Elemental

Chapter 23

Matthew walked slowly behind the group, keeping constant alert. Every rustle was, to him, a new threat, a new danger. If this place could trip Safia up, he reasoned, then I’m dog food. He deftly stepped over a log, taking a quick glance around, and then looked back at the two James’. He studied the backs of their head, wistfully looking for some sign to the real James’ identity. But alas, he found none. He frowned, then anxiously glanced around, looking for any monstrous creatures that had decided to attack in his momentary lapse of attention. He found none.   He almost sighed in relief – if he hadn’t known that that would cause everyone to look at him in something akin to worry. He had half tripped earlier, and cursed to himself, and before he knew it all three of them were in attack mode, weapons out, eyes searching for the hidden foe. Matthew had to embarrassingly explain what had happened, and Safia had given him a scathing look. Matthew had blushed, remembering the mini-speech she had given him. He promised to himself not to do anything else wrong, especially amateur mistakes such as tripping. He gave another nervous glance around.  He wondered briefly if something was waiting in the bushes, just beyond eyesight. He shuddered to himself.

Safia listened. She could feel the magic around her, pulling at her. She concentrated. Slightly northeast. Every fibre in her being tried to resist going that way. So that was the way to go. She almost didn’t notice, so consumed in her magic, the change in scenery, from the forest to the plain. She didn’t stop or pause when the trees melted away to reveal the mile of clearing. She barely felt the change under her feet- from grass to stone. She only followed the dark feeling she was tracking. Every step took more and more strength to take. It was easier for the others. They could only feel the mortal presence, while she could feel the very essence of the thing she was tracking. The blackness. She paused. She was getting closer. In fact, she was nearly on top of it. She took a few more paces forward and looked down. She frowned.  A few paces ahead was a mini desert. Barely two metres across a pile of flat sand formed a circle. She walked to the edge and focussed her energy. She raised her hand, and then in one swift gesture brought it down. Air blew straight through the sand, tossing it as if there had been an explosion. She stayed at the edge, not even blinking as the sand billowed by her. Then it stopped. The scene looked as it had before… almost. Except now the sand covered splotches of the stone floor, and Safia was no longer standing next to a desert, but a circular staircase, leading downwards. She looked to her group. “Guess where we’re going?” she asked with a grin.

They headed down the stairs. Safia took the lead. She stopped using magic guide. She kept one hand on the wall, and used the other to use magic to illuminate the staircase. Matthew followed the two James’. He was unsure in what order they travelled. He was last and Safia was first. He could only see the top of Safia’s head now, over the two James’ head’s. The staircase wound downwards, seemingly for forever. But sooner or later, they arrived at a corridor. The group milled around the bottom of the staircase, awaiting instruction from Safia.

Safia swayed softly. The magic had really taken it out of her. She could barely stand.  It had taken a huge amount of concentration to focus on Metus’ energy signature. She looked at the group assembled around the base of the stairs. They were all looking at her. She paused. She couldn’t concentrate. Matthew frowned at her. He could sense her weakness. He walked to her and placed a reassuring hand on her arm, and let his power flow from him to her. She smiled at him. He had his powers for barely a day, and yet he was already learning tricks that took others years to learn. She turned and began walking, but kept Matthew next to her. Risky, she knew, but she felt as though they were reaching the end of their journey. She led through a few more corridors, before reaching the last turn. This next door marked the end of their journey, she knew. She took a deep breath and opened it.

It took a few seconds to realise what they were seeing. In the middle of the floor, a man was bound – arms, legs and mouth. He looked at her with pleading eyes.