All the warriors relaxed, and some dropped their weapons after seeing the three disappeared into the woods. The fight took a toll on the warriors. They all gathered around Sinto, waiting for instructions. He spoke softly when everyone arrived.
“I’m sorry, my brothers. It seems we’re not just dealing with the Eldana that we know any more. She’s got help, renegades protecting her. Together, they are stronger and faster... but we have more experience and training!” Sinto looked over at a younger warrior who came limping towards them. He tried to give them confidence with his words.
“We haven’t been in combat for a long time, and none of us expected such violence. We must prepare ourselves better in the future.”
Tabeli walked beside him, visibly shaken by what he had just seen. “As much as I value you as our leader, my brother, she means a lot to you and we may have to go much harder than we’ve ever had to. Can you handle that?” Tabeli looked desperately at Sinto with the warmth of a good friend and placed his hand on his shoulder. Sinto looked away from Tabeli and paused for a few seconds.
“ I can handle it. No one is above the law,” said Sinto, his eyes wandering over the forest.
Tabeli gazed at him and nodded. Behind them glowed the forest clearing in the pre-dawn moonlight, scorched earth and holes everywhere from the fight. It was all so different from the calm it had been moments ago. But no one was concerned. All they thought of were the three who had escaped them. For them, the battle was not over; it had only just begun.
CHAPTER TWO
The Town of Kleas
It was midnight when the three companions made it to the small town with the name of Kleas. It was surrounded by a stone wall and protected by a large moat. Rich towns in Toas usually had at least one mage guard per tower. Here there was only one old guard who floated just above the entrance for the entire City.
Confused by this weird instance, Siem tried to explain it to herself. “What’s the point of that? The mage guards usually float in circles to protect the entire city, what if we choose to access from behind? Also, why is there just one? He is never able to guard the entire city alone.” Siem was truly perplexed; she probably knew best about the guardians amongst the three.
“Well, maybe he’s bored, I mean he can’t spend his life floating around in circles, can he?” Hermon laughed about his own revelation.
“Chosen by the Dakar, these are dead magicians who did not want to die immediately and would rather protect others for another century. There is a huge waiting list to become a guardian magician, and in our circles that’s a great honor, so stop blabbering about it being stupid, Hermon!” Siem said in annoyance to her companion, who was now back in the normal confines of his body. It did not seem like he had just gone berserk not long ago.
“Well, now the lady seems to know what she’s saying.”
Siem made a little lightning bolt appear in her hand. “Keep it up,” she said, looking at him threateningly.
Siem and Hermon kept arguing about the mage guardian’s logic and why Hermon choose being annoying; Eldana stayed seated on the ground under a tree and did not look up or follow their conversation. Siem noticed the silence after a while and walked towards her, serious again.
“What is it?”
Eldana looked up, tired. “They wanted to kill me.”
Siem looked irritated, and Hermon approached with a stern look on his face. All the goofiness had vanished from his expression.
“Of course, they want to kill you. They believe in the prophecy,” Hermon reminded her.
“Yes, but without ritual. Don’t you understand?” Eldana’s voice broke. “They wanted to kill me without the ritual. That means that I would not enter the light and save the world, but would be trapped between the two worlds, forever!” She could not hold back her tears.
Hermon and Siem looked concerned and stood by her side. There was no awkwardness or secrets between the three of them. After a while, Siem broke the silence.
“Night is coming soon and we are not safe yet. We have to go inside the town and hide.”
Siem had always been the one to keep everyone else in check. She knew that her friend was upset, but there were more pressing concerns. Eldana and Hermon nodded and moved without exchanging another word about this topic.
“What shall we do about the mage guardian?” Hermon asked. “These guys are always stronger than you think.” His gaze wandered to Siem, although there was no official leader of their group, it was always her who had to make a decision.
“I’ll distract it, and you take Eldana into the city.” She looked at Hermon and said nothing more. He moved towards Eldana and grabbed her by the arm. She was weak. The fight and the loss of home had depleted her. That made her vulnerable, whether she cared to admit it or not. They walked together towards the gate, with Siem remaining a little further away. She casted a cloaking spell with the soft murmurs of her voice.
Thus cloaked, Eldana and Hermon then strolled ahead. Nobody but Siem could see them. Hermon sometimes nervously looked to the top to see if the guard was making any unusual moves. Nothing happened. He was not sure what to expect but no cloak was perfect and it could break any time. As if on command, a short lightning bolt crashed right in front of Hermon and Eldana. They both immediately prepared for a fight.
Siem cursed from a distance but quickly got hold of herself.
The mage guardian uttered a few short
