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C ora had no time to feel awed over the sight of the three Elvyn males, for the anger on their faces was second only to the rage in their tones. If that wasn’t enough, she could feel it. Their shock, their ire, their…fear. Or was that her own? Before she could so much as gather her bearings, they charged across the meadow. Her gaze fell on the swords they carried at their hips. Though each had a hand resting upon the hilt, none drew their weapons. Even so, Cora found her hands flinching toward her waist, her shoulder, seeking weapons that weren’t there. Only then did she recall what she was wearing—a thin linen shift and velvet robe. She didn’t even have her apron and paring knife.

They were nearly upon her now. With every step they took, they shouted at her in a language she couldn’t understand. The golden-haired Elvyn at the fore of the group lifted a hand, pressing his thumb to the center of his ring finger and turning his wrist slightly.

Cora didn’t know what the gesture meant, but it sparked within her enough urgency to mount Valorre and make an escape.

Only…she found her body frozen.

And it wasn’t fear that stilled her, nor any other internal source.

Instead, an invisible force pinned her arms to her sides. Her gaze narrowed on the golden-haired Elvyn’s hand, still curled in that strange gesture.

Valorre reared back on his hind legs, kicking out with his front hooves, but the same fae male extended his other hand. With the same gesture, he forced Valorre back to all fours. The unicorn bucked and thrashed, but it was no use. It was as if he’d been harnessed by an invisible bridle.

The other two Elvyn flanked the first. The one with umber skin and dark hair stepped forward and spoke in more words Cora couldn’t comprehend. Yet she noted the placating nature of his tone. Unlike the golden-haired fae, whose lips were peeled back in a sneer, blue eyes cast in a glower, or the copper-haired fae who simply looked amused, the dark-haired Elvyn had a much gentler energy. Cora’s panic was almost strong enough to drown out the emotions of the three, but she could still bet which of the fae she’d have the best chance of appealing to.

He spoke again, slower this time.

“I don’t understand what you’re saying,” she said, voice edged with hysteria. She tried to focus on deepening her breaths, on rooting herself to the earth beneath her feet, but that only reminded her that she was in another godsdamned realm . Whatever the hell that was supposed to mean. And she was still trapped under the unseen force the golden fae was using.

The dark-haired fae released a sigh and lifted a hand. He crossed two of his fingers and slid them through the air in a horizontal line. “What are you?” he said, and this time Cora could understand him.

“Are you human?” asked the golden fae. His words made sense now too, but she realized they didn’t match the shape of his lips. Perhaps the dark-haired fae had cast a translation enchantment. Was that something the Elvyn could do? All she knew of Elvyn magic was that they utilized what the Forest People had called the Magic of the Sky. Unlike the Faeryn, who revered the earth and lived in harmony with nature, the Elvyn were said to value beauty, art, music, and luxury. She knew the Elvyn specialized in an Art called weaving—the very magic Morkai tried to emulate with his blood tapestries—but she didn’t know what it entailed.

“I’m…I’m human,” she finally managed to say.

The copper-haired Elvyn dipped his chin at her lower body. Now that he was near, she could see an array of bronze freckles dotting his tan skin. “What’s on her arms?”

The golden fae flicked his wrist, and she found her arm thrust suddenly forward. She winced as the invisible force twisted the limb, yanking it at an uncomfortable angle until her inked forearm showed clearly.

“Fanon,” the dark-haired fae said, casting a stern look at the golden fae, “show a little restraint. We don’t know if she’s guilty.”

The word Fanon remained untranslated, so she assumed that must be the golden fae’s name.

“If she’s human, she’s guilty,” Fanon said. He folded his arms over his chest in a slightly more relaxed posture. The pressure eased from her forearm, returning it to a natural angle. She expected to be freed from his invisible magic altogether, but her arms simply snapped back to her sides. Even though he was no longer actively making that strange gesture, both she and Valorre were still trapped under his magic’s influence.

“But those looked like Faeryn insigmora ,” said the stout fae. Belatedly Cora realized his lips had formed the last two words, matching up with what she’d heard.

“She’s not Faeryn, Garot,” said Fanon.

Despite the disgust and trepidation wafting off the three strangers, Cora saw an opportunity to forge some kind of understanding between them. “You’re right, they are Faeryn insigmora . Where I’m from, I lived with a group of people who are Faeryn descendants. They took me in?—”

“There are Faeryn descendants in your realm?” the copper-haired Garot asked, his green eyes alight with renewed curiosity.

Fanon and the dark-haired fae exchanged a brief look. When Fanon returned his gaze to hers, it was no longer quite so cold. His throat bobbed before he spoke. “Are there any Elvyn survivors in your world? Or…descendants?”

Cora sensed a subtle spark of hope in him. Her heart sank. Why did he have to ask that? She knew her answer would only disappoint him. “I’ve never met anyone of Elvyn descent.”

Fanon’s dark glower returned, and with it came a string of clipped words that remained untranslated. Based on his tone, she could only assume they were expletives.

“How did you come here?” the dark-haired fae said. He was now the only one whose name she didn’t know. His eyes were a ruby-tinted brown, and the way they crinkled at the corners set her at ease. She got the distinct impression that he was the eldest of the three, despite their equally youthful appearances. Somehow, all appeared to be both young and ancient at the same time, but the dark-haired fae held a weight to his energy, one that bore centuries of life. Of wisdom.

She realized his question still hung between them. She was about to confess what had happened—or at least try to put it into words—when Valorre’s voice entered her mind.

Tell them I brought you here . Anxiety rippled from him. Do not tell them about your magic .

She glanced at him, saw his muscles quivering against his invisible restraints. Why?

Because it was my fault. I invaded your thoughts with my memory of home. I took a step and brought us here using your traveling magic. But…more than that, I’ve come to learn the value of a lie. If you do not lie, I fear…something. I don’t remember what, but I fear it. They will not like your magic .

He sounded so uncertain in her mind. So unlike the overly proud creature he normally was.

She returned her gaze to the dark-haired fae. “Valorre brought me.”

“What is…Valorre?” Garot asked.

“My unicorn companion.”

Fanon scoffed. “The unicorn is your companion?”

“More concerning,” said the unnamed Elvyn, “is that she’s suggesting he came from her world.” Then to Cora, he said, “Please explain.”

“Unicorns were considered extinct in my world for five hundred years. Only recently have they reappeared.” She tried to keep her voice level. It was easier said than done with the tremors racking her body, coursing with waves of panic over being restrained by a force she couldn’t see. Not to mention the fact that she was referring to where she’d come from as her world .

Mother Goddess, was this really happening? All her life, she’d thought of the fae as creatures who’d once existed and had simply gone extinct. Now she was supposed to reconcile that they’d come from another world. But how?

“And you befriended this one?” The unnamed male glanced at Valorre.

“Yes,” she said, “and we came here by mistake. He accidentally brought me to his home.”

Fanon’s eyes went wide. He whipped his face toward the dark-haired fae. “What does this mean for the Veil, Etrix?”

Etrix . The final name.

He rubbed his jaw. “It might be torn.”

Fanon took a forbidding step closer to Cora, leaving only a foot of space between them. She wanted to flinch back but she still couldn’t move. Valorre released a guttural whinny, but he too remained trapped in place. All Cora could do was tilt her head and meet his gaze. She swallowed hard, realizing he was even taller than Teryn. And Teryn was one of the tallest men she’d met. Fanon’s build, however, was leaner. That didn’t make him any less intimidating.

“Did you cross through the Veil?” he asked with clenched teeth.

“I don’t know what the Veil is.”

“Then are you a worldwalker?”

Cora was struck with the most potent hatred, and her answer dried in her throat. Similar emotions came from the two fae behind Fanon, but theirs was tangled with far more fear. Fanon’s contempt, on the other hand, was too strong to carry much else.

Whatever a worldwalker was, he despised it with a violent passion.

Tell them we came through the Veil , Valorre said.

She shuddered beneath Fanon’s icy stare but finally managed to find her words. “I…I think we came through the Veil.”

He watched her for a few silent moments, then reached toward his waist. Her heart slammed against her ribs as she expected him to unsheathe his sword?—

To her relief, he simply extracted something from inside his robe. Her eyes widened as she took in the strange item. It looked like a large cuff made from two pieces of curved obsidian that ended in tapered points. Like talons. Or claws. A wide gap remained between the sharp tips, and as Fanon tugged on both sides, it widened further on a hinge.

He stepped even closer, bringing the cuff-like object toward her neck.

“What is that?” Cora asked, voice trembling. She struggled against her invisible bonds but they were just as strong as ever. Valorre gave another futile whinny.

“Fanon,” Etrix said, his tone brimming with warning. “You don’t have to?—”

Fanon ignored his companion and proceeded to hook the cuff around her neck. She couldn’t see when he closed it, could glimpse no part of it beneath her chin, but as she felt a sharp pain bite into her skin, she realized he hadn’t hooked it around her neck; he’d hooked the tapered points into her flesh.

Vertigo seized her, first from fear, then from…

A hollow feeling crept upon her awareness. An empty void. An unsettling quiet.

It took her several long moments to realize what was happening.

Her magic…

Her awareness of outside emotion, her connection to the dance of the elements all around her…

It was…gone.

This wasn’t the quiet that came from using her mental shields. This was an absence of clairsentience altogether. A rent in her very identity. Frenzied grief rattled her bones, sent her head spinning, lungs tightening, tears springing to her eyes…

“Is this entirely necessary?” Etrix said, striding up to Fanon. With hollow awareness, Cora realized the translation enchantment remained in place. It seemed the strange collar only affected her own use of magic. She cast a glance at Valorre, tried with all her might to convey some silent thought to him.

She didn’t know if it worked. Didn’t know if he understood the words she couldn’t form.

Then she heard a subtle, I’m here .

It was simple. Stilted. It reminded her of how they’d begun to communicate when they’d first met. Perhaps their connection was weak when only one of them could use their magic. At least they could converse at all.

Etrix spoke again. “She said she isn’t a worldwalker. Even if she was, no worldwalker can move through the Veil. She can’t leave, with or without the collar.”

“We don’t know that,” Fanon said, his cruel gaze still on Cora. “The Veil was woven to keep a worldwalker from entering our world; one could still worldwalk out. Besides, if the Veil is torn, who knows what a worldwalker can do? I won’t risk letting her escape until we’ve sorted out the truth.”

With that, he turned his back on her and began walking away. He was no more than a few steps ahead before Cora found herself pulled forward by that unseen force. She stumbled to keep her feet beneath her, and when she finally managed to match the pace she was being dragged at, it was too fast. Or was she simply too drained? Too broken in the wake of her stolen magic?

Valorre trotted beside her. Though he too moved against his will, his presence provided some semblance of comfort.

“I’m sorry,” Etrix said, keeping pace at her side, “about the collar. I know it hurts, but it’s a necessary precaution.”

The physical pain she felt biting into the sides of her neck was nothing compared to the absence of her magic. “Where are you taking me?”

“To the Veil,” Garot said, grinning over his shoulder like the situation was nothing more than run-of-the-mill amusement to him. He outpaced Fanon and paused at the edge of the meadow. He made a complex gesture with both hands, and the landscape turned to a swirling vortex of green and brown that opened into some sort of tunnel. It was just like what the three males had emerged from when they’d first appeared. Fanon strode straight into it, while Garot waited at its entrance for Cora and Etrix to bypass him.

“Don’t worry,” Etrix said as they approached the unsettling whirl of color. “So long as you aren’t a worldwalker, you have nothing to fear from us.”

Cora pursed her lips. She wasn’t certain what a worldwalker was, but she could guess. It was a type of human they abhorred, someone who could enter their world at will.

She shuddered.

What if she did have something to fear?

What if a worldwalker was exactly what she was?