Horatio spun round after they had killed the last monster in the group, and his chest tightened with shock. While he had been fighting off that group, several others had arrived at the party behind them, and their tight square formation had broken apart as the monsters drove some of them back, or separated them off, or had to be run away from as they flanked the party members and teamed up on them.
And he could not see Alex.
‘WHERE’S ALEX?!’ he shouted in desperation into the chaos of the melee.
But nobody answered him. They were all too busy fighting for their lives.
He scanned the battle, trying to find the hero, but couldn’t see him anywhere. Had Alex slipped away again, trying to progress to the tower on his own, undetected?
He saw Walter and Tyler holding off a group of monsters at what had been the back of their square…
Battle 2 [Group 4, back attack]
He saw Wyvera, Ouzo, Silvia and Helen, pushed over to one side by another group of monsters, near to a lava flow…
Battle 3 [Group 2, surrounded formation]
And he saw Olivia, Ross and Ursula over on the slopes of one of the volcanoes, where they had pursued and surrounded yet another group…
Battle 4 [Group 3, Pincer formation]
But Horatio could still not see Alex anywhere…
There!
‘NO!’ Horatio called without thinking.
Fifty paces away, atop a small ridge in the barren earth that lay closer to the tower than Horatio’s current position, stood Alex.
And in front of him stood a Braxian.
A Braxian five times his height, wearing a long, flowing, cowled cloak the deep blue colour of dusk and carrying a gigantic, gleaming scythe.
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‘GET TO ALEX!’ Horatio shouted even as he began to run, and his voice cracked and became a scream. ‘DEATH! DEATH! PROTECT ALEX!’
Horatio’s world narrowed to one point as he ran faster than he had ever run, eyes fixed on Alex and the Braxian death-worshiper.
He watched in horror as the Braxian took an almighty swing with his scythe at Alex, sure to cleave his whole body in two…
…but Alex ducked under it, produced a wooden staff from somewhere, and then parried the haft of the scythe further away as it came past him.
Horatio was half way to them now. Twenty-five paces.
Do something significant. Be a hero. Save the world.
The Braxian recovered with astounding speed and brought the scythe back round again for another swipe from the other side…
…Alex hopped backwards and held up his staff again, this time to block the blade…
…but instead the scythe cut through the staff easily, severing it into two useless pieces.
Ten paces. Horatio was nearly there.
Got to get there in time.
The Braxian pulled his weapon back for another blow…
…then swung his scythe forwards, sticking it through Alexander’s heart.
The point of the scythe-blade stuck out of Alex’s back, decorated with red.
Horatio staggered to a halt a few steps away, paralysed by shock.
He hadn’t made it in time.
The Braxian raised his weapon and Alex lifted off the ground with it, hanging from the blade. Then with a laugh he flicked it sharply downwards, and Alex’s body flew off of it, hitting the ground by Horatio with a sickening smack and lying still.
Alex’s eyes were open, but unfocused. Blood leaked from his mouth.
He was dead.
‘NO!’ Horatio screamed.
He ran at the Braxian, slashing at him on reflex with his sword, which the scythe-blade turned away, before it came back round for a counter-strike, which Horatio blocked, barely, getting knocked backwards from the force of the blow.
The Braxian was laughing from within his cowl, a horrible hollow mocking sound. ‘Ahahahahahahaha! He was your best hope, was he? All the hope of Qind pinned on such pitiful weakness!’
Horatio was aware of the others arriving at his side, gasping and making noises of lament at the sight of the fallen Alex.
‘Murderer!’ he yelled at the Braxian.
‘Foolish mortal!’ the Braxian replied to him. ‘I am no mere common murderer! I am death, and I am your death! Everyone answers to me eventually! I come for everyone in the end, and I am the end of all!’
The Braxian moved towards them, scythe singing through the air.
Boss battle: Death.