There was no time to think, only go.

Pages flipped, palms slammed. Wings sprouted, dark feathers plumed. Four more came, pure white. The rush of the air barreled down on Leland as he took flight, the fog suddenly felt like the pressure of the deep ocean. A snarl pulled his face taut, and mana flowed.

Faster than Isobel. Faster than the woman who otherwise would trounce him in combat. Lifeforce and mana, each heightened to their limits, ignited his flight.

The fog became a blur as his speed eclipsed the Sightless King’s hand strangling Glenny into the air. Leland tackled his friend, the lack of ground becoming ever apparent. They spun, all six of Leland’s wings trying to keep up with the sudden impact. Higher and higher they went, until they didn’t. Until gravity took the reins.

Leland and Glenny both were too focused to notice, the hand the only thing they cared about. Glenny, whose throat was being strangled, fought to breathe. Leland, however, went for Glenny’s shirt, hoping to remove the hand and bloody spot all together.

Licks of shadow soon turned the pair dark, Glenny’s parasitic cape trying, and failing, to help. What little light there was, the fog diffusing the setting sun, suddenly was gone and only shadows remained.

Yelling for Glenny to control his cape, Leland activated the contract with the Chameleon Lord. Enhanced perceptions flared to life, and suddenly he could see. Glenny was turning purple, the lack of light only highlighted the issue. He was going to—

Pain and the sound of a cannonball smashing through a roof stopped everyone dead. Glenny’s cloak moved to protect him, leaving Leland where he writhed in pain.

Enhanced perception rebounded a moment later as screams of horror filled the building they found themselves in. Struggling to his feet, Leland took in his surroundings. They had fallen through a roof, one of his seraph wings was bent at an odd angle, and a family was huddled together in a nearby corner, the father desperately holding his hands out trying to protect his loved ones.

Leland didn’t spare them any concern, instead dropping to his knees before Glenny. Magic sparked as he whispered, ”Kneel before me!”

The poorly lit home suddenly became a confluence of colors and strobing lights. Violet flames and a violet halo cast the most, highlighting a dinner table with sickening flickers. Then came the darkness brought into reality by Glenny’s cloak. And lastly was the soul of the Damned that clawed toward its master’s enemy.

A shriek sounded from behind him, but Leland didn’t care. Blood fell from his own face, jagged strips of lumber and roof shingles sticking from his shoulder and back. One flutter of his wings knocked them all away.

Still Glenny fought the Sightless King’s hand, but it wasn’t until part of the monster’s soul was removed that he made traction. It started with a gasp, but air filled his lungs.

With better leverage, Leland yanked the offending arm off his friend, the violet flames still circling. He held it with a death grip, and roared, “Leave! Or surrender your soul! We both know how this goes!”

Green mist was pooling off the fist like the underbrush of a jungle. “How charming,” the hand said before splashing into a pile of blood.

“Dad,” Leland then said. “Portal please.”

Slowly, he tapped Glenny on the chest with a green glowing finger, the contract with the Lord of Nature still active from before. It took a moment, but a portal did open. With the help of Jude, who had rushed through the opposite end of the portal, they got Glenny through. Leland gave one last glance to the family and house they had just ruined, made sure none of them were injured, and whispered, “Sorry.”

He stepped through, and the portal closed.

They helped Glenny onto a bed, laying him down while pulling out twin red potions. They weren’t the expensive stolen variety, but they were plenty powerful. They forced one down a delirious Glenny’s throat before Leland downed one himself.

He felt his flesh knit itself back together, his broken wing snapping back into place. “What was that?”

“Me needing wings,” Jude replied, dead serious.

Leland tried not to snarl. “No, with Glenny?”

Before a response could be made, a portal opened and Lucia stepped through. She had her guard up, multiple bands of lightning wrapped around her like a thick jacket.

“Leland!” she shouted, rushing across the room and pulling him into a hug. “Don’t ever do that! Do you know how dangerous—”

Leland pushed her away. “Yeah, I’m doing that again if it means saving my friend’s life.”

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

A motherly frown found her face before shedding away to guilt. “I— yes, of course. I didn’t mean— I just reacted.”

He nodded. “I did too.”

“You’re fast, faster than me. I thought your father portaled you when I couldn’t find you two right away—”

“It’s okay, we’re safe. The Sightless King is gone, for the moment. He didn’t like having his soul torn away.”

Lucia’s eyes widened at the statement. “You three fought that thing all those months ago?”

Jude gave a shrug, his eyes falling back to Glenny. “It wasn’t like that.”

“It was just a shard of its full power. Isobel killed it in minutes,” Leland added.

“I’ve only ever heard of that potent of blood magic when adventurers from the Argile Towers told stories about the Bloodied Eye…” Lucia shook her head, the horrid stories coming back to memory. “They said it was dead.”

Leland bit his lip. “Guardian Spirit Beast?”

“Yeah. You’ve heard of it?”

“No, but the Sightless King is a former Spirit Beast or something similar. Could it be—”

His mom’s eyes went wide. “If that is the case, then a lot more people are going to die.”

Following their logic, Jude asked, “Bloodied Eye, the Sightless King, whatever the case, it has powerful magic. Primordial and blood, right? How do we kill something like that?”

An idea stuck out from the rest in Leland’s mind. He was loath to rely on it, and it didn’t fit his “Harbinger and Witches only” rule, but he felt “evil Primordial Guardian Spirit Beast” should go ahead and be added to the rules.

“Soul Fire.”

Even the words tasted foul in his mouth. He shuddered, noticing the crow tattoo on the back of his hand listening intently.

“Unless there is another path?” he asked his tattoo, getting strange looks from both his mom and Jude.

The crow gave no indication of “yes” or “no.”

“How does the spell work again?” asked his mom.

Leland sighed. “I need a soul to use. And I promised myself that I’d only use either a Harbinger or Witch’s. I… I couldn’t put a regular person’s soul through that.”

Lucia nodded. “And while I’m sure the city has a small population of Witches living inside its walls, I don’t know where to get my hands on any right now.”

“That leaves us Ashford or if we could locate the Pathways Witch,” supplied Jude.

“Hon?” Lucia asked the open air. “Know where she is?”

A small portal opened at eye level. “In the city, I know that. She’s interfering with my magic, and some of the other space mages, but she’s covering her tracks… I could dedicate my focus to finding her, but many would die because of it.”

Even his wife seemed shocked at that. “Why is that?”

“Ashford made his move. He consumed his parasitic weapon and gained its strength. Currently he’s missing, the Witch having moved him while he recovered from the abuse of doing such a thing.” Spencer’s voice then got very low. “His opening move was to shatter the bones above the castle—”

“What!” Leland shouted, echoing the sentiment on Jude and Lucia’s face.

“I’ve been portaling away the shards, but eventually the sternum is going to fall.”

“But that would destroy the whole castle,” Lucia whispered.

“They are evacuating as we speak, but the cultists are also assaulting the castle. The guards and Inquisitors have it handled, for now, but I’ve been opening decisive portals every minute or so to help.”

A cough and a gargle sounded from the corner of the room. Glenny forced himself to sit up, his lungs burning despite the healing potion in his stomach. “We need a hunter, then. To find the Witch.”

As the adults considered this, Jude and Leland slowly smiled.

“Now hold on,” Lucia pleaded, her hands out and open. “We’ve already seen how dangerous this is going to be. Would it not be better for you three to leave the city and—”

“No!” three young men said at the same time.

She groaned. “Fine. In that case, we’re doing this right. Isobel or no, we need a starting location. Honey? Think you can give us a direction?”

Spencer took a moment to respond, but when he did, he said, “The space by the feet bones of the dead Lord seems… odd. Could be a trap, could be their home base. If I investigate any more, she’d notice and move. I can’t even open a portal in that half of the city without alerting her.”

Jude stood, adjusting the strap of his armor. “Looks like we’re going to be traveling on foot.”

“Dad, can you find Isobel?”

“And my dad?”

“Oh! And my parents?”

Spencer went silent, a second later a single large portal opened. On the other side, fog sprawled out, along with the stink of death and the gnawing churn of combat. Guards and Inquisitors were set in formed ranks, slowly taking street after street away from cultist hand.

Four bodies slipped through the portal before it closed.

Bathed in blood, Diana stood the tallest. Axe in hand, a great grin mutely fell away as the lack of battle soothed the rage in her bones. Unwounded and not even breathing hard was Roy, a massive steel shield in each hand. A moment later, they were gone, returning to the castle-like tattoo on the back of his hand. Carmon was over to his son in a single step, his sword dripping with blood. He jittered slightly, an echo. Isobel came in last, her wings out similarly to Leland’s. She was sweating, but far from tired.

“What happened?” Carmon asked, his tone dark and haunted.

Glenny pulled at his collar, trying to hide the bruising around his neck. Leland was the one who answered, “Sightless King went for Glenny. Blood magic. We think it is the Bloodied Eye.”

Everyone other than the kids and Isobel bristled at the name. “Truly?” Roy asked.

Lucia nodded. “It is a safe assumption, I’d say, with everything we know about it.”

Diana growled, “Then we know its approximate power. Anyone up for some big game hunting?”

“Speaking of, actually,” Leland looked at Isobel. “We’ve got a target for you.”

Changing from a blank face, Isobel smiled. “I was wondering when the actual battle would start.”