I watched through the window as Maverick and Aidan continued their fight. It was the first time I had seen Maverick struggle to hold his own. During his fight with Finn, he had intentionally held back. Now, he was fighting with everything he had, and it still wasn't enough. More than anything, I feared for Aidan. I couldn't get the idea out of my head that Maverick would hurt him, intentionally or not. I wanted to go out there and try to reason with him, but I knew that was stupid. I'd only get myself killed.

  "We need to go, Elaina," Letheria called out to me from where she was propped against a wall several feet away from me. "Standing by a window watching two of the most powerful people in Etheria have at each other isn't exactly smart. And Zephyr could come by at any moment—"

  "You're fine." I rolled my eyes at her, knowing she couldn't see as I was facing away. I knew she didn't care about my safety and just wanted an excuse for me to hide from her.

  Fire continued to rain from the sky. The manor must have some sort of protection around it that prevented it from being obliterated. Maverick had seemingly exhausted himself trying to keep himself airborne and kept mostly to the ground. Aidan used that to his advantage to send projectiles of fire and ice at Maverick, who teleported out of the way with ease. They were at a stalemate. But it was only a matter of time before one of them ran out of ether. And I knew deep down...

  That person would be Maverick.

  I needed to find that chamber fast.

  "Where are you going?! You have to help me!" Letheria asked as I walked past her. She tried to stand up but immediately fell back down in pain.

  "I am helping you. The sooner I fix the situation, the sooner Sylvis will be back to protect you," I answered, not bothering to slow down or look back at her.

  She protested, but I tuned her out.

  Think, Elaina! Think! What do you know about this manor? It's magical, it's an undercover school run by Sylvis, and has seemingly had several expansions since its construction.

  Several expansions...

  If this room held all of Meridia's ether, it would have had to have existed for a long time. Likely around the time the manor was built. So that narrowed it down to the lower levels of the manor. It would have to be at least semi-out of the way if Sylvis didn't want people following her or Rosalie to this room. That cancels out the dining hall and foyer. Could it be one of the classrooms?

  I ran to each classroom, pushing desks and shelves out of the way, looking for any concealed entrances. Some rooms were occupied, and their occupants looked at me confused. I guess they were blissfully unaware of the battle going on outside…

  I wasn’t getting anywhere with this. I had searched over half the classrooms, and I was starting to think my hypothesis was wrong. Could it have been the kitchen? Nobody entered there. What time of day had they gone? These were questions I should’ve asked Rosalie.

  I sighed and leaned my back against the wall that had previously been covered by a bookshelf. To my shock, I fell backwards on my butt, staring at the room I had just been standing in.

  …There was a wall, wasn’t there?

  I stepped back into the classroom and observed the wall I knew I had seen before. I stepped forward again and phased through the wall. A fake wall. Clever. No wonder nobody had found the entrance.

  The room was dark. I used my magic to create a ball of fire that lit the area around me, revealing I was not in a room but a hallway. The walls were the same material that the rest of the lower half of the manor was constructed out of. I don’t know why I had expected otherwise. Clearly, Sylvis wasn’t focused on the interior decor of a secret passage.

  I took several steps forward before being greeted by a wall. A dead end. Was this a fakeout? Was there another passage that led to the chamber I was looking for? That seemed…a little too silly. By any chance, could this be—

  Yep. Another fake wall. But why would there need to be a fake wall behind a fake wall? That seemed a little redundant.

  I shook my head and kept walking. To my surprise, I wasn’t alone.

  “Elaina,” Zephyr greeted. His voice had always been soft, compassionate, welcoming… But it now held nothing but hostility — his expression dangerous.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked, feeling slightly scared.

  “I could ask you the same thing.” There was an awkward silence between us. I didn’t want to tell him what Rosalie shared with me since that was obviously confidential, and he seemingly didn’t want to share the reason he was here. “If you have no reason to be here, leave.”

  “I-I do have a reason,” I stuttered. “Let me pass, and I won’t inquire further.”

  “I’d really advise otherwise. It’s dangerous up ahead and you’ll get lost. Turn back while you still can.”

  “Thank you for your concern, but I’ll be just fine.” I pushed on ahead, but not before hearing the small groan he let escape.

  In truth, he terrified me now. Everything terrified me. Finn was a complete mess, Aidan was now my worst enemy, and Zephyr’s intentions were unclear. You knew things were bad when Maverick was the only person you could rely on now.

  I froze in my tracks. In front of me, the hall diverged into half a dozen paths. Not only that, but there was a bottomless pit on either side awaiting anyone who misstepped. No wonder Rosalie couldn’t remember the way there.

  I sucked in a breath and decided to start with the path closest to me on the left. I walked slowly, one foot in front of the other. I wanted to reach my destination as soon as possible, but I knew I’d never reach it if I fell.

  I inhaled sharply through my mouth as I regained my balance. I had hit what appeared to be an invisible wall, knocking me off balance. Once I stopped wobbling and was certain I wouldn’t fall, I reached out in front of me. My hand touched a solid wall, even though I could still see a path ahead—an illusion.

  This was going to be harder than I thought.

  I proceeded to the next path — one arm to my side for balance and the other in front of me to feel for any more walls. I was thankful nobody was watching. I must have looked absolutely ridiculous, slowly inching my way forward with my left arm stretched out in front of me, a ball of fire still remaining in it.

  “Turn back, Elaina.” Zephyr suddenly appeared before me, nearly knocking me off balance.

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  “No.” I stared directly at him. To my surprise, he disappeared.

  “You’ll fall to your death.” The voice came from behind me. I turned my head to see Zephyr standing there. Was he intentionally trying to make me fall? Would he push me the same way he had pushed Letheria? The thought made me quicken my pace.

  The path was a dead end. I inched my way back, Zephyr watching me from the path I had previously tried.

  On the next path, my right arm collided with something — another wall. This one felt angled. I wasn’t expecting a wall there and began to lose my balance. My left leg slipped and… touched solid ground? Was I standing on top of the pit?

  Then it dawned on me. The pit, the fake walls, even Zephyr…

  They were all illusions.

  Well, don’t I look like an idiot now?

  I stretched out my right arm again, feeling the angled wall as I walked back to where I had started. It was a circular room with no pits. The exit was likely over one of the “pits.”

  I felt even more stupid when I realized the exit was directly across from the entrance.

  “You shouldn’t be here.” Zephyr appeared in front of me, blocking me from leaving the room.

  “You still haven’t told me what you’re doing here,” I snapped.

  “And you have yet to state your business.”

  Why was I afraid of him? Why did he intimidate me? I was stronger than him! He… He couldn’t hurt me.

  And what’s more, he wasn’t real. I walked forward, expecting to pass through him, only to bump right into him.

  So, this one was real.

  I blushed and muttered an apology as I walked around him. He stood frozen in place, probably just as confused as I was.

  To my relief, I entered the room Rosalie had mentioned. I could feel the ether stronger here than in the rest of the manor. There were also the stone remains of… something—probably the conduit that contained the ether.

  I heard footsteps behind me and didn’t need to look to know it was Zephyr. I sighed and turned around anyway, and immediately froze upon noticing the musket aimed at my head. So they had guns in this world as well…

  “You did this, didn’t you?” I asked, trying to calm my beating heart. Every weapon summoned was made out of magic, and I still had some of the shield from earlier left. Of course, I could be wrong, and either the shield had dissipated, or this was a real weapon.

  He lowered the weapon, his expression unreadable. “How do you feel about magic, Elaina?”

  “Magic?” I paused. This was a serious question, so I should answer it with a serious answer. “It’s what brought me here and it’s what’s preventing me from going home.”

  “So you dislike it?” he inferred.

  I had never thought about it in that way before. Sure, I called it stupid, but that was more so my frustration with not being able to use it more than its existence. In actuality, it was quite beautiful and mesmerizing. “I don’t dislike it. When used correctly, it can make profound changes that literally save lives.”

  “And what about those who use it wrong?”

  “You mean the Magus of Historia?” I thought back to the other institution. “Just because someone uses magic wrong doesn’t mean magic shouldn’t exist.”

  “Even if unspeakable crimes were committed that resulted in mass genocide and the near extinction of humanity?”

  Had something like that ever happened before?

  “I… That’s not for me to decide. But that leaves me with another question. If you hate magic so much, why did you release it so that everyone’s powers would go out of control?”

  “That wasn’t my intent.” His grip around the musket tightened as he pursed his lips. “It’s too late anyway. What’s done is done. There’s no restoring Meridia’s ether to what it once was.” He raised the firearm at me again, aiming between my eyes.

  I paused, wondering if those words were true. They didn’t sound like a lie.

  Wait, Maverick mentioned that Ethereals could manipulate ether. I’m an Ethereal, so doesn’t that mean that I could…?

  I reached out to the ether and watched as it swirled around me. Time seemed to move in slow motion as a bullet fired from the musket. The ether around me swirled to the bullet and changed its trajectory, missing its target, me, completely.

  But there was something more to this ether…

  When I stared at it, I could see images… No, it was more like a video. Its color was a hazy pink and gray tinted by the ether.

  Two figures stood in front of Zephyr. One with light hair, another dark, their hues indiscernible due to the ether.

  “What do you want? Does Sylvis know you’re here, traitors?” Zephyr asked defensively.

  “She’s overseeing the Magitag game that’s about to start. Not to say she’s completely unaware. Just look at Letheria. Slipped in right under her nose,” the light-haired one chuckled.

  “Letheria is one of you?! But why would you tell me this?”

  “Trust. If we’re going to work together, we have to trust each other.”

  “Why would I ever work with you?” Zephyr straightened his glasses that managed to slide down his nose as he lowered his head to get a better look at the two.

  “Don’t you want to know who murdered your parents?” The dark-haired one smiled darkly, clearly taking delight in the discomfort they caused.

  “How would you know that?”

  “Our master sees all — much like yours. After all, they’re not much different from each other.”

  “And how do I know you won’t lie to me?”

  “Everything will become clear once you know the truth.”

  Zephyr’s features morphed into several different expressions, seemingly mulling over their words until he landed on his default expression. “What do you want in return?”

  “Destroy Meridia’s ether.”

  Zephyr’s eyes lit up in alarm. “But… That means you won't be able to use magic either!”

  The two strangers’ expressions turned soft and remorseful before the darker-haired one spoke. “We love our master just as much as you love yours. If your master was in danger, wouldn’t you do everything in your power to protect her?”

  “Besides…” the other one began. “We’ve grown sick of our magic. Magic isn’t the cure that everyone believes it is. I imagine you can empathize.”

  “What makes you so sure I even know where Meridia’s ether is stored in the first place?” Zephyr asked.

  “Your master isn’t stupid enough not to entrust others with its location in case of an emergency. Naturally, her first pick would be Rosalie, her most trusted confidant. One might deduce Maverick would be her second choice, considering he’s also an Ethereal, but due to some circumstances, he would be an ill fit for such a position. Thus, the role would fall on you.”

  “I’m afraid you are mistaken. Even if you weren’t, I still wouldn’t do it.”

  “Well then, thank you for your time. It really is a shame you don't know anything. I think you would change your tune if you knew that the one to blame for the death of your parents, as well as dozens of others, is none other than yourself.

  "You lost control over your magic and killed them. Your trauma only caused your magic to spiral more out of control, and your master had no choice but to seal away your memory of the incident. Farewell, then.” The two strangers disappeared without a trace.

  I watched as Zephyr had a meltdown. How he rushed to the chamber we were standing in and smashed the vessel with all his might. It must not have been protected from him if Sylvis had thought he may need to use it in the future.

  I looked at the live Zephyr before me and saw ether surrounding him that revealed more memories. A fire burned his village; siding and roof shingles fell as residents fled — their screams nearly deafening me. And in the middle of it all, was a little boy wailing harder and louder than I had heard anyone wail before. Tears streamed down my face as the memory finished playing.

  Zephyr dropped his musket, and I turned around to see that the conduit had been repaired — ether restored to its rightful place.

  And with it restored, my magic vanished just as quickly as it had appeared.