Droplin was already behind them.
Far behind.
Xin knew because the air felt different. Droplin always smelled like damp metal and old smoke. Out here it smelled like dust and burned land, like the world had already given up pretending it was okay.
They were moving fast. Not running. Not hiding. Just moving with intent.
Rion drove the stolen jeep hard, tires rattling over cracked road. The engine whined like it hated being alive. Xin sat in the passenger seat, elbow resting on the open window, eyes fixed on the horizon.
Neither of them spoke for a while.
That usually meant something bad was coming.
"He knows," Xin said finally.
Rion did not ask who. "Yes."
"Not exactly where," Xin continued, "but he knows we made a decision."
Rion nodded once. "Zane always knows when someone stops being afraid."
Xin smirked. "Guess that's his kink."
Rion actually let out a short breath. Almost a laugh.
They drove another hour before stopping near an abandoned relay station. Old resistance tech. Half buried. Half melted. Still usable.
Rion killed the engine. "This is far enough."
Xin jumped out, cracked his neck, and started pulling cables from the back. "Let's call everyone before he decides to show up smiling."
The relay took power after a few angry sparks.
Static filled the air. Then voices.
Tara came through first.
"About time," she said. "I was starting to think you two went quiet on purpose."
"We did," Xin replied. "Just not forever."
Alaric's voice cut in next, calmer but sharp. "Xin. Rion. I assume you felt it too."
"The fight," Xin said.
"Yes," Alaric replied. "And the aftermath. Selena is gone."
No one spoke for a moment.
Tara broke the silence. "Then Zane is unchecked."
Xin leaned against the jeep. "Exactly. Which means this ends now."
Alaric exhaled slowly. "I was hoping you would say that."
"Hit us," Xin said.
Alaric did not sugarcoat it.
"Zane cannot be killed by force. Not yours. Not mine. Not the sun itself. His Spinat resonance absorbs extreme energy. Nuclear detonation would feed him. Stellar exposure would strengthen him."
Tara cursed quietly.
"So what," Xin said. "We just wait for him to eat the planet."
"No," Alaric replied. "We sever him first."
That got Xin's attention.
Rion straightened. "Explain."
"There are two things Zane relies on," Alaric said. "His physical adaptation and his Spinat Symbol connection. Cut the second, the first collapses."
"And how the hell do we do that," Xin asked.
"Anti Spinat technology," Alaric answered. "Not a weapon. An environment."
Tara jumped in. "You're talking about the containment chamber."
"Yes," Alaric said. "An anti Spinat room. Prototype. Never tested on anything like Zane."
Xin smiled slowly. "Good. I hate tested plans."
Alaric continued. "Even weakened, Zane will still be lethal. Which is where Raxton comes in."
The word hung heavy.
Xin's grip tightened on the cable in his hand.
"My parents built it for this," Xin said quietly. "Didn't they."
"Yes," Alaric replied. "They did not plan to win a war. They planned to give you one chance."
Tara's voice hardened. "Then this is it. No more running. No more reacting."
Xin nodded. "We bait him. We trap him. We weaken him."
"And then," Rion added.
"And then I kill him," Xin said flatly.
Static crackled.
No one argued.
They cut the transmission after locking coordinates and fallback plans. Everyone would move. Quietly. Separately.
Rion leaned against the jeep and looked at Xin. "Once we start this, there is no undo."
Xin looked back at the road. Somewhere out there, Zane was already smiling.
"I know," Xin said. "That's why we're leaving footprints now."
He kicked the dirt, stepped into the jeep, and slammed the door.
Rion started the engine.
Far above them, beyond clouds and satellites, something felt the shift.
Zane tilted his head in space and grinned wider than before.
"Oh," he murmured. "They chose violence."
The hunt had officially turned into a trap.
And for the first time, Zane was walking straight into it.