I watch as Val Cath reaches into his armour and retrieves a shiny metal object. My eyes widen as I register what he is holding, but before I can warn Araya, he points the gun and shoots. Not at Araya. At me.

Then: pain. It hurts so much. The pain of being thrown against a wall, and now being shot is almost too much, and I struggle to keep myself from passing out. I hear Araya gasp beside me. I'm probably bleeding a lot. I glance down and, sure enough, I see a pool of red gathering underneath me. I press my hand against the wound, but that doesn't seem to help.

Then the shock of the moment wares off, and I stare with renewed horror at the long gaping wound in my leg. A stabbing pain is making its way up my leg and throughout my body. At the same time, I feel freezing cold. I'm shivering, and my breathing is irregular. I frantically struggle against the ropes holding me in place, and wince as they tighten around me. "Now," my gaze flits to the captain as he starts to speak. He turns to Araya and says, "Now, kid, will you tell me honestly, how you discovered our little village?" Araya is staring at me. She is shaking all over, and her eyes are wide with concern. "I'm fine," I mouth at her, but we both know that's not true. "Well?" Val Cath snaps impatiently. "I-I am t-telling the truth. Please don't hurt my f-friend" The Captain brandishes the gun at me, and I can't help but flinch away from him. My leg is still bleeding, and now I'm starting to really panic. What if I lose too much blood? I can't die. I'm only fifteen! I still have so much I want to do, so much I want to say, I...

I suddenly make eye contact with one of the guard's. I can't see what they look like because of the armour, but then I feel the ropes around me loosen. I blink in surprise, and as soon as the pressure of the ropes around my throat eases, I quickly unzip my jacket and wrap it around my leg. The captain doesn't notice me - his full attention is still on Araya - but she sees what has happened. She glances at me, but I shake my head. If she draws attention to me, I'm dead. I see her take a deep breath, and lock gazes with the captain. "Ok, ok. I'll be honest. Well, you see, when I was little, I encountered a very powerful mage who promised to teach me the strongest magic he knew, because I looked a lot like his daughter who had passed away a few years back." I could tell Araya was just making stuff up on the spot so I had some time to get away. I smiled at her, before wri.ling forward on my hands and knees. All of the soldiers around Val Cath kept their eyes firmly focussed on Araya as I slipped past.

Finally, I was outside. I sighed in relief as I felt the fresh air touch my skin. I hoped that the soldiers would all leave Araya alone when they found out that I had escaped. I frowned as I wondered how I had managed to do that. Was it that guard? Had the guard set me free? But why? I was their captive, why would they want to let me go all of a sudden?

I was about halfway down the street when I noticed that I was leaving a trail of blood behind me. My thoughts turned back to my wound as I realised that I had to find a doctor fast. I crawled for a few more minutes before I spotted a car coming slowly towards me. I lifted a hand and waved frantically, hoping, no, praying that the driver would notice me. The vehicle stopped beside me and I collapsed onto the ground. I hadn't realised how exhausted I was until that moment. The blood loss was also probably getting to me. My jacket was absolutely soaked in blood and my vision had grown hazey. But all I could think about was Araya. Even as helping hands lifted me into the car, I just hoped that my friend would be okay.