"Do you not think me capable of destroying any threat to your person? If she is foolish enough to betray you, she'll meet my teeth."

"Meet your teeth?"

"You asked me to stop talking about eating people. I chose to speak figuratively to avoid breaking your rule."

I snort at Typhon's words, drawing curious glances from my friends.

"Sorry," I say. "Just thinking about when Brunhild called Beck her 'sexy bear.'"

Beck's smile is wistful. "She has a way with words, doesn't she?"

"We want someone we can trust, too, Nessa," Mireen says, suddenly serious. "After everything we've been through, our team is the only family I've got left in this place." She doesn't say it, but I know she's thinking of the people we've all lost since arriving at Confluence—dead in training, dead in their beds, just... gone.

"Mine too," I admit.

"And mine," Ambrose adds quietly.

Beck nods, his usual jovial expression subdued. "Same here. That's why I'm pushing for her. I really do think she'd fight for us."

After another half hour of debate, I finally relent. "Fine. Let's add Brunhild. But Beck, if she betrays us, I'm feeding you to Typhon."

"Deal." Beck's face splits into a wide grin.

"So it's agreed upon, then," Ambrose says, rubbing his hands together. "The five of us against whatever the Crucible throws at us."

"And against Malakai and Serena," Mireen adds grimly.

"Don't remind me," I say with a sour smile.

We're gathering our gear to leave when the heavy wooden door to the training room swings open. A breathless first-year water—Lissa, I think her name is—stumbles in, her eyes wide with urgency.

"Sorry to interrupt," she pants, "but I heard your team was training here. I'm trying to find any teams I can that aren't with Malakai and Serena."

I frown. "What do you mean?"

"Sorry. I'm Lissa. I'm teamed with Jorvan, Markus, Toreena, and Vas. All of us have lost somebody to Malakai and his fucking 'soldiers'. But we thought he gave up trying to grow his little army after Confluence Day. Turns out he didn't. He was only doing it more quietly."

"How do you know this?" Ambrose asks.

"Because he tried to recruit Jorvan. Forgot he killed Jorvan's best friend, I guess. He told him he's already got nearly half the waters on his side. Five full teams ready to go. Jorvan played along to learn as much as he could. Malakai wants to kill everyone who isn't on his team. He's promising to use his legacy privileges to help anyone who sides with him."

I frown. “Thanks, but that’s hardly new information.”

She shakes her head. “You don’t get it. There are the people obviously allied with him, but he’s recruiting people to lay low, too. People to turn at the last second. And he’s not just recruiting waters. He has allies across all affinities already.”