MM - Chapter 229 - SHADOWS ON THE WIND

Melani Feladay

- ZionLine -

Mel soared high in the sky, but not high enough to complicate her mission. Jagged peaks reached toward her like claws as wind whipped through her hair. She circled yet another nameless summit by adjusting the grip on her Lesser Skydrifter. Tilting it slightly, she caught a thermal uplift that carried her back into the colored skylanes. Below, the range stretched like an endless sea of stone, ridges and valleys blurring into a monotonous gray under the cloudy sky.

A flick of her wrist accessed her map interface. With practiced ease, she sketched in the contours of the nearby valleys and canyons with quick, deliberate strokes. The tiny mountain symbol sharpened into focus, revealing hidden crevices and sheer drops that the default view wouldn’t display until she took the time to make her notes. It was tedious work—mapping out each and every potential pass her guildmates could take to the highlands. Still, there was a certain satisfaction in watching the unknown errors lift from her display one line at a time. The last detail was marking a few caves and hidden nooks that might contain treasure, then she was off to the next mountain.

The last half-day in particular had dragged on in isolation, the kind that gnawed at her edges. It was fun at first; flying alone was liberating. She imagined herself a pioneer charting virgin territory untouched by human eyes, which wasn't entirely inaccurate. Climbing the two scout towers she encountered to reveal huge swaths of the region had also been a joy. But as hours turned to a full day and a half, the novelty faded into drudgery. She missed the chatter of the group, the shared exhaustion of a grueling march, the constant battles against gathering beasts, and especially Raine's presence.

He'd been too busy to call more than once. Missing his firm, smooth voice was an ache that she had no weapons to fight. She glanced at her message log, eyes hovering over Pamalaiha's Ncode. Their conversations had become her lifeline, snippets of shared excitement about Raine that made her pulse quicken. The ninja’s sharp insights into his training methods and Celeste's fiery rants about everything under the sun were sparks of bliss in solitude. Unfortunately, their responses came sporadically; everyone was buried in their own tasks.

Seeing no new responses to her last inquiries, Mel sighed and closed the interface. Her thoughts drifted back to the last night spent with Raine: the empty road framed by starlight, his unyielding gaze, and the demanding shouts that pushed her limits. His berating voice was an echo in her thoughts still. The memory of his hand cracking against her skin for each of her (completely and totally accidental) mistakes sent a delectable flush up her neck.

She shifted uncomfortably on the drifter, the ache of absence twisting deep. It had been too long since they'd been together. The night snuggling in the elevator hadn’t soothed her need; it only fueled the fire. If she didn't get him alone soon, she'd burst. Sharing him with the others was exciting in theory, and talking about it with Celeste and Pamalaiha was the highlight of her days, but the wait was torture. At least she wasn’t alone in that. Pamalaiha might be even worse off. The woman was practically rabid.

Reaching the next peak, Mel’s fingers tightened on the drifter's handle as she prepared to loop around. The rugged metal grip yanked her thoughts back to when he’d pressed the special dagger into her hand. His eyes had been so fierce, the trust and commitment seething in his thoughts too much for her heart to bear. If she hadn't already been hopelessly in love before, that moment would have done it. 

It wasn’t until she completed the circle and took the uplift back into the skylanes that she realized her scattered thoughts had failed to focus long enough to map the terrain.

Can’t believe I let myself get so distracted! Half an hour, poof, just like that. So much for only six peaks left!

Mel dropped from the skylane to fly around again, and a flicker of movement caught her peripheral vision. She twisted, eyes narrowing. Eagles had been a constant annoyance, diving at all times of the day and night, not realizing how incredibly outmatched they were until it was too late. Raine's drills took over, and Discipline coiled in her legs, primed for release.

But what drew her eyes wasn't another eagle. A humanoid figure streaked through the sky, unburdened by a drifter. He moved with effortless grace, slicing through the wind like an arrow. He was heading straight for her, and behind him, nine more figures stood casually on a rocky outcropping. 

Mel's heart stuttered, and Raine's many warnings echoed in her mind: flight without a drifter means a potential 4th-tier threat. She keenly remembered the lightning called down from the sky at Vile Peak Town. She'd seen the aftermath. Thousands reduced to nothing more than dark splotches on the streets. Whoever these people were, she did not want to be at their mercy.

Nope-nope-nope.

Fear lanced through Mel’s veins. She stored the drifter mid-flight, and in the same motion, solidified the air beneath her feet with Connection. A powerful Lunge canceled her momentum. She reversed direction, propelling back toward the nearby skylane. The green currents reappeared as she deployed the drifter again. She was close; she would make it.

A glance back revealed that her pursuer had picked up speed in a big way. The distance was cut in half already, his form a blur of motion. But she could see his eyes clearly. They were not the eyes of a man who wished her well. Death was coming, or worse. Mel’s chest tightened, her next breath coming in a sharp gasp. 

Her legs pumped with repeated Lunges, each fueled by dread and copious Discipline. Another glance revealed bad news. He was faster than her, way faster. Wind and air pressure suddenly slammed against her, the drag on her body so great she felt like she was going backward.

In this most critical moment, she’d failed to coordinate her Connection and thin the air in front. Balancing the drifter's tilt while chaining Lunges demanded incredible focus, especially with the new skill system, leaving little room in her panicked state for anything else. Her foot touched solid air, and her next Lunge failed to activate at all.

Like she’d been dropped into some twisted nightmare, Mel was sinking in quicksand, her body awkward and unresponsive in her moment of need. The metallic frame of the drifter became a prison, squeezing the oxygen from her lungs.

The wind howled in her ears, but not loud enough to mask the man’s maniacal laughter. He was close enough to hear, close enough for his mental ability to reach her. The mental assault slammed into her back. It took the form of a wave of disorienting pressure that spun her stomach in circles. She nearly hurled as the most intense vertigo she’d ever experienced turned her vision into a swirl of colors.

On instinct, blackout stirred within, roaring to her aid. Mel still had no idea how to activate the mental ability for offense. Thankfully, Raine had relentlessly drilled her until it became a semi-reliable automatic defense. She clung to memories of her family—both of her mothers’ warm smiles, her father's quiet strength, her brother's infectious giggles. Raine. They were her anchor, the reason she fought. With gritted teeth, she pushed back.

Angered by her resistance, or perhaps excited by it, the man shouted right behind her, “Cheeky slut! I’m going to enjoy—”

No! Mel’s mental shout drowned out her assailant's disgusting promise.

No man but Rain was allowed to touch her. His rough yet calm voice flooded her thoughts. “Focus. Slow down. One leg in front of the other. You can only move forward with a solid foundation, and that foundation is built by every step that comes before it; each is important, deserving of your complete attention, or it all comes tumbling down.”

Mel forced the panic into a tight ball. Her legs stilled for a fraction of a second. The next Lunge was flawless. The next followed, slightly faster. Each deliberate, each perfect. She didn't look back again. Her Discipline drained in torrents as she poured everything into escape. The skylane was so close, its freedom beckoning.

His presence grew tangible; the sound of ragged breaths thundered at her heels. With a final burst of will, she managed to thin the air in front and jetted forward. The skylane enveloped her, and the drifter raced away.

The moment her anxiety eased, fingers with unimaginable strength closed around her ankle. A scream tore from her throat. She kicked wildly, but his grip was impossibly firm. He laughed in her ear while hauling back, yanking her from the skylane. 

“Caught youuuuu. What a pretty little bird, I can’t wait to taste you!”

His fingers painfully dug into her skin, but falling from the sky, drifter pulling her in three directions at once, Mel barely noticed. Another jerk on her leg ripped away more momentum. This time, the pain was everything; her knee groaned in protest, on the verge of snapping. She kicked at his hand with her other leg, but it was no use; she might as well be trying to knock off her own foot.

The realization, and her blind desperation, triggered an insane plan. In that moment of purest panic, it seemed like the best idea she’d ever had. Aiming ahead and upward, Mel pleaded for the aid of the heavens. She poured her heart and soul into the call, leaning hard on the despair swelling within.

The new skill system had made her healing skills tricky. There was no command to activate her chosen skills; it was now a plea, almost like begging for a handout. Mel had never begged for anything in her life harder than she begged for that skill to save her. 

Celestial Power poured from her, creating a tiny mirror of bright light that appeared in the sky. She didn’t stop with one. Mel had three copies of the skill and used them all. Three tiny mirrors of light bloomed above and up, each angled to converge at a single point.

[Ray of Judgement: (Completion - 67% Expert) Launches a ranged attack against a target within sight using mace, wand, or bare hands dealing 500% > 335% damage (Cost: 10 > 13.3 CP) (Cooldown: 2 > 2.66 seconds)]

If she had the capacity to notice while being flung around, she would have been shocked at her completion rate. It was over 20% higher than her next best attempt. 

Beams of fiery judgement shot from all three mirrors, lancing downward with exacting precision. Unfortunately, the man was still hauling on her leg while laughing as if it were the most enjoyable game in the world. His superior Potency sent her spinning, twisting her body chaotically as his vile mental ability chipped away at her flimsy defense. He was toying with her, and it only added to her desperation.

Like her life depended on it, Mel firmed the air all around her with Connection. Her momentum halted, and his incredible strength nearly tore her knee in two. With a surge of Discipline, she kicked her own ankle. While she couldn’t overwhelm his strength, she could exert enough force to move them both through the air. After all, neither had a solid grip on the ground to anchor them.

Her leg fell into the path of the beams' convergence. Her foot severed cleanly at the ankle, blood spraying as the lasers sliced through flesh and bone. [-893]

Another Lunge sent her toward the skylane. Quick as a snake, he snatched her good ankle, but bloodstained fingers slipped against her skin. A curse sounded behind as she broke free, entering the currents. Mel blasted forward at over three hundred kilometers per hour, pain exploding through her leg.

She screamed again, the agony a white-hot blaze. When he didn’t immediately catch her again, back-to-back Healing Bursts knit the wound, regenerating her foot in a rush of tingling warmth. Tears blurred her vision, the phantom touch of his vile mental ability lingered in her flesh, and the feeling of his fingers digging into her skin was the deepest of violations. Raw revulsion trailed in her wake, and looking back, she saw his blurred figure standing still, pointing at her as though promising they would meet again.

Mel altered course, intending to circle wide before heading back to the guild. No matter what, she could not lead this pack of monsters back to her friends.

Both her fingers and eyes shook too hard to make the call. She managed it on the third try, and Raine's voice filled her skull. She tried and failed to describe what happened. Only after he walked her through several deep breaths did she manage it.

Hours later, when she had fully calmed, her vigilance was sharpened to a razor's edge. Her eyes scanned every shadow, every peak. No stray thoughts were allowed purchase in her mind. Raine had warned her time and again about the dangers of ZionLine. Those cautions at last hit home—death waited around every corner, atop every mountain, tucked into each cloud. She finally grasped the depth of it; this world was no game, it was a realm where predators lurked.