Overview

Six awakened after nearly drowning in the duel’s aftermath, bandaged and weak in Petula Hall in the Chiming Wood. Confronted with evidence from King Castor’s notebook and the Oarsman’s claims, she faced the likelihood that all Diviners are killed after their service. Overwhelmed, she fled into the Wood, confided in Rory, revealed her true name—Sybil Delling—and returned to rest with her gargoyle and recovered armor awaiting the knighthood’s arrival.

Full Summary

Six drifted through a dream of Diviners flying away before reliving a memory of Aisling Cathedral’s abbess shrouding her and forcing her underwater, echoing her repeated drownings. Voices cut through: Benji, Maude, and Rory worked frantically to resuscitate her after the duel, with Rory pounding her chest and commanding her to breathe. Six then awoke under a loosely tied new shroud in a fine room, aching and bandaged, especially at the neck where the Oarsman had bitten her.

Exploring the opulent halls, Six entered a study and found the Harried Scribe’s inkwell and the Ardent Oarsman’s oar. She discovered King Castor’s grandfather’s notebook, filled with sprite drawings, maps of Traum, and a depiction of Aisling with six shrouded figures, each with a moth above them. The notes stated Castor had never seen a Diviner after her term and questioned what they hid behind their shrouds. Benji entered and revealed they were in Petula Hall in the Chiming Wood and that she had been unconscious since their arrival the previous day.

Six confronted Benji for hiding the notebook’s contents that suggested Diviners vanish after service. Benji apologized, admitting he feared it would hurt her and that they might not find her friends. Six connected this with the Oarsman’s confession and the Omens’ craving for Aisling spring water, implying Diviners are killed at the end of their ten years. Benji reported they had retrieved the Oarsman’s oar, kicked his corpse, and revived Six, urging her to rest. Overwhelmed, Six left the house and fled into the Chiming Wood to scream.

In the Wood, the atmosphere turned uncanny, with birch trunks seeming like watchful eyes, until a cart approached driven by an old man, Victor, with Rory beside him. Rory halted and called out, finding Six bloodied and barefoot. She told him what she had learned: records showed no Diviners after service, the Oarsman had drunk Diviners’ blood, and the abbess’s secrecy about the spring implied a deadly truth. Rory admitted he had not known about the killings, condemned the spring’s cruel visions, and urged Six to keep going, destroy the remaining Omens, and not give up.

Six, crushed by grief, confessed she could not keep going and mourned the loss of her identity as one of six. Rory comforted her, saying he would have come for her regardless and would do anything for her, even not knowing her name. Seeking to honor what was lost, Six enacted a Diviner’s naming rite: she bit her thumb and told Rory her true name, Sybil Delling. Rory received her blood and name reverently, asking how it felt to say it; Six replied it was years in the making and over in a moment.

They returned to Petula Hall where Victor’s cart had delivered part of Six’s armor—a silver breastplate. The gargoyle greeted them, fussing over the horse and scolding Six for venturing into the Wood. Rory said the knighthood had not yet arrived but would soon, and urged her to heal first. The gargoyle led Six inside to rest, while Rory wished her good night, addressing her as Sybil.

Who Appears

• Sybil Delling (Six) — Diviner protagonist; awakens injured at Petula Hall, discovers evidence that Diviners disappear after service, grieves, reveals her true name to Rory, and prepares to heal.
• Rory — Companion; helps revive Six, finds her in the Wood, comforts and encourages her, receives her true name and vows support.
• King Benedict (Benji) Castor — Companion; admits hiding his grandfather’s notes on Diviners’ disappearance, apologizes, and reports rescuing Six and retrieving the Oarsman’s oar.
• Gargoyle — Six’s squire; carried Six from the Peaks, tends to her return, and guides her back inside Petula Hall.
• Abbess of Aisling — Antagonistic figure in memory; shrouds Sybil and forces her underwater, reinforcing the cathedral’s brutal rites.
• Victor — new; elderly carter who delivers Six’s silver breastplate to Petula Hall.
• Maude — Ally; referenced aiding in Six’s rescue and currently in the village with the gargoyle.
• Ardent Oarsman — Antagonist; dead, his oar recovered; his revelations about drinking Diviners catalyze Six’s crisis.
• King Castor (grandfather) — Historical figure; his notebook documents sprites, maps Traum, and questions the fate of Diviners.