Free Fall - Into Other Worlds

Chapter 3 - The First Fall (Part 2)

The morning sun had yet to rise above the trees, and yet Kara had already been following Cawfeil (the old soldier whose name she'd finally learnt that morning) through the woods for an hour. She struggled to keep up as the injury she'd sustained from falling into the rocky stream had left her leg bruised and swollen. It also didn't help that although her clothes had dried during the night, her shoes and socks were still damp and very uncomfortable to walk in. Kara didn't complain though. She bit her lip and toughed out the pain by reminding herself it could be a lot worse.

It was late morning when they finally broke out from the thick trees and undergrowth, entering into vast open space. Kara's eyes widened as she saw miles of grassland with only a few hills in the distance. Where are the towns? The villages? She knew on the other side of the woods were thousands of soldiers both dead and alive, but where were the normal civilizations?

"Oi!"

A loud call drew both Kara and Cawfeil's attention. A caped figure was walking three horses along the edge of the woods in their direction. Cawfeil raised an arm in greeting and walked to greet the other. Kara assumed that it must be the mage person she was told about. Kara wasn't a massive fan of reading or playing games, but even she knew a mage was similar to a wizard. She had formed expectations as to what the 'country's top mage' would look like, but the long white bearded character in her mind was far from the image brought before her.

"You both made it safely. I'm relieved." His voice was low but soft, almost delicate. Removing the hood of his cloak he gave them dazzling smile. Not only was he not old, his skin was smooth and flawless. With big brown doe eyes surrounded by thick lashes and deep dimples when he smiled, he could only be described as beautiful.

Kara was awestruck and couldn't help but stare while feeling a bit jealous. Even his long black hair was flawlessly thick, smooth and silky as it fell around his shoulders. How is it fair for a man to be prettier that a woman? Kara thought with slight bitterness, as she knew she could never reach such a level of beauty.

"Yes, well it was a struggle, but I managed to find her and give her the bracelet as you requested." Cawfeil reached back and pushed Kara towards the mage. "This is the girl..." He paused and thought for awhile before leaning over to Kara and whispering, "What's your name again?"

His whisper wasn't quiet enough and the Mage rolled his eyes. "Seriously Cawfeil! You haven't even learnt the child's name yet? This is why you always fail to be promoted!" He shook his head with disbelief. Looking at Kara with another blinding smile he asked, "I'm Sir Draro Wix, but called Mage Wix by almost all. What may I call you?"

Kara shook herself out of the daze brought on by the man's beauty and replied, "Kara. My name is Kara Blake."

"Should I call you Miss Blake? Or do you prefer Kara?"

Kara felt chills run down her spine at hearing him say 'Miss Blake'. That's how her teachers always called her when they were about to lecture her. "Kara, please just call me Kara."

Mage Wix gave the girl standing before him a good look over. He could see she had not had an easy time since her sudden appearance on the battlefield yesterday. Her clothes had obviously gotten soaked and muddy at some point, her braids were messy and partially undone, and he could see her odd looking shoes were still retaining water. Then he noticed the dried blood on her shoes, which in turn let him notice the swelling on her right leg.

"You're hurt." He cast a look of annoyance at Cawfeil for not noticing. "Sit down and show me your leg."

Kara felt a little flustered as the mage grabbed her shoulders and encouraged her to sit on the grass. Her cheeks got a bit hot at the male beauty suddenly invading her personal space. He didn't wait for her approval and pulled the injured leg's leggings up to her knee. Kara grimaced in pain as the fabric squeezed over her bruised flesh. Looking down, she was surprised at what she saw. Her calf was swollen; The flesh blue and purple around the long abrasion where layers of skin had been torn away.