Page 79 of Claim the Light
“Not in the way we were created,” the elemental keeper says. “That magic is the oldest of old, and it no longer exists.”
The keeper of light magic is peering at me. “But maybe—”
She stiffens, her eyes shooting wide and a gasp leaving her lips.
I take a step toward her, daring to reach for her. “What’s wrong?”
“I can’t stay,” she cries as the light around her begins to glow brightly. “A powerful supernatural is near death and I must be ready to tether her light magic.”
She spins to the elemental keeper. “Sister, we must not falter. The world may fall to darkness, but even in darkness, there is order. If we, the keepers of light and elements, fail in our duty and, saints forbid, the keeper of old magic should fall, then chaos will truly rule us once and for all.”
With that, she races away into the darkness. Her footfalls become faint echoes and my remaining hope for answers fades with them.
“Did I cause this?” I whisper to myself, rubbing my eyes. “Did I split this realm apart when I escaped it?”
“The dark keeper’s absence is not your doing,” the elemental keeper says, edging toward me as she reinforces what the light magic keeper told me.
“How can you be sure?” I ask, my voice bitter.
A cold smile touches her lips. “Because, my dear, your heart is still beating in your chest.”
She steps back into the gloom.
“What do you mean?”
She stops, tips her head, and gives a little shrug. “Whoever gave him what he needed to walk the Earth has made a sacrifice with consequences they may not understand.”
Hovering at the edge of the gloom, she continues. “Do not stay here for long, Sophia Dragon. This realm was designed with a purpose it can no longer fulfil. Now that its true master is gone, it will become a vacuum from which you may never escape.”
She disappears into the darkness, and then I’m alone.
I have no answers now, only greater worries, and her warning spurs me into action.
Quickly, I ascend the dark staircase, although my footsteps become heavier as I go. Only moments ago, I was incredibly pleased to have discovered this way out. Now it’s leading me back to a reality I don’t want to face.
The keeper of dark magic is gone.
Dark magic will spill into the world and Tyler will grow stronger.
And I still don’t know how to heal my family of the magic that has already taken hold of them.
I emerge into the light of the veil without having to use the little vial of water I took as a precaution.
Micah, Beatrix, and Isaac are waiting for me, each of them lurching forward when they see me.
Beatrix was standing right at the edge of the top step and barely waits for me to be fully standing on it before she tackle-hugs me. “You’re safe.”
Micah is so close behind her on the same step that the three of us take up most of the space and Isaac hovers at the far edge.
Micah hugs me as soon as Beatrix releases me.
“What happened?” he asks.
Before I can answer, the quick thud of boots and frantic beating of wings reaches me.
Beatrix and Micah both spin to the sound, opening up the space between them so I can see another figure racing up the stairs from its bottom rung.
I gasp. “Callan!”
