Found Them

With the chaos surrounding the portal, Rose had no chance to ask Zen to scan it or inquire about what awaited them on the other side. Consequently, she and Luke were utterly unprepared when they stumbled into the marshland.

Rose immediately deactivated her ability, but their sprint's momentum carried them forward several meters. The sudden transition from solid ground to soft, sinking mud caught them off guard. Rose stumbled, nearly losing her balance, while Luke let out a startled yelp. Her heightened reflexes—still sharp from using her ability—allowed her to avoid the suspicious bubbling puddles. Luke, by sheer luck, followed suit without stepping into them.

As they regained their footing, Rose's eyes darted around, taking in their new surroundings. A musty, earthy smell permeated the thick air, and an eerie silence blanketed the landscape. Pools of murky water dotted the area, some bubbling ominously, while twisted, gnarled trees loomed between them. Before she could try to make sense of it, she saw something black shoot at them from the corner of her eyes.

"Watch out!" Rose bellowed, yanking Luke down with her. They ducked instinctively as a strange black smoke whizzed past, mere inches above their heads.

"What the—!" Luke began, bewildered, but Rose cut him off, tugging him along.

"Run!"

There was no time to think. Whatever that smoke was, it certainly wasn't harmless. Before it even had time to cool down completely, Rose activated her ability again and shot down the slope, dragging Luke away from the source of those menacing black tendrils.

Her heart pounded as they raced through the treacherous terrain, her enhanced speed allowing them to cover ground quickly. The black tendrils pursued relentlessly, cutting in the air behind them.

Her lungs and muscles started burning; her body was far from ready to use the speed ability to its full potential. Luke found himself in the familiar position of being half-pulled, half-carried along, his feet only occasionally touching the ground. He kept glancing back, crying out in alarm, whenever the black smoke tendrils approached.

"Rose!"

That was Ethan's voice!

Relief flooded through her as she heard her brother. With renewed determination, she pushed herself harder, pulling Luke along as they zigzagged through the dangerous landscape.

In her slowed-down perception, Rose scanned for familiar figures. She quickly spotted them sitting on the ground behind a shield of what looked like dried branches.

With her speed, the distance between them rapidly closed. In a final leap, Rose skidded to a halt right behind them. Without hesitation, she pulled Luke behind the barrier.

Breathing heavily, Rose quickly assessed the situation. Ethan was leaning against the makeshift barrier, his face contorted with pain as he clutched his leg. Andrew wasn't off much better, one of his arms dangled powerless at his side, blood seeping through the clothes and drying. But right now Rose couldn't care less about his wound. 

She scrambled besides her brother, scanning him up and down and biting her own lips as she saw his leg. It was in bad shape. A deep gash ran along his calf, blood still seeping from the wound, its edges scarred black as if burned. Rose's heart clenched at the sight, knowing how much pain her brother must be in.

She couldn't help but narrow her eyes at Andrew accusingly. Feelings from her former life welled up—memories of when that man had brought her dead brother back from a realm run. Back then, he had been unharmed while her brother had lost his life.

"Don't be angry at Andrew," Ethan said, placing a placating hand on her head. "It's only thanks to him that I'm still alive. If he hadn't pulled me out of that thing's attack path, I might have more than just a wounded leg." Sweat glistened on his forehead as he endured the pain.

Ethan knew his sister best and had immediately noticed her darkening mood and accusatory gaze. But he didn't want her to misunderstand and create bad blood between her and Andrew. He could only hope she understood.

Rose still felt a twinge of resentment towards Andrew, despite knowing it wasn't entirely rational. The memories of that fateful day still haunted her, the image of her brother's lifeless body etched into her mind. She struggled to reconcile these emotions with the reality of the present situation, where Andrew had just saved Ethan's life.

Rose pressed her lips together and averted her gaze, trying to rein in her feelings. After a moment, she muttered a quiet "Sorry" and "Thank you" in Andrew's direction without looking up.

Ethan was happy to see this and patted her head a few more times. His sister had become very sensible in the last couple of days, he thought to himself.

Andrew observed the siblings' interaction impassively, his face a mask of calm. Inside, however, his emotions churned. Witnessing Ethan's injury had thrust him back to that horrific day when he'd lost his best friend. Rose's accusing gaze, identical to the one she'd worn then, pierced him anew. Despite knowing he wasn't at fault, Andrew couldn't help feeling guilty.

Andrew took a deep breath, steadying himself. He knew he had to focus on the present situation, on keeping everyone alive and safe. The past couldn't be changed, but the future was still unwritten. They first had to get out of this realm, preferably without suffering any more injuries.

Andrew turned his attention to Rose and Luke, his mind racing. Before formulating a viable plan, he knew they needed to address some pressing matters—chief among them, the extraordinary speed Rose had just demonstrated. It wasn't normal by any means, which could only mean one thing…

"You also have an ability."

It was a statement, not a question. 

Rose, still kneeling besides her brother, flinched at those words.