Chapter 4: Baz

Baz lingers in the hidden Eclipse commons beneath Aldryn, recalling rumors about Obscura Hall and contrasting them with its cozy reality. He mourns Kai Salonga’s recent Collapsing and removal to the Institute, ruminating on their differences, Kai’s fearless embrace of Eclipse magic, and Baz’s strict adherence to “small” magic to avoid Collapsing like his father.

Turning to myth, Baz studies illustrations of the Tides and the Shadow, remembering Romie’s favorites and Kai’s alternative Constellation Isles version that paints neither the Tides nor the Shadow as evil. The memories sharpen Baz’s grief for Romie and his loneliness without Kai. Dusk, Romie’s cat, keeps him company as he debates showing Emory Romie’s note but is paralyzed by fear.

Spotting bonfires at Dovermere, Baz decides to go, driven by the need to understand why Romie died there. He descends via the Eclipse stair and reaches the cove as students discover a body—Quince Travers—who is barely alive and rapidly wasting away.

Emory rushes to heal Quince but loses control, her magic surging beyond Healer bounds into darkness, growth, light, and finally death—Reaper power. Recognizing the catastrophic danger, Baz breaks his own limits and manipulates time, rewinding the emergence of Emory’s impossible powers so witnesses never register them, though the effort brings him perilously close to Collapsing.

Despite Baz’s intervention, Quince dies. In the stunned silence, Emory and Baz lock eyes, both shaken. Baz recalls Emory’s past healing and realizes the only explanation for her wielding multiple tidal magics is that she is a Tidecaller—an impossibility from legend that now appears real.