Mara throws her bag and shoves Kimala at them before whirling around, immediately blocking the tendril that tries to grab her arm – just like with Don. Gritting her teeth, she shoves her blade against it, cutting deep.

The tentacle rears back as if in pain.

Mara grins. She injured it! She switches hands, gripping the smooth metal in her right palm. Maybe she can fool it with her ambidexterity.

The next attack comes at lightning speed, not giving her time to draw the second dagger. The black whip bypasses her defenses in an entirely different set of moves. A hot, slimy substance slips around Mara’s right wrist and bare ankle above the shoes, scorching her skin. A scream rips from her throat as her dagger tumbles from her hand, clanging against the stones on the pathway.

It tosses her into the air. Mara barely has time to regain her senses before the black cords wrap around the same ankle. It dangles her above the oily liquid, slowly lowering her. Her necklace falls out from underneath her shirt and hangs around her jaw.

Mara gasps for air, slowly gaining control of the burning pain. I really ticked it off… Codi, Rick, and Kimala stare at her in horror. Her father’s vacant eyes flash through her mind. I need to protect them.

“Run.” They only stare. “Run!” They scramble away, putting distance between themselves and the pond.

The Hemius writhes beneath her, and tendrils chase after Codi and Kimala. “Hey, up here, you giant oil spill,” Mara croaks. “Up. Here!”

Ignoring the twinge in her burnt wrist, Mara grabs her hairpin with her right hand and slides the dagger from her left leg with her other hand. She slashes at the black vine holding her ankle.

It recoils as if injured, and she plummets toward the pond. It snatches her ankle again, dangling her only a foot or two above the oily surface.

Fighting through the white-hot burning pain, she stares down at the shallow-looking surface of the pool. More tendrils rise from the ground, reaching for her.

Mara’s breathing speeds up as it draws closer and closer. She slashes out, but the Hemius cords wrap around the blade and yank it out of her one good hand. It grabs her already burning right wrist, and she shrieks in agony as the hairpin spike tumbles into the pond.

Belatedly, she remembers her new ability and tries to create that sparking ball from before. A churning black orb surrounded by silver lightning bolts forms at the tip of her fingertips and blasts away some of the Hemius, but the explosion knocks her across the pond. Her right shoulder strikes a tendril, and a burning kiss races along near the base of her neck where her shirt collar ends.

She screams.

A shockwave of power bursts from her, knocking Codi, Kimala, and Rick several feet away from the pond as her necklace glows a blinding silver before shattering into pieces. They turn around and stare at the unconscious Mara dangling not even a foot over the pond as her inky restraints slowly lower her to its surface.

Codi covers his mouth, horrified. “No… someone, help…”

A brown traveling cloak swirls by Codi. He glances up, startled, and is greeted with sharp, unfriendly blue eyes. “Stay back,” the man says, his hand wrapping around a short curved blade at his side. Pointed ears peek from underneath his straw-blonde hair.

He throws the weapon at the Hemius and speaks a few words in Xharos. The Hemius recoils and flings Mara to the side.

The man phase-steps across the distance. He skids to a halt and catches Mara, nearly tumbling over from the momentum. Kneeling on the ground, he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a vial. Flicking the lid off, he tosses the vial and all of its contents into the puddle.

The Hemius tendrils jerk and writhe in agony, slowly receding into the inky pond.

He quickly catches his flying curved weapon and sheathes it. He phase-steps to the others, snatching Mara’s dagger that had fallen outside of the pond on his way. He jerks his head down the pathway. “Can you walk?”

They nod. Rick, supporting Kimala, is instantly wary of the newcomer and narrows his eyes at him. They scramble to keep up with the blonde elf’s fast pace.

After several yards, the man slows down. He gently lowers Mara to the ground, careful not to touch the bleeding wounds where the Hemius had touched her.

“Thank you for saving her.” Codi kneels beside him. “But… who are you?”

“Ace,” he quickly introduces himself, distracted as he assesses Mara’s injuries. “Do either of you know any healing spells?”

“I-I do,” Kimala stammers, still rattled by what had just happened. She takes a deep breath and leans over Mara, careful not to touch the wounds or the blood seeping from them.

“Can you close them?” he asks as he digs through a small pouch on his hip.

Kimala nods. “Yes.”

Kimala closes her eyes and hovers her hands over Mara’s bleeding shoulder. A silvery sky blue light spills from her fingers and coats Mara’s injuries, the skin slowly knitting itself back together. She does the same for her cousin’s wrist and ankle. She scans Mara’s vitals next, making sure her body is not going into shock. Her sky-colored Source does not pick up any abnormalities.

Finished, Kimala leans back and takes a deep breath. “Her pulse is regulated. There’s no infection other than the Hemius,” she says, her voice trembling ever so slightly as she subtly touches her ankle, quickly mending the torn ligaments the best she can. It will still hurt, but it will be better than before.

Ace hands her a cloth and some gloves. “Wipe away the blood.”

Kimala nods, slipping on the tan-colored gloves and dabbing carefully at the black-tainted blood on Mara’s shoulder. Underneath, only a blackish-purple bruise with horrible red undertones remains, looking worse than any normal bruise. It stretches over her shoulder, about the width and length of her thumb.

Her wrist isn’t much better. As Kimala wipes away the blood, she finds herself lifting Mara’s hand, having to go all the way around the girl’s wrist to see the extent of the inch-wide bracelet that shifts and tightens underneath the skin as if alive.

Gritting her teeth, Kimala pats Mara’s ankle, finding that the two inches of exposed skin between her shoe and her pants leg is completely infected. Wiping off as much blood as she can, Kimala says, “I need a knife.”

Ace hands her Mara’s dagger. Staring at it, Kimala wonders what had happened to the hairpin she had given her cousin. She carefully cuts away the cloth from Mara’s ankle where it had come in contact with the Hemius creature, tossing the ruined fabric off to the side.

Tiny black veins trail up Mara’s leg, fading away about three-quarters of an inch from where the solid anklet of Hemius ended. Kimala lets out her breath, relieved. “It hasn’t hit a major artery,” she announces, putting the knife aside.

Ace nods as he hands her a jar. “Rub this over the Hemius infected areas.”

Kimala eyes it warily. “What is it?” she demands. She is not about to put a foreign substance on her cousin’s wounds no matter how much she dislikes her.

“It’s orica, Hemius ointment. It numbs the pain and slows down the Hemius,” Ace explains quickly.

Kimala recognizes the name from her studies and takes the jar from him.

“Are you sure – ” Rick begins, suspicious of the substance.

Kimala dips her fingers into the substance and sniffs it. Recognizing the concoction, she nods at the guard. “It’s orica.” She gently rubs her fingers over Mara’s exposed shoulder, grimacing as Mara writhes underneath the application. “Codi, Rick, hold her down.”

Startled, the two move to Mara’s left side, keeping the unconscious girl still as Kimala continues the application. The churning Hemius underneath her skin slows down and finally stills as Kimala meticulously coats each infected area.

Mara’s breathing regulates as she sinks into a deeper slumber. “Thank you, Ace,” Kimala says, carefully stripping off the biodegradable gloves and tossing them into a gnarly bush. She tugs off her bag. “I have some bandages we can use, too.”

Ace nods. “Good idea.”

“How did you know we were in trouble?” Rick demands as Kimala quickly wraps Mara’s wrist and ankle in bandages. She uses a square piece of gauze and some medical tape to cover the area on the shoulder.

“I noticed a flash through the woods and felt the shockwave of power,” he admits, his smile strained. “It’s a good thing I let my curiosity get the best of me.”

Codi and Kimala stare at the empty chain around Mara’s neck. Her brow creasing, Kimala murmurs, “Her Source must have shattered it.”

“Will he know we’re in trouble?” Codi asks aloud, voicing their concerns.

Noticing the tense air, Ace changes the topic by asking, “What should I call you?”

“Codi,” he introduces himself, leaving out his last name. “This is my sister, Mara.” Ace glances at Mara’s face as if committing her name to memory.

“Kimala,” she instantly supplies, and then winces. Her name is commonly associated with her father.

Ace pauses, staring at her in surprise. “Tein’stra? Where’s your guard?”

Kimala gives a weak smile. “Rick is the last one. The others were killed.”

“That’s terrible.” He glances at Codi and Mara. “Are these your friends, then?”

“You sure do ask a lot of questions,” Rick growls, on edge. “Shouldn’t we be leaving?”

“Ah, yes, you are right.” Ace stands up and brushes off his tan pants.

Codi scoops Mara into his arms. “I’ll carry her.”

“We should be able to make it to Cerlail Academy before her Hemius spreads too much,” Kimala says, striding ahead of them. She doesn’t want to go back through the Heramus with that monster lurking around, and Cerlail Academy’s medical facilities are the best option for Mara’s survival. They cannot get rid of it entirely, but there are ways to sedate the Hemius.

“If she doesn’t overexert herself beforehand, then yes.” Ace follows their group. “I’m traveling that way, as well, so I will accompany you.”

“It would be nice having an ally here,” Codi admits. Ace seems accustomed to traveling.

Rick trails behind, staring at Ace’s back with narrowed eyes. He cannot disagree with Codi’s statement; one guard will be at a heavy disadvantage to take care of three nobles. He will just have to keep an eye on Ace.

Underneath the cloth covering Mara’s wounds, three blemishes darker than bruises stain the skin where the Hemius had touched her. They writhe and taint her from the inside.