Across the platform her target, Nyla Venthras, straightened her robe, calm and steady, as if she were standing in a study rather than in the middle of a siege.
"You're persistent," the sorceress said. "That's admirable in a data set, but inconvenient in practice."
Idalia spat out a mouthful of dust. "You talk like you swallowed a book!"
She dropped into the stance Lyrawinn had drilled into her—low hips, tail sweeping for balance, chin tucked. Close the distance, break the rhythm, never let the thinker breathe. Her mentor's voice echoed in her skull like a thunder.
Then.
Nyla lifted her hand. The runes on the balcony flared. Bolts of pink energy slashed outward in neat, geometric shapes, each line sharp enough to cut through steel.
Idalia darted between them, footwork fast and brutal. Lyrawinn had made her fight in the rain once, against whipping rock beasts. In Idalia's mind? Read the gaps, feel the air, not the sight.
She rolled through the last burst, coming up under Nyla's guard. Her claw flashed—strike at the pulse, the fragile bits. But the sorceress pivoted with surprising grace, her sleeve dragging a glyph through the air. A hexagonal shield bloomed between them, Idalia's claws screeching across it.
"Spatial compression layer," Nyla murmured. "You shouldn't even be able to touch this."
Idalia grinned. "Then I'll break what I shouldn't."
She slammed her tail down, the shockwave cracking the balcony. Nyla staggered half a step—the first crack in her composure. Idalia lunged through it, shoulder-driving the shield until it splintered like glass. Nyla's eyes widened behind her spectacles; she snapped her fingers, teleporting a meter back.
But not much happened. The spell failed halfway through. Idalia's smile grew bigger, her eyes glowed. She saw it. A crack. A tear in the spatial dimension to exploit. Nyla quickly dodged the sudden portal that had appeared in front of her.
"Feels weird, doesn't it? When the air says no," she growled.
Nyla exhaled through her nose, calm returning. "You're adapting faster than projected. Interesting subject."
"Stop calling me a thing!"
Idalia burst forward again, ducking under another volley of runes. Lyrawinn's training played in muscle memory: Three steps, twist the hips, use the weight. She slammed her head into the sorceress's ribs. Nyla gasped, losing control of half her glyphs. The anti-portal lattice wavered; somewhere below, Kelix's lightning brightened in response.
But Nyla wasn't just a scholar. With one smooth motion she drew a slender wand from her sleeve, tracing a circle that pulsed with gold light. The air folded inward; pressure crushed against Idalia's chest, forcing her to her knees.
"Gravity well," Nyla said, breath ragged. "Even your brute strength—"
Idalia's tail whipped upward, catching Nyla across the wrist. The wand clattered away, rolling to the edge. The pressure flickered.
"Lyrawinn says talking during a fight gets your teeth broken," Idalia hissed. She lunged again, grabbing the sorceress by the robe front. Nyla's glasses slipped sideways as Idalia slammed her into the wall hard enough to send cracks spidering through the stone.
For a moment they froze—Idalia's claws at Nyla's throat, the strategist's fingers trembling inches from a new spell.
Then Nyla smiled faintly. "You're not going to kill me," she whispered. "He wouldn't want that."
Idalia blinked. "Kelix?"
"Of course. You think he came here for me?"
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The sorceress's words hit like cold rain. Idalia hesitated, grip loosening for the barest instant. Nyla used it—palming a small crystal from her belt and slamming it to the ground. Light exploded outward, hurling Idalia across the balcony.
She rolled, coughing, ears ringing. Nyla stood in the center of a glowing circle, the dimensional lock flaring back to full strength.
Idalia pushed to her feet, bruised but grinning through blood-slick teeth. "Lyrawinn also said—" she spat a chunk of broken stone aside— "Never fall for the same trick twice!"
Before Nyla could respond, Idalia vanished—not through a portal, but through sheer movement, her training turning her into a blur of muscle and momentum. She appeared behind the sorceress, caught her arm, twisted, and flung her out of the circle. The runes dimmed instantly.
The air snapped—dimensional energy flooding back. Idalia felt her {Sight} flare open again, colors and shapes returning to their proper places.
"Portal's back," she muttered, flexing her claws. "Thanks for holding it, glasses-lady."
Nyla lay sprawled against the railing, robe torn, breathing heavy but eyes still burning with furious intellect. "You… animal," she rasped.
Idalia tilted her head. "You say that like it's an insult."
Below, a thunderclap split the night—Kelix and Varos locked in another violent collision. Sparks shot up the tower's side.
Idalia looked down, then back at Nyla. "Now, how am I going to deal with you? We can't have you causing more anti-portal antics, can we?"
The moment Nyla tried to motion her hands, lips muttering the start of a spell, Idalia already kicked forward with her [Stomp]. The butt of her clawed foot crashed into Nyla's chest, forcing the breath from the sorceress's lungs. Nyla gasped, eyes wide as she struggled to rally her thoughts amidst the pain.
"Can't think under pressure?" Idalia taunted, pressing her advantage. She stepped over Nyla, pinning her to the ground, claws hovering just above the sorceress's throat. "You've been doing all the big thinking while I've been doing the fighting. Time to turn the tables."
Nyla's expression flickered from shock to determination. "You think this is over?" she rasped. "I still have plans, beast. Plans that don't include you."
"Plans are great, but they're just words until you can back them up." Idalia leaned closer, her eyes narrowing. "Why don't you tell me how your little plan will work when you're thrown into the ocean?"
"You wouldn't…" Nyla wheezed.
Idalia snickered and roared a portal into existence. "Enjoy the swim, Miss Nyla!"
Her claws snatched the sorceress up as she hurled the woman into the swirling vortex. Nyla's scream echoed, sliced through by the rush of the spell, the last image of her shocked expression burned into Idalia's memory.
But as the portal flickered shut behind her, Idalia felt an electric tingle on the back of her neck, instinct kicking in just in time. She dropped low as a beam of pure energy scorched the air above her, narrowly missing her and ripping part of the balcony stone to shreds.
Cursing under her breath, Idalia rolled to her feet, senses heightened. The light had come from across the platform, and she turned to see a figure materializing out of the shadows. It was Varos, the dark knight, his scarred eye glinting with malicious intent.
"Such a mess you've made, ya little tyrant," he said. "Throwing my precious Nyla into the abyss was not part of the plan."
"What plan? Your plan?" Idalia shot back, raising her claws, ready for a fight. "You think I care about your schemes?" She turned toward Kelix, who was kneeling and bleeding heavily.
"Careful," Kelix signaled with a hand gesture.
"You hurt Kelix," Idalia snarled.
"He's more useful to us alive. But you're just an animal masquerading as a warrior. And animals must be put down before they bite."
He stepped forward, mana swirling around him, coalescing into a shape that shimmered like oil in the moonlight. The air grew thick, charged like a storm about to break.
Idalia felt every instinct flare within her, every lesson learned under Lyrawinn's stern watch. "You've got no idea what you're dealing with," she growled, claws trembling with barely contained rage. "I'm not afraid of you!"
Varos's laugh echoed, deep and menacing. "You should be."
With a flick of his wrist, the blade shot toward her, an arrow of blue-red fire propelled by some malignant force. Idalia dove to the side, feeling the rush of wind as the energy cleaved through the space she had occupied only a blink before.
Popping out from a portal and rolling back to her feet, she quickly assessed the battlefield—Kelix still on the ground, his breathing labored; the remnants of Nyla's hounds scattered around like discarded thoughts; and Varos, an imposing figure cloaked in tremendous power, ready to strike again.
"Get up, Kelix!" she shouted, fury propelling her feet as she moved to intercept Varos. "We need to crush him together!"
"Obviously!" he gasped back, struggling against the pain that wracked his body. "Just—stay focused!"
"Easier said than done!" Idalia snapped, turning her full attention back to the knight, who was advancing, blade ready to swing.
She leapt forward, using her speed to close the distance, and aimed a claw at Varos's wrist, hoping to disarm him before he could mount another attack. He seemed to anticipate her movement; with a swift flick of his shoulder, he redirected his two-sided weapon, its edges now slicing toward her.
Idalia barely had time to twist away, feeling the rush of raw energy as the blades grazed her side, biting into her flesh. Agony flared through her, but she pushed it aside, allowing the pain to fuel her fury.
In that moment, she remembered Lyrawinn's teachings about the balance of attack and defense, the importance of timing. She shifted her focus.
{Health: 41%}
{Emotional State: 59%}
{Approaching Condition: [Rage]}
This was it. No more hesitation.
11 chapters ahead [or 5 weeks of reading time ahead of RR]. Have a good one!