"What's going on?" Hailey said.
I blink trying to get my eyes to adjust to the darkness quicker. But nothing seems to happen. A hand wraps around my wrist in the dark and I bring my knee up to kick, when I find that it's Aiden. I can almost envision him smirking as he lightly shoved my leg down.
"Princess? Are you alright?" He said.
I nod and then realize he can't see me.
"Yeah." I mumble softly.
"I can't see. My eyes aren't adjusting." Stella said from somewhere.
"Find the nearest person and hold on to them." Aiden calls out after a few seconds. "Why aren't any spells working?" He mutters to himself after a few seconds.
"Mel is this you?" Jase said sounding quite near me.
"Yeah, here grab my right hand. I got Hailey on my left." She said.
"Yes, because I can actually differentiate between your left and right hand right now." He grumbles.
I smile despite the situation. He sounds so much like Kyle right now that my brother would be proud.
I look around for the windows I saw earlier but with the rain water spraying in and the moon completely hidden, little to no light enter the room through them.
I feel Aiden tighten his grip on my hand. His warmth floods threw me as he pulls us closer.
"Stay close to me. I don't want to lose you. Okay?" He says softly.
"Okay." I mumble back
"Is that you Aiden?" Zach calls after about a minute.
"Yeah, hold on. I got Ellie with me." Aiden said.
"Somebody find the door." Stella said.
The screams below rose higher and then I see something flicker far away. Something like smoke reaches my nose making me cough. And then I realize with a start what the flicker actually was.
Fire.
The whole room gets hazy with smoke. We cough and sputter in the dark with only flickers of shadowy light to light our path.
"I found the door!" Hailey shouts at last.
I feel a tug as she pulls us forward. My eyes by now, have started watering like the damn Niagara falls. As soon as the glass door is pulled open, the screams become deafening.
"How is the fire not extinguished by the storm?" I cough out.
"Natural fire would but fire made my magic will not. At least not that easily." Zach said in between coughs.
I feel the glass beneath my finger tips and hold on to it. Aiden almost tugs me out when something pulls me back into room rather harshly.
My hand slips from Aiden's and then I feel myself getting thrown across the room. I hear him yelling my name but my head is pounding from the impact. i clench my jaw and stand up. The glass doors slam shut making them tremble. I grope the walls and move towards the left, shielding my eyes.
For a moment, I see a pair of blood red eyes staring up at me before a fist comes flying at my face. I ducked just in time and went scrambling across the rubber mat. Suddenly, I see a blast of silver light on the glass doors on the left and a glimpse of Hailey, Jase and Aiden with arms outstretched. Another blast of silver light hits the glass doors on the right and I see Melissa, Zach and Stella.
I cough and move a step back. My back hits a pair of legs. Both of us freeze. My amulet glows, brighter than ever. I feel a calmness settle over me like a warm blanket. My vision clears out. Everything becomes clear as day. I rise to my feet feeling like a new person.
I twist his hand behind his back forcefully.
"Who are you?" I hiss.
The guy struggles, his hood falling off his head in the process. Brown or black hair, I wasn't sure in the dark. His blood red eyes flashed. When I looked closer, I realised that the iris was actually a light brown.
My grip loosens at the strange discovery. The guy shoved me behind and tried to punch me in the stomach. His fist hit the metal belt instead. The guy howled holding his bloody hand.
"Witch!" He cursed.
Another blast of light hit the glass doors, almost blinding us. The guy took that moment to run towards the windows.
"Oh no, you don't." I growled, grabbing his leg.
He lost his grip and fell backwards. Both of us landed in a heap on the rubber mat. He shoved his leg into my side, knocking my breath out. He took that moment to grab me and throw me against the wall. Again.
"What is it with you and walls?" I grumbled under my breath.
My head felt heavy and I was sure, I would have a concussion later. The glass doors burst, sending shards of glass everywhere. I brace my hands before me and shut my eyes tight in reflex. But the glass never reaches me.
After a moment, I lower my hands down and blink. I see yellowed versions of Hailey, Zach and Aiden. I furrow my eyebrows when I see Zach's lips moving but no sound comes out. Hailey and Aiden stare at me with a weird expression on their faces.
"What?" I ask, turning my attention to Zach once again. "Why are you so guys so yellow? Oh wait, you're orange now."
My amulet grows warm on my neck and glows healthily. Hailey snaps out of her trance atlast and blinks twice. She tells something to Zach who nods quietly. He looks at Aiden who is still in his own world and tells him something.
When he doesn't respond, he punches his shoulder lightly. Aiden jumps, holding his arm and looks at Zach with wide eyes. He tells him something and points at me.
"Am I deaf?" I mumble to myself. "No wait, I can hear myself. Maybe-"
The same white light from earlier bursts in front of me and I scream. I clutch my heart and allow my shallow breathing to get normal again.
"What the hell was that for?" I yell once I catch my breath.
"How else were we supposed to get you out? It's not like you were listening." Hailey said.
Zach gives me a hand which I gratefully take. He pulls me up in one swift motion, tightening his grip when I stumble.
"Easy there, Ellie." He said.
"Thanks." I smile. He nods and lets his hand drop to his side.
"Are you alright?" Aiden asks, his eyes searching for bruises and cuts on my body.
"Yeah, that bastard escaped though." I said. I glance at the window. The smoke was almost gone and I could see the room again.
"There was somebody here?" Hailey said, gripping my shoulder.
I wince noticeably and she lets go.
"Sorry."
"It was a guy. Brown or black haired. I wasn't sure in the dark. His eyes glowed an unusual-"
"Red." Aiden and Zach say at the same time.
"Yeah, but they really weren't-"
"The building is collapsing. We need to get out now!"
All four of us turn to look at Jase. He stops where the glass doors should have been. He pants, having probably run all the way.
"Where are the girls?" Zach asks looking behind him. Jason shakes his head.
"No time, let's get out of here first. They should be out by now."
Zach doesn't look convinced but follows Jase anyway. I look at Hailey with a worried look. She doesn't look at me but I can see doubts crossing her mind.
"Come on." Aiden gently pushes both of us forward.
With another deep breath, Hailey starts running in the path Zach just left with Aiden and I following close behind.
The building is charred completely. Broken furniture and fire everywhere. Luckily, it looked like almost everyone got out of here.
Jason leads through a series of twists and turns and down three flights of stairs. Sweat drenches my body making my clothes stick to me like a second skin. My muscles ache and dots appear in my vision. But I push myself further and faster.
"The front doors are jammed. The back door is the only way out. It was jammed too but we managed to find a way through." Jason tells us as we run past the kitchen.
Jason climbs through the half broken down door and past the sharp edges of wood sticking out from everywhere, first. Zach follows him and then helps Hailey out.
Jase and Hailey immediately go around to check if the people, Nana and Lord Dimitri are alright. Zach reaches out for me but I shake my head.
"See if Melissa and Stella are alright." I said and gently squeeze his hand.
He nods gratefully at me and runs towards the people standing a little far off from the house. I let Aiden climb out first.
"Catch me if I fall." I mutter to him.
I am almost through the door when I hear a distant yell from inside the house. Aiden tugs at my sleeve, glancing at the piece of wood which belonged to the broken door, swaying dangerously over my head, fire licking up whatever holds it had on the wall.
"I heard someone." I said.
"It must have come from outside. Come on out now, the door looks ready to fall." He says, urgently.
But another scream sounds in the air and this both of us hear it. Zach appears along with Melissa, looking extremely pale.
"We can't find Stella anywhere. Nobody's seen her come outside." Zach said.
"She didn't come out with me and I have been searching for her ever since." Melissa coughed out.
Jase and Hailey run towards us.
"Has anybody seen Stella?" Hailey asks looking around.
"Nana and Lord Dimitri are okay. Unconscious but alright. We couldn't find Stella anywhere though." Jase adds in.
Zach looks behind my shoulder into the abyss of smoke and flames. The door creaks above me.
"It probably isn't her." Aiden said. But even he looked worried now.
"What do you mean?" Zach asks looking at both of us.
Another scream answers his question. Zach clutches a spot on his left wrist, his face going deathly pale.
"It's coming from inside." Melissa said, laying a careful hand on Zach in case he tried something.
"You come on out, I'll go check." Aiden, trying to lift me out.
"I'll come along." Zach says, pushing away Melissa's hand.
"No, let me g-"
My sentence is cut off short when the door gives away with a loud creak. Both the boys give me alarmed looks and Zach reaches out to help Aiden. I push them away just in time as it shuts my escape. I land on the ground, a little farther from the door and scramble up when the fire licks at my feet.
I run inside, coughing into my elbow. My eyes water and I rub it away with my dirtied hands.
"Where are you?" I yell and then immediately start coughing.
Something falls behind me, sending a wave of it through my back. I curse and tuck my hair behind my ear.
"Help! Somebody! We're stuck!"
I nearly bolt when I hear the voice coming from one of the servant rooms.
"Oh my god." I say quietly to myself when I enter the battered room. I squint in the smoke and finally find two huddled figures in a corner.
"Stella?" I call, looking for a way to get through.
"Ellie? Gods! Ellie is that you?" Stella yells back.
"Yes, can you walk?" I said, climbing over a charred cupboard.
"I think so. I have a kid with me. I have a shield out for protection but I sprained my ankle and couldn't get us out when the cupboard fell." She said in a strained tone.
She lets go of her shield when she sees me and hugs me tight.
"You have no idea, how afraid I was. At least I'm not dying alone now." She chuckled. A little boy around two or three, hid behind her clutching her blouse tightly.
"I am not dying on an empty stomach. Come on let's get out of here." I said and grin, following her method of distraction for both our sakes.
She rolls her eyes playfully at me as I bend down to the boy. "Don't think I didn't see that little show in the training room before, missy. I'm sure that toast tasted good."
"I'll carry you out okay? What is your name? Don't be scared, I won't hurt you." I say softly to the little boy, reaching out my hands towards him.
He allows me to haul him up on my waist and wraps his arms around my neck loosely.
"D-Darren." He whispered. I smile and pat his head.
"We'll protect you." Stella said.
I helped her over the cupboard slowly. Sweat covered my body from the head to my toes. Stella had her shield out again once we got out of the room. We hobbled past the kitchen.
"The back door is closed. We can't get out through that way. Is there any other way you know?" I ask, looking at her. Desperation was starting to sink in as parts of the house fell down.
I could hear voices from outside through the broken windows buy couldn't see anybody with the smoke and fire engulfing our vision. Stella leaned on my side, her shield flickering in and out. She was growing weaker. When I didn't get an answer, I swallowed a cry for help and looked around.
"Drop your shield." I said quietly.
"What?" She looked at me startled, eyes trying not to fail in helping me.
"You need the energy. We'll find a way around." I said, gently patting Darren's back, who was starting to whimper.
All of a sudden, Stella slapped my arm. I yelped and looked at her, startled.
"The windows on the second floor don't have bars like the rest of them. We can get out through any one of those." She said looking hopeful.
"It will take us too long." I said , glancing at her foot which was bleeding, leaving a trail of blood wherever she walked.
"It's either that or nothing at all. We'll have Mors, inviting us to hell with open arms." She said.
Despite the situation, I cracked a smile.
"Okay, but first let me bandage your foot up. Maybe numbing it slightly will help." I said, handing over Darren to Stella. The boy looked like he was going to pass out any minute.
I tore a piece of cloth from my pant and bent down on my knees. I gently pulled out her boot and touched the bloodied skin looking for the cause of blood flow. Stella gasped and I looked up.
"Sorry!" I said.
"No, you did not hurt me. You did the opposite in fact." Stella said, looking wide eyed at me and then at my glowing amulet. "Ellie, wrap your hand around my ankle."
I hesitated at her strange request but did it anyway. My hand felt hot against her skin She clenched her hands into fists tightly but they loosened after a few agonizing seconds which seemed like hours to me. I wondered how much longer the building would stand.
I glanced outside at the moving shadows. I imagined Aiden and Zach hopelessly trying to find a way to get in. I wondered if they thought of the second floor windows as well.
"You can let go now." Stella whispered after a minute. I watched her test out her feet and looked at my hand. Did I just heal her?
She looked at me with a broad smile and opened her mouth to say something but quickly shut it when something caught her attention above me.
"Watch out!" She screamed, startling Darren out of his wits. She pulled us both, scrambling towards the stairs just as almost the whole of first floor fell down.
"I hope the stairs hold on. At least till till we go past it." I breathed.
"Since when did you learn to do that?" Stella asked as we ran as we quickly as we could up the steps.
"Do what? Heal? I don't know." I said.
"No, what you're doing now." She pressed.
"Now?" I ask glancing at her in confusion. She motions around us and then I realise. A yellow dome covered us. So this is what happened before. I created a shield without even meaning to. But how..?
"You created your own shield and for some reason, I can't hear what's happening outside." She said.
I felt like I was playing, 'The floor is lava!' with Kyle and Cole back home when we made our way through the first floor. The floor near the stairs creaked everywhere and there was nothing but air connecting us to the rooms.
We raced through the stairs, jumping away just in time as it fell under our weight.
"This is a nightmare." I said.
We made our way carefully to one of the broken windows. And just like Stella said, there were no bars to hold us back. I kicked at the remaining shards of glass but they didn't budge.
"Here use this." Stella said, throwing me a sword. I managed to catch it without chopping my fingers off. Using the hilt of the sword, I stabbed it against the glass.
Cool air rushed in through the bare window once I was done. I poked my head out and found people all over the place. A few were even seated on dragons, probably looking for us. Stella came up next to me and looked out.
"Here take Darren. I have a way to get their attention."
I took him from her and watched as she put two fingers in my mouth and let out a strange high pitched whistle. That caught us some attention.
"We found them!" One of them yelled from their dragon.
"Sure they did." Stella snorted. I laughed.
"Momma!" Darren suddenly yelled looking down.
Stella and I jumped, startled at his little outburst. His little elf ears twitched. He wiggled out of my hands.
"Woah! Wait up, you'll fall down if you squirm." I said, shifting him in my arms.
I looked down and find Jase, Melissa and Hailey waving at us. Stella waves back like a mad man.
"Yoo-hoo! Hey!" She yelled.
"Seriously?" I give her a look.
"I'm celebrating not being dead." She tells me with a huge smile. I find it contagious and soon smile along, shaking my head at her.
Zach and Aiden join them seconds later. I see Jase pointing us to them. I couldn't see their expressions but I could see Aiden sinking to the ground and Zach bending over and placing his hands on his knees.
I take a step back as a dark emerald green dragon comes really close. Close enough for me to lean and pat its head. It eyes me warily with a menacing look and I take another step back.
"It's okay. She won't do us any harm." Stella soothes me.
I pass Darren to the guy on the dragon carefully. He flies away leaving space for another person with a caramel colored dragon. But before we could do something, the floor beneath us cracks. I look at Stella.
"Run!" We both scream.
I grab the sword in a haste and bolt behind Stella into one of the rooms as the floor falls beneath us.
"I'll break the window, you grab the sheets and make a rope." I said.
"Okay."
We get to work. Just as I break the last piece, Stella yells, "Done!"
"Why aren't the dragons getting any closer?" I ask Stella as she comes next to me to look outside.
"I don't know. Something's not right." She says quietly.
The roof shudders above us. Stella looks at me in alarm.
"Go." I said.
She throws the makeshift rope down the window. I grab one end and tie it to the bed. Not the best place but it will have to do.
"I'm going to haunt whoever is responsible for this mess, if I die." She grumbles and starts climbing down the rope. I see the others waiting for us down.
When Stella is halfway down, the roof gives out. I only have time to yell at her to let go and jump out the window when the whole building comes crashing down.