Trouble in the Village

---Katherine---

"She's not waking up!"

"She tried to summon every last drop of her magic; that's why it drained her so much."

"The magic nearly killed her. She called up some of her life force for that magic."

"It's all my fault…"

"If only I was better at healing…"

Voices. Lots of them. In the heavy darkness they faded in and out, never staying too long. Fatigue would always overwhelm me, and I would fall back into a deep state of unconsciousness. My eyelids were so heavy, and my body protested if I tried to wake up. The voices were talking, sometimes loud, sometimes soft. They washed over me like a soothing lullaby. The darkness pulled me back into its welcome arms…

"What was that? Lucian, go check."

"Guys, I think we're under attack!"

"What?!"

There was a loud clamor as chairs were pushed back and footsteps ran towards the door. A whoosh of wind blew in as the door opened. Even in my semi-conscious state, I could tell that something was wrong. I fought the darkness, struggling to break through my semi-conscious state.

"Oh no…"Was that Indigo's upset voice? "My uncle…my cousins…"

"You children need to get out of here!" I identified the gruff voice as Old Henry.

"You haven't told us everything! Besides, we need to stay and help fight! And Katherine's still unconscious!" I heard Ashley's voice, going shrill at the end.

"I've told you all you need to know. Staying to fight would be suicide. You children need to go now."

"You can't tell us what to do." Someone sounded angry. Was that Lucian or Jason?

"Guys, our packs! They're still in the inn!"

"We need to leave. We'll figure out what to do after we get our stuff."

Strong arms slipped beneath me and lifted me. "I got Katherine. Let's go!" It sounded like Aaron. Was he alright now? Did his wound heal?

"Remember what I told you!" Old Henry shouted after us as we ran out the door and down the hill. The wind blew, gusty and strong. It was just like the day the Evils attacked the Academy.

I heard the neighing of horses. Legacy, I thought.

"Katherine's too weak to ride alone. She'll ride with me," came Aaron's firm voice. I felt a jolt as he leapt onto his horse, with me still in his arms. A lurch, and then we were off.

I fought against another wave of darkness. I need to be awake. My friends needed me. Something bad happened in the village, and if we were going to fight, I can't be unconscious.

Slowly, I forced my eyes to open. I saw Aaron's determined face as he followed the others back to the inn. He glanced down at me, and was surprised to see me awake.

"Kath! Oh thank god you're awake!" We stopped at the inn. Aaron helped me sit up and dismount.

"Katherine! Oh my gosh, how are you feeling? We were so worried," said Ashley, running up. Indigo and Lucian had headed in to grab our packs. Jason and Rachel were trying to gather information from nearby frantic villagers.

"What happened?" I asked groggily. My head still hurt, and I felt weak.

"You almost died from that healing magic," said Ashley. "I had to blast you and Aaron apart with magic in order to get you to let go. We couldn't even get near you two at that point; the magic was so strong."

"You healed me beyond what you had to do. I feel like brand new person," Aaron cut in. "But you almost died, Kath. Don't ever do that again, okay?"

"Okay," I smiled faintly. "And then what?"

"Well, Old Henry and Rachel fixed you, kind of. They fed you some potion and did a bunch of spells. Except you wouldn't wake up, for a long time. We were afraid that you wouldn't. Even Old Henry was doubtful for a while." Ashley continued. "But then your condition leveled out and he said to let you rest. We've just been discussing the quest and the prophecy more. It turns out that Old Henry is good friends with some of the Elders, so he turned out to be trustworthy after all."

"I heard voices when I was unconscious. What happened in the village?" I asked.

"We don't know. There was a loud boom, and it looked like we were being attacked. We hurried back here, knowing that we might have to escape any second," said Aaron grimly. Indigo and Lucian hurried back out of the inn, followed by her aunt and uncle.

"Katherine! I'm so glad you're awake," said Indigo as she tossed us our packs. "Jason, what happened?"

"No one is exactly sure," Jason reported. "It seemed like some tower collapsed and a fire started somewhere."

"A tower? Could that be—" Before Indigo could finish her sentence, a boy about ten years old ran up to us, shouting in panic.

"Mum! Dad! It's Linda!" He ran into Aunt Jenny's arms, tears streaking down his cheeks.

"Alex! What happened?!" Uncle George and Aunt Jenny asked at the same time, fear etched in their faces. Indigo, who was about to mount her horse, hurried up to them.

"Linda? What happened to Linda?" she demanded.

"We were playing over by the watch tower, at Emily's house, and then—and then I went outside to play with my friends, and then the watch tower collapsed! Linda and Emily are trapped!" Alex blubbered, tears rolling down his face. Aunt Jenny paled.

"Isn't there a fire around there too?!" Uncle George grabbed Alex's arm, who nodded quickly.

"I don't know if Emily's house is on fire. I ran as fast as I could to tell you and mum," he said. "I'm sorry—I shouldn't have left Linda—"

"It's not your fault," said Indigo sharply. She turned to us. "Guys, I have to help. Jason, do you think you can use your elemental powers to try and help the villagers?"

"Of course." Jason nodded.

"Count us in too. We're not leaving without you," said Rachel. We jumped onto our horses and galloped in the direction of the chaos.