LYRA

“There are what?” Lucian snapped.

Orion looked like he regretted surviving long enough to answer.

“Heartbeats,” he repeated hoarsely. “Below the ruins.”

The bond reacted instantly.

Like hearing the words woke something deeper inside it.

And then—

I felt them too.

Faint.

Slow.

Ancient.

But alive.

My stomach dropped violently.

No.

No no no.

That was impossible.

The ruined cavern shook hard enough to knock all of us sideways as another explosion tore through the tunnels ...