The door banged open behind her, just a few inches away. Iron Feather stood there, somehow wearing most of his armor despite having been asleep before. Only the breastplate was off, probably thanks to his broken wing. He couldn't have put it on even if he wanted to.

"Lotus!" he yelled, dropping the spear onto the ground. His eyes moved from Gus hacking and coughing on the ground to the spellbook, to Lotus herself in just a few seconds. "Lotus, what have you done? Of all the magic to practice—didn't you give me your word?"

She had, and she had broken it. Iron was right, he'd been right from the beginning. Lotus hadn't cared, and now they all paid the price—starting with Gus.