Chapter 25 · Voidbound - Chapter 25: Don't Seal Me

"Get your hand off the lock."

My voice. My throat. Not my words.

I tried to yank my palm away from the stone door, but the carved teeth had already sunk too deep. Blood ran down my wrist, hot and slick, and the HP bar in the corner of my vision dropped to sixteen percent.

"Kael, what are you—"

Mira's hand clamped on my shoulder, trying to pull me back, but I couldn't move. My mouth opened again without my permission.

"He doesn't know," the voice said, calm and smooth, nothing like the hatchling's rasp. "Three years of feeding him scraps. Three years of keeping him weak enough to control."

"Who the hell are you?" I forced the words out between clenched teeth, my jaw fighting itself.

"The one you should've bonded first."

Behind us, Rook laughed, a wet, choking sound. The Voidling still had him pinned to the ground, black claws through both shoulders, but he tilted his head enough to meet my eyes.

"Told you," he rasped. "Guild knew. Whole time."

Mira's grip tightened. "Kael, listen to me. Whatever's in your head, don't let it stop the seal. If that door stays open—