Hope is all he has left...
Prince Kian is supposed to be dead. He was only 8 years old when the Dark King came into his home and slaughtered his family. Now 21, he lives in hiding, grieving the family and the kingdom both lost. With no magic left...
"What's going on?!" Kian asked as I grabbed our things and ran to the door.
"No questions, we've got to go," I used my free hand to gesture for him to follow me. We didn't have much time and unless someone could control fire (which was very unlikely due to the fact that fire wielders were extinct) the entire camp could burn to the ground.
"Whoa!" Kian cried out as we looked down at the flames which were traveling fast. "How do we get down?"
I sighed, not seeing many options. I wasn't about to make another suicidal jump over the stairway and even if I did I doubted Kian would follow me.
"I think our best bet is the roof, we might be able to get to another tree, it's not a great plan but it's the best I've got."
"Everything about this screams 'recipe for disaster,'" Kian sighed, following my lead as I hoisted myself onto the windowsill and up to the roof.
"Zora!" Tyri called from the ground. She, Cayra, and Areis were gathered at the edge of the flames, horror written on their faces. I looked around me, all of the branches were out of jumping reach. There was no way down.
"Hold on!" Areis had dumped the water out of the buckets used for watering the crops. He then flicked his hand and the puddle began to levitate, forming the shape of a small bench. Tyri reached out, her face clenched with focus. The bench began to freeze. I looked down, watching the flames reach the top of the staircase. Kian and I had minutes, if that.
"Hurry!" I called out.
"She's doing her best!" Cayra yelled back to me. The bench had turned white with cold, solid. Tyri fell over with exhaustion, being caught by Cayra. Areis flicked his hand towards us, sending the bench up. It levitated eerily through the air. The flames had reached the edge of the roof. I grabbed Kian's arm.
"Quick, onto the ice!" We leaped onto the icy seat and Areis brought us slowly down to the ground, my home burning behind us. "Get everyone out. The entire clearing could burn and I'm not taking any chances on people getting injured."
We dispersed, grabbing as many people and supplies as we could. "Zora!" Tyri called to me, sprinting towards the group I was leading out of the clearing. "One of the councilmen escaped."
"Anders?" I asked, sighing. She nodded. "Take this group to safety and I'll deal with it."
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I walked down to the infirmary, where there were no windows and the door was sealed firmly, in any emergency aside from a fire it was the safest place in the camp. The remaining councilmen were still inside. I opened the small shutter that would allow me to talk to the councilmen who remained inside. They all regarded me with smug faces.
"Where's Anders?" I asked in a flat voice. Only a few chuckles answered me. "I'm giving you one minute to tell me where he is."
The silence remained. Let them burn... The voice of my power returned for the first time in days. I subtly flinched, drawing up my inner walls stronger than ever. Rage burned through me, why couldn't anything ever be easy?
"You all have three seconds before I make you regret everything you've ever done."
The men laughed, shouting slurs at me. "Foolish girl, you'll be dead soon! Anders will see to that!"
A humorless smirk came to my face. I had promised myself that I would not be vengeful upon my return. I had promised that I would show mercy. I had promised myself many things, but at that moment I realized that sometimes being cold-hearted was necessary. "Think about how merciful I tried to be while you're burning in the flames you helped create."
I slammed the shutter closed and stalked away without looking back. Anders was a problem for another day. The fire would soon draw the attention of any nearby Drimorian scouts, we needed to get my people as far away as possible and fast. I tried to remind myself that I did what I had to do as the screams of burning men echoed through the trees.
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I caught up with Kian about a mile from the camp. Tears stung my eyes from where the smoke went to war with my body. I had been the last one out of the camp and had nearly been engulfed by the flames. I coughed, red liquid staining my sleeve as I moved it away from my lips. Trying not to show my fear, I quickly wiped my sleeve clean and tried to stand up a little straighter. My head was light and my throat burned. Something wasn't right.
"Zora?" Kian asked, noticing the lull in our conversation. I must have forgotten to answer him. My head spun and the trees blurred together in my vision. I felt my knees buckle.
"Whoa!" Kian cried out as he caught me. The last thing I saw was the white of the snow as everything went black.
A/N
Hey everyone! Sorry for my sudden disappearance, I've been swamped with schoolwork and soccer practices lately. Things are finally slowing down so I should be able to return to my regular update schedule of once or twice a week! Happy reading!
