"Get out of the way!" Rhyden roared.
Rin reached for Xara, but a shadow coiled before her, slamming into her and sending her soaring backward. With a pained scream, she fell against a chunk of fallen rubble. The chaos was disorienting.
She curled up, protecting her head and midsection as she waited for the earthquake to stop.
When it finally did, her heart was weak in her chest, ears ringing in the silence—while flames still crackled.
She stood slowly, wavering. A large hunk of the building had fallen behind her. Rhyden,no?—
Rin slammed her hands against it. She had fallen into a strange pocket of untouched space amid the concrete and rubble, as if protected—by the Stars, fate, or chance, she did not know.
"Rhyden! Rhyden, please!" She coughed, eyes burning.
"Vesperin!" came Rhyden’s answering roar.
She sagged in relief. "I’m here! I’m okay, Rhyden!"
"Stay there. I’ll find a way to you!"
She bent, pressing a hand against her chest as if to steady her erratic, overworked heart. "No, go find the others—please, Rhyden. Please, you have to find them, help them. Make sure they’re okay!"
Fear made her pant. If they were hurt—or dead—she would never forgive herself. It wasn’t supposed to be like this.Shewas the one who was supposed to go first—not them.
It was silent on the other side. She prayed Rhyden would do as she asked, but knew he wouldn’t. He cared for no one but himself—perhaps her, too. Maybe.
Rin’s forehead fell against the stone, dust and soot on her sweaty cheeks. Her Echogun had fallen, half-crushed beneath a large rock. Her boot knocked into something, and she looked down, finding the lighter. She bent to pick it up, groaning at the pain in her back. She felt all wrong, achy. The lighter’s casing was chipped. She swiped ash away, revealing the carved letters of her initials.V.V.
"Xara?" Rin called, voice weaker this time, as if she’d used up all her energy.
Flames hissed and crackled. She couldn’t see over the wall of fallen concrete, but it sounded distant. Had Rhyden called his fire back?
She stumbled forward, calling for Xara again. As the dust and ash cleared, she saw it there on the ground.
It took a second for the realization to settle in. When it did, Rin dropped to her knees, thudding against rubble. She barely felt the pain. She clawed at chunks of rock.
Legs stuck out from beneath a large concrete pillar—the very one that had held up the Academy’s roof. The same that had tipped right toward where she and Xara had stood.
Thick, red blood oozed from beneath.
She didn’t let herself believe it.
"Xara?" Rin’s voice cracked. Her hand shook as she touched Xara’s shoe. Her leg shifted, limp. The concrete had crushed her upper body—only her legs stuck out. More blood pooled from beneath, staining the knees of Rin’s pants.
"I’m so sorry that it—that it ended this way for you." She gave a sob.
She hoped it had been quick. That Xara hadn’t suffered from being aware of her death, crushed beyond recognition, nothing but a pair of legs and bloodied sneakers.
Rin sat back, weak. A shadow slithered over Rin’s knee. She stared at it. "Shadow, did you protect me?" She felt the shadow’s cool touch, yet it held the faintest trace of warmth. "Thank you for keeping me safe."
Something fell to the ground by her leg, making her jolt. Her eyes grew wide as she stared at it. It was a small silver tube with a tiny red blinking light at the top. She gasped, scrambling back. Her aching, bruised spine pressed against fallen rubble. She tipped her head back, staring at the top of the concrete piled high around her.
A hand broke free from the ash, sticking up with stretched fingers as they curled around the edge of the concrete. She knew who it was, even before he pulled himself over the top and crouched high above.
Kit pushed himself into a stand. He was concealed in black armor, a mask covering his nose and mouth. He stared down at her, his brown hair blowing in the fiery wind.
His thighs flexed, and in one great move, he jumped from high above, landing right before her on his feet. He didn’t make a sound.
Kit cocked his head. Xara’s blood splashed beneath his black boots as he stepped toward her.
