The air in the Sunstone Crypt turned crystalline, the temperature plummeting as Commander Valens's presence pressed against the ancient stone seals.
Seraphina stood her ground, her silver blade leveled at the darkness of the tunnel.
Behind her, Kael was a ghost of a man, his breath hitching as the parasitic link of the "Host" cycle began to tug at his fractured soul.
"You speak of him as if he were a piece of meat, Valens!" Seraphina shouted, her voice echoing off the vaulted ceiling.
"To the Council, he is far more than meat,"
Valens's voice was closer now, smooth and terrifyingly calm as he stepped into the faint bioluminescence of the chapel.
He was not in his heavy battle armor, but in ceremonial white robes, his eyes glowing with a cold, artificial gold.
"He is the culmination of three centuries of selective breeding. He is the perfect vessel for the High Elder's transition. You are merely the temporary guardian of a god's new home."
Seraphina glanced at the metallic List on the table. "This ledger says otherwise.
It says the 'Agenda for Genetic Purification' is a lie used to mask a series of murders vessels used and discarded like husks.
Does the Valerius line take pride in being the butchers for a ghost?"
Valens stopped ten paces away, his gaze shifting to the brass key pulsing between them.
"Pride is for those who do not see the horizon, Seraphina. My family ensures the Pack survives. Without the continuity of the Council's wisdom, we are just animals in the dark. Now, give me the key. The girl, Lyra, is already being prepared as the secondary anchor. If you resist, the blood on your hands will be hers as well."
The mention of Lyra froze Seraphina's blood. The secondary anchor meant they weren't just taking Kael; they were using a Valerius descendant to stabilize the transfer.
The Labyrinth wasn't a defense; it was a circuit, and she was standing in the middle of it.
Kael's eyes suddenly snapped wide, his hand shooting out to grab the brass key.
As his fingers touched the metal, a surge of black-and-gold energy arced through his body. He didn't scream; he let out a low, guttural roar that sounded like two voices speaking in unison.
"The Labyrinth" Kael gasped, his voice vibrating with the power of the Inner Sanctum's residual magic.
"It's not a lock It's a rewrite."