“No . . .” Sora stumbled. It seemed that all the air had been sucked from the tower. She and Daemon had just begun their new journey together as more than geminas, and now it was being dashed to pieces.

She whirled on Prince Gin. “This is all your fault! You claim to love your kingdom and its people, but all you’ve caused is misery.”

“Sora.” Daemon sent her a cascade of tenderness, like a bolt of rich velvet unfurling in their gemina bond. “You didn’t let me finish. I compromised with Vespre. I’ll spend fall and winter in Celestae, and spring and summer here with you.”

“But that’s only half your time . . .”

His voice went soft and quiet. “Believe me, I wish I hadn’t had to promise that to him. But it was the only way. During life, souls are marked as pure, tainted, or uncertain. Your soul—and all the taigas’ and other ryuu’s—were tainted, destined for an eternity of torture. Vespre was able to change the mark on your souls to ‘uncertain,’ giving them a chance to go either way when you die.

“The bargain with my father was worth it, Sora,” Daemon said. “And it won’t be that bad. I’m a demigod now; I’ll find a way for us to communicate even if I can’t be with you. Maybe I could use our gemina bond to visit your dreams.”

“Without genka?”

He laughed. “Without genka.” But then his smile faded. “The deal with Vespre only stands, though, if we survive this war. My father did his part of the purification ritual, but we still have to do ours.”

“Tell us what to do,” Hana said, stepping up so her sister could recover.

Sora was overwhelmed. But everyone had made sacrifices, and she wouldn’t let them do it alone. That was the taiga way.

She nodded at Daemon. “How do we finish the purification ritual?”

Strength like steel surged through their bond, and Sora no longer had any doubt that she and Daemon would be together through everything, even if they had to be apart. They would figure out the little details, but the big things were easy because they already knew how to be partners, and now they were more committed to each other than they’d ever been before.

“Vespre removed the shackle that was on all ryuu and taiga souls,” he said. “Even so, as long as the original thief is alive, no one who used Sight will be allowed in the afterlife.” Daemon turned to look at the Dragon Prince. “The originator of the curse has to die in order for the curse itself to die, too.”

Sora also looked at Prince Gin. All it would take is a knife. . . .

“I truly only wanted what was best for Kichona, Aki,” the Dragon Prince said, the fight in his voice gone.