"Veiara! Veiara! Zona va!"
A dark shaped flitted from shadow to shadow, moving quickly and silently towards the city gates. But, no matter how many times the figure wove and dodged through the back allies, the guards were always right behind her. Drafts of wind brushed past her, alerting the guards again and again as to where she had just turned.
Suddenly, a hard blast of wind knocked her into an alley that ended in a wall. She tripped over her feet and banged her head against the hard stones as she fell. Moaning, she tried to stand, but her head spun so much, she collapsed back onto the ground.
The guards clogged up the only escape route as she struggled to her feet. The commander stepped forward, a sword glinting in his hand. He brought up the sword, pressing the tip in to her neck. He held out a hand. "Goza et ona."
She shook her head, grasping the round object in her hands tighter.
Scowling, the commander pressed the tip of his sword harder into the flesh of her neck, drawing blood. "Vuan!"
There was no movement from the figure. The commander tensed, ready to plunge his sword into this annoyance when a gale force wind tore the sword from his grip. Before he had time to think, he and his squad were knocked onto their backs, unable to move an inch.
Silently the commander called for his sword, but the wind did not move it an inch. Fear raced throughout his body as his attention returned to the figure cloaked in black.
She stood with the palm of one hand facing the ground. Stepping delicately over the commander, she knelt down next to him. "Vera laón," she whispered before dissolving into a gust of wind.
At last, the unforgiving pressure was gone, and the commander could stand up. His men whispered to each other as they slowly got to their feet, staring at the spot where the figure had disappeared.
● ● ●
Miles away, slipping into a well guarded underground chamber, the figure placed the crystal clear gem into her well worn leather satchel. Peering out of the shadows of the door, she watched as the guards stood sentinel around the dais. Smiling to herself, she became a breath of air that lazily crept along the hard clay floor.
Sensing something amiss, the guards shifted uneasily, their hands dancing with tiny flames.
A figure appeared on the dais, her presence gone unnoticed by the guards whose backs were turned. Fingering the reddish orange gem, she slipped it into her satchel where it gently clinked against its new comrade.
Suddenly, fire erupted from the dais. The guards spun around, their minds reeling with the mystery of who had just gotten past them. They found the dais completely and utterly...empty.
● ● ●
"Now just hand it over, and we'll let you be," enticed the general.
The figure stood trapped in a mound of earth that came up to her waist. She clutched a greenish brown object to her chest.
"Go to Kólasi̱," she whispered and spat, squarely hitting the general in the face.
His temper flared as he whipped the saliva away. "Fine!" he snapped, his voice cold and flat. "Have it your way." The general clenched his fists tighter and slowly raised them up to eye level.
The figure gasped in pain as the earth trapping her crept up her body, forcing the air out of her lungs. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath in and breathed a long, slow breath out. Suddenly, the earth around her exploded. Chunks flew everywhere, knocking some guards out while others dove out of the way.
