Chapter 120 The escape

Chapter 120 The escape
They moved through the forest in near silence.
Fifteen students, battered and bleeding, followed Kaela through darkness that seemed to swallow every sound. Dagon carried Brin across his shoulders while Taren walked beside them, one hand pressed to Brin's forehead, monitoring his condition.
Louise walked like a ghost. Her eyes were fixed straight ahead, seeing nothing. Selene stayed close to her, one hand on her arm, guiding her around roots and rocks.
Vanya brought up the rear with two noble students whose names Kaela had never learned.
The girl moved stiffly, her face blank with shock. Her parents' blood still stained her clothes. She hadn't spoken since watching them die.
"How much further?" one of the students whispered.
"Maren's safehouse is two miles north," Kaela replied. "We stay off the main roads. Move quietly. The Emperor's soldiers will be searching."
"Will they follow us this far?"
"They'll follow us to the ends of the earth if Lucian orders it." Dagon's voice was rough with exhaustion and grief. "But right now, they're dealing with the resistance in the stands. That buys us time."
Kaela touched her stone bracelet, reaching for Elena.
Elena. We're out. Heading to Maren's position. What's happening up there?
The response came slowly, Elena's mental voice strained and distant.
The resistance holds. Barely. The Emperor's guard is pushing back, but they're disorganised without Magnus. I'm getting as many families out as I can.
Brin's parents? Taren's family?
Safe. I sent them through the western exit with a group of loyalists. They should reach the city by dawn.
Relief washed through Kaela. At least that was something.
Anton...
I know. Elena's voice cracked. I held him at the end. He said to tell the children he loved them. That he was proud.
Kaela glanced at Dagon and Louise. Neither of them knew about this final message yet. She would tell them when they were safe. When there was time to grieve properly.
Get out of there, Elena. Join us at Maren's.
Not yet. There are still people trapped. I won't leave them behind.
Elena—
My husband died for this. I won't dishonour his sacrifice by running while others burn. A pause. Take care of my children, Kaela. If I don't make it out, tell them I loved them more than anything.
The connection faded before Kaela could respond.
She kept walking, kept leading, kept pushing the group forward even as her heart ached with fear for the woman who had become like a mother to her.
They reached Maren's safehouse an hour before dawn.
It wasn't much to look at. An abandoned mill on the outskirts of a small village, its waterwheel long since rotted away. But inside, Sophia's grandmother had transformed the space into a refuge.
Cots lined the walls. Medical supplies covered every table. Potions and salves and bandages, everything they might need to treat the wounded. And food. Real food, not the scraps they'd survived on in the arena.
Maren stood at the door as they approached, her aged face tight with worry.
"How many?" she asked.
"Fifteen. Plus Brin. He's unconscious, but Taren says he'll recover."
"Bring him inside. I have something that will help."
They filed into the mill, students collapsing onto cots the moment they crossed the threshold. Dagon laid Brin on the nearest bed while Maren examined him with practised hands.
"Mental strain," she confirmed. "Severe but not permanent. He pushed his telepathy beyond safe limits." She produced a vial of amber liquid. "This will ease the pressure. He should wake within a few hours."
She administered the potion, then turned to survey the rest of the group.
"You all look like death walking. Eat. Rest. We'll figure out the next steps when the sun rises."
Kaela wanted to argue. Wanted to plan, to strategise, to do something other than sit and wait. But her body refused to cooperate. The moment she sat down, exhaustion crashed over her like a wave.
Dagon settled beside her, his shoulder pressing against hers.
"Louise?" she asked quietly.
"Selene's with her. They're in the back room." He paused. "She hasn't said a word since we left the tunnels."
"She just watched her father die. Give her time."
"I know. I just..." He rubbed his face with both hands. "I keep seeing it. The fire. Magnus's screams. Father holding on even as the shadows tore through him."
Kaela took his hand, lacing her fingers through his.
"He saved us. All of us. The resistance, the families, everyone who escaped. That's because of him."
"I know that too. But knowing doesn't make it hurt less."
They sat in silence as the first light of dawn crept through the mill's grimy windows. Around them, students slept or stared at nothing, each processing the horrors of the past day in their own way.
Kaela's eyes drifted closed.
She dreamed of fire and blood and an Emperor laughing on his throne.