Chapter Two
The thunderstorms had not ended with the day, but continued to dump rain over the city of Trollzopolis and the surrounding lands. To the east, the storm that had just passed could be seen, the lightning within making the clouds turn a beautiful pearl white for a brief instant. The faint thunder followed each flash. To the west the next in line was approaching, its own lighting flashing and the noise slowly growing louder. Right at the moment the city park was between storms, and the land was soaking up the rain and letting the rest run off into the streams and storm drains.
An unpaved path wound between copses of trees and bushes, but was hard to see except when lighting briefly lit the land.
Along the path came a machine and rider. The vehicle was a hovercycle called a skoot, and was painted white. Its driver sat on a green cushioned seat and tried to watch where the path went. The driver missed a turn and was moving over the grass, but had not discovered that.
An extra-bright bolt of lighting flashed, followed almost instantly by extra-loud thunder. The skoot's driver instinctively turned left, away from it, but in the long dark between flashes had also missed seeing the stone fountain at the edge of the open field.
The skoot hit it and bucked, dumping the driver, who made a yelp of surprise, into the water. Without a driver, the skoot throttled down and came to a stop just a few feet from the fountain.
Sitting up with a growl, the driver took off a white helmet after struggling with the buckle for a moment. An enormous amount of blond hair sprang out, but being wet drooped behind the driver's back.
Along with the blond hair, the troll-girl had amber eyes and stood about three feet tall. Normally she wore a friendly, if somewhat vacant, smile, but right now was frowning with annoyance.
"Topaz Trollhopper, you've done some silly things before, but this has GOT to be the limit!" she said aloud. She threw the helmet at the skoot and carefully stepped out of the fountain, glad that no one was around to see.
She squeezed water out of her hair, which more or less restored it to its usual shape, a spiky ponytail that stood up from the back of her head. She tried to wipe the water from her clothes, but didn't have much luck.
"Oh, forget it!" she finally said, "I'm already soaked to the skin from the storm. What's a little fountain water going to do?" She went over to the skoot and looked to see if it had gotten scraped, but really couldn't see anything.
"Wait a sec! If I'm at the fountain, then I'm off the path!" she looked around in the light provided by the much closer lightning, trying to see where the path was. "I am NEVER going to get to Amethyst's house at this rate!"
She looked down at herself. "My clothes are ruined. Maybe I'd just better go back home... IF I can find the path!"
Just then the next round of rain started. Topaz slumped her shoulders, then giggled. "Oh, well. At least I can't get any wetter!" Her hair drooped even more as it took in more water.
She picked up her helmet and looked up at the departing storm. "Man, I wish that had been the last one." As it happened she was looking at the right place at the right moment when something completely unexpected occurred.
A loud BANG! was followed by a short, sharp breeze hittng her, and a person appeared some distance in the air. They didn't fall down, but traveled at a parallel to the ground, screaming all the way, into a tree. Topaz heard a sickening CRACK and the scream cut off.
Frozen for a second she heard the sound of small branches breaking and a thud as the person landed, and not gently. Topaz winced in sympathy. She tossed down the helmet and ran in that direction.
At the foot of the tree she found a person, a girl, lying on her right side. From the unnatural angle, her right leg was broken. She was groaning and trying to sit up. A flash of lightning revealed the girl to have short, dark red hair, and was wearing a black skirt, boots, and a black vest over a white t-shirt with a pumpkin on it.
"About as fashionable as Onyx," she thought. Then she realized the girl looked like the fairies she had met last year! That is, she seemed to be as tall, but wasn't dressed like one. "Maybe I can help her look better. That punk look is SO five years ago!"
Mirta sat up slowly, confused, disoriented, and in pain from scratches and bruises. The world around her was wet, loud, bright then dark, and unfamiliar.
What happened? Was Cloud Tower being attacked? Where was she? For that matter, where was anybody? She stiffened. LUCY! "I have to find her, make sure she's okay," she said aloud.
She sensed unfamiliar magic nearby, like nothing she had ever come across before, and her witch's instincts kicked in. She looked in that direction to see the outline of a... person? Creature? Something... standing and staring at her. She raised a hand and orange energy flared around it. Fear gave the magic strength, and a bolt left her hand, striking the creature and throwing it back. She heard it scream in what she could have sworn was a female voice. But it didn't matter; she had gotten rid of it.
"That's what you get for attacking Mirta the Witch!" she yelled.
Getting her wits back, she looked around, seeking shelter from the storm and the thing that attacked her. She put her left hand down to brace herself and quickly drew it back, wincing in pain. Feeling the wrist she could tell it was swelling up.
"Great, a sprained wrist. Worry about it later, I've got to get out of here before more of those things find me," she thought.
She shifted to stand up, but discovered she couldn't. Her right leg wasn't working. During a flash of lightning she saw it was at an unnatural angle. It didn't hurt, but felt... odd. Shock, she realized. And when it wore off she WOULD be in pain.
Looking in the direction her magic had thrown the creature, she could sense the strange magic was much fainter but still there. She hadn't killed it, but it was probably out for the time being. Fine. Got more important things to worry about, like getting out of this storm.
There were sticks all around her, and she found two of a good length and thickness she could use. Taking off her belt she put the sticks on either side of the break and wrapped the belt securely and tightly around them. That would do for now.
A long stick with a fork in one end was just within reach, and she pulled it to her, using her magic to shear off the side branches, cut the length and even up the ends of the fork.
Bracing against the tree she slowly stood up, her broken leg feeling funny but still without pain. Her wrist was doing its best to make up for it, though; the throbbing was terrible.
She looked around, trying to decide on where to go. There was a hill with what looked like thick trees and bushes atop it. That might do. She could hide there while her leg and wrist mended, then hook back up with the other witches and find out what was going on.
Taking a last look in the direction she had blasted her attacker, she hobbled away. It was slow going, especially with the thunderstorm raging around, but it made good cover.
At her destination she found it to be better than she hoped. There was a kind of rock table at the top with room for her to squeeze in underneath. The bushes provided cover all around, and the trees kept off most of the rain.
Settling in after carefully making sure there were no animals that had claimed it for a home, she turned her attention to herself. On the left side of her belt was a flat case with several vials of unbreakable glass that she always carried with her. A witch had to stay prepared for an emergency. After all, she could rely only on herself.
Figuring the storm would cover her, she used a minor spell to dry herself off. The rock table kept the rain out and the burrow dry. Leaves inside were comfortable.
One vial contained a healing potion that would cure her leg and wrist overnight. But she had to stay quiet and still for it to work.
She took the potion and sleep crept over her. The night was warm and the shelter secure. She drifted off, wondering what had happened.