The ramp opened onto a flat surface, but she was still lost in the dust. Up ahead, she heard Tanax shouting, and then a boom and a brilliant flash, brighter than a blaster bolt. That wasn’t something she’d ever seen from Tanax’s powers, and she broke into a run, emerging from the dust cloud and skidding to a halt as she tried to take in the vast chamber.

There was a … thing, only barely visible in the gloom, the light from her blade glinting off metal plates running high overhead and far back out of sight. In the gaps, she could see striated black muscle, like what ran beneath the skin of the plaguespawn she’d just defeated. This was clearly something similar, but—

The size of it. She couldn’t see far enough to get her head around it. The closest part, a vast curve, resolved into a limb big enough to crush a good-sized house underfoot. Chosen defend, it must be the size of a city!

“The ghouls are here,” Jaedia had said, and talked about a power that could destroy the Republic. This thing must be a ghoul weapon. Their answer to a Chosen skyfortress, maybe, a plaguespawn big enough to break mountains. And someone wants to wake it up?

A moment later, the eddying dust swirled away, and she saw the crater in the stone floor, with Tanax’s limp body lying beside it. Standing over him, a silver sword in one hand, was—

Gyre?

He looked different than when she’d last seen him. Leaner, more dangerous, unruly dark hair grown long enough to curl at the ends. But when the light of her haken fell on his face, there was no doubt it was him. Pale, shiny scars stood out against his brown skin, overlaying the old wound that had taken his eye. Now something glowed in the depth of the socket, a silver orb shining from within with an eerie green light.

Watching him stare down at Tanax, Maya felt a sudden surge of guilt. I let him go. Because he was my brother. I knew he was a rebel, that he’d killed Auxiliaries, that he hated the Order and the Republic, and I let him go. And now … Now he was here, with this monstrous thing, and she had no idea how badly Tanax was hurt. Her heart triple-thumped, and she touched the Thing with her free hand. It had cooled and was just a hard lump under her fingers.

Tanax is probably all right, Maya told herself. His panoply would have absorbed the attack, even if it rendered him unconscious. And I won’t make the same mistake again.

Gyre looked up and saw her. Something about his expression, in the moment of recognition, tore at her heart, but she pushed it down ruthlessly.

“Maya,” he said. His voice was thick.