Hunted by Magic (The Baine Chronicles #3)(49)

“Sunaya! Come quick!” Fenris cried, and I jumped, knocking my forehead against Iannis’s. “We’re under attack!”

“Shit!” I clapped my hand against my throbbing forehead. “I’m coming, I’m coming!”

“What’s wrong?” Iannis demanded as I leapt from the stream and made a beeline for my clothing.

“Fenris just sent me an S.O.S.,” I explained as I hurriedly dragged my clothing on. “I guess your shamaness friend is trying to kill him now.”

“Damn,” Iannis swore as he rushed out of the stream. I forced my gaze away from his naked body – I couldn’t afford the distraction – and focused on shoving my feet back into my boots. “That wolf who sneaked into the village was Fenris? Of course he was.” He sounded chagrined as he grabbed for his own clothes. “Did you bring anyone else?”

“My friend Annia. I’m sure she’s with Fenris right now.”

Iannis and I sprinted down the hill, following the cacophony of shouts and cries. I was a little surprised that he was keeping up with me, but I didn’t have time to dwell on that. We burst into the camp to see women herding their children into the safety of the huts, while pandemonium reigned closer to the fire pit. Annia and Fenris stood back to back near the fire, Annia with her bow drawn and Fenris in human form with his hands outstretched, power crackling at his fingertips. They were surrounded by warriors, and Halyma was facing down Fenris, a ferocious glare on her beautiful face as she held a feathered staff aloft and chanted some sort of spell that made the head of the staff glow bright with power.

“Halyma!” Iannis shouted, drawing the shamaness’s attention away from Fenris. “Stop! These are my friends!”

“These people are outsiders!” Halyma’s dark eyes flashed, and her nostrils flared as she caught sight of me. “Cursed man-beasts and white men, trespassing across our lands and trying to take what is ours!”

“They are not trying to take anything,” Iannis said sternly, and I inwardly sighed with relief – he was sounding more like his old self. “They came here because they were concerned about me.”

“They are trying to take you!” Halyma shrieked, her cheeks reddening with anger. “You are my sharalli, and I will not let them have you!” She leveled her staff in my direction, and a ball of deadly energy shot straight toward me.

Iannis shoved me to the side, and made a slicing motion with his hand as he shouted a Word. A glowing force field materialized in front of him, deflecting the ball up into the sky where it dissipated.

“You…you defend her?” Halyma whispered, her dark eyes filling with tears. She looked so dejected that I would have felt sorry for her if she hadn’t just tried to kill me.

“Of course.” Iannis put his body between Halyma and me, partially blocking my view of the shamaness. “These people are my friends, Halyma. How could you try to hurt them, knowing that?”

“Because they are taking you from me.” Halyma’s voice hardened, though the tears did not disappear, and she pointed a shaking finger at me. “I knew that one would come eventually. That is why I told you to get rid of that necklace! And yet you defy me by wearing it again.”

“I am not yours to command.” Iannis’s voice hardened as well, and the air around him crackled with power. “I am grateful that you found and healed me, Halyma, but you cannot keep me here against my will. My people are in danger, and I must go back to them. As a leader yourself, you must understand this.”

Halyma was silent for a long moment, and for a second I thought she might actually let us go. But then she lifted her chin proudly and squared her jaw.

“I care nothing for mages or their troubles!” she spat, her dark eyes gleaming with anger. “I saw something in you that I thought would be different, but you are just like the rest, taking what you need from us and leaving us to suffer. If you want to leave me, I will send you to the afterlife!”

She pointed her staff in Iannis’s direction and began a chant, but Iannis flung out a hand and shouted several Words. Some kind of strange, sizzling yellow and black energy shot out from his palm and slammed into the shamaness, knocking her flat on her back before she could complete her chant. Her body began to shake as energy crackled over her skin and clothing, and she bucked and writhed as though she were having a seizure.

“Come on!” I grabbed Fenris’s hand. “Let’s get out of here!” Raising a hand, I conjured a ball of fire and aimed it at the shamaness’s tent. The structure burst into flame, and those of the Coazi who weren’t trying to help the shamaness rushed to put out the fire, giving us the diversion we needed. The four of us made a run for it, sprinting from the camp as hard and fast as our legs could carry us, and I prayed to whatever god might be listening that we would make it out of this blasted mountain range alive.





17





It took over an hour to lose the Coazi – even though most of them stayed behind trying to save their shamaness and her burning hut, a good number of them still came after us. Iannis and Fenris took over the defense against the ones who chased us, deflecting arrows and spears with the use of magic. We did not retaliate as Iannis still seemed to have friendly feelings for them, and after all we were intruders on their land. We continued in our full-on sprint for a good two miles after the last confrontation before we finally slowed.