He blinked several times just to make sure.
"No freakin' way." Dhiraj turned to Ted and saw the same shock and awe on his face as well. He turned back ahead to see Natalie and Travis walking toward them, and they were definitely holding hands. Dhiraj's cloud nine had evaporated, and he landed with a thud back on solid ground.
Travis looked smug as he nodded in their direction. "Ted. Moneybags."
"Hey guys." Natalie wore a strained smile. "Travis is my boyfriend now. Deal with it."
Chapter 18
Sela and Cal Fortbright sat on the top of a church tower overlooking the bustling main street. Behind them lay the fresh green grass and tall brick buildings of the university. In front of them, students and residents moved from shop to shop, unaware of what was coming their way.
Sela felt strange next to her brother. Even though they'd both died and come back as dark souls, there was still a part of them that remained family. And yet, Cal could barely talk at the time she was taken away for her training.
They watched a mother and father pass by below. The father pushed a large stroller in front of him, as their infant's legs kicked forward at an odd angle. The mother led a toddler by the hand as they continued at a slow pace toward the busiest part of the strip.
"How do you think things would've been different if you'd stayed?" Cal ducked his head in an effort to reach Sela's downturned eyes.
She continued to look more at the passersby than her brother. "We probably wouldn't be at the top of a tower together on Earth."
Cal sighed with his entire body. "You know that's not what I mean."
Sela let her eyes drift to her left. Cal looked like the rest of her family, but aside from a similar nose and complexion, most people wouldn't have pegged them as related. "Look, Cal." Sela turned her body completely toward him. "They thought I could be something great. And I was." She put her hand on Cal's leg. "But I was also lonely. And I wasn't even allowed to do most of the stuff I learned."
Cal's eyes softened. "That's the most I've heard you say… well, ever."
Sela grinned. "I'm half the girl I used to be." She reached behind her to take the metal staff from the holster on her back. "Do you want to help me do this?"
Cal's face went from quiet grin to goofy chuckle in a hurry. Sela felt like the look gave her a peek into her brother's adolescence, and she was grateful for it. She offered part of the staff to him, and he touched it lightly, as if it were a piece of artwork he was worried would break.
"How do I do it?"
Sela clasped her brother's hands around the very edge of the staff. She gripped just beneath his.
"I'm going to concentrate on the middle of the street there." A thought washed over her of what it would've been like to teach Cal to string his first bow or set his first trap. "Once you're focused on it, we're going to tap the other end of the staff against the building."
Cal looked down at the street so intently, Sela thought he might burn a hole in one of the vehicles passing by. She followed suit and focused in the very middle of the intersection just across from a post office. "Are you ready?"
Cal nodded. "I'm ready, sister."
Sela felt a calmness take her body as they tapped the staff against the building. A stream of energy zipped through Sela's body and out through the weapon. She watched as a portal began to open on the street below. A car making a turn onto the road was almost right above the gateway as it expanded. The vehicle's front wheel dipped immediately. Soon, it titled deep into the portal. Sela continued to concentrate on growing the gateway, ignoring the screams of the people on the sidewalk. Two students rushed to the car in an effort to save the vehicles' passengers. As the portal grew and grew, the entire car and its rescuers fell inside, disappearing into the blue unknown.
Sela smiled and looked away from the street. "Okay, we did it."
Cal's body vibrated with energy. "That was
"No freakin' way." Dhiraj turned to Ted and saw the same shock and awe on his face as well. He turned back ahead to see Natalie and Travis walking toward them, and they were definitely holding hands. Dhiraj's cloud nine had evaporated, and he landed with a thud back on solid ground.
Travis looked smug as he nodded in their direction. "Ted. Moneybags."
"Hey guys." Natalie wore a strained smile. "Travis is my boyfriend now. Deal with it."
Chapter 18
Sela and Cal Fortbright sat on the top of a church tower overlooking the bustling main street. Behind them lay the fresh green grass and tall brick buildings of the university. In front of them, students and residents moved from shop to shop, unaware of what was coming their way.
Sela felt strange next to her brother. Even though they'd both died and come back as dark souls, there was still a part of them that remained family. And yet, Cal could barely talk at the time she was taken away for her training.
They watched a mother and father pass by below. The father pushed a large stroller in front of him, as their infant's legs kicked forward at an odd angle. The mother led a toddler by the hand as they continued at a slow pace toward the busiest part of the strip.
"How do you think things would've been different if you'd stayed?" Cal ducked his head in an effort to reach Sela's downturned eyes.
She continued to look more at the passersby than her brother. "We probably wouldn't be at the top of a tower together on Earth."
Cal sighed with his entire body. "You know that's not what I mean."
Sela let her eyes drift to her left. Cal looked like the rest of her family, but aside from a similar nose and complexion, most people wouldn't have pegged them as related. "Look, Cal." Sela turned her body completely toward him. "They thought I could be something great. And I was." She put her hand on Cal's leg. "But I was also lonely. And I wasn't even allowed to do most of the stuff I learned."
Cal's eyes softened. "That's the most I've heard you say… well, ever."
Sela grinned. "I'm half the girl I used to be." She reached behind her to take the metal staff from the holster on her back. "Do you want to help me do this?"
Cal's face went from quiet grin to goofy chuckle in a hurry. Sela felt like the look gave her a peek into her brother's adolescence, and she was grateful for it. She offered part of the staff to him, and he touched it lightly, as if it were a piece of artwork he was worried would break.
"How do I do it?"
Sela clasped her brother's hands around the very edge of the staff. She gripped just beneath his.
"I'm going to concentrate on the middle of the street there." A thought washed over her of what it would've been like to teach Cal to string his first bow or set his first trap. "Once you're focused on it, we're going to tap the other end of the staff against the building."
Cal looked down at the street so intently, Sela thought he might burn a hole in one of the vehicles passing by. She followed suit and focused in the very middle of the intersection just across from a post office. "Are you ready?"
Cal nodded. "I'm ready, sister."
Sela felt a calmness take her body as they tapped the staff against the building. A stream of energy zipped through Sela's body and out through the weapon. She watched as a portal began to open on the street below. A car making a turn onto the road was almost right above the gateway as it expanded. The vehicle's front wheel dipped immediately. Soon, it titled deep into the portal. Sela continued to concentrate on growing the gateway, ignoring the screams of the people on the sidewalk. Two students rushed to the car in an effort to save the vehicles' passengers. As the portal grew and grew, the entire car and its rescuers fell inside, disappearing into the blue unknown.
Sela smiled and looked away from the street. "Okay, we did it."
Cal's body vibrated with energy. "That was
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