Seraphine arrived just in time, her figure barely visible as she streaked through the battlefield.
"Blue, piercing water wave!"
With a fluid motion, she deflected two gargoyle-like monsters swooping down on Caelum from behind, their shrieks echoing in the darkened sky.
Her magic hit just right where the core of their body was--a tiny dark purple crystal.
The beasts recoiled, twisted forms dissolving into dark mist as Seraphine's magic seared through them.
Caelum turned, looking exhausted, his entire presence dimmed as though he'd been fighting endlessly.
Sweat dripped down his brow, and his once-brilliant aura was now barely a glow.
The toll of the battle was etched across his face, and he looked like he hadn't taken a real breath in hours.
Behind him, a group of students continued to struggle, faces pale and bodies bloodied.
Among them was Tessa, her arms cut and bleeding as she slumped against a rock, trying to catch her breath.
Caelum's eyes softened with relief. "Seraphine... you made it."
Seraphine gave him a sheepish grin. "Yeah, well, took me a while."
He chuckled tiredly.
But their brief moment was cut short as three more gargoyles suddenly descended from the ominous sky, their shriveled wings stretched wide, talons aimed at the wounded students below.
Tessa, still weak but determined, lifted a trembling hand.
She chanted, summoning the last bit of her strength to conjure a shimmering barrier.
Her holy magic formed a protective shield just in time, repelling the monsters with a sizzle of energy.
Seraphine didn't waste a second.
She lunged forward, her water magic slicing through the air as she dispatched the failed attackers, turning them to dust.
She looked up, only to realize that the sky was thick with a new wave of creatures—grotesque, winged monsters swooping in like a storm.
Their blood-red eyes shone against the dark clouds, casting an eerie glow over the battleground.
"What are they?" Seraphine muttered, a note of worry slipping into her voice.
Tessa, close enough to hear, spoke through labored breaths. "Demons. Real ones."
Seraphine's eyes widened. "Demons? Here?"
Caelum took a moment to catch his breath, wiping dirt from his brow. "Apparently, yeah."
He looked at her with a smirk that didn't quite reach his eyes. "By the way, Seraphine... did you know you've got grease on your face?"
Seraphine's cheeks reddened and wiped them off.
She gestured to the sky. "So, what's the plan? How do we even start dealing with that?"
Caelum sighed, casting a tired glance over the swarm. "No matter how many we take down, more keep coming. I don't think we can win this. At least, not like this."
Seraphine glanced at the students struggling to stay on their feet. "If things get desperate, we're supposed to call out the Headmistress's name, and she'll teleport us back to the academy."
"They have tried that," Caelum's face grew grim. "It looks like our connection to the academy's been severed. Sabotaged, most likely."
Seraphine's eyes widened. "What? But the crystal that handles teleportation is deep within the academy! How could they—?"
Before they could process this new problem, another wave of creatures plummeted from the sky, shooting dark magic like deadly arrows.
Seraphine and Caelum raised their weapons, parrying and dodging as best they could.
Seraphine, slashing through another attacker, shouted over the chaos, "On my way here, I noticed something strange—the forest and monsters were all... corrupted. If we don't stop this, the whole forest could fall into darkness."
"Caelum!" a voice called out.
A figure emerged from the haze, a lanky boy with wild hair and a confident grin.
It was Finnian, dressed in a loose, dark tunic layered with leather armor and an assortment of odd tools strapped to his belt.
His dark green cloak was tattered, as if he'd been through his own share of close calls.
Caelum's face lit up. "Finnian, please tell me you've got good news."
Finnian flashed a mischievous smile. "When have I not had good news?"
He pointed off into the distance, where the sky seemed fractured, a jagged tear spilling out ominous energy.
"I tracked the path of the monsters. They're all coming from that rift in the sky. Looks like we're dealing with a demon opening portals."
Caelum's gaze hardened as he looked at the direction. But his eyes drifted to the students, torn between duty and his desire to protect them.
Seeing this, Tessa forced herself to stand, wobbling slightly but setting her jaw with resolve. "Caelum, don't worry about us. We'll hold the line. Go stop that demon."
Caelum hesitated, but Tessa's fierce gaze made his choice easier.
With a nod of gratitude, he turned to Finnian. "Lead the way."
Seraphine glanced back at Tessa and the others. "Stay safe. We'll handle the big one."
Then, with one last determined look, she raced after Caelum and Finnian, their figures disappearing into the shadow of the trees.
__________
Meanwhile, in the cave...
Valeria let out a deep sigh as she collapsed onto the cave floor, her hands still faintly glowing from the lingering warmth of her fire magic.
She'd been fending off small monsters for what felt like hours, keeping the ones that managed to find them at bay.
Eclipse walked past her with a barely concealed smirk, stepping over the remains of a few small, melting blue slimes.
He had a calm, almost bored expression, as if none of this chaos was worth breaking a sweat over.
Valeria looked up, exasperated. "Eclipse, why on earth did you make me waste my energy on those slimes? It's not like we can even eat them."
Eclipse crouched down, inspecting the ground carefully. "They were in the way," he replied dismissively, plucking a peculiar dark flower from a crevice.
The flower had velvety black petals edged in silver, with a faint glow pulsing from its core.
Valeria raised an eyebrow. "And what is that supposed to be?"
"Shadowbloom," Eclipse replied, with a slight hint of pride. "Rare plant."
The cave around them was dim and damp, shadows stretching across the rocky walls, illuminated only by Valeria's faint flame. The Shadowbloom grew in small clusters among patches of stone, almost as if it were a parasite feeding off the darkness in the cave.
"Can you eat it?" Valeria asked, almost hopefully.
Eclipse gave her a withering look. "No. It's for a trial."
Valeria sighed. "Oh, right. Forgot you guys are here on some..."
There was an awkward pause as the realization dawned on her that she might've said too much.
Eclipse narrowed his eyes, clearly curious about this stranger who kept tagging along with him.
"What are you doing here, anyway?" he asked, his tone flat but laced with suspicion.
For a moment, Valeria looked like she might answer, but instead, she averted her gaze, mumbling something under her breath.
Eclipse shook his head, deciding to let it go for now.
Instead, he reached into his bag, pulled out a small bundle, and tossed it to her.
Valeria caught it, sniffed the contents suspiciously. "Is this... poisoned?"
"It's food,"
"That's poisoned?"
"No. What? Who do you think I am?
"Not a hero..."
She gave him a skeptical look but took a bite. "Not that I expected much from someone who calls themselves 'Master'."
Eclipse leaned against the wall, crossing his arms as he watched her eat.
She may be irritating, but she'd proven herself useful in their trek through the cave.
She had handled the smaller monsters without complaint, and even though she asked too many questions, she was good company in a strange way.
As they ate, they could still feel the distant tremors of the corrupted queen slime pacing outside the cave, a looming shadow of malice just beyond their refuge.
Valeria shivered as the faint sound of slithering and churning echoed through the cave walls. "So... how exactly are we getting out of here?"
"We're not," Eclipse replied simply. "Not tonight, at least."
Her face fell. "So, we're just... stuck here?"
"For now," he said, keeping his voice steady. "We'll figure out a way tomorrow."
Eclipse stared into the darkness, thinking of the queen slime and the corrupted creatures they'd encountered.
If he could just survive the night, maybe, by morning, the monster's energy would weaken. For now, though, they would have to endure, huddled in the shadow of something much darker than themselves.