Karl sat stiffly in the backseat of the shuttle, his hands trembling in his lap as if they no longer belonged to him. The engine's low hum buzzed through the metal floor and into his bones, but it did nothing to quiet the frantic thudding of his heart.
He turned toward the window, his gaze catching the last flickers of the underbelly's dim orange glow as the shuttle ascended through a jagged tunnel carved into the earth. The higher they climbed, the more his breathing hitched. He had no idea where they were taking him.
The shuttle jerked to a sudden halt, and before he could brace himself, the side door hissed open. Hands gripped his arms, rough and impatient, dragging him out. The change in light struck him hard. He stumbled, blinded by the pale gleam of a sky fractured by the translucent panels of the Shifter Shard dome.
