It felt like ice was spreading through her veins. Like her blood was freezing solid. Like her bones were shattering and reforming and shattering again, over and over in an endless cycle of agony.
The pain was *indescribable*.
Like someone had taken her body apart piece by piece and was putting it back together wrong, slowly, deliberately, making sure she felt every excruciating second of it.
Tears fell from her eyes—the only part of her that could still move—but she couldn't even cry out.
Just silent, frozen agony.
Around her, everything descended into chaos.
"GET THE PHYSICIANS! NOW!"
"SEAL THE AREA! NO ONE LEAVES!"
"PROTECT THE EVIDENCE! DON'T LET ANYONE NEAR THAT POISON!"
The System was screaming, "HOST! HOST, CAN YOU HEAR ME?! HOST!"
But Heena couldn't respond. Couldn't move. Could only lie there, trapped in her own paralyzed body, drowning in pain.
---
Back at the palace, Larus was still standing by the window when he heard it—
