The match nears its conclusion with Zodiac still behind. Geraldine scores a dramatic point, bringing the round to Starlight 10, Zodiac 5. Darcy feels conflicted seeing Max’s severe welts but notes he chose to continue playing despite the pain. Orion huddles with the team for the final round and tells them to do whatever is necessary to win. He leads a stadium-wide chant that unites the crowd. Darcy and Tory find themselves wanting Zodiac to win despite hating the Heirs. Sofia explains that Zodiac’s only path to victory is forcing Starlight into negative points by eliminating 6 players or causing multiple ball drops.

The final round begins. The four Heirs immediately attack Starlight players, aiming to eliminate them. Damian secures the ball but runs around the pitch to waste time instead of scoring. Benson, Tulissa, and Quentin are eliminated, two taken off on stretchers. Geraldine, Darius, and Caleb combine to eliminate Avery. Darius and Seth violently take down Lang, a fifth Starlight player, securing a draw. With 10 seconds remaining and victory within reach, Caleb sprints toward the Pit. A rogue Starlight Airsentry blindsides him, knocking him down, stealing the ball, and scoring as the timer expires.

The final score flashes: Zodiac 5, Starlight 6. The Zodiac team collapses in devastation. Orion kicks his seat so hard it breaks in half.

Tory feels unexpected disappointment at the loss, particularly for Geraldine. Like Darcy, Tory feels guilt over Max’s extensive purple welts. She reminds herself that he chose to play through the pain Darius kicks a ball pyramid in rage. The silver dome overhead retracts, deactivating the stadium’s magical barriers. Nova announces the twins will present the medals. The Celestial Council, including Lionel, teleports away before the ceremony begins.

The devastated Heirs line up with the Starlight team. Darcy announces Geraldine as Fae of the Match; Tory presents the medal. Geraldine pulls them into an emotional hug. The twins proceed down the line, presenting flowers and medals to the victorious Starlight players. Captain Quentin’s hand skims Tory’s backside as he accepts his medal and invites them to a party. Darius threatens him. Quentin taunts the Heirs about their loss and suggests the twins should claim the throne. Tory and Darcy jokingly agree, but their words carry more weight than they intend.

Furious, Darius blasts Quentin across the pitch with magic. He and Seth advance on the twins, backed by Max and Caleb. The twins join hands, their powers surging and merging naturally. They declare the throne is their birthright. The Heirs challenge them to fight for it if they truly want it. After a moment of silent communication, the Heirs attack. The twins unleash combined elemental magic, knocking all four Heirs to the ground. Max and Caleb step back, leaving one-on-one fights: Darius against Tory, Seth against Darcy. The battles escalate until Darius and Seth simultaneously blast the twins backward into the Pit. The crowd erupts in laughter. The 4 Heirs trap them by casting a magical barrier over the opening. Max spits on it before they walk away, Darius lingering longest.

Trapped in the muddy Pit, the twins attempt to break the Heirs’ magical barrier but fail. Angry and humiliated, they resolve to truly claim the throne. Chaos erupts above—screams, evacuation orders, panicked footsteps. Darcy manages to peek out and sees Fae fleeing in their Order forms. A thick, living shadow spreads across the barrier: a Nymph. She realizes the academy is under attack.

The Nymph’s power destroys the barrier, and the creature drops into the Pit. Its presence drains their magic and energy. They manage to escape, with Tory injuring the Nymph using an ice spear. On the pitch, they witness dozens of Nymphs blocking exits and attacking students. Harpies strike from above while Seth leads Werewolves in a ground assault. The twins work together to freeze the Nymph from the Pit as it tries to climb out. As one targets Tory, Darius in Dragon form swoops down, breathing fire. Orion leaps from his back and kills the Nymph with a silver sword.

Together, Orion and the twins create a magical wall against advancing Nymphs. Dropping his part of the wall, Orion uses the propulsion from the twins’ magic to launch himself at another Nymph and kill it. He is disarmed and overpowered by two Nymphs. As a third moves to deliver a killing blow, Darcy feels immense power surge within her. She releases a winged creature of blue and red fire that completely destroys the Nymph and other Nymphs nearby.

Darcy sees Max and Caleb fighting what she realizes are Nymphs disguised in Fae form. Falling stadium debris threatens them, but Darcy creates an air shield strengthened by Orion’s channeled power, which splits the metal panel in two. She refuses to flee without Tory. Drawing on Orion’s power again, she destroys another Nymph. He encourages her to keep fighting.

Tory surveys the chaos as students fight or flee in their Order forms. She spots friends escaping: Angelica as a red Dragon, Marguerite and Kylie as Sphinx and Medusa. Relieved to see Darcy with Orion in the distance, she starts toward them but is attacked by a Nymph wielding stolen magic. She knocks it away with water. Darius roars in agony as eight Nymphs swarm his Dragon form, one driving its probes into his flank.

Despite their enmity, Tory feels compelled to help. Her power manifests as red and blue flames coating her body. She unleashes them as a living creature that burns the Nymph off Darius. He saves her from another approaching Nymph. They fight in tight coordination, moving around each other seamlessly. Geraldine arrives in Cerberus form and kills another Nymph. Nova’s voice orders all untrained students to evacuate. Tory sees Sofia and Diego under attack. She destroys their attacker with her fire, then uses Coercion to send them fleeing on Sofia’s Pegasus form, refusing to leave without Darcy.

Another Nymph leaps onto Darius’s back, where he cannot reach. It impales him between the shoulder blades. He collapses, trying to push Tory away to safety. She refuses and climbs his massive form. The Nymph lurches at her, draining her magic. She punches it, and her blue and red fire erupts, destroying the creature. Darius kills five more Nymphs with his remaining strength before collapsing and transforming back to Fae form. Tory falls with him.

He lies unconscious, bleeding from multiple critical wounds. She screams for help. Her magic flows into him instinctively, merging with his and easing his pain but not healing the injuries. Terrified, she realizes he is dying and fears losing him.

Seth in his Wolf form kills a Nymph threatening Darcy. Orion suddenly clutches his arm in pain, sensing Darius is injured. They fight across the pitch, Darcy using her new fire power while Orion uses his silver blade to cut down the Nymphs. She trips over the body of a dead Zodiac student and the sight of Ashanti’s lifeless form fuels her rage. Darcy fights with renewed fury alongside Orion. The remaining Nymphs begin fleeing the stadium. Orion declares the battle is over, at least for now.

Darcy frantically searches for Tory, screaming her name over the chaos. Orion uses his Vampire speed to carry her to the far side of the pitch. They find Tory kneeling over Darius, who is critically injured and bleeding from multiple wounds. Tory begs them to heal him. Orion begins but quickly needs more power to close Darius’s injuries. Without hesitation, Tory offers her hand. His healing magic intensifies immediately. Darius regains consciousness, his eyes locking with Tory’s. He briefly places his hand over hers on his cheek before Orion finishes. Tory pulls away sharply and embraces Darcy in relief.

The twins discover they both manifested the same blue and red fire during the battle. Orion admits he has never witnessed mafic like it before. Orion helps Darius to his feet. Darius tells them they have proved their worth, his tone threatening rather than congratulatory. Darcy surveys the devastation: bodies scattered across the pitch and stands, fires still burning, the air filled with grief. Orion concludes that by attacking the children of Solaria’s most powerful Fae, the Nymphs have declared war.

In The Orb, Professor Orion uses air magic to knock Seth’s coffee from his hand, summoning the Heirs for detention. Seth tries to order a senior girl to fetch him another, but Orion threatens to write her family about her shameful eagerness to serve underclassmen. She flees. The four Heirs follow Orion through the Wailing Wood. Max uses his Siren gift to keep Seth calm when Geraldine provokes him on the way. Orion orders them to cease all magic and Order gifts for the detention’s duration.

A student assistant confirms their task is ready. Seth recognizes him and calls him “Squid Legs,” a cruel nickname Seth created and spread. The student protests angrily but Seth persists. Orion dismisses him. He reveals their punishment: retrieving gold stars from a crag hole bog made of giant gog worm secretions, without using magic. He addresses their treatment of the Vegas—specifically the ice pool incident and cutting Darcy’s hair—calling their actions unFae, shameful, and pitiful.

Darius leads by wading into the foul-smelling bog first. The others follow. The stench is overwhelming. Orion sits comfortably in an armchair, scrolling through Seth’s Atlas, which he unlocked using Seth’s birthday as the password—a date he remembers due to a previous embarrassing, drunken incident involving Seth. Orion posts a photo of them in the bog to FaeBook. After they collect the visible stars, he reveals most are submerged beneath the sludge. They must dive for them. Seth surfaces clutching a dead animal by mistake. Orion announces that 28 stars remain.