Jack barely had time to react. One second, he saw Liam’s eyes flickering between red and blue, a sign of the battle raging inside him. The next, the Ogini lunged.A sharp gasp escaped Jack as a powerful hand clamped around his throat. His feet left the ground, his body hoisted effortlessly into the air. The grip was tight, crushing, cutting off his air. He clawed at Liam’s arm, kicking violently, but it was useless. The Ogini was too strong and it had gotten him right where it wanted.A cold smirk spread across The Ogini’s lips. His eyes digging deep into Jack’s as if trying to capture his very soul.Jack’s vision blurred at the edges, his lungs burning. His body thrashed, instinct screaming at him to fight, but his strength was fading fast. The Ogini tilted its head slightly, eyes glowing with eerie amusement as it studied him like a toy that was about to break.“You’ve been quite the nuisance,” the Ogini murmured, its voice smooth yet sharp, layered with something ancient and cruel.

Meanwhile after Peter left Moran’s mansion, he was filled with a new air of confidence as he strode into his laboratory, the Morath Relic clutched tightly in his hand, its cold surface pulsing faintly against his palm. The air inside the facility smelled of chemicals, burnt metal, and something else, something old, something forgotten like it was an abandoned lair. He exhaled slowly, allowing himself a moment to savor his victory. Once again, he had clashed with the Ogini, and once again, he had walked away triumphant. But this time was different.This time, he knew he was running out of his sharp edges, and there was another potential problem, Jack. That boy was the variable he hadn’t accounted for, the unexpected force tilting the balance. If it had been just the Ogini, Peter would have already cemented his dominance. But Jack had proven to be more than a nuisance—he was a real threat. The energy inside him, the way he wielded it, the way he had managed to break through the Ogini’

The sky was still dark when Liam, Jack, and Evelyn pulled out of the driveway. It was early in the morning and Evelyn had suggested that they made the trip before Peter’s men could be active. Rain drizzled lightly, a soft mist clinging to the windows as they drove to the rebel group’s hidden location. The silence in the car was thick, only the hum of the engine and the occasional sigh from Jack in the backseat filled the space.Liam drove with one hand on the wheel, the other clenched against his thigh. “You’re sure this is the only way?” He asked, glancing at Evelyn.“Yes,” Evelyn said from the passenger seat, her eyes fixed directly on the road ahead. “If we go to the Tribunal directly, we’ll be walking into a trap. But where we’re going… they’re not part of that world anymore.”Jack leaned forward. “Where exactly are we going?”Evelyn didn’t answer right away. She just reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a worn slip of paper. “Take the next left,” she said quietly.Although

Evelyn frowned and turned her face away the moment Darius looked at her, pride glowing behind his eyes. Her shoulders were tense, her jaw locked tight. “You crossed a line,” she muttered, barely louder than a breath.Darius blinked in a dismissive way, “She volunteered.”“She’s still a human being,” Evelyn snapped, rounding on him now. “You don’t get to experiment on people and hide behind consent like it’s a shield. You think because she said yes, that makes it clean?”“She chose this,” Darius replied calmly. “She wanted to be useful.”“Useful?” Evelyn’s voice rose. “Is that what we’re calling this now? Weaponizing people, locking them in chambers like test subjects—useful?”Liam stood still, watching the tension crackle between them. He didn’t speak, didn’t breathe. His gaze remained fixed on the woman now standing inside the slowly opening chamber. She was curled around with mist, her form slowly becoming clearer with every breath she took.Jack stepped subtly to the side, closer t

Jack slammed the warehouse door shut as soon as he returned to Liam's mansion. He wasn't sure it was a good idea to still meet Monroe now. Peter's man could have still been trailing him. This time, his steps were slower than usual, more deliberate, and there was a raw edge in his eyes that hadn’t been there before. Liam caught it immediately.“You good?” Liam asked from across the room.Jack didn’t answer at first. His eyes flicked away for a moment before he spoke, and even then, his voice was low.“I was followed.”Liam stood still, he was surprised for a moment and feared they had been compromised, but something in his posture stiffened. “You handled it?”“Yeah,” Jack said, but the word carried a weight that made Liam pause.Jack exhaled and glanced over his shoulder. “It wasn’t just a tail. He was sent. Gun, silencer, no hesitation. He said Peter knows. Everything. The prison, the program. He knew who I was meeting and why.”Liam’s jaw clenched, but he said nothing.Jack looked ar