Nick James - Crimson rising

The ground slants. I lose my footing momentarily but keep my attention on the pathway of the Pearls.

The entire corridor glows green as five of them hover through the hallway. I open my fist and press my palm into the air, beckoning them forward.

A thought stops me.

Just two Pearls had all but decimated the lobby. If I break five at a time, right in the middle of the ship, I could bring everything down.

I let the Pearls settle in the air. They float in a circle around my head, bobbing impatiently. There are more in this storage center. I need them all.

Before calling them forward, I visualize the layout of the ship. Avery and I had studied the directory for only a few minutes, but I’d made sure to note the location of the closest exit to the top level.

My chest buzzes with excitement as the warmth from the Pearls envelopes me. I use the added strength to home in on the remaining Pearls and pull them from storage until I have seventeen in total. They fill the corridor with a blinding glow. I can barely keep my eyes open. The whispers are back, loud and from every direction. The Drifters want out.

They’ll have to wait a few moments more.

I bolt back to the lobby with a string of Pearls following in my wake. It’s easy to control them now, this close. It’s like they’re helping me, like they know they need to follow.

I clear the half-open door and take off into the bowels of the ship. The ground rocks underfoot, throwing me to the wall. The Pearls follow suit. They echo my movement like they’re attached by invisible strings-a bundle of glowing balloons behind me.

As soon as I turn the first corner, I’m ambushed by a trio of soldiers. I skid to a stop. The Pearls bunch around the top of my head, bouncing against the ceiling, denting metal. I notice the soldiers’ eyes widen, even past their visors.

Before they have a chance to compose themselves, I pull a Pearl from above me and clench my fists. It breaks directly in front of my chest and sends a shockwave through the corridor. The security squad topples as soon as the force hits them. I watch the energy hit the walls, fluttering metal like paper.

A Drifter emerges at the end of the corridor and shoots around the corner. I only see it for a split second, and don’t have time to chase it around the ship. I can’t spare too many of these Pearls.

Luckily, the stairwell is close.

It’s also clogged. As soon as I make the turn back into pedestrian territory, I’m met with crowds of people, all bustling around on fast forward, panicked. When they spot me, their panic turns to awe.

They flatten against walls, scared to get too close. I sprint through the crowd and make a beeline for the stairwell. The Pearls sink below my shoulders when the space restricts.

I push past Shippers on the stairs, elbowing my way up two flights. Some people duck out of the way. Others slip and fall. I don’t stop to look at any of them. I climb, face forward as the energy blocks any distractions. I can’t keep the Drifters bound inside for much longer. I’m scared that if I don’t get to the surface quick enough, they’ll break and set off an explosion in the middle of the stairwell-the worst possible place.

With each step, it gets harder to control. I bite my lip and keep my fingers straight. People scream around me, but all I can think about is the release-when I get to the top of the ship and let the Pearls explode.

The thud of my feet on the steps disappears. Everything does, as the energy envelopes me. It pulls at my hair, tears at my clothing. I feel sick. These things are forcing me. I’ve never had so many so close.

One level more. One flight. Five steps.

I arrive at the top level and sprint to the center of a stone plaza, careful to move away from buildings. I don’t even notice how thin the air is until I stop. I take two choked breaths before finding my voice and shouting.

“Move out of the way!”

My panicked cry gets the attention of every single person in the plaza. They turn and stare. I hear shouts, but they’re buffered by the whispers of the Pearls around me.

I sink to my knees and bunch my fists, letting go.

Sixteen explosions pinwheel around my body.

A whirlpool of energy swallows the plaza, spreading through the top level like a black hole. I don’t know how many people duck. I don’t know how many buildings are damaged by the force. I don’t see anything beyond the wall of green, but I know, from the indescribable maelstrom consuming the plaza, that this was a bad idea.

Cassius watched as a security battalion emerged around the corner, sprinting across the Ridium-soaked streets toward Theo. But before the soldiers could come close to reaching the boy, dagger-like cones of blackness cut up through the ground, spearing their bodies like meat on toothpicks. Soldier after soldier succumbed to his power. It was a massacre.

Cassius stepped forward, careful to keep his eye on the ground in case something came at him, too. The Ridium continued to fade around his feet, working its way into the circuitry of the ship.

The wind intensified as more and more atmosphere was sucked out of the hole at the top of the dome. The ship continued to sink. Without a clear view of the space beyond the city, he couldn’t tell how close they were to hitting the ground. When they did, the resulting explosion would be enough to tear the Skyship apart.

Someone grabbed his shoulder. He pulled away and staggered forward in fear for his life.

“Cassius!” A familiar voice called him back. He turned to see Fisher’s friends, Eva and Skandar, standing before him. Their eyes focused on the distance, past his shoulders to Theo.

Cassius coughed. “Where’s Fisher?”

“We don’t know,” Skandar said. “He went with Avery.”

Eva’s mouth fell open as she watched Theo continue to fight back the ship’s forces.

“He’s covered in Ridium,” Cassius explained. “There’s no way to stop him. He’s going to bring the ship down.”

Eva was about to respond when a loud explosion rocked the opposite side of the ship. Cassius turned to see an expanding flare of green energy blossom from the far side of the city. It coursed above the tops of buildings, spreading upward and outward like a tidal wave.

He shielded his eyes from the brightness, but forced himself to keep looking. The longer he stared, the more details he could make out. There were bodies, glowing brighter and stronger than the rest of the green. Drifters swirled amongst the chaos. They circled in loops through the sky, riding the wave of energy.

“Fisher,” Cassius whispered.

Eva moved to his side. “I’ve never seen so much Pearl energy in one place.”

“It’s coming at us.” Cassius took a step back. “It won’t dissolve in time.”

She glanced down at his wrist. “Your bracelet!”

He felt the breeze tickle his bare skin. A shiver went down his spine. “We can’t let Theo get the other one. Fisher has to stay as far away as-”

The Pearl energy crackled above them like sheet lightning, splintering the rest of the dome. A few more direct hits and it would burst altogether.

Cassius bolted toward Theo. The boy continued to fend off security forces in front of him, but it stole all of his attention. If Cassius could take him by surprise, he’d have a chance of buying Fisher and the Drifters some time.

It was reckless, he knew. If anything, he should be running the opposite direction, but he couldn’t let Theo get that bracelet.

A few hundred yards and the boy was in reaching distance. Before Theo could react, Cassius bounded toward him, grabbed his shoulders, and pushed him to the ground. He grunted in pain as he collided with the Ridium. It was like tackling a cold statue.