Brynn studied the layout in the mirrors. "These are all secondary anchors. If they fail, the primary wards will be strained, but the system won't collapse immediately."
"No. But when weakened sufficiently..." Thessa made a gesture, and the map showed wards failing in sequence. "The boundaries will thin. Souls will wander. The courts will bleed into each other."
"Creating chaos," Dante said quietly.
"Or opportunity. For one who wished to reshape the boundaries." Thessa's form flickered. "Violence seeks to expand through conquest. Consumption seeks to devour all it touches. Mercy seeks what it believes is best for all, whether others agree or not."
"Three different motives," Dante said. "And you've given us just enough to suspect everyone while confirming nothing."
"The truth lies not only in destruction, but in what remains untouched." Her voice grew distant. "Sometimes what is preserved tells as much as what is destroyed."
The room started to shift around them.
"Or perhaps," Thessa's voice echoed as she faded, "the truth is something none have considered."
Maren materialized beside them. "Lady Thessa needs rest. I will show you back to the courtyard."
They followed in silence. Brynn felt Dante's awareness of her like heat against her skin. The distance he maintained, the way his shadows kept drifting toward her before he pulled them back.
The courtyard had shifted again. The floating pools now reflectedscenes from the investigation: Seraphina's fortress, Vex's golden halls, Caelum's perfect paradise.
"The way back to your realm is there." Maren pointed to a gate that hadn't existed before. Then she paused, studying Brynn with disconcerting intensity.
"A word of advice?"
Brynn waited.
"Those who linger here teach us that holding onto the past prevents embracing the future." Maren's gaze flicked meaningfully toward Dante, then back. "But they also teach us that some things are worth holding onto. The trick is knowing which is which."
Her eyes held Brynn's for a long moment.
Then she dissolved into mist, leaving them alone in the courtyard.
Brynn looked at Dante. He stood with his back to her, shoulders rigid, shadows pooling at his feet.
"She's talking about you," Brynn said quietly. "The spirits in their loops. Unable to let go."
His shoulders tensed further. He didn't turn around.
"I know," he said finally, his voice rough.
And he walked through the gate without looking back.
XLIV.
BRYNN
The familiar weight of the forsaken realm settled around them. But instead of the usual sense of returning to something that might become home, the Forsaken Court felt oppressive tonight. Too quiet. Too empty.
Coming back to a place that wasn't hers. To a man who kept her at arm's length, no matter how close they stood.
They walked toward the main palace without speaking. The weight of Thessa's domain still pressed against her mind. All those spirits caught in their worst moments, unable to let go.
Just like him.
The thought had been building all day, whispered by every ghost they'd passed. She'd been living in the death realm for weeks. Surrounded by spirits, souls, the dead. And she'd never once asked the question that now felt unavoidable.
"My parents," she said abruptly, stopping in the middle of the corridor. "Are they here?"
