Page 71 of Spirit Trials
“We’ve got to go now. That fire will spread fast.” My voice is hushed, but I don’t know if it matters over the sound of the firecrackling now. “That way will be—” My words are drowned out by another whoosh and another section of trees go up in a blaze. I grab my stuff and throw it over my shoulder and begin running back the way we came. I hear several more screams as we run, and I want nothing more than to cover my ears at the terrible sounds. I wish there was something we could do, but I don’t even know where the other competitors are. I look behind us and see the fire spreading from tree to tree. “Run faster!” I call out above the flames. I leap to the next tree and run as fast as I dare across the branch. I chance another look back. The fire is spreading, and I know we will never outrun it in the trees. “We have to get to the ground.” I begin climbing down.
“What about the trial?” Kinsley asks, wide eyes.
“We may lose the trial, but we’ll lose our lives if we stay in the trees,” I shout above the noise of the fire. Harper’s already halfway down, and Kinsley follows. It takes entirely too long to reach the forest floor. As soon as we do, we set off at a dead run. We cover the distance faster; but I still fear it may not be enough. “Keep going!” I shout. My lungs are burning from the smoke in the air. The thickness of the foliage is acting as a blanket to keep the smoke trapped in here with us. “Cover your nose and mouth!” I rip a strip from the bottom of my shirt and tie it around my face, covering my mouth and nose. The girls do the same as we run. It helps a little but not enough. I have no way of knowing how far we are from the edge of the trees. I honestly don’t know if we’re going to make it out or get burned alive in here. It's that thought that drives me faster. Soon, it’s as if the entire forest is ablaze. Trees are burning in every direction. A tree falls directly to our left, and I scream and push Kinsley away from it. We run in the opposite direction, but another tree falls and cuts us off. I’m so turned around now, and my eyes are watering constantly from the smoke. I still hear the screech of the Guivre, even though I can’t see it.
“Which way?” Kinsley asks. I turn in a circle, but I can’t see anything but flames. My face is beginning to burn. “Which way?” Kinsley shouts again, more desperate than before.
“I don’t know!” I spin around again, trying to find a way out.
“We can’t stay in here!” Harper screams above the roar of the flames.
“I know.” Desperation starts to set in. There’s no way out. We are surrounded on all sides by fire. And then I see the most beautiful thing. A dark blur appears through the fire. “Shade! You shouldn’t be here.” He turns around and starts forward and then looks back at me. I grab a handful of his fur. “Hold on to me!” I shout. Another tree cracks and falls. Kinsley grips my hand, and Harper holds her hand. And then we run. Shade weaves us in and out of the flames. “Faster!” I urge. I’m full-on coughing now, even though my mouth is covered. My eyes burn and water. Kinsley trips and nearly brings us all down. “I don’t think we’re going to make it!” I shout to Shade, but my voice is lost in the noise. I hear a noise and at first think it’s the Guivre again, but relief slams into me when I see it’s Eaglon. It swoops down next to us, and I don’t even hesitate. “Go!” I shout at Harper and Kinsley. “Take them!” I scream over the noise. I’m not leaving Shade in here.
“No!” Harper shouts, but it’s too late. The gryphon takes one of them in each talon and takes off. A tiny bit of relief hits me knowing they're safe. Shade knocks my leg, and I turn to him. He lowers himself, and I know what he’s trying to do. I climb on his back and hang on for dear life as he runs. Every time he leaps, I’m sure this is the time I’m going to fall off. Somehow, I keep my seat. He runs so fast; I can’t see anything around me. He jumps through the flames more times than I can count. Trees come down around us, but somehow, he keeps going. Once when he stops suddenly to avoid a tree coming down, I see a girl who’s been injured.
“Wait!” I shout to Shade. I slide off his back and run to her and drag her to her feet. She resists me at first. “I’m getting us to safety!” I shout over the roar of the fire. Not giving her a chance to fight back, I pull her hard towards Shade and push her on top of him and jump on behind her. “Go, Shade!” And then we’re flying again. It doesn’t seem like we’re ever going to get to safety, but then I finally see the edge of the forest. He runs faster, and we burst out of the woods. He slows to a stop, and I climb off. “Thank you,” I whisper to him. Suddenly, I hear that terrible shriek.How is it still going?I turn and stare in horror. It’s headed right toward us. It opens its mouth, and my brain can’t keep up fast enough. I turn around to find Shade, but he’s already running away with the girl still on his back. I turn to run, but it’s going to be too late. Suddenly, a strong arm encircles my waist, and I’m hoisted up. I slam into the side of a horse as the arm bands around me like steel. I reach up and pull myself into the saddle as Rysden urges the horse faster.
“Hold on,” he shouts right next to my ear. I turn quickly to make sure Shade’s okay; but he and the girl are safe. I hear the terrible shriek, and my body nearly seizes because it’s far too close. Suddenly, we’re airborne. I can’t even scream; it happens so fast. We hit the ground so hard, it knocks the wind from me, even though he took the brunt of the hit. Rysden recovers first, yanking me to my feet. “Run!” he shouts. I don’t question him; I just take off. It takes me a minute or two to realize he’s not with me. I turn back and see him, Lox, Hector, and Jamik all circling the Guivre. I'm not about to let them do this without me. I race back but stay a safe distance back. And then I pull my bow out. Hector gets an eye, and I get the other eye, and it lowers in the air. Rysden pulls out his long sword and runs towards it.
“Rysden! No!” I shout, running towards him. Lox stops me before I get close. I lash out at him, but he’s too strong for me. Rysden takes a running jump and leaps onto the Guivre’s back.Blood sprays as Rysden severs its head from its body. The body crashes to the ground, and Rysden jumps off, landing on his feet before walking toward us, completely unharmed. As soon as Lox releases me, I don’t think; I run towards Rysden. I stop just short of throwing myself into his arms; thankfully, my brain finally kicked in.
He grabs my arms gently. “Are you okay?” His eyes are darker than I’ve ever seen them.
“AmIokay?” I ask, even though my voice is absolutely shredded from the smoke and the choking. “You got too close to it. I thought...I thought...” I can’t even bring myself to say it.
“I’m fine.” We hear a huge crack and turn around to see another tree fall. “We need to get further away.” He guides me to his horse. Seconds later, we’re riding away from the fire and towards the group of competitors gathered.
Rysden drops me off with the other contestants. “I have to work with the others to get this fire out. Lox and Jamik will keep you safe until you get flashed back.” And then he’s gone.
“Farrah!” I’m nearly strangled in a hug. “We were so worried for you!”
“Don’t ever do that again. Not cool,” Harper says. I pull them both in for a group hug, not caring in the least that I’m not normally a hugger. I’m just so incredibly thankful that we’re all three still alive. I turn back around to check with Lox and Jamik. Both of them are on guard, watching the skies. “You think more are coming?” I ask Lox quietly.
“We’ll be ready if they do,” he says by way of answer.
I stare with dread at the forest. The entire thing is going to be gone. “How in the world will they put that out?” I question.
“There’s a dam near here specifically for this reason. They’ll release it and flood the forest.” Almost as if on cue, the ground begins to shake. I can see the relief on Lox’s face. “They got it.”
“Are we safe here?” I ask.
“Yes. We’re on higher ground. The water won’t make it up this high.”
“Competitors!” I turn at the sound of Terron's voice. “We’re flashing out as many people as we can. Hang on to Eaglon.” He looks over at our group. “You’re next.”
As soon as they leave, I turn to Lox. “I’m not leaving until Rysden’s back.”
He frowns at me. “It could be a little while; he’ll want you back where it’s safe.”
“I’m staying,” I tell him, crossing my arms. I’m pretty sure the effect is lost because of the raspiness in my voice, but I hold his gaze.
“Fine,” he caves.
I turn to Harper and Kinsley. “You guys go back; I’m waiting until Rysden gets back.”
“Well, then we’re waiting with you,” Harper says. “We’ve already been there, done that today, and don’t need it repeated.” She drops to the ground to wait.
When Terron comes to our group, I take a step forward. “Mr. Terron, Sir, we want to wait until Rysden gets back safely.”
