Varden's expression turns grim. "Because I'm tired of watching students suffer under a system designed to break them. And because in seven days, this academy will open its doors to parents for the first time in years. Dmitri wants to show the world that Grimrose is a success, a place of rehabilitation and growth. He will place the most submissive Magila in frontof everyone and discipline those who step out of line. If the Council strips Stellan's essence during that visit, in front of all those witnesses..." He trails off. "It would be the beginning of something far worse than what we have now."
"So you're not just protecting Stellan," I say slowly. "You're protecting all of us. Every student here who doesn't fit Dmitri's perfect system."
"Precisely. It’s one reason I’ve stayed quiet and buried. I’m useless in Dmitri’s eyes but it’ll be much harder to get rid of me at this point." Varden stands, indicating the meeting is over. "You have seven days. I suggest you use them wisely. And be careful who you trust. Not everyone on this staff shares my views."
As we file toward the door, Varden's voice stops us. "One more thing." He waits for a beat, his shoulders visibly falling as he sighs. "What you witnessed with those photographs? That's how this works. What people don't understand, they fear. What they fear, they seek to destroy. And when they can't find legitimate reasons, they manufacture them."
"They're framing Stellan," Jade says flatly.
"They're documenting a narrative," Varden corrects. "Every incident report, every counselor observation, every piece of 'evidence' they collect, it all goes back to the Council. By the time the essence hunters arrive, they'll have a file thick enough to justify any action they want to take."
My hands clench at my sides. "So what do we do?"
"Be careful. Be perfect. Give them nothing real to add to that file." Varden's eyes move to Stellan. "And learn to control your phoenix faster than should be humanly possible. Because right now, you're not fighting for acceptance. You're fighting to not become the monster they've already decided you are."
We barely make it into the cafeteria when Rumi pulls us into an alcove, his voice dropping to barely above a whisper. "Weneed to talk about what we know. What weactuallyknow that Varden doesn't."
"You mean Dmitri," Ambrose says flatly. "What he really is."
The name hangs in the air between us. Even now, after everything, it feels dangerous to say out loud.
"Varden thinks this is about essence classification," I say slowly, keeping my voice low. "And Magila like phoenixes not fitting the system. But it's bigger than that. Dmitri isn't just enforcing wrong categories. He created them. He was the first Praestes—"
"He was human," Stellan breathes, cutting me off. "Like Skye."
"Until he twisted himself into something else." Harlow's jaw pulls tight as he continues. "He broke the rules of essence itself to gain power. That's why he's so obsessed with control. He knows better than anyone that the system is a lie."
Jade cuts in. "So when the essence hunters come, they won’t just be following orders. They'll be followinghisorders. The orders of someone who committed the exact crime he's trying to punish Stellan for."
"Worse," I add, the knowledge from Mother Nature's revelations settling heavy in my chest. "He's not just controlling the Council. He essentiallyisthe Council. He has been for centuries. Every rule, every classification, every punishment… it all traces back to him. To Akila."
"Then why are we playing by his rules?" Rumi asks, the darkness in his aura flaring up. "Why are we training Stellan to pass his test when we know the whole system is corrupt?"
"Because we're not ready to fight him yet." The words taste bitter on my tongue. "Because right now, survival means playing along while we figure out how to actually stop him. Varden was right about one thing. Direct opposition doesn't work. We need to be smarter."
"We need to beready," Ambrose corrects. "There's a difference. Playing along doesn't mean accepting defeat. It means buying time."
An enforcer appears at the end of the hallway, we fall silent, the conversation dying as quickly as it started. Dmitri built this system to destroy anyone who didn't fit. And now he's coming for us personally.
"We'll figure this out, right?" Someone calls my name, my gaze darting into the cafeteria to meet Tamara's. Fuck. What could she possibly want after all of that?
Is she helping… or leading us to our demise?
I watch Stellan disappear into the crowd of students heading toward the academic wing, Jade's arm wrapped protectively around his shoulders. Whatever training they manage to squeeze in today won't be enough. Seven days is nothing. Seven days is impossible.
But as Tamara's silhouette waits by the counselor corridor, I realize we don't have the luxury of impossible. We just have to make it possible anyway.
One day at a time. Starting tomorrow.
5
JADE
ThedayafterVarden'sultimatum, the weight of those seven days has already begun to crush us. Skye spent yesterday trapped in meetings with Tamara and whoever else demanded his attention. The rest of us sat through classes we couldn't focus on, counting hours instead of minutes.
But today, I finally manage to get Stellan alone in one of the empty training rooms. The phoenix has been spiraling since that meeting, his control getting shakier with each passing hour rather than better. Every time someone looks at him wrong, his essence flares. When Liz made another snide comment this morning, small flames actually manifested around Stellan's hands before Harlow doused them with his essence.
We have six days left, and Stellan is getting worse, not better.
