Chapter Eight

After Bastian’s unusual Consecration, Lore and Gabriel return to their assigned apartments in the Citadel. Lore finds bad wine and presses Gabriel to admit the ceremony was strange, especially Anton’s bloodletting of Bastian. Gabriel concedes that it was unusual but continues to assume Anton had a purpose, revealing his habit of rationalizing the Priest Exalted’s choices.

As Lore and Gabriel drink, the tension between them eases. Gabriel admits that being back in the Citadel is difficult, and Lore notices how unexpectedly comfortable his quiet presence feels despite their short, violent acquaintance and Gabriel’s loyalty to Anton. Lore recognizes that trusting Gabriel would be dangerous, but her fear and isolation make her want an anchor.

The conversation turns personal. Lore asks about Gabriel’s missing eye, and Gabriel explains that Jax, then the young heir of the Kirythean Empire, tore it out after executing Gabriel’s father for betraying Auverraine. Gabriel says Anton found him afterward, brought him into the Presque Mort, and helped train him to block out his sensitivity to Mortem while he lived at the Northreach monastery. Lore nearly tells Gabriel the truth about being born with Mortem power, but she stops herself and instead lies that she drowned briefly as a child and was cast out by her family.

Gabriel’s history reveals how Anton transformed Gabriel’s trauma into holy loyalty, deepening Lore’s distrust of the Priest Exalted. Gabriel also admits that, because Jax spared him, court suspicion followed him and that he sometimes wishes Jax had killed him. Their moment is interrupted when an envelope slides under the door: an invitation addressed to Remaut for a masquerade hosted by Bastian in the throne room at sunset.

Lore sees the masquerade as a chance to obey August’s command and get close to Bastian, but Gabriel worries that Bastian already knows too much because he may have seen Lore arrive at the Citadel earlier. Lore insists she can lie if questioned, while Gabriel recognizes that Bastian is paying more attention than August believes. A servant then delivers garment bags from King August, solving the problem of what they will wear and making the masquerade unavoidable.