Boiling Isles: The Next Generation - Act I.

Chapter L - The price of survival

Azura was still holding Priscilla in her arms, clutching her tightly. Although the witch girl's coughing had subsided, her breathing remained irregular and weak. Her chest rose and fell almost imperceptibly, as if her body itself hadn't yet decided whether it wanted to go on.

Azura's heart was beating faster. Her whole body was trembling as she supported Priscilla's back, trying to keep her steady. She had no idea what to do. She didn't know anything about healing; she didn't know how she could help her.

"Hey... stay with me... please..." she whispered hoarsely, fighting back tears, though she was almost certain the witch girl couldn't hear her at all.

Meanwhile, Azura's body was also slowly beginning to give out. Her arms grew heavy, a dull ache settled in her shoulders and the back of her neck, and her lungs burned with every breath she took. The trembling gave way to exhaustion, which crept insidiously through her like some invisible poison, gradually sapping her strength.

The brown-haired girl looked down at Priscilla, and for a fleeting moment, it seemed as though the witch's eyelashes fluttered.

"Priscilla?" Azura leaned in closer immediately, her voice a mix of hope and fear.

But there was no reply. Only a faint, barely audible sigh escaped Priscilla's lips.

Azura clenched her teeth. Priscilla needed help. Right away. Because if they stayed here any longer, then...

The brown-haired girl shook her head wildly. No. She didn't even want to think about that.

And just then, the world suddenly roared around them.

Azura looked up in terror, her gaze darting back and forth as she searched for the source of the noise. In the next second, the sky thundered, and a blinding blue light exploded high above in the distance.

Her pupils contracted from the sudden glare, yet she couldn't tear her eyes away. It was as if a new sun had been born in the sky, except that it was made not of light but of flames. The blue fire spread in swirling layers, scorching the air, while the shockwave approached them unstoppably.

After a heartbeat's worth of silence, the sound of the explosion reached them as well.

Azura's whole body trembled at its force. Instinctively, she leaned over Priscilla, shielding the girl with her own body as the rising wind lashed down on them with frenzied force. The wild, raging gusts tore at her hair and clothes, as if trying to rip her away from Priscilla.

Azura was gasping for breath; her lungs rebelled against every breath she took, yet she looked up again. Priscilla's body trembled almost imperceptibly in her arms. Another weak breath.

Azura's eyes immediately locked onto her.

"Hang in there..." she tried to shout over the force of the explosion, but all she could manage was a hoarse whisper, and her voice was almost completely swallowed up by the roar of the raging force.

The horizon began to shimmer. The light of the blue sea of flames grew so intense that Azura could no longer tell where the sky ended and the earth began. Everything melted into a single, coldly glowing blue.

The air suddenly grew hot.

Azura felt her skin begin to tingle, as if hundreds of tiny needles were pricking her all at once. Hot, metallic-tasting air flowed into her lungs, causing her to cough immediately, but even then she did not let go of Priscilla.

The next moment, a shockwave so powerful struck them that the ground practically exploded beneath them.

Azura lost her balance and fell sideways along with Priscilla. A cry of pain escaped her as her shoulder slammed hard against the ground.