Omar grasped my shoulders and the tops of my arms. My skin burned as if it were on the verge of tearing, and my body felt like it would come apart at any moment. Despite trying with everything I had left, I couldn’t lift my arms to defend myself. Instead, I flailed them out, reaching for Omar. My hand brushed against his leather pouch. Is that where he kept the powder he blew in Sani’s eyes? I swung my arm again, wiggling the pouch open and snatching a handful of powder.

  I tried again to lift my arm so I could get the powder in his eyes. But he was too strong. Just as my muscles felt like they could take no more, a dagger whizzed by my head. The blade sank into Omar’s eye, right where I had stabbed him earlier. He screamed, loosening his grip for a moment.

  Seizing the opportunity, I lifted my arm into the air, flinging the handful of powder into Omar’s face.

  He still screamed, but it was a slow drawn-out sound bellowing from his open mouth. His grip seemed to tighten, but moved slowly enough that I could still wiggle a bit.

  Kiri sprang to her feet and jumped beside me, pulling at Omar’s hand.

  His grip remained.

  The sasquatch, seeming to come out of nowhere, joined in, also pulling at the strong man’s hands.

  Still, no change. I feared, even with him slowed, he would eventually rip me apart. If not while still in slow motion, then when the spell wore off.

  Kiri reached up and twisted the dagger that was still embedded in Omar’s eye.

  His reaction was delayed, but I felt his grip loosen again. Finally, I was able to wiggle free, falling to the ground as I struggled.

  I sprang to my feet. “We have to move.”

  Kiri snarled, “After I push this into his evil brain.” She continued to turn the dagger.

  I grabbed her arm. “We will not kill a defenseless yaksha, even if he is evil.”

  “If you don’t, he will come for you,” Avian said.

  “If you do, his two friends will come for all of us,” Bedri said.

  Kiri continued pushing. With the human blood coursing through her, I was no match for her strength. But the sasquatch seemed to be. He grabbed her arm and yanked it back. They struggled for a moment, then the dagger plunked from the eye, slipping from Kiri’s grip and falling to the ground.

  Kiri snarled.

  “He lost. We don’t need to take this any further,” I said.

  She glared at me with wild eyes.

  “What now?” Avian asked.

  Bedri cleared his throat. “As Omar had pointed out, we are not to interfere since we have no contract.” He shrugged. “I suppose we head back to Palla Cahua while your friends go on their way.”

  Sani continued to move forward slowly.

  “What about him?” I asked. “When does this potion wear off?”

  Avian shrugged. “Depends on how he mixed it. But we do know one thing, once Sani’s potion wears off, then Omar won’t be slow much longer.”

  I locked eyes with Sani and spoke extremely slowly, hoping it sounded regular from his perspective. “Stop the attack, let go of the spear, and part your legs like you are sitting on a horse.” I turned to Avian. “Can you help me lift him?”

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  As she joined me, his grip on the spear started to loosen. By the time we lifted him, the weapon fell to the ground below. We carried him to his horse, but getting him up there wasn’t easy. Luckily, the sasquatch realized what we were doing and came over to help. His strength was beneficial, but his height made it even easier. We would have needed to lift Sani above our shoulders, but he only needed to get him up to his chest.

  Once on the horse, I lashed him to it with rope and tied the reins to his hands.

  Before mounting my own steed, I returned to Mace. Ducking under his slow-moving hands. I untied the three sacks from his belt. One contained the slowing spell, but I wasn’t sure what was in the other two. Then I noticed the tops of two vials poking out from his belt. I pulled them free, glancing at them before tucking them into my waistline. They were black, like the potion he drank before becoming nearly invincible.

  Did Blood Magic create such a strong spell? I couldn’t be sure, which meant I wouldn’t drink it. But taking it from Mace meant he couldn’t use it against us either. Not that I planned to stick around long enough to face him again. “I’ll pull Sani’s horse.” I turned to Avian. “Can you lead the apprentice?”

  Bedri locked eyes with Avian. “I wasn’t just speaking for Omar’s sake. You should ride back to Palla Cahua with me. Traveling with them is dangerous. They have made powerful enemies.” He pointed at me. “And he is a Void Wigon.”

  “What?” I raised my voice. “I’m a True Blood Wigon.” My face heated up. Over the past few nights, I had been accused of being a Nasar Wigon several times, which was bad enough. But a Void Wigon! Why did he think I participated in the evil dark arts?

  He shook his head. “You used Void magic. First, the powder that blinded Omar, then the one that slowed his movement.”

  “I stole the blinding one from Dante and the other one from Omar. I didn’t make them.”

  “True Blood Wigons only use magic sanctioned by Mallma, and I can assure you the royals haven’t authorized you to use either of those powders.” He flared his nostrils. “The evil doesn’t only come from making the spells, but from using them as well.”

  “I had no choice.” I threw my hands up. “If I hadn’t used them, we could all be dead.”

  “Better dead than falling under the seduction of the Void Wigon ways. Do you think those practicing the dark arts started out intending to be evil?” He shook his head. “Small compromises along the way make room for larger ones later.”

  My teeth hurt from clenching my jaw so hard. I wasn’t sure if I was mad at his accusations or upset that his words made sense. Can an action taken to save the lives of my friends be evil, even if the desperate means forced upon me saved the lives of good beings?

  Avian whispered to Bedri. I couldn’t hear her words, nor guess at what she said to him. But whatever it was, he nodded, his face showing signs of agreement.

  What could she have said that he would agree with? Why would she need to whisper it? Up until that point, I had put a lot of trust in our fidi partner. But now I wondered if her motivations had been questionable since the beginning of this trip. Unlike Sani and Kiri, she was thrust upon us by a Rasmun, instead of joining the group out of a sense of camaraderie.

  “I shall head back to town.” He locked eyes with me. “I don’t set out to tell others about what happened here on this night. But if questioned, I won’t lie.”

  The hair stood up on the back of my neck. Is he saying he’ll tell them I’m a Void Wigon if they ask? If the punishment for being a Nasar Wigon was death, then what would they do to someone as evil as a Void Wigon? “If we were to have a contract between us, then you would be bound by your honor as a Rasmun not to relay what had happened here.”

  He shook his head. “You have nothing I want in return.” Grinning, he added, “And unlike Layla, I refuse to work with Void Wigons.”

  I scanned Avian’s face, expecting to see a reaction from his comment about Layla, but if she had feelings about it, she hid them.

  “I’ll see you soon.” He said to Avian. “The rest of you, get far away from here and do not return.”

  “Let’s get back on the road,” I said, speaking loud enough for Omar to hear. “We have four more speed potions for the horses. We’ll be able to get far enough away before Omar wakes.”

  They followed me. Avian nudged her horse beside me as we got close. “We should use the potions as soon as we get back on the road.”

  “We don’t have any additional potions.” I shrugged. “Omar is less likely to attempt to catch up when his spell wears off if he thinks we do.”

  “And if he tries anyway?”

  “We won’t be on the road.” I pointed to the forest on the other side. “It will take us longer, but we will stay deep in the trees. If they decide to pursue, they will think they are unable to catch us.”

  “Unless they track us using my ear.”

  I thought for a moment. “Cutting you was already a risk. If they use your flesh in a spell without justification, they will be making an enemy of Layla and the Rasmun.”

  “But I interfered, throwing two daggers.”

  “He was blind. He knows not who threw them. And from Bedri’s words, he would think you sat out as he did.”

  She stared ahead. “I hope you are right. If fighting one Void Wigon was that difficult, I can’t imagine taking on all three.”

  A shiver ran up my spine. “Five if Dante and Lar join them.”