I will not always be with you, but I will leave the Jewel with each and every one of you. It’s better this way. Dalia turned Ezra’s perplexing words over and over in her head, but she couldn’t make heads or tails of them. How can the Jewel be split among twelve? And why won’t Ezra remain with us always? Even the Onkrons are terrified in his presence. It’s clear he’s the prince of Nev come down in the body of a Wanderer. But why? For what purpose? How is his absence better?

Dalia stared at Ezra as they trekked ever nearer to the edge of the Dark Woods. The Swamp of Sudura was their destination, and that had drawn some tension among the Outcasts. Even now, they muttered to themselves why he would journey into the most perilous place possible when the Volcano of Shin offered a much safer route. Allegedly, though. Nobody quite knew for certain, because no one had ever returned to tell of their adventure.

Up front, Ezra conversed with Collin, Aidan, and Esther privately, answering their many questions and teaching them the way of the king. What Nev was really like. No Wanderer alive remembered Nev except for the reclusive princess and her family. Rumor had it they were the cause of the Wanderers’ exile, but no one could ever prove it. Dalia felt a sting of envy course through her veins. She’d lay down her life for the Asynier after what he rescued her from. The look of compassion on his face when he saw her would forever be seared into her memory. Everyone else had shunned her with contempt and disdain, but not Ezra. He stepped into her shame and illuminated it all away. Sure, he taught them all, but some things he keep for those three only.

Beside her, Troy and Artemis discussed various techniques of hewing stone into architecture, jargon transcending far beyond her knowledge. Why indeed was the stonemakers trade so undervalued? Devin, hands in his pockets, followed at the edge of the crowd, saying nothing, but Dalia knew he had been one of the loudest voices of disapproval for venturing into the Dark Woods. Sam and Arianna conversed quietly with one another, and Dalia wondered if something was blossoming between the two. Travis hung at the back of the group with Scarlett, keeping watch for any Onkrons or other creatures.

Trevor caught up to Dalia and whispered in her ear. “You think Ezra’s right about this?”

Dalia was taken aback by the question. “Of course. He’s the prince of Nev, the center of the whole galaxy. Why would he be wrong?”

Trevor scoffed. “How come he has the body of a Wanderer then? Nev nobles have invincible bodies that glow. Nothing compared to this weak thing. But that’s beside the point! Why would he take the Swamp over the Volcano?”

Dalia shrugged, wondering where this conversation was heading. “Maybe he knows something we don’t.”

Trevor sighed. “Dalia, you and I both agree what he did for you was miraculous, uncalled for even, especially if he is the prince. But you have to stop defending all his actions. He’s gonna kill us all in the Swamp. Nobody has ever come back alive.”

Flashes of all the unquenchable pain and burden of seven Onkrons trying to keep her spellbound threatened to overwhelm her, but in the middle of all the shame stood Ezra, holding a sword in one hand and offering the other towards her. She didn’t need to hear the unspoken request. She’d grasp that hand and never let go, no matter what.

Fire burned in Dalia’s eyes, and she clenched her nails into her palms. “Not my Ezra,” she muttered through gritted teeth. “We’ll just have to be the first.”

Trevor rolled his eyes. “Whatever. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” He backed up to Travis and tapped him on the shoulder. Soon, Travis exchanged places and caught up to Dalia.

“I heard everything. Don’t let him get to you. He’s just been sore ever since his father disavowed him for his belief in the Asynier’s regality.”

Dalia stole a glance backward at her least favorite Outcast. Trevor seemed to be chatting just with Scarlett, but he didn’t seem to pick up the hints she didn’t want to talk. “How much was his father going to leave to him?”

Travis glanced back before lowering his voice to a whisper. “Twelve hundred thousand units.”

Dalia’s eyes went round. “That’s nearly as wealthy as the princess herself! No wonder he’s so indignant about it.”

Travis nodded. “We need to keep an eye on him. It’s only a matter of time before he snaps and wants those units back. And you heard what the Lawmakers wanted to do…”

Dalia shivered. The Lawmakers wanted to slaughter Ezra for his claim to be noble, to be the prince of Nev. Blasphemy at its finest if it was false. There was an enormous bounty on Ezra’s head, and whoever turned him in could be the next wealthy merchant of the village. She glanced back one more time and thought she saw an unusual gleam in Trevor’s eyes.