Adventure in Ayremus

Chapter Four: Perilous Journey

The night fell upon us, the moon shining up high in the sky. I woke with a start. I glanced over at Ruby, she did not seem affected by anything at all. I clumsily turned around to try to find the cause of my rude awakening, but to no avail. I looked out again, using my sight to look for disturbances.

There it was. The ether was moving around without a clear direction in mind as it was pushed around by this person.

I nudged Ruby awake, covering her mouth before she could protest. I created a small opening in the cloth draped over the boat, peeking out into the wilderness. Ruby leaned in and tried to look through as well, suddenly intrigued in what I was doing.

Every blade of grass reflected a bit of the moonlight, scattering the soft light into the darkest shadows. The crickets' shrill calls piercing the otherwise silent night. I pointed to my eyes then towards the distance through the cloth, as I slowly let it fall back down. Both of us were alert now, our eyes darting around as we activated our ethereal sight yet again. I searched the flows and soon found the mysterious disruption. I pointed towards it and Ruby hastily moved to look at it. As I glanced around, I caught a glimpse of more disorders in the usual ethereal flow. "What do we do?" Ruby pulled me close, faintly whispering into my ear. My sword seemed to pulse with energy inside the roughly hewn leather scabbard.

However much I despised using force, I had to.

But first, we were surrounded, I couldn't possibly fight them all from every direction. Ruby had other thoughts, she looked at me with determination, she seemed to know what to do at this point, so I whispered back. "You know me better than myself right now, do what you think I would have done then."

She smiled.

I took another look at the advancing ring of people and nodded, whatever she did, it would probably be right. Wouldn't it?

The boat spun and flew into the air, smashing into the ring of people and breaking their advancing line. Ruby and I were both caught in the enormous updraft, which yanked us into the air. I landed with a thud in the middle, my sword flashing out at them.

Soldiers.

I was standing at the epicenter of the commotion, a hundred soldiers armed with swords standing before me. Ruby, the boat, and all its contents were nowhere to be found.

I have been left alone. I was doomed.

I lifted my blade in response to the soldiers' swords. I felt my own sword lighten as I swung, meeting the soldiers head on. Every swing felt lighter as I cut at the enemy, although every strike of mine was being parried or blocked with ease. Time seemed to slow as my sword spun faster and faster in my twirling hands, I was cutting with such tremendous speed, that the blade sang with each swipe. I let go, watching my blade dart from enemy to enemy before returning to me.

I suddenly understood what was going on.

I let my sword go, but instead of watching it, I went to work, twirling my hands furiously as I separated the enemy with the ether. I plucked the swords from the soldiers' hands, turning them in mid-air as I flung them back into the ground, spearing a few soldiers with their own weapon. A soldier rushed forwards, and I was too slow to stop him, with my hand half-raised, I stumbled backward. My blade sang as it flew back, slashing away at my assailant and then returning to me.

I was alone again.

The soldiers were no match for my control over the ether. I had easily bested the lot of them, but I did not want to see if there were more to come. Such a task was incredibly taxing, my breath was ragged from the effort and my arms burnt from controlling the ether. Ruby wasted no time in making herself known, as a loud squeal and crash erupted from within the trees behind me. The mighty air vessel had toppled from its precarious location up high in the cradling branches of a tree. Ruby jumped up from beneath the wreckage, flinging wooden planks and splinters away from her with the immense force of the ether.