Sebastian never had the luxury to get ready for a battle. Not a real one, anyway.

Usually, people were either chasing or ambushing him. Not this time. This time, things were different. He was doing the blindsiding this time. For the first time since he defected from the Shades, he'd be going on the offensive. From the time he left the War Room until the sun rose in the morning, he'd been preparing. Only two of those tireless hours were spent sleeping. The rest entailed studying new spells, strengthening old ones, refreshing his memory on Castle Braexus' layout, and acquiring a full set of armor.

The trip to the armory in the dead of the night had been an interesting one. As a former Shade, he'd never worn armor before. His attire consisted of his regular clothes or the dark robes his housemates wore. Never armor. It was too heavy and loud—the opposite of what a Shade was meant to be. Each house had a specific type of armor for their combat magicians; he recalled House Aegeon's silver and blue chainmail, the animal-inspired outfits of House Oseda's soldiers, and the Viking armor of House Brynjir's battlemages. House Tenebris had no such thing.

So, he'd been forced to make his own.

He stared down at the chest plate sitting on the table in his dark room. He'd hand-painted it black, as the armory possessed no such color. Ink and paint stained his palms; no amount of scrubbing seemed to get rid of it. Magic had its perks, but the ability to create nearly permanent paint was not one of them. The straps of the chest were a deep purple, aligning with the other color of his house.

While he might've been a traitor, House Tenebris would always be a part of him. Despite what other magicians thought, his house didn't have to be synonymous with evil. There were good, decent people within its ranks. The tyranny of their leader, however, prevented them from stepping up. Cowardice, while pathetic, wasn't exactly a punishable offense. Once this war was over, he'd do whatever he could to repair the damage the Order had done to their house's name.

Today was the first step to righting his father's wrongs. If everything went to plan, the Order would fall. Things would go back to normal. He took a deep breath.

A sleek, lightweight helmet stared back at him from the other end of the table. It'd been painted black, purple, and gold. The face hole was shaped like a 'T' with openings for his eyes, nose, and a bit of his mouth. He lifted it and examined the dark iron, which he decorated with protection runes and charms.

Despite its look, it weighed more than he anticipated. Or perhaps it was all in his head.

He once donned the face of a raven when he was a Shade. That felt like an eternity ago. Now, he was about to face the very people who raised him. He was about to assault the place he once called home. He thought of his sister. He thought of Emile. Part of him wished they could've been freed from his father's death grip. But they made their choice and continued to make it the longer this went on. Still, he couldn't help but wonder

He shook his head.

The only thing that mattered right now was making sure everything went to plan.

And that meant getting to the portal gate on time. The sun had begun to rise outside his curtained window. Nodding to himself, he peered at the face of his helmet once more. He spotted his pale, warped reflection in the metal. Some days he barely recognized himself.

But today he knew exactly who he was looking at.

Nodding, he placed the helmet on his head, equipped the rest of his armor, and left to join the others at the palace's portal gate.

#

"Are you sure you want to come, Rem?" Ajax asked while tucking a hatchet in between the bottom strap of his chest plate. "I mean, it's going to get bloody."

"I've survived getting hunted by Shades for a decade, a dragon siege in Thania, and an army of zombies in Vashara." Remy rolled his eyes. "I think I can handle this. Besides, I've been practicing my deception magic. I don't need to be a battlemage to make a difference."

"If you say so, kid."

Sebastian joined his friends off to the side of the arrangement of portals. There were about four hundred people present in total. Their assembled army consisted of Jocasta's Arkangels, the battlemages from House Brynjir, the remaining Eldai who survived the battle in Vashara, a dozen of Karuma's fighters, and a few Solairs who answered Imogen's call a few days prior.

Would it be enough to take the castle long enough to battle his father and the rest of the Order? He wasn't sure. But it would have to be. The element of surprise was their greatest weapon now. As long as they had that, they had a chance.

Catherine and Jocasta stood at the front of the horde of magicians along with Olivier. The three of them were talking strategy. Behind them, a few battlemages were conversing with some Arkangels. This time, no one was shouting or insulting each other. Sebastian smiled at the sight.

A few minutes passed before Olivier took the stage in front of House Tenebris' obsidian portal. Everyone went silent as they stared at the man. But he didn't speak. Instead, he motioned for Sebastian to join him.

He froze. Beside him, Imogen nudged him forward and mouthed: "Go!"

Dazed with trepidation, he awkwardly shuffled forward, fully aware of the hundreds of stares drilled holes into his back. Straightening his posture, he equipped his bravest face and joined Olivier at the front of the crowd. His false confidence crumbled under the weight of the stares pressing against him. It wasn't until he caught Imogen's eye that he felt ready to speak. Every ounce of the building anxiety in his chest melted away like wax dripping from a hot candle.

He lifted his chin before addressing those before him.

"Er, hello, everyone," he managed to cough out. He spotted a few unimpressed faces in the crowd and did his best to ignore them. He cleared his throat before continuing. "For too long we've been afraid of the Order and the Shades. But that ends today. Today...we're fighting back." He pointed at the portal. "Once we step through, you must be ready to fight for your lives and the lives of everyone around you. You must be ready to do whatever it takes to make sure we win. If you don't, we'll lose."

A breeze passed through, chilling him to the bone. No one spoke. There was nothing to be said.

"Is everyone ready?" he asked.

The battlemages summoned their vayrirs and beat their weapons against their armor plates, the rhythmic noise echoing throughout the open pavilion. The Arkangels simply saluted him, much to his surprise. Behind him, his friends beamed brightly at him.

It took all his willpower to not faint.

His public speaking skills weren't anything like Imogen's or Olivier's, but they'd done the job.

"It's time," Olivier said. He faced the portal. Through the haze, Sebastian could see the inside of Castle Braexus. He exhaled loudly and shook out his arms, trying his best to relieve the jitters creeping through his muscles.

Once the portal finished manifesting, Sebastian and the army at his back ran through.

#

Sebastian was a bat rushing through the night. With his blackened armor and masked face, he looked like dusk personified. He emerged into Castle Braexus' portal room, which was positioned in the exact center of the monstrous keep.

Black marble pillars rose toward the ceiling where curved, stone rafters stretched across the painted surface. The high walls of the cavernous chamber were decorated with the Order's symbol—a black lotus flower circled by twelve, white dots. Amethyst light mixed with the glow coming from the dozens of torches.

The gargoyles who protected the room descended from their perches, their talons tearing through the air as they screeched. Sebastian rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding one as it swooped down. Claws glided inches past his skin, causing his stomach to jump up his throat. With the flick of his hand, a stunning spell left his palm. A gargoyle soaring above him burst into chunks of stone before hitting the floor, nothing more than a pile of rubble.

Behind him, the others started making their way through.

More gargoyles dropped from the rafters, their high-pitched cries nearly making Sebastian's ears bleed. Footsteps sounded from the hallway outside. The Shades were on their way.

There goes the element of surprise.

Blood sloshed in his head like a raging sea. His heart thumped and adrenaline coursed through his veins. He dispatched gargoyle after gargoyle like clockwork. He felt the vitalae draining from his system, but he kept up the pace. There wasn't any time to rest.

He'd rest when they won.

Despite the waves of beasts coming from the portal room's ceiling and the Shades rushing through the doors, they were holding the room with relative ease. The Order, while powerful, wasn't infinite; casualties surely added up for them as well over recent weeks. Even with his father's new undead army, they wouldn't have been housed inside the castle. By the time they could be retrieved and unleashed, this battle would be over—at least, that's what he was hoping for.

That's where the second portion of his plan—the part he hadn't told anyone about—came in.

While everyone consented to be a part of this battle, no one knew what he was about to do. That's why it had to be done alone. No one else would die because of him. He was done seeing others lay their lives down in front of him. It was his turn now.

Up ahead, Shades burst into the room with magic spouting from their hands. Battle cries filled the air as the air ignited with energy. Arkangels and battlemages surged forward, fighting in tandem as they forced the dark magicians back. Sebastian watched Dorian tackle a gargoyle out of the sky before pinning it to the ground like a chew toy. The rest of his friends formed a tight circle as they casted at any encroaching Shades. He didn't see Imogen with them, but he had faith she was somewhere holding her own. They were winning. For now.

If he wanted to keep it that way, he needed to leave now.

Before he could shadowjump out of the room. someone snatched at his hand. He turned, his fingers seconds away from unleashing a devasting spell upon the person who'd touched him.

Imogen flinched backward, eyes wide and face flushed. Sebastian dropped his hand and immediately apologized.

"What do you think you're doing?" she hissed. A Shade sprinted at her from behind. She turned to throw a stunning spell at them. The bolt of blue magic connected, dropping the magician immediately.

Sebastian cursed under his breath. "I have something I need to do."

"Something more important than this?!"

Through gritted teeth, he nodded.

"Fine. I'm coming with you then."

Before he could retort, a gargoyle turned a corner and gunned straight for them. He pushed her to the side and cast a shadow spell at the monster. Black, spider leg-like tendrils wrapped around it, constricting like a boa. The creature cried out as its life force rapidly faded. It crashed to the ground like a rogue comet, nearly hitting a few magicians who were dueling beneath it.

"I don't have time for this," Sebastian said to Imogen. "I need to go. Now."

"I said I'm coming with you." She took his head again. "Whatever it is you need to do...you don't have to do it alone."

He shook his head at her. She didn't understand. He couldn't let her come with him. If she got hurt—or worse—fighting with him, he'd never be able to live with himself. No. He had to do this alone.

"We're in this together. How many times do I have to tell you that, you goof?"

Scowling, he gnawed on the inside of his cheek like a dog chewing a bone. Changing her mind was like pulling teeth out of a shark's mouth. While her determination was one of her better qualities, this was one of the few times where he wished she just listened to him.

But maybe she was right.

He let out an exasperated groan. "If I tell you to run and leave me behind, don't argue. Just do it."

She simply nodded.

Closing his eyes, Sebastian manifested the image of the castle's residential wing in his mind. The wide, portrait-filled walls returned to him instantaneously. He saw his bedroom door. Amora's materialized beside it. At the end of the hall was his father's. When he opened his eyes, he and Imogen no longer stood in the castle's portal room. They were now in the center of the Tedorof family's sleeping chambers.

The sudden change from roaring chaos to silent tranquility made his skin crawl. The mouth of the corridor staring him in the face looked more like the maw of a beast than a hallway. Shadows danced on the purple wallpaper, the torchlight wavering in the draft seeping through invisible gaps in the walls.

"Where are we?" Imogen kept close to him, her hand tightening around his.

"The castle' living quarters."

She took a tentative look around. "You lived here?"

He nodded. He shifted his attention straight ahead. The heavy, wooden door of his father's room waited for them. "My father's room."

His father being in there was a long shot, especially after they rushed through the castle's portal. But something told him someone was in there—and the only one ever allowed in his room was himself.

Dozens of memories returned to him all at once. The white scar on his forearm seared with pain as if the wound reopened. He remembered all the gruesome, brutal training sessions with his father. He remembered the vile words that flew from the man's mouth like razor blades, cutting him down every chance he got. He remembered everything.

The thumping in his chest spread to his ears until he couldn't hear anything except his own heartbeat. Doubtful thoughts filled his head, collecting like rainwater in a bucket. He squeezed his eyes shut and backed away.

This was a mistake.

His breaths grew choppier by the second. He feared he'd start hyperventilating. The dark hallway started to warp and bend as if he'd been poisoned again. Swallowing hard, he shook his head.

"I-I can't." He clutched at his tightening throat. "I can't do this."

Imogen walked in front of him. She took both of his hands and stared deep into his eyes.

"You can," she told him. "You're just as strong as he is."

A single tear rolled down his cheek. "I'm not."

"You are," she pressed. "You survived being poisoned twice. You fought in dozens of battles and you're still here. You've even fought against Thorian, and he couldn't kill you." She let go of one of his hands and placed her finger under his chin, gently lifting his head upward. "Sebastian, you are strong. You are resilient. You are powerful. And you can do this." She grinned. "Plus, you've got one thing he doesn't."

Sniffling, he arched a brow at her.

"Me."

He laughed. His voice cracked, but he didn't care. He took her hand and planted a kiss on her palm. The pair nodded at each other and proceeded to approach Thorian's bedroom door.

A simple unlocking charm was all it took to get inside. Sebastian anticipated more charms or some sort of boobytrap, but there wasn't any of that. Immediately, his guard was up. He summoned his vayrir and took a cautious step into the room. Darkness shrouded everything like a hood; not a single light was on. Despite that, he made out a silhouette sitting on the edge of the four-poster bed in the center of the room.

Holding his hand out, he silently ordered Imogen to remain at the door. She did as she was told.

He latched on to every memory he had of his father. The early mornings he wasted trying to make him proud, the late nights he spent crying because of the pain he felt in his heart. He thought about his twin sister and how he couldn't save her from Thorian's corruption. He thought about his mother.

His lip curled into a snarl.

Today was the day Thorian atoned for his crimes. Today was the day the Order of the Black Lotus finally fell.

Exhaling, he pointed his dagger at his father.

"Sebastian. What an unpleasant surprise."

His blood ran cold. The voice didn't possess the deep, cold tone he was used to. That's because it wasn't his.

It was hers.

Amora stood up and dropped her hood. She grinned deviously at him. Sebastian's face twisted as he felt his cheeks burn. Without thinking, he stomped up to her and held his blade under her chin. A few centimeters higher and her jugular vein would've been sliced. She looked down at the black dagger and chuckled.

"Oh, I'm so scared." She rolled her eyes. "Give me a break. You aren't going to do shit."

"Where is he?"

"Where's who, Little Prince?"

He pressed his blade further. The humor fled Amora's face. "Where is Father?"

"Haven't you noticed by now? He's not here."

Sebastian wanted to vomit but he maintained his composure. Amora was a notorious liar. She rarely told the truth unless it directly benefitted her in some way. Thorian had to be hiding somewhere else in Castle Braexus. He would've seen an attack like this coming.

He would've seen it coming...

The black-haired magician blanched. Amora simply grinned.

"I know he's here," Sebastian said.

"I already told you, idiot, he's not here."

Cursing loudly, he broke away from her. He removed his helmet and tangled his quivering fingers into his matted hair. Imogen joined him at his side, her stern stare firmly fixated upon the girl before them.

"Attacking the castle was a bold move," Amora said while rubbing her throat. "Alas, you just missed Father." She clicked her tongue. "It's unfortunate, really. I would've loved to see him finally kill you. Filthy little traitor."

Sebastian's sight reddened. It took everything in him to stop from running her through with his vayrir. "Where is he?"

She went quiet.

He aimed his palm at her.

"I won't ask again."

"You're too late, anyways. You'll never catch up to him. Soon, your little girlfriend and that stupid tower will be gone. Then there'll be nothing you can do to stop us."

Imogen frowned. "What are you talking about?"

Sebastian's eyes widened.

"Lumi's tower," Amora said. "It's hidden in the Himalayas and protected by a massive storm. Well, it was until today. Father and his knights went to take it down."

"And he didn't take you?"

Her mouth twitched. "I was instructed to look after the castle."

He snorted. "Yeah, right. He still doesn't trust you."

His sister's face tensed. He could see it took all her willpower to keep her expression neutral. "You don't know anything."

"I know enough."

They might've been enemies, but she was still his sister. His little sister, even if only by a few minutes. No one knew her better than he did. For their entire lives, they'd been fighting for their father's attention and approval. He always favored her over him, but even she never got the love she so desperately needed. He could see it in her eyes—she still wanted to prove herself to him. Leaving her out of whatever he had planned must've done irreparable damage to her ego.

All he had for her now was pity.

"There's still time," he told her.

She looked away from him. Tears welled in her eyes.

"You don't have to do this anymore, Amora. You don't have to follow him anymore—"

"I do!" she erupted. "I do! You don't understand, Sebastian. This...the Shades...this is all I have. This is all I am and all I'll ever be. Y-You found people who accepted you after leaving. If I leave now, who will accept me? Who'll take me in after everything we've done?"

"I will," he told her.

He watched her face transition through several emotions. Eventually, she settled on rage. Her hand snapped upward. She never got to finish casting her spell. Imogen quickly created a binding charm that tied Amora's wrist to one of the bed's wooden poles. Imogen did the same with her other hand before Amora could think to attack.

Her black hair spilled into her enraged face. She thrashed against the magical binds keeping her in place. She roared at them to release her, but her cries fell on deaf ears. Rage-fueled tears spilled down her red face.

Sebastian turned away. He couldn't bear to see her like that.

"C'mon," he told Imogen. "We need to get back to the others."

#

When they returned to the castle's portal room, the fighting was all but done. Most of the gargoyles were nothing more than heaps of stone while all the Shades either laid dead on the floor or had already retreated deeper into the keep. Castle Braexus had been conquered.

But Sebastian didn't feel victorious.

His plan to fight his father failed. The man wasn't even here. Amora's words echoed in his head. If she was to be trusted, then Thorian was wherever Makaela happened to be. He needed to find them both and stop whatever he was about to do. There was only one issue: he had no clue what tower Amora had been referring to. The Himalayas wasn't a small mountain range—finding a tower there was akin to searching for a needle in a haystack. He needed a clue.

Luckily, they had a human encyclopedia—who also happened to be a Lumaian magician—present. If anyone knew what Lumi's tower was, it would be Remy.

Sebastian found the boy standing with his father, Siren, and Ajax near the portal while the rest of their forces secured the room. They sported minimal injuries. In fact, they hadn't suffered any casualties. Though, a few Arkangels did need a medic. Those that did were being ushered through the portal back to the palace to receive medical attention.

"Where the hell have you two been?" Ajax grumbled as Sebastian and Imogen walked up. "Don't think we didn't notice you disappear midway through the fight. This was your idea. The least you could've done was stick it out with the rest of us."

"It was a good plan," Siren said. She lifted a blonde brow at Sebastian. "Where did you go?"

"My father's quarters."

Siren blinked incredulously at him.

"Well?" Ajax pressed. "What happened? Did you kill him?"

Sebastian dropped his gaze to the floor. His jaw was set harder than an iron shield forged by the greatest blacksmiths Hodvekt had to offer. "He wasn't there. My sister was. She told me where he went, though." He peered at Remy. "She mentioned something about Lumi's tower. What do you know about that?"

They all were looking at the golden-eyed boy now. He rubbed the back of his neck, as he combed through his photographic memory for an answer. His face lit up once he found one.

"It's a myth," was all he said.

"It isn't. The Shades are on their way to destroy it as we speak."

"That...that can't be. It's not real. At least, that's what all the books I've read say."

"It's real," Sebastian argued. "And I need to get there. Makaela's in danger."

That sparked Remy. Stroking his chin, he muttered a string of incomprehensible words to himself. "Legend has it that the tower is protected by a huge, unrelenting storm. If it really is real, then it'd be somewhere in Nepal. For argument's sake, let's say it is real. How're you going to get from here to Nepal in time?"

Sebastian's typical pissed-off expression shattered like glass, only to be pieced back together into a mosaic of dread and disappointment. While he hated to hear it, the Lumaian magician made a good point.

They were currently in Romania. Nowhere near Nepal. The Eldenarian Palace wasn't any closer either. Something told him hours' worth of travel wouldn't get him there before his father destroyed Makaela—and Lumi's tower. The next closest portal was House Doragon's, nestled in the mountains of Japan. Even then, the journey from the pyromancers hidden city of Sunzu to Nepal was no short trip. They needed a miracle.

His eyes widened.

Not a miracle. He never got any of those. What he needed was a dragon. But not just any dragon. The winged, scaly beasts were known for flying at speeds that made human aircrafts look like sloths crawling along a jungle floor, but even they wouldn't get him to Makaela in time.

He needed a Stormkiller.

Surely, House Doragon had one of the fabled beasts amongst their crop of dragons. Then again, they were the rarest dragon species on the planet. There was every chance in the world no one had ever successfully captured—or tamed—one.

Still, the sky-bending creature was the only thing that could get him to that tower in a short amount of time.

He prayed House Doragon had what he needed.