Free Blood Prophecy: Kallen's Tale by Bonnie Lamer Page A

ago
instead of taking valuable time explaining this to her now.  I can think of
much better ways Xandra and I could be spending our time.  If I continue this
train of thought, everyone will know what I am thinking about. 
    “If she’s that good, then
how do you fight against her?” Xandra asks.
    The Angel’s lips press into
a firm line.  “Most can’t.  That is why she’s so powerful.  It takes a strong
talisman to shield you from Seductress magic.”
    “Okay, then how do I make a
talisman like that?”  Another spell?  Apparently, she did not learn her lesson
earlier.  This should be interesting.
    The Angel’s answer draws my
eyes away from Xandra.  “There is an ancient way, a way that requires a lot of
power.”  Ancient magic.  Performed by a powerful novice.  This may end up being
the end of the world for everyone.  She avoids my eyes as she says, “It is
similar to the Fairy trap your mother has set up outside.”
    “You know about that?”
Xandra asks.
    “A Witch can most often feel
the magic of another.  I felt it as I passed through it.  I didn’t know
specifically what it was meant to trap, but I reasoned that out.”  I wonder
what the tally is now for her lies.  Angels and Fairies can taste the magic of
others.  Not Witches.
    “Okay, how do I do this?”
    “You use tree magic.”
    Xandra is obviously
confused.  “What do you mean tree magic?”
    I have to try hard to keep
my face blank.  When she said ancient magic, she did not mean ancient magic of
Witches.  Or Fairies.  She meant the magic of Fallen Angels – those who chose
to fall to help Cowans survive.  This magic has been lost for millennia because,
other than the one sitting here, Angels do not choose to fall anymore.  They
felt their guidance was no longer needed, nor wanted.  So, they stopped coming. 
“Interesting,” I say and the Angel’s eyes lock with mine, daring me to tell her
secret.  I am much too curious to see this magic performed than to out her. 
    “What’s so interesting?” Xandra
asks as her mother says, “I’ve never heard of this before.”  I believe I will
keep my mouth shut and let the Angel answer these questions.  After all, it is
her secret.
    “Tree magic is for the most
part a lost art with Witches.”   The Witches did not lose it, they never had
it.  And the Angel is having a hard time keeping the guilt of her lies off her
face.
    Xandra manages to pull me in
to the conversation, after all.  “Can Fairies do tree magic?”
    That is an easy enough
question.  “No.”
    She scowls at me and I have
no idea why.  I gave her an honest answer to the question she asked.  “Do you
know what tree magic is?”
    Okay, another easy
question.  “Yes.”
    “Do you think you could use
multiple syllables?”
    Ah, she wants me to
elaborate.  But, that would bring me into lie territory and I have already
decided to let the Angel field those questions.  So, I go with, “No.”  I try
hard not to laugh when Xandra throws me a dirty look for teasing her.
    Choosing to not engage me
any farther, she asks her grandmother, “How does it work?”
    “In a forest such as this,
the roots of the trees interlace themselves.”  She laces her fingers together
as an example.  “Where these roots touch each other, the trees share their
energy with each other, working together to maintain equilibrium within the
forest.  It is possible to use this woven network to communicate a spell
amongst the trees.”
    “So, it spreads like a
virus?”  I chuckle.  Xandra is always so literal. 
    “That would be an apt
description, yes.”
    “How do you define which
trees you want the spell to travel to?”  Good question.  I would like to know
that myself.  This is going to be extremely educational for me, as well as
Xandra. 
    “That can be tricky.  Each
tree must be precisely marked.  If the circuit is not kept intact, the magic
will escape its boundaries.  That mustn’t