Chapter 14: Prison of Thorns

Cassian crouched among the merchant wagons outside Silas’s fortress, hood low, cloak dusted in desert ash.

“I’m here to trade moon-iron,” he told the gate guard.

The man eyed him. “You look half-dead.”

Cassian smirked. “I’m not here to look good.”

He limped past the gates with a hidden dagger, a satchel of forged trade slips, and two moon-iron shackles forged in Leia’s measurement. They glowed faintly, drawn to her blood.

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Inside, Leia moved through a nightshade garden, where red thorns curled around obsidian pillars. Silas walked beside her, hands clasped.

“You still resist,” he said.

Leia kept her eyes forward. “You murdered for convenience. You think that earns loyalty?”

“I gave you freedom.”

“You caged it in blood.”

Silas gestured toward a dummy target. “Then show me. Channel your curse into something useful.”

She stepped forward. Runes flickered along her arms. With one strike, she split the stone dummy in half. Thorns flew. Dust exploded.