CHAPTER 25
Another CRACK, louder this time, followed by a collective gasp from somewhere in the distance. Her heart began to hammer. Something was happening. Something unusual.
Driven by an instinct she didn’t understand, Lauren pulled open her barracks door. Other doors were already creaking open down the hall, faces peeking out, wide-eyed with apprehension.
“What was that?” someone whispered.
“Sounded like the main square,” another replied, a tremor in their voice.
Everyone knew what usually happens there. The Main Square has always been where the entire complex gathers for ceremonial formations, announcements, and high-level addresses. Violence there was inherently public, sanctioned, and used to make a terrifying example. This suggested the infraction was of the highest severity,
