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Odie whimpered from the half-open doorway and made his way over to Magda.

“Oh, Odie,” said Magda, dropping to her knees and allowing the grief to consume her once more. She hugged the dog tightly, pressing her face up against his soft fur. For a brief moment, Magda felt a sliver of comfort.

Odie perked up and began wagging his tail, whining in excitement before racing back over to the door and letting out a hopeful whimper.

Dagmara was standing in the frame, her eyes red and indicating she had been crying. “Odie, you found the princess.” She validated the dog in his search.

“How is Teos?” Magda asked instantly. Last she heard, it was confirmed he had zowach.

The muscles in Dagmara’s neck constricted. “He’s alright,” she lied before changing the topic. “There’s news on the investigation into your dad and…,” she paused, as if the next words were difficult to say, “...brother’s deaths.”

“What?” asked Magda, standing up.

“It seems as if early leads point to Ilusauri being responsible. The assassins were wearing Ilusaurian uniforms.”

The words cut through Magda like a knife, threatening to break her. She fought back tears as she assessed the situation. If it was true that Ilusauri was behind this, they had to pay. But how could they be sure this was linked to the Mad King of Ilusauri—Claude?

How would she make this decision as a ruler? And how was she going to rule when she knew nothing about being a Guardian? The only option was to speak to another guardian, one who had the same magic as she did, in the land of Flaustra. Which meant sneaking out of the fortress and past her mother.

“I need you to continue the investigation,” said Magda, fighting back tears. “But first, come with me to the Scribestone. I need to send a message.” There was only one person that she trusted to tell her about the ways of the guardians.

“To who?”

“Queen Sanyal.”

A few minutes later, Magda, Dagmara, and Odie entered the royal library. It was a small, circular room that extended up into one of the large towers at the corner of the fortress. All around, bookshelves wrapped along the walls, extending upward to a small window at the top of the tower. In the center, a wide spiral staircase extended along the outside walls, allowing easy reach to access the manuscripts.

In the center of the room, was the Scribestone. It was a large statue of a book that glowed with a hint of iridescent magic. Anyone that wrote a message on the book would be able to send it to one of the three identical statues that lay in the libraries in Flaustra, Celestaire, and Ilusauri.

Magda approached the Scribestone, with Dagmara close behind.

Odie paced across the room, sniffing the ancient scrolls.

“I’m going to send Sanyal a message and ask to meet with her,” said Magda. Quickly, she grabbed a quill pen from a shelf and began writing on the magical stone.

Queen Sanyal,

I must speak with you. Please allow me to come to Flaustra to visit with you and your children. Without my father and Aleksy, I have no idea what it means to be a guardian, or how to use my powers, and I need your guidance.

Sincerely,

Magdalena Krol

Magda finished the letter, and in an instant, the message had sunk into the stone, completely disappearing. Soon, it would reappear on the Scribestone in Flaustra. The message would only appear for the person whom it was addressed to, meaning Magda didn’t have any reason to fear it would be intercepted.

Suddenly, the Scribestone glowed bright.

Words flashed upon the stone:

One message from Claude Mirage, Ilusauri.

Magda gasped. “Claude?”

“The Mad King?” Dagmara echoed.

Odie let out a whimper and padded across the floor to reach Magda’s side. He placed his snout against her knee, and she idly ran her palm against his head.

Magda pressed her other hand to the words, touching her fingerprints to the letter.