Skyborn

by David Dalglish

  “What the hell happened to you?” she asked as he handed her the pole so she could pull her wings down. “You look like you lost a fight with a boulder.”

  “Later,” he said as he adjusted the wings a little to the left so they weighed evenly on his shoulders. “Do you know what’s going on? Are we under attack?”

  “Not us,” said Bree. “Our allies.”

  They exited to see a crowd forming around Argus Summers, who must have arrived while they were inside the armory.

  “I’ve already sent a flier to Center,” Argus was telling them. “Galen’s launched an attack on Elern, but so long as they hold out, we’ll arrive in time to turn the battle.”

  “It’s not just Galen,” Headmaster Simmons called out as he pushed his way to the commander. He held a crumpled piece of parchment in his left hand, and he offered it to Argus. “Candren’s joined in as well, claiming to fight on the side of some minor Elern noble. They’re going to replace the ruling family, and if they do…”

  “It will be three islands to our two,” Argus said. “And Sothren is already weakened.”

  Rumbles of unease rippled throughout the gathered Seraphim. Elern’s neutral status as defender against any invasion was the only thing keeping Weshern safe. If they fell…

  “We can’t wait until Center gives permission,” the headmaster said. “All will be lost by the time they respond. Give the order.”

  “But it is the Archon’s place to…”

  “There’s no time. You’re our commander. Give the order.”

  Argus looked to the rest of them, and all at once, it seemed the heavy burden on his shoulders faded away.

  “Our allies are under attack,” he shouted. “Let’s go save them.”

  The Seraphim tore into the air, their chaotic order slowly shifting into straight lines and even formations. Unlike before, where Kael flew near the very back, this time he joined the front lines, with Phoenix Squad just to Wolf Squad’s left. Weshern’s rivers and lakes vanished beneath him in a rapid blur, soon replaced by the ocean blue as they made their way to Elern.

  “Remember, keeping Breanna safe is our top priority,” Phoenix Squad’s leader, Olivia, shouted to the rest of them. “Our lives mean nothing compared to hers.”

  It sounded too much like Saul’s bitter proclamation, but Kael tried not to let it bother him. Bree flew just ahead of Olivia, and Kael watched his sister gently weave side to side, dark hair billowing in the wind. He would give his life to protect her. Even before her rise to fame, he’d have done so. What did it matter now that she’d finally mastered her element?

  The minutes dragged, long and quiet. Sothren passed by to their left, and Kael hoped to see their own Seraphim flying out to join them. He could even see a few of them circling the air, but they did not stray beyond the island’s edge. Waiting for Center’s permission was Kael’s guess. He shook his head. He remembered his tedious travel there with Loramere, the waiting in lines, and the theotechs’ overall disinterest. Getting a response in time to join the fight would be a miracle.

  Elern was next, and seeing the island filled Kael’s entire chest with anxiety. Having survived one battle should have helped with his nerves, but it only meant he knew just how horrible it might be. Luck had been with him once. Would he manage to endure twice? He clenched and unclenched his shaking right hand, imagining the ice prism contained within its gauntlet. That ice would protect him. That ice would keep him and his sister alive. He had no choice but to believe it.

  They flew over Elern’s yellow fields, deep chasms, and tall, huddled cities of brown stone. Kael stared at a whole different world he might never walk upon. Did the people down there understand what was at risk? Did they care about the change in ruling families? Selfish as their battle was, he prayed at least Elern’s populace benefitted from their defense. No matter what, Galen’s aggression had to be stopped. All five islands needed peace.

  There they are, thought Kael as they neared the other edge of Elern. In the skies between it and Galen waged the swarming chaos of battle. Elern’s Seraphim, marked by their white jackets, flew in small five-person formations. Swarming alongside the red of Galen were Candren’s yellow jackets, and Kael prayed he could keep track of them all once the battle began. Having a single enemy to follow was one thing. Two enemies, and an ally? Part of him was terrified he’d take down a friend in his confusion.

  Up ahead, Argus split from his squad to fly alongside Bree. He shouted something to her that Kael could not hear, and she nodded. Argus resumed his formation as Bree’s wings flared to their maximum velocity.

  “Here we go,” Kael whispered to himself. “You can do this, Bree. We’re here for you.”

  His sister drew her swords, and as she clanged them together, fire enveloped the blades. She held both at an angle, and they left streaks of flame in a long, burning trail. Olivia shifted Phoenix Squad so they flew directly above and behind Bree, the twin lines of fire passing beneath them. Ahead of all their forces she raced, an unmistakable fiery beacon. Several formations of both Galen and Candren split off from the fight, charging headlong to meet Weshern’s arrival. Kael watched them, right hand tensing. This time, he wouldn’t be hiding in the back during the initial exchange. This time, his ice would be what kept their nine alive.

  “Unleash!” Olivia screamed as the distance between them closed, and the initial volleys soared from either side. Bree weaved left to right, twirling like a dancer on a ballroom floor. From their higher advantage point, Phoenix Squad let loose a barrage of ice and stone, all wide and flat. The elements shot ahead of Bree, intercepting their enemies’ counterbarrage. The sound of cracking ice and breaking stone joined the hum of ancient wings. Fire and lightning filled the space between, with such fury Kael could not hope to follow it all. No, he only had one person to follow: his sister.

  Bree drifted side to side, avoiding sharp lances of ice that shot past mere feet after. She showed no intention of veering away, no attempt to get around to the back of a squad. Instead she zoomed straight into the heart of their enemies’ formations, which meant Kael flew into the thickest, most chaotic part of the battle. He let loose a few round orbs of ice at a Galen group to his right, then turned his aim forward. It seemed their foes wanted Bree dead just as much as she wished to engage them, and they did not attempt to avoid her, only flew straight at her while unleashing an overwhelming display of elements.

  “All you have!” Olivia screamed again, and Kael repeated the cry for the others as he braced his right arm with his left hand and let loose. More than twenty enemy Seraphim were closing in. Kael aimed not at them but the air between them, filling it with ice. Fire slammed against his boulders, shards of stone slammed into a thin wall Olivia summoned. Those farther back in the formation struck dead several with lightning, taking advantage of the enemy’s refusal to focus on anything but Bree. They wanted the Phoenix dead, and so they’d pay. Breath caught in his throat, Kael watched Bree jump forward with one last sudden burst of speed, and then she crashed into the enemy formations.

  Kael had only a second before diving down to follow, but that instant was still breathtaking. Bree spun like a wheel the moment she hit the squad, spears of lightning and fire arcing to either side of her. Her swords lashed out, their trails of fire creating a swirling tunnel. Two men from Galen died, cleaved in half, and then Bree twisted her body so she intercepted a second squad from Candren, cutting right through their V formation. The Seraphim broke apart, but not before Bree slashed the rearmost woman with both her blades. The remainder turned around, letting their momentum carry them as they tried to bring their elements to bear on Bree.

  Olivia followed those trails of flame, leading her squad onward, and they flew straight toward the now-hovering squad. Kael fired three lances, the first two missing, the third spearing a man through the neck. His body spun in place from the force of impact, his wings keeping him hovering like a macabre ornament of the sky. The others tried to retaliate, but speed was not on the
ir side. Phoenix Squad mopped them up in seconds, then banked hard to follow their protected charge.

  Kael felt his muscles screaming as he twisted his body while increasing the throttle. The smoke from Bree’s sword trails passed by his face, and he arced his back to try to match her sudden climb. His path sent him flying toward the distant island of Galen, and as it flashed before his eyes, he felt a sudden, immediate instinct something was wrong, but he couldn’t place it. Something about the island, or its shimmering Beam beneath…

  The naked, Fount-less Beam.

  A loud crack met his ears, and he glanced over his shoulder to see a squad of four suddenly on their tail. They were coming in fast, and in perfect position. More sharp stones followed, killing the woman at the back end of his squad. Letting out a curse, Kael rotated about to face their pursuers and lifted his right gauntlet. Bracing it with his left hand, he prayed he caught them off guard as lance after lance of ice shot toward them. One struck a man in the face as he climbed, smashing bone and splattering blood and gore throughout the air. The other three veered aside, whooshing past Kael. Ignoring him, he realized, preferring to chase the far larger number.

  Under normal circumstances, Kael would have chased, but no doubt something terrible was happening. Spinning to face Galen, he confirmed the missing Fount, and he stared at the Beam with dawning horror.

  Where are the theotechs? he thought, spinning. A boulder flew over Kael’s head, missing by inches as he instinctively ducked. To his right, he finally spotted a group of three hovering in their red robes and golden wings. Punching the throttle, Kael abandoned his squad, instead whirling through the combat. Lightning flashed below him as if a thunderstorm raged close to the ocean. Bodies fell, their jackets of all colors. All the while, he prayed his sister would endure.

  Before he even reached them, Kael could already see the anger on the theotechs’ faces. Seraphim were supposed to ignore their presence during battle, but this was too important, Kael knew it in his gut. Founts never, ever ceased, their creation directly tied to the existence of the Beam that kept all six islands afloat. Slowing his speed so he didn’t slam into the three, Kael spun and pointed toward Galen.

  “The Fount!” he screamed, drifting past them. “The Fount is gone!”

  The theotechs froze, and the nearest turned to follow his finger. Immediately he pulled a horn from a side satchel and put it to his lips, blowing a long, deep note. Kael looked back to the battle, saw the other leaders of the various factions pull out their own horns and sound the note for surrender. Kael felt relief when he spotted Bree’s burning swords amid the chaos. If something had happened to her while he rushed off to the theotechs on a hunch…

  The thought died as full-blown terror erupted in his heart. Galen’s Beam flickered, then dimmed. With wide eyes, he watched the island tilt toward them, just enough to send buildings crumbling, trees snapping, and rivers running askew.

  Galen was falling.

  CHAPTER 31

  The world was a nightmare, and try as Bree might, she could not wake up to escape it. Wings pushed to their maximum, she flew amid a hundred others racing toward the crumbling island of Galen. Allegiances and grudges meant nothing now, the Seraphim from the various islands all sharing the same goal: to save as many lives as possible.

  As she closed in on the edge, she more felt than heard the deep rumbling sound emanating from the island’s center. Buildings shook, many collapsing in on themselves. Given the tremendous size of the island, there seemed no specific place to go, and Bree felt at a loss. She picked a spot and flew, as did all the others, it seemed. So far it didn’t appear Galen had dropped at all, but it had tilted slightly. Men and women fought against the incline as Bree swooped down to the soft earth and grass of the edge. They screamed at her, arms reaching, dozens seeking refuge, but there was only her.

  “Give me the children,” Bree shouted. “Please, the children, I can carry two, now hurry!”

  The group seemed to be a family, and while they were afraid, they were not yet in panic’s grip. Perhaps they are in denial, thought Bree. She couldn’t blame them. The island was shaking, and it’d tilted slightly, but to believe it might fall? To believe an entire world was about to die? Perhaps that was too much, even for her, and she’d personally seen the weakened Beam fading in and out beneath Galen’s surface, its Fount ceasing to be.

  “Please, take care of them,” a mother said, handing over a boy and a girl, each looking to be around six years old. Bree scooped one into each arm, asking them to hold on. Their little hands wrapped around her neck, and Bree shared a look with their mother. The tanned woman’s eyes were hollow, her lip quivering from strangled tears.

  “I’ll come back for you,” Bree told her.

  Left hand clenched into a fist, she poured power into her wings, gripped the children tighter, and then lifted off the grass and into the chaotic sky.

  Thousands of men and women now filled the airways between the two nearest islands, Elern and Candren. Seraphim from all five islands raced in, diving onto Galen and leaving moments later with men and women in their arms. Ferrymen ceased all travels to various islands, everyone with an empty platform turning and heading toward Galen’s docks instead. The fishermen were right behind them, slowly plodding closer while carrying enormous nets. Bree glanced over her shoulder at Galen’s own fishermen. Half a mile away she saw a dock, and two fishermen were just taking off, each holding the side of a net. Crammed within looked to be more than a dozen children.

  Bree turned back, then swore. Too many were in the air, far more than she’d ever seen. It dwarfed the arrival docks at Center, and there were no colored flags to guide people into organized lines. A pair of fishermen were up ahead, each holding a woman by the wrists. Bree banked to the right to avoid slamming into them, and as she did she felt her grip lessen on the girl. She slipped, screamed. Bree felt her heart freeze in her chest, and she lunged to catch her by the wrist before she might fall. The little girl bawled, her dark hair whipping about as she hung there. Bree gritted her teeth hard enough to hurt, but she held on as she pushed her wings faster.

  Don’t drop her, Bree thought as her hand ached and the muscles of her left arm quivered. Don’t you dare drop her. Just a little longer.

  It felt like an eternity, but at last she arrived at Elern’s edge. Bree slowed just enough to drop them onto the grass, two among hundreds as the first wave of refugees arrived. Curling around, Bree put the island of Galen in her sights and then slammed the throttle to its maximum. Her hair danced as she raced toward it, weaving through the traffic as if in the midst of battle. The Beam continued to flicker, and a large chunk of earth broke free from its bottom, falling and falling until it crashed into the ocean. The sound was like a thunderclap, and it chilled Bree to her core.

  Fishermen from the other islands had arrived by the time Bree was almost there. They carried two at a time, sometimes three. Men and women hung from their hands, children wrapping their arms around their necks. The nets were proving more reliable, and like a macabre catch of the ocean the fishermen carried them to safety. Fear was spreading like a fire among the populace as more and more people from the interior parts of the island spread outward to the edges. Twice she watched a platform lift off from the ground in the strong arms of the ferrymen, filled to the absolute brim, yet still people leapt at it, trying to catch its sides. Most missed, and they flailed their limbs wildly as they fell to their deaths.

  It seemed most were traveling toward the various docks and the towns surrounding them, but Bree had a promise to keep. Hoping she remembered correctly, she flew toward the same stretch of earth that she’d taken the children from. She couldn’t concentrate, couldn’t think. The rumbling noise was deeper now, but the screams overwhelmed it. So many crying, shouting, begging for safety…

  When Bree arrived at the same spot, she felt relief to see the children’s mother still there, waiting. She cried out to her, lifting her arms as Bree landed.

  “Wrap
your arms around my neck,” Bree told her.

  The woman tried, but by now more families had joined her waiting group, and they pushed and jostled. Bree felt people grabbing onto her wings, others tugging at her clothing. Bree stepped back, trying to maintain control. The side of the island was so close, yet they seemed not to care.

  “Get back!” Bree screamed, trying to shove away a dark-haired man with wild eyes and silken clothes. She reached for the mother, but before she could grab her hand, the man drew a knife, stabbed the woman in the breast, and then shoved her over the edge.

  “You’ll take me!” the man shouted. One hand held the bloodied knife, the other pulled out a handful of golden coins.

  Bree flew several feet into the air so she would be free of them, drew a sword, and then sliced open the man’s throat. He dropped to his knees, fell to his side, and then rolled off the edge of the island, his corpse chasing the woman he’d killed. His gold fell with him. The rest retreated, horrified, and Bree looked at them with growing terror.

  “You,” she said, pointing at a young woman who looked Bree’s age. “I can fly faster if I carry you.”

  Bree sheathed her sword and then dropped into the group beside her intended passenger. Knowing she couldn’t dare hesitate lest she be mobbed again, Bree grabbed the woman around the waist and immediately flew back into the air. The woman wrapped her arms around Bree’s neck as if in a loving embrace, and she put her face against the buckles of the harness, eyes closed as she cried. Bree envied her. If only she could close her eyes…

  The air was alive with vibrations. Twin paths, like ant trails, or pulsing veins, stretched out to connect the two nearer islands. Fishermen carrying far too much weight dipped and rose as beside them the ferrymen guided their packed platforms to safety. Seraphim flashed through their numbers, trying to stay at the outskirts, but they were so many. As Bree watched, one net tore open, and an elderly woman slipped through. A nearby Seraph dove after, but Bree could not afford to watch to see if he caught her. Another Seraph flew too fast, failing to notice a fisherman higher above starting to drift. Their bodies collided midair, and as the Seraph spun wildly, he struck the chains of a platform, upending it. Men and women fell screaming. Bree told herself to pretend it wasn’t happening. Forget it all. If she dared let it sink in, if she dared think on all the horrible things happening, she’d be paralyzed.