***BLAKE***

“How dare he leave.”

The words left before I could stop them—low, raw, spilling out unstoppable.

I sat on the table, the relic heavy in my hand. The Mover hummed faintly—like a living thing. Its pulse matched the heat rising in my chest. I stared down at it, tracing the runes with my thumb. Each line felt like a promise—a promise that conquers all.

My breath tightened. Anger coiling sharp, sudden. I wanted to shout—tear something apart—but the sound refused to come ...