“I need to speak with him.”It was too early in the morning for an unfamiliar voice to resonate so loudly from the corridor. Dressed and groomed for the day, Micah exited his quarters quietly, assessing the situation through weary eyes.“You need to make an appointment like everyone else,” one of the guards exclaimed, blocking Micah’s line of sight. “Lingering outside His Royal Highness’ personal quarters is an extreme lapse in protocol. You should know this.”Micah gazed past the wall of royal guards, catching the eyes of a young Unda female.She perked up. “Your Highness, I need to speak with you!”“You can make an appointment,” he said unemotionally.He began walking down the corridor, surrounded once again by Josiah’s guards. After the conversation with Cordelia and Sachiel yesterday, Micah had little patience for further politics, especially so early in the morning.Especially with haughty, young aristocrats.“Kai would be disappointed if you put rigid protocols before his well b
In the end, Haken proved remarkably resourceful.Micah had grossly underestimated him—a mere Healer—who claimed himself capable of combat with an Element he’d never used to cause harm. The same young man desperate enough to appear confident for the sole purpose of impressing his reluctant Chosen.He had certainly delivered.As soon as the guards advanced outside Micah’s quarters, Haken adopted an air of cool professionalism despite Micah readying his stance for confrontation.The words that had spewed from the Healer’s mouth were both confident and authoritative as he explained a fabricated ailment that seemingly inflicted Micah. He had explained, being as they were Chosen, Micah and Josiah possessed an intuition when the other wasn’t feeling well. Considering Micah’s ailing state, he knew Josiah needed prompt attention.Prompt attention—immediately.It was in the guards’ best interest to allow them passageway to Josiah’s quarters. While the guards obliged, albeit in a state of confus
“Talia never pushes us this hard.” Viktor bemoaned. “We’re out of practice.”“Faster,” Micah urged unsympathetically. He was just as out of practice as the rest of them, though he’d never tell them that.They sprinted through the hazy maze of the train depot, having just knocked three guards unconscious. It wouldn’t be long until other guards took notice of their unconscious comrades and gathered more numbers.They had no time for confrontations.As Agni had pointed out earlier, Calder would close the train system down if he hadn’t already issued the order.Between the steam from the trains, the smoke from the distant riots, and their dust-covered surroundings, a heavy wall of fog ghosted the surface of the ground and hovered just above waist level.The street lamps cast golden hues across the train yard, emphasizing the thickness of the fog and casting everything else in various shades of silhouettes. In the distance, the palace siren continued to blare. Because they were so far away
“Micah!”Jerking violently awake, Micah pulled down his hood and frantically searched his surroundings. His chest heaved frantically to accommodate his racing pulse, certainly not accustomed to jarring awake so abruptly, especially when his mind had dipped down into a deep, heavy sleep.Across from him, Viktor danced on one foot, then the other, before cupping his groin.“Where do we pee ?”Behind him, Talia shook her head exasperatedly.Micah stared blankly at Viktor. “ What? ” he exclaimed sharply. “What are you doing?”“I need to pee,” he repeated. “I don’t know where we should go. Is there a designated area or…?”Groggy and still fighting the faint clutch of sleepiness, Micah looked at his team. They were in various states of awareness, some appearing just as jarred as he felt, others wide-awake and irritated over Viktor’s antics, Agni especially.“What?” Micah asked again stupidly.The boy slouched petulantly. “Pee. I have to pee.”“Go!” Micah demanded, his tongue slurring with s
Thirteen Years Ago Unimpressed eyes stared down at the young child. “Get lost, boy.” The small boy lifted his chin. “I said you need to give me my change.” His pubescent voice hardened with authority. “I gave you a gold coin.” He gestured to the bag of large potatoes. “For two potatoes. I need nine silver pieces back from you.”“And just how old are you? Do you even know the difference between gold and silver?” The vendor sneered. “Get lost!”Around the quarreling young child and the potato vendor, men and women hustled through the streets. The dying sun cast deep, orange and red hues across the desert village. White and beige buildings, made entirely of clay and other desert materials, stood out from the darkening atmosphere.Most civilians of this outskirt village in Region 10 just wanted to get home to their families before dark. The nightlife was far from convivial and every bit unfriendly.The warmth that the sun had provided earlier that day gradually disappeared. In its plac
“They are not beacons, child, but entities who wish to remain undetected,” Micah impersonated, pitching his voice to sound like Agni.Said entity offered him an uninspired look.“I said until they do not,” Agni emphasized. “Evidently, they do not wish to remain undetected. They are hailing us almost as subtly as your teammate is hiding that pain in her fractured wrist.”Micah stayed back as his team clambered into the inner region conveyance train. The conveyance unit resembled a carriage more than it did a traditional train. However, instead of a horse as the power source, the small, single-compartment unit ran off the bulky coal and steam engine situated in the front.It was a broken-down piece of rusted equipment used to shuttle the residents between the desert settlements of Region 20. Judging from the noises it emitted, and the noxious scent of rust, Micah imagined it was close to its expiration.Fortunately, the place they believed Kai to be located had tracks close by.Otherwis
“They were right behind us!”“I know they were, Talia.”Conway and his men stood tensely behind the open transport, gazing back towards the underground labyrinth where they’d abandoned the prince and the other men. His eyes then lifted to the skies, peering through the downpour of rain and admiring the vivid, wrathful lightning.Across the abandoned town, tall fires burned radiantly, their ginger flames hardly shrinking beneath the onslaught of heavy rain. If anything, they roared fiercer in defiance.A sense of unease hung in the atmosphere, thickening the air with profound static. Every time he inhaled, he tasted the sheer impossibility of their current surroundings on his tongue.It was bitter, like ripe, toxic fear.Rain in the desert.Fires unrelenting under sheets of rain.In the distance, a deteriorating building suddenly burst in a shower of rock, causing a few men to flinch from the thunderous explosion. Their arms jerked towards their heads, as if to protect themselves, yet
The newborn was no longer than his forearm.A tiny thing. Just days old.Five days, to be exact.He’d waited nine mortal months to see it in the flesh, now it was here, a bundle of soft, healthy skin and a thrumming, developing heart. Less bloody and far more endearing than when it took its first, wailing gasp of air five days ago.Cupping the baby in his large palm, he held it aloft, analyzing the petite features, long lashes, the wild tuft of black hair, and the elfin nose and tiny ears. Soft. Breakable. He could curl his fingers into a fist and easily crush the newborn until its delicate ribs closed in around its organs.Death would be quick.His fingers tightened out of morbid curiosity, smiling as the newborn squirmed and emitted a sound of displeasure.No.His fingers loosened before the midwife overheard. He’d observed newborn mortals before—several before as their parents sought for his blessings. Never did he feel any sort of gentle affection for them. They were, after all, m