The Glade and Its Glitch: Book 4 Escape

Chapter 15

Sunbeam's sword was gripped tightly in his hand. He turned in slow circles looking for the source of the danger.

"Should Dani make sure they're ok?" Acorn asked Sunbeam. Sunbeam hadn't been specifically put in charge, but Acorn trusted his friend.

"No, Dani should stay here. We're gonna need all the hands we can get. Especially since they managed to take down the lookout before they could finish the warning."

"Do you think it's... Glitch?" Dani whispered. The word felt almost foreign on her tongue. It was not the name she gave her son. But he had chosen it for himself. The most she could do for him was accept it.

"Or the ninja." Sunbeam knew it could very well be either. However, the ninja might be more likely because they were so close. Or Glitch might be more likely because he was definitely against the Glade. It hurt Niko's brain to think about.

Luckily, or unluckily, a tree branch snapped and pulled him out of his thoughts.

~~~

The ninja had made it really close to the Glade. But Kai spotted someone high up in a tree. The group elected Nya to go knock them out. When she reached the top, the scout turned around and upon seeing her put his mouth to a trumpet-like instrument. They only got out one blast before Nya took them out.

She hopped down from the tree. "That probably was to warn the others. We should pick up the pace."

Everyone agreed and decided that they should also take more care to be quiet. Nya taking out the scout made Cole nervous.

It reminded him of how Soar took him out. He thought Soar was his ally. But he wasn't. What was the Glade to them? Friend or foe? Ally or enemy? And how did Glitch fit into the mix?

While Cole was distracted, he lost his footing. He fell to the ground and Jay just barely caught him by an armpit. But he was still too late. Cole's knee slammed down onto a branch.

~~~

"Someone's here." Sunbeam breathed.

"Yeah no s-"

"Shh." Dani held up a hand, silencing Acorn.

Acorn rolled his eyes, "We're adults, Dani." He pulled out his whip and stood to Sunbeam's right.

With Dani on his left, Sunbeam faced the direction of the noise. It was in the same direction as the bonfire. Whatever was coming their way was the same something that took out the lookout.

"Sunbeam," Acorn leaned in his friend's direction. "What do we do?"

Sunbeam's mind raced. He didn't know what to do. Someone was going to attack the Glade. And right now he, Acorn, and Dani were the only people there to stop them. Everyone else was too far away or asleep.

"We have to stop them." Sunbeam took a breath. "A-"

"Yeah no s-"

Dani cut off Acorn again. "Our k-families are in there." She'd almost said kids. But hers wasn't there anymore. But her husband still was. "We need to keep them at bay until we can signal more people to fight."

"Yeah no s-"

"Acorn!" Sunbeam snapped.

~~~

A voice came from the trees in front of the ninja. It said the word "acorn" and Zane recognized it as the voice of Sunbeam. His voice was snappy and irritated.

"Why would he yell the word acorn?" Jay whispered to Kai.

"Dunno, maybe he's crazy."

"Maybe it's a procedure. Like Operation Acorn."