Page 94 of The Tribes of Magic
“Distracted from what?” I asked him.
“The real Quest.”
“What is thisrealQuest?”
“Come on.”
“That is not an answer.”
“No, it’s a plea. Ditch this boring Quest and sneak off with me instead. I can give you somerealtraining. Altair’s training is such a snooze fest.”
“I’m not sure he would appreciate it if I left.”
“There are bigger things at stake here! Remember the Templars?”
“How could I forget?”
“I found one of them, here on Gaia. Thanks to the General’s completely futile efforts to capture the Rebels, the Fortress’s Spirit Trees are well-guarded. The Templars can’t get away. They’re trapped on Gaia.”
“Which one did you find?”
“The Metamorph. Harlyn. Would you like to speak to him?”
I could hear the smile in Conner’s voice. He knew he had me. He knew I would never pass up an opportunity like this. It was the first real lead I’d had in my quest to find Kylie and the other missing Apprentices.
I glanced at Bronte and Dutch, my overachieving teammates. They could handle the scavenger hunt without me. In fact, they might be better off without me to muck things up.
I glanced in the direction of Conner’s voice. “Let’s go.”
CHAPTER 4
QUEST SWITCH
“Give me your hand,” I told Conner.
I felt his hand close around mine, and then I teleported us away. I was aiming for just outside the shop, but I overreached. We ended up inside a grove of trees just outside the Magic Emporium train station. And I ended up with a nosebleed.
Conner quickly handed me a handkerchief. He was visible again.
I took the handkerchief, pressing it to my nose. “Thanks.”
“Are you ok?”
“I’m fine.”
“You overextended,” he commented. “That’s why your nose is bleeding.”
“I got that, thanks. But, look, it’s already stopped.” I dabbed the handkerchief to my nose once, then folded it and stuffed it into my pocket.
“This might be a problem.”
“What might be a problem?”
“Getting to where Harlyn is. He’s rather far away.”
“How far away?”
“In the Dark Woods.”
