Erik was in a towering rage.

Moonlight drifted down from the council room's high windows and onto the rose quartz floor. Damon and Valerio were standing in front of the king with their heads bowed. Erik's earth magic rippled off him as if it were an earthquake, shaking the sapphire chandelier and rattling the long table where the council members usually convened. The bookcases were vibrating so hard that a dozen books fell to the floor with a crash.

If he doesn't get his power under control, he'll break something, Damon thought. His stomach squirmed as if he'd swallowed a small snake. A rattling torch bracket threatened to set a small tapestry alight.

The king paced, wearing a dark green suit that was embroidered with maple leaves. His gold and emerald crown glinted in the candlelight.

Valerio wore his usual black uniform, his hair was elegantly styled, and his face was schooled into a neutral look. He seemed collected as if it were any other day, except sweat dotted his upper lip.

Damon wore a pale blue tunic and brown pants. He nursed a headache because he'd been in his room trying to sort out the aftermath of Osiah Elwyn's execution. A distant cousin of Elwyn's, named Claude, claimed that he should inherit the erudium mines because he was Elwyn's heir. Claude had further complicated matters when he informed the faeries, who worked the erudium mines, that under Auron's rule they'd have to work longer hours with less pay. As a result, the faeries went on strike. Claude also threatened to take the matter to the High Court, but unfortunately for him it was a fruitless endeavor because the king's word was the law that wiped out all other laws. Damon was debating whether he should arrest Claude or have him paid off, when a messenger had interrupted him and said that the king wanted him in the council room.

"So, that grimoire has been missing for months and you've nothing to show for it. Pray tell, what have you been doing this entire time if not what I've asked?" Erik sneered.

Damon ignored the gibe. "I honestly believe that Aeperos Court has taken it."

"That's impossible." Erik stopped pacing.

Valerio gave the king a furtive glance. "I apologize, Your Majesty. We will keep searching."

Erik's nostrils flared and the chandelier shook so hard that it was in danger of falling from the ceiling. The king looked away and the shaking ceased as he controlled his power.

Frustration stirred in Damon's chest. "Father, if you honestly believe that Aeperos Court doesn't have it then the only alternative is that the grimoire had a spell on it that made it self-destruct. I did a bit of research and found that the Mother Coven used to place self-destructive curses on their grimoires in case the owner died or if the grimoires were stolen."

"If you'd done your research properly." The king's voice was like acid. "Then you'd know that the Maiden Coven never destroyed their grimoires ... All this incompetence on top of Elwyn's betrayal makes me think I should've had the contract extended to our court."

Damon's stomach sank. Incompetent. It was a word that he hated more than anything. Especially when it came from his father. He looked down at the floor, slightly confused as to what contract the king was talking about. But he knew better than to say anything. Keeping quiet was what was best when Erik was in a temper. Plus, he didn't want to give the king more cause for disappointment.

"At least then, Elwyn wouldn't have betrayed us." Erik turned to Valerio. "Get me Andras, perhaps he may have answers about the grimoire that you can't seem to locate."

Valerio's mouth tightened, but nevertheless he remained silent as he bowed and then walked out of the room.

Damon kept his eyes on his boots, posture stiff.

Erik settled himself into an opulent chair that was cushioned with red velvet. It was in front of the bookcase that had rattled only moments ago. The books that had fallen were splayed onto the floor with their pages bent. Damon knew that his father would never put them back on the shelf. He would leave the books on the floor for a servant to find because Erik was above such menial things like picking up after himself. Damon was debating whether he should take a seat, when the council room door creaked open and footsteps echoed towards them.

"Your Majesty." Andras glided forward and bowed, wafting a hint of lavender. He was a tall and willowy fae who wore pale robes that were edged with the gold symbols of the Seer Sect.

Damon's eyes narrowed. He didn't like the new High Seer. He had a bad feeling about Andras when he'd first met him and it wasn't just because he caught Andras trying to coax a drunk lady into his chambers after the Autumn Ball. No. It was because Andras was the youngest High Seer in the history of Elysia. For someone that young to be made a seer was highly suspicious because seers were granted their titles after at least a hundred years of training and religious dedication. Golight faelings who had The Sight, the ability to have visions, were grouped by their birth years and sent off to live at the Seer Sect, a large pale stone priory that was on a remote island in the Elysian Sea. The Seer Sect trained these novices so that they could lead Golights in the teachings of the Goddess. To prove their eligibility as a seer the novices were put through a range of horrible tasks, like the one that assessed the accuracy of their visions by having novices pick out the safest meal amongst a selection of poisoned dishes. Another one had the novices taken out to the middle of the Elysian Sea where they were forced to swim back to the island to prove that the elements favored their survival, those who were water users were given a different task so as not to cheat their way to survival. The Grand Seers thought that the survivors of these tasks were deemed worthy candidates by the Goddess. The novices' devotion to the Goddess was something that they were also marked on. Most novices showed their dedication through daily prayer, or through food and flower offerings. However, Andras had proven his loyalty by sacrificing a human he'd stolen from the Mortal Realm. The Grand Seers had thought his sacrifice showed great dedication because the changing of the seasons was fueled by royal fae blood, so it was considered to be a higher offering to the Goddess instead of flowers or prayer. There was only one seer per birth year and the title usually went to the novice with the highest marks. In Andras's case all ten novices in his birth year had mysteriously died in their sleep and the Grand Seers had thought that their deaths was an act of the Goddess.

"Like my predecessor before me, Your Majesty, I cannot see the grimoire or who took it. But nevertheless, I will keep searching for it," Andras's voice had a youthful lilt to it that belied his sixty years of age.

"Will Morgana still fulfill the prophecy even though we've taken measures to ensure she's weakened?"

Andras's head lowered, and his lilac hair fell forward like a curtain. A moment passed, then he lifted his head. The pale blue of Andras's eyes had turned a milky white, a sign that he was in the throes of a vision. He frowned, eyes darting all over the room, as if he were searching for something.

Despite his dislike of the High Seer, Damon took a step closer. He was curious as to whether Morgana would still be the end of the Golights. Every time Damon thought about the prophecy he felt ill as if something gnawed on his intestines. He didn't want his people to suffer because of Morgana.

"Well?" Erik murmured.

"Golah Court will fall ..."

Everyone stiffened.

"And what of Morgana? Is it still her that does it?" Erik's voice was sharp.

But Andras had run into a problem. He couldn't see Morgana; all he could see was Golah Court in ruins whenever he tried to think of her. He saw riots in the street, fae and faeries bloodied, buildings destroyed. He heard screams. Andras's jaw clenched and a cold sweat broke across the back of his neck.

"No, she is weakened, Your Majesty. The measures we've taken are working," he lied. This was the first time in Andras's life that he'd failed a vision. He hadn't considered his blindness for the grimoire a failure because Balthazaar hadn't seen it either. Andras had assumed that it was the Goddess's will that stopped them from seeing the grimoire. But to not see the witch, now that was troubling because it suggested Andras had a blind spot, and a seer with a blind spot was useless. The Seer Sect made sure each novice could have a vision about every creature in Elysia, those who couldn't were sent home. Obviously, they never assessed the novices to see if they could see a witch because they were extinct. Or so Andras had thought. As soon as Andras was made High Seer, Erik had informed him that Morgana was a witch and had sworn him to secrecy about her identity. Andras was surprised because the Goddess had never revealed Morgana's identity to him. He'd been told that Balthazaar had visions about her, so he'd assumed he'd have no trouble predicting her future. However, he hadn't realized that the reason Morgana's identity hadn't been revealed to him was because he may have a blind spot for witches.

"Balthazaar said Morgana would make this court fall but if she's under control then what is it that threatens Golah Court?" Erik barked.

There was a pause and then, "Your Majesty, the Goddess has decided to keep this knowledge from us for now. But I have no doubt that she will let us know at the opportune moment."

The king strode forward and Andras's eyes returned to their pale blue color.

Erik's teeth flashed. "See to it that the Goddess will have the answers ready, or you may end up just like Balthazaar."