Her suit was nothing but dead, twisted metal, an immovable weight no longer capable of flight. Corinne reached for the air around her, tried to slow her descent, but it was a hopeless gesture and she knew it. No akashic had that kind of power.

But Corinne wasn’t alone. A wash of heat and a rush of air, and Padma and Jun were there. They each grabbed one of her frozen wings, holding her aloft.

Then everyone seemed to be talking at once. “That was incredible!” “What were you thinking?” “Badass!” “How did you even—”

Corinne held up a hand, even that small gesture a struggle in her dead suit. Fortunately, the squad was all gathered close enough to hear her if she shouted. She didn’t expect her earpiece still worked.

From here, she couldn’t see what was happening back at the fortress, or if, while they’d been busy with the demons, the defenses had come online.

“Serena, you’re in charge,” Corinne ordered. “Check in with Cécile and see where she needs you. We’re not done yet.”

“Right,” Serena shot back, her voice just as sharp. “Padma, Jun, get her safely inside, then rejoin the squad.”

Padma and Jun flew Corinne in low to keep clear of the battle still going above the fortress. Whatever had happened while Corinne’s squad had been busy with the demons, the fortress defenses were now in full operation and the enemy ships were trying to retreat, with Phoenix Guard and other Dragon ships giving chase.

A legionnaire stood in the courtyard as Corinne landed. He’d been one of the guards on duty outside the Emperor’s door earlier. Beyond that, she’d seen him throughout the court, often at the Emperor’s side. His was a particularly handsome face—even among the oh-so-decorative Swans that filled the Emperor’s court—but Corinne had never actually spoken to him.

He introduced himself as Major Kosuri Kristoph. Corinne didn’t have to introduce herself. He already knew her name. “Nita Corinne, would you follow me?” As calm and polite as if he were extending a social invitation, and they weren’t still surrounded by an ongoing battle.

Padma and Jun were already back in the air. “Hold on,” Corinne said. Curt. Not exactly court manners, but Corinne had been chewed on, poisoned, and burned just now fighting a demon in defense of the Emperor, and—major or no—Kosuri Kristoph could wait while she struggled out of her wrecked suit.

It was a mess. Frozen, crumpled metal. Irreparable. Corinne squirmed and twisted and finally managed to get free of it.

Kristoph, who had waited patiently, raised an eyebrow. “May we proceed?”

Corinne resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Swans—what could you do? Some parts of the Emperor’s court she wasn’t going to miss. “After you,” she said in a syrupy voice.

Inside it was only marginally quieter than outside. People were yelling and there were distant sounds of fighting. The nima were riled to whirlwind madness, and they chittered in angry clouds as Kristoph led Corinne along the same back-corridor path she’d taken Yeijiro.

As they walked, Kristoph talked, dropping some of his court stuffiness to speak plainly. “Captain Cécile will have this conversation with the rest of your squad. I was clear with her, and I want to be very clear with you how much the Emperor appreciates your efforts today. Her Imperial Highness couldn’t be more pleased with the performance of the Phoenix Guard.”

Two different legionnaires stood guard in the hall that led to the Imperial suite. They saluted Kristoph, who nodded as he led Corinne through the door.

Inside was a reception room with a fountain and walls covered in twining flowers. The remains of a meal were still spread out on the table at the center. Kristoph waved for Corinne to take a seat.

Corinne was more grateful than she wanted to admit for the chair. Her shoulders throbbed, and as adrenaline wore off, she was starting to feel every puncture, tear, and abrasion. “You didn’t bring me here just to say thank you.”

Kristoph tilted his head in concession. “May I come straight to it?”

“Please.”

“You can’t tell anyone about the demon that you fought.”

Corinne shifted, wincing as her skin pulled. “You’re injured?” Kristoph asked.

“It happens when you fight demons. Which, apparently, I didn’t do.” Corinne studied him. “Although I’m curious how you’re here to tell me about the demon I didn’t fight when we were well out of sight of the fortress and didn’t broadcast what was happening.”

“A demon came into this world. You believe the Emperor would not notice?” Kristoph lifted a single, perfectly sculpted eyebrow. “Her Highness extends her most sincere apologies, but she and the Lord Marshal believe that if it were to become widely known that a demon came through what should have been impenetrable space, it could cause a panic.”

If Kristoph had any personal opinion on this, it was unreadable. His face was a perfect, emotionless mask. Corinne expected no less from a high ranking member of the Emperor’s court. Especially a Swan.

While Corinne wasn’t about to disobey an order that came directly from both the Emperor and the Lord Marshal, she wasn’t sure they’d thought it through. “I can keep quiet, and so can my squad. But that doesn’t change what happened. You think no one’s going to have noticed?”

Kristoph gave a very slight nod, allowing her point. “Most of those people were occupied with their own fighting, and you were well out of sight of the fortress. We were monitoring all communications channels, and there was no mention of the demon from anyone outside your squad.”

Which was all well and good, but it didn’t address the real problem. “Even if you lucked out with that, it doesn’t change the fact that we did fight a demon. It broke through planetary defenses that have been solid for hundreds of years. We can’t just walk away and pretend it didn’t happen. We need to understand how it was possible so we can keep it from happening again.”

“The matter is being discussed. And investigated.”

In other words, it was officially no longer Corinne’s business.

If he wanted a promise out of Corinne, he wasn’t going to get one. She wasn’t going to go out of her way to disobey an order—especially from the Emperor, but she wasn’t going to swear an oath that could endanger people either. “Is there anything else?”

“Yes. Your injuries. I assume they don’t look like gunfire.”

“No, I don’t imagine they do.”

“May I?” he asked, stepping closer and holding his empty hands out to her.

A sharir, then. It was the adaptation most common among the Swan, and it made sense that a high ranking bodyguard to the Emperor would be more than simply decorative. “Go ahead,” she said.

He took her hands and closed his eyes. The sharir gift was different from Corinne’s akashic adaptation, but she could still feel him waking up the nima that were a part of her. It was a different sort of energy than Corinne could summon, a warm wave running through her. It tickled a little. Itched a lot as skin regrew over the minor scrapes. But the pain in her shoulders receded, and the aches through the rest of her faded away.

He let go and pulled back. Corinne rolled her shoulders, testing. It still hurt—the nima could only do so much—but nothing like before. She felt bruised and sore, but not weak, and when she slid her hand under the leather padding, her skin was completely intact.

“Thanks.”

He nodded. “Now if Nita Corinne would excuse me…”

Back to court manners, then. Corinne stood. “I’ll get out of your way. I imagine you’ve got a busy day of secret keeping still ahead.”

That earned her the barest hint of a smile, and he bowed. “It has been a sincere pleasure. I truly hope this won’t be the last time.” He retreated through one of the other doors out of the room, and Corinne went out the way she had come, heading back to check on her squad.