Aurelia dropped from her saddle to the gravel path below. The impact vibrated through her legs and up her lower spine. A distant wailing rang in her ears. She gazed into the setting sun, staining the sky blood red. The silhouettes of two huge moons were slowly becoming visible in the sky. It would be dark soon. Aurelia unfastened her riding cloak, rolling it into a bundle before slipping it into her saddlebag.

'Aurelia.' Her comrade called from over her shoulder. She ignored him while grabbing the her horses reins. She gripped the leather strap tightly in her hands, feeling adrenaline rushing through her body, preparing her for the fight ahead.

'What now?' She said, turning to face him. Marcus rummaged through his pocket, producing a large silver coin.

'If I win, I get the one in the forest.' Marcus flipped the coin into the air. 'Eye or Glass?'

'Eye.' She called as she followed the coins descent. It bounced several times before coming to rest in the dust, a small hourglass barely visible on its surface. 'I never win.' She scoffed. She knew he must have some sort of trick. 'Tell me how you do it.'

Marcus winked at her. His face looked normal for an instant, before he reopened his eye. It glowed with an eerie purple, casting a shadow across his sharp features. 'A gentleman never reveals his secrets.' He jested. 'Those knives of yours fully charged?'

Aurelia gripped the blades crossing her chest and slid them partially out of their scabbards. Magical energy radiated from the visible portion of the dark metal blades. 'The feel full to me.' She said, slamming the daggers back into their sheiths. 'Think they have drawn much of an audience for us?' Aurelia said as led her horse towards the Arachnae.

Marcus shrugged at her. 'Can't be sure, the river should have kept most of them inside the city.'

She paused, watching him tether his horse to one of the immobile Arachnae legs. Above, several archers gathered around the captain. She followed, tying her horse beside his. The captains head popped out over the guardrail above.

'Do you have a plan?' He asked staring down at her.

'We'll deal with the Sirens for now, just hold this position.' She said. He nodded before disappearing back over the barrier.

When Aurelia looked back, Marcus was already striding towards his target. Close to the edge of the bubble. His body glistened with energy as his movement picked up speed. He became like a spectre, moving so quickly that his image was hard to track. He had begun drifting.

Aurelia searched her mind, establishing a link with her inner essence. Embers of power erupted throughout her body as her essence was slowly consumed. Her mind became clear as her surroundings slowed. She dashed forward, advancing towards her prey.

The dark tendrils of the void moved in slow motion as she reached the boundary of the bubble. They seemed to converge as she drew near, but she felt no concern. She leapt forwards, erupting through the glistening edge.

A soft vibration hummed around her neck, as a smaller field burst forth around her, keeping the foul energy at bay. She moved swiftly down the path, kicking up a plume of dust behind her.

Drifters could move through time at an accelerated rate, the most talented reached speeds of three times normal time-flow, but required constantly burning essence to maintain.

She drew her daggers from the scabbards crossing her chest. The familiar purple glow of the blades reassured her. Tightly, she squeezed the leather-bound hilts in her grip, feeling the presence of her weapons that invisibly linking them together. They were hers, gifts from her master.

She glanced back at the Arachnae as she raced down the path, barley visible through the churning void. Turning her head, the Siren came into view at the edge of her vision farther down the road. Her ghastly cohort stumbled along behind her. They almost looked normal at this distance.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

She could see three other Voidstricken, gathered close to the Siren. The sickening song drew the regular ones close for some reason. The Siren must have been an old women before the Void infected her, a fat one. It must have turned before the breach opened, food was too scarce now.

Aurelia saw the Siren notice her as she sped towards it. It's scream resonated so loudly all she could hear was a ringing in her ears. The creatures skin was pale and dark veins crossing it's entire body. Her followers were similarly infected.

She saw the creatures bloated stomach split open, revealing a gaping maw, lined with needle-like teeth. Instinctively she leapt sideways. A breif flash of light illuminated the Sirens maw as it sprayed a cluster of teeth towards her previous position.

They left a ghost-like trail of light as they sped through the air. Aurelia drew her daggers and slid to a stop. She had time before the Siren could spin to face her. The other three voidstricken began to run towards her, blocking her line of sight to the Siren.

They moved quickly, enhanced by the Void; but still slow to a drifter. Aurelia lifted her blades above her head, and shifted her weight onto her back foot. She envisioned the path the daggers would take towards her targets in her mind as she brought her weight forward. The instant the blades left her grip, she activated her slicer power, creating a shard of sped up time along the path of her weapons.

A loud whistle drowned out the sirens screams for an instant as the blades tore through time. Even drifting at several times normal speed, the blades were impossible to follow. They instantly struck two of the stricken, blasting them from their feet. Two pale streaks of energy slowly faded, tracing the path the daggers had travelled.

Aurelia turned her head and ran before they hit the ground, encircling the siren. She couldn't let it get a clear line of sight on her again.

She searched through her mind and found the spiritual link that connected her to her blades, calling out to them silently. She was reassured as she felt a soft thud against her chest. Drawing both blades, she weaved towards the remaining foes.

The Siren was facing away, trying to twist it's girth to face her, but the more nimble stricken had followed her movements. It had been a man, middle aged before the void got him. Tatters of his previous clothing still hung off his body as it grasped towards her. Aurelia closed in and easily ducked under the creatures outstreched arms. She slammed her blade up into the possessed man's chin, instantly ending his servitude to the void.

Foul power seeped from the wound as the corpse toppled backwards. The constant wail in her ears was interrupted by a loud whistle.

Pain filled her world as she looked down at her legs. They had been punctured by several siren teeth. Aurelia growled in anger as her legs began to crumble underneath her. She had lost focus on the Siren.

She tried to clear her thoughts, focusing on one word in her mind. Return.

A surge of power flowed through her body, and she felt a large portion of her remaining essence burn away in an instant. A lurching sensation filled her chest, as reality blurred away. Suddenly, everything came into focus around her. She was standing where she had stood moments ago, legs in their previous undamaged condition.

Clenching her remaining dagger tightly she dashed towards the Siren. It had barely begun to react to her sudden change of position. Her heart thumped as she sprinted, trying to reach the creature before it could turn to face her. She had to finish this quickly, she had less than half her essence left.

The milky white eye of the creature came into view as it manuvered to attack. She wouldn't make it in time. Aurelia jumped forward, extending her legs infront of her. She sailed through the air, straight towards the mouth of the creature. She hit the ground sliding through the gravel. Teeth whistled past above her head as she slid towards creatures legs, dagger raised. She rammed the blade into the Sirens stomach as she slid between it's legs.

A gaping wound opened up as the creatures insides spilled out onto the pathway. The sirens wail was replaced with a soft gurgle as the creature attempted one last scream before collapsed to the ground.

A foul stench filled her nose as Aurelia stood and brushed the dust from herself. She hated this smell.

She withdrew a small metallic spike from her belt and crouched beside the corpse. At least she could harvest something from this one. She plunged the spike into the dead siren, waiting for the process to begin. The metal flashed brightly for an instant, before fading to a dull glow.

Withdrawing the spike, she slid it back into her belt and went to retrieve her second dagger. She pulled it from the chin of the dead voidstricken, laying nearby on the path. Dark blood dribbled off the blade onto the corpse below. She looked down at the former human. How long had he been wandering out here, a slave to the void? A breif memory of a familiar face, flashed into her mind before she repressed it. She didn't have time to think about that now.

She cleaned her blade with a rag as she wandered back towards the wagon. With her drifting now extinguished, she moved at a brisk walk. She heard no wails in the distance, only the sound of her boots hitting the ground. Marcus must have finished off the other Siren. She hoped the squad back at the Arachnae were safe.