Jake stood frozen in fear. He couldn't believe what he saw. Why would Varidia attack the mages? Jake heard the chaos and panic around him, but it became background noise. He watched the growing flames with horror. The fires began setting off a chain reaction of more explosions, spreading the destruction. Sirens blared as emergency vehicles headed toward the Mage Quarter and the academy. As Jake watched, a sound finally snapped him out of his stupor. He heard Shaylie crying.

"No, this isn't happening again," she said repeatedly.

Jake turned and gently took her face in his hands. "Shaylie, we have to remain strong. We need to go find Maya." He looked into her eyes and felt her relax slightly. Her eyes focused on his, and she nodded. Before Jake could say anything else, the door behind him opened, and Bret stumbled into the parking lot.

"Is the world ending?" he asked.

"Varidians bombed the Mage Society and the academy," Jake said.

"They what!?" Bret yelled. The revelation seemed to sober him up immediately. He stood straighter and looked toward the growing flames. Bret's mouth hung open and trembled. "Why?" he asked.

"I don't know, but we need to go find Maya. She was at her apartment," Jake said. "Where's Marcus?" Jake added. He turned to look for him and saw Marcus' patrol car pulling into the street. Marcus sped away with the siren blaring. He didn't intend to bring them with him. "Bret, can you open a portal to the Mage Quarter?" Jake asked.

"I-I think so," Bret said, but he almost tripped when he turned to face them.

"Never mind. Shaylie, can you do it?" Jake asked.

"Yes, but there is so much fire. I need a safe location," she said.

Jake enhanced his vision as much as possible and scanned the area until he found a spot. "There," he pointed. "Next to the Hilltop Lofts."

Shaylie lifted her hand. A round portal appeared before them, and her eyes glowed blue. Jake saw and felt the flames through the opening, but the street beyond the portal was clear of danger. Jake seized Bret and Shaylie's hands before leading them into the fray. They emerged into an inferno, and sweat immediately formed on Jake's brow. He could hear screaming but had to block it out and focus.

"Our apartment is that way," Shaylie said, pointing west of them.

Jake turned in that direction, but the wall of a nearby store exploded, sending debris into their path. Bret channeled a gush of water to extinguish as much of the flames as possible, but it didn't provide them passage.

"We'll have to go around," Jake said.

"Wait, give me a second," Bret said. He produced enough water to splash his face. It helped him regain some composure. "Okay, I can teleport us to the other side of the mess," he said, grabbing their hands.

"Are you sure?" Jake asked.

"Trust me!" Bret yelled, and then Jake felt the strange sensation of warping through the air. When it ended, they were past the wreckage.

Jake felt a sharp pain. He looked down to see a little trickle of blood from his thigh. He glared at Bret. "Shaylie will do the teleporting next time," Jake said.

"Sorry," Bret replied.

"Worry about it later!" Shaylie yelled as she ran toward her apartment. She had to teleport them two more times before they arrived. They found the complex engulfed in flames, much to Shaylie's dismay. "No! Maya!" Shaylie screamed. Shaylie ran toward her building, but Jake grabbed her arm.

"It's too dangerous," he said. "Both of you douse the flames in water. I can harden my skin and rush in if you create an opening."

Shaylie and Bret nodded and raised their arms. Torrents of water shot toward the burning walls. Steam rose while they worked, but they created enough of an opening for Jake to enter. He headed straight for Shaylie's door and shouldered it off its hinges. It splintered and collapsed, but he found the living room empty.

"Maya!" Jake called. He did it again when no one answered. Jake checked every room, but the flames returned. They couldn't fight them forever. "I don't think she's here," Jake said. As Jake said this, he heard screams from the neighboring apartment. Jake slammed through the connecting wall and found a young woman trapped underneath a burning beam. He removed the obstruction, ignoring the burns, and lifted the woman into his arms. Jake rushed her to a safe spot and laid her down because she passed out.

"My husband," she muttered upon waking. "Where is he?"

Jake turned to look into the room where he found her. He used his heightened senses to locate the man. Jake spotted him. He thought the man might be dead, but Jake focused until he heard a faint heartbeat.

"Jake, be careful," Shaylie yelled when she saw Jake rush back inside. She tried to put out enough of the fire to keep him safe.

Jake emerged with the man over his shoulder and placed him beside his wife. The problem was that the man became unresponsive. Jake saw the panic in the wife's eyes, and he attempted to revive the man. "Breathe, dammit," Jake said while he worked. It was no use. Jake's attempts weren't working, which only frustrated Jake more.

"Jake," Shaylie said, placing a hand on his arm. She gave him a look that said it was too late, but she didn't dare say it out loud in front of the wife.

Tears streamed down Jake's face, mixing with the sweat and soot. He wiped them away, making the mess worse. Jake started to speak, but a loud explosion interrupted him.

"We have to get out of here," Shaylie said. "Everybody grab someone," she yelled. Once she ensured they were all linked, Shaylie teleported their group to safety. They landed in a clearing close to the apartments and flagged down a passing emergency vehicle. Then Shaylie's phone rang. She saw Maya's name on the screen and joyfully cried as she answered the call. "Maya! Where are you?" Shaylie asked.

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"I'm at Larson Engineering with my parents. What happened?" Maya asked.

"Varidians bombed us."

"What!? Are you okay?" Maya asked.

"I'm fine. Jake and Bret are here with me," Shaylie said. She plugged one ear and held the phone close to the other. Shaylie struggled to hear Maya over the din of madness around her. "Are Mom and Dad alright?" Shaylie asked.

"Yes, they're with us. Shaylie, I'm scared," Maya said. She started to say more, but an unexpected noise interrupted her.

"Was that gunfire?" Shaylie asked.

"I think they're here!" Maya yelled, and the call ended abruptly.

"We have to get to Larson's!" Shaylie said. She didn't wait for an answer. Shaylie grabbed Jake and Bret's hands and teleported them before they realized what was happening. They appeared in the lobby of the engineering shop, but no one was there. "Where are they?" Shaylie asked.

"Upstairs," Jake said.

Shaylie led them to the living quarters above the shop. They found the group huddled in a corner behind a wall of furniture. Maya hugged Shaylie when they reached them, but the moment didn't last. The gunshots grew closer, putting everybody on high alert.

"What the hell is happening?" Van Larson asked.

"They're invading again," Shaylie cried.

"But why? I thought the Varidians wanted peace now," Kiran Abbott said.

"Apparently not. And how did they make it as far as Endria City without someone noticing or stopping them?" Van asked. "None of this makes sense."

Van didn't have time to process this. He heard someone kick open the shop's front door and enter the building. Silence filled the room as they waited. Jake listened closely. "They're coming up the stairs. Be ready," Jake whispered. He nodded at Bret and Mr. Larson, who began channeling magic. Jake's heart pounded so loudly that he worried the soldiers might hear it. Thankfully, Jake could also sense their heartbeats. He knew exactly where they were. Jake used this to his advantage. "There are two of them," Jake said. "If we can catch them off guard, we have a chance."

"Jake, what are you planning?" Shaylie asked.

"We have to strike first. Back me up," Jake said. He held up a hand and started counting down with his fingers. When he reached zero, Jake charged at the door. He smashed through it, plowing into the soldier on the other side. The impact sent the man flying through the opposite wall. His partner raised his gun, but Maya used telekinesis to redirect the barrel. His shots fired through the ceiling of the hallway instead. While the soldier struggled against Maya's magic, Jake punched him. The strike shattered the man's jaw with a sickening crunch and twisted his head around. He crumpled to the ground, but the first man freed himself from the wreckage of the wall. Jake lifted his hand and nailed the man in the chest with a chi blast.

"Was that all of them?" Maya asked.

"For now," Jake said, staring at his hands. Blood dripped from his knuckles. He panted and gasped for air. Jake hadn't realized he was panicking until the fighting stopped. His ears rang, and his mind raced.

"Jake, are you okay?" Shaylie asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"I-I've never killed someone before," Jake said while trying to stop his body from shaking.

"It's okay, son. You did what you had to do to protect us," Van Larson said. As he spoke, they heard more soldiers coming. The sounds of fighting drew them to their location.

"In here," a voice said from below.

Van pushed Jake back toward the corner of the room and said, "I'll take the lead this time. Protect them while I hold the soldiers off." Jake nodded and joined the others at the back of the room. Van turned toward his wife. They didn't speak, but Jake thought they were still communicating. Sure enough, Gloria Larson acted once the soldiers arrived. She sent a desk sliding across the room. It caught the first man by surprise and knocked him head over heels. Van struck him with a small bolt of electricity that incapacitated him. Another Varidian appeared, but Van electrocuted him as well. Jake had never seen Van this way. His eyes blazed a bright blue. Jake could feel the electricity crackling in the air as Van channeled magic. It made the hairs on Jake's arm stand up.

"More are coming," Jake said, listening to the sounds outside. These men slowed down and approached the building cautiously.

"Surrender, and we will not harm you!" a voice called.

"What the hell?" Jake asked, looking confused. Jake explained himself when Bret stared at him questioningly. "That's the worst Varidian accent I've ever heard. Is this a joke?"

"I don't understand," Bret said.

"Neither do I," Jake replied. He walked over to the soldier Van had electrocuted and examined him closer. "Look at this! His uniform has old bullet holes in it."

Van touched the spot on the uniform Jake pointed at and said, "There's old blood on it, too. We didn't shoot these men. Something isn't right about this."

"But why..." Bret started, but the men downstairs took their silence as a refusal to surrender and moved toward the stairs. He didn't need heightened senses to hear them. They almost reached the door, but something stopped them. Bret moved toward the window and looked down to see a Royal Guard cruiser arrive with its siren blaring. Marcus emerged and started fighting with the soldiers below.

"Backup just arrived," Bret smiled. The men on the stairs retreated to join the fight. Bret opened the window and aimed toward the front door. He rained fire down, cutting the soldiers off from attacking Marcus. The distraction allowed Marcus to take out the men he was fighting against and blast the soldiers behind Bret's firewall.

"Thanks, Cable," Marcus said, nodding at Bret.

"Don't mention it," Bret replied.

Marcus climbed the stairs and entered their room. He looked around at the mess and bodies. "Are you all okay?" Marcus asked.

"We're fine. How bad is it out there?" Jake asked.

"It's bad. They destroyed the academy and most of the Mage Quarter. Now, they seem to target places where mages live throughout the city. Something isn't right. How did they know exactly where to go?" Marcus said. "I came here because I saw a few heading in this direction."

"Yeah, we got their attention," Jake said.

"Why am I not surprised you're at the center of that attention?" Marcus laughed, but his laughter didn't have much life behind it. Marcus looked weary. Blood and burn marks littered Marcus' skin. "We could use some help, but I haven't been able to reach the guard station. They must have attacked it. The radio is dead," Marcus said.

"Where are our soldiers?" Jake asked.

"That's a good question. Something feels off about this," Marcus replied.

"You're telling me! Look at this," Jake said, pointing at the dead Varidian on the floor.

Marcus noticed the same thing they did. He poked at the old bullet holes and shook his head. Jake heard a muttered curse under Marcus' breath. "I don't think we're going to get any help," he said.

"What do you mean?" Bret asked.

"I mean this..." Marcus started, but a booming voice interrupted him. Someone was using a magically-amplified voice to address the city.

"Surrender the Red Sparrow, and the attack will stop! We only want the Red Sparrow!" the voice said in a phony Varidian accent. Marcus recognized it as such, just as Jake had.

"Who the hell is the Red Sparrow?" Jake asked, but he heard someone at the back of the room gasp.

***

Inside the tower, Darian watched the attack from his viewing room. He stood at the panoramic window with his hands clasped behind his back. Renault communicated with the men on the ground through a radio. Darian heard snippets of their conversation but focused more on what lay before him. After getting an update, Renault joined Darian.

"We should send in Endrian soldiers to stop the attack before people grow suspicious," Renault said.

"Yes. That should be enough. We made our point," Darian said casually.

"Do you think we killed the Sparrow?"

"Maybe. But if we didn't, we have them scared and on the run. I had to send a message that defiance has consequences."

"The prophecy said you would set your fate in motion with these events. Aren't you worried you did just that?" Renault asked. Darian didn't look away from the window. He stared in silence before answering.

"Perhaps I did, but I will be ready for them when they arrive. Snyder began human testing this morning."

"You think you can beat this?"

"I have to," Darian said, taking his longest drink yet. "If I don't, I'll do everything I can for my kingdom before I fall."