Heir

In a flashback, a young Quil slips away while in the Black Guard barracks, looking to use his magic to find memories of his mother. However, he gets lost and witnesses a vision of Helene executing his father. The trauma of that moment, and later witnessing some of his aunt’s other painful memories, solidifies his reluctance to use his magic except when unavoidable.

The group arrives at a Devanese town where Sirsha, still tense and preoccupied, insists they stay at an inn. As they argue about the best way to continue once back on the road, R’zwana and J’yan arrive at the same inn, prompting Quil and Sirsha to stage an intimate embrace to deter her sister from watching them. While their act succeeds, it forces Quil to confront his growing attraction to Sirsha, which he tries to rationalize as part of their ruse. He reflects on how different she is from Ilar and tells himself that, unlike Ilar, Sirsha cannot be trusted. A tiny, fairy-like messenger called a wight arrives with a message from the Empire: Another city, Silas, has fallen.

Later, Sirsha confesses her desire to detour from their route to meet someone who could provide insight into the killer’s magic. She also tells him that the Sails, which the Martials previously thought to be engineering marvels, are powered by magic. Quil is stunned and angry, realizing the dire implications for the Martial Empire and frustrated that Sirsha withheld this knowledge from them.

Sirsha wrestles with guilt and frustration after she argues with Quil. However, he unexpectedly apologizes first and confides in her about his feelings of loss and inadequacy after being forced to flee the Kegari. The group, led by Quil, agrees to follow Sirsha’s lead to meet her contact, Loli Temba, but with the stipulation that she keep no more secrets, a promise Sirsha reluctantly accepts. Before they leave, J’yan corners her and confronts her about her deal with Elias, criticizing her choice to keep secret what will happen should she fail. She breaks away from him, and the group leaves.

As they travel deeper into Thafwan territory, Sirsha battles a growing sense of unease. Her interactions with Quil shift into a strange rhythm—nightly moments of companionship and quiet vulnerability, interspersed with her inner conflict over her growing attraction to him. She reflects on her guilt about hiding the stakes of her mission and the possibility of harming Quil if she lets him grow too close. Still, their connection strengthens through shared watches, subtle touches, and honest conversations that neither fully acknowledges.

Before they reach Loli Temba’s village, Sirsha falls ill, incapacitated by dizziness, lightheadedness, and severe pain. She hears the voice of Loli Temba, who warns her of the danger she has brought with her.

While traveling through the desert, Ruh’s stories and curiosity help Aiz adapt to her new environment, though her focus remains on uncovering the Ninth Sacred Tale to free Mother Div. Aiz confides in Ruh about her mission and convinces him to search for answers in his mother’s story scrolls. Laia also gives her news that the Kehanni of Tribe Nasur recognized the story and agreed to meet with them in Nur in two months. When Aiz learns that Quil is returning to the tribe, she plots how to get more information from him.

Quil returns from his journey to Antium. While he catches up with Sufiyan, Aiz contacts Cero through her aaj ring—a magical ring that allows communication across great distances. She fills him in on everything that happened since she left. He, in turn, tells her that the Kegari fleet commander Tiral is Tel Ilessi—the vessel of Mother Div—and that while the clerics were released, Tiral killed one of the children from the prison—Hani—to hurt them. Though Aiz insists she’ll come home and kill Tiral, Cero tells her she isn’t being hunted and should stay with the Tribe.

Later, Aiz and Quil share a watch duty, during which Quil opens up about his doubts regarding his role as heir to the throne and his feelings of entrapment by his destiny. As Aiz presses him on the origin of the living metal used by the Masks, she finds herself increasingly drawn to his sincerity and kindness. She plans to ask him for his aunt’s help when she senses an ambush. She uses her wind magic to protect him from the assassin, killing the attacker in the process, but Quil is also poisoned. While she administers aid, he babbles out his feelings for her. Afterward, they return to the camp, with Aiz agreeing to keep the attack a secret from Elias, as Quil fears further restrictions from his aunt should she find out. However, she notes that Elias has grown suspicious of her.

Loli Temba appears suddenly as Sirsha collapses, and Quil realizes she comes from the Karkaun people, enemies of the Martial Empire. Despite the group’s mistrust of her, she tells them she hates her people as well. She manages to usher them into her hidden home, accessed through a magical stone door behind a waterfall. Sirsha’s condition worsens, but Loli reassures them that Sirsha will recover with rest. However, she also reveals that something dark has been stalking the group, a malevolent entity that exudes death and fear.

Quil asks Loli Temba about the Kegari and their motivations, and she tells him that, as his people once were, the Kegari are desperate, starving, and unified under a charismatic leader called the Tel Ilessi, who wields both wind-based magic and the loyalty of the people. Quil believes this is the same man they encountered in Jibaut. When Arelia says he’s the one they must negotiate with, Quil counters that he will kill him.

While the others sleep, Quil stays with the still-unconscious Sirsha. When he inadvertently touches her bed, his magic activates, pulling him into a memory of Sirsha as a child. A younger Sirsha, battered and guilt-ridden, confesses to Loli Temba her guilt over the lives she has taken and her belief that she deserves to suffer and be alone. When he emerges from the memory, he finds Sirsha awake and tells her that she isn’t alone now.

Sirsha awakens in Loli Temba’s sanctuary, and her former mentor accuses her of bringing doom with her. When Sirsha confesses her incomplete understanding of the killer’s power, Loli Temba confirms that the killer is unlike anything Sirsha has faced before, a being that operates beyond the bounds of typical magic. The group prepares to leave. However, the killer ambushes them outside Loli’s refuge. The apparition, grotesque and otherworldly, kills Loli Temba by ripping open her chest and incinerating her heart. It then turns on Sirsha, taking the form of her mother to taunt her. Sirsha, in turn, talks to the creature in an attempt to stall and learn more about it. She finds a tether tracing back to its source: a camp where the Tel Ilessi commands the Kegari forces. The killer vanishes, summoned by its master. Afterward, the group returns Loli’s body to the falls she loved. Sirsha then tells the others that the Tel Ilessi is controlling the killer.

Quil and Aiz grow closer as the Tribe journeys west through the desert. He talks to her about the Empire’s politics, cities, and architecture. Their relationship becomes increasingly intimate, with lingering touches and moments of mutual attraction, though Aiz struggles to balance her desires with Mother Div’s whispers to remain detached and focused.

Meanwhile, Ruh continues to assist Aiz in her search for the Ninth Tale, revealing a potential link to the mysterious Duranis, chaos storytellers rumored to dwell north of Nur. Just as he’s explaining them to her, he suddenly runs off into the desert. Aiz follows in panic, only to find him with the Bani al-Mauth, his grandmother. Mother Div warns Aiz to be wary of her. When Aiz later overhears a conversation about her between the Bani al-Mauth, Elias, and Laia, her unease grows. She realizes she is under suspicion and risks being exposed before accomplishing her mission. In a desperate bid to avoid being caught eavesdropping by Elias, Aiz kisses Quil as a distraction. After Elias leaves, Aiz staves off any of Quil’s questions by leading him back to his tent to have sex.

Cero lands his Sail in Kegar, burdened by the moral weight of his role in Tiral’s oppressive regime. Haunted by the atrocities committed during the bombing raids he is forced to participate in, Cero sabotages his missions, intentionally missing his targets to minimize civilian casualties. However, his defiance comes at a cost as Tiral threatens the lives of the clerics and orphans Cero seeks to protect. Despite his efforts to convince Sister Noa to move the clerics and orphans to safety, Noa refuses, citing her faith in Mother Div. Aiz also repeatedly reaches out to Cero through the aaj, though he refuses to answer her calls. As night falls, Cero lies under the stars, listening to Aiz’s voice echo in his mind, torn between his yearning for silence and his need to hold on to the one person who still connects him to a better version of himself.

Quil, Sirsha, Arelia, and Sufiyan flee the jungle after Loli Temba’s death. Quil learns through a message sent by Musa of the continued devastation throughout the Empire: Laia’s homeland, Serra, has been destroyed, and the kingdom of Nur has rejected a truce.

When the group finally stops in the highlands for shelter, they discuss their next steps. Sirsha reveals that the Tel Ilessi is camped near the Thafwan coast. Quil wants to go there directly, believing capturing or killing the Kegari leader is the clearest path to saving the Empire. However, his decision to split the group by sending Arelia and Sufiyan south to find Tas in Burku while he and Sirsha pursue the Tel Ilessi creates tension in the group, particularly with Sufiyan, who resents being separated and questions Quil’s judgment. Quil reluctantly pulls rank as crown prince to enforce his plan. The group parts the next morning.