Part 2: The Binding
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Winters in the World As We Know It were cold. Often it had grown cold enough to leave a chill in the depths of ones bones for weeks at a time. Orannis had passed through the mountains, and headed for the Great Valley. He planned to destroy the World, and we planned to stop him. The last three months we had spent preparing, making spells and combining them. Belgaer and Dyrim had made the two hemispheres to bind him in.
The road was cold under my bare feet. I had grown skinnier over the last months, my anxiety eating me away. We had just arrived in the Great Valley yesterday, but the hardest part of our long journey still lay ahead. Mosrael spent nights out under the stars, and Astarael's cries were becoming deafening.
I slept uneasily that night, and even worse when Mosrael woke me in the middle of it. The stars were bright in the sky, but the moon was nowhere in sight. I could barely see the ground in front of me, my feet constantly running into things.
Mosrael's long golden hair reflected the star's light, and she took my hand. "We go," she pulled me up and then walked over the where Astarael was sleeping. Dim shapes were scattered the skyline. I sighed and began to pack my bags, my blankets refused to roll up right and my bag kept getting in the way. I decided I needed a light, so I carefully reached up my hand. Usually only Mosrael and Ranna were allowed to use Free Magic, but I had created spells for my own to use. I drew the spell and bound the Free Magic in my mind. The starlight grew in my right hand, and I whispered the closing Mark. It was a dim light, but it would do. I could feel the light across my face, as if it were the wind. I rolled up my blankets and tied them to my bag.
By the time I was done, everyone else was ready as well. I walked over to Kibeth and stood next to her. She stood tall and proud, despite many weeks hard travels, her dark skin blending into the horizon.
Ranna walked to the front. His chestnut hair was pulled back into a crude pony-tail, and he wore long black robes that made him barely visible in the dark night. I walked over to him, took his hand, and placed my light in it. He smiled at me and raised it to his chest. His black eyes looked over us, and he said, "It is time. Orannis must be bound. We head West for two miles, then we spread in a circle around the valley. Mosrael you're at the West end. Dyrim the East, Belgaer the South, and I take the North. Kibeth you're between Belgaer and Dyrim, Astarael between Mosrael and I, and Saraneth between Mosrael and Belgaer. We will have a gap, but there is nothing we can do. We close in– Belgaer will handle the spheres. We all know what to do?"
We all nodded sadly. It sounded easy, the way Ranna had said it. But we all knew the danger that lay ahead. We began marching slowly on, with only Ranna and my light to guide us.
It had taken a while, but the circle was formed. We could hear Orannis laughing to himself. His deep voice sent shivers down my spine. Ranna had given the signal, and we began to close in. I could barely see my siblings in the smoke as the walked down the hill. The stars were gone, the sky a rich pink, and I could feel the sun beginning to rise.
As we drew near, I could see Orannis's figure engrossed in the flames. One could feel the Free Magic in his words. It echoed through ones bones, like Astarael's sobs. Mosrael took my hand, and I took Belgaer's. Soon we were in a circle, our hands clasped. I felt the power, our power, surge through me. Orannis slowly looked up from his tunnel of flames.
He had changed. His once red hair was singed a dark black, and his eyes were cloudy. He had a scar running along his neck, the tissue still raw. He screamed a high pitch scream and laughed.
"Orannis this has gone on long enough." Mosrael said. She looked mad, which was rare for her. Her anger surged through our clasped hands and I tried to pull back. She gripped me tight, and the burning ceased. I squeezed back with relief, looking to Orannis with a deep scowl.
"Mosrael, you cannot stop me. I have more power than you can imagine." His eyes were laughing. He looked at me and winked. I gasped in horror, my heart racing. Belgaer reached to his belt, his hand still in mine, and let loose his spheres. They flew up, above Orannis's head, two silver dots that raced through the smoke.
Mosrael turned to Orannis, smiled, and said, "I am Mosrael, and I stand against you." She let loose the Free Magic of the spell she had made, her voice steady. After her Astarael, and then each of us, until it was my turn. I spoke, concentrating on keeping my spell. It seemed strange to me, even though I had practiced so many times.
The marks flew into the spheres, and they bulged, pulsing with power. Belgaer gripped my hands, and Orannis stood. As the sphere grew above him, he yelled a spell. It was nothing I had heard before, and that scared me. This was what we had prepared for, but not at this magnitude. All that mattered was we kept our hands together. Orannis screamed, sealed his spell, and the spheres took him.
I awoke, sadly, when the sun was up. My eyes hurt in the light, and as I tried to rise dizziness took me and I lied down. I sat there, my head swimming, waiting for it to clear up. I tried again, slowly, and I managed to stand. My eyes adjusted to the light and I saw. The once green valley was now desert, the crack in the earth was sealed, and my brothers and sisters lay on the ground around me. Mosrael was dead, her blood lying around her in a nearly perfect circle, a halo above her head.
I ran to Belgaer. He was covered in blood, and his eyes stared up at me coldly. I turned around and threw up, the sound of water sloshing against the ground breaking the eerie silence that lay around. No one was moving. I was about to give up and collapse where I stood when I felt something. It was a Life, flickering but still present. I followed it, my heart quickening its pace ever so slightly. Don't get your hopes up…she told herself. Astarael lie a few feet away. She had a deep cut on her shoulder, but she would live. Her chest moved as she breathed. At least I wasn't going to be alone. I looked at myself. I had a deep gash in my head, and there was a hole in my stomach the size of my fist. It wasn't bleeding, but it wasn't healing either. I bent down, with great pain, and kissed her on the cheek. "I'm sorry, sister. Do not cry for us, we will always remember you."
I walked slowly back to our camp, my stomach aching and my heart pounding in my head. My stuff was still there, lying in a crumpled heap about the fire. I took the blanket and shredded it into smaller pieces, wrapping one around my stomach, and another around my head. It hurt, badly, but it had to be done. After I had finished and gotten over the pain, I searched through my bag. There was still food enough to travel back to Mornan, if I hurried. I took enough food to last me for a couple days, put my pack on my back, and set off for home.