Footsteps faded into nothing just as the lamplight vanished between buildings. For one breath, Sloane couldn’t tell where pavement ended and sky began. Then came the silence - thick, close, total.
Then Fenris woke.
Not gently.
Not cautiously.
Faster than thought, fire raced along her skin. Eyes opened wide, catching every flicker - sound, warmth, shadow - as night bent into something alive.
Darkness fell, yet her sight stayed sharp. She moved through it like a whisper through walls.
It sharpened her.
Beside her, Elias muttered a curse. It hadn’t been a blackout
Quietly, Sloane spoke a single word: "No." That was all.
Footsteps sank slightly as the earth shivered once more.
Beneath the cracked sidewalk, a vast machine woke without warning. From down there, rhythmic thrums pushed u
