POV: Cain
I watch the gates close between us, and something inside me breaks.
SERA! I roar, fighting against the soldiers holding me back. Let me go! SERA!
But she's gone. Dragged back to the city by guards, headed for a trial where her own sister now queen will be the judge.
Cain, stop! Nyx grabs my arm. You're mortal now, remember? If you fight thirty soldiers, they'll kill you!
I don't care. I'll tear down those gates with my bare hands if I have to.
But Nyx is right. I'm not immortal anymore. I'm just a man. A man who just watched the woman he loves sacrifice herself to save him.
We have to rescue her, I say desperately.
We will, Nyx promises. But not like this. We need a plan.
I sink to my knees in the courtyard, staring at the closed gates. For three hundred years, I was trapped on this side, unable to leave. Now I'm free to go anywhere.
Except the one place I need to be: beside Sera.
POV: Sera
They throw me in a cell. Not the temple dungeon this time the royal prison beneath the palace. It's cold, dark, and smells like despair.
I sit on the stone floor and try not to panic.
Elara is queen now. My father is dead. I'm accused of murdering a High Priest. And I'm about to face a trial where my judge hates me.
I'm going to die here.
No. I can't think like that. I survived being framed before. I survived the Wild Lands. I broke an impossible curse.
I can survive this too.
The cell door opens. I expect guards, but instead, Elara walks in. She's alone, wearing a crown that catches the torchlight.
Hello, sister, she says sweetly. Comfortable?
What do you want? I demand.
To talk, Elara says, sitting gracefully on the cell's only bench. You see, I've been thinking about our situation. You have something I want. And I have something you want.
I have nothing you want, I spit.
Oh, but you do. Elara leans forward. You have curse-breaker blood. Rare, powerful, valuable. Do you know how much the other kingdoms would pay for a curse-breaker? How many problems I could solve with that kind of power?
Horror floods through me. You want to use me.
I want to make a deal, Elara corrects. Work for me. Use your curse-breaking magic to help me secure alliances, break enemy spells, and strengthen my kingdom. And in return, I'll let you live. I'll even let your Guardian boyfriend visit sometimes.
Never, I say.
Elara's smile fades. Then you'll hang for murder. Your trial is tomorrow. I'll make sure you're found guilty. And Cain will spend the rest of his short mortal life knowing he couldn't save you.
She stands and walks to the door. Think about it, sister. Serve me and live, or defy me and die. You have until morning to decide.
The door slams shut, leaving me in darkness.
POV: Cain
I'm going after her, I tell Nyx.
We're in the fortress library, poring over old maps of Valendris. Looking for weak points in the city walls, secret passages, anything that could help us break Sera out.
They'll arrest you the second you enter the city, Nyx points out.
I don't care.
Yes, you do, Nyx says gently. Because if they catch you, who will save Sera? You'll both be prisoners. Or dead.
She's right, but I hate it.
There has to be something we can do, I say desperately.
Nyx studies the map, her glowing eyes thoughtful. There might be. See this? She points to a mark outside the city. The old smuggler's tunnels. They run under the city walls, come up inside the merchant quarter. If we can get in through there
We sneak to the palace and break her out, I finish.
Exactly. Nyx grins. But we'll need help. This is a two-person job at minimum.
Who? I ask.
As if in answer, someone pounds on the fortress gates.
Nyx and I exchange looks. We run to the courtyard and peer through the gate's viewing slot.
A young man in guard captain armor stands outside. He's bleeding from a cut on his forehead, breathing hard like he ran the whole way here.
My name is Rhen! he shouts. I'm Sera's friend! Please, I need to talk to you!
Nyx snaps her fingers, and the gates swing open.
Rhen stumbles inside and immediately draws his sword then stops when he sees me. You're the Guardian?
Was, I correct. The curse is broken. I'm just Cain now.
Rhen sheathes his sword. Sera broke it? She actually broke it?
She did, I say. And now she's been arrested because of it. Accused of murdering Aldric.
I know, Rhen says grimly. That's why I'm here. The new queen Elarashe's planning something terrible. The trial tomorrow is a sham. She's going to find Sera guilty no matter what evidence I present.
Evidence? I ask. You have evidence she's innocent?
I have testimony from servants who saw Aldric's guards dragging Sera to the underground chambers, Rhen says. I have proof that Aldric was stealing magical energy from your curse. I have everything we need to prove Sera acted in self-defense.
Then why won't the queen listen? Nyx asks.
Because she doesn't want justice, Rhen says bitterly. She wants Sera under her control. And if Sera won't cooperate, Elara will have her executed.
My hands curl into fists. We're breaking her out. Tonight.
I was hoping you'd say that, Rhen says with a tired smile. I know the palace. I know the guard rotations. And I have keys to most of the doors.
Perfect. Nyx's eyes gleam with wild magic. Let's go crash a trial.
POV: Sera
Morning comes too fast.
Guards drag me out of my cell and march me through the palace. We emerge into the throne room, and my heart sinks.
Hundreds of nobles fill the space, all dressed in their finest clothes. This isn't just a trial it's entertainment. They've come to watch the former thief get what she deserves.
Elara sits on the throne, her crown glittering. When she sees me, she smiles.
Sera Ashford, she announces. You stand accused of the murder of High Priest Aldric. How do you plead?
Not guilty, I say loudly. I acted in self-defense. Aldric tried to kill me and
Silence! Elara slams her hand on the throne's armrest. You'll speak when spoken to.
The trial is a nightmare. Elara calls witness after witness all temple guards who lie through their teeth. They say I attacked Aldric unprovoked. That I used dark magic to murder him. That the Guardian helped me.
I try to defend myself, but Elara cuts me off every time.
Finally, she stands. The evidence is clear. Sera Ashford is guilty of murder, conspiracy, and treason. The sentence is death by hanging at sunset.
The crowd erupts in cheers.
No! I shout. This isn't justice! You're lying! All of you are
Guards grab me, forcing me to my knees.
Take her to the execution platform, Elara orders. Let the people see what happens to traitors.
As they drag me away, I search the crowd desperately. Looking for anyone who might help. Anyone who might believe me.
And then I see him.
Cain.
He's in the back of the throne room, disguised in a guard's cloak. Our eyes meet across the crowd. He mouths: Hold on.
Hope flares in my chest.
He came for me.
The execution platform stands in the city square. They chain me to the post and place the noose around my neck. The crowd gathers, jeering and throwing things.
Elara stands on a balcony above, watching with satisfaction.
Any last words? the executioner asks.
I open my mouth to speak
An explosion rocks the square.
Purple smoke pours in from everywhere. People scream and scatter. Through the chaos, I see Nyx grinning from a rooftop, her hands glowing with wild magic.
SURPRISE! she shouts.
Guards rush toward her. But then Rhen appears, fighting his way through the crowd toward me.
Rhen! I gasp.
Hold still! He climbs onto the platform and starts cutting my chains.
More guards swarm toward us. There are too many.
Then Cain crashes through them like a battering ram.
He's not immortal anymore, not invincible. But he fights like a man possessed. He reaches the platform, grabs the executioner, and throws him off.
Time to go, he says, cutting the noose from my neck.
You came, I whisper.
Did you really think I wouldn't? Cain pulls me into his arms.
STOP THEM! Elara screams from her balcony.
Arrows rain down. Cain shields me with his body. One arrow grazes his shoulder, but he doesn't stop.
Run! Nyx shouts, creating a wall of purple fire between us and the guards.
We run through the smoke-filled streets. Rhen leads us through alley after alley, heading for the smuggler's tunnels.
Behind us, I hear Elara's furious screams. Find them! Bring me my sister's head! I want those DEAD!
We're almost to the tunnels when more soldiers block our path.
We're surrounded. Again.
But this time, we're together.
Cain grabs my hand. Whatever happens, we fight together.
Together, I agree.
The soldiers advance.
And just when I think this is the end, the ground beneath us starts to shake.
The cobblestones crack. Plants burst through massive vines covered in silver flowers. They wrap around the soldiers, lifting them into the air.
What I breathe.
The Wild Lands, Nyx says with wonder. They're helping us!
More vines erupt, creating a path through the soldiers. The Wild Lands themselves are fighting for us.
GO! Rhen shouts.
We run down the vine-covered path. Behind us, Elara's screams fade into the distance.
We reach the tunnels and plunge into darkness. We run until our lungs burn, until we can't run anymore.
Finally, we collapse in a hidden cave outside the city.
We're alive. We're free. We're together.
What now? I gasp.
Cain pulls me close. Now we disappear. We find somewhere the queen can't reach us. And we live.
Just the four of us against the world? I ask.
Against anything, Cain promises.
But as we catch our breath, I hear something that makes my blood freeze.
Horns. Hunting horns.
Elara's soldiers are tracking us.
And they're getting closer.