Mercury Mind (The Downfall Saga Book 1)

by Chris Mccready

  He stepped forward, his light held before him and stared at the Clachward. Jerel had described them to him, but he had never seen one before. He looked at its large, rocky body, searching for a nonexistent weakness.

  The Clachward was taller than a man, and much heavier. The edges of the rocks forming its body looked sharp, as if they were freshly made, but the moss clinging to it must have taken many years to grow.

  It turned its head towards him, and tilted it back slightly, before advancing straight at him.

  He sent his dim light towards it, and it barely flinched as it continued its trek towards him.

  He brought forth a new light, a vibrant yellow in color and as bright as he could muster. He sent it forward and the Clachward recoiled.

  “Everybody get up,” said Caddaric. “We can hold it off with lights while we escape.”

  “Where are we going?” asked a dark figure whose voice he didn’t recognize.

  “The clearing. We’ll gather in the clearing. I don’t know how many Clachwards there are, but if we work together we should be able to hold them off.”

  He backed the Clachward away until they got to their feet and headed for the clearing. They encountered several other groups of students on the way, some panicking, but most unaware of the Clachwards. They heard many Clachwards crashing through the brush, sounding menacing in the darkness as branches snapped and were crushed in their wake. A few Clachwards seemed to head straight for them, but they held them off with their lights as they quickly outdistanced them.

  Leaving the dark forest, Caddaric was glad to be back in the moonlit clearing. A dark bank of clouds was building near the horizon, but they’d have time to get organized before the storm reached them. Many other students had the same idea and were already in the clearing.

  “Everyone get over here,” bellowed Caddaric.

  Relieved to hear someone of authority, everyone gathered around him.

  “Everybody needs to remain calm. Yes, there are Clachwards wandering in the woods, but has anyone actually been attacked?”

  By the dim light of several floating balls of light, he saw everybody shaking their heads.

  “Good. Just because they haven’t attacked yet, doesn’t mean that they won’t. I’m going to split you all into groups to go collect firewood. As long as you watch each other’s backs then we should all be fine. Don’t abandon your friends. Hold them back with lights while you collect as much wood as possible. We’re going to build a circle of fires in the center of the clearing, so if they cause problems we can hide behind the fires.”

  Caddaric quickly split them into groups of four and sent them to gather wood. He kept one group with himself who began clearing an area for the fires.

  A few students continued to trickle into the clearing and were assigned tasks to keep them distracted.

  Looking up from the pit he was digging with his machete, Caddaric saw a group of three Clachwards enter the clearing.

  “Just focus on what you’re doing,” said Caddaric. “They aren’t a threat to us.”

  Despite his reassurances, everyone kept giving them nervous glances as they wandered around the clearing. More Clachwards entered the clearing one at a time and began milling about. They turned their heads side to side as if searching for something which they couldn’t find.

  The students slowly adjusted to their presence, and their terror turned to mistrust. Giving the Clachwards as wide a berth as possible, they made many trips into the woods, and amassed an impressive pile of wood.

  Several students started stacking the wood into piles around the middle of the clearing. Others used their Gift to heat the wood to remove the moisture from it, but not enough to actually light it on fire.

  The adrenaline slowly subsided and students began to tire. Caddaric called everyone together in the center of the clearing. After spending several minutes conducting attendance and asking if anyone knew where the missing students had camped, he sent out a few groups of volunteers to try and track them down.

  As they were talking a single Clachward approached them. It appeared that it was intent to trample right through their midst, but when Caddaric walked up in front of it, it stopped. It tilted its head back, as if sniffing the wind, before standing there motionless, looming over him and unnerving the students only a few feet away.

  ***

  “Ravyn! Delaney!” screamed Kort, as he scrambled back to where they were camping.

  Cresting the rise, he nearly ran into Ravyn who was running up the other side.

  “Where’s Delaney?” asked Kort.

  “There was a Clachward,” said Ravyn. “She ran off towards the clearing where we’re to meet the professors before I could stop her. Where’s Donovan?”

  “Dunno. They realized that it was a joke and started chasing him into the woods.”

  “We should put up a red light and wait for a professor.”

  “Didn’t you here that whole speech about us becoming representatives of Haven. We can’t expect someone to come along and help us every time we’re in danger. You told me that you wanted to become a War Wizard. What would a War Wizard do in this situation?”

  “First off, I’m not a War Wizard. Secondly, shut up.”

  “Think of this as a practical test. The Clachwards are only here to distract us. We need to stay calm and think this through.”

  “You? Think this through? Are you sure you didn’t fall and hit your head?”

  “Many times, but none recently. Look, if she’s running towards the clearing, then she should be fine, unless something happens.”

  “That’s reassuring,” she said. Kort missed her rolling her eyes in the darkness. “I happen to agree. Donovan needs us more. The Clachwards seem to have an interest in him, and he couldn’t create a light to save his life.”

  “He might have to.”

  They headed in the direction that Donovan and Caddaric had headed earlier. They kept two lights floating ahead of them, one on either side of the path. They crossed through Caddaric’s camp and followed the snapped braches into the forest until they reached a narrow animal trail.

  “This way,” said Kort. “He wouldn’t have wanted to accidentally run into anyone else while trying to lose them.”

  They walked along the trail watching for signs of someone leaving the trail. Kort had hunted many animals with his father and brothers, and was searching for any spoor to indicate someone had passed this way. Between Donovan and his pursuers, he had no problems finding broken branches along the edge of the trail and kicked over rocks.

  “We’ve got to go faster,” said Ravyn. “They would’ve been running and we’ll never catch them at this pace.”

  “If we miss their trail, then we’ll never find Donovan at all,” said Kort.

  He continued along the trail at a measured pace, before dropping to one knee. Ravyn couldn’t see what he was looking at, but he turned and left the trail.

  “They went this way,” he said.

  Ravyn had no choice but to follow behind as he led them down to the edge of a creek. The shallow creek flowed over a rocky bottom. The banks were a couple of feet high, but it was narrow enough to jump over.

  “Wait here for a moment,” said Kort. “He might have tried to lose them in the creek.”

  Kort headed off along the bank of the creek, sweeping his light over both banks, looking for any signs. His light slowly faded into the darkness.

  Ravyn weaved her light around the trees on the opposite side of the creek. Having spent her entire life in a city, she had no idea what Kort was looking for. She began to go over the multiplication table in her head to help her relax. She was most of the way through it when she heard a set of heavy footsteps approaching from behind.

  “Did you find anything?” she asked. She finished the multiplication table as the footsteps continued to advance. “Kort. What’s going on?”

  Still no response.

  “Kort? Stop trying to be funny.”

  She waited u
ntil the footsteps came close before spinning around to scare him, and bounced off the chest of something that was hard and heavy. She stumbled backwards, slipped over the edge of the bank, and fell into the creek. She let out a cry of pain as she twisted her ankle on a rock, and fell onto her back in the water, with a splash.

  Looking up she saw a large figure looming over her on the bank. Broad, with sharp edges, she recognized it from the descriptions that Donovan had given her of the Clachwards he’d seen. She was frozen in terror and couldn’t call Kort for help or summon her magic.

  The Clachward just stood there, scanning the area. A ball of light flew at its head and it recoiled from it. It wasn’t a terrified motion, but rather a deliberate distancing of itself from the light. Every time the light moved closer, it moved an equal distance away.

  “Are you okay?” asked Kort, slowly walking forward, carefully placing each step as he kept his attention fixed on the Clachward.

  “I ... I think I twisted my ankle,” she said.

  “Try not to move it. Can you manage a light?”

  She summoned a bright yellow light, and sent it towards the Clachward. Kort let his light disappear as he climbed down into the creek.

  “I’m going to pick you up and take you to a drier spot to look at your ankle.”

  He bent down and picked her up in his arms. He set her down on the far bank while he climbed up, then proceeded to carry her away from the creek. He found a suitable tree to climb, he thought it might have been an apple tree but didn’t take the time to examine it in detail. He readjusted Ravyn so her arms were wrapped around his neck and her legs around his waist. With his arms and legs free, he slowly climbed until they were a dozen feet off the ground. He gingerly set her down with her back resting against the trunk and her legs resting on branches in front of her.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  She gave him a nod, and he climbed his way over to her foot.

  “Let me know if it comes over here.” She gave him another nod. “I’m going to take off your boot. This might hurt.”

  He loosened her laces as much as he could. She braced herself, but still winced as he pulled off her boot.

  “It’ll be okay,” he said patting her calf. “My brothers and I have rolled our ankles many times. I’m somewhat of an expert at this.” He rolled down her sock, before pulling it off. “Now I just need to let it air out before I touch your disgusting foot.”

  “Please. I’ve smelt some of your shirts and my foot smells like roses in comparison.”

  “I think that’s manure you’ve been smelling, not roses.”

  She gently began banging the back of her head against the trunk while laughing. “This isn’t the time for jokes. Someone could get seriously hurt.”

  “That’s why it’s the perfect time for laughter. Now, tell me if this hurts.”

  He slowly bent her foot back and she let out a yelp of pain. He spent several minutes bending, prodding and massaging her foot. He slide up her pant leg and held her calf while gently rotating her foot.

  He mocked being blinded by the moonlight reflecting off her pale leg. “You know if you showed some more skin, the Clachwards would be afraid of the moonlight reflecting off it.”

  “Now your jokes are getting bad. How’s the ankle?”

  “Better than my jokes apparently. It looks like it’s only a sprain.” He removed his cloak and hung it over a branch. He tore a sleeve off his shirt and wrapped it tightly around her ankle. “It’s not too swollen at the moment. This will hurt, but I want to get it back in your boot before it does.” He put her sock back on, and carefully slide her foot back into her boot. He tied her boot up tightly to help support her ankle.

  “Any sign of danger?” he asked.

  “I haven’t seen a single Clachward since we climbed up here.”

  “They must be afraid of you. How’s the ankle feel?”

  “It actually feels pretty good at the moment. You have a surprisingly tender touch. You’d make a good Healer.”

  “I wish I could afford to come back next year, but my family doesn’t have the money.”

  “I had my mind set on becoming a War Wizard since I was accepted.”

  “Is that what your parents wanted you to be?”

  Kort climbed his way back to the trunk and wedged himself in beside Ravyn, and wrapped an arm over her shoulders.

  “No, that’s why I wanted to do it, but I froze when I saw the Clachward. A War Wizard would never be afraid.”

  “Everyone becomes afraid. It’s about learning to deal with it. The first step is accepting that nobody is perfect. I mean, look at me. I’m out here in the woods. My best friend is being chased by people who want to kill him. The woods are full of scary monsters. What am I doing? I’m sitting in a tree with the most intelligent and enchanting woman I’ve ever met—”

  He was interrupted when Ravyn leaned in, resting her hand against his smooth cheek, and gave him a slow, probing kiss. Kort’s eyes went wide in shock before he relaxed and let his lips join the symphony.

  Chapter 24

  Donovan twisted around and fought to free his arm. With the grating sounds of ripping fabric, he fell free. Scrambling backwards he watched the Clachward stalk towards him.

  His attempt to create a ball of light failed, just like every time he’d tried in Professor Moncha’s class. Every other student could summon a light to repel the Clachward and here he was, alone in a dark forest with none of his classmates nearby. He had to settle for scrambling away as fast as he could.

  “What do you want?” he screamed at the Clachward. “Why me?”

  It stared at him with its eyeless face and continued its relentless pursuit.

  The thick underbrush kept tangling his feet and slowing him down, while his pursuer ripped through it as if it didn’t exist. He could feel its heavy footfalls behind him and he didn’t dare turn around, in case he tripped due to his inattentiveness.

  He took a quick look around, trying to get his bearings. He had a vague recollection of the open slope he’d run through on the way here being on the far side of the Clachward.

  Its pursuit was relentless yet measured. He thought about climbing a tree, but where there was one, there were many of them and he vividly remembered what they’d done to the last tree he’d climbed. He felt the reassuring weight of the machete bouncing against his thigh. Drawing it forth, he hacked his way forward as fast as he could. It was a dangerous gamble, and he kept expecting its massive hand to clamp around his neck at any second. Just when he thought that he might be able to outdistance his pursuit, he heard the crashing of something large moving through the trees ahead.

  Not stopping to think about what he was about to do, he spun around and ran through the semi-cleared path he’d carved out a moment ago. If the Clachward could feel surprise, none showed on its featureless face or in its actions. They headed straight towards each other, the Clachwards arms outstretched, while Donovan pumped his arms at his sides.

  Right before impact, he dove between its legs. Its hands narrowly missed snagging his clothing, as he skidded through its legs. Turning, its leg hit him in the ribs, whether intentional or by accident he couldn’t tell. Rolling to his feet, he headed for the slope near the creek, arm pressed tightly over his sore ribs.

  The Clachward had torn the underbrush in its passing and he had a much easier time following its trail. Climbing over the fallen log, he made it back to the open slope. He didn’t see anybody in the area, and his instincts told him to keep running, but he had to try and warn Caddaric’s cronies in case they were still in the area.

  “Hey!” he yelled. “If anybody can hear me, there are Clachwards in the area. Watch out for Clachwards!”

  He stared up the slope and, as if on cue, Clachwards emerged from the trees ahead of him. They were spread out and not coordinating with each other. In the open area, he had more room to maneuver, and ducked and weaved his way around them as he made his way up the hill. He stumbled cresting the hill
, and rolled partway down to the creek. He was just getting to his feet when he heard a familiar voice.

  “Hey, we were looking for you,” said Kort.

  It took Donovan a few moments to locate the source of the voice high up in a tree to his left.

  “What are you two doing up there?” he asked.

  Kort and Ravyn climbed out of the tree before responding, and Donovan would have sworn that both of them were blushing.

  “I hurt my ankle,” said Ravyn. “We climbed out of the Clachwards reach while Kort tended to me.”

  “I’m sure he did a great job,” said Donovan. “Can you walk?”

  Ravyn took a few careful steps. “I’ll manage,” she said.

  “Good because there are a bunch of Clachwards on the other side of that hill.”

  Ravyn struggled to walk down the steep decline, so they ended up cutting across the face of the hill as they made their descent.

  “I haven’t seen anyone recently,” said Donovan. “Is everyone okay?”

  “Not sure,” said Kort. “We haven’t come across anyone either. Caddaric was fine last we saw him and was trying to find his buddies. We haven’t seen any signs of him recently.”

  “Delaney?” asked Donovan.

  “She was spooked by a Clachward and headed in the general direction of the clearing, but ...” said Ravyn, shrugging her shoulders.

  “I guess that’s where we’re going then,” said Donovan. “Let’s find a spot to cross the creek.”

  They walked along the bank looking for a narrow spot where Ravyn could step across or where the banks were low enough that she could easily cross. It would have been a nice night if it wasn’t for the Clachwards roaming around. It was a warm spring night, clouds were threatening to come in but until then there was plenty of moonlight reflecting off the sluggish creek.

  The birds took flight from the trees.

  “What the h—” said Kort, interrupted by a quivering of the ground.

  They all were knocked to their knees when the quakes grew. Trees started swaying, then sharp cracks echoed as the first tree began to fall.