Realm Keepers 01 - Realm Keepers

hate, but also with fear.
    The gargantuan muscle-bound guy raised his hand and pointed directly at us. I felt like he was pointing directly at me . As one, the entire army of black creatures turned to follow his outstretched finger, gazing at us with hate and malice.
    “Kill the Rune Keepers!” the man bellowed, his voice carrying clearly across the now-still afternoon air.
    Behind me I heard the clanking of metal as Cara raised a plate-gloved fist high. “Protect the Chosen!” she called out.
    The army of blackness poured toward us across the field. Cara and her guard cut through the last few creatures between us and the portal, and then we were running, flying across the grass. The portal looked too far. Risking a glance over my shoulder, I could see the creatures gaining ground. More were circling in from the sides, and they were going to reach the portal before we could.
    “Rearguard!” cried Cara, and she turned to face the army of monsters. I stopped at the command in her voice, almost turning to help her fight.
    “Keep going!” shouted Greystone, grabbing my arm and thrusting me further toward the portal. It was only a few dozen yards away. Greystone turned to the creatures swarming at us on either side and waved his wand. Walls of what looked like crackling blue electricity erupted on either side of us and flew into the crowd, roasting the clustering throngs of monsters, who fell to the ground twitching and screaming. Greystone stopped at the portal and motioned us through.
    I almost leapt into the blue, swirling energy, but I turned and looked back. Cara was still there, fighting with her guard, surrounded by the remnants of the rest of the army. But they were disintegrating. The entire force was only minutes, perhaps seconds away from death.
    I turned to Greystone. “Tell her to run!” I shouted.
    Greystone looked at her sadly. “She will not,” he said.
    “Try!” I told him. Exasperated, I turned to the fighting. “Cara!” I shouted, trying to be heard. “We reached it! Tell your men to come back with us!”
    She didn’t so much as turn her head. I wasn’t loud enough. I wasn’t used to yelling across a chaotic battlefield where men and monsters were fighting and dying.
    “Come on, Sarah!” said Miles. I turned to see all the rest of them standing just outside the portal, waiting for me. Greystone put a hand on my shoulder.
    “Go through!” he commanded. “They are giving their lives so you can have yours.”
    “They can come with us!” I screamed, batting his hand away. I turned back.
    I could see the huge, muscular man, still on his hill, still far away. He was looking at me and smiling. There was so much hatred and cruelty in that smile, it made me shiver. More than anything, I wanted to turn and run into the portal. But it wasn’t right to just leave all these people here to die. There were hardly any of them left, just Cara and less than a dozen of her men.
    “Cara!” I screamed, as loud as I could. “CARA!”
    I clenched my fists and pounded my legs as I screamed, and all of a sudden the ground erupted. A massive chunk of earth that Cara and her men were standing on rose up like a suddenly growing mountain, flinging all of them in our direction while launching the black creatures in the other. With a roar the army began to swarm around the sudden hillock that had sprung up before them.
    I looked at Greystone, relief on my face. “Nice job,” I said.
    “I didn’t do that,” he said mysteriously.
    Before I could ask him what he meant, Cara leapt back to her feet and, much to my relief, didn’t turn to fight again. Instead she shouted a command to retreat and booked it right for us. I couldn’t believe anyone could run that fast in so much armor. She looked faster than Miles on the school track. Her men followed. One of them stumbled, and she turned to help him up, cutting down two of the monstrous front runners that loomed over them both. Then they were fleeing for us again.
    I turned. It was time to go. I couldn’t be sure if they’d reach us in time, but we’d done all we could do.
    “Through the portal!” I shouted. “Come on!”
    I grabbed Tess and flung her into the blue energy. She disappeared with a sharp zapping noise. I hoped like crazy that she was okay. Blade jumped through after her, then Raven and Calvin jumped through together.
    I turned one last time. Cara and her men were only thirty feet away. Greystone waved his hands, and a blast of wind