Hop in, Shewit said, having caught sight of Eldana’s approaching figure.
Soon enough, Eldana saw the reason for the sudden trouble. Shewit had a company of boats, and ships on her tail. They were filled with roaring orcs, and Middle warriors, all on the ready. Eldana even spotted a few boats that held what appeared to be the natives from the island, distinctive with their scanty dressing and the marks they made on their bodies. The sight of the pursuing company took Eldana down memory lane. This was exactly how she had lost her friends. But she brought herself back together instantly. This was no time to dally or fall into sulking, regret, or self-reprimanding. She increased her pace, and then manipulating the air around her, boosted herself up and onto Shewit’s boat.
“Where did they come from?” Eldana asked, as soon as she came on board.
“The natives,” Shewit said. “They called them in.”
“Those damned people!” Eldana cussed. “I had to disarm two of them only moments ago. One was such a good shot with an arrow. He would have shot me.”
Eldana heard a thud behind her and turned to see a spear sticking out from the boat.
“They are onto us,” Eldana said. “Could you go any faster?”
Shewit chuckled. Teleporting would have been the easiest way out, but she could not teleport with Eldana. The gateway in the fabric of the universe could only be accessed one being of chaos and balance at a time, she knew. She had tried to go back for some others like her, but she had been unsuccessful, largely because of this.
“I did not have the time to stall just so I could pick the best boat. It was either get to you in haste or get to you in a really good boat. But if you are still bothered about the boat, then I can turn back, and get a good one?”
Eldana rolled her eyes and moved to the back of the boat.
“Keep your hands strong and firm.” She told Shewit.
Shewit chuckled and tilted her head. Eldana stared into the ships giving chase, and she felt a surge of anger. For being separated from her friends. For her friends who were suffering such terrible, unknown tortures.
With one hand, Eldana caused a wave to erupt from the water, raising one of the ships high into the air, before dashing it down on top of another.
“Are we just running, or do we have any place in mind?” Eldana turned, to ask Shewit.
“I have a place in mind,” Shewit replied.
“Where?” Eldana nodded.
“We will just keep going forward,” Shewit said.
Shewit kept the boat in place, while Eldana tossed, and slowed the boats as much as she could. Sometimes, she encountered counter magic from one of the boats. But ultimately, her will prevailed. If there were mages in the midst of the attacking ship, none of them were a match for a being of Balance and Chaos.
They had long since left Piece Island behind. And were speeding across the Ocean Wall. A smile was beginning to grow on Eldana’s face. The gap between them and the pursuing ships had widened considerably. At the pace they were going, they would lose them entirely in an hour or two.
Suddenly, Eldana heard a grunt behind her. She turned. Shewit was standing, her hands gripping the boat’s wheel, but Eldana noticed a weakness in her posture. A weakness that was growing rapidly and causing her to slouch.
“Are you okay, Shewit?” Eldana asked.
Shewit collapsed. She was dead before she even hit the floor. It was then that Eldana saw the shaft of an arrow, sticking out from Shewit’s chest. it was an enchanted arrow from the presence Eldana felt around it. Her lips trembled when she saw a circle of blood was beginning to bloom from the point of entry. Eldana’s lips began to tremble. Her eyes grew teary.
“No,” she muttered. “No, no, no.”
Just then a circle of space opened in the air before her. And something flew out of it, fast. Instinctively, Eldana rolled to the side, and with one guttural cry, sent a streak of flame into the portal. The portal vanished, and just at the same time, one of the ships behind her burst into flames. But Eldana was not there to see her latest score. She was by Shewit’s body, crying, tears dropping on Shewit’s still body, and mingling with the blood on her dress.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
One Last Time
There were seven of them in a semicircle. Nobody moved. Swords drawn, faces grim.
She was here. The elite warriors of the Middle had her at last; the princess Eldana.
A vast expanse of vegetative land sentinelled by a small body of water, which separated it from the Mountains of Sinora at one side and spilled into the ocean at the other. The ships had not stopped after Shewit’s death. Eldana never expected them to. She was the one they were after. On getting here, she had left Shewit’s body and fled inland. But she was soon surrounded. Hemmed in by orcs, and soldiers. Lord Taboon, Sinto, and five other guards stood in front. This was a re-enactment of the fight in the clearing at Kleas. Only that this time, they came with far more manpower than they needed.
“Scared that I will beat you all to a pulp, huh?” she challenged.
Lord Taboon smiled.
“Impetuous girl.” He said. “We are not taking any chances. Even if you do not have any more helpers.”
“This is over, Eldana,” Sinto said. There was impatience in his tone and stance.
“Yes,” Eldana replied. “Yes, it is.”
“Stop this, and give yourself over willingly. What you have done has been foolish, and selfish. And you know that. It does not have to end this way, but if I have to, I will fight you with everything I have.”
Eldana smiled
