Summary

Erel, Gaven, and Haynes gather in a war room to plan their attacks on the rebels. Gaven steps out to address insistent knocking at the door. Shortly afterward, Erel and Haynes hear Gaven scream. Erel goes to investigate and finds him being assaulted by an unknown man. The man appears to have incapacitated Gaven using an eerie mist that rendered him unconscious. Erel manages to fight off the man but notices the unsettling black liquid that oozes from his wounds, unlike normal blood. Before Erel can subdue him completely, the man overwhelms her with the dark mist, leaving her weak, hallucinated, and disoriented. The intruder escapes, leaving Erel struggling with her own strange visions and symptoms. Fighting off her dark visions, she carries the unconscious Gaven to his chambers while Haynes runs after the culprit.

Erel awakens from a disturbing dream, haunted by...