Cold. That was the first thing that registered. A deep, bone-aching dampness that smelled of rust, mildew, and ancient stone.

I groaned, trying to lift my hands to my throbbing temple, but my arms wouldn't move. Metal rattled loudly in the darkness. I blinked my heavy eyes open, my vision swimming

The iron cuffs did not simply snap. They disintegrated.

Under the crushing weight of the primordial power surging through my veins, the enchanted metal turned to fine, rusted dust, slipping through my fingers like sand. The heavy iron chains holding my wrists to the dungeon wall vanished into the

Seraphina screamed as the radiant heat from the melting blade blistered her hand. She dropped the remaining hilt as if it were a venomous snake, stumbling backward until she hit the stone pillar behind the high table.

I slowly opened my hand. The last drops of molten silver slid from my unblemishe