Galaxy of Hyperion: Mystic Heir

Chapter Thirteen: Bringers of Salvation

Arian really didn't know what to think when he saw the space outside of the mayor's building completely empty. Sand blew gently through the area, but there were no guards to be found. He wanted to believe that it was a good thing, a sign that they were destined to succeed, but he had the sneaking suspicion that this was far from being true. Somehow, this was going to be a trap, and he, along with Lana and Ronan, were going to be sucked in with no chance of escape. They didn't even know where Jay was, so how were they supposed to pull this off? It wasn't as if this was going to stop Arian given how important rescuing the brown-haired girl was, but he still knew that this was going to be far from easy, and he was simply going to have to put up with it. 

Ronan walked forward and pushed open the door, gesturing for the rest of the trio to follow after him as he entered the building. Arian gave the outside of the office one last examination before sighing and trailing after Ronan. Lana took up the rear, and she shut the door behind them. Everything about her posture was tense and on edge, a clear contrast from Ronan, who while nervous, still seemed to be managing to keep his composure at least slightly. Arian felt like his nerves were going to drive him crazier and crazier the longer he was around the two because of how anxious they were. 

Ronan led the others through the rest of the building, and he occasionally gave glances over his shoulder to ensure that he didn't lose anybody along the way. When he was sure that he still had the whole team there, he nodded to himself, murmuring that this was a good thing, before continuing to walk towards their destination. Arian felt as if there was an itch just beneath his skin that he wouldn't be able to scratch no matter how hard he tried. He was positive that it was caused by his own fear, and he prayed with everything that he had that this wasn't a trap. He knew better than to believe it though, so he simply stuck to being brazenly optimistic despite being sure that it wasn't going to pay off in the long run. 

The tour of the office seemed agonizingly slowly. Ronan wasn't even taking them through all of the smaller areas, instead concentrating only on taking the group towards the area where he suspected Jay would be. Arian was more than thankful for this, deciding pretty early that he detested the atmosphere of the office and would never return there of his own volition. As soon as they rescued Jay, he was going to have them teleport away and never go back. In fact, maybe it would be a good idea for them to destroy the building outright before retreating just to make sure that Cryai would never be able to use it for his nefarious deeds ever again. 

As soon as the door came into view, Arian knew that it was the one. He stopped walking a few feet in front of it, casting Ronan a nervous glance when the other boy halted in his motions as well. Ronan gave both Arian and Lana a sympathetic gaze before turning his attention back to the door. Ronan was confused and didn't understand why Cryai had betrayed him, but that didn't mean that he was going to be stopping the others from powering through to rescue Jay. Ronan knew that Cryai was in the wrong for abducting her, and even if he had his own reservations out of anxiety, he was going to do his best to save her. 

It didn't take long for all of them to agree that they had come to the right conclusion, and Ronan reached one hand out to curl it around the knob of the door before them. He twisted it slowly, and Arian tried to ignore the way that his heart was speeding its pounding in his chest. He failed, and as soon as he started thinking about it, he simply couldn't stop. Lana seemed far more composed, but there was still something determined and shadowed about her gaze that unsettled him. Damn it, he wasn't cut out for this. 

All of his worries seemed to melt away as soon as he saw the inside of the room though. He let out a gasp, and his hands clapped over his chest when he realized who was waiting for them. Just as Ronan had suspected, Jay was inside, and she seemed to be relatively unharmed. She was tied to a chair, and she looked just as exhausted and droopy as she had when she was dragged away from her team. When the door opened, she managed to pry her head away from her chin, but panic soon filled her eyes, and the anxiety came rushing back into Arian's body all over again.