"Dad!!"
"Honey!!"
I dashed out of the defense barrier, my heart pounding against my ribs. The metallic scent of blood and burnt soil filled the air as I knelt beside Father. Mother was right behind me, hands trembling as she stared at his wound, panic clouding her usually calm expression.
I didn't understand why she wasn't healing him immediately. Her hands hovered uselessly above his chest, eyes darting between the wand in her grip and the chaos around us. Before I could speak, Father coughed out blood and grabbed her wrist.
Mother froze. The weight in his words silenced even the battlefield's noise for a moment. After a brief hesitation, she took a trembling breath and began chanting anyway.
Father exhaled softly, giving up on stopping her. He turned his gaze to me. Despite the blood trickling from his lips, his eyes burned with fierce determination.
"Vir, listen carefully. Once the spell activates, they'll target your mother. They won't stop until they have her. After I recover enough, I'll take the rest head-on. You take her and run. Don't argue just go."
I clenched my fists. "No, Dad! I can fight! You saw me train! I can help!" My voice cracked as I yelled, all pretense of calm slipping away. I didn't care that I looked desperate; I wasn't going to leave them behind.
"LISTEN TO ME, VIREL LUDIN!" His roar froze me in place. It wasn't just anger it was desperation. His trembling hand gripped my shoulder.
"I know you can fight. That's why I'm entrusting your mother to you. Protect her. I'll catch up."
The world blurred for a moment, and I nodded. "…Okay. I'll protect Mom," I whispered.
A faint smile tugged at his lips. "That's my boy."
Mother's chant ended, and a warm green light glow enveloped both her and Father. Light spilled over his wounds, mending flesh and knitting torn skin. For a brief second, hope returned.
But then
"Sando! One of them's a rare healer! Don't let her get away!" the bandit leader shouted.
"Move!" Father hissed.
I grabbed Mother's arm and pulled with all my strength, reinforcing my body with mana. My core screamed in protest sharp pain rippling through my stomach but I forced it down. Now wasn't the time.
We sprinted toward the slope where Ronan was battling the dual-wielder. His spear danced like flowing water, slashing in unpredictable arcs.
"Vir! Down the road! I've got this one!" Ronan barked, parrying a wild strike that sent sparks flying.
I dragged Mother further when a faint whizz sliced through the air. Instinct took over. I jumped, raising my wooden sword just in time.
CRACK!
The arrow splintered against my weapon, sending vibrations up my arm. My grip faltered, but I twisted midair, redirecting the arrow's force and landing hard on my knees. The wooden sword snapped in half, falling uselessly to the dirt.
"WHAT THE!"
The archer's words cut short as an arrow whistled through the air and pierced his throat. Lyra, standing on a boulder, had already nocked another. "GO!" she shouted, loosing another arrow toward the enemy leader.
Her timing gave me chill too perfect to be coincidence.
But something felt wrong.
Father, Ronan, Scarlet, and Helen were each fighting a strong opponents… but something was missing. My eyes scanned the battlefield.
"Danfo! Forget the plan don't let them escape!" the leader howled.
Who was he shouting to?
Then I heard it a faint voice behind the rumble of magic.
"…respond to my call and wash all to oblivion!"
My blood ran cold.
[WATER WAVE]
From the mountainside, one of the supposed archers dropped his bow and thrust both hands forward. Water gathered between his palms, twisting and condensing until it became a massive sphere, thrumming with pressure.
"SHIT!"
The water orb expanded as it shot toward us, tearing through the air with a shrill hiss. Trees bent from the force of its passage.
I didn't think I moved.
Drawing mana from the atmosphere, I forced it into my fractured core. Instantly, pain erupted through my body. It felt like molten iron crawling through my veins. My vision blurred white, but I pushed harder, shaping the leaking mana into a translucent barrier.
"MANA SHIELD!"
The sphere slammed into the shield with a deafening roar. For a moment, the world drowned in the sound of rushing water. My barrier shuddered, cracks spreading like spiderwebs. I screamed as blood spurted from my nose and ears. It wasn't enough. My broken core couldn't filter the mana it was devouring me from the inside.
Then, just as my knees buckled, a flash of blue light cut across my vision.
"ENOUGH!"
Father appeared beside us, his greatsword glowing with mana. With a single, precise swing, he split the manifester sphere in two. The water exploded harmlessly to the sides, flooding the dirt road.
The manifesterr's expression froze in horror before Father's sword carved a clean line across his chest.
Silence fell for a heartbeat.
Then Father stumbled, coughing blood again. "Selene, now! Activate it!"
Mother nodded, pulling out a small crystal embedded with runic patterns the teleportation seal they had prepared in case of emergencies. It pulsed weakly, feeding off her mana.
But something was wrong. The crystal flickered erratically.
"Selene, it's unstable!" Ronan yelled as he ran toward us, dragging Scarlet by the arm. The air around the crystal began to twist, colors bending unnaturally.
"I have to stabilize it!" Mother cried, pouring more mana into it. The glow turned violent, waves of pressure rippling through the clearing.
"Everyone, fall back!" Father roared.
But before anyone could move, the ground shook violently. The magic circle beneath us flared to life then shattered.
A surge of light consumed everything.
The last thing I saw was Father turning toward me eyes wide up, hand outstretched as the world around us tore apart.
"VIREL!!!"
A surge of light consumed everything. It looks like it was a mass teleportation.
Before I could catch my breath, a shadow swooped down from above a massive hawk, larger and fiercer than any I had ever seen. Its rider, one of the bandits, leapt forward and grabbed me.
"Get on! Now!" he barked, shoving me roughly onto the hawk's back. My small body hit the feathers hard, the wind instantly tugging at my clothes.
"FATHER! MOTHER!" I screamed, thrashing against him, trying to break free. But his grip was iron, holding me like a shield.
The hawk beat its wings violently, launching into the sky. Below, the battlefield shrank into chaos the figures of Father, Mother, and the others blurred, caught in the fight.
I struggled, fists pounding his chest. "Let me go! LEEEEEAVE ME!"
The bandit sneered. "Relax, brat! You're my ticket out of here!"
The wind tore at my hair and clothes. My stomach churned. The world spun in a dizzying whirl of trees, rocks, and sunlight. I had never felt so powerless.
I twisted and flailed, trying to push against him, and in that split second… my grip faltered.
I felt myself slipping.
"VIREL!!" my father's voice rang out like a thunderclap.
"NO!!" Mother screamed, her hands stretching out toward me.
The hawk tilted sharply, wings beating frantically, and I plummeted through the air. The ground rushed toward me faster than I could react. The wind howled in my ears as panic tore through me.
Above me, the hawk and the bandit disappeared into the distance. Below, the unfamiliar forest stretched endlessly. Somewhere deep inside, I felt the faint pulse of crimson light beneath my skin alive, insistent, and calling me forward.
I was alone.
But Father and Mother had seen everything, their cries still echoing in my ears. Somehow… I was carried far from where they were. Somewhere strange.