Alistair's Pov
The moment the wards rippled, every instinct in me snapped to attention.
Someone new had entered Sarafina's room.
Not Cassian.
Not Thalen.
Someone else.
The pulse of her magic jolted through the air,faint, strained, but unmistakably hers.
I almost tore through the barrier by sheer will alone.
"Alistair…" Cassian grabbed my arm.
I jerked away.
"Let go."
"Listen to me…"
"No," I hissed. "She's in there with someone we can't see. And we're out here doing nothing."
I slammed my palm against the ward.
It rejected me instantly, sparks crackling outward like lightning striking water.
Cassian winced. "You're destabilizing the entire lower level…."
"Good."
"Alistair…,"
"Good," I snapped, voice dropping to a lethal whisper. "If the Arcanum won't let me in, I'll bring the entire building down around them."
Cassian stiffened. "That's not a solution…"
"It's the only one I have!"
He opened his mouth to argue—but the air changed.
A scent hit me first.
