The blood shackles restraining Erika and Elizabeth melted away and the remaining blood pooled on the ground. Erika held her throat, desperately trying to catch her breath. Elizabeth quickly stood and looked at the crowd of vampires who seemed unsure of how to react.

“Does this mean he won?” Erika asked, her voice shaky.

Elizabeth admitted, “I’m not sure.” The vampires appeared to have similar doubts, and rather than rush the two of them, the swarm flew further into the city in the direction the battle had gone.

Elizabeth pulled Erika to her feet. “We need to find Lord Bellmont!”, she said.

They followed the group of vampires, eventually finding Alexander lying motionless on the ground. Ahead of him was an area of disturbed ground, which the vampires flocked to; they frantically clawed and kicked at it, shrieking in anger as they did so.

The twins started to run toward Alexander. Some of the vampires screeched his name and lunged for his unconscious body. Erika and Elizabeth quickly dispatched them and knelt at his side.

“He’s still breathing,” Erika said anxiously, calling his name, trying to wake him.

She held her hands over his chest, gathering her magic. A warm glow emitted from them.

Alexander slowly opened his eyes and saw the two of them standing there. The pain and heaviness in his body lingered, but he felt it beginning to fade, ever so slightly. He quickly tried to get up but let out a pained grunt as he slumped back down.

Erika cautioned him, “You’ve suffered a lot of damage, my Lord, but I cast a healing spell on you. It’s not instant, but it will accelerate your natural healing.”

Elizabeth told him, “Relax, you did well, my Lord. You defeated Ivanovich. Now let us handle the rest.”

He quickly disagreed, a look of seriousness and terror in his eyes. “No, you don’t understand! I felt the true depths of his power! My Magma Prison will only keep him contained for a bit!”

He pointed to one of the skyscrapers looming in the distance, where Ivanovich’s underlings had carried the device. A purple and red haze invaded the air near it. “That device is going to transform everyone in the city into vampires! We have to destroy it!”

Elizabeth helped him to his feet, the pain still screaming through his body but easing by the minute. She draped his arm over her shoulder and looked to her sister. With a quick nod, they both cast wind spells at their feet, catapulting them through the air to the top of the tower.

Upon reaching the roof where the device was located, they could feel something vile in the air. It was unnatural and unpleasant. The haze that filled the air sent shivers down their spines as the device whirred and hummed. It pulsated and throbbed, a hideous sight to witness. Alexander remembered Ivanovich telling him the device was infused with his own essence. He realized the pieces of it that seemed to be made of organic material were bits of his own body and flesh. Nausea came over him as Elizabeth sat him down to continue recovering.

Erika told her sister, “Stay with Lord Bellmont while I inspect the device. Hopefully I can find a way to either deactivate or destroy it.”

As she ran to investigate the device, Elizabeth knelt down to Alexander again. “You really did fight well, my Lord. I’m proud to be your servant.”

He gave her a labored smile. “We’re not out of the woods yet…”

She gave him a reassuring nod, confident that once he had recovered, the three of them could defeat a weakened Ivanovich for good.

They heard Erika scream out in horror from near the device. Elizabeth sharply stood and called to her sister. “Erika, what’s wrong?!”

She saw Erika back away from the device, her hand tightly placed over her mouth as the purple and red haze continued to spew from the machine. It hummed louder and more vigorously now.

In a panic, Erika said, “This device…it’s powered by Shadow Magic...”

Alexander’s stomach turned, and a cold sweat formed on Elizabeth’s forehead. Shadow Magic, the toxic substance that Alexander had nearly conjured on accident back on Avalon. He remembered the night in the library when the darkness called to him. The malevolent purple aura that radiated from his body when he wielded the tome. The haze in the air now began to make sense.

Elizabeth, partially in denial, asked, “C-can’t we just destroy it?”

Erika furiously shook her head. “No! The Shadow Magic would have to go somewhere! The backlash of destroying the device without dealing with that first could be devastating! At the very least, the city would be wiped out!”

Elizabeth’s arms dropped lifelessly to her side. She looked on, her mouth hanging open. She quietly whispered, “What can we do…? Is this really it…? Is it truly hopeless…?”

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

An idea struck Alexander as he stumbled back to his feet, the pain slowly fading away. His idea wasn’t a good one, but he could think of no other option. He decided he could try and siphon the Shadow Magic from the device and contain it within himself. After all, he had felt the effects of Shadow Magic before, if it was only for a brief moment. It might be toxic, it might kill him. But if it was the only way to save everyone, he would have to try.

“Sit back down, my Lord! You’re not back to full strength yet”, Erika told him.

He brushed off her concern and told the twins his plan to try and absorb the dark energy powering the device.

Elizabeth looked at him, her expression a mixture of astonishment and anger. “Are you insane?”

Erika agreed with her sister. “I won’t allow you to try something so reckless!”

Undeterred, he asked, “Do you have a better solution?”

Neither of them answered. Erika looked hopelessly at the ground while Elizabeth bit at her lip angrily. Their silence confirmed to him that this was the only way.

He stepped forward, and Erika pleaded with him. “It will kill you! At best, it will be instant, and at worst, it will be slow and agonizing!”

He looked at her and answered with a confident smile as he placed his hand on her shoulder. “There’s no other way...”

She pleaded again, now with tears in her eyes. “Please, don’t do this! If someone has to, let it be me!”

He shook his head. “It has to be me. I’ve felt the effects of the shadows before, so I have an idea of what to expect.”

Elizabeth questioned, “How is that possible?”

He answered, “It’s a long story. I promise I’ll tell you after this is all over…”

He looked to Erika, tears now streaming down her face, and nodded. “When I give the word, split the device.”

He stood in front of the device and took a deep breath, bracing himself for what was to come. He wasn’t sure if he would live to tell that story like he promised, but he wanted to give them hope, even if he didn’t quite believe it himself.

Elizabeth whispered to herself, “Good luck, my Lord,” as Erika let out one more sob.

He slowly raised his hands and yelled, “Erika, now!”

She conjured a blade of light on her hand, and with a quick stroke, she severed the metal machinery and the organic matter of the device.

A blast of foul energy erupted from the machine as more purple haze spewed from its innards. It began to seep in all directions, but Alexander channeled his magic, containing it and controlling its flow. He manipulated it, pulling it toward himself. It was thick, slowly traveling through the air, creeping towards him. Even though it hadn’t reached him yet, he could feel it—the uneasiness, the darkness, the tainted energy. He held out his hand as the purple stream reached him. His hand immediately went numb, much faster than it had back on Avalon. His heart rate spiked, and his breathing increased rapidly.

He slowly pulled more in with his other hand, which also went numb. He continued to siphon it, more and more as it emerged from the device. It slowly engulfed his body, and a searing pain shot through him. It was more intense and debilitating than anything Ivanovich had done to him. Purple shocks arced from him around the area as Erika and Elizabeth looked in horror, powerless to do anything to help him.

He screamed out in pain as the Shadow Magic continued to enter his body. It felt like his cells were being ripped apart continuously, over and over again as he tried so desperately to hold himself together. His vision started to go blurry, and he felt detached from the rest of his body. He wondered how he was still conscious, if he even was...

At last, the remainder of the Shadow Magic entered his body, and the sickening purple aura which had enveloped him started to dim. He whined in panic and coughed violently as he stumbled around, eventually falling into Elizabeth’s arms.

She called to him, “Lord Bellmont, can you hear me?!”

He looked up at her, the life in his eyes weak. He tried to speak, but no words would come out; the pain was too much, overloading all of his senses.

“We need to retreat for now”, Erika suggested.

They dropped back down to the ruined street and laid Alexander on the ground as he writhed and contorted in agony. Both twins looked at him in horror, wondering what would happen to him now. It was a pitiful sight, and they both felt so helpless.

The ground suddenly began to rumble. They looked to where the vampires had been clawing, where Alexander had buried Ivanovich in a prison of molten magma. The remaining vampires backed away, screeching in joy.

Elizabeth swallowed hard and gripped her sword tightly as Erika let out a quiet, “No,” in disbelief.

Rocks and debris exploded into the air as Ivanovich’s figure emerged from the ground. His skin was blackened and charred from the magma as smoke rose from his body. His facial features had morphed, becoming more bat-like in appearance as he seethed, screaming for the World Guardian.

Elizabeth drew her sword and raised her shield, stepping in front of Alexander. “We won’t let you touch him!

Erika raised her hands, creating two red casting circles in preparation for a fire spell. They both shook violently but maintained their positions, unwilling to let the monster past them.

Alexander stirred. He saw Ivanovich ready to fight again. His mind raced; he couldn’t possibly fight in this current condition. He was out of power and could barely move. But then it hit him. He wasn’t out of power. He had just used up all of his own magical reserves. He fought through the pain and labored to his feet as more purple shocks emitted from him.

He finally managed to speak, weakly calling out to Erika and Elizabeth. They both looked back in shock, wondering how he was even standing. “Stand aside,” he told them as he slowly raised one hand.

Ivanovich cackled at his condition. “You know, I’m over the whole making you watch humanity die thing. You get to go first, World Guardian!”

He then noticed the purple shocks crackling on Alexander’s body and screamed. “What have you done?!”

Through pained and bated breath, Alexander responded, “I’ve beaten you. I’ve won.”

The Shadow Magic exited his body and raced through the air, smashing into Ivanovich, creating a purple smog around him. The vampire shrieked as he vigorously clawed at his own body, desperate to make the pain stop. The pain from Alexander’s own body subsided as the dark magic flowed forth. He channeled it all into Ivanovich, who cursed Alexander one final time as his body was ripped to pieces. He slowly disintegrated, and his body turned to ash.

The few remaining vampires backed away in horror, screeching as they took off into the sky. Erika and Elizabeth started to give chase but stopped as Alexander lost consciousness. They caught him as he fell to the ground, looking at him and then each other. Elizabeth smiled again. “He really did it.”

Tears formed in Erika’s eyes again, but this time they were tears of happiness and relief. They had won.