Blood

Chapter Thirty seven: The illusion of Victory

The group stood in stunned silence, their eyes darting between each other, searching for answers. Their breaths were still heavy, their limbs sore from the battle.

"We killed him," Lira said, her voice barely above a whisper. "Didn't we?"

"We definitely did," Riona insisted, though doubt laced her words. "Right? That happened. I saw it."

"Yes, you did," came Alistair's calm, amused voice as he approached them. "But that wasn't me."

Ethan's eyes narrowed as he stepped forward, his fists clenching so tightly that the faint glow of his heartstone pulsed erratically. "What do you mean, it wasn't you?"

"That was just my clone," Alistair said smoothly, as though explaining something trivial. "Cloning myself is one of the many powers I possess. Impressive, isn't it?"

The group stiffened, the weight of their supposed victory dissolving in an instant.

Ethan glared at him, his voice low and dangerous. "What do you want?"

"Nothing. Just wanted to congratulate you all on your win."

The team entered an offensive stance, ready to pounce.

"Hold your horses. I'm not going to attack you." Alistair yawned, clearly unimpressed. "We're done. You pass."

"Pass? What are you talking about?"

"Isn't it obvious? The whole thing was a test."

"But you shoved a poisoned spear into my shoulder."

"And you survived. Congratulations."

"There is something seriously wrong with you. I could've died."

"If you died, then it's for the better because if just a little spear is all it takes to kill you, then you aren't cut out to be a guardian."

"But the prophecy..."

"You entered the library and saw a shelf with only one book. Wasn't that odd? I live in this place. Don't you think I would've destroyed the book so you'd never find it and learn about my plans? I'm more intelligent at being bad than you realize."

"What about the caves? Those inscriptions."

"It was put there before we admitted the next generation of guardians."

"So all this was a test..."

"Precisely."

"You don't want to steal our heartstones."

"I have no use for it. You had the heartstone, and you could barely defeat my clone. Trust me, with or without a heartstone, I'm invincible. Besides, if I wanted the heartstone, I could've taken it at any time and you wouldn't have been able to stop me."

"You're underestimating us, Alistair." Aiden's voice was steady. "It might have been a simulation, but the fact remains that we took you down."

"You took down my clone. Know the difference."

"A clone with the same powers as the original."

"A clone can never be as strong as the original." Alistair's eyes darkened with a hint of menace. "Tip for the future: Do not get on my bad side. I can take you down even if you summon the power of the heartstone. How did you do that, by the way, Ethan? No guardian has ever been able to control the heartstone like you."

"I don't know, actually. It's complicated."

"Well, let's get back to the school. You're finally done with your training to be guardians. You'll be allowed to return home now."

"Yes! Finally." Galen screamed from behind them.

"For someone who claims to love exploring, you really seem excited to go back to your normal life."

"Your lives won't be normal after this." Alistair said, his hands clasped behind his back. "But you'll get used to it. Go to your dorms, pack your things, and meet me in the main hall in twenty minutes."

"We can't get to the school in twenty minutes. It's too far away."

"Then I suggest you run."

The group sighed before jogging back toward the school.

"I would've actually preferred it if Alistair was actually evil and we just took him down." Ethan muttered.

"You just spoke my mind." Riona said before holding Ethan's hand.

"What are you doing?"

"Just trust me." Riona said before snapping her fingers, teleporting them to the school in the blink of an eye.

The others stared at themselves and shook their heads.

"I can't believe we forgot that we could just teleport there with magic." Aiden slapped a hand to his face. "Gather round. Twenty minutes is too much time. Let's go."

A few minutes later, they were all packed and lined up in the main hall, arranged exactly as they had been on the first day.

"You've come a long way since the first day you were here. I had my doubts about some of you, especially you, Galen, but so far, you've proven that you have what it takes to be guardians of the heartstone. For that, I am proud." Alistair cleared his throat as he continued. "I know many of you made friends along the way and would want to stay in touch, but I need to make it clear: it isn't possible. You'll all be living in different dimensions. Dimensions that shouldn't be aware of each other's existence. So, crossing over to other dimensions to visit friends without a solid reason is prohibited. You can communicate using the heartstone, but that's it. No meet-ups."

"How do we communicate with the heartstone?"

"You'll have to figure that out yourselves." Alistair said, his tone final. "It's been a pleasure being your custodian for this short time. Say your goodbyes and meet me on the training ground. I'll be opening the portals that will take you home."