Darrel's skin prickled with magic. It clung to the air like dew, pinning the Evil to the far side of the cavern, where Willy attacked it relentlessly. It glittered across the walls, holding back the streams of lava trying to break through the cracks in the ground.
But there wasn't enough of it to hold back the approaching Phantoms. Four of them marched into the cavern with purpose, fury burning hot in their red eyes. Two of them raced toward Willy's wall of magic. The other two headed straight toward him.
Frantic, Darrel threw up a shield, hoping to keep them far away from Alie. He knew he didn't have the strength to face them for long. He just needed to keep them away long enough to get Willy's attention so they could transport out of danger.
The commander slid to a halt in front of the shield. Putting his back to it, he drew his crystal sword. "Get her out of here," he growled over his shoulder. "I'll buy you some time."
The healer threw his bag's strap over his shoulder, then went back to work stitching Alie's stomach together with his wand. "If you think I'm leaving you behind after everything Alie did to free you, you're stupider than I thought."
Darrel frowned at him. "What do you mean, Alie freed him? Freed him from what?"
The healer lifted his head for just a moment, a disbelieving smile curving his lips. "She freed him from his Evil."
That couldn't be true. Not that Alie couldn't do it; he'd been there when she'd broken the Evil's hold on Michael. It was just... The commander had done nothing but cause her harm. He'd run her through with his blade! Why would she save him from anything?
"We might not have a choice," the commander grumbled, standing his ground. The two Phantoms who stepped up to face him drew their weapons. He nodded to them as they approached. "Dev. Kilera."
The woman, Kilera, shifted her weight nervously. She jutted out her chin, gesturing to Alie. "Is she dead?"
The commander stiffened. He gripped his sword a little tighter. "No. She lives."
"Yet you guard her," the one called Dev noted, his nose scrunching in disgust.
The commander nodded. "I owe her my life."
"It looks like she destroyed you," Dev said darkly, his shadowy power unfurling in waves from his feet. They skirted the ground, searching for opposing forces.
The commander didn't shy away from them. Instead, he took a step closer. "She set me free."
Kilera scoffed. "You're worse than Jea."
"I'll take that as a compliment."
Dev spat at his feet. "To lose your bond is worse than death."
The commander shook his head. His voice softened in sympathy. "No. That's just the lie the Evil tells you so you won't want to let it go."
Snarling, Kilera's power snapped out from her body like iron spikes. "Enough of this," she decided, lifting her sword. "If you won't see the truth, then you will perish with your lies."
They attacked as a unit. The commander met them swiftly, blocking both their weapons and their power with his blade. He shoved them away with a grunt. "Get her to the portal!" he shouted over his shoulder. Then he threw himself into the fight.
Darrel paled as he hurried to scoop Alie into his arms. "We can't take her to the portal."
"Why not?" the healer asked. He caught Alie on the other side, helping to lift her unconscious body from the ground.
"Because Victoria and twelve hundred soldiers are waiting on the other side of it."
The healer stared at Darrel in shock. "What?"
"We think she was trying to attack Sole after he killed Alie. Or after she killed him, whichever it ended up being." He glanced at the commander, fighting with everything he had. The Phantoms' power swept over him, striking him in the chest, in the knees, in the arms. He stumbled and jerked with each strike, but kept fighting. He wouldn't last long.
Darrel clenched his jaw. "Willy has the ability to teleport off world. That's our only way out."
"Does he even have enough magic to accomplish something of that magnitude?" the healer asked, glancing at the rapidly receding magic that filled the air.
"He will if we leave now," Darrel determined. Tucking Alie's head against his shoulder, he stuck two fingers in his mouth and whistled hard. Magic amplified the sound throughout the entire cavern.
A small blast of magic washed over the still rampaging Evil. Shadow, thick and heavy, quickly overwhelmed it. A moment later, Willy appeared beside him in a flash of light. He looked ready to collapse. Panting heavily, he grabbed onto the healer's shoulder and leaned on it heavily, taking his weight off one of his legs. "I can't," he gasped, shaking his head sadly. "I thought I had a chance... But once the Phantoms swept in..."
"Forget the Evil," Darrel ordered. "Forget the Phantoms. We have to get Alie out now."
"Stop them!" one of the Phantoms cried.
With a mighty thrust of its enormous arms, the Evil slammed its fists onto the ground. The earth rippled out like a wave, crumbling and falling away in massive chunks. Lava sprayed up in the gaps.
Bracing himself, Willy thrust his hands onto Darrel's shield, strengthening it with a fresh wave of power. When the ground's ripple struck them, they weathered the blow.
The commander didn't fare quite so well. He tried to jump the wave, but the opposing Phantoms used the distraction to wipe his feet out from under him. He hit the ground and rolled.
"Roger!" the healer cried, reaching out in worry.
"I'll catch him if I can," Willy promised.
"Leave him!" Darrel cried. "We don't have time!"
"I don't have enough magic to teleport," Willy said. He cast Darrel an apologetic look. "The best I can do is shield us and try to get us to the portal."
Dread drained the blood from his head. "But Victoria's on the other side!"
Sadly, Willy shook his head. "I'm sorry."
No. No, this couldn't be it! They couldn't die here, not after everything they'd been through! There had to be a way out. There had to!
Another shockwave struck the ground. The earth beneath the commander vanished.
The healer threw himself against the shield. "NO!"
Willy reached. Magic spiked from his outstretched hand, shooting like a rope out to where the commander tumbled into freefall. The golden rope pulled taut. A moment later, at Willy's rough yank, the rope pulled back.
Commander Sole, caught by his wrist, crawled up from the pit that had tried to claim him.
On the other side of the chasm, the two Phantoms he'd been fighting shot out bands of their own power. Willy lifted his other arm, and lava came spewing out of the crack in the earth. It rose twenty feet in the air, bubbling and glowing red hot. It formed a thick barrier, protecting the commander.
Then, it fell on the Phantoms like a crashing wave.
The Evil roared in anger. It struck the ground again.
Straining with effort, Willy dragged the commander across the ground until he slid through the golden wall protecting them. "Okay," he groaned, nearly falling. "Now I'm out of magic."
The commander, lying on his back, stared up at them with wide, frightened eyes. "Why didn't you leave?"
"What, you can't say thank you?" Darrel snapped.
The commander, surprisingly, looked guilty. He averted his gaze as he rolled up onto his feet, and took a few steps away to give Darrel space, as if he knew nothing good could come of standing too close.
"Not enough magic to teleport," Willy explained, ignoring Darrel completely.
The healer rubbed at his forehead. "If only I had my crystalized butterfly..."
Willy's eyes widened. "What crystalized butterfly?"
"This one," the commander said, reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a small stone, no larger than his palm. Inside a perfect sphere of crystal lay a tiny golden butterfly, its wings stretched out wide.
The healer gaped at him. "I thought Alie consumed its magic in the arena."
"No, I picked it up after the fight. I forgot I even had it."
Willy plucked it quickly from his hand. "That'll do."
But as he began to soak in its magic, an explosion erupted on the far side of the cavern. They all turned, worried of what new danger could possibly befall them, now.
A stream of soldiers rushed into the cavern. Some advanced on the Evil and the two remaining Phantoms. They attacked with magic, weapons and numbers.
The rest, led by Victoria herself, raced straight for them.
"Get us out of here!" Darrel cried desperately.
"I need to get us somewhere we can't be followed," Willy said, drawing the stone to his chest. His entire body began to glow. "I'm trying to think of somewhere Victoria doesn't know about."
"The lake house."
They all turned to the commander.
His cheek twitched as he clenched his jaw. "Victoria can't touch it. Neither can the Phantoms. It's the safest place in the realm. For all of us."
"Agreed," the healer nodded approvingly. "And I have equipment there to better care for Alie."
"Where is it?" Willy demanded.
"Rosewood Pines," the commander said softly. "On the north-eastern side of the lake, right on the water."
"Huddle close," Willy nodded. He clutched the stone tight. Golden light reached out to all of them, linking them in a circle.
Darrel breathed a kiss onto Alie's cheek. "We're almost there," he breathed, waiting for the magic to sweep him away.
But it didn't. Another ripple struck the ground as the giant Evil fell, and the ground crumbled away beneath their feet.
They dropped into freefall. Darrel's stomach flipped. A scream caught in his throat. He didn't dare let go of Alie, afraid to lose her even as they hurdled straight toward the river of lava that waited below.
He closed his eyes, pressing his forehead to hers. I'm sorry, he thought to her. I tried.
A rush of wind swept past his ears. Something grabbed him roughly, pressing tight against him. His whole body jerked with the force of it.
He hit the ground hard.
He fell into grass and soft, cold earth. Something freezing soaked into his pants. Alie's weight, pressing down on him, momentarily knocked the wind from his lungs.
He didn't get up right away. For a moment, he wondered what had happened. Was he dead? Had he hit the lava so fast that his whole body had incinerated in the matter of an instant? Had he not even felt himself dying?
Someone moaned beside him. He opened his eyes.
The healer sat up and rubbed at his head. His bag had slipped from his shoulder. Its contents lay scattered on the ground. He blinked a moment, then scanned the area. "Stars above," he breathed in relief.
Darrel eased himself up slowly. Still holding onto Alie, he glanced around.
They lay at the edge of a lake. A forest stood behind them, blanketed in the soft shadows of night. Patches of snow littered the ground, dotting the landscape in pockets of white.
The commander pushed himself up from a thick patch of snow with a groan. White clumps stuck to his hair and dusted his jacket.
Willy hissed through his teeth as he rose. He reached down and clutched at his leg, clearly in pain. But after a moment, he took stock of their surroundings. "Everybody make it?" he asked, trying to mask his pain behind a wince.
The healer began to laugh. "Yeah," he breathed in disbelief. "We all made it."
The commander's eyes misted over. He turned to Willy with a solemn expression. "Again," he breathed in awe, "I owe you my life."
"You gave me the crystal," Willy argued. "We're even."
"Is Alie still breathing?" the healer asked breathlessly.
Darrel swept her hair back from her face. A moment later, a soft breath pushed past her lips. The cold turned it white. At the sight, he nearly wept. "Yes," he said. "Yes."
Slowly, the commander pushed himself to his feet. "We should get inside," he urged, reaching to help Willy to his feet. He took the brunt of the Wielder's weight, steadying him so he didn't have to walk on his broken leg. "Won't Velay be surprised to see us like this."
"He's seen worse," the healer joked, sweeping his supplies back into his bag.
"Has he?"
"I guess we'll find out."
As the healer helped Darrel lift Alie once more, hope finally sparked inside Darrel's chest. They'd escaped. They were safe. Fire Mountain lay far behind them. Alie was safe in his arms.
They lived.
As he hobbled behind the others, a carefree smile lit up his face. Now they had only to heal, and everything would be alright.
For the first time in fifty-seven days, he felt at peace.