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A silent cry formed on Thea’s lips.

For amid the carnage of the ballroom was not only the arachne, free from all restraints and churning with dark power, but Anya, the Daughter of Darkness, her wings flaring behind her, a bloodied scythe in her hand as she stalked towards the rulers of the midrealms.

They were all there now. Even King Artos, who was shoving Princess Jasira behind him, using his body as a shield to protect her.

Why didn’t they flee when I told them to?

Thea gaped as King Leiko of Tver scrambled back, and Queen Reyna and King Elkan clutched one another close. To Thea’s horror, the leg of King Elkan’s pants was ripped and bloodied, a layer of something translucent coating his skin.

‘Thea!’ Princess Jasira’s desperate plea rang out above all else.

Thea surged towards her, blades raised.

Time both slowed and sped up, and Thea saw several things happen at once.

Lashes of darkness whipped through the air. Anya brandished her weapon, the steel gleaming in the remaining watery light. And the arachne shattered an entire glass wall, sending thousands of shards splintering into the night.

Within seconds, Thea was all that stood between the Daughter of Darkness and the royal families of the midrealms, her gaze trained on the woman who shared her celadon eyes, onemarred by a brutal scar. The air around them crackled, not with Thea’s magic, but with Anya’s. Thea could taste it on her tongue, familiar and heady.

Shadows poured around them, and Anya took a step forward. ‘Move,’ she growled.

Thea’s grip tightened on her swords. ‘Never.’

Anya’s gaze narrowed before it fell to the fate stone that had escaped Thea’s gown. The Daughter of Darkness blanched before she whirled her weapon menacingly. ‘I won’t ask again.’

‘Thea…’ Wilder’s voice sounded distant, but she didn’t look at him, not yet.

Instead, she took a deep breath, gathering all her remaining strength, and charged at her sister —

A rush of darkness crept over the balustrade and swept in like a tidal wave, tearing Thea from the ground, whipping the air around her. A warm hand closed over hers.

And then she was falling.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

WILDER

Clutching Thea to him, Wilder tried to cushion their fall through shadow and air, through darkness and ice. They hit the ground hard, the woodlands frosted beneath them, far beyond the floating domes of Vios.

In the night sky above, the eclipse was frozen in time, blocking out the moonlight and casting an unending darkness across the realms.

Thea groaned, but he clapped a hand over her mouth, drawing a single finger to his own lips before pointing to what he had spotted beyond the treeline.

Illuminated by torches and campfires was an enemy unit. Shadow wraiths, cursed men and a variety of other creatures who seemed to leak darkness into the night. They were armed, blades gleaming, and though Wilder couldn’t make out their words, he knew that violence was on the horizon.

Thea was still trying to catch her breath, but she looked at him in a panic. ‘Cal and Kipp…’ She struggled against his hold. ‘Torj. Everyone – we have to get back. We must fight —’

‘They’ll be fine. There’s a plan. Torj knows where to take them —’

‘But Anya, her arachne, they’ll —’

‘Anya won’t hurt them,’ Wilder tried to tell her. ‘And the arachne is no ally of hers. But she’ll see it slain. And Cal and Kipp will be safe.’ Though he knew the next part sounded stupid given the past year, he added: ‘I promise.’

There were a thousand questions in her eyes, yet somehow the words seemed to calm her, and Thea followed his stare, taking in the ominous sight before them. ‘She sent us here to die,’ she managed, turning back to him, horror etched on that beautiful face.

‘No,’ he told her. ‘She sent us here tosee.’

He pointed again, this time to the two figures at the heart of the operation below.