Ehran hit the advance force of Attosian soldiers with incredible force with his first move. For a man who had taught Eric such a passive style of fighting that relied on building up momentum, his initial power was frightening. He ran head-on into the fighting, both swords drawn, making no move to dance about. At the same instant that he struck down his first target, there was a flash of blindingly bright light, and his own fragment of Longfang sprang into terrible being. It was massive in comparison to Eric’s.

Easily eight feet at the shoulder and twelve in length, the wolf was the same snow-white in color as all others, though with bright green eyes. Its paws were the size of a man and had foot-long claws and fangs that it used to devastating effect. The monstrous wolf lunged several dozen feet in one more, stampeding the men in its way as its jaws clamped down on two more, crushing the life out of them. Attacks rained down on the wolf on all sides, clearly damaging it, but it seemed not to notice.

Ehran moved to his wolf’s side, staying close to its left flank as it spun in place, heavy tail and powerful forepaws striking out in all directions. They were an unstoppable pair, wreaking havoc and devastation despite the odds facing them. The enemy soldiers tried to crowd in and strike Ehran, but he was too well-protected, and his twin swords were a silver blur as he shredded through those who had dared to attack his home.

Megan jumped in surprise as Eric appeared beside her, putting one hand on her shoulder. She hadn’t realized that a full three minutes had passed. Eric was watching his mentor fight, his eyes wide with awe as he saw what his teacher was capable of. There was also a look of fierce pride there, Megan thought, evidence of the strong connection between master and pupil.

“All done already, Eric?” Ehran’s voice carried even over the sound of the carnage of the battlefield. He hadn’t even seemed to glance in their direction as they’d watched, but now, in the short pause he’d created by sending the enemy flying, he was peering at them expectantly. “Come and join me, then.”

Eric agreed at once, moving to the edge of the wall and calling back. “Coming, Master Ehran!”

He stepped up to the very edge of the wall, then turned and offered his hand to Megan. He knew that she wouldn’t be able to handle the drop as easily as he could, and was offering her support. She took it willingly. Now that the time to wade into the fight had come for them, she didn’t want him too far away. He’d just gotten back to Ahya, after all, and it wouldn’t really be fair if he was sent back again.

They hit the ground far more lightly than she’d expected given the distance they dropped, and Eric put her gently back on her feet. She heaved a shaky sigh of relief. “Thanks.”

He grinned at her, then led the way, drawing his swords as they went. Megan unsheathed her wand as well, and, as fast as she could, cast a basic barrier spell on him. His outline glowed briefly for a few seconds, and then she created a basic energy link between them. She could have done more if she had the time, but time was not on her side. Then the moment she was dreading came, and they hit the battle.

Eric immediately went into a cutting frenzy, slashing faster than she could see. He struck down an Attosian soldier to save one of the Tyrman men, who shouted his gratitude and immediately moved to start clearing a path for the young man. It seemed that the Issho-Ni uniform gave a sort of prestige and preference in the fight, so allies would move to help him. Eric gave no comment on this, choosing instead to dash to the left to avoid a spell, and darting back in to strike down another enemy.

They made slow progress to Ehran’s position, who was once more surrounded by enemies and back in the heavy fighting. They could catch glimpses of his wolf as it darted back and forth, but Ehran himself was lost to sight, the only hints of his presence being the cries of those he wounded. Eric was forced to jump to the side regularly to avoid attacks, having no real defensive power to his name. He gave as good as he got, impaling one man who managed to open a wound on his right shoulder.

Megan healed the wound at once, restoring him with her mana, then they were swallowed by the press of fighting bodies. She had allies all around her, but it was the closest she’d ever been to an enemy bent on killing her, and, for a second, she was overwhelmed by the claustrophobic feeling, and her spellwork faltered.

Eric grunted in pain as an enemy club landed a glancing blow on his knee. He darted forward and struck back at the attacker at once, opening a deep wound on his leg. The warrior fell back hastily, clutching his bleeding leg, and quickly swallowed up by his friends on all sides. Megan didn’t heal Eric’s injury at once, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to do that spell for at least ten more seconds. Then, thankfully, they broke through part of the fighting, and she could see Ehran at last.

He had a long jagged cut across his torso where a lucky attack had slipped through his guard from the countless enemies he’d faced, but he was still moving at incredible speeds, seemingly undaunted by the wound. He paused in his movements just long enough for Eric to join him, and the two moved in a slightly wider circle, covering each other’s defense, increasing their collective power and momentum. Eric’s own wolf, dwarfed by the other, sprang into view, joining its larger companion in patrolling around their partners, jaws snapping and bodies lunging.

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The two of them moved to cover Megan as a lone enemy broke through the ring of protective soldiers, and she was suddenly looking at their backs as they danced around her. Grateful, she raised her hands to cast a link to Ehran as well. This was a mistake, as she immediately felt a huge drain on her mana. He was burning through incredible amounts of energy with his attacks. He gained most of it back through some method, but it wasn’t being returned to her.

“Don’t link to me!” Ehran shouted, looking concerned. “Focus on Eric!”

She cut the link at once, but the toll it had taken on her was too much, and she staggered slightly. Then, annoyed with herself, she healed Eric’s injury, as well as a new one he’d just taken. Ehran’s own injury was still bleeding, but the flow seemed to have lessened. Something about his fighting technique seemed to be restoring him slowly. That was all for the better, Megan thought because even though she could split-cast, Eric needed more of her help.

She cast her Bolster spell on him, raising his overall defense. He grunted his gratitude as he was forced to sidestep an enemy lance, whirling in a wide kick to knock the enemy away. The man with the lance was staggered, but by no means out of the fight. It was only then that Megan spotted the nasty cut running down Eric’s right side. When had he gotten that? She’d missed it completely. There was too much information for her to process at once. She wished, not for the first time, that she had better perception skills.

“Fall back for now!” Ehran said. “Take it slowly, and move to the gate!”

They weren’t sure what had caused the idea to form in his mind, but they didn’t bother arguing. Both apprentices were already exhausted, unaccustomed as they were to fighting such a heavy disadvantage for so long. Megan took a half step back in time with them, then another, and another. Their progress was slow, due both to the press of enemies determined to strike them down, as well as the limited mobility of the ring of soldiers guarding them. There were just over two dozen Tyrman soldiers with them, providing cover even as the two white wolves covered them.

It was the ideal defensive situation, but it couldn’t be maintained for long. Eventually, Eric would give in to exhaustion, and then Ehran would be on his own. Capable as he was, he couldn’t keep this many fighters safe. Now she understood his reasoning for the retreat. She had no idea how much time they’d bought, but hopefully, it was enough.

Suddenly, Ehran grabbed both Eric and Megan around the waists and hoisted them up, diving at the East Gate, which was only a few yards away now. Both caught by surprise, they let out cries of shock and protest. He ignored them as his and Eric’s wolves faded, and the soldiers around them also broke free and started sprinting. What was the idea? There were still over two hundred enemy soldiers within easy reach. Ehran was unarmed and unable to fight, and their allies couldn’t hold them off.

Then she felt the mana ripple over her, and she understood. Ehran had somehow sensed the arrival of reinforcements and had picked them both up to rush out of the way. Even as this thought occurred to her, she felt the air crackling with the discharge of destructive mana and saw dozens of attack spells fired over the wall, slamming into the enemy force pursuing them, and punching great gaps in their line. Several dozen were dead in that first flurry, and more attacks were still being launched.

Ehran set the two apprentices down with a sigh of relief and exhaustion. They were safe now. There was no way for the enemy soldiers to break through that hellstorm of magic, and they were protected by the splash by a few strong barrier spells. The gate lifted open behind them, just tall enough for them to run, crouched, through to safety, and slammed shut again the second they made it across. Healers were there already, rushing forward to address injuries.

Megan accepted a Mage’s restorative draft from one healer and drank it eagerly, feeling strength rush back into her exhausted mind and body. Through the closed portcullis, she could see what was left of the Attosian advance force running back in disarray, pitifully low in numbers. The leader of the mage party called a halt to the barrage, letting them escape. They left over eighty percent of their allies behind them, either wounded or dead.

“That was close,” one of the healers was saying. “You nearly didn’t clear the barrage, Master Ehran.”

“I know, Williams,” Ehran said tiredly, accepting a healing potion and downing it in one. His wound stopped bleeding at once and began to knit itself. “How much longer until the main body gets here?”

“Should only be another ten minutes,” the healer reassured him. “Luckily, we already had two battalions formed up.”

Ehran looked up in some surprise. “We did? Why?”

“Nobody knows for sure,” the healer said with a shrug. “Rumor is they were going to Rabanul.”

“To arrest their General,” Ehran guessed, and the healer nodded in confirmation. “Glad they hadn’t left, then. I’d wager he’s out there with that battalion. He’ll have hell to pay if he survives this.”

“Well, let’s not worry about that for now,” the healer said. It was only then that Megan and Eric noticed the heraldry on his robe. He was a Royal Healer, a member of the elite force that answered only to the Queen. “You have new orders. You’re to report to Her Majesty at once. Eric Breeden, you are to come as well.”

“Not me?” Megan asked, her curiosity coming to life at once.

“No,” the healer said firmly as he looked at her, then allowed a smile to spread across his face. “But I do have a message for you from Archmage Bragg.”

“Oh,” she said, taken aback by the sudden communication. “What is it?”

“He says that you should go to the College. They are amassing their own force there, awaiting orders from Her Majesty for a special mission.”