The stairwell opened into a crumbling hall, moonlight spilling through gaps in the roof. Dust floated in the air, glittering like shards of time.
Caelen was the first to speak."We leave tonight. You can't face him, Lyra. No one can."
She paced toward a fractured window, her boots crunching against broken tiles. "You saw what I did back there. I hurt him. Maybe even scared him."
"You think that matters?!" His voice cracked with frustration. "The Binder doesn't fight you, Lyra. He consumes you. Slowly. Until there's nothing left but the echo of what he wants you to be."
She turned on him, eyes blazing. "And you think running will stop him from finding me? He's tied to me, Caelen. I feel it. Every time I breathe, it's like he's listening."
"That's why we cut the thread."
Her chest tightened. "Cut… it?"
He stepped closer, lowering his voice. "There's an old rite in the Spiral Quarter. Dangerous, forbidden—because it can sever bonds between worlds. If we find it before he reaches you…"
Lyra's fingers curled into fists. The thought of breaking free—it was the only thing she'd wanted for years. But there was a reason that rite was forbidden. People didn't just lose their chains; they lost parts of themselves.
She looked out the window, the moon's pale light washing over the streets below."What if it takes the wrong part of me?"
Caelen's hand found her shoulder. "Then I'll be here to give it back."
She almost smiled—until she felt that invisible thread in her chest give the faintest tug.
The Binder was moving closer. And faster.