The Chronicles of Time - Book 2: The Book of Flames

Chapter VII: Alfrey, The Warrior

Chapter VII: Alfrey, The Warrior

"Which way, Felix?" I asked as I ran. Felix was a few feet from me, sniffing the air. The sky was dark as we ran into a small park. The building lights of the city of Seoul softly lit our path; by softly, I meant weakly. So far, I had tripped over: a sharp curb, a small stone block (why would they put that there?!) with a sharp sculpture on it, a low bush and a cat, which screeched at me.

"They're not that far and that flame girl isn't moving very fast," Felix answered just before we got out of the park and into the street once again where there were a few people. Most of them looked like tired businessmen and they didn't take a second look as me and Felix passed by. Some that were in our way silently stepped aside when we came near. It was like it was totally normal for a young boy to be chasing a dog bigger than a dog.

"Well, I wouldn't expect her to move fast carrying a girl as heavy as her."

Felix did a sort of wolf laugh. "True. I didn't think of that!"

I smiled, but ended up wincing. I clutched my hands, which were hurting ever since I slipped on the two rings. The rings seemed to tighten and heat up on my fingers. I didn't feel the pain until much later after putting them on. It was like they were slowly tightening on my fingers and were biting into it. But when I tried to remove them, they came off seamlessly like they're loose with butter.

"There they are!" Felix said.

I looked up from my hands and sure enough, I saw the black-haired girl waiting at a pedestrian light with Alicia hanging limp in her arms. Like us, the other people around her seemed to ignore the fact that there's an unconscious girl right beside them.

The light went green and the girl started walking again. Something ticked me off; she was strolling like she wasn't expecting a pursuit and she was just having a casual walk in a park.

"Hey!" I yelled once we got near  her in a few feet.

The girl turned around, alarmed. She started running.

"Better late than never," I grumbled before breaking into a sprint.

We caught her five seconds later with my hand on her wrist only we realized it wasn't the girl anymore. Instead, it was a Korean girl. She asked me in rapid Korean (probably why I touched her and stuff)  and I just said, "Sorry," even though I doubted she understood it. Once she was gone, I consulted Felix.

"That was-- how did--" I stuttered, not knowing what to say.

"She definitely has some nice moves," Felix said.

"Moves?"

"Yeah. She slipped into the crowd, blended with another girl that's running and made you think that she's still here. Come on," Felix said, starting to run again. "I picked up her scent again, and now she's really running." He rounded up a corner, forcing me to dash with fear of being left behind. I came up on a deserted street. There were closed shops and gated pathways, but there were a line of streetlights that illuminated the path. Felix had stopped.

"What is it?" I doubled over, hands on my knees as I tried to recover my breathing.

Felix said something.

"What?"

"It's a trap," he said. Almost instantly, I felt a tremendous presence from beyond the streetlights, which started flickering and dimming. Out of nowhere, a chill went through my clothes and the wind eerily blew past my ears.

Instinctively, I tried to turn and go back like a mouse, but was stopped by something invisible. It was a Spatial wall. The people on the other side of the wall were stopped in mid-stride. A stray piece of paper hung in the air. A Time-lock, I thought. I turned around to face whatever was there.