Over the past several thousand years, Malikyne had become complacent. His rule had softened, and the great Urlowen empire he had created dwindled. It infuriated Kalma. “As always, I’ll weed out their supporters and silence them all. However, their ranks include members of the Council.”
“As always, you have my confidence,” Malikyne said. “Do as you wish, though I would like to deal with those on the Council myself.”
“Yes, Your Eminence.”
“Good. We’ll discuss this further when I arrive. It’s been a long time since I last visited Earth.”
“It looks almost as it did before,” Kalma offered. “Except the Humans don’t have the same flair for architecture the Elves had.”
“I look forward to seeing it, then.”
The channel cut out and Kalma sat quietly on his mat, pleased. Everything was playing out just as he’d planned.
The door to his quarters flung open and Traven poked his head inside. “Hey, kid, it’s been a rough couple of days. We’re going out for drinks.”
Wren moved into the doorway behind Traven. “Given how you kept us all from going home in body bags, your drinks are on us.”
“I can’t turn that down,” Kalma said.
Joining them in the hallway, the three walked toward the elevators. They turned the corner to find Zavier waiting for them. The elevator doors slid open and they started off toward the pub together.
Chapter 34
Ethan sat on the edge of his bed, anxiously staring at the clock just above the wooden desk in his room. His next lesson with Aleena was only fifteen minutes away, but it felt like an eternity. Since seeing the two Elves in action, his thoughts were consumed with possibilities. He wondered why he was capable of magic, and if he was alone or if other Humans could wield it as well. Though strictly speaking, he had yet to perform any magic himself. Still, Aleena assured him that he had the ability, and he desperately hoped that his ability would be as great as hers, despite how unlikely that was.
The flight from the extraction point to the Alliance base had been relatively uneventful. They spent most of the time bringing Valaan up to speed and trying to convince the Alliance soldiers that the two Elves were not a new alien threat. Ethan thought the Elves’ performance in the field spoke for itself and was surprised by the suspicion etched in the faces of the captain and his men. Even after landing at the base, the Elves were escorted to their quarters under armed guard, unlike the others and himself who were treated as guests.
All the western resistance members had been given quarters in the base until the general decided where to move them. The children would eventually be relocated to the closest Alliance-held city along with their parents, but any volunteers willing to fight would be placed into a newly formed resistance regiment. As its name suggested, the regiment consisted of resistance fighters who had been rescued or extracted from cities across the continent.
Leon, Grant, Gabe, and the other lookouts were thrilled with the prospect of joining the Alliance and immediately accepted the invitation. Even Eric decided to join, although that caught everyone by surprise. Strangely enough, Eric didn’t look at all happy with his decision. Ethan mused that it was much like a child being forced to do something by his parents, and he couldn’t help but laugh a bit. Eric was a strange person.
Unlike the majority of the others, Ethan was torn. He wanted to help the Alliance, but ultimately wanted to stay with Aleena and Valaan. The Elves weren’t invited to join the regiment. Even the general seemed unsure of what to do with them. Ethan was convinced that his reaction was simply out of fear of the unknown. The Urlowens were the first alien species anyone had ever met, and so far, that wasn’t going very well. Then there was the magic. Ethan understood the fear that magic created in the Alliance—after all, it wasn’t supposed to be real. Worse, the Alliance had no defense against it, and word was spreading that the Urlowens could use it. The rangers’ account of the final moments of the battle between the Elves and the Urlowens was spreading, including stories of a single enemy soldier who appeared as gifted with magic as the Elves themselves. That part of the story scared Ethan as well.
He looked up at the clock again—ten more minutes. Ethan began bouncing his leg with excitement. This training session would be different. After Aleena told Valaan of her attempts to teach him, Valaan agreed to train them both. Aleena looked as thrilled with this prospect as Ethan. Now they would be students together and learn from the greatest Councilor of Magic of all time, at least according to Aleena.
Ethan couldn’t wait any longer, getting up from the bed and going into the hallway. The walls were painted a solid white and decorated with various images of military vehicles—tanks, ships, submarines, space fighters, and the like.
He walked to the next room and quietly cracked the door. “Allison?” he whispered. There was no reply. He cracked the door a little more until he could see inside. She was sound asleep under the gray wool covers of the bed. Her room was identical to his. Although the Alliance had given them different quarters, they usually slept together. She would sneak into his room most nights, and when she didn’t, he would end up in hers.
He shut the door as gently as he could to avoid waking her. I’ll come back after training.
It only took a couple of minutes to walk to Aleena’s room. He pressed the buzzer on the outer edge of the doorframe. “Enter,” he heard her call. The door slid open revealing Aleena sitting, her legs crossed, on a half-circle couch. She was wearing a full-length blue strapless dress and looking as striking as ever. Across from her, Valaan sat in his usual full-length robes.
Aleena smiled warmly at Ethan as he entered the room, though her eyes looked a tad red and puffy. “Right on time,” she said. “Please sit.” She indicated a stout plush armchair that was directly across from the sofa.
Ethan took his seat while Aleena and Valaan returned to their conversation. He could see it would be several minutes before they would stop to start his lesson, so he decided to practice on his own. The magic he saw both of them perform in their escape still riddled him with excitement. If he could learn to harness even a fraction of that kind of power, he could become useful to the Alliance.
There was one skill in particular he badly wanted to learn. Valaan and Aleena had both told him to have patience and start small, but the war was raging on. He didn’t have time to start small. People were dying now, and he needed to do his part.
Ethan rested his arms, palms up, on his thighs and closed his eyes. Focus, he thought, reaching inward. He still hadn’t felt that subtle power Aleena described, but it had to be there somewhere. He put aside the conversation the other two were having and delved deep into his mind.
Aleena was struggling to hold back tears. All of this was nearly too much to handle. She’d put aside her thoughts of home and family for the last several weeks. With all the planning and fighting, she found it easier to avoid the harsh reality of her new life, but now, sitting in a quiet room speaking with another Elf, everything came flooding back.
“Everyone I knew is dead,” she told Valaan, tears welling in her eyes. “They destroyed everything. Our entire way of life. I’m the only Earthborn left. How’re we to stop them this time? We couldn’t stop them the last time, and that was with the Earthborn.” She lowered her head into her hands to hide the tears.
Valaan looked at Aleena with the wisdom of a thousand years. “You’re not alone, child. Although I’m not Earthborn, I am here, and there are other Elves among the stars.” He paused a moment, looking toward Ethan, a large grin spreading across his face. “And perhaps there is still some trace of your people here on Earth.”
Aleena slowly lifted her head and wiped her tears. She looked toward Ethan just as he exclaimed, “I did it! Aleena, Valaan, I did it!”
Hovering above his palms were two small blue-white orbs, sending sparks of lightning into the room.
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Acknowledgments
I am indebted to several people for their incredible and generous work helping me make this manuscript everything it is and encouraging me throughout this process. Natasha, thank you for putting up with my incessant chatter about Kalma, Aleena, and well, everything that even remotely relates to writing this novel and becoming an author. You read this entire manuscript multiple times, offered comments, plot suggestions, and fixed my grammar. This book would not be the same without you. Your encouragement has meant the world to me. And don’t worry, Earthborn Alliance is on its way. A special thanks to David Clark, who read the very first draft of this manuscript in its roughest form. I’m sorry. I’ll get better. I promise! Rob Havekost, thank you for all your work reading through the novel and catching the many mistakes I missed. Erin Krueger, your insights were very helpful, and I appreciate the time you put into helping me improve my writing and the manuscript.
An enormous thank you goes out to Kristin Scearce, at Hot Tree Editing. You took my poor attempt at writing and turned it into something I’m proud to show to others. This book would not be even half as readable without your tremendous contribution. Thank you very, very much.
Crystal, Kolleen, and Mandy, thank you for beta reading and editing the manuscript. I loved reading your comments, gaining insight into your thoughts as you read.
Finally, a huge thank you to you, the reader! Without you, there is no reason to write. And since you are reading these acknowledgments, I know you love this story as much as me. Again, thank you.
About the Author
Matthew S. DeVore is the author of the Earthborn Legacy series. He loves writing stories where science fiction and fantasy intertwine. He’s a fan of shadowy characters with hidden motives and epic heroes with personal flaws. Science has a special place in his life, as he holds a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from the University of Kansas. Rock Chalk! He lives in the Midwest with his wife, daughter, and two dogs.
Visit Matthew’s website to learn more: www.matthewdevore.com.
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