POV: Ravenna
They move at dawn.
I'm in the war room when it happens—watching the coordinated strikes unfold across both kingdoms simultaneously. Fire and Water forces working together to arrest identified Eclipse members before they can warn each other. Before they can RUN.
Father stands at the head of the table, stone-faced and grim. Thalassa is beside him via magical communication crystal—her face projected in shimmering water above the table's surface.
"Cassian's residence," a captain reports. "Twenty soldiers ready."
"Lord Marcus Thorne's estate," another adds. "Ten soldiers, two mages."
Father nods. "Execute."
The word hangs in the air like a blade.
I watch through the scrying mirrors as our forces storm Cassian's townhouse in the noble quarter. He's having BREAKFAST. Sitting at his polished table with tea and pastries like he didn't help orchestrate the murder of my mother. Like he didn't hunt gift-bearers for DECADES.
The doors burst open. Soldiers flood in.
Cassian stands so fast his chair topples. "What is the meaning of this? I am a councilor, I have rights—"
"You have the right to remain silent," Hadrian says, stepping forward with shackles. "Though I doubt you'll use it."
"This is political persecution!" Cassian's face goes red. "The king cannot simply—"
"The king can do whatever he wants when presented with evidence of TREASON." Hadrian slams a stack of documents on the table. Seraphine's letters. Silas's confession. The paper trail connecting Cassian to Eclipse operations going back TWENTY YEARS. "You're finished."
Cassian looks at the documents. At the soldiers surrounding him. At the shackles in Hadrian's hands.
"I want a trial," he says finally. His voice is cold now. Calculating. "I have the right to a public trial."
"You'll get one." Father's voice comes through the communication crystal. "And then you'll get a public execution. Unless you cooperate."
Cassian's jaw tightens but he doesn't resist as Hadrian claps the shackles on. He's too smart for that. Too aware that resisting would give them an excuse to kill him on the spot.
They drag him out. I watch him go and feel—nothing. No satisfaction. No relief. Just cold certainty that this is necessary.
"Lord Thorne's estate," the scrying mirror shifts focus.
The soldiers are already inside, weapons drawn, searching room by room. They find Thorne in his study.
Or what's LEFT of Thorne.
He's slumped over his desk, a crystal vial in one hand. Empty. Foam around his mouth. His eyes are open but unseeing.
Dead.
"Poison," one of the soldiers confirms, checking for a pulse. "Self-administered. He's been gone at least an hour."
Father curses under his breath. "Search everything. I want every document, every letter, every SCRAP of evidence before his family tries to destroy it."
The soldiers move fast, stripping the study bare. They find hidden compartments behind books. Coded letters in desk drawers. A journal detailing Eclipse operations with names, dates, LOCATIONS.
More than enough to damn him posthumously. Not enough to question him about who else is involved.
Coward's way out.
"Aetherwyn operations," Thalassa's voice through the crystal. Her image shifts to show HER war room. "General Cove is secured. Ambassador Marsh resisted—his dragon was subdued but not before killing two of my soldiers."
My stomach clenches. More deaths. Always more deaths.
"The others?" Father asks.
"Three more arrests completed. Two fled before we could reach them." Thalassa's expression is grim. "We're tracking them. They won't get far."
"What about confessions?"
"General Cove is talking." A thin smile. "He's providing names. Locations. The organizational structure in Aetherwyn." She pauses. "It's worse than we thought. Eclipse has cells in every major city. Sympathizers in noble houses. Even some in my OWN GUARD."
Father closes his eyes briefly. "How deep does it go?"
"Deep enough that we'll be rooting them out for months." Thalassa's image flickers. "But we have the senior members. The leaders. And with Cassian and the others in custody, we can dismantle the rest systematically."
"What about Seris?" I ask. Because that's the question that matters. The woman who FOUNDED this nightmare. "Where is she?"
Both monarchs look at me. Then at each other.
"Skyreach," Father says finally. "She fled there after Silas was arrested. The Air Kingdom is refusing to cooperate."
"Refusing?" My voice goes sharp. "She murdered my MOTHER. She's hunted gift-bearers for decades. She nearly started a WAR—"
"I know." Father's tone is hard. "But Skyreach has remained neutral throughout this conflict. The Seer Council claims they won't arrest one of their own without direct proof. They're saying True-Sight isn't a crime."
"Having True-Sight isn't a crime," I snap. "Using it to HUNT AND MURDER people IS."
"We agree." Thalassa's image leans forward. "Which is why Aldric and I are sending a joint message to the Council. Either they arrest Seris and allow extradition for trial—or the Fire-Water alliance will consider their protection of her an act of war."
Oh.
OH.
"You're threatening the AIR kingdom?" I stare at them. "That's—that's massive. If they refuse—"
"Then we go to war with Skyreach too." Father's voice is flat. Final. "I will NOT let the woman who killed Elara hide behind neutral territory. Not anymore."
Thalassa nods agreement. "The Council will take the threat seriously. They don't want war with a Fire-Water alliance. They'll investigate."
"And if they find her innocent?" I ask.
"They won't." Father meets my eyes. "Because she's NOT innocent. And the evidence is overwhelming. The Council may be slow and bureaucratic but they're not stupid. They'll see the truth."
I want to believe that. Want to trust that justice will happen.
But I've seen too much. Lost too much. I know how easily the powerful escape consequences.
"What if she runs?" I ask quietly. "Before they can arrest her?"
"Then we hunt her," Theron says from behind me. I didn't hear him enter but he's there suddenly, solid and steady at my back. "We track her down wherever she goes and we bring her back for trial."
Father looks at Theron for a long moment. Then nods. "Agreed."
***
The arrests continue throughout the day. By sunset, we have fifteen Eclipse members in custody across both kingdoms. Three are dead—Thorne's suicide, two who fought and died resisting arrest. Five escaped and are being hunted.
And Seris remains free in Skyreach, protected by the Council's neutrality and her own political connections.
But the net is closing.
I can feel it. The organization that killed my mother, that hunted people like me for decades—it's CRUMBLING. Being dismantled piece by piece.
"We're going after her," I tell Theron that night as we stand on the balcony overlooking the city. "Seris. We're going to Skyreach and we're bringing her back."
"I know," he says quietly. "I know."
"Father will want to handle it diplomatically first—"
"And when diplomacy fails, we'll go." He takes my hand. "Whatever it takes, Ravenna. We'll see this through."
I lean against him and stare at the darkening sky. Somewhere out there, Seris is hiding. Planning. Preparing to escape.
But she won't.
Because I'm coming for her.
And I won't stop until justice is done.