Maye was supposed to have been fighting on the front lines when the ritual began. Her Worldbending abilities were perfectly suited for battle; she could manipulate gravity itself, albeit temporarily, to throw soldiers from their feet en masse, and open up a flaw in the enemy lines. It was not that Maye had wanted to fight on the front lines, only that she had slowly acclimatised to the idea.

  Tana had come to expect that the world would resist their efforts after all, that they had become wise to the fact that the ritual would drain it of life. Years of excellent Player relations had come undone within the past few months; the locals of this world no longer worshipped them in the same way that they used to. Yusef’s death had been the start of that.

  Maye had been involved in drawing up the defence plans. Now that the enemy army amassed beyond their walls in such an inconceivable number, she had come to realise that such elaborate schemes would be required after all. Yet she would no longer be there to see them through, and her powers had to be unwritten for the plans.

  Tana had come to her in the night, and revealed the truth only to her. Arit was not, in fact, still away on missions. In reality, the Slayers had seen to him; it was only luck that meant the malae had made it to Auricia. So it would be Maye taking Arit’s place in the ritual—her Worldbending magicks would support the Enchantment and Divination magicks in creation a new system perfectly suited to their needs. She would be part-responsible for creating the system that made her and her kind into what they truly were: gods. With a system that prioritised their existence above all else—with a system that stopped them from ageing, or taking damage—they would live eternal lives. They would live eternal lives without fear.

  And so it was that with a mere three hours until dawn, Tana summoned her to the ritual circle. There, Tana was to take them through the ritual one final time. Though they all knew the process by now, there was no room for error. Recounting the ritual once more could certainly not hurt.

  Seven of them stood on the platform constructed on top of the Golden Palace, in the very centre of the city of Auricia. The seven magick users were around the seven points of the ritual circle that had been etched onto the platform. Maye took the place of the worldbender. Tana took the place of the healer. Elinor, who specialised in fire, would be their sorcerer. To Maye’s immediate left stood Neia, the diviner, and maybe the only person on the Council that Maye considered a friend. There was also a master of Illusion, an enchanter and a conjurer standing with them, though Maye did not know their names; until recently, all three of them had even kept their faces hidden. The master of Illusion had good reason to keep his identity unknown; since Yusef’s death, he was the only one capable of the level of Illusion magick required for this ritual. Like Maye, he had no backup.

  Tana stepped off her mark to approach the centre of the ritual circle, standing in the spot where the towers would punch through this world and into the void. They had the malae to thank for that; those disgusting creatures had been powering the towers for the last seven days. Their squeals of pain still echoed around Maye’s mind. It was a means to an end, she reminded herself, and soon this would all be history.

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  ‘This is our last rehearsal,’ Tana said, clapping her hands together. ‘I know that each of us already knows our duties, but if you will humour me, I will recount them one last time.’

  The conjurer murmured his assent.

  ‘Excellent.’ She turned on the spot, looking at each of the other six ritual members in turn. ‘Beyond the walls, our armies, and that of the Goldmarch, will keep our enemies at bay. I do not want any of you to think about the battle that rages beyond; the true battle takes place on this platform, as we seek to carve a new world for ourselves.

  ‘In the morning, the towers will have gathered enough energy from the malae and Alterra to punch a hole in this reality. This tear in the world will appear where I am standing right at this very moment. Do not, under any circumstances, stare into the void; we will all require our sanity for the task ahead. Without sight, you will pour your magicks into the void, and you will do your duty through the touch of magick alone.’

  Tana looked first to the master of Illusion, posing a question with her stare.

  ‘My magicks will lay the foundations of our new world. I will create the continents, the dirt, the mantle itself.’

  The leader of the Council nodded. ‘Good.’ She turned next to the sorcerer. ‘Elinor?’ she prompted her.

  ‘I will build upon the foundations. I will create the elements—water, fire, air—all that we will require for our new life.’

  Tana looked to the conjurer next, but he was already prepared; they had been through this multiple times before.

  ‘I will create the creatures—livestock, yes, but also those who will keep the ecosystem in check. I have created a full diagram of the ecology of our world which you will find in my quarters, Tana, if you wish to—’

  ‘Maye,’ Tana said, turning to the worldbender and cutting the conjurer off.

  She knew the answer well. ‘I will lead the creation of the system, combining my magicks with that of Neia and…’ Maye looked to the enchanter, who still didn’t reveal her name. ‘And the enchanter,’ Maye finished.

  ‘And the System itself?’ Tana prompted, just as she had before.

  ‘Will be perfectly suited to our needs. We will be immortal. Not essentially immortal, but truly immortal. I know what I need to do.’

  Neia, Maye’s diviner friend spoke up next, asking a question that had not been asked before. ‘There is no witch among us,’ she said. ‘There is none responsible for Witchcraft magicks, the only magick tree missing from our circle.’

  ‘Would you trust a witch?’ Tana asked her. Though her voice was steady, there was the sense of anger beneath the surface.

  ‘Of course not; I know what Elecon did,’ Neia replied. ‘I ask only to make sure: it is not required? When the Architects created this world, it was Witchcraft that tied all the magicks together.’

  ‘We use the malae for their innate Witchcraft,’ Tana answered. ‘We do not need a traitor in our midst.’ The Council leader’s eyes remained on Neia for a moment longer, before she sighed and turned away. ‘Are there any remaining questions?’

  ‘No, Tana,’ we all said as one.

  ‘Good. Then we will regroup here in the morning, and we will ascend.’