“Move!” I yelled as I shoved Gerald to the side as a crackle of purple lightning struck where we had both just been. I looked frantically to both sides of me, searching for anything we could use as some kind of defensible place, until my eyes came upon a few overturned book shelves that littered the floor with all sorts of tomes.

“Just give me the dagger, Emily, like a good little girl,” Socom said while sending out wave after wave of pulsing force energy shoving any small items off of their perches and leaving them sprawled on the floor.

“Socom, have you lost your mind?” I heard my father yell from somewhere to the right of our position.

“Quite the opposite, actually.” He chortled. “I’ve never felt better. It was all too easy to let the Blackened Bloods in here with Eldwin opening the gates to Magith and the Wilders. He practically handed me a golden opportunity. You’d never understand, you rely too heavily on your moral values instead of the power you could obtain.” He chuckled, finally taking a reprieve from hurling magic at us.

“If we can make it to those shelves we can probably come up with some plan but right here we are just waiting for death.” I gestured across the aisle.

“I agree.” Gerald sat stone faced as if he were still trying to comprehend the situation at hand. “I can help with that. Just let me know when.”

“Well, he’s not trying to completely destroy us at the moment so no time like the present,” I breathed heavily. “Just… do your thing when you are ready.”

Gerald looked back at me for a couple of seconds before nodding to me. “Get ready to run when I step out.”

“What?” I asked as Gerald stepped out from the destroyed desk we were currently hiding behind.

“I see at least one of you has come to your senses.” Socom mused. “I’ll take the dagger now, elf.”

“You’ll never put your hands on it. You sealed your own fate when you made such a despicable decision to become… this.” Gerald sneered at Socom. “You’re an absolute embarrassment to Silitha.”

“You’ll hand me that dagger or I’ll rip it from your corpse!” Socom spat as he shot a crackle of energy at Gerald.

Just as the energy was nearing Gerald put his left hand out towards it, the blast smashing into it and evaporating. “You can have this, though.” He spun his right hand and threw what looked to be the same blast back at Socom.

A bright blue shield absorbed the energy before it could land on the now twisted, demonic form of who once was Socom. “So the elf has tricks.”

I lunged out behind Gerald and started to run across the aisle as the demon sent another purple bolt of lightning towards me.

“I’m your opponent here.” Gerald stared back, summoning a small shield around me, dissipating the electricity. I only felt the slightest tingle as the hairs on my arms stood up.

Gerald turned to look at me. “Take this, get your father, and get out of here,” he said as he threw the dagger still wrapped in fabric to me.

I stumbled and jumped forward to catch it. “What about you?” I exclaimed to the elf.

“I can handle him. He killed Eldwin. That cannot be forgiven” He turned back to face Socom.

“Are you all quite done with your little chat. Give me the dagger.” He raised both hands over his head as a huge blue ball formed over him. As the ball got bigger it shot out with countless waves of energy pushing everything back, Gerald and I stumbling to keep our feet.

“Go!” Gerald yelled over the torrent of energy and slung what appeared to be round plates of ice towards the energy, creating pockets of space where I could make myself to my father who was closer to the demon.

“Socom, do you even understand what you’re doing?” I heard father yell over what seemed like an endless gale of roaring sound from the waves of energy.

Having slowly been turning into a sickly looking beast, Socom’s voice now seemed as if more than one person was speaking through him.

“It’s you all who do not understand. You will never understand, though, as you all will die here and now.” The demon sneered.

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“Never!” Father shouted, scrambling towards the figure with his arm covering his eyes.

“Wait!” I yelled towards father, my voice being drowned out by the noise.

Just as father got within a few meters the ball of energy exploded outward, sending him flying back into a still standing bookshelf. Hitting hard against his back, the shelf toppled over with him still on it.

Socom started to lift in the air while laughing. “This whole city will be razed today.”

I ran to the shelf that my father lay atop and helped him down to the ground. “Stay still, let me help you.”

“No, Emily. Keep that away from me.” Father shoved my hands away from him. “You know how I feel about that.”

“Stop being an idiot. You’re about to die and we have bigger things to worry about.” I once again placed my hands on him and forced my energy into him. I could see his haggard appearance become slightly brighter as he leaned up and flexed his back.

“We have to get him, any ideas?” I looked at him, hoping.

“We have to get out of the library. We can’t do anything in this crowded room.”

Just as he said that Socom sent another bolt of energy at Gerald who, once again, deflected it back towards him and into his own shield.

“Let’s regroup with Gerald and come up with a plan.” I said, helping my father to his feet.

Gerald caught blast after blast of energy and sent them hurling back at their caster. None of which actually struck home, though. “I hope you can do better than this,” he sneered through his teeth. “You’re going to regret betraying Eldwin and Silitha.” Taking a step forward his eyes began to shine a bright blue and the temperature in the room began to noticeably drop rapidly.

I ran with my father around the fallen shelves while shivering as my breath began to turn to mist. “We need to hurry,” I looked back to see that he had stopped running and just stood, mouth open staring at Gerald and Socom.

“By the gods…” Father mouthed as Gerald began walking forward.

The air around Gerald began to crystalize and form snow flurries around him as he walked. He started to gain speed until he was full on sprinting at Socom with what seemed like a mini blizzard around him.

Socom landed back on the ground and pulled both hands forward before they started to glow bright red. Recognizing the sight from the courtyard I screamed out to Gerald but it was too late. A torrent of flame shot towards Gerald who was meer yards away from his target at this point. The flame and Gerald collided causing a massive explosion to blow everything away from the two of them with a colossal wave of energy.

Father and I were slung against the wall to the left of the space where the door had been moments ago. Both of us having the air knocked out of us and gasping on the ground as I looked up and saw Gerald and Socom exchanging magical blows.

Ice and fire mingled like two snakes coiling against each other as the two rapidly struck at the other. If I weren’t moments away from sure death I would have been amazed by the sight but I had to get out of here. Grabbing my father by the arm I began to slowly pull us towards the door.

Right before getting to the opening Socom slammed into the wall before us, spitting up blood as his back impacted with the stone. Falling to the ground he kneeled and wiped the blood from his mouth before looking up at Gerald. “This is nothing!” He spat as he then noticed us and sneered. He pushed his right hand towards us and just as it started to glow Gerald slammed into him like a spear of ice. Both of them bloodied from the battle.

“Get out of here!” He yelled at us as he held his hand around the throat of Socom, his fingers causing veins of ice to spread from his hand and around the figure's neck. He squirmed under Gerald’s grip as the ice spread from him to begin covering the body of the Socom who had slowly stopped moving. Gerald’s eyes completely bloodshot with only his iris being a bright white at this point. He had blood pouring out of his nose, ears, and mouth. “GO!” He slammed Socom’s head back into the wall harder. “I will never forgive what you’ve done to my friends.” He muttered just before I turned away.

“Let’s go,” I replied, helping father up and stumbling out the door. I turned around in time to see a full block of ice beginning to encase the head of the demon. I grabbed my father's hand and we ran towards the entrance that we came from.

Rounding the corner into the opening of the entrance we caught sight of the ensemble of soldiers lining the room from end to end with spears pointed towards our direction.

“What have you done with the master?” One of the soldiers stepped forward, a stern look on his ashen face.

“We? Socom is in there trying to destroy the city!” Father blurted out before I could respond to the older soldier before me. “You are all here, doing what? While he is in there, quite literally, going mad!” He strode forward to the guard with his finger pointed at him. “You all have the nerve to sit here, weapons pointed, and accuse us of this?”

Just then a loud rumbling noise came from behind us as we turned and saw Gerald throw Socom’s seemingly lifeless body from the doorway all the way to the main entrance room behind us.

“This is madness!” The older soldier put his hand on the pommel of his sword while looking at the two of us.

“This is the truth.” Gerald announced stepping up from behind us, bloody, eyes still glowing white, “and you’ll do well to pay heed to what you see before you. This man has committed the worst case of treason, unleashing an opposing force into the city, causing the murder of King Eldwin, and consorting with demons with black magics.” He took a step towards the soldier. “You will step aside or be forced, you’re decision.”

“Errrrrrr.” The soldier stammered, scrambling away from the elf in front of him. “Right away, sir.” He motioned the guards to lower their weapons. “It seems we were mistaken and we will do what we can to help the city. This falls on our shoulders to right this wrong.” He turned to motion his men out the door, following in suit.

As the soldiers cleared out Gerald turned to me, “Emily…” he said as he coughed up a copious amount of blood onto the front of his robe and the floor. He fell to one knee before me, coughing more and more. “I need you to take the dagger to Ashwood for me.”

“We’re all going to take it, don’t worry.” I rushed to him upon the ground. Feeling him he was as cold as ice. “God, Gerald, we need to do something about this!” I frantically tried to push warmth and energy into him.

He coughed again. “It’s no use. I won’t be able to use magic again.” He fell towards the floor before catching himself. “I went too far and pulled from the gods. I’ve burnt myself out,” he continued coughing blood. “Even if I survive I’m useless now.”

“That’s not true. You will survive and you will deliver this dagger.” I pushed the object wrapped in fabric toward the elf. “We’re in this together and we’ll finish this together.” I flashed a forced smile. “Can’t have you checking out early on the journey.”

He chuckled, flipping over to lay on his back, wheezing. “I just… need to… rest.” He slowly closed his eyes.

“No!” I slammed my hands on him, pouring more energy into him. I watched as his wounds didn’t change at all, no healing, no brightening. He just lay there breathing slowly.

Suddenly, he placed his hand on top of mine. “I’m fine, Emily.” He said with his eyes still shut. “I just need to rest.” His hand slid to the floor with a tear falling from his eye down his cheek before eventually splashing to the floor, then more.

Eventually I realized that those weren’t his tears but mine, instead. My father placed his hand on my shoulder as I wiped my face. He pulled me up and embraced me. “You did all you could.”