I raced over to the stream and then, standing in the shallow shore, cast a cursory brush of wind to displace any dirt I had marked with my steps. The rest of the river was too powerful and too fast to swim. I could feel its undercurrent dragging at my feet.
Summoning another casting, I transported myself to the other side. It took a great effort to carry my weight across. Self-levitation was always costly, but I didn't trust myself to balance on a log. The river was too dangerous.
When I reached the other side I immediately dropped my magic and sprinted into the thick forest beyond. My heart was racing and every breath sounded louder than before. I clawed at blackberry brambles and forced myself to keep on running anywhere with brush so that it would be much harder to track the path I had taken.
****
I wasn't sure how much time had passed. I was crouched behind a tree, watching, waiting. I had heard shouts for a while now, but none of them had come close to where I knelt hidden. I couldn't see anything except for a few feet in front of me, but I was confident I wouldn't be caught off-guard. After finding my spot, the first thing I had done was cast a thick mess of dead leaves in a large radius surrounding me.
I would hear my attackers before they found me.
When the shouting got closer, I was able to count eight or nine voices. Relief flooded my chest. I had been afraid most of the Caltothians would stay behind. My plan had worked.
Darren is freeing the hostages right now.
I took a deep breath and then choked as I breathed in a new scent. Either the Caltothians had Alchemy potions on hand, or they had a Combat mage in their midst. I recognized that foul stench from the mock battle in Devon – it had come with the mentors' fog. The same poisonous vapor that had made me lose control of my body.
I had to move. The thick silver fog was spreading fast, any moment it would reach my tree line—
I made a split second decision to rip off my tunic. Then I wrapped it around my face so that my ears and mouth were covered. Then I ran, fast as my legs could carry me, ringlets of chainmail clanging against my skin now that the tunic was not there to muffle them.
"There! You see her?"
Shouting sprang up behind me but I didn't dare look. I cast out a giant sphere at my back and sprinted deeper into the forest.
To my right a tree exploded in flame.
I ducked right and started to zigzag among the trees and rock, hoping to lose the party tracking me. But I had no such luck. The shouting kept getting closer.
And the castings were multiplying.
They most definitely had a mage. And from the number of castings so far, they had at least three, if not more. A well-trained war mage couldn't cast as many attacks as the ones I was avoiding now. Not at once.
At some point I came across the same river from earlier. The burning tree was just beyond it, now a towering spiral of flame.
My stomach fell. I had to cross. Every other direction I was surrounded. My pulse was racing and I could barely breathe. My vision swam in front of my eyes. I could not maintain the defensive sphere and levitate at the same time.
My magic was depleting fast.
I sent a swift plea to the gods and dropped my defense, casting myself into the air. It would only take me twenty seconds to cross…
But a biting pain tore into my side before I had even completed ten. The sudden shock shattered my concentration and my casting fell away.
And then I fell. Into the raging stream below I lost control of my magic. It was too late to attempt another casting – it was impossible to focus. White water swarmed me and I was thrust under its surface. I choked liquid as I fought to get air, only to be tossed again, rock after rock in the stream's rapid course.
The river was ice cold and the sharp pain in my thigh became more intense. Red blood and white waters threw me against the current, beating my body with every river rock along the way. I fought to the surface each time, only to get sucked under and then out. My fingers rubbed raw from scraping against rock.
I couldn't cast. Not with the collision of pain and water choking my lungs. My legs were numb and it was becoming harder and harder to swim. I couldn't see anymore. Darkness was grabbing me, pulling me under.
My arms held on the longest, but eventually those two slowly slipped away…
All at once I was conscious of gold. Sunlight streamed down from above, blinding me. I was at the surface. I could breathe.
There was shouting in the distance. My ears were pounding too heavily to notice.
My entire body ached, my skin felt like ice.
I opened my eyes and saw that the raging river had fettered out into a shallow stream. I had washed ashore. There was a deep gash in my left leg. An arrow had struck it. Part of the shaft was still in it.
But I was still alive.
All at once the shouting drew closer and my heartbeat could no longer block out the words.
"We found the mage girl!"
"Get her bound and gagged – she might be able to pain cast!"
I tried to move, stand, anything, but my limbs were still catching up from the cold.