I pumped my arms, my aunt’s sword swinging near my face as I ran fast — fast as I could — keeping right behind Kalea, and trying to keep ahead of our pursuers. I couldn’t imagine what would happen if they caught us. I had just been able to keep one off me.

  Three would tear me apart. I knew it.

  I could feel fear snake into my chest. The pain in my leg, and hip was unimaginable. How did I keep running?

  Morrigan? Can you do something about that? Can you numb my leg?

  Morrigan flooded the area around my leg and hip with some kind of local anesthetic.

  I pumped my legs, and arms faster. I gained on Kalea. My breathing felt unsustainable. If I didn’t get it under control, I wouldn’t be able to continue. I knew that. But I couldn’t stop. I had to run faster, and running seemed more important than breathing right.

  I could feel that pressure building behind me, that momentum that pushed me forward. We were going crazy fast, far faster than my time running to Boston. Man, if I fell, I think I would hurt myself. Or at least Morrigan.

  Kalea kept turning down alleys, and winding back around the way we came, trying to lose our pursuers, but they matched us easily. Cars, mail boxes, any kind of obstacle they leapt over easily without losing much momentum.

  Kalea waved her hand, and a dark mist spread behind her. I was running too fast. Whatever that mist was, I was going to hit it. As soon as I did, I felt the air completely disappear. It was like someone untethered me. I sped forward. Then the air was back, and it hit me all at once.

  “What. What was. What-was-that?” I asked over comms, struggling to get the words out through my erratic breathing.

  “Drag nullifier! Cuts friction!” She waved her hand again. Behind me I saw one of the robots leap through the mist I’d just left behind and — well, that was odd — they caught fire.

  “I set it to double, reverse the friction after you pass through, but it’s not an exact thing. It’s on a narrow timer. Just make sure you make it each time!”

  I wasn’t sure exactly what she meant, but as soon as I passed through the second wall of mist, I saw the mist change. The robot that had set itself on fire hit that wall after me, and the fire grew into a huge rush of flame. Huh. I’d have to ask her how it worked later.

  We were well past South Boston now, headed away from the bay. It was far away from where Matt would be, but I guess I’d worry about that later.

  I had an idea.

  “Kalea!” I yelled into comms.

  “Just say it!”

  “I got a plan! Do that thing again!”

  Kalea yelled wordlessly, and waved her hand again. This was so dumb. But we couldn’t keep doing this.

  I hit the wall of mist, spun in mid air, and landed with my body facing our pursuers, sliding down the street in a spray of sparks. The robot that had set itself on fire leapt through the mist again, rather than run around, and lose precious seconds. Like I predicted, he went up in a huge gout of flame.

  He couldn’t see me. Not with a face full of fire.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  I planted my feet as best as I could, and swung my sword like a softball bat as he reached me. He sped past me in two separate, burning sections. With all the forces on his body, it didn’t take any effort at all.

  Kalea yelled again, and grabbed a passing street sign to slow herself, yanking it from the concrete. She threw it at the second one, and started running toward us.

  We were fighting for our lives again. But this time, it was a more even match. Two on two.

  Or maybe it would have been had my hip not been so messed up.

  The elite was all strange angles and triangular shapes; its legs were bent back at a strange angle. And it was fast, swiping at me with a short blade, just shy of my plates then hopping back out of range of my sword. He was testing my reflexes, and reach. I may be in trouble if he decided he wanted to end it. I had to take him down before he got comfortable.

  Kalea came in from my right, leading with a swing of her axe. The other elite parried it with something like a staff, electricity crackling off it with each clash.

  I had no time to pay attention to them. Even with my extra senses, I needed all of my focus to stay on my fight.

  The elite in front of me leapt into the air, and disappeared into the blind spot above me. I dashed forward, and rolled as he came down right where I’d been. I spun, putting him in front of me again.

  I couldn’t stand.

  Damn. That was a mistake.

  He swung for my face.

  I pushed forward on my good leg as hard as I could, ducking under his swing. My sword hand shot out. It stuck. I’d pierced his abdomen. I yanked my sword free, and parried his last two swipes as he crashed to the ground beside me.

  I scrambled over him, grabbed his sword, and threw it away. Kalea had picked up her opponent, and held him in the air. I mounted the elite, and pushed the edge of my sword, with both of my hands, through his neck til it hit the asphalt. His head fell onto its side, resting on the flat plane of his triangular head.

  Gross.

  Kalea smashed the elite in her hands repeatedly into the ground until he was a dozen or so pieces.

  When it was over, Kalea walked towards me.

  “Good work. Can you stand?”

  I tried, but fell back down immediately.

  “It’s okay,” she said, “I got you.”

  She swept me into her arms again.

  “Let’s find a place for you to rest up.”

  Later, Kalea kicked in the door of a bar, shattering it, and carried me to a chair. She set me down. As soon as my butt hit the chair, it collapsed. Kalea laughed, and walked to the bar.

  “Want a drink?” she asked.

  “Auuggggh,” I replied.

  I was in so much pain. Morrigan’s medical procedures must have been stretched to its limit.

  “I’ll make you something,” she said, exiting her armor and grabbing some kind glass from behind the counter. “Closest reinforcement is Michaela, and she had to run here from Long Island.”

  I was able to think just clear enough to question how she’d get here from Long Island.

  “She take a ferry or something?”

  “Yeah, then she has to run like some 200 miles or something.”

  She set a glass of something on the ground next to me. It was blue and had a little lemon slice in it.

  “What is it?” I asked. I had never had alcohol outside the bit of wine my mom let me drink.

  “It’s a sports drink with lemon,” she said.

  “Thanks,” I said, grabbing the blue sports drink, willing my mask open, and taking a sip. It was sweet. I forgot how sweet these things were. After my runs, I tended to just drink water.

  Kalea sipped from her silver flask.

  “What’s that?” I asked.

  “Water,” she said. “Water from the place I grew up.

  I nodded, and took another sip.

  A great cacophony of dust, and gravel kicked up outside the cafe. The road peeled up into sheets as the knight stopped in a giant skid.

  Out of the dust and debris, walked Michaela. Her mask slid open, and she doubled over, taking in gulps of air. When she looked up I saw bright red, splotchy cheeks, and blonde hair in a bun, and bright sparkly pink lipstick.

  “I just. Ran here. From Long Island. And you’re both. You’re both drinking?”

  “It’s water!” Kalea insisted.

  Michaela’s armor had been mostly white and rose gold, but was now all kinds of brown, and dust colored from the road. She sat in a chair next to me, and it promptly broke.