at him for a moment before he crouched down. “Where?” he demanded, but Brand’s clutching grip on his side gave him the answer. He pried Brand’s hands away and ripped more of the tunic open so that he could get to the wound. “Why did he do this?” Kamoor asked, the pain of killing his best friend clear to Brand, even through his own physical pain.
“Because of you,” he whispered. “Because he wanted you so badly... that he would get rid of everyone standing in his way.”
A twig breaking had his head moving, but it was only Sarab joining them in the clearing, still holding his bow and arrow at the ready. But something still did not feel right and Brand pushed himself up in a sitting position.
“Stop that! You’re disrupting the wound,” Kamoor snapped, but Brand did not listen to him, instead letting his eyes roam the woods—listening, smelling, seeing—
“Get down!” He shoved Kamoor to the ground, and lay down atop him, hoping to keep him down as the arrows whistled above them. “They’re here,” he whispered, “the men we are hunting... They’re hunting us.” Brand stared into Kamoor’s eyes as he spoke, noticing that they were such a deep brown that they almost appeared to be black. “But this I can deal with.”
He pushed to his feet and let his power run through his body. He knew his eyes had already changed colour and held his hands slightly up and in front of himself, palms up, and let a ball of flame light up above each of them. An arrow came flying and Brand dodged it at the same time as he threw both balls of flame towards the place it had come from.
A person screamed, and at the same time the high bushes hiding him from sight caught fire. Brand used his senses to find another, and when he could both hear him move restlessly and smell him, he let another ball of flame go. That man screamed too, and again the ground consisting of leaves and grass and twigs caught fire.
A loud battle cry came from behind him, and Brand turned in time to watch as one of the dragon killers came charging into the clearing. Kamoor was on him before Brand could do anything, steel clashing against steel, the fight not even lasting a minute before Kamoor sliced him with his sword. The rest of the men, at least seven of them, came charging after. Two going towards Kamoor, two towards Sarab, and the remaining three towards Brand.
Brand backed up, leading his three opponents a safe distance away from Kamoor and Sarab, then used his powers to carve a burning circle in the ground around them, effectively shutting them away from the rest of the fight. Brand was confident that both Kamoor and Sarab could handle the men they were fighting.
One of the men inside the flames with him seemed to be panicking as he watched the wall of flames that kept him prisoner. Brand had never used his powers to kill before, nor had he used them to such an extent, but he wanted to see how far he could push them, and he concentrated hard, gathering all his power, then he released it on the three men in front of him before they could charge him. He watched as the flames consumed them.
When they fell to the ground, dead, he used his powers to withdraw the fire. The circle of flame dimmed, then disappeared completely, leaving only the burned, charred evidence of it in the ground. Brand saw that Kamoor had killed both his opponents, and Sarab killed the last one as he turned his gaze towards him. Brand turned his attention to the fire he had created in the woods, but a sound caught his attention.
Someone was running away.
Chapter Four
Fire
Brand shifted immediately and sprinted after the man, jumping through the burning bush he had first set on fire. One dead man lay on the ground, his body badly burned, but the ground showed the footsteps of another, and he was loud in the woods as he ran away. Brand pursued, running after the sound of the man’s boots crunching on dried leaves and breaking fallen
“Because of you,” he whispered. “Because he wanted you so badly... that he would get rid of everyone standing in his way.”
A twig breaking had his head moving, but it was only Sarab joining them in the clearing, still holding his bow and arrow at the ready. But something still did not feel right and Brand pushed himself up in a sitting position.
“Stop that! You’re disrupting the wound,” Kamoor snapped, but Brand did not listen to him, instead letting his eyes roam the woods—listening, smelling, seeing—
“Get down!” He shoved Kamoor to the ground, and lay down atop him, hoping to keep him down as the arrows whistled above them. “They’re here,” he whispered, “the men we are hunting... They’re hunting us.” Brand stared into Kamoor’s eyes as he spoke, noticing that they were such a deep brown that they almost appeared to be black. “But this I can deal with.”
He pushed to his feet and let his power run through his body. He knew his eyes had already changed colour and held his hands slightly up and in front of himself, palms up, and let a ball of flame light up above each of them. An arrow came flying and Brand dodged it at the same time as he threw both balls of flame towards the place it had come from.
A person screamed, and at the same time the high bushes hiding him from sight caught fire. Brand used his senses to find another, and when he could both hear him move restlessly and smell him, he let another ball of flame go. That man screamed too, and again the ground consisting of leaves and grass and twigs caught fire.
A loud battle cry came from behind him, and Brand turned in time to watch as one of the dragon killers came charging into the clearing. Kamoor was on him before Brand could do anything, steel clashing against steel, the fight not even lasting a minute before Kamoor sliced him with his sword. The rest of the men, at least seven of them, came charging after. Two going towards Kamoor, two towards Sarab, and the remaining three towards Brand.
Brand backed up, leading his three opponents a safe distance away from Kamoor and Sarab, then used his powers to carve a burning circle in the ground around them, effectively shutting them away from the rest of the fight. Brand was confident that both Kamoor and Sarab could handle the men they were fighting.
One of the men inside the flames with him seemed to be panicking as he watched the wall of flames that kept him prisoner. Brand had never used his powers to kill before, nor had he used them to such an extent, but he wanted to see how far he could push them, and he concentrated hard, gathering all his power, then he released it on the three men in front of him before they could charge him. He watched as the flames consumed them.
When they fell to the ground, dead, he used his powers to withdraw the fire. The circle of flame dimmed, then disappeared completely, leaving only the burned, charred evidence of it in the ground. Brand saw that Kamoor had killed both his opponents, and Sarab killed the last one as he turned his gaze towards him. Brand turned his attention to the fire he had created in the woods, but a sound caught his attention.
Someone was running away.
Chapter Four
Fire
Brand shifted immediately and sprinted after the man, jumping through the burning bush he had first set on fire. One dead man lay on the ground, his body badly burned, but the ground showed the footsteps of another, and he was loud in the woods as he ran away. Brand pursued, running after the sound of the man’s boots crunching on dried leaves and breaking fallen
Similar Books
