I made it only two steps before I crashed headlong into something solid.
A man suddenly appeared before me.
He was a hybrid—a Traveler, with the ability to dematerialize from one area and re-materialize in another.
According to Terrick, Travelers were rare, and their power took a great toll on their bodies.
This man certainly confirmed Terrick’s teachings. He swayed, struggling to keep his feet beneath him.
I turned, hoping his dizziness would give me time to escape, but he grasped the front of my tunic. “Itisyou,” he hissed. “This garment is as they described.”
There was something cold in the man’s golden eyes as they meandered over my body. Something hateful.
“Let me go!” I shouted.
At the same time, the other man’s call echoed from behind me. “Left!”
This warning came as I swung my left hand toward my captor.
The golden-eyed man seized my wrist before it connected with his cheek. I stared at him, stunned.
“Donottouch ‘er hands!” The other man bellowed.
As the words left his mouth, flames danced over my fingertips. The golden-eyed man shifted his hold to my upper arm. “You’ll not so easily kill us.” His lips curled over his teeth. “Jaxon is a Foreseer.”
A Foreseer—one of the rarest hybrids. And one of the most limited, as they saw mere seconds into the future. Nothing more.
If I moved quick enough, perhaps I couldthawrt—thwart Jaxon’s ability…
“Right foot!” Jaxon called.
Again, his words sounded as I lifted my right leg, intending to strike the golden-eyed man’s crotch.
The man wasted no time reacting.
I screamed as his mammoth foot crushed mine.
The rancid taste in the back of my mouth grew as my heart made rapid fluttering motions. “Please…” Fire swirled across my knuckles.“Please, I don’t want to hurt—”
The man smacked my cheek.
The pain was sudden. And blinding.
“Darragh, no!” Jaxon screamed. “Ye’ve made it worse!”
Tears stung my eyes. Tears of shock. And hurt. And fear.
Darragh’s grip bruised. The fire traveled along my arms, drawing dangerously close to his knuckles…
“I don’t want to hurt you!” I whispered.
He drew his other hand back.
I stared at his face, at the vein pulsing in his temple, the look of disgust in his eyes.
“Ye’ll need to stun ‘er, Darragh!” Jaxon galloped through the trees, breathing heavily.
“Please,” I started. “Hel—”
