The halls trembled with the echo of Esdarte's laughter.
"Run!" Amethyst shouted, pulling Theodore and Lyra down a narrow corridor. "That button activated patrol golems!"
Huge mechanical footsteps thundered behind them.
"I thought you said you knew the traps!" Lyra shouted.
"I do! That one was new!"
Amethyst panted. "He must be updating the castle constantly… sick freak."
They slipped into a maintenance tunnel. Gears spun slowly above them, dripping oil, the air hot and metallic.
Theodore looked at Amethyst. "Why do you help us?"
"…Because I want to leave too," Amethyst said quietly. "And… I don't want anyone else to suffer like I did."
Theodore placed his hand on Amethyst's shoulder. "Then we'll escape. Together."
---
Aboveground.
Mikaela sat near Lyra's favorite meditation spot, trying to concentrate. "If only… if only I had telepathy."
Her heart ached. She clenched her fists.
"Come on… think…"
Then—something clicked.
She summoned light magic and focused all her energy into one small whisper.
"Theo, can you hear me?"
She felt his presence… but then, BANG!—a magical backlash. A barrier. It stopped her voice.
But she did sense his location.
Eyes wide, she ran to Aizen. "I know where they are!"
They rushed back to the house—but Lyra wasn't there.
"She… she didn't come back?" Aizen asked.
Silence.
His hands trembled. His expression darkened.
"If they took her… too…" His voice cracked. The storm around him intensified.
Mikaela stared at him. "Aizen…"
"Should I destroy this whole city?" he asked bitterly.
No one answered.
Because in that moment… no one knew what he would do next.
(End of Chapter 19)
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