Even though they were outnumbered two to one, the guards were far superior in skill and power, almost all of them using their Power to attack and defend.
Looking up, I saw that Fae was still circling overhead, dodging various attacks. Jets of water, flying boulders, sonic booms, and gusts of wind threatened to bring her down, but Shadow zipped around all of them. That was, until he was paralysed in mid air.
Shadow seized up, and he fell towards the ground, spiralling out of control, taking Fae with him. I screamed as they fell, but my cry went unnoticed over the sound of battle. Shadow and Fae disappeared out of sight, amongst the throng of fighters, so I ran towards the place they had fallen, pushing friend and foe out of my way to reach them. How could I forgive myself if Fae or Shadow were harmed?
I needed to find Gregory – quick.
I turned away and ran to the last place I’d seen Mr. Greenwood, on the outskirts of the fight, knowing Gregory would be close by.
I spotted him in the distance, crouching over an injured woman who was bleeding profusely from the face. I ran up to him, panting for breath.
‘Mr. Greenwood,’ I said. ‘Where is Gregory? Fae and Shadow need help!’
Before Mr. Greenwood could answer me, Gregory appeared at my side.
‘Hey, are you okay?’ he asked at once.
I shook my head. ‘It’s Fae and Shadow!’ I said. ‘You’ve got to get them out of there!’
‘On it!’ he nodded, and a moment later he had vanished. I looked down and saw Fae in the grass where Gregory had once been. He’d swapped positions with her in the blink of an eye.
‘Fae!’ I said, crouching by her side. ‘Are you okay?’
Now that she was away from the Mage who had paralysed Shadow, Fae regained the use of her body.
‘I’m fine,’ she gasped, sitting up and feeling her limbs. ‘Shadow. Where’s Shadow?’
‘Gregory is getting him now,’ I reassured her.
‘Where is Hawthorne?’ she asked next. ‘I thought you were meant to stay airborne!’
‘He is helping Dagon,’ I said. I could see my animal companion above the hundreds of heads. I knew that if he came to harm I would feel it in my chest; we were connected.
We waited, but Shadow did not appear. A minute later, Gregory ran back to our side, his face battered and bloody from his short time amongst the battle.
‘I can’t get him,’ he wheezed, dabbing at a cut above his eye. ‘I can’t switch with the animal.’
‘We’ve got to get him!’ said Fae, jumping to her feet.
‘We need to get that paralysis Mage,’ I concurred, grabbing her by the hand and dragging her towards Shadow.
As we ran, Fae fit another arrow into her bow, and I ignited its tip. Reaching the circle around Shadow, anger flared inside me as I saw what they were doing. Ropes bound Shadow’s legs, and held his muzzle shut. Fae raised her bow, taking a second to aim, before releasing it. Her aim was perfect; the arrow flew through the air and embedded itself into the skull of the paralysis Mage. He fell to his knees slowly, his reaction delayed.
This alerted the others at once. They turned their attention towards us, momentarily distracted. The Mage that had been tying a rope around Shadow’s muzzle paused mid-way, giving the beast enough time to clamp his enormous teeth into his arm. His cry of pain was heard across the grounds.
‘It’s the Fire-Mage!’ another guard bellowed, pointing at me with a shaking finger. ‘Get her!’
Without hesitation, I blasted fire towards them. It roared loudly and whipped the hair back from my face with the force of the explosion. After the fire died, it gave Fae time to run between the guards, along the blackened stretch of grass. The smell of burning hair, flesh, and grass stung my nostrils.
Covering her mouth with her sleeve to prevent smoke inhalation, Fae dropped to Shadow’s side and cut the bindings that held him down.
Immediately, he jumped up, and Fae pulled herself on his back. They galloped forward, through the smoke, until they reached my side. Fae outstretched a hand towards me as they passed, and I gripped it tightly, and was hauled onto Shadow’s back. It felt strangely different to Hawthorne. Shadow was far more vast, and his fur a little coarser.
As quick as she could, Fae raced me towards Hawthorne, whose white fur was stained red from the blood of the guards he had harmed.
I jumped from Shadow’s back, landing on Hawthorne easily.
The Realm’s grounds were a mess. The green lawns were now black, and bits of grass were on fire. Dirt flew as the city-folk trampled the earth beneath them.
With an almighty crash, the doors to the Realm were busted open, and human-supporters began to pour inside.
Suddenly, out of the mist, a man was screaming my name. I looked around and almost fell off Hawthorne’s back when I spotted him
It was my father.
‘Dad!’ I cried, aghast.
‘Avalon!’ he gasped, stopping at Hawthorne’s side. My father’s face was covered in dirt and ash.
‘Dad, what are you doing here?’ I said, my eyes wide.
‘You need to get out of here! Leave the fighting to the adults!’