The set of potions I drank was something the Department of Dungeons called the Trifecta. They gave one to each of their Inspectors to deal with tough situations. Each potion was rare and expensive, and I tried not to use it when I didn’t need to. I had gone through many subjugations without them, but I wasn’t about to leave anything up to chance here.

  The first potion enhanced my physical abilities. Since I didn’t have magic of my own, boosting my strength and reflexes was a must. Energy surged through my body like the lightning I had just dodged, powerful, dangerous, but controlled.

  The second potion protected me. My skin hardened, though remained just as flexible, and I gained some measure of resistance against harmful forms of magic and dispelling effects. Not only that, but my mind was bolstered as well. Mental magic was heavily frowned upon, especially in a dungeon, but not everyone played by the rules.

  The last potion only did one thing, and I usually only drank the Trifecta for its effect over all the others. It was the one with the most restrictions on it. Not completely limited, but people couldn’t buy them in bulk unless they had a license for it. This was a Potion of Fly.

  Abara’s eyes widened when I left the ground and charged. Even though the Gnome was surprised, he had time to cast one more spell in the short moment it took me to reach him. I readied my blood-seeking scimitar at my side as he put his hands up, ready to take whatever attack he was going to throw at me.

  He mumbled his spell, and a shadow-like curtain descended over his body. Back in the Karst of Vile Spores, he had used this spell to great effect. It looked like a variant of Blink, which made it harder to hit the target. Annoying, but my sword would work through it.

  It should have worked better than it did, though.

  I passed by Abara, my scimitar slicing halfway through his darkened form. He grunted in pain, but I could tell that the blow was shallow because of the lack of resistance. My blade seemed to work, but not nearly as well as I’d hoped. Whatever variant the spell added, it must have protections against my type of weapons.

  “Annoying,” I muttered.

  The Gnome didn’t answer. Instead, he threw himself off of the tree-like crystal and fell towards the sloped roof of the Green Union’s building. My eyes never left him, and I spun to follow. Beneath him, a portal to some nondescript room opened up.

  I grit my teeth and willed myself to fly faster, but I was already going as fast as I could. Switching my grip on the sword, I went for a thrust, hoping to catch Abara through the ribs before he fell through or, failing that, charging through after him. Most portals couldn’t close right away if something was still between them. Though they could be dangerous when they ran out of mana, I hadn’t heard of any offensive variants.

  Abara was certainly going to fall through before I could reach him. He shifted his body so that he could fall through without causing any problems.

  Then, he bounced off.

  I swerved off course, slamming into the roof of the Green Union building. It was a better option than going through the portal to who knows where and having to find my way back to Athir in time to stop the ritual. I replayed what had happened in my mind as I rolled towards the ground.

  He had hit the portal as if it were made of glass and literally bounced off of it. When he landed on the ground, I noticed that he left a small crater in the ground as if he weighed more than he looked. It took him a moment before he scrambled to his feet.

  Himia had claimed she could stop him from using his portals. It seems as though she had been right; whatever she was doing was working.

  “What did you do!?” he screeched, throwing his shadowed hands in the air. I didn’t answer.

  Thunder cracked the air around me as it followed the cone of lightning. I grunted as pain coursed through me, dulled by the Trifecta, and hit the ground. Abara took a step backwards, and I lunged, aiming for his stomach.

  The shadow aura around him flickered for a moment as I felt more resistance, though still not enough. I went on the offensive, bearing down on him with a flurry of slashes. Portals opened up under my feet, but thanks to the Potion of Fly he wasn’t able to trap me.

  Abara’s stone staff blocked my scimitar as his other hand was thrust into my face. Fire erupted between us, exploding and throwing me back into the building. The petrified wood logs cracked under the impact and my back didn’t fare much better. Once again, the Trifecta took the edge off of the attack, but it still hurt. The Gnome’s magic was as powerful as I expected and I wasn’t sure if it was natural talent or the workings of the crystal.

  Either way, I had a job to do. I pushed off of the wall and back towards the fight. Abara had been launched backwards as well, and now teetered at the edge of the river. I flew past him, scimitar at my side, and slashed through his shoulder this time.

  Once more, I met with a disturbing lack of resistance. Cojisto had said that he hated this kind of magic, and I was becoming more frustrated with every moment. Abara should have been cut in half twice now, or missing limbs at the very least, but he was still in one piece.

  A bolt of lightning pierced through me as I turned around, and I lost some elevation. Teeth clenched in pain as the damage exceeded the limits of the Trifecta, scorching me as electricity coursed through my body. Grunting, I got a hold of myself. My boots fell into the water before I bounced back up.

  I renewed my assault. Abara backpedaled, attempting to parry with his stone staff, but he couldn’t keep up. A translucent barrier appeared in front of him, and I struck it with all the force I could muster.

  Blood flew from my shoulder as the damage reflected back at me, bypassing the extra magical defense the Trifecta afforded me. The physical enhancements likely saved my arm, however. An alarm rang through my head as Abara thrust his hands towards me and I slammed my shield against my chest.

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  It expanded, giving me more cover as a torrent of flames rushed over me. I lowered myself to the ground to minimize the damage, expecting the Burning Hands spell to be over quickly, but it was not. The grass lit on fire while the water behind me started to steam. It was clearly more powerful than it should have been, which could only mean one thing.

  “Another variant!?” I complained as my enemy slowly stepped back.

  Distance wasn’t what I wanted, and I pushed forward. The flames were forceful, and it felt like I was fighting to walk through a raging river. I was nothing if not persistent. Every step he took, I matched. My shield was beginning to get so hot that I couldn’t see through it anymore, and my jacket was burning. It was hard to tell from all the heat but I was pretty sure I was on fire.

  An arrow plinked off of Abara’s protection, and he turned to look that way. I dove out of the way of the fire before spinning, raising my sword and bringing it down. He wasn’t ready for it. I slashed him from shoulder to hip. There was more resistance this time as I finally caught him with something that wasn’t just a glancing blow.

  Instead of following up, I backed away. The familiar pull of the scimitar as it sought out more blood to drink wasn’t there. It hadn’t been all this time, but I had chalked it up to the strange Blink spell Abara had put on himself. Now that I had finally landed a solid blow, it was immediately noticeable.

  “You don’t have blood in you,” I said, almost accusatory with my words. “Just like the Blackwood Queen, you’re something different.”

  “Wow, that’s really rude,” Abara scoffed.

  The shadow aura around him disappeared, showing him and his clothes completely uninjured. I narrowed my eyes, looking for any sign that I had damaged him. There was no way that he should be unscathed. Something was up.

  He wasn’t looking at me, but towards where the arrow had come from. I glanced that way to see Ferrisdae a good distance off. She had completely disregarded my order to fall back. Not only that, but she was still using her bow, not magic. While her actions had helped me at the time, the danger was too great.

  “What are you, Abara?” I demanded, moving until I was in front of him, hovering a few inches over the ground.

  The Gnome, or the facsimile of one, looked up and gave me a feral grin. “Like I’m just going to give you the answer, Badger,” he replied flippantly. “You’re going to have to figure it out on your own. You and your apprentice.”

  A portal appeared on the ground in front of me, and Ferrisdae fell upwards feet first. It was now clear that, whatever Himia had done, it had only affected Abara’s ability to pass through them. I had been right to be cautious earlier. The Elf managed to put her arms over her head before she landed and fell over. By then, the enemy’s hands were pointed right at her.

  Growling, I surged forward and took up a defensive position in front of her. My shield up, I tried my best to provide as much cover as possible, even going so far as to use my own body. Sometimes, being someone as small as a Halfling wasn’t great.

  Fire once again sprang from his hands. Behind me, Ferrisdae gasped in pain before curling up. I did not have that luxury, standing stalwart against the incoming flames. The Trifecta continued to help, but my clothes continued to burn and smolder along with my flesh.

  “Get out of here,” I managed to say through gritted teeth. My head, at least, was still protected.

  “Badger, I-” she started, guilt and panic in her voice.

  “Go!” I yelled.

  Ferrisdae got onto all fours, unable to stand up completely due to my size, and stumbled. One of her legs fell through a portal that opened up before closing enough to keep her from getting out. I watched out of the corner of my eye as she tried to pull her leg free. Her hair got singed for her efforts, and she had to lower her head.

  Abara began to move. Not away, but around. I shifted to compensate, trying my best to shield Ferrisdae from the worst of it. She struggled, trying to pull her leg free, and I knew he had to be trapping her there. A normal portal would have pushed her out if it simply ended. He was looking to end this.

  There was a way for me to stop this, one that would very decisively end this fight, but I saw an opportunity. A very painful but necessary opportunity.

  “Ferry, you need to cast a spell,” I said as evenly as I could over the sound of the fire. Pain destroyed whatever semblance of even I was aiming for. Dropping my sword, I pulled out a potion and quickly drank it. My wounds healed only to start burning again. That was my limit; any more magic would make me sick. “That’s the only way we’re going to survive this.”

  The Elf grabbed her wand off of her hip as her bow burned beside her. She threw her other hand up, forming the somatic sigils related to her spells with her fingers. She made them frantically, accompanying them with words of power. Nothing happened, and the look of panic on her face only grew with every failed attempt.

  Every step Abara took, I matched. My skin had been repaired thanks to the potion I had drank, but the damage was accumulating. Pain made my voice harsh as the onslaught continued. At some point I thought the spell would turn off, but there was no end to it.

  “Ferry, listen to me,” I grunted. “I know that you feel lost and confused. Your self worth has been shot, and the event that was supposed to be your triumphant entrance into the world changed you. Since then, it’s been hard knocks. I understand. But you are still here. You are right by my side, enduring this situation just as much as I am, and you’re doing it with a smile on your face. Kid, you are strong enough.”

  “I can’t cast,” she sobbed. “I can’t reach it.”

  I took another step. The river began to steam and boil behind Ferrisdae. “You can!” I yelled, no longer able to downplay my pain. “You can because what you need is inside of you. It hasn’t been taken away from you, like my divine magic was before, it is there. It is you. Grab it, demand it! Your wellspring is not your friend, your sister; you are your power. It is Ferrisdae Anne Runelara, and so are you!”

  Behind me, the Elf continued to speak the words of power, but nothing was happening. This was trial by literal fire, and I was taking the bulk of it for her. That was my choice and, as the pain spread, I was hoping I wouldn’t regret it.

  My leg gave out, and yet I dragged myself further. Abara was still circling slowly. I wasn’t sure if he could hear us over the sound of the flames, but it didn’t matter.

  “Ferrisdae,” I said, getting her attention. Her eyes were devoid of hope, and I smiled at her. A sad smile. My last option. “It’s not your fault that this is happening. I need you to get to my family.”

  “W-what?” she sobbed.

  “Get out of here the moment you can, leave me behind and find people strong enough to fight him. That’s an order, Ferrisdae, and my last request,” I demanded. “Tell my family that I love them, and that I’m sorry I won’t see them again.”

  “Badger, you can’t die here,” she yelled, reaching for me. “You can’t die!”

  “No, not Badger,” I said. “I am Liam.”

  Ferrisdae’s eyes widened as she realized what I had said, and I turned away from her. Roaring, fighting the pain through sheer will, I stood up on my burnt leg and took a step towards Abara. The fire shifted, recoiling slightly as if surprised by my sudden movement. I hid behind my shield as I made what appeared to be my final stand.