“All right, let’s get the scry-eye on you.” Elnos pulled a gold necklace chain from his pocket, from which a large, square pendant with a tree carved into it had been attached. “Are you sure you want Sunaya to be at the other end of this?” he asked Iannis.

“I don’t think it would be wise for me to do it under the circumstances,” Iannis said. “If Lord Logar and his mages arrive early, or if anything else should go wrong, I want to be fully present to deal with it.”

“Very well.” Elnos turned to me. “Hold out your palm.”

I did so, and Elnos placed the pendant in my hand. Earlier, when he’d hatched this plan, Elnos explained to us that the scry-eye was a magi-tech device he and Noria had invented, which would allow another person to borrow the eyes and ears of whoever was wearing it at the time. This way, I’d be able to see exactly what was going on around Rylan as he infiltrated the bunker, and relay important information to the others. It didn’t allow for communication, but I could use my own magic to boost a mindspeak connection between Rylan and myself. Elnos was more familiar with the device, but couldn’t use mindspeak.

Not for the first time, I wondered why it was that Iannis was able to communicate with mindspeak, but not Elnos. Was it an ability Iannis had cultivated over his long-lived life that Elnos had not? Or was it yet another gift of his Tua heritage?

“Close your hand around the pendant and concentrate on it,” Elnos told me.

I did so, putting all my attention on the cool square in my hand. I focused on the smoothness of the glossy outer stone against my fingers, and the hardness of the metal backing. I wondered exactly what was inside it that made it function the way it did. How could a tiny piece of equipment do such extraordinary things?

Elnos covered my closed hand with his own and spoke a few Words. The pendant grew warm in my hands, and a tingle of power rushed up my arm and into my chest.

“There,” Elnos said, stepping away. “Now put it on Rylan.”

I did as he asked, crossing over to where my cousin stood. He might have had grey human eyes instead of yellow shifter ones, but the gleam lurking behind them as he ducked his head was all Rylan.

“This seems like an awfully pretty piece for a man to wear,” Rylan said as he tucked it beneath the collar of his uniform shirt. “Hope they don’t decide to strip search me for any reason.”

“This particular piece was intended for Annia,” Elnos said dryly.

“That makes a lot more sense,” Rylan agreed. He looked at me expectantly, then back at Elnos. “So, am I supposed to do anything to make this work?”