Page 12 of A Reign of Chromes & Shadows

He inhaled slow, deliberate breaths, grounding himself.

I am strength.

I am power.

I have full control over that which is mine.

He repeated the mantra until the words steadied his pulse.

He longed for home—for the safety of his bed, the quiet of his room, the comfort of familiar walls. Instead, he was preparing for a long, cold night on a rooftop, praying the soldiers would eventually disperse. Praying Blue or Green authorities wouldn’t catch wind of this. If they did… the fallout would be catastrophic.

A voice shattered the night.

“THE BLUE PRINCE IS ON THE ROOFTOPS! ALL EYES TO THE SKY!”

The words boomed through a speakerphone, echoing across the district.

Rain’s heart slammed against his ribs.

How?

How could they possibly know?

He pressed himself flatter against the tiles, breath shallow. From this vantage point, he should have been invisible. Hidden by darkness. But the energy below surged toward him, sharp and focused. Predatory. They weren’t guessing.

They had him.

Shit!

I don’t want to hurt anyone.

His pulse spiked, panic clawing at his throat. His breath came too fast, too shallow. He squeezed his eyes shut, begging silently to the gods who had cursed him with this existence.

Please…make them leave.

Let me go home.

Don’t let me lose control.

But the world answered with silence.

An eerie stillness fell over the street. Every hair on Rain’s body stood on end. Danger thickened the air, heavy and electric.

Footsteps shuffled to his left.

Rain crept to the edge; senses sharpened to a razor’s edge. Below, he felt hundreds of hearts pounding in unison, bracing for whatever came next.

He forced the internal noise aside, letting instinct take over. The soldiers had re-positioned, shields raised around their formation like an exoskeleton, with weapons poking through narrow gaps. Rain sifted through their swirling energies, searching for weakness, for intent.

Then he felt it.

A device.

A device with heat-signature tracking.

Every movement he made was being monitored.

Very fucking clever.