With such a battle being a new thing to everyone involved, victory would depend on the ability to quickly assess and adapt. The Guard had more power, but in terms of tactics and strategy, each side was on the same level. Rivia’s group would remain on the cliff for the time being, observing the skirmish from afar to learn before throwing themselves into it.

  Moments before Osk’s men clashed with the Guard over the next dune, a rising tide of alchemagi erupted over the sands. Osk’s men were forced to act second—therefore defensively. Two large vector lines came sweeping in from either side, their origins unknown; hiding somewhere in the mass of black and gray armor worn by the attacking army.

  “Milla!” Garder called.

  “I know,” she replied and held up her hand.

  She performed her own strong vector spell to push back the flanking attack. She had to exert nearly all of her power, but she was backed up by the few vector-wielders in Osk’s army before she wore herself out, and the enemy’s cutting, glowing lines quickly disappeared.

  “Watch out for vectors… they’ll cut through us given the chance.”

  “Thanks, Milla,” Osk’s voice fizzed. “Sword clashing’s started down here. Archers, riflemen—wait for my mark. Let’s condense ‘em a bit.”

  Garder turned and observed the surroundings. Hiding between two dunes on either side of the battlefield were small groups of ranged fighters, waiting to strike. And once he faced the central combat zone again, he noticed a wave of reinforcements coming over to join the Guard.

  “There’s a lot of them,” Verim noted. “Sure we can’t help yet?”

  “We’ll wait for an opening,” Shin replied. “We’re higher priority, Verim. We’re more valuable alive and here.”

  “Incoming!” Garder shouted.

  Either a stray or guided fireball was on its way to the cliffside. Jeryn acted first, quickly countering with a bolt of plasma that broke the fireball into a hundred burning embers before it came within a dangerous distance.

  “No problem,” he said coolly. “I wonder if that was meant for us.”

  “Keep your eyes open for any alchemagi or projectile heading our way,” Shin replied. “I’d set up a static shield, but it’d glow in the sunlight and only make us more noticeable.”

  Garder yawned. “This isn’t as exciting as I had hoped.”

  “You have to be kidding.” Milla scowled. “If you only took one thing seriously in your life, Garder, it should be this.”

  “Yeah, yeah…”

  “All men, fall back to the bottleneck,” Osk announced. “Archers and riflemen—ready your weapons.”

  Garder saw him in the corner of his eye. He was summoning strong earthen barriers to cover the fallback. The sand was indeed an optimal place for him, as it provided limitless and accessible protection. The opposing alchemagists had to focus on taking the walls down before the Guard could proceed, creating some distance between them and Osk’s men. It was hard to tell how many had fallen so far, what with a lack of bodies on either side.

  The sound of blades clashing was steadily growing louder in the desert winds. As soon as the last of Osk’s men were through the bottleneck, the captain summoned forth a mighty stone wall, cutting them completely off from the Guard. Before the ranged fighters made their move, two scarlet-clad rebels who had been hiding in the sand sprung up from the other side of the valley and created their own wall.

  This caused chaos in the Guard army. Dozens of men went flying into the air following the sudden maneuver, and the army was quickly cut in two—half the men were now trapped in the valley with nowhere to go.

  “Now,” Osk said calmly.

  Archers on one side and riflemen on the other, the two groups scattered up the hills and took defensive positions. In a rather beautiful synchronization, they let loose with their weaponry. Heavy iron arrows rained down from the west, while large, single-shot spheres loaded with explosive ash came from the east.

  The full-size Aurrian rifle was a work of art. Any Earth gun could be rendered useless so long as the attacker didn’t get a surprise shot in, as basic alchemagi could either break it apart or deflect the fired bullet. To make a rifle in Aurra meant thinking about how to get it past a form of magic.

  First and foremost, every projectile was coated in a thin layer of alchemagi sealant, just enough for it to survive its journey to the target. Fired out of a rifle the size of a rocket launcher, the slug was typically shot with a small ark. Upon hitting something solid, it exploded with the power of a grenade and spewed blinding ash with a loud pop. Harder to create, but far more devastating, were spheres encompassing sealed, volatile energy.

  Bow and arrow used a different technique for effectiveness and naturally dated back much further in Aurrian history. Instead of a sealant coating, arrows were infused with some iron alchemagi, which strengthened them and made them heavier. Acting like an enchanted projectile, it couldn’t be so easily deflected—and the best archers could even maintain control of their fired arrows to empower them. Both weapons were equally important in modern Aurrian use and had their own dozens of variations.

  On the field, the Guard reacted in time to prevent total devastation. Their wizards fired off strong attacks, while the knights and ranged fighters used their own weaponry to deflect what they could. Orange smoke wafted upwards in a high quantity, the clothes and weapons drifting back to the sand where they were trampled by panicking soldiers. Their ammunition spent for the moment, both sides of rebels quickly retreated to reload.

  “Poor show so far,” Jeryn commented. “They either underestimated us or were just ill-prepared.”

  “They could just be testing us,” Shin replied. “The Guard should be better than this… But maybe that’s just what I expected.”

  “Turned out pretty well, huh?” Xavier’s voice came in both through the radio and in the surrounding air. “Up here, Garder.”

  Garder look up and over to find him posted in a small watchtower, a pair of binoculars over his eyes.

  “I came up with that ambush idea, actually.”

  “No kidding? You’re more useful than you look.”

  “Unfortunately, that’s about the only tactic we made up. It’s all a big wild card from here.”

  “Huh…” Garder turned to Milla. “Think we should help them yet? Looks like more reinforcements are coming…”

  “They’ll tell us when they need us. This isn’t really our fight, you know,” Jeryn explained. “We’re just here to help if need be. The important thing is to delay them until Simon’s group can get their job over with…”

  “We’re going to stall them a bit with shields,” Osk’s voice fizzed again. “Use the time to get ready and into position, you five.”

  Below, the soldiers sifted around until a bending arc of heavily shielded men formed forward of the others. The large, reflective blue disks, covered in heavy alchemagi sealant, would negate any direct attack whether physical or mental. Meanwhile above them, like battling artillery, bursts of spells of all colors were clashing in a light show.

  The battle soon came to a virtual standstill, but the Guard’s reinforcements kept coming over the dunes. Within minutes, the archers and riflemen had entered the fray completely and seemed to be firing at will at whomever they could hit.

  “Kind of violent,” Garder quipped.

  “Mindlessly so,” Shin added. “But I suppose we should go in.”

  “Can we make that big of a difference? We’re not special—we were just picked for this assignment and wound up here.”

  “Let’s try anyway,” Milla said. “Come on—let’s back them up.”

  “Right,” Jeryn replied. “I’ll get us down there safely. I’ve always been talented in earth spells, so watch this one…”

  Using a level-two technique, Jeryn made a wall of moving, protective sand over the group. Moments later, another wave of sand appeared from under them, snaring everyone and dragging them downward.

  “Um, Jeryn, what is this?” Garder asked.

  “It looks like a sand snake from the outside. It’s a transportation technique—it can take us underground, too. I spotted a safe area to come in at, so just hold on.”

  “Can’t move a muscle…” Verim groaned.

  “That’s for your own protection. Relax, I know what I’m doing.”

  The serpentine sand burrowed its way deep underground, far below the battlefield. They would’ve been shrouded in darkness had it not been for the small flame Jeryn was maintaining on the side. After a few minutes of travel, the sand snake pitched upwards and quickly resurfaced again.

  Ground mineral blasted outwards at the top of a dune as the snake dissolved around everyone. It was a rather explosive entrance, but with all the other combatants focused on the battle, the vortex of climbing sand appeared to be more of a simple desert updraft than anything else.

  “We’ll attack the stragglers and reinforce the west,” Jeryn ordered. “Be careful. It may seem inconsequential on Earth, but you’re more valuable alive right now than dead. Watch out for one another.”

  “They don’t have any pretorians deployed. Not yet, at least,” Shin observed. “We would’ve noticed by now.”

  “Right. Out comes the sword.” Garder stretched and unsheathed his blade. “Oh, well. Not like I’m that talented in alchemagi anyway.”

  “Personally, I look forward to the show you’ll put on,” Verim replied, bringing down his sword like a whip. “Let’s do it, guys.”

  “Right. On my count, make a cautious flanking charge,” Jeryn said.

  “Wow, that’s really specific,” Garder scoffed.

  “We learn as we go, Garder. Milla, Shin—protect us with vector lines and the static field. We’ll get in close and cut through their ranks.”

  “I’ll fire off a seed bomb as soon as I’m in range,” Verim explained, taking out a weapon akin to a flare gun. “I work better off alone, guys, so don’t panic if I get separated.”

  “Whatever works for you, Verim. Ready?”

  “Yep,” Garder sighed. “Damn this heat… What a place to battle…”

  “If you’re done complaining, it’s time to move.”

  Jeryn used all of his physical strength to rapidly work his way up the sand dune, and was quickly followed by Shin, Milla and Verim. Garder grumbled once more before joining them.

  They were noticed instantly, and vector lines were already homing in on them. Milla worked to deflect them while Shin set up her vibrant static field that could change the direction of any incoming projectile. Running up a sandy hill easily tired them, but they couldn’t stop to rest any time soon.

  With a loud pop, Verim fired his seed gun into the air. Upon hitting its apex, the bomb exploded and showered seeds all across the battlefield.

  “I can only use cactus seeds out in a place like this,” Verim noted. “Less flexible, but more resilient to attack.”

  “Try not to hit our men with them,” Jeryn replied.

  “Oh, I won’t—don’t you worry.”

  Jeryn performed a small manipulation on the dune’s side to smooth out the sand, making it easier and faster to enter the battle below. And just a minute later, the group was fully enthralled with the clash of the Aurrians.

  “Okay… what sub-level are we on now?” Lechi groaned quietly as the trio entered the next central ventilation shaft. “We’ve been going through these vents for at least an hour now.”

  “I don’t know… twenty-eight, I think,” Simon answered. “But it’s not like we have any idea how far these things go down. Sooner or later, we’ll have to leave the safety of this circulation network.” He gave his dying flashlight another hit with his palm. “We’d better get out of here before we lose our lights—and I won’t have any left for me to manipulate.”

  “I can see everything in my mind even in total darkness,” Temki explained. “But that wouldn’t help you two out much.”

  “Which way, Tanesh?” Lechi asked the dog as she crawled into another one of the central shafts. “Six ways to go at this one…”

  He sniffed around each entrance, taking in the smells coming from them. Everyone took a brief moment of rest while the dog did his work.

  “This is looking worse by the minute,” Simon said. “I don’t know how we’re going to get out of here again. We’ve been sliding and climbing down vents the entire way so far. God only knows all the security and rairer creatures we’re bypassing.”

  “I’m not scared,” Lechi said. “As long as we do what we’re supposed to, nothing will frighten me. Even if something should happen to us.”

  “You’ll just return to Hold if they get you, Simon…” Temki added. “You should have no fear at all… That’s why you’re leading us.”

  “But I don’t want anything bad to happen to you two, either. And really, I have little idea of what I’m actually doing… I didn’t expect to be leading two kids and a dog down another world’s administrative system.”

  “Really, none of us have any idea what we’re doing, Simon,” Lechi replied. “We just gotta try everything we can. Keep our wits, you know. We’re the first to fight back against the Guard to such a degree. I doubt either side knows just where this all is going or how intense it might be. Let’s just do what we can at this moment and don’t sweat it.”

  “Ha… On Earth, you’d never find a child speaking like you do.”

  “I’m over a thousand years old. I’ve been around. That all helps.”

  “Hm, maybe you should be leading then.”

  “You’ve got the agile, stronger body. Sometimes having someone who can defend themselves properly lead is the better choice.”

  “This… is all really weird, now that I think about it.”

  Tanesh stopped at one of the lower ventilation connections, wagged his tail, and sat.

  “Does he want us to take that one, then?”

  “Looks like it,” Lechi said. “He’s going after the vents with the freshest airflow. That’s about all we can rely on.”

  “Then down we go, again.”

  The three quietly slid down the small steel tunnel, Tanesh following behind. They slid for a while this time, and Simon feared that they could pick up speed and collide hard with the bottom, or somewhere worse. Luckily, the angle softened up a bit after a few more drops down various levels—but not enough to stop them completely.

  Feet-first, Simon broke through a ventilation panel and hit the ground with a thud. Before checking out his location, he quickly rolled out of the way before Lechi landed on him.

  Noticing the upcoming gap, Lechi reacted in time to grab onto the edge and slowly lower herself to the ground. Temki, on the other hand, wasn’t able-bodied enough to do as such and plowed through as quickly as Simon had. But before he crashed to the ground, Simon caught him in his arms, just as Lechi did the same for Tanesh. He whimpered, after obviously not enjoying the journey down.

  “You okay, Temki?” Simon asked after brushing himself off.

  “Y-yeah. Thanks.”

  “So… where are we?” Simon wondered. “This is different than all the other levels we’ve been on.”

  They looked around the area where they had landed. It was an endless and silent tunnel. Wind echoed in the distance, and the thousands of lamps strewn on the sides lit it equally for at least several miles.

  “Should we go left, or…” Lechi stopped when she realized that no end or beginning could be seen in either direction, and now that Simon was concentrating, he could feel a very strange presence in the area.

  “It… looks kind of like a sewer,” he said quietly. “But on second glance, it’s more like… an atom smasher?”

  “What are those again?” Lechi asked.

  “They’re built in very long, underground tunnels. They use magnetic rails to accelerate matter and collide it with other matter at high speed.”

  “Aurra wouldn’t have something like that. We’re well aware of Earth research and keep up on it, but don’t need to… contribute to it in Aurra.”

  “So, this thing isn’t science related…”

  “Probably not. Hey—Temki, what is it?”

  He seemed to be in a state of heavy meditation and didn’t respond.

  “Tanesh feels something, too… look at him,” Simon mentioned. “And I’m also feeling a little strange.”

  “This has to be the bottom,” Lechi said. “I mean, I can’t imagine anything being under this. So, the tunnel either leads us to suppression control place, or we went past it already. Still… this tunnel must have some kind of importance.”

  “I can see so much…” Temki said quietly and opened his eyes.

  “Hm? What do you see?”

  “Lives… Thousands of lives… All of their memories. And their feelings… Happiness, fear, anger, and sorrow…”

  “Lives?” Simon asked. “Could… you explain a little more, Temki?”

  “They flow through here like a river…”

  “That must mean…” Lechi thought for a moment. “This has to be the place souls go through. We’ve always wondered how this part of the system worked. We can’t see them, but…”

  “This is where we go after we’re done in Hold,” Simon surmised. “This tunnel must connect to every City, right?”

  “The one under C must be severed. That’s why they aren’t getting any transfers.”

  “But this is all so strange… It’s such a complex, industrial system. It just looks like a big, empty tunnel, but it must’ve been built with incredible precision. It couldn’t have been like this at the beginning.”

  “The Guard made it like this. How, no one under the highest levels would know.”

  “There’s something ahead,” Temki said. “About a mile south…”

  “No use staying here,” Simon said with a shrug.

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  With Tanesh leading the way and acting as an early warning system, they soon finished their trek and ended up at a very large, strange machine.

  Coming out of a lightless pit was a metal cone. At its tip was a small burning orb as bright as the sun, and below it, blue plasma bounded off the cone’s surface. A single beam of light was shooting up through a shaft above, eventually disappearing but illuminating everything on its way up.

  “We should be at about the center point of the City now,” Temki said. “This thing… It has to be…”

  There was a brief tremor, and an orb formed at the tip and shot upwards at high speed. It was out of sight within seconds.

  “Looks like someone got chosen to be born in City A,” Lechi guessed. “Yeah, there must be one of these under every City.”

  “But what’s at the bottom, all the way down there?” Simon asked.

  “I have a feeling the control center is either down there…” Lechi looked into the hole below, and then the one above, “or up there.”

  “How do we get around? The leaf gliders won’t cut it this time.”

  “The Guard or Administration probably uses buzzers or something to get around. Maybe we can find some kind of transportation—”

  “I think I found something,” Temki reported from the other side, near the entrance to the next tunnel. “Come over here.”

  Simon was the first to arrive. He noticed the small compartment attached to the wall, almost like how a fire extinguisher would be kept.

  “What is it?” Lechi asked.

  “Demirriage inside. Only for emergency use,” Simon read verbatim. “Return device to this compartment after use and file report immediately. Huh. Can’t these supposedly not be made anymore?”

  “Maybe. Either way, this is something we really need. Good place to put one, too… This area is so far away from everything and has plenty of lighting. And maintenance would be important down here.”

  “We should take this,” Temki said. “Right now, we only have one… This would make things easier for us, right?”

  “It might set off an alarm,” Simon worried. “One we may not hear.”

  “I agree with Temki, though. We can’t just pass up something this powerful in front of us. And anyway, it may be our only ticket out of here.”

  “Don’t worry, Simon…” Temki spoke a little more courageously. “I’ll focus and detect anything coming before it happens.”

  “Well… okay…” Simon sighed.

  He looked at the metal box for a moment longer before opening it. Inside, seemingly unguarded, was a metal scroll like Jeryn’s—though slightly less dirtied. Likely a newer model, as well. He reached in and yanked it out.

  Then the alarm went off.

  “Authorization required. Please provide authorization. Authorization required…” an electronic voice coming from the box itself continued.

  “It’s not a big alarm,” Simon said over the voice, “but we definitely triggered something.”

  “I don’t feel anything yet…” Temki concentrated. “But we’d better run or hide just to be… Wait—a life form is approaching from above.”

  “Human?” Simon asked, pocketing the scroll and preparing to summon a light-manipulation technique.

  “No… I don’t think so.”

  “Then it must be…” Lechi murmured. “Stay right here. Keep calm.”

  “Deploying countermeasure,” the voice announced and shut off.

  A roar came from above. Simon already knew what it was, but didn’t move. Then the rairer appeared from the shaft. It looked at the group, then growled and shifted its six eyes, its drool dripping from sharp fangs. The creature plopped down with a heavy thud and reared up on its legs.

  “Hold on.” Lechi held out her hand behind her. “I’ll talk to it. Don’t move an inch.”

  “Lechi… that thing can tear you apart…” Simon murmured.

  “I trust Rivia. So just let me speak to it… It’s not like the demon…”

  The rairer, smaller than the one seen before, opened its jaws and let out a howl. Before it came charging, Lechi spoke to it calmly.

  “Hi… there.”

  The beast sunk a bit and closed its jaws. A low growl came from its throat as it stared at Lechi intently. Simon let out the smallest sigh of relief, while Temki could already feel the creature’s shifting aura. Tanesh tucked his tail between his legs and curled up behind Lechi, too afraid to whine.

  “How are you?” Lechi continued. “Um, so look… We’re sorry for breaking into your home, but we’re on an important mission. You know the people that say they own you and use you as a weapon? Well, they’re bad and they enjoy hurting others. And they don’t care about you. They just use you as a weapon. But you know what? I like all creatures and treat them with respect. If you help us, I could free you. Do you know what freedom is? You probably don’t… but freedom is beautiful. You can do whatever you want… Would you like to do that? Does that sound nice?”

  The creature’s knees buckled and it let out a snort. Simon held his breath as it knelt down and suddenly nuzzled her with its large, scaly snout.

  “U-um L-Lechi…” Simon muttered.

  “It’s okay…” Temki said. “It’s at peace… I sense no anger at all.”

  “She’s young,” Lechi explained, patting its head as if it were a horse. “She even gets bullied by the bigger ones. Look at the scars… Poor thing. But she’s a good girl. She’s kind of like an innocent child.”

  “Yeah, I kind of get that feeling, too,” Temki added.

  “B-but look at it…” Simon continued.

  “So? Simon, don’t you know that animals are more fearful of us than we are of them? Even though this is an Aurrian animal… maybe the only one. Nothing really changes. Come over here—she’s friendly.”

  “Friendly… Are you sure?”

  Lechi whispered a few words to Tanesh, who got back on his feet and trotted over to the small rairer to take in its smells.

  “What’s your name? Zalatrya? That’s a nice name you have. Can I call you Zala? Really? Okay, Zala, we’re trying to find something. It’s a kind of place that… well, we really don’t know what it looks like. Could you tell me what’s at the bottom of that big hole? I see… Hm… And do you know a way out of here? We have something to escape with, but I want you to get out, too. I don’t care what they say—I’m telling you that you’re free now. Okay, okay… we’ll talk about that later. Could you give my friends here a ride to that place you told me about? You will? Thank you, Zala.”

  “You’re kidding me…” Simon sighed after hearing several groans and snorts Lechi could interpret. “She can take us to the control area?”

  “As far as she can get into it,” Lechi replied. “Come on—get up on her back.”

  “I… don’t know…”

  “Simon, I already told you—she’s friendly. She’ll listen to me. I wouldn’t risk something like this if I wasn’t sure.”

  “I’m coming,” Temki said.

  He walked over, where he was helped up by Lechi. The two clung onto the creature’s nape. Once again, Simon couldn’t quite believe what he was seeing, but he knew there was no other choice and quickly joined the others. Or rather, he tried to, but noticed a bit of a problem.

  “Hm… there’s no more room on the back, is there?” Lechi also observed. “Oh, what’s that, Zala? Okay, I got it. Um, Simon—Zala says she can hold onto you with her leg-tail. They use it to haul stuff around.”

  The rairer’s back leg rose up and opened its grasp for Simon.

  “Oh… joy,” he mumbled. “I’m being taken to its young for dinner.”

  “Nonsense. She’s probably not even old enough to be a mom.”

  The creature’s hand came down and wrapped itself around Simon, holding him securely. He didn’t know what else to do but keep still, quiet, and unquestioning. The rairer let out a howl that sounded happier in tone.

  “Hang on,” Lechi said. “I think this will be a little bumpy.”

  The rairer spun around and plunged down the shaft headfirst. After a long drop, it maneuvered itself closer to the wall and grabbed hold of it to continue downward. Lechi held onto Tanesh tightly with Temki right behind—and Simon further back between the friendly beast’s claws.

  “This is strange,” Garder said after deflecting an attacking knight’s blade. “It’s like the Guard isn’t putting their all into it.”

  “I know,” Milla replied, blasting a group of soldiers away with a strong gust. “I wonder if they even know what they’re fighting for out here, or if they were just brought out here blindly.”

  “In any case, I just hit twenty,” Shin said, ripping off some torn cloth on her blade. “Though I move so fast, my eyes probably missed a few.”

  “Milla, I still think you should just use a vector attack and cut through them,” Garder said. “We’d be done with this a lot sooner.”

  “And I told you that there’s no honor in that. It’s no better than something the Guard would do. It… doesn’t feel right. And anyway, I’m reserving my vector lines for our defense.”

  “Fine, be that way. I haven’t even used any alchemagi yet.”

  “Where did Verim run off to?” Jeryn questioned after launching another fireball. “I haven’t seen him since we came down here.”

  Shin pointed him out. “Over there.”

  He had become a blur with his spinning motions, and was trapped in between the masses of the enemy army slightly further down the dune. It looked like everyone near him was now trying to take him down, but with his wild movements, the battle against him had turned into their side choosing another unlucky soldier to enter a very brief duel.

  “He must’ve smelled ‘rich’ blood and went crazy again,” Shin sighed. “I don’t know why he’s like that.”

  “He’s completely surrounded and cut off out there. He’ll run out of energy sooner or later,” Milla said.

  “He can hold out a little longer. I’m more worried about Osk and his men. We haven’t heard any new orders, and I’m not sure where they are.”

  “They’ve all blended in with the enemy,” Garder said. “Be careful who you’re attacking.”

  A dozen soldiers attempted to launch a combined tackle on Verim, but he reacted first and summoned a strong spell. A couple of large, spiny cacti sprung up from the ground around him and sent some soldiers flying back. The attack was followed with a rain of shooting cactus needles as Verim leapt into the air to reposition himself.

  “That kid is insane,” Garder commented. “He’s really going all out over there. Almost inspires me to actually try a few spells.”

  “Just keep using the sword,” Shin said. “You’re doing fine with it.”

  Another knight leapt at her, likely unaware of her power. She struck while he was still in the air with a thundering crack of electricity. He reacted in time to absorb the first attack into his blade, but was so overwhelmed by her agility that he had no defense against the second.

  Before he could even touch sand again, Shin finished him off with a wide blow. He turned to orange smoke, and his clothes fluttered downward.

  “This isn’t what I expected,” Shin sighed. “Feels more like a violent, mindless squabble than an actual battle. Little honor to be found here.”

  “Hey, guys?” Verim’s voice came through the radio.

  “Yes?” Shin replied.

  “I must’ve taken down about fifty of these boneheads, but I’m spent now… Out of seeds, and my muscles are all screwed up.”

  “Got it, Verim. Come back here and we’ll reposition—”

  “Nah, don’t bother. I think I’m going to Hold to get some rest.”

  “What? You can’t just let yourself get killed.”

  “Ah, don’t worry, I won’t. Hey, Jeryn, watch—you might like this one. It’s a forbidden technique centered around alchemagi destruction.”

  “Oh no. He’s doing that…” Shin grumbled.

  “Doing what? What’s this technique?” Jeryn asked.

  “Watch…”

  “I’ll see you guys later,” Verim continued. “Oh, and bring back my swords, would you? I’ve grown to like them.”

  “You always do, Verim,” Shin replied.

  “I know. Anyway…”

  Verim, completely surrounded by angry soldiers, threw both swords behind him and went into a birdlike stance. Being as unpredictable as he was, the soldiers backed off for a moment to prepare a possible defense. Verim then swallowed one of his pills—it looked like a black one this time.

  Plasma erupted all around him and formed into glowing red feathers that absorbed themselves into Verim. He glowed a vibrant purple, before his entire body suddenly condensed into a small sphere of energy. Realizing what was coming, the soldiers attempted to retreat—but it was too late.

  The explosion was more powerful than Palar’s impact back at the Fragmented City’s portal. It tore open the ground and took out everything within a sixty-foot radius. The affected area had been heated up so much that the sand had been scorched into glass.

  “What the hell…” Garder coughed out the sand that had blown into his throat. “What was that? I saw him take a pill before, but that…”

  “He’s among only a few of us that has the guts to do that,” Shin said calmly. “He always likes to go out with a… you know, bang.”

  “A self-destruction technique?” Jeryn wondered. “How could that even be researched? It wouldn’t even be possible on Aurra.”

  “It’s not a true technique,” Shin explained. “It’s a special type of kill pill. It starts a chain reaction that ignites the body’s alchemagi—but the user still has to train for it and direct their flow so it all goes, well, super-critical.”

  “That is utterly insane.”

  “It’s something our kingdom developed. And it takes quite a toll on the body, even after it’s remade. Verim will be tired in Hold tonight.”

  “I think he’ll win the tally,” Garder added. “He’s probably taken out over a hundred men in total… Uncontrollable little thing, isn’t he?”

  “He can be.”

  “Do you read me? This is Osk—I don’t know what that was just now, but I think our numbers are about even. That said, we’re going to fall back to base and defend from there. We can’t fight out on the dunes much longer—I’ve already got men collapsing from heat stroke.”

  “Got it, Captain,” Milla replied. “Then we’ll fall back, too.”

  “Thanks for the help. See you back at the top.”

  “Certainly was an interesting battle,” Garder muttered. “Jeryn, do your sand worm thing again and get us out of here.”

  “Sure thing,” he replied and prepped the spell.

  They were among the first to leave the field, and after arriving back at the mesa, they watched as the remaining men made their slow retreat back. Osk had done a good job of conserving his numbers, and he could now fight on equal terms—at least for the moment.

  “I didn’t expect to do this well,” he came in again. “It’s obvious they haven’t gotten into C yet. If they attempted to open a portal, we’d know.”

  “They might be just stalling us until they’re ready for their own surprise,” Garder replied. “But so far, so good. Even with Verim gone.”

  “What? You lost the kid with the sword?”

  “He made himself useful, I assure you,” Shin said. “I bet my people will be in chaos tonight trying to sort everyone out. I feel bad for Escellé.”

  “Still, this is going fairly smoothly, don’t you think?” Milla replied.

  “G-guys! Look in the southwest!” Xavier shouted out from his watchtower, his binoculars fixated on something in the distance.

  The group of four hurried over to the cliff edge to get a better look. At first, they couldn’t see a thing, but then it became clear: a large area of space above the desert in the far distance was vibrating with visible ripples.

  “What is that?” Jeryn wondered aloud. “Could it be the demon?”

  “No. It’s something else…” Garder replied.

  The sky opened up as a massive tear formed. Behind it was the darkness of an Aurrian night, the world’s moon shining through the portal. The tear was so large that it sent shock waves out in all directions, and the wind of the desert picked up from the abnormal event.

  “What the hell?” Osk shouted. “All units! Hasten your retreat! We’ve got a major event in the southwest desert!”

  “This is what they’ve been waiting for,” Shin stated.

  “What do you mean?” Milla asked.

  “I have a good feeling of what’s going to come through there…”

  A moment later, the signature bow of the Gods’ Palm pushed its way through the portal and entered Earth’s atmosphere. The large, formidable cannons covering its lower hull just barely managed to pass through the opening—a few feet more in any direction, and they would’ve snapped off.

  “It’s coming up on the radar now!” Xavier reported. “It’s giant!”

  “They managed to bring an entire dreadnought through… just using a pair of those claws?” Garder questioned. “Something is wrong here. The demon has to use all twelve pairs just to get itself through. How could they bring that into battle only using two?”

  “I don’t know,” Shin replied. “But we can’t let the Palm get over here. It’ll wipe us all out in seconds.”

  “It’s far out there,” Xavier explained. “Maybe you can counter it?”

  “Counter it? What are we supposed to do, fire missiles? It’s covered in sealant, too, isn’t it?”

  “It must be coming through a safer area of the wastes, beyond C’s mountains,” Shin explained. “I don’t think it’ll just warp into C, though… Too dangerous, they might hit something.”

  “They may not be able to at all,” Jeryn added. “The claws themselves might not be on board. But that thing will definitely give them the mesa. Getting back into C would be impossible without a demirriage.”

  “And our casualties… It’d be difficult to get us all back together.”

  “You have to take the Palm out,” Osk ordered. “I don’t care how—it must be done. We do have an airstrip—so find a plane and get out there!”

  “Yeah, but… do we have any…” Garder thought. “Wait—we do! Verim’s first stolen plane is still here, right?”

  “Yes, but it’s probably almost out of fuel,” Shin said.

  “We only need enough to get out and above the Palm.”

  “How?” Milla questioned. “Are we going to land on it or something? And look at all of its cannons… It could shoot us down.”

  “We’ll figure everything out when we get there. Even if we crash land, we have the power to protect ourselves, right? Jeryn—can you fly?”

  “Well… I’ll try and remember as much as I can…” He scratched his head. “But Garder, this is pretty crazy, even by your standards.”

  “You already know it’s the only way we’re taking it down.”

  “He’s right,” Shin agreed. “Xavier, how long until it’s in firing range of our men?”

  “About fifteen minutes, give or take,” he replied. “It is a very large and lumbering airship. It wasn’t built to travel quickly.”

  “Then that’s all the time we have to work with. Come on, then.”

  Without any further arguments, the four headed back to the hangar. Garder worked on getting the doors open while Jeryn started the aircraft and checked its systems. It was a small single engine plane with two seats in the back, altogether just enough to hold the group.

  “How’s it look?” Garder asked Jeryn as he climbed in with Milla.

  “Um… It barely has any fuel left, I can tell you that much…”

  “We don’t care about the fuel, just get us moving.”

  “Okay, okay. Ah… hm. Oh, right—turn off the parking brake.”

  “Flaps,” Shin added.

  “Hm?”

  “I don’t fly, but I’ve done enough with Verim to know you need to put the flaps at five. I’m starting to wish he hadn’t just blown himself up.”

  “Right. I think that’s about all we have to worry about. Here we go.”

  With a few jerks, Jeryn got control of the plane and led it outside and to the end of the runway. The Palm’s lumbering mass was slowly growing in the distance, looming over Osk’s retreating men.

  “Fly us straight there,” Garder said. “We’ll work on protecting the plane. Maybe there’s a little moisture higher up for me to work with.”

  “Let me remind you again, Garder, this is crazy,” Jeryn said as he pushed the throttle forward and grasped the yoke firmly.

  “And what hasn’t been? Being crazy has gotten us through plenty so far. As Churchill once said, ‘when you’re going through hell, keep going.’”

  “Great time for a war quote, Garder,” Milla sighed.

  “What? I’m just trying to help.”

  “You can help us in the air. Keep this plane unscathed. One hit and we’ll go down,” Jeryn said as he pulled up.

  “Hey, I got you covered. No worries.”

  Jeryn made a hard right turn to face the oncoming airship. Noticing that Shin and Milla were already prepping defensive spells, Garder went ahead and brought two fingers to his lips as well.

  Jeryn’s flying was shaky at first, but he quickly stabilized the plane to some degree—though it remained obvious he was flying with a handicap.

  After the fighting below disappeared from view, the first attacks from the Palm were unleashed. Unable to turn their starboard and port cannons forward, the group only had three small cannons and a launcher to worry about. The blasts shook the surrounding air with ferocity, and countermeasures had to be deployed right away.

  Milla summoned a vector line to cut through a heavy steel projectile. Shin’s static field would easily be overpowered, so she instead created friction in the dry air and hit the other projectile with a precise tiny bolt of lightning to knock it off course. For about a second, the skies were clear.

  And then a final obstacle: a large homing arrow fired from the Palm’s forward launcher. Using all of his energy, Garder made a sweeping motion with his arm and knocked the arrow off course with a blast of wind.

  “Good work,” Jeryn said. “Here comes the next wave.”

  Garder acted first this time, fully reveling in his chance to shine. He condensed the surrounding moisture into a thousand droplets, froze them into tiny spears, and shot them out. Pelted with ice, all three projectiles lost their speed and dropped to the ground, riddled with marks of damage.

  “Ha…” Garder huffed and waved his hand to brush off an alchemagi energy burn. “I’ve still got it… at least, however much I had…”

  “Not bad, chief,” Shin said. “You almost have my respect.”

  “They have time for one more barrage,” Jeryn explained. “We’re getting close now, too. I’ll pull up quickly as soon as they fire. Get ready.”

  The Palm launched its forward attacks once again. The group reacted with the flashes of the cannons, each focusing on a single projectile. Milla cut down the arrow with her lines, Garder shoved a fireball off course, and Shin used a lightning bolt to explode another. This time, the remnants of the projectiles came in and hit the plane, cutting into its wings and tail.

  As it became unstable, Jeryn took strong hold of the airplane and pitched it down before it went into a stall. The Palm’s dorsal metal shell was just feet below, and the plane soon hit the top of the airship hard.

  The wheels broke off on impact, followed by the propeller. Out of control, the plane skidded across the top. Garder concentrated as much as he could to manipulate the air around them and keep the plane in the center, where it wouldn’t begin sliding down the Palm’s main catenary.

  The plane came to a stop in the center of the airship’s top, its engine smoking and its windows shattered. Everyone took a minute to refocus before leaving through the dented doors, which opened grudgingly due to the entire craft’s mangled frame. Just seconds after exiting, the plane slowly began to move on its own, and then slid down the hull entirely to quickly disappear over the side of the dreadnought.

  “We made it…” Jeryn breathed out. “I can’t believe that worked.”

  “How do we get inside?” Shin shouted over dozens of propellers.

  “You don’t…” replied an unfamiliar voice.

  The four turned to see the same dark figure from the portal site, his ax already out and ready to strike. He had evidently gotten on top of the ship using the service hatch which he stood over.

  “You again?” Garder shouted back. “We were starting to think you wouldn’t be sending pretorians!”

  “We tested you with our weakest first. Now, it is over. You cannot possibly defeat the army within the Palm.”

  “Typical! The Guard’s always ready to sacrifice someone! And hey, we just pulled something amazing by getting here in the first place. Don’t underestimate us like you have before.”

  “I remember you—the weak one. You think you can compare to me, the second pretorian?”

  “Second…” Jeryn murmured. “He really is that powerful…”

  “I really hate being talked down to,” Garder shouted angrily, as he raised two fingers behind his back.

  “This is pathetic. You lot against the Guard… What did you think? Just because you can harm us here meant you were going to win? Don’t underestimate our strength. I won’t even need to fight on the ground below to wipe you four out. This will be like cutting down overgrown weeds.”

  “Get out of our way already!” Garder demanded.

  As quickly as he could, he summoned a control spell and swiped his arm around with force. With the aid of an oncoming gust of wind, the blast of air he created was more than enough to send the pretorian flying off the ship. Garder relaxed his arm and smiled at his work.

  “Well, he’s not our problem anymore. Shall we continue?”

  “You’re wrong,” Jeryn replied. “He’s a big problem. You don’t really think you killed him that easily, right? You just took him by surprise.”

  “Well… of course he’s going to live. He’s an earth-type surrounded by sand. A stupid fall isn’t going to do him in, but he is out of our way.”

  “Maybe our way, but not our comrades.”

  “Huh?”

  “Osk’s men are falling back right now. What do you think he could do to them all? This ship isn’t even needed, Garder—that pretorian is enough to secure the portal, all by himself.”

  “Do you really think—”

  “Yes, I do. So, I’m going to go after him and leave this to you.”

  “What? Jeryn, you can’t—” Milla protested.

  “I have to at least keep him busy. He can’t get to our men, Milla. Worry about yourselves for now. An alchemagist isn’t a great choice for this, anyway. Too easy to blow up the Palm from the inside with us still inside, you know? Knights are better. I’ll deal with that pretorian.”

  “We don’t have time to argue,” Shin stated. “Fine, Jeryn. Be careful down there. And you’re right—he could wipe out Osk’s troop.”

  “Good luck, guys,” Jeryn said, preparing a leaf seed. “When all this is finished, I’ll buy you each a drink. Promise.”

  “Ha…” Garder replied. “Yeah, good luck.”

  Jeryn nodded then leapt off himself, after the pretorian, and activated his leaf glider halfway down to the dunes below.

  “He’s always doing something like this… Show off.”

  “Do you really think he’s powerful enough to take down that pretorian?” Milla wondered.

  “Wouldn’t surprise me,” Shin replied.

  “Why do you say that?”

  “F-forget it. Come on—we know how to get inside. Let’s hurry.”

  The three adjusted their gear, withdrew their swords, and headed over to the topside hatch to enter the greatest airship flown by the Guard.

  Jeryn landed softly inside a large, shallow crater. The wreckage of the plane was at the top of a nearby dune, and in the center of the crater was the pretorian—still a bit dazed from his impact.

  “Quite a fall,” Jeryn said.

  The pretorian turned and glared at Jeryn through his red visor.

  “What technique did you use to survive? I’m interested.”

  “If it’s techniques you want to see…” the pretorian growled and brought up his ax, “I’ll show you plenty.”

  “You and I both know this fight is only to keep you away from those rebels out there. That said, I do plan on giving this one my all.”

  “You have absolutely no idea who you’re dealing with, do you? I don’t care if I’m just going to send you back to Hold—you’ll go there knowing you’ve failed everyone, and that’s enough.”

  “Ha…” Jeryn raised three fingers. “If you say so…”

  “I am Palar—and only my allies hear of my name and live.”

  “You probably know that I’m Jeryn. So now that we’ve been properly introduced…”

  “Oh, I know you, all right. And I’ve been wanting to do this for a long, long time.”

  Jeryn couldn’t comprehend why he would say such a thing, but he paid it no mind—Palar was already charging at him, his ax ready to come down like a razor-sharp boulder. Jeryn took in a deep breath and prepared for what would no doubt be his most intense fight yet: one against a pretorian, among the strongest six people of both worlds.