The Heroine of Irlesoph (FIRST DRAFT)

Chapter Two: Once, Twice, Thrice

Something pulled me up by the arm and I flew out of my bed and onto my knees on the floor. My eyes shot open but I could see very little. I choked on the air and stumbled onto my feet, not being able to see through or breathe the thick smoky air.

"GRAB ZINKAH AND RUN!" Delzri cried out to me, the person who had pulled me out of my bed.

I spun around hazily and dropped to lift Zinkah up. She put her arm around me and I ran behind Delzri through the hallway and down the stairs. Behind us, the ceiling in my bedroom collapsed in. The walls were falling and large chunks of stone were hitting the ground all around us.

We stumbled outside and I immediately noticed the rain from earlier had not let up, only worsened. Lightning struck all around castle town and the rain was too heavy to see clearly beyond a few feet in front of me. The two ran ahead of me and I turned around one last time to see what had happened.

Lightning struck the top of the castle, dislodging a great amount of debris which began tumbling down the side of the castle towards me. As I watched it get closer I told myself to move but my legs would not listen. In my mind I screamed at myself to move but all my legs did was tremble and go weak. At the very last moment I brought my arms up to shield my face when it struck me. For a moment, intense pain and a feeling as if my entire self had been torn apart or as if my bones had been forcefully rearranged. Then... darkness.

I was ripped out of bed. I landed onto my face, but then brought myself back up to my feet. "GRAB ZINKAH AND RUN!" Delzri cried out to me.

I opened my eyes and could barely see. What? What just happened? I turned around and saw Zinkah rising from the floor, rubbing her eyes.

"Laylis? What's happening??" She stood up and grabbed my arms. I held her back.

"I DON'T KNOW!" I exclaimed. The rain outside was still pelting the window even harder than before.

"WE NEED TO LEAVE RIGHT NOW, COME ON!" Delzri shouted once more, this time turning and running away.

Zinkah ran past me, letting go of my hands and stopping just outside the room. "Laylis? What are you doing, come on!"

"What?" I looked at my arms and hands.

"COME ON!" She reached her hand into the room for me to grab. I looked at her as she pulled her hand back and a fragment of the roof fell, barely missing her.

I looked up at the ceiling and more dust and rock fell onto my face and into my eyes as it broke further. In a final moment of desperation I lunged for the doorway to reach for her hand, but... Darkness again.

I was yanked out of my bed. I landed on my feet but stumbled forward. I looked up as Delzri shouted at me to grab Zinkah and run. I turned around and pulled Zinkah to her feet, then chased Delzri through the hallway and out of the castle. 

The lightning still struck as frequently as it did before... or, as it already would have?

As we raced down the steps, blood-curdling screams resounded from over the buildings. A loud lightning bolt was heard behind us, and as we rounded the corner of the plaza I flinched when the fragment of the castle hit the ground.

The storm raged like my heart as it attempted to break out of my chest. It was pouring so heavily it was as if I was running through an ocean, and the streets flooded with water rushing past me.

Zinkah grabbed my hand and we kept sprinting as fast as we were able through the ruins of the city of Archwright. 

Ahead of us the gates at the entrance of the city were being shut from the outside.