Free Metal Deep 4: Soul on Fire by G. X. Knight

Sway had never been that strong. Again, she regretted not having paid attention to all of Maeve’s fight training. There had to be a session she missed on exploiting weak points. Maeve was known for being able to takedown certain baddies with a single finger prick.
     
    Each of Sway’s subsequent blows got her caught by the wrists in Corona’s grasp. Corona squeezed the computers on her arms and crushed them into flying sparks of broken touchscreen glass. The Dragoness lashed out with claws that raked a stinging trail of blood from Sway’s face down to her stomach. Corona continued to parry using her burned wings like another set of striking appendages to rip away all of Sway’s tools until she found the black-diamond knife.
     
    “I’m going to cut you up with your own knife, burn the pieces into ash, and then send the dust back to our jailor’s heir,” Corona promised. “I will let you die with the Frostwick victory to your name. You are cunning and smart. You will be lauded for what you have done here today. It will make your loss that much harder when The Heir finds out that you are dead.”
     

    Corona raised the knife above her flaming head. Sway, unable to move, closed her tear-filled eyes, and waited for the knife to fall. She counted only a single regret. As she felt the sudden icy sensation of the end strike her hot chest, in Elvin tradition, she released that regret with a whisper in hopes that the Great Maker would forgive her mistake: “I kept a secret from Scion Thantosa.”

 
     

     
     
     
    THE VOICE FROM BEYOND
     
     
     
    There was only black. Everywhere. I only saw nothing. Is this what the disembodied limbo between existences looked like, or had X been right, and things were going according to plan?
     
    He told me that because I had such a strong, shielded Cast, he believed that Yel and I would go into some kind of psychic battlefield where I could keep Yel distracted long enough for X and Zora to regain control of the ALOHA JORDAN . Of course that would do me no good if I still lost to Yel here in this spirit-arena. Based on the presence of nothing , I was past worried I had failed to even start. In fact, I was downright panicked that I had landed in the middle of essence-purgatory.
     
     “Scion can you hear me?” X’s becoming-familiar grumble rolled in from out of nowhere.
     
    “Oh thank God. What is this?” I asked.
     
    “I can’t see what you see. I can only briefly communicate with you. It worked. You two are locked together. We’re trying to stop the ship, but it’s not going well. Listen carefully. You’re going to have to capture his spirit and question him. We need you to find out how to stop the boat. If you do anything too traumatic to him, the link will be severed, or worse, and we won’t have as much luck with him out here.  I can’t stay too long or I’ll disrupt the link. I’ll check in a after a while. Hurry! Get the information. We’re starting to see Frostwick on the horizon.”
     
    And then I was alone in the nothing again.
     
    I took one step at a time. The footfalls didn’t echo. In fact there was no sound whatsoever when I moved. There was no wind, no rubbing together of my jeans, not even my arms squeaked or hummed. My fists clenched into tight balls, and my Dragonstones burned brighter. They fed their ancient energy into my veins and eyes that shone with the green-colored power that inhabited me.
     
    After a few more steps, my walk became a run, then a sprint. I pumped my amalgamated legs as hard as I could, but I felt like I was moving in slow motion. I was like a man trying to run while crushed under miles of water. I ran and ran into the void, and again I heard X’s low voice, “Hurry, Scion.” Another eternity worth of minutes let me spy a single pinprick sized dot of light far into the distance.
     
    Every step was heavy, but I pushed onward until I was surrounded by the light. As soon as I was engulfed by the warmth of its