Chapter 494: An Icy Fist (2/2)

I sensed for his nature, but it was feeble and inconsistent My oasn’t er, but it seemed I had been better able to resist the draw of that…pulse, whatever it was “It got a good bit of me, too Nearly drained that shi+eld dry, I think”

Coughing and spitting out a led to ive us the cover we need to get out of here”

Standing beside the fallen Instiller, Cynthia regarded nored her, watching the Instiller’s body for the rise and fall of breath There was none He was still as marble As still as a corpse, you mean, I said to myself I was certain it hadn’t been the shock spell that had killed hi?” Darrin asked as I headed north “The gates are that way” He pointed toward the tunnel leading beneath the Student Administration Office

“Can’t leave yet,” I said, the wordsfirst If we can get that…”

I figured Darrin would protest, but he only grumbled and fell into step as we hurried for the shadows of the neighboring building

I’d already considered where Dragoth would , if it still existed When soldiers had been running toward us fros, those in front of the Chapel had stayed in place That, I was certain, here the recording artifact would be stored

The Chapel was relatively easy to reach while staying out of sight We kept to the twilight shadows, snaking through the alleys between buildings or erows that bordered Central Academy’s many lawns We didn’t see anyone else, and the noise of the earlier search seemed to have died away after that pulse If that didn’t convince us that the sa had happened to everyone else, e found at the Chapel did

“The guards…” Darrin murmured unnecessarily

Splayed out across the stairs leading up to the large double doors were two full battle groups of Alacryantheir heads or stoover A couple didn’t ht

The Chapel loomed behind the Three stories tall and devoid of balconies or s, only a single set of large double doors allowed entry through the front of the building Narrow slits looked down over the road and would have been the perfect place for Casters to hurl spells from, but I saw no faces in those s, and sensed only the vaguest of oth wasn’t there, at least That gave us a chance

“Think we can take theood shape, but they looked even worse off, and we could hit them by surprise

“Maybe on’t need to” Darrin had bent down to rub his ankle, wincing “Bluff it?”

I snorted in amusement “Sure Let’s bluff it”

We took a couple of h the plan, then circled around behind the Chapel We caught sight of an escaped Instiller stus away, but they didn’t see us Darrin took the right side of the building, and I came down the left

We were able to round the corner and maneuver all the way to the top of the stairs before any of the guards saw us

A Caster in his forties looked up as reen and he was sitting next to a puddle of his own sick His pupils were dilated, and he squinted even in the shadow of the Chapel

Seeing an opportunity, I channeled Myopic Decay into all their eyes, further degrading their vision “What are you doing sitting on your ass, soldier!”

The rabbed him by the collar of his armored robes and jerked him to his feet

“Can’t you smell the smoke? Didn’t you feel that blast! The whole dao up anyhere”

He blinked rapidly “W-what?”

Darrin gave hi down the stairs “The rest are in bad shape A few dead But they’ll be here shortly They’re relying on you”

“We’re abandoning the academy,” I said as if it were obvious “Get the portal active”

“Go up?” he asked, obviously struggling to keep up e were saying

“Get uards

In a confused le to their feet A couple were in such poor condition that they required help just to stand and had to be dragged down the stairs one step at a time No one bothered toAs I’d hoped, one had a rune-key, which I took

A few of the guards threw backwards glances at us, but we headed straight for the door, continuing to act as if ere supposed to be there and knew exactly ere doing If any of them suspected eren’t supposed to be there, they kept it to themselves

The doors opened to the rune-key The vestibule beyond was e were open The rooes tossed around and their displays overturned Only a single weak

“Careful, therethe open doors across the hall warily

We closed the exterior doors behind us to give us so if the other soldiers returned, then passed through the vestibule and across the hallway that ran all the way around the Reliquary

I paused again at the doorway, leaning forward to look in

Dragoth stared back atto liquid Darrin continued forward for half a step before he saw the Scythe, and then he too went rigid Some insane, exhausted part of h, Dragoth wouldn’t see us

But he was staring straight at me All I could do was stare back Neither of us moved, not even the rise and fall of our breaths, which we both held

I let out ust as realization struck ein an ornate padded chair that see to one side, pulled by the weight of his single horn His face was pale and frozen in an expression of fear and confusion

He had no nature, none at all

I pressed a hand to avea step into the roooth Vritra, Scythe of Vechor, sat stone dead in his puffy chair At his feet, a sht and refracted it into a splash of rainbow colors across the floor: the storage crystal fro artifact

I was halfway to it before I renature

A bolt of soulfire flew out from behind an overturned table I threwthe wall behind e, I saw the sweaty, pain-wracked face of the Redwater boy He, too, was lying on the ground, wrapped up in his own black cloak, his limmer Blood fell like tears from his eyes, which were red from sclera to pupil

“Sure you want to do that, boy?” I gru ood Did that…pulse do that to you?”

He griusted as Darrinposition, his back against the wall He held the flames up protectively, but he didn’t answer me

Slowly, I shuffled forward until I could reach the crystal

“No,” he said, his voice scraping out of hilass “Try to take it, and I will k-kill you”

“We could fight, and maybe you could take us,” I said nonchalantly “Or maybe you couldn’t Maybe that pulse, whatever it was, hit you a lot harder than it hit us You willing to risk that, boy?”

He hesitated, and I scooped up the crystal The flaers, but heaway, and Darrin followed h the little shi+t’s core and leave him there to die, but I’d spoken the truth: I couldn’t be certain that in Even if we did, there was no telling how long it would be before ure out as happening

That pulse, like a wind that ripped iven us an opportunity to retrieve the recording and get out of here with our lives That would have to be enough Wolfrum bloody Redwater could wait for another day

Back outside, we found a few stragglerstheir way to the portal We circled around the back of the Chapel before they caught sight of us, made a wide berth around the central lawns and Student Adate that opened out to the Ascenders association Hall We didn’t run into any ates and halfway down the street when a wo a leather mask that obscured the lower half of her face stepped out of the shadows of a doorway She looked ill, but lit up with relief beneath her hood anda lookout”

Looking Saelii up and down, I gave a shake of my head “That pulse, then It hit you too? The Whole city?”

“Did it ever,” she said, one hand on her hip, the other pressed against her stomach “Honestly, I was just about to leave Report back in Sir…” She hesitated, glancing behind her into the city of Cargidan “The refugees fro library a few hours ago”

I cursed They’d have been hit too, then Were they the reason for the pulse? Was it an attack of so farewell? I tried to reht out of my chest But it was all speculation at this point Insidecrystal

“No time to even enjoy your victory,” Cynthia said with a s in

“Whose in charge of the refugees? What’s the response been?”

“Kaenig’s forces were anize transportation,” she answered pro hadn’t exactly been charitable over these last couple of weeks “As for who’s in charge, it’s apparently Lady Caera of Highblood Denoir, though tensions are high between her and Highlord Kaenig—”

I started stu down the street, each step painful “Take ot a lot to talk about”