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Nothing. Not a ripple or vibration at all.

I felt her drawing near, along with both of her siblings. My teeth ached from clenching my jaws so tightly with concern. The Mother could not lose her. The world would never be the same without Shara Isador walking it.

Goddess, please let us get her back safely.

I didn’t straighten as they neared, keeping my senses locked on the strange fluid in case there was some kind of a trap or creature hidden inside, ready to attack.

:Any guesses what this is?: Shara asked.

:If you hadn’t seen it separate out of Tanza’s living blood, I would say it’s some kind of liquid metal,: Leonie replied. :Something from an alien movie.:

:You know what they say about technology and magic.: Carys stroked Winnifred’s back. The owl burrowed against her neck and chest, terrified of the space, or perhaps from being too close to Sekh. :Magic is simply technology we don’t understand, though I believe it’s backwards. Technology is mankind’s attempt at creating their own magic independent of the Mother.:

:Which is why it often goes so wrong,: Leonie replied.

:Especially with the rise of artificial intelligence,: Carys said. :Go sit with a tree and touch grass, for fuck’s sake. You’ll learn more about creation and magic than anything a computer can tell you, and you won’t destroy the Mother’s precious resources while doing it.:

Shara came to stand beside me, her fingers light on my shoulder. :So this could be some kind of technology we don’t understand. Magic created by the Screaming Madness. But what is it? What does it want? All I sensed from Tanza was a desire for pain and suffering.:

:It clearly has ways to communicate with humans and Aima,: Sekh replied. :But does it go even deeper than that?:

:How so?:

:How did it infect Tanza? The natural answer is it came from Keisha, but then how was she infected with it?:

Shara’s fingers tightened on my shoulder. :Ra.:

:Exactly. So if the Screaming Madness can corrupt and infect a god…:

He didn’t say it. He didn’t have to.

What chance did we have of defeating it?

SHARA

If the Skolos Triune felt like being inside a fishbowl, entering this secret space created by Tanza’s death felt like standing inside a hollowed-out mortar bowl with another on top of it. Or maybe a geode, with all the sparkling crystals removed, leaving only the bare, empty rock. The space was small enough that Rik barely fit through the opening, and he could touch the edge of the sloped ceiling.

Lew’s shoulder quivered beneath my hand, his impressive alpha senses in full seek-and-destroy mode. Even though nothing happened as we approached.

:Time to experiment,: I warned in the bond.

Rik didn’t step closer—he couldn’t without pushing me into the weird pool—but he swelled, on the verge of shifting into his rock troll.

Step one. “Hello?”

A slight ripple dimpled the surface, as if the sound vibration of my voice disturbed it. I waited, counting my breaths up to three. Calm. Slow. Even.

“I’m Shara Isador.” Another ripple across the surface. I could feel heat radiating off both Rik and Lew, their muscles burning with explosive energy at the slightest threat. “I would like to speak to Tanza Skye, please.”

A faint echo whispered through the domed space, warped and distorted. I couldn’t tell if it was a voice or something else. But given Tanza’s painful shrieks, I feared the decibels might incapacitate my Blood before they could help if she did somehow manage to come through.

Unless… Idea.

I focused on the opaque magic flowing around me. The Eleusinian Mysteries protected me from her horrible shrieks before when I viewed her death. But I’d also used the veil to make Guillaume look like Isabelle’s ancient knight, even though I myself had no idea what he looked like. The magic hadn’t needed my ability to picture him in my mind to work, yet it still transferred his image to my Blood. The question was how many I could work at the same time.

Closing my eyes for a moment, I thought of the veil’s protection. A shield against everything except creatures of the natural world. Certainly whatever infected Tanza was not a thing of the Mother’s creation. Then I bit my lip, offering a small amount of my blood to power my will, carefully shielded by the Mysteries.

Cover everyone in this space. Protect them. Shield them from all harm. The same as you shield me.