Emerging from another entrance came the scorch knight, Netra. From the looks of things, Rio imagined that she and Oz had split up to search the cave for their squires as quickly as possible.
"Netra?" Started Rio, "What are you sayi-"
She was cut off as Netra immediately tried piercing Rio with her long rapier. Failing to properly dodge, the blade bit into Rio's shoulder before the squire pushed her back with a wave of gravitational force.
"Master!" yelled Colwyn from the stretcher, "What are you doing?"
Netra didn't say anything for a moment, but pointed to the black veins that were popping from Rio's flesh. "She's been infected by the worm, If we let her stay like that it'll take control of her body."
Clutching her wounded shoulder, Rio let out a curse as she felt the parasite burrow closer to her heart. "Then help me get it out!"
Netra circled Rio without saying anything. The mana flowed out of Netra into her rapier in a golden light. Most knight's preferred creating their own weapons from mana constructs, much like how Rio created the stretcher, but both Netra and Oz instead preferred to use their family heirlooms.
The blades passed down through their bloodline was enchanted to conduct mana and turn it into a force that burns the soul itself. Rio was lucky Netra hadn't activated it yet before stabbing her.
"Lucky.. Huh?" Grunted Rio in a nervous chuckle.
"You don't have time for a solution, Rio," Netra said bluntly. "Just look at the miners. They couldn't handle the parasite's spirit, but I'm sure you will, that's why I have to kill you. If you won't let me end this cleanly, I'll do it by force."
"Like hell you will!" Rio barked, flaring her gravity magic to push Netra back again. She only stumbled slightly, her strength wavering, but her glare was defiant. "I'm not giving up. Not to you, not to this parasite."
Colwyn, still weak on the stretcher, tried to mediate. "Master Netra, please—she's strong. She can fight it! Just giver her-"
"Not this," Netra interrupted sharply, her golden rapier glowing brighter as she channelled more mana into it. "I'm sorry, Colwyn, but strength alone won't save her. This is a battle against time, and we don't have enough of it."
Rio's breathing was ragged, her thoughts racing. She could feel the parasite's influence growing, sapping her resolve, trying to latch onto her mind. Her light magic had burned it back before, but she wasn't sure she had the energy left to finish the job. Yet the alternative—letting Netra carve her apart like some soulless monster—was unthinkable.
Rio staggered, her knees threatening to buckle as she barely avoided another thrust from Netra's glowing rapier. Her vision swam, the edges of the cavern blurring as exhaustion and pain dragged her down. The worm burrowing inside her burned like molten fire, its relentless path toward her heart driving her to the brink.
Netra pressed forward, her strikes relentless, each one coming closer to piercing through Rio's defences. "You're slipping, Rio," she said, her voice grim but steady. "But you fought well, let me kill you while you're still human."
"Not… going to happen," Rio gasped, raising a trembling hand to summon a weak pulse of gravity magic. The force pushed Netra back a step but lacked the power to do more. Her mana reserves were almost gone, her strength flickering like a dying flame.
The parasite surged again, sending a sharp, electric pain through her chest. Rio screamed, clutching her side as black veins crawled further up her neck. She felt herself faltering, her body rebelling against her, the weight of the parasite's invasion threatening to overwhelm her completely.
But then… something shifted.
The worm inside her paused, its movements changing from invasive to calculating. A sudden, chilling clarity came over her—an alien awareness that wasn't her own. The parasite understood something that sent a shiver through her spine.
If she died, it would die too.
Her pulse raced, and with it, the gravity magic she had left flared, surging in a way it never had before. The parasite, sensing the shift in her will, reacted, its influence strengthening her resolve.
Netra lunged again, her rapier glowing brighter, its lethal light slicing through the air with precision. But Rio's gravity magic exploded outward, this time with a ferocity that knocked Netra off her feet. She skidded back, her feet dragging against the ground.
Netra frowned, "What have you done?"
Letting the parasite, or maybe symbiote, fuel her mana reserves as she unleashed another blast of gravity. This one was even stronger than the last, as it picked up pieces of the ground as the wave of force travelled towards Netra.
Seeing no other choice, Netra the scorch knight had no choice but to throw herself to the side. The knight grunted in annoyance as she put herself in a stance.
"Be careful Rio!" Yelled Colwyn, "That's the cloud breaker! Master intends on severing your connection to magic,"
Netra's eyes flickered with something like pity, though it was quickly masked by her steely resolve. "You've already lost, Rio. The longer you fight, the less you become yourself. And when it's too late… there'll be nothing left to save."
Rio's legs wobbled beneath her as she took a step forward, her mind ablaze with both the hunger for survival and the gnawing dread of what had become of her. She could feel the worm squirming inside, but there was something more—something deeper. It was like an endless void of rage, pulling at the very core of her being, shifting her perception. She wanted to scream, to deny it, but the words never came. Her throat tightened.
But then—before she knew what had happened—Netra lunged again, her rapier aimed at Rio's heart. Rio had no choice but to act. In a flash, she summoned the last remnants of her power, unleashing a singular gravity wave that shot outward like a tidal force, its power compressing into a deadly spear that pierced through the very air.
The silence that followed was deafening. Rio stood there, breathless and bloodied, her gaze locked on the lifeless form of Netra. The parasite, or whatever it had become, writhed inside her, but for a fleeting moment, she felt as if she had regained control. The darkness receded slightly, its grasp on her loosening just enough to let her breathe.
But as she staggered back, barely able to stand, Colwyn's voice cut through her thoughts.
"Master..." he whispered, his tone trembling with worry, before turning to his fellow squire. "Rio? is it still you?"
Rio couldn't hear Colwyn. Instead she doubled over in pain. Her chest felt like it was on fire, and the parasite squirmed around in anguish with her. Except unlike Rio, it was actually burning.
She felt it inside herself, the parasite had wasted to much energy assisting her. And now it was dying. But it had already made too much progress into Rio's soul.
The parasite was dying, but it was taking a part of Rio with it.