No Longer Hidden

Avis is right behind me.

The moment my feet hit the stone, I'm sprinting, weaving through the alley as shouts explode behind us. The soldiers give chase, their armor clanking, their boots pounding against the ground.

"Left!" Avis shouts.

I don't question him. I veer sharply, nearly slipping on the damp stone. A bolt of fire streaks past me, shattering against the wall. My breath stutters. Magic. Not mine theirs.

The king's men don't just hunt people like me. They use us. Break us. Turn us into weapons.

I push myself faster.

Avis grabs my wrist, yanking me down another narrow passage. We spill into a courtyard surrounded by abandoned buildings, the windows dark, the doors hanging open like gaping mouths. The scent of damp wood and mildew clings to the air.

"There." He points to a low rooftop. "Climb."

I don't hesitate. My fingers scrape against the rough stone as I haul myself up. My arms shake, but I don't stop. Avis follows, moving with practiced ease. Just as he reaches the top, the soldiers flood into the courtyard below.

"There!" one of them shouts.

An arrow whizzes past my shoulder.

I scramble back, heart hammering, but Avis moves first. In one smooth motion, he pulls a dagger from his belt and flings it downward

The dagger finds its mark burying deep into a soldier's thigh. He collapses with a strangled cry, clutching at the wound. Chaos erupts below as the other soldiers hesitate, momentarily thrown off.

Avis doesn't waste the opportunity. "Move!"

We bolt across the rooftop, our footsteps echoing over the uneven tiles. My breath is ragged, my legs burning, but I don't slow down. I can't. Not when the soldiers are already scaling the walls behind us.

Avis reaches the edge first. The next rooftop is just a few feet away, separated by a narrow alley. He doesn't stop just leaps, landing in a crouch on the other side.

I skid to a halt, staring at the gap.

It's not far. But my body locks up anyway, a deep, irrational fear clawing up my throat.

"Pandora," Avis calls, already turning back. The urgency in his voice cuts through my panic.

Behind me, a soldier's hand grips the ledge.

I jump.

For a terrifying moment, there's nothing just air, just the sickening drop below.

Then my hands slap against the edge of the rooftop. I scramble for a hold, nails digging into the stone. Avis is there in an instant, grabbing my wrist, hauling me up with surprising strength.

The moment my feet touch solid ground, he tugs me forward. "No stopping."

I nod, breathless.

The rooftops blur beneath my feet as we run, leaping from building to building. Shouts echo behind us, but the soldiers are falling behind. They aren't as fast. They aren't as desperate.

For a second, it almost feels like we might escape.

Then the air shifts.

A deep, bone-chilling cold sweeps through the night, cutting through the heat of my skin. The hair on my arms rises.

Avis curses under his breath.

I don't need to ask why.

A figure stands on the rooftop ahead, waiting.

Captain Stellaris.

He hasn't even broken a sweat. His dark armor gleams in the moonlight, his sword resting easily at his side. He looks like he knows how this ends.

For us, at least.

"We can do this the easy way," he says, his voice smooth. "Or the hard way."

Avis shifts beside me, hand drifting toward his belt. "Funny. I was about to say the same thing."

Stellaris smiles. "Still pretending you're a hero, Avis? How many times do I have to remind you? You serve us."

Something dark flickers across Avis' face. "Not anymore."

Stellaris sighs, almost disappointed. Then he lifts his hand.

A sharp pressure grips my chest sudden, suffocating.

I choke, dropping to my knees as an invisible force crushes the air from my lungs. I claw at my throat, but there's nothing there, nothing I can fight.

Magic.

Not mine. His.

Stellaris' fingers curl, and the pressure tightens. Black spots dance at the edges of my vision.

Somewhere, far away, I hear Avis shout my name.

I can't breathe. I can't think.

I can only hear Stellaris' voice, calm and cold.

"You should have stayed hidden."