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Skye was immediately at her side, lifting her up so she didn’t overexert herself trying to do it herself. Her head lolled onto his shoulder.

“Hey,” she croaked, her eyes flat with pain behind the glamour.

Relief washed over him. He exhaled a laugh. “Hey. There she is. Thought you were going to sleep forever.”

Her lips twitched as if to smile. Or grimace. “Yeah, well. Death said no.”

Beside him, Sarina waited—impatiently. “There’s someone who would like to say hello, I think.”

Taly nodded weakly. “How angry is she?”

He pretended to check. “No smoke yet.” But if he stalled any longer, there would be.

Carefully, he handed her over. Sarina caught Taly in her arms, pulling her close, hands trembling as they ran through her hair.

For a moment, she didn’t say anything. Just held her.

Then she let out a shuddering breath. “My little one,” she whispered, voice breaking. “You’re safe now. You’re home.”

Taly made a small, wrecked sound—a sob she barely held back. She clutched Sarina tighter, fingers curling in the fabric of her dress, as if letting go would mean losing everything all over again.

Skye stepped back, giving them space. This is what Taly needed right now. Not him.

The gray morning light washed over him as he slipped outside, pulling the door shut behind him. No sooner had he taken a breath of cold air than a hand grabbed his sleeve.

“I have a bone to pick with you, little brother.”

Before Skye could react, Kato shoved him toward the tower.

“You shouldn’t be able to outrun me.”

Skye dug in his heels. “Seriously?”

Another shove—harder this time. Shadows swallowed them both as they hit the stairwell.

“Don’t play stupid.” Kato’s voice dropped, sharp and low. “I saw what happened at the bridge. I knew about the bloodcrafting, but I didn’t think the old man was insane enough to teach you how tomorph.”

“He didn’t,” Skye said flatly. “I figured it out myself.”

Kato swore.

Bloodcrafting was, in essence, the art of harnessing the magic within his blood to manipulate the physical aspects of his body. All shadow mages did this to some extent—augmenting the aether flow within their bodies to adjust their senses or give them an extra boost of strength or speed when needed.

Bloodcrafting, however, went further. Did more.

It allowed him to change on a cellular level, to rebuild and restructure at will—in theory. Skye had never attempted it before the river. His body just…reacted.

“I thought you were going to stop.”

“Stop what?” Skye asked.

“You found her.” Kato’s voice was edged with frustration. “That’s what started all of this, right? So, now that you have your precious damsel back at your side, you’re done, yeah?”

Skye exhaled, dragging a hand down his face. “I don’t know… maybe.”

Kato shoved him. “What do you meanmaybe? The answer is ‘yes’, Skylen. It’s too fucking dangerous.”

That tone—worry laced with some warped sense of sibling responsibility. Skye didn’t know what to do with it.