Prologue
Six of them stood each shaking with fear. Around them was all black, the only thing visible was the old wooden floor, and the others. Finally one spoke, she was drippings wet, her dress torn, a tattoo of a cobra on her left arm. It was circling and twisting in agitation.
"It's obvious what happened... the government found out what we did. The wolves are hunting us. We need a plan." The last sentence was pointed at another girl. She was not wet but her red air was tangled and looked to be missing in places. She had a spider on her left arm, it was crawling up and down her arm, seeming to pace.
"We can't stay in Eclistia it's too dangerous now. We also can't stay together, five adepts of magic together would draw too much attention." The girl now copied her spider and started pacing.
"Where do we go then?" Another girl asked, she had a fox on her left arm. It was curled around itself. She whipped the blood off of her cheek. She had a bad gash that cut across half of her face. The girl with the spider-
The world shook inside of Cobra's mind. Someone was attacking her construct. This place, a Torpra as Cobra's people called it, was out of the world, suspended in time through magic. The people in it were more like astral projections but their bodies disappeared when they entered it. Normally, it was used to transport large groups, it was not fast to get places. Portals were faster but a Torpra required less energy and less skill. A beginner could make one.
Time stopped for Cobra, she took a deep breath dragons were trying to break in to this place.
The dragons were the only others who had magic, everyone else was in one of the clans; lion, spider, cobra, fox, shark, nightingale, and star. All together they were called officially HRK's. It stood for His Royal Keepers, the common people of Eclistia called them other things.
Cobra grounded herself the way that she was taught. She focused all her energy on holding the dragons out of the Torpra.
The dragon's black powers were pressing against the bright purple of her own powers. Purple was the color that every other cobra's powers had been. The dragons lashed out at her shields.
Her shields didn't snap with the hit instead they swayed with the hit absorbing the magical energy. Turning the top shield into a darker violet.
Cobra shivered, there was at least twelve dragons focused on getting through. They couldn't stay long. She added more to her shields there was nothing more she could do magically. So she prayed silently that they would make it through.
The dragons were clever and magical, some of the worst combinations. They were just following orders, orders that his royal highness gave. Cobra mentality scoffed at that thought, that man didn't deserve the tittle after what he had done.
But the dragons had orders, the hooks and oaths were stronger in them, they had to be they were to powerful to be left with any free will of their own.
Some of the HRK's who were younger had listened to the orders he tried to give them. They were too young to have learned how to work more on their own and not be completely controlled by the hooks and oaths.
Over all of the HRK's, Dragons and the Wolves were given the same orders.
"His royal keepers are traitors, they are trying to kill the king, they have undermined the royal plans. They are a disease, vermin who must be eradicated. Your orders are simple; kill ever last HRK." The orders had been put directly in to their minds. Even now it still bounced around trying to take over, but in the Torpra it was not as strong. If they left the kingdom it would lessen then as well, but no one knew if it would ever go completely away.
Cobra sent up one last string of prayers, and added to the shields. Then let go of her hold on time in the Torpra. The world resumed for her-
The Spider stopped pacing. All five of the girls froze. They all knew the only places to go were on the other side of the world.
"We are the last aren't we? We are the last HRK's aren't we?" One said, tears were streaming down her face, she had a nightingale on her left arm. It too seemed to be mourning.
"Everyone else is dead. Now Fox you go to Jemess, they are more religiously fanatic but you are the best at hiding. Shark," A girl with electric blue hair and a shark swimming on her left arm looked over at spider. "you go to Carevot, its a sea side kingdom you should do okay." The spider fell silent, where else to put them. There was only two other countries that were not torn apart by war.
"Nightingale and Star you go to Verife. Spider you or I have to go to Sitnalta, no one else can handle the war there." Cobra said making portals for the others to leave to the lands they had been assigned. Soon it was just Spider and Cobra left looking at each other.
Spider bit her lip. They both already knew that Cobra would go to Sitnalta, and spider the one who is best at planning and can go without magic would go to Saxic. The place where all magic was negated. Cobra gave her a watery smile.
"You know I did something, it wasn't very moral but I had to. I did a spell, no one will remember what was said here, not even me." Cobra admitted, Spider for half a second looked panicked then nodded. They hugged quickly.
"Good luck enchantress." Spider said using the second name given to Cobra. She laughed on the verge of hysterics.
"Same to you." Then both disappeared, the Torpra collapsing on itself.
