"Your arse must be RED."

Felony stretched, long and luxuriantly. Then she grinned at Ren.

"Nuh."

"Come on, two days hard riding—and you KNOW I ride hard—and you're not hurtin'?"

In fact, Felony was. She'd never had much to do with horses in her old life, and this was the first time she'd ever ridden on one. Still, apart from being stiff and sore, she didn't feel so bad. After one last stretch she had a little walk-and-look around this new place, the outskirts of a village on the road between Unity and Pyre. It was a drab sort of place, nothing more than a couple of dozen wooden houses clustered around a small church and a smaller tavern, miles and miles of corn and wheat fields surrounding. Even the warm light of the setting sun didn't do much to improve things.

"That was your first time on a horse?" Talise asked. She had her blonde hair tied back in a tight ponytail.

"Pretty much, yeah."

"You didn't bounce at all, I noticed."

"So?"

"It's unusual in someone who's never ridden before. You took to it well."

"Always been a quick learner," said Felony. She indicated the village with a jerk of her head. "This really where we're meeting the guy?"

"Yes," Talise said. "He was on assignment in this area."

"Why do we gotta take so many people on this thing? We're just picking something up, right?"

"It's Pyre. Mr Garnett felt it best to put as many available people as possible on this."

"Hey, we meeting Blue or what? I'm getting bored just standin' around," said Ren. "Need some action, huh?"

"Don't act up," Talise warned Ren, as they led their horses into the village. "You don't need to impress anyone."

"Hasn't ever been about impressing no one," Ren muttered. He glanced at Felony. "You like a little fun, don't ya? That's what it's about. If it's not fun, why do it?"

Felony wasn't listening to Ren. She was looking at the corn fields.

"What is it?" Talise asked.

"Hey."

Out from between the high stalks of corn a young man appeared. He was shabbily dressed in a brown tunic and trousers, and had scruffy brown hair and dark brown eyes. About the only interesting thing about him was the large gourd he had tied around his waist.

"Oh yeah, new girl," he said. "Felony, right? Some kind of perception adept or something?"

"Dunno what that is," Felony said, "but you were making more noise in there than a sackful of cats."

"Yeah," said the boy. "Maybe. I'm Kyle, call me Blue if you want. Kyle's good too."

"Why were you hiding in the corn?" Talise asked. Kyle shrugged with a lazy smile. "Come on, anyway. We have a long day tomorrow and I'd like to get some rest."

"Sure."

Kyle fell into step behind the others, and they continued into the village. There were a few people around, sitting and talking, although they stopped and stared as Felony and the others passed. Talise shot Ren a look as they approached the tavern.

"Edward's not here," she said, flatly. "So there's no need to show off, is there."

Ren shrugged one shoulder.

"Guess there isn't," he said. Felony didn't trust his tone.

"Who's Edward?" she asked Kyle, as Talise and Ren tied the horses to the hitching post outside the tavern. Kyle just shook his head, the lazy smile of before now gone.

Inside, the tavern was rough and rustic and surprisingly full. Over a dozen people stood or sat, drinking and chatting and laughing. Talise headed straight for the bar, but Ren shouldered past her and slammed both hands down.

"Need a room," he said. "Need food. Need plenty of drinks. And we ain't gonna pay for any of 'em." Ren leaned forward over the bar, staring the barkeep down. "You got a problem with that, old man?"

There was silence in the tavern, broken by the barkeep's snort of amusement (and Talise's quietly irritated 'here we go').

"Need you to turn around," said the barkeep. "Need you to step through that door. Need you to head plenty of miles east, till you get back to Harmony. Got a problem with that, boy?"

Ren stepped back. He raised his hand. There was a bright flash, and a sharp crack, and a mug near the barkeep exploded, showering him with ale and splinters and shards of hot pewter. He spluttered in pain as he fell back against the barrels behind him, bleeding from a dozen cuts on his face and arms, staring up at Ren as the boy vaulted the bar and stood over him.

"Need you to show a little respect," Ren growled.

"Ren. That's enough."

Ren looked back at Talise, grinning. "Yeah? You think so?"

Talise sighed pointedly, then turned to cast an eye over the silent and staring patrons. "It would probably be best if you left," she said. There was a short pause, then everyone made for the door, pushing and shoving in their haste to get out. Felony stepped aside for the crowd, a heaviness in her gut.

"Looks like we've got the place to ourselves," said Ren. He laughed. "Okay, 'Barkeep', you know what we want. Make it happen, huh?"

"Who the hell do you think you are?"

Felony looked over at the girl who had just spoken—she'd thought that the entirety of the tavern had been cleared out, but there was one girl remaining. She was short with broad shoulders, and her young eyes were hard as she walked slowly towards Ren.

"Oh good," said Ren. He grinned as he jumped over the bar once more. "A hero."

The girl pulled a weapon from her belt—a stout truncheon. Ren laughed.

"Not even a sword?" he said. "Probably better it ain't. For you, that is."

The girl raised the truncheon, her knuckles white as she gripped it.

"Let me guess," Ren continued. "Volunteer watch? Bet you've never even used—"

He grunted as the truncheon connected heavily with his ribs, staggering to the side before bringing his hand up—

"Don't!" Felony called, even as a blinding flash and a horrible crack filled the tavern. The girl cried out and staggered back, clutching her shoulder, her truncheon now lying on the floor beside her.

"Stupid little bitch," Ren growled, advancing on her. He pushed her hard and grabbed her hair to stop her from falling, then brought his free hand around in a ringing slap against her face. The girl cried out again, then gasped as Ren pushed her down—she fell heavily against the floor, catching a chair on the way down. Ren raised his hand, lightning crackling in his palm—

"Telling you now, Moreland. You do that and we're gonna have problems."

Ren looked back at Felony, irritation clear on his face. She had one of her knives out, and her feet were precisely placed.

"Felony's right, Ren," said Talise. "You've had your fun. Time to let it go."

Ren glared at Felony, then he turned to spit on the fallen girl.

"Not worth my time," he muttered, before righting a fallen chair and sitting in it. "Food! NOW!"

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Felony went to help the girl but she jerked away, struggling up on her own and retrieving her truncheon. With a last look of venomous hatred towards Ren, she limped out of the tavern, her teeth gritted hard, shame and rage in her every movement.

"Ah," said Ren, as the barkeep brought out a huge platter of food, bread and meat and corn. "Just what I was after."

Felony glared at him as he picked up a loaf of bread and tore it in half.

"Put that little knife away," Ren said, before looking up at Felony. He grinned at her. "Gonna have a decent bruise on my ribs, huh? Maybe rival the ones on your arse, 'Felony'. Come on, sit down, eat something, have a drink."

Felony glanced at Talise, who responded with a half-shrug and a 'now you see what I have to deal with' look. Kyle was already moving to sit beside Ren.

With a soft exhalation, Felony put her knife away. Talise nodded at her, a mark of approval, then approached the barkeep.

"Here," she said, putting a full pouch of coins on the bar. "For our food and lodging and any damage caused. Share it with the others in the village. Make sure they know that nothing happened here this evening. Do you understand?"

The barkeep nodded without looking up, then went to fill some mugs with ale, leaving the pouch on the bar, untouched.

"Made your job easier tonight, huh?" said Ren, as the barkeep delivered the drinks with shaking hands. "Just one table to deal with." He belched, then stood suddenly, making the barkeep jump. "I'm not gonna bite you," he said, with a laugh. "Just need to go drain the lizard, where's your back room?"

Felony watched Ren swagger off to the toilet, then looked at Talise.

"What the HELL was all that about?" she demanded. "I mean, I've worked with some amateurs before but that was—"

"That was part of the price of having a powerful lightning adept on our side," said Talise, smoothly. "Part of my role within this group is dealing with the consequences of Ren's 'fun'. It's easier to do it this way than try to stop him, and it keeps him happy." She smiled coldly at Felony. "Even so, I'm glad you stepped in when you did. Good timing."

Felony sat down and shook her head.

"I hope this isn't going to be a problem for you—"

"Nuh. Long as Moreland realises, he takes things too far he's gonna end up with a couple inches of steel between his ribs."

Talise smiled again, not quite so coldly as before.

"I'll make sure he knows," she said, just before Ren came back into the common room.

"Worst commode I ever saw," he said, before laughing and grabbing a hunk of beef. "Wasn't expecting more from a crappy little nowhere place like this, but whatever, huh?"

"Yeah," said Kyle, with a laugh.

"Got to thinking while I was doing my business, should've kept that little watchgirl around, bet she'd be a ton of laughs in the sack, you know what I'm saying?"

Kyle nodded slowly as Ren tore into the meat. "She had a kind of rustic charm," he said. Ren laughed again.

"Yeah, good one. Not really my type, but. I go more for the fit, dark and interesting kind of girl." His eyes fell on Felony. "What do you say, 'Felony'? Wanna go a round tonight?"

Felony looked straight at Ren. "No," she said.

"You sure? Like I told you earlier, I ride hard."

Felony leant forward, her eyes dark. "No."

"Yeah? That your last word?"

"My last word," Felony said, "is 'never'."

"Wow, heavy," said Ren, grinning at her. He shrugged. "Your loss."

Kyle laughed. "Maybe you'll have better luck with the next new girl."

"Pyrian? No thanks!"

Kyle shrugged with a smile. Ren turned in his seat.

"Barkeep!" he yelled. "Our rooms ready?"

"A-aye—"

"Gonna go check 'em out." Ren got up, grabbed a loaf of bread from the table, and went off to the back of the tavern. Felony watched him go, then turned to Talise.

"How do you put up with him?"

"By remembering that he's not my friend. You don't have to like him, Felony, you just have to tolerate him. If we get into a real fight, you'll be glad you did."

Felony picked up a piece of meat and chewed on it. "We'll see," she said.

"I sincerely hope this isn't going to be a problem for you—"

"We'll see," Felony repeated. She grinned at Talise. "We've all got our lines, yeah? Long as Moreland don't cross mine, I'll tolerate him just fine."

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

Fin stood before Selene, Sophia and the others, his cane held in his hands. They had stopped for the night at a small cottage on the outskirts of a tiny village; a cottage belonging to Fin, or so he claimed. It was certainly empty, and clearly had been for a long time. Outside of the house was a fire pit surrounded by logs, upon which the girls were seated. It was night, the sun just set, and Fin was lit by the flickering light of the fire, giving him a somewhat otherworldly appearance.

"We are now less than a day's travel from the Pyrian border," he began. "Tomorrow we will cross it. But before we do, I want to give all of you a clear choice. Pyre can be a dangerous place. If it is discovered that we possess the extraordinary abilities that we do, we will undoubtedly face severe punishment, perhaps even execution."

"Huh. Guess they could try executing me. Dunno how far they'd get."

"Exactly," Fin said, smiling at Ashley. "We would not go quietly, I'm sure that is a sentiment we all share. Additionally, I believe that if we work together and keep our heads the risk we face will be minimal. However, I fully understand if there are some of you who would rather not take any risk at all. Should any of you choose not to venture into Pyre by my side you can instead stay here, in this cottage, until the rest of us return."

Ashley pushed herself to her feet. She rubbed the back of her neck and glanced around at the others.

"Pretty sure you all know how I feel about this junk," she said. "That it's a damn idiotic idea to go into Pyre at all. We've all heard the stories, yeah? Yeah. That's why Maya—" she turned to look at her sister "—you ain't coming with us."

"What? No!" Maya stood up. "Ash, I don't mind, I'll be okay, don't leave me on my own!"

"It's too dangerous, like Fin said," said Ashley. "What are you gonna do if we get in trouble? Yeah, I'd be there to protect you, but it's better if you ain't even around for me to worry about."

"No!" Maya said. "I'm coming with you! I ... I've been practising really hard, I'm good at doing that attack thing that Mr Fin taught me now, I really am!"

"Don't wanna hear it, kid. It's—"

"I think Maya is capable of making her own decisions."

Ashley turned to glare at Selene.

"You stay outta this, Princess."

"No," said Selene. "I stand by what I said. You're Maya's sister, yes, but you don't control her. She wants to come with us. I think she should."

"Thank you, Selene," said Maya, quietly. Ashley gritted her teeth.

"We'll talk about this tomorrow," she said, to Maya. "Hear me? This ain't over."

With another vicious glare at Selene, Ashley sat down.

"Anyone else too chicken to come with us?" she muttered.

There was silence around the campfire.

Then Ada stood up.

"I..."

She trailed off. For a moment she looked very lost and small, then she raised her head and began again: "I'm really scared. Even thinking about the sort of things that happen in Pyre, I feel scared. I heard a lot of stories from people at my ... at the college. There were some books about it, too. But ... but I want to do what I can, to help build this home for all of us. Uh, and not ... not just us. Everyone with powers—abilities like ours. If this statue will help, then I'll do whatever I can to get it. Even ... even if that means danger and fighting." Ada smiled at Fin; weakly, but bravely. "I'm coming with you, Mr Fin. You can count on me."

"Thank you, Miss Hasard," said Fin. "I appreciate your commitment. Rest assured that I will do everything in my power to ensure your safety—the safety of all of you."

Ada sat down again, her cheeks flushed.

"Sophia," Fin said. "I'm not sure if you're ready to—"

"I know that I haven't been able to do anything yet," said Sophia. "But I'm sure I just need to practise some more. Besides which, you're not leaving me behind on my own. I'm coming with you, Mr Fin."

Fin nodded.

"Lina, you—"

"I'll come," Lina said, in her usual flat, emotionless voice.

"Very well. I believe I already know Selene's choice."

"You do," Selene said, gazing at the fire.

"Then I suppose we shall all stay together. In honesty I also think this to be best. And after we have found the statue..."

Fin trailed off, a thoughtful look on his face.

"Perhaps now would be a good time to tell you all where our home is to be." He took a breath. "Technically, it's in Crove—"

"What?" Ashley turned on Fin. "Are you touched? First Pyre, now CROVE? That's where we're supposed to be living? You're kidding, yeah?"

"Miss Ashley, have you heard of the Desert of Ruins?"

"I have," said Sophia, perhaps noting the blank look on Ashley's face. "It's to the south, between Targe and Crove. Clock Face is located near its edge. But there's nothing in it, just ... ruins."

"Yes, most people believe this to be true," said Fin. "That there is nothing of interest there. But I know of a place, a city, not entirely whole but then not entirely ruined, either. A city where water flows beneath and fruit trees grow wild above, where strong stone buildings stand firm against the desert winds. An oasis. A sanctuary. The place nobody goes; our future home."

"But Crove—"

"The desert isn't really part of Crove," Sophia said, interrupting Ashley. "And from what I've read, Crovians avoid it just as much as Targans. It's right up against the Peakless Mountains, and there are no roads going through it. The place nobody goes," she said, repeating Fin's words, her voice soft. "It sounds ... amazing."

"I agree," said Ada, her eyes shining in the firelight.

Ashley looked around at the others, then shook her head.

"Yeah, whatever, fine," she said. "Desert in Crove, of COURSE that's where we're all gonna live. Still don't believe there's gonna be anything there so I guess it don't much matter where it ain't."

"I believe it'll be there," said Maya. "Ash, why can't you just ... why..."

Ashley forced a grin at her sister. "It's okay, kid," she said. "You know me, always mouthing off. Lost city in the desert, great. Can't wait to see it."

Maya looked at Ashley with worried eyes, then smiled at Fin.

"So after we find the statue, we'll go there?"

"We will indeed. It's been a long journey, rather longer than I intended, and even once we get there our work will have just begun ... but," Fin said, with a smile, "in the end, I believe all of our efforts will be worth it."

"So where is this city?" Sophia asked. "I mean ... more precisely."

"Nearer the northern edge of the desert than the southern," said Fin. "And nearer to the eastern edge than to the western, insofar as the desert can be said to have an 'eastern edge'—it's rather close to the Peakless Mountains, is perhaps what I should have said, just past the point of them if you look on a map. Have you ever heard of a town named Seven Rise?"

Sophia shook her head.

"Odd little place north of Clock Face. The city is probably closest to that than anything. Further than that it's difficult to say; a place more felt than found."

"Not even gonna ask what that's supposed to mean," said Ashley. She glanced at Fin. "You ain't got nothing more to say, yeah? Nothing important? I'm gonna sleep, then. Another long day tomorrow, yeah?"

Fin smiled at her. "Miss Ashley," he said, "you took the words right out of my mouth."