THE SUN HAD ILLUMINATED THE PEAKS OF THE POLAR TOWER WHEN ARTEMIS STEPPED OUTSIDE. Her boots crunched softly on the ground as she made her way to the north balcony of the Polar Tower, drawn by something she couldn’t explain, an instinct, a pull… a presence.
And on the north balcony, she saw Cassiel, standing by the balustrade as if he had been waiting all along. He was wearing a cloak, and his figure was motionless. The wind tugged at his coat, and for a moment.
Artemis thought Cassiel looked more like a statue than a man.
“This place is strange,” she said as she approached him, her voice barely above the wind.
Cassiel didn’t turn to face her. “Because this place was different from the world you came from.”
Artemis frowned. “The human world, you mean.”
Cassiel looked at her. His e
