An Ember in the Ashes: Chapters 24–33

by Sabaa Tahir
Learn these words from the first installment of Sabaa Tahir's bestselling fantasy series. This engrossing novel alternates between the perspectives of a slave and a soldier in order to explore the struggle for freedom.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–6, Chapters 7–13, Chapters 14–23, Chapters 24–33, Chapters 34–44, Chapters 45–50
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. harness
    exploit the power of
    “She talked of humans with strange skills that were awoken by contact with the supernatural. Some could harness strength, others could change the weather. A few could even heal with their voices.”
  2. release
    grant freedom to; free from confinement
    If I win the Trials, I become Emperor. Nothing but death can release the Emperor from his duty to the Empire. But that’s not the case for the Blood Shrike. The Blood Shrike can resign, but only if the Emperor agrees to release him from service.
  3. concoct
    devise or invent
    And still I sit in my room, trying to concoct a way out of this place.
  4. scanty
    lacking in extent or quantity
    A rock path and a scanty one at that. I’m sorry, but I’d have to show you—which means I’d have to come with you.
  5. treacherous
    dangerously unstable and unpredictable
    After listening a moment longer, I realize that they’re planning to take the treacherous hidden trail out of the school and into Serra.
  6. conquer
    put down by force or authority
    We conquered them. We rule them now. It’s the way of the world.”
    “Not all conquered people are turned into slaves.
  7. task
    assign a piece of work to
    The Empire has rightfully annexed this land. It’s our land. We fought for it, died for it, and now we’re tasked with keeping it. If doing so means we have to keep the Scholars enslaved, so be it.
  8. tantamount
    being essentially equal to something
    “And the Commandant deserves to know what her slaves are doing. Not telling her is tantamount to aiding and abetting the enemy. I’m turning them in.”
  9. shroud
    burial garment in which a corpse is wrapped
    Laughter tinkles from nearby, a door slams, a child shouts, and beneath it all, the low murmur of conversation thrums. So different from the silence that weighs on Blackcliff like a death shroud.
  10. exuberant
    joyously unrestrained
    Smiles greet us as we make our way through the exuberant crowds.
  11. taciturn
    habitually reserved and uncommunicative
    They are his other lieutenants, closer to Keenan's age than Mazen's and possessed of the younger man's taciturn coolness.
  12. impenetrable
    not admitting of passage into or through
    They're near impenetrable. I expected to have a few weeks to break your brother out, which is why I even agreed to do it.
  13. accomplish
    achieve with effort
    For the first time since the raid, I feel light, as if just maybe I'll be able to accomplish what I set out to do.
  14. perfunctory
    as a formality only
    “Get back safe.” His words are perfunctory, as if he’s speaking to one of his fighters.
  15. unadulterated
    without qualification
    When I finally am able to push the thudding to the back of my head, I’m bowled over by the colors and smells and unadulterated joy around me.
  16. dismal
    causing dejection
    At first, I think to approach them, tell them who I am, and get them back to Blackcliff. But they look like I feel. Free. Happy. I can’t bring myself to ruin it for them, not when their lives are ordinarily so dismal.
  17. incriminate
    bring an accusation against
    She can’t tell the Commandant she saw me here without incriminating herself too.
  18. mischief
    reckless or malicious behavior causing annoyance in others
    The mischief in his eyes makes me forget, for a too-brief second, that I am a slave and that my brother is in prison and that everyone else I love is dead.
  19. cease
    put an end to a state or an activity
    His deep voice echoes across the dance stages, as commanding as a soldier’s. The fiddlers stop mid-note, the drums cease. “Martial raid! Get out! Go!”
  20. subservience
    abject or cringing submissiveness
    He’s a Mask, and I should look away from him. I should show my subservience.
  21. rebel
    break with established customs
    Izzi does as he says, and reluctantly, I follow, my whole body rebelling at the thought of putting my life in the hands of a Mask.
  22. reconcile
    bring into consonance or accord
    With his mask on and the walls of Blackcliff rising around him, Veturius is every inch the Martial soldier. Yet I can’t reconcile the image before me with the handsome Tribesman I danced with.
  23. proprietary
    protected by trademark or patent or copyright
    I try to squirm away from him, but he keeps a proprietary arm slung around my hips.
  24. intact
    lacking nothing essential, not damaged
    “With all due respect, sir, that’s because the first thing you do when you get a new slave is take her eye out.” Veturius tangles his fingers in my hair, and I yelp. “Or carve up her face. But this one”—he yanks my head toward his, a warning in his eyes when he glances down at me —“is still intact. Mostly.”
  25. regulation
    prescribed by or according to rules
    If Helene was speaking to me, she’d frown and say it’s not regulation.
  26. formidable
    extremely impressive in strength or excellence
    “Combat against a formidable foe,” Cain says.
  27. efficiency
    skillfulness in avoiding wasted time and effort
    My rage spills out of me, tainting every move. Helene, on the other hand, channels her fury into a steely efficiency.
  28. purge
    an abrupt or sudden removal of a person or group
    Why did he help me? He risked imprisonment by doing so—worse than that, if rumors about the Black Guard and their purges are true.
  29. overthrow
    cause the downfall of
    “If the Empire freed Darin tomorrow, he’d come here and start making weapons again. His destiny is to rise, to help his people overthrow their oppressors. And mine is to help him do it.”
  30. savior
    a person who rescues you from harm or danger
    “So now you’re the savior of the Scholars, after spending years creating the weapons that have destroyed us?”
  31. guilt
    remorse caused by feeling responsible for some offense
    I live with the guilt. But there are two kinds of guilt, girl: the kind that drowns you until you’re useless, and the kind that fires your soul to purpose.
  32. irreparable
    impossible to rectify or amend
    As long as she thinks my interest in you will get her a Teluman blade, she won't do you any irreparable harm. I might even be able to persuade her to sell you to me. Then I'll break those damned things off”—he nods to my cuffs—"and set you free."
  33. revolutionary
    a radical supporter of political or social change
    Darin might have trusted the smith, but I can't bring myself to. Maybe Teluman really is a revolutionary. Or maybe he's a very convincing spy.
  34. bribe
    make illegal payments to in exchange for favors or influence
    As Cook said, even the students want out of Blackcliff. They must sneak out. How else would they manage their drinking and whoring? Some must bribe the gate guards or tunnel guards, but surely there’s another way out of here.
  35. resolve
    the trait of being firm in purpose or belief
    Every time she leaves for the training building, my resolve to get her out of Blackcliff grows stronger. I will not leave her here when I go. I cannot.
  36. exhilarating
    thrilling or invigorating
    I smile at how she laughed when we danced, with a freedom of spirit I found exhilarating in its possibility.
  37. entangle
    cause to twist together or be caught in a snarled mass
    If I’m entangled with her, won’t that make it worse?
  38. chaos
    a state of extreme confusion and disorder
    Even still, there is an animal freedom to how he moves, a controlled chaos that makes the air around him blaze.
  39. solemnity
    a trait of dignified seriousness
    So different from Keenan, with his restrained solemnity and cool interest.
  40. stoke
    (of a fire) stir up or tend
    Then I hear him laughing, a sadistic chuckle that stokes my defiance.
Created on Mon Jun 12 11:46:18 EDT 2017 (updated Tue Apr 09 15:00:33 EDT 2019)

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