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  Not even a second later, gunfire erupted. The bullets didn’t even touch the dark Sorcēarian as Euclid merely lifted a hand, the ammunition evaporating into nothing.

  “And you thought I didn’t know you were hiding in the shadows?” Euclid laughed wickedly. Thrusting his palm, the overturned makeshift wall Troy was hiding behind shot backward, knocking the soldier over and rendering him unconscious. Turning, he did the same motion, moving back the walls and tables near Aria and Dovian, revealing the two. They stood with weapons aimed. Aria fired without hesitation. Releasing a full clip, she dropped the mag and quickly reloaded another. Dovian halted her.

  “Save your ammo,” he said coolly.

  Aria let out a shuddering sigh. Not a single bullet had hit Euclid. Arrogantly, he flipped his raven hair over his shoulder; his twisted smile wrinkling the tattoo lining his face.

  “As much as I’d love to stay and play, I have a time-bomb on my hands.” Grasping at the thick cords connecting the spherical container to the black portal, Euclid pulled and tore the lines. “My dear, I bid you adieu. But first, where is your little blonde friend? Can’t be too far away, can she?” Signaling to the beasts, he quickly closed up the portal the Elixis machine had sunk into. “You have five minutes at best,” he laughed, disappearing.

  ‘Ivory!’ Aria’s mind reeled.

  Dovian didn’t waste any time, quickly sending a shockwave that crashed against the creatures. He slammed his staff into a few others; their bodies scorched and scattered to ash. Aria followed closely behind him, watching the first portal sink slowly back into normalcy. She fired continuously into the nearing beasts, dodging and running toward the unstable core.

  “Troy! Wake up!” Aria screamed into his head.

  They were greeted by more gunfire; the remaining Cherno soldiers had infiltrated the building, finishing off the final creatures. Aria joined Dovian’s side as he shouted in Legacy, the portal hovering above the nuclear core halting its diminishing size.

  “Quickly! We must lift it!” Dovian hollered. “If you can get it up high enough, maybe I can push it through the rest of the way before it closes.” He quivered, his body wornout and weak from continually expelling energy. “I just can’t do both at once right now.”

  “Troy!” she screamed again, trying feebly to lift the hefty equipment. “It’s too heavy,” she groaned.

  Scuffling from the shadows, Troy hurried the best he could toward the woman, wobbling slightly and holding his head. “Stop shouting, please,” he groaned. As if quieting her voice would help at all in a giant hall full of screaming monsters and constant gunfire.

  “Get your ass over here and help me lift this thing!” she growled.

  “Hey!” Troy shouted to the soldiers, suddenly very alert at the sight of the reactor core. “We need help!”

  “Buddy, we all need help!” one soldier shouted over his shoulder. Seeing the core, the Cherno man quickly twisted, tugging his partner with him. “Mother of....How the hell did this get here?!”

  “We’ll explain later; just help us lift it up high enough to get back inside the portal!” Aria yelled.

  “It won’t hold forever,” Dovian groaned, fighting with the closing gap.

  Together, the four soldiers picked up the core, barely able to move it any higher than a few centimeters. The ball in the center nearly doubled in size, pressing heavily against the glass, sending splinters up the surface.

  “We need more soldiers!” Aria shouted.

  “Hey! Help!” the Cherno shouted to their colleagues. “Forget the monsters; we got bigger problems on our hands!”

  One of the men halted his fire, eyeing something behind one of the exhibits. It had taken only a few seconds before he was boarded and driving full speed ahead in a new-fangled forklift prototype. Frantic shouts sounded from all around. The other soldiers divided with half trying to help lift the core and the rest firing at the monsters that tried to attack the moving vehicle.

  “Lift it as high as you can!” the driver cried, waving his hands as he neared the group.

  Aria and the others heaved the item onto the prongs of the lift. A moment later, it was rising, lifting the core six meters into the air before the secondary arms carried it another five. The cab wobbled, threatening to turn over under the heavy weight of the violently growing orb. The soldiers quickly held onto the backside of the cab to add more weight to balance the machine.

  “Hold it!” Dovian raised a hand. “Don’t get the lift in the portal, or you’ll be sucked right up with it. Hold tight.”

  Quickly, Dovian released the gateway, the thing quickly closing in on itself. Groaning, he raised the reactor core from off the lift, his staff’s light carrying it into the portal just as it suctioned closed. A horrendous thunder erupted into the air for only a millisecond before everything fell into silence. They barely escaped death. The world barely escaped it.

  Dovian leaned against his staff, rubbing his forehead. Aria dropped heavily onto her backside on the ground, sighing. The room was finally quiet. All the monsters had been killed, and Cherno was finally safe. However, she couldn’t say the same for herself and her two comrades seeing as now the three of them were held at gunpoint. The dark-haired woman only glared at the Cherno militants.

  “What is this?” Troy asked in disbelief. “We just saved your asses.”

  A few of the soldiers traded anxious glances.

  “Sorry, but we have no idea who you are. And your friend is quite suspicious with his…powers,” one of the commanding officers stated. “Being in a state of military alert, outside militaries are currently forbidden within our city. As such, you are under arrest for violation of the code. We’ll be taking you in.”

  “This is bullshit and you know it!” Aria argued.

  “Just come with us quietly. It’ll make things so much easier, and we can speed the process up,” the Cherno who had helped with the lift spoke up.

  Aria, her face holding a rather unpleasant expression, reluctantly nodded.

  “Weapons, please.” The officer held out his hand.

  “You’re not getting my damned weapon,” she snarled.

  She eyed the forklift driver again, and he frowned, nudging his head in his superior’s direction. Angrily, she shoved the weapon into the other man’s hands. Troy and Dovian followed her actions, Dovian feeding a nasty, icy glower at the soldier holding his staff.

  “You will be returning that,” Dovian said in a seething tone. The soldier quickly nodded in response.

  “Good. Now, this way.” The commanding officer forced the three out of the building.

  “Where’s Ivory?” Troy muttered through clenched teeth.

  “I don’t know. Euclid said he was going after her,” Aria whispered.

  Dovian stared forward, marching with guns pressed against his back. He, too, was worried about Ivory. With Euclid choosing her as a target, there was no way the young woman stood a chance. And what exactly would Euclid want with her anyway? There was something odd about Ivory, there was no doubt about it, but what was it that made her so special? The thoughts left an unsettling feeling in the Sorcēarian’s gut. Something wasn’t right.

  "Aria And The Brawler"

  Chapter 13

  The loud music of the club pounded in Aria’s ears. She swayed through the dancing crowd, looking about nervously. This wasn’t her typical scene, but for the sake of Troy’s birthday, she promised she’d be there. She was already regretting that promise, seeing as she couldn’t find her blasted partner anywhere. Self-consciously, she flipped her long hair over her shoulder. She hoped she looked alright; the women around her were all decorated with glitter, neon tattoos, incredibly revealing outfits, and hair of all colors. Her hands tugged on her tight halter-top, trying to pull the item over her bare stomach. A hand slipped over hers, pulling her to the side. Instinctively, she readied to smack the perv that drug his hand across her belly, but she paused midway through, giving a shy smile.

  “Gavin,” she sai
d sweetly. “I was about to leave. I couldn’t find you or Troy.”

  “Am I that hard to miss?” he asked, spinning the woman so that she rested back against his chest. Aria’s eyes flickered to the surrounding crowd. There he was. Troy was atop the stage, dancing with a bunch of electric-colored women beside the DJ. Gavin pressed against the woman’s back, his mouth near her ear. “I spotted you from across the room.” His warm breath gave her chills.

  “Oh, please,” she scoffed. The man smelled like whiskey and cigar, but it wasn’t unpleasant mixed with the scent of his cologne. She shivered as he ran his hands through her long black hair, twisting it with her many blue highlights. He piled it atop her head and lightly kissed her neck.

  “I like this look,” he murmured. “You’d look good with short hair. Show off that long neck of yours.” She felt his smile as he nibbled her earlobe.

  “Gavin,” Aria gave a short laugh. Her green eyes flickered to Troy once again. He had no idea the woman was there. Good, because she didn’t know how he’d handle his friend’s current handsy behavior. Sure, Gavin and she had their own personal moments, but they never showed their affections like this in public.

  “But, you look good no matter what you do,” he whispered, his hands lowering over her belly again. He flicked his thumb over her bellybutton ring, giving a low, raspy chuckle.

  “Gavin,” Aria repeated with a stern tone.

  “Aria,” he teased mockingly. His hands lowered further, his fingers dipping into her tight black pants.

  “Gavin!” she laughed, failing at sounding authoritative.

  “You know this feeling?” he returned. “This feeling right now?”

  “Hmm, yeah,” Aria purred.

  “You’re never going to have it ever again.”

  “W-what?” she paused, slowly turning to look at Gavin.

  Much to the woman’s horror, his face was covered with blood.

  “You’ll never have this ever again. You know why? Because I’m dead, that’s why. You ruined every chance you had at having any good memories.” He looked angry and then hurt.

  “Gavin?” she whimpered, watching the man slowly gag and choke.

  “Aria!”

  Quickly, everything turned to black. The bright lights, the loud music, the warm feeling of Gavin’s body pressed against hers faded away into nothing. Aria quickly opened her eyes. She was in the Cherno military’s holding facility. A shiver ran down her spine as she felt the cold cement beneath her. The pale fluorescent lighting did nothing to brighten up the dark room.

  “You were dreaming,” Dovian’s voice intruded.

  “Yes, I was,” Aria huffed irritably.

  “It wasn’t a pleasant one,” he stated.

  “Whatever, I’m fine.”

  She ran her hands up and down her arms, trying to gather some warmth. Slowly, she trailed her fingers up her neck toward her chin-length hair. Gavin always preferred her short hair. Aria frowned, dropping her hands heavily onto the cement. That night at the club was nearly fifteen years ago. It was one of the few memories she had that was close to a normal life. Feeling a burning stare, she turned her gaze toward Troy. His expression was unreadable at first. Was he mad? Of course, he was mad. They had been locked up for the remainder of the day and overnight while the world was in turmoil on the outside.

  “You were dreaming about him, weren’t you?” Troy finally asked in a low tone.

  Aria scoffed. “Who?” She shrugged carelessly.

  “You said his name,” he muttered.

  Aria tore her eyes away from Troy’s, staring at the cracks in the floor. “So what?”

  Troy didn’t push further. He gripped his knees, tugging his legs toward his chest.

  “Your pilot friend?” Dovian intruded. Aria glared at the Sorcēarian.

  “It’s just a dream! It’s not a big deal!” the woman growled.

  “It’s Euclid, isn’t it?” Dovian murmured. “He’s put ideas in your head.”

  “Don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “You’ve been having nightmares ever since you met him, haven’t you?” Dovian asked.

  Aria was silent a moment. From her peripheral, she could see Troy staring at her. “Yeah,” she whispered finally.

  “Don’t listen to him. It’s part of his tactic. Euclid specializes in mental torment. He likes to weaken the enemy by putting them in a poor emotional state.” The Sorcēarian, sitting against the wall opposite the woman, leaned forward.

  “I’m fine!” she shouted. “My emotions are fine!”

  “Seems like it,” Troy scoffed.

  “Shut up, Troy,” Aria spat angrily.

  “I’m merely warning you. He’s a master illusionist. He can easily plant ideas and images in your mind. I just want you to know that whatever’s going on in your head, don’t believe any of it,” Dovian advised.

  “You make me sound like a basket case.”

  “Gavin’s death was not your fault. Don’t let him use that as a tool against you.”

  “Can we just drop it?” she snapped.

  Dovian leaned back, staring at the ceiling. He sighed in defeat.

  The three remained in an awkward silence for a few minutes. Dovian sat, arms folded and eyes closed. Aria wondered if the man even slept. Troy fidgeted, playing with a loose string on his sleeve like a curious kitten. After another few moments, the woman sighed loudly. It was better to talk than to sit and get lost in her depressing thoughts.

  “What exactly is fire and brimstone?” Aria asked.

  Dovian’s eyes popped open. He stared at the woman a moment, his lips parting as he pondered her question. “Where did you hear that?” he asked.

  “Euclid said something about it,” she mumbled. “They were cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where they were tormented day and night. Something like that.”

  “Revelation,” Dovian said.

  “Revelation?” Aria asked.

  “It’s from the Bible, describing the end of days. Fire and brimstone are a description of Hell.” Dovian frowned, seeing Aria’s face falling into a dreadful look. “Is that what he told you? That your friend was in the lake of fire?”

  “In a roundabout way I guess,” she whispered.

  “Don’t you dare listen to that man,” Dovian growled angrily. “He knows nothing.”

  “But what if he’s right?”

  “He isn’t,” Dovian barked.

  “How would you know?”

  The room fell silent. Dovian stared at the floor. “Because I just know. I can tell.”

  “But how?”

  “There’s ways of seeing the light within individuals. He was a believer, that’s all that matters.”

  “Oh, come on,” Troy scoffed.

  Aria and Dovian both turned their attention to the male soldier.

  “Aria? You aren’t believing this are you?” he asked. The woman was quiet, eyeing shamefully at her hands. “Don’t listen to this crap! It’s not going to help!”

  “Why wouldn’t it help?” Dovian asked, glaring at the other male.

  “You’re putting ideas in her head, giving her false hope,” Troy argued.

  “What do you mean false hope?” The Sorcēarian’s voice was very grave.

  “This whole mumbo-jumbo about an afterlife. We’re soldiers. We see death on a daily basis. Why concern her with more thoughts about our dead friend? Make her worry about whether he’s burning in Hell or living the good life in Heaven?”

  “I didn’t realize you were so close-minded on the subject,” Dovian said, his tone unwavering.

  “Do you hear yourself, Dovian? You sound like a madman.”

  “Madman?!” Dovian stood; Troy followed his actions.

  “I don’t appreciate you filling Aria’s head with these ridiculous ideas!” Troy shouted.

  Now they were standing nearly chest to chest. Troy sure was brave trying to get in Dovian’s face. The top of his head didn’t even reach the Sorcēarian’s chin.

>   “There are things going on here that you simply don’t understand, and you have the gall to stand before me and say that I am the madman when there is so much proof around you? Are you really that blind? Or are you just scared?” Dovian asked.

  “Scared? Of what? Dying? I’ve had thousands of chances to die. This is no different,” Troy said indignantly.

  “Those demons out there aren’t any different?”

  “Demons?! Those things…aren’t demons!”

  “Aliens, then?” Dovian chuckled.

  “And that’s more ridiculous than your beliefs? I’m supposed to sit here and think that those things are demons and that you are some angelic being with divine powers? If you were so powerful, then why can’t you stop Euclid? Save Ivory?” Troy glared.

  ‘Save Gavin?’ The thought plagued him. If Dovian was what he said he was, would Gavin really be dead? If he were some ultimate being with supreme power, he should be able to bring someone back from the dead. He would have been able to keep Euclid from murdering him.

  “Boy, I could send your body to particles without so much as a moment’s thought, and you stand here insulting me and my entire race?”

  “As you insult me with your religious antics.”

  Dovian grabbed Troy, his hands twisting in the man’s shirt.

  “Then you better be scared. If those things get a hold of you, you will inevitably burn,” Dovian said, his voice lowering to two tones as his incisors began to grow into sharpened fangs. His back rippled as it readied to sprout wings.

  “Stop it!” Aria shouted. “What is the matter with you? Both of you? Why are you fighting?”

  Dovian quickly rolled his shoulders, releasing Troy. The soldier pushed away, glaring.

  “Troy, he is only trying to make me feel better; don’t be so offended by something you obviously know nothing about.” Aria pointed a finger at the man.

  Troy opened his mouth to argue, but Aria stopped him.

  “Shut up! Dovian! Don’t…touch Troy.” She tried to punish both men the best she could, but it didn’t stop their hateful exchange of fierce looks.

  Dovian huffed angrily. “I’m sincerely sorry about your friend. If I had known what we were up against, I would have tried my best to save him.”