Celestine flexes her hands into fists and straightens out her fingers, testing the strength her new power brings. It has changed little except for the thickness in her skull as it's slowly packing with more and more information about holding a descendant's power. Except for the few journals in the satchel slung along her chest, she doesn't have all the information she needs to use this power to its extent.

Limitless. The power Celestine now holds will grant her limitless in the ways of magic, and nothing will stop her from fully taking advantage of this. When this is over, when they find a way to use a spell on Roux and get the king's influence out of her head, Celestine will go back to Lona and learn everything she can, down to the last shrivel of information.

She's never felt more excited in her life. The entire world feels open to her now like nothing can stop her, and not only does the power feel limitless—Celestine does too. She views the world with a renounced sense of opportunity. The journals in her satchel are untouched, but she can't wait to dive into them and learn the most important things Luna wanted her to remember.

It's all written, from the smallest of spells to the largest.

They cleared the Oxpea Mountains days ago and are now heading east, back in the direction of the capital. The only thing different about the journey back is their new companion, Citlali, who tagged along. She's had enough of Lona, apparently, and wanted to see what hell Mailan had gotten itself into. Two witches of ground in one city will not bode well for the structures—or the sanity of anyone aware.

Dalis walks in the middle of them, checking Celestine every now and then. Out of everyone, she's the wariest about the transformation. Not only is giving up a power for another extremely dangerous, but going about it, seemingly without a care, is even more destructive. And Celestine has put little thought into it.

Changing herself into another witch wasn't a difficult process at all. It happened within minutes; Luna had the spell ready and was more than eager to get the switch started, taking the power of gardens for herself and handing Celestine an entire bucket full of skills and magic, so much she could hardly keep up with her abilities.

Slowly, she'd learn how to use everything. Relief will begin once Roux is secured from the king's control and moved safely somewhere else so no one can ever think of hurting her again. This is Celestine's motivation, she will allow no other alternative. She didn't take this magic, only to watch her sister die. She must—more than anything—she must make this work.

"Isn't Arego around here somewhere?" Citlali asks to break the silence they've been experiencing all day. No one has anything to say, they're too busy thinking about what this transformation might do when brought into the business of the capital. What the king might do if recognizes the ancient power within his grasp.

"We'll reach it by sunrise tomorrow," Dalis says. "We'll stop shortly and rest for the night. Those mountains were treacherous, my legs are still sore."

Scaling the Oxpea Mountains hadn't been the worst of their problems. They had to sneak around Kliat Mines to make it there in the first place, the only place crueler than Fosux and the only place brave enough to kidnap anyone walking nearby and force them to work. Often, residents of Lona are never heard again once they travel in that direction and stray from their homes where no one can hear their protests.

Now that they're safely on the other side of that, Celestine can say she's more than glad. The world is a dangerous place, and although she had wanted to explore the kingdom in the past, she's seen enough. There is plenty of untouched, uncharted territory she'll never see in this lifetime, but...she's fine with that. The world will always be there, as will she with this power.

Even if Luna said her power of garden guaranteed an Age Lock, Celestine finds that hard to believe. That was never given to her, and the other witches told her to prepare for a disappointment. With Roux being an immortal and nearly everyone else she cares about as the same, Celestine doesn't want to die young while they're living their best years.

By taking this power, Celestine grants herself a long life. She won't have to worry anymore, not about her lifespan or whether others will frown upon her for being weak. For the power of an ancient is not weak, it's as strong as they come, and people will be fools not to fear her. With fear comes respect—Celestine desires the fractions of what she can receive from others.

Thinking of Arego, she planned at the beginning of this journey to go through it. Half a year has passed since anyone has gone there, Celestine included, and while she avoided going near it on their way to Lona, she's not going to miss her chance at witnessing her past life. How she's changed since then.

She wants to see her old clothes, where she used to sleep, the desk her father built for her along with every other piece of furniture in the home. The destruction that happened there was caused by Renit, yes, and Celestine knows of how much her sister should hate the prince for ever thinking of doing that.

Of all people, Roux is the one to never hold a grudge. She's always been fearful of their father's mortal life, Celestine remembers. As a child, Roux was very aware of death and what would happen to mortal witches with weak powers. They'd die—they'd live no longer than humans and they'd die—fading away.

Knowing her father was mortal, and being aware of how short and fragile his life was, Roux never took him for granted. But Celestine was also aware of her sister's other values; those that made her unique. She believes everyone deserves a second chance, especially Renit. He may have acted on destroying their home, but as she's brainwashed now, he was, too. Just in a different way.

It took a long time for Celestine to understand that, and she didn't until she witnessed the pure smile on her sister's face and wondered how something so beautiful didn't happen more often. In Renit's presence, that smile showed itself more and more, until it was a routine to watch her sister smile and bask in the way Roux lit up every room she walked into.

There are things Renit should never be forgiven before, Celestine knows that. But life is too short—too fragile—to spend it hating someone with a good heart that found themselves in a bad place. Yes, he destroyed their home, but Celestine believes that the destruction of Arego opened opportunities for the entire kingdom. The rebellion began to rise against the throne, and it's stronger now.

At least, Celestine hopes it is. She's put all her faith into believing those rebels, including Bren, a witch she hasn't seen since that last day in Arego, will finally take the king off his throne. Silas should lead this kingdom to a brighter future, not someone willing to kill anyone and everything that moves, for no reason other than them having lesser powers. He may want a kingdom of strong witches, but the way he's going about it is not right.

Build in a way that draws others to the kingdom, don't make them cower in fear. Celestine shakes her head, unable to comprehend how that fact isn't clear.

"I think I want to see Arego again," she says quietly. The thought of life being short pops back into her head, springing to attention.

"Are you sure?" Dalis asks warily. "It's completely fine, but I don't want it to stir up any memories. That might be hard for you."

Celestine shrugs and shifts her stare to the two women accompanying her. She can already tell Citlali will be a great new addition to their group; Dalis has already gone leaps and bounds to prove her loyalty, she's given everything to help aid them in getting Roux back, even if that means risking her entire life to do it.

"Arego was my home for a long time." She places her hand against Dalis's shoulder. "I want to show you memories of my life, and of Roux's. And, if it's all right with you two, I'd like to officially lay my parents to rest on the cliffsides. I want to bury something that belonged to them."

Dalis's eyes soften as she grasps Celestine's hand and holds tight. "I'm honored to be there with you." Her umber skin glows in the evening hues spreading over the blue skyline. Celestine has seen nothing more beautiful than the combination of Dalis and sunset. The witch of water continues to impress her.

Behind them, Citlali scratches at the back of her head. "I may not know your parents or much of anything else about Arego, but I know it meant a lot for many people," she offers. "I, as well, would love to accompany you and learn about your efforts to help the kingdom."

Celestine swallows back the tears in her eyes so she doesn't start bawling in front of them. Not while they still have so much ground to cover. Arego is close, but not enough they can continue on through the night and have enough hours to sleep by the time they've made it there. Celestine wants to approach it in the sunlight and witness the remnants of that horrible night for herself.

More than anything, besides making it to Arego and besides finding sharing this power with the world, she wants her sister back. Esaria, life itself, isn't the same without Roux at her side. After so many years of competing against each other and bidding for their parents' attention, Celestine wants to focus on what she can do to make things better.

Roux didn't grow up with as much trust or appreciation—she was shoved aside to make room for Celestine's power while hers behaved out of control, the same as Roux did. When the power fought for attention, the soul did, too, and that's partly why the magic was so difficult to control.

The power of ground was tired of being ignored, as was Roux. Realizing that now, Celestine wants to fix everything. Her sister deserves the world, and so much more, to where, if she could, Celestine would wrap up happiness in a bow and hand it to her sister without a second thought.

But that is not always easy. With this power, it'll be a fresh start. She doesn't feel much change underneath her skin, but she stands taller, her mind is clearer, and she views the kingdom through a new perspective. This world will take nothing away from her, Celestine will not bow down to the immortal witches while she's forced to remain as nothing more than a witch of the gardens.

That power gave her the start she needed, a birth of innocence and beauty. It's been too long, and it's time for Celestine to become something else. Witches don't get this opportunity every day, and she will take full advantage of what's been handed to her on a silver platter.