Aelin, Chaol, Rowan, and Aedion carry the two urns of hellfire into the sewers beneath Rifthold. Because the volatile hellfire is beside them, they avoid using flame and stand in silence in the cold, foul darkness while preparing to split for the solstice strike.

Rowan shakes Chaol’s hand and wishes him luck. When Rowan turns to Aelin, Aelin avoids meeting his gaze, focusing on a torn edge of his cloak as she embraces him quickly and tightly, aware this might be their last moment together. Rowan lingers, but Aelin forces herself onward.

Aelin turns to Aedion, whose Ashryver eyes mirror her own. They exchange vows for Terrasen, their family, Marion, and themselves. Aedion kneels and offers her the Sword of Orynth, declaring that ten years of shadows must end and urging his queen to light the darkness.

Aelin accepts her father’s sword, taking strength from its familiar weight. Facing Chaol, Rowan, and Aedion—the three males who mean everything to her—she gathers her courage, desperation, and hope, then leads them forward with the call to “rattle the stars.”