A second of stunned silence greeted Angel’s revelation before everyone burst into chatter, all talking over each other. It was impossible to tell what any individual person was saying. Somewhere on the other side of ~ look at her. “Angel, could you really not have worded that a little more delicately? Seriously, you can’t just drop things on us like that.”

“I was feeling dramatic,” Angel said unapologetically. “And I’m pretty sure I’m right. Mostly.”

“You aren’t even sure?” Alison asked, her mouth dropping open. “You can’t say that kind of thing if you aren’t absolutely sure!”

“Well, I’m most-solutely sure. I think the ambient magic in the world has seriously decreased for some reason. It’s still there, just much less than there once was.”

Vanessa’s eyebrows twitched upward. “That would explain why some artifacts work while others don’t, even when they’re in good shape. It isn’t that they’re just completely useless without Old World Magic, they just don’t have enough magic to activate.”

“Exactly. It makes sense. Think about it – that’s why New World Magic still functions. People have been wondering how we managed to keep the ability to do magic but not actually apply it to anything without pressure.”

Tilly and Vanessa exchanged a glance, their eyes growing wide.

“Buried Gods, that actually makes sense,” Tilly muttered.

“There’s more,” Angel continued, growing more excited with every word. “Magical energy gathers around Catacombs, especially powerful ones. So, hypothetically, true Old World Magic is still completely accessible to the normal person, even right now. They just need to be near a high concentration of magic.”

“But how come Alison can cast it normally?” Vanessa asked. “She’s just like everyone else. Is she somehow gathering magical energy around her like a beacon or something?”

“No, my eyepiece would have picked that up if it were the case,” Angel replied, shaking his head and pursing his lips. “She’s drawing it in right as she casts, and to such a degree that she can’t use runecraft. It’s like she’s flipflopped, going so far over to the other side that she can’t use runes normally at all because there’s so much ambient magic around her when she casts.”

“I don’t have any special artifacts, if that’s what you’re wondering,” Alison said. “I’m an orphan, remember? All I’ve got is what I was born with.”

The hair on Angel’s hair stood on end. Vanessa noticed the change in his expression and glanced over, frowning.

“What is it?”

Angel pulled his eyepiece down and examined Alison closely. There wasn’t any magic around her. He squinted, pacing in a circle around the confused girl and trying to dial up the eyepiece’s sensitivity. There wasn’t much variation in it, so it was largely a futile exercise, but she didn’t show a single fleck of energy.

He studied his own arms, which were lit with a dim glow from the ambient magic coursing through his chest and arm. Vanessa was next, and while she had almost no glow around her, it was still there when he focused with all his might.

Tilly was no different. Hers was a fair bit stronger due to the Star Fragment within her. The rest of the camp was also lit with scattered traces of magical energy from all the choppers and armored guards around them.

But Alison had nothing. Even though she’d just casted multiple powerful spells that should have at least left a trace or two of magic on her, she was devoid of energy.

“What is it?” Alison asked worriedly. “You look like you ate a snake.”

“Orphan,” Angel muttered. “Did you ever meet your parents?”

“Not my original ones,” Alison replied, frowning. “Just my foster ones, and they don’t know the slightest bit about magic. They just wanted to try to help me make a better life for myself. Why?”

“How were you found? Just dropped off at their doorstep?” Angel pressed.

Alison shrugged helplessly. “I honestly have no idea. Are you implying my parents have something to do with this, like they were Reawakening members or something?”

“No,” Angel said, shaking his head. “They weren’t Reawakening members – there hasn’t truly been a Reawakening in years. Only an extension of Soul’s plans. Alison, have you ever been seriously hurt?”

“That’s a very worrying question to ask someone,” Vanessa said slowly. “Angel, can you tell us what you’re thinking?”

“You just said not to blurt giant revelations out if I’m not certain about them.”

“I think we can make an exception. I’ve changed my mind,” Tilly said irritably. “Come on, out with it!”

“This is one that I really don’t want to be wrong about,” Angel said. “I don’t want to be right either, for that matter. But I’m afraid we’re going to have to test.”

“Test what?” Alison asked. “You need to stab me for some reason?”

“No!” Tilly exclaimed. “I mean, there’s no way Angel was actually implying that.”

“Actually, that’s just about what I was implying,” Angel admitted, rubbing the back of his head. “Look, if I’m wrong, I’ll be glad. But I need to find out, because if I’m right, I know exactly why Soul tried to capture Alison.”

Alison swallowed. “I’m not that high level, a stab wound isn’t going to heal immediately.”

“Angel isn’t going to stab you,” Tilly said, crossing her arms.

“Actually, I’m pretty sure he is,” Vanessa said, studying Angel’s features closely. “I’ve seen that expression on his face before.”

“It’s fine,” Alison said, drawing a shaky breath. “I trust Angel.”

“So do I,” Tilly snapped. “That doesn’t mean I want him stabbing holes in me.”

“Tilly,” Alison said, staring at the other girl. “It’s okay.”

Tilly blinked, then swallowed and nodded. “Right. Your magical energy will heal it.”

“I won’t use a giant sword,” Angel said, sending a command to his stiff right arm. The metal shimmered, extending from his forearm and forming into a long, thin needle. “And honestly, I’m hoping you won’t feel it much at all.”

“That’s a pretty big needle,” Tilly said suspiciously. “I’m pretty sure I’d feel it.”

“Then it’s a good thing you’re not the one I’m poking,” Angel replied. “Hold still, Alison. I am sorry about this, but I need–”

“To know,” Alison finished. “I know. You can’t leave anything related to Old World Magic unchecked.”

“Right,” Angel said, his face darkening for a moment. “This will be over quickly. You should heal within a minute. Just don’t move.”

He reached forward, pressing the point of the needle against the right half of her chest. For a moment, he paused, unease swelling within him. A mixture of trepidation and disgust at himself for stabbing his own pupil reared its head, but he mercilessly crushed it.

Angel slid the makeshift weapon in. Alison gritted her teeth and let out a whimper of pain as the point bit her, but the wound was mercifully small. Angel pressed more, delving deeper into her flesh until –

Clink.

Everyone froze, staring at Angel’s still hand.

“Alison?” Tilly asked.

“I – I don’t know,” Alison muttered. “Was that inside me?”

Angel moved the needle back slightly and pushed it forward again. The metallic noise repeated, just loud enough for their ears to pick up. Goosebumps rushed across his skin despite the hot day and he drew the point out of Alison, flicking the blood off it and sending a command to return his arm to its previous state.

“It’s not her fault,” Angel said before anyone else could speak. “I strongly suspect she didn’t know. Even Soul didn’t know until she cast magic in front of him.”

“Know what?” Vanessa demanded.

“I wasn’t the only one Soul worked on,” Angel said. “Heart can create perfect body replicas of people. I think the Reawakening were prototypes. Attempts to create someone that could use Old World Magic, perhaps to access it and somehow assure its destruction now that it’s so scarce. And I don’t think he stopped at the Reawakening. He kept experimenting.”

“You think Soul made Alison?” Vanessa asked in disbelief. “But the timeline – oh. She would have been born a few years after you.”

“Shortly before Soul found me,” Angel agreed. “He probably had so many attempts that he didn’t even recognize Alison. Who knows how many failed experiments he made, tossing them aside when they failed to come into fruition. But Alison wasn’t a failure at all – he just didn’t spend enough time working on her. I suspect Alison possess some very extensive Magitech within her that gathers magical energy when she tries to use it, turning her into a temporary Catacomb core for a few seconds.”

“But why would he just abandon her?” Tilly asked. “With all that Magitech, wouldn’t he at least take it back? I mean, if you’re right, I’m glad he didn’t, but it doesn’t really add up.”

“Maybe he never planned to abandon me,” Alison muttered. “If Angel is right, what if it just took time for my body to really adapt to my power? He might have done this with dozens of people, then waited to see if anyone became capable of Old World Magic. If he can make bodies, couldn’t he have spies anywhere? Literally anyone could be working for him.”

The sand scuffed behind Angel. They all spun as Daliah strode over to join them, her brow furrowed in a scowl.

“There you all are. Any news?” Daliah asked. “We’ve got a lot of work to do. The less time we waste, the better. Who knows how long we’ve got before Soul comes back.”