A Promised Prophecy

Chapter Eighty-Nine

As if Cybill knew we were coming, we heard a large explosion in the distance. We ran to windows that were previously closed and carefully opened them to quickly peak at what we saw. In the distance, in what I could tell was a more central spot of Silverleaf, if not the actual downtown area itself, a plume of smoke rose into the air. And then, about twenty feet away, another explosion.

"We gotta go, now," James ordered.

Still looking out the window, I aligned the crystals and took myself to the center of Silverleaf in the heart of the shopping district. The scene around me was chaotic. People were running, unsure of where to go, as another explosion went off.

"Go to the shore, there are people waiting to evacuate you there," I yelled over the sounds of people screaming, hoping that someone heard and could follow my orders. I kept repeating myself and watched as people slowly started doing as instructed.

"Don't do that," I heard someone say. I looked back and watched as a man pulled a woman away from the direction of safety. "That's Rhea. Cybill warned us not to trust her."

"You can trust me," James interrupted, showing up just in time. "I've enlisted help to ensure my peoples safety. Please, go. Get out of here before another explosion goes off."

"Took you long enough to get here." I smiled at James as the couple ran off.

"Well, you came here without letting anyone else know where you'd go."

"Unintentionally," I responded with a shrug, but my heart pounded with anticipation. "I'm ready for this fight."

"Are you?" James questioned. He raised an eyebrow as if he was challenging me to prove to him that I could protect myself rather than give him a yes or no answer.

I slowly nodded my head as the area around us began to feel heavy. The people that had been running nearby were gone, the sound of fire crackling in the distance diminished, and I felt a small ringing in my ear as if it had been damaged in battle. I turned, trying to place the pressure, and then I saw her.

Cybill.

She walked toward us, her steps deliberate, and her expression oddly calm.

"James." She smiled as she acknowledged him first. "And Rhea."

"Cybill, what you are doing is an attack on my people and I will not let this slide. Stop now or I will move forward with enacting Silverleaf safety measures to ensure you are not only caught, but tried by the people of Silverleaf for your actions."

"We both know that won't happen." Cybill never dropped her smile.

She made a motion with her hand that indicated a spell was coming. I reached forward myself, protecting the two of us with a wall of flames. Cybill's head swiveled to me so quickly she'd forgotten to cast her spell rather than that I had blocked it.

"But you—"

"Shouldn't have powers?" I tried finishing the sentence for her. "Funny how that works out."

She let out a growl and the buildings around us shook at the same time. She was emitting a strong energy that indicated she'd probably taken in a number of people's powers the through SPT. It wasn't going to be easy, but we needed to stop Cybill and, once we did, she'd lead us to Eris.