Rise or Burn

Chapter Sixteen

They ran. The night was cold, the wind blowing fiercely against their faces. The woods were noisy, wolves howling, owls hooting, leaves rustling and the sound of feet chasing after them. Arlin tripped on his too long dress and cussed. He wished he'd worn pants instead of a gown.

"Hurry," Andy said, panic erratic in his eyes as he helped Arlin back to his feet. "They're coming."

He could hear it, twigs snapping, heavy breathing, voices yelling. "I know." He tore off half the dress, leaving it to a length above his knees. "Let's go."

They were almost to the Kulan River. Arlin could hear that too. The rushing water. A dead end. What to do? What to do? Arlin couldn't think. His head was still buzzing and his fingers tingling. He hadn't meant to hurt anyone. Gods, were they dead? No. They weren't. They couldn't be. Focus. He needed to focus. He needed to run.

They reached the water.

"Where now?" Andy asked. Arlin looked to the water. Maybe they could swim across? As if reading his mind Andy shook his head. "No," he said. "It's cold and the current is too strong, we'll drown."

"I don't hear you suggesting any bright ideas," he countered. Andy frowned. "It won't be so bad." He held out his hand. "Just don't let go."

Andy nodded, taking his shaking hand and then they both jumped into the frigid water of the river. The current took them immediately, pushing them downstream. "Just don't let go!" Arlin yelled again over the rapids.

"Never!" Andy yelled back.

Andy was coughing out river water when Arlin came to. They both laid on the leaf littered shore of the Kulan River. It was still dark, the three moons were all visible now with Soe close to setting and Mou just rising. Their light glistened against Arlin's exposed skin as he shivered.

"Are we dead?" Andy finally coughed out.

"Almost," Arlin replied.

"That was stupid. Can we stop doing stupid things?"

Arlin laughed. Well, he tried to. His chest hurt too much for proper laughter. "I can't make any promises." Andy groaned.

They laid there in silence for a long couple of minutes as the events of their escape replayed in Arlin's head. He'd gone for his stake knife the moment those Kuth guards had walked in. He'd thrown it into the shoulder of the one standing closest to the doors. Everything had gone to chaos after that. There was fighting. He'd broken the ribs of another guard, in return the man had pushed him against a wall and nearly taken his head off. Andy had hit him the back of the head with a candleholder. The phoenix had screeched then, swooping down with its talons aimed for Arlin's eyes. He ducked. It scratched at his arms. King called the bird back when the last two guards stepped forward. They grabbed both him and Andy. That's when it happened. Again, purely on instinct as the first time. He'd done magic. He'd set the guards on fire. Their screams filled his ears now. They'd run after that, using the service stairwell to make their escape.

"We have to move," Arlin finally said. He winced as he forced his body to rise. Every part of him was sore, he'd have bruises in the morning, but it didn't matter. He was alive. Andy was alive. They'd gotten away.

They walked in silence. They weren't heading anywhere they just had to get away. They had to get far enough from the river so they couldn't be found. It was an hour before either one of them said a word.

"I think we lost them," Andy said. "We've been walking for a while. Maybe we should rest."

Arlin nodded. "I think the kingdom of Tanu is close by, maybe we can find a town to rest for the night." His teeth were chattering as he spoke. He was shivering fiercely. His gown, what was left of it, was mostly dry now but it was still sleeveless and barely covered his thighs.