Chapter two: The mages' council

She stayed in that inn for two days, hiding from the mages that would hunt her down. But her peace was short-lived, because on the second night, she heard a sharp knock on her door, jolting her out of her sleep.

Esmeray's heart raced as she slowly approached the door.

"Yes," she called out her hands shaking.

"It's the mages' council," a strong, male voice called back, "Open up. We're here to check the place."

"Can I put on clothes first?" Esmeray asked them, trying to keep her fear out of her voice.

"Oh, uhm... sorry. Yea," the voice replied sounding embarrassed.

"Why the sudden change in protocol?" she said, as casually as possible, running around the room and packing up all her stuff quickly.

"The villagers saw a young lady come in yesterday night. She bought clothes to mask her identity and left. It took us a while to get here but now we have to check where she is."

"Any clue who she is?" She ran through the room and grabbed her cloak, pulling it over herself.

"She's a dangerous mage, she's been causing havoc in the city for the past week." As the male voice said that, her fears started growing. If they saw her, they would recognize her as the soulweaving kid.

She peered through the keyhole and saw a group of men who she assumed were the mages' council guards standing outside. They were dressed in black robes, their faces stern and unyielding. Esmeray knew she had to act fast. She pulled her cloak over her head and jumped out the window, landing in a heap on the ground below.

"HEY!" she heard the guard yell, "OPEN UP!"

As she got up and started to run, she heard a loud thud as the mages broke down the door and entered her room. She knew that they would soon realize that she was gone and start chasing her. Esmeray ran as fast as she could, her heart pounding in her chest.

The village was still asleep, and the streets were empty. Esmeray ran past the small houses, hoping to find a place to hide. But she could hear the mages' footsteps gaining on her, their voices calling out to her.

Esmeray's mind raced as she tried to think of a way to escape. She knew that she couldn't outrun them forever, but she refused to give up without a fight. She turned a corner and ran toward the village square, hoping to lose her pursuers in the crowds.

But as she emerged into the square, she saw that the mages had already surrounded her. There were at least a dozen of them, all dressed in black robes, their eyes fixed on her. Esmeray's heart sank as she realized that she was trapped.

"Well, well, well," a guard mused recognizing her face, "Isn't she the soulweaver?"

The rest of the guards gasped in awe as they recognized her too.

"We found the young soulweaver!" another guard chuckled, "We could get so much money from you."

"You won't lay a hand on me," Esmeray snapped back, fear numbing her senses.

"Really?" The guards approached her slowly closing in on her. "And what are you going to do?"

Esmeray knew that she had only one chance to escape. She recited her spellbook in her head and finally decided which spell to use.

"Did you forget?" she said raising her arms above her head, palms facing upward, and lifting them slowly to the sky, as if drawing energy from the heavens. Then she jumped and a powerful gust of wind pushed her upward and over all the guards.

They were caught off guard by her sudden flight, and she managed to escape their grasp. Esmeray flew over the rooftops of the village, heading toward the safety of the forest. She knew that she couldn't stay in the village any longer, and that she would have to keep running if she wanted to survive.

She left a message to Jarek telling him to meet her in their secret meeting spot when she first left the cottage. She told him to meet her today so she flew over to the fountain, she landed in the forest a few yards away from the meeting spot. She took a deep breath and continued walking, praying that he was there.