That's when I noticed it. At the lip of the crater watching us with a curious gaze, my denizen. I had forgotten about it entirely and thought it had disappeared when the sun rose. The small shadowed figure was even more pronounced in the light of the day. My connection with it was still there, a part of my soul residing inside. I called it over and without hesitation the creature dashed towards me and quickly reached my feet. How was this possible? Whatever it was, I needed to figure it out before Lara finally attacked. Right now her attention was solely on Ronalt.
I placed my hand on the denizen, feeling again the strange sensation of its body. My fingers passed through its shadowy exterior into its chest. That's where I felt it. The denizen had a core. It was solid like stone and a perfect sphere. A soft thud resonated from it spreading an incredibly familiar response to myself. This was a fragment of my soul crystallised. Usually when a denizen died the piece of ourselves we gave came back. It took a toll on our bodies but within a few hours we'd be fine again. I had the feeling I wasn't getting this one back.
My head ticked back. I had seen this kind of thing before not too long ago. Back when we first left the Kingdom's Capital, the bandits who had kidnapped me and the creature they released on us. It had reminded me of a denizen but felt like so much more and like the denizen in front of me, it had a core. The image of that terrifying creature came back. The white claws on its hands and the empowering body that stood taller than even Ronalt. Its ability to heal even the most grievous wound like nothing. A strength that could push back Lara.
The denizen's eyes began to glow brighter expanding as did its body. The shadow spread and from my hand still inside I felt something string out of me wrapping around the core as it enlarged. Doing this very well might be killing me but right now I didn't have the luxury to experiment and take things slow. If this creature could stand up against Lara, I'd use it no matter the price. The transformation finished revealing a figure similar to the one I had seen before. Long arms with oversized hands stretched from a tall body. Unlike the one we had faced it didn't have a mouth and instead had wide gold illuminating eyes. Its claws glowed with a bright warmth and in the place of a foreboding aura was an almost serene calm.
"Go," I commanded and withdrew my hand. The denizen's body rippled and leapt towards Lara.
At the same moment Lara leapt towards Ronalt. The two, fully concentrated upon each other were oblivious to what was happening around me. Ronalt dug in his feet solely focused on defending himself. The large shield he held glowed and as Lara's sword pounded against it, currents of light expanded down the metal. I had never seen it before and could only assume it was a gift from the Guild. Even with Lara's strengthened body the shield held. She danced around him aiming for spots he couldn't reach. Each time Ronalt moved the shield barely able to stop her blade. I could see him tiring quickly. He had been up all night and although the shield was strong, it was his muscles that held it. Then it happened, a simple slip due to the loose rubble but it was enough for him to falter.
My denizen reached them just as Lara stabbed towards his back. The dark creature swung its claws, the already long arms stretching. The action caught her by surprise, knocking her away.
"What?" Ronalt backed away shocked by its sudden appearance.
"Ronalt over here!" I called for him.
He sent one last glance to where Lara was dodging my denizen's assault and retreated towards me his shield still facing them. A sudden pain cut through my arm. My eyes widened in panic and looked down to see it perfectly fine. I coughed as something rammed into my chest but again nothing was there. Lara was on the other side of the crater, how could she…. I realised as my denizen took a blow sweeping across its body. It felt like my entire gut had been shredded through. Though the denizen took no damage I was still feeling a phantom pain from it. The sensations passed quickly as if being healed but that wasn't to say each one was traumatic. It wasn't like the creature wasn't being careful either. As if realising my plight it had become more defensive, it was just Lara was too much.
"What's wrong?" he asked concerned and pushed a potion towards me. I drank it to clear my other wounds but it did nothing for those my denizen took.
"Don't mind me," I grimaced in a cold sweat. "Get Earnest back up. We just need one more push, I know it."
He looked at the denizen and back to me, "We'll finish this."
As he left I focused on Lara once more. Her rage had settled. She was no longer screamingly wildly or cold as ice. There was a fire in her eyes, her movements had become human again. I began to creep towards her with slow awkward steps. Each time the denizen took a strike I faltered and sometimes even fell but there was no stopping us now. We were pushing her to the limit and each time she surpassed our expectations, nonetheless it was working. Slowly she was breaking free. All we needed now was one last incentive. A plan came into my mind… Taylor would hate me for it but I owed Lara, we all did and I refused to let her live like this any longer. The bright girl with a stunning smile. As Caius I hated her and as Jane she was my best friend. She never liked fighting. She hardly got angry. A wide open heart, a kindness I could only hope for. As much as she was a Hero she wasn't. Her dream was to be an author. I knew all these things and more. I stood only a dozen metres away. At the end of all this maybe she could be the one to write this story.
"Lara!" I screamed her name. She flinched at the sound of my voice. The denizen paused. Maybe it was my imagination caused by hope but her eyes seemed to shine in recognition. It didn't last however as her sword pointed towards me. Spikes of ice grew in the air behind her and fired. My denizen pounced to intercept breaking the ice into shards. The shrapnel pierced its body causing me to cough and stagger forward.
Lara came soon after. The ripples of energy still visible across her body. Sparks flew as she moved her muscles as if the very act of flexing them triggered power. A hammer intercepted her path forcing her away.
"M-Marley?" I yelled surprised. Riding Pina and wielding her hammer fiercely she had stormed her way in as if coming from nowhere.
"I couldn't miss the finally could I?" she laughed but was clearly tired. The pink bird beneath her however was full of energy and eyed Lara ready for anything.
Lara regarded Marley and Pina like strangers, again hesitating. It didn't last long however as she charged the pair. My denizen pushed between them only for it to be flung away by a wide baring force. Marley blanched, though she had her own talents, compared to Lara in a direct fight she was worse than me. Pina tried to retreat however Lara was too fast and the uneven ground loosened her footing. Marley's hammer managed to stand in the way, only to snap immediately. With nothing to stop her what came next was a scream of pain. Marley began to fall as Pina struggled to keep her settled.
"No!" I struggled to reach them. A glowing light had already encased Marley's wound healing her but there was no way Lara would leave her alone, or so I thought. Sword raised, Lara's posture froze as if unsure to make the final blow. With a howling pain her mind snapped again and the sword descended. A shield caught her halfway knocking into her side. Ronalt steadied himself beside Marley as Lara jumped away, kicking the thick metal. A flash shot from behind her. Earnest had swung his sword. His body was ragged only held together by the brief respite Ronalt had given him. A burst of force blasted from Lara's hand, pushing her away from the sword's trajectory. She landed. The earth rose around her, a hand grasping to hold her down. As the earthen fingers closed she broke them apart with her strength alone. She pried away the fingers only for a knife to shoot forwards, the blade struck her unarmoured chest but bounced off harmlessly. Taylor flinched unable to pierce her skin.
Her counter attack was swift. First Taylor. The moment her arms were free she batted Taylor away. The sound of snapping bones crossed the air between us as she flew. On instinct my denizen jumped to soften the impact of her fall. Next was Ardent. Lara's eyes locked onto his far away form. A spell formed on her palm and before anyone could stop her she fired. The wide beam flared creating a new path through the crater and left nothing but dust behind. Ardent was no longer where he stood. Ronalt cursed and charged. The shield began to glow but the instant it discharged its repelling force, Lara flipped above it. The recoil caused Ronalt to halt and suddenly the girl was in between him and his shield. They were blown apart. The shield dug deep into the crater's wall while Ronalt hit head first into a fallen rock. Earnest closed in and struck towards her, one eye shut and swollen. Again and again they ricocheted against each other. Then as if having enough the ground beneath them lit up. Earnest blocked her blade but not her magic. The earth kicked up in a heave of spikes carrying him away bloody and battered.
Then there was me. I faced Lara with a firm smile. She leapt towards me sword set to pierce my chest. I dropped my sword and opened my arms. Taylor screamed. It hurt more than I thought it would. The steel warm from battle slipping through my skin and into the muscles of my heart. The bones that spread and cracked to make room for the foreign metal. It wasn't the physical pain that hurt me. It was the dull ache knowing that this was the best I could do and knowing the fact, although it would save her… she would hate herself.
Lara didn't draw out her sword. She couldn't. Her arm shook and her eyes quivered from the tears that began to build within them. Cold as ice to the rage of a fire and finally now a piece of herself had broken free. I released my breath and from it the powder that I had held in my mouth. It drifted towards her, a small cloud of pink. Like a wisp of wind the particles floated, entering her mouth and lungs. I smiled. The drug I had taken in Citlia, the same one to bring back her memories. Now she just needed an impetus.
I pushed against her sword and let it slide further inside me. The blade had already pierced my back and now I reached her face to face. Her eyes were wide, trying to turn towards me as I embraced her. My arms folded across her back and drew me closer. She was warm.
I whispered beside her ear, "Lara… this, all of this isn't your fault. You'd never do this. You're kind. The kindest I know. My best friend. Without you I would have destroyed the world…. You are and will always be my Hero. So please… come back to us."
Her body loosened letting go of her sword and slowly she dropped to her knees. With nothing to hold me I hit the ground. My vision began to fade. I could see Lara looking into the sky. There was Taylor running desperately towards me. Oh… I could see Ardent, he was with Caius. It was good they were alive. Earnest was also twitching and Ronalt had stood up reaching Marley. Looks like I did a pretty good job.
Taylor skidded to a halt beside my head and held me close. It was too late, I couldn't hear anything she said or feel the tears that dripped from her face. A shiver went down my spine. This was the end. Marley wouldn't make it. I'd really die this time…. How odd. I was kind of scared now.
My lips twitched and mouthed a single 'sorry'. With that I passed away.