Page 195

“Right again. So the Well can be used only by someone who possesses a full spectrum of magic, someone whose colors are all equally as bright, which—the hellsehers in the room already know this—is incredibly rare.”

He wasn’t wrong. While a small number of the world population fell under the rainbow aura category, their colors were usually diluted, and one was always, always brighter than the others. These were the people who usually entered careers in the field of healing, their rare auras allowing them to have a positive—if only temporary—effect on people with the Tricking.

Arthur added, “The scroll refers to this person as the Rainbow Phoenix, or Skeleton Key. I haven’t quite figured out why they call this person a Skeleton Key, but I don’t believe I need to explain to any of you why they would refer to this person as the Rainbow Phoenix.” A person possessing a full spectrum of magic, all colors equally bright, with the ability to operate the life-granting machine known as the Arcanum Well.

Dominic sat up straight. “Well I’ll be damned.” Everyone looked at him in question. “Blue was brought to Angelthene by people who were looking for—”

“A colored bird,” Max and Dallas finished in unison.

“Rainbow phoenix,” Lace said, looking impressed.

Dominic lifted his chin, a proud smile spreading across his face. “And you all mocked me.”

“Sorry, Dom,” Dallas mumbled.

“Wow,” Dominic crooned. He gave a low whistle. “Did Dallas Bright really just apologize?”

She merely rolled her eyes.

Arthur rolled up the Master Scroll, paper crackling. “It’ll be interesting to see what the other half says.”

Yes, indeed.

43

“Wait,” Loren said, sitting up straighter where she sat at a long oak table in the library of Angelthene Academy for Magic.

She was wholly exhausted from her afternoon practicing to summon her magic with Agatha, but when she’d returned from school she’d immediately come here to try to find any information on the Spirit Realm—anything that might help her get into it without the Terran Imperator there, watching her every step. Dallas and Sabrine were sitting across from her, looking proud of themselves for having discovered everything they’d just told her.

“You’re telling me that Blue’s aura is blue,” Loren said slowly, “and she has Blue Magic?”

Sabrine and Dallas nodded.

It was Sabrine who said, “Technically, it’s the magic of the Mist.” She leaned in close, her lustrous hair swinging to frame her face. “Arthur said it’s a form of Arcane Magic that vanished a long time ago. The term was used to describe hellsehers that possessed water magic. They could summon the element out of thin air.”

Loren added dubiously, “Which somehow explains why her fingernails and hair are blue?”

They nodded again.

Loren raised her eyebrows. “Okay then.”

“Look,” Sabrine began. “I know this all sounds crazy, but it makes sense. We’re learning new things about her every day, and with Arthur’s help, we should be able to find out where she came from and what the men she was with wanted her for.”

Dallas added, “Dom said she told him she came from a facility. She said she was an experiment. But as soon as she said it, she closed herself off. Doesn’t want to talk about it anymore.”

Loren’s lower lip jutted out in thought. “Still no indication of what colored bird she was talking about?”

Dallas shared a glance with Sabrine. “We think Dom mistranslated a bit,” Dallas said, her tone reluctant. “We think Blue meant to say Rainbow Phoenix.”

Rainbow Phoenix.

The floor rotated beneath Loren’s feet as she remembered back to her time in the Chalk Door.

Rainbow Phoenix, Rainbow Phoenix, I can smell you.

Dallas swore. She was looking at her watch. “We’re late.”

Sabrine paled. “Crap! I’ve never been late for a class. Hurry, Dallas! We need to hurry.”