“It’s simple, really.” Emris spoke softly, his voice nearly swallowed in the cavernous air. “Your magic is like a living being somewhere inside you. What you need to do is bind it to your will, much the same as you’d slip a collar on a dog or a bridle on a horse. And you do that with a little help from a god.” He glanced up at the statue on the fountain.

If she did this thing, did that mean she was abandoning the Ancestors for good? Yes.

She stared into the water, finally allowing the truth to envelop her. The Ancestors reviled magic. She had magic—she believed that now, even if she couldn’t quite accept it. If anything, she could safely assume that they’d abandoned her. Lena remembered her hallucination, the angry dead who’d surrounded her in the forest. She couldn’t go back. And this … well, it seemed like this was the only way forward.

Memories of Vigo pushed themselves into her mind, but although sadness tugged at her throat, it couldn’t persuade her now. This was all beyond his imagining. She had created mist out of thin air. What did Vigo know about that?

“Lena?” Emris said. “Are you all right?”

“Yes,” she said firmly. “What should I do?”

“All you do is look into the water and pray for Faul to show you your magic. Gradually, you’ll fall into a kind of dream. I can’t tell you what happens exactly—it’s different for everyone. You’ll have to find your own way through.”

“Is that it?” Somehow, she felt, there must be more to it. “What do you mean, ‘find your own way through’?”

“I can’t say. I’ve heard about other people’s visions—some have had to literally find a path through a maze, others dreamed of a hunt, or even of a tricky riddle. But it’s not difficult—I’ve never known anybody to fail. And afterward you should feel very different, calmer, more in control—especially as a Rogue. I certainly did. You probably don’t realize how much subconscious effort you’re exerting to keep your powers in line.”

Lena felt a rush of warmth for Emris. He had been like her once—but he had found his way. And now he was showing her how to follow.

“Breathe deep and slow—and take your time.”