Pointing his staff at the groveling man, Dorian called upon the power of Zelian. Purple lightning crackled through the air as power surged through the staff. Runes glowed along its length, and a potent blast of energy erupted from its tip.

  Korel vanished in a wave of amethyst power. As the blast dispersed, only a black smudge of ash remained on the ground.

  Dorian screamed, striking his staff down on the ground, beating it against the steps.

  He turned to the lesser warlocks, lying flat on the ground as a sign of their total devotion.

  “Which of you is most powerful?” he demanded.

  A woman rose from the ground to a kneeling position, her head bowed deeply.

  “I am my lord.”

  “What is your name?”

  “I am Venya.”

  “Venya,” Dorian said. “I have one task for you: FIND ARIA!”

  "Yes my lord,” Venya said, rising. “I will not fail you.”

  She turned and strode from the room.

  In the blink of an eye the other warlocks scrambled to their feet, disappearing out the door as they ran to do their master’s bidding.

  Elion and Keyla stood, staring at Gorman’s body. Smoke still rose from his wounds. Keyla leaned against Elion, and he pulled her in. With his arm around her shoulders, he guided her out of Gorman’s room, checking up and down the hall to see if anyone had noticed them.

  “What happened to Domas?” she whispered.

  “He carried the bomb to the Shard,” Elion said. “Zayven’s hauler got hit by a rocket.”

  “Do Tael and Kasm know?”

  “I told Kasm,” Elion said.

  “Thank you for saving me from him,” Keyla said. “He was going to use that chip to take over my mind.”

  “How? Why?”

  “He’s been trying to control people all along,” Keyla said. “He was always cagey about his ability to fuse people with machines, and now I realize it was a Festrin power. He loved how machines would always do what he wanted, but it frustrated him that people weren’t the same. He developed that chip that would make people obey him.”

  Elion squeezed Keyla closer to him, still overwhelmed by what he’d just witnessed. “How did you figure it out?”

  “He told me. Somehow he accidentally summoned that Shard, out of town, and it was taking over the minds of people, the way he wanted to be able to. He’s been studying it, and it’s been trying to kill him, sending its infected to attack. He thought I would be impressed. He thought I would help him plant the chips in people. He accused you of manipulating me to steal his cends.”

  “He was insane,” Elion breathed.

  “When I refused he was furious. I was terrified he would succeed.”

  “All that stuff about the Shard falling from space? From the Tephalian Invaders?”

  “Lies,” Keyla said. “He lied to us all.”

  “What do we do now?” Elion asked. “We’re going to be in trouble with the town.”

  “Tell them the truth,” Keyla said. “Gorman is responsible for the infection, that’s why you killed him. You can stay here.”

  “They’re already suspicious of me. Like you were, at first. They won’t believe me.”

  “They’ll believe me.”

  Elion shook his head. “It doesn’t matter if they do. I need to leave. I’ve been here in one place for too long. There were warlocks chasing the skyskimmer. Dorian is going to find me.”

  Keyla’s face clouded.

  “It’s better for Aterfel if I leave this place. Tell everyone whatever you want. Tell them I killed Gorman. But I should leave before they find out. It’ll be easier that way.”

  “Where will you go?” Her eyes sparkled as she gazed up at him, clear, blue, and earnest.

  “To find my sister,” Elion said.

  Keyla held him to her, pulling him into a full embrace. Elion returned the hug, holding the rifle in one hand. He breathed deeply, nostrils filling with the smell of her hair.

  << Your bravery in battle has been noted. Aurelian Tear Awarded. >>

  A rush of air followed by a pop, and an Aurelian Tear dropped onto the ground just in front of Elion.

  “Another one?” Keyla exclaimed, breaking the hug. “Three in a matter of weeks!”

  Elion sighed, bending to pick up the gem. “I hope I don’t get to earn another one of these for a long time. I’m exhausted.” He put the gem into his pocket.

  Something rumbled outside the tower, and Elion’s heart skipped a beat.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  “Skyskimmer,” Keyla breathed, and they ran to the window. A ship zoomed past overhead, coming to a stop in the sky over the forest. “Is it your uncle?” she asked.

  “Did they come back for me?” Elion wondered.

  The skyskimmer hung in the sky, levitating.

  “That’s over by the Altar,” Keyla said.

  “I’d better go meet them,” Elion said. “Now that we blew up the Shard and you are all free, it’s time for me to move on.”

  A ray of power blasted down from the skyskimmer. A golden shield from the Alter formed in the air, taking the impact. For a moment, the shield deflected the blast, dispersing it into the air. Then the shield burst, popping like a bubble, and the ground shook as the ray from the skyskimmer smashed into the ground.

  Keyla gasped, and Elion’s eyes narrowed.

  “They found me,” he declared.

  He ran for the door, but Keyla grabbed his hand. She pulled, and he turned, meeting her gaze. Their eyes locked for a moment as she inspected him.

  Elion’s bewildered mind could not react, and he stood stiff as a board. Keyla nodded to herself, having resolved an internal question.

  “Hurry!” she gasped. She picked up her gun and pulled him out the door. As they passed her bedroom, she reached inside and grabbed a stuffed backpack.

  “What’s that for?” Elion asked.

  “Supplies,” she said, slinging it over her shoulders.

  “What kind of supplies?”

  She ignored him. “Snickers!” she called, and the cat prowled out of the room, following them as Keyla pulled him down the stairs.

  They crossed the tower to where Elion left the motorcycle, and Snickers climbed into the cargo basket on the front of the bike.

  Everyone had run out of the tower and stood outside, stunned as they stared at the skyskimmer.

  A familiar crack boomed across the town square, as a warlock sprang from a swirl of purple ribbons. Elion recognized the woman he had tackled in the Walker’s back yard. Her eyes glittered venomously as she saw him, corners of her mouth turning up in a malicious grin.

  She no longer wore the thick, figure obscuring warlock cloak, instead showing off her elegant curves and chiseled limbs in a flowing black gown. Her midnight black curls floated behind her as phantom winds from the portal vortex whipped them around.

  Elion climbed atop the motorcycle, slinging his gun over his shoulder. This wasn’t Aterfel’s fight, and he wasn’t going to bring them into it.

  “Who is that?” Keyla growled as Elion fired up the engine. “And why is she so hot?”

  “Venya,” Elion hissed. “I’ll lead her away. She’s trying to get me.”

  “Not if I have anything to say about it,” Keyla said, raising her rifle and firing at the woman.

  The woman casually raised her long wand, creating a purple shield in front of her that absorbed the laser blast. She nonchalantly strode across the road, long legs flashing through the slit in her gown. She quirked an eyebrow at Kelya, unbothered by the rough terrain even though she wore high heels.

  Several more loud cracks heralded the arrival of more warlocks.

  “Zelian’s Halls,” Keyla swore as she jumped onto the back of Elion’s bike. “Get us out of here!”

  Elion slammed on the throttle and they sped away, spewing rocks and dust into the air behind them. Several of the people gathered around outside began firing their weapons at the woman, distracting her as Elion and Keyla swerved behind a nearby building.

  “Keyla, I’ve got to go, I have to get out of here,” Elion said as they sped along the road out of the town.

  “I know,” Keyla yelled over the noise of the wind, her braid flapping behind her. She pressed herself against Elion’s back, arms wrapped around his waist. “I’m coming with you!”

  Elion swerved, dodging around three scavengers meandering down the road toward the bridge.

  “Keyla, no!” Elion shouted. “I’ll drop you off in the woods, before I cross the bridge!”

  “I’m coming with you!” she said. “There’s nothing left for me in Aterfel. And you’re going to get yourself killed without me.”

  They raced along the road, following the destruction and damage from the fighting that morning. When they reached the bridge house, Elion pulled the bike over.

  “Keyla, you can’t,” he said, dismounting and running to where Tharnen still lay against the strut of the bridge. “Stay here, make sure Tharnen gets the help he needs!”

  Elion checked over Tharnen. The man seemed to be alive still, and Save a Friend hadn’t worn off yet. He glanced over his shoulder, and saw the Skyskimmer still hovering in the air over the forest.

  Closing his eyes, he used Save a Friend again, the ability draining him further. Hopefully that would be enough to help the man until he could get proper medical support.

  “I’m going with you,” Keyla declared, petulantly. “You killed my mentor, Gorman. My mother might be alive somewhere, out there, and I need to help her.”

  “And I need to help my sister!” Elion shouted back at her. “I need to find my Uncle Zev!”

  “See, we’re trying to do the same things,” Keyla said. “We should work together.”

  “No we’re not. Those are totally different things. We’re looking for different people.”

  Elion could see in her eyes that Keyla understood what he said. She searched for a different angle, a different way to convince him.

  “It doesn’t matter,” she said as Elion crossed back to the bike where Keyla sat. “I’m going. You need someone who knows the area.”

  She crossed her arms, but did not get off of the bike. Snickers watched lazily from the basket. If the cat had hands, he probably would have started eating popcorn.

  The skyskimmer moved, heading toward them.

  “Come on,” Elion pleaded.

  “You won’t get away from them without my help,” Keyla insisted. “I can guide you. Besides, you don’t have any food or supplies.” She patted the stuffed backpack she wore. “I do.”

  Elion folded his arms, glaring at Keyla. “Get off the bike.”

  “Elion,” she said, voice level. “You promised me you’d help me find my mother.”

  Elion remembered that. He’d hoped Keyla had forgotten.

  He shifted his weight from foot to foot. The skyskimmer drew closer.

  “Fine. You win.” He ran over, climbing back onto the bike. Part of him glad that they would not be parting here, part of him worried to have another person to look out for.

  Elion drove the bike across the bridge, crossing over the Ater river and leaving the town behind.