Necromancer For Hire- Arc 5

Arc 5, Chapter 10

The Sightless

The other one? Victor thought, blood pounding in his ears. Fingers shaking, he brought his hand to his neck, touching Esper. There's no way, there's no way…

In a flash of pink magic, Esper threw himself to the ground, shapeshifting in mid-air. Bare feet hit the grass. Everything was deadly quiet.

Esper stood between the guards and Victor. He wore a long, reddish-pink robe that hung loosely on his shoulders, exposing his chest. Wide, pastel, peacock-like wings and tail cast a regal, yet fearsome shadow.

“It-It's the Blind Spirit!” the guard cried, staggering back. Her hands fumbled on the hilt of her sword. “All the myths were true! Look at its body, its disgusting!”

“I cannot believe we are face to face with a mass murderer,” the smaller nature spirit whimpered, grabbing the satin cape of her partner.

The first nature spirit tightened her expression, knitting her eyebrows. “We're not going to let this monster escape with its life,” Her eyes narrowed as they fell across Seraph and Victor's trembling figures, “Even the progeny must die.”

She took a step forward, green magic swirling around her sword. Her companion’s spear became wrapped in thorns.

“Victor, Seraph!” Esper screamed, his voice rising in pitch, “Run!”

In one swift, fluid motion, Esper grabbed the children by the hands, taking off running in the opposite direction. He was running completely blind, plowing straight through a food tent without faltering.

“On my back!” Esper changed shape in a burst of pink, a massive stag forcing the children onto his back. His nearly revealed peacock wings and train followed him into this form, turning him from a normal deer to a peryton. Victor hugged his neck, weary of being thrown to the the rapidly passing ground below.

“Kill them!” the guards shouted from behind, the nearby soldiers gathering and pursuing them.

Esper’s sharp, cloven hooves ripped out massive clots of soil and grass as he thundered through the crowded festival. Spirits dove to avoid being trampled as the frantic pursuit took to the market place.

“Use your shields, Seraph! They're going to attack us!” Esper commanded, his voice devoid of its usual soft, caring tone. He was serious, and overwhelmingly terrified.

And Victor couldn't blame him. The boy was scared out of his wits, everything in a confusing blur around him. He had no idea what was even happening. His face was buried in Esper’s cream-colored fur, not willing to espy the havoc that was clashing around him.

Tongues of green energy were shot from behind, only to slam into Seraph’s shield of opaque magic. The attack instantly dissipated, but Seraph’s barrier cracked. Seraph gritted his teeth, straining to keep the golden spell around them.

“Seraph! Find us a place to hide! You must know this castle like the back of your hand!” Esper sounded desperate.

“Um…” Seraph turned his head feverishly, searching the area. “Take a sharp left and run about forty meters! There will be a door leading to a small storage room!”

Nodding his head, Esper galloped even faster, tossing any obstructions out of his way with a mighty toss of his antlers. Flapping his wings to gain momentum, they were rapidly approaching the side portion of the castle, which contained a covered patio and several potted plants.

“The door is right ahead of us! Please stop!” Seraph called, digging his nails into Esper’s flank.

Esper came to a crashing hault, kicking open the door with his front hooves. Surging in, he summoned vines to seal the door, forming a thick and sturdy wall of flora.

Panting for breath, Esper turned human, setting his passengers onto the marble floors with gentle care. He allowed a thorn-covered vine to wrap around his arm, his multicolored wings drawn close to his back. He sliced runes into the air, and a vortex came into being.

“Get in,” he breathed, “We don't have much time.”

“What was that, Esper?” Seraph exclaimed, grabbing Victor and holding him close to his side. “Are you really a criminal?”

Sweat ran down Esper’s face. The chase seemed to have drained him. “It's not like that anymore, I-I...Just, please, you've gotta come with me, I have to protect you, I'll explain all of this once we're safe, I swear.”

Victor's vision was blurred with panic as Seraph gingerly brought him closer to the portal. Magical wind brushed his hair across his face. Victor was dead on his feet, practically in a state of mental shut-down from the events that had just transpired. It didn't feel real. None of it did. The only thing his body could do was weakly clutch Seraph’s tunic.

And then they were gone, sucked into the portal, on their way to who-knows-where.

Author's Note- finally, the plot has actually started *loud sigh of relief* writing shouldn't be as hard now since I'm actually getting to the “not introduction” part of my notes. Speaking of notes, I need to finish those.

So, how you feeling so far about this?

*fantastic pic by kreiigon*