MasukThey climbed the stairs to the main house. Through the windows, they could see the North City. It wasn't the bright, bustling city Faith loved. There were no streetlights. The power had been cut. The only light came from the fires burning at the Academy on the hill. “The estate is empty,” Leo whispered, checking his scanner. “The guards are gone. They must have joined the fight at the school.” “Wait,” Faith said, her hand going to her throat. She felt a ripple in the air. It wasn't the Master Key. It was a smell—the smell of jasmine and old paper. A figure stepped out from the shadows of the library. It wasn't a soldier. It was the Librarian from her visions. But this time, he looked solid. He looked real. “You are early, Faith Nightshade,” the Librarian said. The school is burning, Faith said. “I don't have time for riddles.” The school is a distraction, the Librarian warned. He walked toward her, his grey cloak sweeping the floor. “The King doesn't want the Academy. He
Killian didn't want to wake her.,She looked so peaceful in the dim red light of the tower, her face tucked against his chest. For a few hours, she hadn't been a Saviour or a Catalyst. She had just been Faith. But the screen on the wall was screaming in silent text: ACADEMY UNDER ATTACK. He gently brushed her hair back and whispered her name. Faith’s eyes snapped open. She didn't wake up slowly. Her silver eyes flared to life instantly, sensing the change in Killian’s heartbeat. She felt the cold wave of anger and worry coming from him through their bond. “What is it?” she asked, her voice raspy. Killian pointed to the screen. Faith stood up, the wool blanket falling to the floor. She walked toward the glass walls. On the monitors, she saw live footage from the North. The beautiful stone buildings of the Academy, the place where she had just stood in her graduation gown, were covered in thick, black smoke. People were running. Students were crying. And in the center of the plaza,
Faith sat on a wide window seat at the very top of the tower. She looked out at the deep blue ocean, watching the bubbles rise from the island’s energy shield. Her silver eyes were dim, reflecting her exhaustion. She felt like a battery drained to its very last drop.She heard a soft step on the metal floor. She didn't have to turn around to know who it was. The bond in her chest warmed up, a steady pulse of gold that matched her silver.Killian sat down beside her. He didn't say anything at first. He just wrapped a heavy wool blanket around her shoulders and pulled her into his side. Faith leaned her head against his chest, listening to the slow, powerful thrum of his heart.“The warships are still up there,” Killian said softly. They are circling like sharks. But they can't see us. The shield is holding.Faith didn't look up. She stared at her hands. Her skin looked pale, and she could see the faint silver veins glowing beneath her palms.“When will it end, Killian?” he whispered. H
She felt Killian’s presence before she heard him. He walked into the room, his face grim. “Leo just finished a scan of the local area,” Killian said. Three warships are heading this way. They aren't High Council ships. They carry the black flag of the Nullifiers. “How did they find us so fast?” Faith asked. “The clones,” Killian said. When you lifted them all at once at the mine, you created a silver outburst that could be seen from space. You basically lit a signal fire in the middle of the ocean.” Faith looked at the sisters below, who were finally laughing and eating. She couldn't let this place be destroyed. “We can't fight three warships in the open,” Faith said. “The sisters are too weak, and the Remnants aren't warriors.” “Then we hide,” the old man said. The lighthouse has a ‘Ghost Mode.’ It can sink the entire island beneath the waves. But it requires a massive amount of energy to maintain the oxygen seal.” “I’ll do it,” Faith said. “Baby, it will drain you,” Killian
Leo sat in the cockpit, his fingers glowing blue as he fought the magnetic interference of the area. “The sensors are going crazy,” Leo said, his voice tense. “The salt-mist is thick, but there’s something else down there. A frequency I’ve never seen. It’s like the island is breathing.” Faith stood behind him, her silver eyes fixed on the fog. Through her bond with Killian, she could feel his heart beating fast. He was standing in the back of the ship with the forty sisters, his hand resting on his weapon. He was an Alpha in a place that didn't follow the rules of wolves, and it made his instincts scream. “There,” Faith pointed. The mist parted, revealing a bumpy rock of an island. In the center stood a massive, black lighthouse made of reinforced steel and glass. It didn't look like a normal building: it looked like a giant computer tower sticking out of the ocean. “Sector Zero,” Faith whispered. As the ship lowered its landing gear, the lighthouse suddenly flickered to life. A
Above them, the heavy metal vent cover clattered to the floor. The first wave of Vane’s security team dropped into the room, their boots clanking on the metal grates. They wore black tactical gear and carried wide-bore rifles designed to fire paralyzing nets.“Protect the assets! Kill the Alpha!” the lead soldier shouted.Killian didn't wait for them to aim. He let out a roar that shook the salt-encrusted walls and charged. He moved like a shadow, knocking the rifles out of the soldiers' hands before they could pull the triggers. But there were too many of them, and more were pouring down from the vents every second.Faith stood her ground. Beside her, the first clone, the one who had smiled, stood tall. Her movements were a bit stiff, like a bird learning to fly, but her silver eyes were focused.“What is your name?” Faith asked, never taking her eyes off the soldiers.The girl paused, her brow furrowing. “Unit 01….no. My name is Hope.”“Hope,” Faith repeated, a spark of warmth hitti







