Chapter Twenty-One

Summary

• The narrator injures their shoulder during a rolling dismount training exercise.
• Despite the injury, the narrator is determined to recover quickly to perform well in upcoming challenges.
• In history class, news arrives about an attack resulting in the death of Masen Sanborn, a recent graduate.
• The chapter explores the historical unification of the narrator's society, revealing tension between retaining individual cultures and fostering a united identity.
• Characters in the class debate the costs and benefits of their society's unification, such as lost languages, culture, and restricted travel.
• The narrator is good at knots and is practicing on fabric strips, determined to beat someone named Xaden in a challenge.
• During a combat exercise, the narrator is unfairly matched against Dain Aetos, the wing leader and a former best friend.
• Dain has previously stolen a memory from the narrator and they exchange tense words during the match, where the narrator is forced to defend personal memories.
• Rhiannon, a close friend of the narrator, begins to suspect connections between recent events and pressures the narrator for answers.
• Following the uncomfortable match, the narrator deflects Rhiannon's queries to avoid revealing sensitive information.
• The narrator is approached by Aaric, who implies an understanding of covert occurrences involving the narrator.
• Aaric confesses to eluding his guards and indicates awareness of deeper secrets, linked to something about dragons.