The massive shape moved slowly between two crumbling buildings, then turned down a different street entirely, its heavy footsteps fading into the distance.Sera let out a breath. "It's not coming this way," she said. "Not yet.""That's not exactly comforting," Ethan said."Nothing about today is comforting," Sera said, finally letting go of his wrist. "Come on. We need to get inside before something else decides we look interesting."They pushed through the greenhouse doors and kept moving, cutting through back alleys toward the dungeon entrance Ethan remembered from his old life. The streets around them stayed eerily quiet, too quiet, the kind of quiet that made Ethan's skin prickle with every step."How did you know my name?" Sera asked suddenly, breaking the silence.Ethan kept his eyes forward. "I told you already. Lucky guess.""That's not an answer," Sera said. "I've been thinking about it since the school dungeon. You knew my name before I ever told you. You knew things about t

The countdown ticked lower. Four minutes, thirty seconds.Ethan studied the stone door carefully, running his fingers along the carved symbols. Ancient text spiraled around a circular groove at the center, two handprints pressed into the stone below it."There," Ethan said, pointing. "Handprints. It wants something from both of us.""What kind of something?" Sera asked, already wary.Ethan pressed his palm against the stone. Words flared to life above the door, burning gold against the dark chamber walls.[Trial of Trust: To pass, both must offer a drop of blood freely, weapons lowered, backs turned to one another. Doubt of any kind will seal the chamber permanently.]Sera read the words twice, her face going pale."Weapons down," she repeated slowly. "Backs turned. In a room I've never been in, with a man I met three days ago, who just told me he's lived through the end of the world once already.""I know how it sounds," Ethan said."Do you?" Sera snapped. "Because from where I'm sta

Ethan stood outside Lila's door for a long moment after the scouts left, their warning still ringing in his ears. Two days. Maybe less. He pressed his palm flat against the wall, forcing himself to breathe. "You're thinking too loud," Sera said beside him. "I can practically hear it." "We just found out the tide moved up again," Ethan said. "And Vance has new friends with real power backing him. And Lila just said a name that doesn't belong to either of us." He shook his head. "Forgive me if my thoughts are a little loud right now." "Fair," Sera admitted. Ethan pushed back into the small room where Lila rested. Her color had returned, her breathing steady now, but her eyes still carried a faint confusion that hadn't been there before the Ember Bloom healed her. "Lila," he said gently, sitting beside her. "Can we talk? About the name?" She blinked up at him, pulling her knees up slightly beneath the thin blanket. "I don't know what else I can tell you. I already said everyth

Ren left before dawn, slipping out the same way he'd slipped in, offering no further explanation beyond a warning that he'd be back when it mattered. Ethan didn't chase him. There wasn't time, and some part of him suspected chasing Ren down would never actually work unless Ren wanted to be caught."Two days," Ethan said to the gathered guild the next morning, standing in the warehouse's central courtyard, still scarred from the battle with Ashveil. "Maybe less, according to the scouts. We train until the tide hits. No excuses, no breaks we don't need."The guild nodded, exhaustion and determination mixing on every face. Lila stood near the back, steadier now than she'd been the night before, though Ethan still caught her watching her own hands sometimes, like she was checking they still belonged to her.They drilled formations through the morning, Ethan pushing recruits through combinations meant to maximize coverage against a wide-scale assault. Sera worked alongside him, correcting