"He… Marshal Death is in trouble!"
Ren stood up so fast that a hot rush of blood made his vision pulse at the edges.
He was on his feet before the thought even finished forming. His knee knocked onto the chair, and it toppled backward.
Without caring about the burst of pain in his leg, he rushed toward the already open door.
Kaizen braced one hand against the frame, as if the wood itself might give way under the force of his panic and looked at him with alarm in his eyes.
"Sir," he gasped, trying to keep his voice from breaking. "Liora... He got this urgent message two hours ago. And now, I can't reach him. He was heading to meet Marshal Death."
"What?" Ren closed the space between them in three strides. "What happened to Kade? Wasn't he near some enemy camp? Liora said—"
The words tumbled out too fast, stumbling over one another. His hand shot out and clamped onto Kaizen's arm.
