Fall of the Spectrum

Chapter Eighteen

Receiving permission to enter, Forneus strode into Gwen's quarters, surprised to see that not only had she finished her breakfast, she had already showered and changed into her training gear. Her hair, which had grown a few inches since first arriving in the Spectrum, was pulled back in a short ponytail. Holsters were belted at her hips and upper thighs overtop of form-fitting clothing. Unlike her usual attire, her training gear wouldn't catch on any branches, rocks, or whatever else the Training Facility had to throw at them, and so was better suited during her close-quarters combat training.

"You're up early," he remarked, watching as she slipped the last ethereal blade into its holster.

Tucking the diamond-covered phoenix feather necklace beneath her shirt, Gwen brushed her fringe out of her eyes. "Yeah, well, with the way things have been going, sleep's been in short supply." She crossed the room to stand next to him, resting her hand on the door handle. "Besides, I figured you might come early, and if you did, I wanted to be ready."

"We'll make an operative out of you, yet." Forneus gave her a teasing wink, earning a slight smile from her in return. With that, they stepped out into the pyrite corridor, making their way first toward the Central Junction, and then down a series of spiralling staircases.

As they descended into the lower levels, he regaled Gwen with the council's most recent ruling. After their failure two days ago, the urgency to find the Amethyst of Unity had become paramount. Likewise, ensuring that the enemy didn't get hold of the artifacts Gwen had already restored fell under the same category.

"I thought Hermes had already hidden them?" Gwen asked as they descended yet another staircase, the steps thin and steep.

"He did, but the council feels it is no longer safe to keep them unguarded. So they had Hermes send Asclepius an encrypted code of the artifacts' whereabouts, and now both the Third and Fifth units are tasked with retrieving them before the enemy has the chance to." When Gwen stumbled on one of the steps, Forneus reached out a hand to catch her. When he was certain she'd regained her balance, he went on. "Once they have them, they are to head to one of the more inconspicuous realms under the council's protection and relinquish them to the gods residing there."

"I hope they'll be okay."

"Don't worry," said Forneus, "they're equal to the task. Regulations Force operatives are made of pretty stern stuff. It will take more than what Reeves has at his disposal to do them in."

"I hope so."

They had reached the Training Facility by this point, Forneus pulling open the door and ushering Gwen inside. "Try not to worry about it too much, Gwen. I assure you, they know what they're doing. Now, until the Amethyst can be located, it is imperative that we continue your training."

Pressing his palm flat against the left-hand side of the wall, he closed his eyes and waited. The reaction was instantaneous. He could feel the Training Facility morphing from the duplicate of the Milky Way into the foamy seaside cliff he held in his mind; the place where, nine hundred years ago, Forneus had taken his very first breath.

Once the floor beneath his feet stopped shuddering—Gwen's grip on his sleeve relaxing, now that the worst was over—he opened his eyes. Giving a nod of satisfaction, he turned his attention to Gwen, watching as she took a tentative step away from him, eyes wide with wonder. Large rock formations sat on either side of them, covered in lush greenery. Thick forest ran between them, dipping and rising with the land, while crystal clear waters battered the sandy white beaches below.

"Now," Forneus said, smiling when Gwen turned her awed gaze on him, "let's find out what that new power of yours is, shall we?" 

*