Copyright J.B. Norman
Kat Darkstone has spent most of her life idolising Carlotta Stonehelm, one of the most famous and successful female Guild Captains in the entire Guild Authority of Porthaven.
On the other hand, Kat Darkstone never imagined she’d be working with Carlotta’s sister Giulia. Largely because she didn’t even know Carlotta Stonehelm had a sister Giulia until a few days ago.
Now, Kat and Giulia Stonehelm find themselves trying to break the magical seals keeping an ancient temple shut up and locked.
“I’m listening to the magic,” Giulia explains, her ear pressed close against the stone slab at the temples entrance.
Kat blinks at her.
“Of course magic has a sound,” Giulia says, her voice becoming defensive. “Magic derives its nature from the Powers and the Powers have imbued the cosmos with the Music of the Spheres that guides the movement of all things that exist. Ergo, magic is music, too.”
“I didn’t say anything,” Kat notes.
“You didn’t have to,” Giulia says. “I’ve worked with enough other adventurers to realise they think the way I do things is weird.”
“I don’t think it’s weird,” Kat protests. “I’ve just never seen anyone, um, listen to magic before. But, then, I don’t really understand magic, you know.”
“It’s a perfectly valid magicological theory!” Giulia insists. “People have only known about the Music of the Spheres for six thousand years.”
“I believe you,” Kat insists. “And, hey, if it works, it works, right?”
“Thank you,” Giulia says.
“You’re welcome?”
Clearly, listening to the magic does work, because it’s not long before Giulia touches several of the engravings on the stone slab and the whole thing begins to slowly groan open.
“How did you do that?” Kat asks.
“I. Listened. To. The. Magic,” Giulia repeats. “It’s not the way other magicologists would do it, but my way is better.”
She takes off her glasses and wipes them on her tunic.
“Now,” she says. “Let’s go be the first people to explore this temple in three thousand years, shall — Ow!”
“What happened?” Kat asks.
“I poked myself in the eye with my glasses when I was trying to put them back on,” Giulia groans. “Ugh. I can’t believe I’ve done that twice today!”
Still covering her eye with her hand, Giulia turns to Kat.
“You should go first,” she says.
“Why?” Kat asks. “Is it dangerous. Are there traps?”
“Probably not,” Giulia answers. “It should be safe. Temples like this usually don’t have defences beyond the seals keeping them shut.”
“What’s the issue, then?” Kat asks cautiously.
“It’s been three thousand years,” Giulia says. “There’s probably all kinds of dust and cobwebs in there. I don’t like getting dust and gross stuff like that on me.”
“No offence,” Kat offers. “But you don’t really seem to be all that much like your sister. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not like my sister.”
“Carlotta locked me in a shed when we were kids,” Giulia mutters. “But then the door got stuck, so I couldn’t get out even after Mom and Dad yelled at her…”
We’re going to meet Giulia’s sister Carlotta in a few hours in the next chapter of The Valley of Appraisal.
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