Page 162 of Cerulean Truth
“Like, whenever I ask you whether or not you’ve managed to figure out why those Radicals bled me out?”
Shit.
A harsh knock on the door saved me from having to answer impossible question, and opening it, I had never been so happy to see Julian standing there. Maybe not “happy” but there was definitely some relief.
“You guys ready?” he asked, while Emma slammed her suitcase shut.
We portaled quickly into the Basilica, where Dale, Maurice and Maria awaited us, and I grabbed Emma’s hand, squeezing it reassuringly.
“Right. This is the address,” Dale began, translating the location with the yellow drops of his Nexus. “We’ve arranged the accommodations for you upon arrival, and we’ll meet up after an hour at this address,” Dale continued, nexing the second location to us.
I glanced sideways, noticing Julian stare at Emma. Again. I’d noticed that throughout these last few weeks. How he stared at her. Not like she was his, would have killed him if he had, but like he expected her to…something. I couldn’t quite figure out what it was and it was driving me insane.
Before I could get lost in another mental rant about Julian’s real intentions, the Maumars disappeared through the first portal.
I quickly drew my own, squeezed Emma’s hand and jumped through it with her, clutching my arm, navigating my drops to Alliance.
As we stepped through, the world around us dissolved into a kaleidoscope of colors and shapes. When the disorientation faded, we found ourselves standing on the edge of a cliff, the rugged coastline of Upper Corsica stretching out before us.
The evening sun still shone on the cliff, which rose steeply from the azure waters below, its face weathered by centuries of wind and sea spray. This was the natural rocky foundation upon which the entire Collective of Alliance was built.
“Wow,” Emma breathed and I nodded. It wasn’t my first time at Alliance—I’d been a few times with Councilmember Anaïs Dubois—but its beauty still shook me to my core.
I gestured towards the cliff, its sheer walls rising high. "This is where it begins," I explained to her. "Every magi family in Alliance lives within these rock formations, hidden from the prying eyes of the outside world. Each enclave is nestled within the cliffs, invisible to those without magic."
I pointed towards a faint shimmer in the air, barely discernible to the untrained eye. "That's the ‘secret’ pathway," I continued. "Without translation, it's impossible to navigate these rocky heights. It's their first line of defense, a barrier that keeps them safe from intruders."
“Now what?” she asked, her eyes wide, taking it all in.
“We can’t portal through Layers of protection. So, we climb.” I grabbed her hand and lead her toward the pathway.
As we passed the first caves, Emma seemed shocked by their simplicity. “Magi live inside these caves?” she whispered.
I nodded. “Yeah, but don’t let those fool you. The inside of these caves are all magically enhanced. Most magi in Alliance live in greater luxury than Cyclos’s newest Leader.” I winked and Emma grinned.
“But they don’t have the luxury of eating your steak.”
I let out a laugh. “That is true. I guess there’s no greater luxury than savoring my…meat.”
Emma punched my upper arm. “That was very crude of you, mister Leader.”
I grinned. “Crude but true.”
She rolled her eyes, but her blush had spread from her cheeks to her entire face, and my heart raced at the sight of her beautiful features.Damn, I am falling hard for this woman.
“There’s something else, “ I changed the subject swiftly. “Not that it should matter, but Alliance is the only Collective wherethe haze is visible inside the sphere. Not traceable, except for yours maybe, but still visible.”
She frowned. “Why?”
I shrugged. “Something about educational purposes. Don’t really care, but keep it in mind, if we need to be stealthy tonight, your haze will be visible.”
She nodded in understanding. The rest of the climb we spent in comfortable silence, hoping we’d arrive to our destination before dark.
Reaching the top of the rock, we found ourselves in the midst of… nothing. I frowned. Had Dale steered us wrong?
It was now completely dark out, so I couldn’t entirely see where we were but it seemed like we were standing in a clearing, surrounded by trees on one side, a steep cliff downward on the other. I quickly translated some light and ran a location-diagnosis, gathering all the intel I could over a ten mile-radius.
“We still have to walk up a few yards,” Emma stated, completely ignoring my efforts.
