Running alongside Kell felt almost like coming home again to Norok. At the end of every trial, every cataclysmic collision with the enemy squad, he always seemed to find himself side by side with the lanky brunette. It helped that Kell had a hand on Norok’s back, a pulsating warmth flooding between Norok’s shoulder blades and slowly undoing the damage Rik’s interrogation tactics had left him with.

  “Daimona’s somewhere to the east,” Will explained from behind. The canon he had donned before had long since dropped into a portal, Will kicking it behind them as they sprinted under the shadows of the floating towers. “I saw her briefly when we fell. We’re not sure where Irina is, but she’s somewhere down here too.”

  “What makes you say that?” Norok inquired, eyeing Kell with a smirk. “Weren’t the two of you supposed to stay in the tower?”

  Kell pouted, an offended sigh escaping his gritted teeth before he managed stiffly, “We were. And then Irina saw you guys falling and thought we should all stick together. So she shoved me out and cackled the whole way down. I thought I was going to die.”

  Norok chuckled, and even Will let out a stray snort from behind, causing Kell to glare at both of them and turn his nose up in the air. “Keep it up guys! See who’ll heal you next time!”

  A visceral chewing noise stopped Norok in his tracks. He threw an arm out, catching Kell by the chest and bringing the group to a halt. No words needed to be exchanged; up ahead, one of Bash’s monstrosities crossed the trail perpendicular to their path. It wasn’t like the others Norok had seen. Those were small, oblong creatures easily punted away. This one was easily twice his height, a tower of melting, oozing flesh moving like a caterpillar along a branch. Gnashing maws of teeth revealed themselves in slits beneath the dripping flabs of fat. It didn’t seem to notice the three.

  In a low voice, Kell asked nervously, “Why would Bash’s creatures stay down here when the other flag is up there? She has to know we’re not up there anymore.”

  Norok recalled Zia’s brusk nature. They hadn’t seemed to care about the middle flag, only where Will had taken their own. He turned to Will with a grave look. “They don’t want the other flag. Teleport Boy would have nabbed it the second we fell down if they did.”

  “She must be going for a full wipe,” Will replied, curling a finger under his upper lip as he thought aloud. “Seizing the second flag would be an easy victory, but it won’t make the reports prestigious enough for her liking. Bash wants absolutely no competition for the Foreign Counter-Operations offers.”

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  “That gives us time, then,” Kell said optimistically. “All we need to do is sneak around, grab the second flag, and--”

  “Duck!!”

  Norok’s vision completely rolled. One moment, he was listening to Kell and the next he was being tackled by a blur of pink hair and muscle. He looked up indignantly at his sister, but Daimona snapped her head to the left, barring him down by the neck with a firm arm.

  “Ow,” he groaned. Then, the bullet whizzed mere millimeters above his eyes. Daimona grabbed him by the shirt and tossed him upwards, avoiding a second shot.

  “It’s Leka,” Will said urgently. “We need to go, now!!”

  He turned to run, but a third shot lodged directly into the back of his leg, bringing him down to his knees. Kell opened his mouth to shout, hands out and rushing towards Will.

  Bang!

  Time seemed to slow. Norok watched, breathless as something too large to be a bullet pierced through the air from the opposite side of the forest. A bolt of blue fire soared through the air, sinking into Kell’s forehead and protruding from both ends. He choked, hands twitching as he tried to reach up. Kell’s eyes rolled to the back of his head. Then, he crumpled to the ground without a final, strangled noise.

  Zia emerged, limping through to stand before the astonished team. Chunks of her mask had fallen away, revealing patches of severely burned and bubbled flesh. A single hazel eye peered through, calm and calculating. Norok raised a hand to send her off, but another one of Leka’s bullets reacted immediately, shooting through his hand and setting off every nerve in his body.

  Daimona growled, hoisting Will’s body onto her shoulders. “Norok, we’re going to deal with Bash. You handle the rest.”

  “Thats--!!” Norok’s jaw dropped, eyes wide with frustration towards Daimona’s retreating back. He shouted after her, “You can’t just leave me alone!!”

  “I didn’t!” Daimona replied airily.

  “Pity,” Zia said hollowly. “I had wanted to keep this simple.”

  She raised another bolt. Norok hissed through his teeth, cursing at her and trying to steady himself above the pain.

  “Relax, Tadpole,” a voice from behind sounded dryly. “This will be fun.”