The Magic of Three

7.

Erena curved her dagger through the air and struck the pig-headed boarx in it's neck. A trail of maroon blood gushed out of the nick but she frowned as she raced away from it's poison-tipped nails, the dagger had merely scraped the boarx's leathery skin. The blow hadn't been fatal.

"Girl- you die", the boarx rumbled as it charged towards her with it's sharpened nails swiping at her face.

"Shut up", she muttered as she moved to the left just as it would have made contact with her, with her left hand she twisted the dagger and wedged it firmly in the back of it's head. She felt the squelch of it's brains as she tore her dagger out and smiled at the sound of the creature thudding on to the ground.

With a sigh she wiped the edges of her daggers on her tunic and pushed them in to their sheaths at her belt. She glanced around the clearing, the snow was covered in the creature's blood and the red splotches seemed almost ominous as they contrasted the whiteness of the snow. She made a face as she turned to head back north towards the mansion. Her mind felt surprisingly clear, killing three of the undead had lifted the tension that had settled inside her but she grimaced as she thought of Fitz. With a shake of her shoulders, she buried the boy's face deep in her mind and opened her mind for the grunting sounds of any more boarx lurking in the woods.

It was silent, a peaceful emptiness that had her relaxing her shoulders slightly as she passed through the trees.

It was nearly sunset and the sky had taken on a pretty peach colour as her feet trudged through the deep snow. She smiled as she thought of the hot bath that awaited her as soon as she got in to the mansion, the thought of the scalding water on her skin and the soft pillows of her bed that she would fall in to afterwards dimmed her senses until it was too late. She felt the edges of the world darken and for a brief second she felt herself fall forward in to the icy snow before everything went dark.

"He is on the brink of death- just as you instructed".

She blinked as the scene became clearer. At first she thought she was in a dark room but as she squinted at the rocky walls the realisation hit her that they were in a cave. The creature who had spoken was facing her and she breathed in quickly at the sight of it, it was completely disfigured like someone had burned it alive. Large red welts covered it's face and pus filled scabs scarred the creature's features. She knew exactly what it was; the Scorchx was one of the strongest undead and capable of spreading it's deadly disease to any that it touched. She shuddered as her mind went to the images of it's victims and the silent plea for death in their eyes as they lay in eternal damnation.

She tried to turn her head but she couldn't, whoever's body she was in was breathing their last breaths and the realisation hit her like a rock. She closed her eyes and tried to summon power, she had to try to save them, to try and get help. A hopelessness spread through her as no magical energy bubbled up from within the body for her to use; whoever's body she was in had no magic.

"Sad isn't it", the deep voice spoke and she recognised it in an instance, "this time you can't even manage light".