Kael and Mira ran through the narrow streets of Raven's Crossing.
Behind them, angry shouts echoed through the town square.
"After them!"
The Highland captain's voice carried through the streets like thunder.
Kael didn't slow down.
"We need to get out of the town!" he said, breathing heavily.
Mira shook her head while running beside him.
"Not yet."
Kael looked at her in confusion.
"What do you mean, not yet?!"
Mira turned down another alley, jumping over broken crates.
"If we run straight out, the soldiers at the gates will catch us."
Kael realized she was right.
The Highland soldiers always guarded the entrances to towns.
If they tried to leave now, they would run straight into another group of soldiers.
"We need another way," Mira said.
They turned another corner and suddenly stopped.
The alley ended at a tall stone wall.
Kael groaned.
"Great."
Behind them, footsteps were getting closer.
The soldiers were catching up.
Mira looked up at the wall.
It was at least three times her height.
"Can you climb?" she asked.
Kael shook his head.
"Not that fast."
More soldiers appeared at the end of the street.
"There!" one of them shouted.
Mira sighed.
"Well, this is inconvenient."
The soldiers rushed toward them.
Kael felt the heat of his magic rising again.
Flames flickered around his hands.
"Ignis!"
He fired a blast of fire down the alley.
The soldiers jumped back as the flames exploded across the ground.
But it only slowed them for a moment.
"There are too many!" Kael said.
Mira glanced at the wall again.
Then she smiled.
"I have an idea."
She stepped forward and placed her hands against the stone wall.
"Stand back," she said.
Kael quickly moved aside.
Mira focused her magic.
Flames slowly gathered around her palms.
"Ignis!"
Instead of shooting forward, the fire blasted directly into the wall.
The stone cracked loudly.
Dust and small pieces of rock fell to the ground.
But the wall didn't break.
The soldiers were almost upon them now.
"Again!" Kael said.
Mira nodded.
This time, Kael stepped beside her.
"Let's do it together."
Mira glanced at him and grinned.
"Now you're thinking like a magician."
They both raised their hands.
The fire inside Kael surged stronger than before.
"Ignis!"
"IGNIS!"
Two streams of fire slammed into the stone wall.
CRACK!
The wall shattered.
A large hole opened through the stone.
Sunlight poured through the broken gap.
Beyond it lay open fields.
"Go!" Mira shouted.
They jumped through the hole just as the soldiers reached the alley.
The captain appeared behind them, his expression furious.
"Stop them!"
But Kael and Mira were already running across the grassy fields outside the town.
The wind rushed past them as they sprinted down the hill.
After several minutes, they finally slowed down.
Kael collapsed onto the grass, breathing heavily.
"That… was… insane," he said between breaths.
Mira laughed and sat beside him.
"You did well."
Kael stared up at the sky.
Far above, the floating Highlands still shone over the continent.
"They're going to keep chasing us," he said.
"Of course," Mira replied.
"That's what the Highlands do."
Kael sat up slowly.
"So what now?"
Mira thought for a moment.
Then she pointed toward the distant mountains on the horizon.
"There's a place beyond those mountains."
Kael followed her gaze.
"What place?"
Mira's expression became serious.
"A hidden city."
"Built by the magicians who erased the dragons."
Kael's eyes widened.
"You mean the survivors?"
Mira nodded.
"That's the rumor."
She stood up and brushed the dust from her clothes.
"If we're going to fight the Highlands…"
She looked back at Kael.
"…we're going to need to find them first."
Kael stood as well.
The journey was becoming bigger than he had ever imagined.
Villages.
Cities.
Magicians hiding across the continent.
And a kingdom in the sky built on lies.
Kael clenched his fists.
The fire inside him burned brighter than ever.
"Then let's find them."
Together, they began walking toward the distant mountains.
Unaware that far behind them, the Highland captain stood on the broken wall of Raven's Crossing, watching them escape.
His eyes were cold with anger.
"Run while you can," he muttered.
"Soon, the entire Highlands will know your name."