Amaya McIntosh gripped the ladder of the ArkKnight and refused to climb. The mecha loomed above her, humanity's strongest weapon, and its cockpit held two seats. She could pilot it. She could not awaken its full power alone. The bond needed a partner she trusted with her life, and the only pilot who matched her sat waiting at the top. She would not sit beside a spy. "You joined us for the Faye queen," Amaya said. "Give me a reason to believe that changed." Elran Malta stood on the platform, icy wings folded tight against his back. His purple eyes did not flinch. "I'll give you proof, not words," he said. He pressed something into her palm. A cracked communicator, faye-made, its shell shaped like a leaf. "She still calls me on that. Listen." Amaya thumbed it on. A voice poured out, low and sweet, filling the hangar. Queen Masmer. Amaya had only seen the enemy in briefings, fourteen feet tall, skin like green glass, a gown of thorns. The voice alone made the hair on her arms rise. "My little spy," the queen crooned. "Tell me the girl's flight paths. Tell me where the ArkKnight sleeps. Do this and I lift the leash inside you." Amaya's stomach dropped. "A leash?" "She bound me before I ever met you," Elran said. His voice stayed quiet. "Faye magic. If I disobey, it hurts. It's been hurting for weeks." He wasn't lying. His hands shook. A thin line of frost crept from his fingertips, the wings on his back trembling like a trapped insect. Amaya had seen fear before. This was pain held down by will. "Answer her," Amaya said. "Right now. Tell her no." Elran took the communicator back. He looked at Amaya, not at the device. "My queen," he said. "I'm not your spy. I fight for the humans now. For her." The hangar went silent. Then the queen laughed, and the sound curdled the air. "Then feel it, traitor." Elran dropped to one knee. Frost burst across the platform. He gasped, gripping the rail, and did not take the words back. Amaya caught his arm before he fell. Cold bit through her glove. He was shaking, teeth clenched, refusing to scream. No spy would choose this. No spy would burn for a lie. "Enough," Amaya said. She crushed the communicator under her boot. The queen's voice cut off. Elran slumped, breathing hard, the frost melting into puddles around them. Amaya pulled him up. Her doubt was gone, but a worse problem took its place. She helped him toward the cockpit at last. "The queen knows where I am now," Elran said. "She knows I turned. She'll come for the ArkKnight herself." Amaya climbed into the second seat beside him. She had her partner. She had also given the enemy a reason to hunt them both.