by Arden, Mari
I scream as the ground starts to rumble.
"Shit!" Kaiden curses.
Damien runs toward us, and Kaiden braces himself before jumping up, meeting him halfway. They both fall to the ground with a thud. Limping to the side, I try to follow them. Kaiden doesn't have a power, but he's strong. He takes every punch Damien delves him, and reciprocates it back just as violently. The wind and rain play together in a fierce dance, urging their aggression on. Curling my fists, I close my eyes imagining a dozen perfect arrows, filled with venomous fire. Swiftly raising my hands, I aim. The arrows appear from thin air, gathering in front of me. With a grunt, I push them forward. They fly, some hitting the ground and others hitting both Damien and Kaiden.
The fire hits Kaiden first and I hear him shout. He's violently flipped to his back. I scream when his head hits the ground. A loose arrow plunges Damien from behind and he screeches, arching his head toward the sky. It's a death cry, and desperation fills me as I plunge ahead. Damien pulls the arrow from his back. For a moment his palms glow, and he breaks it in half. Instantly, the broken arrow disappears.
Mid- stride, I recoil back in shock, uncertain of what to do next. My palms are aching, but I lift them anyway, discharging as much fire as I can, aiming for Damien. Seeing Damien's exposed neck, Kaiden takes his chance, seizing him by the throat. Damien is too fast though, and in less than a second they both are suffocating each other. Damien is trying to stare into Kaiden's eyes, attempting to bring his greatest fear to life.
"No!" I move as fast as I can, shooting fire. The pain is so intense my arm might fall off at any second. With his other hand Damien stops me in mid-stride, his invisible grip holding me in place. My fire stops, frozen.
Abruptly, Kaiden stops struggling, gazing at Damien, transfixed.
"No!" The grasp on my neck tightens. Something small and bright catches my eyes, and I look up. A star. A single star. Shutting my eyes tight, I picture a burning star. I give it a multitude of colors, red, orange, and blues. I make it into a moving fireball, rotating and turning like waves churning. When I open my eyes again, it emerges in front of me, faint at first, and harder and brighter as I hold the picture in my head. My hands grab the invisible rope on my neck, and I see all my fingers are flaming red. Burning the rope with my fingers, I gaze into the fiery star, silently commanding it to devour the alien. When the rope slowly loosens, melting underneath my onslaught, I shout with every ounce of energy I have left: "Go!"
With a roar, the flaming star sends itself through the short distance to Damien. It launches itself onto his back, thick like liquid cement. Cackling, the fire melts the metal on his body. With a shout, Damien jumps off Kaiden, flailing his arms wildly to put it out. The rain is steadily coming stronger, but it's no match for my fire, and the star burns brighter, consuming more.
Kaiden looks dazed on the ground, staring at Damien's burning form. I limp to him, tugging his shirt. "Kaiden! Let's go!" It takes a moment, but he seems to snap out of his haze. He shakes his head like he's trying to get rid of something in his head, and takes my hand. Damien is howling, and still alive. I want to go back to finish him.
I don't get my chance though because something is suddenly roaring from underneath me.
"Watch out!"
Chapter 27
The earth is breaking, shuddering to be free. I scream, clutching Kaiden. He's trembling violently, and all of a sudden I know I'm too late. Damien has already pulled out his greatest fear.
"What is it?" I shout to Kaiden over the earsplitting roars.
"A night creature."
I have no idea what that is, but I know it's not good because Kaiden's face is paper white.
"If I kill Damien, will it die too?"
"I-I- don't know." Kaiden looks at the ground, violently anticipating what will come out. I look back to Damien, and my star is still devouring him, slowly burning through his skin. He's still standing though, and I feel a rush of panic. Should I leave Kaiden to finish off Damien? Looking at the petrified expression on Kaiden's face I'm afraid if I leave he'll be unable to protect himself. My heart is pounding with my decision.
"Kaiden!" I grab his face, pulling it down to me. "Kaiden!"
His eyes are completely round and unblinking. I don't know what else to do so I kiss him. The kiss is a wet and desperate one. It tastes like rain and panic, and when his cold mouth moves against mine, I know I've made the right choice. I pull away, gasping for breath. His eyes are no longer dazed and he's looking at me with a shocked expression.
"I'm going to kill Damien. You stay back and kick some night creature butt!" Saying the words "night creature" seems to make him nervous again, but he's looking at me strangely like he's suddenly seeing me for the first time. He nods, then pulls me roughly into his arms and gives me another quick kiss. I let him, hoping it will make him stronger. When I pull away again, I see that his eyes are back to normal.
"Go!" he shouts.
I limp back to Damien. He's still standing and it's a grotesque sight to behold. His skin is burning, some parts are scorched black, and others an odd muddy brown. His eyes continue to glow though, and when he spots me, he snarls, the sound vibrating through the flames still latched to him. I picture more arrows and I shoot them toward him. There is less this time because my energy has waned considerably, and he dodges them, raising his hand to take hold of me. I know this trick already so I fall to the ground, crawling and dodging his invisible arms. My leg is breaking more underneath the pressure of what I'm doing, but I don't dare stop. When I get close enough I use every part of my body to stand. I make a flaming fist and punch him in the face. Simultaneously his hand connects with my cheek, slamming me back. It's got a trace of fire on it, and my skin sizzles with the contact. Within seconds, my face is numb.
I shove him back, and my leg collapses underneath me. Falling back with him, I grunt with the impact of our bodies. We crumple in a struggling heap, our magic spinning between us. Even in his state, his eyes are slowly growing black, and I panic. Clutching his shirt tightly, my hands turn into flames.
His screams of agony don't stop his powers though, and I feel him touching my mind. Desperately, I raise two fiery fingers and press them into Damien's eyes, digging as deep as I can. His howls of pain terrify me, but I don't stop, pushing harder until I feel the muscles underneath his eye sockets. Then I twist, shoving more fire into his face with my fingers. I don't stop digging until he's completely collapsed on top of me.
When I finally realize his face is next to mine, I scream, pushing his body away. The flames are still licking him, and they swirl around him, latching like maggots. I watch, fascinated I created that, but disgusted at the same time. My fingers are wet with blood, mucous, and fire.
A loud howl sounds close by, making me flinch. Turning toward Kaiden, I see a giant black wolf like creature circling him, red eyes glaring menacingly. It's larger than he is. Dread fills my body as I struggle to get up. Emitting low growls, the gigantic creature is digging his claws into the ground, baring large fangs the size of my arm. Kaiden is bracing himself, holding his hands up like a boxer.
Reaching over I grab some flames, decaying by Damien's body. I let it wash over me, massaging for more fire. I curl my fists, stretching my fingers to pull for more flames. I'm so tired that at first nothing comes out then gently, more fire is created, pulsing on the surface of my skin.
Crouching the creature roars, jumping onto Kaiden. His long nails slash Kaiden's chest. When I see his blood spilling out, I want to faint. Screaming as loud as I can to get its attention, I yell, "Over here you piece of filth! Over here!"
Fighting to get up, I use the ground to push my body. I crawl over. The distance isn't far, but my body is so ravaged I can barely move. Trying to shoot the fire, I raise my hands but it's no use. The blaze sputters, but continues to rest on my fingers.
"Kaiden!" I shout. "Bring it over here!"
He spares me a look like I'm crazy, and continues to ward off the creatures biting
advances. Damn it, I think, crawling over. The animal's jaws snap precariously close to Kaiden's face, and it's enough to give me the energy to crawl faster. My bleeding knees are drenched in water and soil. Through sheer determination, or desperation, Kaiden flips the animal to its side, and both struggle to dominate. Kaiden punches with all his might, narrowly avoiding sharp claws and teeth.
When I'm near, he catches my eyes, and tries to push the animal closer. That's all I need, and reaching my hand out, I pour every ounce of fire left in my body onto the animal.
It howls, screeching. It's the most terrifying sound I've ever heard, and I'm so afraid I press my hands deeper into the fur, transferring more flames onto its flesh. Kaiden pushes the creature further from his body, and closer to me. When I can't hear any more grotesque screams from the animal, I pull my hand back, staring at the blackness stained there.
Breathing hard, Kaiden stands up, looking as disheveled and exhausted as I am. Walking over to me, he gives me his hands. I take it and he helps me up, arms over my waist. He looks to Damien's smoking body, then to the beast burning in front of us.
"First thing you should know: magical creatures take forever to die."
A tiny smile curls the corner of my lips. We're both staring at each other with identical expressions of bafflement at what we've just survived. Even though Kaiden's holding me, I sway, dizzy. Looking at him helplessly, my whole body collapses. When I close my eyes, I'm thinking nothing at all.
Chapter 27
The earth is breaking, shuddering to be free. I scream, clutching Kaiden. He's trembling violently, and all of a sudden I know I'm too late. Damien has already pulled out his greatest fear.
"What is it?" I shout to Kaiden over the earsplitting roars.
"A night creature."
I have no idea what that is, but I know it's not good because Kaiden's face is paper white.
"If I kill Damien, will it die too?"
"I-I- don't know." Kaiden looks at the ground, violently anticipating what will come out. I look back to Damien, and my star is still devouring him, slowly burning through his skin. He's still standing though, and I feel a rush of panic. Should I leave Kaiden to finish off Damien? Looking at the petrified expression on Kaiden's face I'm afraid if I leave he'll be unable to protect himself. My heart is pounding with my decision.
"Kaiden!" I grab his face, pulling it down to me. "Kaiden!"
His eyes are completely round and unblinking. I don't know what else to do so I kiss him. The kiss is a wet and desperate one. It tastes like rain and panic, and when his cold mouth moves against mine, I know I've made the right choice. I pull away, gasping for breath. His eyes are no longer dazed and he's looking at me with a shocked expression.
"I'm going to kill Damien. You stay back and kick some night creature butt!" Saying the words "night creature" seems to make him nervous again, but he's looking at me strangely like he's suddenly seeing me for the first time. He nods, then pulls me roughly into his arms and gives me another quick kiss. I let him, hoping it will make him stronger. When I pull away again, I see that his eyes are back to normal.
"Go!" he shouts.
I limp back to Damien. He's still standing and it's a grotesque sight to behold. His skin is burning, some parts are scorched black, and others an odd muddy brown. His eyes continue to glow though, and when he spots me, he snarls, the sound vibrating through the flames still latched to him. I picture more arrows and I shoot them toward him. There is less this time because my energy has waned considerably, and he dodges them, raising his hand to take hold of me. I know this trick already so I fall to the ground, crawling and dodging his invisible arms. My leg is breaking more underneath the pressure of what I'm doing, but I don't dare stop. When I get close enough I use every part of my body to stand. I make a flaming fist and punch him in the face. Simultaneously his hand connects with my cheek, slamming me back. It's got a trace of fire on it, and my skin sizzles with the contact. Within seconds, my face is numb.
I shove him back, and my leg collapses underneath me. Falling back with him, I grunt with the impact of our bodies. We crumple in a struggling heap, our magic spinning between us. Even in his state, his eyes are slowly growing black, and I panic. Clutching his shirt tightly, my hands turn into flames.
His screams of agony don't stop his powers though, and I feel him touching my mind. Desperately, I raise two fiery fingers and press them into Damien's eyes, digging as deep as I can. His howls of pain terrify me, but I don't stop, pushing harder until I feel the muscles underneath his eye sockets. Then I twist, shoving more fire into his face with my fingers. I don't stop digging until he's completely collapsed on top of me.
When I finally realize his face is next to mine, I scream, pushing his body away. The flames are still licking him, and they swirl around him, latching like maggots. I watch, fascinated I created that, but disgusted at the same time. My fingers are wet with blood, mucous, and fire.
A loud howl sounds close by, making me flinch. Turning toward Kaiden, I see a giant black wolf like creature circling him, red eyes glaring menacingly. It's larger than he is. Dread fills my body as I struggle to get up. Emitting low growls, the gigantic creature is digging his claws into the ground, baring large fangs the size of my arm. Kaiden is bracing himself, holding his hands up like a boxer.
Reaching over I grab some flames, decaying by Damien's body. I let it wash over me, massaging for more fire. I curl my fists, stretching my fingers to pull for more flames. I'm so tired that at first nothing comes out then gently, more fire is created, pulsing on the surface of my skin.
Crouching the creature roars, jumping onto Kaiden. His long nails slash Kaiden's chest. When I see his blood spilling out, I want to faint. Screaming as loud as I can to get its attention, I yell, "Over here you piece of filth! Over here!"
Fighting to get up, I use the ground to push my body. I crawl over. The distance isn't far, but my body is so ravaged I can barely move. Trying to shoot the fire, I raise my hands but it's no use. The blaze sputters, but continues to rest on my fingers.
"Kaiden!" I shout. "Bring it over here!"
He spares me a look like I'm crazy, and continues to ward off the creatures biting advances. Damn it, I think, crawling over. The animal's jaws snap precariously close to Kaiden's face, and it's enough to give me the energy to crawl faster. My bleeding knees are drenched in water and soil. Through sheer determination, or desperation, Kaiden flips the animal to its side, and both struggle to dominate. Kaiden punches with all his might, narrowly avoiding sharp claws and teeth.
When I'm near, he catches my eyes, and tries to push the animal closer. That's all I need, and reaching my hand out, I pour every ounce of fire left in my body onto the animal.
It howls, screeching. It's the most terrifying sound I've ever heard, and I'm so afraid I press my hands deeper into the fur, transferring more flames onto its flesh. Kaiden pushes the creature further from his body, and closer to me. When I can't hear any more grotesque screams from the animal, I pull my hand back, staring at the blackness stained there.
Breathing hard, Kaiden stands up, looking as disheveled and exhausted as I am. Walking over to me, he gives me his hands. I take it and he helps me up, arms over my waist. He looks to Damien's smoking body, then to the beast burning in front of us.
"First thing you should know: magical creatures take forever to die."
A tiny smile curls the corner of my lips. We're both staring at each other with identical expressions of bafflement at what we've just survived. Even though Kaiden's holding me, I sway, dizzy. Looking at him helplessly, my whole body collapses. When I close my eyes, I'm thinking nothing at all.
Chapter 28
Something soft touches my face. I wrinkle my nose to chase it away, which makes me sneeze. Jerking awake, I try swatting the insect back. When I do, my hand smacks straight on to a hard chest.
Kaiden's hard chest.
Suddenly, everything comes rushing back to me. Escape. The explosion. Damien. Kai
den. Death.
Fire.
With that last thought, I abruptly straighten.
"Ow!" we both yell simultaneously as my head bumps into Kaiden's chin. Feeling the arms around me sway slightly, I grasp his neck for more support.
"Sorry."
"It's ok," he says, but he's cringing. I know it's from more than just me. We've had quite a night.
"Kaiden, you can put me down." I shift anxiously in his arms. "I want to try walking." Gently, he unlaces the hand around my knees, setting me softly on my feet. The second my weight is put on my right leg, I cringe, shuddering from the impact. Gritting my teeth, I try to remove myself from Kaiden's hold, but he's firm, pressing his fingers into my back.
"Let me help you." When I open my mouth to protest, he continues. "I need to. Or else we'll never get out of this place." It takes a moment, but I finally nod, conceding his better judgment. Feeling like a big baby, I let him take me into his arms again, listening to the steady rhythm of his gait.
It's still dark out. "How long have we been walking?"
"A couple hours."
A couple hours? He's not breathing very hard." Aren't you tired?"
"Yes," he admits.
Bewildered, I remark, "You sure don't sound like it."
I feel him shrug. "I have a larger energy reserve than most do. It's sort of left over residue from my ancestry."
"Oh?" My interest piqued, I ask, "What does that mean?"
"It means I come from a long line of magic, which is ironic because I don't actually have any magic." He chuckles, and I feel the vibrations through my sides. I settle my head deeper into his body.
"Does that upset you?"
He takes a moment to think, then answers candidly, "No. It actually doesn't. I think who you are matters more than what magic you have." He sounds serious and wise.
I smile into his shirt. "And who are you, Kaiden?" I ask softly, realizing I don't know much about the guy who helped save my life.
