Cas and Poppy hunt remaining Ascended in liberated Solis while preparing for the coming war against the god Kolis.

Poppy collapses and Nektas explains she must enter deep stasis to complete her Culling, warning she may lose her memories entirely.

Nektas departs with Ires for Iliseeum and Cas begins telling the sleeping Poppy the story of how they first met.

Cas realizes the cloaked woman he has been kissing in a private room at the Red Pearl is actually the Maiden herself.

Jericho kills Rylan but disobeys orders by injuring Poppy; Cas cuts off Jericho's hand as punishment for the transgression.

Duke Teerman formally introduces Cas to Poppy as her new guard, and Poppy yanks off her veil to reveal her scarred face.

Using compulsion to confirm Duke Teerman beats Poppy with a cane, Cas beats the Duke and drives the cane through his chest.

Vikter is fatally stabbed during the chaos of the Rite ceremony, and Poppy decapitates Lord Mazeen in grief and rage.

During a Blood Forest attack, the wounded guard Airrick dies peacefully in Poppy's arms, revealing her extraordinary healing touch.

Cas and Poppy have sex for the first time in her room at the inn in New Haven.

Poppy discovers that Cas is actually Prince Casteel Da'Neer, the Dark One, and drives her dagger into his chest.

Cas chases Poppy into the snowy woods after the stabbing, feeds on her blood, and they have sex in the snow.

Cas announces he will marry Poppy and bring her to Atlantia, declaring to his comrades that she is half-Atlantian.

Millicent and Malik arrive at Jasper's estate, and Cas and Malik finally reconcile as brothers after years of estrangement.

A Revenant attacks Cas over Poppy's sleeping body, triggering his first shapeshifting into a cave cat; Poppy wakes with silver eyes.

Casteel Da'Neer opens in newly liberated Solis, standing vigil over his wife Poppy as she enters a mysterious stasis that could erase her memories of him. To prevent amnesia, Cas narrates their love story from his own perspective, beginning with his undercover mission to kidnap the Maiden and ransom her for his captive brother Malik. As he recounts becoming Poppy's personal guard, his cold strategic mission dissolves into genuine devotion, marked by the killing of Duke Teerman, the tragedy of Vikter's death, and Poppy's shattering discovery of his true identity. The flashback timeline closes with Cas declaring he will marry Poppy and bring her safely to Atlantia as its princess. The present timeline resolves when a Revenant attack forces Cas into an unexpected first shapeshifting, and Poppy's eyes finally open—glowing silver.

The central love story from first meeting to Poppy's awakening.

The search party finds Poppy's father Ires malnourished and imprisoned; Poppy calms him by pushing her own good memories into him.

Working undercover as Hawke on the Rise, Cas observes Masadonia's crumbling infrastructure and the Ascended's lies used to control mortals.

Cas and Commander Jansen secretly meet at the Red Pearl to plan killing Rylan and installing Cas as Poppy's personal guard.

Cas hunts down and kills an Ascended pursuing Poppy through the city streets after her unsupervised escape from the Red Pearl.

Cas and Kieran discover a mortal couple drained of blood in the lower district, their infant daughter already turned Craven.

Cas interviews with Duke Teerman for the role of Poppy's guard, immediately identifying the Duke as a dangerous predator.

Cas eavesdrops outside Poppy's door as she confesses to Tawny that she kissed Hawke Flynn at the Red Pearl.

Cas and Kieran torture the Ascended Lord Devries for information about Malik's location until Kieran tears Devries apart.

Cas catches Poppy sneaking into the public library and relentlessly teases her with a stolen copy of Willa Colyns's sex diary.

Cas destroys the sleeping tonic given to Poppy by the Duchess and intercepts Poppy's grief-driven attempt to murder Agnes.

The travel party departs Masadonia with Poppy riding alongside Cas on his horse Setti, beginning the journey toward New Haven.

While camping in the Blood Forest, Cas brings Poppy to her first orgasm so she can sleep, and she drifts off smiling.

Kieran confronts Cas by calling him Hawke instead of Cas, accusing him of losing sight of his mission regarding Poppy.

Orion arrives in New Haven revealing that King Valyn plans to have Poppy killed; Cas rips out Orion's heart to stop him.

In the present timeline, Cas confesses to the sleeping Poppy that he withheld his true identity out of selfishness and hope.

This pool explores the operatives, investigations, and pivotal secondary events that shaped Cas's undercover mission in Solis from the ground up. From observing Masadonia's crushing poverty on the Rise to secretly coordinating Rylan's death with Commander Jansen, Cas's actions carry heavy consequences for everyone around him. His growing awareness of the Ascended's true cruelty—the infant Craven, Lord Devries's admissions, and the Duke's abuse—deepens his fury and sharpens his resolve. As the mission shifts into a Blood Forest journey, private moments with Poppy, Kieran's blunt confrontations, and a shocking betrayal from King Valyn's own camp force Cas to confront the limits of his original plan. The pool closes in the present timeline with Cas admitting to sleeping Poppy that his prolonged deception was rooted in selfish hope rather than strategy alone.

The hidden operations, investigations, and private moments behind Cas's mission.

Ires shifts into human form, gently takes Poppy's hand, tells her he knows who she is, and asks for Millicent before fainting.

Cas spars with Vikter in the castle gardens and Vikter warns that even a heartbeat of distraction will prove deadly.

Cas reflects on his fifty years of imprisonment, torture and sexual assault by Ileana, self-harm as a coping mechanism, and killing Shea.

The Tulis family publicly begs Duke Teerman to spare their third-born infant from the Rite ceremony and is coldly denied.

Vikter gives Cas a brusque guard briefing, calls him arrogant and cocky, and warns him never to be alone with Poppy behind closed doors.

Poppy speaks sharply and with wit at the ladies' tea party, completely shattering Cas's assumption that she is weak and silent.

Cas enters Poppy's cold, bare bedchamber during a nightmare and realizes they share the same people haunting their darkest memories.

Lev the Descenter disrupts the Duke's assembly, hurls a severed Craven hand toward Poppy, shouts a rebellion cry, and is beaten.

A priestess grabs Poppy by the chin during a lesson; Cas steps forward to threaten the woman and shield Poppy.

Cas and Poppy share their first real kiss under the willow tree and Cas is overwhelmed by an inexplicable sense of rightness.

Poppy confesses her empath abilities to Cas in her New Haven inn room, then lets her robe drop to the floor.

Two Solis guards attempt to flee with Poppy after witnessing Kieran shift into wolf form; Cas shoots and kills both men.

Cas tells imprisoned Poppy the full truth about the Ascended's crimes and how his own blood was drained to create vampry.

After their encounter in the snow, Poppy places her hands on Cas and soothes the lingering pain in his stabbed chest.

Kieran speaks to Cas telepathically to guide him back to human form after Cas loses himself entirely in cave cat instincts.

This pool traces the emotional and moral turning points that gradually transformed Cas from a ruthless operative into a man irrevocably changed by love. Beginning with Ires recognizing his daughter and Vikter's sharp warnings about arrogance, each event chips away at Cas's certainty and armor. Key revelations—including Cas's own traumatic past, the Tulis family's desperate plea at the assembly, and Poppy's unexpected sharp wit—deepen his understanding of what is truly at stake in Solis. The pivotal first kiss under the willow tree, Poppy's confession of her empath powers, and the full truth laid bare in a dungeon cell all accelerate the collapse of every wall between the two of them. The pool closes across both timelines simultaneously, with Poppy soothing Cas after their encounter in the snow and Kieran guiding Cas back to himself after his first shapeshifting, just as Poppy's silver eyes open.