Bullets whistled around her, some even coming close—but despite the danger they represented, Jade felt oddly at ease. This was home, all this frantic activity and excitement. This was what had been missing from her life for months. Jade Darcy was a child of war, a daughter of battle; the scent of danger in her nostrils, the taste of death in her mouth was the only certainty she knew. Everything else was simply waiting.
She scrambled up the rocks, taking advantage of what cover she could and pulling her Combat Masterpiece from her belt again as she ran. The riflemen were both firing at her; they were fair shots, but they’d never dealt with any targets that could dodge as quickly and surely as Jade. With the supreme overconfidence of amateurs, they refused to take cover behind the rocks; th
