The vertebrae in orbit fluttered loose, their perfect arc briefly breaking.
Camber rolled. His ribs shrieked with the motion, but he moved anyway—shoulder dragging, thigh slipping under him. His left eye was shut completely now. The right stared ahead without blinking.
He stood.
Unsteady. Barely breathing. But standing.
A ghost strike followed. One hand dropped low, and the energy flared off the floor toward Ravel's ribs.
It hit. Not deep, but enough to send him a step back.
Ravel's expression didn't change. He let the force move through him.
Then reached out with one hand and gripped Camber by the front of the chest.
The tether reappeared. Not over the shoulder this time.
Directly over the heart.
A fine red thread attached itself to the skin just above Camber's left pec. The shard pulsed underneath.
Camber froze. His mouth opened, but no words came out.
Ravel twisted.
The thread yanked.
