As quickly as it had arrived, the smoke vanished. Knell stood on a cobbled road. He glanced at the setting sun above him – it had shifted downward significantly from when he had last seen it, but it was still the same general time of day, so Mordrigal hadn’t taken him too far.

He took a moment to gather himself. Heading into a fight without being in complete control of his emotions was a dangerous and foolish move. Little made him truly angry anymore, but Mordrigal was the exception.

Old memories flashed through his mind, but the foremost amongst them was the goddess of death as she cut his mother down before him. Knell’s hands clenched. If Mordrigal ever discovered that he’d seen the murder of his mother, he didn’t doubt she’d try to deal with him more directly. But, for now, she still believed him to be subservient. He let out a slow breath, wrestling his emotions down.

A short distance away from him, at the edge of a large forest, an armored woman that must have been Lillicent faced off with a canine monster. The woman glowed with faint light to Knell’s eyes, almost as if the sun were hidden just behind her.

The monster’s fur was matted and black, with jagged fangs that jutted up from its lower jaw. The beast’s eyes burned with purple energy. It already sported several jagged cuts, but the woman was equally wounded.

Her shield laid on the ground several paces behind the monster, and from the way she was favoring one leg, Knell could tell that she’d taken at least one serious blow. He suppressed a sigh and started down toward them, careful to avoid putting any pressure on his right leg. At the same time, he activated his mental clock. He was only willing to spare a few minutes for something like this.

The monster lunged at Lillicent and she dove forward. It wasn’t a graceful move, but it took the beast by surprise and her blade scored across its chest, sending blood and internal organs spilling to the ground. She landed with a grunt a few feet from it.

It let out a scream of fury and lashed out, catching her on the shoulder before she could scramble away. Metal screamed against claw, but she managed to spin with the blow and avoid most of the damage.

Lillicent scrambled back, grabbing her shield from the ground and keeping her blade pointed at the monster as she unsteadily rose to her feet. It took a step toward her, the light in its eyes dimming, then collapsed to the ground and went silent.

Knell continued toward her. The woman’s stance was riddled with openings, most of them due to the serious injuries hidden by her armor. She turned to face him, her expression going grim.

“Which god?” she asked, struggling to keep her sword at the ready.

“Mordrigal,” Knell replied. “And you are Holen’s ilk.”

“I am,” Lillicent said. “And you should not be here. Holen told me that there were no other Scions in the area.”

“Apologies,” Knell said, stopping just out of reach. “He did not lie. Mordrigal cheated.”

The woman’s hand tightened around the hilt of her sword. “And what do you seek?”

“You already know that,” Knell said.

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“No, I don’t,” she replied, a slight note of hope in her voice. “You waited until I had killed the Scorhound to attack, so you might seek my aid in something.”

“I’m sorry,” Knell said, somewhat surprised to find he actually meant it. “I did not intervene because your injuries are great enough that I will not have to. There is no reason for me to risk my life against your blade when you will die within a few minutes anyway.”

A bitter laugh escaped the woman’s mouth. “Modrigal broke the rules for no reason then, didn’t she? I suppose I can take that with me. The other gods will not look kindly on her interference, and it was completely for naught. I wasn’t as good of a warrior as I believed myself to be.”

She coughed, spinning her sword and jabbing it into the ground. She made no attempt to stem her wound. “You do not seem like the normal instruments Mordrigal employs.”

“I am one of a kind,” Knell said, his lip curling in mirth. “But you are the first Scion of Holen that I have come face to face with. Your fortitude is respectable. I think most would have tried begging for help by now.”

“It wouldn’t do me any good. There is no help to be found, and you would not betray your god,” Lillicent said. She slumped to the ground, bracing her back against the sword. “I do not have the energy to muster a call for help, so you’re lucky. There is nothing I can do. You’ve been gifted my Boon.”

“You’re wrong about that, but I doubt luck has anything to do with it,” Knell said. “I assume you did something to anger Mordrigal?”

“Killed one of her Scions,” Lillicent said, a flicker of a smirk dancing across her face. “Took the bastard’s Boon and gave it to Holen as well. She must have been furious. Hope you didn’t know him.”

“I didn’t,” Knell said, not bothering to ask who it was. It had been two minutes. It was almost time to wrap things up. “You must have known things would end this way. You cannot anger the gods without expecting retaliation.”

“I live the way I want to,” Lillicent said. “The Scion was going to try to kill a bunch of innocent people. I wasn’t about to stand by.”

Knell nodded slowly. “I can respect that.”

She looked up at him, clearly struggling to do even that. “What will you do with my Boon?”

“I’ll put it to use, I promise you that,” Knell said. “Mordrigal gifted it to me, whether she intended to or not. It shall not be wasted.”

Lillicent let out a bitter laugh. “I don’t suppose you’d be willing to agree not to use it to harm innocents?”

Knell tilted his head. “So long as they don’t attempt to stand in my way, I can grant that request.”

She blinked. “You’re… oddly reasonable. Thank you. It’s a pity you’re caught under Mordrigal’s thumb. Perhaps, in another life, we could have been friends.”

“Unlikely,” Knell said. “But life does not often conform to chance. Are you ready?”

“Like an angel of death, eh?” Lillicent asked, breaking into a pained cough. “Damn the gods. Meddling bastards never gave me a choice. I’ll take a warrior’s end if you’ll give it to me. At least I’ll go out on my terms. My Boon is in my right palm.”

“Thank you. I value my time.” Knell twisted his cane apart, drawing the thin blade within it free. “Could you tell me what city we’re beside, while you’re at it?”

Lillicent shook her head. “You’re shameless, asking a woman for favors when you’re about to kill her. We’re next to Chrisford.”

Good. Mordrigal didn’t lie.

“Goodbye, Lillicent.” Knell’s eyes lit with glowing yellow light. Lillicent blinked in surprise as Knell drew on his energy to his limits, lighting up the dimming clearing like he had two miniature suns within his head. That would be enough energy to get the attention of anyone nearby. “Rest well.”

He drove the blade forward in a precise thrust, just slightly to the side of the center of her chest and through a tear in her armor. Surprise flickered in the woman’s eyes and her mouth worked, trying to form words. The ticking stopped as his mental clock ran out.

The glow faded and he staggered. He flicked the tip of his blade down into her palm, carving it open to reveal a glittering green orb which he grabbed and deposited in his pocket.

He put his staff back together and leaned heavily on it, steadying himself. He’d used an enormous amount of power for that little stunt, but he couldn’t help the smug grin from crossing his face.

“Have fun dealing with that one, Mordrigal,” Knell said.

It wouldn’t be long before someone came running to find the source of the energy. Knell had no plans of being around when that happened. He turned and set off, not looking back once.