Azia thought about yelling at him. Ultimately, Ginger had done enough. If the conflicted look on his face was anything to go by, Cailin was far from indifferent to her ire. Granted, Azia still couldn’t dissect it entirely, somewhere between unsettled and eerily tranquil. She was almost afraid to ask as to whether he’d truly gotten what he wanted.

  It took her until well after the doors had swung shut behind them to so much as begin finding her words, let alone to face him at all. Noisy roads were better than the crushing silence that had snuck between venom for the past fifteen minutes. For as much as she regretted shirking Ginger’s company, fresh air was desperately needed.

  “Cailin,” Azia began sharply.

  She didn’t mean for it to come out sharp at all, really. He never made it all the way to his bike, his hands just barely gracing the handles. When Cailin raised his head wordlessly, he met her with only a hint of apprehension. He knew what was coming, maybe.

  There wasn’t much more she could give him than what he’d already earned. It took Azia a moment to plan her reproach. “You can’t just…ask things like that,” she said at last.

  Cailin’s eyes fell to scrape the pavement. Even now, he was quiet. Azia persisted.

  “Look, I know you’ve got your research. I get it. I promise you, I get it. We have that in common. That still doesn’t make that any better. It’s not worth hurting people over.”

  Once more, he was speechless, and his gaze was on the ground. Azia gestured with a sweeping arm towards the shop at her back. “There were real people on the other side of that Tempest. I don’t know what you know about it, but it was--”

  “I’m well aware,” Cailin interrupted, his voice soft and firm all at once. It took time for him to lift his head again, and the gentle hurt nestled into his gaze was a constant. “I very much know what happened during that Tempest. I’ve just never gotten to speak with anyone who’s lived it. That’s all. I’m not a…cruel person.”

  It was Azia’s turn with hurt. She bit her tongue and started over. “I…never said you were. That’s not what I meant.”

  “I didn’t mean to make her upset.”

  “It’s a sensitive subject. Did you really expect anything different?”

  Cailin squeezed the bike handles tighter, absentminded as the motion was. “I’m sure that you know what it’s like to do things you don’t want to in the name of your dreams. Right? If it was something you needed for yours, would you go that far?”

  When Azia herself paused, he persisted instead. “I don’t enjoy asking people about their experiences with one of the worst disasters in recorded history, no. Regardless, I meant what I said. Everything I do, I do for a reason. Please don’t…think otherwise. I’m not trying to hurt anyone. I’m trying to do the opposite, Azia.”

  He sighed. When next he met her eyes in full, the same pain was no longer subtle. “I’m sorry,” Cailin murmured. “I wasn’t trying to upset your friend.”

  His gaze burned, somewhat. Azia couldn’t keep it for long. She hugged herself uncomfortably, firm nails digging just a bit too hard into her elbows. “I know. It’s okay.”

  She got her silence back. Even outside of a clinic and devoid of poison, it was a different kind of miserable. Passing traffic meant nothing, and oxygen was equally useless. Azia treaded a line, by which pressing Cailin to forsake his heavier research would leave her a hypocrite. Not so long ago, she’d placed an anomaly alone on the front lines. Consensual or not, she was no less guilty of risking hurt.

  “You’re really gonna like the Alchemist Institute, I think,” the same anomaly offered. “They don’t have an observatory, or anything, but they’ve got this huge library. With fish. Somehow. There’s tons of stuff you could do your research with, I bet. Not sure if there’s, like, different things you’d get out of being over there instead of hanging out at the Research Institute. Worth a shot, though, right?”

  Seleth’s smile was soft in place of a grin. It wasn’t quite enough to earn one back. At the very least, the purity in his words sufficed to wash away pain, and Cailin met Seleth’s eyes instead. “There’s…fish?”

  Seleth cocked his head. “Yeah. Don’t ask me, I don’t know how the hell that works. Cute little guys, either way. The librarian takes good care of ‘em.”

  “The librarian doesn’t feed them,” Azia muttered under her breath.

  Her volume meant nothing, and Seleth’s grin grew to sparkle on her behalf. “Nice atmosphere, for one. Good place to do all of your studying, or whatever. And you’ll have Klare, so you’ve got a research buddy, anyway. There’s definitely other stuff the Institute has, but I haven’t gotten to see all of it yet. I’m a little overworked.”

  “You agreed to this,” Azia hissed, soft venom shoved under her breath once more.

  Again, Seleth only shimmered. “I know exactly what I agreed to.”

  Cailin’s lips curled upwards into the tiniest smile. Seleth’s grin might’ve been a magnet for that much, at this point. “I’m…looking forward to it,” he conceded.

  “Whatever you’re trying to figure out, you’re gonna have a lot of room to do it. And a lot of people to do it with,” Seleth went on. “I mean, from what I know of the alchemists, you’ll fit right in. You’re smart as hell.”

  He’d be left to float in an unfamiliar sea, actually. So would Klare. Symbolic red would give them away, and it would be all Azia could do to pray for amicability. There was no use pointing it out. Either Cailin would figure that much out the hard way, or he already knew. Azia refused to burden him with extra stress herself.

  Still, she’d protect him where applicable. Knowing Seleth, he’d be twice as defensive, if it came to that. He’d already battled an astronomer’s pain so many times with his smile alone. Even now, the same salvation was effortless.

  Seleth’s voice softened in time with his expression, and he flicked one thumb towards himself. “And you’ve…got me. I’m guessing that part’s kind of important. I won’t let you down, okay? Whatever you need, just say the word. If you’re with Azia, then I’m your anomaly, now, too.”

  He was contradicting himself, somewhat. That wasn’t the deal, necessarily. Azia was well aware that he knew that much, and he’d established the terms on his own. If the wording was for the sake of shining starlight, it showed. It worked. That was all that mattered.

  Cailin beamed. “I’ll do my best to make the most of that. Thank you for having me.”

  Seleth stretched with more flair than he needed to--provided he needed to at all. His eyes fell to Azia. “We headin’ out any time soon? Or, like, did you…”

  When he trailed off, his flickering gaze towards the shop doors spoke for itself. Azia shook her head. “No. We should probably get going, anyway. I really am trying to be careful with the time. I don’t like driving in the dark. It’s hard to see out there.”

  She still had an ample amount of sunshine to work with, to be fair. She preferred a surplus to the opposite, all the same. Azia turned to Cailin instead. “Are you good with staying close to me? I’ll go slow.”

  Cailin tossed one leg over the side of his bike without concern, already toying with the ignition. “Don’t worry. I can keep up, I promise. Don’t slow down on my account. I made it this far, didn’t I?”

  Azia shrugged playfully as she reclaimed her own vehicle, emulating him one metallic click at a time. She earned low rumbling for her troubles, and she was satisfied. “Suit yourself. Don’t get lost, then.”

  He chuckled. “I’ve never had a problem navigating. I work with coordinates so much that it would take a miracle for me to get lost.”

  She bit back a smirk as she mounted her bike in turn. “Right. Astronomer. Should’ve known.”

  Peering over her shoulder left her one anomaly richer, the bike shifting beneath her in the slightest. “You good?”

  Cailin had monopolized Seleth’s grin for at least ten minutes. Azia got her turn with it, finally. “Yup.”

  “You know, you could always ride with Cailin, if you wanted to,” she offered.

  Seleth raised an eyebrow. “What, you sick of me?”

  Azia could’ve teased. She went with honesty. “I mean, you guys seem to get along pretty good. I’m sure he’d like the company.”

  His grin slipped into something softer, if not weaker. “I get more out of riding bikes with cute girls, I think.”

  “You’re good at cheering him up, too. Ginger kind of…went after him hard. He walked into it, don’t get me wrong. You’ve always been great at getting his spirits up, though. I bet he’d appreciate it. It’d be sweet, actually.”

  The same smile dimmed ever further, slowly slipping from his face altogether. “I’d really prefer to stay here,” Seleth said. “It’s the…way I’m used to traveling. Don’t really wanna…mess with that.”

  Azia scoffed. “Oh, come on. Since when are you shy? Look, we’re both going to the exact same place, anyway. And he’s never been to the Institute before. I don’t even know how far he’s ever--”

  “Please don’t leave me alone.”

  There was no sparkle on his lips at all. The muffled panic in his eyes took priority. Azia caught sight of the way he dug his fingernails into the leather of the seat, with or without his knowledge. His shoulders rose and fell just the slightest bit quicker, and he challenged her banter with solely fear. It was enough for her to swallow every playful word on her tongue. Seleth was quiet. She was the same.

  “Please don’t…leave me alone out here. I don’t want to be apart from you,” he finally mumbled, his low voice wavering.

  Not a hint of a tease sat upon a single word. Again, Azia found only distress, raw and fervent. She thought to tease him herself, if not only to clear whatever fog slowly suffocated her happiness. “Seleth?” she asked.

  He exhaled far too heavily, his breaths rattling on the way out. At the very least, his voice grew steady once more. “I…sorry. I just don’t like the idea of being separated. Please.”

  Azia stared, for a moment. Seleth averted his gaze. She dismissed the palm that rose to cradle his forehead as stress-induced, initially. Still, it was excessive, and he closed his eyes. He held his head for just long enough that she pushed.

  “Are you okay?” Azia tried softly.

  Seleth took longer to respond than she would’ve liked. He nodded, eventually, his palm grasping at his head all the while. “Yeah. I’m sorry. I can’t…explain it. Please, just…don’t make me go.”

  “I won’t,” she relented, just as soft. “It’s fine.”

  The deep sigh of relief he let out wasn’t at all subtle. Where his shoulders relaxed, he freed his head in turn. “Thank you,” Seleth nearly whispered.

  “Are you sure you’re alright?”

  He opened his eyes. The panic had ebbed, at least. Whatever had replaced it was indescribable. If anything, he seemed just as disoriented as she was. Whether their rationales matched was debatable. “I’m good,” Seleth said, each word too heavy relative to their speaker.

  Azia lost his face soon enough, anyway. He turned his head towards the town at her back, and speeding traffic just feet away stole the sound of his breaths. Casting her own attention towards what of Raverna rested ahead was difficult. “We’re going now, okay? Hold on.”

  “Yeah.”

  It was just as hollow. Azia didn’t give it thought, nor did she let one last glance over her shoulder linger on Seleth. She aimed it at an astronomer alone, verifying his company and seeking nothing more. For all of the emotions she’d ever recorded from an anomaly, panic was new. It wasn’t the kind of mental note she’d ever wanted to take, and Azia regretted carrying it with her out of Raverna.

  It didn’t last, fortunately. She never did manage to dissect his anxiety, nor did she bother to push. Sunshine did him wonders the moment he had it. Azia refused to compromise it. She also refused to compromise the grin he hurtled across stretching sands to another vehicle so near. One less bike in their ensemble made it slightly easier to hear. The lack of a librarian helped with that much, in truth.

  He was still practically shouting the whole time, regardless. Still, if Seleth was happy, that was enough for her. Cailin was the same, and whatever venom an apothecary had stung him with was left splattered on the ground in Raverna. Azia was somewhat impressed that he could match Seleth’s volume. It was the first time she’d heard Cailin raise his voice, really.

  Swaddled in thick fabrics that billowed behind him even now, Azia had no idea how he wasn’t melting beneath the sun above. Seleth had insisted that the same fluttering as he drove was cool. Their priorities were different enough.

  You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

  “Don’t you get hot in that thing?” Seleth still asked eventually. Echoed as the sentiment was, Azia rolled her eyes inwardly.

  Cailin took it well enough. “I’m alright. It gets cold up in the observatory, so it’s what I’m used to. Truthfully, I don’t head into the desert very often.”

  “You know, I was joking about you not getting out much,” Seleth teased. “Didn’t think you were serious.”

  One swift twist of Azia’s shoulder was enough for her to slap his arm. He only snickered. “I can’t promise we’re going to be avoiding it altogether,” she took over instead. “I’m not sure where I’m taking him next, whenever that comes around, but there’s no way I’m gonna get absolutely everything done at the Institute. If you’re sticking with me, you’re gonna have to deal with a bit of…well, this.”

  Cailin chuckled. “That’s perfectly fine with me. I like the idea, actually.”

  Azia doubted she’d be condemning him to the same open sands and extensive voyages immediately, regardless. She was mostly dreading the sheer weight of whatever Dissemination was next to follow, if not the process of easing two researchers into a different world. What list she’d concocted of experiments to follow was mostly mental.

  She hadn’t gotten around to sorting it out on paper just yet. If anyone would be strained over the course of the next several weeks, it would be the anomaly who’d taken the job. Willing as Seleth was, Azia didn’t feel as bad about it as she should’ve.

  The tiniest part of her wondered if Cailin would offer his own ideas again--unrelated to pouring toxins and tailored towards her research alone. She’d expressed interest in that much, once. Were he to bring up places far from holy twice over, Azia wasn’t sure how she’d react. If he mentioned foul religions in front of Seleth, it would be infinitely worse.

  He never did. That was all that mattered. If Cailin had considered it, Seleth might’ve beaten him to trying. “So, you said you’re trying to get rid of the Rain? Did I hear that part right, earlier?”

  Cailin had the leeway to turn his head, albeit carefully. “Yes. That’s my dream, at least. I know it’s a lofty goal, but I’m willing to do whatever it takes to make that happen.”

  “I mean, bringing back all of the water in the world is kind of an insane dream, too. I’ve heard worse. There’s crazier people out there.”

  Again, Azia whipped one arm behind her. Again, too, she was dead-on, and a well-placed slap only left Seleth laughing. “Will you stop?” she spat, not immune to a creeping smile.

  Cailin stifled a laugh of his own with one palm. “I don’t think it’s at all impossible. Difficult, yes, but not inconceivable. There was a time before Precipitation, and there was a time when we had water. There’s got to be a way to go back to that, if that’s the case. If fixing one is the catalyst for fixing the other, then I’ll help wherever I can.”

  “I’ll support you, too,” Azia offered. “It’s only fair. You’re helping me out, so I promise I’ll do what I can for your dream.”

  His eyes widened, somewhat. “You don’t have to do that. You’ve already given me so much.”

  “First off, don’t start. You handed me an entire forecast model that you made yourself,” Azia chided with one pointed finger. “And I stole you away from your job for this.”

  “I asked to come.”

  “Irrelevant. Second, I agree that our research is probably going to overlap. Inevitably, I’ll stumble across something that’ll help you more than it helps me. I wouldn’t be surprised if you’re right about the water problem and the Precipitation problem being related. I’ve always wondered the same thing.”

  “Couldn’t ask for a better team, then,” Seleth added. “Best guy you could’ve snagged for the job, really.”

  “Third,” Azia went on anyway, “we’re sharing a resource.”

  Cailin tilted his head in the slightest. When he was quiet, she jabbed one lazy thumb behind her.

  “‘Resource,’” Seleth repeated slowly. “You know, ‘anomaly’ was a cuter term. Felt affectionate. This is new.”

  Given that Cailin had been calling him the same, it might’ve explained the way one hand failed to suppress a budding smile. “Provided Seleth is alright with me studying him, as well, of course. I’m not certain what that would entail on my end, yet. I’m still digesting everything I’ve learned in the last few days.”

  “I don’t hate it, actually.”

  “I was the one delegated to oversee the process of researching him, actually,” Azia said with just a hint of pride. “With that being said, I’m always open to sharing. I don’t know everything.”

  “But you’re incredibly creative,” Cailin praised. “Considering that you started with nothing, what you have figured out is remarkable. Of course, he’s remarkable, too.”

  “You can use me,” Azia heard, far too low and far too satisfied as Seleth leaned against her back. “You can use me as much as you’d like. Only you, though. No offense to Cailin, or anything. Just ask reeeeally nicely, and you can use me however you--”

  “I will crash this bike and kill us both!” she snapped over her shoulder.

  Cailin no longer bothered restraining his laughter. Seleth didn’t even try to do the same. Keeping his perversion behind lock and key would’ve been a nightmare, anyway, if she did intend to drag an astronomer into her research. Azia could do little more than sigh. If Cailin wanted “remarkable," he’d earn all of it, soon enough.

  “Is that it?”

  She’d been so wrapped up in crude teasing that she hadn’t noticed the peeking white on the horizon at all. It was wonderfully towering and beautifully familiar, just as she’d left it an eternity ago. That, by comparison, was enough for a true smile. It was all Azia could do not to go faster. “It sure is.”

  The soft thump atop her bag was unexpected. She was glad Seleth had the common sense to avoid a spearing glaive, although his head resting too close to the same was unnerving. “Home, sweet home,” he joked, whether or not he was looking.

  “It’s lovely,” Cailin complimented. “It’s not as different from the Research Institute as I would’ve expected.”

  Azia could feel Seleth shift half-heartedly against her. “It’s not round. And there’s no observatory. They’re both really sparkly, though. You’ve never been there, right?”

  “This is my first time.”

  “Hopefully, you’ll get used to it quickly,” Azia said, tilting her head in his direction. “I’m…really happy you’re here. And Klare, of course. I’m looking forward to working with both of you.”

  He was silent. He was devoid of a smile, or anything more than narrowing eyes. If anything, he was squinting. Azia blinked. “Cailin?”

  When Cailin tilted his head, it was for another reason entirely. His gaze was still fixed firmly on the horizon, glued to a distant Institute that grew ever more near. He was lucky that he was audible above two engines in tandem to begin with. “Is that…”

  He trailed off. Azia followed his eyes. They forewent pristine whites altogether, surrendered in favor of that which rose even higher. It rose too high, really, billowing and sickly in ambers she hated. They weren’t the swirling grays and darkened clouds that came with the worst of poisons, and she counted her blessings for that much. They were, regardless, incredibly aggravating.

  “Oh, for God’s sake,” Azia openly spat.

  The added weight on her back lessened, and the motorcycle shifted beneath her. “What?” Seleth asked quickly.

  Azia was lucky in that not one rolling tuft of dust had crashed against the building yet. Luck didn’t slow the sweeping winds they rode along, nor did it disperse the haze that swelled endlessly with each passing second. Where she sped in from the front, it closed in from the back, a surging sea set to engulf an Institute so immaculate. For how it fanned out ever further, claiming the sky on either side, she’d soon lose the sun altogether.

  Near as she was to the building, she wouldn’t have missed it, anyway. If Azia strained, she could just barely catch blaring blasts--rapid, staccato, and tumbling fivefold. They were differently-pitched, if not unmistakable all the same. Those, too, grew closer, and she grew ever more irritated in turn.

  Azia threw her head back towards the sky with an exasperated groan. “Seriously?”

  Again, the hurried jostling of the bike underneath her was concerning. Ideally, Seleth wouldn’t fall off. The fact that he’d managed to face forward was impressive, in truth, and she tolerated his proximity. His voice was urgent once more. “Is it Raining?”

  She was thankful that she could say no, if nothing else. “It’s a sandstorm. I hate them.”

  Azia felt him lean closer, somewhat. “Damn, you guys get those?”

  “Yes, and they’re insanely annoying. One of them almost wrecked my bike a few years ago. And getting covered in the stuff isn’t fun. I’d take them over Rain any day, but still.”

  “Are they dangerous?”

  “If you’re a bike,” she reiterated disdainfully. “They’re not exactly great for your health, if you get stuck in one. Miserable experience. They won’t kill you, if that’s what you’re asking.”

  “Do you want to divert?” Cailin asked. “It’s coming from the south. At the pace it’s going, it should pass over the Institute in roughly ninety seconds. It’s sizable, and the thickness is concerning, so I don’t think it’ll dissipate quickly. An hour, at the absolute least. There’s more behind it.”

  Azia only stared at him, for a moment. “You could tell all of that just by looking at it?”

  Even fleeting and muted, pride looked good on him. He deserved it. “Could I really call myself a meteorologist if I can’t do this much?”

  Annoyed or not, Azia submitted to the tiny smile that inched onto her lips. Her eyes fell forward once more, and she cast them deep into the vengeful cloud of dust. “How long did you say it’ll take to hit the Institute?”

  “Ninety seconds, give or take,” Cailin repeated. “It’s a rough estimate, to be fair.”

  “Ninety seconds,” she echoed, quieter.

  “It’s…large, like I said. I’ve never been to this part of Tenaveris, so I don’t know where we’d actually go if we diverted. I’d have to leave that part to you. Outrunning it would be difficult. If we go east or west, we’d be able to--”

  “We’re not gonna outrun it,” Azia interrupted.

  Blasting sirens grew louder. The surprise in Cailin’s voice still took priority. “Then…which way do you want to go?”

  “I’m not waiting for this stupid thing,” she insisted, gripping the handles tighter. “We’re not diverting. I want to go home.”

  Surprise became shock, albeit gentle. “You want to go through it?”

  “We won’t have to, if we’re fast enough.”

  Seleth’s shock, by comparison, was somewhat less soft. “You’re gonna race a freakin’ sandstorm?”

  “Ninety seconds is plenty. We’re not that far,” she argued.

  When Azia cast her eyes over her shoulder, the grin she threw him felt good, for once. “Put a bit of faith in me every now and then, alright?”

  Seleth was speechless, for a moment. She wasn’t sure why she’d bothered with grinning, given that the one he returned was downright lethal. The sensuality dripping from his voice was wildly unnecessary, teasing or not. “God, you’re so hot,” he purred.

  In the most surreal way, he only fueled her fire. Azia soaked up his crass confidence and sent it sailing towards Cailin. “We can definitely make it. Head for the main doors, and don’t slow down for a second. Stay close to me.”

  It wasn’t a disaster if she faltered. It would come with consequences, and consequences would be frustrating nonetheless. At the very least, no one would die. If she'd accompanied a different researcher, this would’ve been a competition, by now.

  Cailin tightened his grasp on the throttle for another reason. “Are you sure about this? Again, it’s an estimate. It might be a shorter window. If we get caught and we lose visibility, even that small distance could be dangerous to drive.”

  “You’re not dealing with researchers anymore, Cailin,” Azia declared with burning bravado. “This is how alchemists do things. Try to keep up, okay?”

  Cailin was quiet. He didn’t match either grin by a longshot. The smile he eventually found still stole enough bubbling strength to get by. “I’ll do my best.”

  Where she’d put her trust in his predictions so many times over already, Azia didn’t hesitate to do so again for a second. Her attention was forward alone, and her eyes were only on a not-so-distant Institute. The blossoming storm behind towered at least thrice as high. It might’ve been her fault for not noticing the sheer scale of the clouds, climbing well into the darkened sky in the time it took her to protest.

  Where they surged, Azia surged faster, jerking her wrist and battling the wind. She’d forgotten to tell Seleth to hold on tight, although she was somewhat glad that he’d still forsaken her waist for balance. He was near enough, his excitement radiant in a way that left her blood scorching hotter. It wasn’t that Cailin wasn’t an encouraging accomplice for recklessness. Seleth was nothing but, by default.

  There was no point in counting the seconds themselves, nor in considering failure. Azia hadn’t been lying about simply wanting to return to the Institute, and the promise of a hot shower was motivation enough. Still, she hadn’t decided which high she was riding. She had enough of them to choose from, cultivated over a week and wonderfully powerful as they’d become.

  Success was a candidate. Hope was another. Branching options on the horizon served as her current suspicion, for how the future awaited her with open arms. Every one left her soaked in adrenaline, and those, too, became fuel. She took it out on sand.

  There was a non-zero chance she’d crash into the doors. Azia hadn’t stopped to consider the actual process of making it inside. Sprinting would have to suffice, probably, the moment she reached the steps. She’d never bothered to check the extent of Cailin’s athleticism. Ideally, he could climb quickly enough. Screaming sirens would probably spurn him on faster, so loud in her ears and bursting forever. To his credit, Cailin was doing excellently under pressure. Azia went faster. So did he.

  Wafting amber crested the roof in the slightest, just barely kissing shingles and brushing against the eaves. In a perfect world, it would leave the barometers alone this time. Azia was dealing with enough wind as it was, her scarf battering against her cheeks as she practically flew. Her speed was more dangerous than the storm, probably. It didn’t help that what she had didn’t suffice.

  She thought she was second-guessing herself, at first. Still, it was close, and she couldn’t be blamed for her hesitation. An amber sea of another kind was indomitable, swallowing the building inch by inch. By no means was it Cailin’s fault for miscalculating. Really, Azia was fairly certain he hadn’t miscalculated at all, for how he’d emphasized the “estimate” part so many times over. There was no way to stop, regardless. She’d embraced peak speed with unwavering confidence. No amount of braking would sever it in a way that mattered.

  “Azia?” Cailin called anxiously.

  She swore under her breath. She lost the rest of the roof, mostly. She lost windows, walls, and splendid whites, buried in the grasp of clouds that outran her. Azia would, in fact, make it to the steps. That might not have mattered anymore, either.

  “What do you want to do?” Cailin shouted above the roar of the sirens.

  “This isn't gonna be fun!” Azia shouted back. “Just hold your breath! We’re gonna have to run, I guess!”

  “Since when do you give up?”

  Azia didn’t have the room to toss her confusion behind her. She could at least fling it verbally. “What?”

  Seleth wasn’t quite in her ear, and yet he was close enough. “Don’t back out on me now.”

  The rest of her bewilderment never made it all the way out. “What are you--”

  “Cailin,” he called instead, “come this way!”

  He, too, looked just as puzzled. Still, he didn’t question it. “I…okay!”

  Drifting inwards towards Azia’s bike was surely difficult, given his speed. He managed, regardless. Above the chaos that was blasting winds, sweeping sands, and screeching sirens, Seleth’s calm voice was every bit as clear. “Liiiittle more!”

  “Um, sure!”

  It wasn’t by much, nor did he have the time to do so. Cailin’s bike was roughly a foot from Azia’s own, by the end, and she feared one wrong movement of his hand at this speed would leave them colliding. Really, she was far more concerned about the monstrous tide that had blotted out the sky above and stolen even the doors from her.

  Where she would meet marble first, sand in her lungs would serve as a reward seconds later. Azia’s eyes widened, and she fought the urge to growl in frustration alone. It was more annoying than anything.

  “That’ll work!”

  She was fairly certain that she got to the steps. The quickest flash of blue was disorienting. In the time it took her to sharply brake, Azia lost her visibility altogether. So, too, did she lose pressure against her back. There was, undoubtedly, wind. Azia could hear that much, howling alongside the same eternal sirens. More than that, whatever bubbled so fervently above and around her took precedence. Where she’d been positive she’d find her irritated eyes blighted by an amber veil, aquamarine was inexplicable in its place.

  Cailin’s involvement in the same was baffling, too. Azia turned her head, and he was stagnant atop his own bike. They shared the same shimmering dome, as wide as it was perfect. On every side, a hollow sea claimed them, enclosed in blues that sparkled against each prick of sand that scraped past. In lieu of surrendering to a cloudy tide, Seleth dragged her to the bottom of his own. His arms were aloft, spread wide in line with a familiar grin.

  If Azia looked closely enough, each rippling wall was hardly static. They flowed in turn, the tiniest of currents swirling and surging as they wrapped her up. Seleth challenged an arid storm with one of his own, forged faster than she could blink. Azia resisted the urge to dip her fingers into his spinning waters. Instead, she simply stared at him.

  The moment he had her gaze, he was utterly aglow. The awe in Cailin’s own most definitely wasn’t helping his ego, if that was the problem. Azia expected Seleth to tease, if not to boast. Instead, he only laughed. He laughed more than he needed to. She at least repaid the favor with a smile.

  Azia had no Institute to formally gesture to, and only three stairs penetrated their personal bubble. Even so, she worked with what she had. She caught her breath as best as she could, fiddling with her windswept scarf as she motioned towards the invisible. “Welcome to the Alchemist Institute,” she offered.

  Cailin beamed. Starlight in a sandstorm was a nice souvenir, much the same as another researcher she’d stolen from across the desert. A partnership, too, might’ve been a high. She was starting to lean towards that one, if not a combination of several by now.

  Innocent company, in particular, made the most sense thus far. Seleth was still laughing, and the happiness on his face was pure. Trapped in a streaming shield, his joy was contagious, and Azia was powerless to do more than catch the same. Now and forever, she would prefer it to fear. It was her favorite high yet.