The Final Mission

The halo above Lylar Sector shattered, signaling its loss of protection. He watched as the sector's shield faded and the halo began its descent. He knew he was still too far away; nonetheless, he also knew he had no other choice but to try anyway. His Spectrane was beginning to diminish, inviting fear in for the first time. He had never before left the Prism. He had never needed to, until now. Without Spectrane, he was powerless. Without it, he was a Souling, essentially.

Taking a deep breath, he activated the rune on his forearm; he felt his Spectrane pulse, giving rise to her location, just as a blast of blinding blue light sent a shockwave through the Brink. He was knocked unconscious while plummeting quickly towards the sector, awakening as he hit the ground on Lylar. His ears rang from the deafening sound the blast emitted. How was that possible? How could it do that to me?

Quickly coming to his senses, he rose to his feet, as he watched the fog rapidly encroach upon him. Looking above, noting the timer was stopped, he knew she was in trouble. He scanned the sector, catching sight of her making a dash for the blind, the fog mere seconds away. He knew he did not have time to go through the front of the blind, so he braced for impact.

Alaystin gritted his teeth as the acidic mist brushed his skin. Ahhhhhhh! He paused upon hearing the scream, realizing it was his own voice in his head. How was that possible? He was one of the Dignified.

He clenched his jaw, pushing against the pain, doing his best to remain focused. Where is she? Looking around the dense fog, he pinpointed the folds of the blind and saw her darting through, a Fogrin unknowingly on her heels. Knowing it would be futile to call out to her, he made haste. If the Fogrin seized her, he knew she could never escape it. He quickened his pace, rushing to get to her before it did. He closed in, just as it reached out to her. Gripping its sharp cloak-like skin, he twisted the Fogrin away from her, but not before its fingers sharply licked her shoulder.

She made it through! His strength wavered as he continued his way through the blind, its folds giving way to the poison of the fog, obscuring his sight. He pushed on, relying on the echo the blind resounded as its end was coming to a close. With only one second to spare, Alaystin shot through to the other side, barely escaping the Fogrin that branded her. It gave him a final look that told him they would meet again before the blind vanished, taking the haze with it. He let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding, as the pain slowly subsided.

After lifting himself up and shaking off the experience, he steadied himself to find he was in the Absolute, the only sector of pure perfection...on the surface. He began feeling uneasy, knowing the dangers that awaited him if he were to be caught here. I have to find her. He made his way through the sector with caution, treading carefully. He knew she could not have been too far ahead, so he continued in the direction he was sure she had to have gone, keeping his eyes peeled for signs of her or else.

Her bluish, black hair waved against the bright backdrop of the Absolute, as she darted behind a retaining wall, just in time for him to see her head disappear behind it. Stepping closer to the wall, he called out to her.

"Amelia Sorenson, I know you're there," he said.

He waited as she slowly peeked over, eyes widened, staring intently. He was stunned. How could a Souling be so...exquisite? He waited a second before trying again.

"Amelia," he repeated, "Please, we don't have much time."

"Where am I?" she inquired. "What sector is this? What happened to the timer? Who are you? And how do you know my name?"

"Never mind all of that," he told her. "I need your help, Amelia. We don't have long."

"Never mind?" she asked, incredulously. "No, I don't think so. WHO are you? Are you an Ally? What am I doing here? What is happening?!" firing one question another before he could have time to answer the first.

"Amelia...," he began but was quickly interrupted.

"Mel! It's Mel!" she snapped at him, clearly uncomfortable with her full name being used.

"Okay," he tried again. "Mel, I'll explain everything later. Right now, though, you need to come with me. It isn't safe for you here," hoping to get through to her, as time was now more of the essence than it had ever been.

"WHO ARE YOU?" she continued. "And what do you mean it isn't safe? Isn't this place perfect? How could it NOT be safe?"

"No, Amel...," he started again, instantly going silent upon seeing her cut her eyes in his direction. Damn! Not even a Disconnector could survive that kind of cut. "No, Mel," treading carefully with his words, "it isn't perfect. It's far from it."

"What are you talking about?" she insisted, scanning the sector beyond them in every direction before meeting his gaze once more. "I have protected millions of sectors. Never have I seen one like this," she remarked.

"I know, but this is not what you think, Mel. It isn't what it appears," he told her.

Her tone changed as she sneered at him. "Oh? And why should I listen to you? I don't even know who you are! Are you an Ally? What sector?" she requested.

"No, I'm not an Ally," he responded, reluctant to say more.

Her gaze bore into his until she had finally reached her point. Her voice echoed in the silence surrounding them as she ordered again, unable to disguise her annoyance, "Okay, so?! WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?"

"I think you know who I am, Mel," he started, weary to continue with his affirmation, as he could already predict her reaction.

"No, I don't," she said, "how about we stop with the pretense, shall we? I am not going anywhere with you unless you affirm!"

"You already know," he maintained.

"No, I don't. I never forget an affirmation, ever. Tell me. NOW!" she demanded.

He let out a heavy sigh, steeled himself to continue holding her stare, and warily told her, "I'm Alaystin."

She increased the distance between them, as his words repeated over and over in her head.

"Mel," he tried again, "We have to go. It isn't safe for you here."

"And I will be with you?!" she asked, skeptically.

"Like I said before, I will explain everything as soon as we leave here and are somewhere safer, but I need you to trust me," he pressed.

"Trust you? You? THE Alaystin?"

"Please, Mel...we need to move," he insisted, stretching his hand out to her.

Scoffing at him for even daring, Mel exclaimed, "No, absolutely not! You can forget it! Leave me here! I'll take my chances!"

However, he did not back down. Keeping his hand outstretched, he pleaded with his eyes for her to take it. They stood briefly while she looked from his face to his hand and back to his face, studying him.

He waited and waited while she seemingly processed all he had said. He knew they were running out of time before the Governors arrived. He could sense them as they got closer to Lylar, knowing he would not have the strength to fight them. He was in forbidden territory and didn't stand a chance. He kept his hand out while watching her take in all of their surroundings again, the gravity of the situation shifting its weight. When she looked back at him, her face held a new expression, something softer.

"Okay, Prince Alaystin," she said. "My trust is yours," she told him, extending her arm to meet his hand with hers, and all went dark.