Shield of Fire

When Crini gains consciousness, she finds herself trapped in a vortex of dust. Intense pain jabs her in the ribs and her breath cuts short. Perfect, just what I want. Putting her hands flat on the ground to stabilize herself, she pushes herself up.

A loud scream escapes her lips as the pain in the ribs is getting stronger and her left ankle is complaining when her weight lands on her feet. Absolute darkness swallows her. Even after she blinks a few times - in hope that her eyes will somewhat be able to adjust to the absence of light - the view doesn’t change.

What to do now? Walking in blind and hope not to get killed?

They’re subtle sounds in the background. Rocks keep falling, most probably from the level they were a few seconds ago.

Wait…

“Tadal! Are you there?” She cries out with as much strength as she can put in her lungs. Her ribs jab her and her efforts end abruptly. Crini turns around, praying for a sound apart from rocks or even the faint sound of breathing. Something to hope for. A sign.

There’s nothing near her, not a single sign of life. Did he die? Would this part of the journey be the finish line for the prince? If I ever get out of here alive, I will vanish into the woods or ask for refuge in Sopolis. Anywhere beyond Queen Tesfira’s reach and wrath.

The air is still thick with humidity. She could feel the particles of dust entering her nostrils with every breath she takes in. Letting a puff of air, she braces herself with courage and shoves the fear down.

If I stay put, I’ll die eventually after a couple of days without food and water and with whatever other injuries I have that I haven’t noticed yet. If I start walking, and die, at least I have more chances to find a way out.

The scale of options was clear. Huffing another breath out, Crini starts moving. One leg after the other, she drags it forward - just as long as a small step - securing the ground is stable before she transfers her weight on it. It would take her a long time but at least she will still have her head on her shoulders. She feels something heavy on the right pocket of her trousers and something smiles within.

Reaching for it, she grabs the metal cylinder and waves it in the air in a move general Kra’ko has shown her to activate the mechanism that expands it into a sword. Maybe it could be used if something is blocking the way.

But when the sword starts to glow, she startles - almost losing the hold around it - but she manages. The blade of the sword produces a steady green light expanding like a dome of light around her. Crini’s eyes grow wide in awe, watching the light like a moth hypnotised by its eerie light.

When her eyes finally adjusted to the light, she keeps walking with rejuvenating confidence building within her. The area around is a dark wasteland of crumbled rocks forming piles of various heights. She scans the area as she walks, finding something of Tadal’s things holding with him or even the prince himself. “Tadal! Tadal!”

***

Only the echo of her steps resonates. Sporadically, the sound of rocks that respond to the calling of gravity breaks the steady pattern. Crini has moved considerably away from the point she found herself after everything collapsed and still no sign of life. With every passing moment, her hopes to find the prince are fading. The sword illuminates the rocks around her.

Crini feels like falling into a loop. Her ankle starts to pain her more frequently than before and each time she takes a breath the ribs are here to claim their presence. The view remains the same… until something feels odd.

She could have sworn that her vision is playing games from the heavy air, the dust must have been affecting her. Everything starts to ripple. She stops abruptly, putting her free hand, against a rock to stabilise herself.

“Are you ready to face your nightmares?” an otherworldly voice - so familiar that made her skin crawl - resonated in her ears. “Are you prepared for what’s coming?”