38 The Components Of Blood (1/2)
”Yes,” Ash growled.
He knew his powers were weak but he didn't like being reminded of that fact. If he had been stronger he would have been able to prevent the slaughter of his coven.
Jezebel laughed. ”No need to get defensive! I am merely repeated what you said back to you. I may have a theory or two but this is all speculation. I do not have nearly enough information about your fairy friend to do more than guess. Vampires practice blood magic but have you ever thought of the components of blood?”
The components of blood…a few members of his coven who specialized in testing the boundaries of blood magic and creating new spells did research into that but Ash had never been interested so it went in one ear and out the other. Why care about something he was terrible at?
Ruby had told him the other day that human blood had high salt content due to the nature of their diets. That was about the extent of his knowledge.
”…not my area of expertise.”
Jezebel pulled the brim of her hat down on both sides of her head in agitation. ”You really are hopeless! Let me spell it out for you: red blood cells make up 45%, white blood cells make up less than 1%, and the other 55% is made of plasma.
”Plasma is primarily made of water but also consists of other things including mineral ions. And red blood cells contain iron, yet another mineral. I suspect your friend has control over minerals since she is able to assist your blood magic and has some power over rocks, which are made of minerals.”
Mineral control? Weren't fairy powers supposed to be ridiculously specific? That wasn't specific at all!
That explained one mystery but none of the others. Ash frowned and Jezebel leaned against the counter with a concerned expression on her face.
”You said she makes money seemingly out of thin air and has pearlescent wings. The applications of mineral control would be endless…including manipulating gemstones. If her power truly extends that far it's no wonder she ran away.
”That is a dangerous gift to have indeed. My guess is that she hides her appearance so no one will guess her powers and be able to take advantage of them. Her ability to change her glamour at will may be a natural defense mechanism.”
Jezebel gave him a sharp glare and put her hands on her hips, realizing she had said too much. ”You aren't going to take advantage of them, are you?”
Ash was insulted. He would never! Ruby trusted him and he had already betrayed her trust by accident. He hadn't wanted to know everything but since it tied in to the most likely reason why she affected his magic it ended up happening anyway.
If her power truly was mineral control, this girl had the potential to take over the earth itself. It would perfectly explain why she lived in fear.
Ruby hadn't asked for this. All the things that were different about her had been the product of random chance.
Ash's protectiveness toward her surged even though he had no right to want to take care of her. Even more so than before because he had breached her trust by speculating about all of this.