There became a point where I could no longer walk. I was so tired, so sure it had been more than a day, possibly even two days of walking, searching, and begging for the end of that horrid place.
I thought of Fen. The others too, but mostly him. Not having him here with me was unsettling. I wasn’t sure when that switch had happened, but I realized I just couldn’t fight the way I felt about him anymore. The idea of never seeing him again was the worst thing I could imagine. I had no one else. I hadn’t thought I’d be scared to be alone until I really was again. I was going to tell him how I really felt. Just lay it all out there and let him make the decision. He’d been a dick, but he’d more than made up for that, and it was time to really let it all go.
I couldn’t sleep. I wouldn’t let that nightmare of Nealla call to me again. Instead, I lay on the ground and did the only thing I could think to do. I tried to call on my magic. I had no distractions, no other choices and an endless amount of time.
I closed my eyes and let the muddied world fall away until I was completely weightless in my mind, searching deep within me. I jumped to my feet as I realized I hadn’t felt my magic, but Fen. It felt like he was right beside me, comforting me, though I knew he wasn’t.
“Fen,” I screamed, but only silence answered.
I sat back down, closed my eyes and concentrated. Again, I could feel him. Sense him, though he wasn’t there. I tried to reach out to him. Nothing. I even tried taking down my mental shields. I only felt naked, exposed. Still no sign of the others. I shoved my shields back in place and focused solely on the magic I knew was within me.
I reached for that drop I had recognized before. Only this time it was more than a drop. A shallow bowl. I called it forward and felt it rush through me and into the world like a thunderclap. My hair stood on end as I looked around and realized I’d cleared The Mists around me in a large circle radius. The barren ground was only compacted dirt, but I could finally take a full deep breath without the feeling of soggy suffocation. I vaulted to my feet. My palms sweating, heart pumping and eyes blinking rapidly. I’d done it.
I ran to the edge of the circle, closed my eyes and tried again to pull that magic through me. It was more strenuous this time, but when I did, and The Mists cleared, I saw a figure in the distance. From here, I could see the ink on his tan skin and his long black hair draped over his broad shoulders.
“Greeve,” I screamed.
He turned, saw me and was by my side in an instant. “Are you okay?” He searched me for wounds, spinning me around and then crushing me into his chest.
“I’m fine. Only tired and hungry.”
“Here.” He reached into his pack and handed me a hunk of grilled rabbit. I hadn’t realized just how hungry I was until I inhaled the meat, barely even tasting it. “If I’d known we were going to be separated, I would have sorted out the meat for everyone.”
“How long has it been?”
“Days, I’d wager. How did you ...” He waved to the clearing.
“I’m not sure. I think I used magic, but I don’t know what kind. It wasn’t fire though. I just pulled on it and this happened.”
“Can you do it again?”
I bit my lip. “I could try.”
We walked together to the edge of the circle I’d cleared, and I repeated the process. When I opened my eyes, the clearing had nearly doubled in size, but it was bare.
“Again, Ara. But stay away from that final drop, do you hear me? Never use that last bit of magic.”
I nodded. My fatigue had grown exponentially by the fourth try, but as it happened, Wren appeared. She wailed and leapt into Greeve’s arms. “I thought I’d never see you all again. I was certain we had made the biggest mistake coming here.”
“I’m not so sure you were wrong,” I answered.
Greeve handed her some meat, and she ate it about as gracefully as I had.
“How?” she said with a mouthful of food.
“Ara’s using her magic,” Greeve answered, pride lighting his eyes.
“So, it’s true? You really do have it. What kind?”
“I don’t know. Mist clearing seems to be working so far. Does that count?”
“This time when you try, see if you can get the same results using less.” Greeve looked around us, recognizing that eventually that small bit of magic would be gone. If I didn’t learn quickly enough, we would never get to the others.
“I don’t know how. I’m not in control of it.”
“Just imagine one drop will clear all of The Mists. You put the power into the process and see what happens,” Greeve said.
“No promises,” I answered.
