Selena lifted her head slowly, the weight of the chains digging into her bruised wrists. Her mouth was dry, the taste of metal lingering at the back of her tongue. Every breath was a struggle, every movement a test of endurance. But her eyes—those sharp, defiant eyes—never wavered from Reginald’s."You should ask your men,” she said, her voice raspy but unwavering. “They were the last ones to touch it.”Reginald’s jaw twitched. He stepped forward, the polished leather of his shoes clicking against the stone floor like a judge’s gavel. “Do not play games with me, Selena. You think you’re clever? Risking your life for that boy? For what? Love?"He spat the last word like it disgusted him.Selena said nothing. She simply looked at him—truly looked. Not as the tyrant she had feared growing up, not as the cold-blooded collector of relics. But as a man desperate to control what was slipping through his fingers."You think I wanted this life for you?” he asked suddenly, voice lowering. “I bu

Flames licked the walls of the entryway, casting jagged shadows across the dusty floor as the heat surged toward them. James’s hands trembled slightly as he held the blaster Striker had thrown to him. It felt too light to do any real damage, and yet somehow, it vibrated faintly in his grip like it held a life of its own."Through the back!" Striker barked, already moving.The smoke curled thickly as they rushed down a narrow hallway, Striker kicking open a half-rotten wooden door that led to a hidden stairwell. The ground beneath them rumbled, the Seeker's arrival twisting the air into something unnatural."Where does this lead?" James coughed, eyes watering as he tried to stay close."To the tunnels," Striker replied. "Old railway lines that cut under the city. Carlos used to use them to smuggle tech between timelines before the Time Guardians locked them.""And now?"Striker gave him a grim smile. "Now we unlock them."As they descended, the flickering lights faded behind them, repl