Lowell

Chapter 13

Lowell looked over the papers and grimaced. A blastia like this could destroy the world. No, this couldn't be allowed. And, now humans believed they could craft cores? They were inviting death. Lowell burned the papers and headed to the window.

The door rattled and he jumped through to the hard ground below. The impact didn't hurt, but he needed to move. He slid through the courtyard and around the halls till he made it out in the open.

"Lowell?" He froze. Hanna looked at him in confusion. "What are you doing here?"

He stood straight and put on his best smile. "I came to see you."

Hanna narrowed her eyes. "Really?" She looked him over. "Then why don't we talk in my room?"

Lowell needed to get out of here, but if he ran now Hanna would be immediately suspicious. He took her arm kindly. "That would be wonderful, milady."

She rolled her eyes. "You idiot."

The crunch of their boots on the dead leaves seemed the only sound as the group made their way towards the ruins. Yuri felt like his nose might fall off from the stench. Everything, even the soil, smelled of sweet decay and briny oil. The appeal he'd smelt before was gone like the food had turned rotten. The red aer drifted around and Yuri couldn't help admitting he was a little nauseous.

There was something to all of this that screamed in his head. It felt corrupt and unnatural. Flynn walked behind hesitantly. Still troubled by his fears. Yuri pulled him aside and slyly nibbled his ear.

"Yuri!" Flynn exclaimed quietly.

Yuri smirked. "Fourteen." Flynn's hand went to his ear in confusion. "We ended on unlucky number last time. So, now you know we'll make it through." Yuri wasn't sure why Flynn's face had gotten pink, but he didn't care. He continued marching on with his slight headache.

The water in the lake could hardly be called such. As of now, it was viscous ooze. That thing living in the lake had swallowed everything and had turned it all into a disgusting cesspool. Yuri could almost feel it moving around under there squirming and writhing as it looked for more… not food. It wasn't like that thing it. It was more like it assimilated. So, Yuri would say it was gathering materials.

Crossing the bridge was relatively easy. Once inside Yuri had to cover his mouth to hide his cough. Flynn looked at him wide-eyed, but Yuri raised a hand. He was fine. The aer was just thick and he was just choking on it a bit. It cleared up in a few seconds and Yuri let out a breath in relief.

Of all the things Yuri had been expecting, being chased by a giant boulder down a narrow hallway had not been one of them. He'd barely managed to avoid falling to his death off the ledge. He lost his shield though and Yuri did not want to file the paperwork for a new one. They pressed onward down toward the tower. Yuri heard that hum on the blastia on Hisca's wrist distort into a scream as it exploded away from everyone. The core was shattered and when he listened again. Silence. His head was starting to ache. Shit. Not now.

"Is your condition acting up?" Flynn asked softly as they made their way.

"I'm fine." Yuri huffed. Now was not the time to start babying him. "And, if it does ignore it."

The blastia that sat inside the room was monstrous and ugly. Yuri felt repulsed as the aer was pulled from the ground and pumped into the machine. As he looked up noticed further along the machine in the pillar it was attached to were compartments filled red liquid. Upon further inspection, he noticed little crystals growing inside. What the… they looked like cores? But why would there be…

Niren set down a strange blastia and activated. "What's that? It looks weird."

The captain nodded. "No kidding. Very weird." The machine scuttled and stopped the flow of aer. His head throbbed again and the machine exploded knocking them into the debris. Yuri started to make his way towards the exit when the throbbing burst into agony. He clutched his head and stopped.