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It was the right thing to do.

I stepped away from the corpse, pulling my sword from the sticky mess. A line of blood flickered off the edge of my blade.

The wolf was fleeing, already almost to the open cell door. It’d been only seconds, but even the animal knew when he’d been outmatched. I’d give him credit; he was fast.

But he still wouldn’t make it.

I threw the sword at the canine, and the blade struck the wolf near his upper back. He fell onto the steps and a loud whine echoed through the prison.

The air swelled in anticipation as I moved over my prey. The hilt was hot in my hand, and I pulled out my weapon as the wolf laid on his side, staring up at me with wide, panicked eyes.

To anyone who didn’t know—this was nothing more than an innocent, wounded animal. And, at some point, I might have even felt sorry for him.

But not today.

My grip tightened around the leather handle, and I threw my weight forward and pierced him directly through the throat.

I only had a second of repose as I stood over my victim.

My heart ached. It was sad that it’d come to this, but not that I had to kill them.

It was the state of the world. When had everything changed? Humans—I thought—were better than this. We’d worked so hard.

The crimson haze of fury slowly faded from my vision. I couldn’t tear my eyes from the thick red blood coating the ground at my feet.

The darkness, which had been a lingering thing in the distance, was beginning to close in once more.

“Holy shit!” Ada’s shout pierced through my head. She was standing now, pointing at me. “She’s Mu! She’s Mu, isn’t she?”

“Shut up!” Maria rounded on the hyena, pushing at her shoulder. “Someone might hear you!”

“You knew?” She glared at Maria, then Gloria. The wolf was watching me in silent consternation. “You knew too! How could you not have told me? I never would have agreed to—”

“That’s why,” Gloria answered without missing a beat. “It’s on a need-to-know basis.”

I should go over there, try to find a way to get her out of those chains, or at least free the others. I was up now, I could walk.

I could help us escape.

But before I could even move, my ears popped, and the breath rushed out of me. It was as if a weight had been lifted, and my vision swayed asSpellslayerslipped through my tingling fingers. It disappeared, mid-air, before it could even touch the ground.

I didn’t even feel the stone as I fell.