As the door swung open, Lena’s breath caught in her throat. They stepped from the humble doorway onto the stone floor of the tallest room she’d ever seen—it was like someone had hollowed out one of the towers in Duke’s Forest. Narrow windows punctuated the thick walls—and far above, the ceiling was silver glass, gentle light filtering down through the pointed arches like clouded sunlight through leaves. The pillars holding up the impossible ceiling were shaped into the likeness of trees and twined with pale carvings of ivy and flowers. The air was cool and full of an indefinable strangeness—a little like the strangeness in the crypts of Duke’s Forest, but a hundred times more wonderful. Lena’s skin tingled. Inside, she felt uneasy—dizzy, even.

This place is spun from shades of light, she thought. She’d lived her whole life in darkness, and now … This was almost too much.

In the center of the space, a four-tiered fountain trickled musically. On the highest, shallowest pedestal stood the archer, just like the one on the mantelpiece in the map room but ten times the size and hewn of gray-veined marble. His bow was drawn tight and aimed at some invisible target, his hair blowing in a nonexistent wind, brow caught in a frown of concentration.

“It’s beautiful,” said Lena under her breath, as Emris shut the door at her back, drawing a curtain across the archway to hide the entrance from view. A few other people stood or knelt before the fountain—some dressed in gray, others in ordinary clothes. A murmur filled the air, mingling with the trickle of water.

“Yes, it is.” He seemed pleased by her reaction. The huntsman led her across the flagstones toward the fountain. His scars, normally paler and puckered, appeared smooth in the soft light. “So, the Binding—it’s about finding and controlling the magic within yourself. As you know, losing control completely will cause Chaos to take over, and that’s dangerous for everyone. This is an exercise you’ll only need to perform once. Afterward, as long as you remain with the temples, you’ll be able to exert basic control over your powers—and you shouldn’t be a danger to anyone, not even yourself.”

They reached the fountain. Its edges were broad and smooth, worn by the touch of countless people. The water was clear and very deep for a fountain—deep enough to swallow a standing man at least.

“Here, sit down beside me.”

Emris sat cross-legged on the fountain ledge, and Lena took a spot at his side, their knees nearly touching. The thick soles of her boots pressed into her thighs. She watched as an older man standing opposite dropped a coin into the water and bowed his head.