Chapter 40

Arriving in Yejedin’s jagged mountains, Dianna forces a glowing Logan into cover, arguing over his visible celestial markings. To avoid detection, they plunge into a foul river and follow tunnels beneath a mountain citadel while machines grind above. Logan’s soul-mark erupts; he senses Neverra nearby and nearly charges, but Dianna restrains and centers him using a calming ritual Samkiel taught, restoring his control.

As they move deeper, Logan explains the Mark of Dhihsin—an all-encompassing soul tie whose partners share power and, sometimes, life force. Dianna dismisses the idea for herself and deflects any link to Samkiel. Reaching a sewer access, they enter a cold stone room, are ambushed by a golem, and Dianna decapitates it, reducing it to rubble.

They advance to a balcony overlooking a colossal factory where tiny winged workers and undead pour molten metal into molds, forging serrated, bluish-black blades—Kaden’s iron arsenal. Recognizing the scale, Dianna ends their partnership: she presses Camilla’s obsidian rift stone into Logan’s hand and orders him to find and extract Neverra, repaying the debt she feels for Gabriella’s sake. Logan, torn but convinced, departs.

Dianna then summons the power she has fed for months, transforming into a larger, scaled, winged form, galvanized by a childhood memory of promising to protect her sister. She erupts into the foundry, collapsing the balcony, spewing cataclysmic fire, and incinerating creatures, vats, and conveyors. Rising through smoke, she issues a shattering war cry, declaring ruin on Kaden’s operation.