“I think I understand. I'll do what I can to protect your secret. Maybe keep the troops on alert for Melicose's presence. I'm sure, after a few months, the subject will fade. Just remember, you can always talk to me if you need someone with a glimmer of understanding about what you’ve inherited.”
She stepped forward, stood on her toes, and kissed him on the cheek.
“Take good care of Clarel. I’m not the only one who discovered something that's been in front of my face the whole time. She means everything to me.”
“You have my word,” he said, smiling. He turned and departed.
Snitch entered her quarters. Little wisps of white light sprang from her hands, flitted about the room, collected her things, and loaded them into her pack.
Picking up her coat, she spotted the same leather book that had saved her life. Her eyes widened.
Despite surviving the blast of a Warex in the purple dimension and Glantham’s incineration spell, it had its familiar beat-up look.
She lifted it and warmth filled her fingertips, still not believing it was back in her hands.
With a simple gesture, it floated into the air and hovered over her open hand. The pages flew back and forth in response to her query before stopping on a page. Her lips drew into a smile as she read the passage. Closing the book, she dropped it into her pocket.
Snitch traveled through several hallways into a different part of the palace where the levels of dust were thick. There were no footprints except her own. She reached the door to a dusty old storage room. Waving her hands, a key-shaped thread of light unlocked it.
Inside was a tunnel hatch caked with inches of dirt and grime. This one wasn't on Colonel Townsend’s map.
She closed the door behind herself and locked it. Extending her hand, palm up, and lifting, the hatch opened. Climbing down, she closed it.
Snitch was filled with purpose. She would hunt down anything left by the Warex, destroying the slightest chance of them ever coming back.
About the Author
Greg L. Turnquist has read scifi since he was a kid including Asimov, Herbert, Saberhagen, and Del Rey. Years ago, the ideas of a futuristic world reduced to a medieval existence began to bounce around in his head. A world where the heroes had to overcome a hostile environment to save the day. Where bits of hi-tech floated around but few knew of them. Where magic had been discovered but proved the downfall of society and has since been buried. Almost.
Other Works by Greg L. Turnquist
Fiction
The Job: A Darklight Chronicle
Uprising: A Darklight Chronicle
Non-Fiction
Learning Spring Boot 2.0 2nd Edition
Learning Spring Boot (Video)
Learning Spring Boot
Python Testing Cookbook
Spring Python 1.1
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