Relinquish: Book II of the Rising Trilogy Read Online Free PDF Page A

could say the same for you,” I growl back. My fingers clench into fists at my side. Vikesh loves to taunt, to draw out his playtime, but I have no intention of letting him have that satisfaction.
    I flicker my gaze just to the side of him and nearly grin as he falls for my ruse. I am already halfway across the crevice before he realizes my intent. My hair whips against my cheek as I twist to connect my boot with his jaw.
    The outline of his body ripples a split second before he dematerializes, stumbling backward. I plummet to the ground, landing hard enough on my hip to suck the breath from my lungs.
    “A nice strike,” his ghostly voice calls from somewhere to my left. “I did not think you had it in you.”
    I spring back onto my feet, turning slowly as I search for any hint of a disturbance in the air that will betray his location. The smoke is thicker now, rolling in giant, stifling waves from the forest. The night sky overhead gleams burnt orange as the fires spread from tree to tree, never crossing into the base. The swamp muck is good for something at least , I think as I grit my teeth against the pain, stuffing it down deep so I can focus.
    A near constant buzzing rises in my ears as I feel ripples of energy coursing down my arms. I wonder if Vikesh can hear it or sense its presence. Can my own energy be used against me? I’d rather not find out.
    I step away from the crumbling rim of the crevice and pause beside a rock. With hardly a thought, I toss it through the air to my left, but it slams into a section of the wall that still remains intact and falls uselessly to the ground
    “Tsk. Tsk. You are starting to disappoint me.” His voice comes from my right. I turn to see him lounging against the wall of the bunker, one leg crossed over the other as if he doesn’t have a care in the world.
    I grin as I throw out my hands. An invisible blast of energy spirals across the clearing and shoves him back into the steel wall, the weakened metal crumpling in around him. His growl of fury is cut off as I latch onto him again, seizing the front of his uniform with my mind, and hurl him past me, slamming him into the concrete wall. The top row of blocks rock from their mortar bed and tumble down upon him. His cry of outrage rises as he crawls to his feet and I turn to face off with him.
    I brace as he draws his arms out to either side of his body and swings them in rapidly as his fists connect. I throw up a protective shield only seconds before the explosion hits. My hair whips behind my back as I plant my feet, leaning into the blast. Rocks, beams of splintered wood, and brick pelt at me, grazing harmlessly off my shield, grinding into a fine sandy texture that piles about my feet.
    “Impressive.” Vikesh mockingly claps as he stands to his full height. I can see blood dripping from his shattered knuckles, but he seems oblivious to the pain. “How about this?”
    He whirls his hands in a circular motion in front of him, sucking the flames from the oil tanker into a vacuum before him. It swirls into a ball, the bright orange and blue flames entwining as he throws out his hands and hurls it toward me.
    In my mind, I burrow deep into the ground, searching. I grin as Vikesh’s eyes widen in shock as the ground before me erupts into a geyser of water from a spring hidden many feet below us. Steam places a veil between us as the water and fire collide.
    “Equally impressive.” He doesn’t sound quite as haughty as he did a moment ago. I ache to release the tension wound painfully between my shoulder blades, but I know I can’t show any sign of weakness or he will exploit it.
    “Is that all you’ve got?” I goad, stepping to the side of the geyser so I can keep my gaze focused on him. My hair falls in dripping strands over my eyes, clinging to my cheeks. The water is cold, making the skin beneath my uniform pimple with sensitivity, but I ignore my discomfort. I am running out of time. If Eamon arrives before Vikesh