Vistus

“Akorri! Jinny! Where are you?”

Lae struggled to find her companions in the sea of fleeing villagers, pushed back as they rammed past her. She heard the dragon’s claws lashing out in her direction and just barely managed to dodge it. Her heart pounding, she scrambled away from Vacerus’s second claw swipe and continued running until she put enough distance between herself and the undead dragon.

She found Akorri and Jinny taking shelter behind one of the buildings that was still standing and almost broke down at the sight of them. “You’re still safe...” she breathed. “Thank goodness...”

“Laerya!” Jinny leapt up and hugged the rabbit girl, and she hastened to return it. She could feel the Feln trembling in her arms. “You’re okay!”

“Of course I am. You can’t keep me down.” Lae grinned, but inside she was terrified; yet if her false bravado gave way now she knew she would not be able to get it back. “We have to move, quickly.”

“There’s nowhere to go,” Akorri said, his voice calm despite the chaos surrounding him. “Vacerus isn’t gonna rest ‘til we’re all gone.”

Lae bit her lip, desperately trying to block out the screams plaguing her ears. “I wasn’t saying we’re running away,” she said, “we have to move from this building, and we have to fight.”

Akorri just stared at her. “Fight?”

Laerya could hear Vacerus approaching their shelter, emitting an unnatural growl. Without warning she grabbed her friends’ arms and pulled them away, her speed giving her enough time to drag them to safety. She heard their shelter crumbling behind them.

“Yes, we have to stop Vacerus,” she said, running from the dragon and pulling her friends along. “He’s gonna destroy everything if we don’t.”

“You’re nuts.” She felt Akorri protesting against her grip, but she held firm. “There’s no way we can do anything against this!” He yelped as a burst of Fire magic sailed past him.

Lae watched as the Greengladers quickly collected themselves and, realising what was at stake, started to fight back. Magic of all kinds bombarded the dragon, heat and cold and darkness and light mingling together to paint the village a kaleidoscope of colours. Vacerus reared back briefly, letting out something that might have been a snarl, but continued his rampage.

“Maybe not,” said Lae, “but everyone’s trying, so we have to, too. Right?”

“What can a couple of non-magic users do?” Akorri retorted weakly.

Lae glanced back at him with another grin. “You’d be surprised.”

They continued to dodge Vacerus’s attacks, Lae holding on to her friends all the while. If she let them go, they might die. She whisked them out of harm’s way, pushed them aside and pulled them back up with her lightning quick speed. Even with her burden she was nimble.

“Shady!” Jinny cried out suddenly, stopping so abruptly that Lae thought she might tear her arm off. She had no choice but to also stop and follow Jinny’s gaze.

Up in the sky, almost obscured by a cloud of Air magic, flew the dragon. He was much smaller than Vacerus, looking like a bird compared to the massive walking corpse, yet he flew right at the undead dragon’s head, flames shooting from his mouth. Vacerus stopped his assault to swat at Shady, who dodged every blow.

“Shady, stop! Come down!” Jinny commanded in a panicked voice.

“But he’s distracting Vacerus!” Lae retorted. Shady was giving them time to attack. She let go of her friends and took out her blaster. There was so much to aim at, but nothing looked like a weak point. She did not even know how to destroy a walking corpse. What was she going to do?

Shady, hearing Jinny, shot one last flame at Vacerus before swooping down to meet her, landing beside her with a frustrated grunt. “Don’t risk your life,” she murmured, latching on to the black dragon’s neck and burying her face in his fur.

“But he has to,” said Laerya with a sigh. “We all have to. We don’t really have a choice now.”

“I don’t want Shady to,” Jinny replied, her voice muffled, “and I don’t want you or Akorri to either. I don’t want anyone here to die. Why is Lorelei doing this?”

“She’s Feri’s necromancer friend,” Laerya said simply. By now she was sure they had also figured it out.

“She thinks the village is diseased,” Akorri went on. He looked tired, but the normally dull look in his eyes was gone. “She has to make sure everything is eliminated, or there’s a chance for the sickness to live on. Makes sense in a twisted sort of way.”

“I don’t care!” Jinny held on tight to Shady, looking at her friends with wet eyes. “Nobody here deserves to die.”

“That’s why we have to stop her,” Lae said. They needed to take action quickly. Every second spent talking could be fatal. Vacerus was currently occupied by the Greengladers’ attacks, but even they would not hold out forever.

Jinny’s body shook as though she was freezing. “But I don’t know how... I’m going to have to...”

“Yes, you’ll have to use your magic.”Akorri spoke up. “Trust me, you can do it. I’ve seen you.”

Jinny shook her head vigorously, looking away. Lae furrowed her brow as she watched. She was sure Jinny knew her delay was costing everyone, and that her magic could help keep Vacerus at bay for longer. Yet there was still that fear that she would not be able to do anything at all when they needed her most.

“Don’t think,” Laerya said, “just do. There’s no time for second guessing now.”

Jinny whimpered, but stopped shaking her head. “Akorri... are you going to help too?”

“It’s like Lae says, we don’t have a choice.” Akorri sighed. “I’d rather turn tail and run, just like I did years ago in a similar situation. But that’d really make me an asshole, wouldn’t it? To do the same thing again?” He smiled bitterly.

“What’s with the change of heart?” Lae raised her eyebrow. “I had you pegged as the guy who’d bolt as soon as I let go of you.”

 “No you didn’t.” Akorri watched as vines from several Earth users tried to bind Vacerus’s tail. “You never really believed me when I said I was an asshole. I’ve just gotta prove you were right, that’s all.”

“Only ‘cos I backed you into a corner, huh?”

“Nah. It’s ‘cos you want to stand and fight, and I’m not gonna leave my friends again,” said Akorri. “If I did, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. So, Jinny.” He turned to her. “Let’s go try and stop Vacerus.”

Jinny hesitated, looking from Laerya, to Akorri, to Shady. She swallowed, biting her lip. And then she nodded. “Yes. Let’s go.”

“Great!” Laerya cheered, her heart swelling with pride as she looked at her friends. Terrified as they all were, they were willing to fight, and that was what mattered. “Now, what we’re gonna have to do is find Lorelei. She’s the necromancer controlling this guy, so if we stop her, we stop him.”

“She disappeared as soon as she let Vacerus loose,” Akorri said, “I have no idea where she’s gone.”

“She’s somewhere around here. Necromancers can’t be too far from their puppets, I bet.”

Shady grunted, gesturing to his back and lowering his body slightly.

“No way.” Laerya blinked. “Shady, are you asking what I think you’re asking?”

Shady nodded.

Jinny’s blue eyes widened with shock. “You’re asking us to ride you? Is it okay? Really?”

Another nod.

Jinny looked worriedly at her dragon companion, but his approval could not be clearer. Carefully she climbed onto his back, sitting at his neck to hold on to him.

“Oh, no. There’s no way I’m gonna ride a dragon.” Akorri’s face paled.

“Yes you are.” Laerya did not hesitate to climb aboard the black dragon’s scaly back, positioning herself behind Jinny. “Hop up, no time to waste.” Truthfully she was just as concerned about riding Shady as Akorri, but they had no time to think it over. That and she was just a little excited, too.

Grumbling under his breath, Akorri clambered aboard, sitting behind Lae. “This is gonna suck.”

With that, Shady spread his wings and took off into the air. He moved so quickly that Laerya felt her stomach would leap out of her and she clung on to Jinny for dear life, praying that she would not fall off. Wind whipped back her hair and ears and she had to squint against it, shivering from the sudden cold.

They were up in the air in a matter of seconds and Lae was able to hear her surroundings once more. When she looked around to see Vacerus’s purple eyes so close to her own she almost screamed. In a flash they were gone, the sound of the dead dragon’s jaws snapping thin air behind them. “You didn’t have to fly that close to him!” she protested.

Shady guided them away from Vacerus, flying high enough to scan Greenglade from above. From up here Lae could see all the villagers fighting for their lives, children and elders included. Everyone who could move was on the frontlines, and those wounded were scattered about the village, some trying to seek shelter and helping their injured friends to safety. She did not want to think about the ones that lay unmoving on the ground.

They flew lower, and Laerya saw Katarina and Alex fighting side by side, moving in unison. Katarina looked angrier than Laerya had ever seen her; her eyes were lit with fury as fire danced from her fingertips, propelled forward by Alex’s wind.

Shady flew higher again, keeping his head low to scan the village for Lorelei. Lae wondered what he was thinking. After all, he was seeing his own kind being used for destruction. If she was sick at the thought, she could only imagine how he felt.

“Watch out!” Akorri cried suddenly.

Laerya heard the tail hammering towards them before she could see it; without pausing to think she shot with her blaster. In the same moment a beam of Light magic struck the tail, Lae’s bullets of fire engulfed in its glow. The tail withdrew from the impact of both attacks, and Shady bolted out of range before it could attack again.

Jinny’s breath came in shallow, quick gasps as she stared at her hand, still gleaming with light. Lae rushed to reassure her before she could panic. “You did it,” she said, grinning.

She groaned, shutting her eyes in an attempt to block everything out. Lae gave her a pat on the shoulder and sighed. “Get ready for the next one.”

Vacerus’s tail barrelled towards them again, but this time Shady expected it and dodged. Lae had her blaster ready while Jinny opened her eyes, forcing her hand to keep glowing.

“I’ve gotta help distract him or he’s just gonna keep going for us,” Lae said, turning around to see Vacerus breaking free of an Earth user’s vines. “Shady, fly near his head.”

“What? No!” Jinny exclaimed. “That’s too dangerous!”

“I’ll slow him down while you two look for Lorelei,” said Lae. “He’s gonna be too busy trying to swat me off to notice you.”

“No...” Jinny shook her head firmly. “No. If he hits you–“

“He won’t, I’m too fast for him.” Lae found it hard to believe herself. She wasn’t sure if she could dodge him, but she had to do something.

Jinny shook her head again, choking back a cry. Lae wanted to say something again to assure her, but before she could speak she noticed something forming at Jinny’s back. A pair of translucent wings steadily grew from her body, pulsating with Air magic. “If Shady and I do it, he won’t know who to hit,” she said. “So let us try.”

Lae’s jaw dropped open. “B-but! No! You just said yourself it was too dangerous!”

Akorri coughed. “Both of you are ridiculous. How about I do it?”

“No!” Jinny and Laerya snapped in unison.

“At least Jinny and Shady would have a chance ‘cos they can fly!” Lae said.

“And Laerya is fast enough to dodge his attacks,” Jinny put in.

Akorri snorted, rolling his eyes. “Do you see my point now? “

Laerya stared, realising what Akorri had done. It was true that both she and Jinny had a fighting chance while he probably did not, and that either of them would be ideal in distracting Vacerus, even if it was dangerous. With this in mind, Lae knew how much courage it must have taken Jinny just to volunteer, especially considering her lack of confidence in her abilities.

“Fine.” She sighed. “Jinny, Shady, you’re up. Akorri and I will look for Lorelei ourselves.”

Jinny nodded, fighting to keep her body from trembling. “Thank you.”

Shady glided downwards to give Akorri and Lae a chance to hop off him. Too impatient to wait, Laerya jumped down while they were still high up, landing effortlessly near a pile of rubble. Akorri waited until Shady was practically on the ground before he hopped off, stumbling as he landed beside Lae. Jinny took the opportunity to get off him as well, spreading her wings out and flapping them to remain airborne.

“I need to get used to this,” she said, hovering awkwardly in the air like someone swimming in the sea for the first time.

Lae couldn’t help wondering if Jinny really would be okay. Watching her struggle to stay upright only made her doubt the Feln would be quick enough to dodge Vacerus’s attacks. But Jinny had put herself forward for this role, and Lae was not going to disrespect that. Besides, Shady would be there to help. They would be fine for the moment. “Good luck,” she said, waving Jinny off.

She nodded and flew on ahead, back to Vacerus with Shady beside her. When they were by his head, they split up, circling him. He roared as his jaws lunged forward to crush Jinny, only to be cut off by Shady’s flamethrower. Laerya watched as Vacerus’s targets constantly switched as Jinny and Shady antagonised him. Whenever the dragon so much as looked in Shady’s direction, Jinny would hurry to blast him with Light magic, while Shady rushed to intervene whenever Jinny was in trouble.

“They’re doing well,” Akorri said.

“Yeah. Come on, we have to make use of their distraction.” Laerya took Akorri’s hand and tugged him along. To her surprise, he did not pull away.

They were able to cover a lot of ground thanks to Laerya’s hurried pace, one which Akorri was having difficulty matching. They passed by ruined buildings, market stalls scattered over the ground, injured villagers. Lae was having a hard time keeping a level head, anger and regret burning a hole in her chest. “We could’ve stopped this,” she muttered.

Akorri shook his head. “No, we couldn’t. Even if I knew what Lorelei was doing with the information I gathered on day one, I would not have been able to stop her.”

“Would you have wanted to?”

“Yes.”

Laerya sighed. “I see. But Yuli had the chance, and she didn’t take it.”

“Yuli’s loyalty to her is unshakeable,” Akorri replied. “If Lorelei flung herself off a cliff, Yuli would follow her.”

“Why?”

“I’m not entirely sure. Something about being indebted to her, I guess. Go wherever she goes, do whatever’s asked of her to pay Lorelei back.”

Laerya wondered if that was the case, but didn’t have time to dwell on it further. Weaving between distressed Greengladers and rubble, they came upon the clearing with the rock. Past this point was one of the entrances into the forest, bordered by trees. Vacerus had not advanced that far, so villagers had taken to this place for temporary refuge. Trails of blood stained the grass as they pushed themselves out of the wreckages of their homes to seek shelter. A Water user was rushing between them, healing with his powers as best he could. He was finding moderate success as the minor wounds were quickly patched up, but it was clear his magic was not very well developed.

Lae found herself wishing she could stay behind to help, but she had her own job to do. It pained her to walk away from the suffering villagers, so she turned and ran ahead as quickly as Akorri could follow.

“She doesn’t... seem... to be in the village itself,” Akorri panted as they ran. “We should try the forest.”

Laerya nodded. Of course Lorelei would not be somewhere she could be easily spotted, as she had to focus her energy on keeping Vacerus moving. The forest was vast and provided good cover. “Let’s go, then.”

Once in the forest, Lae began to slow down, keeping her eyes open for Lorelei. Akorri’s eyes narrowed as he looked around, watching for any signs of shifting foliage that might suggest the necromancer’s presence.

“Just where do you think you’re going?”

Laerya gasped as a tendril of Dark magic sprung up from a tree’s shadow, rushing towards her. She had less than a second to sidestep away from it, wincing as it whipped past her ear.

“Oh, you’re fast.” The tendril struck again, but this time Lae was ready for it and hopped away easily.

“Lorelei!” she called out. “This is you, isn’t it?”

“It is. I can recognise her voice.” Akorri took out a dagger from his pocket, slashing at the tendril. It dissolved from the attack, melting back into a shadow.

“Then stop messing around and come out and face us!” Laerya challenged.

“I don’t see why I should.” Lae listened carefully to the voice. It was coming from behind her, probably hidden by one of the trees. “Laerya, why did you escape?”

“Don’t be stupid, you know why I did. I’m not gonna sit around while Greenglade’s under attack.”

“Why? You have no attachment to this place. Why do you want to save it?”

“Because people live here, people who don’t deserve to die. That’s reason enough.”

A deep sigh. “I’m giving you one more chance to turn around and leave while you still can. You are not part of this.”

Laerya’s grip on her blaster tightened as her frustration spiked. Even from this distance she could hear the Greengladers’ cries. She was not going to leave these people to die, no matter how much Lorelei excused her. “No.”

An armoured figure stepped out from the cover of the trees. Lorelei stood before them, arms extended as the gemstones on her gauntlets glowed. Wisps of Dark magic seeped from her fingers. “So in the end, you chose to be a thorn in my side. Fine.” She clenched her fist and a barrage of magic shards shot towards Laerya. “I have no patience for nuisances.”

Lae rushed to escape the attack, but she could not avoid them all and the shards struck her body. Though they disappeared upon impact, they left stabs of pain in their wake. She gasped, gritting her teeth to endure it.

“As for you.” Lorelei glanced at Akorri. “I’m surprised you had the nerve to face me. You’re going to die for your stupidity.” She raised a hand to attack.

Seeing Akorri in trouble, Laerya lunged forward to retaliate, only to be blocked by vines of Dark magic. She kicked them away in time to see Akorri rushing to take cover behind a tree as Dark shards flew at him.

“Stop it, Lorelei!” Lae shouted. “Why are you doing this?”

“The world’s better with Greenglade off the map,” she replied casually, as though she were discussing the weather. “It’s a nesting ground for monsters.”

Lae was not sure how much Lorelei really believed that, and how much was just an excuse for revenge. It was clear to see she was far gone, and no amount of talk would persuade her. In that case, Lae had to put an end to this, quickly.

“Ah.” Lorelei stepped away as Akorri leapt out from the tree to rush her, his blade extended. “Was that an attempt at murder? You’ve even gained the courage to kill, now?”

 To kill... Laerya watched as Akorri turned around, desperately running at Lorelei, who dodged again. His dagger was out, ready to stab her. Are we going to have to kill Lorelei?

“Killing you’s the best way to stop this, right?” Akorri spat, glaring as he tried in vain to strike her. She dodged every blow. “If you’re gone, this is over. Greenglade will be safe. I will be safe.”

"Then try harder," Lorelei replied, grabbing Akorri's hand as he thrust his dagger at her. She tossed him aside and kicked him away, sneering. "Like you could kill me."

Lae did not hesitate to make use of Akorri's distraction. She kicked Lorelei’s legs, knocking her off her feet. The Feln gasped as she tripped, then grunted as Laerya elbowed her back and sent her crashing to the ground.

Lae hurried to incapacitate her, holding her arms in place while she struggled to get up. She held on to her as tightly as she could, keeping her down.

Laerya realised how easy it would be to kill Lorelei now. She was at her mercy, only able to curse as she fought to free herself. Yet the thought of murdering Lorelei struck her with nausea, and she bit her lip to keep from heaving. But what else could she do?

No. No. No. No. In spite of everything she had done, Lorelei was still a person. Laerya could not bear the thought of robbing someone of their life.We can’t kill her.

She watched as Akorri stood up. "We won't kill her," she told him.

"You can't. You're too weak," Lorelei growled.

"We have to." Akorri looked at his dagger with equal parts disgust and fear. "If you can't do it, I will."

"No! There has to be another way to stop this."

"I wish there was."

"We can think of something! We–”

“Agh!” Lorelei wrenched her hands free from Lae’s grip while she was distracted, and she wasted no time in summoning a mass of Dark magic tendrils to dislodge the rabbit. They grabbed her and threw her off Lorelei, constricting her. More flew towards Akorri, restraining him before he could act.

“Crap! No!” Laerya tried to fight against the magic strands, but they held her firmly in place. She could only watch as Lorelei slowly stood up and dusted herself off, smirking at her captured prey.

“Too bad. You almost did it.” The necromancer sighed, shaking her head. “So close to saving Greenglade and yourselves. To think you would fall at the last hurdle."

Laerya’s heart froze with dread as Lorelei raised her hands once more.

“You will pay for your lack of resolve."