Logan took a step back as the savod’s scream ripped through the night. Logan recognized the giant humanoid form, and the glowing white eyes of the creature. It was the same one that attacked them in Nethas.

  The dark magic already surrounded his sword, but Logan drew deeper. He reached as far into his soul as he could. He only hoped that the little spark of power would be enough. This time he wasn’t going to run away.

  The savod stood, raising its arms above Joshua’s head as Logan and Elaine looked on. It cried out again into the night, and Logan braced himself against the force of its voice.

  Joshua stood frozen before the creature. All of the mage’s confidence from before seemed to have fled him. Elaine was already handling it. She hit him with a tackle, sending Joshua flying away as Logan charged.

  He thrust his sword at the savod’s chest. For a fleeting moment, he was sure that it would pierce through the monster’s heart and kill it with one blow. His blade’s tip only scratched along the savod’s chest and skidded up past its shoulder.

  Logan cursed and jumped back. The magic roiled through his veins, empowering his movements as the savod reached out to him. Logan brought up his sword and caught the creature’s attack.

  It was still slow, at least that much stayed the same. Logan caught the savod’s arm with his sword edge, and ducked under it. He would be able to keep ahead of it, if that was as fast as it could act.

  A blur flashed across his face. Logan instinctively flinched backwards, stopping in his tracks as the blur scraped across his nose. He jumped away, moving out of the savod’s reach and tracking the blur with his eyes.

  A single tendril came to rest above the savod’s shoulder, attached at the creature's back. Logan grimaced. It had grown a new appendage to take him by surprise. He couldn’t take its slowness for granted.

  Logan charged forward again. Before he could take more than three steps, more tendrils shot out from the savod’s back, striking the ground in front of him. Logan dodged right, strafing as he followed the tendrils movements.

  He wouldn’t be able to get close if it could keep doing that forever.

  “Face me savod!” Elaine ran at the savod with Joshua left forgotten on the ground.

  She came in from behind the savod. It remained focused on Logan. It was pointless. Logan knew that as he continued to dodge the tendrils. He stopped in his tracks, letting the next wave of tendrils fly at him as Elaine struck the monster.

  He dug into the well in his soul and released the power. Ten lashes of darkness cut before him, catching the tendrils mid-air. He ran forward with them, hoping that the spell would be enough.

  Magic collided in front of him, scattering dust in the air and obscuring his sight. He charged forward nonetheless. He had to get to the savod before it turned to Elaine. Joshua and he at least had some way to fight it. She did not.

  When he cleared the cloud, she was already fighting it. She dodged and weaved past its arm as the tendrils regrew on its back. Her sword could not pierce its skin, no matter how hard she struck it.

  Logan ran forward and jumped, stabbing his sword down into the creature’s back. He held onto the hilt with all his strength, forcing the blade past its hard skin. His sword dug deep into the darkness, and dark blood flowed out from the cut.

  That would not stop the savod. Even as Logan’s magic ripped through the monster’s back, it closed its claws around Elaine’s chest and pulled her off her feet. She cried out into the night as its claws closed in.

  Logan released his hold on his sword, and took hold of his knives. Magic flared across their surface as he stabbed them, time and time again into the savod’s back. Each time he pulled himself up, until he was on its shoulders.

  He stabbed the knives into the savod’s skull. Its pained cry ripped through the air, burning through Logan’s ears. Hot trails of blood flowed out of his ears as the scream reached its peak.

  The savod threw Elaine away, and clutched at its head. Logan jumped off grasping at his sword as he fell of the savod’s back. It came out sickeningly slowly, sliding away in his hand until he finally hit the ground. It clattered in the dirt as he regained his footing.

  Logan got up as quickly as he could and rushed over to where Elaine had fallen. She was still breathing, but her eyes stayed closed and she would not move. He started to pick her up, but the savod’s scream filled the air.

  From behind him, the savod ran across the ground, its glowing eyes focusing on him. He brought the magic to his hands again, knives left discarded. Claws formed in his hands and he held them up. He was ready to stand his ground.

  Before the savod could reach him, a large plume of green flame shot through the air.

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  “I won’t be beaten!” Joshua yelled as he threw more and more streams of fire at the savod.

  It shuddered under the assault, and turned to face its new enemy. Logan couldn’t let that go to waste. He jumped behind the creature again, clawing at it with the giant claws that now surrounded his hands.

  He cut deep with each strike, and black blood splattered around him. Joshua’s flames cut at it from one side as he did from the other. Logan kept the pressure on, slashing again and again, even as green flames singed his skin.

  The savod buckled under the attack. It cried and bellowed as it fell to the ground, curling up into a ball of darkness. Neither Logan nor Joshua would let up. They kept attacking it until dust choked out the stars, and Logan could not see it anymore.

  Finally they stopped. Logan rested on his knees, his arms lying useless and numb at his side. His knees were bloody and raw, he hadn’t noticed until then. He leaned forward, ignoring the sting and looked into the black pool that was once the savod. It had lost all its form, not even the glowing eyes remained.

  They had done it. They had won.

  Joshua staggered up to him. Darkness now marred even more of his body. That didn’t matter though. All that mattered was that the savod lay in a smoking pile. Logan turned his gaze to the Veil above and smiled.

  It faded when he remembered Elaine.

  “Elaine!” Logan shouted as he rose to his feet.

  He stumbled back to her and kneeled down. She had still not opened her eyes. Her breath was calm and steady. Logan pulled her up from the ground and cradled her in his arms. Her eyes fluttered open.

  “Did we get it?” Elaine asked feebly as she looked around.

  “We did.” Logan nodded.

  He put her arm over his shoulder, acting as a balance as they both stood. Logan’s heart soared in his chest as they walked back towards Joshua. For that one single moment, Logan was sure that they would make it to Abfall.

  Then he noticed the green orb in Joshua's hand.

  Fire exploded in his gut and Logan cried out as both he and Elaine tumbled to the ground. Logan reached down instinctively, holding onto his side. When he brought his hand back up, blood covered it.

  “You worthless shell.” Joshua’s voice echoed in his head as he fought to rise.

  He turned his head left and right, searching for Joshua, but he couldn’t focus. All he could see was a blur. Logan struggled to sit up, ignoring the stinging pain in his side. He focused and suppressed the haze.

  The mage stood above the remains of the savod with his back turned to Logan. His voice didn’t sound right amid the swirling mess of the world. There was a sharp edge to it. Logan couldn’t even be sure if it was truly him.

  ‘Stop moving,’ Talan said.

  A cool touch crept across his stomach, until a dark sheen enveloped it. Logan’s mind cleared, and he could finally see Joshua clearly. Logan stood up and drew the magic into his hands. The claws came again.

  ‘It will hold the wound closed,’ Talan said.

  “You did give me the chance to gain control. Come, take what’s left of your life and give it to me.” Joshua kneeled down over the savod. “I will take you back home.”

  “Joshua,” Logan said, walking forward with careful steps. “What are you doing?”

  Joshua turned and revealed himself in the dim moonlight. Expressionless darkness covered half of his face, and reached down his neck beneath his robes. A black claw, similar to Logan’s own extended out from his right sleeve.

  “Joshua,” the mage said, a smile curling in his lips. “He is but a fragment now. He tapped into my power until he could control it no more. I am in control now.”

  “You’re a savod then,” Logan said, flexing his claws. “But you’re not like the others. I’ve seen men taken by your infection. They are mindless.”

  “That’s the power of magic, isn’t it?” the creature that was once Joshua asked. “We’ve been waiting for one like this boy, foolish enough to get himself infected. The boy will allow us to reopen the gate. We will walk the world again, without the sylvestrian’s help.”

  “I won’t let you,” Logan said.

  “You can’t stop me!” the creature yelled.

  He charged at the mage, reaching for Joshua’s throat with his black claws. The ground around him erupted. Jagged teeth made of rocks shot up and cut him off before he could get close.

  Logan slammed his right claw into the rocks, piercing through until he found a hold. He flung himself up over the rocks with all of his might. He released his grip once he was in the air, and aimed himself at the mage.

  He fell on top of the mage with all of his weight, and they both tumbled to the ground. Dust rose again as Logan found his footing. The mage already stood as well, his hands holding his black staff before him.

  “You’re very good at this,” the creature said. “You’re able to adapt the magic into your body and use it like a part of yourself. If you were born differently in this world, you might have been a suitable host.”

  “Shut up,” Logan said as his breath quickened. “Release your hold on him!”

  “I can’t do that,” the creature said.

  “Then I’ll tear you out of him!” Logan yelled.

  “I think not,” the creature said.

  Behind him, a giant black sphere covered the stars, spotted with black marks opened. With a slight wave, the creature stepped back into it. Before Logan could move, the sphere closed and vanished. No sign of Joshua remained.

  “Damn.” Logan fell to his knees as the magic burned away again.

  His bones ached and his muscles burned as he turned his gaze up into the sky. He couldn’t do it; he couldn’t stop the creature from leaving. It was like when the boy took his brother, so long ago.

  “Logan.” Elaine limped over to him. “What happened?”

  “Joshua’s gone,” Logan said. “A savod took control of him.”

  “Why?” Elaine asked.

  “To open the seal,” Logan said and stood unsteadily. “It’s going to use him to open it before we can get there.”

  He looked down to his stomach, but could not see the wound. The darkness still covered it, even though the magic no longer flowed. He ran his hand across the black surface, but only felt a numb tingle.

  “Talan,” he said. “What happened, where did it disappear to?”

  “It opened a gate into the Veil.” From his shadow, Talan rose. “It can use the Veil to travel anywhere, but the strength of a single person limits the range.”

  “It’s like the spell you used in Atria,” Elaine said, crossing her arms.

  “Can we use it again to follow them?” Logan asked.

  “No,” Talan said, pointing to Logan’s stomach. “Even if you were at your full strength, we do not know where they will come out.”

  “So, we have to reach the gate first,” Logan said, clutching at his side.

  He and Elaine made their way back to the horses, gathering up their weapons on the way. The battle and his injuries weighed heavily on his body, but he didn’t care. There would be time to rest when he was dead.

  He wasn’t going to let the savod get away.