Ember's POV
"Tonight, I name my heir."
My father's voice cuts through the Grand Hall like a knife. I stand straighter, trying to ignore how my hands shake. This is it. The moment I've been waiting for my whole life.
Twenty-five years of training. Twenty-five years of proving myself. Tonight, Father will finally announce me as the Ravencrest heiress.
I paste on my best smile even though my head is pounding. My magic has been acting weird all week—flickering and weak when it should be strong. But tonight isn't about magic. Tonight is about legacy.
"Ember, darling, you look pale." Celeste appears at my side, her sweet voice dripping with fake concern. My stepsister looks perfect as always, her golden hair shining under the crystal lights. "Are you feeling okay?"
"I'm fine," I say through gritted teeth.
She squeezes my arm. "Good. Tonight is so important." Her smile doesn't reach her eyes.
I pull away and scan the crowd. Every important family in the Ember Court is here. The Thornwells. The Ashfires. The Stonemantles. All watching, waiting. My fiancé Marcus stands near the front with his parents, but he won't look at me.
That's weird. He hasn't looked at me all night.
Father raises his hands for silence. "The Ravencrest family has led the Ember Court for three generations. Our fire magic burns brightest. Our legacy stands strongest."
Pride swells in my chest. This is my family. My birthright.
"But magic is changing," Father continues. "We must change with it. We must choose leaders who are strong, capable, and powerful."
I nod. That's me. I've been strong my whole life, even when my magic started fading.
"Therefore, I name as my heir..." Father pauses, and the whole room holds its breath. "Celeste Ravencrest."
The world stops.
Did he just say Celeste?
"What?" The word escapes my mouth before I can stop it.
Everyone turns to stare at me. Some look surprised. Others look... like they already knew. Like this was planned.
"Father, there must be a mistake," I say, my voice shaking. "I'm your daughter. I'm supposed to—"
"Celeste has proven herself more capable." Father's eyes are cold. "Your magic has been weakening for months, Ember. Everyone sees it. You're not fit to lead."
The room spins. No. This can't be happening.
Celeste steps forward, and I notice she's wearing Mother's necklace—the one Father said I would inherit tonight. She's wearing MY necklace.
"I'll serve our family with honor, Father," Celeste says, bowing her head. She looks at me with pity. "I know this is hard for you, sister. But it's for the best."
"How long have you known?" I whisper.
She doesn't answer. She doesn't have to. The guilt on her face tells me everything.
They planned this. All of them.
"Ember," Marcus's voice makes me spin around. He's walking toward me, but something is wrong. He looks nervous. Guilty.
"Marcus, tell them," I beg. "Tell them I'm strong. Tell them I'm worthy."
He takes Celeste's hand instead of mine.
I stop breathing.
"I'm sorry, Ember," Marcus says, but he doesn't sound sorry. "Celeste and I... we're engaged. We've been together for two years."
Two years.
Two years while he was supposed to be engaged to ME.
"You're lying," I say, but even as the words leave my mouth, I know it's true. All those late meetings. All those times he was "too busy" to see me. He was with her.
Celeste leans into him, and he wraps his arm around her waist like he's done it a thousand times before.
"We didn't want to hurt you," Celeste says softly. "But we're in love, Ember. Surely you can understand."
Laughter bubbles up in my throat. Mad, horrible laughter. "Understand? You stole my inheritance. You stole my fiancé. What's next? My life?"
Father slams his staff on the ground. "Enough! You're embarrassing yourself, Ember. Accept this with grace."
Grace. He wants me to be graceful while they destroy me.
I look around the room. Not one person meets my eyes. They all knew. Everyone knew except me.
Fire sparks in my palms—weak, pathetic fire that barely glows. I try to summon more, but it won't come. My magic sputters and dies like a candle in the wind.
"See?" Father says coldly. "You can't even control your own power. How could you ever lead?"
Shame burns hotter than any fire. He's right. I'm weak. Powerless. Broken.
"You're wrong," I whisper, but no one hears me.
I turn and run. Out of the Grand Hall, down the marble corridors, away from their stares and whispers. I run until my lungs burn and my eyes blur with tears.
I end up in my bedroom and slam the door. My hands won't stop shaking.
They took everything. Everything.
A knock on the door makes me jump.
"Ember? It's Lyra."
I let my best friend in. She's the only one who stood by my side in that hall. The only one who looked shocked.
"I'm so sorry," Lyra says, hugging me tight. "I had no idea they would—"
"Help me pack," I interrupt. "I'm leaving."
"Where will you go?"
"I don't care. Anywhere but here."
We work in silence, throwing clothes and books into bags. At the bottom of my closet, I find Mother's old chest—the one Father gave me when she died. I've never opened it before. It felt too painful.
Tonight, I don't care about pain anymore.
Inside are books, letters, and a strange scroll covered in symbols I don't recognize. The symbols pulse with a faint light—both fire and shadow mixed together.
"What is that?" Lyra asks.
"I don't know." I reach for it, and a sharp edge cuts my finger. "Ow!"
Blood drips onto the scroll.
The world explodes in white light.
I see a man with silver eyes and midnight hair. A castle made of shadows and stars. Words echo in my head: "THIRTY DAYS. FIND EACH OTHER OR DIE."
Then I see my mother's face—not dead, but alive and screaming my name from behind bars.
The vision ends as suddenly as it started. I'm gasping on the floor, the scroll clutched in my bleeding hand.
"Ember!" Lyra grabs my shoulders. "What just happened? Your eyes were glowing!"
I stare at the scroll. At the symbols that now make perfect sense, like I've known them my whole life.
My mother isn't dead.
I have a soulmate in another world.
And I have thirty days to save us both.
"Lyra," I whisper, my voice shaking. "I need your help with something crazy."
She looks at the scroll, at my face, and nods. "What do you need?"
I smile, and for the first time tonight, I feel something other than pain.
I feel hope.
"I need to leave this world entirely."