PS The Dragon Fights (Shadeworld Book 2)

suddenly stood still, his body twinging in anticipation. He held himself as a dog on point, then he started to mumble to himself. One quarter of a mile, approximately fifteen minutes, this point here, surprise tactics, drop maneuver b. "Yes, that'll do." His muscles bunched, and he shot up seventy feet into the air, far overshooting any nearby trees. There was the faintest sound of ripping fabric, and two fiery red wings burst from his back, twirling in the air in a quick figure eight, certain no one would see him, as camouflage came naturally to his body and didn't even require the effort of making a spell and he was unlikely to cause any commotion this way. Some more airborne acrobatics were done. He had time to kill until she came close to his target point, and in the meantime he'd missed flying and enjoying the rush it gave him. It was as good an excuse as any to play.

Then she could be seen coming closer, a mere mile away now, and he knew it was time to get serious once more. He coasted, lazily drifting down in altitude until he was only twenty feet from the ground, landing on a sturdy branch that was partially obscured by leafy branches and some diligent squirrel's dray.

She walked along that same path, cutting through the trees. Something was wrong here, everything was wrong here, and she didn't like it. It had been fun to be in this place at the beginning, but the appeal of good health and making friends had long since been soured. Mr. Yates had asked good questions. Where had everyone gone? Jackie had disappeared in the middle of a party. Aeron had been gone for a while, and good riddance, but then her brother had disappeared shortly after him.

Was that Aeron's fault? She knew the two of them didn't really get along. They were always fighting with each other. What could any decent person dislike about her kind and friendly Darien? He was such a nice guy. It was already a major warning sign that the jerk disliked him. And now that everyone went missing at about the same time it sure looked suspicious. In fact, not long before Jackie had disappeared, she'd been so sneaky warning her about the dangers of that jerk. Had he gotten rid of her for daring to go against him? Had he gotten rid of her brother for the same reason?

Jackie had told her that almost fling Warren was bad news. What if there were other guys like him, guys who didn't spend most of their time as playboys, but instead focused on getting up to trouble? Aeron had acted like he was the leader of a creepy cult. It wouldn't surprise her if in real life it turned out he was the head of a gang or the mafia or something. She wasn't willing to rule out any terrible possibility when it came to a jerk like that.

All of this was insane here. What happened to the friendly and peaceful image people always had of the Midwest? What kind of so-called sleepy, small town had gangs that went around kidnapping people's brothers? She wanted to go back to Florida, and who cared about being sick when there were dangerous psychos running free through the city? What kind of place gave the criminals all the power? It was like the Medieval Ages, a country ruled by whoever had the most strength and battle skill. It seemed it wasn`t just that Aeron jerk either. In fact, there seemed to be a few gang bosses. Maybe even my brother, he seemed to be getting into fights and stirring up trouble too, she thought. But she hastily waved that possibility away. How could he be involved in anything creepy after being here for only a few weeks? No one else could be safe though. Everyone seemed to be a gang leader, a subordinate. In this new school, this new state, it was mob rule. It was scary. Even more importantly, it was dangerous, and she didn't like it. Who would? Maybe being unhealthy in Florida was better than this anarchy," she thought. She toyed with the idea, looking at it from different angles, but it seemed to be inarguable logic. It seemed safer, and better. Smarter even. Maybe, after this, it would be best if she went through the hassle of getting them moved again. Florida wasn't the only option, after all; she could go somewhere new. Maybe a different country, Canada might be a good place to live. Mind made up, she set through the trees, thinking her thoughts.

The sun slipped in the sky the briefest of increments, and the crouching man tensed up. There was the faint sound of whistling in the distance, steadily growing stronger. And then she was walking directly under his tree, the flash of her hair catching his attention. He shook his head, shaking off the distraction. He leaped down, landing in an animalistic crouch. He quickly leaped forward so that he stood directly behind her, and he pulled the back of her shirt up, revealing twin birthmarks on her shoulder blades. The faint outline of slits, and a small pattern that seemed to be unfurled wings beside them. Ignoring her protests, he now pulled her shirt back down for her and swung her around. The familiar black fire with shining white specks rose around them, and they were standing in the middle of a deserted field.

"Hello, there," he said with a smile, the words mellow and friendly.

She looked wildly around the meadow in alarm. "Where--, what--, huh?"

He smiled with more confidence. "Precisely. That`s what will be happening to you." A ball of clear fire with the faintest of blue outlines bloomed around his palm, and he blew the substance at her. It clung and grew, becoming a giant bubble with the faintest iridescent green sheen gracing the surface. Slowly the bubble rose in the air, its ascent