The silhouettes at the far end of the tunnel took shape as they approached.
There were six. Mercenaries. Leather armor, swords, axes. They blocked the way completely.
Darian didn't even slow down.
"Out of my way."
The one in front smiled.
"Easy, boy. We just want to..."
He didn't let him finish.
"Flow Perception."
The world slowed. He saw their positions, their weak points, the fastest route through. He didn't care. He just wanted to run them over.
He extended a hand. The shadow his body cast stretched across the stone and crawled forward like living ink.
The first three tried to step back. The shadow reached them and coiled around their legs. They were pinned.
Darian closed his fist.
The shadow hardened. Spikes of darkness burst from it, piercing boots and greaves. The mercenaries fell screaming, legs bleeding.
"What is that?!" one of them shouted.
The other three froze.
Darian was already on them.
One raised a sword. Darian activated the Void Dominion. The gravity crushed him to the ground before he could swing it. He lay pinned, groaning.
Another tried to flank him with an axe. Darian spun and drove a kick into his chest. He flew back against the wall and collapsed.
The last one retreated with wide eyes.
"Wait... we just..."
Darian grabbed him by the throat and slammed him against the rock.
"Where is Aria?"
"I don't know anything! We were just paid to slow you down!"
He released him. The man fell to the ground, coughing. Darian didn't even look at him. He was already out of the fight.
Varkas and Kára came running.
"Darian!" Kára shouted.
He didn't hear. He was already running again.
But his body was starting to pay the price.
A thread of blood ran from his nose. A constant ringing drilled through his ears. His chest weighed more than ever. Every step cost double.
He didn't care.
The tunnel narrowed. The walls scraped his shoulders. Vael flew beside him, beating his wings with difficulty.
"Darian!"
Varkas caught up and put a hand on his shoulder. Darian shook it off.
"Let go of me!"
"Listen! We're not going to make it like this!"
"I don't care!" He turned, eyes blazing. "She's out there because of me!"
Varkas grabbed his arm. Darian struggled.
"That power just now... the shadows... what was that?"
"I don't know! It came out on its own! I don't care!"
"Well you should! You're bleeding!"
"Let me bleed! I'm not stopping!"
Kára arrived, chest heaving.
"Darian..."
"She was the first!" His voice broke. "Do you understand? The first one who trusted me when I was nobody. The first one who had my back without asking for anything. And I treated her like she didn't matter!"
Vael settled on his shoulder and rubbed his head against his neck, making a soft sound. Darian closed his eyes for a moment. He wiped the blood from his face with the back of his hand.
"I'm not going to be late," he said, calmer but just as broken. "Not again."
He pulled free and kept running.
Kára and Varkas looked at each other. They said nothing. They just followed.
The tunnel opened into an enormous cavern.
A natural vault with cracks in the ceiling that let through the night sky. On the other side, an opening led outside. The sound of the sea drifted in from the distance.
In the center, three figures waited.
The first was an elven woman. Green tunic, a staff of living wood with a natural glow. Liriel, nature mage.
The second was a tall, strong man with dark hair pulled back in a ponytail. Chain mail and a long sword. A veteran's posture. Brom, the fighter.
The third was a stocky elf, broader in the shoulders than his kind usually were. Heavy armor and a large white-and-green shield. In his other hand, a broad sword. Eryndor, the tank.
Darian stopped. His chest rose and fell. Blood stained his lips.
Liriel smiled.
"You made it. I thought they'd hold you longer."
Brom rested the tip of his sword on the ground.
"Looks promising. Too bad you won't get past here."
Eryndor raised his shield.
"I'm Eryndor. Guardian of the dock. And you..."
Darian didn't let him finish.
"I don't care."
He extended both hands. The shadow his body cast expanded like ink across the stone, crawling toward all three.
"I'm getting through. Over you if I have to."