Contents
Chapter Forty-Nine
Overview
Summoned at midnight, Neema and Cain hear Katsan publicly confess to stealing the Blade and framing Valit, inventing a convincing story that redirects Gaida’s murder into a suicide. The emperor eagerly accepts the lie. Katsan then requests return to Anat-garra to “fall into the Bear’s embrace,” exposing the emperor’s ignorance.
Granted passage at dawn, Katsan secretly secures escape to warn the Bear monastery. Neema regains Gaida’s colors, and she and a battered Cain share a tender goodnight before facing each other in the arena.
Summary
Neema and a badly injured Cain are summoned to the throne room at midnight. The emperor, oddly jovial, praises Neema’s sparring and notes Cain’s condition while hinting at new information about Gaida’s death. Vabras arrives with Katsan, now maimed and no longer a contender, who stands before the throne with stoic composure despite obvious pain.
Katsan confesses to stealing the Blade of Peace and framing Valit, claiming she found Gaida already dead and, in grief, targeted the Tigers. The emperor seizes on the detail of poison, and—supported by Vabras and Havoc’s false testimony about Gaida’s state of mind—declares Gaida’s death a suicide. Katsan’s protests are overruled as the emperor moves to close the matter.
When sentenced to five years in the mines, Katsan rejects the leniency and invokes the Bear’s code, requesting to return to Anat-garra to “fall into the Bear’s embrace.” The emperor’s momentary panic reveals his ignorance of the Bear rite, confirming for Katsan that he is not truly Brother Bersun. He nonetheless grants her departure at first light.
Escorted out, Katsan pauses to return Neema’s colors—once Gaida’s, used as a tourniquet—formally passing them back. Neema recognizes how the official narrative has erased the truth, even as Katsan’s lie protects Neema for now. The night’s reversals leave Neema recalibrating her priorities.
Back in the corridor, Cain is near collapse from targeted blows delivered by Havoc’s Hounds. Neema settles him toward rest, and they exchange a brief, intimate goodnight—Cain blurting “my love”—before parting for the night. They are drawn to face each other in the morning’s bout, and Neema quietly taps on Sunur’s door to end the chapter.
Who Appears
- Neema BallariWitnesses Katsan’s staged confession, regains Gaida’s colors, and shares a tender goodnight with the injured Cain before their looming match.
- Katsan BrundtConfesses to theft and framing, crafts a suicide cover for Gaida, requests return to Anat-garra, exposing the emperor’s ignorance, and returns Neema’s colors.
- The Emperor (Gedrun impostor)Eagerly adopts the suicide narrative, sentences then permits Katsan’s departure, revealing unfamiliarity with Bear rites.
- Cain KraaSeverely beaten by Havoc’s Hounds, stands through the midnight audience, and parts gently from Neema before their scheduled fight.
- VabrasArrives with Katsan and supports the emperor’s framing of Gaida’s death as suicide.
- HavocProvides false testimony about Gaida’s despair; his Hounds earlier beat Cain.
- SunurUnseen presence at chapter’s end when Neema knocks on the door.