Chapter Eighty-Eight

Summary

• The scene is that of Bryce using her starlight to seal the Heart Gate, an event that hasn't occurred since the First Wars, amidst demons and Fae.
• Her brother, Ruhn, is taken aback by Bryce's surge of power and what it means to the throne that he is set to inherit.
• The others watch this event on in silence on a monitor in a conference room and when it's over, Bryce collapses against the Gate from exertion.
• Despite this victory, the other Gates in the city still remain open.
• The Autumn King accuses Ember Quinlan of hiding Bryce's Starborn Fae identity from him and Ember claims she's been waiting for this confrontation for over twenty years.
• Ember recounts Bryce's early days and her fierce protective nature, and that her secret Starborn power (a gift of starlight) was kept to protect Ruhn and his inheritance for the throne.
• Despite the Autumn King's disbelief that Bryce could keep such a power hidden, Ember explains that she did it out of love for her brother and despite her potential claim to the throne, she did not want to take away his value in the eyes of their father.
• Ember contemptuously points out that the Autumn King discarded Bryce like trash despite all this.
• Hunt Athalar recalls how Bryce had deflected and hidden her true power and is shocked by Queen Hypaxia's apparent offer to remove his magical halo in return for him taking vengeance on a target.
• Despite Bryce's heroic effort, the situation is still dire; there are still threats looming and Bryce must find the strength to manage six more Gates.
• There is suspicion that Bryce's startling display of power has been reported to the Asteri, thereby revealing the Horn and potentially making her the target of their wrath.
• Hunt realizes that Bryce's bloodline and power make her the only one capable of using the Horn, a central object in a plot to control portals to any world, posing a threat to the authoritarian Asteri.
• Ruhn counters that Bryce can't be killed as she is the only one capable of shutting the Gates, but Sandriel contradicts him, arguing that until Bryce makes the Drop, she is vulnerable, and the Asteri can and will kill her.
• With Hypaxia's magic helping remove the halo on his brow, Hunt decides it’s time to intervene and defend Bryce.