“Indeed. Avyn will help them work something out.”
Another silence, stretching on, broken by the distant chatter from far below.
“I’m going to try to fix the Blues,” Tori says. “The ones that are left. I don’t know if I can fully undo what I did to them but … I can try. Make them people again.”
“Tori.” I take a deep breath, looking away from her and out at the city. “Are you sure this is what you want? Coming with me?” My jaw tightens. “The Emperor offered you a place in the palace. I think he might be sweet on you.”
“Avyn?” Tori sounds as though she’d never considered the possibility. “Really?”
“Play your cards right, and you could be Empress.”
She laughs. “That seems unlikely.” Out of the corner of my eye, I see her turn to look up at me. “Besides. I’d rather live on a monster-infested ghost ship with you than in a palace by myself.”
I swallow, eyes pricking.
“Are…” Tori’s voice is very soft. “Are you sure you want me to stay? After everything I’ve done? I know that I’m not … what you wanted.”
My throat is too thick to answer, but I turn and wrap my arms around her, pulling my little sister off her feet and into a tight embrace. We stay that way for a long time, while below us the gaping maw of Soliton takes aboard the citizens of a new world.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
As I write The End on another series, it occurs to me that it’s my third, which scarcely seems possible. It wouldn’t be possible at all without a long list of people helping me every step of the way. That starts with my wife, Casey Blair, who (in addition to her usual role of generally being brilliant with plots and characters) served as a YA expert and guide for me when I was fresh to the genre. As on previous volumes, Liz Bourke and Iori Kusano were my sensitivity readers, and the books are much better for their valuable contributions.
My editor, Ali Fisher, loved this series from the start, and I’m lucky to have been able to work with her. My thanks as well to everyone at Tor Teen: Devi Pillai, Fritz Foy, Isa Caban, Renata Sweeney, Anthony Parisi, Eileen Lawrence, Desirae Friesen, Sarah Reidy, Lucille Rettino, Jessica Katz, Steven Bucsok, and, as always, Tom Doherty. And thanks to Richard Anderson and Amir Zand, whose striking covers give this series its amazing look.
My agent, Seth Fishman, makes these things happen, and I’d be completely lost without him. As always, he and the team at The Gernert Company have all my gratitude: Jack Gernert, Will Roberts, Rebecca Gardner, and Ellen Goodson.
And for everyone out there: I hope you’ve had as much fun with Isoka, Tori, Meroe, and the rest as I have.
MORE BOOKS BY DJANGO WEXLER
THE WELLS OF SORCERY TRILOGY
for young adults
Ship of Smoke and Steel
City of Stone and Silence
THE SHADOW CAMPAIGNS
for adults
The Thousand Names
The Shadow Throne
The Price of Valor
The Guns of Empire
The Infernal Battalion
THE FORBIDDEN LIBRARY SERIES
for young readers
The Forbidden Library
The Mad Apprentice
The Palace of Glass
The Fall of the Readers
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
DJANGO WEXLER graduated from Carnagie Mellon University with degrees in creative writing and computer science, worked in artificial intelligence research and as a programmer/writer for Microsoft, and is now a full-time fantasy writer. Wexler is the author of The Shadow Campaigns, an epic fantasy series for adults, and The Forbidden Library, a classic fantasy series for middle-grade readers.
Visit him online at DjangoWexler.com, or sign up for email updates here.
facebook.com/AuthorDjangoWexler
Twitter: @DjangoWexler
Goodreads: Django Wexler
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
1.
2. Tori
3. Isoka
4. Tori
5. Isoka
6. Tori
7. Isoka
8. Tori
9. Isoka
10. Tori
11. Isoka
12. Isoka
13. Tori
14. Isoka
15. Isoka
16. Tori
17. Tori
18. Isoka
Epilogue. Isoka
Acknowledgments
More Books by Django Wexler
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
SIEGE OF RAGE AND RUIN
Copyright © 2020 by Django Wexler
All rights reserved.
Map by Jennifer Hanover
Cover art by Amir Zand
A Tor Teen Book
Published by Tom Doherty Associates
120 Broadway
New York, NY 10271
www.tor-forge.com
Tor® is a registered trademark of Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC.
The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.
ISBN 978-0-7653-9731-7 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-0-7653-9730-0 (ebook)
eISBN 9780765397300
Our ebooks may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at 1-800-221-7945, extension 5442, or by email at [email protected].
First Edition: 2021
Siege of Rage and Ruin Page 31