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  Part one

  A

  Galaxy

  Of

  Fate

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  Crylisna’s POV

  My father was a foolish man.

  But that man I will never deny.

  "For your future as the glorious queen you are destined to become, you will need a fresh perspective." My father's voice rumbled throughout the masses of civilians whilst holding a smile that left his eyes untouched. His waist-length hair was tied back into a high pony that left his fervor more visible. “Which is why your journey will deliver you exactly what you will need for your ascension. It is time to dwell on more than just our next war offense.”

  Civilians crowded every surface in the sky, circling around us like they would if we were another attraction constructed for their pointless amusement.

  The ground around us remained still as silence etched into the deepest parts of Jerusan, reminding me of the only thing I'd miss once I was gone.

  Without a moment to spare, my father finished his exclamations, stepping back to the lined formation my mother and brother held behind him. Exploring foreign grounds with a trip outside of our own galaxy sounded more or less something my father would make up. I just didn’t understand how my mother was okay with it..

  Without disruptions, I'd rule with an eye over all. In the end, nothing will change and I will still rule a planet that grows from the blood spilt on the ground.

  A sigh escaped from my lips before I pressed a vixian pipe between them—inhaling and distributing the long wisps of smoke into the air.

  If only I could feel the emotions harbored in the expressions of others.

  Apprehension. Horror. Dismay.

  Maybe with that, I’d feel something.

  I turned, sparing the ship taking me a glance.

  Earth.

  A planet renowned for its slow development, and its sweeping diversity of residents. All is said to be accepted on a planet originally filled with only humans. It's proposal to create an opportunity for unity between all species that ended with a rocky history of trial and error. No planets were safe from its horrors. Much less a planet intended to bring all of it together.

  "Are you ready?" Both my feet pressed into the arid base of the floor. My legs hummed with each step I made toward my ship. If making an effort to observe those who despised ideas of genocidal bloodshedding would somehow transform me into a moral commander, it could make other planets bemused at the abrupt changes of an otherwise well-known miscreant. It could be interesting.

  However, I doubted Earth would be useful in doing anything but flattering me with its cute attempts of reformation.

  As my back hit the seat my eyes latched onto my family one last time.

  Becoming queen had never tempted me before, but it wasn't a choice to be had. It was a direction meant to be followed.

  So here I was, following another direction. Though seeing my fathers smile as he waved me away was all I needed to make myself look forward, reveling in the rare show of his genuine happiness. The ship's cap shut over me as a U-shaped handle came out of the dashboard. Milk-skinned buttons gave me affirmation for progressing.

  I’d asked before departure what I was to do once I arrived. My father had only given me a smile that hadn’t answered any of my questions before pressing a soft kiss on my head.

  I pressed three buttons simultaneously and watched as the machine burst to life. Civilians surrounding me pushed back to gain some distance. This would be my last sight of flying, gray-skinned aliens roaming the skies, for soon I would be the last reminder of my birth planet. The ship beneath me glided into the skies avoiding every civilian who had already wiped me from their memory.

  The pink skies above were filled with twinkling white diamonds that decorated its exterior since the very birth of Jerusan. Soon the pink was no more and black infiltrated every part of my vision. My eyes trailed to the planet beside it. Black highlighted every feature of the planet as it rotated its orbit around Niahm—a planet filled with glaring light that offered no warmth.

  My ship sped through one galactic entrance to another, disguising me without strained effort. Even as I massaged my fingers against my temple, the headache formed would persist.

  An effect of galactic travel.

  My eyes drifted toward the communicator given to me in preparation for this trip. My mother said it was only for emergencies yet when I looked at my father only one of his eyes blinked.

  I pinned the communicator to my waist before catching sight of my reflection. These features distinguished me from the common folk I've learned inhabited the Earth besides the humans. Monxians, Yurmis, Luqmoia's, and several other planets remotely human looking or completely discernible were all set on finding company from their kind on Earth. I haven't heard of the last time a Jerusanian has left to accommodate themselves on another planet and survived it.

  Looking over myself the only thing my eyes caught on was the overly familiar white strands that had coiled over my hips.

  It was getting dull.

  I wrapped a fist around the tail of my hair, in my left hand shaping a green bolt into a more useful physical shape. A blade forged into my hand.

  With one swipe, my slashed hairs fell to the ship's floor. I leaned towards the dashboard and pressed a button watching as the freed hairs orbited toward a vacant galaxy's black hole. I closed the tiny hole meant to suck out litter before clicking another button to reveal a socket. A pouch filled with various colored powders lay inside. A sigh escaped my mouth as I looked at the options my father gave me for this commitment.

  I picked the least flamboyant color to sprinkle over my scalp. As my head itched at the powders work I looked towards my choices of attire. My original outfit consisted of the coverage of the hips but the sheer display of the chest. The ssuca inside the material stretched to make the outfit impenetrable and indecent, at least to those who entered Jerusan skies in search of a contest. Most competitors place bare sets of ssuca on their bodies to reassure the confidence they so lack. Some take nothing as they come bearing their hearts and bodies to prove their fortitude, then others combine both to manipulate the focus away.

  The latter tactic no longer worked as others have gotten used to the sight, betraying the thought of any distraction. Pulling over a ssuca shirt that hugged my chest, I took off the loose material around my hips and pulled over a pair of fitted pants. My head fell back on the recliner as I squinted at the blinding light morphing to swallow the entire ship. From the light surfaced creatures that took over half the space my ship did and others three times it. One creature swerved directly into the ship, making a reckoning sound. The long beak in place of its mouth was now cracked and the creature was now stumbling; gravity no longer being able to brace it. But I wasn't the only one with my eyes on it.

  From beyond the darkness of space, another creature emerged. Its bigger body competing with the ship's size. It suddenly opened its mouth, its blue tongue following the vulnerable tiny creature. The ship passed before I could see the rest.

  My head leaned against my arm as the base of my mind wandered without direction. Watching passing space creatures only made my stomach grumble with animosity toward the tease of these delicacies. My head hit against the surface of my palm over and over again as my mind surrounded nothing but my empty stomach. On the 59th hit, I saw hints of blue form in front of me. I lifted my head and stared ahead at my first real encounter with planet Earth.

  The priority once I descended was to find a country to occupy for moments of plain observation. My eyes closed and instead of staring at the beckoning blue of the earth, I cherished the sereneness of my darkness

  Jun's POV

  My head shook for what felt like the thousandth time. "I'm sorry Bumble, but I can't help you." My fingers skimmed through paper after paper placing any immediate cause for my attention to a pile of first priority. As I simmer through another cliff of papers waiting for my approval I question my sanity.

  Japan is a country of business and in accordance with that business comes the opportunity for expansion. Consistent requests for all sorts of issues have plagued my desk for weeks now. I doubt my head could be filled with any more assistant missions concerning missing people or fleeing war criminals.

  A sigh fell out of Bumble's mouth as his shoulders sagged to his sides.

  "I wish I could help bubs, I do, but my hands are tied."

  The door burst open forcing my attention toward the boisterous entry. Entering was Lina with squared shoulders and an evident glare as she trudged her way toward me. Her heavy sigh rang through the air as she took a seat. My eyes latched onto another member that trailed behind her, his raven hair tied differently from the familiar long hair he let loose. Usually Ten's bangs would be the first thing I would notice, yet instead his hair remained tied half up and left to be loosely down on his back. Likely Lina's doing considering he rarely willingly styled his hair.

  My focus went back to the stacks of papers calling out my name.

  Considering Ten’s calm while following a fuming Lina I didn’t have to guess the culprit. The dynamic of the only aliens in the group never failed to amuse me.

  "Isn’t throwing a party for a dead fictional character a little overboard?"

  Lina rolled her perfectly blue eyes, before they landed on me. My eyebrow raised expectantly as I waited for the disagreement the two had to be shared.

  It's not like I didn't have a million other things I could be doing with my time.

  "I’m allowed to feel the way I do, right Jun?" Tens head tilted, his teasing grin making its entrance.

  I sighed, both seeming to gain their humor just from the sound.

  Aliens.

  "If you want to stop playing games there's important matters we need to get to." Both aliens moved next to Bumble who set himself on a seat across from the desk. I stood, placing my pen down, finally able to stretch out my stiff joints.

  "The Hero Council has approved the request to be able to hold auditions for a new member. It's important we keep our eyes open because we might be called in at any time." I stopped, letting Lina to have time to clap with a new energy changing her mood.

  "I have some news about future missions. At the moment we hold a report made of a giant man destroying property around the neighborhood. We have permission to detain and bring him in-" Lina slammed both hands on my desk, the sudden noise causing Bumble to jump from his chair. "The Council won’t interfere anymore right? They’ve done enough making us go through ridiculous loops to give reason as to why we want a sixth member. It’s our decision right?"

  Lina looked at me for some kind of reassurance, her smile dimming as if she could see the answer reflecting back in my eyes. "I can’t promise anything."

  The room went quickly quiet. The buzz of the computer filling up most of the sound. “That’s stupid.” She muttered.

  I watched their gazes wander now, thier expressions telling of their thoughts.

  I cleared my throat, pulling them out of their quiet dazes.

  "Does anybody know where Ray went?"

  Before anyone could answer the crime alarm rang in every direction of the room. My eyes latched onto my computer as it displayed footage of a figure from space getting closer to Earth at unsettling speeds.

  Without a word, the others left. I got off the desk, rolling my shoulders back and draping my jacket over my shoulders.

  A break from signing.

  Crylisna's POV

  An extraterrestrial being is what the human world will know me as. An alien who came from outside of Earth's atmosphere.

  In a different galaxy we’d know each other by our planets, but considering their rather recent introduction into the Milky Way I couldn't say I was surprised that they’d develop a small scope of what's outside of their narrow world

  Once I got close enough to the brimming blue I flew out of the ship with a plan to fly beside it. I expected the smooth metal to follow beside me since the ship's speed has severely decreased compared to the fast travels of the ship earlier, but instead, I watched as the ship spiraled towards Earth, the gravitational pull increasing as it pulled it into its home.

  I stopped flying, watching the fleeting ship that just a second ago was right beside me.

  Was I supposed to chase after it? I gave it a moment to consider until I reluctantly flew towards the bright blue planet.

  If this landed somewhere that wasn't deserted my presence would be announced. Even then, I made no effort to stop the ship. The more I flew towards it the more the blue in the skies started to engulf both me and the ship. I passed through puffy white smoke before I caught a glance at the area the ship was spiraling towards. Instantly I threw my head back at my bad luck. The area was polluted with cityscapes and buildings. Moving machines filled the space below with even smaller figures using the ground as a way of transportation.

  If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

  A horde of screams echoed over the cities as they finally took notice of the object hurdling towards them. When my eyes focused on the reactions of these creatures I noticed the way some stood frozen as they just waited for the danger to hit them in the face while others ran with all their might at times turning to see if it were catching up with them.

  Could a simple crashing ship kill them? Gradually I flew closer to the city as the ship neared a building tall enough to kill an entire busy street. Despite this, my eyes latched over the expressions of these beings. They certainly looked different in person than I'd seen on the telemonitor.

  The closer I got the more height they lacked but taking one good look around I could see a lack of differences in skin tone. I heard Earth people had groups that had once originated from the sun and those from the cold that together created a civilization. Yet one look at all these faces in front of me and all I saw were similar height proportions and overt straight lines of hair. The only thing amiss being the color of their heads.

  At least that was the humans. The aliens couldn't look any more out of place.

  Interrupting the screams was the sound of destruction. When my eyes made it upon the ship, it had already gone through a building, toppling it over to its side as it slowly tilted to give itself time before falling.

  I stopped the building in the middle of the sky, impeding it from growing momentum. Pieces of debris fell over the heads of humans as they flinched before grabbing others around them as they rushed off. I once more became more engrossed in something else than in catching the building to save the other humans from a worst fate. There was no point in starting another war.

  I only just got here.

  Even I deserved a break.

  The ship stopped in the air; maybe three inches from touching a group of quivering humans. Slowly it descended to the ground, no longer hurling closer toward the people of Earth. As I straightened the broken building I realized that it hadn't been entirely empty. For a few moments, I only watched as humans flew out of the building with flailing arms and screams that accompanied them all the way down.

  I assume their screams mean they can’t fly.

  Their bodies stopped in the middle of the air just inches above the ground. While slowly lowering them to the floor, I noticed some of them were completely limp once I put them on the floor.

  I flew towards the ship when the familiar sound of whimpers filled my ears. I leaned down to my ship to check the damage. Lifting the top of the lid nothing seemed out of place. My eyes now lifted towards the people as a unanimous gasp filled the air. My eyes trailed from the short mortals to the even shorter ones. Out of all the 140 to 160 nations I could've landed on, I landed in one where the only thing they had was people.

  I parted my lips only to close them once again. I didn't know which language these people spoke.

  My eyes landed on a woman–pale human, who parted her lips as her eyes darted around me. "Watashitachi o kizutsukenaide!" Japanese. I landed in the middle of Japan. My lips pursed instantly.

  I didn't say anything as I watched a set of humans start muttering to each other, their eyes glued onto me. My attention wandered past the crowds of humans towards the structures they have made for themselves. Long buildings that seemed obvious targets if bloodshed were to spread, minuscule black bricks that drove down to the end of more walkways, and vehicles with wheels or wings just about littered everywhere I turned.

  My eyes ran through the crowd avoiding every human face. My curiosity was filled once more once I felt what I was looking for. Their presence had only become known to me now.

  Only because they were getting closer.

  My eyebrows lifted as my eyes narrowed into the crowd of shaking mortals. One presence felt too familiar.

  Were there enemies waiting for my arrival to strike or was I being congratulated for my total normal and noble entrance?

  I leaned into the ship and pressed its emergency button to preserve it until I figured out which one it was. Humans around me crowded and stared as if I were a bomb ready to explode and only moved away once the two presences I'd felt cut through the crowd to be at the front of the crowds.

  Oddly there were no aliens in the crowds. None unless I counted those coming towards me right now.

  My back pressed against the ship as I considered my options. If they were here specifically to obliterate me there'd be no reason to hesitate in acting, but if these people were allies to Earth I'd only receive another nuisance of an enemy as a result.

  As my attention fell back to the approaching aliens I noticed two others walking right behind them. The four of them looked like a band of quadruplets with their similar tight black shirts that highlighted the muscles on their stomachs, and matching cargo pants that rode down on their defined legs.

  Despite the gratuitous clothing, just one look and anyone could tell them apart.

  There was a human boy with skin colored by the caresses of the sun and yellow hair that gripped every line that sprouted from his scalp. Next to him stood a rather rare presence. A hybrid of both human and alien races posted themselves in front of the two aliens. His hair seemed longer than any other male human I saw surrounding me but his body lacked qualities that usually identified such aliens. His skin was darker than the other humans surrounding me but lighter than the blonde next to him. He carried a withering gaze as he kept his eyes on me taking no time to access any damage or lack of it.

  Now my attention lied on the aliens. Besides the hybrid stood a girl whose presence I placed from the planet Florum. A planet close to Earth's galaxy. Her skin was shaded with a bluish tone that otherwise couldn't be told without light. Her hair was a midnight blue, long bangs cut straight besides her face and over her forehead. Pieces of metal curled over her lips, nose and ears. Decorating her in silver. Her eyes brimmed a dark shade of blue only for when the sun hit it, her eyes would glow.

  Tentatively, my eyes moved toward the other alien besides the girl.

  I looked back towards the hybrid who stared at me with some kind of profoundness.

  I moved forward. Truthfully I did it out of my own frivolous intrigue but the only reaction from them was to reach for the weapons at their sides. In an instant they had many blades pointed at me. Once my other foot caught up with the step I'd taken I stayed there, waiting to see their next move.

  "We are a hero group under the Hero Council's direction. We need you to give us your information or else there'll be no other method for compromise."

  I felt a strong vibration take over the lower side of my body. My communicator. My father, being the bother he was, probably the reason for the call. I left its vibration hum against my body as I looked back up towards the group of heroes.

  Most of their eyes made it onto my waist whilst the hybrid's eyes searched mine, seeking something I wouldn't communicate.

  Behind me, the familiar voice of the woman who'd spoken earlier sang all over again. "Help us Jun! She tried killing us!" I gave one glance towards the woman only to notice the bald headed infant wrapped around her arms.

  If fear had really struck her, why had she stayed? The same could be said for all the remaining humans, pressing their eyes into me while breathing unevenly, even shaking from their unease. They were all still here.

  The hybrid's eyes moved between the woman and me.

  His expression hardened. "I will ask this once again. Who are you, and why are you here?"

  If these four were the human's heroes, did that make me the human's villain?

  I pulled my lips apart but the Florian girl spoke ahead of me. "She's Jerusanian." She paused, her eyebrows coming together as she peered over at me. "Did you escape?" I drank in the pity-filled look the girl gave me.

  Escape?

  Considering I avoided any planet to tail me I guess I did escape, but I know that's not what she meant.

  She thought I was a civilian.

  She looked towards the alien boy next to her whose eyes traveled me wearily. "Ten, you know of her right? Of Jerusan. Does she look dangerous to you?" The spear the boy held was pointed up toward the sky proving a lack of desire to attack. I returned his weary look as he opened his mouth.

  "She's reading us. Her face shows no expressions but her eyes follow us everywhere."

  Eyes stabbed me from every corner giving me expressions I was often accustomed to at home. Though this didn't seem to come from the acknowledgment of my identity.

  Actually quite the opposite.

  After a couple of moments of silence, the hybrid sighed. "Civilians disperse. They'll be taken care of." The people here didn't seem to listen. Only a couple of humans ran away before the others only made room to try and divert the instructions.

  Pitiful.

  The hybrid watched me as he took a step forward. "Jun, be careful." The boy clutched his weapons closer to his sides as his eyes flared. "I'm not in the best mood today so I would prefer you make this easy. Who. are. you." The muffled sounds of my vibrating communicator was the only sound to infringe the air.

  "I don't think she's harming anyone. She seems confused." The blonde boy chided, seeming unsure even with his own words. There was no confusion. I think I was understanding what this was.

  "Regardless, there's been no effort to communicate. Saying her name is the least." The boy came closer before stopping a couple of feet away from me. This time giving me an indifferent look that sucked out all the previous irritation to move into boredom.

  "Your name. What is it." The vibrations against my waist caused distractions to the other three behind the hybrid boy; their eyes darted straight to the device. When I reached down to stop it from causing unnecessary distractions I only got met with an empty belt. Civilians gasped screaming over something I didn't bother looking for.

  Next to the hybrid now stood the alien boy.

  In his hand was my communicator.

  "You cannot communicate with anyone without telling us who you are. That is our law. You must obey it." Without holding onto the spear, it flew in front of him pointing directly at me.

  My eyebrows pulled together as he slid my communicator into his pocket, the sound cutting off before disappearing.

  "Ten give it back. We might still have a chance to-" The hybrid pulled out a pair of black cuffs interrupting the blonde. "That chance is gone. You are in custody for the destruction of federal property- '' The boy stopped speaking when my feet no longer touched the ground. I watched the ground below the four explode causing flying debris to erupt into the bright blue skies.

  My eyes latched onto the boy with my communicator. The alien fell into the erupting hole but within seconds I no longer saw him falling. I looked around, latching my gaze to his disappearing and reappearing figure. I slammed one of the buildings he landed onto into another to block any remaining chance he had to land.

  I did say this city was a blood-shedding target.

  My hand cupped over my communicator that had plummeted to the ground in the alien boy's haste. I turned only to catch a flying blade headed straight for my shoulder. I threw it on the ground as if it were trash.

  "Civilians leave now!" I made a bolt to replicate the blade, only bigger. I lifted my gaze only for it to catch onto the approaching hybrid with blue flames dancing between his hands.

  I leaned a foot back and threw it, watching as it spiraled directly to its target. In just seconds, the boy's flames were out and he was on the ground, knees first. His eyes rounded, his hands clenched around the dagger dug into his torso. He screamed in a familiar pattern of agony. His stomach began to deteriorate from the green energy surrounding my makeshift weapon. The alien girl sprinted towards him, giving up her hiding spot where she observed us. In a stupor, the girl clearly had no idea what to do. She brashly tried to pull it out of him but with no avail, her hands only burned in effort.

  From the corner of my eye, I saw the yellow-haired boy. Before I could properly assess him his body had begun morphing. The creature had the same gray skin as me and walked on four legs. Without hesitation, it rushed towards me. I moved back, barely missing its fangs before he transformed into a two-footed black-furred creature and charged straight towards me only to catch my wrist.

  I thrusted my hand out but he had already transformed again. There was no pause between intervals. He was fast. The new long silky creature he transformed into coiled itself over my arm so tightly my knees gave out in response.

  The end of its tail had turned into a steel metal blade within just a single blink. It came to strike me but with one hand I snapped its tail into two. As the creature slid off me, his quaint body growing, now returning to his previous state, I watched compellingly. The boy seemed completely apathetic to the broken arm hanging limply at his side. He jumped up again without so much as glancing at it before transforming again.

  But it was too late. I caught on already.

  My fist crashed down to his jaw. The impact cracked the street below him more than it seemed to break him. His eyes went wide—his mouth agape but this time he stayed in the ground motionless.

  I gave one last glance to his arm before going back to the girl. Her lip was bit in dire concentration as her hand reached above the hybrid whose eyes fluttered close easier then they stayed open. The hole in his stomach let me see the pink and red inside of him.

  The girl's attention landed on me after the silence had settled. A glare pierced right through me as she stood. Her body trembled the entire way.

  Her eyes traveled behind me, fists curling up by her sides as a single tear trailed her cheek.

  In response, my head smoothly tilted to my side. "Why do you cry, girl?"

  I lifted a hand and wiped away the small formed smile on my lips.

  The girl's breathing patterns became erratic without so much as looking at me. She was behaving like a human. The sword she'd held by her side pointed at me unsheathed. My eyebrow raised at the sight but instantly went down once I blinked and the metal in her hand was gone. When I looked to see the wielder I only got sight of the splattered debris littering the floor below. My head swept from corner to corner making sure she hadn't just teleported somewhere nearby. I only had heard the sound of the air cutting to know she had been making her move.

  And that she had been closer than I'd thought.

  My head shot back before my foot shot into what I assumed was where the girl had been standing. The air in front of me suddenly made a choking sound but I barely heard it as I stared at the debris pieces of dirt and brick being shuffled around. I licked my lips, letting the sound of my tongue traveling against my lips mock the heaving the invisible girl was doing.

  My head cocked to one side.

  Interrupting the mocking was now the sound of rushed wind. I backed up at every hit she would attempt. Her desperation to place her weapon to skin was making her movements sloppy

  When the sound of her footsteps tickled the base of my ear my arm shot out to intervene. I grabbed something long and without wasting time twisted it making a cry launch out of her mouth. With my other foot, I kicked her down, pinning her under my weight. Despite her resistance, my eyes went only on the debris beneath her squirming body.

  I leaned my foot more into her, watching as she faded in and out into view. She gasped out for air before I raised my foot freeing her of my weight only to press her seized arm closer into my chest. Before she could be gracious for my generosity, my foot shot straight down her back. A faint crack sounded out from her dislocated shoulder and a shrill scream fell out of her mouth.

  Failing to play her invisible tricks she flashed back to view. She choked out blood and cried. I finally let go of her arm and took a few steps back. Between her cries was a pure look of hatred directly only at me. One filled with promises I now knew would come up empty. Digging her fingers into the ground she began to crawl to me vindictively. Oddly enough I couldn't find myself not reacting.

  So I gave in to my mouth.

  "Your friends aren't dead." The declaration left me before I could retract it.

  My hand lifted to show her the communicator I'd gotten back. I faced my back to the girl, now knowing there was nothing she could do to it, and headed to my ship. The objects fallen atop of it were removed instantly.

  "W-why not kill u-us."

  When I turned I took in her upright posture and the trembles that shook her. She held her arm, staring at me with a bloodied face and busted lip.

  Her primal rage wasn't driving her this time. It was trepidation.

  She was waiting for something worse.

  I saw the twitch in her bruised and cut fingers. I hummed to myself, making a note of it.

  There's no point to killing here.

  That's until there is a point.

  I met the girl's twitching blue eyes.

  "You're not a threat."

  I turned but it had been too late. I was knocked backwards into the ground before being slammed into a metal pole that seemed to be left untouched despite my weight ramming fully into it. A sharp pain shot up my neck coming even worse as I tried lifting my head. I hadn't even sat up yet when the pebbles and rocks around me started to float, and soon I did too.

  Something I couldn't see or touch squeezed me until my limbs snapped under pressure. My eyes widened, my head falling backwards to face the sky with my screams. This power wasn't just a body manipulation trick. It was Gravity.

  Pebbles and rocks joined me in the air before turning into nothing but dust at the pressure. Through a blurry vision, I caught a glimpse of a man standing in front of me. The second alien.

  I forced my mind away from the pain—only to my power. Energy built up in my hands. I pushed forward my green bolts. I pushed my hands against the invisible barrier only to enlarge my bolts as much as I could only until my breath came back to me and the vision of the boy were not so blurry. I dropped onto the ground, knees first but my eyes had never dropped him.

  I climbed onto my own feet woefully unsteady. My head fell to the side in bemusement. The fury in his eyes were not there before.

  His jaw ticked once my lips pulled apart.

  Does he not know who I am?

  "Where is your spirit? You don't seem to be trying." I rolled my neck back pushing the limbs back to their places. He could've killed me. Split my body apart till I was nothing but blood and strings. Yet he spared me. It didn't make sense. I expected him not to answer so I just settled with a shrug but I wouldn’t let my gaze wander far from him.

  His shoulders sat tensely. My teeth bit on my cheek.

  This makes no sense.

  I ended up speaking again this time with anticipation clouding over my words.

  "I remember the General of Sauria's nephew being named Ten." It wasn't a question and he knew it wasn't. He hurled back as if he had just been hit. Seeing my chance I lifted my hand. I tried shooting but his hand was already on my wrist.

  Before I could react my hearts stopped beating. My eyes widened as I frantically searched for air but there was none to be given to me. With one final look at the boy's bleak glare, my body crumpled to the ground.