Chapter 28 · The Crownstack Summit

"Move!"

Kellan came at her with a knife made of light.

Nia barely got her arm up. The blade punched through her sleeve and burned a white line across her forearm. She shoved him back. He didn't stumble. Just stood there in the red emergency glow, silver eyes locked on her face.

"You killed me," he said.

His voice came over the room speakers too. It rolled through cracked walls, dead monitors, the tiny receiver clipped to Nia's collar. Somewhere above, the whole city was hearing it.

"You knew the core would take me," Kellan said. "You watched it happen."

"Kellan." She pressed her bleeding arm to her chest. "Look at me."

"I am looking at you."

"No. You're staring at whatever's wearing your face."

His mouth pulled into a smile that didn't belong to him.

Then he lunged again.

Elias plowed into him from the side. They hit the floor so hard dust rained from the ceiling. Kellan's light knife sliced across Elias's ribs. Blood bloomed through his shirt.

"Elias!"

"Busy," he grunted.

Kellan twisted underneath him. Silver lines crawled over his throat and jaw. His fingers locked around Elias's windpipe.

Nia grabbed the nearest thing—a broken conduit—