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Shadows parted, now knowing my commands before I could give them, and retreated to the edges of the room. Before me, a statue stood—Royion’s body encased in stone, his face still twisted with ire. He was not dead, but frozen back into his curse. My eyes shifted to see the others already on their knees, heads tilted toward me in supplication.

Unease flowed under my chest at the sight, at the well of power rising in me. It was dangerous,intoxicating.

“Does anyone else wish to defy the ‘half-breed God’? Or was this enough of a demonstration?” I spat the question down at them. Azyer’s eyes narrowed on me as if he was about to speak but Nantia’s hand clasped around his forearm, stopping him.

“You have our loyalty,” Essara said, her voice muted against the shadows still flowing around them. They retreated and light flooded into the room as she lifted her head to look at me. “What do you need us to do?”

“Stand,” I commanded. They listened without hesitation, rising to their feet as they took a half-step away from me. “We are going to Ammord and I am taking back our people. You will help me get them out, then you will burn Sethros—the House of High—until it is nothing more than dust upon the sand of Ammord and a scar on Nimbria’s earth. The war starts now.”

My eyes flickered over each of them as they nodded, clasping their arms at their backs, but stayed silent. I turned toward the door and it opened as my eyes connected with its surface, letting in the morning air, shadows pouring out of the opening as I stalked toward it. I paused at the threshold, glancing at them over my shoulder.

“I’m a kind person and I feel emotion at depths that scare even me. But do not mistake that as a weakness. My kindness grew from pain, but if I must turn that kindness into wrath I will not hesitate. I will still kill you with tears in my eyes, even if my life goes with it. Do not betray me, because I do not fear dying for this cause.” The words were gentle as they left my mouth, but the softness of them did not betray their meaning. Essara and Nantia exchange a quick glance, before nodding in understanding, the corners of their lips tilting up almost as if they were impressed. “Call your dragons and meet me at the passage. I will be waiting for you.”

Istoodattheentrance of the realm passage, my grip tightening on the daggers fastened to my chest and feeling the weight of their familiar comfort. In the distance, I could hear the peaceful murmur of waterfalls cascading down the cliff’s edge. Soon it would be drowned out by the screams of fallen warriors. The once clear waters would be stained crimson with their blood. My eyes slipped shut as I drew in a slow, deep breath, savoring the crisp air and the stillness of the world around me for what may be the last time.

I opened my eyes again to the sound of boots pressing down blades of grass and scanned the clearing. There was no one there. My ears perked, the tips of them twitching toward the sound that was growing louder, and palmed my blades. Relief billowed from my chest as Wren’s head popped over the edge of the landing and I shoved my knives back into their sheaths.

My hearing had never been so focused, so heightened. My eyes locked on Wren from across the clearing, following his movements as he strode toward me. I could see his face from here with complete clarity, every line of worry etched into his features, every bruise that marred his skin. I glanced down at my hands, expecting some physical sign of the change, but there was nothing outside of the heavy pulse of this new magic thrumming under my skin.

I released a sharp breath, dragging my eyes back to Wren as he took his final steps toward me. He shouldn’t be here; Icouldn’t put him in harm’s way. Not again. My lips parted and he threw up his hand.

“I’m going with you so there is no point in trying to convince me otherwise,” he bit out as my lips pressed back together in a hard line. “Pri is coming too, she should be here any minute with Asrai and Yenne.”

“Wren—”

“No, Cin. We are all going. It’s our family too and you can’t expect us not to do whatever it takes to get them back just because you are scared for our lives. We are all scared, every one of us. But if we die, at least we will die together.” There was no room for argument in his tone as he ran a hand through his hair and clenched his jaw.

There was a wildness to his eyes that I hadn’t seen there since Ardan passed, something in the shift of his energy that jolted my nerves into high alert.

“Hey,” I said, my voice soft as I slipped my hand into his. “Are you okay?”

His eyes didn’t meet mine. “We need to talk. There’s something I need to tell you. I should have told you sooner, but . . .” He paused, his eyes flickering to the edge of the clearing. My eyes darted over his face, shadows pulling his chin back to face me as a chill ran up my spine.

“You’re scaring me, what’s wrong?” He stared back at me with pleading eyes, his face twisted as if he were in physical pain.

“I never meant—”

A dragon’s roar blew over the clearing as they landed on the grass only yards from us and Wren’s gaze grew frantic.

I only had seconds to get this out of him.

“Are you compromised?” I hissed, my voice lowering as they dismounted and walked toward us.

The nod he gave me cracked my heart into bloody fragments.

“Did you betray us?” I choked out the question, my heart swelling in my chest as Cain’s words echoed between my ears.

It couldn’t be him. He would never do this to us.

“No.” He shook his head frantically as relief crashed into me with bruising force. “But, I—” He didn’t have time to finish his sentence before the Fallen Ones were at our side and Pri, Yenne, Asrai, and Andrues were materializing around us.

There was an apology in his eyes as he looked at me for one more moment and pain flared beneath my chest.

He didn’t betray us, I believed that. Or at least, I wanted to.

But for the first time in my life, since seeing him after passing through the academy gates, I didn’t trust him.

I gestured my head toward Andrues, silently calling him over as Wren turned from me, moving to Pri’s side and wrapping a stiff arm around her waist. My eyes stayed locked on him as Pri’s brows furrowed at the look on his face.