Legacy (Keeper of the Lost Cities #8) - Shannon Messenger Page 0,93

questions, hoping that something might help them figure out what to do with this new information.

So far, including the question that Biana had just added, they had:

Did Lady Zillah know about the connection between shadowflux and magsidian?

Are there any other physical manifestations of shadowflux that they should be aware of?

What happens if magsidian comes into contact with shadowflux?

Would any of the Shade skills that Tam had learned be more dangerous around magsidian?

Could magsidian weaken Tam’s ability if it were cut the right way?

“Do you think we should ask either the Council or the dwarves to give Lady Zillah a piece of magsidian to experiment with?” Wylie asked after Sophie had finished reading their list out loud again.

“Probably,” Sophie told him. “But I don’t know if it’ll do much good. She knows a lot about shadowflux, but she can’t call for it or control it herself.”

Still, that was why Sophie had already taken the time to talk to Grady, hail Councillor Oralie, and have Flori tell Mr. Forkle what they’d learned from Nubiti. And they’d all wondered the same thing Sophie had—the one question she’d managed to ask Nubiti before she disappeared underground again: Why had Nubiti waited so long to tell anyone about this?

Apparently, that had been King Enki’s decision.

Nubiti had only made the connection between magsidian and shadowflux a couple of days earlier, when she’d overheard Mr. Forkle sharing his fears about Tam and the dwarven city with Sophie. And she’d gone straight to her king to see what he wanted her to do. But he’d disagreed that there was any cause for concern. He felt that the cuts they’d made to repair the damage in their existing magsidian network had not only fixed the sabotage, but had enhanced their overall security so well that it more than addressed any potential threats that might arise from the stone’s origin. So the last thing he wanted was to have the elves demanding explanations for how the system worked. He preferred to keep that information classified.

He’d actually ordered Nubiti not to share her theories with anyone in the Lost Cities. And she’d been trying her best to follow that order—but she was also worried that King Enki had spent too long underground, away from the dangers thriving on the planet’s surface, and was severely underestimating their enemies. So she’d decided that if any elves reached out to her, she’d lead them to the information. That way she wasn’t disobeying, but she was still passing along a warning in case the connection between shadowflux and magsidian was significant. And while Nubiti hadn’t asked Sophie to cover for her whenever she and her friends met with King Enki, she’d looked immeasurably relieved when Sophie had promised to make it seem like they’d made the discovery on their own—since, in a way, they had.

“Anyone have anything else to add?” Sophie asked, scanning their list again and wishing it were longer.

“I think that covers it pretty well,” Dex assured her. “Especially since her answers will probably make them come up with additional questions while they’re there.”

“And you don’t think we should all go?” Sophie had to ask.

When they’d decided to split up for the meeting, the conversation hadn’t felt nearly as important.

“Ugh, don’t go getting all ‘I have to be a part of everything’ now,” Stina grumbled.

“This isn’t about me,” Sophie insisted. “I just think it might be good to have all of us there, since any of us could catch something the others don’t.”

“Eh, I think that’ll freak Lady Zillah out,” Stina argued. “You heard her—she already sounded super suspicious. And I can’t really blame her for that. It’s gotta be weird having your only prodigy working with the enemy—”

“Tam’s not working with them,” Biana interrupted. “He’s basically their prisoner.”

Stina shrugged. “Just because he’s not doing it by choice doesn’t mean he’s not still helping them. And hey—I’m not judging. I’d probably make the same decision if the Neverseen were threatening my parents. But that doesn’t change the fact that every time he cooperates, he’s technically contributing to their plans. And I’m sure Lady Zillah’s not happy that the stuff she taught Tam might be used to hurt someone—or lots of someones, depending on what the Neverseen are getting ready for. So I’m betting she’s a little nervous to answer questions about Tam’s lessons. And if five of us show up when she’s only agreed to meet with two of us, I think she’ll freak out and refuse to cooperate.”

“Stina’s right,” Biana agreed, crinkling