As soon as Fay squeezed into the narrow passage, Radeon moved.
Threads snapped from his fingers and shot down the throat of the corridor.
They did not stop at stone. They sewed through it. Filaments bit into rock and vanished, then reappeared in tight angles, crossing and recrossing until the passage became an intricate maze of traps.
One layer. Five. Ten. Twenty. His chant held steady while his hands worked. When he finished, his spools were bare.
"Hold the entrance," he sent to Fay through silent qi. "I'll look around."
Fay nodded and watched Radeon. She braced for contempt, for the familiar disdain, for the cold look that made her small.
It did not come. His face was still hard, still his, but the edge of disgust was not there. Not now.
The absence of it loosened something in her chest. Relief came first, then guilt for feeling it.
She took a stance. Teal soul flame licked at her fingertips, ready to erupt.
