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Ellie emerges from behind the screen, a faint flush still coating her cheeks, and I release the shadows, and they slip back into the floor like mist.

Mira arrives at almost the same moment, bringing Ellie’s pack with her. While she and Varam talk about final details, I step closer to Ellie.

My intention to stay focused, warn her to be vigilant, goes out of the window the second her eyes meet mine.

“Stay close to Mira.”

She tips her face up to look at me. “What if something goes wrong?”

“It won’t.”

“It’s time.” Mira nods toward the window. “The first gate rotation is beginning. We need to move. They’re less likely to focus on our papers when all they’re thinking about is ending their shift and going to their beds.”

“We’ll meet at River Crossing, two hours after midday.”

“We’ll give you a moment,” Varam says to me, and leads Mira outside.

The door closes softly.

“I still don’t like it,” she says the second they’re gone. “The dream felt so real. Shadows everywhere, silver light burning through darkness.” The worry in her voice is unmistakable.

I know my plan demands distance. Detachment. I know I should give her orders, not comfort. I know that to touch her now is to accept fully the fractures she’s already created in me.

And still … I reach for her.

I take her hands in mine before I can talk myself out of it. Before duty can reclaim me. The connection snaps into place immediately. Shadows flowing from my skin to hers where we touch.

It shouldn't be possible, this bridge between us. It shouldn’t exist. But it does. And I can’t ignore it.

"Stay with Mira," I say, forcing myself to focus on her safety rather than the warmth of her hands in mine. "If something happens,anythingat all, your only focus is getting to River Crossing. There's a map in your pack."

"What about you?" Her eyes search mine, silver flecks brightening with emotion, with magic that reaches every broken place inside me. No one has ever looked at me that way, like my survival matters beyond what I can give. "Promise me you'll be careful."

The part of me that belongs to duty, to my role, screams to let go. To turn away. To leave her behind before she can tear me apart any further. But I don’t.

Instead, I pull her closer. I cross the distance that was never supposed to close. I break my own rules. I break myself.

My lips meet hers in a kiss that deepens as soon as we touch, silver flaring, shadows rising to meet it. For ten heartbeats, there’s no mission. No ring. No Veinwardens. No Authority.

Only this. Only her.

When we part, she blinks up at me, biting her lip.

“I’ll see you at River Crossing.” The words are somewhere between a statement and a question.

“You will, Mel’shira.” My thumb brushes her cheek, over her lips.A last indulgence I can’t deny myself. Shadows trail in its wake. “Now go. Mira is waiting.”

She walks to the door, pausing for a backward glance before slipping through it. I stay where I am, allowing myself one more second to think about what happened between us, then I force my mind back to the moment.

Today I reclaim what was taken from me. Today, I become whole again … or what remains of me does.

Ashenvale hums with barely-contained tension. The air smells of damp stone, burning oil, and the sharp tang of metal. Servants rush by with final decorations, heads bowed low. Authority soldiers stand at intersections, eyes passing over every passerby with the suspicion that has become their second nature.

No one speaks unless spoken to.

Varam waits for me outside a narrow alleyway, the hood of his uniform casting his face in shadow. There’s a hidden entry point at the end, one his investigation yesterday confirmed hasn’t been used since Ashenvale was overtaken by the Authority.

He moves ahead when he sees me, slipping deeper into the alley’s mouth without a word.