He could feel his muscles clench as his hands grabbed for his head, pulling it down toward his chest in a frantic motion. The only thought coursing through his mind was to protect his head. As his body was slamming into the wall, the carriage flipped over. Shuddering and lurching about, the carriage physically twisted as it threw them once more. Only the two of them were thrown across the carriage as it slid on its side against the rails. The dark-robed figures were still sitting in their seats, ignoring the gravity that whipped Sayori and Kaden around. Sharp eyes connected with Kaden as the two of them continued flipping through the air.

Sayori’s body was tossed across the carriage and he felt himself reach out to her, trying his best to catch her. He felt a tingling sensation and instantly knew what his body was instinctively doing. A burst of mist shot out from where his hand was and wrapped around her, softening her landing in a wet splash.

Shards of glass that were flying through the air were pushed away by his mist that enveloped them both. Metal could be heard screeching and peeling away from the carriage as it slid to a stop. Gravity kicked in again as they fell the to floor in a huff.

He tried to take a few deep breaths to compose himself as their momentum slowed, but before he knew what was happening, a boulder flew through the compartment, tearing an opening in the carriage. Sayori had pulled herself up, not hesitating as he had, and was already using her magic against the dark-robed figures. He saw shiny knives, glowing an eerie red, cutting and slicing at her as she jumped and dodged away. Backing her way toward the exit she had created for them, she shouted a war cry at them, causing a few to stutter in their attacks.

He couldn’t admire her quick thinking any longer before he too was desperately trying to dodge attacks. Red streaks of light cut through the air as their weapons danced toward him. Every person who had been in their train was now after them. A man sliced forward and Kaden narrowly dodged out of reach as the blade cut through his shirt without striking flesh. Using what magic he could, he pushed the mist left hanging in the destroyed carriage toward them, forcing their bodies away. The assailants looked shocked as they were forced into the broken carriage walls. Slipping over the debris, Kaden frantically crawled toward the opening, following Sayori.

They both ran out of the wrecked train, sliding across debris until they found their footing on proper ground. Sayori’s arm shot out, pointing toward the back of the twisted train that had jumped the rails before she led the way in a run. A gust of wind hit them with force, lifting their feet several inches into the air. Their boots touched the ground again before another gust blasted their way. The wind was inconsistent and caused them to be thrown off balance as they ran.

Kaden stumbled and fell to the ground. Pulling him up by the arm, Sayori lifted him to his feet and drug him behind her as they continued to flee. Pulling him to a stop, she stomped the ground and the dirt around his feet slithered across and over his shoes before hardening. A gust of wind hit them again, and he was stuck firmly in place, unable to fall. The dirt fell away and she pulled on his shirt to run again.

Two wind magic users were fighting their own army of dark-robed figures not far from their location. Sayori and Kaden just happened to run into the crossfire. She must have noticed when an attack had flown their way and reacted in just the right amount of time to keep them steady. Grabbing his arm and pulling it with her, Sayori bolted toward the furthest rail cars, toward the dragons. He was so flustered and shocked at the incident that he hadn’t even thought about Zuma.

A blurred mass flew across their vision as a man was blown into the overturned train in front of them. His body was pushed with an unnatural force into the train’s walls. The sound of his bones shattering and bending into the metal pierced Kaden’s ears. His jaw chattered at the sight as his heart continued to pound heavily in his chest. To see and hear such horrific deaths was not something he wanted to experience this early into his magical career.

Several arrows with metal wires attached to them caught Kaden’s eye as they flew in their direction. Sayori was already prepared as she stomped on the ground and several large rocks were thrown into the air, protecting them as a shield from the onslaught. Their shafts embedded into the rock face before she dropped the makeshift stone shield. She let it all clatter to the ground before she pulled on his arm to continue their sprint.

Her reaction time was unparalleled. She was proving to him that her skills were well above his own and even that of the assailants. He was perfectly okay with someone else saving his ass as she had. Sayori was proving that her rise in the earth nation ranks was well earned. He would have been long dead if she hadn’t been with him.

A man slid in front of them and Sayori was quick on her feet once again. With little effort, she was able to bounce a rock up and push it toward them with a powerful force.

The rock shot out at the man, tossing him backward, knocking him away only for another robed figure to take his place. There was no end to the assailants. The man was posed with his glowing red weapon and Kaden could finally make out what was causing the light. There were red, vibrant runes pulsating against the shiny metals. Sayori tried to throw another rock, but the moment it reached the attacker, he sliced it out of the air and it immediately fell to the ground completely inert. The magic she had used to control it was severed with his slash.

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Sayori let out a surprised gasp. The man lunged toward them but before he could make contact, he too was pushed into the train like the other man only a few moments before. His bones gave the same horrifying crunch and crack that Kaden wouldn’t be forgetting anytime soon.

One of the older wind mages ran to them. “They’re Rebels! They’re here for your dragons! Get them and get out of here!”

Just as the man turned around to rejoin the fight, he was stabbed in the gut by a rebel. He let out a scream of anger and pain and shoved the two dragon riders away from him. Kaden felt a tug on his shirt as his body was ripped away from the entangled fighters. Sayori had pulled him from them with a shocking force. The wind mage started frantically pushing wind out in every direction, blasting them as they fled. He fell to the ground with an audible thud. The hectic winds dying with them.

Sayori let out a cry of anguish as she took a look back at their fallen savior. Shaking her head and refocusing her attention, she said, “we can’t let those weapons touch us. He shouldn’t have died that quickly from a stab like that! Their runes are doing something to the magic!”

She stomped the ground and produced another boulder, letting it float above the surface before throwing it at a crowd of rebels that were headed their way. They scattered to avoid the projectile. It wouldn’t take them long to regroup and move in for another attack. Kaden didn’t hesitate to take the opening she created, and they both sprinted toward the dragons. As they ran toward the back of the train, he pushed his thoughts out to search for any indication that Zuma was safe.

A wave of panicked emotion hit him, causing him to stumble in his sprint.

He heard their roar, heard the pain in his ears. It was vibrating inside his head. They rounded a bend in the crashed train and saw exactly what the rebels were doing. Taldor and Zuma were already out of their trailers, but they weren’t free. The rebels had them bound and were trying to move them to another train on the opposite side of the tracks. They were actually trying to steal the dragons.

An inner fire was lit inside him as Zuma’s cries of anguish hit his ears. He didn’t wait for Sayori that time before he started charging toward the rebels. With light feet, he sprinted with anger in a speed he was unfamiliar with. A heat rose inside him, consuming his will and filling him with rage. He jumped over discarded bodies and splashed through pools of blood. The rebels were taken by surprise as he screamed out a guttural cry while running straight toward them.

The blood of the wounded and dead around him rose, floating into the air as he outstretched his hands. There was water in their blood and he fully intended on using it. Freezing the floating pools as he had been taught only days before, he threw the bloodied, frozen daggers at the few rebels that were trying to subdue Zuma. Sailing through the air with a whistle, they impaled their victims with force. Their surprised gasps flew out of their mouths, only to be accompanied by their own blood as they looked down to witness their frozen deaths.

Sayori wasn’t phased as she ran right behind him, throwing rocks and stones at the rebels that were attempting to dodge the onslaught of ice to no avail. Stopping to boost him up, he used her help to climb up the large trailer. Hand over hand, he scaled it with speed as he pulled himself up to Zuma. His eyes darted around, looking for any rebels who had the audacity to try and stop him.

Sayori had managed to clear them off the platform from her position on the ground before he arrived at the top. His eyes fell upon the straps that held Zuma down. They were covered in the same runes as the rebel’s weapons. Grabbing one of his sharpened icicles embedded in the trailer, he cut the strap and threw it off of Zuma. He made quick work of the rest of them, and soon Zuma was free.

Their roar echoed off the landscape, and they didn’t wait for him to give any instruction. Zuma’s wings flew open, knocking off several mages trying to climb up to stop him. Their tail whipped and threw another rebel across the field and Sayori managed to slam a rock up to stop the rebel mid-flight. A wet thud was heard as the body hit the ground. Zuma took a few steps and flew to the ground to join Sayori as more rebels approached. Their maw of teeth pulled open and a steaming breath swallowed the crowd. Screams echoed off the landscape as she was boiling them alive with scalding water.

Kaden looked around to see a bronze dragon trapped under the same runed straps. Climbing over bodies, rocks, and ice, he rushed over to them. The dragon howled as he neared. Its tail slapped the ground behind him, whipping around. They hadn’t fully finished restraining it before they arrived. It was frightened and confused by his approach.

“It’s okay, Taldor! I’m going to get you out of there.” Taldor immediately stopped moving at the mention of its name.

Kaden cut the straps as quickly as he could, throwing them off of the bronze dragon. It too didn’t wait for any instruction before barreling down into the fight as well. Every step the dragon took on the earth, the dirt wrapped around and encased them, giving them a protective barrier. Its mouth opened and a storm of dust flew out, obscuring their vision. He heard more screams and yells as the two dragons fought in tandem, eliminating more and more of the rebels.

Sayori reached down, worming her hands into the dirt. The earth slithered and wrapped itself around two rebels, encasing them. Their screams were snuffed out as the dirt solidified to stone. Kaden’s jaw dropped at the move, terrified at her skills. Turning to face him, she smiled and nodded. He now knew to not underestimate her despite that friendly behavior of hers.

Her smile fell as she let out a warning scream at Kaden, shaking him out of his observational trance. He turned quickly as a woman tossed a metal net right over the top of him. Bolts of magical lightning spread across it and shocked him. His muscles pulsed and his arms drooped, useless as the lighting shattered across his skin. Memories of the original rune barrier that had trapped Zuma began flooding his mind as he fell onto the hard floor of the trailer.

He tried to reach out toward Zuma, but the moment he did, the netting shocked and neutralized his hand. Zuma’s roar assaulted his ears as the needling pain of the lightning pulsed against his body. He closed his eyes, waiting for the assailant to make their killing blow.

This was it.

This was how he died.