A Court of Wings and Ruin

Amren says the Archeron sisters can accomplish together what Feyre could not do alone: nullifying the Cauldron. The battle will provide cover for their mission.

Feyre helps Rhys evacuate humans from her former human village to the Summer Court. Seeing Rhys’s exhaustion, Feyre decides to conquer the Ouroboros mirror.

Feyre winnows to the Hewn City and finds the Ouroboros mirror. It is massive, with a gilded border shaped like a snake eating its own tail. In the mirror, Feyre sees her reflection, then a clawed, black-and-gold beast scaling the wall behind her. It vanishes when she turns to stop its attack. When she looks in the mirror again, the beast is her own reflection.

Feyre goes to the Bone Carver’s cell and summons the Ouroboros mirror, having conquered it. The Bone Carver didn’t want the mirror, it was only to test Feyre’s worthiness. Feyre’s ability to stare at and accept the truth about herself—good and bad—proved she deserves his help. He agrees to fight.

The Prythian forces survey the destroyed Spring Court and nearby human lands. Azriel gives Elain his dagger, Truth-Teller, since he is unable to fight. Feyre imagines them as a “lovely fawn” and “Death” personified (611). Rhys gathers his chosen family: Mor, Azriel, Cassian, Amren, Feyre, and Feyre’s sisters. He praises each of them, grateful for how they’ve influenced his life. They all hold hands.

The Prythian alliance finds Hybern waiting for them near the sea. As they review their plan, Rhys and Feyre reassure one another, both worried for their friends.

The battle begins: Each side shields their armies with magic. Feyre jokes she has a mating present for Rhys as the Bone Carver and Bryaxis appear before the Hybern troops. Rhys asks what Feyre saw in the mirror. Feyre remembers the torment of seeing “every horrific and cruel and selfish thing” she’s ever done, but also the good (618). She tells Rhys she forgave and loved herself. Rhys also has a surprise: Helion freed Stryga the Weaver to fight as well. The three monsters attack Hybern.

The magical shields fracture and the fighting begins. The battle is vicious, and Feyre notes the lethal prowess of Bryaxis, the Bone Carver, and Stryga. Three more Prythian armies join the battle: Tamlin’s Spring Court, Beron’s Autumn Court, and a legion of humans under Graysen’s banner, led by Jurian. Eris confirms Tamlin forced Beron to come.

Amren leads the Archeron sisters across the battlefield, seeking out the Cauldron. Nesta screams to warn Cassian as a devastating blast of Cauldron power vaporizes an Illyrian legion—and the Bone Carver.

The battle rages as the Cauldron recoups its power for another blast. Feyre telepathically asks Amren if the two of them can succeed alone; Amren agrees to try. The Hybern fleet attacks from the sea. Desperate, Rhys sends the wounded Azriel to lead a charge. Another armada appears: Drakon and Miryam have come to their aid.

Drakon flies to Rhys to explain: The spell hiding his and Miryam’s paradise worked too well, preventing friend or foe from finding them. They heard of Hybern’s attack and rushed to help. Their forces are augmented by Vassa’s. Lucien directed them all to Prythian, but Vassa was rescued by a human, “the Prince of Merchants” (634). Seeing ships named Feyre, Nesta, and Elain, Feyre realizes her father has come to their aid.

Feyre reflects on her father’s love as a firebird—Vassa—attacks Hybern’s ships. Rhys tells Drakon Jurian is there and on their side.

Nesta insists on baiting the King away from the Cauldron so Feyre and Amren can destroy it. Despite Rhys’s protests, Cassian offers to protect her, knowing he will likely die doing so. Cassian demands Rhys allow them to sacrifice as much as he does and then winnows away with Nesta.

Amren and Feyre traverse the nightmarish battlefield; Prythian is losing. Stryga the Weaver creates a diversion so Amren and Feyre can creep to where the Cauldron sits on a mountainside. Not seeing them, the King of Hybern overpowers the Weaver and then winnows away to pursue Nesta. Amren instructs Feyre to touch the Cauldron but discards the Book of Breathings.

Bound to the Cauldron by its power, Feyre realizes Amren has a secret plan, informed by the Suriel’s clue. Feyre’s consciousness merges with the Cauldron’s: She sees Rhys fighting and hears Nesta’s summoning. She sees Nesta and Cassian as the King of Hybern arrives before them, holding his sword to Feyre’s father’s throat.

Feyre’s father expresses his love before the King breaks his neck. Cassian engages the king in battle but is soon disarmed. The king breaks his wings and tortures him as Nesta attacks the king with raw power. Cassian begs Nesta to flee but she runs to Cassian, covering his body with hers. They kiss and Cassian promises to find her in the afterlife. As the king raises his hand for the killing blow, Elain stabs the king through the throat with Truth-Teller.

Nesta slowly decapitates the King of Hybern with Truth-Teller: “Savage. Unyielding. Brutal.” (655). The Cauldron’s awareness retreats as Elain screams over her father’s body, taking Feyre with it. Their merged consciousness crosses the battlefield again; Hybern prevails, despite Bryaxis’s power. The king’s death changes nothing.

Amren’s shouting brings Feyre back to herself. Amren needs Feyre’s help to return to her original form, which is capable of decimating Hybern, though Amren will die in the process. Varian appears, begging Amren to stay. Amren knew humans in her original world and watched them wage love and war with curiosity and desire. She wishes she could learn more of love with Varian.

Amren submerges herself in the Cauldron as Feyre’s powers facilitate the spell to release her from her High Fae form. An enormous, winged creature of “flame and light” emerges and sweeps over the battlefield (659). Amren’s light slowly burns out as she reduces the Hybern forces to ash.

Varian weeps with Feyre by the Cauldron, which is now broken in three pieces. Feyre senses a growing “void” within it. Rhys arrives as Feyre realizes that because the Cauldron is an elemental part of their world, all of existence will collapse unless they repair it.

Though they are both exhausted, Rhys offers to join his power to Feyre’s. He kisses her and jokes, reassuring her. Feyre touches the Cauldron as Rhys holds her from behind. He whispers “I love you” and pours his power into Feyre (665); Feyre wills the Cauldron back together, emboldened by love and self-confidence. When the Cauldron is whole, Feyre turns to see Rhys is dead.

Mor, Azriel, and Cassian find Feyre screaming over Rhys’s body. He knew he would die but didn’t tell her so she wouldn’t stop him. The other High Lords arrive, and Feyre demands they resurrect Rhys as they once resurrected her. The High Lords each give Rhys a bit of their power; Thesan instructs Feyre how to give Rhys some of hers. Only Tamlin is left. Feyre offers anything in return for his help. Tamlin tells Feyre to be happy and gives part of his power to Rhys.

Feyre holds Rhys as his soul returns to his body, calling to him through their mating bond. As Rhys wakes, Feyre realizes this was the moment the Suriel meant: “Stay with the High Lord” (672). Amren is also resurrected; Rhys brought her back with him. They pull her from the Cauldron, now entirely High Fae.

Nesta, Elain, and Feyre go to their father’s body. They leave the King of Hybern’s corpse for crows, but Elain strews their father’s body with flowers. Feyre prays a faerie blessing, then magically cremates their father.

Lucien arrives, and Elain greets him. Feyre thanks him for his help and invites Lucien to live at Velaris. Nesta remains as the others return to camp.

Mor kept Miryam, Drakon, and Jurian from killing each other in battle, though their reconciliation is incomplete. Feyre asks Miryam to hide the Cauldron on her hidden island.

Feyre calls a grand meeting of Prythian and mortal nobility to renegotiate the treaty between humans and faeries. Tamlin sees Lucien in Night Court garb and is visibly distraught. Feyre hopes they will someday reconcile. Nesta has doubts, but Feyre and Nesta enter the meeting hand in hand.

Feyre tells the story of her life at the meeting. Next, Miryam and Drakon tell theirs. More and more stories are told, and sometimes arguments break out, but Feyre knows it is the beginning of progress, and this is the first meeting of many.

Feyre sends Lucien to Tamlin with a message of thanks she hopes will bring him peace and then returns to Velaris to celebrate with her friends. Only Nesta seems depleted. Elain asks Feyre how they can help; Feyre says they will know when the time comes. Elain intends to build a garden.

Rhysand takes over first-person narration. From the kitchen, he listens to his friends celebrating; nearly losing everything makes their happiness more meaningful. Azriel and Cassian join Rhys. They toast and share a moment of camaraderie. Rhys smiles as he hears Feyre’s laugh, imagining a long future with his loves.

Feyre resumes narration. She finds Rhys on the rooftop, and they hold each other, gazing over Velaris. They agree that when the time comes, they will die together, sealing their promise with a magical bargain. Rhys teases that Feyre still needs to recapture Bryaxis but promises to accompany her on all her adventures. They kiss and then fly into the night sky together.