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She’d let herself become too relaxed, and she felt her revulsion return Color and beauty couldn’t cover up such enor a parasite living on the cood disappeared into the arena Vivenna waited, thinking for a time about her own BioChroma and what it meant She was completely shocked when a round

Thecloak The cloth had stiffened, looking a little like a hand as it held the h so he could see over the crowd How does it do that? She’d been told that Breath could give life to objects, but what did "life" mean? It seemed as if the fibers in the cloak were taut, likeso much heavier than it was?

TheVivenna couldn’t hear, and his BioChroer as he recovered his Breath froain soon," theup ahead"

Indeed, soon the crowd started to progress It wasn’t long before Vivenna and Parlin entered the arena itself Theya place that wasn’t too crowded, and Vivenna looked urgently through the boxes set above The building was ornate, but not really very big, and so it didn’t take her long to locate Siri

When she did, her heart sank Mysister, Vivenna thought with a chill My poor sister

Siri was dressed in a scandalous golden dress that didn’t even co neckline Siri’s hair, which even she should have been able to keep a dark broas instead the golden yellow of enjoyh it She was being attended by dozens of servants

"Look what they’ve done to her," Vivenna said "Shelike that, forced to keep her hair a color that

Parlin’s square-jawed face grew hard He didn’t often get angry, but Vivenna could see it in hi exploited; they were carrying her around and displaying her like some kind of trophy It see they could take a chaste, innocent Idris woman and do whatever they wished with her

What I’ deter to do Leht be dead, but I have to press onward I have to find a way

I have to save my sister

"Vivenna?" Parlin said

"Hum?" Vivenna asked, distracted

"Why is everyone starting to bow?"

SIRI PLAYED idly with one of the tassels on her dress The final god was seating hiht That should be all of thean to rise, then kneel to the ground Siri stood, searching anxiously What was sheelse? Even the gods had gone down on their knees, though they didn’t prostrate the toward Siri So for their new queen?

Then she saw it Her dress exploded with color, the stone at her feet gained luster, and her very skin becaan to shine; then it see into the colors of the rainbow

A serving woed on Siri’s sleeve from where she knelt below "Vessel," the woman whispered, "behind you!"

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Breath catching in her chest, Siri turned She found hih she had no idea how he had arrived There was no entrance back there, just the stone wall

He hite She hadn’t expected that So about his BioChro up like light passed through a prisht, she could finally see this properly His clothing see a robe-shaped rainbow in a colorful aura around hier than her shadowed ned in Hallandren for decades, yet thebehind her appeared to be no htly, and any words she had planned to say escaped her This od The very air distorted around him How could she have not seen it? How could she possibly have treated him as she had? She felt like a fool