Aelin falls through the sealed Wyrdgate but does not immediately reach Erilea. As all worlds overlap, she hurtles through realms of water, ice, darkness, lights, towers, silence, rain, oceans, and mountains, desperately searching for the tether of the mating bond that can guide her home.

The bond strengthens and begins reeling Aelin toward Erilea, but Aelin is moving too quickly and fears she will overshoot her own world. She scrapes together the last remnants of herself to slow down, passing over a world of snowcapped mountains where a winged Fae male stands beside a pregnant female. The male notices Aelin’s passing spark and sends a gentle blast of dark power that slows Aelin enough to save her course.

Aelin finally sees Erilea: its pine, snow, mountains, Oakwald, the Wastes, and countless peoples at war and peace. Refusing to let this be the end, Aelin seizes the bond, pulls herself downward, and returns to her body just as the Wyrdgate and all other doors slam shut.

At Endovier, Rowan kneels over Aelin, believing she is dying and intending to follow her if she does. Instead, Rowan feels a surge through the damaged mating bond as it repairs, and Aelin collapses alive into his arms. Dorian and Chaol weep nearby while Aelin wakes, smiles at Rowan, and tells him she came back.

Aelin awakens weak, altered, and aching. When Dorian asks what happened, Aelin summons only a small flame and reveals that her immense fire magic is gone, leaving only an ember. She also discovers that the cost of forging the Lock burned away her human life and mortality; she can no longer shift and will remain in her Fae body. Yet Aelin retains a small ordinary flame and a droplet of water, her mother’s gift, confirming that although she is no longer a Fire-Bringer, she is still herself.