Silence struck harder than any explosion.
Raven lay collapsed on the silver stone. His breath-signature was erased as though the world itself refused to acknowledge he had ever breathed.
The Scarlet Senior Sister clutched him with trembling hands. Her voice cracked.
"Raven—please—RAVEN—!"
But the man did not stir.
The lake answered instead.
A deep, resonant thrum shook the entire terrace.
Lucien's head snapped up.
Another spear of condensed breathe.
The lake's surface contracted once more, forming a spiraling vortex of breath.
The factions froze in terror.
Lucien acted.
He hurled the Stygian Shell straight toward the lake.
He expanded the shield with his will.
The tortoise-shell shield obeyed his command like a living fortress.
It spread outward, unfolding into a massive dome that slammed down over the entire lake.
KANG—KANG—KANG—!!
Multiple impacts hammered it from below.
The Stygian Shell vibrated under the pressure, but held.
For now.
