"I see that there is no use convincing you that what he has promised me will come to pass," Ardrin shook his head. "And what might that be? Becoming ruler of the Realm? Everlasting life and power?" Taegin asked with a scoff.
"At last, you see some potential outcomes, but that's not everything. Like I said before, manyworse things are happening that I do not have the time to explain," Ardrin said, taking another few steps forward.
"Join me, Taegin. Together we can do what they've planned. You know the ways of the Gwynnleaf better than anyone. Just imagine the knowledge we could uncover together!" Ardrin said invitingly, extending a hand to Taegin as he walked forward.
No, he wouldn't accept that… would he? Sacrifice the entire continent and potentially other realms for knowledge? I thought, feeling my heart begin to race.
"There is only so much we can gain from it without angering the gods. You know that just as well as I do," Taegin retorted after a short moment of consideration. "Would you not want to strengthen the Synners by giving them more power? Once the ordeal he caused is over, it could become a reality, brother!" Ardrin raised his voice, causing the ground to tremble slightly.
"No, brother, I will not and cannot join you, not after what you've done. You are merely his pawn, and once his will is enacted in this realm, he will discard you like he has so many others. He will not give you what you seek, nor what he promised. Instead, he will take everything from you, even your core; if you still have one," Taegin said defiantly.
"Then I suppose our paths diverge once again. Mine to glory and god-like power, and yours to your demise," Ardrin replied, shaking his head in frustration, while Taegin lowered his head and sighed deeply.
"I am sorry to see that there is no changing your mind, though I should've known better than to try," he said, readying himself and taking a few steps back. "Then you have chosen death? So be it," Ardrin said, taking a few steps back. Taegin drew his sword, and his eyes glowed intensely.
As did his brother's.
In the time it took me to blink, a large spike of mana darted out from across the palace floor, meeting a ward that the Master cast to counter it. Sparks of what looked like lava fell to the floor from the impact, sending a shockwave throughout the hall that nearly knocked me off my feet.
Bernar, realizing the rest of their fight would be like this, brought me beside him and put his hand on my shoulder, giving me some of his mana. "Cast a ward out in front of you to protect them," he nodded toward Leona and Meliss, who looked at us with widened eyes. I did as instructed, entering my second stage to try to keep up, though even with the added mana, my ward was nowhere near as strong as his.
Taegin still couldn't accept his words from earlier, as tears began to well in his eyes. "Ardrin, put an end to this madness! What deal did you make? How can I help you get out of it?" he pleaded. "Have you ever considered that maybe I wanted to bait you out so I could kill you before you became a threat to our plans? Perhaps there is another reason why I'm here," Ardrin replied, tilting his head and raising his hands slightly.
"You lying bastard," Taegin snarled. "Nah-ah-ah, you don't get to say that about us. We're twins, after all, so mind your tongue," Ardrin said menacingly. "Then why are you lying to me?" Taegin asked, already knowing the answer to his question.
"You've always known there is only one way to stop me when I set my mind to something. If only you knew the true extent of their power, you would be standing beside me," Ardrin said, causing Taegin to cast another barrage of spells before dashing in to cut at his brother.
The blow was deflected with a violet mana shield before another spell knocked the Master back a few dozen meters. He landed on his feet, but likely realized there was little hope of dealing a physical blow, prompting him to sheathe his blade and focus on spells.
Ardrin grunted as he cast three fireballs in a single flick of his arm. Taegin dodged the first that would have struck Leona and Meliss were it not for the barrier Bernar and I created. I don't know how Taegin hadn't flinched when blocking the second and third, but it felt like Bernar and I just stopped a bull from charging.
I can't let a single one of those get by me, I thought, sharing the same, determined look as my brother.
We'd always had an unspoken sort of understanding with one another, and we knew that this battle would mostly be about protecting those two behind us. However, our thoughts were cut short, as another set of violet spears barreled down the hall, slamming into the wall again.
Ardrin contorted his hands like claws, and two ghostly hands attempted to strike his brother, who cut at them with his mana-infused sword, forcing them to disappear. The two vanished momentarily, exchanging blow after blow that I could hardly follow along with, even in my second stage.
As I was observing the battle, I saw three figures coming from the stairway on the ground nearest to the Masked One carrying vases, but I barely recognized one of them. I immediately felt rage surging within me as my adrenaline kicked in, and my hands began to shake like a hunter's before a kill.
Irun, the name burned at the forefront of my mind when I recognized who it was.
"They're coming!" Thorsen shouted from behind me as he readied himself to face the small horde of glicks. "Thorsen, hold them off for as long as you can! Meliss, Leona, get somewhere deep inside the castle and stay there. Bernar and I will handle the newcomers," I called out, knowing my brother was still heavily focused on the wall of mana protecting us.
"I don't want to leave you," Meliss said desperately. "You'll be okay so long as Thorsen can hold the line. Leona, please take her somewhere safe," I replied.
She nodded and grabbed Meliss' arm before they scurried off down one of the nearby corners to hide themselves. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! We can't just let them go off on their own! What if they run into some monsters we didn't know were in here?" Bernar asked urgently. "If we don't, then the Master will be outmatched, and all of this will have gone to shit," I said quickly, causing him to sigh. "I fucking hate it when you're right," he said.
He turned his attention back to the hall and noticed the three newcomers, his eyes stopping on Irun's distorted figure. "Is that who I think it is?" he asked. "The shit-sucking traitor himself. Gods above and below, I had really hoped it wouldn't be him," I replied, my hatred beginning to stir.
Bernar must have felt it immediately because he gave me a concerned look and shook his head. "Well, I'll leave him to you, while I take on the other two," he said with a nod. "I was hoping you would say that," I growled maliciously. "Hey, don't let your emotions make your fighting sloppy," my brother cautioned.
"If they allow me to kill the bastard, then I'll let them devour me," I said, focusing my attention on my target. "Fine. Let's move," Bernar said before we dashed toward them, veering our attention away from the battle that ensued to our left. "Irun, you slimy turtle shit!" I shouted as we approached, hoping he would stop putting whatever Gwynnleaves he had in the portal and overlook Meliss and Leona, who had run off down that side of the hall.
Come on, Irun; I know you heard that, I thought, keeping the two women in my peripheral vision.