The sky looked calm but kael knew better.
Up there, above the clouds nothing stayed quiet for long.Winds could shift in seconds. Storms could roll in from nowhere. And then there were the others the ones who hunted treasure too.
Kael checked the map again.The symbol was clear now.The trail led towards a place called The Hollow Drift a zone where compasses spun wild and engines sometimes failed.
He had just crossed the first sky ring when a shadow zipped past his left wing.
Kael frowned and leaned forward."That's not a bird."
Another shadow darted by this time faster.
Then he heard it. A low growl from behind.
Engines.
"Pirates," he muttered.
He gripped the controls as a black airbike came into view,it's rider dressed in dark armor,face covered with a mask.Two more followed, flying in a triangle.
Kael's radio buzzed. A voice crackled through.
"Unknown flier. You're entering claimed air. Drop altitude or be brought down."
Kael rolled his eyes." Yeah, not today."
He yanked the stick and sent The Emberwing diving between cloud layers. The pirates followed fast, firing warning shots that zipped past his tail.g
Kael pulled up, twisted left,then spun in a tight spiral losing one in the. clouds.
The chase had just begun.
Ten minutes later, Kael found a moments peace. He flew through a golden mist, silent and still. His fuel gauge was dipping low, but he didn't stop. Not yet.
Suddenly, something flashed ahead.
It wasn't a plane.
It was a floating island, half hidden in the fog. Tall rock spires rose like fingers, and at the center stood an ancient tower, it's top glowing faintly.
Kael's breath caught. He whispered, "Is this...it?"
But before he could move closer, his radio buzzed again.
"You're not the only one looking, Kael Stroud."
His eyes widened.
That voice. He knew it.
Captain Vex
The man who ruined his father. The man Kael had sworn to find.
Now he was here too.