*Katerina's POV*

My eyes widened as I gawked at the numerous glows.

Belatedly, in a hushed voice, I said, "Diondin, dozens of stones are glowing now! I can't see what the mages are doing, but more keep appearing."

"Dozens? Are they stronger glows or just faint illumination?"

"Stronger, just like the four they were using–" I paused as several figures scrambled out of the rock rubble and began running this way. "They're coming this way!"

"I can't see through the smoke," he growled. "What–"

Another explosion blasted skyward, creating more fire and smoke. A dim bluish shimmer appeared overhead, forming a shield that covered most of the canyon.

"There's three of them!" I hissed. My heart pounded as I waited for his reply. When it didn't come, I repeated myself, "Diondin! There's three of them! They're coming right for us!"

There was still no response. Several runes scattered on the ground by the cave glowed brighter, then flared as more spells were cast skyward. The runes dimmed and slowly began glowing again. They weren't being aimed, not that I could see well past the smoke, but they were sending attacks without distracting a mage.

Three men ran this way, burdened with backpacks and several small stone tablets. I hunched down as far as I could while still watching them.

"There isn't enough time for a true binding, but we can use a lens from a dragon's eye as the focus of this spell to become invisible to the other dragons."

One mage stumbled as he stared at his companion. "We have to pop its eye?"

"Do you have a better idea?" the first one demanded. "I didn't expect seven dragons to show up. They usually only travel in groups of two or three."

Without waiting for a reply, the ringleader dropped his armful of stones on the ground and drew a belt knife as he ran toward Rakota's head. I could barely believe my ears, but the man was definitely prepared to maim a dragon if it meant he could escape.

Swallowing hard, I grabbed my bow and leaned around the boulder. Even as I nocked the arrow, I knew this could very well be a fatal mistake, but I couldn't let them gouge out Rakota's eyes.

I released the string and ducked down without waiting to see the arrow miss. A pained yell startled me so much I almost dropped my bow. I peeked through a different gap. One mage – not the ringleader – sat on the ground with an arrow in his leg, and his stone slabs scattered around him.

The mage with the belt knife was backing up to the stone tablets he'd dropped as he scanned the boulders. The third one held something in the air as it started glowing. It flared and a massive fireball raced toward my hiding place.

A second fireball came from overhead, intercepting the mage's attack. I glanced up to see Serepha on the ridge, standing inside the shield. One wing sagged and more than a few of her luminous scales were scuffed, but that only added to the threat behind her bared teeth.

Her murderous glare was locked onto the mages as she launched another fireball at them. The two mages with the stones each held up one as it started glowing. Remembering how the falling rock had interrupted a spellcasting, I quickly grabbed another arrow and sent it flying. It whizzed in front of a mage, missing, but it was enough to distract him and make the rune go dark.

Lightning cracked down, striking the ground between the ringleader and his pre-charged spells. He slid to a stop, then ran sideways to the boulders, ducking out of sight. I shot a few more arrows at the two mages fending off Serepha but kept glancing to the side nervously.

The faint clattering of small stones confirmed my fears. I quickly ducked behind a different boulder as I nocked another arrow onto the bow string. Serepha was too busy exchanging spells with the other two mages to notice my situation or have time to help.

I slinked behind another boulder, hoping to evade him long enough for Serepha to defeat the other two mages. This was a dangerous game of cat and mouse. He had magic on his side, and even if he didn't have the powerful pre-charged runes, he could still cast spells that I had no defense against. And if he figured out how much magic was hidden inside me... I gulped and edged farther away, watching my step so I made the least amount of noise possible.

"You might as well come out," a voice said about a stone's throw away. "I know you're hiding around here."

I slipped behind yet another boulder and wondered what sort of fool he thought I was.

"I'll free you from your chains," the voice continued reasonably. "You'll be free, and we'll both get to go our own ways."

My feet continued moving as quickly as I dared. I was no match against a mage, and I knew it. In the middle of the valley, spells from the unattended runes continued to fly skyward even as Serepha sent more fire and lightning at the other two mages.

"Ah, there you are. Now hold still."

I spun around, only now noticing the mage had climbed on top of a boulder and could easily see me. He unrolled a leather scroll and a rune on it began glowing. I shot an arrow at him as I ducked behind another boulder and out of sight.

"Thank you for the arrow. Now I don't even need to see you."

My heart sank as I realized the truth behind his words. If I hid, he'd have all the time in the world to cast. The only remaining option was to interrupt his concentration. Even as I put another arrow on my bow, I wondered if I stood any chance of hitting him.

Standing up, I twisted around and fired the bow. The glowing rune dimmed as the man sidestepped the arrow even though it would have missed him anyway. I quickly grabbed another arrow and shot it, then another, and another. I desperately tried to hit him but couldn't take much time to aim since the rune would swiftly regain its glow.

My fingers closed around my last arrow. Taking a deep breath, I put it on the string as the rune began glowing brighter. Determination filled me as I took aim. The mage stared right back at me, no trace of fear or unease in his gaze.

Twang! The string sang as it fired my last arrow. The mage ducked down, letting it sail past him. The rune dimmed halfway, but quickly began regaining its glow. It was getting bright – too bright.

Refusing to give up, I grabbed several rocks near my feet and whipped them at the mage. One clipped his shoulder and another flew past his head. Behind him, Randel crept across the rocks and began climbing up the boulder.

I swiftly threw more rocks to distract the mage. A spark of hope lit inside me as over half of them struck my would-be attacker. My aim with stones was clearly several notches above my archery skills.

One clipped his forehead. "Ack! Stop that! Just look this way and hold still. I need that bond in order to control the dragon's mind."

"Hell with that!" I retorted, throwing more stones and trying to keep him from noticing the rider sneaking up behind him.

A couple of the rocks almost hit Randel, who dodged them more gracefully than I had expected. If he hadn't been directly behind the mage, he wouldn't have so many close calls.

Despite all the stones I was throwing, the rune was slowly getting brighter. The mage suddenly stopped dodging, letting two hit him, but the glow didn't diminish. My breath caught in my throat as it flared.

A burst of green and blue light flew at me. Even as I dropped to my knees to avoid it, it struck my skin like oily swamp water. Then it faded. Nothing happened.

The mage gaped at me in complete shock. "Wha– You're not a rider!"

Randel swung his sword at the mage's head. "No, but I am!"

Clank. I winced at the sound of steel meeting bone. The mage tumbled off the boulder headfirst and landed with a sickening crunch. His neck and body were twisted at an unnatural angle, and I didn't look closely enough to see if the blood came from injuries related to the fall or Randel's sword.

Ignoring the dead mage, Randel slid down the boulder. "Are you okay?"

"I think so. Thanks." I cast a nervous glance at the growing blood pool under the mage. "Should we find a better hiding place in case he has some kind of explosion spell like the ones at the mines had?"

"Good idea. Let's go." He glanced up. "It looks like Serepha is only fighting one mage now. She'll win in a few minutes."

"I hope so," I murmured as I followed Randel between the boulders.