Page 106 of Spirit Storm

After a moment, I realize how lost in thought I've been, and I step forward. "Welcome, everyone. I am Poppy Hallowind, and this is Sebastian. I can't thank you enough for coming. With your help, it's my genuine hope that we can reinstate the warding set in place by The Nine, and keep evil at bay. No matter what the outcome, no matter if you are a Descendant of the Nine or simply empowered with a spirit affinity, I am grateful you each rose to the call."

"And now that we're all here, let me take you through to our lockstone chamber." Khylie leads us down the narrow steps, through the passage, and into the sea cave proper.

I watch for the moment it hits each of the newcomers: the scale of the carved rune circle on the wall, the sheer, ancient weight of it, the power and intention of what it all means.

Amara breathes out slowly through her nose.

Priya actually takes a step back.

Dae-Jung pushes his glasses up and leans forward.

Nolan just nods, like something has been confirmed.

Bjorn looks conflicted, and I wonder how much of what happened to Henrik was explained to him.

Wylder breaks off from the group and moves toward the rune circle with two of Khylie's family journals tucked under his arm. He sets them open on the altar table and gets straight to work.

There are still so many things to learn about the runes and their meanings. Thankfully, runework is a passion and a talent of his. And hopefully, that will be enough to see us through.

Still…

I approach Henrik's twin brother, my breath growing tight in my chest. "Thank you for being here. I wanted to say… I only knew your brother a very short time, but he impressed the hell out of me. He was intelligent and brave, and losing him is a tragedy I will carry with me forever."

Bjorn meets my gaze, and he has the same vibrant blue eyes as his brother… and, well, all of us. "It's a loss, for sure. He was the one who wanted to change the world. He was fearless and dedicated."

"Well, I admire the fact that you're here picking up the pieces in his name."

He dips his chin but doesn't reply.

"Do you share his passion for runes?"

"Since we were boys. We used to pretend it was a secret language that only we would know."

"Well, I know Wylder would welcome any insight you might have. He and Henrik shared a passion for the runes and were quite excited about working together to unravel the intention of the ritual. Let me introduce you."

I guide him over to the altar stone. After I've introduced them, and Wylder has had a moment to get over the shock of meeting Henrik's twin and expressing his condolences, he moves directly into a discussion of the runes.

"It's complicated," he says, "but I think I've got most of it mapped. I'll walk you through what I believe we're working with."

The others drift closer as Wylder takes Bjorn through the symbology of the rune circle, section by section. He's methodical about it: the binding sequence in the upper arc, the anchoring symbols at the base that tie the warding to the physical stone, the nine individual marks spaced evenly around the circle where each spirit witch is meant to focus.

"According to Khylie's family journals, these marks aren't just position markers. Each one corresponds to a specific intention within the ritual. Purpose. Sacrifice. Endurance. Memory. The witches of The Nine weren't performing an incantation so much as they were lending the stone their will. But once the rune circle is powered, it draws from the ley lines to ensure the spell continues on."

Nolan exhales through his teeth. "How much energy does it draw to power it?"

"That we don't know." Wylder glances at me, then meets Nolan's gaze. "We know several of them died over the course of the original thirteen lockstones. We're hoping the cause of that was worked out, corrected, and that the ritual steps that have been left for all of you is the solution."

"We're hoping that too," Khylie says.

Amara studies the circle. "But there's no way to know."

"Unfortunately, no."

"And what about those of us who aren't descendants?" Dae Jung asks.

I field that one. "I honestly don't think that will impact the spell. After all, The Nine weren't 'The Nine' while they were working all this out. They were simply a group of dedicated spirit witches committed to stopping a horror from taking hold in our world."

I think about the vision I had of the faces of those who came before: the terror in their expressions, the exhaustion, the complete absence of heroism. They were simply desperate witches doing something impossible because there was no one else left to do it.