In Exchange for Magic

"No!" Ez and I cried in unison.

Ez stepped away from me and rushed to his cousins side.

"No... No, now that... Well, now that we've found each other-"
"I've got to go home," she said, sadly shaking her head.
"Well..." Ez hesitated. "Can't we come with you?"

There was a thick awkwardness that settled over the air. It was a useless question and we all knew it. Ez knew it the best, but he insisted on hearing Nienna say it.

"Ez..." she began, wincing. "You know as well as I do that my colony wouldn't accept you."

Ez's face remained a stone, but I could tell that the truth stung him. He hung his head.

"Look... I'll visit you as often as I can," she told him. "I promise."

He nodded, putting on a wry smile. He held his hand up to her, palm out. She stepped towards him and lightly placed her hand on his. I was surprised when their hands started to glow with a ghostly light. The elf girl's was much stronger than Ez's, but I figured that was because he was only half elf.

The light took on a semi-solid form and swirled around the pair's hands.

"Elves," I muttered, rolling my eyes.

"At least let me point you in the right direction," Ez offered.
"No, I can..." Nienna began, but then realized that the trees were too tall to see the sun. "Yeah. Sure. Just tell me where the sun is setting."

Ez had to concentrate a bit before he could get himself up in the air. He was only a few inches up - and climbing slowly - when I tugged his sleeve. He landed softly like a cat on the ground and sighed.

"Rose, you're making this-"

I interrupted him with a peck on the lips. At first he was surprised, and he went red in the face. Then, recovering, he laughed and rolled his eyes.

"Thanks, sweet. Now I have to try harder to fly."
I punched him lightly for teasing me, and he slowly climbed up to the top of the trees.

"The sun is setting that way!" Ez called down to us, pointing to the horizon. He changed the direction of his finger. "Which means that North is-"

He was cut off suddenly, and he didn't even cry out as he fell through the air. He didn't kick his legs or swing his arms like he was swimming - just like people do when they fall. He fell limply and gracefully, which made me think that he couldn't even move at all.

Nienna seemed to know more about what was going on then I did, because she gasped and shouted, "Those bastards!"

And that's when I heard it. The buzzing of a dozen giant wings. The shining shells of the Shade's beetle creatures caught the glint of the sun. I bit back a scream as Ez landed in the trees at the edge of the clearing. He smacked branches on the way down and finally ended by hitting the ground with a muffled thump.

And it all suddenly made sense. Why we were able to escape the castle so easily. Why we hadn't met anything evil in the woods.

It was a set up. It was all fake. Everyone was waiting for Ez to show his face.

"Rose!" Ez yelled. His voice was so strained that it cracked.

He rose to his feet, shaky. He began running lopsided towards me and Nienna, favoring his right leg. He collapsed near me, and I froze in shock. His fingertips were glowing with a strange light. It was different from the Healing light or the glow that Ez and Nienna had exchanged when they touched palms.

This was the light that had exploded out of Ez when Nienna brought him back to life. It was steely grey, and it made Ez look like a ghost.

"Go, go, go!" Ez urged, trying to get the three of us behind some of the trees.

The beetle creatures had begun their descent, trying to land in the clearing. The buzzing of their wings hummed through my chest.

"Shit!" Ez yelled, hobbling along, supported by the elf girl and I. We started running through the woods, dodging trees as we went.
"What was that?!" I yelled over the buzzing.
"Pure energy," Ez and Nienna answered in unison.

We continued, but I'd noticed that the buzzing had stopped. With the speed of the wind, the Shades blew past us. It was only a matter of seconds before we were completely surrounded. The Shades were wielding sinister looking gun-like weapons.

The leader stepped forwards, and his face flashed up in my mind's eye. It was Bane. I remembered him from the first day I'd met Ez... It seemed so long ago. It was clear that he remembered us as well.

"Line them up," Bane barked.

A few of his cronies grasped our shoulders and kicked us in the backs of the knees. Nienna and I fell, but Ez crumpled. His already hurt leg gave way with a snap. He let out a strange noise, akin to a wounded animal.

And there we were. All three of us in a row, as good as blindfolded. I was painfully reminded of those mafia movies where the victims were lined up and then...

"Hello," Bane greeted us. "Mr. Sullivan. Ms. Collins... And you are?"
Nienna looked up at him, angered at being addressed.
"I'm Nienna," she said, sticking her nose up at him. "Nienna Ivorywing."
"Well, Ms. Ivorywing," he hissed. "So nice to have met you."
She spat at his feet.

Without speaking further, Bane cocked the gun and fired a small stream of energy at her. She let out a scream of pure pain, pure agony, pure terror.

"No!" Ez shouted, his voice straining. "Stop!"
"Oh?" Bane asked. "You'd like me to stop?"
"Yes... Please," Ez growled, hating being made to beg.

Wordlessly, Bane moved the gun to point at me.

Ez sucked in his breath.

"A soft spot?" Bane pressed, amused.

He moved the gentle, spider string-like thread of energy to me. It caught me straight in the heart. My air hitched in my throat and I screamed just like I was breathing. It seemed so natural to respond in such a way to the pain.

And what pain it was... There are no words to describe it. It was nothing I have ever felt. I can only explain the hurt by comparing it tangible things. It was bamboo slivers under my nails. It was a bed of needles. It was a vinegar coated razor blade. It was delicate like a nuclear rose petal. It was fierce like glass fire.

And it was gone. It was a while before the white hot numbness wore off and I could hear Ez screaming.

"Hit me!" he cried, his voice rough. "Hit me!"
"Relax, boy," Bane scoffed. "I'm through with her."
I sighed softly and wavered, wobbling on my knees.

Immediately, Ez's hand was clenched on my upper arm. I glanced at him, watching dusty tears leak from his eyes and crawl down his face.

He opened his mouth to say something, but he was cut short when the energy string caught him. He gasped and clamped his mouth shut, his eyes welled up and he had a defiant look on his face. It was clear that he wasn't going to scream.

The energy string was kicked up a notch. It was now the size of a good strong sailing rope. Ez winced and bit down on his lip so hard that it began to bleed.

Bane looked annoyed. It was as if he was saying, "Why won't he die already?"

It wasn't until the energy was turned up again that Ez started to weaken. My heart shattered, it was so horrible. He had promised himself that he wouldn't show that he was affected, but he kept choking out sobs and whimpers.

Nienna leapt to her feet, still weak, and pitched forwards. I don't know what she was meaning to do. Wether it was that she wanted to throw her self in front of the energy stream, or that she wanted to kiss him again - thus, saving him - I didn't know.

The only problem is that she never made it that far.

She was met with five different streams of energy, coming from the tense Shades surrounding us. Thick and solid, she fell instantly. Her arm was thrown out over her head, and her eyes were close gracefully.

"She'll Heal," Ez hissed tensely. "She'll Heal."

Two Shades broke the circle to pick up Nienna's lifeless body. Ez leaned forwards, resting all his weight on his broken leg. He didn't seem to notice. He snatched her limp wrist and held on to it with all his might.

"Wait!" he begged. "No, no, she'll Heal!"
"Ez," I breathed gently. Something in my heart told me that she was gone.
"She will Heal!" he screamed.

One of the Shades kicked him in the stomach, and he fell forward, his forehead on the ground.

"She'll Heal, she'll Heal..." he kept crying. "She'll come back..."

I looked up at Nienna as she was being carried off and gasped. Ez's gaze shot up as well.

"I told you!" he shouted. "She's..."

He trailed off when he realized the real reason for my gasp.

A small trickle of blood slid out of her mouth and dripped to the dirt floor. The blood was red. Her magic was gone. She couldn't Heal.

Ez let out a scream. It was a scream of pain, but not like when Nienna or I had screamed under the stream of energy. It was different. It was... tortured.

He started to glow with energy. For one furious second I thought that he was being hit with the gun again. The look on Bane's face told me otherwise. Ez was glowing from within.

"Ez, what are you doing?" I shrieked, my voice raw and scratched.

And then Ez exploded.