After a few more brief words were exchanged, Julius and Zyta finally said their farewells and left the room. The two siblings walked side by side in complete silence, both lost in thought. Julius had a rather satisfied expression, showing he was pleased with their success, while Zyta looked grim.
"Was it really worth it?" she finally asked her brother when she could no longer hold it in. "We gave him a treasure for which many beings have already died, and for what?"
Julius looked his sister in the eyes and sighed inwardly. She understood so little. She outranked him in the Order, but only because she had been blessed with more magic. It was unfair, yet there was nothing he could do about it, even though he firmly believed he deserved it more.
"Sister, the Order cannot do anything with the Eye of Aryha anyway. We both know it is just a children's tale, that it is the key to a 'city of gods.' In my opinion, the Eye is nothing more than a stone charged with large amounts of magic that happens to have the shape of a ring. Trading such a stone for the support of a man as powerful as Nero is definitely worth it for the Order. How many people in this world can claim to be on his level? Perhaps you? And Father, and maybe a handful more. If we anger someone like him and allow him to ally himself with the other two races, it would be a disaster. That must be clear to you."
Zyta snorted. "And how do you know he is not already a member of one of the other races?"
Julius shrugged. "I cannot know that, of course. But first, if that is the case, we will find out sooner or later and deal with him accordingly. Second, it is very unlikely. Again, why would he have saved Kia and Morch? The Lizzian he killed was a top spy. I cannot imagine the Lizzians sacrificing someone like that just to infiltrate our ranks. And tomorrow he will join us in hunting a Reil. We will learn more about his relationship with those disgusting beastmen then. Who knows, he might even lead us to success."
Zyta looked away. She hated it when her brother acted so superior, yet she knew he was the more intelligent one. That was why, despite her higher rank, she usually followed his lead. As much as he annoyed her, she trusted him and knew he only wanted the best for her and humanity.
"What about his companion? Did you feel his aura?"
Julius nodded. "That is indeed strange. Just like Nero, Eleanor's aura is completely unknown to me. But I already have a plan to learn more about their magic."
"Oh?" Zyta asked skeptically. "And how do you intend to do that?"
Julius smiled. "Do you really think the Eye of Aryha serves only one purpose?"
…
Nero ran his finger over the Eye of Aryha, which Julius had given him just before leaving. It had surprised him, as he had assumed Julius would only hand it over after their search, but that was not the case.
The aura of the small ring still filled the room like smoke from a fire. Nero carefully tried to channel some of his magic into it, just as he had done with the blue stone before opening a rift to another world. But the Eye resisted his aura sharply, and the more Nero tried, the stronger the resistance became. Within seconds, he began to sweat as the ring glowed brighter and brighter. An incredibly unpleasant sensation came over him, like the bites of countless ants on his skin. He stopped immediately. Slowly, the ring dimmed again until it lay still once more.
Nero looked at Eleanor. "What do you think?" he asked.
Eleanor was briefly surprised that Nero was asking for his opinion, but then realized he was expected to use his magic. This time, he did not hold back, focusing completely on the Eye of Aryha. The aura had no fixed form. It spread through the room like a purple flame. Eleanor activated more of his magic to look deeper into the object, into its structure and essence, just as he had done with the blue stone.
He frowned in confusion. The closer he looked, the more clearly he saw a faint, almost invisible trace. He blinked to make sure he was not imagining it, but it was real. He followed it with his gaze, yet the further it went, the more indistinct it became. He poured more and more magic into his perception, which helped slightly. The trace curved gently before fading completely. No matter how much magic he used, it became impossible to follow beyond that point.
"It seems to lead somewhere…" Eleanor murmured.
Nero's eyes flashed, but he said nothing and simply waited.
"But it fades quickly and becomes impossible to track after only a few meters."
"In which direction?" Nero asked with interest.
Eleanor pointed. "But it is not a straight line. It has turns, so I cannot say if it continues in that direction forever. We would have to follow it to know where it leads."
Nero tilted his head slightly. That was not good news. It meant the path could theoretically loop endlessly, lead to other continents, into the sky, or deep underground. It could even lead straight to the heart of the continent, to the very seat of ruler Pascal van Uriel. Nero finally shook his head. "We will deal with that once we are finished with this planet. Before that, it is simply too much effort. Do you notice anything else?"
Eleanor focused again, this time directly on the center of the ring. At first, he thought there was nothing else, but then his eyes widened. "Symbols. In the center of the ring, there are engravings, like the ones Ramor draws, but at the same time… different."
"Different?"
Eleanor nodded, narrowing his eyes as if trying to see something far away. "It is actually just a single symbol, but it keeps changing its form. Wait, there is more…"
Suddenly, Eleanor cried out. Nero immediately activated his magic, yet he could perceive nothing because everything happened within Eleanor's aura. He had sent it deep into the ring, which worked at first, but then he flew too close to the sun.
The ring struck back. Its aura hurled Eleanor's aura away. Like a cornered beast, it bit into his prismarine star, which trembled violently as red cracks spread across its surface, just as he had seen with Julius. A painful burning sensation spread through him, growing stronger with each passing second. Blood burst from his face as he fell backward from his chair and hit the ground hard. Slowly, the cracks receded. The pain lessened, but the damage was clear. Not only his body, but his magic had been affected. The prismarine star had shrunk by one or two percent.
Eleanor slowly pushed himself up again.
"What happened?" Nero asked curiously.
"It attacked me…" Eleanor murmured.
Now that he thought about it, it was similar to what had happened with Nero's blue stone. When he had pushed too much magic into it and looked too deeply, it had resisted as well. The reaction had been different, yet the similarity remained.
But how could that be? Nero had once said he received the blue stone from a traveler from another world. Could that traveler have come from the same place as the Eye of Aryha? From Noira?
Eleanor looked at Nero thoughtfully, but did not voice his thoughts. Instead, he simply explained what had happened while examining the Eye.
"Very well," Nero said in conclusion. "Do not attempt further experiments until we learn more." He wrapped the ring in the symbol-covered cloth Julius had left behind. Immediately, the aura vanished as the symbols suppressed it.
"I am going to lie down…" Eleanor muttered. Since Nero said nothing, he assumed there was no objection. He lay down with a pounding headache and fell asleep within minutes.
Nero, however, remained seated in silence. A thought crossed his mind. Should we just leave?
He dismissed the idea quickly. It would take another week and a half before Xersies opened the portal. There was not enough time to travel to another city, and they could not hide in the forest for long. They had little choice but to assist Julius and his sister in searching for Tark.
Of course, Nero knew where Tark was, buried four or five kilometers from the portal's location. But he was not concerned that they would find the body. Even if they did, there would be no proof linking it to him. If anything, the claw marks would point to a Reil, to Fril.
While Nero continued thinking, Eleanor slept. Not for long, however. Before the first rays of sunlight appeared, he was awakened by another knock on the door.
Slowly, Eleanor blinked away his drowsiness and sat up. Nero had already packed everything important. He looked at Eleanor with cold eyes.
"Get up," he said. "It is time we fulfill our part of the deal."