Page 185 of Burn of the Everflame

“Do you?” Diem asked. “I destroyed so much on my last visit.” Her eyes swept across the lines. “Looks like I missed a few pieces.”

The men with godstone weapons shuffled backward.

“I’ve come to deliver a message,” she shouted, raising her voice loud enough for all the men to hear. “You want to destroy the Crowns? I’m offering you a chance to do it.” The form over her head began to shift, rotating one by one through each of the realms’ individual Crowns before merging back into its combined nine-peaked form. “I hold them all, and I’m the last person who will ever wear them. I made a deal with the Kindred—when I die, the Crowns die with me.”

The men shared looks that ranged from distrust to cautious hope. Swords and crossbows lifted as realization dawned that life outside Descended rule was one well-placed strike away.

What the hell was she doing? She’d just put an irresistible bounty on her head. If word spread to her army, she might not even be safe here in Lumnos.

And Henri . . . if Diem had confessed this to him the night I’d brought them together to talk, there was no telling how much more damage he could cause.

I gripped harder to her presence inside me. It would be worth baring every secret in my head if I could hide her in the safety of my thoughts.

In the vision, Diem held out her arms. “Go on, take your shot. End the Crowns, once and for all.”

Wood creaked as archers drew back arrows and the ballista swung into position.

“Wait,” Vance said. His eyes narrowed. “She wants us to attack.”

Diem scoffed. “First you run from my army. Now you’re too scared to face me when I’m all alone?”

His lip curled back. “I fear no Descended. Archers, take her out.”

Arrows soared across the field. Diem gave a bored wave, and a burst of Ignios flame gobbled them up, leaving their metal points dropping to the rocky soil.

“That was underwhelming,” she mocked.

Vance’s face flushed scarlet. “Swordsmen, attack!”

His men weren’t so eager. Many held their ground, and those who advanced moved forward at a crawl.

The ground trembled, and a ridge of stone rose from the soil, stopping at waist height. Long shards of glistening ice took form along its upper edge.

“Hope you boys like to climb,” Diem taunted. “Careful, though. That ice is sharper than it looks.”

Vance’s men looked at each other with uneasy glances. In my own body, I felt myself smile. These men had overcome bigger obstacles than this in battle. Their hesitance was proof that Diem had gotten under their skin. For all their chauvinist pride, a woman in a flowing gown and empty scabbard had left them quaking.

And they were right to be scared.

“You told me once that true Guardians aren’t afraid to give their lives,” she called out to Vance. “Your men have proven that. So have the Guardians in my army. But you always find an excuse to stay out of the fight. Guess you’re not as true a Guardian as I thought.”

Vance practically snarled. “I’m more of a Guardian than you’ll ever be.”

“Prove it.” Diem rolled her wrist, and a hole opened in the wall she’d built. “Come kill me yourself.”

“I have nothing to prove to you.”

“Then prove it to your men.” She tipped her scabbard upside down. “Look—no sword. Not a weapon on me.” She clasped her hands behind her back. “I won’t even use my magic.”

The stillness was deafening.

The creases on Vance’s weathered face deepened as his men whispered within their ranks.

Diem’s smirk grew. “I wonder what Ophiucae will do when he realizes the man leading his army is so spineless.”

Vance spat at the ground. “We’re not his army. He serves us. And you can’t fool me, girl. You’re trying to trick us so your gryvern can attack.”

“More excuses.” She sighed. “If I send my gryvern away, then will you face me, or is the mortals’ freedom not worth the risk?”