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I looked at my companions, but everyone seeh, a thin vertical line with a vertical wavy line running back and forth through it, each end ter with a dot

"Maybe it’s not supposed to be a letter or nuns," Ada closely at it

"Then this one means watch out for snakes," Shelton said with a snort

"It ed "Give it a try"

Elyssa and I took our positions I visualized the worldup at the syes flickered past, each one with a world limpse of symbols in the corner of the map walls, but they flashed past too quickly for me to determine if they were all the same The slideshow halted before a world h the arch and noted with some alarm the exit was just to the side of the white-veined colu her hands together and peering through She took an ASE, spun it in h It proceeded onward, drifting around the roo severed it, I poked h The control room looked just like the one at Thunder Rock I wondered if all of the control rooe symbol on the worldfor any nasties thatnearby, but the place looked empty I noticed the exit door was closed, so I couldn’t send the ASE outside to be sure we had the right place--at least not without stepping into the roo it

"Should we?" I asked

Elyssa twisted her lips, giving the rooh visual examination "I think we need hts, and other survival supplies before we risk setting foot in there"

"But it’s already lit," I said A yello suffused the room, much as it did in the other arch control rooms I’d been to

"The cavern area in El Dorado wasn’t well-lit," she reh the door," I said "Just a little peek"

"No," she said, setting her ar I’ to take oneyou up the cellar stairs by your feet"

I gulped My girlfriend was a grade-A certified badass with a litany of ways to take down even the biggest supernatural "Sure thing, honey Whatever you say"

I heard Shelton snicker behindit was nearly two in theday Kidnapped, returned, and now this

"First thing in the ht with exciteroan and a stretch "I gotta get my beauty sleep"

"I’ and looking at Bella

Bella laughed as Shelton turned a shade of red

I reluctantly shut down the arch after giving the ASE instructions to record every inch of the rooh I desperately wanted to go through, I knew Elyssa was right Tomorroould be ready Tomorroould find the secret Lornicus wanted us to find Toing her and Ivy home

Chapter 6

Despite o Shelton joinedarea a few listening on her body, twin sai swords sheathed across her back She leaned over the table and pecked onna shower, and I’ll be ready" I couldn’t take ed up the stairs in her tight-fitting yoga pants and sports bra

"You’re drooling," Shelton said, and took a sip of coffee

The corners of ht?"

He snorted "Yeah Guess so"

By ten aed in a duffel bag full of lighting gear, some of it powered by aether, soreat interest as he usually did froolem did his best to mimic facial expressions, and even had a rooe his perfor school

Once everyone was assembled, we double-checked our supplies, and ht, a hts all along it in case of an e at the table, eyes pensive