Fun Fact: Healing potions were invented by combining Cleric natural healing magic with Alchemy. The healing potion was one of the first few items to be invented due to the necessity borne of humanity’s bloody past. It can be used to speed up recovery of damaged body parts.

It cannot be used as a poison antidote, though.

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Gaius had to put his hand over the girl’s mouth to stop her from screaming any further.

“Shh, keep it down. Parthena, it’s me.” He put a finger to his lips as he slowly moved his hand away from her mouth. He glanced at the blood streaks staining the side of her face.

“Are you hurt?” he asked. “Do you need-”

“So much… blood.” Parthena trembled uncontrollably. “Everyone turned into those… things. I had to hide… I had to save myself first… I’m sorry… I’m sorry…”

“It’s not your fault, Parthena.” Gaius pulled her to her feet with a grim look on his face. He did not need to imagine the horrors of seeing their own dorm mates warp into freaks of nature. “Come, we need to get out of here now.”

The girl refused to budge.

“I’m so scared…” she whimpered. “My magic doesn’t work when I’m afraid. What if we run into those monsters?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll protect you,” Gaius replied, steeling himself for the inevitable encounter with the monster later. “And it’s probably best that you don’t use magic for now; I suspect that’s what turned everyone into monsters in the first place.”

Parthena’s room door opened without a sound, and Gaius silently thanked the school for keeping the doors well oiled. They crept along the devastated hallways, ignoring the smears of fresh blood as well as mangled corpses that put even the best Halloween decoration to shame. Parthena pointed excitedly at the wide-open gate, and Gaius’ stomach sank.

Ten more steps.

The Sorcerer signalled a confused Parthena to stay put while he walked forward cautiously. His breathing became heavier as the gate loomed closer and closer. Three more steps.

Two.

One.

A gentle breeze was all the warning he needed.

Energy gushed into his soles as he flipped up more than five metres into the air, only to be struck down by the monster’s unnecessarily long tail anyway. The boy crashed hard to the ground, his eyes flashing desperately as he tried to look into the future again for a more ideal outcome.

But there was no time to focus his magic.

He screamed in pain as a pincer ripped his back open, followed by another claw slashing through his waist. Gaius stumbled to his feet, narrowly avoiding the creature’s tail that left a gash on the concrete floor. His mouth went dry. Parthena was screaming. The scorpion-like monster was rearing up for another attack. He was in actual trouble.

Everything he foresaw had just come to pass.

The monster lunged again, but not towards him this time. Deep cracks spread in the wall as it sunk its pointed legs into the concrete. It crawled up the building at an alarming speed away from Gaius. Where was it going-

Oh no.

Gaius’ legs moved by themselves. He darted towards Parthena and scooped her into his arms, just in time for another blinding pain to shoot through his exposed back. The girl shrieked as an enormous force slammed into his side, causing him to drop her.

Her body slid on the floor while Gaius got up quickly, his breaths getting more and more desperate. A flurry of movement blinded him as he raised his fists desperately to block the attacks.

Shit, am I… losing? It’s so fast…

Sidestep. Parry. Slide left. Duck down- Ow! Lean back. Counter- Argh! Slide ri- Shit!

The world spun like a drunken ballerina before his eyes as the boy’s battered body slammed hard onto the ground. A wand fell out of his pocket, sliding towards Parthena. He looked up desperately to check if she was alright, and his eyes widened with hope.

In the commotion, the monster was no longer standing between them and the gate.

“Parthena! Cast teleport!” Gaius pointed to his wand. More pain choked his body as the monster drove its pointed leg through his abdomen.

“Do it…” The boy gritted his teeth against the paralysing pain. “Now…”

There was a familiar low rumble of a warp portal opening, and Gaius grinned victoriously. A blade popped out from his gauntlet.

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“Fare…well!” Gaius swiped the knife through the monster’s leg and scrambled to his feet, seizing the opportunity to make for the school gate.

“Go, go!” he yelled for a stunned Parthena to enter the portal as he crossed the school gates, feeling the anti-warp charm wash off him. The Sorcerer tossed another energy ball behind for good measure, staggering the pursuing monster once more.

He leapt into the closing portal.

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The duo took a moment to catch their breath in their new, darker location. Parthena was not injured, merely shaken, while Gaius was mostly unscathed. Well, except for the pointed leg still lodged in his stomach. He cringed in pain as he grabbed onto it firmly.

“What are you doing, Gaius?” Parthena exclaimed. “Don’t pull it out yet; you’ll bleed to dea-”

She let out a small squeal as the boy inhaled sharply and dropped the monster’s leg to the floor. Light was pouring out of the gaping hole in his abdomen, but the wound quickly sealed itself up.

“Your injuries…” the girl stuttered in surprise. “They’re all healed… How did you do that without a potion?”

“It’s… a long story,” Gaius replied curtly, clearly too exhausted to recount anything at the moment. “Where did you warp us to?”

“My church.”

“Of course that was your first choice…” Gaius mumbled to himself amusedly. He was not complaining though. This place was spacious and completely empty, which made it a good hideout. The only problem was that it was in the middle of a populated city with no easy access to resources.

“I need to call my friends,” Parthena said abruptly, fishing out her phone. “I need to make sure they’re okay-”

Gaius put her hand back down and shook his head.

“If your friends are on the move at this time of the night, a ringing phone will be the last thing they need,” he said grimly, pulling out his own phone instead. He flipped to the emergency news broadcast.

Nothing yet. Guess shit really hit the fan, huh?

Gaius bowed his head, deep in thought. The government has always been quick in responding to national threats, even during Benedictus’ time. With Warlock Vulcan now holding the reins, the news should have spread to the whole country by now. So why has there been no news yet?

“Gaius…” Parthena’s voice sounded far away, fighting for attention with the multitude of thoughts in his head.

Unless… Everyone in the government had unknowingly transformed as well. A sinking pit formed in the boy’s stomach. It was entirely possible that all the key authority figures had also turned into monsters, especially since magis were so reliant on using magic. If so, who’s in charge now? Was there even anyone spared from this threat?

“Gaius…”

The boy broke into a cold sweat.

We can’t hold out here forever. Is Sirius City the only place affected? Or is the rest of the world in ruins as well? Where can we run to? What is the Guardian Council doing-

“Gaius!”

“What?!”

Parthena’s yell shook him out of his doom-laden reverie. She was pointing at a murmuring voice from behind the door. Gaius shifted into a martial arts stance, preparing to fight whatever it was that managed to find their hiding spot so quickly.

The doors burst open.

“Baby Eagle reporting, I’ve secured the target. He’s safe for now.”

Gaius put down his fists, watching the Guardian sweep the room with her technomagick rifle. There was a faint whirring as she activated the safety catch of her weapon and tucked it on her back. The boy heaved a sigh of relief.

“Gaius! Oh thank the gods you’re alright.” Kleopatra rushed over to hug him, dropping her tough Guardian front. “I was so worried that something would’ve happened to you as well.”

Gaius found himself embracing her back a little too tightly, so he let go with a sheepish look on his face.

“I’m glad you’re alright too, Kleo. How did you find us?”

“Your Guardian badge,” she replied simply. “Every Guardian badge has a tracking signal just in case you’re incapacitated and require urgent backup. Didn’t you know that?”

The Guardian took out his badge from his breast pocket. It was still pulsating, although its glow was rapidly fading away.

“Huh… I almost forgot about this badge,” he muttered to himself.

“Anyway, I was sent here by Cybele to bring you back for an emergency briefing,” Kleopatra said. A dark look crossed her face. “Half the Guardian Council have been confirmed to be transformed or killed in action. We have a serious crisis on our hands.”

“How about her?” Gaius motioned to Parthena. “I can’t possibly bring a civilian back to Headquarters, can I?”

“I… I don’t want to leave this place!” Parthena protested, clinging onto Gaius. “Lucifer’s blessing is in this church; we’ll be safe here!”

Gaius stumbled over his words, his face turning red at the girl’s proximity. Kleopatra was not as amused.

“Look, lady. You can stay here if you like; I don’t care,” she huffed, putting her hands on her hips. “But Gaius has a duty, and it is mine to see that he does it.”

Parthena let go of the boy as her eyes sharpened, glaring at the female Guardian. Kleopatra did not back down, tapping her foot impatiently.

“Well, I suppose I’ll go back with you.” Gaius tried to ease the tension. “But still, we can’t possibly leave her here by herself-”

“The Guardian Council has already opened a refugee shelter,” Kleopatra snapped. “It’s right beside our Headquarters and protected by what’s left of the military as well. If you ask me, that’s probably the safest place in Sirius City now.”

She casted a teleportation charm and stood by its side, waiting for Gaius to enter it. The boy sighed. Why do these women have to make things so difficult for him?

“Hey Parthena, I know how much this church means to you,” he urged her gently. “But Kleopatra’s right. You’ll be much safer in the refugee centre.”

Parthena was still pouting, but she tilted her head towards him and nodded shyly.

“As long as I’m with you,” she said in a voice loud enough for Kleopatra to overhear. The Soothsayer walked into the portal, ignoring the simmering Warlock staring daggers at her.

Gaius followed her in quickly.