Chapter 44: Flesh and Bone

“Now?” Vix panted as she followed Melina.

The two women hurried quickly down the dank, dark corridor. Shafts of unnatural blue light slanted from cracks in the stone walls. Vix caught a glimpse of the source; Conjurers, three of them, clustered together like squat, metal-bodied spiders, brilliant beams of blue light spewing from their nozzle-heads. Bobber trailed behind, making curious snorting sounds as it soared through the air.

“Yes, now.” The witch swept forward, her dress whispering along the stones after her. As usual, she moved with a stately grace; gliding more than walking. Yet there was a newfound urgency to her movements. Her eyes, glinting in the Conjurer’s blue gleam, betrayed the impatience lurking beneath the calm, unhurried surface.

A surge of panic filled Vix. “I thought... I thought we’d have more time.”