Alaric’s clone felt his hands begin to get clammy as he watched the white lion unleash a level of destruction he was not familiar with.

  The stench of death got lighter in the guardian’s overwhelming presence.

  Aslan, the boisterous large lion the boy had come to know in Jack’s Fall, was an entirely different being now. Not just him… but LionHeart as well.

  The man pushed forward fearlessly, exuding a solid aura of killing intent and confidence unlike anything Alaric had felt from before.

  Together, the human and guardian shot forward like harbingers of death. LionHeart’s blade went clean through the neck of a towering demon with eight pin-like legs before shooting for another only a few paces away.

  Beyond that one, a creature large enough to bite a bear in half loomed, roaring loudly as it barreled for the man.

  Alaric’s white clone felt as though time had completely stopped as he watched this all happen in front of him. The first thing the clone realised was that he was not even remotely fast enough to keep up with these two, even with Aether empowering his body beyond human capabilities.

  Only his mind and eyes were capable of keeping up with what was currently happening… and he was mortified.

  Aether swirled within him as he summoned fireballs around him, for the first time falling back on Alaric’s habits.

  ‘No!’ he gasped as the beast in front of LionHeart brought its maw down on the large man.

  LionHeart didn’t look fazed… but Alaric was aware of his Temper Rank. Wood Ranks, while powerful, were still vulnerable to most demons. On what continent did a Wood Rank have a chance of challenging a creature such as this one?

  LionHeart’s blade flew up and met the creature’s maw. The atmosphere seemed to change with that one swing. The air at the edge of the man’s blade seemed to sizzle under tyrannical pressure.

  BOOM

  It was like a clap of thunder erupted right at the forest floor, sending wind shooting in all directions. The shockwave caught the clone right in the gut, sending him reeling back into the bark of a tree.

  The forest trembled and Alaric’s hearing went numb.

  Seconds later, the white clone crumpled to the ground, gasping for air. The sound of chunks of meat falling to the ground filled the air along with a ringing hum in his ears.

  He looked up at where LionHeart had been and saw the man rid his sword of black goop with a single stylish swish.

  The demon. Gone.

  Its upper half was completely obliterated along with a section of the canopy.

  “Hey… Vivid Clone. You okay?”

  The white clone staggered upright and growled, “My name’s not Vivid Clone.”

  Just like Alia had said, the white version of Alaric was pretty much healed. All effects of the shockwave had been erased from its body.

  “Oh? Then what is it?” LionHeart smirked.

  The clone opened his mouth to speak… but then held back. The clone looked away. “He hasn’t given me a name yet.”

  “Well, you are a part of him. I don’t think he can give you an actual name. Don’t you know that names have power?” the man explained with a chuckle.

  The clone sighed, “Leon’s not your name. How does that work?”

  “That’s a perk of having a Face Mask. It’s all in the enchantment,” the man replied with a sigh. “Can you still fight?”

  The clone stood up and checked his belly. Just like before, there was no sign of an injury. If anything, he looked better than he had after the near-death incident with the centipede, ‘It seems I easily return to my original form.’

  The clone nodded, “I’m good… but that ability…?”

  “Oh yeah. My Inborn…”

  “I don’t care what it is. Just be careful where you aim it next time. You nearly killed me,” the clone snapped at the man. There was little satisfaction to be drawn from seeing the big man flinch a bit.

  That took care of his nerves(and feelings of inadequacy). The clone stretched his shoulders and nodded, “I’m ready… Let’s…”

  His words stopped mid-sentence. The world went several degrees colder as his senses went on high alert. If he’d been Alaric himself, he wouldn’t have frozen the way he did… but he wasn’t exactly the same as his master.

  The white clone was made from Alaric’s subconscious… and while they were the same, Alaric’s subconscious held memories that were buried far too deep.

  Among those memories were events of the day Jared died. The cold air licked the clone’s skin and the feeling of hopelessness returned, mixing with the feeling that something was stalking them.

  A low growl came from the woods, echoing through the forest floor… like the growl of a hungry wolf ready to end its prey’s life.

  LionHeart’s body tensed and he followed the clone’s gaze to a dark spot ahead. Because of the sun spilling out of the hole in the canopies, the shadows were deeper and the man didn’t see the creature well… but he didn’t need to squint.

  It stuck its face out of the shadows and into the light, confidence mixing with its bloodlust. Illuminated by the slightest glow from the sun-rays, it circled them very slowly.

  A set of six kaleidoscopic eyes sat atop a grotesque head attached to an equally repulsive body. Its skin was a tad sleeker than the rest, bearing the quality of strong leather yet covered in small scales. Its limbs were far too long for the creature’s body, forcing it to walk on all four when it looked capable of walking on two. Spikes shot out of its hunched, long back. Its leathery skin, covered in scales, did nothing to hide the rippling cables of lean muscle holding this deformed creature’s body intact.

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Not only did it look wrong but it didn’t attack mindlessly like the others. Its movements were deceptively slow as well… Both Alaric’s clone and LionHeart could tell this thing was capable of moving fast.

  Very fast.

  The growl came again… this time exposing a row of misshapen teeth. This creature didn’t need teeth, though. It raised a clawed hand to reveal six-inch-long shiny claws before vanishing from sight.

  Only instinct told the white clone that the beast had moved, but he didn’t see the demon move. One moment it was there, and the next, it was gone… His blood had long gone cold with fear while his body remained petrified. Even if he tried to move, there was no chance he could make any distance before that thing hit.

  LionHeart’s large hand pushed the boy back as his sword moved with unimaginable speed to clash with a sharp set of claws. For a second, the boy saw the beast get pushed back… but only for a second before it was upon them again.

  Alaric’s body moved slowly… The woods groaned and quaked with his power, but all too slow to fathom what he should have been doing.

  ‘Aether… I need to circulate… aether…’ he mentally yelled. With a roar, the aether in his cold body shot through every vessel, empowering him just in time for him to see a set of claws heading for his eyes.

  Instinct took hold and he bent back. A moment later, LionHeart’s blade slashed the spot the demon had been in, but it was gone by then, vanishing into the woods to circle back.

  “ASLAN,” the man yelled.

  The lion roared in response, appearing next to them before…

  Poof

  The next thing Alaric’s clone saw was a vast expanse of blue sitting atop a vast expanse of green. They were high in the air… and he was falling.

  …………………………

  Alaric stood in the carriage with an ashen face, blood draining from it. His mind flashed with images of a fast-moving demon. It’s gaunt body, lean limbs, kaleidoscopic eyes and sharp talons flashed through his mind as he observed it through his power over the woods.

  Scarlett wanted to ask the boy what he’d seen… but his expression said it all. Byron laughed in his seat, “Where did that confidence you had a moment ago just disappear to, boy?”

  Alaric didn’t bother replying to the man. He needed a solution… but how was he going to get one when he could barely get his nerves under control?

  [ I’ll recall your clone back into the In-Between… His fear might be affecting yours… ]

  [ He almost died, Alia. ] Alaric gasped.

  There was a short moment of silence before the guardian replied, [ I know, Alaric, I know. ]

  It wasn’t enough that she just said it. Alaric and Alia shared emotions most of the time so he could feel her fear through their link. The fact that the white clone looked exactly like Alaric only worked to aggravate her angst.

  [ How are you so calm? ] the boy tried.

  Time, however, was not on their side. Sariah gripped his shoulders and shook him back into the present, “Speak, Alistair. What is it?”

  “There is a demon headed this way… Leon couldn’t stop it…” the boy explained in a soft tone, “He… He barely got away.”

  Sariah wasted no time, picking up her sword and jumping off the carriage. Her guardian shot out of a fissure in space just in time to meet a creature shooting from the woods.

  A wave of the oppressive aura of death washed over the carriage, and the horses neighed in terror.

  The carriage lurched to the side as the coachman fought for control. “Damned butchers! Do your freaking jobs!” Taran yelled.

  Scarlett, Bumi and Maple all lurched to the side where Byron and Lucy were. Alaric, however, remained perfectly steady, watching with his own eyes as Sariah’s sword met the razor-sharp claws of the demon with a shower of sparks.

  The two were both pushed back by the force of their attacks hitting good defences. Sariah lost her balance and went hurtling back into the carriage while the serpent shot forward with its maw open.

  A green liquid shot from the guardian’s maw and landed on the demon’s skin with a sizzling hiss. The extra venom that fell on the ground burnt deep holes into the ground. Victory was far from sight though…

  Despite showing minimal patches of damage, the demon was unfazed. Everything went silent for Alaric, his instincts firing off on all cylinders.

  ‘No…’ he gasped, but his body wouldn’t move fast enough.

  The demon shot darted forward and was under the guardian in a fraction of a second, then slashed the snake’s belly.

  Sariah got up with a scream as the carriage rode away from the scene of the carnage. Alaric could still see what was happening though. His control over the woods gave him nearly omniscient sight.

  A bear made of obsidian with flowing rivers of magma slammed into the demon a moment later, seeming to have come out of nowhere. The attack was brutal enough to send the abomination flying back into the woods.

  Sariah had seen this from a distance and dropped to one knee… relieved, yet terrified.

  Guardians were powerful beasts that protected humans… and yet, losing a guardian was said to be more painful than death itself.

  It was a paradox really…

  The two guardians vanished into the In-Between, awaiting the master’s next summoning. The abomination was not done hunting them though.

  A terrifying screech echoed through the woods and Alaric staggered. The aether in his system went still before he called on it again, ‘What was that?’

  [ I sincerely hope that was just you pissing your pants with fear. ] Alia responded.

  The demon caught up with the carriage from the right, dashing through the woods with its kaleidoscopic eyes locked on the carriage, a mad thirst for blood shining deep inside them.

  Alaric made a fist… trying to calm his nerves. He’d just seen the same demon nearly kill LionHeart… and the fear that had grown numb since Jared had awakened within him.

  What would he do if LionHeart had died?

  [ Your train of thought sometimes worries me… ] his guardian intervened.

  [ Because you would know what it’s like to lose a loved one. ] the boy snapped back only to regret his words.

  There was much he didn’t know about guardians. Only a fool would make the remark he’d just made. Where did guardians get all their knowledge if not from some other life? It was a theory he’d pondered before.

  Ignoring his remark, the guardian continued, seemingly unbothered by his comment, [ Remember Darth… You moved faster than you’d ever moved before and protected your friends. That time, you knew a moment of hesitation would get them killed and you did everything in your power to save them. Save the guilt for after you’ve failed, not before. ]

  The words were comforting enough for the boy to regain some motor functions. The world went cold and the aether in the air hummed as he locked eyes with the dashing demon.

  “What the hell is that thing?” the coachman squealed, his hands trembling as he held the reins.

  Alaric ignored him and turned his attention to the woods. Everywhere he looked, he saw the demons gaining on them, led by this one abomination that sent fear down their throats.

  High in the air, the white lion shot over the trees, heading for the carriage with Leon’s sword drawn and ready. The man’s eyes surveyed the ground in worry as he summoned balls of fire, then dismissed them…

  What was he going to do against all these demons? Without a defensive wide-area spell, he’d just be wasting all his aether. Yes, he could take down a few of them, but in the grand scheme of things, it didn’t make sense why he’d take that approach.

  Unfortunately, he needed to do something. Looking into the distance, he noticed the armoured demons had been crushed by heavy boulders and left subdued. It would take a while for those to reconstitute themselves if no Holy Magic was applied to them… so for now, they weren’t a problem.

  The problem was that they were no longer playing the part of decoys. Now that they were down, the other demons stirred, curling inwards in undulating waves of death, all aiming for the carriage. At the very head of the horrid wave of death was the creature that had banished him, Aslan and the phoenix flying beside him back into the sky.

  ‘They’re too organised,’ LionHeart observed with worry.

  The demon with kaleidoscopic eyes was staring right at the carriage, more specifically, at Alaric.

  The big man squinted his eyes at the scene.

  ‘Alaric… of course, it’s looking at Alaric,’ the man wanted to cry out. Why was everything after that boy?