Page 147 of Prince of the Phantom Sky

How he knew, was a mystery. Unease unfurled, snaking into Kora’s limbs with every mile gained. They were missing something, something that she couldn’t see.

Refugees would need to flee north, potentially into the Horrow Mountains. Raiden mentioned there was an inner cave system they could use to hide, but nothing lay beyond those peaks, only a simple path to the edge of Galen to sail to the Infernal Highland. A collapsible system had been created near the Aurora Gap to cave in the pass in case the volcano ever erupted, protecting the rest of the island.

Kora practised spiriting whenever they landed, her elemental magic still not powerful enough. It’d been a shock to Aerion and Aryn when she’d sneak attacked them both, enough for a blast of wind to knock her on her back. She could spirit up to twenty feet away, but every time she landed on her arse, the air forced from her lungs. And if she wasn’t practising that, she played with summoning her divine magic, figuring out how to separate it from her elemental power.

Compared to the thunderous thrum of power when she wielded water, her divine magic was warm, comforting, and bloomed slowly. And whenever light sparkled across her palms, twigs snapped in the forest lining the cliff, followed by a squeak and the flap of wings.

Once again, Kora tried spiriting and landed on her back, wheezing as the sand cushioned her fall.

“That’s what you get for keeping valuable mage secrets from us!” Aerion yelled after the hundredth time Kora spirited into a tree trunk.

The sun set behind the mountains, basking the Mist in a citrine hue similar to Windspire. It was thinning every day that passed. The horizon becoming more visible every time Kora glanced towards it. She near-enough expected to see those mighty green sails any moment, fear clawing its way up at the thought of facing Barron again already. She’d barely spared a moment to process Blake, still unable to fathom his betrayal.

She wasn’t sure whether she would kill him instantly, or drag out the torture first. Perhaps she could wield their old torture tactics on him. Deal back what he’d coerced her into doing upon innocent souls.

“I just need . . .” Raiden panted, “five more minutes.”

He sat on a boulder, his shoulders tight and hunched as he leaned forward. His locks had grown, the shaved sides growing out, tickling the tops of his ears. Aerion was spread-eagled on the shoreline, his feet soaking in the shallow water as Aryn disappeared into the forest, hunting for their next meal. Aerion’s chest was rapid, his breathing borderline worrying.

“You’re burning out,” Kora approached, wincing as her back sang with pain. “You both need to rest. You’ve been flying for a day straight. We’ve rarely stopped for more than ten minutes.”

“We don’t have time.” Raiden’s head whipped up as Aerion groaned in response. “They could be under attack. Barron could be there right now. My family . . . we could lose them all.”

“If you can’t fly, then we will lose them.” Raiden winced at her stern tone, but his weeks of training flowed through her as she redirected it back at him. “There’s always a limit.”

“I can’t stay here. I can’t stay still. Even if I have to walk every second I can’t fly, I will make it home.” Tears pricked his eyes, his knees bouncing with fear. Aerion grunted, his eyes still shut. His rich brown skin had become muted, cool undertones bleeding through.

“You won’t lose them like you lost Iris.” Kora cupped his cheek, her thumb swiping across his short beard. “Aerion is here with us. We will make it back.”

Raiden’s sparkling eyes shuttered as his fingers brushed her wrist. He inhaled once, and his stare met hers as he exhaled.

“If I move, I will vomit,” Aerion added from the sand. “I’ve never flown that much in my life.”

“If I could spirit us, I would.” Kora’s fingers curled into Raiden’s thick hair and he leaned into her touch.

“Would’ve been good to know,” Aerion slowly sat up, sand coating his curls. “I could’ve trained that gift.”

“We don’t know what it means,” Raiden argued. “This is new territory. A mage has never spirited before.”

Aerion’s doe eyes slid across them, narrowing slightly. Cogs turned behind his stare, his infinite wisdom assessing the situation. “We’ll stop for dinner, sleep a bit. Then fly in the early hours.”

“Or we could go now and—”

Aryn stumbled out of the forest, two rabbits in his hands as he slid down the short bank from the forest line. Mud slicked his legs and splattered across his face. Kora patted Raiden’s cheek as they set to work creating a small fire, skinning and roasting the rabbits. Her stomach tensed, coiling at food that wasn’t as divine as Raiden’s cooking, but was enough to fill the hole gnawing at her.

Raiden tucked Kora into his chest, keeping her close as they attempted some resemblance of sleep. She tossed and turned, images flying through her mind of death, of citizens of Mistros City screaming, crying, fearing her. Would they welcome her return? Would they accept her once again?

A shadow with purple eyes and dark claws emerged from the depths of her mind, followed by a cackling laugh causing her hair to prickle. Kora bolted upright, her breaths shallow and fast, cold sweat breaking out across her skin.

“Kora?” Raiden reached for her. His warmth penetrated her clouded mind, and her eyes adjusted to the dark. On the other side of the doused fire, Aryn and Aerion laid side-by-side, the latter snoring softly.

“Sorry, I can’t sleep.”

“Me neither. I can’t stop thinking about Skylar, about the civilians. Even my father. Pathetic, isn’t it?” Raiden shuddered, his crystalised eyes glowing in the dark.

They’d chosen to camp within the curvature of the cliff, protected from all sides bar the ocean before them. Quiet ocean waves soothed Kora’s frayed nerves, and she clasped Raiden’s hand. If Barron attacked now, Erick would be helpless. Would he be safe underground with the healers?

“We’re not even halfway home yet,” he continued. They needed a gods-damned miracle. Something with the raw power of flight. Kora’s eyes flared as an idea sparked. “What? Something’s going on in that sexy mind of yours.”