Storm of Arranon Fire and Ice Read Free

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    “Well, I know where that one is,” Erynn
mumbled, “and it’s not the lake. This couldn’t be a portal. Could
it? Are there tunnels connecting the area around the lake with the
base?” Her stomach rolled and her skin prickled with energy.
“There’s something I’m missing,” she whispered and glanced around.
Nothing seemed out of place.
    Like a light that pulsed at the edge of her
vision, understanding flitted just beyond her awareness.
     
     
    Erynn set the fighter down with feather-light
precision on the scramble pad carved by countless years of wind and
weather out of the granite mountainside. Each landing left her in
awe of the natural shelf that lay before the immense cavern of the
hangar bay. It didn’t seem possible that the formation of this
massive base had been the work of nature alone. Cale told her most
of the warrens that made up the underground tunnels and caverns
were here when he’d found the spot.
    Two ground-crew personnel rolled stairs next
to the cockpit and began attaching the fighter to the charging
system. Erynn pulled the canopy’s latch, and it hummed open. She
released the restraints holding her to the seat, unbuckled her
helmet strap, and climbed out.
    Tam, Erynn’s fellow pilot and best friend,
waited just outside the hangar. Weak sunshine filtered through low
gray clouds, making Tam’s white flight suit a bright spot against
the muted black and gray stone. A full hood pulled close around
Tam’s face, emphasized her flawless deep- brown complexion. In
spite of the bulky jumpsuit, she glided forward to meet Erynn with
a fluid grace. “What happened?” Her tone held an undercurrent of
apprehension.
    Erynn glanced into Tam’s gold-flecked brown
eyes and took in her friend’s concern. “Nothing.” She gazed around
at the activity on the scramble pad and inside the hangar bay. “The
Anim Blath showed me…” Erynn hesitated, lowering her voice. The
Anim Blath colonies linked her to Arranon’s living consciousness.
Talking about this curious connection with the Anim Blath made her
uneasy even with Tam. “They led me to a lake. There is something
strange beneath the water.”
    Tam frowned, mimicking Erynn’s expression.
“Strange like what?”
    “Like two letters. A and L.” Erynn shrugged.
“Probably just the remains of some ancient ruins.”
    “You don’t believe that, though. Do you?”
Tension rolled from Tam, flowing over Erynn in a constant
stream.
    Erynn waved her hand with a dismissive
gesture. “I’ll talk to Jaer and Cale about what I saw.” She winced
and glanced up at Tam. “Have I re-established my strange status with everyone?” The knowledge that her words blurted over
the COM had spread through the hangar personnel brought unpleasant
memories rushing to the surface.
    Will this be like what happened in school
all over again ? The other kids and teachers staring at me.
Their probing, disapproving emotions bombarding me when something
odd would happen or if I spoke an answer before it was
asked ?
    Damon, her adoptive father, had drilled the
need for secrecy into her from an early age with his stern,
cautionary response each time the unexplainable would happen around
Erynn. Her life, or life as she knew it, was at stake.
    Even now, the minimal knowledge people had
regarding her unusual abilities made her uncomfortable.
    It’s not like that anymore. Not now. Not
here. But would it be if they knew all I could do? The bending of
time, the manipulation of the electromagnetic field around me,
sensing the emotions of others, and visions of future events? Since
my arrival on this world, even more abilities have surfaced. I
communicate with animals, influence the weather, and have a
connection through the Anim Blath to the living soul of
Arranon .
    Tam scowled. “You are not strange.” She
grabbed a handful of Erynn’s flight suit and tugged. “Come on. Cale
wants to talk to you.”
    Erynn hurried alongside Tam and glanced
sideways at her. “Do you know