Breeze hurtled down the sheer face of the mountain, gritting his teeth and squinting while the cold air blasted his face. His arms were stretched out before him as he tried to suppress his fears as the canyon floor rapidly approached.
He surrendered himself to the reality that he was going to die. He thought about his father and wondered what he would think of his death when a brief image of his mother floated through his mind. She looked sad, even when she smiled. She dissipated when he heard the laughter of a child.
He felt a surge of power rush through him as his shield rose. He leveled out in time and narrowly escaped impacting with the canyon floor.
He skimmed across the surface and focused on his steering when he was slammed from the side. He lost control and bounced off the walls of the narrow canyon, flinging rock and debris everywhere.
Relieved that the shield held up and protected him, he quickly looked over his shoulder to find the source of the attack and saw a black clad figure hurling a boulder at him.
He grunted as he poured on the power and raced through the canyon with a sonic boom trailing behind him, triggering a rock slide with massive boulders pouring down the sides of the canyon.
His shield was struck repeatedly from the raining debris of rocks and boulders. He tried to dodge and weave through them, but the rock slide came down too fast for him to maneuver through.
He looked up just as a shadow descended upon him. He had enough time to see a massive boulder trailed by several smaller ones hit him, sending him in a downward trajectory to the canyon floor.
He impacted the ground hard and plowed a trench, coming to a stop when he slammed into the base of the mountain. He laid huddled in a fetal position as rocks rained down on him. His shield stayed up and protected him from the torrential rock slide as dirt and boulders piled upon it, plunging him into darkness.
The rock slide eventually ended, followed by an eerie silence. He closed his eyes as they ached from straining to focus in the dark. He calmed himself down, knowing that should he lose his concentration the shield would collapse and the tons of rock above him would crush him to death.
The air inside the shield was turning foul and beginning to buckle as he struggled for fresh air.
Beneath him, he felt dampness as his impact exposed an underground river. Water began filtering through the shield, yet he didn’t resist as it filled the interior and immersed him. It reminded him of the first time he met Nina at the bottom of the cove. He convulsed as water filled his lungs and caused the shield to waver, and then surrendered himself as his breathing relaxed and he slipped into a peaceful oblivion.
Sally drifted in her astral form across the burning city as she tried to get her bearings. She could feel her body back at the mountain being caressed by the hot air heated by the fires as it blew across the valley. She looked back upon the trail of light that connected her astral form to her physical body. She knew she would need to follow it to return.
She stopped to hover over the center of the valley. Below, flames and smoke enveloped the city. She scanned the streets hoping to find anyone, but the city was a corpse except for the sound of an explosion or the collapse of another building succumbing to the ravages of the fires.
She steeled her nerves as she drifted across the destruction, telling herself over and over again that this was just a dream, and she would wake up any moment in the safety of her home.
Home, where was it? She thought as she spun slowly, hoping to find some landmark that would lead her to it when she saw a twin spire tower on the horizon. It was the same one she had always seen from her bedroom window and just beyond it was her neighborhood.
She glided over to the tower, surprised to find it wasn’t on fire or damaged, nor the surrounding structures attached to it. She continued traveling, leaving behind the burning city and into the surrounding suburbs when she reached the district of her neighborhood where it too seemed to have escaped the ravages of the flames. She cautiously flew over the darkened streets with only the distant glow of the fires behind her to light the way. The homes below were left untouched from the fire and destruction. Everything was perfectly intact.
She recognized her street and glided past each of the stately homes on it until she reached hers, and instead found a smoldering crater in the ground.
She felt her heart crush as she descended. It couldn’t be! Every home is untouched, except mine!
Fear crept up within her as she thought of parents. Mother, father, where are you?
She hovered over the horrible gash in the earth where her home once stood and looked at the houses across the street. They were in perfect condition. She saw through the trees that Ray’s family home next door was intact.
She turned to look back at the crater and gasped as a figure stepped out of it. It was jet black with a featureless face. An Elephim. It walked the perimeter of the crater shaking its head.
Sally could feel the terror course through her as the sound of static began to build. She carefully floated away when the Elephim looked in her direction, then leapt across the expanse of the crater and landed a few feet from her, leaning forward as it looked through the darkness; searching. Its face swirled with pinpoints of lights as the hiss of static grew stronger.
Sally put her hands to her mouth as she dared herself not to breathe.
Back at the mountain, Ray watched as Sally’s body trembled and shook as it mimicked the actions of her astral form. He saw her hands go to her mouth as her eyes glowed an intense, searing white.
He leaned into her face and said loudly, “Sally, come back.”
At the crater, Sally continued floating away from the creature as Ray’s voice was barely heard above the hiss of static. Every time she moved, the Elephim seemed to sense her presence but was hesitant and cautious as if it knew a sudden move on its part would send her flying away.
She looked behind and saw her trail of light was diminishing. A wave of panic swept over her as she felt her energy draining as the static built in intensity.
She looked back at the Elephim. It was gone.
She turned around and it was right before her, reaching out and groping with its hands as it tried to find her in the darkness.
She screamed as she felt the light trail sweep her off her feet and drag her back. She saw the landscape below as nothing more than a blur of fire and smoke as she rapidly approached the cliff and slammed back into her body. She skidded across the ground and rammed into the landing gear of the ship, where she laid still in a crumpled heap.
Ray rushed over and gently rolled her to face him.
She was comatose.
Oslo held his breath underwater as he watched the pair of Elephim above the surface. One hovered over him as the other circled like a vulture.
In a flash, the Elephim that hovered pierced the water and angled towards him.
Oslo closed his eyes and forced himself to focus. He would have to make a jump if he wanted to escape. His paranormal ability was never fully refined, and nobody knew how to instruct him of his powers and how to achieve his full potential. He was only able to leap forward a few seconds at most, folding space around him, which created the impression he could move quickly.
He did his best to discover more about himself, but always came across roadblocks in his mind that prevented him from doing so. He was written off immediately upon arriving at Perihelion as a low level paranormal who was not fit for active combat duty as a Helios and was transferred to the Military Science Battalion. That was fine by him as he always preferred the comfort of a well-equipped laboratory and a fully stocked library. That was his domain.
He cursed himself as he struggled to stay underwater with the limited breath he had in his lungs. He saw the Elephim streaking towards him and wished he could do so much more than just jump.
And jump he did. He flitted away from his original p
osition, leaving the Elephim to grab at empty space as he reappeared on the surface a few hundred feet away and gasping for air.
He swam toward debris he spotted from his sunken ship and grabbed onto a part of the hull that had broken off and held onto it. He knew he couldn’t go underwater to hide. It would weaken him further and prevent him from jumping again.
The Elephim that was circling above spotted him and dove in his direction. Again he focused, hoping he had the strength to jump with the piece of debris he was hanging onto. Carrying large objects, or people with him wasn’t something he did often or well.
He shuddered as he mustered all his strength and jumped, reappearing down range from the wreckage.
The attacking Elephim had plunged into the water just as he jumped. It rose back to the surface and looked about wildly trying to find him.
Oslo lowered himself into the water so that only his head was above the surface as he clung to the debris.
The ruse didn’t work as the Elephim who first attacked him surfaced and pointed out Oslo’s location to its companion, and then they raced toward him in tandem.
Oslo gritted his teeth and focused with all of his intensity. He jumped just as the Elephim split off and flew in the opposite directions.
When he reappeared, one was right behind him and grabbed him by the neck as static roared through his ears. He thrashed wildly and managed to break free from its grip, jumping just a few feet away where
the second Elephim was waiting for him. Again he jumped, this time just a few inches over, narrowly escaping its grip.
He knew they were aware of his plan as his trajectory back to the island was giving it away. But he had nowhere else to go, and not enough strength to keep jumping. Time was running out.
He cried out as his feet were suddenly grabbed from below, and he was yanked under the surface. He expected to ingest a lungful of water but instead found himself inside a bubble. He looked up to see the Elephim give chase as the bubble raced toward the island.
He turned to look in the direction he was heading, and his jaw dropped.
Towing the bubble was Nina. Sensing his gaze, she turned briefly to wave at him, and then accelerated toward the island.
Breeze was in complete darkness. He felt no pain and was surrounded by a warm cloud of air. He felt light as a feather, making him realize how heavy his body really was until now.
He drifted across a vast sea of blackness, hearing nothing and seeing no one, yet he felt no panic or anxiety, nor any desire to wake up. In the back of his mind, he was well aware of the threat from the Elephim that attacked him, yet he felt no reason why he should care.
Streaks of light crept into his outer periphery. He turned to follow them as they weaved and meandered their way toward him.
The streaks of light molded themselves into globes. They flitted about and cast their light upon him, and when he looked down, he found he was completely naked.
He watched as the orbs coalesced into a single globe, then it hovered before him and shimmered as a deep hum reverberated through his head.
A voice spoke to him. “Never surrender. There will be times when you will feel overwhelmed and wish to escape. You may come to this place, for it is a respite for weary souls. But do not stay too long. Your time will not arrive for quite a while. Take succor and imbibe the nourishment we offer you. But then be on your way. Never forget that you are loved and the light within you burns brightly. You will use this light and cast it upon all that you meet as we cast it upon you. Be generous with this light. Illuminate the path they all must travel upon. Remember, always go the light, and shun the darkness.”
The globe approached and absorbed him, then pushed him up toward a rift of light that he passed into, and he was sent rushing down a long corridor. Streams of light raced past his head as he felt a shudder course through his body.
When he opened his eyes, he could barely see; it felt as if he were underwater and every breath he took was labored and strained.
What little light he had gave way to a brilliance that rushed over him. He watched rocks and stones fall to the side as he was lifted into the air and out of the trench he was buried in. He could see the outline of a single Elephim with outstretched hands hovering above him as he was lowered onto the canyon floor.
He didn’t sense any malevolence from it, only a feeling that it wanted to help and protect him.
He was startled as twin black streaks surged at him from above. With whiplash speed, the Elephim grabbed and rammed them together, then hurled them onto the canyon floor. With a shriek accompanied by a powerful hiss of static, the black streaks materialized into Elephim. The two laid still as their bodies pulsated with a dark energy.
The helpful Elephim turned away from them to look at Breeze. Its expressionless face began to swirl with pinpoints of light as it scanned Breeze within his shield filled with water. It noted how his lungs squeezed the oxygen from the liquid and kept him from drowning. The pinpoints of light on its face abruptly stopped as it turned and hovered over to its comrades and grabbed them by their wrists, then flew away.
Breeze watched the helpful Elephim fly with its teammates in custody as it disappeared into the clouds, never quite understanding why it betrayed its own kind and helped him like it did.
He was becoming anxious, and the urge to lower his shield was overwhelming. As if the shield sensed his wishes, it lowered instantly and spilled him and the water onto the canyon floor. He coughed and heaved, vomiting water out of his lungs as he struggled to breathe the cold air, all the while writhing in agony from the pain he felt in his chest.
He lay on his side as water drained from his lungs and out of his mouth. He could feel the freezing air chill his body, and he shivered violently as he laid curled into a fetal position. He wanted to raise his shield again to protect himself from the elements, but didn’t know how to do it on command. Oslo tried to teach him during one of many lessons on Perihelion, but he could never quite master it.
He focused his eyes on a canyon wall close to him to take his mind off the cold when he saw an etching of a sun with its rays of light shining upon rows of people with their arms outstretched. Their faces were featureless.
Shine the light upon them; he remembered the words from the globe of light.
His mind began to wander as an image of Nina appeared before him.
Nina, if you can hear me, I could use your help, he thought to himself before drifting off into darkness.
Ray picked up Sally and cradled her in his arms. He was tempted to climb back up into the ship and call for help, then remembered the comms were down. And hiding inside the ship made him feel like a sitting duck.
We’re being watched. There’s only one thing to do. Run and hide elsewhere.
He picked his way along the trail that led to the base of the mountain. He was familiar with the area, having hunted here before with his father. His plan was to find the cabin they frequently used on previous hunting trips. There would be food there, as well as heat and dry clothes. Then he would have a chance to regroup and plan.
As he made his way down the trail, it dawned up him the reality they faced. Their city was destroyed, and they were the only known survivors. He stopped and dropped to his knees, then laid Sally down and took in a deep breath.
Father, what happened?
He was so sure he did the right thing leaving Perihelion with Sally as it was his father who urged him to come back. He replayed the last conversation he had with him before leaving Perihelion and realized only now how strained and anxious he sounded, which was odd considering how his father was a stone cold military warrior. Nothing ever seemed to rattle or faze him. Ray wondered why he didn’t pick up on this before.
His thoughts were interrupted by loud and powerful crack as a tree off to his side crashed towards them. He scooped up Sally and
ran as the tree fell onto where they once stood.
There were several loud cracks as more trees keeled over and fell around them where one by one they formed a crude corral, trapping them inside.
Fear clouded Ray’s mind as he lashed out with a bolt of energy and blasted away a clump of felled trees, giving them a way out.
He picked up Sally and dashed through the opening when more trees began to fall around them as he ran down the trail at full speed.
He was out of breath and exhausted when they reached the foot of the mountain. He stumbled and lost his grip on Sally, and she fell to the ground.
He crouched down next to her and took in deep breaths to steady his nerves. He could barely feel his legs as he was numb from running for so long.
The silence that fell over them was unnerving, and was shattered by the sickening crack of trees falling over as yet another crude corral was formed around them. He reached out feebly to let out a blast of energy, but only a few sparks spewed forth.
Drained. They’re wearing me down so I can’t put up much of a fight.
He grabbed Sally and hoisted her over his shoulder and hobbled out as fast he could as trees crashed and tumbled all around them, getting out of the makeshift corral before it could be finished.
Ahead he saw the cabin. He ran to it and with the last bit of energy he could muster he stumbled up the steps and pushed the door.
It was locked.
He wanted to blast the door down, but knew he couldn’t. He needed the sun to replenish his energy and he couldn’t draw that much from starlight. Yet.
He stomped his feet. He wasn’t accustomed to not having options. Then again, he wasn’t used to working on his own. He was usually with a group of people and always had his father’s guidance to help him, or an authority figure to turn to. Now, more than ever, he was alone and he was also responsible for Sally’s safety.
He snapped his fingers as he remembered the cellar below. If he could hide there with Sally, maybe they wouldn’t be able find them and would call off the chase.
Breeze Corinth (Book 1): Sky Shatter Page 28
