A Whole New Mystery To...

Chapter 16

Back to Abbey's POV! And I'll let you guys get reading! Enjoy!

I woke to a pounding headache and darkness, groaning as my eyes adjusted to the dim light of the crescent moon. "She's awake!" I heard a gruff voice say before being dropped to the ground. I groaned once more as my right leg buckled underneath my weight. Then a hand grabbed my arm and hauled me up gently.

"You okay?" Will asked. He let me lean on him slightly as we started walking. I fought back a wave of nausea as I gave a small smile and a thumbs up.

"Fine." I responded in a weak voice. Then I took a look at our surroundings. We seemed to be traveling along a narrow pass, just wide enough for four people to walk abreast. Four normal sized people, so the Skandians, with their bulky helmets and shields, could only walk two abreast. The pass seemed too small to be Three Step Pass, but I figured it must have narrowed towards the middle.

"Three Step Pass?" I asked Will. He bit his lip before answering and my gaze narrowed.

"Not-Not exactly. I mean, I guess technically, but it depends on how you look at it considering-" he was cut off by a voice to my left.

"Will, you're rambling again." Cassandra said. I turned suddenly, surprised she was there. Cassandra continued, this time directing her words to me, "this pass apparently branches out to the right of Three Step Pass. We had no idea it existed. It spills out just before the marshes." Cassandra lowered her voice and addressed both of us, "The exit to this one is less than a kilometer from the exit to Three Step Pass. I overheard the Skandians talking. Maybe we can make a run for it as soon as we get out." I nodded smiling and regretted it a second later when a blinding pain flashed through my skull.

"Argh!" I yelled involuntarily as I grasped the sides of my head, doubling over. Now I knew what it felt like to have a concussion. Yay. Will grabbed my arm again.

"You okay?" He asked for the second time in minutes. I wanted to reply with a sarcastic comment like: I just doubled over in pain, do you think I'm alright! But I held my tongue. No sense in creating unnecessary conflict.

Instead I responded, "Yep. Just remind me not to shake my head." He smiled slightly at that, and I had to remind myself that he liked Alyss. Plus, I come from a different world; it would be extremely foolish to get tied up in anything in Araluen. Too late. I tried concentrating back on our surroundings, but my headache was still going on strong. The only thing I could think of was fear.

Honestly, I was panicking. I was supposed to stop this from happening. I had made it my goal to make sure that Cassandra and Will got out of this safely, and so far it hadn't worked out the way I had planned. I'd just have to make sure they got away once we reached the end of this pass. Speak of the devil, a light appeared from up ahead. Orders were being shouted from the two leading Skandians. I assumed they were Erak and Svengal, but I didn't know for sure.

"Wonder what they're saying." Will spoke suddenly. The northerners' thick accents made it hard to discern what they were saying, even though they were talking in the common tongue. I shrugged, hoping it wasn't about securing us to make sure we didn't get away. Then I mentally berated myself for jinxing it.

The three of us walked on in silence, all tensed, waiting for the moment when we would be in the clear and ready to make a run for it. Suddenly a thought occurred to me. What about the war with the temajui? Without the help of Halt, Horace, Evanlyn, and Will, the Skandians would all be killed, and then the army would march on until it reached Araluen. The thought shook me so much that I didn't even realize that we were out of the Pass. Will nudged me silently and I became aware of my surroundings again. Looking around, I could just see the muted glow of the fires staining the night sky from the temporary camp set up outside the entrance to Three Step Pass.

Will, Evanlyn, and I all exchanged glances and I put my hand by my side, nodding at it so the others would get the message. I held three fingers out and slowly lowered each of them, one by one. As the last one folded into my palm, I took of running towards the light. I heard the others beside me and saw Will drawing slightly ahead, and I matched my pace to his. I may not be a good sprinter, but I know how to hold my pace well enough. I estimated it would take us 7-8 minutes to reach the camp at the pace we were going. It would be close. I could already hear the Skandians trying to catch up with us. I wanted to yell out and alert the camp, but I didn't have any breath to spare.

Looking behind myself quickly, I noticed with alarm that Evanlyn was falling behind. I cursed myself for not realizing she wouldn't be as fast as us with her being the Princess and all. It wasn't until after Skandia that she had really improved on her survival skills and stamina.  I slowed slightly, well aware that the Skandians were getting closer and closer. As soon as I was even with Evanlyn, I grabbed her hand and started running faster again. Will had slowed slightly too until we were all running side by side.

So close! I though. We're gonna make it! I really had jinxed it. I heard the Skandians. They were very close behind us, and we were still too far away. I knew I had to make a decision. Hating myself as I did it, I pushed Evanlyn forward and shouted "Go!". I slowed down considerably, as did Will who seemed to sense my plan. I knew he wouldn't leave me, and I knew it was for the best, but I still wished he would have kept running and not looked back. Evanlyn didn't look as if she noticed what was happening behind her, and when she did turn around a couple seconds later, her eyes widened in horror.

I made a shooing motion with my hands and cupped my hands around my mouth, "Go tell them! Bring back the soldiers!" And then, after I saw her turn around and put on new burst of speed, I stopped entirely and turned to face the oncoming Skandians.

Okay, okay, feel free to pelt me with tomatoes. I know this is most definitely not summer and I'm so sorry for that. Homework has been crazy so far and topped with everything else, I haven't had a lot of time to work on this fanfiction as much. But, I'm still here. So I can't make anymore promises on when I'll be updating again, but I can say that I will try to get it done as fast as I can. I have some ideas on what to do with this story so hang tight and I hope to update as soon as I can!

-RangerLizzyTreaty48