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Good. Control isn't absence. Dax. Exactly.

"East stairs!" Someone shouts. I recognize Cassian.

Where?

"CASSIAN!"

"EREIA!" Wrong pronunciation. Fine. Smoke. I follow voice.

He appears through grey-black air with six Tide students behind him. Blood on his face.

Not his? No time. Nyra behind him. Thank gods.

Nyra grabs my arm. "You're alive."

"Currently."

"Good."

Cassian looks toward my group. "Where are you going?"

"Inner Academy."

"East stairs blocked."

"By what."

"Everything."

Useful. Another blast. Theryn.

Farther west now. Dragons roar in response. Our dragons. Fighting her? No. Gods.

"North route?" Nyra asks.

"Compromised." Cassian says.

"Lower?"

"Flooded."

"What?"

"Don't ask." Fair.

I look around. Map. Academy. Routes. Secondary.

Tertiary. Rhyven breaking every plan during drills.

Central intersection collapses. Where do you go?

"Old archive corridor." Nyra looks at me.

"Sealed."

"Archive is. Corridor isn't." Cassian nods.

"Leads to inner east."