Chapter 20 · The Anchor's Secret Hum

"Put me down, you overgrown piece of sludge, or I'll rip your throat out!" Jace snarled, his voice echoing against the damp, oppressive walls of the tunnel.

He wasn't standing. He was dangling. A massive, translucent limb—half-muscle, half-slime—had him clamped around the waist, squeezing the air out of his lungs. The creature, a Lurker scout with too many eyes and not enough skin, didn't care about the threats. It just dragged him deeper into the gloom, its suction cups leaving iridescent trails on his gear.

"Jace!" Lira's scream hit him from somewhere behind.

He twisted, catching a glimpse of her through the haze. She was sprinting, her boots splashing through ankle-deep black water, the encrypted tablet clutched to her chest like a shield. Behind her, the remaining Council soldiers were closing in, their tactical boots thumping a rhythmic death march on the stone.

"Get out of here!" Jace roared, though it came out as a strangled wheeze. "Lira, run!"

"I'm not leaving you to be digested!" she yelled back, her voice cracking.

The Lurker gave a sudden, violent jerk, slamming Jace against a jagged outcrop of obsidian.