Raelia

by Lynette Noni

  “I promise,” she whispered. And she meant it. But only as a last resort. She would never willingly drag him or anyone else into the mess that had become her life.

  He continued looking at her for a moment longer and then nodded, apparently satisfied she was telling the truth. He dropped her hand and she immediately felt a sense of loss at the broken contact, absurd as that was.

  “We should keep moving,” he said. “I’m sure the others will be worrying about us.”

  They hurried up the hill in silence, careful with their footing as the light from the mansion faded with every step. Only when they were near the meeting place did Kaiden speak again.

  “I’m not sure if you realised in the middle of all that, but your weapon disappeared after it knocked the telekinetic woman to the floor,” he said. “It just vanished into the air. What’s the deal with that

  “Honestly, I have no idea,” Alex said. “It’s happened three times now. It just appears when I need it and disappears again afterwards.”

  “Aven called it ‘A’enara’,” Kaiden mused. “I’ll see if I can find out anything about it once we’re back at the academy, if you want?”

  Alex didn’t need to think about his offer. “That would actually be really good; I wouldn’t even know where to begin looking.”

  “Consider it done,” he said. “I’ll let you know if I discover anything.”

  “Thanks, Kaiden.” She sent him a soft smile. “Oh, and thanks for, you know, rescuing me. I don’t think I would’ve made it out of there if you hadn’t come back. But I’m sorry you had to carry me—I’m surprised you didn’t break your back.”

  Kaiden laughed. “You weigh practically nothing, Alex. I’ve carried much heavier things in Finn’s class. I’d choose you any day.”

  Alex was glad the darkness kept him from seeing her reaction to his statement. ‘I’d choose you any day.’ Maybe she was taking his words out of context, but so what?

  “How did you get me away from Aven, anyway?” she asked, deliberately moving her thoughts along.

  “I used this,” he said, pulling from his belt the silver Stabiliser he must have stolen back from Calista.

  “You shot him?”

  “It didn’t do much good,” Kaiden admitted. “He was barely jolted, when most people would’ve been out like a light. But it was enough to shock him into releasing you, which gave me the chance I needed to get you out of there.”

  Alex shook her head in amazement, and she couldn’t help chuckling. Her chuckle turned into a laugh, and all the while Kaiden watched her with curious amusement.

  “What’s so funny?”

  “I can’t believe you shot him,” she said, still grinning. “I wish I’d seen that.”

  “Maybe one day I’ll offer a repeat performance,” he said, winking.

  Alex sobered at the thought of seeing Aven again in the future. For a moment she regretted her promise to ask for Kaiden’s help if needed, but at the same time she couldn’t deny the relief she felt at someone else knowing about the threat tainting her life. At least part of it, anyway.

  “I can see them! Over there!”

  Alex looked further up the hill and saw her classmates running in their direction. The sight of them safe and well almost brought her to tears after everything they’d all been through. When they were within arm’s reach, she and Kaiden were drawn into a group hug.

  “Are you guys okay?” Pipsqueak asked when they broke apart. “We were so worried when we realised you weren’t with us! What happened?”

  “Just a minor setback,” Kaiden assured them. “We’re both fine.”

  “We’ll be even better when we get back to the academy,” Alex said in a pointed tone.

  Everyone nodded in agreement and looked towards Samson, who rummaged through his bag and pulled out a handful of Bubbler vials.

  “We’ll have to go through in two groups,” he said, “because my Bubblers are cheap knock-offs and they only have enough juice for five people at a time. No one else knows where we’re going, so I’ll have to come back and bring the second lot of you through as well. Good thing I’ve got a few of these vials handy.”

  Good thing indeed, Alex thought suspiciously, beginning to question just how much of Samson’s imprisonment and subsequent rescue had been staged by Hunter. In hindsight, parts of it seemed a little too convenient to Alex’s mind, like the fact that she had unwittingly crossed paths with Aven yet again—an event that she was certain hadn’t occurred by accident, not on Hunter’s watch. What, exactly, had her SAS teacher been thinking?

  Putting aside her questions for now, she watched Samson activate the first Bubbledoor and step through, followed by Blink, Pipsqueak, Skyla and Tom.

  While the rest of them waited for him to return, Kaiden guided Declan a short distance away for a whispered conversation, hopefully asking him not to press Alex for details about Aven or Meya. Giving them some privacy, she turned back to Jordan and quickly found herself wrapped in his arms. He hugged her so tightly that she was in danger of suffocating for the second time that night.

  “Alex, I was so scared,” he whispered in her ear.

  She returned his fierce hug, having had first-hand experience—a few times over—of just how terrifying Aven could be.

  “I really thought I’d lost you tonight,” Jordan continued. “And not just when you weren’t behind us coming out of the mansion, although that’s definitely something I never want to experience again. But when you fought Aven… I thought he was going to kill you. His eyes… I’ve never seen so much hatred.”

  Alex frowned in confusion and pulled back to look at Jordan’s serious face, trying to read his features in the moonlight. “Wait a minute. Are you saying you were freaked out about me, not about Aven?”

  At his nod, she gaped at him.

  “Are you mad?” she asked. “What about you? You were stuck in the same room the whole time! If anything, you were in way more danger. Aven needs me alive—at least for the moment— but he was more than willing to kill you. Especially after Signa read your thoughts about Meya.”

  Jordan winced. “Sorry about that. I tried not to think about it, but the more I tried not to think about it, the more I thought about it.”

  “Like the pink hippo,” Alex said, understanding.

  Jordan looked bemused. “Huh?”

  “You know, the pink hippo,” she repeated. Seeing his expression, she added, “When someone says, ‘Don’t think about a pink hippopotamus’, what’s the first thing you think of? A pink hippopotamus.”

  “Riiiight,” Jordan said. “I think it’s time we got you home.”

  Alex definitely agreed with him, and Samson chose that moment to Bubble back to them. Without preamble, he smashed another vial and walked through it with Alex, Jordan, Kaiden and Declan following.

  They landed in a dimly lit street and the moment they were all steady, Samson started leading them swiftly along the cobblestone pavement.

  “Where are the others?” she asked, looking around. “And where are we?”

  “Your friends are already waiting at my house,” he answered. “And we’re on the outskirts of a small town called Dupressa.”

  “Do we have far to walk?” Jordan asked, wrapping an arm around Alex’s waist so she could lean on him for support. She hadn’t realised how much she’d been struggling to remain upright until his added assistance made it so much easier for her to keep going.

  “Not far,” Samson promised. “My house is warded against unauthorised Bubbledoor arrivals. I won the vials we used in a game of Stix and didn’t have time to program my access code into them before I was imprisoned. That’s why we’re stuck walking.” The juggler eyed Alex. “Can you last a little longer, love? You sure are a mess.”

  She frowned and looked down at herself. True enough, she was covered in shallow cuts, and her dress was slashed and bloodied in numerous places where Aven had managed to make contact with his blade. Really, she was lucky she had any material left
covering her body, considering the damage. But somehow she was still mostly decent, a fact for which she was grateful.

  “I’m fine,” she told Samson.

  The man raised his eyebrow in disbelief but he didn’t call her on the truth of her statement.

  They continued walking in silence for another few minutes, and with each step, Alex leaned more and more heavily on Jordan.

  “Here we are,” Samson said at last, leading them off the street and up to a cottage that was separated from the other houses nearby by a thick row of trees.

  As they stepped inside and were greeted by the rest of their classmates, Alex exhaled with relief. But it was short-lived.

  “We’ve found an arrow with our next task,” Tom said.

  “Another task?” Declan said. “You can’t be serious!”

  He took the words right out of Alex’s mouth. Did Hunter seriously expect more from them? She didn’t have anything left to give.

  Tom raised his hands. “Don’t shoot the messenger.”

  “Sorry,” Declan said, running his fingers agitatedly through his cropped hair. “What does it say?”

  “Just that the arrow will transport us to our next destination. We’ve also been given a bottle of Liquid Light, which doesn’t make me feel great about wherever we’re going to land.”

  “Fabulous,” Declan muttered.

  Alex swayed on her feet, prompting Jordan to tighten his grip around her waist.

  “Do you have something we can eat?” Kaiden asked Samson, his eyes taking in Alex’s failing energy. “Something to drink, too?”

  “I’m fine,” Alex repeated, knowing he was only asking for her sake. But she also knew that if she sat down to eat or drink, she probably wouldn’t be able to get back up.

  “I’m thirsty,” Skyla stated. “And hungry.”

  “We can eat back at the academy,” Alex said firmly, and she turned to Samson. “It was nice meeting you. I hope I get to see you perform one day.”

  “The pleasure was all mine, love,” he told her. “Thanks for helping me escape. I owe you one.”

  Before anyone could argue or ask again for food, Alex sent him a parting smile and stepped out of Jordan’s grasp, stumbling over to Tom. She took the vial of Liquid Light from him and reached up to touch the arrow embedded in Samson’s wall. Immediately she was whisked away, and when she landed, she couldn’t see anything in the pitch-black darkness. She quickly unstoppered the vial in her hands, releasing a brilliant light that illuminated the entire area around her.

  All Alex could tell was that she was surrounded by trees, but her attention was diverted when Jordan stepped through, followed by the others.

  “Where are we this time?” Pipsqueak asked tiredly.

  “It looks like we’re back in another forest,” Blink said. No one could say his observation skills were lacking.

  “I’m cold,” Skyla complained. “And hungry. And tired. And—”

  “Skyla, you’re not going to feel any better whining about it,” Tom said.

  “But it’s true,” she said petulantly. “I didn’t get to eat anything at the party because Alex and I were too busy rescuing the rest of you from the dungeon. You’re welcome, by the way.”

  “We already thanked you,” Pipsqueak muttered. “About a million times.”

  “It doesn’t hurt to show a little appreciation for the risks we took,” Skyla huffed.

  “We haven’t had a chance to thank Alex yet, and she’s the one who took most of the risks,” Pipsqueak pointed out.

  Alex groaned at Pip’s words, knowing Skyla wouldn’t be impressed.

  She was right.

  “What’s that supposed to mean, Philippa?” Skyla demanded.

  “Nothing, Skyla,” Alex jumped in. “Pip didn’t mean anything. She knows how amazing you were tonight. We couldn’t have made it out of there without you. But we’re all tired, so maybe instead of talking, we should search for our next set of instructions?”

  “Fine,” Skyla relented. “Whatever.”

  Everyone else looked at Alex with gratitude, but she was too drained to so much as offer a smile in return.

  “Let’s see what we can find,” Jordan said. “Alex, stay there and point the light for us, will you?”

  “Subtle, Jordan,” she said with a snort. But she didn’t argue, since she was too relieved he’d given her an excuse not to move. She gratefully slumped down onto a fallen tree and pointed the light around as directed.

  “Over here!” Declan called.

  They all hustled over to where he stood beside another arrow.

  “What is it?” Tom asked.

  “It’s another map, I think,” Declan said. “Alex, turn the light a little.”

  She did as he asked and Declan held the paper up so they could all see it.

  They stared at the map for a few moments before Alex whispered, “Please tell me that means what I think it means?”

  “I think it means exactly what you think it means,” Jordan said with a grin. “I think we’re finished!”

  “There’s only one way to find out,” Tom said with renewed excitement. He pointed at the arrow. “Who wants to try first?”

  “Me! Pick me!” Skyla squealed.

  No one argued, and she reached out for the arrow, disappearing in a swirl of colour.

  “High maintenance, that one,” Blink muttered, looking at the place where Skyla had just been standing. “Off the charts.”

  Again, no one argued, and one by one, the rest of the group travelled through the Bubbledoor until only Declan and Alex remained.

  “After you,” she offered. “Then I’ll come through with the light.”

  “No way,” he said, and he gently took the vial from her hands. “You first.”

  Alex didn’t see the point in arguing, so she stepped up to the arrow. Before she could touch it, Declan called out to her.

  “I’m not sure what happened earlier tonight,” he told her seriously, “but Kaiden’s my best mate, and you saved his life. You saved us all, in fact. I gave him my word that I’d keep my mouth shut about everything that happened, and now I’m giving it to you, too. Your secrets, whatever they are, they’re safe with me.”

  Alex was so tired that she couldn’t suppress her overwhelming gratitude, so she reached out and wrapped her arms around Declan’s firm torso, grateful to have a friend like him on her side.

  “Thanks for coming back for Jordan and me,” she said into his chest.

  He gave her an affectionate squeeze and replied, “You know me—I love a good fight.”

  She let him go and smiled up at him, knowing the absolute truth of his words.

  “Maybe next time your feet won’t be stuck to the ground and you’ll be able to jump in and lend a hand,” she said light-heartedly. “What’s the point in having all those muscles if you can’t use them?”

  “You were doing just fine on your own,” he said. “But next time I’ll make sure to bring popcorn for the show.”

  She swatted him on the arm and he laughed at her pathetic attempt at violence.

  “I don’t want to have to carry you through, so get going before you collapse,” he said, giving her a gentle nudge forward.

  She resisted the urge to poke her tongue out at him as she reached for the arrow. Once she landed, she had to blink her eyes until they adjusted to the painfully bright light.

  “Here’s my favourite patient,” came a familiar voice.

  Alex glanced around and almost cried with relief when she realised she’d been transported directly to the Medical Ward.

  “Look at you, Alex,” Fletcher tsked, narrowing his eyes at someone over her shoulder. “Hunter, you have a lot to answer for.”

  Alex spun around and, sure enough, there stood her teacher, leaning casually against the wall. All around the room her classmates where climbing onto beds, waiting for Fletcher to check the status of their health.

  “This is convenient,” Declan said, arriving through the Bubbledoo
r. “But Hunter, teacher or not, we’re going to have words about the nightmare you put us through this weekend.”

  “It’s interesting that out of everyone in this room, Alex is the only one who hasn’t threatened me,” Hunter said with dry amusement.

  “I’m too tired to threaten you,” Alex said, and then she remembered something. “But I am supposed to pass on a message from Warden Jeera to let you know that she’ll be in contact about your ‘teaching methods’.”

  “I can’t wait,” Hunter said. Rather than sounding sarcastic, he almost seemed excited by the prospect.

  “Did you say Warden Jeera?” Declan asked, and his eyes flickered over to Kaiden who was listening closely as well. “As in, Warden Jeera from the palace in Tryllin?”

  “Uh-huh,” Alex confirmed around a yawn. “She helped me escape from the military compound after I pretended to be the royal princess. I only wish I’d stayed with her and skipped the fan-flipping-tastic night we’ve all just experienced.”

  The only person in the room not gaping at her was Hunter, whose dark eyes glittered with humour.

  “What?”

  Alex wasn’t sure who’d spoken, but she knew the exclamation came from more than one person. She’d forgotten that she hadn’t told them how she’d managed to get in and out of the Soori Outpost. Oops.

  “It’s a long story,” she mumbled. “And it doesn’t matter anyway since we’re all here now, safe and sound.”

  She swayed as she said the words and Fletcher caught her by the elbow.

  “You’re about to collapse on your feet,” he said, guiding her to a bed.

  “It’s just these horrible shoes,” Alex told him, scowling down at her heels as he forced her onto the mattress. She was amazed that she’d made it through the night without breaking an ankle, and she had absolutely no idea how she’d managed to fight Aven while wearing them. “Next time, Hunter, you need to pick more appropriate footwear.”

  “I’ll see what I can do,” he said, his voice rumbling with amusement.

  “It’s not just the shoes, Alex,” Fletcher said with exasperation. “You look like you’ve been through a cheese grater.”