Embers in the Dust

“I’m tired of reading… Can we do something else?”

Myla looked over to her sister, who tossed the book in her hand onto the table and laid her head in her hands. She saw how tired they all looked. It was late, and the library was closed to everyone else, but Leaf’s status and the current situation allowed them late-night access. She set her book down as well and closed it.

“What do you want to do?” She asked.

“I don’t know. Anything but this! I know we’re in a time crunch to get to Avernus, but we should be celebrating or something! We took on an ancient dragon, stopped some bad guys, and are off to who knows what.”

“Well… It’s not celebrating, but I have been curious about trying something,” Myla stated.

Myla sat up in her chair, looking down at her hands. Gazing at the rest of them, who all had set their books down as well and were looking at her, she continued.

“I know I opened that portal to come get you, Lyla. I just don’t really know how I did it. We could talk about ways to make that happen again?”

“Yes! Let’s do it!” Lyla exclaimed, standing and almost knocking her chair over in excitement.

“What did it feel like, when you did it?” Gisela asked.

“I’m not really sure. It felt… internal. Like it came from me, but was something not attached to me. Does that make sense?”

“Not really, but go on and we’ll figure it out,” Mr. Muffins added.

“Well, I held my hand up, like this, and then focused on finding Lyla.”

As she spoke, she put her hand out in front of her and stared at the entrance of the library. Myla felt something inside her spark, but it didn’t have anything to ignite.

“It feels like I’m missing something.”

“Do you remember saying anything? Some spells need an incantation,” Leaf explained.

“No… Nothing specific. I was just thinking of finding Lyla, and bringing her back.”

“Well, maybe it’s a motivation thing,” Rhokhishi pondered. “I know that when I need to cast magic, I don’t use symbols or words. I just will it into existence.”

“I could try,” Myla whispered, not fully sure of herself or their explanations.

It wasn’t that she didn’t believe in magic, as she had seen many use it throughout her life. She had just never had magic for herself. Even small feats of arcane, like what came from Lyla’s training, seemed foreign to her and changed the dynamic of their relationship for a time. It was another precaution to watch out for. It was another thing to hide when they were running.

She felt the spark again, but something was held there this time. Like a small flame inside her. A protective aspect, deep inside, to keep Lyla safe, to keep her friends safe. Myla opened her eyes. Just before her hand, almost completely blocked by it, was a pentagonal shimmer. As she stared, the thing changed, resembling a mirror. Instead of reflecting back at her, though, she saw Khoros standing near the front door with a stack of books in his hands. Glancing at the entrance, she saw him standing there, just as it looked in the rift before her.

“Guys… It’s working.”

“Woah!” Lyla shouted. She ran behind her sister and looked through. “There’s no rift over there, though?”

“It might be invisible,” Leaf added.

“This is so cool!” Rhokhishi stated.

“Now, the next step after learning something, is to learn how to stop it. Can you do that, Myla?” Mr. Muffins asked.

“I think so.”

She closed her open hand into a fist, and watched as the portal disappeared. Before closing, a gust of wind kicked up around Khoros, and a single book flung off his stack and came through. Landing in Myla’s lap, she looked down at it.

It was an old, leather-bound journal with a silver locking clasp. Carefully, she opened it and started to read. Inside was a list of various spells that have been created, as well as the incantations and components needed to cast them. Next to each component, someone had jotted notes.

“I-I was looking for this!”

“What is it?” Wulfgar asked.

“It’s a book on magic. I’ve been trying to find a way to stop spells, and this might just be what I need to make it happen!”

“So, a great test run, and a gift. I’d say your portal abilities are doing pretty well, Myla,” Mr. Muffins stated.

“Mhm.”

“Do you think you can portal farther away, though?” He asked her.

“Like where?”

“Aramore. They have those automatons there. If you could make a portal big enough, we might be able to grab one. I have some ideas on how to modify one since we saw them, but I hadn’t the coin or time when we were there.”

“I could try.”

She held her hand out again and concentrated. She felt something pull inside her, stronger than before. On the table, another pentagonal shape appeared, the other side staring at a stone wall, covered in snow.

“Well, there’s only one way to really know,” Mr. Muffins said before standing up and sticking his head through the rift.

His torso disappeared, but Myla could see him through the portal. With her other hand, she grabbed onto his belt and waited. A minute later, he gave a quick signal, and she pulled him back.

“That’s Aramore! The rift you made would be a little small to bring an automaton in, so we’ll have to see what we can do about that, but if we can do that, I could go in, grab one, and get out pretty easily,” He explained.

“I could reach out to Medusa as well. She said she was going back to Karthmere Keep anyways,” Leaf added.

“While I enjoy seeing new things, it feels a little unsafe currently. Why not take The Polyanthus?” A voice called from behind them.

Myla turned to see Darion standing there, looking impressed.

“It’ll cost you to use the academy’s airship, but you could make it there and back in just a couple weeks at most,” He explained.

“That wouldn’t be a bad idea. I’ve never traveled by airship before, but I imagine it would be a bit safer than using a new gift that we’re unsure of,” Myla stated.

“Well, let’s do that then! We could pull some of the students, and maybe even hire a few more people to help with various things. That way it doesn’t feel like a wasted trip. Hells, I might be able to knock out the automaton modifications by the time we get back,” Mr. Muffins said.

“I’ll let the captain know, then. They should be ready to go by tomorrow evening. Gather your things, and you can meet them at Whalehunter’s Dock,” Darion finished. “It is getting late, so maybe it would be best that you all get some rest before your trip?”

With Darion’s suggestion, they all put books away quickly, thanked Aravine for staying so late, and walked back to the dorm. As Myla laid down for the night, she couldn’t help but open her hands and close them, causing small portals to appear and vanish with each motion.

If this is what magic is like, I could get used to this…