Sage: The Edge of Dusk

By Stephanie Holder

Several months have passed since the incident at Stone Flats and RedEarth’s base, but Zone has not yet seen peace as crisis spreads through the regions in a new form of destruction.
Through all the chaos, the five individuals formerly known as the Shadow Soldiers still linger and when rumours of a gang impersonating their names come abound, they're once again thrown in the middle of it.
But their enemy is closer than they realise, and the new life they have made for themselves is threatened when the wounds RedEarth left behind are re-opened.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Stephanie Holder
• Release date: May 17, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301946839

Stephanie Holder

Stephanie was born in Melbourne, Australia, where she grew up with the determination to become a famous actress. She had always had a love of books, which she inherited from both her parents, and began writing from the age of 10. The dream to become an actress quickly changed to the dream of becoming a writer, and most of her days at school during classes were spent scribbling notes and daydreaming.It was at 15 where she began writing her now first published novel SAGE - The Power Within, drawing ideas from the multitude of stories she had filed away, as well as the people, places and concepts around her.Stephanie studied a course in professional writing and editing once she finished high school, and learnt to dabble in areas of writing outside fiction, but her passion stays with writing stories that can let the reader's imagination run wild -- as well as her own.Sage #1 - The Power Within can be purchased in paperback from www.altopublishing.com or on kindle in two parts at www.amazon.com.

Book preview

PART ONE

‘…And suddenly we’re standing on unstable grounds.’

CHAPTER ONE

Days Gone By

Theo yawned loudly as he sauntered into the remodelled Renark’s Citadel, vision blurring and limbs stretching satisfyingly before he blinked and rubbed the sleep away from his eyes. The receptionists greeted him respectfully and far too chirpily for anyone who had to be awake at such an early hour in the morning, but he returned the greeting with a polite wave as he headed up the stairs to the next floor.

With the Palm-Crest war almost a year ago leaving Lion Crest under serious reconstruction, the Renark’s Citadel’s design had been modified before being rebuilt, in case the city was ever attacked again. The Citadel, the Infirmary and the damaged civilian quarters were considered priority to rebuild and repair, so now the Renark’s Citadel was only three floors, and the entrance opened up into a wide atrium with reception centred in the middle and two staircases either side of the front desk leading up to a mezzanine floor.

While the mezzanine floor was entirely for the offices of the different department heads and their assistants, including the Nin- and Sai- Soldier division commanders, the second floor held the headquarters for those sectors, like the intelligence division and interrogation unit. The third floor was purely for the Renark’s office, the conference rooms and guest rooms for diplomats were any to visit Lion Crest.

‘Lord Renark!’

Theo swore under his breath and only just stopped himself from running in the other direction. One of his wizened old assistants, handed down to him after the late Renark, came striding toward him.

‘Reeza, good morning,’ Theo addressed the huffy woman, his eyes sliding down to the thick folder she had tucked under her arm. Reeza was reaching late middle-age, her hair a sharp silver that was pulled back into a harsh bun, with only a few wispy grey strands framing her angular, age-lined face.

‘Lord Renark, I’ve been waiting for you!’ she admonished, pushing her silver rimmed glasses up the bridge of her nose. ‘And I believe something is wrong with your office door, I couldn’t seem to get it open.’

That’s because I lock it so you don’t sneak in and give me more paperwork.

‘It’s still there, isn’t it?’

Reeza frowned. ‘What’s still there?’

‘My door,’ he said, knowing it was entirely probable that Reeza would rather smash down his office door to give him more paperwork than wait until later.

She waved her hand frivolously through the air, saying, ‘Of course it is, Lord Renark, now come on, we’ve dilly-deled enough already.’ Reeza spun on her heel, gesturing him to follow. ‘We’ve got several matters to discuss this morning, Lord Renark.’

‘Yay,’ he said, slouching as he followed after her.

When Reeza’s back was turned, Theo subtly unlocked the office door and pushed it open, casting a ‘well-would-you-look-at-that’ expression at her when she realised the door wasn’t quite as stuck as she thought.

Feeling his heart sink a little further at the paperwork already scattered across his desk, Theo’s slouch became a bit more prominent as he slumped down into his chair, wishing that he hadn’t woken up that morning.

Reeza placed her folder on the desk and stepped back, arms crossing over her torso. ‘We have to discuss the discipline of our Crest Soldiers.’

‘My Crest Soldiers,’ Theo corrected. Reeza was the head of civilian-Soldier relations, which Theo thought was a ludicrous division. ‘And what’s wrong with their discipline?’

‘They have none,’ she deadpanned.

‘Huh.’

‘They are far too lackadaisical during their patrols, you see, and it makes the civilians feel that they are not being as protected as they should be by our Crest Soldiers,’ Reeza told him, her voice gaining the huffiness he despised, like the matters she brought up were of such great importance that she’d be terribly offended were they not addressed with equal seriousness.

‘My Crest Soldiers.’

‘And!’ she added sharply, ‘They are always frequenting the local pubs!’

Theo frowned. ‘During their patrol duties?’ If that were the case, then perhaps the matter was more serious than he thought. If they weren’t putting enough effort into securing the City’s perimeter then—

‘Well, no... Not exactly.’

He sat back in his chair with a sigh. ‘Reeza, Crest Soldiers are allowed to go to the pub when their off duty.’

‘But what if there’s an emergency and we need to call them in while they’re drinking themselves stupid?’

‘I’m quite sure we would have enough Soldiers on duty to cover any emergency,’ he assured her, since off-duty Soldiers were only ever a minority. ‘Anything else?’

Looking slightly affronted, Reeza said, ‘Yes, in fact I’ve noticed that a majority of our Crest Soldiers lack any notion of formality.’

‘How so?’

‘Civilians view Soldiers as something to admire, you see, but the Crest Soldiers of this generation don’t take their roles seriously enough. They do not display respect for their elders, or for their superiors.’

Theo shook his head. ‘I highly doubt they are displaying such disrespect, Reeza, perhaps you are just mistaking disrespect for—’

‘You bastard!’ someone shouted from behind the door.

Reeza spun around, her hand fluttering to her chest in fright. The office door burst open and Theo straightened just as Reeza cried, ‘Excuse you!’

Rhun marched into the room, pointing an accusatory finger at Theo. ‘Why’d you tell Sydney that you didn’t want to get married, huh? I ought to knock some sense into you, bastard!’

‘Rhun!’ Theo exclaimed, ‘This is hardly the time!’

Rhun blinked, only then realising that Theo had company. ‘Oh,’ he muttered, suddenly looking sheepish. ‘Sorry, what were you two talking about?’

Theo glowered and said, quite deliberately, ‘I was just saying that Crest Soldiers are always respectful to their superiors.’

Clearly understanding the connotation, Rhun began backing out of the office. ‘Really? Well, good work Lord Renark, you’re doing a top job, really. Do you need anything? Coffee? Biscuits? Coffee and biscuits? Just name it and I’ll—’

‘I need you to leave, Rhun,’ said Theo.

Rhun saluted, ‘Yessir!’ and fled from the office.

There was silence for a moment, Theo briefly refusing to meet Reeza’s eyes, before he finally mustered the courage and offered her a smile.

‘See? Completely respectful.’

~~~

Leon was ambling casually down the corridor toward the Lord Renark’s office, hands stuffed in his pockets and thoughts elsewhere when the Renark’s door opened and out stepped Reeza, the Civilian-Soldier relations coordinator.

‘I’m glad we’ve sorted everything out, Lord Renark,’ she was saying as she departed, ‘and I’ll see you bright and early tomorrow morning for another briefing, all right?’ The woman shut the door behind her, and as she passed Leon with an upturned nose, Leon heard something bang against the Renark’s door and then hit the ground with a muffled thud.

Quirking his brow, Leon sauntered forward and knocked once as he opened the door. He found a shoe sitting on the floor.

‘Could you pass me that?’ Theo asked, glowering.

Leon picked up the shoe and passed it to Theo, grinning. ‘A little frustrated, Lord Renark?’

‘You could say that,’ he replied, leaning down and replacing his shoe before he sat up, seemingly more composed.

Leon threw down a manila folder marked with ‘classified’. ‘There’s the mission report you asked for.’

‘Joy.’ Theo eyed the extra piece of paperwork before him, as if he hoped that staring at it hard enough would make it disappear. When he realised that Leon was still standing in his office, watching him with mild amusement, Theo gestured to the chair opposite him, ‘Have a seat, Leon.’

Leon sat down, leaning back in the leather chair as he drew in a deep breath. ‘Any news?’

Theo shook his head. ‘The three Renarks’ conditions haven’t changed. They’re still stable. People are still getting sick and no one has even come remotely close to finding a cure.’

‘Then it has to be man-made. Whoever designed the disease obviously made it so it was impossible to find a vaccine.’

‘...Maybe,’ Theo frowned, ‘but I’d rather not look at it like that. Such a theory opens up doors to too many new problems.’

Leon shrugged. ‘If you say so. I guess the fact that the Renarks of The Palms, Sunlight Falls and Radiant Hills are allied and all fell ill around the same time is merely coincidence.’ He raised one eyebrow sceptically. ‘Of course. Makes perfect sense.’

‘Leon…’ the Renark groaned. ‘Man, I wish your sister was here. Then I wouldn’t have to deal with you.’

‘Glad I am such a welcome presence in your office, Lord Renark.’

‘You know what I mean.’

Leon nodded, letting his gaze drift out the window. ‘What about… those Soldiers?’

Theo leaned forward and clasped his hands on the desktop, brow furrowing. ‘Are you sure they were…?’

‘I wasn’t the only one who saw them. They wore Shadow Soldier attire and from what we could see, their silhouettes looked identical to the Shadow Soldiers. Nox Ludoco’s large form isn’t hard to pick.’

‘Wouldn’t they have recognised you, then? Wouldn’t she have recognised you?’ Leon caught Theo’s sympathetic look from the corner of his eye. ‘There have been no other reported sightings of Shadow Soldiers.’

‘Hm,’ Leon murmured noncommittally.

Theo sighed again, pinching the bridge of his nose. ‘Look, Sage and Raidan died in RedEarth’s building. Everyone sensed them inside when the building collapsed. As for Dante, Toren and Nox, you left them as soon as the Stone Soldiers arrived. We even heard reports about the Stone Soldiers eliminating them because they were far too weak to fight back.’ There was a look of remorse on Theo’s face as he spoke, and Leon braced himself for the Renark’s next few words. ‘Leon… they all died at Stone Flats one year ago.’

Leon inwardly cringed. ‘I know,’ he responded in a clipped tone, but he was still unable to believe it. Even after six months, a part of him still refused to let go.

Standing up, Leon fixed a grin onto his face and regarded Theo casually. ‘That all, Lord Renark?’

‘Leon, hang on a minute. I didn’t mean to—’

But Leon was already heading out of the office, throwing an offhand wave over his shoulder as he shut the door behind him.

Stepping out of the Renark’s Citadel, Leon drew his jacket closer around him as a chilly breeze swept through the main street. He glanced up at the grey, overcast sky, spying light storm clouds in the distance that were gradually making their way toward the city. Winter was reaching its peak, meaning bouts of frequent storms and strong winds that often held an icy bite, but it also meant less missions.

All around him the city was still in a state of rebuild, certain sections of the city cautioned off behind chain-link fences, buildings with their walls propped up by timber frames and tarps covering holes in ceilings. They expected majority of the repairs to be done by the end of the year but Theo had organised the repairs to be done in stages, such as homes first and shops last. Those who were struggling financially were supported by the Renarks, which meant Soldiers saw a percentage of their own wage put toward the civilian support. Most Soldiers didn’t have a problem with it, though there were some who had kicked up a fuss. The Renarks, Raven especially, were quick to put them back in their place though.

As Leon moved through the city he mulled, somewhat despondently, over Theo’s words and the incident some weeks ago. All the Snow Soldiers had been eradicated at the rendezvous point and he assumed the culprits were the five anonymous Soldiers that had appeared in front of him and his squad, only to disappear without engaging in battle.

Maybe it was them and that’s why they didn’t attack us, he mused, knowing that it was straws he was clutching at. If it had indeed been the Shadow Soldiers, he or Trey would have recognised Sage’s signature. Yet despite the truth of the matter being that Sage, Raidan and the other Shadow Soldiers had died at Stone Flats six months ago, Leon couldn’t help but feel like something was missing, like he was missing some vital factor.

Regardless, Zone was now free of RedEarth. While Lion Crest was recovering from the war against The Palms, the other regions who had been allied with RedEarth were removing any evidence that they had ever joined the underground organisation. The RedEarth regions had panicked when the Elites were reported dead, and they cut off all ties from the organisation and tried to imprison any Soldier still claiming allegiance to RedEarth, since most had been rogues and criminals. The RedEarth Soldiers who had been placed under Bryce Suragi’s control eventually came out of their states and most of them returned to their home cities, as they had been forcibly taken in the first place.

Stone Flats kept up the alliance with Sky Expanse and Sacred Plains, but that was the only political and public move they ever made. They returned to their isolated government and Soldier-based lifestyle, choosing to pretend that whatever they did while under control of RedEarth never actually happened. Stone Flats were quite good at denial.

When the main base of RedEarth collapsed and it became wide known that the Elites had been eliminated, all the other headquarters positioned throughout Zone broke down as well. The Soldiers disbanded, the ones running the separate divisions disappeared and the buildings became empty.

Meanwhile, Theo had been returning Lion Crest to its former state with Raven at his side, as the co-Renark. After a few months leading the City on his own, he had asked Raven to join him, saying two minds were better than one.

It had been the best decision, in Leon’s opinion, that a Renark had ever made.

Zone hadn’t been given a reprieve though after RedEarth’s manipulation, because within three months after RedEarth’s demise a disease had flared up in the north of Zone. It quickly became an epidemic and now only after a few months, the death toll was already in the hundreds.

The disease started with cold and flu-like symptoms, but the disease evolved within time frames that varied from person to person. It destroyed the mind, altering their behaviour, creating hallucinations that triggered panicked and angry outbursts, making the infected dangerous to any nurses and medics. They had no name for it other than the disease, because what else could they call it? It was purely a disease, being an airborne strand transferred through saliva and breath, then evolving into a strand that could be transferred through blood as well. As a cure had yet to be found, anyone who was infected eventually died.

Lion Crest had had a few cases of its own, but the medical department had set up a ward in the newly repaired infirmary that held the sick people hit by the unknown disease. So far the medics were doing well in keeping the disease confined; there hadn’t been a new patient in a month.

Green Coast and WhiteSnow Valley weren’t affected as much either, nor was Stone Flats, Sacred Plains or Sky Expanse. Then again, it was just a matter of time. If what Leon thought turned out to be true, then it wouldn’t take long for another alliance to be badly affected by the epidemic.

Leon believed that there was a hidden motive behind the sudden outbreak. After all, the Renarks of Sunlight Falls, Radiant Hills and The Palms were all allied and had all fallen ill at the same time. The population was also being devastated by the disease and because of that, many rogues and criminals turned to those regions to try to steal from them while they were in their vulnerable state.

It wouldn’t be long until three more allied regions began to crumble underneath the weight of the disease.

Leon just hoped it wasn’t the alliance that involved Lion Crest.

Pulling himself out of his reverie, Leon stopped at the small grassy knoll that overlooked the entire memorial. He glanced around, pulling his jacket tighter around his body before moving off to the section that held the resting places of Soldiers. Of course, not all Soldiers were recovered and so their bodies could never be laid to rest, but a headstone was placed in the memorial nevertheless with fond words etched into the marble.

Leon stopped in front of two marble headstones with gold lettering engraved into them. One had the name Dean Lycrart while the other read Sage Lycrart.

His brow furrowed slightly, crouching down as he gazed at Sage’s memorial stone, not being able to dismiss the feeling that he was surely missing something. On the day of Sage’s funeral Leon had also had the strange sensation of doing something wrong, but he merely blamed it on not being able to let go of his former student and adopted daughter.

Falling back onto his haunches, Leon looked to his left at the group of memorial stones for each member of the Suragi family. Raidan’s headstone sat alongside his parents, and although criminals never actually received a memorial stone once they were found dead, Raidan had done a great service for Lion Crest before his death, so Theo believed that a memorial stone for him was in order.

Lazily stretching back onto his feet, Leon blinked as a few rain drops splashed onto his face. He looked up, finding the storm clouds he had spotted before now hovering directly above the city, darkening the dismal sky. He pulled his collar up higher against his neck and walked back out of the memorial.

Reaching the residential area, Leon heard his name called from somewhere behind him. He stopped, glancing back over his shoulder to find Trey approaching.

‘Trey, don’t you live on the other side of Lion Crest? What brings you here?’

‘A mission,’ his second-in-command replied.

Leon sighed. ‘I was afraid of that.’

‘Yes,’ he sympathised, ‘the Lord Renark gave our squad another one.’

‘I was just speaking with Theo.’

‘Mm. The mission came up as soon as you left, and since I was in the building the Lord Renark gave me the mission details to pass on to you,’ replied Trey, pulling out a thin manila folder.

Leon blew out a breath through closed teeth and flipped the folder open, quickly scanning over its contents. ‘A retrieval mission to Sunlight Falls? Theo does know that that region is a danger-zone for the disease, right?’ he queried, looking across to Trey.

‘We’re taking precautionary medical masks in case the disease is still airborne up there.’

‘Fun,’ sighed Leon. ‘So we’re going to go up to an infected area just see if there are any survivors from a squad that WhiteSnow Valley sent up there on one of their own missions,’ he summed up.

‘That’s right.’

‘Jeez, WhiteSnow Valley sure is turning out to be a handful as an ally.’

Trey shrugged. ‘They are a cautious region and won’t risk losing another one of their squads trying to retrieve the other.’

‘But they’ll risk ours?’

‘We’re getting paid. Usually allies don’t pay allies when they need help.’

‘True. Well, it says we leave tomorrow night. Could you inform the rest of the squad, Trey?’ Leon flipped the folder closed and tucked it under his arm as Trey nodded and sprinted back through the street.

Returning his hands to his pockets, Leon continued his slow walk toward his apartment as the rain began to fall, lightly pelting his skin. He ignored the bite that the rain carried, letting it soak through his clothing as his mind went over the mission details. He was getting an odd feeling about this mission.

~~~

‘Sira, you need to keep your weight balanced,’ said Leah, coming to stand beside the fifteen-year-old girl. ‘When you’re crossing your arms in front of you to block your attacker’s punch, you need to make sure your weight is balanced on your front and back foot, rather than one over the other.’

Sira looked absolutely dumbstruck as she blinked down at her feet. ‘O-okay?’ she murmured, ‘I t-think I—’

‘Can I attack now?’ said Tai, Sira’s classmate. He had the usual disinterested expression on his face, like training with Sira was the peak of his boredom.

Leah smiled and stood back to assess. ‘Go ahead.’

Tai lunged forward and threw out his fist just as Sira raised her arms and crossed them in front of her face. Tai’s fist collided with her armguards and Sira toppled over, falling onto her backside.

She blinked, a small pout marring her delicate features. ‘Ow.’

Tai shrugged. ‘You didn’t listen to Miss Leah.’

With a laugh, Leah helped her young student onto her feet. ‘Don’t worry, Sira, you’ll get the hang of it soon.’ She moved away from the pair, turning around and looking across the training field to the rest of the class. She had partnered them together and set them the task of perfecting straightforward punches and kicks, and while some were excelling at a surprising pace, others were less so.

‘Miss Leah!’ came a desperate cry.

Leah whipped around, her heart skipping a beat, and then when she saw Jayden running from his partner, Elise, who was charging toward him with her fists ready, Leah let out a calming breath.

‘Jayden, you have to block her attack, not run away from it!’ Leah called out, shaking her head.

‘She’s trying to kill me!’ Jayden cried, waving his arms in the air frantically. ‘She’s supposed to be helping me, not killing me!’

‘Get back here, Jay!’ shouted Elise.

Jayden whipped around and headed for Leah, quickly scrambling to crouch behind her. ‘Miss Leah!’

Leah sighed. She had hoped that by pairing them it would be easier to practice their movements, how it felt to adjust a punch to match the height of your opponent or how to alter your blocks depending on their body weight and how they countered. I guess it doesn’t work for every student, she thought.

‘Jayden!’ Elise stood in front of Leah, eyeing her cowering teammate.

‘Tai, w-wait, I th-think I’ve g-got it now!’ Leah heard Sira say. ‘One m-more t-time!’

‘No.’

‘T-Tai!’

Several other students had stopped training altogether, a few of the girls giggling as they watched a few of the boys, while another pair had grabbed each other in a brawling grapple, obviously having turned their training into an actual fight.

‘I hope you all aren’t giving Miss Leah any trouble!’

Leah turned, her smile blossoming when she found Rhun walking across the training field toward them, a familiar grin on his face.

Every student stopped and greeted him just as enthusiastically. Many of Leah’s students, Elise and Jayden, acted as if Rhun were like an older brother to them, someone they both admired and feared, someone they could tackle and wrestle with but would immediately snap to attention if Rhun demanded it, despite not even being their trainer. Whereas others, like Tai, displayed absolute respect for him, being the one to revere and obey authority in any situation.

‘Hey, kids.’ Rhun waved, but his eyes were focused on Leah. ‘How about all of you go and do six laps around the training grounds, ‘kay?’

Their faces fell, obviously having expected Rhun to whisk them away for some fun between their training. ‘The winner gets a surprise,’ he added.

Leah stifled a laugh. ‘Go on, unless you wish to keep sparring each other?’

Jayden sped off.

‘May as well,’ said Tai, just as the remaining twelve students followed.

Leah was greeted by her other half with a generous kiss. She smiled up at him as he pulled away, admiring the boyish charm of his grin. Rhun’s dark hair was a bit longer, a bit messier, and he had a certain maturity to him now that was centred around taking on more responsibility, being a more active person both professionally and personally.

He always took it upon himself to organise frequent get-togethers with their friends, and although it wasn’t out of the ordinary for him to be sociable, Leah could tell his motives were somehow deeper now. The get-togethers weren’t just an excuse to drink anymore.

‘So did you speak with Theo?’ she asked, watching Rhun as he turned his eyes onto the four racing teenagers.

‘Uh-huh.’

‘You were polite about it, weren’t you?’

‘Na-uh.’

‘Rhun,’ Leah admonished, ‘Theo’s the Renark, don’t forget, and if he isn’t ready to marry Sydney it isn’t your place to yell at him about it.’

Rhun looked down at her, a sheepish expression crossing her face. ‘Sorry,’ he mumbled, ‘but Sydney deserves—’

‘Sydney deserves to be married by a man who is ready to get married, not by a man who is pressured into it,’ she told him.

‘Yeah, okay,’ said Rhun. He threw out his arm and slung it around Leah’s shoulders to pull her against his side, saying, ‘You know, you’ve got the teacher thing down. I’m not surprised your students are so obedient.’

Leah smiled as well. ‘They’re good students.’

She had only been a student-trainer for five months, but already she was terribly fond of thirteen young teens she taught. Leah had decided to become a student-trainer soon after the event at Stone Flats.

During the war, when Lion Crest had been hit by The Palms, Leah remembered seeing the young Gin-Soldiers who were all so scared and yet all so willing to risk their lives to protect their home and their families. It was then that she had first had the urge to help the younger Soldiers-in-training grow into confident, fully-fledged Soldiers. Leah also never wanted to see the Gin-Soldiers have to gain experience through such heavy bloodshed; she wanted them to be gently brought into the lifestyle of a Soldier, but at the same time she wanted them to still have a childhood.

And so when she had seen all those young Gin-Soldiers helping to rebuild Lion Crest, helping to recover bodies and lost possessions, Leah had made her decision.

She was glad she did.

‘I’m proud of you,’ Rhun said quietly, resting a kiss against her temple.

Leah tightened her arm around his waist in return, her smile softening. ‘Do you think Sage would—?’

‘Of course she would.’

‘I’m done, I win!’ Elise shouted as she raced toward them, the other students just behind her, followed by a puffing, stumbling Jayden and Tai, who was walking like he had just been out on an afternoon stroll, his hands in his pocket and barely a bead of sweat on his face.

‘Tai... gave... up...!’ gasped Jayden, crumpling to the grass.

‘I did not give up,’ Tai retorted, glaring down at his teammate. ‘I just thought that the racing was stupid.’

‘What’s my surprise?!’ Elise demanded, pushing her brown hair out of her eyes.

Rhun knelt down to her level and grinned. ‘You get to race me!’

‘Excuse me?’ she muttered, her face falling. The other students snickered.

‘That’s not a surprise,’ huffed Tai, smug, ‘that’s a punishment.’

Elise threw her arms up into the air in exasperation. ‘I just ran six laps to win a surprise that involves running more laps?! Are you kidding me?!’

Rhun stood. ‘Actually, no. I thought it was pretty good prize, didn’t you, Leah?’

‘It’s a pretty poor prize.’

‘Huh.’

‘How about,’ Leah walked up to Jayden and pulled him to his feet, ‘we go back to class and have some lunch, hm?’

‘Yes, lunch!’ Jayden whooped, pumping a fist into the air. He turned and ran toward the edge of the field, dirt staining his back and blades of grass caught in his spiky blonde hair.

‘I’ll race you, Jay!’ called Elise, chasing after him.

Leah gestured to the other students, Sira and Tai. ‘Go on, then. I’ll meet you back in class.’

Tai sighed and went ahead, Sira timidly falling into step beside him while the other students ran ahead to catch up with Jayden and Elise. Leah had a certain soft spot for Tai, Sira, Elise and Jayden.

Rhun slung an arm around Leah. ‘Come on, I’ve got the afternoon free. I’ll sit in on your class and see if you can teach me few things,’ he said, grinning.

Leah laughed. ‘Okay, I’ll try my best.’

~~~

Sydney stood at the end of the hallway outside Theo’s office, her lips pursed in irritation and her arms tightly folded across her chest. She was debating whether to storm into the office and yell at Theo, or go back home and give him the silent treatment until he apologised.

Even thinking about how he had blithely stated that he never wanted to get married still stirred up a fierce, righteous anger in her chest that made her want to throw inanimate objects at him all over again. She hadn’t intentionally meant for last night’s conversation to end up on the topic that it had, all Sydney had mentioned was if she and Theo could ever be able to take a break, go to one of the lodges along the coast and stay there for a short holiday. After all, couldn’t Raven handle Renark duties for a few days?

And then Sydney had made a joke about spending their honeymoon in Theo’s office, to which he had replied ‘What honeymoon?’ and proceeded to inform Sydney that he never intended to get married, that it was too much trouble, and why did they need it when they already lived together and everyone knew they were a happy couple?

Sydney had then thrown a book at him, followed by a shoe, which was then followed by a plate. When she had demanded that Theo clean up the broken plate, he’d sighed and walked into the bedroom, stating he was tired and that all the arguing had worn him out.

She’d left the house and stayed at Rhun and Leah’s that night.

She couldn’t believe him! How dare he string her along all those years only to lead her right into a dead end!

Huffing, Sydney threw her arms down to her sides and stormed across the hall, her mind a whirlwind of heated words and sharp-tongued remarks that she was going to use against Theo to make him feel as remorseful as possible.

So when she kicked open the doors and marched into the office, Sydney’s mouth snapped open, tongue about to lash — and then she saw Theo slumped back in his chair, one foot up on the desk and an open folder lying across his chest, both arms dangling over the sides of his chair.

Sydney deflated, a sigh leaving her lips as she crept forward and sat on the edge of the desk next to Theo’s sleeping form.

He stirred a moment later, obviously sensing someone else in the room, and she watched as Theo cracked an eye open, a moment of delayed panic crossing his face as he realised he had fallen asleep, before the panic turned to sheer terror as he saw Sydney looming over him.

‘Syd!’ he exclaimed, dragging himself out of his chair and putting at least five feet between them. ‘You’re not going to throw another plate at me, are you? Or send Rhun after me?’

‘I probably should,’ she said, glowering at him for just a second before she shrugged and stood up, her lips pursing into a pout once again.

‘But... you’re not going to?’ Theo asked hopefully.

She sighed. ‘Nah, I’m not going to.’

Relaxing, Theo returned back to his chair. Sydney paced across the width of the room, brow furrowing in bemusement. She was at a loss now; her anger had disappeared and with it, all of her choice words and prepared arguments.

‘I don’t see what the big deal is,’ said Theo, breaking the silence.

Sydney stopped, her frown deepening. ‘Why?’

He shrugged. ‘It’s just marriage. Marriage doesn’t mean anything.’

‘You know how I said I wasn’t going to throw a plate at you or send Rhun after you? Well, you’re on the right track to making me reconsider, Theodore Monahue!’

Theo cringed. ‘My full name? Really?’

‘Uh-huh,’ she huffed, planting her hands on her hips.

‘Just listen, Syd,’ Theo urged, leaving his chair to approach Sydney with his hands up in a placating gesture. ‘Why do you even want to get married? It doesn’t mean anything, marriage is just a fancy term for signing a document.’

‘If that’s all it is then why don’t you want to sign the damn document?’ Sydney asked. ‘If it isn’t as big a deal as you keep saying then what’s the problem?’

‘It isn’t that,’ he said, leaning against the edge of his desk.

Sydney stepped up to him, placing her hands on his shoulders. ‘Then what, huh?’

‘Signing a marriage document is pretty much signing a legally binding contract that states that two people are considered one, which to me turns the whole relationship thing into a business deal.’

Sydney blinked, hearing the logic in his reasoning. She hadn’t thought of it that way, but now that she did she realised that signing a document that was pretty much a contract did, in fact, make the relationship like a business deal.

‘And,’ Theo added tiredly, ‘I’ve had enough of business deals and contracts.’

Feeling sympathetic again, Sydney leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Theo’s neck, murmuring, ‘Yeah, I know you have.’

‘Am I interrupting something, Lord Renark?’

Sydney jumped and quickly detached herself from Theo, recognising the steady, professional tone of voice that belonged to one Raven Deltra.

‘Raven, I wasn’t expecting you back until tomorrow morning,’ said Theo, smoothing down his sleep-tussled clothing.

Sydney waved. ‘Hi, Raven!’

‘Hello, Sydney,’ the Lady Renark greeted, a pleasant smile appearing on her face. ‘And yes, I was supposed to return tomorrow morning but there was a need for me to cut my trip short.’

Theo frowned. ‘What’s wrong?’

The smile slipped from Raven’s face as she pulled out a letter from the inside pocket of her jacket. ‘Green Coast got word of some rather imperative news from a reconnaissance squad in The Palms, and since it concerns Lion Crest Shane Locknan gave me the information.’

‘Concerns Lion Crest how, exactly?’

She handed the letter to Theo.

Sydney looked between the two Renarks, worry bubbling in her chest as she saw Theo’s expression fall.

‘What is it?’ she asked anxiously.

Theo looked up, shock written over his face. ‘The Palm’s Renark just died – and they’re blaming Lion Crest.’

CHAPTER TWO

Suspicious Activity

Chase’s breath came out in misty puffs of air as he ran laps around one of the larger training fields. His mind was blank as he sprinted, his body so used to his training schedule that he barely had to concentrate on the repetitive tasks of running laps, practicing punches, aiming daggers and concentrating on Kyra control. Even mid-winter, when the mornings were frosty and the air was thick with fog, Chase’s training schedule was rigid and never skipped. He trained in the simplest of clothing, nothing more than slacks and a sleeveless shirt. The cold used to bother him, use to redden his skin and freeze his fingers, but now he barely noticed it. That was what he wanted.

When the hint of someone’s Kyra signature grabbed his senses, Chase retracted from his mindless sprinting and slowed his pace to a comfortable jog. He scanned the field, his eyes glancing over the wooden structures at the centre of the ground that were used for target practice and across to the path of trees that hid the small lake behind the training fields. The visitor was sitting under one of the trees, watching Chase with mild amusement.

‘You'll catch a cold, you know,’ said Leon as Chase walked over.

‘The normal kind or the life-threatening kind?’ he replied, picking up his jacket he had discarded before he'd started training.

Leon stood, stretching as if he had been sitting there for longer than Chase realised. ‘There was a normal kind? I forgot all about the normal kind of cold.’

‘Is there any reason for the visit, Leon?’ asked Chase. ‘Don't you have a mission to go on?’

‘Yes I do have a mission to go on and do I need a reason to visit my favourite former-student?’

‘I'm your only former-student,’ he said, without realising the implication. Glancing across to Leon, Chase saw his old mentor's sudden fall of expression and he regretted the words. ‘Sorry, I didn't mean it like that.’

Leon shrugged, his aloof demeanour returning. ‘I wanted to ask you about that mission you went on a week ago, the one where you escorted Raven to Green Coast?’

‘What about it?’

‘Do you know if the Renarks discussed anything about the anonymous rogue-Soldier sightings in the Green Coast region?’

Chase quirked an eyebrow, curious. ‘Why not just ask Raven? She is your sister.’

‘After the recent news about The Palms, Raven's been a bit occupied, as has Theo,’ Leon explained. ‘As would happen when an entire alliance blames one city for the death of a Renark.’

‘Naturally,’ Chase agreed. ‘And as for rogue-Soldier sightings, I know they were mentioned but the Renarks didn't go into too much detail about them. Shane Locknan said that the Soldiers never attacked, they were just frequently spotted in the region and no one has managed to get a clear description of them.’

‘Not even about the clothes they were wearing?’

‘You mean like uniforms? No, I don't think so.’ Chase suddenly understood why Leon was asking for such information. ‘This is about the Shadow Soldiers you think you saw a few weeks ago, isn't it?’

‘They were Shadow Soldiers,’ Leon corrected.

‘Wearing the uniform of a Shadow Soldier and being a Shadow Soldier are two different things, Leon.’ As much as it pained him to say it. When he'd first heard about the apparent sighting of Shadow Soldiers, he became hopeful that Sage was still alive, but then he began wondering why she hadn't contacted them somehow, why she didn't let everyone – him – know she was okay. Then weeks passed, and there wasn't another sighting, so Chase returned to the realisation that Sage was most certainly not alive.

Chase took off his jacket, deciding he wanted to train for another few hours. ‘Was that all?’

‘You're going to train more?’

He nodded.

‘Have you ever heard the term 'social life', Chase?’ Leon asked, trying to lighten the mood that was threatening to turn bad at the subtle mentioning of Sage's death.

‘I don't have time,’ Chase retorted, dropping his jacket on the ground.

‘Well,’ Leon stepped around him, stopping Chase from walking off, ‘if you lessened your training and perhaps didn't accept every single mission that was available you might just find that time.’

Pushing past Leon, Chase said, ‘Forgive me for making my duty my first priority.’

‘I get that this is your way of coping, Chase, but you're taking it to an extreme,’ Leon called after him.

‘At least I am coping, Leon,’ he called over