Mitchell's leg was bouncing and he tried to will it still for what felt like the thousandth time. Without the manacles, Allora was apparently able to use her magic. She'd cast the language spell on him, although it appeared to exhaust her to do so, and said that there was going to be an escape attempt and he needed to sit patiently and let them handle it. He would only get in the way.
He fumed at her words, even more so because she was right. The spell hadn't lasted long but she'd conveyed the basics. They would strike when let out for the morning walk. If all went according to plan, they would be free before the sun rose. So Mitchell sat and hated himself a little for being unable to contribute. He knew he shouldn't feel bad. This wasn't his world, and people from Earth had no need for swords and had no concept of magic. He'd be cut down in a moment by one or the other without the knowledge to defend himself. He knew it but he was angry just the same.
Sleep was impossible so he waited. He occupied himself by swatting at the little fleas that liked to feed on their blood. One good thing about being in the wagon is that they were up out of the sand. The fleas were worse when he'd slept on the ground. He'd woken up every morning itchy. Luckily, the itching didn't last too long.
But, while the little bastards couldn't fly, they could apparently jump and they weren't as bad up here but enough of them were motivated to hop up into the wagon for a snack. So as the minutes crawled by he busied himself with smashing the little pests when he felt them on his skin or caught one crawling up the leg of his filthy pants. While he smashed them he sang the words to Black Sabbath's War Pigs to himself.
"Evil minds that plot destruction!" Squish. "Sorcerer of death's construction." Squish squish.
Ignoring the looks he got from Allora and Revos for his odd behavior, he once again said a silent word of thanks that his parents had been so into music as he was growing up. They'd met at the now legendary Nirvana concert at the Paramount Theater in Seattle in 1991 and were still rocking out to this day. Music had always been present in his house and he had a large repertoire of several genres from which to choose. It was surprising how much he could remember now that he had nothing to do but recall the lyrics.
He was in the middle of Pearl Jam's Do the Evolution when he heard the first sounds of their jailors rousing. His song cut off immediately. He didn't know what the plan was exactly but he knew he wasn't part of it. He did his best to look asleep as they set about the morning tasks. From the corner of his eye, he saw Allora arrange the manacles so that they looked like they were still on her wrist and feigned sleep just as he was.
As Dumb Fuck Two pulled himself up into the wagon Mitchell's heart started pounding so hard he thought for sure the big gray thing would hear it. What if they had superhuman hearing? He didn't know. What if he got suspicious about why his heart was beating so fast? What if he could smell the fear?
He did his best to control his breathing and appear to rouse naturally from his cramped slumber. Dumb Fuck paid him no mind, moving first to Allora's cage. Mitchell sat up and looked around, making a show of examining their surroundings. He craned his neck and spotted Pony Tail Spock and Dumb Fuck One stowing the lean-to and drinking water. They were watching the landscape warily. They didn't know what Mitchell knew but they weren't stupid. They knew someone was picking them off and were on guard.
Spock had some sort of shimmering field around himself that made Mitchell think of the personal force fields that had been described in Dune. Despite how much he hated his situation and hated them, this magical stuff was seriously cool.
Dumb Fuck Two began to untie the rope holding Allora's cage shut. Once the rope slipped free he swung the cage open and stepped back. Allora didn't move. Mitchell's leg began bouncing again and he grabbed onto it with both hands to hold it still. Dumb Fuck didn't notice. He was staring at the open cage waiting for Allora to crawl out.
He said something, probably some variation of "let's get a move on" and Allora didn't respond. His tone became more threatening and she merely glared at him.
She's waiting for him to reach in, Mitchell thought. She wants to be yanked out, she wants him to come in close. He had to remind himself to breathe as he attempted to look casual. He felt like his act was so obvious that there might as well be a neon sign above his head proclaiming "This guy knows shit is about to go down!" It must have just been the panic, though because Dumb Fuck still didn't even glance at him.
Finally, with a small snarl, he reached into the cage and went for the link of the chain that was just visible between her legs, meaning to grab it and drag her out of the cage. It was what Allora had been waiting for. With a move so fast he almost didn't see it, her hand was around his wrist, having never been in the manacles. She'd twisted it seam-side down so it looked like it was still closed and had tucked her arms up against them, wrists bent, so it looked like her hands were tucked between her legs. It wouldn't have passed a close inspection but their captors were nervous and jumpy and they weren't paying close attention.
Dumb Fuck Two grunted in surprise and looked in shock at the now free hand around his wrist. Mitchell saw his eyes widen and he began to pull in a breath to shout an alarm. But before he'd even finished his inhalation, the stiletto came out in Allora's other hand and she buried it almost to the hilt under his chin. His body seized and a spout of blood erupted from his mouth but, except for a couple of grunts, he died in silence.
With the blade still lodged in Dumb Fuck's Skull, Mitchell watched in horrified fascination as she lowered his twitching form to the wagon bed and began to crawl out.
***
Allora glanced around to see if the small noises he'd made as the blade pierced his brain alerted Ivaran or the other one but they were deep in conversation. Their eyes were focused on the sandy hills watching for signs of attack and they weren't expecting anything from the wagon bed. So far, so good.
Her body ached from being in the cage overnight but she pushed through the pain knowing this was their only chance. Whoever their mysterious rescuer was, she was working alone or she wouldn't have needed the help of exhausted and malnourished prisoners to carry out whatever mission she was on. If Ivaran saw Allora before this woman made her move, she'd have little chance against him. Without a sevith or krisa to focus her mana, she'd burn through her reserves far too fast to be able to match him in a magical fight. She trusted her training but, one-on-one without her gear, he'd rip her to pieces.
She glanced to the side to see Revos working at the knot on his ropes and, crouching low, she moved past Mitchell's cage and slipped the blade between it and the bars. She stifled a groan as her back protested at the movement.
With a quick yank, the rope was cut, falling away softly to allow the cage door to swing free. Almost in the same instant, there was the sound of an arrow striking the wood planks of the driver's seat. Two voices shouted simultaneously and the fight began.
Peeking over the lip, Allora saw Ivaran and the other one--his name was Fellock she thought--staring out at a clump of bushes about sixty feet away. The arrow that was meant for Fellock was sticking out of the side of the wagon a few inches from his head. She'd missed!
Ivaran was raising his sevith, the stones already glowing. If he hit the bush with the arcane lance he'd used yesterday and the woman was still there, there wouldn't be much left of her. No time to worry about it now. Legs quivering, Allora vaulted over the railing aiming for Fellock's back.
He reacted faster than she'd expected. He must have sensed her coming or heard something. While she was still in the air, he started to turn, his blade already coming up, and instead of landing squarely on his back to drive the knife down into his ribs, Allora hit him in the shoulder and her weight drove them both into the ground where they landed with a grunt.
Above and behind her, the night exploded into brightness as Ivaran got off his spell. The sizzling sound of the arcane bolt lancing through the air was quickly followed by the sound of an explosion as it struck the ground around the bush.
Allora's ears were wringing as she struggled to control Fellock beneath her. He moved like a snake, twisting and trying to get leverage on her. She attempted to stick the knife in his neck but he got an arm up and he was able to turn the point aside with the bracer at his wrist. Her body was sluggish and stiff after days spent in the cage with just enough food and water to keep them from dying. She could already feel her strength failing. She had to end this fast.
His body came around fully and she tried to stay atop him. If he managed to get her beneath him, it wouldn't go well, not as weak as she was. She brought the blade down, again going for his throat and he cursed as he brought his arms up to block her.
"You fucking bitch!" he spat as she brought her weight down on him. He was strong for a human. Her muscles began to fail and her arms quivered as he tried to push against her. From the corner of her eye, she saw Revos fire a spell at Ivaran and it struck his shield, sending him staggering.
Despite her bringing her full weight on him, Fellock began to raise her up. The tip of the blade that was just inches from his throat began to move away. Sweat was pouring off her as she strained to pierce his flesh.
"You're gonna die, bitch," Fellock grunted. "Fuck carrying you all the way to Milandris. We're going to gut you here and feed you to the clorvol."
He pushed her up another inch. A little more and he'd have the leverage to flip her off. Behind her, another spell fired. She didn't know if it was Revos or Ivaran and she couldn't break focus to check. As much as she didn't want to do it, she was going to have to use a spell. Without her krisa to focus the mana, it would be wild and likely to hurt her as well, but she had no other choice. Allora formed the spell in her mind.
