The Unsuspecting Mage - Brian S. Pratt [120]
James turns and sees three more riders approaching at a gallop. Looking toward the ones to the north, he sees them begin turning their way as they too break into a gallop. “Let’s go,” he says. Kicking the sides of his horse he’s quickly racing across the road at a fast gallop, Miko doing the same a split second after.
They race down the road trying to outdistance their pursuers when from out of the distance ahead, three more riders appear racing toward them from the east. South being the only direction currently free of riders trying to intercept them, he turns his horse in that direction and they leave the road, racing through the tall grass. James hopes fervently that neither horse puts a hoof in a gopher hole or something, which would prove disastrous.
As if on cue, two more riders appear in the distance to the south before they have gone more than twenty feet from the road. Realizing they are surrounded and unlikely to escape the trap, he scans the area for somewhere to make their stand. Seeing a small hill to the southwest an idea comes to mind and he turns his horse, racing for it. Upon reaching the hill he dismounts quickly, giving Miko his horse’s reins. “Get those hoods we got at Lufer’s and cover their heads, fast,” he tells him. “Whatever you do, don’t let go of their reins.”
“What are you going to do?” Miko asks as he begins pulling the hoods out of the packs.
“You’ll see. No time to explain, just stay close to me.” James looks around at the approaching horsemen. Their approach has slowed now that James and Miko have stopped atop the little hill. Those closer to the pair slow in order to allow those further away to be able to join with the closer ones in completely encircling the hill. Three of them have crossbows and are in the process of winding back the crossarm.
Scared, Miko watches as the men continue to tighten the noose. Holding tight to the reins, he keeps the now hooded horses and mule close to the top of the hill. He looks toward James and sees that his eyes are closed in concentration. The breeze that had been blowing gently begins to slowly increase in strength. Clouds move unnaturally fast as they rush toward them from every direction.
The approaching men continue tightening the circle. One of the crossbowmen looses a bolt but the wind blows it wide. They advance without seeming to care, or perhaps fail to notice what is going on in the sky above them. The gathering clouds begin smoothing out until the cloud cover looks like one big, dark blanket extending in all directions. Then all at once the wind suddenly stops and the world becomes ominously quiet.
The sudden cessation of wind causes the men to slow their advance as they begin to understand that something strange is happening. Suddenly, the clouds above them begin to swirl and Miko looks in frightened awe as a section of the swirling clouds descends toward them, the center of which is open and clear. It rapidly slams all the way to the ground, enveloping the men approaching the hill.
The wind whips around the hill in a frightening mass of flying debris and deafening sound. Standing amidst the relative calm upon the hilltop, Miko holds tight to the horses, trying to keep them from becoming frightened amidst the noise going on around them.
From within the tempest surrounding them he could hear the cries of men and horses being ravaged by the savage wind. Suddenly, one of the riders is flung from the storm and slams into the ground a few feet from him. Miko looks closely at the man and sees that his body is broken and lifeless. Truly awed by what James has done, he stands there holding tightly to the reins and watches as the storm continues to swirl around the hill. Looking straight up, he sees what appears to be a tunnel going all the way through the storm to the blue sky at the other end.
Not long after that, the storm begins to slowly dissipate as the swirling mass surrounding the hill thins and then fades away. The clouds above start breaking apart until they resume their normal course through the sky. Amazed, Miko looks at the grassland