Cole stood still and stared out at the wasteland in front of him. He could feel the tall grass moving around him. Other than the sound of the wind rushing past his face, it was completely silent. Everything was so calm that it almost felt magical. Then Cole remembered why he was here. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and waited patiently to feel something—anything.
It had been a week since Cole had released the magic and set it free across Lathinium. He hadn’t seen any difference, but he had definitely felt the change inside of him. He could feel where the magic had been, and he could also feel that it was now gone.
Before, it had been like a storm inside of him that he had barely been able to control. Now, though, he was empty.
The magic had left him.
Cole finally gave up. He knew he wasn’t going to feel the magic anymore. He opened his eyes again and watched the grass bending in the wind. Cole knew he shouldn’t be upset about losing the magic. He had never wanted it to begin with, and compared to everything else that could have happened, losing the magic seemed like such a small price to pay.
But Cole missed the magic. He missed the strength it had given him—the feeling of raw power running through his body. Without it, Cole was powerless.
He looked behind him, just to make sure no one was nearby. Then he pulled out the sword that was strapped to his back and swung it around in the air slowly. He always felt a little ridiculous when he had his sword out. It was old—pretty much useless against the guns used by General Sylvester and his soldiers—but it had allowed Cole to control the magic.
He remembered training with Ulrik, feeling the power coursing through his body. He had been so strong.
Then the general had found him again and reminded
him of how weak he really was. Even with the magic, Cole had barely been able to escape alive. Now that the magic was gone, Cole was completely unprepared. He looked down at the sword in his hands. If anything happened, all he would have is this rusty old relic from the past to defend himself.
Cole dropped the sword to the ground in frustration. It was powerless.
He was powerless.
“Good morning.”
Cole jumped and then relaxed when he realized it was Aria.
She grinned. “Wow, you’re tense today. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Cole said quickly.
“Oh, sure,” Aria said sarcastically. “That’s why you’re up early, standing in the middle of nowhere—by yourself.” She picked the sword up and examined it. “Were you trying to attack the grass?”
Cole laughed. “Give that back.” He reached for the sword, but Aria kept it out of his reach.
“Tell me what’s wrong first.”
“Nothing,” Cole repeated. “I mean, everything’s perfect now, right? We escaped, released the magic, stopped General Sylvester and Ulrik from controlling it—”
“Kept you from dying,” Aria added.
“Right,” Cole agreed. “Everything’s great.”
Aria nodded and handed Cole his sword back. “So why don’t you sound convinced?”
Cole hesitated. He hadn’t told anyone the truth yet. “The magic’s gone.”
“Isn’t that obvious? You released it, remember?”
“No, that’s not what I meant,” Cole corrected. “I meant that it’s all gone inside of me. I can’t feel it anywhere—not even a little.”
“And that’s a bad thing?” Aria looked surprised. “I thought you didn’t even want it in the first place.”
“I didn’t. I still don’t—” He broke off suddenly because that was a lie. He did want the magic.
“Then I’m confused. What’s the problem?”
Cole struggled to find the right words to describe how he was feeling. “The problem is that I need the magic. It was an energy boost—it made me stronger, braver, and more powerful. It protected me. What if something happens now? I can’t do anything to help.” He looked at his sword again. “I can’t even use this piece of junk in a fight,” he muttered.
Aria laughed. “The magic didn’t make you anything different; it just helped you show off who you were. Just because you have a weapon, it doesn’t mean you’re a warrior. The magic works the same way. Sure, it was powerful, but you were only able to use it because you were already strong and brave. Nothing’s changed.” She thought for a moment and then added, “Except I think all the heroics should be saved for the fairy tales—no more dying, okay?”
That made Cole grin. “Really?” he said sarcastically. “It’s funny. I feel like I’ve told you that before.”
“Okay,” Aria said. “You were right about one thing. Don’t let it go to your head, though.” They were silent for a minute. Then Aria added, “But I was right, too. You were right to release the magic.”
Cole tried to hide his smile. Even after everything, Aria still suffered from a severely strong case of moral obligation. “So . . . did you get any magic?” he asked, remembering how badly Aria had wanted it before.
Aria’s face fell. “No,” she admitted. “It’s too bad—I would have been great with the magic.” Her eyes lit up. “Can you imagine me being able to move objects or freeze water or explode things?”
Cole just stared at her. Actually, the thought of Aria having the magic absolutely terrified him. “I think you would do a little too much exploding if you had the magic,” he said. But he still couldn’t help grinning as he imagined Aria charging into Ambroise, fighting all the injustice in the world.
Aria glared at him. “I would have used the magic responsibly,” she argued. “Probably better than you did.”
“Well, I guess we’ll never know,” Cole said. “Since you didn’t get any of the magic.”
That comment earned him another glare.
Then someone cleared their throat, and they both quickly turned around. Gale was standing a few feet behind them. “Sorry to interrupt.” Cole didn’t think he looked too sorry.
Aria smiled. “Good morning! How did you sleep?”
“Yeah, good morning,” Cole repeated, with slightly less enthusiasm than Aria had shown.
“I slept fine.” He looked at Aria. “Your parents are awake. They asked me to get you two for breakfast. Marylie’s cooking this morning.”
Cole grinned. Aria’s mom made the best food. “Then what are we still doing here? Let’s go eat.”
Aria grinned mischievously. “Race you back,” she said. Before Cole could even process what she had said, she was already sprinting toward their camp.
“Hey, no fair!” Cole shouted. He and Gale both took off after her.
When they raced into the campsite, Marylie was bent over a small fire, stirring something in a pot. She looked up when she heard them. “Good morning, dears. Breakfast will be ready in a little while.”
“Great,” Cole said enthusiastically.
“But first, we need to discuss something,” she added.
Cole’s good mood instantly vanished. The tone in her voice didn’t sound good. “Discuss what?” he asked hesitantly.
Marylie didn’t answer him.
“What’s going on?” Cole repeated.
Marylie glanced at Sarge and coughed slightly. Finally, Sarge took a deep breath and shifted his gaze as he looked at Cole, Aria, and Gale in turn. “Marylie and I have made a decision, and we expect all of you to follow it. Do you all understand?”
Aria and Gale nodded. Cole wasn’t sure where this was headed, but he also nodded in agreement. “Fine. What is it?” he asked impatiently.
Sarge hesitated for a moment longer. “Remember that we have your best interest at heart—all three of you.” He looked at Cole. “We’re going to look out for you guys—”
“Dad,” Aria interrupted impatiently. Cole noticed that she still made a slight face whenever she used that word, but at least she seemed to be making an effort to create a relationship with her parents. “Just tell us what’s going on.”
Cole held his breath. Whatever Sarge was planning, it didn’t sound good.
Sarge met Cole’s eyes. In a low, quiet voice, he finally said, “We’ve decided to go back to Rhomac.”
