Page 28 of Blackheart

“Where are you going?” Beck asked, running up next to me.

“Where were you?” I rasped, trying to hand off the orb. He refused to take it.

“Doing my part. Sucks though, I liked Lyander.” Beck tugged my arm, pulling me behind another tree. He closed his eyes, as ifhe could barely stand to use his Nature any longer, yet I felt our presence once again become silent.

I swallowed as the realization hit:he’d killed Lyander.

Beck shadowed us from a passing Flamecastor. She stumbled a little, radiating with heat, and her bloody leg slowing her down.

The Flamecastor stopped and turned around again, a fiery silhouette in the fog.

She was lost.

Beck, Fate bless him, managed to shadow us the entire time. His eyes remained closed, squeezing tight every few seconds. After a moment, she finally trailed off.

Wasting no time, we ran. We had an orb. All we had to do was get it to our base. I held it, attempting to mask the glow between my hands while following Beck.

We might win this.Food, warm clothes, blankets.

Without warning, the light above the field brightened to a white glow resembling the sun, and the fog vanished. We could see everything, which meant everyone could see us, standing in the middle of the field like prey.

Lord Ansel stood on the sidelines, directly in my path. “Don't be scared,” he mouthed.

That did not help.

The injured Flamecastor and a grinning Stonesender set their sights on the orb in my hands.

“Elora!”someone roared from the sidelines.I knew that voice like I knew a hangover.I whipped around, my body tensing as a ball of flames hurtled towards my head. Fear struck me with its icy touch. I was frozen in place, my own instincts failing me. I couldn’t act. Couldn’t think.

“Move!” Riven shouted, voice surging over the crazed crowd.

Beck rammed into me, knocking us both to the hard ground. I held tight to the orb as if my life depended on it.

As quickly as he’d pushed me to dodge the blow, Beck pulled me back up. “Run,” he ordered.

I bolted.

Our base was clear ahead, but no sign of Charles.

Was he hiding somewhere with the orb? Was he dead?

The Flamecastor ran on her injured leg, her fiery glow only brightening as she picked up her pace. Her brown hair flowed like an enemy flag running into battle.

Crashing into me, we slammed into the ground, toppling over one another.

I winced at the impact, my shoulder screaming as it took the brunt of the fall, just as it had when I’d fallen down the stairs.

“Useless Blackheart,” she spat as she ripped the orb away.

I strained to sit up, panting and cursing as she ran off.

Food. Warm clothes. Blankets.

There was no option I could live with except forcing myself up. The pain in my shoulder cried out in obliterating agony, as fragile as cloth right before tearing. I closed my eyes, embracing a moment of darkness.

One, two, three.

I flung my eyes open.