Indenuel opened his eyes and found himself back in the dungeon, but he wasn’t alone. It was swarming with demons. Tolomon was nowhere in sight, but he did see another guard there.

“Where is Tolomon?” Indenuel asked the demons.

You must get out of here.

You must kill to get to the High Elders.

We know you do not wish to kill your friend.

We sent him a note to deceive him.

Indenuel struggled with the chains keeping him bound. The guard stood up and walked over to Indenuel, pulling out a staff. Indenuel looked at it, realizing this was the man Garen was talking about. The staff was made of some sort of dark red wood. It was about to the height of the man’s shoulder, crooked the entire way up. Nothing looked natural about this staff.

The guard took out the key, unlocking the chains. Indenuel got up, allowing the man to unlock his arms before shaking off the rest of the chains. He pulled the mask free, setting them all carefully to one side.

The guard picked up the staff again, holding it tightly. “Hold the staff, let your corrupted pain kill me. That is what will transfer the power to you, Warrior. You must free us from the High Elder’s power,” the guard said.

Indenuel touched the wood of the staff, closing his eyes as he pushed his corrupted pain through the staff. Demons squealed in delight as they sensed the pain, piling into the man’s body to taste the sensation. Indenuel threw pain to the man’s head, and he dropped to the ground. The demons still forced themselves into the man, trying to taste the remaining pain before the body became useless.

Indenuel held the staff, feeling his powers coming into himself. The corrupted ones. He didn’t know how long he had been in the devil induced vision, but he was growing stronger with every step. He didn’t need the devil’s sleep.

The demons threw themselves into the staff as he walked up the stairs of the dungeon. They told him when to duck behind a door or when to stop. He had to keep what he was a secret as long as possible. Despite the incredible power in his hands, he didn’t want the High Elders to be prepared. His best course of action was to catch them by surprise. If they knew about the staff, then they also knew how to defeat it.

He slipped out of the dungeon as the edges of the sun dipped below the horizon. Indenuel was silent as he thought about the next portion of his plan. The element of surprise was still his best bet. Facing all the High Elders at once was risky but killing them one by one meant the others might be warned. He didn’t dare face them all at once, though, even with the element of surprise.

A dagger appeared out of nowhere, burying hilt deep into the tree right next to his eye. Indenuel gasped and spun around.

Tolomon walked out of the long shadows.

How did none of us see him! One of the demons screamed.

“You shouldn’t be out here, Indenuel.”

Indenuel’s eyes widened.

If he knows you sold your soul, he will kill you on the spot.

The fact that he hasn’t already means he doesn’t know.

Do not, under any circumstances, let him know you’re marked.

“Don’t, Tolomon. Just… go back to the dungeons and wait.”

“Wait for what, exactly?” Tolomon asked, thumbing the blade of another dagger.

“It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t concern you,” Indenuel said.

“Yes, it does.”

You cannot expect to kill the High Elders with him on your tail.

He will try and knock you out and drag you back to the dungeon.

He will find you are marked.

He will kill you.

He’s done it before.

Memories flitted through his mind, causing him to step back. Memories belonging to marked men who Tolomon killed calmly, easily. Like he was doing his duty. Not only that, but many of them were once Tolomon’s friends. He was no stranger to killing friends.

Tolomon’s words played in his mind. The boy had stupidly sold his soul to the devil to make himself strong enough to kill me, and so I had to kill him before he wreaked havoc on the city.

…I was right. I needed to defend Santollia City.

…I was right.

…Damn it all, I made the right choice.

Indenuel blinked again, trying way too hard to keep the emotions from his face. Tolomon would undoubtably kill him if he ever found out what was just beneath the fabric of his shirt.

If you want to kill the High Elders, you will have to kill Tolomon.

Indenuel had tears in his eyes as he stared at Tolomon, who was studying the staff with a cautious look. “Please, Tolomon.” There was a heaviness to his voice. “Please, all I need you to do is turn around and pretend you never saw me.”

“As you go do what, exactly?” Tolomon asked.

Indenuel didn’t answer, his chest heaving, tears falling down his cheeks. He couldn’t do this. Indenuel couldn’t kill his bodyguard.

If you don’t, he will kill you, a demon said.

He’s been close to killing you before.

Memories once again tumbled into his mind, Tolomon pressing his dagger tight against his throat, threatening to kill him if he sold his soul. Being so angry at Indenuel for pushing him to do this.

He will not hesitate.

You must not hesitate either. While he still doesn’t know. You must kill Tolomon now.

Tolomon sheathed his dagger and pulled out his sword. Indenuel took a step back. “Come of your own free will, or I will be forced to take you back myself.”

Indenuel still had tears in his eyes, but he tried to morph his face into one of command. “This is my last instructions to you as my bodyguard. Go back to the dungeon without me and just stay there.”

Tolomon strode forward. “Then consider my time as your bodyguard finished.”

“What do I do?” Indenuel asked.

Let us help.

Do not fight us.

Let us fight him through the staff.

Indenuel held up his staff as all the inhabitants of hell entered it. His arm went numb. Tolomon threw his sword against the staff, and the demons already anticipated it. The sword clanged against the wood. Blackness misted off the staff. If Tolomon was surprised, he didn’t show it. Instead, he went for another knockout blow near the chest with his fist. The staff blocked it easily before throwing him back. Tolomon wasn’t thrown back that far and was already heading straight for him. Tolomon’s hand blurred as the sword tried to strike him everywhere possible, but the demons kept up. Face, shoulder, chest, leg, groin, Tolomon could not get a single strike against him. Indenuel had his two hands against the staff, feeling the power through it, hardly breaking a sweat. Tolomon again did some quick hits with the sword before giving a yell and coming down as hard as he could on the center of the staff. Indenuel tripped and fell flat on his back, the sword inches from his face, unable to breathe. The staff should have broken, but it didn’t. It held as though it was made of tougher material.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

The air re-entered Indenuel’s body far too slow. The staff pushed with everything in its power and Tolomon was thrown off Indenuel, ramming against a tree. Indenuel scrambled to his feet, holding the staff ready. Tolomon moved for him again, pulling out a second sword. He said no words, he simply ran toward Indenuel with two swords in hand, striking fast.

Indenuel tried to catch up. Tolomon hit him with everything he had, and the demons started to lose their focus. The staff was a creation of hell itself, something not even the Graduates could prepare for, and yet Tolomon was winning.

He will not be susceptible to the staff.

We will not be able to possess him if he touches it. He is a good man.

You must kill him, Indenuel.

You cannot fight him like this and have him not figure out what you are.

We can only do so much.

It is you that needs to kill him.

Indenuel let out a shaky breath. He had hoped the demons would do that, but it was clear the path he had created. It was clear Tolomon would not approve of what he chose to do. And the demons were right. If Tolomon knew, he would kill him without question. He needed to stop hiding behind the staff.

After a quick bout of deadly force, Indenuel kicked Tolomon as hard as he could in the knee. Tolomon’s gasp was nearly imperceptible, but he did back away. Indenuel almost missed the dagger Tolomon threw at him. If it wasn’t for the staff that blocked it, he would have received a dagger to the shoulder. Tolomon’s jaw clenched as he threw another one, again at the shoulder. The staff easily blocked it.

He still doesn’t know.

You must kill him.

“I don’t know how,” Indenuel thought. “Please… tell me how.”

“This is my last warning,” Indenuel said, staring straight at Tolomon. “Return to the dungeon. Pretend you didn’t see me.”

“Are you going to kill the High Elders?” Tolomon asked, panting a little.

“That is none of your concern,” Indenuel said.

Tolomon moved his swords to create a better grip. “Assassination attempts against the High Elders will always be my concern, no matter who it is doing the attempt.”

“You’re not a Graduate anymore! You’re not bound to them!”

“I am bound to Nathaniel, and I will not let you murder his father,” Tolomon said. He came down hard on the staff again, and the staff caught it before blocking a dagger that would have buried itself into his ribs.

“They are wrong!” Indenuel managed to get out. “They are destroying everything! They are the ones that need to die! Just look the other way like you did before!”

Tolomon went again with multiple fast strikes, and Indenuel’s arm was a blur, blocking them all. Until Tolomon broke through and punched him right in the nose. Indenuel let out a gasp of pain and surprise before the staff again moved, blocking Tolomon’s every block.

Stop trying to convince him!

Just kill him!

“How!” Indenuel thought. “He’s a Graduate! He’s the best! I don’t know how!”

You are marked! Tolomon is weakest in his God-given gift!

Indenuel tried to focus on something, but with half the demons in his staff, there weren’t many to help him use the demonic realm. He couldn’t use pain. Tolomon was a healer, and it would alert him. He had to use one of the other three.

But he couldn’t. Tolomon was moving insanely fast. It took every bit of concentration just to keep Tolomon’s two swords from knocking him out. Blood was flowing out of his broken nose.

“I need some of you to help! Help me figure out how to kill him!”

You will do what we suggest? Despite your friendship with him?

Indenuel hesitated, and Tolomon punched him in the face again. Indenuel toppled to the ground, not sure where the new injury was as he scrambled to his feet.

“Yes! Yes I will! Help me!” Indenuel thought.

Memories tumbled into his mind. Demons flickered through them, finding the most relevant ones. Indenuel continued to block blow after blow.

“You are the Warrior, and therefore the most important person in the world right now,” Tolomon had once said.

“I stay at the top because I know I’m not immortal.”

“You take out threats as quickly as possible.”

Indenuel kept blocking when a memory of Tolomon’s teary eyes came to mind. “I myself am starting to crack. I don’t think anyone is expected to live this kind of life for ten years, let alone the almost twenty I have.”

Nathaniel appeared in his mind, drinking his coffee. “The powder you’re given to gain muscle? It’s through corruptive means. You won’t be receiving anymore.”

He wasn’t as strong. He wasn’t as fast. Tolomon was weakening in his older age, and he could be killed.

“I wasn’t supposed to get attached. I wasn’t supposed to find love. I assumed it meant romantic love. I’m sure my instructors at the Graduate program would agree.” More memories of him laughing with Indenuel, comforting him. The smiles he gave, the brotherly hugs. “I knew becoming friends was too dangerous.”

“You are, after all, the most important person in the world right now, and I don’t want any harm to come to you.”

Indenuel started to cry when the final memory came to him.

“The idiot’s maneuver. To gage the stupidity of your opponent. If they think you’re still a threat without your main weapon.”

It was then that Indenuel knew exactly how to kill Tolomon.

Tolomon came down hard with his two swords, again trying to break the staff, but it held without so much as a splinter. Indenuel used his elbow to try and punch Tolomon in the face, but he moved out of the way, going again for another round of fast strikes. Indenuel started to cough, the blood getting into his mouth.

“Tolomon,” Indenuel said, his voice hoarse with the sob he kept hidden. “I can’t stop! Please! Get the staff from me! They won’t stop!”

Tolomon narrowed his eyes, but again looked at the staff. “What are you talking about?”

“The staff. It’s clouded my mind!” Indenuel said. “They’re powered through it. I can’t… I can’t control it! Get it out of my hands! I’m scared, Tolomon.”

Tolomon focused again on the staff, fighting as hard as he could, hitting it with his two swords. Indenuel’s forearm was cut deep, and he let out a scream of surprise before Tolomon whacked the staff completely out of Indenuel’s hands. He kicked it as hard as he could, right as Indenuel slapped his hand against the trunk of a tree, breaking its will, following the order Indenuel gave it. Faster than even Tolomon could react, a branch came alive, shoving itself straight through Tolomon’s chest.

Tolomon acted as though nothing happened at all. Like his heart wasn’t pushed through his ribcage and coming out the other side. Instead, Tolomon looked over and saw Indenuel’s hand flat against the tree, his face unreadable. He met Indenuel’s eyes, the unreadable part melting away to reveal the betrayal clear in his face as he took out another dagger.

No!

More branches came alive, wrapping themselves around Tolomon’s wrists, holding him up into the air as another branch rammed through his ribcage and out the other side.

Indenuel kept his face steady, glaring at him, trying to force himself to stop crying. Tolomon was still so close to him, like they were having a conversation. Not like he was bound and about to die. Tolomon should have gone back to the dungeon. He would have stayed alive if he had just listened. Tolomon opened his mouth to say something. Instead, blood trickled down his chin.

Indenuel stared at his friend, remembering Simon’s words. “He will use you for more than just killing the High Elders!”

The betrayal was still there in his friend’s eyes. He then looked at Indenuel’s chest. In the fight, Indenuel’s shirt jostled enough that the black mark on his sternum peeked through. A tear fell from Tolomon’s eye as he looked back at Indenuel. He tried to say something. Indenuel doubted Tolomon could speak with so many punctured organs, but he didn’t want to risk him somehow surprising him. Instead Indenuel shoved a branch straight through Tolomon’s brain. Tolomon’s eyes turned glassy, the final tear falling from his eyes.

The soul has left.

He is dead.

Indenuel reached out, and the demons lifted the staff, carrying it to him. He curled his fingers over the icy staff but didn’t leave. He waited at least ten more heartbeats before he released the wills of the trees, the branches retreating.

Tolomon’s body fell, landing on his back, looking as though he was simply staring up at the sky. The sky from where the Gods watched and did nothing to stop him from killing his closest friend.

Indenuel used his sleeve to wipe the blood from his mouth and nose as the sun sank into the horizon. He turned away from Tolomon’s body and headed deeper into the trees. The body would be discovered soon. The guard in his own dungeon cell would be discovered too. He needed to act now before word spread.

And yet the staff still tumbled out his hands and he fell to his knees. He covered his face, sobbing. Tolomon was dead. He had murdered his closest friend. His heart pounded, his brain in shock. Deceptively happy memories played before his mind. He had to stay a secret, yet he sobbed, not bothering to hide how loud he was getting.

“You chose the High Elders,” Indenuel said through his sobs. “You chose them instead of me. I had to.” He closed his eyes, the tears coming. “I had to, I’m sorry.”

“Get up, and get going,” Garen said.

“I killed him,” Indenuel said.

“And the guards will hear you.”

“You knew this would happen!” Indenuel said.

“I knew you would do what you had to. But if you stay here sobbing about it, you will be discovered. So, get up and kill the High Elders, or the only person you will kill tonight is Tolomon,” Garen said, little emotion in his voice.

Indenuel nodded, climbing to his feet again and heading past the trees, wiping the tears from his eyes. Garen was right. Tolomon’s death meant he needed to finish his mission. And if he killed Tolomon, it meant he needed to succeed in killing the other High Elders. All of them.