“Report,” called the mysterious figure as his eyes roamed the surroundings. They lingered on the Creeping Horror before moving to land on Leo and the others with amusement as they struggled to stay afoot before his presence.

“Master, after luring away the sword sage, I was able to determine that the island holds no traps or preparations for our arrival,” Reign answered calmly, still kneeling in submission.

The man’s lips tucked in a frown. “I’m disappointed. It is the beginning of a new cycle—he must’ve known I would be coming.” He strode forward, hands clasped behind his back. “Was his thirst for revenge really so slight? I thought I had given him plenty of motivation the last time we crossed paths.”

With each step the man took, the plants around him withered and turned to ash, their grey forms breaking apart like flakes of snow falling to the earth. He walked over to where Leo and the others were clustered, haggardly trying to stay afoot under the immense pressure the man exerted.

“You must be the new Arrival. Tell me, lad, how has old Zeldorth been getting along after the death of his wife and son? I imagine that kind of loss tends to leave quite the mark on a person.” The black-clad figure peered off in the direction of the cabin, as if his pitch-black eyes could pull back all the undergrowth and obstacles, unveiling the gravestones tucked quietly away.

“Who…are…you?” Leo gasped as his legs finally gave out. The pressure was too much to bear and his body crumpled to the ground, leaving him gasping for breath on his hands and knees.

“Me?” The man cocked his head to the side before revealing his teeth to show a flawless smile. “I’m the one who killed them.”

KAWOOO

A loud cry went up from Leo’s right side as Sparky darted into the clearing, feathers bristling with power. She gave a mighty flap of her bright yellow wings and hurled three separate arcs of electricity that spun toward the man. The three strikes of lightning spiraled as they raced forward, their energies mixing and condensing into one massive bolt.

The man whipped his hand up and held out a single finger to meet the massive surge of energy. The bolt lit up the clearing in a golden glow as it impacted the tip of his index finger, before dissipating in a million sparks beneath his touch.

While the man was temporarily distracted by Sparky’s attack, Mute charged silently out of cover from where he had lain in wait on the other side of the clearing. He held his war hammer high, muscles rippling in power as he sped behind the man, intent on delivering a killing blow.

The heavy metal weapon made it within six inches of the man’s black robes before it blew away like dust in the breeze. Mute stared at his empty palms as his weapon dematerialized and vanished in his hands. He looked down at the two dendromancers, stone-faced in calm acceptance as he spoke a single word. “Run.” Then his body peeled apart and vanished as well, leaving empty rags and a heavy metal collar to flop to the gray ground below.

“Reign, why didn’t you take care of the rabble already?” the man said, his eyes flickering to the boy’s prostrated form.

“Forgive me, master, I thought they would be of use to support the new Arrival’s growth,” Reign replied in an empty voice.

“He has his pets for that.”

The man, whom Leo was starting to believe was some sort of reaper, towered over their fallen forms like death’s very shadow. Lila’s brother had managed to struggle to his feet, refusing to succumb to the immense strain the man’s presence exerted on them. He was desperately trying to pull his sister back into the garden but stopped to jump protectively in front of her as Vizon shifted his attention to them.

“I won’t let you hurt her!” he shouted, standing over Lila’s fallen form as his whole body shook.

“Only the strong may make such declarations,” he said with a lazy wave of his hand that froze the boy’s body like a statue.

“Brier!” Lila cried out, her hand floundering out to grab at her brother’s sleeve, fingers touching unmoving flesh but for a moment before his body crumbled to the ground like a billion grains of sand. “No…” she whispered in anguish, her hand clutching a stray piece of fabric. “Nooo-!” Her heart-wrenching scream was abruptly cut off as her face froze in despair.

“Why is it always so irksome to get rid of pests,” the reaper said as Lila’s delicate figure fell apart to join her brother, some of her ashen remains drifting off to coat Leo’s horror-stricken face. The man removed one of his black leather gloves and began to swat at his clothes, releasing a cloud of errant ash that had stuck to his figure. “If you are going to die, at least do so with some civility. Don’t you agree, lad?”

Leo couldn’t process the man’s words after watching those lives extinguished with the same casualness as one took in blowing out a candle before bed. His mind kept flashing through images of Lila’s face, the light twinkling in her kind amber eyes as she smiled and helped him to his feet after healing him, to the all-consuming terror that leapt out of her as she realized her brother had just been murdered.

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“Hmm, was that not enough to fan the flames of rage in your heart? Perhaps I need to take away something a bit more personal.” His black eyes fell on Pride, the Chari’s fur standing on-end under his heavy gaze, then he looked at Sparky, who took a few steps back, feathers bristling in defiance. “Decisions, decisions.” The reaper spoke with a perfect smile, as he slipped his glove back on his hand and stretched his arm up and over his head. “I choose…”

“No, please,” Leo begged the man, wondering which of his beloved companions he was about to lose. Just as the words dripped out of his mouth, thunderstruck. The blast was so powerful that the shockwave it expelled blew both Leo and Pride to the outer edges of the clearing.

“Vizon!” roared a voice filled with unbridled fury from up above. Amira descended through the large opening in the cavern ceiling. Her wings blocked out the light and draped an ominous shadow over the garden, making Leo feel like a hunted rodent before the terrifying visage of an eagle. Atop her back stood Zeld, his white robes billowing with the hurricane winds generated by each flap of Amira’s wings.

“…you,” finished the cloaked man, Vizon, with a grin. He lowered his arm from where it had blocked the incoming blast, the ground beneath his feet a charred mess of scorched earth. “You come at last! I was getting bored waiting on you, Arrival!” he shouted, face filled with mirth and anticipation.

Leo’s eyes widened at the title as he watched Zeld hop off Amira’s back, plummeting several stories through the open air to impact the ground with a slight bend in his knees and a spray of dirt. He straightened himself, the dark thunderclouds that marred his face a stark contrast to Vizon’s wide-open smile.

“Zeld, you’re an Arrival? What’s going on?” Leo asked hesitantly, his voice breaking through the palpable tension that hung heavily in the air.

Vizon roared with maniacal laughter at his question. “You never told him! Oh, this is too good!” he cried out in delight. “We are your overseers, sent by the one who brought you to this hellhole of a planet! We are both your beginning and your end!”

“Oh, save the monologue,” Zeld snapped in irritation, turning his attention to Leo.

“Zeld?” Leo said warily, the distance he had gained from the crazed man finally allowing him to unsteadily reclaim his feet.

His mentor turned to him, the cloud of anger blotting his features softening as he saw his student’s apprehensive look. “I turn my back on you for a second and you shoot up how many levels?” the old man said with a slight grin, his face a mask of twisted emotions.

“Zeld,” Leo repeated, fear beginning to trickle into his heart by the usually calm old man’s mixed expression.

“I’m sorry, my boy, I honestly thought we would have more time.” Zeld’s face broke momentarily, letting Leo see the sorrow and pity that filled his mentor’s gaze.

“I already told you, I’m getting tired of waiting,” Vizon said, his voice layered with malicious intent.

“You’ve waited twenty-seven years; you can wait a moment longer!”

Irritation flashed across Vizon’s face as the two held a brief stare-down, then surprisingly the tall man gave a shrug and turned over to share some muffled words with Reign.

“Tell me what’s going on, old man. You’re not really going to go…die on me, are you?” Despite all that he had gone through since coming to Asylum, despite the decade that had passed back on Earth since his father’s death, Leo couldn’t help but feel like a child again. The same boy who had watched his dad walk out the door of his family’s old home for the last time.

“They are who I told you about, the ones who brought Erreth to ruin, the Order of Lazarus. They are the ones who bring us here at the beginning of every cycle, and the ones who take us away if we live until the end.” He looked at Leo’s crushed face, watching the tears swell in his eyes. Zeld knelt. “Leo, dry your face and listen to this old man’s prattle for the last time. Neither the gods above nor the abyss below controls who you are and what you can do. In this world, there are those who accept their lot in life, who trudge on to obey the expectation of others without a word, simply because it is the road most traveled, but the harder the climb, the more rewarding the view.

“I failed. I lost heart and stumbled back on the beaten path others had carved for me, too weighed down by the burdens of my past to try and carry on for a better future, but I know you can do better. Pick up the burned-down trail that I left behind and struggle through the ashen remains to fight your fate. There are other Arrivals out there—find them, garner strength in union and one day break out of this cycle of ruin.”

Zeld rose to his feet to the sound of slow-clapping resounding across the clearing. “Bravo! Well said!” shouted Vizon with a mocking smile while Reign stood silently at his side, face blank. “Ready to die now, old friend?”

“Not here, or we’ll destroy this island and both of our inheritors along with it. We will fight on the surface below,” Zeld responded coolly, his face now calm.

“I suppose you’ve earned the right to make such a declaration,” Vizon said after a moment’s consideration. “Very well, after you.” He gestured to the opening in the ceiling above.

Leo reached out and grabbed Zeld’s white robes just as the old man turned around. “I don’t want you to go…” Leo trailed off. The old man had been brutal and exacting ever since Leo had met him. The training was harsh, his lessons were strict, and his jokes were oftentimes more painful than they were funny, but after weeks of living alongside the old man, and fighting for food at the dinner table with Pride and Sparky, the small cottage had for a time made him feel like he was among family.

Zeldorth smiled, knowing his student’s sentiments. He wiggled from around his finger the plain gold band with the imprint of a Roc clutching a staff, before gently unlatching Leo’s grip and dropping the ring into his palm. “Keep this safe for me, will you?” He turned back and took a few steps forward, meeting Vizon’s amused eyes. “Don’t mourn, boy. Didn’t I already tell you, there are fates far worse than a quick death.”

There was a loud crack that shook the cavern as both Vizon and Zeld disappeared, leaving only craters behind. He continued to stare at the spot long after they departed, trying to burn his mentor’s smile and last words permanently into his mind.