Selection (Book 2 of P.O.E. chronicles)

Chapter 1 - In the Jungle you must wait

I was running, my heart in my throat as we torn through the grass field, breaths ragged and heavy. I could barely focus on the ground in front of me with the little light we had; my eyes threatened to drop shut any minute and my legs felt heavy as lead. I hadn’t slept for more than a few hours and my entire body was screaming in agony. The only reason why I was still running was because of adrenaline, which was bound to wear off soon.

“Gail, pull yourself together!” Tom’s angry voice snapped me out of my trance. Just in time too, since I nearly stumbled on a particularly large twig on the ground. There were countless starches on my legs, courtesy of the long grasses we were running through. I couldn’t even feel them; but I was beyond caring now. All I wanted for all these to end.

“Go left!” Evanna shouted from behind. Tom and Fred immediately veered left and the rest of us followed. I swallowed hard. I didn’t know how long I could run for. How many times has it been? Tenth? Fifteenth? I had lost count now. I didn’t know how long we could do this for, but if we don’t find shelter soon, we are dead meat.

The roar of the pack of Lupas behind us gave me another reality call. They were closing in on us. I looked back and saw they were gaining on us quickly. Owen and Evanna were at the back and my heart skipped a beat.

In our dreamy state, we forgot our usual formation and ended up in a loose line stretching for several hundred meters, and we had also managed to get separated as well. I watched in horror as the Lupa continued to gain on Owen and Evanna, frozen to spot by the nightmarish scene in front of me.

“Gail run!” Owen shouted at me, waving his hand and pushing Evanna forward and taking a stand in front of the Lupas, who were only twenty short meters behind him.

“No!” I screamed, creating a mind wall in front of him, successfully blocking the first blows. Evanna continued to run towards me with a pained expression and I couldn’t help but resent her a little at that moment. My first mind wall shattered and I quickly put another one up, ignoring the dizziness in my head.

“Go!” Owen shouted at me, wielding his make-shift sword in front of me in a fighting stance. “Rather me than any of you.” He said.

My second wall shattered and my vision blackened for a minute. When I regain consciousness I was being carried piggyback and the temperature has gone up. Tom had created a fire wall to stop the Lupas.

“Put me down, I am fine.” I said, struggling to get off Tom’s back. He tightened his grip on my tight and ignored my request, continuing to run in the direction Evanna instructed us to. I could see the edge of the forest now, if we run into it, there was a chance that we can hold them off till day light.

I could see Fred was carrying Evanna too, who had already passed out. Owen was behind us, giving me a reassuring smile when he saw me looking.

“Shoot.” Tom cussed. The howls behind me told me that the Lupas had somehow managed to get through the wall of fire and were again hot on our trails. My eyes immediately darted towards Owen, praying that he wouldn’t do something stupid. I also cursed myself silently. If only I was strong enough to hold a decent mind wall right now.

The Lupas broke through my third set of mind wall like it was made of paper; Fred and Tom tried to set up another fire or ice wall respectively but I could tell that they were running out of strength as well. I began to wonder if this was the place where we died.

“You guys run.” Owen said in a grim tone. “I will hold them off.”

“No!” I screamed, Tom and Fred exchanged a look and they both shook their heads. If we won’t in such a dire situation I would have laughed. These two are actually agreeing on something!