Harald was on his knees in the muddy forest soil. Blood gushed from his mouth. His right arm was hanging limply while he used the other to hold it against his body, giving him the stability he needed to roll away from the massive swings of the ogre.

  But his luck had run out.

  His head was spinning. He could feel bile in his throat as pain threatened to make him empty his stomach. Doom was coming for him, as the club rose one last time.

  “Ahhh!”

  A shrill scream filled with hatred and finality hurt his ears. Suddenly, the ogre’s head exploded in a cloud of gore. Its body kept swinging the club for a brief moment, its head replaced by a copy of its weapon. Harald gaped when the massive creature tipped forward, its club falling limply to the side, revealing an angel of blood. Tears painted uneven patterns on her cheeks and red mist congealed and wafted off her body like waves of summer heat.

  Before he could stop himself, Harald shrunk back in fear. His long-time friend had always been different, but he had ignored it because he’d seen the softness and loneliness beneath the savage visage. Seeing her now, though, he couldn’t help but shiver as his friend morphed into a savage beast.

  An elf… He muttered.

  ***

  Reyleigh looked at her friend, revealed by the ogre crashing to the ground, while her vision drifted in and out of focus. He silently muttered something, but the rushing in her head squashed whatever meaning lay in his words. She sank to her knees, gasping for breath; it was as if her arms and legs were clad in lead. At that moment she was utterly spent, her mana had run dry, the stolen life-force in her reservoir long gone, and her body bruised and battered beyond belief. Pain lanced up her face from her half-healed wound as she smiled, still aware enough to hide her teeth.

  “I… Reyleigh. I… Thank you.” Said Harald, with a tremble.

  Reyleigh only managed to nod in response from her kneeling position before she retched and emptied what little she had left in her stomach on the ground. Thoroughly tired of vomiting blood, she was just about to straighten before energy entered her for a third time. The phenomenon startled her, but she soon recognised it for what it was; kill energy. The same thing happened when she killed the goblin and probably when drained the ogre too. Other things were on her mind at the time, but she distinctly remembered the sensation. As the energy sped through her, she could feel herself absorbing it somewhere deep within, much like when she drank blood, but this seemed much more natural and, to her dismay, the energy quickly disappeared. It did, however, leave behind a slightly energising effect for which she was immensely thankful for.

  Realising she was still on her knees, she looked at Harald.

  “We need to find shelter. I can barely walk right now, much less fight. If more of them show up, we’re fucked.” She said with a croak.

  Harald paused, then nodded. With deliberate movements to control the pain, he tied his broken arm to his side with a leather strap and got to his feet. Seemingly back to his confident self, he held his healthy arm out to Reyleigh. She looked at it for a few seconds before taking it and hauling herself to her feet with a wince.

  Something’s changed… She whispered in her mind. He’s hesitating.

  She clenched her fist and looked at the red mist slowly dissipating from around her fingers.

  I can’t really blame him.

  “Saved by a monster…” she whispered under her breath.

  “What?” Asked Harald.

  “Nothing.”

  A whimper brought Reyleigh back to reality. As one, they turned to where Owen was whimpering on the ground with Themis tried half-heartedly to get him on his feet. Reyleigh threw a look towards where Themis had been fighting, finding the stronger goblin dead on the ground, its head pierced with Owen’s last dagger.

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  “Where is Purity? I saw her running in the middle of the fight. Did she leave us here to die?!” Owen forced out between clenched teeth, somewhat hysterically.

  Reyleigh winced as she remembered seeing Purity running away from them. She couldn’t help the fear creeping up her spine, both for Purity and for what was coming.

  “She wasn’t running Owen. Theres more of them coming.” Reyleigh replied and nodded at the carnage and dead monsters all around them.

  “Get your head out of your asses!” Themis roared. “Whatever her intention is, that idiot girl is long gone! We need to get into the dungeon right fucking now! We don’t have time to stand around here chittering. Even if the mongrel is right and Purity is scouting—or whatever else has gotten into her harebrained mind—we leave now, or die.”

  Themis stabbed a finger into Harald’s chest, all efforts to help Owen forgotten.

  “You fucking coward!” Harald thundered back “you left us to die just a few hours ago and now you’re suddenly concerned about our welfare?! If it wasn’t for your piss poor excuse for battle prowess you would have been long gone back to Unbern by now. We are not you.” Harald hissed while stabbing his own index finger back at Themis’ chest. “We don’t leave our comrades behind. And neither are we going into the fucking dungeon. That’s a death sentence and you know it!”

  “Who the fuck are you calling a coward, you whoreson?” Themis answered, a deranged gleam in his eyes as they almost popped from their sockets. “I fought my way back to you before I — “.

  A half-shout in a deep woman’s voice stopped Themis in his tracks.

  “Incoming!” Purity came running at a full sprint from behind the dungeon.

  She looked pale and worn, her armour torn and stained, and favouring her left leg. Her mace was gone, replaced by a goblin spear. She ran like her life depended on it and reached the haggard group in no time.

  “I tried to slow them.” She managed to get out between ragged breaths. “My Class has roots. But I couldn’t anymore. We need to run.”

  Purity’s short sentences were actually a boon for once, as four ogres choose that moment to round the massive tree trunk in hot pursuit. When they saw the injured ground, standing there bathed in blood and clearly wounded, they stopped in their tracks and looked at each other. They shared savage grins at the state of the prey before them. One of them roared and charged, the last three hot on his heels.

  Purity ran to Owen and hoisted him to his feet by his collar.

  “We go. Now!” she screamed and dragged the befuddled man screaming toward the dungeon entrance.

  Themis didn’t need to be told twice, his legs already pumping as he ran past the duo on the way to the door. Harald and Reyleigh looked at each other in helplessness before running after them.

  The wounded group hobbled toward the dungeon entrance. Continued whimpers and ragged breathing filled Reyleigh’s ears. Without looking back, Reyleigh and Harald overtook Purity and Owen. The large man snatching Owen from the smaller girls’ arms. They were close now. Reaching the stairs toward the dungeon door, they scrambled up step after step. The staircase felt endless and soon they could feel the steps trembling as the ogres reached it. Themis ignored all of them and was almost at the top already.

  Reyleigh couldn’t help herself and spared a quick glance behind her. To her horror saw the ogres taking three steps at a time, their long legs giving them a huge advantage.

  “Run! Get in! They are going to catch us!” she shrieked, willing herself to go faster.

  The others reacted to her desperate plea and surged forward, feet slipping on the polished wood. Thankfully, no one fell before they finally reached the plateau. It was perfectly circular, the massive stone door looming on the other side. Reyleigh had taken the lead and only Themis reached the door before her. When she arrived, he was desperately tugging at the massive handle, trying to get it open.

  “Help me, godsdamnit!” He barked.

  She didn’t waste any time, fear fuelling her muscles as she tugged at the door with everything she had. Her not insubstantial strength was enough to crack it open and, throwing caution to the wind, they jammed their hands and arms into the opening. Finally, the door reached a tipping point and swung open, creating a sliver just large enough to slip through.

  The other three reached the plateau just as she turned around.

  “Go go go!” She shouted.

  Themis wasted no time slipping through and disappearing inside the black abyss contained behind the door. Then Purity reached her and stepped up, nodding before vanishing. Finally, Harald arrived with Owen slung over his shoulder, two ogres hot on his heels. Reyleigh gulped as she saw the creatures bear down on her, their hatred and bloodlust twisting their faces. Harald met her eyes and barrelled through the opening thin opening, leaving her alone with the ogres. The large man disappeared, and she used the freed-up space to take the last step through the portal. Before she finished, the lead ogre launched itself with a desperate cry toward her. She was already half through the door when she screamed in pain, her ankle caught in a pockmarked hand, its strength threatening to break it. Franticly she tried to dislodge her foot, but the grip was just too strong, and another hand clamped down on her shoulder, dragging her backwards like a rag-doll.

  On the brink of desperation, she tried to activate Charge, but her overtaxed body wouldn’t heed her commands. Neither did Blood Frenzy or even Blood manipulation want to activate, as she cast about her arsenal for a way out of the ogre’s grasp. Just as she was about to turn and make her last stand, an arrow bearing a black mark pulverised the head of the monster holding her. The sudden change in equilibrium made her tumble backwards, straight through the portal. The last thing she saw before the world lurched was a familiar set of sunken eyes gazing into hers.