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“If you want.”

“I do. Thank you.”

Wow.That was another major step for her.

I smiled, then focused on the scroll, carefully running my fingertips of magic over the surface, pulling out what was hidden within and essentially working on translating it from the energy the Unity Council had stored it as, to actual readable results.

In moments, symbols, sigils, and glyphs began floating from it like swirling smoke—fortunately not that Celestial one that had infected me. It possessed the magical signature of Hugh Clayborne, the leader of the Unity Council. No surprise there.

As Vorzyr looked on in awe, and Ariana shifted her weight nervously, I finished pulling out everything within.

And then I made my power flare to both hands and I swept them around what I’d extricated until they were all contained within a large levitating rose-gold sphere, the symbols and glyphs, and even bits and pieces of ancient text now, swirling rapidly as I crafted a spell to interpret it all.

It didn’t take more than a few moments for legible information to generate.

I reported the first thing that I was able to discern, as the rest continued to be deciphered by my spell, bit by bit. “They definitely clocked that you’re not at full power.” I winced. “They also registered instability. It has them concerned, according to this. But, because they don’t understand Celestial magic, they weren’t able to determine that the cause is merely you notbeing united as a whole with your power. They’re concerned it’s something else far beyond that.” I rolled my eyes. “The ignorance is as frustrating as it is disturbing.”

“Another reason why they shouldn’t have tested her against her fucking will,” V muttered.

“Agreed,” I said. And then I was jolting as something else was deciphered.

“What is it?” Ari asked, noticing.

“Interference.”

“What?” V pressed.

“They registered some interference within you, to you, impacting your magic.”

“That could just be my natural connection to the Celestial Plane and the True Celestials there.”

“Perhaps.”

Before I could speak more to it, a sigil flamed and grew larger and brighter, making itself much more prominent.

It was a radiant jagged broken circle, tendrils of energy unraveling from its edges and reinforcing a sense of disruption. There was a dark, eerie glow surrounding it, giving off a feeling of foreboding.

“That’s it!” Ariana cried. “That’s what I kept drawing with my shadow weaving, the thing I haven’t been able to replicate ever since I registered it on a conscious level. It wouldn’t even let me doodle it on a piece of paper, something was… something was stopping me, an unknown force.”

“Like the True Celestials?” Vorzyr asked.

“Has to be,” I said. “There’s no other force stronger than her, able to influence her in any way.” I swallowed hard as I stared at the mark and placed it from the great deal of knowledge I’d acquired over the years from ancient texts. “You’re certain it wasthissymbol?” I asked her.

“Yes. Why? Do you recognize it?”

I grimaced. “I do.”

“And?”

“I’m not liking that look all over your face,” Vorzyr told me.

“It’s called a Rift Mark,” I informed them. “Essentially, it’s a warning of an impending rift between planes, realms, that sort of thing. It signals a tear, possibly allowing something dangerous to slip through. Dimensional instability is forthcoming, if this is to be believed.”

“That could explain why there was a shift in the balance that my family felt.” She came forward, studying the scroll. “Anything else your spell picked up?”

“They also registered a potential for darkness within you. According to this, you are susceptible to magical corruption, despite many believing that wouldn’t be possible because you’re a literal angel.But,as I said, they also registered interference, so this could be linked to the source of that interference—that being what’s susceptible, not you. As for the potential for darkness, that could also be misinterpreted. Fear, which you were carrying so heavily until recently toward your own power and nature can be read in a negative way during tests like these as the same as darkness potential. It can easily be misconstrued, especially when testing a being they have very little knowledge of, a being who has never existed before.”

“Fuck,” V grunted, not liking any of this.