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Chapter 12: The Price Of Power
Selene's blade shifted, angling toward Eddy. "You're lying. Whitmore wants the Xore intact. He'd never risk damaging it by extracting it from a corpse.""True." Eddy tilted his head, conceding the point. "But he'd risk it if the alternative was letting the heir grow strong enough to challenge him. Better a damaged Xore than a living enemy."Ethan's hands clenched into fists. Silver light flickered around them, the Xore responding to his rage. "I'm not surrendering. Tell me where my mother is.""You're not in a position to make demands." Eddy's smile never faltered. "But I like your spirit. It reminds me of your father.""You knew my father?""Marcus Cross? Of course. Good man. Weak, but good. He actually believed love could protect you from people like me." Eddy laughed, the sound echoing off ancient stone. "We had such interesting conversations before he died. Did you know his heart attack wasn't natural?"The world tilted."What?""Whitmore couldn't risk him telling you the truth ab
Chapter 11: Silver Light In Darkness
The tunnel shook with another distant explosion. Dust rained from the cracked ceiling as Ethan ran back toward the estate, his mother's screams echoing behind him.“Turn back,” the Echo urged. “She's buying you time with her life. Don't waste it.”“Negative,” the Academy seal countered. “Returning guarantees host's death. Recommend immediate extraction to surface.”"Shut up!" Ethan snarled at both voices. "Both of you, just shut up!"His chest burned where the Core pulsed with frantic energy. Through the mental link Selene had created, he could feel her presence above ground, focused, deadly, efficient. She was winning her battle. His mother was losing hers.The sound of Lydia's combat grew fainter. Either she was being driven deeper into the tunnels, or…Ethan refused to finish that thought.He rounded a corner and slammed directly into an Abyssal Guard.The impact sent both of them sprawling. Ethan recovered first, his enhanced reflexes snapping him to his feet. The guard was older,
Chapter 10: Dragged
Dawn came too quickly.Ethan stood in the ruins of the Hardy Estate, watching the sun paint the devastated courtyard in shades of gold and red. Smoke still rose from collapsed buildings. The meditation gardens were churned mud and broken stone. Twenty-three bodies had been recovered, defenders who'd given their lives protecting a man they barely knew.Because of bloodline. Because of duty. Because his mother had asked."We'll rebuild," Lydia said softly, appearing beside him. She'd changed into traveling clothes, her silver hair bound back in a severe braid. "The Hardy legacy has survived worse than this.""Has it?" Ethan gestured at the destruction. "How many estates have you lost to Whitmore? How many people have died for a war I didn't even know existed until yesterday?"Lydia's expression tightened. "Forty-three estates over thirty years. Seven hundred and twelve confirmed deaths." She met his eyes. "I've kept count of every single one. Every sacrifice made to keep you hidden, to
Chapter 9: Buried & Unbroken
Ethan dreamed of drowning.Cold water filled his lungs. Darkness pressed against his eyes. Vincent's hands around his throat, squeezing, squeezing.He woke up with a gasp.This time, the room was different. Smaller. Darker. And he could hear fighting in the distance, explosions, screams, the crash of buildings collapsing.“You've been asleep for four hours,” the Academy seal informed him. “The estate is under sustained assault. Third wave initiated forty-seven minutes ago.”Ethan sat up, expecting pain from his injuries. Instead, he felt... whole. His shoulder was healed. The cuts and bruises from the Juggernaut fight were gone. Even his exhaustion had faded to a manageable ache."How"“Academy medical protocols,” the seal explained. “Your body has been flooded with restorative energy while you slept. Current status: 73% combat effectiveness.”The building shuddered. Dust rained from the ceiling. Another explosion, closer this time.Ethan stood, looking around the room for his clothes
Chapter Eight: Instinct Awakened
The pain stopped as suddenly as it began.Ethan gasped, his body convulsing on the bed as the Xore seal finished integrating with his Xore . Sweat drenched his skin. His vision swam with afterimages of light."Breathe," Selene commanded. "Deep breaths. Let the energies settle."Ethan sucked in air, and suddenly he could feel everything. The circulation of Xore energy through his meridians. The pulse of power in his Xore . The new pathways the seal had carved through his body like rivers of light.And voices, two of them now, speaking simultaneously in his mind.“You've made a grave mistake,” the Echo snarled. “The Academy's leash will strangle you.”“Integration complete,” the Academy seal announced in a toneless voice. “Host designated, Ethan Hardy. Bloodline confirmed, First Hardy lineage. Threat assessment, Critical. Defensive protocols active.”"What did you do to me?" Ethan pushed himself upright, staring at his hands. They glowed faintly with silver light traced through with geo
Chapter 7: Voices
Ethan woke to the smell of incense and the sound of water.His eyes opened slowly, vision adjusting to soft lamplight. He lay on a bed more comfortable than anything he'd ever known, in a room that mixed traditional elegance with modern technology. Silk sheets. Wooden beams overhead carved with intricate patterns. And everywhere, the faint hum of astral energy.He tried to sit up and immediately regretted it. Every muscle in his body protested, burning with the aftermath of pushing beyond his limits."Don't move." The voice was cold, clinical. "Your muscles tore themselves attempting to channel power your meridians aren't developed enough to handle. You're lucky you didn't cripple yourself permanently."Ethan turned his head. The woman from the battle, Selene Arkwright sat in a chair beside his bed, reading something on a translucent screen that floated in the air before her. She didn't look at him."Where am I?" His voice came out as a croak."Hardy Estate, medical wing. You've been
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