March 13, 2019, 12:35 am. Recently captured by a living beam of light.

I’m brought back to the dragons and loaded in a cage beneath them. As I’m packed in with Rufka and Tipan, each of us with our backs to each other, the cage begins to tighten, binding us so close that we’re left with our arms and legs sticking out the sides.

In the other cage, Beth’s unconscious body is placed behind Josh. Then they load Roberts in the same fashion, to my surprise.

“What happened?” I ask as the dragons lift into the sky.

“Roberts tried to buy you time. I guess it wasn’t enough,” Rufka informs me, her voice cold.

I swallow, hard. I mean, I know it’s an act, but it still hurts. Maybe she’s upset I got caught so quickly. I tried running further. I just couldn’t bring myself to teleport. Not after the rock exploded. Besides, getting away wasn’t required for the plan. Sure, I’m captured, but how much worse would it be if I died? Or if Talkith had given up, taken the others away and I couldn’t follow?

I don’t try explaining myself to Rufka as the wind picks up around us. Not with Tipan’s father nearby. And with our chat suppressed, all I can do is shoulder her slightly. When she doesn’t respond for a few seconds, I start to worry she’s really upset. Then I feel her shoulder pressing against mine. It’s not much, but with a sigh, I look outwards with nothing to do but stew in our cage. It’s the first time I’ve flown for an extended period without my magic to make it cozy. It’s not enough to decrease my Health, but it is uncomfortable.

As is sitting in the same position for hours. At least I can work against the manacles with my aura from within, even if it’s disrupted outside my body.

Even when a mana storm appears on the horizon, Talkith keeps us locked in our cages as we land. Instead of the bunkers we utilize, one of the K’tharn has a rod they deploy that creates a small shield overhead. With lightning and small cracks in reality appearing all around, I’m able to appreciate how terrifying a mana-storm can be up close.

And how awesome.

Even as the storm is breaking, Talkith orders us onward, though she doesn't speak to us directly. In fact, she seems to be avoiding us. As the dragon we're riding beneath ascends, a few sputtering bolts of lightning draw my attention. There’s a single floating rip, winking as it floats past our cage, the inside swirling with a chaotic mix of reds and blues.

I try to peer inside it, but the cage lurches violently as the dragon carrying us veers away and I smack my face against the cage. When I recover, the rip is gone and we’re clear of the storm.

Rufka hasn’t been sitting idle. The entire time we’ve been flying, she’s been shifting against my back. Unfortunately, the cage doesn’t leave enough room for me to turn around to face her and she’s only given me grunts in response to any of my attempts to talk.

And Tipan hasn't been any more chatty.

A few hours later, Rufka freezes for a second, her shuffling finally coming to an end. Then I hear a click.

“Rufka did-” I bite my tongue to prevent myself from asking the rest of my question. I’d be willing to bet Rufka managed to get out of her collar. Or at least her manacles. A little early, but it should be fine.

However, we don’t get time to celebrate as there’s a sudden thunk from behind me, followed by Rufka going completely slack.

“Rufka? Rufka?!”

I try to turn, but all I can see is the side of her head laying listlessly against my shoulder and one of her enchanting scriveners tumbling through the air below. It takes me nearly a minute to calm down before I’m able to feel her still breathing. This… could be bad. We were counting on being able to disable the manacles.

As I sag forward, Tipan speaks for the first time, “I’m sorry Alexis. My father would never have gotten involved personally if it wasn’t for me.”

“Not your fault. We just weren’t ready. She’s too strong. If Genitha had been there…”

What would Genitha have done? Probably thrown insults around while distracting Talkith until everyone got away. Could I have done that? If I wasn't so crippled by the System's lockdown?

We sit there in silence for several minutes before Tipan says, “I missed her, you know.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. She wasn’t always around. But when she was, she’d give us her undivided attention.”

“Well, I mean, she’s kind of doing that now,” I point out, indicating where her father is standing on the back of the other dragon, her eyes passing over us every few seconds.

Tipan snorts, before falling into a deep laugh that shakes the cage and elicits a call from the guards riding on the dragon above.

When her laughter finally calms down, Tipan says, “You’re right. Still, I didn’t expect for her to apprehend us for crimes against the Aetherium. It just feels… wrong.”

“It is wrong. And it’s not like we had anything to do with Ivicka blowing up the tower.”

“I wish I’d gone back.”

“What?”

“When we fled. I wish I’d gone back to check… To help people.”

“Oh.”

“I know what we were doing was important. But I just felt so… small. Like what I was doing barely mattered. The rest of you were vital. I felt like I was just following along.”

“But you weren’t. You know you were important, right?”

“Was I? I doubt a single thing would’ve changed if I’d gone straight back to Glimmering Sands. And I could’ve helped people.”

I try to reach out to pat her hand, but I can’t reach with the way we’re bound, so I end up just bumping my head against hers. “But we did go back.”

“Yeah. After we… After Ivicka.”

I don’t respond, nodding, and trusting that she understands the gesture. We continue chatting for the rest of the day, and though I check on her a few times, Rufka doesn’t wake. I’m starting to suspect these are the same collars that kept Josh and Roberts unconscious the first time they were captured.

Of course, they weren’t hauled around in cages for over a day while being restrained.

Even when the dragons set down to rest for the evening, Talkith keeps us locked in a cage. Her eyes barely make contact as she stands at the far side of the camp as the guards bring us a thin soup, possibly the blandest food I’ve had since coming to Akilo. As I’m drinking my soup, two guards rouse Rufka. She doesn’t say anything, audibly slurping her soup in a manner I know would embarrass her if she were okay.

But she doesn’t say anything, slumping against me again the second they're done. Then they repeat the process with Beth and Roberts. Them not being conscious is really going to mess things up.

Maybe I can figure out a way to wake them once they’ve got us into Aethire. Having to wake up Beth, Roberts and Rufka wasn’t in any version of the WD contingencies.

Of course, I’m pretty sure Rufka throwing me into the swamp wasn’t part of any of our plans either.

Our guards erect the storm-rod again before settling down to sleep in deployable yurts. They don’t bother moving us inside, leaving us confined to our cages. I don’t remember when I lose consciousness, but before I know it, the early morning sun is shining in my eyes as our guards move around, feeding us again.

Throughout it all, Talkith doesn’t approach us, watching from a distance. It’s as though she’s afraid to get close to Tipan.

Which, fair.

I’d be pretty upset if my father arrested me for something I didn’t do. Though if it was mom, I'd be more surprised she'd figured out how.

And with that pleasant thought front and foremost in my mind, we set off, spending another day and night eating their thin soup, being tossed around in the tailwinds of mana-storms, and just generally having a grand time.

I spend a lot of time staring off into space, cycling Anchor to test its limits more thoroughly. But I stop, when I realize practicing with it is just making the trip take even longer. Tipan and I talk occasionally, but with the wind stealing our words and not being able to so much as chat with Wyonna, it’s the most alone I’ve been since we came to Akilo. Even with Tipan and Rufka literally pressed up against me the entire time.

Which is probably why I start thinking about what I’m going to do when we get home. And that I’m going to have to face mom. I… really don’t want to do that. If not for all my stuff being in the apartment, I probably wouldn’t even go home. Maybe that’s an option? Just teleport all my stuff out?

Wonder if Sab misses me?

Oh, who am I kidding. Of course she does. Wish I’d had a chance to talk to her before we left. I’m going to give her the biggest hug when I get back. And papa too. After Roberts heals him.

And isn’t that just going to be the most amazing thing. Bringing real magic back to earth is going to be great.

Reinvigorated, I spend the rest of the day working on the tedious task of wrestling my aura against the shackles, with only the occasional thought of what life will be like on earth with my magic under control. I’m drawn out of my efforts when I see floating buildings in the distance. We’ve crossed back into the Aetherium. There are K’tharn out in fields of green pasture as we fly over, herding their large, shaggy beasts towards new lands. Several call out, pointing at us as we fly by. I guess the Stormguard don’t haul prisoners in every day.

Or maybe it’s the two distinctive dragons flying in formation with over two dozen gliders escorting them.

After that, we fly slower, and closer to the ground, turning to follow the river Lathiac toward Aethire. There are several large barges visible, even from our reduced height, the water around them seeming to bend away as they travel upriver.

Funny how much of the settled lands outside the capital we haven’t seen. One downside to teleporting everywhere, I guess. There are a lot of the floating farmhouses bobbing in the wind as we move upriver. More than I expected. There are even several buildings I’d be inclined to call mansions built along the river, their expansive estates clearly a statement. Not sure of what, but it can’t be easy to keep a place that big intact outside of a Stronghold or their capital. Especially with mana-storms and mana-swells wrecking the local infrastructure.

Seems kind of wasteful.

Then I see a pair of K’tharn smashing through walls of one. There's a flash of lightning, then another K'tharn appears. They continue skirmishing even as we pass over an empty plot of land, where another pair of K'tharn are flattening the ground and stacking rubble into cubes. In the next plot over another group of K’tharn are building an entirely new estate.

They’re… using them for practice?

Huh.

As we continue up the river, I pick out the pattern. For every twenty farmhouses or so, there’s a short stretch of land packed with estates. And each set of estates has people within putting on a no-holds-bared combat match, destroying the manor. And right behind them is another team, restoring them to their former glory. Well, not former. It's pretty obvious they're changing the styles of building while they're at it.

“Hey, Tipan?” I prompt her, realizing the wind that's been overpowering is much lower now. I loose my train of thought when I notice a K’tharn destroying a beautiful garden, full of blooming white and blue flowers, all reduced to cinders as they throw fireballs hot enough to melt stone at their opponent.

“Yeah?”

“What’re they doing?” I ask, trying to point at the duelling K’tharn.

“Huh. Oh, I’m not certain. But I think they’re being trained to join the Aegis.” As if discerning my curiosity from the way I shift to look in her direction, Tipan continues, “Civilians who step up when the Aetherium is at war. I haven’t seen them in action before.”

“So, they’re like a militia?” I ask, staring down at the fighting K’tharn throwing magic powerful enough to knock over solid stone walls. Not like any militia I’ve ever heard of, but then, magic.

“I don’t think so. I think a militia is more… organized yet weaker. Those who join the Aegis aren’t people you’d see following orders. In fact, I’d be willing to bet Genitha is registered with the Aegis.”

“You think Genitha did paperwork?”

“Ha. Well, despite her antagonism with the council, she’s a well-known figure to most of the Aetherium.”

“Like your father?” I can’t help but ask, glancing up at where the silent K’tharn stands even know, watching over us from the back of the other dragon.

“Actually, people don’t really know about my father. Most people in the Aetherium never see the Stormguard in person. Like, I said. They don’t normally get involved in politics.”

“Yeah, except to haul us in to the Aetherium apparently.”

“I… yeah. Guess that’s yet another lie. Do you ever feel as if everything you’ve ever known was… wrong?” Tipan asks, a long slow sigh slipping out as she looks back.

Pressing my shoulder against hers, I shake my head. “Not really. Sorry. I mean, unless you count discovering magic is real, but I don’t think that counts.”

“Yeah. Your world is still hard to imagine. No magic, but everyone carries around powerful artifacts and you use them for gossip and entertainment.”

“Hey now, more than half of the subclasses I’ve heard about are for entertainment,” I object.

“Well yes, but-” Tipan’s giggling objection is drowned out by a sudden shift in our momentum as the dragon veers upward without warning. The next moment, the dragon veers again. It’s only as we level out that I’m able to make out dark shapes darting through the sky around us. I’m unable to discern more than vague triangle shapes, the actual forms obscured by shadows.

“Dusk Athama!” One of our guards calls out, throwing a spear of lightning. The cry has barely reached my ears when the sky explodes, bolts of lightning and disks of tightly packed wind energy fly everywhere. As we spin, I count several strikes that should have hit us, but it appears there’s an invisible shield keeping us safe. Good to know.

The assault continues for nearly a minute before silence returns. More than half of our escort are missing, though I notice Talkith is fine. That probably would’ve been a great distraction, but we’re still not close enough to Aethire to execute contingency MD-3.

So, I twiddle my thumbs as our guards hiss and whisper back and forth for a bit, listening for any hints.

It sounds like some of them were stolen by the shadow creatures. Apparently, half of the Athama explode on contact. And now our guards are waiting for a follow-up attack. Because half the time ‘the squids’ send the Dusk Athama just to shake people up. But just as often they’re used prior to a full-scale assault. Interesting.

Given how teleportation isn’t working, I’d wager on the former. Not that it matters since we’re safely tucked away inside of a surprisingly sturdy shield. I guess if our dragon goes down it would get problematic. I rub my finger over the rough outline of my manacles, sending Facet into them. When they don't reject it, and I'm able to saturate them completely, I almost give a deep sigh. Wasn’t sure it'd work, and didn’t want to risk it until we were inside Aethire.

Guess the Athama shook me up more than I thought.

The vigilance of my guards proves warranted as another wave of darkness descends over us. It’s tempting to break free, to fight back, but… the Athama aren’t targeting us.

They’re targeting Tipan’s father.

"Get the prisoners to safety!" I hear Talkith command from above, before losing her again.

Even as the cage shakes, I wait, though I’m not left in suspense long. The darkness is torn away with a thunderous clap, revealing Talkith plummeting toward a ranch-house while wrestling with a squid twenty times her size. Did they send one of their children into combat?

Despite her bright white fur, it’s hard to track Talkith as the dragons fly away, zooming straight to Aethire at more than twice the speed they've flown at any other point so far. Another few minutes and we lose Talkith to the distance. My last sighting is a giant mushroom cloud where several of the practice estates once rested. Getting my bearings, I notice we’re crossing the rim of the endless pit over which Aethire hovers.

There’s a short delay as the guards verify with a flying patrol that we’re supposed to be moved inside the city. There's some grumbling from one of the patrols before they mention we've been cleared for entry, but that if we're not in the palace in twelve hours we'll be flagged as… something that sounds like violated? The wind makes it hard to tell, and it's not like they're talking to me.

Still, with confirmed access, and us being on the outer edges of the capital while the strongest of our captors is occupied… We’re not going to have a better opportunity.

Well, unless the others wake up. But can't count on that.

Hoping it works, I stretch my Facet out, soaking everyone’s manacles and collars. Once I’m certain I have them all completely wrapped, I test with my own manacles. I’m able to teleport a small slice out of the cuffs, causing them to malfunction. Pausing time, I repeat the process on every one of our bindings.

A second later, the manacles and collar drop away as my control of the elements reasserts itself.

Our guards begin to cry out as the remnants of our cage burn away, but they’re already too late.

In my reflections over the last couple days, it occurred to me that most users don’t have defence against their breathe being literally stolen. Just like Ivicka showed me. And as they’re all close enough, I’m able to subdue all but one of them in seconds. Wish I’d thought of that while we were assaulting the Taken.

Still, this wouldn't have worked if our guards were past Iron.

With uneven flight uncharacteristic of our guards, the sole conscious member flees in jerky motions. Making sure I have an IFF tether on them, I check on Rufka. While her status indicates she’s at full health, she refuses to wake even after I’ve removed her bindings.

Well, waking can wait.

Floating her behind me, I join Josh and Tipan who’re already carrying Beth and Roberts. Nodding, I wrest the air from the last guard, pulling them close then injecting them with Kellica's paralytic. With the prisoner secure, I float her beside Rufka before descending into the city.

It was kind of the Nightstar to bring us inside Aethire’s security network.