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Maude would have rushed forward to knock Hildr on her ass if her father hadn't restrained her.

As soon as Herrick's scream ruptured the silence of the clearing, she had moved on instinct.

Flames flickered in her periphery, her skin growing hotter the longer he screamed.

The sound was unbearable— she would rather be deaf than have to listen to him scream.

Only in her nightmares had she heard Herrick shout like this— raw and broken.

Arms like iron wrapped around her stomach, the thick corded muscle unbreakable under her thrashing.

"He's going to be okay," Aeric whispered in her ear, his melodic voice calling to some hidden nature in her very being that begged her irrational mind to listen to him. She didn't care; they were hurting him. "You need to calm yourself, m?ne . Interrupting them now will only prolong the pain."

Maude let out a frustrated cry as she fought against her father's hold on her. Golden flames licked up her arms, engulfing them both. A small grunt of pain from him turned her fire to ash— she had burnt him in her panicked rage when he had not let go. Instant remorse doused her flames.

At her side, Hakon was fighting against Gunnar and Liv to get to his brother as well.

When he had shown up for the ritual, his eyes had been clearer than they had been in weeks.

Traces of agony still lingered there, but the Heir of Rivers' focus was on the Elven healer the moment he arrived.

He'd nodded at her in greeting, but Dahlia had only looked him up and down once before turning away, forcing a raw chuckle out of Hakon, to everyone's surprise.

"Look. Look at him," Aeric continued to whisper. "He's already recovering. "

Maude froze. Hildr had placed her hands on the iron band, interlocking them with Dahlia's, and joined in on the chanting that would remove the iron from Herrick's throat as his back bowed backward.

His ragged gasps tore new holes into her, each breath of broken relief from him urged her to crawl to him.

The smoke from the hallucinogenic herbs that worshippers often inhaled during their visits to the temples thickened around them until her mind grew fuzzy.

In her outburst, she had forgotten to maintain the air shields around herself that had kept her mind clear.

Now, as the drug took effect, the sands of the same beach she had seen before the ritual started flashed before her again.

Only this time, the group was smaller—only two people and an infant.

Maude took a mental step forward, her body leaning forward almost incorporeally to catch a glimpse of who stood with their backs to her.

As soon as she moved, the robed seer who chanted in front of the infant looked up directly at Maude. Before she could open her mouth to speak to the seer who had sensed her, a wall of flames shot up in front of her, blocking whatever was taking place on that beach.

The same instance her mind returned to her body, a sharp crack reverberated through the air.

Shadows as thick and as heavy as the nightmares that sometimes clouded her mind at night shot up in tall pillars from where Herrick, Dahlia, and Hildr stood.

The opaque darkness clouded her sight for a small eternity until the only thing she could make out was the sound of her blood pounding in her ears.

Abruptly, the chanting stopped, and as fast as the shadows had appeared, they vanished.

The moonlight cut through the remaining darkness until the field before them became visible again.

Arms raised above her head, Hildr stood before Herrick, who had sprawled forward onto his hands and knees, with the iron band in her hands.

The two halves of the band glowed where they had seemingly been ripped apart after something flaming had severed it, the dark iron still burning a bright ruby over the ends.

Maude didn't care, all she could think to do was reach Herrick's side as that thread tying them together throbbed painfully.

Aeric released her so she could sprint forward.

She slid onto her knees in the damp grass right next to Herrick, her hands running over his exposed back as he breathed heavily.

His sweat mixed with her damp palms, their scents perfuming the smokey air until it wrapped around the both of them.

Petrichor and cedar. Summer berries and jasmine.

Dahlia still stood behind him, but when Maude glanced up at her, she saw that the healer was about to fall backward from exhaustion.

Hakon, who had been heading for his brother, stopped to catch the Elven healer before she hit the ground.

Head lolled backward, her hair a curtain of glossy black, Hakon crouched to lay her gently on the grass as the rest of their friends joined them.

Needing to know that Herrick was well, Maude shifted in front of him on her knees and helped him sit up. His hands wrapped around the back of her arms as she gripped him by his elbows until they both sat in a crouched position.

"Herrick," she whispered, her voice suddenly gone from her grasp. She couldn't think of anything else to say but his name.

He looked up at her then, his golden eyes clear and bright even as sweat beaded on his brow.

He seemed to look through her, like she was a ghost that he wasn't sure was even there.

Hands tightened around her arms as he slowed his breathing.

Understanding flashed across his face before his eyes focused on hers.

He opened his mouth to speak but remained silent.

Taking a deep breath, he smothered whatever he had experienced.

"It's gone," he finally croaked, his voice hoarse from his screams. "He's gone."

"Who's gone?" Gunnar asked, but Herrick could only stare at her.

Without responding, Herrick released her and planted his fingers on the ground before closing his eyes.

Maude could feel the earth pulse below her a second before it happened.

She grinned as dark green sprouts broke free from the soil.

The longer the vines became, the wider she smiled.

Wrapping around her ankles and then her calves, small white buds began to bloom as Herrick poured his galder into them.

Soon, her legs and hips were wrapped in vines that were covered in white jasmine flowers, their spicy scent caressing her.

Herrick opened his eyes, snatching one of the small flowers and tucking it behind her ear before he grabbed the back of her neck and pressed his mouth to hers.

As soon as their lips touched, the crisp flow of water seemed to bubble over her skin.

Herrick's hands cradled her face, their touch as invigorating and soothing as they had been before his capture.

"If you two are finished, there is more to discuss," Hildr said, her grumpy voice cutting through the reunion Herrick was having with his galder .

Maude turned to snap at the old woman, but saw that Hildr only met her glare evenly. Any protest she may have had was silenced— the truth she had asked of her was going to be revealed tonight.

"We should have this conversation in the privacy of my cabin," Hildr went on as she motioned for everyone to follow her out of the clearing. "Now that the band has been removed from Herrick's body, we may speak freely about your next steps in this war."

"What do you mean?" Bryn asked as she caught up to Maude's side.

Liv watched Bryn's movements with longing but quickly shuttered the emotion as she caught Maude's attention on her.

"I mean that whoever put this restraint on the General of Rivers has been keeping tabs on him through its connection with the being inside the metal."

Ice wound through her at what Vilde might have heard in the time he had been back with them.

Herrick's eyes widened slightly— if he had been tracked, he hadn't been aware of it.

Their group was silent by the time they reached Hildr's cabin.

Hakon, who had carried Dahlia from the clearing, set her on a small cot in the corner of the room before covering her with furs.

Once everyone gathered around the fire in her cabin, the Grand Soothsayer at the head of this meeting with one of her seers behind her, the room finally settled. Unable to sit down because of the nervous energy that wound through her, Maude stayed standing with Herrick close behind her.

"What have you discovered, Hildr?" Aeric asked, his voice calm despite the palpable tension.

The Soothsayer was silent as she weighed her answer, her blind focus moving from person to person. Finally, when she spoke again, her words seemed to vibrate in the still room. The world outside of her cabin quieted, the Norns listening intently .

"The mission you had set upon three moon cycles past," she began, her voice low. "Was not a complete failure, as you may have thought until now."

Maude shivered as Herrick seemed to drift closer to her. His skin was cooler against her back than before, the water in his blood already making itself known.

"How can you know that?" Hakon asked, his focus split between Hildr and Dahlia.

"Because what came to pass would have always happened," she explained. "The dalkr Hela was not in that cavern; that much was true. But you were always close to finding it. You were only mistaken about its resting place these last ten years."

"If you know where it is, you have to tell us," Liv said, trying to get to her feet, but Bryn gripped her wrist before she could move.

The two women exchanged a look, a silent conversation passing between them before Liv settled again. Bryn removed her hold on the Elven, but not before her thumb stroked the inside of Liv's wrist gently.

"Its home lies north, in the Elysian Caves just off the coast of where the Kingdom of Shadows meets the Kingdom of Rivers."

"Excellent," Maude bit out quickly. "Another mission to another mysterious cave for a weapon that may or may not exist."

Bryn snorted but smothered the sound quickly as Liv elbowed her before motioning over her shoulder to Hakon and Gunnar. The two men remained quiet, their glazed eyes reflecting the horrors they were reliving from their time in the Knotted Cavern. What they'd witnessed, who they had lost.

"What happened in the Knotted Caverns also set you all on the path the gods intended for you from the start," Hildr went on, ignoring the grief that tinged the air.

"The death of your friend at the hands of the Knotted Caverns has influenced each of you, putting you on the trajectory that led you here.

Eydis was a catalyst— the agent that sped up your progress toward your fates. "

Hakon, his face twisted with fury as his nostrils flared, opened his mouth to speak the words that burned in his eyes, but it was Maude who spoke instead .

"Eydis was so much more to us than a tool the gods used. If that's true, then they're all the cruel bastards I always knew them to be. Don't speak to us about what we lost and call it necessary."

Her voice was low and acidic even as she kept her eyes downcast on the fire that danced in front of her.

She could feel Hakon's eyes on her, the surprise that broke off from him in violent waves.

Bryn and Aeric remained silent as they watched this exchange, watched how their whole group seemed to collectively flinch from Hildr's words about Eydis.

"She was my friend, and I will not tolerate hearing her spoken of like she was a pawn to be thrown away," she continued as she looked up to meet Hakon's gaze.

"I know I don't always seem like I'm broken up about it, but I miss her every day.

She didn't die for some god's scheme. She died bravely protecting her friends, protecting her loved ones.

" Her eyes returned to the Soothsayer. "You dishonor her by callously speaking of her sacrifice. "

When Hakon relaxed against the cot, Maude noticed that Dahlia had woken. Amethyst eyes rested on the Heir of Rivers, her face unreadable.

"I meant no disrespect," Hildr said quietly, though her words held a tone of impatience.

"I only meant that even though you were never going to find the weapon you were looking for in the south, the gods put you on the right path using Eydis's death.

Her passing has affected each person in this room— for some it has not become clear as to how yet. "

Hildr eyed Gunnar and then Herrick but no one spoke for a moment, letting the ominous impact of her words settle.

"So how do we get to these Elysian Caves?" Herrick asked, breaking the silence and focusing the conversation on something other than the heartbreak Hakon and Maude were clearly still nursing so they could recollect themselves. She was grateful for it.

"You don't have to go there," Hildr replied, her mouth tilting up in the corner. "The weapon is already here. In this room."

Before Maude could process what the Soothsayer was implying, Hildr removed the dagger she had carried for the last decade from her robes and placed it on the ground in front of her. Every thought in her mind turned to ash, every emotion frozen in her veins, as shadows danced in her periphery.

She eyed the weapon that had once brought her comfort, the promise that was wrapped around its hilt but found nothing resembling relief as she got closer to it.

Only weariness that sat heavy in her bones, like her very being was warning her away from the weapon even as she yearned to have it at her side again.

Maude had possessed the dalkr Hela all this time. Her mother had provided the legendary weapon for her all those years ago, knowing she would need it.

But how did Sylvi come across such a dangerous weapon?