Chapter 29

**Merianna**

As my vision still hovered on the verge of darkness, something started taking shape in front of my eyes.

*I could smell the crisp moist air that surrounded me. The breeze that blew across my skin was warm, and brought with it the smell of the damp earth and a freshly departed rain storm. The thunder was still rolling in the distance as my eyes wandered over the field in front of me.*

I shook my head vigorously to come back to here and now. This was no time for my mind to start dreaming up nonsense! Swallowing a deep breath, my vision cleared and I saw the Nirn witches looming over me like silent avengers with their leader looming directly over my head.

"I might have made a mistake," I wheezed from the floor as I reached within myself, "but, there is always a way out!" I grabbed a solid hold on my new found element like Noch had taught me, and sent it channelling out in a wave over the surrounding group.

I heard a lot of static zapping and cursing coming from around me as I attempted to jump up off the ground and sprint back to the shadows. That zap was nowhere near as strong as I would have liked it to be, and I soon regretted that fact.

I barely managed three stumbling steps before the wind was knocked out of me again. My body slammed into the ground once more, but this time a big hand found its way around my throat and lifted me off the ground again just as quickly. I desperately clawed at the solid fist that was wrapped around my slender neck as my legs kicked uselessly at the body attached to it.

"You are one very irritable child." I heard the leader growl out in anger. "I will take great pleasure in ending you."

My eyes met his in the darkness and I could see that this time, he was not the slightest bit amused. He now saw me as a very real threat that he had to get rid of once and for all.

Just as the pressure around my neck increased, I was suddenly wrenched away from him and his body went flying in the opposite direction, straight into a stone wall. I internally cringed at the impact, feeling slightly sorry for his part. But only slightly. Very slightly,

I found myself in strong feminine arms as I watched everything break out in chaos around me. Furiously blinking the stars in my vision away, I saw Jasnine's radiant face above mine. She smirked down at me and shoved a bag into my hands as she helped me back onto my feet.

"Well done Merianna, you did a splendid job." She said with a smile that could melt the heart of any battle hardened male. It didn't melt my heart though. In fact, I could feel incredulous anger starting to bubble up from inside of me.

"You left me!!!" I yelled in her face.

She pouted and ruffled my hair. "I knew you could handle it Meri, don't be so sour. You were a wonderful distraction!" She said innocently.

"Declare yourself!" The leader boomed in anger as he dislodged himself from the building's decimated wall and began striding towards us with energy roiling and snapping around him. The other Nirns that surrounded us looked strained but resigned as they let their leader draw on their power to sustain himself.

"Oh my." Jasnine said with big eyes while putting the tips of her fingers to her lips. "Aren't you a tough one now? I'm Jasnine, it's a pleasure to meet you." She beamed.

"And you sure are cocky." He growled out as he gathered darkness around him.

Jasnine smiled then, and a shiver ran up my spine at the sight. It wasn't one of her normally sweet smiles that she often blinded me and Nelia with, this one made her look like a manic demon imp. The comfort that I usually felt around Jasnine promptly shriveled up and died in that instance. I didn't know this woman! Where was the sickly sweet motherly persona? Where were the soft smiles and softly spoken encouragements? Where were the gentle touches and kind eyes?

I was so confused!

"Meri?" She said sweetly as she situated me to her left and stood up to her full height. "Would you be a dear and make sure the rest don't get you in their clutches? I'd be a little put out if I had to explain to everyone at the Order that you died on my watch." She said while ruffling my hair fondly.

I didn't have words.

I didn't have thoughts.

I *couldn't* think in the first place.

What had just happened?!

I was too stunned to do anything, that was, until Jasnine suddenly sprinted to the Learder and landed a shot to his shoulder with one of her throwing knives that she pulled out of her belt.

He snarled viciously at her and tried to take a swipe at her with his shadows, but she moved quickly out of his range and with a wickedly thrilled smile on her face, she melted into the surroundings. As in, poof. I couldn't track her with my eyes anymore. She was just not there...

At least, that was what I thought until I saw a gash open updeom on leader's thigh that stretched from his groin to his knee.

He bellowed in rage as the blood ran like a river down his leg. The other Nirns all sprang into a frenzy of movement at his pain.

With a jolt I realized that many of them were quickly moving in my direction while their leader was occupied with the stronger enemy.

I squeaked and clutched the bag Jasnine shoved onto me to my chest and sprinted for the shadows for all I was worth. I dived into the darkness before any of the Nirns had a chance of grazing my boot let alone catch me.

The shadows cloaked me as I willed my energy to wrap it around myself. It was strange to have the coolness of the shadows around me again after everything else that had happened in the span of a few hours. From the time of scouting around to this madness that was unfolding. I didn't dwell on anything though. I had to get back to the forest and link to the gateway Jasnine and I came through before I became Nirn target practice

Jumping through the shadows I traveled as fast as possible through the volley of attacks that were randomly being thrown at all the surrounding shadows. Yes I was in the shadows. Yes it's a small space in-between spaces. Yes their attacks weren't as powerful as the leader's. But, that didn't mean that I couldn't be hurt, and it also didn't mean that I was looking forward to trying to fight off more than a dozen Dark Nirn Witches. No matter how weak their magic was! Numbers were just as deadly, and I wasn't feeling my best either.

I led them about a merry chase with darker spots of shadows in various areas until they were as confused as a bloodhound in a field full of rabbits and foxes. With urging the shadows to bunch and move about as I moved further and further away, I could finally just slip out into the forest without them knowing any better.

By the time I finally reached the tree line I was breathing heavily, shaking with adrenaline, fear and exhaustion all at the same time. The Nirns that were "after my trail", started yelling at each other in frustration and most turned back to go and help their leader, who was now struggling to get up off the ground more often than not.

I leaned against the cool bark of a nearby pine tree and felt my knees knocking together while Jasnine's laughter echoed through the air.

*She's enjoying this far too much*... I thought flatly to myself as I let the shadows drop away from me.

A figure suddenly appeared next to me. Adrenaline shot through my body again, making me choke on a scream and flail my limbs in an uncoordinated mess, which in turn made me tumble backwards into a bush. With wide eyes I clutched the bag against my rapidly pumping heart as I finally saw who exactly had nearly given me a heart attack.

"*Jasnine*!" I hissed out in exasperation. "Don't *do* that!" I whispered harshly as I attempted to disentangle myself from the mass of twigs and leaves that encased me. She chuckled as she took a hold of my biceps and hauled me out of the bush without so much as a grunt.

"I couldn't resist." She said with a serene smile as she dusted the loose leaves off of my shoulders.

I looked at her sweetly smiling face. My mind felt like it had just been picked up by one of Raska's monstrous winged pets and taken for a gut clenching flight. My brain didn't know which way was up or down anymore.

Only, in this case, the direction was personified by Jasnine.

Now she was suddenly the same Jasnine as I had always known! I didn't get it!

"I'm never going on a mission with you again." I stated flatly.

Jasnine gave a small gasp of disbelief. "You're just saying that! You don't mean it Meri!" She declared as she encased me in a soft "normal" hug.

I just pulled my face away from her chest and gave her a raised eyebrow as a reply. It seemed like the Jasnine I knew to be "normal" was back. Especially considering, when she saw the reply on my face, her eyes started getting misty and her bottom lip started slightly trembling. She saw me and Nelia as family and it absolutely crushed her if we were upset with her.

I gave a heavy sigh and gave her a squeeze back. "Maybe, I will go with you on a bounty again. Someday..." Hope lit Jasnine's eyes up again and she started to smile, "Not any time soon though." Her smile faltered and she immediately pursed her lips in disappointment.

"Oh come now, it was NOT that bad!" She placated while we started walking back to the area that the gateway had opened for us in the beginning of the evening.

"No... It was worse." I muttered haggardly. At least at the Order I knew that Raska wouldn't kill me during the training sessions.