Selene

The fortress’s iron gates loomed behind us, their runes pulsing red like a heartbeat, sealing Veyra, Thorne, Renn, and Elara outside. Dorian’s cries echoed through the stone corridors ahead, each one a knife twisting in my chest.

“Stay close,” Draven whispered, drawing his sword, golden eyes scanning the dark. Torren flanked him, holding a dagger on either hand, ready for anything. The prisoner we’d freed earlier trailed behind us, muttering about traps.

"Be careful. Kaelen rigged this entire place,” he rasped. “There're blood wards everywhere.”

“Keep moving,” I said, following Dorian’s cries. The corridors twisted as we moved, the stone walls carved with ancient runes that pulsed erratically, amplifying...