A Foul Wind

Dade curses as a few of his men stumble to the side with injuries. That crazy bastard on his high horse was like a damn mad dog! They barely managed to lose them, and it was partially due to the storm that rolled in. They had been chased all night!

One thing was certain, he would never underestimate these people here again. If he was going to engage with them again, he'll make sure they were prepared. He looks over to the others, watching as they use their potions to heal themselves.

A dark twisted smile appears on his face as he reaches into his magical pouch. He pulls out a solid black stone, looking like black ice. He slowly lifts it in his hands, lightning flashing and ominously lighting up his sinister smile.

He would never use this in their world but here? Hah, he wishes to destroy the whole damn thing. One of his men named Chris speaks up with a look of concern, "Uh, Dade... Are you sure you want to use that here?"

Dade looks over and sneers before saying, "Why not? This isn't our world. We don't have to worry about the rules back home." Chris swallows hard as he says, "Well, yeah but... We're still here." Dade rolls his eyes in annoyance before saying, "I'm not an idiot. If all of us place our blood on the stone beforehand, we won't have anything to fear."

Chris and the others look relieved as they all start laughing with excitement. They've always wanted to see something like this but wouldn't dare use it in their world. Dade cuts his hand, allowing his blood to pour onto the black stone.

The stone absorbs the blood like a living thing. The others quickly follow, watching as the stone soaks up all the blood with ease. It seems hungry. Dade then lifts the stone, chanting as the rain continues to fall on them.

The lightning takes on a new intensity as Dade's chanting intensifies. The stone begins to levitate before slowly turning. It spins, faster and faster as it goes higher and higher. With the last line of chanting, the stone shatters!

The shards of the stone go flying in every direction, disappearing from sight. Dade and his men all start laughing, feeling their moods improving. Dade looks up at the sky as the rain continues to fall. His smile grows once again when he thinks about what's to come.

The fun has just begun.

__________

WEIMIN

Weimin and his men are forced to give up. They've lost them and the rain is only becoming worse. Weimin grits his teeth, unhappy that he couldn't fulfill his promise, but this isn't the end. He won't stop until he puts an end to those dangerous men.

When he thinks back to Lyra, he grits his teeth and decides to head back to Bolin. Even if he is protecting her, he feels like he shouldn't leave Lyra with that dangerous man. Bolin has always been an oddity that never really fit in.

He always had to do things his way and was always hiding things. The man can't be trusted with Lyra. He lifts his hand, giving a signal to his men. All but two double back, heading for Bolin's place. The other two will remain and try their best to hunt down those odd men.

___________

LYRA

I lay on the bed, in a night of light sleep, listening to the rain outside when suddenly my eyes flash open. Lightning flashes, lighting the whole room up before everything grows dark once again. Thunder rolls as my eyes lightly glow in the dark room.

I sit up, turn and look towards the window as my heart races. Mago wakes up with a lazy yawn and asks, "What's wrong? Why are you getting worked up?" I push the blankets away and walk to the window, pushing it open.

It was already growing colder but the rain brought on a chill. When the wind blows, I shiver but it has nothing to do with the temperature. My eyes sharpen as I softly say, "There's something foul in the wind. Can you feel it?"

Mago perks up, trying to sense what I was talking about but can't. "I don't feel anything... but that could be because I'm a mirror." I roll my eyes at his comment and say, "It's magic, dark magic." Mago grows silent, still unable to feel anything but knowing how serious it is.

If Master felt black magic, that could only mean that Dade and his men were up to no good. Master was powerful and was more sensitive to magic, especially black magic. He nervously asks, "What is it? What have they done?"

I narrow my eyes, trying to get a better feel but all I can sense is a foul smell. It makes my skin crawl. I bite my lip as I say, "Nothing good..."

___________

BOLIN

He sits in a large office, looking over an old map that looks as if it had been burnt on one side. He waves his hand over the map, using his power and watching as everything changes on it. He narrows his dark eyes, lightly touching the map before freezing.

He looks up as lightning lights up the entire room. The map goes back to normal when he places it on the desk in front of him. He gets up, walking over to the large double doors. When he pushes them open, a cold wind blows in, snuffing out all the candles in the room.

Darkness descends onto the room, leaving everything in cold, dark silence. He looks out, watching the night rain before saying, "What happened?" Huan appears with a cold sweat and says, "The shadows we placed on them say that something has happened."

Bolin instantly thinks back to Lyra and her warning before turning to look at Haun and saying, "Speak." Huan nervously retells what they've seen. None of it made sense but at the same time, an uneasy feeling had settled over them and their hearts.

Bolin listens without a word, silently thinking. His eyes grow cold before saying, "Continue to watch them but don't interfere. Also, find out what the stone is and what they planning to use it for. Place shadows in the surrounding towns to keep an eye on things."

Haun bows before saying, "Also, it looks like Weimin, and his men are heading back this way. They'll be here by morning." Bolin smirks, dismissing Haun. He didn't have to be told, he knew Weimin and how he works. He knew he'd be back for Lyra.