The green energy screamed toward me—
And shattered against a shield.
The blue knight stood over me, arm braced, blocking the blast.
"Get up," he said. "We can't die here."
I scrambled to my feet and drew my blade. Together, we retreated into the fog, putting distance between us and Amera.
The Fog
The valley echoed with chaos.
Mazza's voice thundered somewhere in the mist—shouting commands, casting spells. Explosions rumbled through the haze. We couldn't see more than a few feet ahead.
Gold and Flake had been separated. They were on their own now.
We had to find them.
Blue and I moved carefully, following the sounds of battle.
Then the fog darkened.
A massive black shadow rose from the mist—growing larger, spreading wider, consuming everything in its path.
I froze.
My chest tightened. My breath caught. I couldn't move.
The shadow swelled until it blotted out the sky—
I shut my eyes.
And when I opened them—it was gone.
"It's okay," the blue knight said. "It was an illusion. Mazza's using mind spells."
I exhaled slowly. Gripped my sword tighter.
"I'm going to kill him."
We heard the gold knight yelling in the distance.
"FLAKE! WHERE ARE YOU?"
"I'm here!" Flake's voice called back.
We ran toward the sound and found Gold standing alone, spinning in circles, trying to locate her.
"She's close," I said. "But wait—where's Jax?"
Gold cursed under his breath. "She was with us. We must've lost her in the fog."
"Then we find them both. Stay close this time."
The fog dropped.
All at once—gone.
And we saw what had been waiting for us.
A massive serpent coiled around the clearing, body wreathed in fire. Behind it, tree monsters loomed—dozens of them, twisted and groaning.
And behind them—Mazza and Amera.
Jax and Flake were in the trees above, trapped.
Flake moved first. She leaped from branch to branch and landed beside us.
The four knights stood together once more.
We drew our swords.
And charged.
The Battle
We cut through the monsters—blade after blade, spell after spell.
But we needed a clear shot at Mazza and Amera.
Jax raised the Sun Blade.
She leaped into the air—
Amera fired.
A ball of green energy struck Jax mid-flight. She screamed—but she didn't stop.
She hurled the blade into the ground.
The earth ignited.
Fire swept across the battlefield in every direction. The monsters shrieked and burned.
We stood our ground. Our armor could handle the heat.
Mazza and Amera could not.
They stumbled back—then recovered.
And combined their power.
A swirling orb formed between them—purple, crackling with energy.
They launched it.
Blue and Gold raised their shields.
The impact was catastrophic.
They couldn't hold it.
The orb exploded through their guard, sending them flying. They hit the ground hard—armor shredded, bodies smoking.
They struggled to stand.
Amera smiled. "Impossible. That should have killed all of you."
Mazza raised his wand. "Doesn't matter. We do it again."
They charged another orb.
This one was bigger. Brighter.
Red.
I recognized it.
When I was under their control, they had spoken of this spell—how devastating it could be, how unstable.
I also knew its weakness.
Mazza was losing control of the size. The orb swelled, pulsing erratically.
It grew so large and bright that it outshone the sun.
We couldn't see anything.
They threw it.
The Realm of the Dead
Something hit me from behind.
Not an attack—a push.
The blue knight's shield slammed into us, shoving all of us through a tear in the air—
And we landed in darkness.
Cold. Silent. Wrong.
I looked around.
Shapes moved in the distance. Pale. Hollow. The dead.
We were no longer in the living world.
"What happened?" Flake asked.
I stood slowly. "The blue knight... he transported us. To the realm of the dead."
"How do we get out?"
"We use our magic. Combine it. Open a portal."
We gathered our strength.
Energy flowed around us—black and green flames swirling together.
We pushed.
POOF.
Light flooded back.
We stumbled out of the portal and into the battlefield.
Return
Mazza and Amera were still fighting—but not us.
The gold knight was holding them off alone.
We sprinted toward them.
I swung at Mazza.
He dodged—
But my blade kept going.
It pierced Amera's leg.
She screamed.
A wind spell hit me square in the chest, throwing me across the clearing.
Flake came from behind.
Her blade caught Mazza across the back.
He vanished—reappeared behind her—and cast a choking spell.
Flake lifted off the ground, gasping, clawing at invisible hands around her throat.
He hurled her into a boulder.
But it wasn't a boulder.
It was a rock monster.
Its jaws clamped down on her arm.
And tore it off.
Flake screamed.
She smashed the creature with her remaining hand and collapsed.
I saw it happen.
Everything inside me ignited.
Fire replaced my vision. Rage replaced thought.
My armor shifted—the black flames burned away, replaced by blazing red.
Mazza's corruption was gone.
I was free.
Mazza looked at me with contempt.
"So. He removed my limit after all." He raised his wand. "No matter. I'll kill you—and everyone who stood with you. Starting with her."
I blurred toward him.
"You touch her—and I kill yours."
He sneered. "You can't. If you do, I'll kill her before I die."
He tried to cast a spell.
I grabbed his hand.
And crushed it—along with his wand.
He screamed.
Amera raised her wand instantly—black magic swirled—
And they both vanished.
Confession
I walked to Flake.
She lay on the ground, clutching the stump where her arm had been. Her face was pale. Her breathing shallow.
I knelt beside her.
"I'm sorry."
She looked at me weakly. "For what?"
"For not telling you sooner."
"Telling me what?"
I took a breath.
"I love you, Flake."
Her eyes widened.
"Ever since we ran into each other... you gave me something I'd never felt before. Power. Happiness. Confidence."
I held her gaze.
"I love you."
For a long moment, she didn't speak.
Then—slowly—her lips curved.
A smile.
The first one I had ever seen from her.
A tear rolled down her cheek.
"You made me feel something," she whispered. "For the first time since I killed my parents... I feel again."
She reached up with her remaining hand.
"I love you too."
She pulled me close.
And kissed me.
Mazza and Amera
They appeared in a dark cave, far from the battlefield.
Amera clutched her wounded leg. Mazza cradled his shattered hand.
"Who was that?" Amera demanded. "The one behind them—protecting them?"
Mazza's eyes were distant. "When I was latched onto him... he had a friend. One who died. Maybe it was him. Or the other one—the one he killed with his own hands."
"That magic was unstable," Amera said. "We can't fight that."
"I know." Mazza's voice was cold. "We can't face them again—not until we find something stronger."
He sat back against the stone.
"For now... we rest."
Two Days Later
Mazza and Amera hadn't resurfaced.
We returned to the waterfall.
We buried Dixon beside Cast.
Jax sat alone at the edge of the falls, staring at the water.
She said she needed time.
I understood.
Flake and I sat together nearby.
"Is it true?" she asked quietly.
"Is what true?"
"You actually love someone like me? Someone who killed her own parents?"
I looked at her.
"I don't look for flaws. I look for room for improvement. For the good in people." I paused. "The only time I won't care for someone is if they're truly evil. Like Mazza."
She stared into my eyes.
"You're not going to stop until you kill him, are you?"
"Not a chance. He made me do things against my will. He made me kill my best friend."
"I know." She looked away. "But you need to understand—Amera is worse than he is. More wicked."
"I don't care. I won't stop. Even if it kills me."
She was silent for a moment.
Then she looked at Jax.
And back at me.
"You know she likes you, right?"
I blinked. "What?"
"She has a weird way of showing it. But I can tell." Flake's voice softened. "And she needs you more than I do."
My chest tightened. "Flake—"
"So I have to decline your love."
I looked at her.
Then down.
A tear fell from my eye and hit the water.
I stood.
And walked toward Jax.
"Can I sit?"
She didn't look at me. "Yes."
I sat beside her, watching the waterfall.
"Uh... well..."
"I already know," she said quietly. "It's fine."
"I want to be with you, Jax."
She finally turned.
"I know you like me. And I want to see... if I can feel the same."
She held my gaze for a long moment.
Then looked away.
"Not now. There's too much going on. I need time to think about how I'm going to drive this sword through Amera's skull."
I laughed softly. "I think about the same thing with Mazza. Constantly."
She almost smiled.
We talked until the sun set.
And we agreed to stay low—until Mazza showed his face again.