Black tendrils coiled like inky fingers around the stones that made up the hallway. Despite the liquid appearance, there was nothing slow about their approach.
"We need to go, now!"
Both figures dashed around a bend, spraying loose pebbles and sand every which way.
Still the shadows followed, swallowing up bits and pieces of everything around them.
They skidded around larger boulders, avoiding debris, and one fell to a half kneeling position before clambering at the wall to get back up.
"Go! Go! Don't wait for me!" the one who stumbled shouted. Her voice was sharp and panicked.
The other figure hesitated a few steps ahead. "I'm not leaving you!"
She reached out to snag her companion and jerked her forward as the darkness chasing them spilled over the boulder they had just avoided.
"It's like it has a mind of its own!" one whimpered, trying to keep pace.
The other figured shuddered, not willing to think that maybe it did.
As they continued to run, their lungs burned and their legs ached. It wasn't long before their steps faltered again and they slipped on some of the uneven, sandy ground.
The darkness was behind them, hissing at their heels as they forced themselves to keep going.
They continued to run until they burst into a wider, taller cavern. Glowing crystals and veins spread in every direction and finally cast light upon them and their darkened pursuer.
"There!" the taller figure said, pointing towards one end of the room. "There's a tear, I can feel it."
The smaller, red headed girl turned to look at her companion with wide eyes. "You aren't... I can't leave you here!"
"You are the only one who can step between the worlds and pass through the veil."
"But-"
They were interrupted as, despite the glow from the stones, the shadows flowed into the room.
"You have to go." the taller woman insisted. "You have to go now."
The red head shook her head, "No! We can keep running. We need to warn everyone anyway!"
"They will know soon enough, and we need help. Help from outside."
The curled, blackened fingers crept closer, crawling along the ground, the walls and up into the dome above them.
Both figures took a step backwards on sheer impulse.
"You have to go now." she insisted again, voice a harsh whisper.
The red head hesitated, darting a look between the darkness, the not-quite-right tear ahead and her companion.
"Tell them what is here. Tell them we need help!" the taller one said.
She nodded, taking another step back as the shadows lingered closer.
"I... I'll bring them back. We'll come back for you," the red head said, swallowing hard.
The other figured offered a fleeting smile and then jerked her head to the tear. "Go!"
Without another pause to second guess herself or change her mind, the red head took a running jump into the nearly invisible tear.
It shimmered, and she had the strangest sensation of falling.
She hadn't remembered feeling that before when she passed through the veil.
But then, a heartbeat later, she burst into cold, empty air.
She was falling.
With a startled yelp, she tried to use her wings to at least glide a little to the ground, but her efforts barely helped and she crashed a moment later onto her side.
The fall knocked the wind from her, but it had only been a few feet.
Bones didn't feel broken, but her lungs burned and she pushed herself up to a sitting position. With a few gasping breaths she looked around.
The familiar feeling of a world without magic woven their it's very air spiked her skin, but everything else looked alien.
She had no idea where she was, only that it was night and that she was cold.
Pushing her way to her feet, she winced as her legs trembled and protested the motion. They'd been running for so long...
The thought of the world in peril she'd left behind steeled her nerves and she spun around once more, looking for landmarks of any kind.
At first, there was nothing. But then, as if she had willed herself to be where she needed to be, there was a glint on the horizon.
A tower, lit up against the backdrop of the starry sky.
With a sigh of relief, she took a moment to breathe and then set off walking.
She had summoners to find.
Authors Note: Hey, what's up? XD
It's Moonclaw! Hahahaha just when you think you can escape... it pulls you back in.
Not going to lie, I miss some of my characters a lot, and since I have SO many ideas, I thought maybe I'd just pop on and get working on another one. Plus, I want to get back into the habit of writing often, not only for fanfiction projects but all my other works, too!
NO, this isn't "4th fic". Sorry... a part of me would love to someday write that 4th epic story, but it's a massive undertaking as the story would likely be longer then Shards of History, and you know how long that took. If only I had infinite time!
This fic is actually a short multi-part one (I'm thinking like 7 parts including this and the short ending? We'll see) and is a "future ish" fic. This is an idea I actulaly randomly had a long time ago (as is the title. It literally popped into my head one day out of no where,) so I hope you all enjoy :)
I'm not sure when the 1st real chapter will be up, but I hope you all enjoy my little teaser here.
~Moonclaw