Night Fury's Wrath

Chapter 60: Pursuit of Power [Part 2]

"It's the only way to find the right method quickly," he argued. "Yes, there's some risk involved, but it isn't like we can just nicely ask the universe to tell us how." 

Silence.

Von looked uneasy now, noticing our wide-eyed stares. "You can't tell me that's actually possible."

Honestly, I'd completely forgotten about that little detail. Since the Queen's defeat, I didn't have a reason to ask my Lunar-Magic for assistance until now, and as far as I was aware, neither did Stormfly. We used it as anyone else would use their magic, largely disregarding what made it truly unique. Aurora, however, probably used her magic the right way the entire time, but I suspected no one would ever have the level of mastery she did, even if they used it the right way; she was simply too in tune with her magic for anyone to match. 

Asking Aurora for assistance came to mind, but I quickly tossed that idea aside. Myrkr had made it clear that he didn't want his mate in any danger by taking her away the second it was safe to do so. Convincing him to go back on his decision was next to impossible, as it involved keeping 'the light of his life' out of harm's way. Also, Aurora has had enough to do with all of this madness, what with being tortured for nights on end. She deserved to be kept out of it for the foreseeable future. In fact, she deserved to be as far from it as possible. 

"Auroon!" I jolted out of my thoughts, met with a familiar face inches from my own. "Finally," Mom sighed. "We've called your name several times now. Are you sure you don't have a concussion?"

I shook my head. "I'm sure. I was just... thinking about something." That 'something' being Aurora's torment, one of my greatest failures—not exactly a light subject.

Mom gave me a look that meant she knew I was hiding something and that she would dig it out of me later, but she let it go for now. "We need you to try 'talking' to your magic," she explained. "If you can remember how, that is. Stormfly is either forgetting how, or her magic isn't responding."

"I'm telling you, it's just not responding!" Stormfly groaned. I belatedly noticed her pacing back and forth near the tunnel, her tail lashing in frustration. "I remember how to do it, but nothing's happening."

"I believe you," Von replied kindly. "This is simply a test to ensure it isn't only you but your magic as a whole."

"I'm pretty sure she forgot and is too embarrassed to admit it," Moon chimed in unhelpfully. Stormfly shot her a withering glare. The deity merely smiled innocently.

"Hush," Von chided, giving Moon's ear a light flick with his tail tip, making her jump. "Be nice."

Mom rolled her eyes and bumped my head with her own as Moon began complaining about Von 'startling her.' "Give it a shot. The worst that can happen is nothing, and we'll know where we stand. Just don't overexert yourself."

I withheld a sigh at Mom's warning. If she thought I needed a reminder, then she must believe I still had that problem. She was pretty knowledgeable about anything about me, so if she thought so, then she was probably right. Under her calm gaze, I closed my eyes and focused on my core and the cool energy stored within it. I tried to recall how we invoked Lunar-Magic's aid in the past; the request had to be simple, and we had to prod at my core as if getting the attention of a distracted hatchling. I couldn't remember if there was anything else to it.

I focused on my core and was almost instantly granted a familiar spike of energy, which somehow felt... welcoming... and playful? That hadn't happened before.

"Well, I'll be. He's definitely doing something," Von commented, surprised. I opened my eyes to a wall of faint blue fog swirling gently around my prone form, only about a tail-length high and surrounding me. My mother, who still lingered beside me, was unaffected, almost like it was merely water washing over her scales.