Adonis and Blair turned to see Vacarlo.
‘I have news,’ he said. ‘I was with Alyssa during the attack, we almost died. I counted five missiles heading straight for us.’
‘You are still alive,’ observed Blair.
Vacarlo nodded, ‘I think she saved our lives.’
‘How?’ asked Adonis.
‘The ground rose up after she did something, I don’t understand how. It blocked the missiles. Is this what you were talking about? Is this what you wanted me to watch out for?’
The Daijuar turned to one another and bowed slightly. Instead of answering Vacarlo, they then turned around and headed straight to the travelling band.
When they spotted Alyssa, Adonis made one endobrace light with energy and he shouted, ‘protect yourself, Virtuarn!’
He sent a pulse of blue energy at her, but Alyssa’s eyes simply went wide with shock and she cowered, turning her back to Adonis. All the people around had gasped and looked stunned at what seemed like an unprovoked attack. But the energy was harmless and did no damage to Alyssa or the people. Adonis stood staring at her for a moment, then without word, turned and headed away, with Blair walking beside him.
‘She did not defend herself,’ said Blair.
‘Perhaps she is not the one with power.’
‘If not her, then who?’
‘Jaden was near,’ Adonis concluded.
‘He does not possess such ability.’
‘Only Noviahn has shown potential. There could be others.’
‘Could he have shown Jaden how it’s done?’
‘We must find out,’ said Adonis.
‘A new question is posed. If the Alliance is successful in taking Corsec, will we follow Noviahn?’ asked Blair.
‘He may reveal himself to be a fool,’ said Adonis, agreeing that this was indeed an issue of concern.
‘Or the champion he claims.’
‘Many of the others trust him,’ added Adonis.
‘But he is not one of us. He does not share our vision.’
‘What of the young one?’
‘Do you believe he has fallen?’
‘He has lost his love, grown in power and used it for revenge.’
‘I agree,’ said Blair. ‘He should not be trusted. We defend at Corsec until more answers are given.’
‘What of the girl?’ asked Adonis.
‘Her memory is failing, perhaps not only from the fall.’
‘She could be affected by the essence.’
‘She is unique,’ said Blair thoughtfully. ‘There is something in her that Jaden sees that we do not.’
‘His desire is more than love.’
‘They share a bond.’
‘Vacarlo will need to keep a closer eye on her.’
The two sentinels became silent as they walked, glancing over their shoulders from time to time, making sure that the people were now following them in the darkness. They lit the way a little with their endobraces but left most of the lighting to the vehicles behind them. They had a long journey ahead of them to get to Corsec city, where the true battle between the World Protection Alliance and the United Resistance would take place. They did not know what would happen or how long the battle would last, but they knew it would not end well for either side.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
The change begins with one.
April 14, 997 R.E.
The sky over Corsec city seemed to be an eternal dusk, as if the sun refused to fall any further while the battle went on. For the previous week no one could tell the time of day without aid of a clock. Thick cloud cover had formed in the heat, but the sky was still alight with red, the rings no longer serene blue but now emitting a fiery glow, as if it were an omen of the Alliance approach and desire for conquest. On their way north, they had successfully attacked and destroyed all Resistance strongholds in less than a month. They were now stationed at the southern border of Corsec, locked into a stalemate, as neither side seemed able to break through the other.
The Resistance showed no sign of weakness inside the giant red mounds of rock, and the Alliance seemed reluctant to try to make any advances, fanning their forces out instead to prevent the Resistance from inflicting any major damage to their units. General Ryan Daiyus moved around quickly inside a hidden command room deep under one of the red mounds in the south. Thirty thin but large display screens were placed all around the walls. They acted as his eyes on the zones of Corsec, from zones one and two in the north facing the continental land bridge, to the southern zones of ten through to fourteen where the Alliance forces were stationed. His staff worked tirelessly behind each, ensuring he had every possible piece of information he required to manoeuvre his troops, countering Alliance attacks and making strikes of his own as he saw fit.