SIXTH BOOK OF THE CHRONICLES OF FANTASILIA SERIES
𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘵. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥. 𝘕𝘰𝘸, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘴.
Xanthiene Vivenca has to find allies and legendary objects of po...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
They barged into the oasis as fast as their feet could carry them. Marthiaq didn't need to make them invisible as much as they didn't need to fake the fear from their faces as a wall of fire erupted from behind them. Holy Rudik. June outdid it this time.
Before the flames even left June's hand completely, the whole patch of shrubs lit up in a roar, almost rivaling the howl of the shifting dunes. Rhys stumbled out of the patch, managing to get thorns and spikes poking his skin in the most uncomfortable of places. Ugh. These damned tirches.
He landed on his rear against the lukewarm sand still cooling down for the night. It took all of his effort to scramble to his feet as he flailed, grasping and making sand fly in different directions. June and the others were already cresting the sloping dune. Hurry. He should hurry. Rhys swallowed. For once, he ignored the bits of sand which came along with it. That's the least of his worries now.
Rhys tucked his wings inside his cloak as he ran. If there's anything varichriais feared the most, it's fire. The substance could tear through their wings like grapel biting into parchment. The pain...
Rhys shook his head. No use distracting himself with imagined agony. Focus on running. No flying. An ember riding the wind could start a fire in his wings. Holy gods of Calaris. He hated Lanbridhr for a reason and he was thoroughly reminded of that tonight.
They ran, letting the pull of the ground carry them down after reaching the dune's peak. Sand flew with the winds as the roar of fire slowly increased its thrum in Rhys's ears. He witnessed a shrub patch burst into flames just a wee distance to his right.
They veered here and there, tearing past the other patches of flammable plants before they erupt into flames. What in Rudik's jaw was in that spell? The oasis's walls edged into view. Just a short distance left. Good. Safe.
Those were Rhys's thoughts until they reached the fence to find it deserted. Calca's famed tight security was nowhere to be found amid the stringent screaming now echoing inside the city. Xanthy had been right, then.
"Fire!" someone called out from behind them. Rhys looked back to realize it wasn't only them who made for the royal city. At least thirty men and women were running for the pool of water as the flames ate up every green it could launch itself into.
Rhys coughed against his dry throat. They continued running. The screams rose to a maximum point in Rhys's ears. Did they come from the other side of the fence or from behind him? There was also a large probability they came from him.
Marthiaq let them pass through a crack in the fence before turning and running after them. Rhys scanned the city, noting where the fire had erupted and where it hadn't hit yet. Xanthy darted forward, waving her hands at the smoke mixing with the haze of disturbed sand.
A circle of buildings made from clay lined the fence before giving way to a busy desert forest beyond. The air was tinted orange and the dark sky seemed to amplify it further. Rhys pushed forward, his heart beating faster than it needed to.
