The ruins of the lab had long grown cold, yet General Shax remained within its hollow shell. His claws tapped against the warped metal table where human scientists once wrote their foolish reports, their work now scattered in ashes.
Purple eyes narrowed as he scanned the stolen files stacked before him—fragments of experiments, energy readings, and most importantly… data on Levi's containment.
"Here," Forneus said, her fingers brushing across one file she had deciphered with her witchcraft. "The readings show bursts of energy not from Levi herself, but… combined. The witch was stabilizing her."
Shax's tail lashed against the floor with a sharp crack. "So it is true. That little scientist… Jane Elion. She feeds the queen strength she should not have."
Stolas leaned lazily against the ruined wall, his raven-black eyes gleaming. "Not just strength, General. Devotion. She would burn herself to ashes for Levi."
Shax's claws curled into the table's edge, warping the steel beneath his grip. "And that makes her useful."
Phenex growled, pacing on wolfen paws. "Why not kill her? A broken hand and a false arm—hardly worth the trouble."
Shax turned, the glow of his eyes silencing the shifter. His voice was low, lethal. "Because Levi values her. And if Levi values her… she can be turned. Used. Broken."
The chamber is filled with heavy silence.
Finally, Pazusax, her smirk cruelty, broke it. "And if not broken? Then she can be bait. Nothing drags a queen to her knees faster than the threat of losing her heart."
Shax allowed himself a thin smile, sharp as a blade. His wings unfolded, brushing the ceiling of the ruined chamber. "Yes. The witch is the key. I care not for her life, only the leverage she gives me."
He crushed the file in his clawed hand, paper crumbling into dust.
"Find them. Watch them. Do not strike until I command it. Levi must see her little savior bleed before I claim her throne."
The group bowed their heads. The order was clear.
And as Shax stepped into the night, wings unfurling, the shadows stretched wide beneath him—spreading like a promise of ruin.
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