Cole was back to full strength and keeping up with the rest of his party, leading them. He had been feeling the elusive form of Juni’s sand on the air, she was near now. From around a corner she came gliding along on a trail of sand, her arms up and outstretched, the sand instantly retreating to the gourd on her hip as she gracefully landed and was running alongside them now.

  “Took you long enough, say your goodbyes? Cause we really don’t know where this fool is leading us.” Tigress joked, looking Juni’s way some and smiling even a little.

  “This is just as much my problem, and my business as well. Just understand I can’t explain why, and I won’t ask the same of you.” Juni said, keeping her eyes forward as she ran alongside the three of them.

  Iris and Faye were mildly surprised by her conditions and statement, but said nothing for it was not their place. Tigress chuckled some as well.

  “Very well then, keep your secrets and I will keep mine.” Tigress whispered, so that only Juni could hear it.

  “Stay focused, we’re out of time. He’s casting it again soon. The moon is directly over the palace now.” Cole said, taking note of the moon’s placement.

  “Shit!” Tigress growled, launching herself ahead of Cole.

  Grabbing his wrist she hurled him back to crash into Juni, her sand catching them both inturn as it immediately poured from her gourd and prevented them from hitting the ground.

  Faye and Iris came to a skidding halt as well.

  A figure emerging from the shadows to the left, her yellow eyes training on the party before her. Her telltale cat ears and gentle swaying of her tail gave her away.

  “You’ve been busy lady Tigress, it’s been difficult with the amount of these knights and guards present. But now that I have you here, I’ve come for what must be.” She said candidly, her expression monotone.

  “Scram cat! We don’t have time for parlor tricks and vanishing acts, a madman is about to complete his schemes, again!” Tigress commanded, marching forward as she spoke.

  “You know the rules. You’re the one who drilled them into me, and I can’t allow that one to live if you will not kill him. Step aside, so I may finish this and we return home.” The assassin said, drawing her hidden dagger, it’s silver blade and hilt gleaming beautifully in the dark and moonlight.

  Tigress immediately deployed her shield and knocking the Assassin back as she tried to charge past. The assassin looking momentarily confused by Tigress’ actions.

  “Juni, take him on ahead. This is my fight, keep him safe.” Tigress said, before charging headfirst into the assassin again.

  Juni still momentarily stunned at this, Cole now gritting his teeth at the sight of this supposed assassin. Looking to Faye and Iris they both shook their heads, gripping Cole’s arm she pulled them both to their feet.

  “Cole, we have to go! There’s no time.” She reminded him, the look in her eyes one of distraught and pleading.

  Cole groaned and took off with Juni, Faye and Iris. Tigress quickly grabbing the assassin’s wrist and sending her skidding away.

  “I didn’t say you could go anywhere near him now did I? You haven’t finished what you started here.” Tigress commanded now, the assassin feeling a slight tinge of fear run down her spine.

  But she couldn’t once more feel her rage boiling and overtaking her fear. Rage for Cole, for all he had turned upside down, for his careless words. She launched herself at Tigress again, and was once more batted away by her shield. Sliding back in they began throwing punches and grappling with one another. Though Tigress was able to keep her down and completely overpower this assassin.

  “Why do you keep this up? Why does he matter so much? Why must you make this so complicated? What is this game to you?” The assassin demanded, in between each kick, punch and slash she threw at her lady.

  Tigress caught her by the wrists and whirled her overhead, slamming her into the ground. The assassin rolling out of the way in time to avoid the stamping down of Tigress’ foot, as the cobblestone shattered and splintered.

  “It is no concern of yours what my dealings with him are. It’s between he and I. It is not your place to speak on affairs you have no business in.” Tigress said, snapping her fingers as black chains of shadow shot out from any direction where shadows were visible. For each that popped out and wrapped around the assassin, she broke it just as easily.

  Nothing made sense. The lady was doing her damnedest to keep her from getting to Cole. She even told that other girl take him and go ahead. Before it clicked in her mind, she could feel herself losing strength and motor skills, her body becoming heavy and gravity pulling her down.

  “Stay down. Don’t think too much, an assassin who thinks too much is dangerous.” Tigress cautioned, her hand now outstretched and emanating a dark aura, she was draining the assassin of her own aura.

  The assassin could feel her vision fading and the darkness threatening to take her under. It was peaceful, like falling asleep. Her eyes snapped open as she bellowed out a scream of defiance, slamming her hand to the ground she turned the draining against her lady. The feeling of staring into the abyss momentarily taking form in her mind’s eye.

  Finding the tether of her soul, she would not lose herself to madness.

  Tigress leaping back to break off and replan her attack method, but she smiled all the same, proud of the assassin all the same.

  “Void magic is even more dangerous than thinking. You really are difficult for an alley cat.” Tigress complimented her, redeploying her shield.

  “I know I can’t beat you, but you won’t let me past. You protect the one who has stripped you of title, whom you’ve given yourself to, and yet he does not return it, but he has bound himself to the other woman. Juni, you called her.” The assassin said carelessly.

  She didn’t sense her until Tigress’ fist was mere centimeters away from her midsection and collided, her other hand just inches away from her face. Her nails more elongated and sharp, clawing and slicing into the assassin’s face, marking her permanently.

  The assassin was sent hurtling to the ground by the punch. Tigress’ gaze piercing, as she looked down on her.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  “You had better watch your damn tone around me, girl. Just because I do not hold the title does not mean I am any weaker, and if you go anywhere near either of them I will kill you.” Tigress commanded, her voice booming and stern.

  “You know this will not last, how long does she have left? A few years? How has she been keeping that body from breaking down?” The assassin asked, still showing little care or regard.

  “I told you to watch your tone. Or do I put you in the ground again? Want another scar to match?” Tigress warned her. “Do not speak for which does not concern you.” She repeated as well, her tone teetering on the edge of not showing restraint any longer.

  Focusing she gritted her teeth and clenched her fists, letting out a momentary groan of pain as the slash marks across her cheek mended, leaving behind pink lines and deep gashes.

  “Regeneration is a forbidden art amongst the stealth force.” Tigress goaded.

  “Only if they find out..” the assassin said softly, smiling a little.

  “You really don’t understand. This isn’t about me or about him or whatever you have sworn to. A madman will rob everyone of free will! Turn their dreams into reality, not just here, but Eden, everywhere!” Tigress said, once more trying to get her former student to see sense.

  “And I tell you once more as well, this will not end the way either of you like or want.” The assassin said, holding her dagger out before sheathing it away. “This fight is going nowhere, you and I can go round and round but get nowhere, I will be content to wait this out.” She added, respectfully bowing before leaping off and disappearing.

  Tigress now alone, sighed to herself, the only sound was the wind rattling through broken windows and destroyed buildings. But this was the path she had chosen, and the silence was her answer to her wordless prayers for answers to why things had to be the way they were. Fighting back tears, she resolved herself of this. She would not change her mind now, these were the rules that she lived by, without them she was no better than a beast, and these were the consequences of her rules, and she would have to live with them.

  ————————————

  All four were nearing the entrance of the palace now having gotten through the wall and its gate. But came to a skidding halt as sitting on the ledge of a large ornately carved fountain, was the dark elf Lady Nimara.

  Rising up she took up her shield that was resting beside her, as well as drawing her cutlass. A wry smile playing across her face.

  “It would seem it falls to me. My comrades have been taken down, though I felt Emberith go out as she would have desired, in explosive fashion.” Nimara teased, uncaring for how morbid she sounded.

  “And here I thought I had a dark sense of humor.” Iris jabbed, making Nimara chuckle.

  “Sis…” Cole grumbled, as Iris merely looked at him from the corner of her eye.

  “We’re out of time.” Faye chimed in, as she stepped forward and pointing her staff skyward some.

  The moon was starting to change shades from its bright white to a pale lilac, before the next hour passed it would be a deep purple and begin crystallizing in the upper stratosphere.

  “You two gonna be alright?” Cole asked once more.

  “You act like we haven’t seen combat before, relax. This one needs a lesson anyways.” Iris smiled assuredly, drawing her sword at last.

  Cole grunted before he gave in, he and Juni taking off to try and find the old man and stop him or stop the spell from being complete.

  Faye and Iris launching a gust of wind each at Nimara to distract her as well as to gain her undivided attention.

  “Now I’m really excited to see what you both can do. I haven’t had a challenge yet worth my time.“ Nimara said, even more riled up and ready to take them both on.

  Iris was the first to act, firing off a firebolt with a single pointed finger and raised thumb.

  Nimara raised her shield taking the brunt of the explosion of fire that was rapidly sent her way.

  Faye immediately followed in with her own, her staff outstretched as five beams of light shot from its gem, each taking on the hue of a gentle green.

  But Nimara was able to block these each as well, her shield glowing with her own dark aura.

  Iris now summoning water from the fountain, shaping and molding it, causing it to rapidly harden into ice with sharp edges, ice daggers. All them let loose with the dropping of her arm.

  Nimara blocked this onslaught as well having to use her sword to fend off those she could block with her shield, a few slipping past and nicking her cheek.

  Iris not wasting time, was instantly infront of Nimara and her sword hand almost too fast for her own cutlass. She was being forced onto the backfoot and could only defend with her shield against such a rapid onslaught.

  “You both are offering more of a challenge than I thought. I haven’t had to put this much of defensive play since I first picked up a sword.” Nimara said honestly, her smile even wider at the excitement she felt.

  “You have potential and show promise. But you’re still far from being on either of our levels.” Iris said, momentarily channeling more aura into the blade of her sword.

  Performing a vertical and horizontal slash across Nimara’s shield, leaving deep grooves in the face of it.

  Iris immediately following it up with a powerful stomp of her foot, causing the cobblestone to shatter and earth beneath them both to tremble and erupt.

  Nimara leaping back some was immediately caught in a whirlwind that rapidly rotated her before tripping and disorienting her as she fell to the ground.

  Bracing herself and covering with her shield, Iris having launched her own series of light missiles as hers took on a violet hue.

  Faye having cast another wind spell, compressing wind into curved blades that flew at her shield.

  Both attacks hit simultaneously damaging her shield, the initial crack Cole had put on it finally giving.

  Tossing it aside she began to duel Iris, driving her back with well timed parries and swift curving swings.

  Iris keeping pace and able to block with ease, showing little effort in her need to keep pace.

  “Surely you can do better.” Iris retorted, momentarily locking blades and meeting Nimara’s eye with a smile of her own.

  Nimara drove at her harder, delivering her jabs and slashes with even faster swings, putting more work into her wrist twirling than her whole arm.

  But Iris was faster, her ability to channel and control her aura on a level that far exceeded Nimara’s.

  She could outpace and out duel the Dark elf.

  “Is this all you can muster? Or is all your strength only in that shield? You must disrupt my line focus.” Iris commented, keeping up with ease and still keeping Nimara feel sluggish by comparison. “You’re holding it too tight, now too lightly!” She commented, knocking her cutlass out of her hand and catching it with ease.

  “Well it seems I’ve been disarmed completely by a far superior swordswoman, I didn’t think give much thought to basic spells being so strong. Had that boy not cracked it, I’m sure I could have held out longer.” Nimara said, breathing deeply and holding her hands up in surrender, her own cutlass pointed at her chin.

  “You are brash and impatient, careless as well. You lack focus or imagination. Perhaps in another century you would be able to start to open your mind to something more. A higher aim to understanding the arcane arts our people studied long before the Supreme Emperor.” Faye further confirmed, approaching them both.

  “You know I am not going to be redeemed. You’ve lost, the others may have been beaten, but those two will not make it to him.” Nimara smiled, showing no hint of redemption in her eyes and ready for Iris to deliver the death stroke.

  “Perhaps, but you lack faith. Faith in the smaller more honest soul. Faith that while the dark will come around, the light will as well. It is how we respond to the shifting nature of things that test our grit, if we can see it through we come more enlightened and a better understanding of what we cannot see.“ Iris further commented, not moving the cutlass away but not giving her the satisfaction of what she desired.

  “As to Cole and Juni, their fates are their own, what is meant to happen can always be altered or changed, nothing is truly written until it happens. Just because it’s a certainty the moon will reflect his great dreamland spell, that doesn’t mean it can’t be undone. Time has run out, but it’s far from over.” Faye said as well.

  Nimara groaned further as she finally and completely surrendered. Faye binding her hands with a light seal, Iris keeping her sword on her hip alongside Faye’s sword that had been gifted.

  For now they headed to try and find any remaining commanding knights or officers that were still leading. Though what Nimara had said was true, they just had to hope Cole and Juni could find him before it was too late…