As Jade's army clashes with Elyon's troops in the snowy terrain of Snowpoint, the Shadowkhan Queen demonstrates new useful and terrifying aspects of herself while she unknowingly makes a new enemy for herself.
- Action Girl: We're introduced to Vera Bexley, a Master Archer who refuses to back down from a fight.
- Ain't Too Proud to Beg: At least one of the paralyzed soldiers is heard screaming for mercy as the Mantis Khan are finishing them off.
- An Arm and a Leg: Jade cuts off the hand of the soldier who engages with her in a Sword Fight.
- Bare-Handed Blade Block: Jade uses her Super-Strength to block a rebel soldier's sword.
- Battle Couple: After Windblade rescues a fellow Mogriff who's revealed to be her mate Metalbeak in the next chapter, they proceed to charge the enemy together.
- Benevolent Boss: Despite not technically needing to, Jade thanks the Ninja Khan that saved her from Vera's arrow despite not having been summoned.
- Big Damn Reunion: Windblade rescues a big greyish-white Mogriff before hugging him with reciprocal affection, making it clear he's someone dear to her she's been separated from for some time. The next chapter reveals him to be her mate Metalbeak.
- Big "YES!": Tyrian yells this as Shadow Striker bites a rebel soldier to death.
- Blood Knight: Jade discovers that now being a full Shadowkhan gives her an Oni's bloodlust in battle, as she becomes so filled by it that she starts going after the rebel soldiers in a vicious fury and demanding them to give her some challenge. Only after unleashing a devastating storm wind upon the army does she calm down in exhaustion.
- Blow You Away: Jade now has the ability to summon and attack with intense storm winds which are also filled with paralyzing shadow energy.
- Call-Back:
- The authors bring up several canonical incidents as proof of Jade having a wind element motif, thus her Blow You Away powers as a fully embraced Shadowkhan.
- While mulling over the viciousness she displayed in battle, Jade recalls how she acted when she and Valmont both wore one half of an Oni Mask.
- The Cavalry: Jade and her relief force serve as a villainous example to the garrison of Snowpoint.
- Cliffhanger: As the surviving rebels retreat in the face of the advancing Mantis Khan, Vera Bexley swears that she'll return to finish off both them and the Mogriffs.
- Combat Hand Fan: Jade's new outfit was mentioned to include two metal fans, and now she shows they can serve as both shields and a focus for magical attacks.
- Combat Tentacles: Jade uses shadow tendrils during the battle.
- Continuity Nod: It's noted that Jade has been using her katana only for several months, and as such, doesn't have the skill of a Master Swordsman. Her fall into the full Queen mindset in turn leads her to using shadowy Combat Tentacles, a trick she learned from the Queen in Kage.
- Curb Stomp Cushion: Jade's rather overpowered against any rebels coming her way, but there are three instances that prevent it from becoming a complete Curb-Stomp Battle. The soldier who has a Sword Fight with her proves himself to be much more experienced in swordsmanship than she is to the point that he has her on the defensive and she needs the aggression of her Oni bloodlust to gain the upper hand. Another soldier manages to send her flying by striking her with a mace, though she lands uninjured and proceeds to use Combat Tentacles in greater anger. And finally, Vera Bexley's arrow would have hit her head if not for the Ninja Khan who saves her at the last second.
- Defiant to the End: When a Lurden is brought to his knees in the fortress, his opponent gives him a chance to surrender. The wounded and exhausted Lurden tries to stand in defiance and is about to be finished off before he's saved by Ymir and his snake serpent.
- Establishing Character Moment: Vera Bexley is quickly shown to be desiring the Mogriffs' extinction as revenge for her grandfather she greatly admires and regarding any of Phobos' followers as monsters who deserve death for hurting innocents, and having them on their last legs brings her sadistic satisfaction. When the Mantis Khan turn the tide of battle, she furiously refuses to lose, has her Sky Hunters press on and almost manages to kill Jade with her master archery, showing how much of a determined maverick she is even against supernatural foes. Even after getting buried by an avalanche and seeing the enemy army advancing on them, she still wants to keep fighting and agrees to retreat only with the prospect of returning with reinforcements.
- Evil Laugh: Much like Frost in Chapter 12, Jade laughs while she's intoxicated by the thrill of battle. Tyrian also laughs insanely as his shadow serpent mauls the rebels.
- Eye Scream: Jade throws a shuriken into a rebel soldier's eye at one point.
- Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: Some of Jade's Combat Tentacles pierce many soldiers.
- Impromptu Tracheotomy:
- At least one Mogriff dies by getting a Sky Hunter's arrow in the throat.
- Jade leaps behind a rebel soldier from his shadow and impales his throat with her katana.
- Insult Backfire: When the soldier who has a Sword Fight with Jade calls her a monster, she chuckles in her bloodlust and replies that flattery will get him nowhere.
- Is That the Best You Can Do?: Jade throws this taunt at the enemy soldiers and adds that even the Dark Hand Enforcers could put up a better fight.
- Kick Them While They Are Down: When Jade unleashes a storm upon the enemy army, it leaves three-hundred soldiers paralyzed with dark electricity. They're finished off by the Mantis Khan as the remaining rebels retreat.
- Killed Mid-Sentence: One of the paralyzed soldiers the Mantis Khan are killing is about to shout "Oh by the queen!" before being cut off.
- Know When to Fold 'Em: With the Shadowkhan overwhelming the rebels, they reluctantly recognize the situation for what it is and fall back.
- Luckily, My Shield Will Protect Me: Subverted when one soldier blocks a Mantis Khan's scythe with a wooden shield, leaving the tip stuck. Unfortunately for him, the Khan takes advantage of this by flinging the soldier from the plateau to his death.
- Master Archer: Elyon's army has a squad of volunteers from the town of Castwell's Peak who've been trained in archery from young age and are so skilled they rarely miss their target, a skill that has made them the Mogriffs' main terror and earned them the moniker of Sky Hunters. When their leader Vera Bexley takes aim at Jade from the other side of a chasm, her arrow gets past even Jade's Combat Tentacles and is just inches from her head before a Ninja Khan's kunai intercepts it.
- Mountain Warfare: The narration acknowledges right at the start that warring in snowy mountains is difficult; it's taken the rebels weeks to gradually surround Snowpoint and wear down the hardened natives.
- Neutral in Name Only: When Phobos reigned, the town of Castwell's Peak publicly professed loyalty to him while secretly aiding any rebel who needed a hiding place in the north. After Phobos was overthrown, the town has been more openly supportive of Elyon's royal army and even sent volunteers to aid in the siege of Snowpoint.
- Off with His Head!: Metalbeak kills a rebel soldier by slashing his head off.
- One-Man Army: Jade kills by herself many enemy soldiers with her fighting skills and powers.
- Royals Who Actually Do Something: Not only does Jade lead from the front as Queen of the Shadowkhan, but six of the Sky Hunters are heirs of their town's aristocratic families, with Vera Bexley, the governor's daughter, being the leader of the whole squad.
- The Siege: Rebellion forces have been besieging Snowpoint since Elyon came to power, intent to wear down and eventually overwhelm the Lurdens and Mogriffs stationed there. If not for the timely counterattack of Jade's relief force driving the attackers back, the fortress would have finally fallen.
- Slasher Smile:
- Jade's Oni bloodlust makes her grin like this.
- Vera gives a vicious grin as she thinks about finally being able to have her revenge on the Mogriffs after all the years of waiting.
- Superpowered Evil Side: Despite having merged with the Queen, Jade still somewhat has one of these. When she enters the bloodlust that comes with her new Oni biology, signified by her eyes glowing brighter and fangs sprouting in her mouth, she slips into a mindset much more like purely the Queen.
- Sword Fight: Jade ends up having a brief one with a rebel soldier who initially has her on the defensive thanks to being more experienced with his sword than she's with her katana. This changes as she's consumed by Oni bloodlust that gives her enough aggression to overwhelm him.
- Sword Sparks: The Mantis Khan's scythes clashing against the rebels' weapons emit sparks. It also happens when Jade engages in a sword duel with one of the soldiers.
- These Hands Have Killed: After the thrill of Oni bloodlust passes Jade, she stares at her hand in shock of how violently she killed soldiers and decides she needs to be careful with bloodthirsty feelings lest she returns completely into her Queen persona.
- Third Party Stops Attack: Just as Vera's arrow is about to hit Jade, a Ninja Khan that emerges from her shadow bats it away with a kunai.
- Thwarted Coup de Grâce: When a Galhot soldier is about to kill the Lurden who refuses to surrender, Ymir's shadow serpent headbutts him.
- Victory by Endurance: In order to wear down Snowpoint's Lurdens and Mogriffs who're accustomed to Mountain Warfare, the rebel army has been relentlessly attacking by degrees and isolating the fortress for weeks. The strategy has paid off as the attackers are on the verge of claiming victory until Jade's relief force takes them by surprise and forces them to pull back.
- Wrecked Weapon:
- The soldier who manages to give Jade a legitimate Sword Fight eventually gets his sword cut in half by her katana before she proceeds to cut his hand off.
- After coming around from the avalanche Jade brought down on to the Sky Hunters, Vera wants to keep fighting... only to find her bow trashed, symbolizing the truth Albel forces her to face; they've lost the battle and must regroup.
- Would Hurt a Child: The rebel soldiers have no trouble trying to kill Jade whom they believe to be one of Phobos' monsters, and Vera almost manages to shoot her.
- You Killed My Father: Vera Bexley's grandfather was killed by Mogriffs, which is why she wants to kill them all.
