The Shadowglass (The Bone Witch, #3)(67)

“That is, word for word, the same line in a book I once took from a Faceless woman,” I said.

“Words are shapeshifters. They take different forms to suit different motivations. The word for blue can be sifted and changed until it spells red. We share similar teachings with the Faceless, but what they take and learn from those teachings are different from the messages we treasure. It is why words are important, and it is why they can be dangerous.”

“Do you know then where the First Harvest is located? Is it at the Ring of Worship?”

The man nodded approvingly. “We believe so. But no asha, Dark or otherwise, has ever seen it and returned alive. Only Rashnu the Just survived, and only because he was wise enough to touch nothing.”

“So the only way is to acquire shadowglass?”

“A test is required, to prove one’s worthiness.”

“Why is this necessary?” Khalad asked.

“The road to treachery and malice has always been cobbled with the intentions of those who thought to only do what was best.”

I put my hand over my heartsglass instinctively.

“There is no shame in a black heart, Lady Tea.” Agnarr’s fingers caressed the air. Something shimmered on his chest: a heartsglass of impenetrable black.

Likh gasped.

“There are many myths regarding black heartsglass. It is not a sign of corruption, as many kingdoms would believe. It is a sign of strength and power, the ability to harness your talents beyond the average runebinder’s. Very few can manifest the black, though it is more common among Dark asha and Faceless. The Dark runes are the strongest of the magics, after all.” He drew another rune, and the outlines of a strange, ever-branching tree shimmered into view.

“What is that?” Likh asked, entranced.

“The rune to summon shadowglass. You can create it before the First Harvest as many times as you desire, but without shadowglass, it will refuse your call each time. To acquire shadowglass, you must first abide by our test. To you, seeking Hollow Knife’s path: present yourself to the mountain for judgment.”

Silently, I cursed Aenah for being right. “What is this mountain that I must pass?” I felt Kalen’s hand on my arm, but I persisted. “What is it that I need to do?”

In response, Lord Agnarr turned his face to stare out the window at the looming figure of Stranger’s Peak.

Likh’s mouth fell open. “Tea has to climb the mountain?”

“No, Lady Likh. Our men and women scale Stranger’s Peak frequently to gather runeberries to sell. It is a difficult task, but it is not impossible. To pass the test, Lady Tea must not go up the mountain; instead, she must go through it.”





“You can ask me a question, if you’d like,” she said.

She was Lord Agnarr’s daughter, called Solveiga, Strength of the Sun. It was a strange name for someone who has spent most of her years in winter, under the shadow of a mountain. “We prize what we do not always have,” she responded, and I could not refute her logic.

Here, sitting on her horse in ungainly furs as we traveled to southern Odalia with the rest of the Kion army, she looked at ease with the world. I envied this skill of hers—it was one I had never been able to master.

“Did your father tell the Dark asha the secrets of shadowglass?” I spotted Lord Agnarr riding with Lord Fox, the two engaged in deep conversation. The asha’s brother seemed troubled, but they were too far away for their words to reach us.

She nodded at her father. “That was the same question your general asked earlier. As Lady Tea’s familiar, Lord Fox will die should she complete the spell. His courage is commendable, but he has no reason to worry. A touch of the First Harvest upon his own, and he will be saved.”

I said, “He didn’t want his sister to take shadowglass. He knows she will die from it.”

“She’s been dying for a long time, milord. There is a reason why we keep shadowglass a secret. There is a reason why Faceless seek us out despite not truly understanding the tenets of Hollow Knife. We have been threatened by the Faceless more times than they have threatened kingdoms, and still they balk at rising against us. Once we are gone, their hopes cannot come to fruition. We cannot be compelled, and their holds on daeva have always been tenuous—not as complete as Lady Tea’s. Should she join darksglass and lightsglass with the First Harvest, then she too becomes a creature of magic. Do you not see what happens next?”

“If all magic dies,” I began slowly, and then understood, “so will she.”

“It is a strong possibility. I suspect she has realized the same, and that is why she makes many plans. She has two familiars now, doesn’t she?”

“Lord Kalen would rather share her fate than gain another lifetime without her, milady.”

“Perhaps. We are wary of those who come seeking shadowglass. We trust the mountain to judge the worthy. Lady Tea will become like a goddess herself. She could choose to divest herself of those powers—perhaps sacrificing her life in the process—or use them to hold dominion over us as a god. Though the mountain rejects those who choose the latter. That is why so many runebinders fail its test. That is why so many Faceless are desperate for another way.”



A yell rose from the vanguard. Clouds of dust swirled as weapons were drawn. Lord Fox swore loudly and rode on ahead, the rest of the soldiers at his heels.