Book of Praan: Volume 1

Chapter 9

We were in the middle of combat training (Essie and Alexis against Francesca and me while Aryen watched from the sidelines) when a shaft of light fell onto the ground. The three of us froze mid-battle to stare at the teleportation ring to see who would be coming through. Unsurprisingly, it was Wenn. She looked around and smiled when she saw us.

"Hello, everyone!" she called to us as we ran over to join her and Aryen on the sidelines.

"Greetings, Commander," Essie said as she bowed in salute. "As you can see, we have been training dutifully."

Wenn nodded. "And I appreciate your efforts," she said, her gratitude evident in her tone before her face grew more solemn. "But now comes the test."

My ears perked up. Wenn was basically ordering us back to Praan – and for a reason.

"I must ask you five to return with me so I can brief you on recent developments."

"Did you find a lead on the shapeshifter's helper?" Francesca asked.

Wenn nodded as she began drawing another, larger, teleportation circle. She didn't mince words explaining. We waited for the incantation to take us back to the Resistance's base and followed her silently back to her war room. A few others were already there, who saluted Wenn and Aryen as they entered. However, when they saw us, they weren't as welcoming. A blonde girl in particular gaped at us, her mouth opening and closing like a fish. I followed their gaze back to Francesca, who – somehow – was oblivious to the staring. When Aryen saw what I was doing, he turned to the group and whispered something to them that made them wipe their expressions clean. I glanced back over to my companions; Alexis and Francesca were none the wiser, but Wenn's eyes met mine, and she gave a slight shake of her head. And with that, the matter was over.

"So, Captain," Wenn began, addressing Aryen directly, "you will be pleased to know that your squad has kept busy in your absence. Lieutenants Tach and Petra have tracked down the origin of the curse, which we're hoping will lead us to the mage that helped the Sincara."

"How did you manage that on such short notice?" Francesca asked.

"Curses are strong sorcery," Wenn said. "They are unique to the mages that create them. You could say, then, that a curse's symbol – it's incantation – is a mage's signature. So, I took Essie's drawing and had Lieutenant Tach –" she gestured to the older man standing next to the blonde – "trace the symbol with his Far Sight ability."

"Far Sight?" Alexis asked.

"It's an ability that allows the user to find the origins of a trace or pattern," Wenn replied.

"Is it a spell or something?"

"Oh, no, it's just an ability some expert trackers have developed, independent of Actual. It can only be used in response to a direct command and used to be exclusive to the Palace Guard."

"Does...does that mean you used to be part of the Palace Guard?" Alexis asked Tach directly.

He nodded. His jaw visibly clenched before he answered, "I left to answer Thalm's call to arms, just before the Guard was defeated."

"So where did you trace the curse to?" Aryen asked.

Tach hesitated. "To Agrapolis, sir."

Aryen said nothing but I could practically feel him tense up at the mention of his home city. "Interesting," he said finally.

"Right," Wenn said. "The girls and I will head to Agrapolis at once to investigate this lead. Aryen, I want you and your squad to run an errand for me in –"