Ambrosia Night

Chapter 42; A Challenger

Why could any of her plans go to plan? Why did they always end up with her running for her life or getting caught up in some stupid scheme. On this occasion Emma opted for the former option. She hurtled down the stair case faster and faster with each step. The only knowledge of her foe was the ever-present ticking that seemed to echo off the walls. Because of the speed she had obtained down her descent Emma almost slammed in to Xander and Johnathan as she turned the corner of one very tight corner. "Shit" She shouted before hitting the wall to their left.

"Are you ok?" Xander questioned, confusion evident as to why she was panicking.

"Magic didn't work"

"What?"

"RUN!" She bellowed forcing them onwards. It took Xander a nanosecond longer to realise that she was being pursued. The sound of hollow footsteps clattering against the stone and wood highlighted the danger of their current situation. "Where to?"

"The door! Get far enough away and we won't be in their magical range. We should end up in the natural world again."

"Should?" Johnathan asked panting at the extreme pace that he had been forced to take up. With no training or experience in combat he was a burden to both Emma and Xander. They knew their odds would be significantly improved if they were only looking after each other. Before Emma had a chance to really assess the situation any possibility was taken from them.

Emma felt the explosion before she felt it. She was lifted off the ground and tossed across the room. Coughing up the mouthful of dust and grit that she had swallowed in the attack Emma staggered to her feet in search of her companions. A flow of swear words escaped her lips as she turned on the spot. Johnathan was the closest to her; he was similarly covered in dust, his golden hair no longer visible under the camouflage. As she sprinted to his position he had already begun pulling himself up. "I'm okay, I'm okay" he reassured her.

"Come on" she simply instructed grabbing his hand and dragging him along.

The attack benefited them in one way; the explosion had clearly created more of a disturbance than the automatons had expected and as a result created a thick layer of fog and smut that hung in the air blocking any clear sight pathways. Using it to her advantage, Emma ducked between debris and structures. In the corner of her eye she saw Xander on the floor. Fighting the urge to scream his name she paused to look closer. He was still breathing; of course he was, he had the same shield charm that she had. So why wasn't he moving?

The answer to Emma's question was quickly answered by the approach of the automaton woman. The same machine that had previously slammed Johnathan into the floor. She clicked her way up to Xander, hand out stretched to apprehend her friend. However, before her hands had found their hold around his neck Xander had already slammed a beam of plasma through her chest. The blast of light cut its way up through the ceiling causing even more debris to cascade to the floor. The woman simply stopped moving when the bolt hit. Stuck mid action as her mechanics broke. "Xander" Emma called catching his sight she gestured for him. He kept his head down as he sprinted in her direction, sliding in next to her. "Are you Okay?" he question before she had a chance to.

"Yeah we are both fine." She whispered loudly not wanting to give away their location while they still had an advantage. "how do we get out now? They probably sealed most of the exits now."

"Shit. Yeah. That explosion was probably used to separate us long enough to stop us escaping."

"how many of them are out there?" Johnathan asked

"Well we saw at least fifty in that room in the clock tower"

"three against fifty; I don't like our odds." Xander groaned

"more like two against fifty." Emma replied nodding at Johnathan who was barely orientated to his surroundings. She suspected that he didn't quite believe what was going on yet and that he would wake up any moment. "Think" she ordered the two boys "we are stuck here. They want me and Johnathan."

"I am not leaving you behind" hissed Xander

"Thanks buddy but that's not what I meant." She laughed "I mean if I have some crazy ability, shouldn't Johnathan too?"

"That's a possibility" Xander nodded turning to Johnathan now in concentration "but he probably won't be able to use it."

"besides, they were able to overcome whatever you had going" Johnathan added

"These guys seems scared of what we are. They keep calling us potentials, we should use that!"

"How?"

"Don't follow me out" she instructed before adding "but save me if it doesn't work."

Grasping her double handed immortal instrument inher hands Emma took a deep breath and willed the dust to settle. As it did thebattle field that had been chosen was revealed. "Now or never" she declared intothe eternal abyss. She didn't expect an answer when she called out to herguardian angle and she didn't receive one. "All up to me then" she groanedletting loose the magical flow of energy on to her weapon. It hummed with powerat the delight of her touch. "I better make this worth it." As energy seepedinto the weapon Emma realised that this river flowed both ways. The power radiatedher bones, drumming with the sound of her heart beat. The world sharpenedaround her as she stood on the edge of the arena. "Well?" she invited.