“So this is Warfield, eh? Not exactly as glamorous as I’d expected.” Drake remarked.

“This is a place of battle, of death. There is no glamour or glory here, only honor and the will to survive.” Kymien responded.

“Oh blah blah blah, honor this, honor that. All I’m saying is, this place could do with some redecoration, and some foliage.”

“It bears its battle scars with pride.”

“Well some battle scars should really be healed then.”

“Cease bickering, the both of you. This is a serious endeavour, not the training yard. Idle banter will not do.” I scowled at the two of them before returning my gaze to the terrain before us. Warfield was as ever more reminiscent of a blasted heath from a horror novel than any location found on the six planes.

“Yes, sir.” Kymien said respectfully, while Drake simply smirked and went silent.

“I do hope you actually remember the mission, Drake.”

“Of course I do, Fitzy, it’s the first time I’ve been on Warfield. To ol’ Kymien here this is just another battle in a war, but I’m still new at this, so of course I’d remember. We’re here to take back an outpost lost in… the last conflict right?”

I nodded. “The outpost was taken in a push by Fire and Light, along with some other territory. It was given to Fire to control, and now that Fire is weak from fighting other elements we have a chance to take it back. Expect a motley crew, only enough to keep watch and ensure it doesn’t fall instantly.”

Drake nodded, a bit more serious now, and we continued our march through the wasteland. We were approaching a mountain pass, and the two slayers we’d brought with us were grim. Drake asked, “It’s at a high elevation, right?”

“The outpost is an overlook in the pass, nestled against a point midway up one of the mountains. There’s a trail leading to the entrance, but the overlook gives a perfect view of anyone approaching, while the fortifications allow for defenders to freely attack invaders while remaining safe from retaliation.”

Drake frowned. “Um, not to criticize, but I’m not really seeing how we’re supposed to get to the outpost if it has such good defenses.”

“Leave that to me. I will get us to the entrance, and then it is your job to make a battle plan. Kymien has already been tested in battle. If you want to be as respected as a potential Champion as he is, you must also test your abilities in true combat, including planning abilities.”

“Got it. So… how are we getting to it? Like, seriously I’m kind of worried about getting blasted with fire.”

“We are almost there. I will explain once I see the trail.”

We walked on for a few more moments, Kymien stoic and Drake uneasy, until I saw the beginnings of the trail that led to the overlook. I motioned for the group to halt, and then pulled out a stone with a rune carved on it. “This will make my task much easier.” Drake furrowed his brow and walked over, looking at it. I began waving my hand over it, muttering nonsense words under my breath to help clear my thoughts.

“The stone… has some magic in it. Stored energy.” I nodded in confirmation as a bit of darkness began to seep from my hand, into the stone. The runes began to glow with a purple light. “It’s activating, and… I don’t recognize that spell.” He looked at me in confusion.

“That’s because it is an old one, and few have learned it. My studies and my training have given me skills that those content with power would never seek out.” I clenched my fist, and the entire stone went black.

“That’s interesting, but, uh, what did you actually do?”

“I cast a cloaking spell, which is projected in a sphere around the stone. We are now invisible to all other elementals. The stone serves as a vault of energy from which the spell draws, so that I do not have to power it. Now we may safely advance.” Drake stared at me, a little bit in awe, and I smiled. It was nice, the few moments when someone recognized what I had accomplished. Not everyone was like Renessa, after all.

No, don’t think of her, or of Kiana. Just enjoy this outing, and watch the potentials. One of them must be Champion, and today is important to that goal.

We walked forward, and the overlook was revealed. The walls were stone brick with minimal markings, though the Fire elementals had splashed orange paint at random areas. Drake tensed up a bit as we came within range, but relaxed when there were no sounds of being spotted. We continued our travel, moving at a steady pace, and after a bit of time we reached the gate itself, high up the trail. “Now it is time for you to construct a plan, Drake. This cloaking spell will not last for much longer, and it will not hide our voices, so keep your volume down and speak quickly. I will cast a spell of blindness upon our enemies when battle begins, but it will only last for a few seconds, not enough to allow us a free victory.” I spoke softly but firmly, ever mindful of our limited time remaining.

“Wait, you can blind them?” Drake sounded impressed with me, but managed to lower his voice enough to avoid the enemy hearing.

“Only for a short time. It is another perk of being skillful, and of researching. Now, let us see how many there are.” I pulled out a mirror from the satchel I’d brought with me, and handed it to Kymien.

He waved his hand over it, and a few moments later said, “They have five slayers, and a single caster. The caster is off to the side, while the slayers are mostly bunched up in the middle, having a laugh. They don’t appear to have any sentries posted, so you can drop the invisibility spell now.” I nodded and released my magic from the stone. It returned to its dull color, and we became visible to any who would look upon us.

“Well, Drake, you have all the info you need. Construct a plan.” I retrieved my mirror, and put it back in the satchel as I waited for him to speak.

He tapped his chin thoughtfully for a few seconds, and started talking to himself aloud. “We’ve got two slayers… Kymien… the blindness spell… me… they have five slayers and a caster… hmm. Kymien’s got good defenses, he could probably take a few hits, and he brought his shield and sword… you did bring that right?”

Kymien nodded, and Drake continued his quiet musing. “I’m quick and efficient… the slayers are good at teamwork… terrain is… flat?” Kymien gave another nod. “Right, so flat terrain, stone brick walls, no sentries to watch the walls… someone could probably… right. Got a plan figured out. Kymien will charge in right before the blindness spell kicks in to get the attention of everyone, they’ll move towards him while the slayers get in position to flank. Kymien will try and draw their attacks. I’ll be climbing the walls, getting to the other side so I can sneak in from behind and kill a few. We’ll deal with the slayers first because there are more of them, then focus the caster together.”

I considered his plan. “It seems a decent plan, but we shall see how it works in practice. If you intend on crawling around back there, how will we know when to begin the attack?”

“Begin it the moment I’m out of sight, I’ll try and move quickly.” With that, he grabbed a handhold on the wall and began moving quickly and carefully. The moment he was out of sight, I nodded to Kymien and he unsheathed his weapon and shield before slamming into the door, which was made of wood unlike the walls. It splintered inward, and he charged the nearest slayer. The Fire elementals looked at him in dismay and surprise, and I cast the blindness spell, muttering a few quick words and making a single gesture with my hand.

A darkness fell over their eyes, and they panicked, swinging their weapons wildly in defense while the caster threw a fireball in the general direction of Kymien. Our slayers moved in to flank the enemy, and Kymien cut deeply into the first enemy, nearly killing her before the blindness spell wore off. I leaned against the wall, a little weak from my spells, and watched as the enemies attempted to defend themselves from our force.

Kymien proved capable of keeping their attention, finishing off one slayer while the two Dark slayers put the rest to task. Then, Drake jumped down off the wall and darted forward, running the nearest slayer through with his rapier. The slayer clutched their abdomen, and Drake imbued his sword with darkness and slashed at the slayer’s neck, killing them. He moved to the next, and took a bit more time with this one, slashing and stabbing with an attempt at flair as the slayer desperately tried to defend himself. Drake finished him off with another stab, and laughed.

His laugh was cut off as Kymien rushed forward, shoving him aside and raising his shield to block a powerful blast of fire from the caster. The two Dark slayers dueled the Fire slayers while Kymien and Drake rushed at the caster together, Kymien managing to block the attacks. They reached the caster, and she tried to run but Drake darted forward and swept his foot out, knocking her to the ground. He stabbed her through the chest a few times, and she perished, turning to flame. The two moved to join their allies, and together they finished off the last two Fire slayers.

Kymien hesitated, then said, “Nice work, Drake. Your plan worked well.”

Drake grinned and patted him on the back. “You too, big guy.”

I smiled at their camaraderie. Experience and instinct. I expect they will work together, regardless of whom is ultimately made Champion.

My happiness was brought down by the sudden arrival of a second caster, who rushed from behind a pile of crates and immediately targeted me, throwing a bolt of fire. Drake and Kymien rushed towards me, but I acted with greater haste. I threw up a square of darkness the size of the projectile and dismissed it the second after the fire struck. I took aim at the caster and with one swift movement I threw a small spike of darkness, which pierced his throat. The enemy caster clutched his neck, gasping for air, and fell to the ground. Kymien rushed over and finished him off.

Drake walked over to me, and looked at me with something approaching fear and respect. “That… was brutally efficient. When they said you were skilled, I’ve got to admit I underestimated you. That… I’m kind of glad we’re on the same side now.”

“I… appreciate the sentiment.” I said weakly, before falling against the wall, my vision blurring. I heard the others rushing over, and Kymien kneeling by my side.

“What happened, what’s wrong with him?” asked Drake.

“His ailment makes him weaker as he ages. It is the reason he has to be so careful with his spells. Casting four spells in the course of less than an hour? That must have taxed him greatly. He… should be fine, once he gets a bit of energy. Come on, old friend.” Kymien stretched his hand, and I took it, raising myself up before leaning against him. We walked over together to a table with some chairs, a dining area it seemed, and I sat down.

They brought some rations, and we all ate together. “Now that I… am less weak, I should congratulate you, Drake. You did excellent work there, even if you were a bit overconfident at times. Both of you have the makings of a fine Champion.”

Drake smiled at that, and we ate in a silence for a few minutes, but then he hesitated, and asked, “What about Shadow?”

I scowled. “Kiana’s only virtue is power. She does not have skill, she does not have loyalty, she does not cooperate, and she does not possess a moral bone in her body. Mark my words well; I will not allow her to become Champion, because doing so would be the beginning of a catastrophe affecting all elements, even Darkness. But you are both fine choices and while Shadow may complain and throw a fit, I do not foresee anything stopping one of you from becoming Champion. She would not dare stand against the full might of the Council, and a new Champion.”