Samir seemed to know where he was going, and Varajas was happy to follow. Ruan walked with Varajas, side by side as they had so many times before. His face was unreadable. Bolt trotted happily next to Samir, as though he knew they were finally on their way home. Krys flew from perch to perch, sometimes ahead, sometimes behind. They were quite the procession.

“This knife of yours, that’s what’s causing the trouble,” Samir said.

“Isn’t it always.” Varajas managed a droll tone, masking his worry. All this back and forth, in and out of memories and dreams—he couldn’t remember clearly what he’d told Samir. He wasn’t sure how much Samir had picked out of his head when they’d been sunk down in the magic. Either way, once they were all out of here, he was going to have to decide what to do about Samir and Ruan both.

Ruan’s quick glance at Varajas implied his thoughts were moving along a similar path. Light only knew what decision Ruan was going to make.

Samir didn’t seem to have any idea the questions Ruan and Varajas were struggling with. He kept talking, an easy confidence in his tone. “Everyone knew about the power you knights were guarding. By which I mean, there were rumors and stories, but no one actually knew anything. Only that there was something.”

“Some people thought the knights had sold their souls to demons,” Ruan said.

Samir snorted, as though the idea were utterly ridiculous.

Varajas had always wondered, “Do demons even buy souls? Is that a thing that happens?”

Samir ignored the question. “Most people—most wizards, I mean—were split into two camps. Those who believed you’d found a whole new kind of magic, and those who believed you had some object that was granting you this power.”

“Which camp were you in?”

Samir looked back at Varajas just long enough to roll his eyes, a clear communication that he thought Varajas should know better. “Sheluna knew it had to be an object. Magic is magic. There isn’t any ‘other’ magic for anyone to discover.”

What was the balance—Sheluna’s knowledge against Darkivel arrogance? For now, it probably didn’t matter. Sheluna had been right.

“I don’t know what Girald believed,” Samir continued. “Either way, though, he had to search the castle. If it was an object, it might still be here. If it was a new kind of magic, there might be records. What he absolutely didn’t want was anyone else poking around.”

“The magic that made everyone forget about this place,” Ruan said. “That was Girald.”

“I think so,” Samir answered. “It would make sense. He’s been working with Innokent for a long time. That would definitely be something he could do.

“But it’s the next part that would have been clever. Sidaine’s mind-maze, I think they found a new way to use it. To try to use it. Peyter tried to plug in to the ambient magic of the castle. He was looking for echoes. Clues about what had been hidden inside the walls.”

Samir swept his hand in a circle. “Instead he got this. Because your knife doesn’t want to give up its secrets, and enough of its magic is still here that it could cause trouble.”

But the confidence in his voice had slipped just a little. A few days ago, Varajas probably wouldn’t have caught it, but they’d been living in each others heads, and Varajas now knew Samir inside and out. “You think that’s it? That it’s just leftover power from the knife?”

“What else could it be?” But he still didn’t sound certain.

Samir led them back outside to the courtyard. As soon as they passed through the gate into the main yard, shadows started to stir again, rising at the edge of Varajas’s vision. He reached for his sword, but Samir simply waved his hand and the shadows settled once more.

“You’ve got this magic all figured out.” It was honestly a little unsettling, how relaxed Samir seemed to be.

“I had this magic figured out years ago,” Samir answered in a tired voice. “I just needed to remember.”

“It’s more than that.” Ruan once more traded a look with Varajas, and Varajas could see the concern moving behind his eyes. “It’s not just that you knew Sidaine’s magic. It’s that you touched the knife, somehow, all those years ago. That was part of your escape from her. You were the first one to twist the knife’s power into Sidaine’s mind-maze. You understand this because you did it first.”

Samir didn’t look back, but Varajas could see enough of his face to catch the grim smile that was his response.

On the far side of the courtyard, there was a stairway leading down under the walls of the castle. Varajas was pretty sure that didn’t actually exist in the real world. Samir walked in without hesitation, disappearing into darkness.

Varajas sighed. “Wizards,” he muttered. Then stepped into the darkness to follow.