Page 58 of The Mercy of Dawn

He seemed like the type to have some archaic views on the places where women belonged, and combat training surely wasn’t one of them.

“That was kind of her,” Cyril said, a bit more quiet, as they started up the stairs. Just a few minutes and she’d be back in her room, and freed of this awkward excuse of a conversation.

“It was.” He paused. “I have a question for you, Lady Cyril, if you’ll humor me.”

She looked back at Mikael, trailing a couple of steps behind her. This entire interaction was downright civilized, and it was really fucking weird.

Cyril forced a wry smile and said, “It’s not about my hobbies again, is it?”

A flicker of surprise lit up his face and he chuckled, shaking his head.

“No, I’m afraid not. I was wondering…” He hesitated. “Is your uncle always such an asshole, or is this just some special act we’re being treated to?”

Oh.

“He…” Cyril weighed her words carefully as Mikael stopped beside her at the top of the stairs. “I wouldn’t list acting high on Dion’s strengths, if that answers your question.”

She hoped it did, desperately, and loosed a quiet breath when Mikael nodded slowly. Not a conversation she felt like delving much further into. Besides, she knew the prince had witnessed what happened with Dion in the hall the other afternoon.

That gave him everything he needed to know.

Mikael looked past her and caught the eyes of the guards standing watch over the residential wing.

“Will one of you see Lady Cyril through the rest of the perilous journey to her room?” he asked, and a trio of nods and chuckles followed suit.

Mikael looked down at her and smiled a bit more warmly than she remembered seeing him do before. Gods, the wine here had to be ten times stronger than it was back home.

“Goodnight, Lady Cyril. Enjoy your reading,” he said, hitching ever so slightly at the waist. More respect than she ever thought she’d get from him.

“Thank you, Your Highness. Enjoy, ah…” She couldn’t remember for the life of her what Runa said he’d be running off to do. “Goodnight?” Cyril grimaced.

Amusement tugged at his features, but the prince only nodded and sauntered his way back down the stairs.

Section 4—The Physical Tolls of Ascension

Part c. Impacts to Self-healing

All fae—regardless of their status of Ascension—possess innately superior self-healing abilities when compared to their mortal counterparts and other documented races. This natural process is only further enhanced once a fae has achieved their Ascension and taps into their full wellspring of powers.

During the process of Ascension, however, fae undergo a transitional period during which their self-healing abilities enter a state of stasis. This stasis can last anywhere from mere hours to days and seems to directly correlate to the amount of energy spent by the fae’s body during the moment of Ascension.

For fae who undergo a more subtle transition, it may only manifest as a few hours of feeling unwell. For those whose transition results in a more complete release of energy from their bodies, the results may be grievous.

Stasis will leave them at a heightened risk of permanent injury, as well as the possibility of death. The most common causes of death for fae during their healing stasis are blood loss, from injuries sustained during the outburst of energy, and exposure to the elements, as they also experience a reduced ability to self-regulate their body temperatures.

The phenomenon of Ascension Death is most commonly seen in male fae, who are prone to…

Cyril had run through this passage four times now and still wasn’t sure if she trusted the connections her mind was forging. She'd even flipped through two other tomes that Isa lent her on Ascension, and they all said some subtly differently worded version of the same thing.

And if that were the case…

Gods, she didn’t want to assume, but…Dion's scar.

It had to be.

For as long as Cyril could remember, the brutal and wicked thing cut down the right side of his face was a point of fascination for her. But it was a topic he refused to discuss, as did anyone at the guild. All she ever knew was it had to be something grievous, with how quickly her own feeble and mixed body healed.

But now, reading these texts, it made so much sense.