Through Infinite Realms by Adams P R

Author:Adams, P R
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Promethean Tales
Published: 2022-04-25T16:00:00+00:00

33

Clouds smothered the moon, robbing the night of light. Something about that troubled Quil, but he could not put a finger upon the problem. Yes, it was dark, but he had operated under such conditions previously.

Naru tugged on his arm. “You okay?”

“Does something appear to be wrong with me?”

Her eyes went to the clouds, then she shivered. “I thought maybe you felt it, too.”

That was what had been troubling him. “The malaise?”

“Sure? I mean, mostly I feel almost sick? Tired, y’know? It comes in waves, I guess.”

And as it flashed through the woods, it changed things. Quil had noticed it—smelled its influence in the way seasons turn. Then he had simply…forgotten about it. How better to reflect the change than to alter his awareness of it?

He hugged the hacker close beneath the tree they had chosen for cover as they surveyed the slope down to the clearing outside the castle walls. The young woman flinched but did not complain. Perhaps she felt dirty after their descent into the ruins. That had carried with them the residual stench of things festering and collapsing, but would anyone really notice in the dormitory?

In the dark beneath the bough, he failed to notice her fingers sliding beneath his until the brushoff fully registered.

That was when the realization of what he had done sank in, and he blushed.

She inched away. “Maybe we could focus on rescuing your girlfriend before you make your move on me?”

“It would be unfair for me to blame the malaise for my inappropriate—”

“At least you only hugged me, Quil. I’ve experienced a lot worse.”

Her tone had a finality in it that left him blushing even harder. Such complete darkness had advantages. The hum of the wind that had awaited them when they had climbed from the ruins had advantages, too.

The pseudo cursed himself and squared his shoulders. What had come over him? “We cannot risk flashlights crossing through the tall grass.”

“I wasn’t planning on it.”

She hopped out from the cover of the tree, then raced down the slope toward the castle wall. It was a dangerous thing to do with so little visibility. Possibly, it was an indication of her discomfort around him after his inappropriate assumption of her desires. As he chased after her, he wondered what other things he had done since the first ripple of transformative and corrupting energy that might have offended the hacker.

Dew wet his shoes by the time he reached level ground, at which point he quite nearly lost his footing and rolled into the rustling black blades.

Naru spun around. “Quil?”

“I slipped on the wet grass. Keep going.”

After a pause, she started forward, then dropped out of sight. He rushed forward, concerned at first, then doing exactly the same thing when he realized what she must have seen: a light atop the wall.

When had there ever been someone up there?

He crawled up to where she lay, staring up at the unmoving globe of illumination. She held a finger to her lips, as if she thought he might blurt out some stupid message about his arrival.

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