The Dragon's Sign

Chapter 5

"Fire is born within from our hearts. It is stronger in some while weaker in others. Only fate can decide to whom may discover their heart's true power and weild it."

~ -Sandra, Northern Witch of Auroura's Light~

Fairwin awoke with a headache, her head throbbing as if she had hit her skull against a rock. Sitting up, she rubbed her temples with her finger tips. Groaning, she fumbled around for her pack and searched inside for the flashlight.

After a moment of gropping around, she found it and clicked it on. Pointing it into the pack, she looked to see if there were any Tylanol or migraine pills left. After a brisk search, she came up with nothing.

Sighing, she got up and walked over to where Keran slept, making sure to point the light away from his face. She smiled in silent amusement as hs eyebrows rose and fell. His nose twitched, and hen he rolled over onto his otherside.

Clamping a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing, Fairwin turned left and crept onward until she reached the enterance. Once she managed to detangle herself from the clutching vines, Fairwin gulped in the crisp, cool morning air.

They had stayed inside the cave all day yesterday, spending most of the night trying to figure out what to do about the whole situation. Keran had told her of his mother's people, how the culture had been based on honor and constant quests. As he had told her about all those things, she had noticed the shadows of memories shining in his eyes.

Lucian Iverhiz was a man that they couldn't hide from forever and she knew it from the gut feeling she had been getting since they had broke out of the facility barely three days ago. She didn't know who had been the head of the place, but she hadn't cared at the time. She had been captured nearly a week before Keran had been, and the pain inflicted on her from the inhumanly experiments had left her with the wild need to escape.

It made her shudder at the memory of those long days and nights, her teeth gritting as she recalled the screams of others going though their own pain. All because they were different. Because they were not concidered human. Shaking her head, she forced away the dark thoughts and rubbed her eyes.

The sun had not yet risen over the trees, the sky a light blue that brought the sun's promise to return. Birds drowsily sang and twittered around her, their presence lightening her mood. She set the flashlight down near one of the small slagmites, reassured she wouldn't need it out here. Feeling slightly better, Fairwin started off into the bushes nearby and squatted. After relieving herself, she started to go back.

A twig snapped, leaves rustling in the air became tenser, the birds abandoning rheir caroling and taking to the sky. Afraid of being seen, Fairwin crouched down beneath the bush in front of her and peeked through a hole near the bottom.

Five camoflauged men were lined up and moving in a crouching position towards the cave. "Keran!" she thought, looking at the still shadow-covered cave mouth. They had to be after him, but how had they found them? Panic set in as the squad closed in, now not but ten feet from the entrance.

Without thinking of her own safety, Fairwin stood up and shouted,"Keran! Run!"

She sprang over the bush and arched intoa roll as bullets whizzed around her. Her cry of warning had suprised the squad, causing the other eight to emerge from their coverage and open fire on her.

A bullet hit her in her left shoulder, causing her to scream out in pain. Panting, she rolled sideways and spoke a charm. Twisting her hand backwards, she charged the energy ball before throwing it at one of the soldier's face. The soldier let out a howling scream as his face slowly began to dissolve into liquid wax.