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Both of my eyebrows went up. “So you intend to follow the goblins into some unknown location? You intend to get sucked into the ground with no idea how you’re going to get out, and I’m supposed to stay behind?”

I took several steps closer, stepping between his Dogs. There had been a time when I was wary of them, when the sight of them reminded me that I would have to fight and kill them in order to kill the emperor. Now we were on the same side. We shared the same goal: saving Tallu.

“Tallu, I don’t intend to let you jump into some invisible pool of water without me,” I said. “Don’t you dare try to order me to stay, or I will openly defy you.”

Because we both balanced on that knife’s edge, trying to appear as though I would follow Tallu’s orders. As though I saw him as my emperor first, even if he was also my lover. But if he was about to do something foolish like this, then I would prove to everyone that I listened to Tallu out of affection and not obedience.

“They want you. They’re about to take us to some unknown location, where we will have even less control over the situation. How do we get out? Where are we going? It is clearly magic, and what if it is possible to simply redirect you as soon as we get there? That we should arrive in one location and you in another?”

Frowning, I realized that Tallu’s worries were valid, although it didn’t change my response either. “I will tear down whatever enemy they put in front of me, whatever ally they put in front of me just to get back to you. Trust me, I have made enough enemies of my own clan mates that I know how to make someone angry enough to give me what I want.”

Tallu tilted his head, still frowning, but I saw the echo of a smile on his face. He raised his voice. “General Saxu, Commander Rede, Sagam, Asahi.”

The four of them immediately approached. Tallu waited until they were close enough before he said, “We will follow the goblin council. I assume this magic is part of their ‘hidden waters,’ meaning whatever lies inside is what Bemishu has been seeking all these decades. We will see it, this prize that has cost so many imperial lives. And then, when he arrives, we will have enough men to easily defeat him.” Tallu looked around the circle. “General Saxu, speak with your men about how they should behave while we are gone. Put men in charge who will not panic and put our alliance at risk. Sagam, decide which of the Dogs will be coming with us. I would prefer Gotuye and anyone else with experience. Asahi, based on their words, they will try to keep Consort Airón. They may not have him. If any of them tries to take him, you have my permission to do what you must to keep him with us.”

“As you order,” General Saxu said, bowing low, his fingers forming a triangle above his forehead.

With the exception of Asahi, who stayed close to my side, the other three men left quickly, coming back within a few minutes. General Saxu approached Zoigei. “Our men are ready. Is that where they will be staying?”

He raised a hand, indicating the large building behind Zoigei. The goblin looked over his shoulder, nodding. He called out to two of the other goblins, introducing them to General Saxu, who in turn introduced them to his subordinates who would be in charge of the men while we were gone.

“It is not the first time they have tried to separate you from the emperor,” Asahi said, drawing my attention.

“No,” I agreed. “I appreciate your stalwart defense of me. It reminds me of when I first arrived at the palace.”

I looked over the crowd, catching sight of Iradîo. Significantly I glanced between her and Empress Koque. Iradîo nearly rolled her eyes, the expression on her face dour, but she obediently moved closer to the empress, ready to protect her if something should go wrong. The goblins didn’t seem to recognize who Koque or Hallu was, which was lucky for us.

When everything was settled, Zoigei led us toward the same area of sand the Council had disappeared into. One of Tallu’s Dogs stepped in first, and he sank down to his knees, then down to his neck, then his head disappeared and there was the brilliant explosion of light again. General Saxu and Sagam followed. Tallu took a step forward, but I caught up with him, grabbing hold of his hand. He wasn’t wrong that any sort of transition would be the best time to separate me from him.

Holding on to him, I tugged him until we stepped into the sand together. Having watched the others go through, I expected it to feel like stepping into water, a substance with little resistance if you approached it slowly. It was not. The sand pressed against us, immediately putting pressure on my skin.

But, as soon as I began to worry, it was too late. We were already up to our necks, the fine grains pressing into our cheeks and over our heads. I closed my mouth so I didn’t swallow any.

Tallu’s fingers tightened around mine, and then we fell through darkness, landing in a place of brilliant light.

I gaped, looking around at the world. The sun was up. It had been nighttime when we left, and now the sun was high in the sky, but it didn’t have the brilliant heat of the desert. Instead, it was mild, a cool breeze whisking away the heat.

We stood near a high cliff with an endless stretch of open lake in front of us. Turning, I saw an entire city stretching up the hillside. The only people with us were the members of the Council and the imperials who had stepped in before, waiting for us.

I tugged Tallu toward them, taking a few steps but stopping immediately. The pressure in my chest was immense, so large that I could barely breathe with it.

Gasping, I nearly fell to my knees and the world shifted around me. Spirals of colored light whirled around me and I could feel all of them. I knew if I touched them, something, something, something would happen.

Tallu grabbed hold of my shoulders. “Airón?”

I inhaled again, and the light moved with me. It circled and collapsed and then rose up again. Beams of it shot into the sky and I could feel something answer as the light came back. I didn’t dare touch it, didn’t dare reach out because I knew that if I did, I was inviting whatever had sent it into me.

Gritting my teeth, I tried to force myself to rise, to get over the feeling of discomfort. I let Tallu help me stand.

The council murmured to each other, each one with their eyes fixed on the light. Even Zoigei raised his eyes in awe at the show. Then the last member of our party appeared, and I had to shield my eyes.

Naî was bathed in brilliant light, the color the palest possible blue. Up close it was nearly white. Even at the size she was—only coming up to my hip—her magic extended out into the sky and washed over the land. Naî shook her head, her scales taking on an iridescent sheen, her eyes clearing for the first time since we had entered the hot desert.

She gasped, an amused laugh breaking free before she pushed herself into the air, flying up high before spiraling down and pulling up just before she hit the surface of the lake. She laughed again, the sound echoing in my head, and I could see her healing in real time.

When I turned and looked over my shoulder, two dozen people had come out of the buildings, making their way through the narrow stone paths. Lights swirled around them, and I recognized who they were. What they were.

My vision flashed, and suddenly I was in a dark cave, surrounded by statues, a spiral leading me back to the One Dragon. She had sent me on a quest. She had sent me⁠—