CAELAN'S GAZE TRAVELED around the massive room, his eyebrows furrowed slightly. His hand lifted and rubbed at the back of his neck. "I am going to take a break and see if I can find that spellbook," he announced. "I am sure that Tylat kept a copy for himself."
"The ancient one?" Ravenna questioned. "I can try to help you," she added.
"Yes. It will not be an easy find," he warned her. He glanced at her, a ghost of a smile tugging at his lips. "Tylat had a knack for creative hiding places."
"I'm always up for a good challenge," she assured him with a wink.
His eyes rolled. The corners of his lips tugged back even further. "It will be found where you least expect it," Caelan told her. "A single spelled image found in one of the hundreds of scrolls and books in this blasted study, no doubt."
Ravenna's nose wrinkled. "Lovely," she muttered.
"It will take some time to go through each of these books and scrolls," Caelan said. His expression matched her own. A sigh escaped him. "But it needs to be done. We need that book if we are to defeat Vyses."
"Is there some sort of searching spell that can help us find it?" she asked him. Her thoughts ventured back to the first time she attempted to enter Zeporia. The guards protecting the entrance to the city had used spelled stones to detect the use of magic on those who attempted to enter.
But Caelan shook his head. "Not for this. A simple magic detection spell won't work, as almost everything within this room has been touched by magic at some point. Even if I were to create something specifically looking for the book itself, I doubt it would work. Tylat would have spelled it so that it was untraceable. The book is not meant to be easily found."
"Ah," she murmured. Her gaze flicked around the room. There were so many shelves lining the walls, overflowing with hundreds of scrolls and books. Another sigh escaped her. "I guess we better get started then," she said.
He let out an exasperated chuckle.
Both Caelan and Ravenna advanced toward the shelves. Caelan utilized his magical abilities — books encased with white magic hovered in the air around him. The pages flipped themselves. Each book seemed to wait patiently, as if it had a conscious mind, for his gaze to scan over each individual page. Ravenna took the old fashioned approach. She planted herself down in front of a shelf and pulled out all of the books. She scanned through each one, searching for any book-like shape or illustration.
As they searched through the shelves, a steady conversation flowed between the two of them. It started with small complaints about the task at hand and slowly evolved into deeper, more personal topics. Caelan asked her about her mother, and more about the town that she'd grown up in. He asked her about any small snippets of Ravenna's human life that she could remember. She did the same. He told her about what he could remember of his own childhood — about how he'd been born with the ability to use magic and was quickly shipped to Tylat for his apprenticeship. His honesty surprised her. She was not expecting him to dive into such details, especially considering he'd been so secretive before. The notion only fueled the flames that flickered to life inside her chest, forcing her heart to beat erratically.
Ravenna even asked him more details about Tylat. And, to her surprise, Caelan seemed to answer to the best of his ability.
"I fear that I do not know much about his life before I entered it," he said. His voice carried over the bookshelves, echoing through the silence that encased the massive study. "But I do know that he served the Originals — the original kings of Khal. He actually created the spell that served to protect the Capitol from magical attacks."
Ravenna's brow furrowed. "Do you mean the spell that was placed on the stones?" she questioned. Her memories drifted back to her first visit to the Capitol, when Eoin explained how the ancient stones that comprised the city prevented the use of magic within its walls.
"Yes," he said. "He is the one who created it and implemented it. It worked very well for at least a century, but now has faded over time."
"I mean, that would explain why we were able to escape the castle using magic," she said sarcastically.
He chuckled at that. "The spell served its purpose. It was meant to be maintained over time, ensuring the need for a wizard in the King's court. Without it, our kind would have been completely obliterated. The use of magic is not always smiled upon in the Capitol."
Ravenna nodded. She could remember the hostility that the Imperial guards held toward her using magic. In some towns, like her own little hometown, it had been outlawed completely. No one was permitted to use magic at all.
A lull formed in their conversation, and then she heard Caelan heave a sigh. "It must be here somewhere," he grumbled, just loud enough for her to hear. She glanced to her right, spotting him standing in front of a bookshelf mere feet from her own. His eyes narrowed at the piles of discarded books that littered the floor.
"Do you think that Vyses managed to find it?" Ravenna crossed her arms and her head tilted slightly.
"I do not think he is that bright," he admitted after a brief pause. He pulled a thin scroll from the shelf in front of him and unraveled it. His gaze scanned over the contents of the scroll. Then his expression pinched. With a heavy sigh, he released the scroll. It hovered in front of him, glowing bright white, and rolled itself back up. He swatted it away and then moved on to the next scroll.
Ravenna decided to take a break from the shelf in front of her. She turned and slowly lowered herself down. She leaned back against the hard edges of the wooden shelves, a multitude of aged leather book-spines pressing into her back. She rubbed at her tired eyes and a long, low sigh escaped her.
"Are you alright?" she heard Caelan call.
"Yes," she answered. She stared vacantly at the wall in front of her.
"Does your chest hurt?" The concern that filled his tone made the corners of her lips twitch upward.
"No, it does not hurt," she assured him. "Just haven't found anything yet."
Caelan responded with a dejected sounding, "Neither have I."
There was a harsh thud as the book in Caelan's hands was tossed aside, its weight hitting the floor and its pages splaying open. He glanced at Ravenna and crossed his arms over his chest. A glimmer of something almost playful appeared in his eyes. "Are you ready to get your butt kicked again?"
~
hey there friends!
I apologize for the slight delay in this chapter today! Things have been a bit crazy on my end at work and I am just now sitting down to post. I hope that everyone is having a fantastic week so far!! ❤
I did also want to let you know that this book has been stolen and posted to a website called Novelhd. Please, please, PLEASE do not go to this website and/or read anything from this website. It appears to be similar to a website that "mirrored" Wattpad several years ago and is literally swimming with viruses.
That being said, if you happen to be reading this chapter from Novelhd: seriously scan your device and read from Wattpad instead. Novelhd does NOT have my permission to post any of my books.
Please stay safe friends!! Thank you all so much for taking the time to read this book and honestly for having so much patience with me!! I seriously appreciate you so much!! You are honestly amazing!! ❤
ash ❤