Shane walked through the forest with the rest of the class.

Tendrils of smoke choked through the trees.

When his breaths came, they were rasping.

They walked at a brisk marching past, leaving the fire far behind. Professor Seabend was at the head of the party, leading the students through the thick ferns and tangling vines. Everyone was nervous, twitching like prey animals.

At one point, Fernando called out to the teacher.

"Where are we going?" Fernando yelled to Professor Seabend.

"The Psionic Science room," she answered.

Nobody talked for a while after that.

In every breath of silence, Shane's mind went crazy.

He kept seeing the ranks and ranks of Onyx League soldiers, marching forward. The image of the Onyx soldiers flashed in his mind again and again. When he closed his eyes, it was seared to his eyelids.

They were moving inexorably, with power, with destructive purpose, with deadly intention.

And then there were the questions.

They were eating away at him, consuming him from inside.

There were so many things unanswered, so many things he was desperate to know.

How had they gone through the force field?

How were there so many soldiers, and how had they gotten onto the school grounds?

Why did they even want to invade Psionic Academy in the first place? Why had they come to the school?

And, above everything else, what did all of this have to do with the message they had given him?

The final question was the most worrying.

Shane felt terrified. It was an increased terror, more profound than the fear that the others were experiencing.

They had contacted him.

Contacted him especially.

It horrified him. Were they going to assassinate him? Capture him?

He didn't even want to think about it. Every possibility was sickening, and it made his gut sore.

Still, he wanted to know the answers to all of his questions.

No, he needed to know the answers.

It wasn't a matter of curiosity any more.

He wasn't just being inquisitive.

No, not his questions were based in desperation.

Shane saw the Professor glance over her shoulder.

He checked behind him too, it was an instinct.

Liang was trailing behind.

"Quickly, everybody! Stay together!" she said, staring pointedly at Liang. He sped up, jogging to join the group.

Complying, the students formed a tight, compound mass.

The journey through the forest took a while, and Shane was anxious the whole time.

Every time a twig snapped, his heart jumped in his chest.

Every time something moved in his peripheral vision, he wanted to dart away like a fleeing rabbit.

Soon, they had reached the edge of the forest.

"We're going to move towards the Psionic Science room. But we must be fast, and quiet. If we run into an Onyx League member, don't fight. Just run to the science room."

And then they walked into the open.

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This is the last day that Psionic Academy is free on Amazon! In this publication I have included written a bonus story from the point of view of an Onyx Officer inside the Onyx League Headquarters. This extra story reveals the darkest inner secrets of the Onyx League, and is only available on Amazon. Making an Amazon account is free, fast, and easy. The book will only be free for two days, so what are you waiting for - get it while it has no cost!

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Sylver here! I hope you enjoyed this new chapter! Make sure to leave your thoughts on this chapter in the comments, I want to hear your ideas on what will happen next! And I'm publishing a new chapter of Psionic Academy every second day, so stay tuned for more.

If you've enjoyed reading this story, don't forget to vote, comment and add it to your reading lists. Stay tuned, because I will be publishing a brand new chapter every second day! If you have any tips for how I can improve my writing, or what I did well this time, please feel free to tell me (in a nice manner). Thanks so much for reading my story!

- Sylver