The first explosion rocks the entire building, and people are immediately scrambling to the trees for the cover. I make the mistake of breathing and cough up smoke. Stumbling to the edge of the roof, I look down, and my stomach lurches. On the ground, in full armor with weapons, is an army. And Rythe is the one leading it. Scrambling backwards, I look around to see what’s going on. Alar has disappeared, but weapons are being chucked up through the hatch to the roof, so I’m assuming he’s the one arming us. Ama is casting spells and her aura is getting more solid and blacker by the second. Klef is speaking to Mom and Dad. Flo is looking around, calling Rythe’s name. Hibiscus is trying to dodge the fires that are sprouting up from falling branches and damaged parts of the roof. I stick two fingers in my mouth and whistle the best I can. They all look to me. “It’s Rythe!” I scream. “Rythe is down there leading the attacking army! If he comes up here, do not let him ‘help’ you!”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkVtMaBEmVV
Everyone stares at me in shock. Ama is the first to recover, unleashing a primeval scream before her chants pick up speed and suddenly there are dozens upon dozens of bones flying in the air from all around us, swarming at her. She sweeps one hand toward the madness below. “Attack!” she screeches, and the bones go flying.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjjlpeGTMUI
The leaders of the Crusaders are grabbing bows, pickaxes, swords, daggers, guns, whatever is being tossed up the hatch. Klef throws me a bow and a quiver of arrows, and I run to the edge of the roof, notching those suckers as fast as I can. Years of practice has made me an excellent shot, and I’m aiming to kill. One by one enemies are falling, dropping to the floor. But for every one that falls down, two are brought in to replace them. And Rythe is just standing there, a smirk on their face. “Still think you can win, do you?” he calls up, as if he’s just talking about the weather. “Give up, little Iri, you know you can’t win! You know how this ends!”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFKoQLxLQda
I swallow. I had sort of pieced together what was about to happen, but that didn’t mean I was going to accept it. I notch another arrow and aim it straight at their eye. I release, and the arrow flies true to course, but gets smashed by a kind of magic I’ve never seen before. They smile up at me, waving their hand, where a charm is dangling from their wrist. I growl. Clearly, this is not going to be easy.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAy64lgFZDB
Something behind Rythe draws my attention, and I see a giant ball of flame in a catapult, ready to fire. “Back! EVeryone, back! They’re about to burn us all to a crisp! Get back!”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVXVgm9WgVR
Everyone who still can, runs, but Hibiscus starts sobbing. “I can’t move!” they yell. “I’m stuck!”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYABnrnUcd8
My stomach drops. No. Hibiscus? After all they’ve been through, they can’t die. I run for them, but fire explodes in the corner of my eye, and suddenly we’re falling.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnOGtS1Kx1o
I sit up, not daring to groan. My vision is swimming. Fire. It’s all around me. It’s what I’m almost breathing in and what I’m choking on. I hear someone yell, “Shelter! We have to get to shelter!”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Wl4cIe9Y9
Where is he? He has to be here, he couldn’t have been hit. “Klef!” I scream.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0XKClb0fod
Coughs erupt 3 feet away from me. I reach out and grab a hand. Klef’s hand. He squeezes it, and we struggle out of the immediate fire. BANG!134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoL25eU6Ys8
“They’ve got guns!” I exclaim, panicked.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmC4IGhqVqp
We’re sitting ducks, trapped in the base by fire. No way out this time. I look at Klef and he looks at me. There’s desperation in his eyes, and I have no doubt it’s in mine as well. And in what feels to be our final moments together…we kiss.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5qmP3H13Xp
There’s footsteps running up to the now gaping opening of the base, and Klef and I break apart. “You have to hide,” Klef orders. “Go!”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhlbjqpexoH
“No way I’m leaving without you!” I exclaim. “Don’t you dare tell me to go hide and be safe while you’re out here being stupid!”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFLjKtZ1TVs
There are blurry shapes walking through the flames, approaching fast. One reaches out an appendage and slams into the back of Klef’s head, causing his eyes to widen in shock before they close and he falls face- first to the floor. I scramble backward but the same appendage grabs onto my ankle and refuses to let go. “No!” I scream, kicking wildly. “Let me go! No!”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi0TFQWnRZk
Someone behind me grabs my arms and twists them painfully. “A-ah! No! Nnn… no!”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhgGsA7SOEh
There’s a prick in my neck and everything starts swimming faster. “N… no… no…”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvk2O5wO7qK
The last thing I can clearly see is Klef lying there on the floor, and I can only imagine the panic he’ll feel when he wakes up, before my vision fades to black.copyright protection130ＰＥＮＡＮＡop6UltxdOT
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzIKsoAoLso
When I wake up, there’s something cold against my wrists and ankles. I sit up, blinking rapidly, trying to clear the swimming in my head. “Good morning, Oracle,” a voice says across from me. “You’ve been out quite a while.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5KFMdfT54y
I frown and blink more, and slowly the blurry form of Rythe comes into view. I lunge forward, or at least try to, but the cold on my wrists is holding me back. They chuckle. “Don’t try and fight, little Iri, you know how this is going to end as well as I do. Not well for you, I’m afraid.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmzTpoYVd5l
“Screw you,” I rasp, before coughing.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXF4I7siweL
A glass of water comes into my line of sight and I scowl at the hand offering it, which quickly retreats. Rythe waves a hand dismissively, and shrugs. “I can understand why you don’t want my help, Oracle, but I want to make sure you are in top condition.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUkvz6IPZOT
I laugh. “You shouldn’t have tried to kill me, then. Or weren’t you the person who threw the grenade in the bedroom at the base?”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡybtrASqw6w
“I knew you were in the ensuite, I was trying to kill that pesky little boyfriend of yours.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS4bWMip4PD
“Somehow, that’s not reassuring,” I snark.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQKYlk4494T
Rythe rolls his eyes. “Yes, well. I’m afraid we won’t be talking for much longer. You see, your Sight is rather… unusual. I suppose you now know that you were in my head in your dream? Thing is, I never even felt it. I felt heightened paranoia, perhaps. The feeling I was being watched. But I didn’t know who, or how. And I want to see if we can harness that power.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3C4x4Fpubw
I lean back into the wall behind me, staring up at Rythe with disgust. “And how are you going to do that?”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ04Ab0muqrk
“Simple,” Rythe says, waving a hand. A fairy starts connecting wires to my fingers and hands, and clips glass circles to my eyes and around the back of my head. “We’re going to force your magic to conduct itself while you are awake, and see what you can see through a screen.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4h42Do7Hxb
Something starts buzzing and I arch my back in pain. It feels like my entire body is on fire, and that my soul is being split from it. Slowly, images start to take form.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBBOF8Slymx
Sharp, blackened shapes that stretch into the sky. Rubble all around, and dead bodies of people in their Deuxlives scattered about. Fresh deaths are just starting to rouse with groans and gasps. The head I’m in doesn’t stop looking around, and sighs. I know that sigh. Klef, I realize.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4nBEzB032r
“Is everyone okay?” his voice asks.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn6Jr9mQg4o
Someone is crying. Another person is calling out names of people they care about. One giant shape in the rubble stands up shakily. A new dragon. They look down at themselves and smile. “Well, if I had to go some way, I’m glad I got to be a dragon.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrFZgk88FGv
Hibiscus. “Hibiscus, I am so sorry,” Klef says.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdKSOprqqvs
The dragon smiles. “Don’t worry about it. I’m more concerned about Rides’ parents. Has anyone seen them?”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSTzBlIXbZ1
A lump forms in my throat. Mom might still be alive in her Deuxlife. But if Dad died… he has no way of coming back this time. “I’m here,” Dad calls.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzrGzH1HPHo
Klef turns and runs over to him. “Have you seen her mother? Please tell me she’s okay!”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlU9dJyF9Za
Dad sighs. “Well, she’s technically still alive…”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCR4bspUqAT
My heart skips a beat. Mom died. It’s all my fault. She walks into view, rubbing her shoulders. “Klef, I never realized how complicated it is to have wings. I’ll be making some adjustments to our house rules, to better accomodate you.” Tawny yellow wings stretch out from Mom’s back.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsak9J2arSS
“That’s not necessary, really, it just takes a bit getting used to,” Klef assures her. “Has anyone seen Rides, though?”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQdNZrwy6Gx
Everyone turns solemn. I can feel Klef’s panic in his head. “Someone has seen her, right?! She’s not gone?!”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhioluRLohl
Hibiscus stretches their wings. “I saw someone grab her and carry her out as I was dying. I’m sorry.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiJwDSgF3Hx
“We have to find her!” Klef exclaims. “Form a search party! We have to find out where she’s gone.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWxLJxcg5jW
“No, Klef, don’t be an idiot!” I scream. “They’ll just kill you too!”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCBf0XJRI89
Klef’s head whips around. “Ride?” he whispers.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4qSA3LQJPy
Before I can say anything else, I’m disconnected from the wires that let me see him. I want to scream in frustration, but I refuse to give Rythe the satisfaction. “See your boyfriend, did you? How sweet,” they coo. “Hope you said goodbye.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgL51vDeLIx
I ignore Rythe in favor of looking around where I’m being held. It’s a carriage, but it’s one of the ones usually reserved for escorting prisoners. No ammount of yelling for help is going to get me anywhere, but I do recognize the rock patterns outside on the hills from pictures I’ve seen of places in west Argentor. “Do you want to see your hometown?” Rythe asks casually. “I’m sure all your friends would love to see you carted away like the criminal that you are. But then again, someone such as yourself probably doesn’t have any friends, am I right?”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIk9Xl6HdPP
They’re trying to rile me up, but I stay silent. I’m not willing to give them the satisfaction of interacting with me anymore than they force me to. They sigh. “This is going to be a long ride,” they sigh.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmTfetj0j2P
“‘I was angry at my friend,134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRjAXl6AzRj
“‘I told my wrath, my wrath did end.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7ADhyZnfcc
“‘I was angry at my foe,134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5y5kNzENSH
“‘I told it not, my wrath did grow,” I mutter.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDK0eIlkjVb
“‘And I watered it in fears,134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC3MgkkfHAr
“‘Night and morning with my tears.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUFZ00NzFBs
“‘And I sunned it with smiles,134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmedmsVIMeD
“‘And with soft, deceitful wiles.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYRHL715mJG
“‘And it grew both day and night.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNEmNEmBe1c
“‘Till it bore an apple bright.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGnrTKUPsG4
“‘And my foe beheld it shine,134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6FVNq2Pwoy
“‘And he knew that it was mine.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡccczZRVA5X
“‘And into my garden stole,134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNMleF58vyP
“‘When the night had veild the pole;134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzFvutVxisV
“‘In the morning glad I see;134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRF73e7UaI0
“‘My foe outstretched beneath the tree.’ Nice poem,” Rythe finishes. “One of our founders was fond of it as well. She actually used that to motivate herself to get things done, a lot like you.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7vMtKszTX8
I feel a little sick at the comparison. “You don’t get to say who I am and am not like. I’m my own person, and expect to be treated as such.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJwNe1hayzD
Rythe smirks. “Feisty like her, too.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuqiBuxJoHr
I stand as best I can with the shackles on me and spit in their face. Rythe blinks, before laughing. “Definitely fiesty,” they say. “I really like you. If we weren’t on opposing sides I’d like you to be my partner in crime.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoPXbiIDRCA
“You had Flo,” I point out. “Wasn’t she enough for you?”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0l7NA84LHE
Rythe shrugs. “She was nice, true, but she was a means to an end. We needed a Crusader base in the Werewolf Territory. And she was the most likely to start it. Shame what happened to her last night.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡob5HNzexYW
I swallow and drop my eyes.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYnLWy4FbWh
“‘Course, I would never have anyone but myself kill her. Only the best for my love,” he sighs.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLWDTKe2OZJ
“You’re a monster,” I growl. “Nothing more than a monster.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtoVy5J8jg6
“Want to know how she died? With honor, maybe? It was pathetic, I’ll tell you that much. Told me that if I stopped now we could still have a chance. I smiled and shot her. Never saw it coming, dropped to the ground. I would have laughed, if it weren’t so tragic.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgft1c26Rd2
My eyes sting. “Shut up,” I growl. “You don’t talk about the dead like that.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9ZZNTJ1Vy1
“Maybe you don’t, but I do,” Rythe says with a satisfied grin. “Oh, you’re stuck here, my dear. May as well get used to my brand of humor.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF1pBAukIOB
“I’m going to die anyway, what’s the point?”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP4Qj62ldUz
“Die? No, no, no, no. You’re not going to die. The machine we need you for won’t kill you, we’ve made sure of that,” Rythe laughs. “You’re simply going to destroy the humans. And the grief will drive you mad when we kill the Crusaders who aren’t with us, starting with your precious boyfriend. But we need your dreams. We’re not going to kill you. We’re going to break you.”134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf4zfRsYTnw
I bite my lip and look at the outside world. It wouldn’t take that much to break me at this point, to be honest. Flo is dead. Hibiscus died. Mom died. Klef is stranded without me. And I’m going to be instrumental in genocide. I sit back sullenly and watch the scenery go by. For all I know, it could be my last time seeing it.copyright protection130ＰＥＮＡＮＡQGb18V4GpK
