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The carpet jetted froe tree, twistingthe carpet to a halt Trees and vines blocked every direction, granting very little rooainst h the dense forest All these sensations flicked through rasped the obvious Kassus wasn’t threading his way through the trees

I directed the carpet straight up We rose above the tree line Steep canyon walls bordered a jungle valley on all sides I wondered if ere in Africa, or lost in the jungles of South A for the carpet around and willed it forward Wind whistled past ical wind barrier didn’t see Elyssa doithus to the carpet felt fir loe’d be more aerodynarew closer in the distance

Elyssa’s grip tightened around retted it Trees bent and broke like twigs as soh theon obliterated their perches A bellowing roar shook the air Within an instant, it seeht with a cacophony of shrieks and squawks of alarainst us as we jetted through the swarm Elyssa and I ducked closer to the carpet as the air cah-pitched cries I sputtered as a hairy body sit away, spitting out hair, and felt ht back at me

S creatures gained altitude above us I spotted Kassus fighting through a wave of white fowl His staff threw out waves of energy ahead of hi forreen canopy

He turned to look at us, a fierce scowl radiating fury He aimed his staff at us, but a stray bird conked hiht scorched a score of birds nearby instead of us A white blanket fluttered from the cradle of his other arm where he held the cupid

He fired another shot I veered left, easily dodging his attacks at this range Kassus gave up his atteled up a cliff face We followed As we leveled off, even with a s, and realized with horror Kassus was leading us straight tohat looked like a place where tourists viewed the hts behind us

We were no more than fifty yards behind the Arcane I saw people on the plateau pointing at us Kassus aie camera to his face A narrow beam sliced the rails away The man screamed as he fell forward into open air

"Bastard!" I shouted, and took the carpet into a steep dive

Elyssa gripped the ht dragged on the carpet, pulling it toward the jungle I grittedto rise Its velocity slowed Then it shot straight up while Elyssa swung the terrified ?" he cried out, falling to his knees and gripping the sides of the carpet

"Where are we?" I asked

His wide eyes stared blankly at ers in his face "Where are we?"

He blinked "The Three Sisters"

"What country?"

He peered over the edge of the rug, and his face blanched "Australia," he said through chattering teeth

We crested the ledge, glided a foot off the ground as wide-eyed, dumbfounded people stared Elyssa pried the uided hi eyes following us I swungroar shattered the air and the entire ledge ru I spun the carpet back over the ledge and saw trees bursting froround in the monster’s wake Did it intend to come up here? The attention of the tourists shifted Soon’s glowing maw rose above the trees

"Run!" I shouted "Get out of here!"

Apparently, people had no proble carpet, because they scattered, screalish seemed to take the cue fro lot

The ledge rattled Chunks broke off, sending the rest of the railing and pay-per-use telescopes turippedover a tree-topped hill before vanishing on the other side I swung the carpet in pursuit, pulling into a steep climb Tree tops brushed the botto At the peak, I spotted Kassus diving down the slope above the switchback road below and toward a plain dotted with scrubby bushes and rocks A herd of kangaroos scattered as he swooped over theled to follow, kneeling to give us more speed Just as Kassus reached the outskirts of the town, his carpet dropped a foot He pounded a fist against it, but so with his ride

Our carpet shuddered and slowed My feet lost cohesion for a split second, and I gripped the side of the rug for support

"The rip onany better luck," I said

The Arcane’s carpet landed Kassus stumbled off it and onto the road A red car skidded to a halt just in time to miss the man Our carpet lost ot in Tires screeched as the car raced into town