Only when they saw Aethelgard's corpse-strewn fields and Lady Agnes's head on the Crimson Covenant's gates did they believe me. They turned on Seraphina, voices raw. "You said Caden was jealous! You made us celebrate Lysander's birthday! How could this happen?" Seraphina trembled. Last life, when the Covenant attacked, Seraphina had led our best mages to celebrate novice Lysander's birthday. I'd raced back to help repel the attack—but too late for Lysander. The cultists tortured him to death, dismembered him, and hung his remains on their gates. Seraphina alone retrieved his body. After three months secluded, she emerged—and ran me through with her sword. "If you hadn't conspired with them," she hissed, "Lysander would live. You never should have existed." 1 When I opened my eyes, I was back. It was the day of the attack. I scrambled out of my chambers. Lady Agnes and a handful of junior disciples were at the main gate, desperately pouring their aether into the Great Ward. In the distance, a horde of Covenant cultists watched like wolves, launching fireball after fireball at the shimmering barrier, trying to batter their way through. I began my own incantation, adding my aether to the Ward. Sensing my presence, Lady Agnes turned. "Caden! Go to the rear mountain! Find Seraphina and bring the others back, quickly!" It pained me, but I had to tell her the truth. "My Lady, they aren't at the rear mountain. They've gone down to the village to celebrate Lysander's birthday." Ever since the Shadow Lord of the Covenant was captured and imprisoned within Aethelgard, a new rule had been established: no Adept-rank mage was to leave the Citadel without the Grandmaster's explicit permission. And the dozen mages who had left with Seraphina were the Order's strongest. "Those irresponsible fools!" Lady Agnes cursed. "Use the Vox Crystal! Tell them to return at once!" I hesitated. "My Lady, perhaps we shouldn't. If we interrupt Lysander's birthday, Seraphina will be furious." "Caden, have you lost all sense? A birthday party or the fate of Aethelgard? Which do you think is more important?" Before I could answer, she had already activated the Vox Crystal herself, her voice ringing with urgency. "Seraphina! The Crimson Covenant is at the gates! Bring your brothers and sisters back now!" Lady Agnes was her mother. In the past, Seraphina had always been the most obedient of daughters. But this time, a cold, dismissive laugh came through the crystal. "Mother, please, spare me the theatrics." Lady Agnes frowned. "What are you talking about?" "I know you've never been fond of Lysander, but you shouldn't stoop to conspiring with Caden to trick me back with such a ridiculous lie. I made inquiries this morning. The Covenant's high priest is getting married today. The entire cult is celebrating. They have no time to attack Aethelgard. Today is Lysander's birthday—the first one he's ever truly celebrated. We promised him we would spend the entire day with him. So please, you and Caden, just behave yourselves and don't bother us." The connection was severed. Lady Agnes's face was a mask of fury. "That boy, Lysander! What potion has he fed my daughter that she no longer trusts her own mother's word?" Suddenly, the entire mountain shuddered. She whipped her head around, her face draining of color. "Sky-Breaker... How do they have the Sky-Breaker Axe?" At the head of the enemy horde, two hulking figures were swinging a colossal axe, each blow sending spiderweb cracks across the surface of the Great Ward. Sky-Breaker was the legendary weapon of our Order's first Grandmaster. Upon his Ascension, he had left it behind as the Citadel's ultimate defense. "They stole it," Lady Agnes whispered in horror. "No wonder they could bypass the lower wards." She turned to me, her eyes filled with desperate resolve. "Caden, I will hold the Ward here. You must go to your master." "But the Grandmaster is in seclusion!" I protested. "To disturb him now could cause his aether to run wild, it could kill him!" Three years ago, after subduing the Shadow Lord, our master had been gravely wounded. He'd been meditating in the sealed Grotto of Sorrows ever since, leaving the Order in Seraphina's care—which was precisely why she'd been able to lead so many adepts away. "Caden," Lady Agnes said, her voice stern and unyielding. "Do you know what lies south of this mountain? The mortal realms. The Covenant first grew its power by devouring mortal souls. The First Grandmaster founded this Order here to protect those people, to beat the darkness back. We bear a responsibility not just to contain the Covenant, but to shield the innocent." She looked me dead in the eye. "Compared to the lives of all those people, what is your master's life? What is mine?" Her words struck me like a tolling bell. I clenched my fists. "Then you go to the Grandmaster. I will defend the Ward." "No." She shoved me back. "My power is greater than yours. I can hold them for half an hour. Go! You must return with him before then!" With tears in my eyes, I nodded, and launched myself into the air, flying toward the Grotto of Sorrows. But as I reached the foot of the sealed mountain, a flash of light slammed into me, sending me crashing to the ground. I thought the Covenant had found me. But when I looked up, it was my junior sister, Rhea, standing over me. My eyes widened. "Rhea! What are you doing here?" "I was waiting for you." 2 Rhea's expression was strange, unreadable. I didn't have time for this. "The Covenant is at the gates! Rhea, you have to help Lady Agnes! I'm going to get the Grandmaster." Rhea was the most gifted prodigy in our Order. With her help, they could surely hold on longer. I tried to take flight again, but a hand grabbed the back of my tunic. In one smooth motion, Rhea twisted and threw me over her shoulder, slamming me hard onto the packed earth. "Oh, cut the act, Caden. Don't play these games with me." Her words were almost identical to Seraphina's. My mind went blank. "What are you talking about?" "You're just jealous that Seraphina organized a party for Lysander, aren't you? Is it really necessary to bother the Grandmaster over something so petty? He's at a critical point in his healing. If you disturb him over this, he'll never forgive you." "Rhea, I'm not jealous!" I scrambled to explain. "The Covenant is really here!" "Don't lie to me," she scoffed. "Seraphina told us this morning. She said you were upset about her and Lysander and would definitely cause a scene. She even took us down the mountain to reinforce the lower wards herself. Even if the Shadow Lord himself escaped, he couldn't break through them." I sighed, a wave of exhaustion washing over me. "They stole the Sky-Breaker Axe. Rhea, I swear on my life, everything I'm saying is true." Perhaps the desperation in my voice gave her pause. She seemed to hesitate. But then a small, pitying smile touched her lips. "You really are a terrible liar, Caden. Sky-Breaker is locked in the Grandmaster's private chambers. How could they possibly have stolen it?" No matter how I tried to explain, she was convinced I was lying. I couldn't waste any more time. I twisted out of her grip. "Fine, don't believe me! But I have to get to the Grandmaster, or all of Aethelgard will be lost!" "Don't run!" The next moment, Rhea produced a set of silver chains. With a single word of power, they flew through the air and wrapped around me, binding me tight. I struggled on the ground, helpless. "Rhea, let me go! There's no time! Lady Agnes is still at the gate! If you won't save her, are you going to stop anyone else from trying?" She shook her head. "Stop shouting, Caden. To be honest, Seraphina told me to wait here specifically to catch you. I've been here for a while, and I haven't seen a single cultist." She looked at me with genuine confusion. "I just don't get it. Seraphina and Lysander are perfect for each other, a match made in the heavens. Why do you have to be so conniving and try to ruin their happiness?" I knew. They all thought I was a scheming, petty villain. And Lysander, their precious Lysander, was a true gentleman. A year ago, Seraphina had found him, an orphan with no discernible aether, and brought him back to the Citadel. She had insisted on taking him as her personal apprentice, a position of incredible honor. I had argued with her, pointing out how unfair it was to the other, more talented disciples. It broke all our traditions. It was a clear abuse of her authority. I was trying to stand up for fairness, but somehow, I was branded as being jealous of Lysander. From that day on, my relationship with Seraphina had grown colder and more distant. When Lysander’s training wand broke, she accused me of sabotaging it. When he "tripped" and fell down a flight of stairs, she accused me of pushing him. When he had a manic episode and was found scrubbing the floors in the middle of the night, she said I had bullied him into it. It wasn't just her. As Lysander's "misfortunes" piled up, everyone began to see me as the villain, jealous of his closeness to Seraphina. They all seemed to have forgotten that I was the one betrothed to her. Worried the chains weren't enough, Rhea placed a paralysis sigil on my chest. She dusted off her hands. "There. Don't be so upset, Caden. I'll keep you company today." I was so frantic I could have wept. "Rhea, I'll stay with you, I promise! Just... just go back to the Citadel and look! Please! If you're too late, it won't just be Aethelgard that falls, the mortal realms will be plunged into chaos!" Despite my repeated, desperate pleas, she stood firm. "No. Seraphina said she's planning a firework display from the top of the Citadel for Lysander tonight. I have to take you somewhere else." As the words left her mouth, the jade pendants we all wore at our waists began to chime violently. Clang, clang, clang! The color drained from Rhea's face. The Citadel Jade trembles for only one reason. The Great Ward of Aethelgard, the unbreakable shield of the Order, had been shattered.
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