29 January 2013
*Yes, this is a return to the story! Now entitled (provisionally) "Possession" I suffered from the double affliction of Writer's Block and January Exams, which stopped me (again) writing more. I haven't written much more than this, but I'll put it on the back-burner for now until the summer holiday, at which point I WILL do a MASSIVE write, and hopefully get at least halfway through! So, I'll leave you to read what I've done so far! Richard out.*
Ok, this was bad. Why did I provoke an all-powerful, possessed demon mage to attack me while we were out in the middle of nowhere? How was I going to get out of this? And… Bang! Luckily my subconscious took over while my brain was still debating these meaningful questions and activated my legs, sprinting me from the bush I had dived into before it burst into sapphire flame. Gods, he was accurate. The only thing that saved me from incineration was just running between each bush as he incinerated one after the other. My brain had put itself on track by now and was considering how to actually defeat this unnatural being. Part of me was debating just to send an arrow through his brain and-be-done-with-it, but in my heart of hearts I knew that it wasn’t a viable option. My legs were still operating on automatic, so you couldn’t blame them for tripping over while I was still thinking it through. I tumbled face first into the mossy grass, and a wave of pain washed over me as I struggled to get to my feet. I scrambled to a bush and just lay there, hoping against hope that the mage had continued in front of me. He had. I checked down during my temporary respite. Skinned shin. Painful, but not lethal. I lay still in the bush while the demon searched for his prey. Calm somehow settled in the forest, except for the heavy breathing of the possessed. It was almost like the forest had gone to sleep… That was it. The way to defeat the mage was to get him to sleep. Sleeping dampened the personality, which is where most possessions were centred. If that was shut off, the boy inside could regain control. However, the problem was getting him to go to sleep. This didn’t mean blaring out an elfish lullaby, this meant whacking some good old sedatives into the poor boy, and that was what I needed. Right. Let’s concentrate. Curtap always used to send me (in my earlier days as a Second) to stock up on Courlorash leaf – a herb which, when ground up, produced fumes strong enough to knock an elf out in seconds. More than enough for my needs. I tensed my body ready to run. I shot out of the bush, hollering loudly to get Samuel’s attention. Time for Round Two. Immediately I dodged three fireballs, then threw myself to the ground as another whizzed overhead. But I hadn’t randomly chosen this spot. I immediately started ripping the precious herb from the ground, trying to keep my sense of urgency, as the heady fumes started to wash over me as I tore the leaves from their stems. Another ball of flame came sailing dangerously close. I got up, then, herbs primed, and charged at the boy. Again a furious game of cat and mouse ensued, with me ducking and dodging and diving to get out of the way of the magic which still came at a furious pace. But with every scrape, I got a few feet closer to the boy. And when I was near enough, I barrelled out and took the mage down with a flying shoulder tackle. Then I pinned him to the ground and held the leaves under his nose. The effect was almost instantaneous. The aquamarine lines of magic that throbbed on his skin faded, and Samuel, himself again, was sleeping like a log.
I stood up, weary. He definitely wasn’t boasting about how he could incinerate me in seconds. I took a look at my surroundings. For at least a hundred metres in every direction there were bushes reduced to ruins, trees scorched and the acrid smell of carbonised wood in the air. I swore I could almost taste roast squirrel. Well, this mulling wasn’t going to get me anywhere. I had me, and a mage who had decided to recover from his possession by taking an extended nap. Recognise the situation? I thought so.
So, I checked my things, and sat down, once again wondering what to do with the softly slumbering Samuel. And then he woke up.
A Fight • Opuss № I