Nightstalker reacted as quickly as Caith. He veered away from the moongate and thus prevented a ball of destructive fire to swallow up his mistress. The magical blaze leapt across the ground as it touched down, bursting into tiny fragments that burnt anything they touched.

While Nightstalker took the sparks that scorched his skin with the tolerance of any frenzied ostard, Mercury’s mount had less understanding for the pain. It stomped the ground fearfully and soon the warrior girl had to focus on controlling the panicking beast instead of leading it through the moongate.

Through the panic, the ostard collided with Nightstalker just as Mara caught sight of the dragon as it came plunging at them from above. Another ball of fire shot towards the ground, but this time it was caught by a blockade of red scales. The impact made Caith grunt.

“Mercury! Get through the gate already!” Mara searched for the magic that possessed her and called forth a healing spell. “In Vas Mani…” Instantly, Caith was enveloped in a cloud of blue sparks that drew together around him and soothed his scorched skin. A fully-grown and healthy dragon had the ability to spew enough fire to burn even through another dragon’s protective scales… While this was only an annoyance for the experienced Caith, Mara refused to neglect it.

Behind her she heard the moongate crumble and Mecury shout a warning. “Look out!”

Now what do you think I’m doing…

Mara pulled Nightstalker’s reigns and urged him backwards to avoid getting caught in the fray. The dragon launched itself from the air, crashing into Caith who stood his ground as a living shield. But this time he was unable to withstand the collision and slid steadily across the ground as both dragons used their mass against each other.

A battle of giants had begun.

To stand in their way was certain death, and as they fought Mara was forced to continue her retreat. Mercury followed suit until they stopped at the pond’s shore. “Kahlan,” Mara called out to the younger dragon, who almost threw herself into the battle “stay and guard me!”

Again the tamer called for the magic and directed her attention to their enemy. “Kal Vas Flam!” she shouted through the turmoil and watched as magical flames licked over the wild beasts body. It wailed in pain.

“Corp…” Mara continued, but the spells second syllable was lost as Kahlan roared a warning. The tamer turned to see a second dragon charge them, Kahlan right behind him, trying to catch the beast and bring it off-course. But this one had decided on Mara as its goal and steadily continued towards her.

“An Ex Por!” Her right hand moved upward, palm pointing at the dragon, as it lunged for her. And there it froze, suspended in its movements a heartbeat before launching itself into the air. Just long enough for Kahlan to reach it and bury her claws into its back. The spell of paralyzing broke upon contact and the dragon whipped around to face Kahlan.

As it turned, the female dragon was thrown off balance – her opponent being larger than her – and the dragon’s tail came slashing through the air at Mara. She ducked, along with Nighstalker who pulled his long neck down as the air rippled maybe an inch above her head.

Oh gods…

“Woah, Mara!” Mercury shouted, who was well out of range now. But Mara wasn’t. The dragon turned again, attacking Kahlan, its tail coming back at Mara in a low arch, catching her and Nightstalker. The impact threw them backwards, its force enough to lift both of them off the ground and towards the pond.

Mara drew in a breath of air just before the frenzied ostard’s weight pushed her below the cold surface.

---

It was cold. In fact, Mara hadn’t expected anything like the biting pain to her skin as the water closed in around her. She felt Nightstalker struggle to break the surface, and before she was able to dive away, one of his muscular legs punched right into her stomach. In an instant all air was pressed out of her lungs.

Instinct told her to replenish the missing breath – the need to live refused it. Her hands groped through water, her legs kicked frantically, and even as she thought her world might turn black her fingers closed around a strap of leather that rose rapidly upwards. ’Up, Up, Up Nightstalker!’ Mara willed the ostard, and not a heartbeat later she was torn from the water. The air she sucked in greedily burnt its way into her lungs.
As she was carried from the pond, Mara lost the grip on the leather strap from Nightstalker’s saddle and plunged back into the shallow water. She pushed herself up quickly this time, crawling towards the shore just like the man they had rescued only a few minutes prior. The moment she regained her senses, the tamer registered the familiar sounds of battle.

A battle that had already begun taking its toll.

With a ferocity fueled by the everlasting bond between them, Caith fought the assault of three dragons, while Kahlan was kept in check by a forth. Under any other circumstances, Mara would have pitied the wild beasts, but as she rose to assist her companion that self-assurance was quickly replaced by dread. She searched her belt for the reagent pouch, then the spell book and her stomach turned violently as she found them missing.

Fear was nothing she was ashamed of. Fear was, as the warrior Ramzies had once told her, nothing but a path to bravery. “You can’t be brave if your not scared to begin with…” And Mara was brave – but above that, she knew her way out when heroism failed.

“Nightstalker!”

The frenzied ostard had retreated from the pond, joining Mercury in a safe distance from the battle, but upon hearing her call, quickly made his way back towards her. Mercury decided to follow.

They headed her way – almost there – when Nightstalker fell. He didn’t stumble, nor did the ground beneath his feet give way. It was the liquid fire that shattered his leg and the piercing claws that snuffed his life.

One dragon had broken from the fray to intercept them and after killing the ostard his attention shifted. Not to Mercury, who had recoiled quickly with her mount, but to Mara who stood stunned. The shock lifted as another ball of fire flew her way and she rolled to the ground to dodge the assault. The rapid movement was accompanied by searing pain to her mid-section, but the tamer refused to let it slow her. Just as she refused the sorrow to ground her. She clenched her teeth.

There was time for all this later…

“Mercury! The scrolls! In his saddlebag, a ga…” The dragon lowered itself for a jump and Mara remained motionless crouched on the ground. It roared, she tensed her leg muscles and watched as it readied itself with proud confidence. She twitched to the right in a feign attempt to jump and the dragon went for her. Mara avoided the deadly body by mere inches as she lunged for the left instead.

“A gate scroll!”, she finished her sentance and dashed for Mercury as the dragon behind her turned. “Kahlan, break and get him!”

While Kahlan confirmed the request with a warcry of her own, Mercury had already dismounted and was frantically searching Nightsalker’s corpse. The girl finally pulled off the whole saddlebag and rummaged within it for the scroll. She pulled one out – it had a blue band wrapped around it – and Mara shook her head while she ran. All her scrolls were marked with different colors as to make it easier to distinguish them. “No, wrong one!”

But Mercury did not waste any time. She unfolded the scroll before looking up briefly at the thunderstruck tamer. Mercury's cold smile, visible through the slit of her helmet, obliviated any remnants of hope.

“Kal Ort Por”, were the faint words before the porting spell took Mercury to safety. Along with the saddlebag.