Chapter 47

Raeve steels herself in a slumbersuite, determined to reach Bhoggith within seven rises, kill the marked target, and deliver proof to Sereme to save The Flourish and herself. She refuses to leave before contacting Kaan and decides to search within for Bulder’s language to strengthen her chances.

Sereme’s blood bind ignites, crippling Raeve with targeted pain meant to control but not incapacitate her. As Raeve considers flying straight to Gore to force a severance, a frigid pull drags her beneath the surface of her inner lake, trapping her under ice while her Other moves above.

Seizing the chance to avoid a direct encounter, Raeve swims to the den of pillars. She discovers multiple nests of silver, egg-shaped memory stones newly arranged, and notices the central pillar now holds only two ominous tokens. Across the nests, black shards—pieces of a shattered memory stone—are deliberately hidden beneath the silver eggs.

Realizing her Other has created a trade, Raeve understands the price: to recover the shards containing Bulder’s language, she must absorb portions of her Other’s memories, likely including painful history tied to Elluin. With time and stakes pressing, Raeve protests but accepts the exchange.

Kneeling at the nearest pile, Raeve takes a silver memory stone. The moment she touches it, consciousness drops into her Other’s body, committing her to relive the past in order to gain the knowledge she needs to complete the mission and move toward freedom from Sereme.