“Alright, enough of this,” he said, advancing on what appeared to him as my compromised form. When his boots came into my line of sight, I knew he was close enough.
In an instant, I shot upright and used his own momentum to push him toward the open door, throwingall ofmy weight and might into the move. The male, being caught so offguard, stumbled further, allowing me to shove him again—even harder than the first time—straight inside of the watchtower.
I swiftly shut the door behind us, wishing to the Stars above that nobody had seen or heard us.
“What is happening here?” he demanded, finally righting himself.
I liftedmy head to meet his gaze as I answered, “Justice.”
With that word alone, his eyeswidenedand his mouthpartedin an effort to call out. Forwho, Iwasn’tsure, because before he could utter a word, I was on him.
I pounced, forcefullykneeinghim between the legs with as much strength as I could muster. A squeaking sound was the only noise that left his mouth as he fell to his knees. With his upper body now lower and therefore easier for me to reach, I quickly grabbed toward the front and back of his head, shifting to bring his temple down onto my knee withall ofmy might in the same movement.
The male fell to the ground, out cold from the sudden knock to his head. Forcing air into my lungs so I could remain concentrated, I did a fast sweep of the floor of the watchtower we were on, searching.
“Perfect,” I said under my breath as I found a rope in a large chest of other tools and weapons.
Returning to the male, who was still crumpled on the ground, I made quick work of moving him to one of the wooden posts that held up the ceiling and tying him firmly in place. After securing him, I ripped off a large strip of his own shirt and tied it tightly around hisheadso it covered his mouth.
He wouldn’t be going anywhere for awhile.
Wiping my hands on my trousers, I slipped back out of the watchtower and carried on walking along the wall, though much faster than before.
It only took another few minutes before I finally saw the perfect spot for whatI’dbeen looking for.
There were still structural supports at that point of the wall, but they looked as though maybethey’dbeen placed first,as they had obviously beenweathered downover the years. They were full of cracks, and one of them already looked slightly off center. All I needed to do was help speed up the route they were already on.
Slylyobservingmy surroundings, I pulled the small vial of light gray liquid out of my pocket.
The alychite-combatant.
This better work, I thought as I popped the cork off and brought the elixir to my mouth. I downed it in one big gulp, cringing at the awful, spoiled taste now coating my tongue.
Tucking the empty vial away, I paused for a moment, waiting for something to hit me.
A minute passed, then another, and I could feel the panic scratchingat the edges of my mind.
And then it hit all at once.
Itfelt like comingupforair the way myziriliumslammed back into my body. It was as though a switch had been flipped within me, the usual hum of my abilities flowing through my veins once more.
Flexing my hands in front of me, I smiled.
Chess and Ezra’s hard work had paid off, after all.
Checking once more to ensure nobody was in sight, I got to work.
Using myearthzirilium, I tore down the weathered supports that were holding up the section of wall that stood before me.I’dnever been more grateful for my multiple abilities until that moment.
Though, once all the supports sat in piles of rubble, the wall still hadn’t shifted.
The wall itself was much too large for me to tear down on my own. Earth wielding was an ability I had yet to strengthen and build up as much as I should have, and I was regretting that now.
I’d have to find another way to open up the wall.
And I had to do so quickly—before the Northern higher ups of this place realized their malesweren’tcoming back.
Just as I was debating tearing the wall down with my bare hands, I heard the heavy footsteps of somebody running in my direction.
