Nightbane

Isla faces Terra and Poppy, her former guardians. Terra taunts Isla’s past recklessness; Poppy anxiously tries to soften the meeting. When Terra insults Isla, Grim intervenes, and Isla draws a blade, threatening Terra and refusing to be cowed.

Terra then asserts that, despite past lies, she and Poppy did not kill Isla’s parents. Isla, unable to verify with magic due to her restraints, rejects the claim but is shaken by the contradiction to earlier admissions.

The scene shifts to Nightshade’s fields, where Isla, Grim, and Wren confront devastation: all nightbane flowers have withered to ash after the storm. Recognizing the loss’s impact on healing elixirs and a vital daily drug, Isla orders Wren to secure remaining elixirs and plant newland seeds, knowing supply will be scarce.

Seeking causes and solutions to the storms, Isla asks Grim about seers. Grim reveals Nightshade once had a prophet whose order survives on a mountain reachable only by a lethal test; power is nullified there, tunnels shift, and beasts roam within. Grim’s father killed the prophet for withholding prophecies, and the order barred Grim from entry when he once climbed.

Despite the risk and her nullified powers, Isla insists on making the climb to obtain knowledge about the storms. Grim, citing the mortal danger and their people’s reliance on her survival, insists on accompanying her. They agree to undertake the ascent to seek answers.