Rekindle The Light

Chapter 5: A Traitor

Alice had been fighting goblins for a while. They were unusually aggressive and seemed to ignore standard tactics.

Alice killed another goblin and stood momentarily, trying to regain her breath. Everything was quiet. She couldn't find Nagano anywhere.

Did he run off? She shook her head. From what Alice could tell, Nagano was smart. He wouldn't do something like that—

The ground started rumbling, throwing Alice off balance. She felt a surplus of Aether shoot out from the center of the camp. This Aether was a dark energy that blackened the surroundings, making Alice's stomach churn.

When the beam disappeared, the sky returned to normal again. Alice quickly ran over to where the beam came from. It seemed to have emanated from a hole in the ground.

Alice hastily descended the ladder, only to find Nagano at the bottom. He was facing away from her, and a small orb was clenched in his hand.

Alice held her spear in one hand and slowly approached him. She tentatively reached for his shoulder.

"Nagano—"

He abruptly turned around, aiming his dagger right at her neck.

Alice just barely managed to block Nagano's blade. There was unbelievable force behind his attack.

"Nagano! What are you doing—" Alice stopped when she noticed his eyes. They were solid white. A subtle glow behind them. Before she could think too much about it, Nagano delivered a blow to her gut.

Alice was sent flying back, hitting the wall behind them. The impact knocked the wind out of her. Her vision was blurry, and she was wheezing, but she managed to pull herself up.

Nagano's movements were rigid; they weren't truly his, though his strength made up for it.

He leaped at her again, and Alice swiftly evaded it. She flipped her spear around and jutted it forward, hitting Nagano with its blunt end. He stumbled backward but managed to keep his footing.

They exchanged blow after blow. Sparks flew as their blades collided. Alice was just barely dodging Nagano's ruthless attacks. She was accumulating damage.

Luckily, this version of Nagano didn't seem to know how to use his Aether. Otherwise, she surely would have been dead, but if she didn't figure out how to stop him, that wouldn't matter.

Alice kept dodging and deflecting his attacks, but she knew she couldn't keep it up forever. She just had to figure out how to bring him back.

Her eyes fell to the orb in his hand. He was still clenching it tightly, and he seemed to be protecting it more than his own life.

That must have been it. She had one chance at this. She raised her spear over her head and threw it at him with all her might.

Nagano took the bait; he focused on the spear and tried to dodge the spear.

Alice took a deep breath. Aether flowed through her body, and she lunged for him. She grabbed his wrist and gripped it tightly. She plied his fingers off the orb, and it fell, dropping to the ground with a clink.

A dark energy swirled around them, Nagano's eyes returned to normal, and he fell to his knees.

▬▬ι|═══════ﺤ

Darkness. That was all Nagano could see. All he could feel. A shiver went down his spine. The atmosphere was thick, and it took Nagano a moment to feel the presence.

Something else was in this darkness. Looming in the shadows and analyzing–Scrutinizing him.

"Mortal." A deep voice called out. It seemed to come from every direction.