Page 89 of Daughter of No Worlds

I’m not done.

I tethered that sentence to my heartbeat.

I whipped a string of magic from my hand to bring the nearest orb to me, but just as I did, a wall of wind bludgeoned me so hard that I went flying across the room. A sharp pain tore through my skull.

“Come back, Tisaanah,” Zeryth purred. An offering of relief, of safety.

No.

I touched my head and felt warm blood over my fingers. My legs were already beginning to obey, crawling towards him. But I found it — the one sharp piece left in my brain. Clutched it.

I rubbed the blood between my fingers.

“Come here, Tisaanah.”

Rest, little butterfly.

I drew a circle.

My legs still moved. Only my fingers still clung to the ground.

A line.

I closed my eyes and I could see all of it, lit up like a map — me, the orbs, the three Valtain.

I’m not finished.

Another line.

“I won’t say it again—”

No,I thought.You won’t.

And I drew one final line of my Stratagram.

And then, all at once, there was a crash. Metal on metal and shocked grunts and a wall of light all converged into one beautiful, chaotic cacophony.

I opened my eyes just in time to see the final two orbs ricochet into the basin. To see Zeryth, Nura, and the third Valtain pushing themselves up from the floor. To look down and see my Stratagram smeared in my own blood beneath me.

And to hear a familiar voice shouting from the balcony:

“What. TheFUCK. Wasthat.”

I slumped back against the ground.

* * *

When I openedmy eyes again, Max was leaning over me, hands on his knees. I saw his lips move but his words didn’t register.

The events of the last few minutes hit me in flashes.

Nura. Zeryth. The shadows.

Get on your knees.

And the Stratagram. MysuccessfulStratagram.

Max spoke again, each word hammered with sharp-edged intensity. “Are you alright?”

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