Chapter 4

The Resort

Find Lumen.

Stopping a war should be child’s play for you.

To be free.

Join me, Terrill.

Each statement was an endless flood inside Terrill’s head, banging against his brain like it would reveal something to him, but failed to do so. There was some nugget of truth that lay at the core of his statements, but the further Terrill dove down into the darkness, the less he could see the answer. It never once elucidated itself to him.

Why did Atrum want him to seek out Lumen? Why did he want to work with him on an operation that he knew Terrill would oppose?

Like part of it was Atrum using their friendship to fulfill the side that was the Shadow King. The side that wanted to defy destiny.

He hated not knowing the answer, but what he hated more was the bright light that hit his eyes when his mind left those swirling thoughts behind to awaken. Terrill didn’t even know his eyes were open until they braced themselves against the light that flashed. It swiftly faded to a pleasantly dim filter of sunlight through large windows. He groaned, turning over and realizing that he was not on the sand he last remembered being on, but on the softness of a bed.

The first thought was that this was a dream of his, taking him back to his days in Hart. Simpler days, he began to believe. Days before Atrum went insane with whatever “truth” he had discovered, and before Lumen and Charles had disappeared, as well. Days before his promise to bring the boy home had been put to the test.

What a royal screwup…he lamented. His bed squeaked as his knees drew up to allow his arms to encircle them. He knew now that he was not in a dream. His clothes were unfamiliar, but the bruises from their watery adventure remained. He was alive, but just didn’t know where. Not yet. Only that it wasn’t Hart. As if I could ever go back. Not with Atrum like this. What happened to him? Working with Fiends…

The squeak of his adjustments on the bed prompted movement from the bed next to him, one planted on the other side of the large windows. Terrill glanced over to see that Krysta was standing next to it, dressed in similar, pure white garb as his own, her hand gripping to her arm. She was staring out with no attention paid to the world inside…wherever this was. Terrill cleared his throat, realizing it was scratchy from the salt water he had imbibed before passing out. Krysta took notice of that, looking over to Terrill, but offering no smile. There was no way they could after the events on the ocean. Already, Terrill wondered and mourned for the three sailors that had been sent into the ocean by the breaking of the ship. His fist tugged at the sheets on the bed.

“Did…did anyone else make it?” Terrill was afraid to ask the question. Krysta watched his quivering hand for a second, and then continued to stare out the window. Terrill relaxed himself, and with a solitary breath, he swung out to join her.

The sun was bright outside; brighter than, perhaps, he’d ever seen it. Yet that did nothing to stop the thin veil of ash, making the air appear just that bit darker. Through the haze, Terrill could see the beautiful beachside location they had been taken to, with homes made of clay and wood, and various large facilities that seemed to be surprisingly popular. Many pools and fountains were set up, and children could be seen frolicking. It almost reinforced the idea that this was all some bizarre happy dream that his mind had conjured.

Then, Krysta spoke.

“Torry and Floyd were up before. I don’t know where they went. Possibly checked out of this clinic.” Terrill’s chest loosened. He tried to shove his hands in his pockets, only to find the white pants he was wearing had none. Krysta continued to talk. “Would seem we were found on the beach and brought here. We got lucky.”

“I’m not so sure luck had anything to do with it.” With nowhere to place his hands, Terrill folded them across his chest. “Atrum wanted us to get here, and with no other recourse. That had to be why he broke the ship. Wherever here is.”

“Turtle Stone Resort…or so the pamphlet says.” Krysta gestured to the papers on her bed, but Terrill felt no desire to look over them. “The only town on the continent of Ardoris. A place for all to relax, free of the entanglements of countries.”

“So…a neutral zone?” A shrug was the best answer to expect from that question.

Krysta, however, had a question of her own. “What is the deal with this Atrum?”

That was a loaded question if ever there was one. He knew Krysta was aware of the two of them being friends, but he had never explained much else. Trying to wrap his head around it, Terrill sat on the windowsill and watched the sun illuminate her every feature. He’d never considered it before, too focused on the goal ahead, but she was a rather beautiful person. Still, she waited for an answer, and Terrill sighed.

“He was my best friend in my hometown, and the one who was picked as Chosen One from Hart.”

“Oh, right…the traditions of your world…”

Terrill didn’t need the reminder that he was in an alternate world from the one he knew, but he plowed on nonetheless. “We trained together, were friends since youth. In a small town like Hart, that was tantamount to being tied at the hip. It was the two of us that set off for Sayn, met Lumen and Charles there. We battled Golbrucht there. But something happened in the darkness of that battle, and whatever did, Atrum seems to have come out of it changed.”

“A Shadow King.” Terrill nodded at her conclusion, finding it the only reasonable one, himself. “So, he wants this war to…”

“Who knows? He said so many things, there’s no way to tell if it’s the truth or a lie,” Terrill said, his head tipping and hitting the back of the window. It was surprisingly cool, and Terrill noticed that the room they were in was kept nice and chilled in spite of the arid sun that shined on the building. “That he threw his lot in with the Fiends makes anything he said all the more suspect.”

“But you believe he wanted us here?”

“I think he’s testing me. Or maybe it’s Winifred doing it. Goddess knows that woman has the ability to rile me up.” Terrill leaned forward now, his fingers lacing together as he placed them on his lap. He may have spoken his thoughts on the matter, but all he had to go on was Atrum’s goading, and the simple statement that he’d guided him in the right direction. Terrill had to only believe that was here.

And that was when the memory struck.

Terrill pivoted his body so fast, his lower half didn’t have time to respond before he was looking out the window at the thin layer of soot that covered the sky. It was no longer blotting the sun, but the trail that drifted to the sea made it just as present as if it had. To most, it was perceived as the herald of Tarkinder Volcano, but to Terrill, he had an idea something else was there. He peeked at Krysta, and she noticed, her face prodding him to ask his question.

There was no easy way to say it, so he just blurted it out. “Krysta, can you sense the Lifebloods?”

The awkward question received an equally awkward silence. She looked away again, gripping tighter to her upper arm. Terrill waited for longer than he would have liked, and considered apologizing to Krysta for such a rude question. “I wouldn’t call it sensing.”

“What…what would you call it then?”

“Tell me, Terrill, you said you heard a voice with the Lifeblood of Earth, right?”

“Something like that.”

“I guess you could say it’s similar.” She reached behind now, scratching at her head while her hair flowed in tresses around her, no longer bound by her ribbon. “I can’t hear them, but it’s like there are…currents. My affinity with the light allows me to see that flow. Those currents. Like a cascade of souls.”

“Souls, huh?” It didn’t make much sense, but Terrill could see evidence of it in her past interactions. How she’d found Torry above Devil’s Haven, or how she’d known something was inside the Luster Mines. Her magic was a strange one, but he knew his own knowledge was too sparse to say for certain. “And the Lifebloods?”

“They’re like a collection of little lights, and my closeness with it makes that clear.” She, too, had begun to fold her hands, her fingers twisting around themselves. The blush on her face indicated that she had never shared this with anyone. Too embarrassed, Terrill presumed. “There’s one here. On the continent. I could feel it on the ocean, but…I didn’t have the time to really make contact with it.”

“Because of Atrum and his Fiends. How I wouldn’t mind to have another go at them!” Terrill snapped. His righteous fury tore a giggle from Krysta’s lips, and she finally returned to the cheerful girl he was used to, allowing him to relax and turn their focus to more pressing matters, including one that became self-evident. “Speaking of…where’s my sword?”

“I’m afraid we’ve confiscated all weaponry that was found on your person and placed it in our vault.” Terrill hadn’t heard the door open, or the man come in, so his voice caused both he and Krysta to jerk at the new presence and face the opening to the room they were in. The owner of the voice was framed by the doorway he was entering, obscuring his features until he stepped fully in the room, alongside two attendants bearing what seemed to be their old clothing. He, too, was dressed in the same white garb that Terrill and Krysta now wore, offset by his darker skin and serene expression. The look was amplified by his palms clasped together. Unsure of what to do, Terrill bowed in his direction, believing it to be the custom of this locale. “Welcome to Turtle Stone Resort, Sir Terrill, Lady Krysta. I am Chief Micah, the leader of our fine location in eastern Ardoris.”

The pair eyed him with suspicion, which wasn’t deterred by the retrieval of their clothes, freshly laundered and patched up (to the degree they could be, at least). Micah remained calm and inviting through it all. Terrill held his usual wardrobe close to him. “Um…thank you. For rescuing us, I guess.”

“It’s no problem. The goddess blessed you with her fortune that we were able to pick you from the drifts. Come.” His attendants preceded Micah, but the chief of this bizarre and relaxed place led the duo out. They hesitated at first, but soon determined there was nothing to do but follow. Whether he was a man to be trusted or not was irrelevant. “Many wash upon our shores, and we bring them in for rejuvenation. You see, this is a place free from all conflict. We have taken in all types for that sole purpose, to fulfill the teachings of our goddess Crea and the creed of the old ways.”

“So, you’re like an arm of the church?” Terrill asked. They were into the greater area of the clinic now, where many were lounging about and nurses were shuttling back and forth to patients in far more critical condition than they had ever been.

“A healing arm, we’d like to believe. Refugees, those abandoned by their countries, monks and all types find their way to the Resort. Here, we try to fill them with spiritual sustenance. They are free to stay and commune with our great goddess, or they may depart at any time,” Micah explained. He seemed generous, and Terrill found his suspicions abating. They almost vanished when the man took them to a large and gorgeous courtyard in the center of the clinic where Terrill could see Floyd and Torry, clad in the same white and sitting on chairs in front of some ruined documents. “However, in the time here, there is no weaponry allowed. It is a safe place where no conflict or country lines exist. I trust you’ll follow tha-”

A sudden, small rumble sent tremors through the courtyard. It became easy to see just who the natives were by how many didn’t miss a step, and those who fell to the ground. Terrill was somewhere in the middle, finding himself holding to Krysta as they maintained their balances. Up in the sky, it grew darker yet again with the ash cloud.

“It would seem she grows angry.” Micah’s words would have been imperceptible had Terrill not been standing right next to him. The slightest of frowns creased his face, but vanished soon as Terrill blinked. He was jovial again. “In any case, we rescued seven of you from the shores, though two are in quite the critical care. Do enjoy your stay at the resort.”

Micah gave another bow with his clasped palms, and started to walk away. Terrill had more questions, however, and without thinking, he held the man back, receiving an inquisitive glance in turn. “The ash in the sky. What’s it from?”

His question caused some to stop their jobs. Torry and Floyd also heard him, grinning at his presence before they noticed the newfound tension in the room. Micah patiently removed Terrill’s hand.

“It is our Great Tarkinder, the sustainer of life, as told in scripture.” He added another bow to it. Terrill was getting sick of those. “It has produced more ash of late, after such a long dormancy. But you need not worry. All remains well here.”

If anything, that made Terrill worry more. Micah seemed a pleasant man and devout leader, but he also seemed to want to avoid the most obvious of situations. Tarkinder Volcano’s ash was merely a start, or a symptom of a greater problem, and one he seemed to ignore. A flick of his eyes over to Krysta reminded him of how she said there was a Lifeblood here. Another glance to Torry recollected her theory on the Lifebloods being involved with the war to come.

Then there was Atrum, and with a grimace, Terrill felt he had started to understand what the boy had meant when he said he was guiding him on the path.

His lips couldn’t stop from uttering his own hypothesis. “Is this what he meant? Does the ash from Tarkinder have to do with the coming war?”

From Micah’s earlier reactions, Terrill should have suspected what was to follow. The entire clinic fell silent, and the dark ash in the sky made it look a little colder than it had when he’d first walked in. Floyd and Torry stood, disturbed by the reaction around them.

Micah soon cleared his throat, and the serene man from before was replaced with an adamant force. “There is no war here at the Resort.”

“I didn’t say there-”

Micah’s singular step silenced Terrill, forcing him to bite his tongue at his words. The chief came closer and all eyes were rooted on the pair of them, including Krysta’s, gripping tighter to her clothes with her hair back up. “As I told you, Sir Terrill, this is a place of peace. There is no war while you are here. We are but a place of healing. Do not bring outside conflict to these shores.”

Terrill would have stammered out some kind of argument, but he was suddenly pre-empted by another shaking, this one more violent than the last. This time, even the natives of the Resort failed to keep standing. Shelves were scattered, carts rattled, and everyone searched for a means to hold on. Micah’s expression told Terrill all he needed to know.

This was not the norm, no matter how much he wanted to pass it off.

The quake lasted for a few seconds longer, and when it stopped, everyone in the room took a moment to collect their breath. Micah was the first, his sharp eyes giving insistent instruction to Terrill. “As you can see, the goddess does not permit war and violence brought to these shores. Any further mention could bring further calamity, so I request you not say any more.”

He wouldn’t let Terrill get a word in edgewise, bowing low again. Someone new had entered the courtyard, calling for the chief, and he took his leave without any further attempts at conversation. When he was gone and the people there had resumed their duties, Terrill found himself leaning against the chair that Floyd had stood from.

“What was that all about? You really riled him up,” Floyd said. Terrill chose to take it as a form of greeting, meaning he could ignore it, and settled his mind into concentration, complete with a grim frown. Floyd chose to intercede on that. “Hey, Terrill, you gonna answer me?”

“Maybe if you stopped bothering him for a second and focused on drying out this useless lump of paper, he would,” Torry said back. It was the only thing to get Floyd to relent, returning to their hopeless side project. “Our bags were saved, but all of our information was not. How are we ever going to find the Lifebloods now?! Especially stranded here!”

“Thought we determined there was one on Ardoris,” Floyd argued back, but Torry was in too foul a mood to listen. Terrill heard it all loud and clear.

“A Lifeblood, huh?” He and Krysta were immediately on the same page. “Krysta, you don’t think there’s really the goddess in that volcano causing things like tremors, do you?”

“I doubt it. Though, I’m not an active practitioner of the faith, one doesn’t live in Sayn without knowing base details. The goddess most certainly is not in this world.” She was looking upwards as she said it, watching the ashes trail off. “There’s only one thing that could cause the volcano to become so active, I would think, and that would be-”

“A Lifeblood! You can sense them?” Torry had left her soggy documents behind to clasp Krysta’s hands in her own. Floyd rolled his eyes and sat back, his head hitting against Terrill and prompting both to shove away from each other. “When did this happen? You never said anything.”

“Terrill could hear them, too.”

“Just one.” Terrill reminded him. He still remembered, with stunning detail, their encounter with the Lifeblood of Earth, and the instructions it had given them, surprisingly similar to the taunts from Atrum. “And even then, I only heard it because I was Blessed by it, whatever that means.”

“So many more mysteries!” Torry was beyond excited, and she swept the soaked pages away in a search for something, hoping to make notes about these newest phenomena. She couldn’t find anything, so in its stead, she chose to commit everything to memory by coming close to Terrill’s face. “What’s a Blessed? You never mentioned it! Is it possible you heard the Lifeblood because of this blessing or your magic type? If that’s the case, why can Krysta hear it? There was nothing in my mother’s notes about Light-users having that capability.”

“Wow, I must be really special.” Krysta’s deadpan indicated how little she cared for Torry’s latest research. Her steps away from the courtyard solidified that fact. She, like Terrill, didn’t care for the stuffy clinic, and made tracks to get out of there as fast as possible. Terrill was right behind her, while Torry zoomed to her side with bulging eyes full of queries. Floyd was slower, though once he abandoned the now pointless books and papers, he was faster in hauling their bags after them.

“You must be! I’ve never heard of anyone hearing a Lifeblood! Not even my mother. How do you do it?”

“I don’t really hear it,” Krysta said. Her tone was that of one wanting to swat an annoying gnat away, but Torry would not be denied. “I sense it. Like…almost like they’re souls.”

“Aha! A new type of magic, mayhaps? Soul Magic, we can call it.”

“No, it’s Light Magic.”

“Torry, don’t get sidetracked.” Floyd’s remonstration brought the girl back to reality as they emerged under the Ardorisan sun. It helped that he shoved her bag in her hands. Terrill thought she might drop it, but she didn’t miss a beat.

“Fascinating… Light is believed to be the progenitor element from which all other elements of this world were created, so it could explain how you’re able to perceive the sources of all magic. But if Terrill can sense earth, does that mean you can sense the power of fire?” Torry had said this all in such a rapid-fire, Terrill had to stop and rub his temples when she took a single moment for a breath. He could see Krysta looking stressed by it as well, wiping away the sweat. Floyd grimaced at her request.

“How the hell am I supposed to know, Torry?”

“Give it a try!”

“Do you two mind going silent for just a second?” Terrill snapped at them. It silenced the pair, but Torry still had an expectant shine glazing her eyes. Floyd couldn’t resist it; he never could when it came to her. So, he closed his eyes and offered Terrill the relief of peace to take in the Resort at which they’d found themselves.

It didn’t look much different on the outside as it did from the windows of the clinic. The buildings were all still made of clay, though on closer inspection, many of them were bricks, too. The clear pools of water helped to take away the ambient heat from the center of town where the clinic was, and Terrill could take in every detail. There was an observation deck rising upwards, currently empty, and on the far side of town was another platform where a band was playing music to entertain the guests. Terrill guessed that it was also used for announcements by the chief.

The more he looked, the more Terrill realized how peaceful it was, just as Micah had said it was. Whether he turned a blind eye to things was irrelevant; he had created a sort of paradise here, made no more evident than by their former helmsman sitting poolside with a relaxing flask of mead. He noticed them, and held up his glass to welcome them, but said little more. Beyond him were some others, including two parties that appeared at odds with one another, but were separated by the many white-garbed attendants of the Resort.

It reminded Terrill that there were still tensions, and he questioned if the two sides were from Valorda or Invaria, and whether they had purposely met here on neutral ground. Not that Micah wanted any discussion of the outside world. Or weapons. Terrill felt naked without his sword, his back itching to find his just for a better means of protecting himself. Magic felt too inadequate for such a task.

Wanting to find wherever the chief had stashed his sword, Terrill endeavored to walk poolside to find the location of this “vault”. He had no such luck.

“I guess I feel something,” Floyd said after his moment of silence passed. Terrill could see him nodding with consideration. “Yeah, like a flame to the west. But it feels…different. Don’t know how to describe it. No voices, though.”

“But you felt something…” Torry laughed, no longer sounding impressed with her own discoveries. “Wonder if she felt it too… Guess I haven’t reached that level with all of the elements yet to sense them…”

“Torry…” Floyd reached out, wanting to take her in a hug, but the blonde wiped away her doubt to hook Krysta’s arm with her own, smiling at her fellow female.

“So, Krysta, what do you say you and I do some investigation together?”

“Is research all you think about?” Krysta asked. She squirmed, uncomfortable under Torry’s hold, but the girl didn’t relent, holding her in place until she would fully acquiesce. “Can’t we just explore the Resort as, you know, girls?”

“Of course, we can! I just think your magic is fascinating, and there’s nowhere better than here. Ooh, I know, how about you and I get some new clothing. Our funds didn’t wash away so we can get something more practical for the road ahead than our poorly stitched travel outfits.” Torry had taken charge over the girl, dragging her off to a line of stores that existed as the center of commerce in the town. “In the meantime, they say this is the only town on the entire continent. I know it’s near the edge of the world and all, but why do you think this is the only town?”

“Probably has to do with the Lifeblood lines that run through the world, like the one the Lifeblood of Earth used to send us to the surface.”

“Lifeblood lines? I guess they’re more than just sources of magic, huh?”

The girls’ voices faded into the din of those gathered, their conversation not looking to change topics from Torry’s obsession any time soon. Terrill worried for Krysta’s sanity as much as he worried for her body; the sweat she had been leaking indicated there was something wrong, and it brought to mind her rather violent reaction on the ship. He hoped Torry would be there for her if something was wrong.

“Torry can get a bit carried away when it comes to this stuff.” Floyd had slithered up to Terrill’s side, leaning on him while he bit into an orange-colored fruit. He didn’t seem to like the taste, as he spat it out on the sandy streets a moment later.

“So can you,” Terrill reminded the boy. “But hey, I had no illusions about why she joined us. So long as we find some way off this place.”

“Hm, there’s the pickle, isn’t it?” The leaning transferred into an arm encircling Terrill’s shoulders, and it was this that the Guardian found was enough. He ducked underneath, and walked forward without warning, towards the small watchtower that stretched upwards. No one was around it. “We’re stuck here without a ship, and I have no way of doing my most important job as an ambassador.”

“Don’t inflate yourself.”

“Can’t be inflation if it’s true.” Terrill snorted at Floyd’s grandiose sense of self-importance. At the very least, he wasn’t running after Torry, and Terrill took that to be a good thing.

The two reached the tower, with still nary a guard around. A ladder stretched up to the top, and Terrill placed his hand on the first of the rungs to see if anyone would stop him. When no one, including Floyd, did so, he began to climb. If there was any hope of them getting out of here or figuring out just why this was the supposed path for the war to come, Terrill knew he had to get a survey of the land.

It was a long climb, and the tower itself was surprisingly sturdy, with not a single rattle or shake on the way up. Not even when Terrill planted both feet on the enclosed wooden platform atop did the thing shake. Floyd’s added weight did little to change that, though he looked perplexed about why they were up there in the first place. Terrill didn’t appreciate being stuck with a follower, but took it in stride to try and get a three-sixty of the land around them. The windsock mounted on the platform nearly slapped him in the face, but Terrill was able to hold it down and gaze over the ocean.

There was no sight of the ship they had tried to ride in on, lost to the tidal abyss. The shores were calm, with many people walking along their edges, either as couples hand-in-hand, or monks with a daily meditation. They were certainly devout.

Only one sign of ships was around the area, and it was a rather damaged one moored on the beach, bearing two unique flags. If Terrill had to guess, he supposed they belonged to Valorda and Invaria both, explaining the two sitting below. No further elucidation on how to escape their situation visited Terrill, and he began to turn westward.

Below, Terrill could see many more people enjoying their strolls, fanning themselves as they walked. The longer he watched them, the hotter Terrill felt, and he too began to sweat like Krysta had. He wasn’t alone, since Floyd was making too many noises in his own sweat, to the point he took his shirt off to gain relief from the heat.

“Don’t you feel that?”

Terrill neither confirmed nor denied, sweeping the lower level of the Resort to the large building on the northern outskirts; the only one with people standing straight outside. Terrill guessed this was the vault that Micah had mentioned. His hand itched to go there right this second.

He might have, too, were it not for the black cloud that attracted his attention.

His brain told him it was something to just ignore, being the same ashen cloud he’d seen so many times since they were within range of Ardoris. That’s what his eyes were seeing, the black cloud belching forth from a high-topped mountain. That natural construct was barely visible beyond a haze of sand and wind that started just beyond the resort’s borders, but to any normal, inexperienced pair of eyes, it would look like nothing more than a volcano’s standard activity.

Terrill’s eyes weren’t inexperienced.

As his mind changed gears and raced towards a new conclusion, the ground shook again, and Terrill now felt the heat that Floyd had mentioned. The resort was growing hotter, and some people were heading indoors, while others jumped in the pool. Terrill’s eyes squinted through the burning sun to the ashen cloud, ignoring the swelling of his eyes from the heat.

That was when he knew it was there.

“Floyd, you said you felt that fire earlier? From where the Lifeblood is?”

“I think. Never felt anything like a source of fire before, so it might have just been tha-”

“What did it feel like?” Terrill asked. He whipped around, grabbing the boy by his shoulders. Under any other circumstance, Floyd would have been alarmed, but his current flushed appearance from the mounting heat made him quick to answer.

“It was…violent. Not like what that other Lifeblood presented itself as. I don’t even know if it was the Lifeblood. I’m not Krysta.”

Terrill made a brief “tch” noise, feeling as if they’d gotten nowhere, allowing his hands to slide off of Floyd. When they did, Floyd’s arms came into focus, and Terrill remembered a very different burning sensation that boy had experienced. He took Floyd’s attention again by staring into his eyes. “That sensation…was it like LeBrandon’s shadow?”

Realization came to Floyd, his eyes widening. No words could be given, so he settled for a rapid bobbing of his head, the hairs on his arms making Floyd clasp to them. He looked chilled in spite of the ridiculous heat. Terrill hated being right.

The ash and soot looked all the more sinister now, and Atrum’s path was making more sense.

Something was wrong at the Lifeblood, just as it had been in the Luster Mines.

“Terrill! Floyd! TERRILL!” The shout was panicked, and with only two people capable of yelling for them, the two leaned over the edge of the platform to look below. Torry had escaped from the crowd of people trying to get inside, away from the heat, and in her hands, she was carrying Krysta, passed out. “We were about to get to the store when she just passed out. Started saying something about a shadow coming closer. I think she might have tried to make contact with the Lifeblood.”

The boys threw themselves over the edge without another thought. Floyd slowed their descent, allowing them to touch the ground without accident. Touching the floor, however, was the greatest accident. The moment they touched, it felt like his feet were burning, but Terrill pushed through to reach Krysta.

“There was nothing I could do. I tried to make some ice, but it melted before it could even touch her.”

“You did fine, Torry,” Terrill said, holding Krysta up in his arms. Floyd was the first to test her forehead, pulling away like his hand had been burned alongside his feet. “Krysta, pull it together. Break whatever connection you have.”

“It’s… Terrill, it’s…” Krysta was murmuring, and every word brought on a greater expulsion of heat. Beyond a fidgeting Torry, Terrill’s eyes widened as he watched the water in the pool begin to vanish before his very eyes. Fear gripped him, and he and Floyd took hold of the near comatose girl, pulling her away from that horrid sight. “It’s trying to reach me. It’s calling.”

“Why’s it calling? What’s calling?” Torry was asking, opening the door back into the clinic as they carried her through. Once they were inside, Krysta leaned up, her breath tickling Terrill’s ear as her lips moved against his cheek to speak in a haggard whisper.

“The Lifeblood. It bleeds. Bleeds darkness. Shadow.

“It’s coming here.”

Terrill’s fingers pressed into Krysta’s skin, searing themselves at the tips, and Terrill knew there was one answer for the darkness that surrounded a Lifeblood. He had felt it before, in the depths of the Luster Mines. As had Floyd.

They knew what it could mean.

“Get down!” The boys dropped Krysta (and their bags) as carefully as possible, and ran for the doors, pulling them shut. Torry fell to Krysta’s side, trying to create more ice and water to cool her down, for all the good it did.

That action was rendered irrelevant as Terrill looked through the nearest window to witness the most savage sight.

A plume of flame suddenly shot into the sky, right where the pool had been, evaporating it on sight. The heat disappeared from the ground, redirected into the pillar of fire that burned sky high, searing the watchtower and the many other wooden constructs throughout the city.

And in that flame was a shadow, swirling to the highest heights.

“There’s no war here,” Terrill laughed out, his bitterness evident, “but I don’t think they were prepared for a disaster.”