OPERATION WINTERSPINE (Strings Between Us Book 2)

CHAPTER THIRTY SIX: OF SHIELDS, SWORDS, AND CHAOS UNLEASHED

CHAPTER THIRTY SIX: OF SHIELDS, SWORDS, AND CHAOS UNLEASHED

Riyee's POV

I hate Monday.

I hate waking up early just to sit trapped inside the Arista Dome—its cold metal ribs arching overhead like a cage—forced to listen to the faculty drone on about "integrity" and "being a good role model," their hollow words echoing through the cavernous space like ghosts, all while pretending they don't rot Supreme Allievo Academy from the inside out.

But what I hate even more? A Monday wrapped up in the Inter-School Academic Festival. This school's obsession with festivals is maddening—like every event must have one. And festivals mean new faces. Students and faculty from other schools, wandering around with smiles and hidden agendas. That means enemies. They're already here, slipping into our territory without anyone noticing. The faint scrape of boots on tile, hushed murmurs behind curtains, a camera shutter clicking too fast—small sounds that spike the hairs on my neck.

Great. Just great.

"For sure, we're gonna have final exams right after this," Xylia whispered beside me, barely hiding her exhaustion.

Jodie groaned. "What do you expect? GPA is everything here. Student well-being? Forget about it."

I smirked. "You're all ranting but none of you are transferring."

"Because we have no choice," Errol said from behind, his voice low, mingling with the distant chatter and clinking cups from the refreshment stands. "This is the best school we've got. Maybe except Celestine. But, honestly? They probably wouldn't even take us."

Jodie and Xylia nodded grimly, their breaths shallow and quick in the stale air. "Yeah, seeing the nine of you? No way we'd last there."

Two weeks since the breach, and all we've dug up are fragments of the truth. Mom doesn't know how to stop a slip. The intel's classified beyond her clearance. Alexie's parents—Tito Cassiel and Tita Celia—are holed up in Silent Vale, the founding Court's secret sanctuary. Tofer's still working on a comm line—whatever channel Mom used before is dead now. And worst of all... Dr. Caelum and Dr. Amara, KD's parents said that there's no way to stop Lucem from slipping. Only to control it. 

How do you teach KD to control something he doesn't even understand? How do you keep him from breaking when the past is a locked door he's not allowed to open?

So far, KD's Echo-9 Lucem hasn't slipped again. And we're all praying it stays that way.

I'll do whatever it takes to keep him safe. Even if it means breaking every Ardent Court rule. Not on my watch. Not ever.

The moment KD stepped up to the podium, silence fell like a glacier. The dome's vast emptiness swallowed sound, except for the subtle creak of the microphone stand and the faint, uneven intake of breath from the crowd.

He is the Ice President after all.

"Good morning, everyone," his calm voice rang out, filled with quiet authority. "Welcome to the Inter-School Academic Festival of Supreme Allievo Academy. This isn't just a competition. It's a rare chance—to learn from our peers, push our limits, and forge bonds beyond our walls."

He paused, letting the weight of his words settle like heavy dust in the air.

"I know festivals like this bring new faces—some familiar, many unknown. And with that comes uncertainty. But remember—how we respond to the unknown defines us. Whether challenge or threat, our strength isn't just in our talents, but in how we come together as a commun—"