Blood dyed her trembling hands, providing a fleeting warmth that was soon stolen by the cold winds that carried the clouds of dust across the chamber. Her vision flickered as a throbbing pain jolted through her battered body. The faint blue residue of spirit essence lingered on his fingertips and as she tried to hold onto it. It vanished, leaving behind an emptiness that struck her heart.

  May’s body shuddered uncontrollably as she lay amidst the rubble of the ruined teleportation platform. Blaire’s final moments flashed through her mind, causing her to grab onto shoulders in disarray while tugging the fabric of her clothes. Slowly, she turned her head, locking onto the trail of blood that led to Owl’s motionless body. Her breaths came in short bursts of ragged and uneven gasps. While sweat mixed with the dust and trickled down her forehead, stinging her eyes.

  It can’t be.

  Her mind screamed the truth, but her heart clung to the lie. Whispering in her mind.

  He’s alive. He has to be.

  But that was a lie, a lie she told herself to believe that everything would be fine. Yet no matter what she said, or did. Her body continued to shiver uncontrollably as she lay there on the broken stone tiles. She struggled to crawl towards her mentor—her father—who gave his life for hers with every bone in her body fighting against her will.

  Her instincts told her to run away. To get as far away as possible from the sinister aura wrapping around her like a thick veil. Cradling her in a malicious energy that sought to invade her mind and break her spirit. Her fingers scraped against the cold floors as she squirmed back.

  The sinister energy refused to let go and clung to her. Oozing into the surroundings like a living miasma that tainted everything it touched and soon a voice whispered into her ear.

  [You killed him.]

  No, I didn’t mean to—

  [But you did, and you liked it.]

  Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!

  [Why? You know the truth, after all. I can feel it. I can see it in your memories.]

  The voice tore apart May’s mind bit by bit, gnawing at her thoughts as it tried to deconstruct every part of her life. She could feel her heart quiver in pain as she tried to focus on the platform. Feeling the malevolent aura leaking from the center of the teleportation device like a plague. Still, she felt powerless to do anything.

  A hand reached out from the depths of the platform. Pulling itself free as it rose from the debris, with rubble falling off its shoulders. The shadow loomed over her and the other watchmen, relishing in its newfound freedom. With two obsidian horns jutted from the sides of its ashen head, sharp and curved like scythes. Its smog-colored skin was unlike anything they had ever seen before. Its fingers wrapping around a single, jagged object. A blade resembling that of a rusty cleaver. The weapon hummed a chaotic tune that seemed to shake their very souls as its distorted appearance shimmered with corrupted energy like the abyss.

  Yet despite the noise, Tucker raced to the platform and pushed through the thick miasma that leaked from the platform before grabbing onto May. “May! Can you move!” He stared in bewilderment at her upon noticing how much she was trembling and then threw her towards Mark along with the broken metal canister as pages flew out from the side. “Get out of here and bring this back to the Order!”

  Mark held the broken canister and May. His eyes shifted towards the demon, but before they could move any further. Tucker’s desperate voice entered his ears. “Listen, you need to finish the mission. We’ll buy time for you!”

  The giant nodded and quickly took May and what was left of the canister before heading to the entrance of the tunnel. He gazed back at the other watchmen and bitterly gritted his teeth before sprinting down the tunnels.

  Tucker watched as Alex engaged the figure that came from the teleportation device and gritted his teeth. He wanted to help the old man, but right now, he needed to check on Owl. His eyes scanned the area for the injured watchman, but instead, the other half of the pages came into sight. He felt his spirit essence waver as he stared at the contents.

  The information was the key to their mission. A crucial piece of the puzzle that could change the very outcome of the war. Tucker knew this but felt his hands shake as he reached for the pages. They were scattered throughout the area and if he wanted, he could gather them all but…

  Why am I hesitating?

  The thought gnawed at him as he clenched his jaw. If he grabbed the papers and ran with Alex, they would easily complete the mission. It was everything the Order needed. Yet the idea didn’t sit well with him. It didn’t feel right to abandon one of their own, and if he did. He would be no better than the watchmen before him.

  There was also no telling how far the pages had flown through the area, and if he did try to search for it, Owl would definitely die before he found them all.

  What would Alex do?

  Tucker asked himself with frustration tightening in his chest. He knew the answer but couldn’t bring himself to move, and as he thought this, a gust of wind from Gale pushed him forward. Forcing him to step towards Blaire as if a snapping realization grabbed hold of him. The pages would have to wait. First, he needed to save Blaire, then face the demon.

  Running through the clouds of dust, Tucker waved his hand, fanning out the smoke that blocked his vision. The metallic scent of blood hung heavy in the air. Guiding him towards Blaire who was buried beneath a pile of stone bricks and wooden planks, and with sparing a second, Tucker rushed over. Dropping to his knees as he scrapped and clawed through the debris to free the watchman.

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  When Blaire’s broken body finally came into view, Tucker popped the cork off of the healing potion and held their body while pouring the crimson liquid over his wound. It sizzled and bubbled on the large gash, but as Tucker stared at his bloodstained hands, his heart sank.

  “Ah…” Tucker dropped the empty vial, listening to it bounce on the floor. A knot formed in his throat as he stared at Owl’s motionless body. His mind struggled to process what had just happened—like time itself had frozen, but the evidence was right in front of him.

  Owl was dead. The ambush instantly killed him.

  Tucker clenched his fist. An overwhelming sense of guilt filled his mind, and he didn’t know what to do.

  I should have checked the platform. I should have told them about the issue with the dwarf’s teleportation device.

  Tucker’s mind raced as he played the scenario out in his head. He pressed on the wound, trying to keep it shut, and poured another vial over it. Then another, and another, until finally he ran out. The last vial hit the ground, shattering into countless tiny pieces as Tucker knelt there, thinking about how he could have done to change the outcome. A way to save Owl, yet no matter how much he tried, it was impossible. And that reality left him shocked.

  “Focus!”

  Tucker snapped out of his thoughts and followed the voice to Alex, who shouted at the top of his lungs. He watched the old man swiftly deflect the jagged cleaver to the side and slash at the creature’s chest. His blade nicking the surface as his flames flared in desperation to penetrate its defenses.

  He stood there frozen, but knew that now wasn’t the time to grieve. He needed to help his partner, or else the old man would suffer the same fate as Owl. Tucker bit his lip and took the medallion from Blaire’s body with a pained expression. It was impossible to retrieve his body, but the least he could do was to carry his memento. Yet, as he inspected the small medallion, his eyes widened.

  Not a single scratch was on the surface of the cold owl-shaped metal with an azure ribbon on the end. The medallion was perfectly fine.

  Despite the intense bleeding from Owl, the watchman was still alive. Even if it was just barely. Otherwise, the medallion would have snapped in half, signaling their death as the spirit essence that bridged their soul to his companion would cease to exist. Without wasting a second, he grabbed hold of Blare’s arm and threw him over his shoulder.

  The rookie stared at the demonic creature. It was more than double the size of Alex and could single-handedly swing its cleaver with ease. He needed to do something to turn the tides of the battle. To help his mentor, and after scanning his surroundings. His gaze fell on the stone bridge above the platform.

  As the demon clashed with Alex beneath the shadow of the stone bridge. An idea came to mind. Alex held his ground against the monstrous beast, locking it in a feral dance that pushed and pulled the air in the chamber. In an instant, Tucker gathered his spirit essence within the palm of his hands, letting it coalesce into a verdant swirl as Gale emerged from the sphere of energy. With a flutter of its wings, Gale took to the sky. A look of anger flashed in its eyes at the Hellspawn perched on the platform. An undeniable fury containing pure hatred and spite.

  “Gale! I need you to break that stone bridge above the platform!” Tucker frantically ordered, praying that his spirit companion would cooperate and sensing the urgency in his voice. It immediately flew towards the cobblestone bridge and flapped its wings, releasing a fierce slash of wind that destroyed the two outer sections of the cobblestone bridge.

  Alex, who sensed the abundance of spirit energy in the chamber, looked up and watched as the structure above him crumbled. The falling stone and dust landed all around him as he battled the demon. Their blades clashed, shockwaves erupting through the area. His eyes narrowed while strengthening his body with aura. There was only one way they would win, and it was crushing the demon under a mountain of stone.

  Bit by bit, more rubble descended onto the platform. Catching the demon’s attention as it glared at the collapsing bridge with its violet eyes. Yet before it could move out of the way, Alex circled around the fiend and concentrated his essence on the edge of his sword. In one swift motion, he severed both of the demon’s achilles tendons, forcing it to cry out in pain as it struggled to stand.

  The collapsing stone bridge fell, and without wasting a single moment, Alex drove off the platform and rolled to his side before standing. Dust flew everywhere as the large section of the bridge fell on top of the demon. With a resounding crash, the platform quaked as it shattered beneath the pressure of the large stone fragment. After moments of silence, the two stood still.

  “Did we get it?” Tucker asked.

  “If the dwarves managed to kill a four-horned demon by dropping an anvil on it. Then it should be as good as dead with that bridge on top of it.”

  Tucker let out a sigh of relief, watching as Alex walked over to the other half of the broken canister Mark had dropped. The pages were torn and shattered throughout the filth and sewage. Any hopes of recovering the reports were hopeless now, but before he could think about what to do next, Alex’s gaze fell on the rookie. Tucker clenched Owl’s body with a bitter expression and, seeing this, Alex lightly patted his shoulder.

  “There’s still hope. If we leave now and reach the dwarven stronghold, there’s a chance he’ll make it.” Alex’s soft tone was quiet but firm. The old man was sincere in his words causing Tucker to nod with a hope filled gaze.

  Before another word escaped, they both felt the earth shake. Their eyes narrowed as the noise of a deep rumble filled the chamber, accompanied by a sharp crunch of stone reverberating behind them. The dust cloud had yet to settle, and the unease in their bodies wouldn’t clear. Tucker’s gaze fell on Gale, and soon his companion flew towards the thick wall of smoke. With one powerful beat of its wings, it blew away the dust surrounding the broken platform, causing a well of emotions to fill their minds.

  The demon had yet to fall. Its weapon buried itself in the ground before it, and with one knee on the ground, it held the colossal bridge with both arms as the object rested on its shoulders. The two watchmen stood there in disbelief as the fiend released a terrifying howl that shook them to their very core. Its muscles tensed as the veins bulged along its forearms and neck. It pushed its arms upwards. Each inch gained from the demon’s display of raw prowess caused their breath to fall short. In an instant, it raised the bridge above its head in defiance and hurled the object to the side as its bloodshot eyes locked onto them.

  They felt the ground shake once the bridge slammed into the ground. Their thoughts wandered for a moment as the demon reached for its blade. Once it held the hilt of its cleaver, the beast slowly swung its blade to the side, cutting the empty air before the fallen structure. Before they could comprehend what had just happened, the bridge blew up into countless tiny pieces, sending rubble flying in all directions.

  Alex clicked his tongue and took out several white cubes from his pouch. “We’re leaving.”

  Without waiting for Tucker to respond, he threw the orbs onto the shattered ground, breaking the spheres into tiny pieces as a cloud of smoke filled the entire chamber. Both of them immediately turned tail and sprinted towards the tunnel they came from, but as they reached the entrance, a terrifying chill crept up their spines. Tucker’s entire body broke out into a cold sweat as he felt his heart stop. Something was looming over him, and he couldn’t tell what it was. His entire body trembled in fear as it crept upon them, and then the world suddenly faded into darkness.

  Well! I'm back to outlining and planning since I'm going to my 3x schedule. Maybe I'll still do a bonus chapter. Who knows?

  I have the urge to release more, but it's the final week of RS for me, and I think I had a good run.

  Now, it's consistency and delivering on quality. I also received some feedback and plan to tweak certain parts of the story to better improve them.

  If you're enjoying the story so far, it would mean a lot to me if you could follow, favorite, or leave a review!