I slept that night in the First Light Inn, falling asleep the instant my head hit the pillow. The visions were scarce and shallow, more dream than prophecy, and all centered around Luke. When I woke hours later, I sat up, my heart beating swiftly, my face flushed, my tail tangled in the sheets.

I yawned, absently rubbing the heavy gold ring between two fingers as the memories dulled, fading into obscurity. There was no dawn in Haven, yet I sensed I’d slept long past when I should have awoken. Standing, I freshened up with a spell, ran a comb through my hair, and then stared at the mirror, gripping my spatial ring tightly. There was nothing practical about the Blacksand dresses. The fabric was soft and sheer, but compared to my other dresses, restrictive. But the way Luke looked at me, the way he touched my side, his hand bare against my hip, pulling me close...

I let out a small, bashful squeak and patted my cheeks, my face hot to the touch. We were going to war! How could I possibly wonder about such things?

But still, I hesitated as I withdrew a white Heartland dress, before steeling my will and tugging it on. Luke was the apostle of the descent, the leader of the infernal horde. Why would he notice, or even care about something this frivolous? He had more important things to worry about than what I was wearing.

I sighed as I drew the red sash around my waist, tying the bow over my left hip. That was right. It didn’t matter what I wore. Nothing would change, in the end.

Somehow, dressing proved to be the hardest part of my morning. After meeting up with Korra and R’lissea, we visited Starfall Keep, relaying everything that had happened during the Infernal Council and around the apostles’ campfire.

"So, our mission is to strike Darkreign Keep?" Bethiv asked when we’d finished, stroking the graying bristle on his chin. "I can’t say I know much about it. Only rumors when it was constructed, some decade ago. Apparently, it’s supposed to be even more impregnable than the Divine Throne."

"And you’re certain you can’t get eyes on it?" Fyren asked.

I shook my head. "If I could, I would have before we risked everything tracking down Nithalee. The church has it warded. All I’ve been able to learn is hearsay and rumor from some of the generals who were a little lax on warding their war councils."

"It can’t be that bad, right? They don’t know we’re coming," Korra said.

Bethiv gave her a flat look. "Two ninth-level beings and a hero. And that’s in addition to whatever more...mundane defenses they might have. A small fleet of skyships, an entire army, powerful defensive arrays, the possibilities are endless."

"Do we know which ninth levels are there?" R’lissea asked.

Again, I could only shake my head helplessly. "There’s a mage maintaining the World Barrier, but they’ll still be able to fight if their life depends on it. The other is anyone’s guess. Every ninth-level being has had constant shielding, so I haven’t been able to get a read on their positions or assignments for months now."

"And you, our greatest asset, will be tied up preparing to deploy the demons?" Bethiv asked. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

"Yeah, Emlica said I shouldn’t expend any strength in the fight, or I might not be able to withstand channeling the Leylines. And I’ll have to call Emlica to cast the spell, so we won’t be able to rely on Haven’s power."

Silence followed that admittance, the conference room feeling dark and oppressive. Fyren and Bethiv stared at the table, where a small illusion portrayed the core archipelago of Haven centered on Starfall Keep.

R’lissae broke the silence, tentative and uncertain. "So, er, what exactly do we have going for us?"

"Gayron and I, for one," Korra said lightly. "And Fyren, Fable, and the Fatesworn."

"Except for Zephyriss and me," Incinderus rumbled from the corner. "We cannot leave this realm if the Oracle uses her power to call the remnant to her side."

"We have the element of surprise. That itself might prove our greatest asset. No matter how powerful a spell is, or how strong an art, they only matter if they’re actually used," Fyren said.

"Do we need to? Can’t we just assassinate the mage and be done with it? We can just teleport back through the shard to another one to launch the invasion."

"I can’t," I said, fidgeting with my sleeve. "After... what happened, I can’t risk using a shard to teleport. But if I use too many Spatial Rifts, I won’t have enough strength left over to send the horde out."

"That’s inconvenient," she muttered, folding her arms. "But if that’s the way it is, so be it. It sounds like Gayron won’t be able to help much before the World Barrier comes down, so I can handle Grace. I’ll beat the Heart Crest out of her if I have to. Once she’s freed, there’s no way in hell she won’t join us for some revenge. She’s not weak, like Victor."

R’lissea and I nodded in agreement. Victor had...vanished, for lack of a better word. I’d half expected him to volunteer to go north with Elise, but after the war, he went quiet. It wouldn’t have been hard to track him down through Fate, but it didn’t really matter. He would turn up where he was meant to be, and so long as that wasn’t in our way, I couldn’t care less what happened to that particular prickly, self-righteous hero.

"Fable and Borealis can face the mage," I said.

Everyone looked at me in surprise.

"Are you sure that’s a good idea?" Korra asked. "If something goes wrong, they’re your last line of defense."

"That’s why I’ll be with them. There’s a lot I can do, even without using any powerful spells."

"I don’t like it. You’re too critical to risk in such unpredictable circumstances," Bethiv said. "They’ve had months, maybe even years, to prepare for this assault. The chance they haven’t laid some traps around the formation is practically zero."

"That’s exactly why I have to go. The Oracle of Eternity gives me the best chance out of anyone to avoid them. If worse comes to worse, it warns me of perilous danger, which is more of a heads up than anyone else would have."

"But that only holds if there’s no divination wards in place."

"Then someone’s going to have to disable them," I said, doing my best to sound confident.

"How could you expect anyone to find them? They’d certainly hide them somewhere secret and safe," Korra argued.

"She might have a point, hero," Fyren said, looking thoughtful. "Those wards are their only true protection against us, which means they won’t be just anywhere. Could that be the reason they assigned ninth-level beings to this keep?"

"One for the formation, one for the wards?" Incinderus muttered, nodding slowly. "Yes, I imagine you’re right. The gods have often betrayed their own intentions by overinvesting in their fears."

"That sounds good, but what if you’re wrong?" Korra asked, scowling at the illusion. "I don’t like putting Xiviyah in danger."

"Then you should have no objection to taking on that task yourself," Fyren said. "The life hero and I will engage the guardian, drawing them away. You and the apostle of fire silence the wards, then join us. If this other ninth level truly is a warrior, then together, we stand a chance of killing them."

"Or worse come to worse, you might force him to retreat. But that would only happen if the World Barrier falls," Incinderus said.

"Can’t do that. I’m on Grace," Korra said.

"Perhaps I could step in here," Bethiv said. "The Fatesworn’s primary role will be to engage the army stationed at the keep, but I could send Jackal and a small task force of sixth-level soldiers with you. So long as the ninth-level is occupied, they should easily be able to subdue the regular guard and disable it."

Korra thought for a second and then nodded. "Fine, works for me. But only if it’s Jackal. I like that guy."

"So many interlocking pieces," R’lisesa murmured, folding her hands in her lap. "If even one of these things goes wrong, the whole plan falls apart, and we’re left divided amongst enemies far stronger than us."

"That’s war," Fyren said. "But I, too, would like to see this play out with less risk. I do not see a path for that right now, without more information on our target. So we will do what we must."

"We’ll discuss the details once the ladies leave, and try to minimize more of the risk," Bethiv said, nodding at three of us. "I’d like to get the opinion of some of the remnants, as well. We’ll be able to plan more contingencies with their experience."

"Then it sounds like we’re only a burden here," Korra said, standing. She offered me and R’lissea a hand, pulling us both to our feet at once with a smile. "Wanna go to the Colosseum for some last-minute training?"

"I think I’d better go see Luke," I said, hurriedly backing away, raising my hands as if she might try to grab me again. "I need to talk to him about the teleportation."

"Hmmm," she regarded me closely, tapping her chin with a finger. "Fine, but if you’re skipping some good old sparring, it’d better not be to cuddle up in some corner. Now’s the time for business!"

"I...well, um..." I stammered, my tail curling between my legs. "I-I wasn’t going to. I promise!"

"You hesitated." She shot me a grin, patting my shoulder as she walked by.

I stared after her, my face burning. How had she known?