The Severaine

Chapter Four The First Piece of the Puzzle-4

It was a few moments before she dared to move, the scent of fresh air driving her forwards with the last remnants of her energy. It tasted like a sweet nectar at the back of her stinging throat as she ducked and weaved through precariously balanced timbers. Timbers that protested against the slightest contact.

The cries of her friends became audible, each calling her name desperately. In the panic of seeing the building collapse their distraught shouts left her no chance to respond. Yet when she did call out, they fell silent. Eiji approached, his face showing the concern he felt. The instability of the building had seen her exit collapse considerably, and despite trying, he had found no other location where an escape could be possible.

Acha had not needed him to speak to understand. She could see clearly the gaps before her were too narrow for her passage. They could address that later. For now, getting the child out had to be her focus. She closed her eyes, feeling the cool rain on her perspiration-soaked skin. After a slow breath, she unsecured the blanket, wrapping it around the child.

“It's okay, let's get her out first.” Her voice seemed hoarse to her own ears, no doubt from the air she had been breathing. She gently encouraged the girl through the first gap, manoeuvring slightly to thread her arms through small openings to give guidance to the terrified child. It took several attempts before she was close enough for Eiji to reach. His fingers brushed against Acha's as he took the young girl's hand, guiding her in the same manner Acha had through the maze of debris. When she was clear Daniel carried her away. Acha heaved a sigh of relief, her head resting against the timber near one of the openings.

Eiji stood opposite her, separated by the barricade, almost mirroring her posture. He had held hope that Acha could have followed the child's escape route, but seeing the difficulty in guiding the small frame, he knew it to be an impossibility. He reached forward his hands failing to make contact.

Acha took a long deep breath, releasing it quickly before turning her vision to Eiji. Even disguised by the rain, she could see the tears he shed for her and realised he understood all too well her predicament. For her, there was no escape from this building. Reaching under her hair she undid the leather fasten which secured her talisman in place.

“Take this.” She extended her arm through the opening towards him. Lightning flashed in the sky above, the storm was growing closer. Her shelter would not withstand much more of the storm's relentless barrage. Once more she felt tremors run through the earth, cringing as the structure behind her collapsed into the flames. “Take it and go. Get out of here,” she ordered. The wood above her groaned and cracked.

“There's no way I'm leavin' y' here.” He reached inside, his hand gripping hers tightly.

“There's no choice.” Fork lightning scarred the sky; the storm was almost directly upon them. The thunder brought with it the sound of a splintering crack, the beam above Acha began to buckle. She pulled her hand from Eiji's leaving her amulet within his grasp, knowing he would never have willingly let go.

With little choice Eiji pulled away, his vision fixed upon the talisman his friend always wore. Fresh tears welled in his eyes as his blurred gaze focused on the intricate symbols etched upon its surface. The area above Acha began to sag, the final cracks of surrounding wood causing him to cry out.

It was a powerful cry, one which filled the air, echoing as loud as the thunder. Raw emotions flooded him, the power of the storm harnessed in his grief causing something new to stir within him. A power welling, rising so quickly there was no hope of restraint. Thunder echoed, yet the storm had not been the source. The debris before him somehow exploded outward, lifted into the sky. He saw himself grabbing Acha, dragging her across the unstable terrain as gravity brought down all the unknown power had expelled.

Clear from the debris, Eiji collapsed to his knees, panting in laboured breaths as the rain washed over him.

“What was that?” Daniel questioned in surprise. He knew Eiji had a very finite arsenal of abilities he could use. After all, Elementalists only possessed the powers they took from another of their kind. He had been unable to believe his eyes. Whether Eiji had realised it or not, whatever force he had just unleashed had momentarily raised the entire building. It had saturated the air with the tingling vibration of magic, and it was like nothing he had felt before. Eiji, rose to his feet steadily, his breath still rapid as he turned to look at the fallen debris before turning his focus to Acha.

“I'm not sure.” He stepped forward, helping Acha to gain her footing. Once steady he carefully placed the amulet around her neck, returning it to where it belonged. His fingers lingered on the cool metal of its surface, before he looked to his hands. “It must'a had somethin' t'do with Acha's necklace,” he stated. Whatever power had taken hold of him was unfamiliar and like nothing he had felt before. He was unsure if he could call upon the same force again, but somehow, he felt with practise he could. It defied all logic, Elementalists could not learn new skills. “It doesn't matter anyway, we've larger concerns.” He looked to the child cradled in Daniel's arms.

“She needs medical attention, nothing I can't see to if we can find somewhere sheltered.” Daniel looked to the child, pulling her closer in hope to warm her cold body. She had slipped into unconsciousness almost the moment she was free from the rubble, as if fear and self-preservation had been the only things to keep her functioning. Her skin was ice cold, yet her forehead burnt with fever, her pale, dirty cheeks vibrant with a heated red glow.

“I wonder if her parents made it out.” Acha questioned, her eyes closed and face tilted to the rain as it washed some of the thick mud and dirt from her skin. The number of dead tallied did not match those of a town the size of Weft. Whilst it was unlikely all those lost had been retrieved, the difference was too great to put down to carnivores and carrion. There had to be some survivors.

“I know somewhere we can ask, assuming they are still there that is.” Daniel stomach lurched as he was forced to remember that place once more. Acha, seeing his distraction lifted the child from him, pulling her sodden cloak around her. “My brother lived not too far from here. If anyone did survive, the people there are bound to know something.”

“If the same force that levelled this place struck theirs, I wouldn't count on it.” Eiji gave himself a mental scolding as he heard the words he had spoken. Daniel, almost in a daze, began to walk, his footfall clumsy and uncoordinated as he led the way into the forest.