Grace of a Wolf by Lenaleia

Chapter 154: Grace: Arcana (I)

Lyre waits until I’m calm again, her chin still resting in her palm as she watches me.

"I don’t get it," I finally admit, scrubbing my hands over my face again. It’s not that I’m trying to hide, but just... the pressure and darkness helps me feel a little better. A little less dizzy and lost with the information thrown at me.

Anchors. Divinity. Gods. Fate...

"What don’t you get?"

"Everything. I understand what you’re saying, it just... doesn’t feel real." Like Lyre’s making up a story.

"Hmm." Her fingers tap against the table again. "Well, it’s understandable. You’ll come to know more with time, but it’s against us at the moment. More importantly, Grace, there are things you need to do, now that Chaos has opened your door."

Somehow, I know I’m not going to like whatever she has to say.

"What things?"

"Well." Cool fingers touch the back of my hands, and I pull them away from my face to blink at the rainbow-haired woman in front of me. Lyre smiles faintly. "First, you need to learn to harness your power. I hear you can see arcana now?"

I nod.

"It’s a bit fast, but I suppose I should thank Chaos for this gift, at least. Can you see it at will? Or only when you’re in the middle of your..." Her index finger swirls in the air. "...shenanigans?"

I blush.

"Only when I touch Caine. They look like golden threads."

You’re all out of order." Again with the tapping as she frowns. "Can

head. "Not exactly. I can touch it sometimes. I can’t really... stop it. I tried to squeeze it, and it worked a little." We just won’t tell her about the

never needs to see the

does it feel when you

a wiggling rope and water at

the table again. "It sounds like your perception and expression are

at her

your skin. Everything in this world is made of arcana. If you want to control it, you need to manipulate it from its basest form.

nod. "So how

density of it, or absorb more. Give it roads and direction, and it will follow your will. If you know where it’s coming from, it’s easy to

a sledgehammer to a

absorb it, and therefore it’s mine." Slowly, a faint, fuzzy ball of golden light

fingers tremble slightly. The ball of golden light hovers between Lyre’s hands, pulsing gently like a miniature sun. I squint at it, trying to see beyond what my eyes

Nothing.

human would—a weird glowing orb that shouldn’t exist but somehow does. My jaw tightens with frustration. Last night with Caine, I’d seen those golden threads so clearly. I’d touched

it?" Lyre asks, her cat-like eyes studying

is all new to

people, relying on them to keep me safe. I want power, too. At least enough to defend

I thought... after last night with Caine, I

luck—I finally discover I’m some mythical being called an Anchor, capable of influencing gods, and I can’t even see magic

far, but then I feel a little

the sound surprisingly gentle. She moves her hands forward until they’re beneath

us. As she slowly pulls her hands away, the golden ball remains, hovering just above my

"Oh!"

sensation hits immediately; it’s warm and gentle, but the heat it emits is something beyond