Just as Zenith dove at Hellebore, the light wreathing his blade sputtered and died. He stumbled, surprise ringing in his head.
Even basic as it was, the spell should not have run its course this soon. Had something happened to Theo?
He had cast the dream-spell twice in rapid succession, after all. No doubt it had taken a massive toll on his Levia. Still, from what Zenith sensed through the contract, Theo hadn't yet come close to running out of power.
The contract. He needed to reach for Theo, ascertain his condition –
A fist came whirling at him from the left. Zenith reacted on instinct, throwing up his shield. Just in time. The fist struck the shield with an impact that shattered its crystal surface and drove him back several feet, but spared him the worst of the attack.
Hellebore's bloodied face appeared above the shield, twisted in a feral snarl. "Don't get distracted on me now."
Zenith swung his shield to the right, forcing Hellebore to stumble. He seized the opening to jump back, putting distance between himself and the opponent.
"C'mon, come at me," Hellebore rasped, beckoning with one hand. "What's the matter? Can't do anything without your wizard? Shame, thought you were stronger than this."
Most of Hellebore's words flowed over Zenith's ears, meaning absolutely nothing. No, only one thing stood out.
"What do you mean, without my wizard? What happened to Theo?" he demanded.
He couldn't afford to focus on his Levia alone, but he could still try to sense it at the edge of his consciousness. The familiar stark light pulsed inside his core, weak but still steady. But the soft dawn glow that should have tempered it was so faint, it might as well have not existed.
Horror welled in Zenith's chest, freezing like ice. "What did you do? Where is Theo?"
"Can't fathom why, but the Infernal Lord wanted your brat of a wizard," Hellebore said, scratching his temple. "Well, now he has him, so he's gonna be happy."
No. The full meaning of Hellebore's words hit Zenith like a punch to the heart. So that meant all along, everything – this entire battle – had only been a distraction.
And Zenith had fallen for it.
At last, something broke through the icy horror like a burning blade. Rage. He spun around, racing toward the town wall.
Only for Hellebore to cut in his way. "Whoa now," the demon sneered, grabbing the top edge of Zenith's shield. "Where do you think you're going? We've got a fight to wrap up."
"Get out of my way!" Zenith yelled, jabbing his shield forward. When Hellebore still didn't let go, Zenith rounded on him from the right. Hellebore raised his arm to block, but the impact forced him to release the shield.
Zenith tore his sword away from Hellebore's arm, shedding scraps of vine and thorns. A horrible throbbing had filled his head, wiping blank all his thoughts. Nothing mattered – certainly not this pointless battle. Theo, he had to find Theo –
"Zenith! Zenith!" he dimly heard Sam shouting, but he couldn't care less. Once more he lunged toward town, only to once more get blocked by Hellebore.
Zenith raised his sword high, prepared to cut down Hellebore in a single stroke. Even if he knew it was impossible without his wizard. He still had to do something.
As he shifted his weight to jump, his head pounded harder and harder. No...wait. This sound didn't come from within its mind. Indeed, something about its steady rhythm seemed all too familiar.
Propellers?
Just as the thought hit him, a shadow blanketed the scene. Instinctively Zenith snapped his head up, to be greeted by the curving hull of a skycraft underneath a blue medusid.
Hellebore noticed too. He swerved toward the craft, a snarl on his lips, and a jolt of sheer terror stabbed through Zenith. No. He couldn't let the demon attack the rest of the crew.
Just as he charged, something sailed over the edge of the Blue Sky. A whistling shriek pierced the air before the object struck the ground in front of Hellebore. With a deafening bang, clouds of smoke billowed through the air.
Zenith stumbled, his mind whirling. He needed to adjust his visual filters, hunt down Hellebore – but that was when something long and slender unfurled from the fog in front of him. A translucent tentacle.
Zenith seized his chance, sheathing his sword and grabbing onto the tentacle. It swung him high into the air, clearing the smoke, and the next thing he knew his feet hit a solid metal deck.
Sam, Ryllis, Fia, and Ryan were already there. At the wheel, Amaro tilted the skycraft's nose upward. "All right, we're off!"
The propellers thrummed louder than ever, spinning until they became blurs. Smoke trailing after them, the Blue Sky took off.
As they fled the scene, Zenith realized the device must have been one of the bombs Nevy had created, intended to make the most out of their remaining supply of smokescreen potion. Though the smoke was already fading, they had successfully gotten clear of Hellebore.
Mare stretched beneath them, but it was a far cry from the peaceful town Zenith knew. Soldiers flooded the streets, and they weren't alone; armed townspeople were busy engaging them, the clash and clang of their weapons echoing all the way up to the Blue Sky.
"Is everyone all right?" Cay asked, approaching the group. "Any injuries? If not, get ready to fight again. We're going to back up Prince Darian."
"My liege?" Zenith's spine prickled. "What happened to her?"
"We don't know." Cay ran a hand through his hair. "We lost track of her in the chaos. For all we know, she may have gotten captured. So our first order of business is to find her."
Yes. This made perfect sense. Prince Darian was their commander, the most vital member of the crew. If Zenith were in Cay's place, he would have chosen to do the same.
Yet...yet....
He thought of Hellebore's gloating face. 'The Infernal Lord wanted your brat of a wizard.' Zenith couldn't just abandon Theo. Not when it was his fault Theo had gotten captured. If he hadn't been so distracted fighting Hellebore, he would have been able to keep Theo safe.
He was Theo's familiar. Wasn't it his duty to protect his wizard?
Yet he also had a duty to his liege, if not a greater one. Besides, if they found Darian and regrouped, she would surely be able to come up with a plan to rescue Theo. Thus, it was the most logical course of action.
So he told himself, and he knew it was true, yet he could not stop thinking about Theo. Alone and frightened, locked in a cell in the Infernal Legion skycraft. Helpless to defend himself from the sadistic whims of his captors.
"Sir Zenith? Is something wrong?" Cay's voice drifted toward him, but it sounded distant indeed. Though not nearly as distant as Theo's dawn light.
His hands shook from the enormity of what he was about to say. Ever since he had sworn himself to Prince Darian's service, she had always come first. It went without question, and he accepted it. Why shouldn't he, when she was the liege who had given his life purpose?
It had always been so easy. He'd never had to think about it. Of course his liege was his highest priority, and nothing else came close.
Now...now....
He remembered when they first arrived in Tielos, when Theo had been unconscious in the Sunless Sea. How reluctant he'd been to leave Theo's side. But in the end, he had acquiesced to his liege's orders.
A bitter taste welled in Zenith's mouth. He swallowed it back, straightened his shoulders, and forced himself to face Cay.
"You continue searching for our liege. I'm going to find Theo."
"Theo?" Cay blinked.
"He was captured." Despite himself, Zenith couldn't stop his voice from trembling. "I believe they must have brought him to their skycraft."
"Wait, we'll come with you!" Sam shouted.
Zenith shook his head. "No, you're needed here. Please help my liege when you find her. Cayelci is right about it being most important right now."
"Are you certain about this?" Cay's question, innocent as it might be, almost shattered the flimsy resolve Zenith had managed to summon. He clenched his teeth, willing back the doubts crowding his mind.
"I am. Theo...Theo needs my strength more. My liege is better able to defend herself."
Yes, this was a perfectly logical reason. Darian stood a chance to fight her way free; the same could not be said for Theo. Hence why a wizard needed his familiar by his side.
So he told himself, but deep inside he knew it wasn't his main reason.
'I simply...don't want Theo to suffer because of me.'
He did not say it aloud, of course. How could he even begin to? Instead he nodded sharply at Cay, and then at Sam, before climbing over the railing and vaulting himself into the town below. As he fell, he let the wind whistle past his ears and drive the thoughts from his mind.
Better not to think. Otherwise, he might only end up regretting his choice.