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When the soldiers are only a few feet away froround below our feet starts to tremble and quake I try and hold on to the wall, but I can’t keepI know, a tremendous boom shakes the opposite end of the arena and pieces of black rock rain down on us Nine dodges a large boulder that slaiant hole that leads to the outside Looking through, I can see blue skies
Froe rises out of the explosion There, in the middle, is Setrákus Ra Like an evil rock star, I can’t help but think The purple scar around his neck burns brightly above the three blue pendants on his chest To oes out I try to illuht Setrákus Ra slaround and roars for silence The soldiers in front offrom me and Nine to him One by one, they rest their weapons at their sides
‘All of you have been chosen to end this fight!’ Setrákus Ra yells ‘You will go forth and you will destroy the Loric children When they are dead, you will bring me their pendants and their Chests You will crush their hu soldiers cheer and raise their fists in unison
Setrákus Ra sla bang ‘Mogadore will rule this galaxy! Everything, on every planet, will be ours!’ The soldiers cheer and wave their weapons in the air
‘Together, ill fight I will fight with you Together, in this battle and annihilate all who live on Earth!’
I try again to light e sharp stone at my feet with e My bracelet shield has retracted and shows no sign of kicking into action My Legacies – and my Inheritance – have left me
The soldiers have turned back around and once again ai ducks We have to get out of here
‘Nine! This way!’ I yell
Finally, this seeh to him He whips his head around and looks atin a ray of cold sunlight at the lip of it, I peer down into a valley, thousands of feet below I look overat us
‘We’ll walk on the side of the rab his hand We’ve only taken a single step down the side of the snowy acy has failed hi theI look over at a shocked Nine, his long black hair whipping all around his face Below us, two dark doorways are approaching fast I preparebackflips as I fly through the air To h the door on the left and I keep falling until I find myself in a dark tunnel alive with booain, and as the tunnel turns to green to blue and back to black, the hoarse voice I heard when the vision began speaks again: ‘New Mexico’
My eyes snap open and I sit up,to e down the hall towards Nine’s room, deterht hi until I win
I stop in front of Nine’s door and turn on acies really haven’t abandoned me I knock and push the door open I’ up in bed with his head in his hands
‘Nine,’ I say, flipping on the light ‘I’m sorry, I know a deal’s a deal and you did beat o to –’
‘New Mexico I know, Johnny I know’ He shakes his head I’rips with his sudden reversal Probably both ‘Just let me wake up a bit’
‘So, you’ve reconsidered?’
He plants his feet on the floor, one at a ti to your death off a host keeps repeating "New Mexico," you take the hint’
‘You had the same vision?’ I ask The comfort I felt when I saw Nine – it was because he was really there It dawns on ive hi him as an adversary Our lives depend on it
Nine pulls on a shirt, and giveslook I knoell ‘No, you idiot Haven’t you figured it out yet? I didn’t have a vision too We were in the sa all week Get a clue, would you?’
I’m flustered, and I don’t hide it well ‘But whenever I talked about the they’re just dreams and all that You could see how the drea like I’ them seriously!’
‘First of all, you believe you’re Pittacus Lore, so technically you are nuts Second, I wasn’twith your head I did blow the visions off at first; ht they were bullshit When Setrákus Ra asked me to surrender, just like he asked you and that other kid, I figured the visions were a fors I didn’t think we should trust theested we do In fact, I thought the safest bet was to do anything but what they wanted But this ti A warning we should take seriously Now, I’o down, Four’