The carpet jetted from the opening. I had to veer sharply to avoid a huge tree, twisting my feet, and bringing the carpet to a halt. Trees and vines blocked every direction, granting very little room to maneuver. Hot humid air pressed against my skin. The sound of insects and other animals echoed through the dense forest. All these sensations flicked through my mind in an instant before my brain grasped the obvious. Kassus wasn't threading his way through the trees.
I directed the carpet straight up. We rose above the tree line. Steep canyon walls bordered a jungle valley on all sides. I wondered if we were in Africa, or lost in the jungles of South America.
"There!" Elyssa said, pointing to a receding form on a carpet several hundred yards away.
I swung the carpet around and willed it forward. Wind whistled past my ears, drawing tears from my eyes. This carpet's magical wind barrier didn't seem to be working. I dropped to my knees, pulling Elyssa down with me. Despite the wind, the magical bond holding us to the carpet felt firm. I hoped by ducking low, we'd be more aerodynamic.
Either it worked, or Kassus had a slower carpet. He grew closer in the distance.
Elyssa's grip tightened around my arm. "Look behind us."
I did and immediately regretted it. Trees bent and broke like twigs as something humongous plowed through them. Startled birds took flight in a riot of colors as a dragon obliterated their perches. A bellowing roar shook the air. Within an instant, it seemed every bird in the vicinity took flight with a cacophony of shrieks and squawks of alarm.
A wave of black bats flapped past us, bodies slamming against us as we jetted through the swarm. Elyssa and I ducked closer to the carpet as the air came to life with flapping bodies and high-pitched cries. I sputtered as a hairy body smacked into my face, its claws gripping my skin. I pulled away a frightened looking bat. I flung it away, spitting out hair, and felt my own spittle smack me in the face as the wind flung it right back at me.
Smooth move, Einstein.
The air cleared as the flying creatures gained altitude above us. I spotted Kassus fighting through a wave of white fowl. His staff threw out waves of energy ahead of him, turning the birds to blackened, smoking forms that fell back into the green canopy.
He turned to look at us, a fierce scowl radiating fury. He aimed his staff at us, but a stray bird conked him in the head. His aim shifted and a shaft of light scorched a score of birds nearby instead of us. A white blanket fluttered from the cradle of his other arm where he held the cupid.
He fired another shot. I veered left, easily dodging his attacks at this range. Kassus gave up his attempts, and angled up a cliff face. We followed. As we leveled off, even with a small plateau, I saw moving forms, a metal railing, and realized with horror Kassus was leading us straight toward what looked like a place where tourists viewed the magnificent sights behind us.
We were no more than fifty yards behind the Arcane. I saw people on the plateau pointing at us. Kassus aimed his staff at the railing where a man leaned on it, a large camera to his face. A narrow beam sliced the rails away. The man screamed as he fell forward into open air.
"Bastard!" I shouted, and took the carpet into a steep dive.
Elyssa gripped the man's hand just feet above the trees. The extra weight dragged on the carpet, pulling it toward the jungle. I gritted my teeth, straining, and willing the rug to rise. Its velocity slowed. Then it shot straight up while Elyssa swung the terrified man to the carpet.
"What the hell is this thing?" he cried out, falling to his knees and gripping the sides of the carpet.
"Where are we?" I asked.
His wide eyes stared blankly at me for a moment.
I snapped my fingers in his face. "Where are we?"
He blinked. "The Three Sisters."
"What country?"
He peered over the edge of the rug, and his face blanched. "Australia," he said through chattering teeth.
We crested the ledge, glided a foot off the ground as wide-eyed, dumbfounded people stared. Elyssa pried the man's hands from the edge of the carpet and guided him off. He stumbled, dropped to his knees, disbelieving eyes following us. I swung my gaze around the area, scanning for Kassus.
A piercing roar shattered the air and the entire ledge rumbled.
The dragon was coming. I spun the carpet back over the ledge and saw trees bursting from the ground in the monster's wake. Did it intend to come up here? The attention of the tourists shifted. Someone pointed over the railing and screamed as the dragon's glowing maw rose above the trees.
"Run!" I shouted. "Get out of here!"
Apparently, people had no problems taking advice from a man on a flying carpet, because they scattered, screaming. Anyone who didn't speak English seemed to take the cue from the panic of fellow humans and bolted toward a parking lot.
The ledge rattled. Chunks broke off, sending the rest of the railing and pay-per-use telescopes tumbling into the abyss. Elyssa gripped my arm, and pointed at a figure rising over a tree-topped hill before vanishing on the other side. I swung the carpet in pursuit, pulling into a steep climb. Tree tops brushed the bottom of the carpet as we raced along. At the peak, I spotted Kassus diving down the slope above the switchback road below and toward a plain dotted with scrubby bushes and rocks. A herd of kangaroos scattered as he swooped over them and toward a small town in the distance.
I angled to follow, kneeling to give us more speed. Just as Kassus reached the outskirts of the town, his carpet dropped a foot. He pounded a fist against it, but something seemed wrong with his ride.
Our carpet shuddered and slowed. My feet lost cohesion for a split second, and I gripped the side of the rug for support.
"The magical charge is running out," Elyssa said, her grip on my waist tightening.
"Looks like Kassus isn't having any better luck," I said.
The Arcane's carpet landed. Kassus stumbled off it and onto the road. A red car skidded to a halt just in time to miss the man. Our carpet lost more altitude. Kassus jerked the driver from the car, and got in. Tires screeched as the car raced into town.
I looked frantically for another car while the carpet slowed, drifting toward the ground. We might be able to catch Kassus on foot, but it would be much harder. How the hell did someone charge a magic carpet? I didn't see anywhere to plug it into an outlet. I thought back to the flying car and how I'd powered it. Planting my hand against the carpet, I closed my eyes, and willed aether to flow from me and into it. The fabric went limp and we dropped like rocks.
Elyssa cursed.
I looked down. Saw the ground rushing to meet us. This was going to effing hurt.
Power on, you stupid carpet!
I drew in a breath and blew out, willing power into the carpet. Energize! It went stiff. Caught the air. Shot forward just feet above the ground. I kept my hand on the carpet, pushing aether into it, unsure how to tell when it had a full charge.
A terrific rumbling sounded behind us. I whipped my head around to see the road churning behind us as if a mole the size of an airplane was tunneling beneath it. The upheaval shoved cars off the road, sent power poles leaning at crazy angles, and left a trench where the road used to be.
Kassus's car screeched around a corner. I shot above houses, aiming diagonally across the town. The leyworm changed course.
"How does that thing know where the baby is?" I asked Elyssa.
She shook her head, fear and wonder in her eyes. "Maybe the same way those things tracked that portable arch we used to escape from El Dorado."
I couldn't stop watching as a house literally bounced in the air in the leyworm's wake, breaking the structure in half when it landed. I looked for signs of life, praying nobody had been inside. More houses broke apart, collapsing as the earth bubbled then collapsed just as suddenly, shattering foundations and leaving nothing but rubble behind.
Kassus had to know he had nowhere to run, especially if the leyworm could follow him anywhere. His car emerged from the other side of the small town. I heard the motor roaring as he pressed the pedal to the floor. Slowly but surely, the car began to pull away. I willed more power into the carpet. It surged forward. Wind tore at my face, blurring my vision with tears. I pressed my lips tight and leaned into it.
Where is he going?
I looked back and saw the leyworm falling behind. It must be tiring. I couldn't imagine the amount of energy it took to move that much mass. The rippling earth receded, vanished. Had it given up?
Despite our extra speed, we weren't gaining on Kassus. I clenched my teeth, frustration building, rage simmering in my chest. He couldn't get away this time.
Get him!
My chest flared like an inferno. Heat blazed down my arm. The carpet shot forward. The scenery blurred for an instant, and we closed in on the car like it was standing still.
"Justin!" Elyssa shouted.
I didn't dare turn my head for fear of losing my concentration. I felt the fragile connection with my angel powers waver. The odor of burning rug reached my nose, and I knew we had to reach Kassus now or never.
"We're burning up!" Elyssa said, fear in her voice.
Not a lot of things frightened my ninja girlfriend that much, so I knew the situation had just hit code red. But I couldn't stop. Not now. The car was just twenty yards ahead.
I felt heat on my back. Felt the carpet going limp beneath us. I turned my head and saw blue flames sputtering in the wind. Nearly half the carpet was blackened or turned to ash and scattered in the wind. It lost power, and I knew this time I wouldn't be able to stop us from hitting the ground at horrific speed. Elyssa slapped her hands against my ribs. The nightingale armor grew webbing beneath my arms and between my legs.
"Hold your arms and legs out!" she said, an instant before spreading hers. The air caught in the webbing, and she glided away.
I did the same. The air slammed into me. Hot flames flashed past as the carpet plummeted to the ground. I slowed. For an instant, it felt like I was flying. Then I dropped. I tried to execute a roll when I hit the ground, instead landing awkwardly on a rock and twisting my ankle. I cried out with pain. Elyssa glided like a flying squirrel, ducked into a roll, and managed to miss the plentiful rocks before springing to her feet gracefully.