Alchemist Read Free

saving the world.”
    Conner
laughed. “I wouldn’t say that, we never quite saved the world.”
    “No, but we did a
lot more than most people will ever do in their lifetimes.”
    “It makes you kind
of long for trouble again doesn’t it?”
    “I wouldn’t go
that far. In fact, I just wish that I could go home.”
    Connor’s heart
sank. “I’m sorry.”
    She waved
his apology away. “It’s ok, it wasn’t your fault.” It was mine .
    A sudden flash of
lightning in the night sky caught their attention. And the metallic
taste was in terry’s mouth.

Chapter
2
    After Dark

    Conner and Terry
made their way across the field. “Are you sure it was over here?”
asked Conner, directing the torch.
    “I’m positive, I
can smell it and I had that metal taste in my mouth again. It was
too strong to be anything else.” Terry said with conviction.
    Connor waved the
beam of light far in front of them. “I still can’t see anything.
Wouldn’t it have left a mark in the grass?”
    Terry stopped
without word.
    When he noticed,
Connor turned back and directed the light at her. “What?”
    She looked about
for a few moments before settling to the south west. She cursed
under her breath.
    “What? What is
it?”
    She sighed. “They
tried to open a portal here then when it failed they tried one over
there.”
    Connor pointed the
torch the direction she was looking, the white beam dissipating
into the gloom. “How far?”
    Terry sniffed at
the air. “I’d say about a mile.”
    Conner sighed.
“Now you tell me. If you had told me that five minutes ago I could
have saved us from walking.”
    “I didn’t want you
to light up like a Christmas tree and attract even more attention
if we’re not the only ones who saw it.” She said as her skin began
to change colour.
    “No one would have
seen me.” Replied Conner, as he watched her transform.
    In her standard
Alchemist form Terry appeared to be wearing a metal suit of
armour.
    Her torso was
reminiscent of the top half of an hour glass. Although thin near
her middle, she widened again at the waist, her limbs were thin but
coated in plates, raised in parts, but smooth. It appeared black in
the poor light of the moonless night. Her feet were wide, pronged
into two large toes and a third support at the back
    Two raised metal
plates lined both her shoulders, curving up and back, the ones at
the back larger than the first. But the armour ended swiftly at her
neck, forming a bulky collar.
    “You can never be
to sure.”
    Connor looked her
up and down, the torch light glinting off her armour. The dense
alloy seemed to drink it, dulling the brightness. “So why’s it ok
for you to run around looking like that?”
    “Like I said,”
Terry raised an arm and a twelve inch curving blade grew out of the
underside of her elbow. Flexing her hand, it retracted. “I don’t
light up like a Christmas tree.” Without waiting for a reply, she
turned, running off into the night at a high speed.
    Conner lost sight
of her in less than ten seconds. “Whatever.” He muttered, flicking
off the torch and dropping it. Ignoring her warnings and igniting
himself into a human flame. The fire rippled over him like liquid.
With a small burst beneath his feet, he took off into the sky.
    Terry was first to
arrive, with a bitter copper taste in her mouth. It was so foul,
she had to spit. A burned semi circle of grass drew her attention.
She knelt down for a look. But on closer inspection there was
nothing remarkable about, no tell tale signs of who had came
through. There were no signs of footprints; which she found odd.
Standing, she let her gaze sweep across the hillside, but there was
no sign of anyone.
    Conner landed just
behind her. “Was it one then?” he asked, hurrying up to her
side.
    “Yeah...but I
don’t think anyone came through. Not that I can tell anyway.”
    Connor peered into
the gloom. His eyesight was nowhere near as good as hers but he was
happy to take her word for it.
    “Why