“You wanted them to invade Adra-al,” the bone witch responded. “You wanted them to watch in horror as you transformed the people there into your blighted pets. No doubt you had already killed Aadil.”

“I must plan my own precautions. But their lives are spared now that you are here. You were victorious at the Hollows. Isn’t it nice how things work out?” She turned to smile at us, and she wore the face of the asha Altaecia. Zoya’s breath left her in a soft, shuddering gasp.

“Assume your own face, you scum,” the Dark asha snarled. “You aren’t worthy of hers.”

“Even knowing she betrayed you, Tea? You still harbor fond memories of my ward?”

“She did what she thought was right, misguided as she was. You convinced her that you would rid the world of magic. You lie. I know better.”

“How do I lie?” The Faceless’s face rippled, her own lovely features supplanting the other asha’s. She was a breathtaking beauty, as the bone witch had described, though there was a cruel tilt to her mouth. “We want the same thing. You will not live for much longer, and you must make a choice soon. Will you take the First Harvest and save us from magic, or will you subvert it to create a paradise of your own making?”

The bone witch hesitated.

“It is not so easy, is it, to talk of saving the world before you’ve experienced true power coursing through your veins?”

“You do not want to rid the world of magic,” Lady Tea declared. “You will fade in influence and position, just like the elder asha you suspect. If you cannot complete shadowglass yourself, then you seek to influence the one who can—or will attempt to steal it.”

“I am far too cautious to do the latter. But my advice will be worth your while,” the former oracle promised. “I vow on the graves of Ashi, Mithra, Anahita, and Sraosha underneath my feet that I will protect Kion. I will guide King Kance into a golden age of prosperity, and Empress Alyx and her daughter as well. I will take care of Likh, Lord Khalad.”

The Heartforger bared his teeth. “Like hell you will.”

“You lie,” the bone witch repeated. “Once I create shadowglass, you will take it from me, weak as I am, and force your own will into the world. You know the original legends better than anyone else. Blade that Soars proved capable of seizing shadowglass, and he would have, had not Hollow Knife chosen to halt the spell. You of all people know that shadowglass can be wrested away from the one who creates it.”

“You blighted people on a whim,” Lord Fox snapped. “You can no longer resume your place in Kion society after this unless it’s in chains. You have no plans of letting us leave this place alive.”