At first, it was just the four of us: me and Xen, Amblin, and Daria. The warm-up distance was little more than what I had done with everyone watching earlier in the day. Xen and I worked well together, despite the fact that they were not magically inclined, their energy was solid and strong.
As expected, as the distance grew so did the work required to reach it. By the third marker, I was sweating, my head hurt, and I was tiring out. Daria stepped in to add her energy to mine and Xen’s. That got us to the fourth marker, which was just on the edge of visible from where I stood.
I held up my hands. “I need a break.” I slid to the ground with a groan, my hands trembling as I put the kelcimite in my pocket. Daria handed me a canteen which I accepted gratefully, swallowing down large gulps of
