“I’ll stay, if you don’t mind,” I growled through gritted teeth. I had no doubt that I would win this battle, although I was unsure yet of how I would succeed. Unlike the forest that was full of natural tools and props to use, the rooftop was bare and the fall to the ground below long.
“Get out of here,” the leader growled back, surprisingly emotional. I wanted to believe that he was asking me to leave because of the powerfulness of my skills, but something deep inside told me it was for different reasons.
“Let her stay if she wants to fight,” a different masked man, to my right taunted. “If she wants to try and protect the spoiled brat, let her,” disgust filled his voice, and there was no doubt in my mind that he meant to kill Kiran.
“Eden, go. If they are willing to let you go unharmed, then go,” Kiran commanded me. His magic was strong and I could feel the heat from his boiling blood radiate off of his skin. He was not going to give up this fight easily, but neither was I willing to let him. “What do you want with him?” I deflected Kiran’s command and addressed the leader once again. Nothing in my body was willing to settle this dispute calmly; talking it out was only a decoy until I figured out what to use to my advantage.
“We want a new King,” another cloaked figure to my left shouted. “A King who will give us our magic freely.”
“A King who will let all of our people free,” Another man roared louder. Their response was turning into their war cry.
“We want to destroy this bloodline and end the bloodshed and prejudice. We want what we were promised,” the leader spoke softer, but equally as menacing.
And then the battle began. One of the men to my right let out a battle cry before shifting into a grizzly bear, towering over the still human rest of us. He crossed the distance between Kiran and himself in less than a second. I closed my eyes expecting the fight to be over before it began, but I heard the roar of the bear and opened my eyes to see that Kiran had eluded him.
Kiran was fast, much faster than the overly large bear; but he would not last long. Another man joined his companion, shifting into a chocolate brown wolf. Kiran used his skill and power, making it impossible for either attacker to touch him, but there were three other men closing in.
I focused my magic, making it palpable in my hand. The three men, who were apparently going to remain men, were circling Kiran waiting for the opportunity to strike. The men who chose to ignore me had made their first mistake. I threw the magic at them with force, sending out a type of pulse, knocking them off their feet and surprising them all.
Unfortunately for Kiran, I distracted him just long enough for the wolf to get a hold of his arm and bite down hard. He let out a shout of rage and threw the animal-man off of him and into the wall with such force that he crushed the red brick, sending shrapnel flying around him. He sunk to the ground before shaking his head and rejoining the fight.
Blood dripped down Kiran’s arm as he tried to keep the grizzly bear at bay. The three remaining men stood to their feet undeterred by my weak attempt at disabling them. I tried the pulse again, but this time they were ready for it. The man, who had challenged me to stay, sent me his own version of a pulse; it was not as strong as mine though and I was able to block it with a defensive surge of magic. He continued on the path to fight me, while the other two men did their best to out maneuver Kiran.
I once again focused my magic, feeling the electricity surge through my veins. This time when I centered it in my hands I could see the white heat from the force of it. Just as I was about to send my powerful blow, the man on his way over, threw another one my way, knocking me off of my feet.
My hands flew apart and the magic was sent up uselessly into the sky, illuminating the dark clouds above. I struggled quickly to my feet, ripping the seam of my dress at the thigh. I sent quick pulses of magic his direction as rapidly as I could. They were small since I was unable to take the time to focus my magic firmly, but they did the trick in keeping him from advancing farther.
Kiran, with four men surrounding him, was struggling to stay ahead of them. Although he was super-humanly fast, there were just too many of them to stay untouched. The bear caught him by the back of the neck, shaking him roughly, before Kiran was able to break free. Blood dripped down his back, covering his torn tuxedo in thick crimson stains.
He fought on, defying all odds. He continued to block pulse after pulse from the remaining humans, while keeping the animals at a safe distance. My fight with my one attacker intensified as he got a blow past me, punching me in the stomach and knocking the wind out of me. I fell to one knee, ripping my dress further and tearing the skin away from that leg. I stood up quickly sending a stronger pulse in his direction throwing him against the metal door, and denting it.
I turned to Kiran’s defense and centered my magic quickly but effectively. I threw my arms their way sending all men flying in different directions. The men recovered quickly; but the quickest of all was their leader. He stood to his feet, walking directly over to Kiran and surprisingly punched him in the mouth and then again in the eye.
No one was expecting such a human gesture, especially me. When the leader thrusted his fist into Kiran’s face, the sleeve of his cloak slid up the length of his arm and I painfully realized why he was so familiar. Around his wrist was a thick tattoo of a snake eating his tail and around his bicep, the lower half of a phoenix rising from flames. They were the unmistakable tattoos belonging to Avalon.
My mouth dropped open and I stood dumbfounded amid the bloody battle. If I would have known how to react or continue I would not have been given the chance. The mouthy and vengeful attacker from before recovered from the last blow I sent him and sent me one of his own. The electric pulse hit me with such force that I was blindsided and unfortunately unprepared.
The wave of magic threw me flailing over the side of the building and towards the ground below. Time slowed down and I felt as if I was watching the entire experience in slow motion. All five of the attackers’ heads poked over the ledge of the building as if to watch me fall to my death. But most surprisingly was Kiran, who himself came flying over the edge, diving in my direction.
Before I could realize how long the deathly fall was taking, Kiran was diving towards me and gathering me into his arms. Once in his arms, we seemingly were going to float to the ground. I relaxed, grateful to be wrapped in his protective hold.
My reaction was premature; I heard a guttural scream from the top of the building and witnessed the electric wave of magic fall from the sky and on top of us. Our descent was quickened to a sickening speed and we hit the ground with such momentum that we indented the cement sidewalk that served as a landing pad.
I closed my eyes expecting to open them to severed or paralyzed limbs. The landing was painful, the ground crumbling around us. Somehow Kiran managed to land on bottom, giving me a softer landing via his body. I heard several bones snap and wasn’t sure if they were mine or his.
I heard him groan underneath me and forced myself to assess the damage to my body. Upon opening my eyes and wiggling my toes and fingers, I realized that I was generally unharmed, except for some bruising and the gash on my leg from earlier. I awkwardly peeled myself off Kiran and struggled out of the hole we created with the impact of our body.
By this time the students and teachers from the dance began to exit the building, investigating what must have sounded like a car crash to them inside. I looked down at Kiran’s limp and unconscious body and let out a scream I didn’t realize I was capable of. I turned my head to be sick and heard other students around me gasp and let out cries of their own.
Someone came to my aid and began asking questions, but the only sound I could make was a throaty sobbing noise. I watched the men teachers bend over and pick Kiran up out of the hole formed around his body. They carefully carried him inside and I was left on the sidewalk watching after him, feeling more than helpless.