Tension permeated the forest air, the smell of dirt and vegetation mixing with the metallic tang of approaching violence. Standing at the ready, Kael's muscles coiled as his blade glowed in the pale moonlight. The Shadows moved like phantoms around him; their silence was more frightening than any war cry.
Kael said, "Stand down," his voice slicing over the silence. This does not have to finish in slaughter.
The lead Shadow bent their head and laughed sarcastically. "Spare us your theatrical performances, Kael. Shen's directives are known to you. Surrender the healer, and you might survive to see still another dawn.
Kael's eye turned to the healer, who held a sack firmly to his chest. The old man had a pale face and shallow breathing, but his eyes gleamed with defiance. Kael understood the secret to everything Shen yearned for—the formula contained in that satchel.
Kael said, striding forward, "I have decided." As he raised his knife, it glinted. You will have to pass me if you wish for a healer.
The grin of the lead, Shadow, disappeared. "Thus be it."
The first hit arrived quickly, a swirl of steel headed at Kael's neck. He twisted, the clang of blades ringing out like an alarm. The other Shadows moved in unison, a lethal ballet refined over years of instruction. They surged forward. With a blade moving in arcs of silver light, Kael battled with a desperation-born ferocity. His attacks were exact, but the Shadows' numbers were overwhelming. He avoided and corrected.
"Run!"— Raw in tone, Kael yelled over his shoulder. "Take Arin and head!"
The healer stopped for a pulse, staring between Kael and the unconscious Arin figure. He nodded reluctantly, then raised Arin onto his back and vanished into the forest shadows.
The relief Kael experienced was fleeting. A blade sliced his arm, creating a thin bloodline. Though he hissed in agony, he stayed steady. The Shadow slumped to the ground as he turned to cut at his assailant. Another one was practically replaced right away.
"You're outmatched," the lead Shadow said, their motions elegant and unrelenting. "Why fight for a cause that is nonpersonal?"
Kael ignored her response. His concentration shifted to the fight, every parry and stroke evidence of his will. Shen's steely stare, the harsh lectures, the many missions that had sharpened him into a weapon—memory of his training in the Dark Sect inundated his thoughts. Underneath the killer's mask, though, Kael sensed something stir: a flutter of humanity, a protest against the road he had been compelled to follow.
---
Far from the fight, Shen was sitting in his chamber, and the orb before him was just flickering. With his eyes closed and his breathing calm, he spoke with a black might. He watched flashes of the ambush, the collision of steel, and the flight of the healer. He wore a weak smile on his lips.
"They're going to fail," he said to himself. And when they do, my Shadows will guarantee the formula is mine.
The chamber door creaked open, and Mira came in with an unclear look. Shen opened his eyes and fixed her sharply.
"Report," he ordered.
"The Shadows have engaged Kael," Mira remarked, her voice steady. "The formula and the healer have left. Should I call for further troops?
Shen gave this some thought, then shook his head. "No. Allow Kael to establish his value. Should he survive, he will show up back here. Should not be the case; the Shadows will complete the work.
Mira hesitated and then spoke gently. What if the healer completely disappears?
Though it did not reach his eyes, Shen's grin grew wider. He won't. Not even the most intelligent prey can avoid the predator indefinitely.
— — —
Kael struggled on, his strength failing, his breathing in jagged gasps. With faster, more exact strikes, The Shadows pressed their advantage. His eyesight hazy, but he would not give up. He was battling for something he couldn't quite describe, not for commands, not for obligation, for the first time in his life.
A Shadow shot him, and Kael sidestepped to drive his blade into their side. The man slumped, and Kael staggered back, blood pouring from a shoulder injury. He clenched his teeth, his will stiffening.
Raising a hand, the lead Shadow said, "Enough." The surviving numbers stopped, their rifles lowered but ready. Kael, you have shown your talent. But you count less than others. Surrender, and we will spare you.
Kael chuckled bitterly when his hand shook with his blade. "Spare me." Shen does not spare anyone. Like he has done to everyone else, he will toss you the instant you become useless.
The posture of the lead shadow grew stiffer. "You have wandered from your path. Shen assigned you a task; this is how you honor him?
Kael tightened his hold on his blade. Maybe I'm bored with being a pawn.
A loud roar sounded throughout the jungle before the Shadow could reply. The ground trembled, and the air thickened with a terrible intensity. Kael and the Shadows stopped, their eyes flying to find the disturbance's cause.
From the shadows emerged a figure whose presence commanded an otherworldly quality. Their eyes glowed with an unusual brightness, and they wore a robe that seemed to ripple like liquid shadow. Power crackled in the air around them.
Kela felt her heart sink. This intruder was unknown, but he knew the fight was far from over.