The guard looked past me and cast his unsettled gaze on my aunt. “There’s a breach, ma’am.”
I skirted around him, unbelieving of his claim. This had something to do with Chrome, and Amethyst knew it, too. Fuck, I hoped he was alright.
If only I could get down there and see for myself.
My phone buzzed in my pants pocket as I hurried through the hallway to the stairwell. The elevator was sure to be locked down, so I prayed the stairs weren’t clogged with panicked Kinetics.
Onyx "Shithead" Valor
Meet Royal in the lobby.
My steps faltered at the text. Royal? Why the hell would I do that?
Me
Why?
Onyx "Shithead" Valor
Just trust me for once.
I growled in frustration as I descended the steps to the lobby against my better judgment.
Taking the stairs two at a time, I shoved past random Kinetics who rushed to find their way to an emergency exit. Fucking cowards. Gods forbid if we were actually under attack from Elementals, this lot would be fucking useless despite their bravado. Isn’t this what everyone trained for?
I didn’t wear my gear, but for moments like these, I always kept blades strapped to my body. Although, if Chrome was the cause of the chaos, then I wouldn’t need them. Regardless, at least I wasn’t exposed.
I stretched my senses out, using my ability to give me a better idea of the situation that lay ahead. The door slammed open with a shove as it bounced off the wall. Focusing on the auras’ light waves, my vision became inundated with reddish-orange glowing forms. Some were dimmer than others, but most glowed bright with fear.
It was too much as they all began to bleed together. I couldn’t pick apart who was who, but I knew Chrome wasn’t present. Reining my magic back in, I returned my vision to normal to seek out Royal Okrafor.
Why I wasted my time with this, I wasn’t sure. Onyx might’ve known something more than he’d let on in the text.
After searching the sea of colors bouncing with vibrant hair, I finally spotted her rich cerulean bob.Right, she’d recently chopped off her long locks to her chin.Royal’s back faced me as she stood alone by the wall, staring out the revolving glass door, her posture rigid.
Kinetics bounced off me during their quests to find their loved ones in their panicked states. Fucking weak.
I tapped Royal’s shoulder from behind.
Wheeling around, her deep-set eyes rounded, her lips parting in surprise. “Slate. Oh, thank the gods.”
“What’s going on?” I asked, looking past her, constantly searching the lobby for a flash of chromatic hair.
“I don’t—don’t know! Supposedly, we’re under attack! Slate, do you think Onyx is okay?” Royal asked, tears brimming her bottom lids.
“Onyx is fine. Everything is okay,” I tried to assure her through my distracted tone.
“How do you know? Have you talked to him?” Royal looked distraught at the implication that he’d reach out to me and not her.
“No, just have a hunch.” I shrugged.
A little girl cried out for her mom, and a man squatted to pick her up, immediately carrying the child away.
I squinted, suspicious of the act, until I found the man passing off the little girl to a woman with similar features.
The thick black liner and mascara lining Royal’s eyes stood out as she glared at the busy Atlanta street.
I frowned. “What’s wrong?”
