The bottom fell out of my stomach.
“I’ll burn out in front ofeveryone,” I said, barely able to breathe. “I’m going to die.”
Zander moved fast, grabbing both my hands in his. “No. You’re not.”
Tears threatened, but I bit them back. “You saw what happened earlier, Zander. I can’t control it. I’m not stable.”
“Then we train,” he said fiercely. “We use the time we have. Tonight. I’ll find a way to anchor you if Kaelith won’t.”
His voice cracked, just barely. “I won’t let you die out there.”
But I knew the truth. Kaelith would have to choose.
And if she didn’t…
I wasn’t sure I’d survive the fall.
Chapter
Eighteen
The next morning arrived cold and bright, as if the skies had no idea someone might die beneath them.
I met Zander and my squad on the Ascension Grounds just after dawn, the training fields glazed with a thin veil of dew. My breath misted in the air, but my palms were already slick with sweat.
Zander was there before us, arms crossed, speaking quietly to one of the guards before his eyes flicked to me. His gaze held the weight of everything unsaid from the night before, plans whispered in the dark, desperate strategies, the trembling truth between our kisses.
He’d given me every idea he could. How to garner Kaelith’s trust. How to move without magic. How to survive even if she refused me again.
I had slipped back to my barracks early in the morning, padding barefoot and sore through stone hallways, the taste of Zander still clinging to my lips. No one said anything. Not even Riven, who met my eyes briefly but just handed me my boots in silence.
Jax and Ferrula were already outside when I arrived, side by side, near the weapons racks, their shoulders brushing like itwas the most natural thing in the world. I caught the small smile Ferrula gave him and felt a surprising twist of relief. At least someone was getting something good out of this mess.
We all assembled quickly, tension crackling through the air like flint, ready to catch.
Major Ledor stepped forward, his red-trimmed cloak snapping in the wind as he surveyed the gathered squads. His gaze swept over us once, then over the gathered ranks behind Crownwatch, Stormforge, Warborn.
“You are dismissed,” he said.
They didn’t hesitate.
Crownwatch was gone first, their disciplined formation vanishing into the castle. Stormforge followed, glancing back at us with the grim curiosity of those who already knew what was coming. Even Warborn didn’t linger.
But Remy didn’t move.
And neither did Zander.
The major’s eyes lingered on them with unspoken meaning, but he said nothing. A silent truce.
Then he turned back to the center of the Ascension Grounds, where I stood with my squad at my back.
“There will be a trial by combat,” he announced, his voice cutting through the morning air like a blade. “The rider of Iron Fang, Perin Cochne, has called for a sanctioned duel. And Prospect Ashe Rebec of the Fourth Guild has been named as his opponent.”
The words landed like thunder.
Even knowing they were coming, they still made my pulse spike.
A duel.
