“You’ve heard many stories from your other mistresses, I’m sure. Normally, you would be sent to a school to learn this. However, your mother is not very keen on that idea. Neither were the others.” She took a deep breath. “How do I begin this?” she muttered. “Well, from today, I’ll begin teaching you my language. If you didn’t already know, I come from Lalenir. It’s in a country called Ovanol, the domain of the Dragon Emperor Aech.”

My forehead crumpled. “What for?” I asked.

“Well…Ovanolish is the warrior tongue. It is the strongest, probably the most potent of all the Erindalian languages you will encounter. This is because every intonation channels the energy of the universe. It has the power to bring down the mightiest of thunders—the most ruthless of waves. And those who speak it basically have the entire world at their bidding.”

My apparent confusion made her sigh.

“I suppose I will have to show you first.” She took several steps back, looking at me straight in the eye and pinning me in place.

Once she was a reasonable distance away, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. For a few, still seconds I watched. The air stirred. Warm energy rose around me. Every single hair on my body stood—as though saluting this new presence that had swept in. It was made of all things holy and all things pure, but there was indeed no way to describe how it felt to me except, maybe…sublime. It had a similarity to walking through that galactic sky in the in-between. However, that would be like comparing the flame of a candle to a burning sun. Whatever this was was no more than a crumb from the whole pie. Maybe not even that much.

I continued watching. The energy gathered. Thickened. It came to the point that clouds seemed to converge in the sky. I looked up. Shadows seemed to build up above, painting the blue horizon a dusty shade of grey. The sun was covered, and everything turned dark. She continued with her chant to the point that she was almost singing it. I strained to hear the song, but my ears deafened for reasons I could not understand.

It was then that lightning branched down. My mistress held up two fingers to the direction of the clouds, and it struck perfectly at her like she was an antenna. The charge made my hair rise in all directions, and I stood back, gaping. I could see little snakes of electricity snapping on her skin.

“Wow,” I muttered. “That’s awesome!”

She opened her eyes. They glowed. Blue—like her hair. She took a deep breath, said a word, and shot the lightning back into the sky. The energy died down and, slowly, the clouds dispersed to reveal the blue sky it covered up. It was as though nothing had happened at all.

A small smile pulled on her lips. “This is the Dragon of the Third Night, Balasea. He is my Deliverer,” she said. “And also the wielder of light and flames. Your Deliverer will show himself to you very soon. He will tell you about your gifts, and you will learn the true nature of your three fates.”

“I don’t know what that means, but it sounds amazing,” I said. “Can you show me how to do it? Can I do it?”

“Not anytime soon. We must see when your ability will awaken. From now on, as I train you, I will talk to you in my tongue. Destarben?” The sudden switch made the gears in my mind pull into a halt until a hasty translation was spat out to the forefront of my mind.

She seemed to have said, “Understood?”

I pouted.

“No need to be sad, leuben. What we have is rare. No more than ten percent of the population has it. It, of course, takes time,” she consoled.

“So I am a Conduit? What element do I have? Mama never told me,” I said.

“Come walk with me,” she said, beckoning me to her side.

I hesitated.

“Kommen, Evyionne. Take my hand.”

She switched frequently between Ovanolish and Veneryali, slowly easing me into the words. I would bet she didn’t expect I understood her perfectly.

This was when I realized…the “gift” that Amber had given me was really no joke. I thought it only allowed me to understand the language of this place, Veneryali. I didn’t expect it applied to others as well.

Did this mean I was omnilingual? Was this my Conduit power?

I swung my arms and followed after her, a little happier at the thought of this very useful ability. Amber was now in a slightly better light for me than he had been back in the in-between. Then again, he had told me he would bill me in time.

My face fell at the thought.

I thought it would be best to keep a low profile for now. This ability…it must have come with something ominous. Otherwise, why would it be given so freely?

It shouldn’t be so simple. I doubt it would be.

“Mistress,” I began, changing the topic, “you said it was rare.”

“Yes, it is,” she replied. “We are the few who can help specific energies materialize. If you try and focus, you can see that there are many spots around you that pool a certain kind of force. These forces are responsible for all the things in the world—the birds, the trees, the people…and, of course, you.”

“Why can’t I know my element?”

“Because…it’s too early and it can still change. We don’t want you sad.”

“But I thought it didn’t change,” I countered. “Eren said it’s something we get at birth.”

Mistress Veronika was stifled. She didn’t know how to refute what I said. “All will be revealed in time, Evyionne.”

“What do the three fates have to do with anything, then? Can you explain them to me, please?”

She gazed at me and smiled. “You, as a being of this world, this universe, is rooted to the three different dimensions.”

“Dimensions?”

“Yes. I heard your mother mentioned it. There are three—the mind, body, and the soul. Your connection to these three dimensions is crucial to your identity and purpose here in this life.”

I thought for a moment. They considered the mind, body, and the soul as different ‘dimensions.’ I was making some sense out of it. The body was a temple of many things mysterious and also, in my opinion, the most earthly and accessible. This concept posed similarities to, if I wasn’t mistaken, meditative practices in esoteric traditions found in India—like the chakra. I expected that they had their own beliefs and spirituality, but this one seemed to have strong manifestations in the corporeal plane.

“What’s the difference between the fates and dimensions?”

“The fates are the elements to your dimensions. For example, I have the same fate for all my dimensions. I have light and flames that materialize as lightning.”

“What do the dragons or the serpent have anything to do with it?” I asked.

“Well, what links us to all of these dimensions are extraordinary energy binds—the same kind I just summoned. The fates, before they are bound to us humans, are first called domains. The dragons guard over certain domains that are responsible for these energies. Balasea, my Deliverer, is the dragon who rules over the domain of light and fire.”

“So Balasea…is your Deliverer.”

“Yes.”

“And light and flames are your fates?”

“Yes.”

“So, you can control flames?”

“To an extent, yes...But it’s truly just lightning. It can be useful, but then again…not always.”

“What else is there?” I eagerly asked.

“There is Azurine. She is the Dragon of the First Night who guards over life and rebirth, appearing when the moon is full. Having her as a patron of the body, for example, symbolizes fertility, good health, and abundance. These people will most likely never die of illness and only pass away once they reach old age.”

I took a deep breath as I pictured the concept in my mind. I had to do some more research on these dragons. I remembered passing through some information about them some time ago, but I hadn’t had enough time so far to dig into the higher books. They were too high up the shelf in the library too.

So many things to read and know about, so little time.

“How do you come to be a Conduit, then? Is it possible to have three different fates?”

“That’s right. They make up most of the common folk—those with more than one Deliverer. It usually means they can’t wield an element. For example, your mother Hellenia has Azurine as a Deliverer for the soul and mind. Her patron of the body, on the other hand, is Galatea.”

“So she’s not a Conduit?”

“No. There are rare times when a person has the same patron for all three dimensions. One Deliverer. That is like the perfect alignment of the stars. This alignment gives them the ability to channel the energy of the patron efficiently and bend it to their will to a certain degree.”

She took a deep breath as a breeze blew by. We continued to stroll down the path, and I brushed the flowers with the palm of my hand. The garden was beautiful. The foliage blossomed a rich, maple gold. Paired with the pearly bricks layering the path, it seemed almost surreal. Mistress Kora had prepared this place so wonderfully for this season.

“Mistress, why are you here in the Oblivion then?” I inquired. “Don’t you want to be somewhere else? You would be a really strong warrior…”

“It’s a long story.” She patted my head. “I guess I was shooting for a sky I could not reach. If there is anything I’ve learned in my efforts, it’s that a ceiling that doesn’t want to be broken is not easily torn down. No matter how hard you try, no matter your will, sometimes you won’t win. It’s not always a happy ending for each one of us.”

I was speechless but did not halt as we continued strolling.

We finally stopped before the pond. The House of Oblivion enjoyed immense space. This was one of the most beautiful places around. A dainty, little bridge hopped over to the other side, and the water was tinged green. The fishes cast soft splashes in the water when they took sudden turns, startled as I threw in a tiny pebble from the bank. They took shelter under the lily pads.

“Over here, Evyionne.”

I was led away by Mistress Veronika to take shade under the weeping willow that leaned down towards the pond.

“Take a seat.” The mistress nodded at the base of the tree.

I looked at her for a moment before obeying, sitting down with legs crossed on the ground and gazing up at her inquiringly.

“Good. Stay there until I call you.”

I watched her leave, wondering what in the world this was all about. What was I supposed to do here? If I had a book, I would be reading. Then again, I had been told not to move.