“You would be the greatest ruler the world has ever known. You won’t be able to help it. Your term as empress would be the candle burning brightest just before darkness consumed all—and I am not exaggerating when I tell you, it quite literally would. I’m threading a needle here. Now is not the time for one such as you to take the throne. Events must fall a certain way. Some of those incidents, like this one, need to unfold in a precise manner and at an exact time to prevent disaster. A series of awful things must occur to make way for a future good. Like a forest fire that clears old trees for new growth.”

“So, I am the forest and you the fire?”

“Yes.”

Farilane nodded, then once more casting her hair back, she walked in a tight circle, starting in Estramnadon, crossing the Nidwalden, arcing around Mount Mador, then pivoting back. “I don’t have a choice, do I?”

Kile looked surprised. “Oh yes, you do.” He said this with sincere intensity, as if he were appalled, even insulted, that she didn’t know. “I can’t . . .” He bowed his head, then faced her again. “Look, forcing people to do things is how I got into this mess. My approach has always been to manipulate. People do what I want because I arrange the world around them to suit the choices I need them to make. But in your case . . .”

“Yes?”

“As I said before—you understand. You perceive too much. Maneuvering you isn’t easy. Worse yet”—he looked sick once more—“I don’t want to.”

“Why not?”

He hesitated for a long while. He looked down at the floor, then out at the Blue Sea. “I’d rather not say.” Just then, she noticed Kile’s lower lip tremble. “So, as a shock for both of us, you do have a choice. I won’t force it. I can’t—which is another reason why your brother is a problem. If given the choice, Nordyan would not choose to sacrifice himself. When I say I scrutinized this juncture, I studied every option—including that one. Furthermore, I cannot kill him. If I cause his death, not only would the world suffer the same terrible fate I’m attempting to stop, but it would happen a lot faster. He’s just as innocent as you are. And, quite frankly, there’s more at stake than merely the existence of humans, dwarfs, Fhrey, and ghazel. The future is darker than you can imagine—it is the nightmare that nightmares fear. I alone see it far in the distance, growing closer every day. And only I can stop it. I must be the one because it’s my fault. In a sense, we are both trapped. So, you get to decide.”

“How long do I have?”

“In order for everything to fall as it must . . . you have tonight.”

“Tomorrow? I must die tomorrow?”