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Hadrien remained perfectly composed. “Mr. Haldan, I was about to ask you the same thing.
“You march in here ready to arrest me with zero explanation and no official warrant. Has the Guide Protection Association grown this arrogant p>
Lior shot back sharply, “You dare ask for reasons?
“That new Guide named Lyra Kaelin, were you not the one who secretly abducted her and hid her away p>
“Do you have any proof of that?” Hadrien replied coolly.
Yannis cut in next, his tone stern and unyielding. “New Guides are unfamiliar with federal protocols and easily manipulated.
“Last time on Core Prime, teams searched every corner and found nothing. Yet blood matching your profile was left at the scene. You never registered an exit through the Core Prime transit hubs, and right after that, all traces of the new Guide vanished from Core Prime. If that was not you taking an inexperienced Guide and running off with her, what was it p>
Hadrien let out a cold scoff. “That’s all it takes to accuse me of illegally harboring a Guide? Who taught you this logic? The Oversight Council p>
Yannis let out a sharp huff and glanced toward the rear of his entourage.
“Hadrien p>
A low, steady voice cut through the tension as a tall, lean man stepped forward.
Unlike the irritable, argumentative men beside him, his expression was calm and unreadable. “Where is the Guide p>
Hadrien’s sharp gaze locked onto the oversight insignia emblazoned on the man’s chest before sweeping across all three of his opponents.
The Oversight Council held a unique status within the Federal system. Independent of the judicial, legislative, and administrative branches yet established jointly by all three, it wielded quasi–legislative, quasi–administrative, and quasi–judicial authority. It was the Federation’s most impartial institution–and also its most chaotic.
His arrival signaled a unified verdict from the Federation’s three core governing branches.
After a quick assessment of the stakes, Hadrien stepped aside without further resistance.
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Zev Korth advanced forward immediately, with Yannis and Lior falling into step right behind him.
“Lyra, what’s going on outside p>
Trapped inside the cell block, the Sentinels craned their necks, desperate for answers.
Staring out at the massive fleet of starships blotting out the horizon, Lyra began to feel uneasy.
She wheeled herself back into the cell block and typed a message on her Star Brain.
“Dozens of starships are here. They cover almost half the sky p>
The moment they read the message, Arthur and the other Sentinels fell silent, their gazes turning heavy and apprehensive as they looked toward the outside.
“Wow.” Kyren let out a low, meaningful sigh.
Lyra met the eyes of Rhys and the others, her anxiety spiraling higher by the second.
“Don’t be scared, Lyra p>
Harlan spoke softly, noticing the color draining steadily from her face and how she’d bitten her lower lip pale with tension.
Lyra lifted her head, the corners of her eyes growing red and watery.
She understood exactly what this arrival meant–and that was why she was terrified.
“I don’t want to leave,” she typed silently.
The Star Brain’s automated voice remained cold and flat, but the girl communicating through it was unraveling with panic.
Watching her on the verge of tears, every Sentinel in the cell block fell completely quiet.
“Lyra p>
It was the first time Arthur had ever spoken her name. He stretched a hand out through the window.
Lyra maneuvered her wheelchair forward at once, grasping his hand tightly like it was her last lifeline.
Arthur felt her cold fingers trembling uncontrollably and squeezed her hand firmly in return.
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His warm golden eyes locked on hers as he murmured gentle reassurances. “It’s okay. Don’t worry.
“Hadrien’s here. He’ll keep you safe p>
Lyra shook her head, tears welling thick in her
eyes.
She’d finally grown used to this place and had finally built real bonds with the people around
her.
She couldn’t bear the thought of being uprooted and thrown into a completely unfamiliar environment.
She knew there must be something different about her compared with the Guides here.
She feared being taken away and locked up for experimentation once her anomalies were discovered.
Here at Black Spire, Hadrien was there to shield and protect her. Out there on Core Prime, she would lose every shred of her freedom.
Worse still, if she was taken away, no one would be left to look after the Sentinels here.
She dreaded being trapped in some cold, distant place, forced to receive constant news of her friends‘ deaths one by one.
The thought of living as a stranger dependent on others filled her with crippling anxiety.
It was all happening too fast. Far too fast.
She hadn’t gotten the chance to lower the contamination levels for the Sentinels in Building Three. She hadn’t finished building her personal guard. She wasn’t ready for any of this.
“It’s not so bad,” Arthur said softly, his voice full of sympathy. “You won’t be in any danger on Core Prime. You’ll have endless people looking after and protecting you. It’s far safer than here. No one will dare hurt you there.
“Don’t cry p>
He brushed the tears gently from her cheeks, his heart aching for her.
But his words did nothing to soothe her. If anything, they only made her more hopeless.
Lyra was fiercely sentimental. No luxurious palace on Core Prime could replace the home she’d found here.
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She’d already lost Jessa. Now she was about to lose the only home she knew, along with every friend she’d just grown close to.
The thought shattered her, and she cried harder.
Unable to make a sound, she could only pour all her helplessness and despair into endless, streaming tears.
Arthur had never been good at comforting girls. He had no idea what else to say, so he could only repeat quiet pleas for her to stop crying.
The cell block fell into a heavy silence. Every Sentinel’s spirit animal emerged from their mindscapes, gazing down at the trembling, weeping girl in the wheelchair with obvious pity.
It was exactly this scene that greeted Zev and his team when they arrived.
A dark figure darted forward instantly. Hadrien rushed to Lyra’s side in three quick strides.
“Lyra p>
Seeing her broken, crying state, Hadrien’s chest felt tight and shattered, sharp pain swelling in
his heart.
Lyra turned her head and saw the crowd of officials flooding the doorway. Panic flashed across her face as she clung tightly to Hadrien’s arm, shaking her head over and over again, begging silently not to be taken away.
Her silent refusal and desperate tears splashed down like scalding lava, burning into the hearts of everyone present.
“Tch. Quite the dramatic spectacle. Anyone would think we’ve got a Phasmophage outbreak on our hands p>
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Ruby Walker
Ruby Walker is a rising voice in the world of romance and spicy fiction. With a gift for weaving deep emotions, sizzling chemistry, and unexpected twists, her stories are a blend of passion and drama that captivate readers from start to finish. Ruby’s writing style is bold and irresistible—perfect for those who crave intense, addictive love stories.