Kaela screamed as her body twisted against her will, her eyes wide with fear as she lunged at me—spear aimed straight for my heart. I sidestepped, just in time, her strike slicing through the air with unnatural precision. I couldn’t strike her. Not like this. Every movement she made was deliberate—but not her own.

  The Lieutenant strolled behind her, slow and cruel, his cane ticking against the stone with rhythmic finality.

  I glanced around frantically but for some reason Lunae had disappeared…

  Was she hiding somewhere?

  Waiting for an opportunity?

  “You see?” he said, voice a silken dagger. “Loyalty. All it takes is the right… incentive.”

  I gritted my teeth and parried Kaela’s next thrust, spinning her off balance just enough to wrap my arm around her neck and hold her steady. She fought me like a wild animal, but there were tremors in her limbs. She was crying. Beyond her movements, she was still herself.

  “Stop this!” I shouted at him. “You’re forcing her!”

  The Lieutenant tilted his head. “Of course I am. That’s the point.”

  I scanned him, watching the way he moved. His cane—decorative, ornate. Useless for walking. But when Kaela twitched, he always moved one of his hands. Rings. Ten of them. Each different. Magic?

  He was controlling her through one of those.

  I narrowed my eyes. Ten possible keys. No room for error.

  I let Kaela go with a shove and dove forward.

  It genuinely felt like a hallucination when his leg came up, crashing into my chest. He hadn’t been standing there a moment ago, so how…?

  I was sent flying across the hall, landing with a heavy thud.

  My chest burned from the kick, and my breath came in short and sharp, but I couldn’t give up. Not now.

  Kaela needed me.

  Lyria needed me.

  I steeled my resolve, and forced myself to my feet, glaring at him with unflinching intensity.

  Pushing myself off the wall, I charged in. Kaela lunged, extending her spear toward my chest. I caught it mid-thrust, gripped it tight, spun around, and pressed my back into her, wrenching it free.

  Side stepping out of Kaela’s reach, I twirled the spear, and launched it at the Lieutenant with surprising accuracy. His body became a blur, as though it were vibrating in and out of existence, and the spear passed harmlessly through his after image.

  “Tch–” I clicked my tongue in annoyance.

  I wasn’t done yet, I raised my blade, and sprinted forward, leaping in the air just beside him and bringing my blade down hard as I descended.

  He blocked it deftly with his cane and, just as quickly, clubbed me with it. The hit made my teeth chatter. I wiped a bit of blood from my lip and lunged in again, I swiped, slashed, and stabbed, but he avoided everything with ease. He stepped in before I could react, pulling my arms forward, and kneed me in the abdomen. The hit carried so much force I almost lost my dinner…

  Gritting my teeth I responded in turn, not giving him a moment despite my pain. This time I twisted into a feint, then slashed upward. He moved—too slow.

  My blade caught his side.

  The cut was shallow, but it bled. He could be hurt.

  Even through his mask I could see the dangerous smile. Kaela, having retrieved her spear, moved towards me once again, but he raised his hand and she came to an abrupt halt.

  It was his left hand, I noticed this time.

  “Enough… You really want to fight? Fine then, I’ll kill you with my own hands,” he said, stepping towards me, arms outstretched in open challenge.

  My heart pounded as he approached. I glued my eyes to his left hand as he commanded Kaela again.

  Left pinky. A flick.

  She backed up.

  Kaela’s eyes, glassy from his control, began to well. She didn’t want me to fight him…she didn’t believe I could win.

  I grinned defiantly. “Finally—”

  I’d go for the ring on his left pinky.

  The Lieutenant moved quicker than I expected—his cane snapped apart, revealing a hidden blade slick with green venom. It glinted unnaturally in the dim light.

  I brought up my sword to parry, but he was already inside my guard. Pain exploded in my side as the dagger buried itself just below my ribs.

  I staggered back, clutching the wound. My vision blurred as I looked down in disbelief. The edges of my breath went cold.

  Poisoned.

  The Lieutenant smiled faintly with his eyes. “Lethal. Very. You’ll be dead in a minute. Two, if you’re stubborn.”

  My knees buckled. I dropped to one hand, gasping. Kaela screamed again, trying to resist as her body now stalked toward me under his command. My vision tunneled.

  I wasn’t strong enough. Not this time. Not like this.

  My mind subconsciously reached out to Tenebrae, desperate to survive, craving his strength. When I connected with him I saw a brief vision, as if looking through his eyes.

  Selene fought valiantly to defend Bront’s flank. Bront traded concussive blows with the goliath, and Tenebrae darted about, ripping apart any who came in his path.

  I couldn’t call him now, not when Selene and Bront were still fighting.

  “Lunae—please…” I whispered, whether audibly or internally, I wasn’t sure.

  For a moment, nothing.

  Kaela closed in on me, crying softly as her body moved against her will.

  The mark on my chest suddenly ignited like frost-fire. In my mind's eye an image of Lunae appeared. Her lustrous white fur glowed in the ethereal light of a massive moon, her icy blue orbs gazed into me, and I felt her power once again course through me.

  “Yukon—your fight is not yet over,” came Lunae’s voice, smooth and absolute.

  The poison burned as Lunae’s power purged it. I cried out, the agony of healing worse than the pain of dying. The stab wound on my side sizzled and steamed as it closed up. Then… clarity. Cool, radiant, focus. The trembling stopped. My lungs pulled in clean, steady air.

  I stood.

  Bluish silver light shimmered from my skin and lit my eyes. My fingertips split as claws extended. My teeth ached as fangs pierced through my gums. I stood slowly, tunic rippling in an unseen wind, the sound of my heartbeat lost beneath the echoing howl in my mind.

  The Lieutenant’s smile finally faded.

  “Oh,” he muttered. “That’s new.”

  Kaela froze mid-step.

  I moved.

  Fast.

  One moment I was ten feet away. The next—I was in his face, slamming him back with a feral roar and a blade that hissed with icy blue light.

  Barely deflecting my strike with his blade, the Lieutenant clicked his tongue. “Too much power.”

  He moved in fast, blade flashing again. We clashed—my sword against his poisoned dagger. He was still faster, but now I moved with purpose. Lunae’s clarity let me see the flow of his movements—the rhythm beneath the chaos.

  My body steamed and my muscles rippled as our clash became a blur.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  Kaela watched on in disbelief, barely able to track our movements.

  Icy breath trailed from my mouth as I fought. He flicked his hand again, the left pinky for sure this time, and forced Kaela to attack my flank.

  Blocking his next strike, I extended my hand without hesitation. Frost surged from my palm, coating the floor in an instant—Kaela’s next step landed on it, and she slipped hard.

  I turned back to the Lieutenant, my eyes glowing with rage. I pressed him hard. My instincts, sharpened by Lunae’s power, could see everything. The trajectory of each of his strikes, and most prominently, the fear now rising within him.

  He blocked my next slash but couldn't anticipate the following swipe. My clawed hand tore three red lines across his warped face. Momentum surged—I wasn’t letting up.

  “WHAT ARE YOU?!” he roared through gritted teeth as he desperately fended off my assault.

  He staggered, cloak flaring behind him, and lashed out with rings glowing in sequence—flames, lightning, shadow. But I could see the rhythm now, the flaws in his perfection. I ducked low, swept his leg, cracked his chin with the pommel of my blade, then whirled and slammed him against the wall.

  Without hesitation I swung fast, he sidestepped against the wall to avoid a slash to his neck, but that was never my target.

  I slashed at his hand—not to wound, but to strike the ring.

  Steel met gemstone.

  With a sharp crack, the crimson ring split down the center and exploded in a flare of sparks.

  Kaela screamed again—but this time, her voice returned to her own.

  She collapsed to her knees, coughing, the brand on her arm flickering—then fading. Smoke curled off her skin. It was gone.

  The Lieutenant’s eyes went wide.

  “No,” he whispered. “No, no, no.”

  His aura broke. The air around him lost its bite.

  “You have no Idea what you’ve just done!” He shrieked, clutching his hand. “Do you know how many people I have branded?? I practically had my own army! Have you any idea how much time and effort that took?!”

  I had no more words left, Lyria had waited long enough, and Kaela was finally free. I stalked forward, a dangerous glint in my icy blue eyes.

  “...No…no! You can’t! Don’t you know who I am?!” He tried to reason, pulling down his mask.

  I raised my blade

  His bloodied face contorted into a triumphant grin, clenching a ringed fist, he activated the power of another ring.

  “Goodbye—” he said, chuckling as the ring began to emit a black sludge that ran down his arm, beginning to encase his body.

  A transportation spell.

  Not a chance.

  In a flash, I brought my sword down.

  He screamed as his hand fell, severed cleanly from his wrist.

  Before he could attempt to recover I balled a clawed fist and punched hard, his back slammed into the wall, cracking the stone. He fell to the ground—unmoving.

  Kaela, still unsteady for the time being, watched on in awe.

  Lunae’s voice came to me again.

  “The door at the end of the corridor…”

  I had no time to waste, I still couldn’t maintain this power for very long.

  I turned and walked down the hallway without missing a beat. A sturdy metal door stood in my way.

  Locked.

  I kicked it once.

  The door rattled.

  Twice, this time leaving a dent.

  Three times—I reared back and kicked hard.

  —BOOM—

  Dust shook from the door frame.

  I gritted my teeth impatiently, focused my power, and kicked a fourth and final time.

  The door crashed open, its frame bending from the force.

  When the dust cleared I saw Lyria standing there in the middle of the room, bruised, her loose clothes barely clinging to her body, but alive. Her lavender eyes immediately melted from cold and unyielding, to soft and glimmering.

  I turned my head, a man sat trembling in a chair before Lyria, two guards stood dumbfounded to either side of her.

  My blazing blue eyes, alight with Lunae’s power, bore through each of their souls.

  “What are you waiting for?! Kill him!” the merchant shrieked.

  One of the guards, clearly not the brightest, let out a cry as he charged me, his sword aimed low. I sidestepped with otherworldly grace, and caught him by the neck. In the next instant he lay slammed into the ground, dust settling around him.

  The merchant sprang from his chair, stumbling back in fear.

  My eyes twitched back to Lyria as the other guard moved towards her, brandishing his dagger. I could tell instantly he intended to use her as a bargaining chip.

  Don’t fucking touch her.

  My eyes caught his before he could grab her and I used Lunae’s intimidation to freeze him in his tracks. A trick I’d learned after using it on the guy with the snake tattoo that Kaela had swindled out of a spear.

  Moving like an icy wind, in the blink of an eye, I was in his face.

  These two guards, both the one that now lay on the floor unconscious and the one currently in front of me, were no doubt the ones who kidnapped Lyria, bound her, and left her bruised. It took everything to hold in my rage.

  My punch came like a comet, launching him into the back wall, where he stuck like a broken painting.

  Looking to Lyria, my vision, enhanced by Lunae’s power, saw the restrictive properties of the collar clamped around her neck. My hands came up swift and gentle as I snapped the band in two. With a little yelp, Lyria’s lavender eyes found mine. I could see the fear that haunted them begin to recede.

  I turned to the merchant.

  He shrank away, backing up towards the destroyed door, sweat pouring down his face.

  “B–but, I paid so much for her—!” he whimpered.

  I took a step forward, frost curling around my footprint.

  His entire body flinched—but before I could get to him, the haft of a spear cracked down on his skull, dropping him like a stone.

  Kaela, breathing heavily, expression unreadable, stood behind him.

  She looked past me, directly at Lyria. In her eyes a mixture of guilt, sadness, and relief swam like translucent fish in a golden pond. Her tears came immediately.

  Of course—Lyria had no idea what part Kaela played in all this…

  “Uh… Is she alright...?” Lyria asked, slightly confused, as she stepped halfway behind me, gingerly clutching the sleeve of my tunic.

  I dismissed Lunae’s power quickly, feeling the burning fatigue spread through my muscles, and glanced back to Lyria. My own, deep green eyes, widened a bit by her candor, and I couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle.

  “Hah… She—she will be,” I responded, a tired smile on my face as I turned back to Kaela.

  Her eyes traded between Lyria and I, vulnerable, and tired.

  I led Lyria towards the entrance as she continued clinging to me, nodding to Kaela reassuringly as we took our leave.

  We’d left the Assassins Guild battered… When we reunited with Bront and Selene, dozens of bodies lay strewn about.

  Everyone took turns hugging Lyria, desperately holding back their tears.

  She smiled faintly, bruised but composed, giving each of us a reassuring nod—as if she was the one comforting us.

  When it was my turn, she stepped into the hug without hesitation.

  Her voice was soft, barely above a whisper, but the words hit like an arrow.

  “I knew you’d come.”

  My arms tightened just a little more.

  “Next time,” I said, “try not to get kidnapped.”

  She smirked into my shoulder. “Next time, try to get here faster.”

  We both laughed—quietly. But the exchange was genuine.

  Tenebrae padded over and sat before me. It almost looked like he was smiling. My lips curled slightly in response and I dismissed him with a silent, thank you.

  “Let’s get out of here… I can’t see a world in which our actions go unpunished, even if we were in the right,” Selene said, pulling away from the scene.

  I couldn’t agree more.

  We began heading back to the inn, hoping to get at least a few hours of rest before the journey back to Lanton in the morning.

  As we walked, I noticed Kaela wasn’t joining us. I turned back and saw her standing there a few paces back. Her head dropped, unmoving.

  Letting Selene and Bront continue on with Lyria, I slowed and stepped back to Kaela.

  Lyria cast a subtle glance over her shoulder, curious—

  “Hey…” I said, bending to try to get a look at her face.

  Kaela didn’t respond, or move to look at me.

  “...Look—you know I can’t just say it’s okay, after all of that, but despite everything, you still fought with us and helped us get her back.”

  Kaela finally looked up, unshed tears pooling in her eyes.

  “I… I betrayed you all. I—I didn’t think I would care, never have… I’ve been in and out of parties ever since I got away from the Assassins Guild, but… For some reason, I can’t stop crying—” Kaela said, her voice breaking as she looked up to me, tears streaking down her cheeks.

  Without thinking, I stepped forward and pulled her into a hug.

  Her eyes widened in surprise but she didn’t pull away.

  “Kaela, how long will you fight alone...?” I asked softly.

  “If I've learned anything in these past days, it's that this world is dangerous. Layered with threats and challenges at every turn, and we can’t even be sure our past won’t rear up to try to drag us back down… but, I’ve also learned that with a brief respite, like yesterday, and with genuine camaraderie, the darkness doesn’t seem quite as blinding.” I pulled back from her, looking down to catch her eyes.

  “What you did cannot be excused… but neither can your fight be forgotten. You helped us get her back, despite your fear, despite what it may have meant for you, and that is worth something. So please, let's head back to Lanton and finish this bloody quest already…” I said, extending my hand for her.

  She looked up, red-rimmed eyes searching mine. She turned her head down, but a tiny hint of a weak smile curled at the corner of her lips.

  “Fine… but I’m not holding your hand,” she said, stepping past me with the smallest trace of her usual teasing grin.

  I stood there a bit dumbfounded, but happy, a smile now finding its way to my lips as well.

  “Hurry up, ranger! I’m not gonna wait around for you!” Kaela called back as she continued.

  I shook my head and started after her.

  We had Lyria back, Kaela was still with us, and no one was seriously hurt. It hadn’t been a real quest, but still—a tiny sliver of pride glowed in my chest. This was the first time I had called the shots, and it worked out.

  I whispered a silent thanks to Lunae and Tenebrae—and with a steadied breath, set my mind on tomorrow.

  Come the morning, it was back to Lanton.