Relia spent the next hour training in the backyard and cycling her new pill through her channels. By the end of the session, she could almost feel her soul dilating, letting in more mana than before. She’d have to go easy on Akari when that happened. She’d spent years learning to control her power as an Apprentice, but this was all uncharted territory. One wrong move could actually kill someone.

Kalden returned to his alchemy lab instead of joining them. He was already making soulshine for Akari and himself, and he wanted to finish while the ideas were fresh in his mind. Her friends had a much longer journey to Artisan, and they had to start now if they wanted to advance this year.

A portal opened over her right shoulder. Relia couldn’t see it, but she felt the shifts in the mana cloud that surrounded her body. The portal winked out just as fast, and it was clearly a feint.

Relia spun to her left and released a cloud of life mana. Akari’s next portal opened there a heartbeat later, and the other girl ran straight into the trap. The cloud wouldn’t harm her, but the threat was clear enough.

“Damnit.” Akari’s shoulders sagged, and the blue glow faded from her muscles.

Relia gave her an encouraging smile. “That would have worked on me a few days ago, but you keep using the same tricks.”

Akari shrugged as she swiped some dark hair from her face. It had grown longer this past year, and she’d need to pull it back soon. Or, more likely, she would chop it off again.

“What time is it?” Relia asked as they caught their breath.

Akari glanced down at her watch. “Almost one o’clock.”

“Guess I should go get ready.” Relia glanced back toward the house. “Lena will be here in another hour.”

Akari cocked her head to the side. “Who?”

“Lena Cavaco. The Aeon lady we met in Creta. She’s supposed to help me with my Aeon training.”

Jealously flashed across Akari’s face, and it wasn’t hard to guess why. The others had seen Sozen Trengen take on a Master last semester, and that was only a glimpse into Aeon power.

“You’ll be next,” Relia told her. “Don’t worry. There’s a reason Elend’s rushing you guys to advance this year. Just keep working on your displacement technique like he said.” And with that, she headed inside to shower and change. She’d technically met Lena before, but things had been a blur after the Battle of Tureko, and she wanted to make a good impression this time.

She tried on a white blouse, but it made her feel too much like Irina. And while the older woman could pull off white with her Cadrian complexion, it made Relia look like a pale mana spirit. It might work if she paired it with a blazer, but that would be too much for a simple training session.

Instead, Relia settled on a blue top and a gray, knee-length skirt. Rather than braiding her hair, she hit it with a blow-dryer and let it fall freely past her shoulders. She always told herself she would wear this way if she ever went on a date, but no one had ever asked her. Well, no one from the Artegium, anyway.

A part of her had also avoided romance because of her condition. It never seemed right to lead someone on when her days were numbered. But maybe it was time to change that. Akari and Kalden made it work, and they trained harder than anyone she’d ever met. Why not her?

Stay focused, Relia told herself. You need to reach Artisan first. Not to mention this whole Aeon thing, was which still a mystery. She’d been aiming for Artisan her entire life, but the original Aeons had come here from a different planet. And despite her travels with Lyraina Trelian, she still knew very little about these powers.

An hour later, Relia stood in the hunter’s room, waiting for her new teacher to arrive. This room sat on the estate’s main floor, but its vaulted ceilings stretched well past the second. A mammoth skull hung over the fireplace, and a Midwinter tree dominated the bay window. Over twenty feet tall, its peak almost reached the ceiling.

She’d chosen this room for its space and versatility. Leather chairs and sofas formed a loose ring around the fireplace, and two long wooden tables stretched along the walls. Even the Darklights didn’t know what this training would entail, so it was best to be ready for anything.

The clock struck two, and Lena’s boots clicked across the flagstone floor as she entered the room. The older woman wore dark jeans and a long, cream-colored sweater. Her complexion was even darker than Irina’s, and her hair fell in braided cords past her shoulders.

Relia stepped forward, bowing low at the waist. “Master Cavaco.”

“Lena is fine,” the woman said with an amused smile. “I’m certainly no Master. You must be Relia?”

She nodded and resisted the urge to fidget. She’d always had a subconscious need to impress authority figures, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out why. “Can I get you anything? Water? Coffee?”

“Coffee would be lovely,” Lena said as she stepped toward the hearth with its cackling flames.

Relia pulled the carafe off the heating element and poured Lena a cup. She poured herself a glass of water next, and they sat down in the leather armchairs.

Lena sipped her mug with a grateful nod. “May I see the Etherite?”

“Of course.” Relia reached into her belt pouch and retrieved a smooth wooden box, about the size of her outstretched hand. She pulled it open to reveal a pale crystal shard in the shape of a ring. This was one of the four cuffs Elend had worn during their time in Creta. Apparently, it was more valuable than this entire house, and it made her nervous to carry around. Her old master had owned an Etherite pendant, and she’d rarely let it out of her sight.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Your grandmother, Relia corrected herself. Azul’s ashes, but that would take some getting used to. And it must have been even harder for Lyraina, knowing the truth, and not being able to speak of it. She hoped they could see each other again someday.

Relia passed her teacher the open box. “This whole thing is going in my chest?”

“Eventually.” Lena accepted the box with clear reverence in her dark eyes. “It will be painful, but Aeon blood runs through your veins. That should make things easier.” She examined the soul fragment from several angles, catching the light of the fireplace in its crystal structure. “But just to be safe, you should do it during your advancement to Artisan.”

Relia drew in a sharp breath. With her soulshine, that would only be a few weeks away. “What happens if I reach Artisan first?”

“Most Mana Artists don’t have a choice,” Lena said absently. “If they build their Aeon souls too early, the Etherite might kill them or stunt their advancement. If they wait too long, their bodies might reject the crystal.”

This much she’d already learned from Elend. Lena was trapped as an Apprentice for this exact reason. Kalden’s brother was in a similar boat, trapped as an Artisan. As far as she knew, no Mana Artist had ever advanced farther than that after building an Aeon soul. Her father didn’t count, since he’d been born with his.

But if this worked, she and her friends would be the first ones to succeed.

Lena hovered a hand over the crystal cuff, and it vanished in a cloud of pale blue mist. Relia’s breath hitched at the sight. She knew Etherite was just a stronger version of mana, so of course it had a vapor form. Still, knowing something wasn’t the same as seeing it with your own eyes.

Lena closed her eyes as if feeling the crystal inside her.

“Does it hurt?” Relia asked to fill the sudden silence.

Her eyes cracked open. “For me? No.” She pressed a hand to her sternum. “I already have my crystal soul, and that acts as a vessel for the power.” Blue mist flashed in the wooden box as the cuff returned to its original shape. “You’ll need to carry this with you at all times,” she said as she placed the box on the table between them. “I’d recommend wearing it as a pendant.”

Relia leaned forward, scooped up the box, and held it close to her heart. A storm churned beneath the cuff’s crystal surface as if all the forces of nature had been condensed into a small space. She’d expect nothing less from the soul of a dead Angel.

In some ways, this felt like a pool of mana she could draw from. At the same time, the power felt distant and incomprehensible, like a tidal wave, a storm, or the sun itself. She’d used her grandmother’s pendant during her aspecting ritual, but that was different. Her mana had only grazed the surface of its power. For this, she would need to bring the entire crystal inside her body.

Relia met her teacher’s eyes again. “Am I supposed to feel anything specific?”

“In the first thirty seconds?” Her amused smile returned. “No. Even your ancestors weren’t that fast.” She paused for a moment as if considering her next words. “Do you remember the first time you sensed your mana?”

“No,” Relia admitted. “Not really.” She’d been a little girl back then, and the memories were a blur. It was like learning how to read, or do basic math. She remembered the lessons, but the feelings had faded long ago.

“Well,” Lena said. “It’s a bit like that. Etherite is mana. Angelic mana, to be precise. From the structure of the crystal to the energy inside of it. You’ve spent your life sensing your own mortal mana, but this is a level beyond that. You’ll need to go back to basics if you want to feel it.”

“Okay.” Relia chewed on her lip. “So what do I do?”

She mulled that over. “How’s your meditation? I assume Lady Trelian taught you the basics?”

“Yeah.” Relia winced. “But I only practice a few minutes a day.” Even that was a generous claim. Lots of Mana Artists trained their minds more often. But as a Life Artist, she’d never had a reason to dive too deep.

Elend and Irina were both Knowledge Artists, and they meditated for more than an hour each day. Kalden probably did something similar with his battle mana. And while Akari acted impatient, her mind was as sharp as a dragon’s fang. Relia had watched her duel with Elise Moonfire last semester, and she’d clearly trained enough to resist her illusions.

“You’re not alone,” Lena said. “Most people avoid spending time in their own heads. Very often, they’re afraid of what they’ll find there. Either that, or they can’t comprehend training without rising numbers.”

Relia liked to think of herself in the latter group. It was the same reason she struggled to focus on schoolwork.

“But this is the fastest path forward,” Lena continued. “Calm your body, your thoughts, and your mana. When you do that”—she glanced down at the glowing crystal—“this will feel much brighter in your mind’s eye.”

The other woman leaned forward and retrieved the crystal from Relia. “I wish I could tell you more, but sensing mana is different for everyone. Some people need to visualize it. Others feel a physical object in their mental senses. You’ll need to find what works best for you, and that takes time.”

Time . . . the one thing she didn’t have. Relia wished she could have started this training sooner, but that wasn’t Elend’s fault. He’d tried recruiting Lena after they’d escaped Creta, but she’d refused his offer back then. Beyond that, he wouldn’t have known what to tell her. This all made perfect sense in hindsight, but there were only a handful of Aeons on this planet. Without a teacher, she would have been stumbling through the dark, guessing at her next steps.

“Is there any way to make this go faster?” Relia asked. “I don’t know what Elend told you, but I’m sort of on a time limit.”

Lena’s expression didn’t change. “Wherever you are, whatever you’re doing, focus on the crystal as your default thought. Think of it before you go to sleep, and first thing in the morning. Think of it in the shower, while you eat, and while you train.”

“The shower?” A nervous chuckle escaped her lips, and her eyes fell to the crystal ring. “You weren’t kidding about wearing this everywhere.”

Lena shook her head as she pulled the crystal back into her own soul. “I’ll make this smaller for you, so it’s more comfortable to wear. Did you have a specific shape in mind?”

“A crescent moon,” Relia said at once.

Her dark eyebrows shot up at that. “Your grandmother’s clan sigil? Are you sure?”

Relia held the woman’s gaze to show she understood the dangers. The Cult of Trelian also used this symbol, just as Lena wore the black dragon of Clan Solidor.

This would mark Relia as a Death Artist, but she’d spent her whole life trying to appease the people who didn’t care about her. From her parents, to her classmates, to her sister. And where had that gotten her? She’d put Akari in danger last semester. Before that, she’d distanced herself from Lyraina—the first person in this world who truly cared about her. The woman who’d taken her in, trained her, and shared her aspect.

“I’m sure,” she finally said.

If Relia ever wanted to become a Master, she would need to know who she was and what she fought for. This seemed like a step in the right direction.

Lena nodded once before closing her eyes again. A few seconds passed, then a cloud of mist formed in her outstretched hand, coalescing into a pale blue crescent with a small ring at the top. It was larger than her grandmother’s pendant, but it still had the same general shape.

“You’ll want to cover the crystal with metal casing,” Lena said as she passed it back.

Relia nodded as she clutched it between her fingers. Her grandmother had used a silver casing for her own pendant. But in this case, it might be faster just to ask Elend for an illusion. His Constructs lasted for weeks, and that was all she needed.

She took several deep breaths as she imagined the scope of the task ahead. Aspecting her mana had taken hours of intense focus, and she would need to approach this in the same way. Then she had her Artisan training on top of that, plus the pain of her condition.

Yeah . . . she was in for a rough couple of weeks.