Thornhill Academy (By Sheridan Hartin) novel Chapter 193

Chapter 193

Allison

Rhaziel stands in the centre of the ruined hideout like the room itself is bracing for what he’s about to say. Shadows coil around him, reacting to his pulse, his power, his rage so controlled it feels like a blade sheathed only by his will. Cassian stands beside me, body angled protectively toward the group, but eyes sharp and calculating, waiting. Kael sits cross-legged on the floor like he’s watching a campfire story. Evander lingers near the broken window, jaw tight, arms folded as though preparing for a truth that might break something important. Tessa is perched on a crate, kicking the air, Rynor standing behind her like a very tired babysitter. And me-I stand with Rhaziel’s tail curled around my ankle, grounding me. He waits until the room settles into silence.

Then, he begins.

“I have never cared for mortal wars,” Rhaziel says. “Because they were never mine. I do not govern this realm. I do not sit at their councils. I do not pass their laws. And for thousands of years, I saw no reason to involve myself.” He lifts his eyes. They burn like twin endless night skies. “That changed the

moment I learned my Queen was being hunted to be used as a weapon in that war.”

My breath stills. His shadows surge once, then calm. “So,” he continues, “I used my resources. I sent spies, scouts, shadow-walkers, truthseekers-every

creature loyal to the shadow crown. I tore into every whispered corner of this realm, every place the Council hides their sins, every place rebels flee to when

they fear their magic will be stripped from them.” He paces slowly, like a king surveying the battlefield he’s about to set on fire. “And this is what I found.”

My shadows reach for his, my sigils instinctively pulsing in time with my heart.

“The rebellion,” Rhaziel says, “is indeed the Council’s enemy.”

Cassian nods once. “They’ve been attacking the Wall for centuries.”

Rhaziel’s expression turns sharp. “Yes. But not for the reasons you’ve been told.”

Cassian’s brows pull together.

Rhaziel continues, voice deepening.

“They are not the enemy of the people. They are not monsters. They are not creatures seeking to tear down the world. They are a coalition-a gathering of oppressed magicals who refuse to bow.”

I blink, “Oppressed?”

“Oh, Hummingbird.” Rhaziel’s gaze softens briefly. “There is much your Council has hidden from you.”

He turns his attention to the room. “The rebellion is made of those who have suffered under Council rule. Shifters of castes they deemed ‘too wild.” Vampires who refused to pay blood tithes. Warlocks punished for magic too ancient. Witches who were forbidden to practice their birthright.”

Tessa’s eyes go wide. “Holy shit.”

Rhaziel nods. “There are also fae, mages, spectral walkers, rune-beaters…”

He pauses, and then his voice drops. “And siphons.”

The air evaporates from my lungs. Evander’s hand curls tighter around the windowsill. Kael’s eyes darken until his pupils swallow the gold. Cassian stills completely. Rhaziel nods, observing my reaction.

“Yes, Hummingbird. Many of your kind escaped. They ran to the rebellion. They were protected, hidden, trained, sheltered-because the rebellion believed

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17:43

Thu, Jan

Chapter 193

something your Council never did.” He steps closer, his tail brushing against my call. “They believed siphons were more than tools. More than weapons. More than power to be drained and used.”

My throat tightens. A tremble shivers through my shadows.

Cassian whispers, “That… that can’t be right. Siphons were rare. Nearly extinct.”

Rhaziel’s head tilts. “Extinct? Or hidden?”

Cassian swallows hard and Rhaziel keeps going.

“The Council used siphons as ammunition in their war. You know this.” He looks at Cassian directly. “You saw them brought to the Wall.”

Cassian’s jaw clenches. “Yes.”

“You saw them used until their bodies burned out.”

He nods, slow and haunted.

“And then?”

Cassian’s voice is a ghost. “They brought more.”

Rhaziel turns to the rest of us.

“And where,” he asks softly, “do you think the Council obtained an endless supply of ‘rare, nearly extinct siphons?”

There is dead silence through the room. I feel sick.

“Oh gods,” Kael breathes.

Evander’s dragon stirs beneath his skin like a storm, his skin barely containing the scales threatening to shift through him.

Rhaziel’s voice drops to a deadly soft whisper. “They hunted them. Sent trackers, enforcers, and armies into every fragmented corner of the realm. Tore families apart. Stole children. Killed the ones who resisted. And the siphons who escaped their nets?” His eyes meet mine. “They ran to the rebellion or hid

themselves from the world.”

I can’t breathe.

“They hide,” Rhaziel continues, “not because they are the enemy… but because if the Council learned how many survived-how many siphons they failed to eradicate they would unleash hell upon the world trying to reclaim them.”

My knees weaken. Cassian steadies me without thought, hand landing on my elbow.

Rhaziel’s gaze sharpens. “The rebellion does not fight to destroy life beyond the Wall.” He gestures toward the outside world. “They fight to free those trapped beneath the Council’s rule. They fight to undo the chains, the systems, the cruelty. They fight for equality-for all magicals, regardless of power.” He steps closer, shadows curling around his feet like loyal wolves. “They are not the threat.” Ilis voice becomes a blade. “The Council is.” The words land like

thunder.

Kael inhales sharply. “So… so all this time… the enemy wasn’t the enemy?”

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