Missing

Chapter 7

A few days later

Allie leant against one of the wooden huts, watching Henrik and Kestrel arguing playfully. She heard Lyra walking up behind her before she turned around.

"She's doing well." she remarked, nodding towards Kestrel.

Lyra sat down on the grass, ignoring the pointed stares of both Allie and Phenoxa, her soul. "Gloating?" she asked.

"A little."

Lyra picked a stem of grass and began to play with it in her hands. She was always fiddling with something. "You were up early this morning. I heard you walking around before I had even started my morning Griffin-round. Having trouble sleeping?"

"No, I feel great. I just have a little extra fire to burn."

Lyra smiled slightly and stroked her soul gently. Allie noticed her t-shirt was peppered with burn holes. She would have to ask her about that later.

"If you want, I could lay out the mats in the main room. We could go a few rounds, like in the old days. You could punch my teeth out again." Lyra gestured light-heartedly to the gap in her mouth, where Allie had previously busted a tooth.

Her back pocket vibrated, and a shrill whistling sound made its way to her ears. Allie took out the small circular mirror and nodded at the face within. How she loved mirror-streaming.

"Chief. There's been a breach in the northern wall. No signals and won't respond. With your permission, we'll send a team to investigate." The voice came through slightly metallic, like knives scraped against rock.

"Do what you must, although you could have just asked someone to Shadow watch." She sighed. "I'll be there shortly."

"Aye, chief." The figure melted away until the ordinary mirror returned. She rubbed her eyes and ran a hand through her brown hair.

"Saved by the bell." Lyra mocked. They sparked a teleport and left the pavilion without delay.

*****

Most of the Moondoor elites grumbled as they shuffled about the main room of the base, still bleary-eyed from last night's celebration. Ordinarily, they were trained to be on their guard at all hours, but with a peculiar absence of missions this year, Allie had cut them some slack. She motioned to one of her subordinate elementals and inquired about the breach.

"False alarm, ma'am." he said, stamping to attention.

She stared at him, trying to guess what he was saying. "Well?" Allie snapped.

"It was a, um..." He coughed. "A rabbit..."

"A rabbit. You're telling me that our high-tech, magical, state-of-the-art security system that has kept this island safe for millennia, was triggered by a rabbit?"

"Yes, ma'am." He nodded mousily. His jackalope soul twitched behind his legs.

"Right. Just, make sure it hasn't been eaten by the Adar Llwch Gwin yet. God, that's a mouthful."

"The griffins are too busy at the moment. It's that time again."

"You know, you could just say 'breeding season' like everyone else, Brown."

"Yes, ma'am." He nodded once and opened his mouth, as if he was about to say something, before shutting it again, like a goldfish.

"Anything else you'd like to say, Brown?" Allie asked, beginning to get impatient at the subordinate. She didn't usually get irritated but supposed it could be pushed at times. She was, after all, the Fire element.