Chapter 18

Erebus returns early in the morning while Bree, Elijah, and Zoe are eating breakfast. The twins automatically rise to greet Erebus, but Bree does not, which reminds Bree that Elijah and Zoe resent the different treatment. Bree notices that Erebus looks unusually drained, tense, and hungry after shadow walking, and her anxiety causes her to bend a spoon and break a plate by accident.

When Erebus calls Bree, Bree steadies her emotions because Erebus can sense fear and distress. Erebus takes Bree by shadow walk to a secluded Varelian warehouse outside town, explaining that the space is a training center where her bright, powerful magic can be contained. Bree questions Erebus about whether he is hunting Rootcrafters or using a warlock, and Erebus admits he has fed from Rootcrafters before but denies any recent feeding or involvement with pact-magic mercenaries.

As they walk, Erebus mentions that Merlin bodies run hot, prompting a physical memory in Bree of intimate contact with a Merlin. Erebus infers what happened and reveals that Bree was involved with the same reckless Merlin who sacrificed himself for her. He adds that the boy was a Kingsmage, which deepens Bree’s guilt but also gives Bree hope: if a Kingsmage has survived impossible transformation before, then this boy may be absent rather than truly gone.

Erebus frames Bree’s losses as part of a quest that has made her stronger, but Bree challenges him by asking whether the stolen crown is his own great and necessary loss. Erebus reacts with a flash of fury and grief before shutting the subject down. Bree realizes that Erebus has been upsetting her deliberately and, after he activates her bloodmark to check her strength, he explains that the crown no longer answers his call and that the bloodmark lets him monitor his investment in her.

Inside the warehouse, Bree sees a fully equipped training arena once used for young Merlins. Bree asks why Elijah and Zoe have not trained there, and Erebus says the twins are rare cambion assets better used as emissaries, not fighters. Erebus states that Bree’s experiences with death have sharpened her hunger and potential, and that Bree’s eventual strength will increase his own. Bree recognizes the danger of living under Erebus while gathering knowledge and power, and she prepares to train while privately biding her time until she can escape.