When War Calls(111)

He stood upon the ledge underneath the greyed sky as before and then looked out over the broken city that was his mind. He wondered at what lay down there in the ruins, among the many jagged structures that may have once been beautiful homes. He thought to jump from the ledge, to explore them, but somehow felt that anything that happened in this part of the crystal’s realm might have some sort of repercussions in the real world. This ledge overlooking the broken city seemed all too real. He would need to ask Raquel before he tried anything daring, so until then, he would visit the rooms of which he already knew.

He wandered back through the single door and then down the stairway, this time entering the door on the right. Darkness surrounded him in this one as it had through the left door, and he quickly created the scenes he wished to see, of the man in black uniform that had ordered his people killed, of the Alliance soldiers who had chased after him, and even the fighter jets that had first attacked his home. As each came, he did his best to fight against them, using the techniques he had learned to best combat the situations. He felt his power growing inside the crystal’s realm, and felt that he was starting to understand what they had been trying to explain to him. He had to feel the energy, not simply think of it being there. He had to know what it was to have it become a part of him, only then could he truly be able to command it as his own.

Hours passed as he was locked inside his imagination. He had become tired and resorted to a more peaceful scene, where he conjured Alyssa and Elijenda by a lake. The people he created in this realm had very few reactions of their own, but for lying in the sun in Alyssa’s lap and allowing the gentle breeze to cool them down, it suited him well enough. It helped put his mind to rest a little, making him almost believe she was really there.

But his fantasy came to an abrupt end as he was wrenched upright in his seat and the crystal fell away. He heard many clangs of steel, and then there was an explosion that caused the entire craft to shake out of control. The air screamed by as their craft began to lose altitude.

‘What’s happening?’ he shouted.

‘We’ve been hit!’ said the pilot, picking up a radio device. ‘This is Ceahlin Glide X17A, can anyone acknowledge? Location details are being broadcast now. We request immediate assistance!’

The pilot’s yells over the radio were in vain as no reply came and he turned to shout over his shoulder. ‘Hold on tight, Sentinel.’

Jaden nodded and closed his eyes as the craft plummeted toward the ground. He didn’t know what else he could do.

The craft jolted heavily, this time as it crashed and bounced from giant tree branches, tearing through vines and leaves and anything else that was in its way. The pilots did their best to stabilise the craft, but it was out of their control. Their speed was decreased a little by some of the smaller branches they passed through and then again as they hit the lower sections of the forest. They came to a complete stop as they slammed into a hill of dirt and rock, the engines falling silent as the dust cleared, and everything in the forest returned to quiet for the coming hours.

Jaden woke inside the crashed craft, but he was not sure how long he had been unconscious. For a moment, he couldn’t remember anything, but was soon reminded of falling violently through the trees as he recognised where he was. He was up on an angle, lifted in the air as the craft tilted to its left. He unbuckled the harness and fell to the other side of the craft with a thud. In a daze, he moved to the front of the cabin.

‘What happened?’ he asked the pilots. ‘Where are we?’

No reply came, and Jaden pushed both of them gently. But their heads were slumped low and neither of them moved at all. Jaden checked for signs of life, but as he used an endobrace for light, he soon saw the blood on their faces and retreated back into the cabin.

They were dead.

He tried to take in a deep breath, but the air was stale and filled with fumes. He had to get out, but the door was jammed against the rocks outside. Using the endobraces, he tried to push the door open but was without success each time. It wouldn’t budge. He then tried to exert so much force that the wall of the cabin would tear open, but all that he could manage was a small dint.

He had almost begun to panic when he ran to the back of the craft and found no opening there either, but soon remembered he had seen the pilots use their own doors to get inside. Running back to the front, he was able to climb over the pilot on the right and unlatch the door. He had to kick it open, as it too was jammed from the impact, but through it he had gained his freedom.

Outside there was a low-lying mist in the air, and it seemed chillier than in Waikor and Ceahlin. As his attention was on his surroundings as he got out of the aircraft, he didn’t notice a vine lying across its side until he tripped and fell hard onto the ground, hitting his head on the dirt. After a few seconds he managed to stand up where he was but almost lost his balance straight away. Dazed, he could no longer remember where he was or what he was meant to be doing. The last thing that came to mind was that he was on his way to Corsec, and that’s where he planned on going.