I meant that in such a deeper way than Ember, Glimmer, or Ivan could ever really know. If this killed me, I would be dead. I would be dead for a cause though, and that was worth something. It was a legacy I could be proud leaving behind.

  “You’re weird,” Ember answered. “Fine,” he finally relented, “if you want to get yourself killed, I guess I can’t stop you. Just get in touch with me and let me know who you come back as. Once you’ve leveled up enough, I’ll see if I can’t get you in a decent guild. Maybe, one day, you’ll get to be an Angel again.”

  I smiled at him. This was important to him, but in the end, it was just a game. In some ways, I envied that. In others, I absolutely pitied it. There was no need to deal with those truths right now though. So, instead of diving into them, I just said, “Thanks, bud. I appreciate that.”

  Glimmer came up to me as Ember left. I didn’t see Ivan on her shoulder, meaning he’d probably hopped off to Ember’s. For all his talk of wanting to fight these things, he was getting as far away from them as possible.

  “Ice says you’re being an idiot,” she said, settling next to me.

  “He says that a lot,” I chuckled. “You’ve been talking to him a lot lately. He’s a good guy.”

  “He says you need to come home.”

  “That’s what I’m trying to do.”

  “I am telling him!” she shot back. Obviously, Barry was on the phone with her right now. “He says he’s not talking about KOH. He doesn’t give a damn whether you through your stupid ass into an impossible situation or not. Just do it at home. Your sister is all alone. She needs you. She needs to know that you’re okay.” Glimmer was silent for a beat. “God, Jack. Did you just leave?”

  “It’s more complicated than that,” I tried to explain, “but we don’t have time for that right now. You need to get the hell out of here. Just please tell him I’m okay and that I’m trying to come home. Tell Amanda I’m sorry, but for the first time in my whole life, I’m trying to do the right thing for the right reasons.”

  “Okay,” she nodded. “I’ll tell him, but he wants me to tell you something too.” She took a deep breath. “Pineapple.”

  I grinned. When you’re on a team that works together so tightly as the Angels, it can be hard to have much privacy. It’s sort of like sharing a hive mind with your guild mates. Everything you say is common knowledge. And the thing was that sometimes Barry and I wanted to talk about what had happened or talk shit about the others without them knowing. Since the cell reception is spotty at my house, we came up with an alternate way to get that done.

  Whenever Barry or I worked the word ‘pineapple’ into a conversation, it was code for the other one to switch over to a different channel. There, without the open ears of our guild mates, we could say what we really felt and honest about things in a way we never would with everyone else listening.

  I guess he wasn’t interested in wrapping the code word up with a pretty bow this time. Desperate measures and all that. It didn’t matter. I could flip to the other channel until the cows came home and I still wouldn’t be able to talk to him, not with the way things were here.

  “I would if I could,” I answered. “Just go, okay? Tell him thanks for everything and that with any luck, I’ll be seeing him around.”

  Glimmer nodded at me and went on her way.

  What was left of my team (plus a spider guy) hauled ass, running as quickly as I had ever seen them, I turned and felt the chill in the air turn into an absolute biting cold. It was strange. I knew this was supposed to be an effect of the wraiths coming closer but seeing the frost on a screen and actually feeling it were two different things.

  I took a few steps out into the open and stood there with my arms outstretched, waiting for the horde to overtake me.

  A last glance at my Energy bar told me I could take a handful or so direct hits before I was in any real danger. Hopefully, by then, my Principality energy would flare up like it did before and I’d be able to harness the energy of one of these banshees.

  I took a deep breath and tightened my jaw.

  This was it. One way or another, this ended now.

  The first of the wraiths hit me dead on, knocking me backward. The cold of it hit me like a spike, and I stumbled but didn’t fall. Then two more slammed into me, digging into me with claws and slicing straight into my soul. The cold ran through me, causing every piece of me to shiver.

  “Come on,” I muttered, looking up at my quickly fading energy bar. “Come the hell on.”

  I thought about wielding my sword, about cutting through these things like vines that now surrounded me. It wouldn’t do any good though. There were way too many of them for that. If I couldn’t get my angelic pilot light fired up, I was dead in a second.

  I took another breath and thought about things. When I leveled up the first time, accessing the Principality Energy, I had been following quest prompts in the middle of a life-or-death battle with the Shadow. Desperation and the world itself had been on my side.

  Maybe the quest itself was the difference here, keeping the Power of the Principality deep inside me. Then again, I had unlocked the Attunement itself. Surely, I had to be able to access it or else I would never be able to raise it.

  The memory played in my head, and I realized there was something else, a big difference between then and now. In the Upper Levels, Ori and Hecate were there. They were being hurt. Their lives were in danger right in front of me.

  What if that was it? What if personal danger wasn’t enough? What if the thing that really got me going, that really reached into me and pulled at every scrap of potential I had, was the need to save the people I cared about?

  Another creature collided with me and it knocked me to the ground. Looking at it, I saw that what was over me now, clawing at my chest and digging into my spirit, was a banshee.

  My Energy bar was flickering red. I was about to drift off into death. Grabbing hold of the thing’s shoulders, I closed my eyes and let my mind plant itself firmly back on Ori.

  Something strange happened. As soon as my eyes fluttered closed, I felt like I was gone. I could see things, levels upon levels, realms on top of realms. I could see where I was, the Surface, and even the Upper Levels.

  My mind raced and pulled me in an unknown direction. I was moving so fast that I couldn’t keep track of anything. My eyes couldn’t focus except to say that the Surface looked dark and different.

  Finally, I zeroed in on a white room. There, on the Skull Throne, sat the Shadow, glowing with energy. At his side, knelt on the floor with a leash around her neck and her beautiful wings trapped in cages of black iron, was Ori.

  Her face was bruised, and her eyes looked nearly empty as they sit, cast to the floor.

  My heart screamed in anger, each beat a protest to what I was seeing here. Was it real? Was I really looking at what was happening to the woman I cared about now?

  All I knew was that this scene, the very idea of this image, was enough to make me want to tear this world in half trying to get to her.

  My eyes flew open and, I felt the energy run through me like a bolt of lightning. The Power of the Principalities sang through my body, echoing until it poured out of me in a torrent of bright white light. My wounds physical and spiritual mended themselves in the process.

  Quest ‘Ascend to the Skull Throne’ updated!

  You have begun to master the Power of the Principalities!

  You gain 5 ranks of Power of the Principalities Attunement!

  You gain the new Active Ability ‘Energy Manipulation’ at Grade 1!

  Secondary objective updated: Continue to gain mastery of the Power!

  I heard the banshee scream and felt it try to pull away.

  “Stick around,” I muttered, holding it tight.

  When the light subsided along with the energy inside of me, every member of the horde was flying away, running for their lives, all but one.

  The banshee was still in my clutches. All I had to do now was take its Power, to consume it like I did with the treasure of those I’d beat.

  Something strange happened though. I watched as the banshee’s energy bled away in a quick succession.

  “Wait. What?” I said dumbfounded, watching the energy leave me as the banshee flickered out of existence. “What the hell?” I screamed, my hands full of nothing but air now.

  Right in front of me, I saw a glow of blue energy swirl. It centered in a place and then expanded. Before my very eyes, a certain spider man grew to human height before morphing into a much more human looking avatar.

  Ivan stood before me, sandy hair and a chiseled jaw with a flute in his hand and wearing a bard’s outfit.

  This had been a trick. He had taken the energy for himself, taken it and somehow twisted it so he could revert to his original form.

  “Sorry, cowboy,” he said in his usual twang. “I’m afraid I needed that more than you did.”

  24

  “You son of a bitch!” I screamed, looking up at the now full sized and very human looking Ivan. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”

  Anger pulsed through me, growing stronger with every breath. I pushed myself upright, my teeth grinding together.

  “I did what I had to do.” He shrugged. “I’m sorry. I know you wanted to cut the line and get on back up to the Surface, but I had needs too, bud. And the thing is you can still get where you need to go. If I didn’t do this now, I would never be able to.” He shook his head. “Once you leave this place, all the changes become permanent.” His hands lifted and outstretched as if to explain himself. “Can you imagine me being that thing for the rest of my KOH life? It would be ridiculous.” He nodded firmly. “So, you know, I hope you can understand.”

  I reached for my sword, and Energy bars for both of us popped up overhead, cueing Ivan into the fact that I was about to murder his lying ass.

  He wanted me to understand. I tried, I really did. I thought about what it would have been like to have to scrap a character you’ve spent your time and sweat into building up. Or, worse than that, stick around as that character and watch it go to Hell literally. It sucked that KOH didn’t allow more than one character at a time. Still though, I was literally going to die down here and everyone the Shadow touch would suffer horribly. But hey, at least goddamn Ivan wouldn’t have to be a freaking spider anymore.

  To understand! The entire goddamn world was at stake! All the people in it, the woman that I loved was being tortured! If what I saw was just an image conjured up by my mind, she very well might be dead, and he wanted me to understand!

  “Woah! Dude!” Ivan waved his hands defensively in front of him. “There’s really no reason for that. I just wanted to get my avatar back. I’m sure you get that. I mean, look at you. You’re like Ryan Gosling’s hotter more muscular brother. I’m sure you wouldn’t want to be stuck a disgusting spider guy forever either.” He backed away, putting on a winning smile. “You can cut me some slack, right?”

  “I’m going to cut you something,” I growled. “That’s for sure!” I pulled out my sword. I didn’t care that the energy of the Principalities had subsided again. That damn force had a way of locking itself up inside of me whenever it wasn’t absolutely needed. Still, I didn’t care if I died fighting this jerk. This was over anyway.

  “You can still get back, dude!” he cried, his eyes staring at my sword. “All you have to do is get to the rest of your team!”

  “And how the hell am I supposed to do that?” I asked, swinging my sword at the man. The weapon glowed with blue energy, singing as it cut its way through the air.

  Ivan dodged backward but not quick enough. The sword nicked him, slicing through the chest of his ridiculous Peter Pan looking outfit and drawing blood.

  “Dude! Stop!” he screamed as he saw his Energy drop down by a third. His voice wasn’t pained though, the way mine would have been if I’d have suffered a similar blow. He wasn’t actually here, and his soul wasn’t connected to the avatar the way mine was. That sucked because I wanted him to hurt but it was also awesome in a way. It meant I could kill his ass and not feel guilty about it. He wouldn’t actually die. All he’d suffer is a loss of his character, and I was more than okay with that.

  “You don’t have to do this!” he said. “You don’t-”

  Ivan grabbed the stupid ivory flute at his belt as I swung at him again. My blade hit him squarely in the shoulder, knocking him to the ground.

  “Jesus Christ, dude!” he screamed. His Energy was less than half of what it had been when he reverted back to a man, and we both knew that two more clean strikes at most would end this character for him forever. I was more than ready to deliver them.

  “Do you have any idea how many people your selfishness is going to hurt?” I asked, tears welling up in my eyes at the thought of Ori and the way I’d just seen her. “I could have been back there right now! I could have saved her!”

  I reared back again, ready to strike. He raised his flute to his lips and before I could bring my sword down, he blew into the damn thing.

  I arrested my next swing and braced myself. I knew what that flute was. I knew what it meant. The Bard Attunement that I knew Ivan had to possess was connected to the powers of nature. Just as my sword acted as an instrument for Sanctity a.k.a. Holy Power, his flute channeled the Power of one of the four elements, earth, air, fire, or water. Bards could be very dangerous in a fight, even if the majority of them dressed like a neutered version of Robin Hood.

  The sound of his flute brought a gust of wind. Instantly, I knew his Bardic specialty was connected to the wind, to the air. He blew harder as I swung my sword down and as he did, the wind grew stronger and stronger. It focused on me and surrounding me with cyclonic winds, staying my hand and stopping me from being able to deliver another blow. I fought against it, but it was no use. As much as I tried, I couldn’t force my hands or my blade forward. In fact, it was taking all I could do to stop the winds from throwing me backward.

  Ivan C. plays the Melody of the Ensnaring Winds!

  The winds ensnare you! All physical, movement, and spell-casting actions are suspended until you are freed.

  Finally, the wind swept me off my feet, throwing me into the air and holding me there, a good thirty feet in the air. I was helpless as a baby, not even able to move my fingers enough to cast down some Nature magic. Expecting Ivan to call down some more natural disasters on my head, I was surprised as he stood up straight, pulling the flute away from his mouth. The music still kept going, though, a ghostly tune that kept the winds stirred.

  “Dude, you might be some big bad Avenging Angel with an awesome sword and all that, but you’re not going to win this one.” He shook his head. “There’s no way a knight like you can catch a bard who doesn’t want to get caught. Fortunately, I don’t want to fight you. I actually want to help you, bro.”

  Anger rushed up into my chest again. He might not have wanted to fight me, but that wasn’t going to get him out of this. Bards had a Melody mechanic that meant they couldn’t keep up their songs forever. The second his song gave out, I would bring him down, regardless of what he said.

  “I know you’re mad at me, bro, and I get it, but we’re not done yet. We can still get home. You can get to your guild and ride that sweet portal all the back to whatever piece of strange elf tail you’re so desperate to get back to.”

  “And how am I supposed to find them?” I yelled down at him, keeping a steady grip on my sword and keeping my Lightning Bolt forefront in my mind. “They’re obviously out of earshot. Otherwise, they’d have come running back by now. I don’t know where Barry and Blackthorne are. Only Glimmer does. So how the fuck am I supposed to meet up with them in this place?”

  “With my help, of course,” Ivan grinned, spreading his arms wide. “I control the wind, Jack. That means all the wind. That means those pesky tornadoes that whip around this place and separate everyone. I might not have a banshee for you to hijack anymore, but I can help you ride the wind, and that means you can find your peeps and they can find the portal. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.”

  He shrugged. “Besides, it’s not like you have a better option. It’s either me or go hoofing it for your friends, and we both know how that’s going to end. Even if you could track them, which you can’t, you’d never get to them in time. They’d go through that portal thinking you were already on the other side. That would be the end of it.”

  His words echoed inside of my head. Though I didn’t want to admit it, he was right. Ivan and his flute were my best chance out of this place.

  “Okay, you talked me into it,” I said, still suspended helplessly in the air. “Now come on,” I said as the Energy bars overhead faded away, signaling our fight was, for all intents and purposes, over. “Let me down and make good on your tornado promise.”

  “Okay,” he said, putting his flute back to his lips. Another short melody later, the winds set me gently back down to the ground.

  “So, friends again?” he asked as he held out a hand. I could hear a smile in his voice.

  “Don’t get ahead of yourself,” I muttered, but I still took that hand and have it a shake.

  “Fair enough,” he said. “Now let’s go rustle us up a storm.”

  25

  “You’re not redeeming yourself, you know,” I said, glaring over at Ivan as we walked for what felt like the third consecutive hour. I figured that after Ivan told me he could take me on a hurricane ride to the end of this God-forsaken realm, we’d be a hop, skip, and a jump away from getting the hell out of this place.

  Turned out that wasn’t how it worked because we had been footing it for a long time now.

  “What do you want me to do, Jack?” he asked, biting his lower lip. “I can’t exactly call on a tornado, you know.”

 

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