Lore

by Alexandra Bracken

Heaps of dark asphalt, the mangled yellow remains of a taxi, and blocks of concrete had fallen in a ring of destruction around her. The chaos was just outside a circle of intense, crackling light that surrounded her like a protective barrier. Lore craned her head back. She knew this power. “Cas?” she choked out. Castor stood hunched over her, his arms up, his palms out-stretched. Above him, trying to drive down through the new god’s barrier, was a massive slab of concrete. It bobbed in the air, riding the blasting heat and light. It was the source of the sound she had heard before, not rushing sand. The concrete was being incinerated to a fine dust. It poured down along the edges of the barrier and piled up around it. “Don’t. Move,” Castor got out between gritted teeth.