“This ritual will pull on you,” he said quietly. “On your spirit. On your body.”
Poppy nodded. “I know.”
“And the shard may fight.”
“I know.”
“And if it tries to reach you—”
Poppy touched his cheek, steadying him before he could spiral any further. “Mingxi. I chose this.”
He looked at her as though she had swallowed the moon.
Yunlian approached with the lacquered box, opening it to reveal five silver-threaded bracelets—one for each ritual role. She placed one in Poppy’s hands. Poppy closed her fingers around it, feeling the moonwell pulse faintly beneath her palm in response. Weak. Uncertain. Pleading.
“We’re here,” she whispered.
The moonwell flickered weakly, as if trying to answer.
Chapter 106
Preparations moved quickly after that.
The Guardians finished sweeping the ritual space, clearing a wide ring around the moonwell’s trembling surface. Elder Suyin chalked the final curve of the circle, and the moment the line closed, the air inside it steadied—just enough to breathe without tasting metal.
“Positions,” she instructed softly.
Caelan and Lirrane stepped forward first. Their auras synced immediately, water and tide aligning like two halves of a single pulse. Caelan took the northern point. Lirrane the south. Pale-blue light gathered around them as their magic braided into the beginnings of the boundary.
Yunlian moved to the west, settling into a kneeling position. She set her hands on the ground, exhaled, and a soft, luminous glow spread from her palms—warm, steady, heartbreakingly gentle. The moonwell’s pulse slowed, as if trying to lean toward her.
Mingxi guided Poppy to the eastern point, where the circle’s lines shimmered brighter, as though anticipating her presence. His foxfire flickered with barely restrained intensity, more white than blue—celestial flame straining at the edges.
“You stand here,” he murmured, touching the chalk. “The heart-tethered point.”
Poppy nodded, though her knees wobbled. She could feel the pull like a soft hook beneath her ribs, tugging her closer to the water’s dim glow. Mingxi cupped her face with both hands, forehead brushing hers.
“If it tries to reach you,” he whispered, “you fight me.”
She blinked. “You?”
“I will try to pull you back with everything in me. Even if you don’t want to come.”
Poppy swallowed around the lump in her throat. “I understand.”
His breath hitched. Just once. Then he kissed her—quick, firm, grounding. He stepped back and took his place at the center of the circle, justbehind her, where the Flamebearer always stood. Foxfire spiraled up his arms, curling over his shoulders like living light.
The circle brightened.
Elder Suyin lifted her voice. “Let the five take their roles.”
Caelan extended both hands toward the pool. Water gathered at his fingertips.
Lirrane pressed her palms to the earth. Tidal force rippled outward.
Yunlian’s healing glow deepened into gold, and the moonwell steadied—just barely.
Mingxi ignited, foxfire flaring into a radiant arc behind him.
