Spear and Shadow

PART 8

She glanced at Cervas. He was shaking and pale. His eyes kept darting to and from random places in the cavern. She turned her attention back to the biggest tent in the cavern and sighed. She'd been stupid to leave Arvin and Anri on their own. Something had been off about the situation from the start but she'd been in such a rush to cheer Anri up that she ignored the signs. A scream cut through the air and she stared at the tent. Cervas stepped beside her and drew his sword.
"That sounded like Arvin."
She nodded as she drew her long knives.
"We should get ready for a fight."
The tent began to shake and she tilted her head. Another scream cut through the air and her eyes widened.
"We need to go."
Cervas glared as she grabbed his arm.
"We can't just leave Arvin."
She shook her head.
"I couldn't agree more. But Arvin isn't in a good place right now."
They grunted as a shock wave sent them to their knees. Somewhere in the cavern a child began crying and Cervas started at the sound. She shook her head.
"No. Don't worry about that now. She's safer where she is."
He nodded and they turned their attention back to the tent. Four large black tendrils burst from the sides of the tent and slammed into the ground. Black fire began to consume the tent and everything around it. One of the tendrils began to move and they tensed as it unfurled. Cervas groaned as it pulled his mother from the tent and held her a few metres above the ground. The other three regarded her with invisible eyes. They moved around her, seemingly analysing her. A moment later they stopped and the tendrils holding her relaxed. She gave a sigh of releif as it began lowering her to the floor. It stopped just short and she cursed as it flexed and slammed her against the floor. Cracks appeared as it slammed her into the floor again and again. After what seemed like hours it stopped and flung her towards them. She rolled to a stop behind them and Cervas cast her a concerned glance.
"She's still breathing," Nora muttered. "Right now we need to focus on that."
Cervas nodded and drew his sword.
"I wasn't worried. Just thought that this thing might've taken the honor of ending her from me."
She raised an eyebrow at the venom in his voice as he stared at the tendrils. They writhed and contorted as sentry after sentry charged towards them.
"What is that thing?"
She narrowed her eyes. If he truly didn't know, she didn't need to tell him. She doubted he'd stay around if he knew and she wasn't ready for another friend to disappear. Not now.
"I don't know. I've never seen anything like this."
"How do we beat it?"
She shrugged.
"It looks like it's defending its centre. We could try attacking that?"
Cervas nodded.
"That's as good a plan as any. How are we going to get to it though?"
"We aren't. You need to stay back and try and draw its attention without putting yourself in danger. Anri's going to need you after this."
He stared and she sighed.
"Look, I get that it goes against everything you believe to ask someone you barely know to risk their lives. But the fact is I don't have anyone that needs me after this is all done. You do."
He nodded and smiled.
"Thank you."
His attention switched to the tendrils and he clanged his sword against the ground. They snapped towards him and he gave a nervous laugh. They shot towards him and he rolled to the side as they collided with the ground. Nora rolled her shoulders and pulled her knives from her belt. This was going to hurt. She ran forwards towards the centre of the tendrils as fast as she could. The more distance she cleared before they noticed her the better. One of them turned away from Cervas and darted towards her. She dropped into a slide as it shot towards her head and winced as stones cut into her leg. The tendril slammed into the wall and the cavern shook. She kept moving as it struggled to dislodge it's self. She was almost there. She could make it. As long as she kept moving. She grunted and stumbled as something slammed into her shoulder. She fell to one knee and looked behind her. Cervas's mother stood, propped against a rock with a grin on her face. She felt around her back and yelled when she touched the hilt of a knife. She stood back up and kept moving. Cervas called out to her and she ignored him. She had to make it. The tendril slammed into her stomach and drove the breath from her lungs and lifted her off her feet. She hit the ground and rolled to a stop just behind where she'd started. She forced herself to one knee and wheezed. Cervas crouched beside her and went to grab the knife. She shook her head.
"Leave it."
He glared.
"It'll get infected."
"No it won't. Pulling out will just hurt."
He sighed.
"I'm sorry. I should of made sure she was unconscious."
She glanced at where Cervas's mother had been standing and sighed. She was gone.
"Just give me a second. I just need to get my breath back and I'll try again."
He shook his head.
"You can't. Your ribs must be broken."
She glared and shook her head.
"I'm fine."
He began to speak and stopped as a voice echoed throughout the cavern. His face paled and he turned slowly to see Anri standing a few metres away. He raised his hands and smiled.
"Just stay there. Just stay, right there."
She began to run towards them and the tendrils moved towards her. She jumped into Cervas's arms as the tendrils shot towards them. Nora forced herself to stand and move in between the tentacles and Cervas. Her first and last act of selflessness. She closed her eyes and prepared for the impact. The cavern shook and she winced. She opened her eyes and looked herself over. No holes. She looked towards the tendrils and her eyes widened. A wall of ice, several metres tall and just as thick, stood between them and the tendrils. She looked at Anri, who was staring at the tendrils in fear and smiled.
Quite the little Cryomancer indeed. She picked her knife up off the floor and spun it around a few times. Cervas tapped her leg and she looked at him.
"Let me go."
She laughed.
"And leave Anri with me? She needs you."
She moved around the wall and took a deep breath. The tendrils shot towards her and she tensed. She threw herself forward and into a sprint as they slammed into the ground. She jumped over the remnants of the tent and stabbed into the centre. The tendrils retracted immediately and she sighed. Arvin slumped to the floor and she sat next to him. Blood oozed from the small hole in his chest where she'd stabbed him. Cervas clambered over the wreckage of the tent and everything that had been in it and his eyes widened.
"He's dead?"
She shook her head and waved her hand.
"He'll be back in little while. He can't actually die. So he'll be fine."
He nodded and reached a hand towards her.
"You want a hand?"
He nodded as she grabbed it and he pulled her to her feet.
"Who's gonna carry him then?"
She looked at him and shrugged.
"Well, I can't lift a lot at the moment."
She gestured towards her ribs.
"Y'know, my ribs are kinda broken."
He nodded and sighed.
"Fine. Are you Ok to carry Anri? I think using that much magic tired her out, as soon as the ice wall fell she fell asleep."
She nodded as he passed her along.
"Yeah sure."
He grunted as he hefted him over his shoulder.
"OK. Let's go."
She laughed as he staggered along and smiled to herself as she followed behind him. Maybe this could work. Maybe he and Arvin could help her. She grinned and they kept walking.