Fairycorrupter

Prologue

The night was body-numbing frigid with the ice-filled wind blowing around them. Even for the Alaskan-born cryomancer Azura, tonight was way too cold. It was a shock when their parents shoved her out into the deadly elements with her younger brother in the dead of night. Azura wasn't sure when it was since the moon's light wasn't with them tonight. They weren't given a destination but a simple demand.

Run. Don't. Look, Back.

Those were their mother's last words before she closed the door on them. Azure would have banged on the door demanding to be let in, but creatures swarmed the house. It was motivating enough to listen to her mother, who hopefully had a reason for banishing them into the wilderness. Azura had no idea what was lurking around the house, but it gave her chills worse than the frozen taiga. Fifteen inches of snow had blanketed the forests over the past three days, making their escape difficult. It was difficult for her to trudge through the snow; she could only imagine its burden on her five-year-old brother. Her advantage tonight without the moon's light was that she had played in these woods for her twelve-year lifespan. What would be different about tonight?

Azura gasped when something scuttled parallel with them in the forest. She'd never heard movements like it before from any of the creatures. Not even ice beetles moved that way. She glanced around, but the new moon night made it harder to see even with her natural night vision. Without the added powers, her vision reverted to normal unless she used magic to enhance her eyes. It would give them away to whatever was chasing them. It sounded like it was only one... For now. The whole forest was cloaked in a never-ending shadow, and it was on nights like this where enemies hid and lurked for a surprise attack. In the mage world, there's no telling what it could be. Humans have no idea how dangerous the world could be.

Azura continued to pull her brother through the snow and wind to a place she hoped would be safe enough for them to take a needed break. "Aza, I'm tired." Her bother, Draven, whimpered behind her through confused tears.

"I know, Dray. I am too. We'll stop soon." Azura called out as the cold wind made her lungs sting with pain. Every breath she took became progressively more painful with every step. As tempting it was to stop right then and there, they'd be too exposed out here.

"Ah," Draven called out, his hand slipping out of hers.

She didn't hesitate to spin around when his hand left hers. She had feared something had snatched him, but a large log had bested her bother. He sat on the ground sobbing, holding his leg. Azura was grateful that nothing had gotten hold of him, but she felt guilty for not paying attention. She had gone over the log without thinking about it, not even thinking about how Draven would get over it. Unbelievable, she thought, kneeling over his leg to get a better look. She used a small amount of her silver magic to illuminate the area, which looked as bad as she feared it would. She raised her other hand, and a semi-transparent dome formed around them. Hopefully, it would dim some of the light.

She looked at his torn sleep pants and carefully moved the fabric away from the extended cut running almost the length of his calf. His pants were going to be stained with blood, but she should be able to stop the bleeding. She was only in secondary school, but her mother taught her all about silver lunar magic, or lunamancy, which they wouldn't be able to teach her in school. Her hands glowed silver before she hovered one hand above the top and the other at the bottom. Her brother winced as the cut slowly began to heal. It was a painfully itchy process sometimes.

Something screeched loudly behind them, which made her close her hands and bring them to her chest. Azura took down the shield and moved them into a deep pit in the middle of the woods. On the other end, protruding from the pit's wall was a tangled mess of exposed tree roots thicker than Azura's body. Dray's body was getting heavy while she quickly crossed the vast space. She placed him down between two roots and then shoved him back towards the dirt towards the back of the extensive root ball. Azura managed to squeeze herself through the spaces and sat with her back against the soil with a hefty exhale. At least there was enough room for both of them.