Rune watches Cressida Roseblood shoot, and only after the shot does Rune realize Alex has stepped into the bullet’s path. Gideon rushes toward his brother, but Rune reaches Alex first and catches him as he collapses, blood spreading quickly through his shirt. As Alex fades, he asks Rune to tell Gideon he loves him.

Gunfire and marching swell around them as a massive Blood Guard force floods the square, joined by thousands of ordinary citizens. The crowd advances and surrounds the witches, and Rune realizes Cressida cannot hold against an army backed by patriots; she believes their side is finished.

Bleeding out in Rune’s arms, Alex begs Rune to save herself. He explicitly gives Rune permission to use his blood for stronger magic—something Rune has avoided because taking blood without consent corrupts witches. Alex insists his death must mean something, and Rune finally promises to use his blood to live.

Alex pulls Rune into a final kiss, and Rune holds him until his chest stops moving and his eyes go glassy. Grief-stricken, Rune wants to give up, but her promise forces her to act.

Drawing on her grandmother’s spellbooks and the fresh blood on her hands, Rune chooses a spell she previously could not cast: Earth Sunderer. With Alex’s body in her arms, Rune draws seven glowing marks into the stone around them, enclosing them in a circle of white symbols, and releases the magic—sending a roaring shock through the ground as the earth begins to shake.