beach.”
“Loop?” asked Cameron.
“This is a portal loop, a string of gateways, that crosses all of Elitia. “As I said, the portals fade each time they’re used. If we’re lucky, the next one will still be there. It will bring us to Mist Veil, just across the border from the Temple of Aurelia.”
Cameron shifted his pack in preparation for the hike. It wouldn’t be long now before they reached the Book of Prophecy. And then Terra.
CHAPTER TWELVE
~ The Wasteland ~
526AX August 21, The Sapphire Shore
EVERETT WALKED ALONG the shore , which was composed of ninety percent rock and ten percent wet and gushy grey sand. Pebbles shifted beneath his boots, and a gust of cold wind battered him, piercing his jacket. The official name of this Elition kingdom was the Sapphire Shore, but it wasn’t hard to see why it was commonly referred to as the Wasteland. Rocky beaches, icy water, scant vegetation, and strong northern winds were a superb combination — for survival training. It wasn’t exactly a luxury getaway spot, but he’d been to worse places. At least there were no assassins chasing them here. The only assassin around was Jason, and as long as you talked to him as little as possible and didn’t do anything too stupid, he tended to just ignore you. Except Isis. He hardly ever ignored her.
Though the poor girl had survived Selpe imprisonment, the scars were undeniable. She didn’t chatter and prance about as she used to. It felt wrong to see her so reserved, but she seemed to be slowly warming up again. Ever since they’d arrived in the Wasteland, she’d spent the entire time walking alongside Jason, engaged in a hushed conversation with him. Everett had even caught her smile once or twice. Perhaps, she just needed time. Everett wouldn’t have thought Jason’s stony, expressionless manner to be the best remedy to return her to a state of carefree bliss, but she’d been drawn to him from nearly the first moment. Women rarely made sense.
Isis tapped Jason’s shoulder and pointed toward the ocean. Mostly cloaked behind a thick cover of fog, Everett could just make out the distinctive disc-like silhouette of a Hellean city floating high above the waves. It was a marvelous feat of technology, and a sight he knew well. There was one just like it above the Western Seas, near to the Rev territories. Like all Rev boys, he’d grown up staring up at Pallas, dreaming of one day setting foot on it. But the chances of that were slim. The Helleans didn’t let just anyone into their cities.
“No, not that one. Ariella was headed for Oasis,” Jason whispered to Isis.
“I’m worried about her,” she replied, looking up at him.
Jason held her gaze. “I know.” He stroked his hand down her arm. “She’ll be all right.”
Everett cleared his throat loudly as he and Cameron stopped behind them. Jason’s hand dropped.
“How about some breakfast?” Everett suggested, smiling.
Cameron nodded in enthusiastic agreement.
“There’s no time,” Jason said. “We’re not the only ones after the Book of Prophecy. We must get to the temple before anyone else does.”
His face was set. Everett could see that there would be no convincing the assassin, and he wasn’t going to risk losing any nonexpendable appendages by trying. They would just have to eat while they hiked. As Jason and Isis walked off, Everett quickly recovered two wrapped sandwiches from his bag. He kept one for himself and handed the other to Cameron, and then they were off again. No time had been wasted. Even a stingy assassin like Jason Chanz couldn’t complain.
But it didn’t take long before they did fall behind. Beneath a stone archway, Everett tripped over a broken fishbone and lost a few minutes dumping sand and tiny gravel out of his boots. While he was waiting, Cameron decided to relieve Everett of the burden of his half-eaten sandwich. The wind echoed off the walls, and Cameron gave him a devious grin.
“You know, they say
“Loop?” asked Cameron.
“This is a portal loop, a string of gateways, that crosses all of Elitia. “As I said, the portals fade each time they’re used. If we’re lucky, the next one will still be there. It will bring us to Mist Veil, just across the border from the Temple of Aurelia.”
Cameron shifted his pack in preparation for the hike. It wouldn’t be long now before they reached the Book of Prophecy. And then Terra.
CHAPTER TWELVE
~ The Wasteland ~
526AX August 21, The Sapphire Shore
EVERETT WALKED ALONG the shore , which was composed of ninety percent rock and ten percent wet and gushy grey sand. Pebbles shifted beneath his boots, and a gust of cold wind battered him, piercing his jacket. The official name of this Elition kingdom was the Sapphire Shore, but it wasn’t hard to see why it was commonly referred to as the Wasteland. Rocky beaches, icy water, scant vegetation, and strong northern winds were a superb combination — for survival training. It wasn’t exactly a luxury getaway spot, but he’d been to worse places. At least there were no assassins chasing them here. The only assassin around was Jason, and as long as you talked to him as little as possible and didn’t do anything too stupid, he tended to just ignore you. Except Isis. He hardly ever ignored her.
Though the poor girl had survived Selpe imprisonment, the scars were undeniable. She didn’t chatter and prance about as she used to. It felt wrong to see her so reserved, but she seemed to be slowly warming up again. Ever since they’d arrived in the Wasteland, she’d spent the entire time walking alongside Jason, engaged in a hushed conversation with him. Everett had even caught her smile once or twice. Perhaps, she just needed time. Everett wouldn’t have thought Jason’s stony, expressionless manner to be the best remedy to return her to a state of carefree bliss, but she’d been drawn to him from nearly the first moment. Women rarely made sense.
Isis tapped Jason’s shoulder and pointed toward the ocean. Mostly cloaked behind a thick cover of fog, Everett could just make out the distinctive disc-like silhouette of a Hellean city floating high above the waves. It was a marvelous feat of technology, and a sight he knew well. There was one just like it above the Western Seas, near to the Rev territories. Like all Rev boys, he’d grown up staring up at Pallas, dreaming of one day setting foot on it. But the chances of that were slim. The Helleans didn’t let just anyone into their cities.
“No, not that one. Ariella was headed for Oasis,” Jason whispered to Isis.
“I’m worried about her,” she replied, looking up at him.
Jason held her gaze. “I know.” He stroked his hand down her arm. “She’ll be all right.”
Everett cleared his throat loudly as he and Cameron stopped behind them. Jason’s hand dropped.
“How about some breakfast?” Everett suggested, smiling.
Cameron nodded in enthusiastic agreement.
“There’s no time,” Jason said. “We’re not the only ones after the Book of Prophecy. We must get to the temple before anyone else does.”
His face was set. Everett could see that there would be no convincing the assassin, and he wasn’t going to risk losing any nonexpendable appendages by trying. They would just have to eat while they hiked. As Jason and Isis walked off, Everett quickly recovered two wrapped sandwiches from his bag. He kept one for himself and handed the other to Cameron, and then they were off again. No time had been wasted. Even a stingy assassin like Jason Chanz couldn’t complain.
But it didn’t take long before they did fall behind. Beneath a stone archway, Everett tripped over a broken fishbone and lost a few minutes dumping sand and tiny gravel out of his boots. While he was waiting, Cameron decided to relieve Everett of the burden of his half-eaten sandwich. The wind echoed off the walls, and Cameron gave him a devious grin.
“You know, they say
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