The Heroes of The Elemental Academies Book 4: The Fire Within

Chapter 1: Fire in the Sky

Karlion

   Fires raged in the forest of evergreen as his small party raced through the night.
"Keep moving, but stay low," he ordered ducking as a hideous screech sounded above. It was closer this time, then again it was always closer. 
    "How does it keep finding us," his friend Kartigal said as he ran next to him. Karlion hurdled a fallen tree and ducked under a branch low enough that his dark rust colored wings were hit. It was such a pain having to fold them across his back like this. He turned his attention back to his friend as they raced around a small group of bushes following the narrow travelers path.
  "I don't know," he admitted. Kartigal ducked again his deep green wings catching on a branch, scraping the membrane on his inner wing.
   "Ahh! By the almighty that hurt!!" He exclaimed as they started down a hill covered by a thick green grass. Karlion knew that for any other race it would've been difficult to avoid the small sharp rocks scattered across the hill side. But for an Eskalion of his strength seeing at night was no different the seeing in daylight. He deftly stepped over each one as he and the others behind him flew down the hill at speeds he was sure no human could've matched. Another screech behind him caused him to look back through the thick canopy of pine branches to night sky overhead. Small gemlike lights stood staring down on him, watching. A dark winged shape easily fifty feet from wingtip to wingtip swooped over the trees blocking the starry night from view as it passed over head. Even with his keen sight he couldn't make out any of its individual traits.

   Pain erupted from his left foot and suddenly the sky and ground switched places, then they switched places again. a sharp sting erupted from the back of his head and his eyesight blurred. He had no idea how long he fell but when he finally recovered enough to see his surroundings he was laying on a grassy slope looking up at the cloudless sky.  Had he really fallen?  he tried to stand up but simultaneous pain from both the back of his head and his back told him he was injured. Another tinge told him his left wing was broken in perhaps two places. A screech behind him caused him to ignore his pain and stagger to his feet.

  Kar! A voice yelled and a blue scaled young man ran out of the trees to his right. Within seconds his arm was thrown over the younger Escalion's shoulders and they began once again limping down the slope as fast as they could go.

   "I'm sorry Temulion," Karlion muttered not really meaning for the young dragon to hear. "I'm not really used to being... Grounded." His blue scaled friend regarded him for a moment with cool Azure eyes. The scales on his face made it harder for him to guess his thoughts.

   "None of us are used to this," he reasoned as they ducked under the boughs of a fir tree. "For the first time in 10,000 years the skies of Elementia have been taken from us." 

   "May the King of all Protect us," Karlion said in response. There wasn't much else he could say.

  "Where are the others," He asked a sudden alarm filling his veins like ice. Temulion shrugged causing the moonlight to glint off the thick scales covering his shoulders.

   "When you fell they scattered to lure the abominations away from you. If they were successful they should be showing back up here soon. Karlion wasn't relieved, but he was gratified to know they were alive.

   "That was a good thought," He said quickly so Temulion didn't mistake his silence for rebuke. Temulion just shrugged again and grunted as he helped Karlion over a fallen tree. They were silent for a time as they picked their way down the hill till they reached a small stream that bisected the forest.

   "let's wait here for the others," He suggested. Temuliuon didn't argue and he could see the younger Eskalion's stamina was waning. He set him down next to a boulder by the edge of the river just slightly off the path they had been following. then he watched as Temulion stretched before crouching down beside him.