WITH A RELUCTANT nod, the red haired guard pulled out a ring embedded with a gleaming red crystal on the top. He wore it on his middle finger, then raised it high, muttering an incantation with a shaky voice.
** "Vireth tal shaer, doruun ka'taal, sorith mal krathas, ar'dun vorr'kal!" **
Immediately, a beam of crimson light shot skyward, tearing through the clouds above.A violent wind began to rip through the village, turning the air into a swirling torrent of dust and debris.
The red crystal on the ring pulsed erratically, as if whatever powered it was struggling. The red haired guard's heart skipped a beat. He could feel the magic slipping beyond his control, like trying to hold water in his hands.
He repeated the incantation and tried to steady his voice, casting nervous glances at Braxton. He knew if the little monster didn't kill him, Braxton certainly would if he failed.
Just then, the glow stabilized, casting a red shadow over the crowd. The guard's red hair slowly lost some of it's vibrant color, his face becoming pale as if all his blood was being drained out by the spell.
Wait - since when do they practice magic in the Emerald Dominion? The sight stole Adrian's breath away, and dread settled in his gut.
Something didn't feel right.
It felt like everything that could go wrong, had gone wrong in the world.
- "This is bad, really bad," - Daevera said in a tone he hadn't heard her use. She was scared of whatever was happening, and that frightened him even more.
The air shifted, and all the hair on Adrian's body stood at attention, a cold shiver running down his spine. He glanced around frantically, trying to make sense of the deep rumbling beneath his feet.
Daevera, what in the nine hells is happening?
The sky above was torn open by the pillar of crimson light, and when the light reached the earth, a fog began to form, coalescing into a shape that defied logic.
Daevera's voice cut through his spiraling thoughts. - "Get your mother and run, Adrian. Run now!" -
He didn't wait.
His legs were already moving before his mind could catch up. No one paid attention to him, everyone else stood, transfixed, staring at the fog.
Are they dumb or what? Who waits around for something like that?
He bolted towards Halena, who was still kneeling in the mud, face pale, breath shallow. He grabbed her shoulder, fingers digging into her skin. "Mom! We have to go!" He pulled her up, frantic.
"I can't, Adrian. Go. Save yourself." She tried to wave him off, her voice barely a whisper.
"What? I'm not leaving you here!" Adrian snapped, desperation fraying his words.
"Stupid boy," she hissed, as she let him lift her to her feet. Together, they staggered backward, but the air itself felt hostile, thick with dread.
Adrian glanced over his shoulder. The fog continued to warp and solidify, taking on a hulking, monstrous shape, far worse than anything he'd ever imagined.
The creature coalesced into a 15-foot beast, panther-like, with scales that glistened like tarnished metal. Red eyes gleamed with a fierce intelligence, and two jagged horns curved back from its head, casting it in a demonic light. Its tail, long and whip-like, lashed at the ground, ridged spines jutting from its back.
"You idiot!" Braxton's voice thundered above the chaos, directed at the guard-summoner. "What on earth did you summon?!"
The beast answered for him with a roar - an earsplitting, earth-shaking sound that sent waves of terror through everyone that heard it.
The guards scattered, abandoning their mission of hunting down villagers, running alongside them as the beast charged, hurling bodies like ragdolls. Blood sprayed the air, mingling with the thick stench of fear and death.
Braxton leapt out of range, grabbing a terrified villager and throwing them into the beast's path. He turned, fury blazing. "Get it under control!" he yelled at the guard who had summoned it.
The guard raised the ring, muttering the spell again. But the beast was quicker. It lunged, jaws snapping around the man's body, lifting him into the air before tearing him apart with a single, brutal swipe of its claws. The guard's scream cut off in a sickening crunch of bone and flesh.
Braxton dove just in time, snatching up the guard's severed hand with the summoner's ring still on it. Without missing a beat, he sprinted for cover, tossing the bloodied hand away once he retrieved the ring.
"Move!" Adrian's voice was a desperate command as he grabbed Halena's hand, pulling her along. But she stumbled, her steps faltering, her frail body barely able to keep up with the panic and chaos around them.
"Mom, please. We have to move faster."
Halena wavered, then collapsed, her legs buckling beneath her. "Adrian… I'm too weak. You… you need to go." Her words trembled with quiet resignation.
Adrian's gut twisted. No. He wouldn't abandon her. "Don't say that. I'm not leaving you."
Her tear-filled, unseeing eyes searched for his face, her expression weary with years of sickness. "If you stay - "
"I said no!" His voice was sharp, a finality in his tone she didn't dare contest.
He bent down and scooped her into his arms. She felt so light, too light, years of the wasting sickness had left little meat on her bones.
"Hold on, Mom." His voice cracked as he adjusted her on his shoulders, running as fast as his legs would carry him. His heart thudded painfully in his chest, but he couldn't stop.
The sound of the beasts rampage echoed behind them, but Adrian focused on the only thing that mattered: getting to the bridge.
It was their only hope.
If we can just cross, we'll make it to the docks. Criminals move through there all the time; we'll find a way out. And I have enough money to buy our way.
Halena's breath came in ragged gasps, but she didn't argue further, her arms limp around his neck. Adrian's pulse raced as he pushed forward, his legs burning with the effort, his lungs screaming for air.
The bridge loomed ahead, a faint sliver of hope in the distance.
"Almost there, Mom," Adrian panted. "We're almost there."
Just as they reached the bridge, the sound of pursuit grew louder, the crowd swelling behind them, frantic to escape the nightmare.
As they neared the bridge, Braxton spotted the fleeing crowd and turned to one of his remaining guards. "Did you leave the orange crystals on the bridge?"
"Yes, sir," the guard replied.
"Good. Detonate it."
If anyone makes it past that bridge, they'll start a rumor that we practice forbidden magic, and the Lord will have my head! We left crystals around the bridge because we planned to kill everyone anyway. This is just speeding things up, Braxton thought.
Adrian had reached the far end of the bridge, when Daevera's voice screamed in his mind. - "Adrian, some kind of energy is building up on the bridge. It's too close! Run faster!" -
But it was too late.
The bridge exploded in a violent roar, sending shards of wood and chunks of stone flying in all directions. The force ripped Adrian's grip from his mother, flinging them both into the air. The crowd closest to the blast was torn apart instantly, bodies shredded by the unforgiving force.
The cold water engulfed him immediately, swallowing his screams as he tumbled, helpless under the weight of his soaked clothes. He clawed his way to the surface, gasping for air, his voice raw as he shouted for his mother.
"Mom! Mom, where are you!" The water stung his eyes, his throat burning as he yelled.
Blinding pain exploded in his side and when he coughed into his hand, he saw it was tinged with red. Reaching down, his fingers brushed against a piece of wood lodged deep in his stomach, staining the water around him red.
He ignored the pain, and continued looking around, desperately. "Mom!" he choked out, swallowing a mouthful of water. "Mom!" But his voice was swallowed by the rush of the river and the distant echoes of destruction.
- "Adrian, you're injured. You need to get out of the water before your strength wanes." - Daevera said anxiously.
"No! I have to find her! I have to..."
Every stroke felt heavier, the piece of wood driving deeper with each frantic movement. But he wouldn't stop. He couldn't. His mother was out here somewhere, and if he didn't find her…
He felt himself floating towards the riverbank, and even though he fought the wave, he was too weak to stop it.
- "Please... forgive me. I can't let you drown." - Daevera's voice sounded hollow as she manipulated the water, ferrying him to safety against his will.
"No! Stop it!" He struggled against her hold frantically, but she wouldn't let go. Tears streaked his face as he finally gave in, too exhausted to fighting.
His mother was too weak, too frail, to have survived the blast. He knew it, but wasn't ready to accept it.
He finally reached the riverbank, clawing at the mud, the world around him spinning as he dragged himself up onto solid ground. His vision tunneled, blood spilling from his wound from the strain.
He made to remove the piece of wood lodged in his stomach.
- "Don't, you'll bleed out even faster if you remove it. Just keep moving." - Daevera said.
Through his blurred gaze, he looked back at his burning village on the other side. The sky was once again painted in ominous crimson hues. Braxton was chanting, his guards forming a protective wall around him.
Adrian heard a shrill roar, and saw the massive creature thrashing in defiance as it struggled against invisible chains that yanked it upward, back into the swirling, blood-red pillar that descended from the sky again.
Winds whipped through the atmosphere, dragging the beast higher and higher until, with one final, haunting shriek, it disappeared into the light, swallowed whole, and the pillar snapped shut, leaving the sky ominously still.
Adrian's vision blurred, and his senses began to shut down. He knew that he couldn't stay here, the City Watch would no doubt call for reinforcements, and he was as good as dead if they found him here.
So he gritted his teeth, stumbling as he turned left and disappeared into the woods.