OPERATION WINTERSPINE (Strings Between Us Book 2)

CHAPTER FORTY SIX: OF SHADOWS, ASHES AND THE ABYSS

Lucian staggered, blood streaking his jaw, mask shattered into jagged ruin. His grin was wider than ever. "You can't keep it up, Prince. Hecate will eat you alive before it kills me."

Xythe's ocean-blue eyes locked on him—glacial, unflinching. "Then I'll drag you with me."

He snapped the chamber shut. Six rounds, every one glowing like a fragment of a dying star. His voice cut through the shaking chamber, cold as judgment itself:

"Witch's Judgement."

The Abyss screamed. Six bullets erupted from Hecate, spinning into the perfect spiral—ricochets weaving light and shadow until all paths converged. Lucian roared, chains and sigils clawing up in frenzy, the chamber itself folding to shield him. But inevitability doesn't break.

The first shot pierced his gauntlet, shattering the dark orichalcum.
The second tore through his chest.
The third carved his throat.
The fourth split his ribs wide open.
The fifth burst his spine.
And the sixth—an Orichalcum round, blazing white—detonated through his skull.

Xythe's hands were trembling. Smoke curled from Hecate's barrel, each breath he drew shallow, burning. Lucian's body lay crumpled in the ruin, crimson leaking across the shattered sigils that once obeyed him. The Abyss itself was shaking, as though in denial of its master's death.

Xythe swayed, knees threatening to buckle. He tightened his grip around Riyee, her unconscious weight pulling against his weakening arms. His whisper was raw, barely audible: "Never... letting go."

"Xythe!"

Boots pounded against fractured stone. Saichel emerged first, silver-blond hair wild, his usual grin gone—replaced by urgency. He dropped to his knees beside them, eyes flicking from Xythe to Riyee. Relief hit him like a wave when he saw her chest rising.

"She's alive." His voice cracked, sharper than he meant. He steadied, then slid his arms beneath her, lifting her and Artemis both as if they were priceless. "I've got her. You hold yourself together, you hear me?"

Xythe let her go only when Saichel had her secure. His hands shook as they fell empty at his side, Hecate dangling loose in his grip.

Alexie was already there, violet eyes scanning his face. "You're pale as death, Prince." She looped his arm over her shoulders, her strength quiet but unyielding. "Lean on me. Don't argue."

His lips pressed into a thin line, but he obeyed, the weight of his exhaustion dragging him heavily against her.

The comms crackled to life, cutting through the tremors of collapsing stone.

"Xythe. Saichel. Alexie." Keryn's voice—steady, warm, but strained at the edges. "The maze is collapsing. I've marked you a path out. You'll have to move carefully, but you'll make it."

Another voice cut in, deep and commanding, calm even now. Lyle. "Listen to her marks. No detours. Every second you hesitate, the Abyss takes another piece of itself down."

A rumble shook through the chamber, dust raining like ash. Sigil veins split and bled red fire across the walls.

Saichel adjusted Riyee in his arms, his usual bravado flickering back. "Then keep talking, Crown. I'd rather not add 'buried alive in hellhole' to my resume."

Alexie tugged Xythe forward. His feet dragged, his body heavy. Halfway through a fractured bridge, his legs buckled, and he lurched sideways. For a heartbeat, Hecate almost slipped from his fingers.

"Xythe!" Alexie caught him fast, bracing his full weight with her shoulder. She cupped his face briefly, forcing his fading eyes to meet hers. Her voice was sharp, but steady—an anchor. "Not now. You hear me? Not while she still needs you."

His jaw tightened, a flicker of resolve breaking through the haze. Slowly, painfully, he steadied himself against her.

"Good," Alexie murmured, voice softer now. "One step at a time. I'll hold you up as long as it takes."

Keryn's voice softened through static. "You're almost there. Keep going."

They moved slowly—stumbling over fractured stone, slipping on ash-slick ground, every step measured by Keryn's guiding words and Lyle's precise commands. The Abyss wailed behind them, sigils cracking into sparks, corridors folding back into themselves like a dying beast.

When they finally broke through the last archway, the storm outside hit them like cold salvation.

Saichel lowered Riyee onto the ground gently, brushing damp strands of hair from her face. His voice dropped, softer than anyone usually heard from him. "Still breathing. She's still here."

Alexie eased Xythe down beside her, keeping his weight steady until his back met stone. She crouched in front of him, gaze sharp but voice gentle. "Don't close your eyes. Not yet. You did it."

Xythe's chest rose and fell, ragged but steady. His eyes never left Riyee's still form, even as his own vision blurred.

The comms were quiet for a beat, then Keryn whispered, her composure breaking. "You're out. You're safe now."

And Lyle's voice sealed it, low and resolute: "Lucian Ortega, Echo-8 is no more."

Behind them, the Ebonreach Abyss gave its last breath—sigil-fire erupting skyward before the entire fortress collapsed inward. The explosion swallowed everything, leaving only a crater where the Abyss once stood.

The Abyss burned behind them, gone to ash. But the four of them stood—scarred, exhausted, but alive.

Supreme Allievo Academy – Eclipsa Sanctum – The Tactician Deck

The faint glow of crystalline monitors painted the walls in pale blue. The pulse-link threads still crackled faintly with residual energy from the Ebonreach connection, like nerves after a cut.

Keryn finally let out the breath she had been holding. Her voice was soft, almost reverent. "They made it."

Across the deck, Lyle stood straight-backed, though his eyes betrayed the shadow of worry that had sat there the entire mission. His words were calm, deliberate. "They should've. We can't lose the Princess... or Tita Dana."

Keryn turned. KD had been silent the entire time, his knuckles white where he gripped the edge of the console. He hadn't spoken—not once—only listening, waiting, breathing like every second could break him. Which it might have, had the mission failed.

Now she met his gaze. "Pres," Keryn said gently, her voice the anchor in the storm. "She's safe now."

They had brought KD here even though it was restricted—he wasn't Ardent Court, and the Tactician Deck was forbidden to outsiders. But he needed this. He needed to know. Knowing about Riyee's situation calmed KD.

She was monitoring his pulse pattern through the Architect's Web, and the moment KD stepped inside, his pulse stabilized on her readings. The flicker of Echo-9 was gone.

KD inhaled deeply, staring at the lightstreams weaving across the deck. Only then did his voice come, low, steadying itself. "Thank you... for letting me be here. So I could be informed of her situation."

Lyle gave the smallest nod. Keryn smiled, her shoulders finally easing.

"Oh, by the way," she said, turning to him lightly, almost casual in tone. "I need to borrow your Elarin Band ring. And your glacial wrist band."

KD blinked, confused. "Why?"

"Just... modifications," Keryn answered smoothly, her hand already extended. "The Architect's Protocol. I'll return them once I'm done."

He hesitated, but only for a breath. Trust outweighed doubt. Wordlessly, he removed both and placed them in her palm.

She closed her fingers around the bands, her expression unreadable for a moment. Then she slipped them into her satchel, her smile returning. "I'll take care of it."

But in her mind, the smile was armor. Her thoughts sharper, colder:
The Halcyon Pact will not stop until they have him again—or until they kill him. If they come, he needs more than defenses. He needs safeguards.

Precautions only she could build.