Book of Praan: Volume 1

Chapter 12

The image of Cenna's furious expression had barely faded when I fully materialized in the center of the all-too-familiar ghost town. The first of Praan's moons hovered completely over the horizon, casting thin light across the square. I looked around to make sure I was alone before stalking off to the base's secret entrance, praying that I wasn't too late.

I didn't know whether to be terrified or relieved when I spotted Li's Guards searching the outskirts of the town. On the one hand, they clearly had not found the entrance, if their vigorous searching through rubble was any indication. On the other, they were a lot closer than I had hoped, and even with the teleportation spell, I hadn't gained much of an edge over them. My eyes darted around, counting eight groups of three or four Guards – two squadrons' worth, if I remembered Aryen's lessons correctly. My heart hammered against my chest; there was no way I was taking them all on alone.

I leaned into the corner I was hiding in and rubbed a hand over my face, willing my brain to conjure up a plan. I needed to get the Guardsmen away from the entrance so that I could slip by unnoticed and enter the base myself. That would give me a few minutes to hopefully find Wenn and the others and warn them. If she and the others weren't back yet, though, I'd have to evacuate Subterra myself – all while keeping the Guards preoccupied elsewhere. I didn't like it, but it was the only scheme I could scrap together. I peeked around the corner one last time in search of anything I could use to pull the Guards away and spotted just the thing. On the far end of the next block, the stony remains of what looked like an apartment building sat precariously on the corner. I concentrated my Actual on the base, probing desperately for a weak point in the structure. Finally, I found it, and I jammed as much energy as I could into that single point. Moments later, the building groaned as the walls slowly caved in before collapsing with a loud and clear thud. The floors gave under the pressure, and each fall kicked up undisturbed dirt and dust.

I willed the dust around me, creating a protective barrier as I dove out of my hiding spot and towards the base. All around me, the Guardsmen were either shielding themselves from the dirt or making their way over to check out the pile of rubble. Either way, they were ignoring me. After a few long minutes, I finally found the threadbare rug covering the hatch to the Rebels' base. I gave one last look over my shoulder to make sure I was clear before throwing the rug back carefully so that it would fall into place after I closed the door.

I didn't pause to marvel at the sconces as they magically lit up, like I usually did. Instead, I ran down the earthen corridor, all too eager to find a familiar face and warn them. Finally, the path opened up to the archway marking the beginning of the underground city. As per usual this time of day, the bustling of the city's center had died down, shopkeepers starting to close up while taverns opened. A patrolling unit disappeared into the barracks, and I hurried into the city after them.

"Hey!" I called out after them when I was near enough. The squad stopped and turned to face me, and I swallowed, trying to catch my breath. "Guardsmen...outside," I panted.

The squad leader's eyes widened, and he pushed his way through his subordinates to me. "What did you say?"

"Li...sent Guardsmen...after Wenn. They're outside searching for us right now!" I glanced over my shoulder. "We may only have a few minutes. You have to assemble the others and –!"

It was too late.

A crash thundered from outside, followed by the sound of boots marching and screams of the townspeople. The squad and I ran back outside in time to see the Guardsmen throwing something that exploded on impact from behind a defensive ring of metal shields. I cursed under my breath. "You!" I yelled to the squad leader. "What's your name?"