“But there’s another way,” Vanya interjects. “If we can identify the specific triggers, we can work around them. Ask questions that extract information without activating the failsafe.”
“How?” Caleb asks.
Ember leans forward. Light flickers at her fingertips—unconscious manifestation of her interest. “You ask about methods instead of goals. Tactics instead of strategy. How they do things rather than why.”
“Exactly,” Vanya confirms. Her hand moves to Ember’s shoulder. A subtle touch. Grounding. Mother to daughter. Ember doesn’t pull away. Just nods slightly, and the magical light flickers away.
The small exchange makes something in my chest tighten. Family. Connection. The easy intimacy of people who know each other’s tells.
I had that once. With Lyria. With advisors I trusted. With warriors who fought beside me for decades.
Then I slept for four centuries and woke to a world where everyone I knew is dust.
Viktor nods. Turns back to Vex. “Tell me about the facilities. How many operational sites does the Syndicate maintain?”
Vex’s expression clears slightly. The question is factual. Probably common knowledge. “Seventeen. Across four continents. Primary operations in Eastern Europe. Secondary sites in—”
He rattles off locations. Viktor records everything.
I watch. Listen. But my attention keeps slipping.
The bond hums in my chest. Stretched thin by distance but present. Mara is in the living quarters above. Alone. Probably processing everything that happened on the terrace.
Processing what I didn’t say.
What I couldn’t say.
I haven’t spoken to her since then, but I know it needs to be dealt with.
“Tell us more about these facilities,” Viktor presses.
“They serve multiple purposes,” Vex continues. His voice is still mechanical, but the words flow easier now that Viktor’s found the safe channels. “Research. Training. Strategic planning for—”
He stops abruptly.
“Strategic planning for what?” Viktor prompts carefully.
Vex’s breathing is labored. “Restructuring. Current… structures.”
“Government structures?” Caleb asks.
A nod. Slight. Painful.
“How?” I ask. “Governments don’t fall because you wish them to. You need infrastructure. Networks. Resources.”
His vacant eyes turn to me. “We have those. Years of… preparation. Assets in place. Financial systems. Communication networks. Key individuals in positions of—”
He gasps. Another block.
“Influence,” Kieran finishes for him. “They’ve been infiltrating human governments for decades. Placing operatives in strategic positions. Building power structures that look legitimate but answer to Syndicate control.”
“How do you know this?” Viktor asks.
“Because I saw the strategy that would support it.” Kieran’s voice is emotionless. Dead. “For three years. After they broke me. Before Iris found me. I was involved in activities that I can now see would lead to this.”
“They’re not planning a war,” Viktor says. “They’re planning a coup.”
“Multiple coups,” Kieran amends. “Coordinated. Simultaneous across major governments. Dragons revealing themselves not as myth but as the next stage of humanevolution. Offering protection. Order. Solutions to problems they’ve been quietly creating for years.”
