The air within the abandoned district grew thick. A static charge made the hair on Kota's arms stand up.
A sudden deep chill settled into the marrow of his bones. His eyes took on a glassy, distant quality. He wasn't looking at the ruins anymore. He was looking through them, perceiving the world with a clinical, predatory sharpness. He stopped abruptly. His posture was rigid. He tilted his head as if listening to a frequency no one else could hear.
"Girl, move faster," Kota said. His voice dropped into a flat, toneless register. "Someone is getting close."
Leiya stopped, glancing back over her shoulder. She scanned the jagged silhouettes of the decaying buildings and the swirling gray fog. She saw nothing but the hollow shells of the settlement.
"No one is near us, Kota," Leiya said. Her voice shook slightly. "I've been watching the rear since we left the center. What do you feel? What do you see?"
Kota didn't answer immediately. He turned his head slowly. His gaze fixed on the distance with an intensity that made Leiya flinch.
"I just know," Kota replied. His eyes narrowed. "The air is changing. They're coming and they aren't coming to talk. Keep moving."
Leiya felt a knot of worry tighten in her chest. He moved too smoothly. Too purposefully. She'd seen him like this before, but it felt different now. More absolute.
It's the sickness, she told herself. It's flaring up again. The pressure of the borderlands is making him lose his grip.
She wanted to reach out and touch his arm, to pull him back to her. But the Yen radiating from him was so hot she pulled her hand away. She merely nodded and picked up her pace, following the stranger who wore her friend's face.
At the Haven, the silence of the grand hall was shattered by the sharp click of boots on stone. The base was carved directly into the mountain range. Massive stone halls hung precariously over the jagged cliffside.
Kaola stood in the center of the room. Her chest heaved with indignation as she glared at Kova. The sudden warp through the void had left her nauseous, but her anger was a more potent fire.
"I can't believe you," Kaola snapped. Her voice echoed off the high mountain arches. "Making me travel like that was unnecessary. And making me retreat? We would've caught Kota in literal hours. I had the trail. I had the lead. You pulled me out for nothing."
Kova stood by a large window. He looked out at the peaks piercing the skyline. He remained motionless, a silhouette of cold authority against the vertical drop.
"The fact that you're standing here arguing instead of realizing why you were removed further proves you aren't strong enough," Kova said without turning. "You were leading a pursuit that was beginning to fracture under your own lack of authority."
Kaola stepped forward, eyes flashing. She threw her hands up in frustration.
"How was I supposed to lead a madman? I've never been able to lead him on any mission you and Koma sent us on. He's uncontrollable, especially since getting that thing!"
She pointed toward the heavy doors. Her voice lowered to a sharp hiss.
"You know what it does to him. You know what it makes him. Leading him isn't a task of authority, Kova. It's an exercise in surviving his presence."
"Koa already thinks you aren't strong enough to handle the weight of this family name," Kova continued. His voice was steady and cold. "And Hykee? He disregarded everything you had to offer out there. He didn't respect your lead because he didn't fear your power. A leader without the ability to command respect is just a target."
Kova turned slowly. His eyes were like ice, devoid of any sibling affection.
"But you are correct. He is uncontrollable. But he is a tool and right now he may be a little too much for you and the others to handle. I have a feeling he'll do something out there that will make them fail the mission."
Kaola let out a sharp scoff. "So you sent Kana and your loyal servant into that?"
"I sent them to observe and support," Kova replied. his expression was unmoving. "And another thing for you to process. Koma and I have talked. While catching Kota is the goal, Koma doesn't care if he isn't brought back either. Dead or alive, the error must be corrected. If Hykee burns the world down to find him, it makes no difference to the final result."
Kaola met his gaze with a hard, glassy look of her own. She didn't flinch at the prospect of the carnage Hykee might cause.
"Fine. I wanted to kill him myself, but if that's how the pieces are being moved, then so be it. But don't expect me to sit quietly while my efforts are discarded."
Kova began to walk past her. He didn't look back as he spoke. His voice trailed behind him like a freezing draft.
"Koma initially wanted to kill you and the twins when he woke up. But I changed his mind."
Kaola suddenly felt fear. The words kill you echoed in her mind. The air in the grand hall seemed to vanish, leaving her gasping in a sudden vacuum of terror. Her hard facade crumbled instantly. The reality of her proximity to death took hold. She stood frozen. Her hands trembled as the cold weight of Kova's revelation settled in her gut.
She watched the door close behind him. Her breath came in ragged hitches as she realized just how thin the ice was beneath her feet.