The Throne of Broken Gods

Dianna decorates for the dinner party. Samkiel tells her that everyone will come except Vincent and confesses that he hit him. Dianna comforts Samkiel, who feels he failed as a leader. She also shows him Gabby’s note.

At dinner, Vincent arrives late with a cake. Dianna scolds him, insisting that his issues are with her, not Samkiel. Vincent apologizes, and the tension eases. Neverra and Logan announce that they are trying to have a baby, and Samkiel declares that he will disband The Hand once Kaden is destroyed, encouraging everyone to live freely afterward.

Outside, Dianna meets Roccurem, who checks on her. She admits that she feels protective of Samkiel. Xavier joins her, and they bond over their love for Cameron and Samkiel. Later, Neverra gives Dianna a framed picture from their girls’ night and calls her family. Dianna places it beside Gabby’s photo and whispers to the star that she likes her new sisters. She gives Samkiel a charm made from their festival photo. He enchants it so that it can never be removed.

The Hand discusses Samkiel’s announcement while walking home. Cameron and Xavier separate from the group, and Xavier reveals that his boyfriend proposed and that he plans to accept. Cameron argues that it is too soon, and they fight over Cameron’s past with Elianna. Xavier accuses Cameron of hiding his feelings for too long. However, Cameron still refuses to confess, afraid of ruining what remains between them. Xavier therefore walks away, leaving Cameron alone.

At a masquerade, Kaden talks with Roccurem—a conversation that apparently reveals Roccurem to be working for Kaden. Vincent arrives late, and Kaden scolds him (confirming that he, too, is on Kaden’s side). Vincent assures Kaden that he will keep The Hand divided. Kaden reminds him that he serves “us,” and Vincent warns that Dianna and Samkiel are together. Kaden’s jealousy flares, and he dismisses Vincent. He accuses Roccurem of pushing him to turn Dianna into an Ig’Morruthen. Roccurem calms him, promising that Samkiel will die soon.

Dianna dreams of her home with Gabby, who warns Dianna that she must fix the cracks in the house or the world will end. Darkness seeps through the floor, and light glows from beneath a door. Gabby urges her to open it, but Dianna refuses. The cracks widen as Gabby transforms into an Ig’Morruthen. Dianna opens the door and falls into a void filled with stars and worlds. Kaden appears, showing her Samkiel lying dead on a stone slab surrounded by flowers. Dianna demands to know what Kaden did, and Kaden says only what was promised. She sees two shadowed figures and realizes that, together with Kaden, they are the figures from her dreams.

Dianna wakes beside Samkiel, who pulls her close. They share an intimate moment, and she makes him promise to return to her. After he leaves, she senses that something is wrong.

Logan and Neverra enjoy a new beachside home. Logan finds the picture of Imogen, Dianna, and Neverra and accidentally shatters it when Kaden appears. Logan attacks, but Neverra stops him. Kaden smirks, saying that what he did to Neverra (place her under the control of the Words of Ezalan), he will do to all of them.

Samkiel visits The Higher One (the deity of the mental realms), who takes Dianna’s form. He demands the truth about Unir and the past. The Higher One mocks his fear of admitting love, calling him weak for being terrified of Dianna’s rejection. She warns that Dianna’s love borders on “madness” and that she would destroy anyone to protect him. When Samkiel presses about Yejedin, she reveals that Unir lied: Kaden was not just his general but his son. She tells him that Unir created children forged from light, darkness, and his own blood. However, creating life without sharing it is a crime among the gods, so Unir hid these children. Three grew too strong and escaped Unir’s control.

The Higher One taunts Samkiel for not realizing that Dianna is his amata; She was not killed but rather transformed into an Ig’Morruthen. She reveals that Roccurem serves Unir but that the other two fates serve the One True King. The Higher One says it is too late to stop The Order (those who rebelled against Unir) because Samkiel lacks the Mark of Dhishin (if he were tied to Dianna in this way, with access to her power, his enemies would not be able to bind him). Moreover, the equinox nears. She binds him in chains as Elianna and the council appear around him.

Cameron wakes to a strange call from Xavier’s number and is told to meet at 52nd Street. He finds Kaden waiting there. Kaden reveals that Vincent betrayed The Hand. Xavier then steps from the shadows, blank and controlled. Cameron refuses to fight while Xavier is there. Kaden pours him a drink and insists that they talk; he then reveals Azrael, alive but under the control of the Words of Ezalan. Kaden tells Cameron that Xavier now belongs to him and proves it by forcing Xavier to slit his own throat. Devastated, Cameron agrees to follow Kaden in exchange for Xavier’s release. Kaden forces Cameron to drink his blood to become an Ig’Morruthen.

Dianna wakes to a tower of gifts from Samkiel and a note promising his return. She opens the presents, smiling at his thoughtfulness. Music plays downstairs, and she follows it, expecting Samkiel until the song changes to one only Gabby, Kaden, and she know.

Sure enough, Kaden is waiting for her. She tries to flee, but Cameron and Vincent block the exit. Kaden reveals that Vincent has been his spy all along. Cameron grabs Dianna, and Kaden opens a portal and orders Cameron to drag her through. She realizes that Cameron is now an Ig’Morruthen. Kaden explains that he can only turn celestials to Ig’Morruthens: When Dianna asks how he turned her, Kaden reveals that Azrael is her father, meaning Dianna was a celestial.

Cameron and Vincent shackle Dianna. She pleads, but Cameron says that he will not risk Xavier’s life. They take her to a cave surrounded by Irikuva, which Kaden and Azrael then enter. Kaden displays Azrael’s spear; this was what he was amassing iron to build. He explains that Dianna’s blood is the key to breaking Samkiel’s immortality and that the gods hid her existence to preserve cosmic balance, as the two of them would be nearly invincible once joined. Kaden claims that he loves her and insists that she will love him again. He tells her that the equinox will mark Samkiel’s death and the reopening of the realms. Azrael coats the spear in Dianna’s blood as she loses consciousness in despair.

Samkiel, chained to the floor and confined within a circle of runes, confronts Elianna, who reveals that Unir made the inscriptions, which she calls “wards,” to hold the Primordials (those who instigated the war among the gods); these wards are unbreakable, except by the person who created them. Samkiel sees Logan and Imogen, hollow-eyed, and learns that Elianna stripped their emotions using the Words of Ezalan, a spell from the Book of Azrael. She declares that celestials exist only for war and that half the council serves The Order.

Cameron and Xavier enter, and Samkiel realizes Xavier is under control and that Cameron has betrayed him. Vincent then arrives with a struggling Camilla. Finally, Kaden appears in Dragonbane armor, striking Samkiel with lightning. He calls Samkiel his brother and reveals their shared blood. Kaden stabs Samkiel with the spear coated in Dianna’s blood, mortally wounding him and tearing open the realms.

Samkiel dies slowly as The Hand retreats, but Camilla throws him an orb of energy that urges him to survive. Roccurem arrives, and Samkiel demands answers. Roccurem admits that the fates serve the One True King. Samkiel asks who this is as Nismera steps from a portal and greets him.

Trapped in her mind, Dianna returns to the house she shared with Gabby. Gabby greets her and says that Dianna has suppressed her powers for too long. Dianna confesses her guilt and the memory of choosing love and peace over vengeance. Gabby calls it survivor’s guilt and tells her that she deserves happiness. The house shakes as Gabby warns that the realms are opening and Samkiel is dying. She says that Nismera has crossed between realms and that Dianna must reach Samkiel first. Gabby tells her that she is always with her and then fades as Dianna vows to save Samkiel.

Dianna wakes and breaks her restraints. Azrael stops her, and they fight. She wounds him, briefly freeing his mind. He calls her Ayla and tells her that he once gave her a dagger when she was a child. He says that the Words of Ezalan can be broken only by death and begs her to kill him. When he turns on her again, Dianna does. She then races toward the rift.

Samkiel suffers as Kaden and Isaiah, Kaden’s brother, torture him. Isaiah severs Samkiel’s hand and removes the Ring of Oblivion (which contains the Sword of Oblivion), giving it to Nismera. Nismera scolds Kaden for losing her armies, and he blames her for demanding that he kill Gabby. When Nismera orders her general to seize Rashearim and Onuna, Samkiel uses the last of his strength to protect Onuna. Nismera raises her blade to kill him, but Dianna arrives, throwing Nismera’s general’s head into the room. She taunts Nismera and escapes with Samkiel through a portal as Roccurem shields them.

Dianna drags Samkiel to safety, but he grows cold and tells her that he is dying. She tries to heal him, but his power is gone. He tells her that he loves her and fades. Roccurem appears, wounded, and tells her that the bond between her and Samkiel is incomplete. He says that confessing her love may revive Samkiel but that the price will be high. Dianna accepts, declares her love, and vows destruction if it fails. The Mark of Dhishin flashes and disappears, and Samkiel breathes again.

Roccurem marvels that even death fears Dianna’s love. He asks what she paid for Samkiel’s life, and she says only the Mark. He warns her that Nismera now rules the realms, believing Samkiel dead. Dianna lies beside Samkiel, wondering if her lost mark was the only cost of bringing him back.