Suddenly, the sharp click of a gun cocking shattered the uneasy hum. The subtle rustle of fabric, barely audible, marked the figure dressed in black slipping beside the podium. The cold barrel of a gun gleamed, aimed with deadly intent at KD.
My breath hitched. Silence swallowed the room, save for the faint rattling of a ventilation duct and the distant murmur of frozen students—sound fading into a deafening stillness that pressed down on my chest like a stone. My heart stopped cold, every nerve screaming in the sudden vacuum of fear.
"Oh my god!" Jodie gasped, covering her mouth.
"KD!" I shouted, every eye snapping to me.
"Nobody move. Nobody scream. Or the President dies," the man hissed, his voice low and venomous.
Xylia grabbed me, pulling me down. "Don't, Rielle. You'll get Khaizer killed." Her voice trembled with fear.
I scanned around—the sharp scrape of boots on metal echoed as armed men flooded in from every exit, the bleachers, shadows lurking behind the stage. Dozens, perfectly coordinated.
Fully armed. Ready for war.
With a thunderous clang, the dome doors slammed shut. The metallic echo bounced off the dome's walls, reverberating like a death knell. A heavy hiss followed—the seal locking us in with finality. The stale air thickened instantly, tasting faintly of burnt circuits and fear, mingling with the metallic tang of blood and sweat.
We were trapped. The sharp click of boots against steel floor, the jittery breaths of terrified students, all stitched into a suffocating symphony of dread.
"What do you want?" KD's voice trembled, but he stood firm, every breath ragged but steady.
Please don't trigger the Echo-9 slip.
"We were ordered to kill you all," the gunman answered coldly. "Word is, everyone here is big time."
"Ari, I'll make a path for you. Run fast to Khaizer," Xythe's voice crackled sharply through our comms, calm but urgent.
"Got it." I told him, pushing away from Xylia's grip, muscles coiled like springs.
"Whatever you're planning, don't. You'll get hurt," Xylia warned, voice shaking.
BANG!
Xythe fired his Hecate. The sharp crack of gunfire echoed, the attacker's hand exploded in pain, dropping the weapon with a heavy thud.
KD stepped aside in that second, catching his breath, while the attacker crumpled, shrieking, the metallic scent of blood briefly sharp in the air.
I sprinted to him.
"Thank GOD he brought his tranquilizer!" I heard Jodie scream from the crowd.
Xythe smirked coldly.
"Nope." He flicked the empty casing into the air. "This is a real gun."
Saichel cracked his neck, blue electricity sizzling along Chronos—the shock-wire tendrils twisting up his arm like a serpent ready to strike.
"Defense mode: ON," he grinned, blue sparks crackling like miniature thunderstorms along his glove. The sharp scent of ozone snapped through the tense air, prickling at the back of my neck, syncing perfectly with the electric surge of adrenaline pulsing through my veins.
I was right in front of KD when another gunman lunged at me. My hybrid arc-blade, Artemis, slid from the hidden compartment in my boots, a blade pressed sharply to the attacker's neck. He stumbled back.
YOU ARE READING
OPERATION WINTERSPINE (Strings Between Us Book 2)
Teen Fiction✧ STRINGS BETWEEN US ✧ Book Two: Operation Winterspine by miszywitch She thought she buried the war with her title. But some crowns aren't laid down--they're reactivated Arielle Rylance Del Rio walked away from the Ardent Court, from the strategist...
CHAPTER THIRTY SIX: OF SHIELDS, SWORDS, AND CHAOS UNLEASHED
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