Matt woke up early that morning. The sky outside his window was still dark, but a soft purple light was starting to appear on the horizon. He lay in bed for a long time, just looking at the ceiling and thinking. His room in the Grand Veil Spire was quiet and simple. He liked it that way. It helped him remember that he was still the same boy from the alley, even if the world now called him the Sovereign of the Eternal Night.
He sat up slowly and rubbed his eyes. His body felt strong from all the training and journeys, but his heart felt a little heavy in a good way. The last trip to the place between the layers had been very long. They had met many echoes there, and some of them had asked difficult questions. Matt kept thinking about those questions even now.
The hunger inside him was qui
