Zain's POV
I wake to the sound of screaming.
My eyes snap open. The campfire has burned down to embers. Ren and Aria are still asleep on the far side of the clearing, but Nyx is sitting up, weapons drawn.
"Where's Lyra?" I demand, already on my feet.
Nyx points toward the forest edge. "She went that way about five minutes ago. Said she needed a minute alone."
Another scream tears through the night—raw, terrified, distinctly Lyra.
I'm running before I consciously decide to move. Ice already forming around my hands. Every combat instinct I've honed over three years of brutal training screaming that she's in danger.
I find her collapsed in a small clearing, her whole body shaking. No visible enemies. No blood. But she's gasping like she can't breathe, tears streaming down her face.
"Lyra." I drop to my knees beside her, scanning for threats. Nothing. "What happened? Are you hurt?"
"Not—not physical." She struggles to speak through sobs. "A message. Finn. My brother."
She holds up her communication device with trembling hands. I read the text on the screen and my blood runs cold.
MEDICAL CENTER ALERT: Patient Finnegan Ashford condition critical. Vital signs unstable. Requesting immediate family contact.
Below it, a second message from a doctor:
Lyra, I'm so sorry. Finn's illness has progressed rapidly in the last 48 hours. We don't know why. If you can come, please do. He's asking for you.
"I have to go back," Lyra whispers. "I have to see him. What if he dies and I'm not there? What if—"
"It's a trap."
Her head snaps up, eyes blazing through tears. "What?"
"Think about the timing. Your brother's been sick for months with no sudden changes. Now, the exact moment you activate ancient technology and become valuable to half the galaxy, suddenly his condition becomes critical?" I keep my voice level, though anger burns through me. "Someone is manipulating his medical treatment."
"You don't know that!"
"I do. Because it's exactly what the Luminal Order would do." I show her my own device, pulling up encrypted files I've spent years collecting. "My parents died researching Starborn suppression. Before they were killed, they documented the Order's tactics. One of their favorite methods: leverage loved ones to control their targets."
Lyra stares at the files—medical records of other Starborn descendants, all showing the same pattern. Family members suddenly falling ill. "No. Finn is really sick. I've seen him—"
"He's sick because they're making him sick," I say flatly. "Poison that mimics natural illness. Untraceable unless you know what to look for. They kept him just sick enough to keep you desperate and controllable."
The look on her face nearly breaks my carefully maintained control. Pure devastation mixed with rage.
"Celeste," she breathes. "At the trial, she said something about Finn's medical files. About keeping me desperate. I thought she was just being cruel but—"
"She was confessing." I pull up another file. "Look. Finn's medical records show irregular medication doses. Small changes, but consistent. Someone with access has been altering his treatment."
Lyra's power flares—starfire crackling around her hands. The trees nearby lean away from the heat. "I'm going to kill her. I'm going to kill all of them."
"No." I catch her wrists, not flinching even when her power burns against my ice shields. "You're going to get stronger. Strong enough that when we finally confront them, they can't touch you or anyone you love ever again."
"He's dying, Zain!"
"He's leverage. Which means they need him alive." I meet her eyes, willing her to understand. "If you go back now, they'll capture you. Suppress your power permanently. Lock you away. And then what happens to Finn? Who saves him when you're gone?"
She's shaking, torn between desperation and logic.
"The trials," I continue. "Each one breaks another seal, makes you stronger. The Codex showed medical technology in that vault back at the academy—Starborn healing methods far beyond what modern doctors can do. Get to the end of the trials, unlock your full power, and you can cure him yourself."
"How long will that take?"
"I don't know. Days. Maybe weeks."
"He might not have weeks!"
"Then we move faster." I release her wrists, letting her make her own choice. "But going back now accomplishes nothing except getting you captured. Is that what Finn would want? His sister throwing her life away?"
Lyra's breathing slowly steadies. The starfire dims. When she speaks again, her voice is harder than I've ever heard it.
"I'm going to make them pay. Everyone who touched him. Everyone who hurt him to control me. I'm going to burn them all down."
"Good," I say. "Use that rage. Channel it. Let it fuel you through the trials."
She looks at me with something like surprise. "You're not going to tell me revenge is wrong?"
"Why would I? Revenge is the only thing that's kept me going for eight years." I stand, offering her my hand. "The difference is doing it smart versus doing it stupid. Smart means getting powerful enough that they can't stop you."
She takes my hand, letting me pull her up. "You really think the Codex can lead us to a cure?"
"Starborn technology could heal injuries that would kill anyone else. If we reach the end, if you unlock everything..." I pause. "Yes. I believe you could save him."
We walk back toward camp in silence. But halfway there, Lyra stops.
"Why are you really helping me?" she asks quietly. "And don't say it's just about your parents. You could research the conspiracy alone."
I could lie. Should lie. Keep my walls up like I have for years.
But something about this girl who went from F-Rank to C-Rank in one day, who commands forests and refuses to give up—she deserves honesty.
"You remind me of them," I admit. "My parents. They were brilliant researchers everyone underestimated because they asked uncomfortable questions. They were fearless even when they should have been afraid." I look at her. "And they were murdered for having the courage to seek truth."
"You think I'm like them?"
"I think you're what they would have wanted to protect. A Starborn heir who survived the genocide. Living proof that the Council's crimes didn't succeed." My jaw tightens. "Keeping you alive and getting you to full power? That's the best revenge I could give them."
Lyra studies me for a long moment. "That's really messed up, you know. Using me as revenge."
"I know."
"Good. As long as we're honest about it." She starts walking again. "For what it's worth, I'm using you too. I need your knowledge and your power to survive this."
A surprised laugh escapes me—rare enough that Nyx looks up sharply when we enter camp.
"Did Zain just... laugh?" she stage-whispers to Ren.
"I must be hallucinating from magical exhaustion," Ren replies.
I ignore them, but something in my chest loosens slightly. This strange team we've formed—it's the closest thing I've had to family since I was ten years old.
Dangerous. Caring about people makes you vulnerable.
But as I watch Lyra explain about Finn to the others, watch them immediately rally around her with promises to help, I realize vulnerability might not be weakness.
My device buzzes. New data from the perimeter sensors.
"We have a problem," I announce. "Two actually."
Everyone looks at me.
"Kael's team recalculated the portal coordinates. They'll be here in three hours instead of six."
"And the second problem?" Aria asks.
I pull up the sensor data, showing three separate groups converging on our location. "The Obsidian Syndicate called for backup. They're bringing an army. Fifty mercenaries. Heavy weapons. And something else—the readings are strange. Like they brought magical inhibitors designed specifically to counter Starborn energy."
"They built weapons to fight Lyra?" Nyx demands. "Already?"
"The Syndicate has been preparing for Starborn resurgence for decades. They want to capture and weaponize any heirs they find." I close the data. "We're surrounded by three hostile forces with no support and barely any rest. The next trial is our only escape."
"Then we take it now," Lyra decides. "No more rest. We move."
"You're exhausted," Aria protests. "You just unlocked two seals in one day. Your body needs recovery—"
"My body can recover when my brother is safe and our enemies are dead." Lyra's voice carries command—the first hint of the queen she's becoming. "Zain, where's the next portal?"
I check the Codex coordinates downloaded to my device. "North. Twenty minutes' walk through hostile territory."
"Then we walk fast."
She's learning. Good.
As we pack up camp and prepare to move, movement flickers at the edge of my vision. I enhance my sight with ice-magic—a trick for seeing through forest darkness—and spot figures in the trees.
Scouts. Already watching us.
"They're closer than I thought," I mutter.
"What?" Lyra moves to my side.
"Don't look. But we're being observed. Syndicate scouts, probably reporting our position." I keep my voice casual. "We're not walking into the next trial. We're running."
Understanding flashes across her face. "How many?"
"At least six that I can see."
"And you're just now mentioning this?"
"I wanted everyone calm enough to pack properly." I meet her eyes. "On my signal, we sprint. Don't look back. Don't stop for anything. Understood?"
She nods, then quietly passes the message to the others.
I count down in my head. Three. Two. One.
"Run!"
We explode into motion. Behind us, shouts of alarm. Energy weapons powering up. The forest erupts with pursuit.
And ahead, somewhere in the darkness, the third trial awaits.