As Olea neared the city, others had taken note of her appearance in the skies. The more probable cause for their awareness of her plight was perhaps the one-hundred-foot serpentine monstrosity that was closing in on her small form; that could be seen by anyone with eyes.

  One pair of observers stood upon the city’s longest pier. It was a wide finger of stone, wood, and ropes shoving out into Jaga Lake. Sailors meandered about, looking busy while doing nothing as it was not normally unwise to travel the waterways during the Turning; one of the many reasons for this was currently chasing down a small Elf-like girl above said-same water.

  As more people took note of the situation above the water, the activity on the walls and the docks increased. People began moving along faster, while some simply turned to watch events unfold. Some of the archers on the wall took up their bows in case they were presented with a shot if the creature got within range.

  And once more the attention was shifted to that of the odd pair on the dock, the pair that seemed to be paying no attention to the large creature chasing down a small girl; a small girl that was currently running through the sky.

  At first it seemed that the two were fighting one another; a tall man talking down to a small girl. That was when a large ball of ice shot forth from the girl’s finger to fly through the air and smash into the distant creature of darkness only heartbeats later to deliver a glancing blow.

  The ice ball splintered on impact with most of the mass being shot off to the side while a small amount seemed to shoot across the surface of the beast giving its skin a slightly frosted look.

  “That was close, though you may want to aim a little to the left.” Said the warrior.

  “That’s not how this works!” Shouted the now irate girl, “You know as well as anyone you don’t aim spells, they follow your intent.” She glowered up at the man before looking back out upon the water and raising her hard.

  “So, your intent was to miss? Got it.” Said the man dryly as he turned to watch the chase, his eyes shifting slightly to observe the girl’s reaction to his barb.

  “Argh, would you just shut up already, d-.” started the girl, before being cuffed behind the head by the man’s hand before she could finish speaking.

  “What have I told you about using such language?” he rebuked with a scowl, “We are in a public place and should act accordingly.”

  The girl grumbled unintelligibly under her breath as she raised her hand to launch another projectile. The magical attack left her splayed palm as a blue streak and bloomed outward as the distance from her hand increased before it formed into a rough-cut frozen orb that smashed into one of the beasts tentacular appendages.

  The timing of the strike seemed fortuitous as it caused the beast to shudder for a moment, giving the elf a chance to leap upward away from the creature; no doubt under the effects of Wind Walk. Though that had made the man think for a few moments, as it was highly uncommon for someone of her obvious youth to have such spells, while apparently lacking any offensive capabilities.

  “Most likely some spoiled protégé.” He said in a faint voice, letting the sentence hang like some half-hearted admonition in the open air.

  “What was that?” said the girl over her shoulder as she lined up another shot.

  “I was wondering why you don’t use lightning.” He lied.

  “You’ve been reading too many stories again.” The girl chided, “At this range I’d be more likely to hit the elf than the monster, ice is the only accurate spell I have for this distance especially in the rain.”

  The man smiled while shaking his head, he knew all these things, but it was good to have the younger generation extrapolate and be allowed to posture with their hard-won knowledge from time to time. This stance on her growing independence did not however stop him from saying, “You missed again.”

  The girl growled, having not needed to be told that she had missed when her ball of ice skidded across the surface of the lake two-hundred feet distant. “I am working at maximum range here, old man.”

  “Hey now! What have I told you about-.” He began.

  “You told me not to use words and names that could give away your identity or help identify you in some other way.” She took a breath before continuing, “I called you old, everyone present can see that you are ancient!”

  The elf took advantage of another lapse in the creature’s speed as a lucky arrow caught it in the face by jumping higher into the air. Her feet were moving quickly, but the jerky movement was a sure sign of dwindling resources. She had to be nearing her end, and if she did not manage to get closer to the docks or walls soon…

  “It doesn’t look good, does it?” he said.

  “She will be fine.” Said the girl calmly.

  “What makes you so sure about her then?” he said smiling down at her, “Don’t tell me you have a new friend, when did you even meet her?”

  The girl fumed silently for a few moments, barely more than seconds but it was enough to let the man know that there was at least some weight to his guess. They grew up so fast.

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  “I’ve seen enough.” She said into the wind that even now was still gusting strongly in the constant turmoil of seasons turn.

  The man grinned as she turned around to toss another ice ball. The speed with which she was tossing those about was almost enough to make him regret his own skill choices; almost. That line of thought soon had him checking the straps on his sword, as well as the clasp on his smaller blades. All was as it should be.

  “I’m just glad the sun has finally decided set.” He said glancing up, “It’s almost time.”

  The girl unleashed another spell even as she replied, “Go take a nap, then.”

  They continued with their back and forth as the elf climbed ever higher, she must have reached over three hundred feet by now.

  As the man was wondering why on earth she would be climbing upward instead of racing for the safety of the city, and the aid therein, he saw something truly humorous.

  The elf in question stopped her climb and began falling again, angling her descent with the assistance of some feathered companion he had until now disregarded. The bird was large, maybe the size of a pony. He had no idea how he had failed to notice such a large creature even if there was a much more massive monster rampaging about, it was unlike him to discount any beast of that size in any situation.

  What caught his attention most was what happened an instant later, as the beast climbed up to meet the pair the avian ally spread its wings wide and flapped once, arresting their fall slightly even as the girl conjured a large chunk of rock from nowhere into her hands and released it. The rock dropped even as it shifted form into something resembling a korred, one of the northern earth elementals.

  She had just dropped a conjured elemental onto the unsuspecting head of the beast that was even now still climbing upward. It took only a few seconds for the two to meet in the air. The man watched as the elemental, who looked mildly disappointed for some reason, brought his hands together and swung down upon the snout of the nightmarish serpent.

  The beast fell like the rock that had struck it, rearing back in pain even as its magical flight was interrupted, and it fell into the water once again. The elemental lost its form moments later as it no doubt escaped the range of the conjurer or more likely suffered from the collision itself.

  He could not help but chuckle and then burst into laughter as the girl stood stupefied and frozen mid cast at the sight before her. Who used conjured elementals as projectiles? Apparently, this elf did.

  The monster had only disappeared for a second before it emerged from the lake once again, screaming in rage as it tore into the sky after the elf. It seemed as if it were not using its full speed before as the new rate of travel was far greater than its previous pace.

  The elf had not been idle while the elemental bomb did its thing as she was now only half her previous distance from the docks where the pair stood. He wasn’t sure why she chose to head this way rather than toward the wall that was launching multiple arrows in the direction of the beast until he saw the arrow that was dangling the cloth of her pant leg.

  “Yeah, I’d run from them too.” He said, acknowledging that someone needed to work on their aim. “Got anything special for closer ranger, kiddo?”

  She glared up at him even as another ball of ice tore through the air, going high over the elf. It would not help their cause if she continued flying straight at them; she was an obvious obstruction to their line of sight.

  More arrows peppered the beast even as most of them went wide or fell short. More spells had also begun flying out from the city, it seemed as if someone had roused the more magically inclined guards into action. No one wanted a monster to come to visit their homes.

  It was moments like these that one could genuinely appreciate the danger of Turning. The spells one could cast were always empowered but by that same token monsters would be similarly strengthened. A monster this size should have already been slain by the number of spells that had hit it, but by the same logic the spells that had landed would have been far less potent if not for the special amplifying powers of the occurrence.

  The beast had been slowing before it hit the water though after its reappearance it seemed renewed; such was the power of its regeneration. Even now with the spells making contact more often it was slowing steadily.

  The man once again checked his gear, soon it would be time for him to act.

  He drew the large sword from the harness at his back gripping it in his right hand as he drew the blue dagger with his left.

  The girl looked his way after finally unleashing a spell of lightning, which caused the man to grin. He watched with satisfaction as the bolt arced through the air ripping violently past the elf to strike the beast in its neck as it lifted its head.

  “Lightning really is the best.” He said while smiling.

  “All magic is of equal value; they only differ in their applicable use.” Said the girl, as if reciting some dry, old tome.

  “Sure, kid.” He said dismissively.

  He watched the beast approach the docks at speed, no more than one hundred feet separated him from the creature he would soon engage. The elf was nearly to the docks by now, only a few wobbly steps left, and she would be with them. He did idly wonder if she knew just how lucky she was that he was here.

  “Stop that.”

  His face shifted as he looked down at the brat, “Stop what?”

  “You had that satisfied look on your face again, that stupid one that almost always means you are thinking about how absolutely right you are about whatever it is you are thinking about.” She said pointedly, “It’s a bit sad, really. How arrogant do you need to be to think that you’re the only reason something is going to work out.”

  “That is not what I was thinking!” he countered before adding, “It’s also not arrogance if I truly am the one responsible for success.”

  “Whatever.” She huffed.

  Their quibbling was interrupted as the thud of a falling elf sounded near their feet, causing them both to look down at the disheveled elf that had landed there. She was still carrying the arrow in her clothes but looked otherwise fine if you ignored the obvious exhaustion that was clear in the way she flopped onto her side clutching her sides.

  They took in her appearance quickly before making eye contact with one another, it was time to finish the job.

  The girl swiftly recited the incantation of a new spell, causing a ball of intense fire to manifest in the air. This fiery projectile traveled in a spiraling trajectory before striking the creature's flesh and detonating upon impact. Consequently, fractures appeared on the areas of its skin that had previously been struck by ice.

  The beast roared again in anger more than pain, the sound was a physical thing at a range of barely fifty feet and it looked as if the beast would soon collide with the dock taking the trio with it as it passed.

  At that moment, the man wielded his dagger with precision, slicing through the fabric of reality and creating a tear in space. The resulting aperture emitted darkness, which behaved as if it were sentient, with fine tendrils extending outward to interact with the surrounding atmosphere. These tendrils penetrated solid objects, such as the dock, as though they were immaterial, while simultaneously responding to the movements of the wind as if they possessed physical form.

  The man offered one last wink at the girl and gestured to the elf before leaping through the hole, his large sword resting over a shoulder.

  The young girl merely shook her head and turned to gaze at the oncoming monster.