Page 219 of Kingdom of Ash

Aelin. Aelin was—

Arcas neared the earth, talons splaying. Aelin hit the ground, rolling, rolling, until she uncoiled to her feet.

Right in the path of that wave.

“Oh gods,” Fenrys breathed, seeing her, too.

They all saw her.

The queen on the plain.

The endless wall of water surging for her.

The keep stones began shuddering. Rowan threw out a hand to brace himself, fear like nothing he had known ripping through him as Aelin lifted her arms above her head.

A pillar of fire shot up around her, lifting her hair with it.

The wave roared and roared for her, for the army behind her.

The shaking in the keep was not from the wave.

It was not from that wall of water at all.

Cracks formed in the earth, splintering across it. Spiderwebbing from Aelin.

“The hot springs,” Chaol breathed. “The valley floor is full of veins into the earth itself.”

Into the burning heart of the world.

The keep shook, more violently this time.

The pillar of fire sucked back into Aelin. She held out a hand before her, her fist closed.

As if it would halt the wave in its tracks.

He knew then. Either as her mate orcarranam, he knew.

“Three months,” Rowan breathed.

The others stilled.

“Three months,” he said again, his knees wobbling. “She’s been making the descent into her power for three months.”

Every day she had been with Maeve, bound in iron, she had gone deeper. And she had not tapped too far into that power since they’d freed her because she hadkeptmaking the plunge.

To gather up the full might of her magic. Not for the Lock, not for Erawan.

But for Maeve’s death blow.

A few weeks of descent had taken her powers to devastating levels. Threemonthsof it …

Holy gods. Holy rutting gods.

And when her fire hit the wall of water now towering over her, when they collided—

“GET DOWN!” Rowan bellowed, over the screaming waters. “GET DOWN NOW!”

His companions dropped to the stones, any within earshot doing the same.

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