Moira hurried through the camp, keeping her eyes peeled for anyone familiar. The time was quickly approaching for them to leave, and still, there was no sign of Kalian. Despite her efforts to calm herself, Moira couldn't silence the paranoid thoughts that plagued her, or ignore the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.

She sighed with relief when she spotted Bellamy up ahead. He was loading supply packs onto mules. Samson wasn't far from his side. Moira hurried over to them, attempting to throw a cool mask over her features. "Have either of you seen Kalian?" She asked. "We're leaving soon and I need his help with some last minute preparations."

Bellamy shook his head, his lips curling into a frown. "I haven't seen him since last night."

"I saw him this morning," Samson said. "But not since then."

Moira massaged her forehead wearily. "Do you have any idea where he might be?" Both of them shook their heads. "If you see him, tell him to come find me." She turned away and set off in a random direction.

Dirt scuffled as someone hurried after her. "Commander," Samson called. Moira spared him a brief glance as he fell in step with her. "I'm sure Kalian will be back soon, but what will we do if he's not?"

"I don't know. Dagen won't let anyone stay behind and wait for him."

"We shouldn't just leave without knowing if he's all right. Can you stall General Dagen somehow?"

"Ivar Dagen cares for no one but himself," Moira huffed. "It won't matter what I say. He intends to move out within the hour, and that is what he'll do."

"But you're second only to him. Surely that means..."

"That means nothing more than what he wants it to mean. Right now, it means he wants to ride into battle with me at his side. Nothing more. I have no real power or authority. None of us do. Only him."

Samson gave a heavy sigh. "Then I'll stay behind. Kalian and I will catch up when we can."

"You'll have no supplies, weapons, or support."

"That doesn't matter. Kalian is Bellamy's friend. Bel will rip my balls off if I don't try to help somehow."

Moira managed a small smile. "Very well. I wish I could stay too, but..."

"Kalian will understand."

Moira began to reply, but shouts erupted, cutting her off. She whipped her head around, peering towards the front of the camp where the commotion was happening. Samson's hand fell to the pistol shoved through his belt. Moira gripped the hilt of her iron sword, but did not draw it. She started towards the crowd, struggling to make sense of what they were saying. She could only catch fragments of sentences as the clamor grew.

"...spotted flying this way."

"Is it...I thought they didn't travel east."

"What type did you say?"

"...Night Faerie."

Moira narrowed her eyes, shouldering her way through the throng. She burst into the center of the crowd and found herself staring at Dagen, Lir, and Malachi's backs. Moira didn't stop to question where Malachi had been. She pushed Dagen aside and beheld the prisoner before them. Her gaze locked with Kalian Deirdre's.

☽◦༻◦☽◦༺◦☽

Kalian ceased fighting as Moira stared at him. Shock and rage flooded her eyes. She rounded on Dagen, curving her hands into fists. "What is the meaning of this? Release him at once."

"I'm afraid we can't do that," Malachi snickered.

"Why the hell not?"

Kalian lowered his head and tried to relax, in an effort to reduce the pain swelling through his body. The guards restraining him wore iron gauntlets, which burned against his flesh. His glamour was faltering as his magic receded deep within him. He fed the last of his energy into keeping his glamour alive for at least a moment longer.

Samson appeared at the front of the crowd. A red hue tinged his fingers, but Kalian barely shook his head. Samson couldn't risk being discovered too. Bellamy shoved between two people and reached Samson's side. His eyes landed on Kalian and widened with surprise.

"This is ridiculous!" Moira seethed, catching Kalian's attention. "You're delusional. Both of you. Let him go, now." She rounded on the guards. They only tightened their grip. Kalian sucked down a sharp breath, white hot needles stabbing through his arms.

"I'm afraid you no longer give the orders here," Dagen crowed. "You lost that privilege when you allowed a Faerie to sneak into your unit and hide right under your nose."

"Kalian is not a Faerie. Tell them." She faced him. Kalian couldn't keep his head up. It took all his strength to keep his glamour from fading. Pain ate away at his nerves, leaving his body trembling from head to toe.

"Moira Lev, you are stripped of your rank and authority," Dagen continued. "Take her."

"What? No, I... What are you talking about?" Moira snarled as four men grabbed her by the arms and wrestled her down to her knees. She yelped, her features contorting with pain.

    At the sound, Kalian jerked against his captors. "Hurt her and I'll fucking skin you alive!"

Dagen raised an eyebrow, looking between the two of them. "Apparently this little infatuation runs deeper than I thought." He approached slowly and Kalian lifted a hateful glare towards the General. Dagen just smiled and held out a hand. "His sword."

One of the guards laid Asar in Dagen's palm. He stroked the blade fondly, tilting his head to view it from another angle. "As long as I live, I will never forget this blade," he murmured. "The way it severs through flesh and bone. It is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. A sword imbued with magic of great and terrible capacities."

Dagen glanced at Kalian, his smile growing. "The perfect weapon for you, Shadow of Death. Although, I hear you tend to use your obsidian dagger during your interrogations. For sentimental reasons, correct?" Kalian didn't dare look at Moira. He didn't search for Bellamy or Samson either. They had already faded back into the crowd.

"And now, you have come here to use that blade on me. To give me a slow, painful death in retribution. In revenge." Dagen buried Asar's point in the dirt and knelt, meeting Kalian at eye-level. "For killing your wife and daughter."

The ice that had plagued Kalian for so long melted into a raging river of molten anger. "For murdering them, you fucking bastard!" He surged forward. Dagen leapt back and the guards managed to restrain Kalian. "They never did anything wrong. Calandra was a healer. She healed hundreds of Humans after the Soleone War ended!"

"My little..." His voice broke. Kalian stared at the ground, swallowing the lump that had formed in his throat. Finally, he met Dagen's gaze once more. "My little girl was five years old. Five years old. What the fuck did she do to deserve being stabbed through the gut and left to bleed out?"

"My tummy hurts. I'm bleeding. Daddy, I'm bleeding! Why...why am I... Where's Mommy? I want Mommy!"

Tears stung his eyes, but Kalian blinked them back. This was the man who had taken everything from him. The two loves of his life. His wife. His little girl. No more flying at night, racing Calandra and hearing Yara's carefree laugh. No more dancing around the house while Calandra sang a lilting tune.

No more waking up to find Yara standing beside him, whispering that she was scared of the shadows in her closet. No more tucking her in bed between himself and Calandra. No more kissing her little fingers while promising that she was safe. No watching her grow up and learning to fly. No seeing who she would one day become. What she would one day do. No second baby that Calandra had so desperately wanted.

Gone. All of it was gone. They were gone. Because of this man. "Why bother hiding the truth? Your magic will fade any minute now and you'll be exposed," Dagen whispered. "Are you hoping she'll help you?" He gestured towards Moira.

    She was still being held down by guards. Confusion and anger were at war in her dark eyes. "She won't. She's nothing now. I have made her nothing, just as I took your insignificant family and made them nothing. Just as I will make you nothing."

"Leave her alone," Kalian growled. "She had no part in this."

"Kalian?" He felt Moira's gaze, but couldn't bring himself to meet it.

"Leave her alone," he repeated. "You can do what you want with me, but leave her alone."

"You would trade yourself for a woman who is renowned for killing your kind? A woman who won't care what happens to you now? You would give yourself up for her and doom your people to annihilation? My, my, my." Dagen faced Moira. "You must be a Witch. How else could you seduce this Faerie so completely?"

"My people will survive whatever you throw at them," Kalian spat. "We have never cowered to you before, and we will not do so now. My King and Queen know you're coming. They are readying our armies as we speak. They will survive. You will not."

It was a lie, and one Dagen might be aware of, but he'd take that chance. Maybe it would be enough to dissuade the General, though Kalian didn't dare hope. He prayed that no one knew he'd been discovered before he could find a Witch to deliver his warning. He hadn't even made it to Levrune before he turned around and came back.

"You don't care what happens to you," Dagen realized. His gaze shifted to Kalian's wrists. "No, you don't care at all. You think I'm going to kill you. You welcome death. You crave it. It's what you've been after this whole time. A quick death and a reunion with your family."

"Not quite," Kalian hissed. "I planned on taking you with me."

"You'll just have to be disappointed then. Death is not coming for you, Kalian Deirdre. Not yet, anyway. You will be the last of your kind to perish. I want you to suffer for as long as possible. Starting with this." Dagen leveled Asar at Moira's throat.

Kalian's eyes widened and he lurched against the hands that held him. "No! No, please!" Moira's throat bobbed, but otherwise, she showed no signs of fear. She lifted her gaze to the sky, waiting for Dagen's blow. "Please," Kalian pleaded again. "Not her."

Dagen lowered Asar. "Very well, Faerie. I'll spare Moira Lev's life, but there is a price you must pay in exchange."

Dagen approached him, dragging Asar through the dirt. He drew a small pouch from his belt and slipped his fingers inside. They emerged covered in a black, grainy slime. Dagen coated Asar's blade with the oil, a cruel grin stretching across his lips.

    "A Faerie's first instinct is to protect their wings," Dagen said. "You are born with this instinct. You are aware of it every day. You wield and protect them. You covet them. You love them. They are your gateway to freedom. They are what truly make you a Faerie. Without them, you are nothing."

    Kalian steeled himself, understanding what was about to happen. The last of his magic was draining rapidly. He closed his eyes and measured his breaths. "Show me your wings, Shadow of Death," Dagen whispered, pausing at Kalian's side. "And I will spare her life."

     "Be warned, Shadow of Death. The path before you is a dangerous one. A great sacrifice will be demanded. One you will have to pay. There will be no way to avoid it."

    Kalian's jaw trembled as his magic slipped away. Gasps echoed around him. He couldn't bring himself to look at Moira. To watch her reaction as she saw the truth of who, what, he was. Kalian doubled over, stretching his wings skyward to give Dagen a clean shot. Tears beaded beneath his lashes and ran down his cheeks. He waited one minute. Two. Three.

    Asar sang through the air. Kalian's eyes flew open and a scream tore from his lips. Blinding agony, greater than any he'd known before, crashed through him. Black spots flashed through his vision. His guards let go and he collapsed as his surroundings distorted.

    There was no longer a steady weight between his shoulder blades. There was only relentless burning. Unending pain. He was screaming and screaming and screaming. He couldn't stop. The pain didn't fade. Unconsciousness didn't come. His wings. His wings. His wings. Kalian screamed until his voice broke and he tasted blood. The blood was his. It was flowing down his back and pooling beneath his cheek.

    Boots entered his line of sight. Dagen was dragging something. Soft leathery membrane that had once been graced by shimmering ice blue swirls. The swirls were gone now, severed from his flow of magic. And that thing, it was... Kalian's eyes rolled back and darkness swept in as Dagen dropped one of his wings beside him.