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to it. She knew it must be dangerous, but she couldn't shake off the feeling that it wasn't dangerous to her. Finally, the need to keep it with her overcame all the more rational arguments about why she shouldn’t. She dashed around the table, reached out and carefully plucked it from the nest of broken glass. A warm tingle spread up her fingers for a moment when she touched it, and she thought it must be the remnants of the protective spells in the shattered jar. She turned and fled from the room and apartments, clutching the caeldar, pendant and letters to her chest as she headed for her own room.
     

Chapter 3
     
     
    As soon as she closed the door, she wove a sealing spell into it. She felt a little foolish for that when she turned and looked around her room. The only window was too narrow to get through and even if she did somehow manage that, it was a sheer drop from three stories up with no ledge to speak of. There was also nowhere in the room to hide, as the lower bunk of the bed was nearly on the floor. Beyond that, there was only a chest of drawers and a table and chair that served as her desk. At least no one will be able to listen in, not even with magic, she told herself.
    She went to the lower bunk and tucked the bundle of letters inside the pack she had left open there, deciding that they could wait until she had more time. She held the pendant in the palm of her hand for a moment, trying to figure out what had come over her to take it. For all she knew, that darkness might come pouring out of it again. Only the black cloud hadn't touched her, had pulled back instead and disappeared. She thought that meant she wasn't in any danger from it. She tucked the pendant into a pocket on her bag, surprised at how reluctant she was to be parted from it even that much.
    She sank to the bed and held the caeldar in both hands. Ganson had led her through a study of these ancient crystals once over a year ago, though he had never mentioned possessing one. She had thought at the time that he was indulging her interest in obscure applications of magic, but she now saw purpose in his suggestion of them. The making of caeldar was lost and few existed after so many centuries. Now they were used for only the most important messages. Because of their scarcity, she had never seen or used one before, though she knew the method for triggering it. She stared intently at the crystal, holding the image of her mentor in her mind and the sound of his voice, then let her magic infuse the thoughts. The caeldar brightened and warmed in her hands, Ganson's voice rolling out of it. The sound made her heart ache with worry over what had happened to him.
    "Dearest Fay, I have prepared this message, hoping that you will never need to hear it, but I fear that events move in such directions as to frustrate my wishes. Know that, whatever has happened to cause this caeldar to be in your hands, I felt privileged to know you and be part of your life. It has been an experience beyond my expectations when I was asked to take on this task. You are the daughter I have never had, and the source of my greatest pride in a long life that has been graced with many achievements.
    "You have asked me many times in the years since you came to Voleno why it was that the Council elected to transfer you here, a move so unusual that I know of no previous precedent for it. I have been able to avoid answering you in the past, though I think you have suspected most of my diversions and evasions on the subject. Now is the time for you to know at least some part of the story. Your father's behavior toward you came to the attention of powerful people several years after your mother's death and it caused some concern. His decisions regarding you were closely watched until it became apparent that his plans would put you in unconscionable danger. An application was made to the Council Magicia to have you transferred to another school, one far enough from Iondis and your father