Page 136 of Soul Forge

There was barely time to see him clutch his hair with both hands before Elda was winging her way to the gates after her husband.

Nox’s sides heaved as she chased down Sypher in the distance. Elda bent over her back, keeping her head down to help increase their speed. The Soul Forge seemed to be following some inert sense of direction, which meant the Corrupted had to be close by.

Elda pulled the reins gently to slow Nox down when Sypher noticed a dark shape on the horizon and barrelled towards it. She knew he’d be angry if she threw herself into the thick of the fighting beside him, and there was a good chance Abraxos wasn’t alone. She wanted to be ready in case Cynthia appeared and tried to attack Sypher while he was occupied.

The Soul Forge and the Corrupted collided in the air, Sypher’s sword slicing through the wraith that carried him with such ease that the bird could have been nothing more than smoke. He yanked Abraxos from the back of the dying demon by his throat. The dark-haired elf snarled and swung a gleaming mace, forcing Sypher to release him. Elda watched the Soul Forge cock his head and let him fall.

Abraxos twisted at the last second and pointed his mace at the ground, energy building inside it and pulsing out with enough force to jolt him upwards right before he hit the ground. He still landed heavily, but he avoided serious damage.

Sypher rectified that by crashing into him like a meteorite from the sky, dropping boots-first onto the Corrupted and slamming him into the dirt with an audible grunt. Abraxos crumpled, but his mace came to his rescue again. Lightning crackled from the deadly spikes and bit into Sypher, shocking him until he was forced to back out of its reach, his muscles convulsing. The elf got back to his feet and spat blood into the dirt.

The pair faced off, Sypher brandishing his sword, Abraxos swinging his mace. Elda watched them engage in a deadly dance, eyes scanning constantly for any signs that Cynthia was about to join the fight. She flinched when the handle of the mace smashed across Sypher’s cheekbone, splitting the skin and drawing a furious snarl from his lips. He pulled back his fist and fired off a punch that rocked the Corrupted back on his heels, following it with a blast of air that sent Abraxos sailing backwards. Impossibly, he flipped as he tumbled, landing lightly on the balls of his feet.

“You haven’t lost your touch,” the elf commented, keeping a safe distance so he could catch his breath. His voice carried on the wind despite its smooth, soft tones.

“And you still rely on Cain far too often,” Sypher retorted. “Where’s Arden?”

“Alive.”

“Where?”

“Somewhere away from you and the others. Somewhere you can’t drip poison into his ear.” The Corrupted shrugged.

Sypher threw back his head and laughed. “You really think you and Cynthia are on a righteous path?” he scoffed. “You kill people for fun!”

“And you kill people in the name of the Spirits you serve,” Abraxos grinned. “Soldiers, children, lovers, you name it. Am I really more dangerous than a man who can walk onto a battlefield and kill every living thing on it in one fell swoop?”

“Your order forced my hand,” Sypher growled back, baring his teeth. “I’m only as dangerous as the person in control of me.”

“And how dangerous are you, now that you have your precious little princess to look after?” he goaded. For a moment, Elda thought he’d noticed her and Nox hovering silently in the night sky.

“More dangerous than you know,” Sypher warned. “Tell me where Arden is, Abraxos.”

“Not a chance,” the elf chuckled, and then he launched himself at the Soul Forge, swinging his mace like a bat. Sypher deflected the blow with his sword and planted a boot against Abraxos’ chest, kicking him backwards hard enough to make him stumble. Lightning flashed from the weapon to singe Sypher’s wings, his hiss of pain audible even from a distance.

Elda found it hard to focus on her surroundings with the pair of them bent on killing each other, but she saw a movement – barely there in her peripheral vision. She drew her bow and sighted the swathe of blackness detaching itself from a thick copse of trees. She kept the string slack until her eyes adjusted, making out the details of yet another wraith slinking along the ground instead of flying. A shock of flame-red hair was visible on its back.

Elda pulled the bowstring taut, an arrow of pure white energy appearing in her hands. The weapon buzzed with power that zipped up and down her arm until the arrow glowed like a star. Cynthia noticed the flash as she released it, but by then,it was too late. It arced through the air, piercing the monstrous bird right between the ribs and exploding on contact. A keening shriek pierced the night when the wraith disintegrated in a bluster of feathers and ice, throwing Cynthia into the air like a rag doll.

Sypher shielded himself with his wings, but Abraxos didn’t brace himself in time and was sent tumbling backwards, skidding along the ground. Elda swooped down to land beside Sypher in the clearing, staying on Nox’s back and keeping her bow raised.

“You’re supposed to be back at the villa,” he noted.

“And we’re supposed to be a team,” she shot back. “You’re welcome, by the way.”

He arched an eyebrow at her, obviously impressed. Cynthia was already getting back to her feet, but Abraxos was slower to move his beaten limbs.

“Tell me where Arden is,” Sypher demanded again. “Nobody has to die today. Just return him to us.”

“But I like killing things,” Cynthia pouted, and the black whip sprouted from her left hand, her right brandishing the dagger that had left Sypher’s body a patchwork of scars. Elda bared her teeth and slapped the blue crystal on her bow, releasing her own dagger and pointing it at the Corrupted.

“Come and get us,” she challenged.

“Oh, Ilikeyou,” the necromancer grinned, and then she was running towards them, the whip lashing out into the space in front of her to try and snag Sypher’s ankles. He lopped the end off and ducked low, sweeping a leg out to knock her feet from beneath her. She dove into a roll and recovered, coming up on one knee and flinging Lazarus. The blade lodged in Sypher’s shoulder right down to the hilt, just as Abraxos engaged with Elda, where she perched on Nox’s back.

The princess leaned backwards to avoid the spikes of the mace piercing her eyes, then swung the bow out and bounced it off the side of Abraxos’ head before he could readjust under the weight of his weapon. He grunted and staggered backwards, landing on his back with an ‘oof’ when Nox slapped a hoof hard against his chest.

Sypher was still fighting with the dagger lodged in his flesh. His teeth were bared in a furious snarl, his movements growing faster, forcing Cynthia into a defensive stance. Rage streamed down the bond between him and Elda.

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