I ran through the forest as it burned.

The iron clad people had arrived in our part of the woods.

My vision was blurred by tears as I pushed through the thick branches of the untamed forest.

There had been rounds of the metal men of death that were raging the Endirisania but my family didn't buy it. They thought it was just some kids playing pranks with their magic.

But how wrong they were.

I glanced back as I heard a large craving thud and saw our burning house had collapsed in on itself.

I saw the men still moving and continued running.

I dashed through the stream and over the hill.

I could hear the fighting in the far off distance, as all the sorcerers and sorceresses in town resisted the steel people.

I couldn't tell who was winning anymore, all I could see was the smoke rising about the trees from where I was on the second hill.

My family said they'd meet me at our old cottage buried deep in the forest, away from where everyone lived. It was a several day journey to make it there, but I knew the path well.

I didn't understand why I couldn't have met them on the hill so we could flee together but it was too late to protest now. Dad said they'd be taking a back trail, and it would take them longer to get there.

I ran and ran until my legs collapsed. I'd only been able to run two hours, as even though I was a sorceress I wasn't superhuman.

After a short rest, and taking a drink of water from the lake, I started on my way again. (I used a water purification spell before drinking, don't think I'm stupid enough to drink straight from a lake.)

After hours of walking I figured it was safe enough to make camp for a few hours at least. I climbed into a tree and found myself falling asleep much more quickly than I would have thought to have.

After three days I made it to our cottage.

And there I waited.

And waited.

And waited some more.

After nearly a week, I was concerned.

How long is this detour? I wondered.

What had been days turned into weeks, which turned into months.

I'd long since feared the worst. My hope of ever seeing my family again was gone.

That's why they didn't come with me. I realized at long last.

I wanted to go looking for them but I didn't know if it was safe or not.

At about week 14 from when the attack took place the corsage was finally found.

I don't know how I managed to survive this long but I'm willing to guess the smoke from the wood stove might have something to do with that.

I put out the fire with a cold puff of air. (With magic, obviously.) Then I grabbed my parent's spell book and stuffed it into a satchel, along with several vials of rare herbs that had been imported. I grabbed my mother's old favorite cloak and I rushed to the special cabinet.

I quickly found an invisibility potion from among the various pre-prepared elixirs.

Please don't be expired, I thought as I drank it.

Just as I did, the doors slammed open.

Two iron men barged in and searched the house from top to bottom, flipping furniture and ripping the doors of cabinets.

"Find anything?" A voice asked.

"Someone is obviously living here," one noted when the other wanted to give up.

"They must have already fled," the first one's deep voice replied.

"We just need to get out, and report to the master."

The two exited the small cottage and told the remaining steel people to comb the forest as the demon couldn't be far.

Then I heard the first man give orders to burn the cottage.

I ran through the open door just as it was lit up in a fiery explosion.

There were metal men everywhere I turned. The woods were infested.

I knew even at its most potent state the potion would only last a few hours at max, and these people didn't appear to be leaving any time soon.

I waved my way through the forest and the invaders as far and as fast as I could, trying to get some distance before I became visible again.

That evening I made camp in a cave high up on a steep mountain. I collect several wild vines and leaves and drape them over the entrance to the cave, then activate a cloaking spell with some nightshade and deer honey. (Don't ask.)

It was months later and I'd survived this far without event.

The cave I made camp in connected with catacombs of other caves of which the ceilings had caved in, creating the perfect little enclosed woods.

Woods in which I made an extensive garden.

I used some pear sprout blossoms to speed up the growth process of the seeds I'd planted and it worked out just perfectly.

It was nearly a year and a half since the original attack when I found all of the ingredients to make an invisibility potion.

I decided it was finally time to go survey the damages back home and confirm my greatest fears.

When I made it to town nearly a week later I was shocked by the state of it all. The invaders had left at long last, but... what was left... well it wasn't much.

Every building in town had been burned to ashes, and the surrounding round was covered in soot.

I spent the next month traveling all over the country to every city of sorcery that I knew the location of and it was the same all across the Endirisania.

Eventually I returned to my cave home. Defeated.

Everyone is dead. I realized. I'm the last sorceress alive.