Chapter 1

Commencement Karn was heavier than he looked, even without his weapons and heavy armor, but then again unconscious bodies always were misleading.

Opal may have been young, but she was not naive; she learned as she went, and this was a lesson her aching muscles would remind her of for days to come.

She rubbed her dainty hands down the side of her old patchwork leather pants. Made from pieces of clothing that belonged to her father, she had altered them several times to fit. However, Opal wasn’t worried about ruining them; they were already stained with many layers of dirt…and blood.

After a deep breath, Opal brushed her long, wavy red hair to the side, out of her eyes. She wrinkled her nose and pursed her crimson lips together to puff the final nagging strands away, so she could think.

She knew she would have to call upon her magic to carry Karn the rest of the way; she was just too weak to do it herself. Nevertheless, she did not want to waste any magical energy she did not have to; a powerful spell would be required to put her plan into motion, and she wanted to be sure she could cast it.

She sighed as she took one last long look at her project lying in the mossy forest grass. He was dressed, not unlike her, in casual farmer’s garb, nothing that would make him stand out in a crowd. No one would know how special he was. No one but her.

Karn was the man of her dreams; tall, strong, handsome, and she could not wait to love him and to be loved by him. This will work, she told herself for the thousandth time. This will work.

Wispy light, like thin, pink mist, formed around both of their heads. She was the key that unlocked the jumbled mess inside his mind. Without her, he would be useless to the others. I made sure of it, my love. I had to or risk my… our well-being.

Opal knew the magical energy that filled her body had its limits, but she had not yet reached them. At times, she felt so powerful, she thought she could move the world—this was not one of those times. She had taxed her body over the past two days, with little sleep and nourishment to replenish it. It was not the magic that ebbed; it was her body. She needed rest desperately.

A sour sensation in her stomach made her want to retch, as the spell she cast ended. With a look to the sky, Opal calculated. Karn will wake up when the sun is straight above the treetops; there’s just enough time for a quick meal and a short slumber.

She was only several steps away when fatigued breathing emerged from behind her.

“Mage, you’ve cast your last spell!”

Like the howl of a hungry animal, the man’s shout tore the peaceful silence from the forest around her and startled her so badly she nearly fell when she turned to face him.

She sized him up. Pointed ears… angular brow…

The man continued to scream as he charged with his weathered sword held high.

Where the elf had come from, Opal had no idea. Her thoughts were dominated by one thing: Could all my work be cut short by the rusty blade of this dirt-covered stranger’s longsword?

Opal ducked under his initial swing and called for a defensive spell, a magical shield, but no sooner had the spell begun to form than it vanished.

Her body heated, and her skin grew moist and sticky. If I can’t concentrate… my power is worthless.

“Your kind has set ruin to our world. Today I will cleanse this forest with your blood!”

With her hands and feet in the grass, Opal scrambled for cover like a panicked animal. As her head spun, she could hear the words of the High Council echo inside her mind. She would not allow them the satisfaction of being right. Not now, not ever.

At risk of succumbing to unconsciousness, Opal turned and stood her ground against her wild-eyed assailant. She did what her trainers always said. She relied on her senses and her training.

First, she took in her circumstances.

This old man, he smells as if he’s not bathed in months. He… She gagged. He reeks like something dead. He’s exhausted, as exhausted as I am… but in his eyes there’s a passion like I have never seen before. This elf… he desires one thing: to kill me… Kill me or die trying.

He lunged forward with an attack that should have run her through, but Opal had created a small portal in front of her body, one large enough to protect her from chest to groin. When his sword, and arm that wielded it, entered the crackling violet vortex, she snapped the portal shut, and transported the old metal and older flesh to a location in the southern sea.

Injured, he fell into her, the stump of his bleeding arm ramming her belly. The jarring impact knocked her backward; everything went dark.

***

When she opened her eyes, she did not know how much time had passed. What happened? Where is he?

She remembered a fight, but its conclusion was foggy. When she looked down at herself, she saw that her beige sash-tied vest was covered in blood, but there were no wounds. I’m fine. I think I’m fine. Oh no… Karn…

She held her breath as she searched about. Where’s Karn…? When her eyes found him, she sighed with relief. He was still asleep.

My plan remains unspoiled.

When she stood up she did so slowly, her eyes on the elven man lying motionless behind her. His wound–his missing arm–should’ve killed him but had not. Somehow, the old elven man still drew breath although shallow and haggard.

She examined him for other weapons but found none. In fact, the old man had nothing apart from the rags he wore for clothes. Who is he? she wondered. Why would he come here? Now?

Her curiosity came to a quick end when she saw his eyes flutter in effort to open.

Opal snatched up a rock and squeezed it so tight in her hand that she felt its corners dig into her flesh. She raised her fist high over her head, drew a deep breath, and then smashed the man’s nose and bashed in his teeth.

Over and over, she slammed the rock into the man’s face, until her arm was coated to the elbow in gore. When there was nothing left but grass and mud, she stopped and inhaled her first breath in what seemed to her like ages.

It’s over, she told herself. No. It’s all set to begin.

She shook her head in disgust; there was more work to be completed now. After she tossed the rock to the side, she grabbed the man by his ankles. Lifeless bodies are so much heavier than they look.