Contents
Chapter Eighteen
Overview
Sylvia and Arin argue over Jasad’s history, exposing clashing loyalties. A resurrected Ruby Hound attacks; Sylvia restrains it with magic while Arin plants a device. Realizing it was sent as contact, Sylvia kills it and finds an Urabi note warning of enemies within. Arin is wounded, and Sylvia tends him, deepening their uneasy bond.
Summary
Sylvia avoids visiting the keep, unwilling to confront Fairel’s pain. Arin unexpectedly arrives with horses to escort her, and their wary banter resumes as they ride away from Mahair past celebratory decorations. The looming danger of the upcoming trials weighs on Sylvia.
The conversation turns to Jasad’s past. When Sylvia condemns Nizahl for razing Jasad, Arin counters with accounts of Jasadi atrocities and the Blood Summit, insisting magic led to tyranny. The argument aggravates Sylvia’s distress just as a massive, gemstone-armored Ruby Hound charges them.
Sylvia slows the Hound with her magic while Arin clasps her bare hand, intensifying her power through pain, and uses a spiked device in the creature’s mouth. When the Hound targets Sylvia, she immobilizes Arin with magic, approaches the beast, and realizes it was sent as a conduit rather than a mere assassin.
Addressing the unseen senders through the Hound, Sylvia refuses recruitment, then triggers Arin’s device, killing the creature. A note falls free, bearing the Urabi seal, promising to raise Jasad and warning that enemies begin within. They infer the Urabi tracked her after the Mufsid contact.
Arin, slashed in the attack, tries to downplay his injury. Sylvia forces the issue and bandages him using his torn tunic. Amid pain and unexpected laughter, they share a charged, vulnerable moment. Sylvia apologizes for trapping him with magic; Arin warns her never to risk that again, and their uneasy alliance hardens with new tensions and hints of trust.
Who Appears
- Sylvia (Essiya)Jasadi heir; restrains and confronts a Ruby Hound, rejects Urabi overture, and bandages Arin’s wounds after the fight.
- Arin NizahlHeir-Commander; challenges Sylvia with Jasadi history, fights the Hound with a device, is injured, briefly softens during treatment.
- Ruby HoundResurrected, gem-armored beast sent as attack and conduit; subdued and killed by Sylvia using Arin’s device.
- UrabiJasadi faction; sends the Hound and a note offering alliance and warning that enemies begin within.
- HanimAbuser’s voice in Sylvia’s mind, urging violence during the Hound attack, underscoring internal conflict.