The fall had no end.

Darkness swallowed them whole, thick and suffocating, but it wasn’t silence—it was screaming. Voices clawed at Elaria’s ears, some begging, some cursing, some crying for a mercy that never came. Her hands clutched at Draven’s chest with a desperation that left her knuckles white, terrified that if she let go for even a heartbeat, the void would rip him from her.

Draven’s arms locked around her, anchoring her even as his own body trembled with the strain. His ...