Chapter 120 The Fall Of Shadows

• The explosion's echo faded into screams and collapsing stone, smoke curling through shattered marble while moonlight cut through the haze with precision that seemed almost intentional. Gideon moved before conscious thought approved action, voice sharp and commanding as he positioned himself between Bobby and falling debris.
• "Cover the queen! Healers, maintain the barriers!"
• Bobby's glow remained dim yet steady—no longer the fragile divinity that had nearly consumed her, but controlled radiance that spoke of power tempered by understanding its cost. She pushed herself upright despite protests from muscles that had just crossed the threshold between life and death, hand pressing over the scar at her heart where she'd chosen mortality over ascension.