Chapter 33 · Deep Dive into the Void

"Get your head down! Now!"

Cain’s hand slammed into my shoulder, pinning me against the cold metal grating. A beam of violet light sliced through the air exactly where my skull had been a second ago.

I gasped, lungs burning with the smell of ozone and scorched iron. "What the hell was that?"

"A resonance spike," Cain spat. He didn't let go. His grip was bruising, a sharp reminder of who held the leash. "Victor didn't just find the Key. He’s using a tuner to drag your core out of your chest. We're in a kill zone, Lyra. Move."

He hauled me up, practically dragging me toward the ventilation shaft. I stumbled, boots clattering on the steel. "I can't—my legs, Cain. The core is vibrating."

"Stop whining and keep your feet," he snapped.

Even as he yelled, his arm shifted, wrapping around my waist to yank me tight against his side. His body heat seeped through my thin jumpsuit, a sudden, jarring contrast to the freezing damp of the Void sector.

"If you trip, I'm not carrying you," he muttered. "I'll just leave you for the scavengers."

"Liar," I breathed. I glanced up.