POV: Miranda Prospero

The power had been building inside me for days.

Ever since the blood moon ritual. Ever since I'd absorbed the energy meant to kill me. It churned beneath my skin like a living thing, demanding release, demanding purpose.

I'd been keeping it contained through sheer force of will. Meditation. Grounding exercises. Everything my father had taught me about controlling magical overflow.

But it wasn't enough anymore.

Standing in the Southern Alliance holding facility, ...