Rise

Adara

Erica couldn't have been more right, Calore did go rogue. The sight made my gut churn, watching him attack my new friends and hurting Kira. When I squash your rebellion and kill all of the fools that dare to get close to you or Rise, don't crawl back and beg for my forgiveness. That's what he told me. His eyes looked dead, full of burning rage. When I made it up in the trees, Jaxson and Harper wait for me. Along with the two, Camila sits with them. I have seen the girl since we met in Jaxsons bedchambers. Her hair has grown since the past month but her skin is paler from being in the cloudy country of Ventus."Finally, I thought we were going to have to leave her behind." Camila huffs, standing from the fat branch she sits on, handing Harper and Jaxson some sort of gun with a metal harpoon point on each end and three triggers that do who knows what. "Here. Since I can't carry all of you." The woman speaks. The looks on my friends' faces glow with joy. "Wait we're leaving? We need to hold our ground" Jaxson and Harper don't listen, extending their new toys out to the branches in front of them before pressing the first trigger. The point shoots out of the barre, digging into the branch with a resounding crack. They press the second trigger and take off, flying through the sky."Camila we can't go. Athena will send more forces and troops and then all of this fighting will have been for nothing""If we kept fighting we all would have died, then all of this would have been for nothing" Camila forces out, moving behind me and putting a harness around my body. When I hear the faint click of a lock, she jumps.Falling to your death brings out a new feeling that I've never experienced before. Worse than fear and more tragic than grief. Only for it to stop, your body grows numb, like it understands everything is coming to an end. Except nothing happens, I don't feel my body hit the earth, or any pain at all, almost like I am in a stasis. I slowly open my eyes only to see passing trees and the rising and falling of the ground. A few clicks away are Jaxson and harper, swinging through the trees almost gracefully. "Is this your first time flying?" Camila chuckles into my ear."Just relax, you tensing up like that is throwing me off balance." her voice sounds strained, pushing us up onto a large branch."Take a deep breath, Adara." Camila's voice is soft and sweet, a lot different than what I'm used to hearing. It sounds almost natural.At first, I didn't know what she was talking about, but then I start to feel my chest rise and fall, my knees shake and feel like I'm going to collapse. The faint sound of laughter flows through the wind."What Camila? Can't handle a few extra pounds on your back?" Jaxson yells and Harper laughs."Jeez Mila, Catch up!" Their voices ring into my eyes, only strengthening my forming headache."Adara, breath," Camila commands, her voice reverting back to her hardened state. I let go, drawing a breath in through my nose and releasing it through my mouth. The weaver nods, encouraging me on. Once I feel my body relax, I clear my throat."Adara are you okay?" Jaxson and harper land next to us, not close enough to overwhelm, but enough for me to know that they are there if I need them. "I didn't know this was her first time in the air. The minute we dropped she started to freak." I run my hands up and down my body, finding the clip and releasing myself from Camila. "Can you stop talking like I'm not here." I walk in front of Harper, holding my hand out for the gun, Harper scoffs, staring down at my hands with confusion and just a hint of disgust."Are you kidding me? There is no way I'm riding with Camila. Do you even know how this thing works?' Harper protest. I shrug and snatch the gun out of her hands before she can do anything."No I don't know how this works, but I'm sure I can figure it out. There is just no way I'm getting back in that harness with her, okay." The fear in my voice is heard greatly. I don't understand it myself but the feeling of being out of control, falling do my doom only to rise again and again send chills up my body."Come on guys we don't have time." Camila jumps in. Harper grumbles, walking over to the weaver girl and strapping herself into the death trap that Camila calls her body I turn to Jaxson, staring down at the gun and flipping it in my hands."Can you tell me how this thing works?" I ask sheepishly, Jaxson chuckles and holds out his own gun for a demonstration. Camila groans and walks over to the branches edge. "We don't have time for this, Jaxson you know where to go right? Well meet you there but if you get stuck just click me on your beeper.' And with that both Camila and Harper fall, only to be blasted up in the air a few feet ahead. "Okay, the first button you push is the top button. That releases the point into any surface you want to swing out of. The second button, the middle one pulls the rope back inside the gun, moving you to the gun. Then the final bottom button releases the point out of the tree, that is so you can do it again on the next branch you need for leverage. Does this make any sense?" I nod trying to make sense on how the gun works but that doesn't matter. I nod, pointing the gun out in front of me and pressing the top trigger button, letting it stick into a branch before pressing the middle button. So on and so forth until I catch a rhythm.We make our way up the Ignis border, past Moris and Aleron, moving until we run out of trees. The only thing in front of us is the barren waste of an old city called Ceora. It was one of Ignis's largest cities next to Caleo, and losing it hurt us greatly. Now seeing its crumbling buildings and soot-filled streets leaves a gut-wrenching feeling deep inside. From what I've seen we were the last to leave Fiross and the last to arrive at the war-torn city, both Camila and Harper arriving before us."So I see a city but no people, where do we go from here?" I ask the small smirk forming on his face tells me that he knows exactly where we are going. Jaxson squats on the branch, pressing the first trigger before jumping to the ground. I watch him fall, landing hard on the ground. "Come on Adara, just jump down." I sigh and do the same, the feeling of free falling makes the butterflies in my chest flutter. When I land Jaxson is right there next to me, helping me rise from the floor. When both of our ankles stop stinging from the pain, we walk into a warzone. Though no one has come near Ceora in my lifetime, they fought over this area for over a century. Ignis defending it with our lives and Glacies attacking it with everything they had, I guess it just wasn't enough to stop them. The fighting hurt both sides greatly but that win has kept us on the offensive, reacting in anger at the loss. Now each kingdom stays on either side of the city, the still burning buildings and the choking smoke enough to kill any legion. We step through the rusted gates, they sprawl open for us, leading into a foggy dystopia. As we walk, the visibility grows dimmer, soon we were only able to see the shadows of the decrepit building."This looks like something I would have in my nightmares," I mumble, taking a small step closer to Jaxson. He does the same, letting his left arm hover over my waist. "Just keep moving." "It's hard to keep moving when you don't know where you're going, Jaxson" I retort, he ignores my comment and reaches into his back pocket, pulling out a small flag. I can't quite see the color through the fog, even with our bodies basically squashed together. Jaxson waves it above his head. This is it, he has finally lost his mind."May we rise." He speaks lowly at first, then his volume increases, moving into a shout. Seconds after his incessant yelling, bird whistles begin to ring through the empty streets. Jaxson stops, putting the flag back in his pocket, taking my wrist and leading the way. He responds to the birds with a whistle of his own, a small low tune but enough for it to ring through the streets. We follow the sounds to one of the few buildings still standing. Two shadows haunt the entrance, making both of us stop."State your captain, your director and where you're coming from" The guard on the left commands. Jaxson lets me go, taking a small step forward."I'm Jaxson Powell, my captain is Carter and my director is Ashton. We are just making our way back from the Fiross battle""The people from the Fiross battle came back hours ago." The one on the right states, eyeing him up and down before scanning me."And who is she?" "Look, Camila and Kennedy should have came not too long before us, they should have told you that we were coming. Camila is a captain herself and Kennedy is with Carter. This is Adara, she recently pledged herself and does not have a rank." Jaxson explains. The guards squint their eyes slightly before nodding us through, watching our every move. The area is empty, very little evidence showing there was any sort of business in this building. The furniture moved, desk tripped from the floor, even the large curtains that covered the windows are gone, the only proof of their existence is the rings that held them to the ceiling. Jaxson takes my wrist once again, leading me through the hallway on the right and down the several flights of stairs. When we reach the bottom, Jaxson doesn't give me a chance to breathe, running down a wide concrete hallway that leads to a metal door with no handle. Jaxson approaches it with confidence, dragging me behind him. He knocks six times, each one louder than the last, then waits. Seconds later the door swings open."Get inside now." Zander's familiar voice whispers. He pushes us both inside before shutting and locking the door. He turns to us, a flash of fear crossed his face. He quickly recovers, pulling up his mask before a second glance. "Did anyone follow you?" He speaks quickly, walking past us at almost a blinding speed. Jaxson follows behind him and I do the same, trying to move in time with the two boys. "No, I don't believe we were, how many wounded? Is my sister okay?" Jaxson asks, only Zander responds with silence. I can feel Jaxsons need to prod further, then he does. "Zander is Beatrix okay?" Jaxson voice is filled with worry. Zander stops completely, not daring to look into the healer's eyes. He then takes off left down a hallway. We follow carters twist and turns through the underground labyrinth. Stopping at the end of a long hallway, a set of swinging doors on the far wall. "Most of them are in here," Carter says softly. Jaxson quickly walks inside and I follow him. I was surprised to find so many Sanos laying in the beds, other I can't quite see covered by thin white sheets. The sight makes me sick. I scan the beds looking for anyone I know, Christine specifically. I haven't seen her since the night before all of this. Instead of Christine, I find someone else. Kira sits upright in a hospital bed, talking to Christine with a smile on her face. I quickly walk over to her, trying to see if my brain was playing tricks on me. "Kira?" I mutter, she lifts her head, eyes widening. She jumps up and into my arms. I hold her tight and look at Christine, gesturing a thumbs up as if asking if she is okay. The woman nods and responds with a thumbs up of her own. Thank gods she names it out okay. I pull Kira backs, holding her forearms in my hands. "How did you get here? Are you okay? Why are you in the infirmary?" Questions flow out of my mouth faster than I can think. Kira grabs my hands, squeezing them slightly to calm me down. A small chuckle emits from her lips before fading, curling downward into a frown. Kira's eyes glass over, almost reliving the memory. "Let me just show you" She mumbles, her eyes flashing white before I'm sucked into her world.Kira watches Cal chase after the money, I can feel everything she feels, see everything she feels. Sadness, confusion, and fear consumed her before my brother burns her. Then came the pain, the sizzling of her blistering skin makes me want to scream, and Kira does, her voice shrill and deafening. Two arms lift her small body from the ground, carrying her into the woods."What happened?" A man's pants and huffs, a healer I think, his cools hands running over Kira's wounds. "Prince Calore went after the money, I think he's gone rogue. Kira is no longer safe in Ignis, take her with you she needs to leave now." Fins voice fills my ears and an overwhelming sense of relief takes me. He's speaking faster than his brain can process, passing her to the healer quickly. "Go get out of here" His voice began to fade and my own feeling begins to come back. Then her life disappears and my fades back. Kira stares at me, her eyes threatening to spill tears at any moment. "Oh, Ki..." Is the only thing I can get out. My brother has hurt us both, and he will keep hurting others until there is no one left. For too long we have drowned in warrior kings and queens. My mind drifts to my mother and King Algor of Glaciers. Too long we have been at war, on the front and also within. I think of my brother and the constant battle he has had within. He will see he has chosen the wrong side and he will fall.