Chapter 26

The powerbehind Jasce's fire magic lingers in my mind, burning through the fog of my thoughts like a torch in the dark. I can't shake the image of flames dancing at his command. His control over them is absolute, and it stirs something within me, a mixture of awe and a yearning to understand my abilities just as deeply.

When I return to his bedchamber, and he leaves to speak to Jude, I retreat to the corner where my belongings rest. I grab my leather satchel and pull it open. The book Emerin gave me about silver magic lies atop a jumble of sketching charcoal and spare parchment.

I extract it with care, then I sink onto the bed and thumb through the pages. Diagrams and runes are etched with meticulous precision alongside dense blocks of text.

I search for any mention of Aigis Siphoning, my eyes darting across the pages. There's so much about silver magic that seems familiar now—the healing flames, the portals, but nothing about this rare ability that is supposedly mine.

A soft sigh escapes me as frustration knots in my chest. The book seems to mock me with its silence on Aigis Siphoning, creating a void where there should be clarity.

It feels like I'm at the edge of a vast sea with no vessel to navigate it. I need to understand this part of myself.

Jasce has mastered his fire. Surely, there must be a way for me to learn about this silver magic entwined within me.

There has to be an answer somewhere in these pages, hidden like a pearl within an oyster's rough shell. I just have to find it.

A passage catches my eye, and I lean closer, my heart thudding with anticipation. "The bearer of Aigis Siphoning wields a rune of profound power. Through this conduit, they may draw forth the magic of another, siphoning it away as one might draw poison from a wound."

A tight sensation squeezes around my chest at the thought of robbing someone of their magic. But is this truly an abomination, as my mother claimed?

The text continues: "This stolen essence may then be wielded once against any foe."

Maybe that's the part she hates. Being able to use crimson magic.

But she doesn't know that I already have crimson magic. I only told Asha.

I sigh, mark my place with a folded piece of parchment, and set the book next to me.

Now that I'm with Jasce, and in crimson territory, I doubt there is anyone who can teach me about Aigis Siphoning. And even if I did learn, how would I get the rune required to siphon magic?

I worry my bottom lip between my teeth. It all seems hopelessly complicated.

Still, I won't give up. If there is more information in the book Emerin gave me, I will discover it. Then, I will worry about the next part—learning to wield Aigis Siphoning.