Book Seven: Chapter 169

“Suly’s down! Cecilia’s been captured, and--” Eulalie caught a flicker of movement in one of the side monitors. The door of the greenhouse was shoved open and Zel came racing out, her features bloody and her face frantic. She was followed by several centaurs, all of them holding weapons. Immediately, those wielding bows launched arrows at nearby attackers.

Zel screamed so loud that her voice was picked up by multiple microphones.

“CALLISTO! CALLISTO!” Zel took another deep breath and turned her head. “GRACE!”

Eulalie felt the world drop out from beneath her. She stared hard into the monitors, her fingers trembling just above the keys.

“They’ve taken the children,” she said, the words tumbling free from numb lips. “Lethal force authorized.”

For several seconds, nobody spoke. The comms were silent as everybody processed this information. There was an eerie burst of static, followed by a single sentence.

“Play time’s over,” said Jenny.

Out in t