Everything comes to a head as Black Cloak's Essex, Pax, and Alden come face to face with the monster behind the Dragyern. Can saving Kiros mean not setting everything on fire this time? What happens if the last city in the world… falls?

Phaedra, Pax, and all their allies teleport to Devaki’s old house for safety.

Valorie casts a spell to help Dagmar get her memories back. Renna is annoyed with Dagmar but then she starts to enjoy her dark sense of humor.

Dagmar relates how she, along with others, was forced to use magic to control the Dragyern and to make them kill people. She was held in a lair with lots of tech and scientists, including Elea Veris, one of the Kiros Three. She is shocked to realize that someone she knew so well would do this to her. Most of her memories are still confused. She remembers something about being recruited by “Delphi.” Renna knows Delphi is at the Crux where she used to work.

Delphi turns out to be a machine that tests your magical potential. The information then gets sent to Elea.

They go to Elea’s mansion and sneak inside using a Dragyern tunnel. They hear Lysanthir, who was kidnapped, talking with Elea. Elea’s group has been working on creating synthetic magic, using a template that Lysanthir had been working on years ago. Elea plans to use the synthetic magic to save the city, but also to use it as leverage for the her and the other humans to gain control. They have been killing people with the Dragyern to cover up any clues about what they’ve been doing.

When they confront Elea, she activates another Dragyern to attack them. The heroes’ allies teleport in to help. Phaedra shoots the machine that is controlling the Dragyern, freeing them. They turn on Elea and kill her. Lysanthir gives up and tries to buy leniency by providing information about the synthetic magic.

The Taka and Dragyern comfort each other. They seem to have some connection.

Later, Phaedra’s father Phinneas, who is the Prime Minister, explains in a public broadcast that the synthetic magic has been working out and has solved many of the problems caused by the fires five years ago.

Phaedra, Pax, and their friends all hang out. Valorie and Devaki are now together, as are Renna and Dagmar. Phaedra and Nida are now talking again as well. They are happy to see that Joya is using Phaedra’s mech-wings to replace her own amputated wings.

The city feels hope.