Knights of Light (Book 2 of The Conjurors Series)

Chapter 8

"Here you are. It's perfectly safe to jump, but most prefer the ladder," Elden said.

Henry's eyes went wide. "Leap over the edge? Or go down a ladder so high off the ground? Are you crazy?"

Azra's laugh tinkled in Valerie's mind. It's safe. Allow me to go first, she said, and she galloped off the edge, swallowed by the mist.

"You can't be serious!" Henry exclaimed.

"You're on the Globe now. Things don't have the same rules here. This isn't the last time that you'll have to make a leap of faith. Might as well start today," she said, and gave him a nudge.

He wiped sweaty palms on his pants. "All right. I'll go next. Thank you for your help, Elden."

Slowly, he climbed down the ladder, gripping the rungs so tightly that his knuckles turned white. After a few steps down, the fog swallowed him up.

"You pretended to be brave for your brother, but I can hear your heart pounding," Elden said to her. "This fear, it is why you will not lead?"

"No, it isn't only that I'm afraid. You don't know me well. I'm not the leading type—what if I make the wrong decision and people get hurt? I'm not sure I could live with myself."

"You do not understand what it means to be a vivicus. It is a manifestation of magic that resides only in one with a completely pure heart. That is why it is so rare, and why everyone expects you to lead. It is impossible that you could lead us astray through selfishness or corruption. You have honor."

"I can't say for certain how incorruptible I am, since I've never been tested. But even if what you say is true, there's no way I could ever lead other people. I can barely lead myself."

"You have been tested. You had the opportunity to justly destroy your greatest enemy, and instead you saved her life," Elden said.

Valerie was surprised that he had heard of her encounter with Sanguina. If the People of the Woods knew, removed from the world up in their trees, then everyone must know.

She shifted uncomfortably, and Elden examined her closely. "I can see you are not ready to accept this truth. But if the day comes when you are, you will have allies in my people."

"Thank you," she murmured, not sure what else to say. "And thank you for your help and protection."

He nodded in acknowledgment and farewell. She stepped to the edge of the platform and thought about going down as Henry had, rung by rung. But then she shrugged, sucked in a big gulp of air, and took a swan dive into the fog.

For several heart-stopping moments, wind rushed past her, blowing her hair back and stinging her eyes. But then she slowed, and the fog lifted. She was floating through the air above Arden, heading gently to the surface. In the distance, she saw the streets of Silva, which was the capital city in Arden, and knew that they must be landing in a nearby forest. When her feet touched the ground, Henry was waiting for her with a huge grin on his face.

"That was incredible. Let's go back and do it again," he joked. "Azra went on ahead. She said it was urgent to inform the Guild Masters about the threat that Elden told us about—Reaper. But we just have to follow this path back to the city, and she said you'd know the way to the Society of Imaginary Friends dorm from there."

They headed down a well-worn path through the trees and came out at the edge of The Horseshoe of Guilds. As they approached the walkway, Valerie explained about the guilds, that each represented a different profession, ranging from music to weaponry to being the imaginary friend of children on Earth. Conjurors apprenticed to a guild when they were young and learned their trade in order to give back to the community.