From Sea to Sky

t h i r t y - f o u r | s k y e

Ellerin nods, lifting her chin slightly, and with that, Vyanna unleashes her oil like magic upon Lana. It's like a pack of wolves, the oil weaving in and out of each other as it surrounds Lana, leaving her with no escape from the calculated attack of Vyanna's magic. Her expression cracks as the magic comes towards her, filled with fear as her body convulses with the sheer force of it. Then she's gone.

It's startlingly scary seeing the life, passion, and soul drain from Lana's expression, turning into a puppet of Vyanna's own design in the blink of an eye. One moment she's the woman Skye loves and the next, she stares ahead, turning away from them and raising her hands to summon her magic, her eyes blank and unseeing.

"No! Lana!" he struggles fiercely against Arlo, glaring at Vyanna. "You b-"

She doesn't even look away from Lana as she sends another wave of magic towards him. Pain. Agony. Rip-roaring fire burns its way through his veins. Every time she stops, he can barely catch his breath before it starts again.

Stay silent or I won't be so kind. Vyanna's voice hisses in his head and despite focusing on the sweet air flowing into his lungs, he feels a chill run through his spine knowing that he can't stop. He won't. He can't let Lana —or rather Vyanna controlling her— end their world.

It's the only thing he can think about. Even if it kills him.

Skye straightens up slightly and ignores the pounding of his heart, ignores the sweat that trickles down his face, ignores the fact that he's alone, the only protector left of Maris against the Morai, and glares at Vyanna.

"Kill me if you want." he spat. "But I won't stop fighting for his people."

Vyanna finally walks towards him, her features no longer smooth in a calm expression but now contorted into a malicious, angry expression. "So be it. As for your world..." she glances over to Lana whose body now glows with unfathomable energy, radiant and supremely powerful, like a small sun in the middle of the street. "I think it's already lost."

She reaches a hand out to him suddenly, touching his cheek gently, forcing him to face her, their eyes only inches apart. It's the first time he's able to see her pale green eyes, at first glance striking, like faded emeralds, but at second glance terrifying. They're cold and soul-bearing, as if she can see right through him.

"Ellerin did say you were a pretty little thing for a human," Vyanna says musingly then moves her hand down to his neck. "It's a pity you have to die."

Her hand suddenly squeezes, crushing his windpipe and eradicating his only hope at life. He gasps, and Arlo's grip around him falls away from him, leaving his flailing hands to simply claw at Vyanna's hand as he feels the air stolen from his lungs. He gasps but it's as if the oxygen has abandoned him, and the more he tries to breathe in, the tighter the grip around his neck is. He starts to see black creeping into the edge of his vision and a tingling sensation runs through his body as his limbs start to go limp. This is the end. The final end.

Then suddenly, a voice spats from the darkness. "Let go of my nephew."

The grip around his neck disappears and he can breathe again. Vertigo rushes through him and he falls to the ground, his hand at his throat as he drinks in the air around him. Before he can even recover, someone grabs his arms and pulls him to his feet, and he stumbles up, his vision still blurry and his balance still unsteady. Shaking his head to clear the fog, he looks up and is surprised to see Raz staring back, a grin on his expression.

"Come on." He says and then his eyes go out of focus for a second, before pushing Skye down. "Watch out!"

A comet of magic blows past them, singing the hairs on the back of his neck. He looks at Raz, wide eyes and impressed. "How did you...?"