The next morning followed the pattern of the previous days. They trained hard in the morning followed by a quick lunch. Sam accompanied Sanders to see the soul weaver where he got to watch the ritual performed again. Sanders had chosen vanguard as his class which gave him an increase in attack prowess. He had gained an ability which allowed him to slow time for a few seconds giving him enough time to strike out at an enemy. It could also be used defensively when a few seconds could mean the difference between life and death. He also got a skill that gave him a premonition of impending danger. The soul weaver apologized, informing Sam that she still hadn’t been able to learn anything about the phase warden class.

            After the soul upgrade, Sanders returned to spar with Bard and Azuriel in the training area while Sam left the town to join Lucas and Alannah at the archery range. He found them shooting from about fifty yards from the target. He could hear them joking with each other as he approached, and they seemed to be making a game of it. Sam joined in the mini tournament. The game they were playing was similar to the game horse in basketball. They took turns creating difficult shots and would give points to the two arrows furthest from the center. Sam quickly got to nine points and the game would end once someone reached ten. The most recent shot had been one of Alannah’s design and required the archer to be kneeling behind a tree and arch your back beyond the tree and fire your arrow at the target thirty yards away. He had positioned himself near the tree and dropped to his knee. He held his bow close to his chest to be able to move it past the tree. He arched his back lining up the shot. He didn’t seem to have the right angle, so he relaxed his draw on the string and straightened back up. He turned his head to Alannah to give her an exasperated look regarding this ridiculous shot. His voice caught as he saw figures moving toward them from deeper in the woods. He could see five or six with one of them only feet behind Lucas and Alannah with a sword raised to strike. He immediately twisted his body toward them, drawing back on the bow, and loosing an arrow between the siblings. He couldn’t register the shocked looks on their faces as he aimed at them, and he could only hope that his training had improved enough to avoid hitting his friends. He called out a warning as soon as he had let go of the arrow. It soared between them, missing Lucas’ shoulder by an inch. It sunk into the throat of the would-be attacker dropping him to the ground.

            The warning jolted the siblings out of their surprise, and they turned toward the oncoming group. They drew their bows as well, stepping back toward Sam. He had risen to his feet and held another arrow on his bow drawing back on the string. Before he could fire the next shot, one of the figures that had been obscured by a tree stepped to the side into the sunlight. It was a demon wearing black armor that was partially covered by dark robes. He stood close to six feet tall and was smiling at them. He held no weapon and was actually clapping approval at them.

            “Bravo! Bravo! That was one hell of a shot.” The demon uttered in a guttural tone. Although he was smiling and clapping, his purple eyes burned with hatred as he stared at the three humans in front of him. “We were hoping to whittle your number down a little more. I only need one of you –.” His speech was cut off by the release of another arrow by Sam. The demon’s movements were impossibly quick as he pulled a dagger off his chest and swatted the arrow to the side. Before his team could fire off their arrows, the demon had jumped back behind the tree he was near. The other members of his group had moved behind cover as well. “As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted. I only need one of you to torture as punishment for killing my brother.”

            Sam took a moment to look at his teammates and they signaled a plan. Sam would try and keep the demon busy while they set things in motion. “What are you talking about?” Sam asked as he moved closer to a tree for protection. Sam and his partners would occasionally send an arrow at the opposing force any time they tried to move from their covered locations but there were more bad guys than good, and they were slowly moving from tree to tree getting closer.

            “Vorax! You killed Vorax!” the demon screamed. “I know it was one of you three since he had arrow wounds in his neck.”

            Sam remembered back to the day he arrived on this world and the demon that was killed by Lucas and Alannah together. “Nope, doesn’t ring a bell. We kill so many pathetic demons that it’s hard to keep track.”

            “Enough of this. Kill them but leave the mouthy one to me,” Anarak ordered. Sam had to hope that he had bought enough time for his team to get ready. Just before their enemies attacked, his hopes were answered as he saw a sleek tan mountain lion bound from the trees on his right and land on one of the attackers hiding behind a tree. The beast pinned the man to the ground and clamped down on his neck with its razor-sharp teeth. The beast ripped the man’s throat out instantly killing him. This was the result of Alannah’s innate ability to interact with beasts. With her upgraded soul, she could now summon a beast into battle. He had seen her choose different animals, but she seemed to favor the mountain lion. The ability let her summon any creature that she had absorbed energy from as long as it wasn’t stronger than her current soul strength. The appearance of this creature startled a couple of the closest attackers, and they moved a few inches out from behind their trees to put a little distance between themselves and the beast. A few inches were all Alannah and Lucas needed and two arrows went into flight. Alannah’s blue energy arrow coursed through the air catching one attacker in the shoulder. This caused his arm to fall limply to his side. Lucas’ arrow also found its mark and thudded into the side of the man’s head dropping him to the ground. The rest of the attackers jumped into motion at the site of this. The demon emerged from the tree at a run aiming straight for Sam. He loosed another arrow but it was again deflected by a rapid dagger swipe. The demon was twenty yards from Sam, but his inhuman speed would close the gap quickly. He knew there was no time for another shot, so he dropped the bow and pulled out his axe and shield. As his strength improved, he had started to wield the axe one handed which allowed for him to start using a shield during their training sessions. He held the axe steady in his right hand and leveled the buckler just below his eyes in his left. He knew he was no match for this demon, but he had to stay alive long enough for his friends to join the fight.

            Lucas had lined up a shot on another human that had started to charge at him. He was able to get a shot off catching the attacker in his side and making him lose his footing. He stumbled forward awkwardly closing the last few feet to Lucas’ position. He had a long sword in one hand and a knife in the other. Although off balance, he still had momentum moving forward and lunged out with his long sword. Lucas was able to spin to the side deflecting the attack with his bow. As he did so, he changed the bow to his left hand and drew his own longsword. His enemy had regained his footing and the arrow had only grazed his side. The man feinted a dagger strike with his left hand before swinging his longsword across trying to catch Lucas off balance. Luckily, Lucas was well trained and saw the feint for what it was. He pretended to move his sword forward to block the fake dagger strike and then as the man made his move, he stepped into the attack moving closer than the arc of the long sword. He blocked the swing with the bow he held in his left hand and drove his sword into the man’s abdomen. The man spasmed slightly dropping both weapons before his body went limp.

            Alannah had only managed to wound her assailant in the shoulder, and she summoned another arrow to send once he came out from behind the tree. He didn’t leave the safety of cover quickly; however, so she scanned the battlefield for any other targets. She saw Lucas battling one of the attackers. Her summons had finished its first victim and was leaping toward another one. Her eyes continued to scan until she saw the demon running full speed at Sam. She turned her bow leading the demon slightly and let loose. The arrow hit the demon in his left arm and punctured through the arm enough to pin it to his side. The demon didn’t even get knocked off course. She did seem him sling something at her with his right hand. She reacted too slowly, and a dagger sliced into her hip causing a searing pain to erupt along her leg. The leg started to go numb almost as soon as the blade hit it. She looked down at the wound pulling the knife from her hip. A green sheen coated the blade and she already saw the same color green oozing from her wound and mixing with her blood. She felt faint and collapsed to one knee. She looked up to see the other wounded attacker charging her with an axe overhead. She tried to lift her bow to block the attack, but the poison had started spreading to her arms and she could hardly lift them. Just before the killing blow, a long sword came whizzing through the air and sliced into the man’s chest knocking him back a few feet. The axe slipped from his hands and fell to the ground. Alannah collapsed onto the ground as her eyes closed.

Sam’s heart thundered in his chest as the demon bounded closer and closer. He saw the blue streak of an arrow thud into the demon’s left arm followed by a lightning quick throw of the dagger in his right hand. The demon smiled as he charged and pulled the arrow out of his arm. He dropped the arrow and equipped a dagger in each hand. Sam heard Alannah cry out in pain from the thrown dagger and his blood started to boil. His hand started to hurt from gripping the axe so tight. He knew a swing in anger would only benefit the more experienced and quicker demon. He also knew the demon would expect this since the smile on the demon’s face became almost welcoming as he listened to Alannah cry out. Sam pulled back the axe as though he was going to launch a wild swing. He started its forward motion but stopped as it passed the shield. It achieved its purpose as the demon turned his body toward the oncoming axe swing to block it with both daggers. The demon’s smile faltered as the axe swing slowed and the buckler in Sam’s other hand smashed into the demon’s face. It was not a devastating blow but combined with the twisting motion of the demon’s body, it did throw him off balance making him stumble back a few paces. He righted himself quickly enough and threw himself at Sam. Sam was able to deflect one of the daggers coming at him, but another slipped underneath the shield and sliced his forearm. His new braces helped block most of the blow, but the edge of the dagger dug into his skin just below the elbow. He felt an explosion of pain out of proportion for the injury followed by almost immediate numbness in his arm. The shield became too heavy, and the arm dropped to the ground. The demon’s smile returned as he moved to finish the job with the other dagger. He was forced to abandon the attack; however, as the mountain lion leaped at him from the side. The demon moved quickly enough to grab the mountain lion by the throat and slice open its belly with the poisoned dagger. He turned toward Sam again but was interrupted by an arrow streaking toward him that he deflected. Both attacks had only lasted a moment, but that was enough. The poison was trying to take hold of Sam, but he noticed the collapsed form of Alannah and the rage returned tenfold. It overpowered the numbing effects of the poison temporarily. Now, he did unleash a rage filled swing with his axe. The demon was blocking the arrow from Lucas as the axe descended toward him. He tried to spin away but he wasn’t quick enough to change his momentum a second time. He pulled his head out of the way of the downward strike, but it caught him at the level of the sternum. The strength of the axe strike cut into the demon’s armor sinking into his upper chest. The demon sputtered something unintelligible and stared at Sam with wide eyes as blood started to gurgle in his mouth. The demon’s body crumpled to the ground at Sam’s feet. Sam did the same moments later as the poison resumed its attack on his body. He could hear a horn ring out from the camp in the distance.

A large surge of energy from the slain demon entered Sam followed by an immediate sensation of energy overload. The energy fluxing into his body started to battle the poison for supremacy. This gave Sam enough time to move his working hand over his elbow and start channeling energy into the wound. He focused on pulling all the poison out of his body first and with the help of the energy surge, he was able to cleanse his blood. He didn’t waste any time on closing his wound for now. His energy returned and feeling in his limbs was restored. He stumbled to his feet and ran toward Alannah. Lucas had already reached her and was cradling her head in his hands. Sam dropped beside them and placed his hands on her chest and wounded leg. He could still feel her heartbeat, but it was slower than it should be. He pushed as much of his energy out of his body and into hers. He started to battle the poison that was in her system as well as cleaning the wound of the poisonous slime to keep more form circulating. He was starting to clear it out, but his energy levels were draining too rapidly. He knew he wouldn’t be able to clear all the poison before his energy ran out. He steeled his resolve and focused his mind forgetting the rest of the world around him. The air about him started to move slightly and he felt the drain on his own energy stores lessen as ambient energy started to move into his hands and continue to cleanse the poison from Alannah’s body. He worked for another five minutes until all the poison had been cleared. He felt her heartbeat increasing again and her breathing improved. She didn’t open her eyes, but he knew she would live. He slumped to the ground beside her taking in deep breaths as the adrenaline left him and sheer mental and physical exhaustion took its place.

 Sam lay for a few minutes catching his breath while Lucas watched over them both. After he recuperated some of his energy, he was able to kneel next to Alannah. He had improved enough that he told Lucas to alert the others and he would stand guard. Lucas questioned the plan initially, worried there might be more attackers. After a moment of surveying the surrounding woods, he nodded his agreement and took off at a sprint toward the camp entrance. He only made it a few hundred feet before Azuriel launched himself over the closest wall and was flying in their direction. A guard from the wall had heard Alannah cry out and saw the battle happening. He had raised an alarm and sent the soldiers to help. Azuriel landed and started conferring with Lucas about the battle. Sanders and Bard arrived with a small contingent of soldiers moments later. Bard immediately moved to Alannah’s side, lifting her off the ground to carry her back. Sanders approached Sam and helped him to his feet.

“You couldn’t have left any for us to play with?” Sanders said with a grin. The two moved amongst the bodies looting them before returning to camp with the rest of the group.

Bard had taken Alannah immediately to the healing house to be checked out. Sanders and Sam followed while Lucas accompanied Azuriel to debrief with Commander Hyperion. Lucas had initially tried to argue with Azuriel about leaving his sister’s side, but he knew she was in good hands and was out of any immediate danger. Bard burst into the healing house calling for Sushanna as he lay her body down on the cot nearby. Sushanna hurried over to examine her and quickly added a small amount of healing to completely close the wound on her leg. Sam arrived a few moments later and described the effects of the poison, showing her one of the blades.

“Death snake poison” Sushanna stated in response to the description. “It’s a powerful poison used by many of the dark assassins. It takes effect within seconds and can immobilize a person within a minute. Death quickly follows and although there is an antidote, it’s rarely given in time. Again, you impress me, Sam.”

“You are the reason she pulled through,” Sam replied.

“Me?”

“I was running out of energy but somehow connected to the ambient energy and funneled that into her to cleanse the poison.” Sam said in a thankful tone. She nodded at him and started to examine him as well. He waved her off as she noticed the small puncture wound on his elbow. He had forgotten it himself but quickly turned his focus to it as he healed the injury.

“I’m thankful it worked for you.” Sushanna turned her attention back to Alannah. “She will likely sleep through the night, but she is no longer in danger. You can let her rest here or you can take her back to her bed.” Bard scooped Alannah back up without a word and started moving toward their house. Sam agreed with his assessment that Alannah would rest better in her own room. They moved back to the house in silence. Bard laid her down in her bed on the third floor. He sat down on the ground in the corner of the room to start his vigil over her until she awoke. Sam felt the same way and sat down with his back against the bed. So much had happened in so short a time. He had survived another life and death experience and almost lost another friend. This place truly was dangerous. As he recalled the events of the day in his mind, he remembered the huge surge of energy that entered him upon killing the demon. His prior experiences with the energy surges paled in comparison to the surge of energy he had received today. He instinctively knew that he was ready to upgrade his soul to the apprentice tier.

His excitement at realizing this was subdued as he looked back at Alannah. The fear and anger he felt when he saw her unconscious on the ground started seeping back in as he saw her resting in bed. He was glad she was safe for now, but those emotions unearthed the feelings of fear and loss that had haunted him for the past months. He had managed to push them down during the day with his focus on training and advancement, but they were always bubbling just under the surface. He would have to start facing them if he wanted to move past them. He didn’t want to allow his emotions to overwhelm him while he sat only feet from Bard. As he was considering returning to his room, Bard suddenly stood and started to walk past him. As he reached the door, he paused.

“Thanks for bringing her back.” His comment was barely a whisper but the sincerity of it struck Sam and he hoped that they could improve their strained relationship moving forward. He left the room after, and Sam could hear him moving down the stairs. Finding himself alone in the room with Alannah, he repositioned himself so that he was sitting with his back against the wall laying his head on the side of her bed. He finally let his emotions wash over him as tears started to well in his eyes. Despite the emotional turmoil he had been in for months with the depression and insomnia, he hadn’t cried since learning the news for the first time over eight months ago when he woke in the hospital bed. He told himself it was a strength of will, but he saw now that he had just shut off all emotion making himself an empty shell of a man. He wept for his wife, his kids, and his old life. He wept for Alannah, and finally for the overwhelming madness that was the past two weeks of his life. Once the emotions started to flow, they didn’t stop for close to an hour. Finally, his emotions had mentally drained him, and he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.