Adventurous

Take Care

An arrow whizzed by Linda's ear, slamming hard into the ground somewhere behind her. Two more followed, although not as close. It took all the self-control she could muster to not bolt upright and run for cover. The moon's light shone almost directly down upon their heads, just minutes away from its peak. For a moment, Linda mused over the sheer number of attackers, wondering why so many were needed for the less than twenty people they had with them, but the thought was pushed aside as men's shouts were heard from below.

Restrained, Linda told herself that Jaysen would take care of it and turned back to Morgan. She stood in the center of the circle, and regardless of her eyes being squeezed shut, she faced the shouting and turmoil below. From this close, Linda could see the pain that flickered behind the eyelids with every shout of pain, whether it came from the enemy or not. Blocking that knowledge out as well, she looked once more at the moon, her heartbeat in her ears. They were so close!

At the bottom of the hill, somewhere outside the circle of heather seeds, Jaysen and his men stood in something that resembled a line, though it was spread across the road and merged with the forest on either side. They each had their weapon of choice in hand and fought what seemed like an endless supply of Kingsmen. Surprisingly, they were really spread out down the road and had seemed surprised when they met resistance. This worked to the defenders' advantage as they could fight only a few at a time. In a moment of respite, he looked up at the moon and almost sighed with relief—soon the spell would be complete and they could allow it to do its magic.

Suddenly he saw an orange streak pass between his feet and jump on the nearest attacker. The man screamed in pain and fell to the ground, tearing at his face. As Jaysen looked closer, he saw that it was Pumpkin—Linda furball cat—scratching and clawing at the man's face. Looking around quickly to make sure no one would attack him while he was distracted, he stepped forward and knocked the man out. Suddenly docile, Pumpkin allowed himself to be scooped up by Jaysen. Glancing up, he realized the final incantation would be just about done; a second realization hit him: Pumpkin wouldn't be able to get back in the clearing before the spell was finished.

Leaving his men to take care of any attackers that showed up he ran the short distance to the barrier and looked towards the main hill. He could barely see Linda and Morgan through the trees, finishing their final ritual. Suddenly the moon shone brighter and the air in front of him began to shimmer. He backed up, taking care to stay far enough away from the border to avoid the magic.

"Linda! Morgan! Hurry! Come here! I need to tell you something!" He hoped she heard him over the sounds of fighting behind him.

Morgan's eyes snapped open the moment the last syllable fell from her lips. For a brief moment she saw the shimmer, then the world returned to normal. She looked down at Linda and smiled, helping her to her feet. She froze; for a moment, it sounded like someone was shouting her name. But she shook it away and stood next to Linda atop their hill.

"We're safe now." Morgan sighed.

Linda nodded. "We should go see how Jaysen has held up." They began walking down the hill together, skirts rustling in the breeze.