The tree lashed out, its vines striking Margaret.
She struggled, twisting and kicking, but the vines were binding and entangling her body.
"I'll apologize later to Margaret," Theai said in my mind, her voice teasing.
Margaret groaned as she was dragged closer, the tree swallowing her whole.
"A little help here, Ezekiel," Damian called through our mind link.
I glanced at him, seeing how he struggled against the witch. Without hesitation, I sprinted to his side, pointing my hand at the witch.
I glanced at him, seeing how he struggled against the witch. Without hesitation, I sprinted to his side, pointing my hand at the witch hovering above.
She shot her hand upward, fingers curling as if gathering power, then with a sharp motion she waved it downward with command.
"Cascading Barbs!"
Chains with sharp, glinting edges rained down from above, slicing toward us.
I twisted and leapt, dodging most of them with swift movements. Damian and his white wolf moved in perfect sync, evading the falling chains. The remaining chains slammed into the concrete below, sending sparks flying.
"Frost Armor!"
Damian commanded, and his white wolf transformed instantly. Its fur crystallized into jagged ice, and with a wave of Damian's hands, it spun like a battering ram toward the falling chains. The chains' sharp edges struck the wolf's body but barely left a mark, unable to pierce it, and its unyielding force held them fast.
"Crash that witch!" Damian shouted, pointing at the witch. The wolf launched upward, spinning midair before striking toward her.
The witch hovered calmly, her eyes narrowed.
"Phantom Leash!"
Before I could react, two spectral chains shot out from the witch's abdomen. They passed straight through the wolf's body, invisible until they had nearly reached us. Damian froze, eyes widening in shock as the chains phased through his summon and lunged directly at us.
"Temporal Shi—"
I started casting my skill, but it was too late. The spectral chains shot forward, piercing our abdomens with cold, searing energy. Damian grunted as the chains struck him as well.
At the same time, the wolf slammed into the witch, its jagged, icy body crashing against hers.
"Arghhh!"
She screamed, her body slammed into the concrete below with a heavy thump. The wolf returned to us immediately, panting slightly, its fur settling back into normal form.
Moments later, she pushed herself up, completely unharmed. The spectral chains still lingered, tethered to her abdomen. Slowly, she lifted her hands, moving them as if drawing something from within us.
A sudden drain swept through me. My knees buckled, and I dropped to the ground, clutching my stomach.
"Damian! I feel my strength slipping!" I gasped.
He dropped beside me, his face pale, breathing hard.
"I… I don't know what these chains do, but I feel it too!" Damian groaned, pulling desperately at the spectral chains, but they wouldn't let go.
"Lunar Crescendo!"
Damian raised his hands, and the large white wolf turned to face the witch. It opened its mouth, and a soft light began gathering there, coalescing into a glowing sphere.
The wolf stepped forward, and the light sphere in its mouth merged with swirling black energy, spinning and expanding as it hovered in the air. It grew larger and larger, radiating raw power with every moment.
"Astral Interlock!"
With a simple wave of the witch's hand, the large sphere of light began to shrink. Five astral pink chains appeared out of nowhere, surrounding the sphere and latching onto it, draining its energy as they tightened around it.
"What? She did that with just a simple wave of her hand?" Damian stared in disbelief, dropping to one knee as his strength gave out.
"I think her magic seals and nullifies," I said, kneeling on the ground while gripping one of the spectral chains embedded in my abdomen. "Earlier, I couldn't use my ability to remove crowd control when her chains bound me."
"I can't hold on anymore, Ezekiel. It's draining me," Damian said, clutching his chest as his breathing grew heavy.
His white wolf flickered and vanished into thin air, scattering faint particles of light.
The spectral chains still connected to our abdomens continued to draw my strength away, sending weakness through my body.
Then the witch's gaze suddenly shifted.
I followed her sight and saw her companion. A large mirror emerged beside the elder witch, its surface rippling. A hand shot out from within and grabbed her by the neck.
A figure stepped through the mirror. It was the Captain.
"Mistress!" the apprentice shouted, rushing toward her. The moment she moved, the spectral chains linking us snapped apart and dissolved into fading light.
[Moment of Clarity has been triggered!]
I pushed myself up and grabbed Damian's arm, pulling him to his feet as strength slowly returned to my body.
"My Aeon Restore will not work on you. It only restores lost limbs or reverses wounds," I said, shaking my head.
"Just take me to the tree you unleashed earlier," Damian replied, gripping my shoulder as he struggled to stay upright.
I glanced at the tree still standing in the distance, the one Theai lent me through her skill. It continued to release soft green spores that drifted through the air.
I wrapped Damian's arm over my shoulder and walked with him toward the tree, supporting most of his weight as he dragged his feet across the ground.
When we reached it, he let his body slump forward and wrapped his arms around the glowing green trunk. He pressed his forehead against it and closed his eyes.
Moments later, a faint green light spread across his body.
The glow grew brighter for a second before slowly fading. When he opened his eyes, he stood up straight, rolling his shoulders to test his strength.
"Let's go to them," Damian said, flexing his fingers before stepping forward.
I gave a small nod and followed beside him.
I looked toward Captain, who was fighting both witches at once. Bursts of dark energy clashed in the air around them. We reached Theai's side, and I let out a quiet sigh of relief when I saw that she was holding her ground against the elder witch.
"Should we help Captain?" I asked, watching another wave of power collide in the distance.
"Nah. I think Captain can handle both of them," Damian said with confidence, crossing his arms as he observed the fight.
We stepped closer and stood below the battlefield, looking up as magic flashed and tremors shook the air around us. Every clash above sounded like lightning.
"Obsidian Convergence!"
The elder witch raised both hands. Five small circular mirrors appeared beside her, spinning slowly. Suddenly, thick dark beams burst from each mirror, shooting straight toward Captain Edmund.
"Soul-Cutting Crescent!"
Captain Edmund moved without fear. He swung his arm in a wide arc. A dark crescent-shaped slash flew from his blade, spinning fast. The crescent met the five beams head-on. Everything froze in a blinding clash of black light. Then the beams shattered into faint light.
"Nether Lash!"
The apprentice witch rushed forward. She thrust her hands out, and glowing chains burst from her palms. The chains snapped and whipped through the air, aiming for the Captain from all sides.
He vanished in a blur of dark smoke. The chains struck nothing. Before the apprentice could turn, he reappeared right in front of her.
She gasped and swung the chains that had materialized in her hands.
The Captain was faster. With every swing of the witch's chains, he kept vanishing and reappearing out of nowhere.
"Dread Shatter!"
Captain Edmund swung his scythe in a sharp, clean strike. A black, glowing copy of the blade flew forward from the swing. It cut through the apprentice witch before she could dodge. The shadowy scythe passed through her body.
Then the dark blade pulsed. The single scythe split into four more, each one spinning outward in wide arcs.
One of the spinning scythes curved toward the elder witch, its shadowy trail twisting behind it.
She quickly raised her hand and cast a mirror barrier, but the scythe slammed into it, cracking the shield. The force pushed her backward across the sky.
Below us, the apprentice's severed body fell.
It hit the ground in front of us with a heavy thud.
Above us, the elder witch steadied herself in the air, breathing hard, her cracked shield fading away.
Captain Edmund stood alone in the sky, his scythe resting on his shoulder.
"Dang!" I said, my eyes immediately returning to the battle above.
"Reflective Aegis!"
The elder witch raised her hand once more. Shards of light formed around her, spreading outward and locking together into a dome of mirrors. The curved barrier surrounded her completely, each mirror reflecting the battlefield from every angle.
The surface shimmered with dark energy flowed across it, ready to deflect any attack.
Captain Edmund floated toward her, calm and steady. His cloak drifted behind him as he approached the mirror dome, his eyes fixed on the witch inside.
"Abyssal Wraith Requiem!"
He slashed through the air, and a rift tore open. Several tormented souls spilled out, swirling violently as they surged toward the elder witch, their wails echoing and ghostly hands reaching hungrily for her.
The tormented souls floated toward the witch inside, ignoring the mirror dome, their voices echoing with accusation.
"Murderer!"
"Corrupt!"
"Fake!"
"Traitor!"
"Coward!"
"Betrayer!"
The souls kept screaming harsh words at her, clawing and reaching, trying to tear her apart. She shivered under their assault. Then, her form shattered like glass, shards scattering into the air. The souls floated back toward Captain's scythe.
I heard the sharp crack of glass from the area where the apprentice witch had fallen in front of us. My eyes widened as realization hit me.
"They were clones!" I shouted.
Theai and Damian turned to me, eyebrows raised in surprise.
"Huh? They were clones?" Damian asked, stepping closer.
Captain appeared in front of us, calm and collected.
"We were deceived. They were clones," he said, his eyes scanning the battlefield.
"Great, we just wasted our time battling them," Theai said, turning toward her tree.
With a graceful wave of her hand, the tree glowed softly, emitting a faint green light. Margaret stumbled from the branches, about to fall, but Theai caught her just in time.
"Where are the real bodies, Captain?" Damian asked, frowning.
"I think they managed to escape," Captain replied.
"That was cowardly of them," I said, shaking my head.
"We should head home now," Captain said, gesturing for us to follow.