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!”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsKNnVCnxCK
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.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ727jScg81
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!”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuxmu5xQrqM
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.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbMs3Xt1VSC
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!”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNTRWO2BXDI
Everyone who still can, runs, but Hibiscus starts sobbing. “I can’t move!” they yell. “I’m stuck!”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBopx9JWqjY
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.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVKmXGR8yg6
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!”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2Fuuu5qbHY
Where is he? He has to be here, he couldn’t have been hit. “Klef!” I scream.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9P0uYUUSvD
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!902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVpDH9I3cDL
“They’ve got guns!” I exclaim, panicked.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLjN9DARhXP
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.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKUkbJNHoSF
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!”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSNqqxb2Z16
“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!”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUxE8cYMtyP
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!”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡos7lFSCxNZ
Someone behind me grabs my arms and twists them painfully. “A-ah! No! Nnn… no!”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9p4KrOs8AC
There’s a prick in my neck and everything starts swimming faster. “N… no… no…”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcp0aNqE3BU
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.
902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk7IytpcXe8
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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv0tEC5I4Bg
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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ43YHI4yZin
“Screw you,” I rasp, before coughing.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqm7tT7HYie
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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaoDuRpwzb1
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?”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHwDAD0BUeD
“I knew you were in the ensuite, I was trying to kill that pesky little boyfriend of yours.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrkzRw2cmpC
“Somehow, that’s not reassuring,” I snark.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3D95EVdmV4
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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZbYS1Mj0GW
I lean back into the wall behind me, staring up at Rythe with disgust. “And how are you going to do that?”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc5BqE7fuBJ
“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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ccM4aRyeI
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.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs4WMiCz0MY
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.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ737K7vuomw
“Is everyone okay?” his voice asks.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu8RAxkCP1O
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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKEh1EkAXqf
Hibiscus. “Hibiscus, I am so sorry,” Klef says.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoanCQHEVYz
The dragon smiles. “Don’t worry about it. I’m more concerned about Rides’ parents. Has anyone seen them?”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8fsXC59764
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.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6T9enpJUrE
Klef turns and runs over to him. “Have you seen her mother? Please tell me she’s okay!”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnk1we57zDz
Dad sighs. “Well, she’s technically still alive…”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsnBE6Rxf5y
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.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTCyXkmC6M8
“That’s not necessary, really, it just takes a bit getting used to,” Klef assures her. “Has anyone seen Rides, though?”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHjnHfskK8F
Everyone turns solemn. I can feel Klef’s panic in his head. “Someone has seen her, right?! She’s not gone?!”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTK6DNP375t
Hibiscus stretches their wings. “I saw someone grab her and carry her out as I was dying. I’m sorry.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBN2fB3TCC8
“We have to find her!” Klef exclaims. “Form a search party! We have to find out where she’s gone.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMcJNpvHqsq
“No, Klef, don’t be an idiot!” I scream. “They’ll just kill you too!”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtsrt2aRJEK
Klef’s head whips around. “Ride?” he whispers.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVGB6Rnfrvj
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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLamyQmhhBo
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?”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2bnMkxdpD8
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.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtj6LryJlhk
“‘I was angry at my friend,902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡum7Dsh3F6K
“‘I told my wrath, my wrath did end.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNbEPbAVSSv
“‘I was angry at my foe,902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX1kdVXxXtU
“‘I told it not, my wrath did grow,” I mutter.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNetTFtckRe
“‘And I watered it in fears,902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNHGUIW9ySY
“‘Night and morning with my tears.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwlJba0wynU
“‘And I sunned it with smiles,902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqotJPBcyx5
“‘And with soft, deceitful wiles.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc7ZwUUAXIi
“‘And it grew both day and night.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn6eT20RDnP
“‘Till it bore an apple bright.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTrc5LYhLSV
“‘And my foe beheld it shine,902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8DXUHgI7Vx
“‘And he knew that it was mine.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt7mq2KFwHM
“‘And into my garden stole,902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhzlcOArW2j
“‘When the night had veild the pole;902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2sXBdeLdPc
“‘In the morning glad I see;902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsSI0miNc8y
“‘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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZqcLLuufPH
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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPmrOzO3qBe
Rythe smirks. “Feisty like her, too.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRaSciNbqTH
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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgKm4FyEXiB
“You had Flo,” I point out. “Wasn’t she enough for you?”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9zQAuyZFnm
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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Xw80COo6o
I swallow and drop my eyes.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYGWNLIqO34
“‘Course, I would never have anyone but myself kill her. Only the best for my love,” he sighs.902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrGaHhOkksi
“You’re a monster,” I growl. “Nothing more than a monster.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsmIWdAE0Fe
“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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJUc6fUzW9J
My eyes sting. “Shut up,” I growl. “You don’t talk about the dead like that.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG0HwGbemld
“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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡITsGnrJSZd
“I’m going to die anyway, what’s the point?”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa0VmcjGr7r
“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.”902Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr8A0UYjwny
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.
