Chapter 196 - Bonds Of One [II] (1/2)
At first she didn't feel the arm that encircled her c.h.e.s.t. The burning was too painful for her to notice anything. It jerked her upright, and Chang Chang felt herself smashed against a hard wall. The wall moved, drawing her to the surface. Whenever Chang Chang thought she would slip, the arm would pull her back from the abyss.
She broke the surface gasping, choking foul water when she tried to suck in air. Her muscles were on fire. But she was alive.
Ju Feng was treading water directly behind her, holding her afloat with his right arm. The wall she'd been crushed against was his c.h.e.s.t. The light spell on her arm still functioned. She could see the wraith making mad, swooping circles all around Ju Feng's raft.
”What did you do to it?” he demanded. ”Its senses are blinded.”
”I'm not sure.” Chang Chang coughed and spat water. ”We have to get away from here.”
She felt Ju Feng shake his head. ”Won't get far without a boat,” he said. ”Drive it away. Use your arts.”
The wraith burst into the air, spraying them with water. Its attention refocused on the swimming pair. A high-pitched scream rent the air, and the creature dived at them again.
Ju Feng dragged her underwater, and they barely dodged the attack. When they came back up, the wraith had circled around for another pass.
”Make your blood magic,” Ju Feng ordered her. ”Make it a good one. You won't get another before it kills us.”
”You don't understand. I have no power.” Chang Chang tried to swim away from him, but he pinned her against his c.h.e.s.t.
”Your glowing arm suggests otherwise,” he said.
”It's also bleeding. Let me go!”
”Listen to me.” He raised her left hand in front of her face. Chang Chang remembered the silver ring given to her by king Laggarma. It rested on her finger, its light dull. ”Everything this ring touches grows in strength, including magical essence. As long as it touches your skin, your runecasting should work.”
Chang Chang closed her palm and felt a tingle of electricity coming from the ring. She searched her memory again. The fire rune was gone, but there was another….
”When I cast this, I will likely lose consciousness,” Chang Chang said. She fought to keep her voice steady.
Ju Feng tightened his grip. ”You won't drown—you haven't paid me my fee yet. I'll hold you up, only work your rune!”
Chang Chang blocked out his voice, the icy water, the wraith's screams. She waited for the creature to glide close to the water again. When it was in her line of sight, she muttered the words.
Burning pain erupted behind her eyes, a side effect Chang Chang only vaguely remembered from her early lessons. She had not cast spells of this magnitude for years. Her body was not ready for the shock.
Fighting oblivion, Chang Chang thrust her free hand above her head. The arcane pulse came again, strong and sustained. This time, the castl was going to work.
A stream of white vapor unfurled on the air like a sheet. It snapped and coalesced into a savage-looking spear, which shot across the water, trailing ice shards in its wake.
The magical spear impaled the wraith through its eyeless head. Unholy screams shattered the air. Ice flew in all directions. The force of the magic drove the creature back a full ten feet, and the light in its body flickered and died. The wraith collapsed in on itself, disappearing into the water without creating a wake.
For a long time, there was no sound except Chang Chang and Ju Feng's breathing. Chang Chang saw her breath in the wake of the cold spell. A fine layer of ice rimed the water in a straight line to where the creature had been. She watched the shards flake off like so much paint.