Fight or Flight

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

'Troubling' was not an ideal start.

"This particular document," Lyra's regal features twisted. "Was discovered floating in the Serac Sea years ago, enclosed in a mystical glass box that even our most esteemed scholars could not unlock. The fact that it was unreadable caused us a great unease, so it was stored in the restricted area of the Nexus.

She paused before adding, "we shall address your illicit entry at another time."

Kaius picked up where his partner had left off, as if they shared the same mind. "From the little that we have translated so far, the scroll speaks of an unknown city, a place the text names 'Glasmere.' It provides vague instructions on how to reach it, but the reasons are unclear."

A hidden city? Why would someone write instructions on how to reach it, but go to such lengths to conceal its location?

I leaned forward. "If the box was magically sealed, how was I able to retrieve it?" It seemed such a mundane task at the time. I tried to recall if anything had felt different as I had reached inside the glass, but the memory was clouded with the Shadow's ravenous pursuit.

He exchanged a frantic look with Lyra before continuing. "We have reason to believe it is imbued with a blood hex."

"Blood hex?" Vex and Eylan asked in unison.

"It is a forbidden practice across all lands. The ritual utilizes essential magic entwined with blood, as the name implies. It only allows the sole enchanter and anyone directly related to them to retrieve its contents."

This didn't make sense. No one in my family had been able to use magic in that way, let alone blood magic. It was not common practice in Riem.

Lyra's gentle voice sounded again. "There is one more thing. The scroll bears the name of its writer, who we can only assume was the one who sealed it inside." She paused, her eyes locking with mine. "Illya of Falcon."

I found myself standing from my seat. Illya of Falcon. My birth mother. The woman who had been cast out of Riem when I was just a nestling, leaving behind only faint recollections and endless questions.

I could feel the eyes of my companions on me, their features laced with concern. But I couldn't find the words to express the storm of emotions swirling within me. All I wanted to do was scream, to release the confusion that gnawed at me.

Eylan placed a comforting hand on my shoulder, his touch guiding me back into my seat. He might have been the only one who truly knew the weight I was carrying.

Finnian's lips pressed into a thin line. "Is she...?"

"Aria's mother." Eylan jabbed pointedly enough to end any further discussion. I was grateful for his silencing tone, especially since I wasn't able to muster one of my own.

"What is the next course of action?" Finnian got the hint, leaving me to deal with the news of my mother in my own time.

Lyra looked at each of us in turn, her gaze lingering on Alannah. "We will study the scroll further and plan our next move around what we learn. We do ask that you all keep this quiet; if this knowledge falls into the wrong hands, the consequences could be catastrophic."

Alannah winced. "We've already had a run-in with 'the wrong hands.' A shadow creature was prepared to kill Aria for the information on that parchment."

The author of that scroll published secrets that threatened to topple the very foundations of our society.

At least the Shadow's riddles from the Nexus were beginning to make more sense. There were still so many holes, though.

Secrets that could lead to Riem's utter ruin.