Free Redemption by H. D. Gordon

to ceiling windows on the
west wall. And I was out of bed and moving toward the door before I had a
chance to really think about what had jolted me out of slumber.
    “Nelly?” Tommy said, climbing out
of bed and rushing over to me.
    I threw the door open without
pause. “It’s Alexa,” I said. “Something’s wrong.”
    Dashing out into the hallway and
down to the room that Kayden and my sister were sharing, I banged hard on the
green door, unmindful of the others that were sleeping in the cabin. “Alexa!” I
yelled, leaning against the door. No answer. I twisted the doorknob, a sense of
dread coming over me when I found that it was unlocked, and shoved my way into
the room.
    They weren’t here.
    “Where are they?” Tommy asked
from behind me.
    “I don’t know,” I said, not
liking the way the words made my stomach turn. I stared down at the empty bed.
“Hold on. I’ll find out.”
    I shut my eyes, not really
wanting to do what I was going to, but the worry for my sister trumped any
feelings of guilt, and I threw my mind out with more force that I tried for,
blanketing the Outlands with it. I cringed when the familiar rush of
exhilaration filled me, but reached further and further still with my mental
fingers until I found her.
    My heart leapt up into my throat
as I opened my eyes and turned to face Tommy in the dark room. “She’s at the
border,” I said. And then I was out the door, moving like a hundred mile per
hour wind.

 
     
    Alexa
    I’m offended, Warrior. What
about you?
    I stared at the strange girl in
front of me. “Yes,” I told my Monster. “But mostly, I’m confused.”
    “Alexa Montgomery, correct?”
asked the lavender-haired girl who called herself Surah. “Such a pleasure it is
to meet you. The last Sun Warrior left. It’s almost a shame that I’ll have to
kill you.” Her head tilted a fraction. “Actually, not really.”
    This made a harsh laugh escape my
throat. “Did you skip your medication or something?” I asked. “I have no idea
who the hell you even are.”
    The cool expression on the girl’s
face didn’t slip, but hatred burned behind her purple-colored eyes that was so
hot I almost took a step back. “Surah Stormsong,” she said, as if this
explained everything. “I believe you know my brother, Syris Stormsong.”
    My eyebrows went up. “Uh, no, I
don’t. You must be mistaken.”
    Surah’s gloved hands disappeared
under her black cloak and emerged holding a sai in each hand. The Warrior in me
had to take a minute to admire the weapons, whose three points were silver and
sharp. The handles of them were wrapped around with black leather that appeared
to be well used. I had never fought anyone with sais before. This was going to
be interesting.
    “Will you step over the barrier
on your own, Sun Warrior? Or are you a coward?”
    Kayden’s hand shot out and
gripped my arm, jolting me a little as I had been half of a heartbeat away from
leaping at this girl’s throat. His golden eyes were hard on Surah’s. “What’s
your business here, Sorceress?” he asked.
    Surah’s head tilted back, and her
voice was too soft and sweet for her words. “That is none of your concern, Libra. ”
She pointed the tip of the sai in her left hand at me. “Unless you really are a
coward, and you need him to fight your battles for you.”
    Now I moved too fast for even
Kayden to stop me, leaping over the border with my Gladius in my hand before I
had a chance to think about what I was doing. No one—not even some obviously
insane chick who thought I’d killed her brother—called me a coward.
    May I have the pleasure,
Warrior , my Monster chuckled in my head.
    “Let’s share it.”
    For a moment I was sure that my
blade was going to slide right into Surah’s midsection, but amazingly, she
blocked my strike, catching my sword between her two sais and deflecting my
blow. The weapons made a sharp slicing sound as metal slid over metal. Surah
threw her head back and laughed