Our horses galloped up the long dirt path leading to what had been a sweet, peaceful home until Flare disturbed it. I should have realized that she might have stayed in our simulation and that Elsie could have been in danger. We had to find the girl before anything happened.

Nash had not spoken or taken his eyes off the distance since we left, only rode with his body as tense as when he first saw Flare holding his child. Nothing I said could comfort him, so instead of trying, I focused solely on trying to detect either Flare or Elsie.

As we drew closer to Trish's home, I didn’t feel Flare or hear her heart beating. But I did hear someone else.

“Elsie’s here,” I said. “Inside.”

Nash kicked his horse's side and sped for the house. He'd not stopped the horse completely when he dismounted and sprinted to the house. I followed closely after him.

“Elsie!” Nash slammed the door against the wall so hard the house shook. I thought for sure the door would break free. “Trish!”

The bedroom door opened. “We’re safe,” Trish said, moving aside as Nash burst into the room and swept past her.

There on her bed, Elsie slept beneath her blankets, looking unharmed. A man, who must have been Trish’s husband, sat at the foot of the bed.

Nash collapsed at her bedside and grabbed her into his arms, cradling her head against him as he sat back against the bed. I pressed my knuckles to my mouth.

“Flare?” Wren asked, breathing hard in the doorway.

Trish shook her head. Her cheeks were stained with tears. “She placed Elsie at the door and disappeared.”

“Disappeared how?” I asked.

Trish looked confused but there was no time to explain. “On her horse. She rode off too fast for me to even get a good look at her.”

“She’s a coward,” I said. At least she didn't have the ability to travel instantly any longer. Surely, she would have used it today if she did.

“I’m sorry,” Nash whispered, kissing the crown of Elsie’s head. “I’m so sorry, baby girl. I’ll never let her get to you again.”

“Daddy…” Elsie’s eyes opened slowly.

“Hi, baby,” he whispered, a smile crawling onto his face.

"I'm sorry." Trish wiped her eyes. "I didn't stay at the cabin. We came home. It's my fault."

"It isn't your fault," I said quietly. "It's Flare's." Relief washed over me as Elsie nestled her head against her father. My people were safe now and so was Elsie. Still, what could have happened haunted me.

I turned to Piercey. "Take care of them." Fire burned within me. "Start for the Mountain of the Gods."

"Max–" Wren reached for me but I rushed past and continued through the door without stopping.

----------------------------------------

No matter how fast I rode, I couldn't catch up to Flare. She'd left plenty of clumsy tracks in her trail, but she was a fast rider, and her head start had really put me behind.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

This wasn't working. I had to try something else, something I'd always failed at as a child, but might manage now that I had Piercey's knowledge and had unleashed my power. If ever there were a time to do it, now was that time.

I reached forward with my power, stretching myself in a search for her heartbeat.

My eyes slid closed as I rode. The woods rippled.

I heard the muffled beating and felt the distance between myself and Flare as if I could catch it and rip it away.

When I opened my eyes, I gave in to the pull of time and space, and the trees around me snapped shut.

I stood in a field facing Flare. She jerked back on the reigns of her mare, so the horse whinnied and snapped back. Nearly fell.

That was no slip. I'd propelled myself forward, ripped through space-time, and planted myself right before her.

The fire of my wrath burned so hot that nothing could survive its flames, especially not shock at how I'd yielded my power. The question was whether I'd ever be able to do it again but at least I had this time. With steady hands, I ripped my bow from my back and aimed right at her face. "Did you truly think you would escape from me?"

Flare climbed down from her horse, the anger burning in her eyes even more brightly than the fear. "Kill me and I'll have no choice but to break in from outside the simulation. It'll be almost instant for you and much more dangerous."

My fingers twitched against my arrow. "I'll let you live and play your games here, as long as you don't try to take back control."

Flare's shoulders shook as she laughed. "I can't blame you for trying, dear girl, but that must be your most pathetic attempt yet." She folded her arms over her chest. "And don't think that because it took Piercey years to figure this out that you'll have that much time with me. I helped create worlds like this. I know the code. I will have control back, whether I take it back from within the simulation or outside of it."

"You aren't good with your power."

"Not with the power you use. This world wastes the potential of the neural implant on war. You trained yourself for its most barbaric and primitive uses. I am a master of sophisticated technology you cannot begin to imagine."

"Maybe I should kill you, then. It'll be more dangerous for our world if you try to break in from outside the simulation. You may not risk it."

"Foolish girl." Flare narrowed her eyes. "I won't dust off my hands and walk away. You're lucky I won't, because you can never leave the closed circuit of this world to enter the after-life until I release you. You'll slumber eternally. You need me to take back control."

My stomach tightened. "Slumber?"

"None of you are released to the after-life when you die. I keep you here until we're done with the experiment. You're trapped here, Max, even in death. If I let you keep control of your world, no one will ever live again."

I coiled my muscles. "Is that your plan? To keep me here forever? To keep everyone who knows what you did here so we can never tell the council discovers what you've been up to?"

A laugh burst from her. "When you wake up in the after-life, you have no memories. You must seek out your memories if you want them. Most people never remember everything because they don't want to. Only a few seek and or attain enlightenment over centuries. I don't need to strand you here in this world."

I refused to let her get to me. Even though it seemed certain she would regain control of the world, certain she'd lord over us and have total control of our life here and the one beyond, I'd come too far to quit. "You are the god of this world, Flare, but you don't have all the power. I've fought you in every life I've lived and I'll fight you in death if you steal this life from me. You're breaking your own council's rules and ethical codes. You're tampering with our world in ways no one should. I'll make sure everyone finds out."

Flare's eyes narrowed. "It's difficult to kill you given my current limitations. If you won't relent, which I know you won't, then I'll just have to get creative."

"So, it's war. Have fun trying to kill me, Flare. You may find the lack of amenities in this world distracting. All the war and disease can be a nuisance too. I sure hope none of this detracts from the time you need to take back control."

There was hope. We had to keep her busy. In her hubris, she always gave me more information that she had to, just to see the look on my face as I witnessed her power and might. Today she'd given me something I could use, even if I didn't know how to quite yet. There was a way to reach the after-life from this world.

One day, I would crush Flare–Dr. Henderson. I would stop her from ever controlling my world and all of us who lived in it again.

But for now, I needed to see my people to safety, and we all needed time to heal.