Back on Earth, inside one of Alaric's safest hidden bases, Selene jolted awake from her unconscious state.
Her eyes snapped open. Her body sat up too quickly, and a sharp wave of dizziness rushed through her head.
Her hand caught the edge of the bed to steady herself. The room around her was unfamiliar.
Alaric was seated in a sofa beside the bed.
He looked up from the tablet in his hands as she stirred.
"Good morning."
His expression was calm. His face was tired but composed.
Selene took a moment to gather her thoughts. Her mind sorted through the last things she could remember. The tournament arena. The dark figures moving through the western wall. The figures clad in black. Her rushing forward to fight. Then nothing but darkness.
She frowned.
"What happened?"
Alaric didn't lie.
He didn't sugarcoat it either. He told her the truth of the plan he had built with Moon the night before the tournament.
