The Everburn Mage

12. Creeping Shadows

Whether adrift in the abyss or casting a spell, there remained a constant: If you lacked control, only despair awaited you.

This was one of the very first lessons taught to her by her master. A lesson Ebony kept with her until this day. For a mage who couldn't properly manipulate their magic was no different than a child running through a wooden house with a lit match. 

A ticking time bomb on the cusp of detonation. For her to live on in this society as a combat mage, no, for her to survive in an age of magic, she needed but to control her powers as much as humanly possible.

Whether she was surrounded by those who were unable to use Ryas' gift or, like right now, facing an obstacle many times her size, her fate was sealed the moment she lost control. She was a mage and she ruled her magic, not the other way around. That is how it always should be. How it always should've been.

With her arms stretched out in front of her, she briefly analyzed the restrained golem of which her shadows confined. It grumbled and huffed, trying its best to break free. Little did the poor creature know that once it allowed itself to get captured it had already forfeited any chance of emerging from this nonsensical farce victoriously. A single spell was all it would take for her to put it out of its misery. However, there were other complications she first needed to address.

"Rune! During my missions, I always strive to keep the number of casualties to a minimum!" She looked upwards at the trio of panicking masked men mounted on the creature's massive hide and frowned. "I don't want anyone else to die today! No matter who they are! Do you understand?" she asked, glancing back at him.

"Yeah, I get ya," he smiled. "Leave this to me!"

Spraying on her backside manifested a sudden wave of heat, its warmth incubating her exposed skin. In a burst of accompanying bright, orange light, what sounded to her like an exploding car erupted in her eardrums. What next she knew Rune had soared over her head several feet in the air alongside his flickering tome. 

His trajectory: the golem. Or perhaps to be more specific, the criminals responsible for this mess' conception. Having trained with him during their academy days, Ebony was aware of Rune's skills long before he started making a name for himself. He was a deceptively quick thinker, even if he had a track record of not thinking things through when the situation called for it. But, what had always impressed her about him was the expert fashion in which he made use of his fire spells. Truly remarkable.

Conjuring a spark of fire in the cup of his hand, Rune hurtled a fireball at the vypers. Like a comet, the blistering projectile skidded across the blue and exploded onto the giant, knocking each of the men off its hide. The masked men, now falling several feet from the sky, shouted and flailed their limbs as tears flooded out their eyes. But before they could plummet to their deaths, Rune quickly flew to their aid. 

With his right hand, he caught one of them by their arm. With his left, he caught another by the collar of his shirt. Finally, the last screaming criminal was saved courtesy of the flying, fire mage who masterfully flew underneath the man's stomach and flung him over his backside. Panicked though he might have been, the vyper cooperated, not hesitating to follow Rune's lead by tightly gripping onto the boy's shoulders, eager to avoid his fate as a human-shaped pancake. It was only after he'd procured their safety did Rune reduce his speed and slowly descend to the street.

You sniveling idiots better be grateful I'm so nice, a frowning Rune thought to himself. Safely landing on the ground, he shifted his vision to Ebony, giving the girls a smirk as well as a thumbs up. "Everything's taken care of! Give that thing hell!"

Ebony nodded at him. "Noted."

She side-glance her levitating, black-colored tome cloaked in purple flames. Lowering dipping her chin, the girl muttered, "Umbra Ubfula", and in a rush of excitement, she felt her essence circuit her body.