Sorrow and Starlight: Zodiac Academy 8

After the devastating battle that closed Heartless Sky, everyone is left reeling and grieving. Most of the principal characters lost someone important to them, whether it was a parent, sibling, or lover. Their grief is depicted as a pervasive, corrosive force that chips away at each of them, and much of the book is taken up by focusing on the different ways they choose to cope with what happened. They shut themselves off from each other, lash out violently, or turn to sex purely to feel something other than pain. Tory takes the most extreme approach: Refusing to accept the loss of her lover Darius, she turns to dark magic and forces her way into the afterlife to save him. However, most of the other characters don’t follow her lead and instead find solace and healing through love and community.

The most literal example appears in the form of Xavier Acrux. His mother and brother were both killed in the battle by his father, Lionel. He is also physically scarred, as the wings of his Pegasus form are cut off and taken to the Palace of Souls as a trophy. His severed wings, once symbols of freedom and pride, become emblems of his grief and vulnerability. He spends the first half of the novel angry and closed off. As he notes, “It wasn’t just losing my wings, or even Darius or my mom, I’d lost something else out there on that field of destruction. Something intrinsic which had abandoned me, leaving me worthless without it. My confidence perhaps, or something deeper. A piece of me that couldn’t be reforged” (966). After the battle, he is, in his eyes, permanently broken. His only goal is to make his father pay for what he did. As a result, he tries to cut everyone else off, including his romantic partners, Tyler and Sofia. They, however, continue to reach out even as he pushes them away. When he fails to climax during a threesome with them because “the cold hand of grief [i]s sweeping over [him] again” (425), they provide him with an outlet to channel his frustration by destroying a facsimile of Lionel’s office. Afterward, they continue to give him their unconditional support. Their concern is not only a comfort but also a continued reminder that he is not alone. The community itself comes together to see his first flight once he heals. The physical restoration mirrors the emotional one that Xavier has once he reconnects with his community.

Peckham and Valenti show that while grief can be all-consuming, it doesn’t have to stay that way. Healing is possible, even when the process isn’t linear. Moving on requires confronting one’s sorrow, sharing it with others, and allowing oneself to be vulnerable. Vulnerability is crucial because it opens the door to support, an antidote to the isolation and despair of grief.