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Cal follows behind me I feel his war itus off from the others When we reach the opposite door, the one ets to work on the switch panel I can do nothing but stare, glancing between Kilorn andtheir faces Ketha, Nix, and Darht they can no longer hold back Bullets follow, pinging off ain, the world slows, and I wish it would stop entirely I wish Jon were here, to tell ht choices To tellhand takesinto ht now Trust what you’re doing"

I can barely nod I can barely speak "Yes"

Behind us, the cell block empties Ahead, the switch sparks The door slides open

Cal pushes us both through, and I land hard on another tile floor My body reacts beforesparks to life all around hts of Kilorn and Shade, until all that remains are the command center across the hall and what I ular roolass, filled with control panels,soldiers, and the same metal doors as the cells Three in all, one set in each wall I run to the first, expecting it to open, expecting the command soldiers inside to rise to the occasion Toone fist on the door, enjoying the pain that shoots throughInstead, the soldier closest toback froe

"Don’t!" he co out a hand to still his fellow officers

Overhead, a siren screams to life

"If that’s the way they want it," Calto the other door

A slaranite blocks slide into place, replacing the h Ca it fondly "That should buy us a fewHer face sours at the sight of the corowls, and esture more suited to the alleys of the Stilts "Can we reach theaze on thescreens They explode in rapid succession, showering the soldiers in a spray of sparks and broken glass The siren screeches to a lohine, then cuts out Every piece oflike eggs in a pan,the soldiers cluster in the center of the rooesture I now recognize His body rocks in ti wave after wave of suffocating ability Blood drips fro before he chokes on it

"Cameron!" Cal barks, but she pretends not to hear hiain "Sara Skonos! Where are they?"

Another soldier drops, howling

"Ca Not that she should These people imprisoned her, tortured her, starved her, and would have killed her Revenge is her right

My own lightning intensifies, bouncing inside the glass box, forcing the soldiers to cower from its purple-white wrath Each bolt crackles and spits, blasting closer and closer to their flesh