Chapter 2

I'm deep inside the market.

The stone walls loom closer on either side of the dock, blocking out a large portion of the sun and casting the booths in shadow. The air is different here, rich and earthy. It reminds me of the scent that comes before it rains. It's my favorite.

The vendors this far in are nestled closer together. It's less crowded, filled with more locals than Alaha. There are candles and honey and stoneware fit for royalty, gold and embossed. It'd be downright blasphemy to put the fish stew we've been eating anywhere near them.

The merchant behind the booth doesn't approach. It's obvious I'm not his normal clientele, but he smiles at me as I admire the hand-painted saucers. Deer and rabbits and foxes, animals you'd find on land.

They put my charcoal sketches to shame.

A woman in a knee-length dress approaches the booth, and I move out of the way to not interfere. That's when I notice him. Again.

The first time was a quarter mile back. Our eyes connected for a moment when I passed, but I registered a lot in the brief flash of time: the way he stood with his arms folded over his chest, how his smile dimmed when he saw me, and how the conversation he was having with his fellow Kenta soldier stopped.

Dark hair, dark eyes, a gold ring in one nostril. Lips I somehow know often say crude things—or maybe it's his entire demeanor that tells me that, but there's something inherently vulgar in his beauty.

I'm positive he's been following me ever since. I maintain my gait, not wanting to let on that I know I'm being followed, but I cross the dock to put distance between us. It's far enough to create a buffer but not too far to be suspicious.

What's your next move?

Sure enough, he crosses too, staying a few paces behind me. A strap of daggers adorns his chest, the leather embroidered with the emblem of Kenta, signifying his wealth and high rank. I do a quick inventory of my surroundings and can't find one Alaha in sight. There are only Kenta in every direction.

I glance over my shoulder.

He doesn't bother hiding his interest this time, dark eyes focused on me as he weaves through the crowd, towering over the heads of people.

Maybe he's keeping an eye on me because I'm alone. Gramble's reminder to stay in a group rings in my head, but my gut tells me otherwise. My gut tells me I'm being hunted.

I pick up my pace, skipping the next row of vendors before daring another glance over my shoulder. This time I don't look away, letting him know I'm aware of him and I'm not afraid.

He has the nerve to smile. It's unsettling, his grin that's as wicked as it is beautiful. Maybe he just gets a kick out of intimidating Alaha girls.

I stop at a random vendor, hoping if I ignore his existence, he'll just lose interest.

"Any color you're looking for in particular?" asks the lady behind the counter.

I don't even look to see what she's selling as I shake my head in answer before moving down. I pretend to peruse the stalls, skipping every few in an effort to get closer to the front of the promenade.

The tension in my muscles dissipates when I spot two Alaha soldiers within yelling distance. I see Messer's glossy hair through the crowd, then Kai as they weave between people, heads swiveling as they search for me. Aurora follows, swigging from a cup without a care in the world.

Once again, I look over my shoulder and am further relieved when I don't find the soldier. I wave at Messer, who slaps Kai in the shoulder and points to me. As I wait for them to come to me so we don't lose each other in the crowd, I notice the booth nearest to me has gems on display. Light refracts from cut hanging gems and throws rainbows onto the dock and stone wall behind it. I walk near and run my fingertips across a small stone that looks like sea glass.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" the vendor says, a genuine smile behind his full beard.

Remembering the four coppers still in my pocket, I inquire, "How much?"

"These are very valuable stones," he says, picking up one of the smaller cuttings. "They're hard to find deep within the mines of the earth. One gold coin for this one."

Dreams of hanging one from the window in my room float away. "They're very beautiful," I say with disappointment.

He nods, a dip of his chin in understanding. Before I can move away, a hand slaps down over mine. I suck in a breath as the soldier looms over me, dark eyes rimmed with anger and locking me into place.

"Thief," he says, voice echoing off the canyon's walls.

I shake my head, half in an attempt to defend myself, half in disbelief. I yank my hand from where he has me pinned to the table, but his hold is unmoving. "I didn't take anything."

"Yeah?" He pushes the sleeve of my tunic up my forearm and turns my hand over in his, exposing the stone of light green glass underneath. "Then what's this?"

I gasp. "You put that there."

His dark eyes drill holes into mine. "Are you calling me a liar?"

"Yes," I answer, refusing to back down from his domineering stare.

His hand tightens around my wrist between us. "I heard the Alaha remove the limbs of people who break any of their precious covenants. What is it? A finger or a hand for a thief?"

I speak through clenched teeth. "I didn't take anything."

He regards me for a moment, eyes bouncing between mine. Looking for what, I'm unsure, considering we both know he concocted this entire scheme.

The neighboring vendors and shoppers stop to watch the spectacle.

He breaks first, clearing his throat and signaling to someone behind me. "A hand it is."

I'm wrestled away from the table by another soldier.

"This is absurd!" I flail to dislodge the strong arm around my waist, but the soldier lifts me so I'm unable to leverage myself against the ground. "I'm not a thief! "

My accuser leads us around the booth and behind the row of vendors. The soldier holding me places me before the stone wall, which is like a sleeping giant before us. Warmth radiates from its surface, not more than a foot away. It's the closest I've ever come to touching land.

The dark eyes of the accusing soldier drill into the side of my face. "Place your hand on the wall," he commands.

I don't move or so much as blink as I assess my options. The decade of training should kick in at any moment now, but it's hard to think with the attention of half the promenade on my back. The bustle of the market has dulled to a low buzz behind me.

Everything stills as I take a calming breath, then I stomp as hard as I can onto the soldier's foot holding me, ripping my arm away at the same time. It weakens his stronghold enough to free myself, but the momentum throws me off balance and I fall into the grasp of the dark-eyed soldier.

He's quick to spin me in place, wrapping a forearm around my neck with a blade at the base of my throat. If I wasn't on the sharp end of the knife at my skin, I'd be more impressed by his speed and ability, but panic countermands any rational thought besides calculating a way out of this mess.

I look for Kai, my focus jumping between faces in the crowd, but I come up empty. Only strangers stare back at me.

He orders the command into my ear for only me to hear, sending a shiver down my spine. "Place your hand against the stone." He's not simply playing games with me like I had suspected.

I shake my head despite the sting of the blade. "Why are you doing this?"

He's done waiting for me to comply. Instead, he uses his free hand to grab my mine and places my trembling palm against the warm stone, his hand covering mine.

Pain unlike anything I've ever felt before lances through my body. Heat sears my arm and my chest, down my body and into my legs. It's like a live current, similar to the electric eels found in the coral outside Alaha, but times a thousand.

I scream.

Then, in the span of a blink, it's over.

My eyes fly open and my breath rushes out in an abrupt halt, the scream dying in my throat. I'm on my knees, the wood of the dock cutting into my shins. My senses flood back into focus. The sounds of murmuring and shocked voices filter in through my haze. I lift my hands to my face and am relieved to see I still have both of them attached to my body.

But the pain…

I look up, up, up and into the soldier's face. He looks as stunned as I feel, eyes wide as he stares down at me, breath frozen in his chest.

Kai's voice shouts over the gathered voices. "Let her go!"

But the soldier doesn't break eye contact with me, something between awe and fear staring back at me.

"I said," Kai demands, the voice he rarely uses silencing the crowd. "Let her go."

The soldier is slow to turn, head swiveling in Kai's direction before his gaze slides away from me, face transforming from awestruck to cold as he looks at Kai. "That won't work on me," he says, voice low and undeterred. "You have no power here. "

I struggle to get to my feet, legs giving way when I try to put my weight on them. I can't look behind me to see Kai's expression, but the unflinching gaze of the soldier tells me this isn't going to end without collateral damage. He flips the blade in his hand, a visual reminder that Kai and I are defenseless against him and his men.

"Let her go," Kai repeats, more placating than before.

The soldier tips a brow. "She's not yours."

There's a beat of calm before a loud crash comes from our left. Messer leaps over the now overturned booth, glass jars of jellies and jams shattering across the dock. Chaos ensues as he tackles my second captor from behind.

Using the distraction to my advantage, I reach for the blade strapped to the soldier's thigh and make a clean swipe through his heel. He barks in pain, knee hitting the dock beside me. He reaches to grab me, but I swing the blade in a wide arc, forcing him to dodge the blow that comes within centimeters of his face. It gives me just enough time to get my legs underneath me, careful to avoid the surface of the stone wall as I wobble into a stance.

He levels his gaze up at me. "Don't," he says, an air of desperation coating the single word.

Something in the distressed way he's holding my eyes as he struggles to pull himself up on one leg gives me pause, but not enough to actually stop me.

Sensing my intentions to run, he yells to his fellow soldiers. "Don't let her off this dock!"

I stumble toward Messer, who is grappling with the other soldier. Seeing me coming, he gets on top of the man and slams a fist into his face, knocking him out cold. He rushes toward me, wrapping an arm around my waist to help me stay upright.

Kai sees us and begins clearing a path through the people. Alaha has joined the fray, and it's an all-out battle to get all our people back to the boats.

"Are you okay?" Kai asks, taking up my other side.

I don't waste energy replying, concentrating on my steps as my faculties slowly come back into full working order. We sprint for the end of the dock, to the Alaha flags overhead. It's a mass exodus as the Kenta people move out of our way.

"What the hell happened?" Gramble shouts as he runs toward us, eyes flicking over our heads at the angry mob of Kenta soldiers hot on our heels.

He doesn't wait for an explanation, taking the helm to usher the students onto the nearest gangway. Alaha soldiers take position along the dock, a last line of defense as our people rush onto the boats.

Kai halts at the makeshift line. "Where's Aurora?"

Messer slams into my back at the abrupt stop, his chest heaving as he searches for her. "I thought she was right behind us."

An explosion rocks the deck, sending everyone to the ground. Silence rings for a long moment before I'm able to get my bearings. Debris and wood rain down, and I cover my head until it slows to a stop. Messer helps me up, and I shove my hair out of my face as Kai grips me by my upper arms.

"I'm okay," I tell them, voice muffled in my ears. "Are you?"

There's no time to take inventory as Gramble continues to shout for us to embark. The Kenta soldiers behind us begin to rise. Half of them shake off their disorientation as they take in the plume of smoke billowing into the sky from deep within the market. The other half are now filled with vengeance.

Messer pushes me toward the ship. "I'm going to find Aurora."

He stops mid-step as she appears from the fold, unhurried and unconcerned as she stalks toward us, holding the same cup I saw her carrying earlier.

"Figured we could use a head start," she says, winking at Messer's stunned expression as she passes by.

All heads turn to watch as she stalks up the gangway.

Kai shakes his head and urges me forward. "We need to go."

The crew works in a fury to pull up the gangway and push off from the dock, setting off in just enough time to watch the Market collapse in on itself. Seawater swallows an entire portion of the promenade in one gulp, people included.

Hurrying to the mast, I use the last of my strength to climb. Kai yells my name, but I don't stop, wanting a better view of the damage. Nothing could have prepared me for the scale of the destruction. Aurora managed to take out a hole the size of two ships right in the middle of the Market. Hundreds and hundreds of people tread water, clinging to whatever they can find and to each other.

A century of trade and peace… demolished . There's no coming back from this. Retribution will be coming.

I realize my fist is still clenched and look down to find the soldier's blade clasped tightly in my shaking hands.