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Although Nora seemed to be in a state of semi-shock, I couldn’t tell if it was because of the spell’s outcome or something else. “You didn’t get hurt, did you? Let me see your fingers.”
She held out her hands for inspection, still staring at the molten pool of gold on the stone floor. “I-I dropped it before it burst into flames. Maybe if I throw some magical water on it…”
“That would be quite the steam bath…” I murmured. “Let’s just leave it alone for now. It’ll cool on its own, I think… eventually.”
“I can’t just leave it like this!” she cried, reaching for her wooden staff. “Maybe I can reshape it… bring it back to its previous form…”
The mass quivered and rose several inches above the ground, slowly coalescing into the form of a staff. It held its form for a few seconds, then shot apart into hundreds of tiny gold nuggets of varying sizes. They sprayed across the floor in waves, bouncing and rolling off in several directions. Thankfully, whatever she did had caused their stored heat to discharge, so the ones that rolled under the bed did not incite any fires.
Nora did a double take. “Why didn't it just go back into a staff?”
Was that even possible at this point? Putting something back in a previous state after it’s been so permanently altered, divested of its form—it could never indeed be the same, no matter how skillful one was in crafting such things.
“Looks like you reverted it all back to the pieces it originally came from,” I replied, sweeping a few with my foot. “Let's see if we can find a broom.”
We spent a little while gathering up the pieces in relative silence, though Nora occasionally whimpered further pieces of explanation.
“He said I could try a spell with it…”
It’s half his fault, then, leaving her unsupervised with it.
“I thought I was attuned to it…”
“I barely even concentrated!”
“Well, let’s go ask the expert, then,” I advised, dumping the last bits into a thick sheet of linen and gathering up the corners to make a sack.
Even though it was very late when we reached his quarters, Master Landon was still willing to receive us. Sitting at his desk, he looked up slowly, his blank expression artfully unreadable.
“Squeezing in one final lesson today,” he remarked, pulling out a pair of glasses from a desk drawer and placing them on the bridge of his nose. “I commend your study efforts.”
“I’m so sorry!” Nora wailed with guilt, dropping to her knees as I carefully set down the sheet, presenting the contents within. “I don’t know what happened! I focused, I swear! All I did was use a simple fire spell…”
Master Landon stared at the gold nuggets, his lips pursed. “This was not the outcome I was expecting.”
He’s too calm. Magical value aside, his staff had probably been worth a fortune.
“What were you expecting, then?” I demanded before Nora could confess further.
“Liquid gold,” he confirmed, picking up one of the nuggets. “But these are much more marketable now. Let me guess… you tried to reverse the damage?”
Nora nodded mutely as I scowled. “You knew this was going to happen?”
Master Landon glanced at the ceiling, a subtle frown creasing his brow. “I did not know, but I surmised.”
Nora jumped up in protest. “Why did you let me do that? I could have destroyed something!”
He shrugged. “You are a kinesthetic learner, and this was a lesson you had to experience firsthand. Don’t worry; I imbued the staff with protection before I let you loose with it. Everything was under control.”
Nora slammed her hands down on his desk with enough force to make the wood creak. “And the moral of your lesson?”
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“Your power is immense, Nora; frankly, I’ve never seen another mage like you. That staff Euphrida gave you wasn’t a gift—it was a necessity. Gold and other precious metals amplify magic, allowing it to flow without resistance. But you… you don’t need amplification. You need grounding. Control. That’s what the wood and glass provide. Without them…” He gestured to the nuggets, now glinting almost mockingly in the light. “You saw the result.”
Nora crossed her arms, frowning. “So, the staff melted because it couldn’t handle my power?”
“Precisely,” Master Landon said, setting the nugget down with a soft clink. “The gold became a conduit, but your magic overwhelmed it. Wood and glass temper your power—they absorb the excess, preventing your spells from cascading into disaster. Euphridia knew exactly what she was doing.”
Yet she was still so irresponsible for not explaining why!
It was obvious that Nora was trying to be mad at him for the setup, even while suppressing her natural urge to gloat. Her nose wrinkled, and her lips curled, exposing gritted teeth. “You… you’re as reckless as I am!”
“Half,” he countered. “Three-fourths at the most. But unlike you… I can hide behind my age and the façade that it has brought me wisdom.” He then began to laugh, his entire body shaking as tears streamed down his eyes. “I cannot even begin to imagine how startled you were.” He chortled for several more moments, removing his glasses and wiping his tears. “If you truly want to cast a full-power spell, just throw down your staff. But clear the general vicinity first.”
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The next day brought an endless stream of farewells, most of them high on the sincerity scale. Even the girl from the kitchen came to see me, giving me a generous sack of shortbread cookies that would never make it into my packs.
The Order of the Gold gathered for a group prayer to Euphridia in a side sanctuary, and although Relias led the prayer, he kept his call for blessings short. For some reason, he seemed a little lost, as if he couldn’t quite figure out what to say or do next.
It was a feeling I was quite familiar with.
“It’s a bit of a shame we never did have that dance,” I murmured as we filed out of the sanctuary. “It would have been nice to take some time to celebrate.”
“You did not get your day of reprieve, either,” he said with a small sigh. “I… feel as though I have failed yet again… What am I doing wrong?”
“Hey now… I’m not going to let you take all the blame. I keep thinking, if I had just avoided this place entirely… that maybe…” I paused, stepping out of the front entrance of the High Temple. “Maybe even the barrier would still be intact…”
Relias flinched a little as he walked out into the sunlight. “I sincerely doubt—”
Whatever else he tried to say was drowned out by the loud waves of cheers reverberating throughout the Forums. Hundreds of knights, priests, and civilians, some even hybrids, had gathered to see us off. Unlike my other jaunts to and from the temple, I was decked out in full hero gear with no cloak to hide behind. Even the breeze seemed set on giving me center stage, and Nora swears to this very day she never had any need to encourage it. Epic fanfare accompanied us as we exited the forums on horseback, though Faith managed to get in her own dueling counterpoints in during a few pauses.
I clenched the reins tighter, whispering inwardly to the shield strapped at my side.
I’ll do my best not to let you or anyone else down…
Our loud parade route continued out through the Periphery, where a few hybrids watched from farther away. While the shouts and cries could still be heard from the Sanctum, it was quieter here, and while I felt a general sense of good wishes, no one shouted them out of silent respect.
“You brought the hero manual, right?” Relias asked once it was quiet enough to do so.
“Yes,” I answered, trying to see if I could catch a glimpse of Roderick.
“I will… I will try to do my best to answer any questions you have once you start reading it,” he noted. “Even if they are difficult for me.”
“Ah,” I said with a guilty smile. “You can tell I’ve been putting off my homework?”
He shook his head. “I know you are one to prioritize. There will be time on our journey for the book, but what you did here was most crucial. And please, hold your response for a moment," he added, raising a hand to forestall my protest. "I will not stand for you to say that you did nothing yet again."
I bristled at his tone but held my breath.
Thirty seconds. You get thirty seconds to explain yourself before I retaliate.
“It is true that the barrier is gone," he said, his voice softening. “And some of the walls are now more than just weathered, yes. But look around you—those who make up the soul of this city are uniting. The seeds of change are taking root in their hearts. For the first time in generations, there is hope for something better, even while we stand on the precipice of war. If anyone is to blame for the crisis before this correction, it is I.”
I blinked, startled by his transparency.
Relias continued, his eyes shadowed with regret. “For too long, I have failed in my duty. I did not guide humanity as I was tasked. I hid from it, thinking that somehow, without my intervention, things would get better. I was a fool to believe that complacency could bring peace. Change is necessary—both for Chairo… and for myself.”
His gaze finally met mine. “I must no longer turn away from the responsibility I carry. I see that now. I must do better, and I will, even if it means discomfort in taking new approaches to the challenges we face."
I felt my rigid posture melt with a reluctant sigh. "It takes a lot of strength to admit that," I replied. “So, I’m sure you’ll be able to meet those challenges head-on.”
Relias’s lips curved into a faint smile that seemed slightly sad, as it didn’t quite reach his eyes. "Thank you, Rae. Your Faith in me means more than you know."
I smiled back, a flicker of hope kindling in my chest. For once, Relias seemed to be growing, shedding the rigid self-righteousness that had always held him back. Maybe this journey could reshape us all into something different, something more.
It was much easier to think of it that way than to dwell on the shadowed lands that awaited ahead of us—or the demons we might face, both within and beyond.
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