Rakia's POV My head thumped like a base drum and the frequent jostles made it hurt even more, as I lifted my head up. "Auugh..."   "Well, it's about time you woke up."   My vision wobbled, but after a few seconds of intense blinking, it became stable, granting me a clear view of Granark shackled to wooden boards. My heart jumped in fear. "Wh-where are we?"   I tried moving my hands, only to find them bound in some metal contraptions fixed to the wooden walls of a wagon. The reality of everything hit me like a rock. "No, no, no! They kidnapped us?"   Granark nodded regretfully. "When I woke up, we were already on the move. I have absolutely no idea where they're taking us."   The wagon jostled up and down again on what I guessed

Rakia's POV Green and black ribbons of magic parted way as we galloped through the boundary. The pathway Granark had created with his magic was beginning to close up from behind. "Rakia!" Clifford appeared on my side, flicking his horse's reins."What's the plan?" "Once we emerge from the boundary, follow me," I yelled, loud enough for our companions behind to hear. "I want to find my parents first before anything else." With that, I dug my heels into the sides of my horse. Luca got the message and picked up the pace, pushing Clifford behind us. The magic continued to part and soon green grass came into view. I forced down a lump in my throat. After spending a month here, travelling through the Midlands and being chased by bounty hunters, I was finally returning home, to face the confusi

Rakia's POV "What!" Mother lunged for me, gripping my shoulders, "Rakia, No! You don't know what he's capable of." "He doesn't know what I'm capable of either." I snapped back, pushing her hands off. "I can take him!" Heavy footsteps thundered on the floor. Crap. The guards were coming. "Go!" I yelled at Riley and Granark. "We'll take care of them. You guys need to get out of here as fast as you can." Granark grabbed Mother's arm but she jerked back. "No! I'm not leaving my daughter behind." "And we're not leaving you behind either!" Grasping Mother's arm, Riley forcefully yanked her backwards, taking off in the opposite direction of the approaching guards.

Rakia's POV "The guards were just telling me about your arrival," Adrian said out loud. The guards, who were much closer to him when I came in, were now drawing closer to me with arrows locked on me as the target. I glared at them. My water tentacles rippled, ready for an attack. "Stand down, men," Adrian ordered. Heeding the command, the guards pushed down their bows and arrows. Taking a quick glance around, Adrian quizzed, "Where's Tristan?" At first, there was no answer, then the guard closest to him pointed an accusing finger at me. "She... she killed him. I saw her slam him into a wall several times with those water things on her arms." 

Rakia's POV I moved back to the half-broken sculpture, ready to deliver the first blow. I took a stance, bringing my hands up, but all of a sudden, they wouldn't move. "What the heck..." Straining my muscles, I tried pulling my hand down, but it still wouldn't budge. I brought my attention to my legs, attempting to move backwards. But they were both glued to the same spot, and so was my neck when I tried to turn. What in sky blazes is going on? All my body parts were refusing to do my bidding. I wasn't frozen. There wasn't any ice on my body, so why couldn't I fricking move? Panic set in and my eyes darted around, frantically searching for an explanation or some sort of solution. "I-I... under... estimated you." My heart jumped upon hearing the voice.