Once Upon A Mage

Chapter 4

Finn watched as a tendril of flames flew out of the fire twin and knocked Rohan's sword clean from his hand, and at the same time, the air grew cold and dry as ice formed at Rohan's feet, immobilizing him. Fin was both impressed and scared; Impressed because he was watching such a wonderfully powerful display for the first time, and scared because Rohan would be the victim of such displays, and he was defenseless against four mages. Rohan looked really panicked at the moment, his eyes wide and darting from one mage to the other, and Finn knew too well the feeling of fear when he saw it.

"Wait!" At the sound of his voice, the mages all looked at him in unison, which Finn found momentarily creepy, but he forced the feeling down. "Wait, don't hurt him"

"But he tried to kill you! Chased you like you were game on a hunt! Forced you out of your home, your birthland, and all the with a baby in your care!" Nesta retorted, her hands now faintly glowing as the wind picks up, but Finn rushed up, despite the dull pain throbbing at his side.

"It's okay, Nesta, he didn't hurt me. I'm here now, he should know better than to try anything now" Finn said the last words looking at Rohan pleadingly. Rohan, who so far hadn't spoken a word, nodded eagerly. Finn gave him a soft smile, but it was dropped as he spotted something oddly moving about a bush.

"wha-"

"Shush!" Nesta gestured, alert, and looking around. The twins seemed to have picked up on Nesta's signal as they too grew alert. They all moved and positioned themselves around Finn and the baby, forming a human barrier. Suddenly, half a dozen creatures emerged from the hiding spots, surrounding the group.

"By the Gods! What are those?" Rohan asked, horror on his handsome face.

"Volvilem," Nesta answered, "In other words, shadow wolves. They are devoid of souls and are tricky to kill." One of the beasts' eyes locked on Finn and the baby and he let out a vicious snarl, his claws scraping the dirt. "We must protect Finn and the baby"

"Maybe I can help!" Finn argued as he watched the beasts circle them. They were no bigger than the Timberwolves that roamed the forests of Lucktov, but they were not corporeal, or at least as corporeal as the wisps of smoke coming from them made them. With each step, black smoke billowed to the ground, red eyes so vibrant against the dark.

"No!" Nesta answered, "you are vulnerable with the baby, leave the fighting to us, we've been killing these monsters for a while now." Then she looked over to Rohan and nodded towards his sword, " That won't help you here, it'll just pass through them without harm. These things are only vulnerable to our abilities." That didn't seem to deter Rohan, but he moved closer to Finn and the baby, adding another body to the barrier.

Without warning, one of the beasts launched himself at the group. The twins were quick in their thinking as, in unison, they lifted a hand, and fire and ice intertwined to blast the monster. It hissed as their spell made contact with its body, and momentarily turned to what Finn could only describe as a blackish, ashy goo on the ground. The other wolves seemed to be enraged by the defeat of their brethren as they too lunged at them.

This time, It was Nesta who acted. The wind quickened and Finn held onto the baby, who began fussing in his arms. When he next looked up, three of the Volvilem were up in the air, struggling to get closer but only to get pulverized by the twins again. And it went like that until every one of them was destroyed.