Chapter 36 · The Final Price of Mercy

"Let go of me, Kael! Just get the hell out of the way!"

I screamed the words, but my voice was a shredded wreck. I could feel the Star-Core inside me vibrating, not with power, but with a violent, desperate hunger. It was screaming to be released, and if I didn't dump it now, it would tear me apart from the inside out.

Kael didn't budge. He had me pinned against a slab of fallen concrete, his hands gripping my shoulders so hard I could feel his pulse hammering through his palms. His face was inches from mine, streaked with ash and blood, his golden eyes searching mine for something I didn't want to give.

"You can't do this," he hissed. "You're talking about erasing yourself. Look at the city, Nova. Look at the rubble. You're the only one who can stop the collapse."

"Exactly!" I spat, trying to shove him back. "That's the point, you idiot! I'm the only one who can do it, and it's going to cost me everything. Now move!"

Around us, the city was screaming. Not people—the actual buildings. The air was thick with the metallic tang of ozone and the smell of incinerated asphalt.