Pivot.
Disarm.
My elbow slams into his throat hard enough he stumbles backward—
Clay finishes him before he hits the ground.
My breathing goes ragged instantly.
Because again—
it felt automatic.
Natural.
Some part of Ascension still lives inside my body.
Wu’s voice suddenly fills the bunker once more.
“You see?”
Calm.
Satisfied.
“Hannah was always exceptional.”
“No!” I scream toward the ceiling.
“I went to survival camp and my brother taught me everything I know. I knew nothing before that!” I shout at the speakers.
Gunfire echoes around us.
Children crying now.
Operators shouting.
The bunker collapsing deeper into chaos.
But Wu’s voice cuts through all of it.
“You were designed to lead.”
Something cold moves through my chest.
Because for one terrible second—
I remember wanting his approval.
A child desperate for kindness from a monster.
I physically recoil from the memory.
Clay notices instantly.
“Hannah.”
His voice grounds me.
