The druid prince was panting, and Alejandra saw dark green lights bounce around him. Sylvar backed away, frowning as he tried to contain his fear. Alejandra squinted, realizing they weren’t lights at all. They were glowing spores. Sylvar, as an elf, tried to control his fear, but he stumbled away, eyes widening. The spores continued to glow, then disappeared, the light entering Sylvar’s longsword. The druid prince unsheathed it, before his eyes shot to the gargoyle near Hraktar. Alejandra’s eyes widened as she saw another +8 hit points join his +9, and regular 12 hit points. With all that together, Sylvar had twenty-nine hit points.

With a shout, Sylvar brought down his longsword against the gargoyle. Despite the shout, the gargoyle didn’t look too hurt. The creature at first didn’t react, but then when Sylvar brought the sword back, part of the gargoyle’s shoulder eroded away with age. The gargoyle snarled at Sylvar, and the druid prince gasped in surprise.

The earth elemental focused on Grizzizzik, bringing its two arms down. Grizzizzik dodged the first one, but the second one broke across his head. The extra hit points Clarissa gave him blipped out of existence, and his hit points tumbled before stabilizing to ten. Grizzizzik spat out dirt from his mouth. He had a cut across his forehead, clotted with dirt.

Milo tapped his wrench against his crossbow before pointing it at the gargoyle. It looked like the bolt would hit, but the gargoyle leapt out of the way at the last minute. It retaliated by biting his arm and shoulder. Milo grunted as Clarissa’s extra hit points dropped to one, but he at least still had twenty-four hit points.

Grizzizzik mumbled something, again that black fog collecting to his hands. Grizzizzik then unleashed it against the earth elemental. The creature grunted as it hit, then it looked around, confused and scared.

One gargoyle slammed its claws into Clarissa, then tried to bite her. She shrieked, leaping out of the way, but there were claw marks gathering blood and running down her arm. Alejandra again didn’t know what to do. She simply had Hraktar snarl at the creature again to draw its attention. Sylvar was no longer dangerously low, but Hraktar still felt a duty to protect him. The gargoyle tried to bite Hraktar, but it clanged off the chain mail, as did the claws.

A shriek brought Alejandra’s attention to the gargoyle in front of Clarissa, who slammed her flame blade again into its stomach, causing the blackened stone to give way. It was pretty battered.

“Go help Grizzizzik, my love. I’m fine,” Clarissa said.

Ezekiel nodded, then made his way toward the rogue. The spiritual book slammed against the earth mound, and it shrieked in surprise as dirt fell off it. It was still an imposing creature, though. A burst of radiant light hit against the creature, brushing off more dirt.

Sylvar lifted his longsword, but he glanced around at the invisible spores around him and his sword point dropped. His eyes widened and Alejandra had the distinct impression he was having a moment of panic.

The earth elemental grunted again, backing away as more dirt fell off. Milo pointed his cannon and his magical crossbow toward the gargoyle. A bolt of white energy smacked into the gargoyle, as well as an electric bolt jolting through its shoulder. The gargoyle shrieked in pain, its body crumbling. It was still standing, but did not look good. The creature shrieked before attacking Milo and adding to his cuts and bruises. The mana fusor grunted, his hit points stabilizing at four.

Another bolt of black energy hit the earth elemental. It stumbled, bracing itself as it snarled at Grizzizzik, who was concentrating, his eyes never leaving the creature. Clarissa gave a shriek as her extra hit points disappeared. She still had nineteen hit points. Alejandra didn’t have time to think about it. The gargoyle tried to bite Hraktar, and when that didn’t happen, it clawed the fighter’s face. Hraktar grunted with only one extra hit point left. It didn’t matter. Hraktar was nothing more than someone to take the damage, so Sylvar wouldn’t have to.

Clarissa tried to slam her flame blade into the gargoyle, but it leapt aside, taking flight.

“Shit,” Tyler muttered.

Ezekiel clutched his medallion, whispering. Grizzizzik glowed, the dirt from his wounds dropping off as it stitched together. Grizzizzik went back up to sixteen hit points, which felt a lot better than four. Ezekiel’s eyes snapped open, and he pushed a hand forward. Radiant light slammed into the earth elemental. The creature roared, sounding like boulders falling down a mountain.

Sylvar was panting as the green spore lights again appeared around him. Sylvar stared at them, confused, before he reached out and touched one. He hissed as he touched it, his knees buckling. Tyler almost moved toward him, but Rafael grabbed his shoulder.

“If we have to stay from the fight, so do you,” Rafael said.

Tyler’s shoulders slumped as Sylvar lost three hit points. The earth elemental shivered, chunks of earth falling off his shoulders as it bellowed, grabbing his head.

Milo again shot white energy into the creature. The gargoyle bellowed before collapsing into a pile of rocks. Milo let out a breath of relief before turning toward the earth elemental and lifted his crossbow, aiming it at the creature and blasting it with an electric bolt. The earth elemental shrieked, mounds of dirt falling off it as it stumbled. It panted, turning its coal eyes on Milo. The mana fusor, to his credit, stared back at the creature.

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There was movement as Clarissa’s gargoyle missed hitting her, when Alejandra’s attention was again pulled into the time freeze. She kept Hraktar between Sylvar and the gargoyle, who did not look nearly as damaged as everyone else’s. Alejandra tried not to worry about it. The gargoyle snapped at Hraktar, but the fighter just growled back.

Things were happening fast. Ezekiel’s book smacked the earth elemental again. It shrieked as half of its face fell away. That earth elemental was getting pummeled.

Sylvar shouted, raising his longsword over his head before the gargoyle leapt out of the way, sneering at Sylvar as the sword missed him completely. The druid prince panted, looking nauseous.

Milo ran between Ezekiel and Grizzizzik, holding up the crossbow and the cannon.

“Eat cannon!”

The white ball of energy flew wild, smacking into the pavement, and the crossbow bolt went wild into the dark, missing the earth elemental entirely. Ezekiel and Grizzizzik both glanced at Milo, who sighed.

“I guess… the pavement will eat cannon.”

The gargoyle hovered in the air near Clarissa. She grimaced as the claws sliced her cheek and hitting her pointed ear; her hit points dropping to sixteen. The gargoyle moved away from Hraktar and swiped its claws against Sylvar. The druid prince grunted as the claw marks caught his forearms. Sylvar, despite being weak, was not in danger even now. But to Hraktar, he felt like a failure.

Clarissa shouted as she slammed her flame blade into the gargoyle. It shrieked again, the smell of hot stone filling the air.

Ezekiel hit the earth elemental again with his book and radiant damage, and the creature took them both, shrieking in pain. The creature looked like it was on its last leg, which was great, because Hraktar and Sylvar needed help.

Sylvar again raised the longsword above his head before bringing it down, missing completely. The gargoyle cackled.

Mounds of dirt fell off the earth elemental while it bellowed at them. It wasn’t nearly as imposing as before. The coal eyes met Milo again and it brought down one of its enormous fists against the ground before punching Milo with the other one, slamming everything it could into it. Milo’s shouts were muffled as earth filled his mouth. He started coughing, cuts appearing across his body like he’d fallen down the length of a mountain, his hit points dropping to nine.

Milo cleared his throat before pointing the crossbow at the mound of earth. “Eat… lightning.” The bolt slammed into the earth elemental, and it shrieked before everything that made it humanoid fell into a pile of dirt. Milo coughed again before turning around and facing Clarissa’s hovering gargoyle in the air. A blast of white energy slammed into its chest, and it dropped to the ground, shrieking and somehow still standing. Milo coughed again, leaning over to spit some dirt from his mouth.

Hraktar moved Sylvar away, standing between the druid prince and the gargoyle to make him the bigger target. It cackled again before trying to attack Hraktar. The fighter dodged each attack, snarling at the creature.

Clarissa raised her flame blade, but again missed the creature. Ezekiel turned and threw his book at it, which made it collapse into dust.

That just left the gargoyle Hraktar and Sylvar had. The radiant fire sailed past the gargoyle as it spun. The creature no doubt realized there were no more of its buddies around.

Sylvar again raised his longsword and brought it down, missing the gargoyle completely. Milo ran forward, trying to hit it with his cannon and crossbow, but both missed. Grizzizzik muttered an incantation, and the gargoyle’s eyes widened as he jerked around, terrified and confused.

Hraktar grabbed Sylvar and moved him away from the group. “Stay away, Prince. They’re more than capable of handling this.”

Sylvar said nothing, though he seemed pained at Hraktar’s words. The gargoyle shrieked, clasping its hands over its ears, shuddering.

Clarissa ran forward with her flame blade, slamming it into the creature’s side. It shrieked in pain as its side blackened.

Sylvar’s breathing turned uneasy before he closed his eyes. Once again, the little green spores popped into existence, and the gargoyle spun, watching them. Sylvar, eyes still closed, moved them with a snap of his wrist, and the spores threw themselves into the gargoyle. The creature shrieked.

Milo shot his cannon and crossbow, both smacking into the gargoyle as it writhed in pain before collapsing in a mound of dirt and rock. The only sound for a few moments was everyone’s exhausted breathing. Then there was a clatter on the ground as Sylvar dropped his longsword and backed away before collapsing to his knees.

“Sylvar?” Clarissa asked, running over to him.

Sylvar opened his hands, staring at them wide eyed. “What… am I?”

Tyler rushed over, approaching Sylvar’s side.

“My brother. You always will be,” Clarissa said.

“I… am weak.”

Grizzizzik quietly stepped away before sifting through the mounds of dirt. Grizzizzik had never been the touchy-feely kind of guy. Alejandra fought back the desire to roll her eyes.

“The ritual weakened you and changed some aspects about your powers,” Tyler said.

“I…” Sylvar opened his eyes, then raised his hand. Alejandra gasped as a skeletal hand appeared out of the ground, and tears pricked his eyes. “How can I do this? I’ve never had this ability before.”

Tyler glanced at the hand. “That’s… chill touch. A cantrip you get as part of your circle. Circle of spores.”

“Spores.” Green spores blinked into existence around Sylvar again. “Destruction. Decay.” His purple eyes flickered over to the skeletal hand. “Death.”

Tyler let out an uneasy breath. “It’s necromancy. Necromancy doesn’t mean evil.”

Sylvar said nothing, again staring at his hands. “I am weaker. My longsword. I… can’t lift it like I could.”

“Yeah, that’s the dice’s fault. I rolled terribly for that one,” Tyler muttered. “Your strength modifier isn’t the best, either. We could… get a different weapon for you. Finesse or a simple weapon that calculates your dexterity instead of your strength.”

Sylvar stared at Tyler. “I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

Tyler gave a slow nod. “Fair enough. Come on, we’ll have Cal help out.”

Five hundred and twenty-five experience points tumbled into Hraktar’s experience bar. Alejandra’s shoulders relaxed as a notification started blinking that Hraktar reached level five.

Sylvar waved away the skeletal hand, then grabbed his staff. They got to their feet, quietly returning to their cars. Tyler watched as Sylvar slid into the back of the car before meeting Rafael and Alejandra’s gaze.

“I’ll meet you back at Calawit’s.”