Page 110 of The Starlight Savior

The priestess shook her head. “There is no training. No one knows how to use it. I’d suggest requesting your training to be done in seclusion. You can’t trust anyone with this information.”

Saige nodded. Deep in her bones, she knew her safety was compromised with this knowledge. If Tiranos got word of her true power, she’d imagine they’d come back to Athalos. Perhaps that was why Queen Anya had taken interest in her in the first place.

But keeping it a secret would be difficult. King Vospella and his court were searching for Sydera’s magic. They just didn’t know what that looked like.

Before Saige left the temple, she turned to the priestess. “What happened to Queen Ameris?”

“She escaped, of course. How else would the starlight bloodline live on?”

Chapter 41

After all Saige preached about being honest and keeping no secrets, holding starlight magic close to her heart felt excruciating. Throughout her day, her mind buzzed with all the possibilities of starlight magic. Now that she knew what kind of magic she wielded, she felt a new found confidence. As if she finally felt free in her own skin. Being one of the last starlight-wielders alive changed things. She wasn’t living for her parents now, but all her ancestors who had fallen that day.

She just wished she could share it with someone.

Saige went through Tobin’s training halfheartedly. Anytime she thought of confiding in him, the priestesses’s words rang in her head. This was a necessary secret. King Vospella and his court may be searching for an ancient-wielder, but they didn’t need to know of her capabilities yet.

Day after day, Saige stood before the basins, pretending they were useful. The plants continued to grow. Water and storm remained difficult to manipulate. She had gotten a bit more adequate with fire, yet it still sputtered out in her palm. The only one that pulsed was spirit. Sometimes when her hands hovered over the bones, vivid visions flashed in her mind. It was usually her parents. But now, immersing herself in Ameris’s last words, she imagined the starlight witches and King Tyrus taking advantage of them. Their faces were blurs. Voices muffled in her head.

Moons ago, Saige simply wanted to be ordinary. To live in Denholm in peace. Now there was this urge to be something different. To be bigger than all the magic-wielders before her. She didn’t fit in with Brevil, nor did she fit in with Etrane. Maybe there was a spot for her among the stars.

Restlessness rose after an especially boring magic lesson. Saige couldn’t wait any longer to test out her magic. Instead of attending supper, she slipped out of the castle doors undetected, towards the meadow. Her hood blocked the falling snowflakes, her skin buzzing with anticipation. The moon and stars lit her path as she descended into the forest, past the meadow, the mountains looming above her.

Saige knew she should be weary of being alone. The threat of Tiranos increased each day as Etrane awaited the water kingdom’s next move. A handful of posts had been ransacked near the western border, but no one had spotted Myles or his legion lurking around. In order for Saige to practice her starlight magic though, she needed seclusion under the night sky.

The snow crunched under her boots as she stumbled into a small clearing. The pine trees above were parted, a cluster of stars glittering bright through the canopy. A small watering hole trickled into a creek, soft grass sprouting from powdered ground. Sitting upon a boulder, Saige descended her mind into her quiet practice.

Just as people claimed, magic was becoming secondhand. It was bizarre to remember how much Saige had struggled with not just drawing upon her magic, but calming the jittering buzz running through her. Her chest burned with energy as Saige rose to her feet. Stars danced across the dark purple sky. Shaking off her cloak, she rested it on a rock. Her dark curls were loose, flowing down her back. The sleeves of her tunic were rolled up to reveal smooth olive skin and veins.

With a shaky breath, Saige closed her eyes. Fear tightened in her chest. All she could do was follow her instincts. There were no trainings or guidance like the other elements. She could only rely on herself. Just as she had always done.

Lifting her arms halfway, she opened her palms to the sky. She followed all the instructions Tobin and Conor had given her to connect with her magic. She thought of ways to connect herself to the elements beyond, drawing upon memories, emotions, and intentions. Imagining her father, she could almost feel her small hand grasping his while they watched the stars above. The faceless images of the starlight witches. Cecilia and her blood spilling. Her lantern rising to the sky with a purple and white glow, joining with the twinkling sky.

With a deep breath, Saige imagined the stars flowing into her palms one by one. The familiar tingle formed at the bottom of her spine. A burn spread across her arms, but it was different this time. It ached, but it was less consuming. More in sync with her breath and body. Finally, she opened her eyes and hoped what she saw made sense.

In the oddest way, it did.

All around, light and energy was being pulled from the sky and into her palms. Like the tendrils of light the witches had emitted. A lump formed in her throat at the sight of her arms. Her veins had once glowed bright, but now they almost sparkled under her skin like the sky above her now.

She had once feared this. The moments where she had felt her magic, pure and strong, had been so incredibly painful. Her curse had been burning her from the inside out. But now that she understood, the burning sensation felt good. Like a shot of liquor down her throat, settling warm in her gut. There was no block in her mind preventing her from allowing herself to simply feel.

If only her mother and father could see her now.

Look at her glow. Bright as her soul.

The light dimmed, but the power still thrummed inside her. She thought of the trials set before her in the training hall, the way they didn’t seem to fit with her. Saige wondered if she could mimic it right before her.

Kneeling, Saige pressed her palms into the cool earth. She barely needed to muster the demand to grow before the ground shook below her. It was as if the stars knew exactly how to respond. Instead of meager plants sprouting from the earth, a wall of rock burst through the earth, sending her flying back against the frozen ground. She barely registered the pain jolting through her body as a shocked laugh burst from her lips.

Her legs ached as she leaped from the ground and walked over to the pool of trickling water. Given Etrane’s endless winters, the creek should be frozen. But magic throughout Opela had its own laws. Hovering her hands over the water, she wondered what she was capable of with the stars above. In the training hall, she could barely muster a small orb of water. But now?

Obey. Follow.

Streams of light fell from her fingertips. Water droplets began to rise, floating around her. The longer she allowed her power to seep out, the more the drops grew, becoming increasingly solid with each breath. Just like the rock wall, a barrier of water formed around her, lapping at her body.

When the water fell, it descended into the pool rather than atop of her.

“Yes!” Saige shouted. The pride flooding through her was all consuming. Taking a step back from the water, she was giddy to move onto the next element. There was no fire for her to draw upon, but her skin often burned when she needed to release her magic. Sometimes it even caught things aflame. Maybe starlight could forge her own spark.