Dawn breaks over the Academy not with a gentle sunrise, but with the harsh, blinding glare of a winter morning. The air is freezing, biting at the exposed skin of my neck, but the cold is the least of my concerns.
I stand at the edge of the central courtyard, staring at the surface tether.
It is a massive, scorched monolith of blackthorn wood, permanently scarred by the cosmic war. The bark is blackened, cracked, and weeping a faint, golden sap. It is the physical anchor of the Academy’s ley-lines, and today, it is the battery for the most dangerous political stunt in human history.
Kade stands beside me. He is dressed in the formal, dark tactical uniform of the Alpha, the silver insignia gleaming on his collar. His left sleeve is pinned neatly to his chest. He isn't looking at the teth
