Nevermore

My eyes moved quickly from Amy, catching her breath in the chair, to Sophia, still unconscious on the bed.

There was no time to think.

"If I do nothing and Aldric finds us... we will all die!"

I pointed my wand at my injured side.

Healing spells were something I had always been bad at but, by imitating the movements I had seen the healers do in the infirmary, I managed to ease the pain a little.

"It should at least allow me to keep going for a while."

I turned to Amy and whispered, trying to keep a firm tone:

«Amy, Aldric is coming. I need you to stay here and protect Sophia, okay?»

I saw her eyes widen as she understood the meaning of my words.

«L-»

Before she could scream, I lunged at her, my body screaming for mercy from the pain in my side, despite my healing spell.

I covered her mouth with my hand. I couldn't let Aldric hear us.

«We don't have time, Amy, he's on his way! I will try to lure him away and keep him occupied until the event is over... If we wait here, we risk all three of us dying! You were great before, but now it is time for me to keep my promise.»

Her eyes were filled with tears, but she nodded weakly.

«Thank you... thank you for always being my friend, despite everything,» I sighed, caressing her cheek.

Without giving her time to respond, I quickly moved close to Sophia and kissed her cheek, whispering in her ear:

«I'm sorry... your girlfriend never learns.»

I approached the door and, leaning out slightly, peered into the hallway.

Aldric was about ten metres from me, intent on looking into one of the rooms to our left.

"Time to see if the stories about him are true."

I stepped out into the open, closing the door behind me and pointing my wand at Aldric:

«Fireball!»

My voice caught his attention and, a moment before his figure was engulfed in the flames of my spell, I saw his vacant eyes shift to mine.

"He didn't even try to defend himself."

Suddenly, I saw something shimmer in the midst of the cloud of smoke created by my spell.

Instinctively, I jumped to the side. A flash of light blinded me and I felt a wave of heat scalding my legs.

"What the... hell..."

When I regained my sight, I noticed that the spot on the ground where I had been standing had opened up into a large crater.

But it didn't look like the result of an ordinary explosion.

No... it looked as if the stone had been completely vaporised at the point of impact, while below and around it the ground had melted and turned to magma.

"This... must be his signature spell!"

It had no name. After all, a mage like Aldric had no need for incantations and no one else would ever be able to cast such magic.

There were several theories as to how it worked. Only one thing was certain: the result.

A beam so high in temperature that it could melt any material and penetrate any defence. A spell capable of defeating the Demon King in a single blow.

"So... at least some of the stories were true..."

By now the smoke had cleared. As I expected, Aldric was completely unharmed.

"His clothes don't look burned either... maybe he had an active barrier protecting him? Or perhaps..."

But my former idol had no intention of letting me think.

His right hand, pointed at me, shimmered again.

«Typhoon!»

I unleashed a powerful blast of wind at Aldric, trying to knock him off balance while using the recoil of the spell to widen the distance between us.

I was thrown backwards, and this time, squinting, I could see my opponent's spell at work.

A beam of pure light shot out of his hand and, in an instant, a large section of the ground disappeared as if it had never existed.

"Without a wand..."

My spell, on the other hand, didn't even seem to have ruffled his hair.

"Either he has an innate power similar to Finch's, or he has an active barrier... but can he really cast such powerful spells while splitting his mana?"

I landed at the end of the corridor, cushioned the fall with another spell, and turned the corner.

"If he fights like this... I have a chance."

But out of the corner of my eye I saw what looked like a bolt of black lightning behind me.

"What...!"

I threw myself to the ground as a beam of light passed over me. I patted my hair, which seemed to be on fire.

But as I desperately tried to stand up, I felt an iron grip tighten around my neck.

«AAAAAAH!»

I screamed in pain as I felt my vertebrae creak eerily.

Suddenly I was lifted off the ground until I was inches from his face. As I had noticed a few hours earlier, there seemed to be no sense in his eyes.

But I only had a second to formulate the thought.

Suddenly I heard them:

Desperate screams.

A cacophony of pain.

I realised that both my attacker and I were enveloped in what seemed to be a thick, dark mist.

I felt my stomach turn.

It was as if Aldric, by grabbing me, had lowered me into a dark swamp whose foul waters were trying to make their way through every orifice of my body.

As I stared into his eyes, I felt that even my sanity was about to be drowned in that deep abyss of despair.

Aldric raised his other hand and placed it in front of my face.

A blinding light shone.

«P-phase shift!»

Aldric's grip closed completely, passing through my neck.

«Speed!»

I immediately cast one of the buffs I had learnt and made my escape as the entire right wall of the corridor vaporised.

"He really is a... monster!"

I glanced over my shoulder.

Aldric had both hands outstretched in front of him.

"NO WAY! But he can't have an active barrier now!"

«METEOR!»

I immediately cast the spell, only to dodge to the left and hurl myself into one of the rooms.

I rolled on the floor as an inferno of light flashed behind me.

"Two of those spells at once... and what the hell was that?!"

Those screams and that atmosphere I felt... it was like a circle of damned souls swirling around him.

But there was no time to breathe.

Using one of the openings Sophia had created earlier, I immediately moved into the next room.

Through the door I could see the devastation Aldric had caused in the corridor, it was almost as if he had turned into the inside of a volcano.

I kept moving, staying alert.

"Have I lost him?"

Caw

"What?"

I turned around. A raven was staring at me with its gleaming black eyes, perched on the desk in the room I was in.

"Wha... shit, a familiar!"

I didn't have time to cast a spell at the creature before the towering figure of Aldric appeared outside the door.

"Don't tell me he can teleport!"

«Phase shift!» I shouted again, hurling myself through the back wall.

I burst into a new room and immediately deactivated the spell.

I felt like I was going to faint.

"I'm running out of mana..."

But before I could take another step, the wall behind me exploded and the resulting blast of air threw me forward and out of the room.

I landed on the floor.

As I struggled to get up, I saw a crater to my right.

"Shit, I'm back here... close to the room where Amy and Sophia are hiding!"

I turned around. As inexorable as death, Aldric's figure emerged from the cloud of dust.

"How long until the end...'"

But now that there were few students left and Aldric was focused on me, it was normal that the pace of the slaughter had slowed down.

I saw Aldric's hands glow in a familiar way.

«Typhoon!»

Again I used a gust of wind to dodge the two deadly beams coming my way.

If I was still alive, I had to thank the fact that Aldric did not fight with finesse and technique, but only with sheer brute force.

Had he used his incredible magic more cleverly, there would have been no hope for me.

It was as if I was being chased by a ferocious animal, incredibly stronger than me, but not very smart.

"But he still managed to summon a familiar... maybe deep down, the wizard he once was still exists," I thought as I landed a few metres away.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Aldric appear in the middle of the corridor, leaving a smoldering trail on what was left of the floor.

"It's not that he's teleporting... he's so fast I can't see his movements!"

I didn't have time to realise that Aldric was already standing in front of me, his hand glowing.

There wasn't even a scratch or a tear in his black robe, my Meteor hadn't even scratched him.

"When spells don't work..."

I dodged to the right just in time and threw myself against the wall. I drew my sword in one fluid motion.

«Boost Sharpness!»

My blade glowed with blue light as I brought it down on Aldric's outstretched arm.

The metal melted like snow in the sun and I found myself with only the hilt in my hand.

I let out a hysterical laugh.

«Ahahahahahahah-»

Aldric's foot reached my left side.

I felt some of my ribs crack as I was thrown violently against the wall.

Fortunately, my head did not hit the hard stone, but when my burnt side was crushed, the pain was so great that I thought I would go mad.

I collapsed to the floor. Every inch of my body seemed to be begging me to end its suffering. Perhaps it was a wish that would soon be granted.

Aldric towered over me.

Barely lifting my head, I saw myself once more in his dull eyes.

The oppressive mist hovered around us, enveloping us in an intimate, mortal embrace.

"It almost looks like... mana..."

A blinding light flashed in front of me.

"So... this is how it ends... killed by the person I admired so much. Poetic."

The light grew stronger, but not from Aldric's hand, but... from above.

«Stone shield!»

The ceiling exploded, releasing a shower of rocks. Aldric's figure disappeared beneath them.

I tried to shield my head, but saw a stone dome floating above my head, protecting me.

Someone grabbed my hand and pulled me with great force. I quickly aimed the wand at my broken ribs, the pain barely subsided.

With all the will I had left, I allowed my rescuer to help me to my feet.

«Lizzie! We need to move!»

I nodded, and after casting "Speed" on both of us, we began to run.

«Amy... how...?»

«Like before... when I saw you and Aldric were no longer in the corridor, I traced seals on the ceiling... I thought I'd activate them in case someone came to attack me and Sophia... but when I saw what was happening...»

«Amy…»

«I'm sorry... I know you told me to stay there and protect Sophia but... How could I watch you die!? Anyway, I don't think anyone's going in that room... and Aldric...»

I glanced over my shoulder...

The monster had already surfaced, moving the large chunks of stone that had buried him as if they were feathers. I saw his eyes fixed on me again.

By now he had chosen me as his prey.

«Don't you dare apologise, Amy... this is the second time you've saved my life today.»

«And I hope to do it a third time... I've got an idea!»

«Nothing will work Amy... Aldric... he's invincible, he's a real monster.»

«That's why we're not going to fight him... we're going to trap him!»

In the meantime, we had broken into the entrance hall. The scene I was confronted with made me want to vomit.

The white marble floor, now riddled with craters, was littered with charred corpses.

I could see an expression of pure horror frozen on the faces of some of them. Others were just a mess of burnt flesh with no recognisable features.

«Up the stairs,» Amy said.

«What's your plan...?»

«The magic seal that gives access to the roof! If we send Aldric up there and then destroy it, he'll be trapped!»

«Destroy it? How are y-»

«We don't have time! Will you just do what I say for once in your life, Lizzie?

I've spat blood to learn all I can about these damned seals, because apparently it's the only thing I'm good at! You said it, I saved your neck twice today. So stop doubting me and do what I tell you,» Amy interrupted me with a determined look on her face.

I looked at her with my mouth hanging open. But I quickly collected myself and nodded.

"In my eagerness to keep my promise, I did nothing but treat her like a burden today... when in the end she proved to be much more steel-hearted than I am."

«What do you want me to do, Amy?»

«Just lure Aldric in there,» she said pointing to the room with the magic circle, «I'll take care of the rest...»

Lure him... well, that wasn't hard. After all, he seemed to have a soft spot for me. Soon he would be here.

"But he's so fast, if I enter that room I risk him grabbing me and I'd be stuck on the roof with him too..."

So fast...

"...!"

It would have been comical if it had worked.

But it was all I could think of.

«Here he comes, Lizzie!»

«Get down, he might throw one of his beams!»

Amy obeyed.

I positioned myself in front of the door that led to the magic circle.

Aldric was staring at me from under the stairs.

"In a few seconds..."

Aldric disappeared from my view.

«Frost field!» I shouted as I dodged out of the way.

The ground around me turned to ice.

Suddenly, a thud echoed through the room behind me.

«AMY NOW!»

Unable to stop his momentum on the slippery floor, Aldric had landed in there.

A bright light shone beneath him and he disappeared from my sight.

Amy was ready.

She slashed the air with her wand and a line was drawn on the floor. The magic seal shone once more before fading away.

«We...»

«We got him!»

My legs gave out and before I knew it, tears were streaming down my face.

«IT'S OVER!»

Amy smiled at me, but soon her expression turned serious again.

«It's not over yet Lizzie, let's get back to Sophia,» she walked over to me and put an arm around my waist, «come on, I'll give you a hand...»

«Amy... thank you. It's all thanks to you, you've been amazing... I'm sorry for the way I treated you,» I whispered to her as she helped me to my feet.

«Don't worry, you're the one who kept that monster at bay the whole time. I would never have made it out alive. Also sorry for lashing out at you...»

«But I would have died in the end... you saved my life...»

Amy huffed, but I saw her smile.

«You know... all this time I thought I would spend my life chasing after you... but today I almost feel like I got to walk beside you for once!» she said as we descended the stairs.

I stared at her, trying to look away from the bodies of Aldric's victims.

"This smile... it's the old Amy's smile."

I used the last of my strenght to hug her tightly.

«Lizzie?! This is not the moment!»

«I'm sorry... I'll never leave you behind again...»

«From tomorrow it's going to get even harder you know...»

«Don't worry... we'll get home soon... Toget-.»

Caw

A mournful cry interrupted me.

Caw

I looked up.

A black bird was circling above our heads.

«...»

«What's a raven doing in here?»

An explosion in the distance.

The whole building seemed to shake.

«AMY! WE MUST RUN-»

The ceiling above us collapsed and in a shower of stones, a black figure descended upon us like an angel of death.

The impact of his landing knocked us backwards, creating a huge crack in the already devastated floor of the entrance hall.

"... this can't be happening."

In a flash, Aldric was in front of me. I felt his foot slam into my femur.

«AAAAH!»

I was sent backwards. My leg bent unnaturally.

Aldric never took his eyes off me as he advanced.

But before he could reach me, someone was standing in front of me.

"NO..."

«AMY, NO, GET AWAY, IT'S ME HE WANTS!»

But Aldric was on her.

The spell Amy had cast died harmlessly before it reached him, and the man lifted the tiny girl by the neck.

«NOOO!»

I began to cast spells at his legs, but nothing seemed to work. By now I had used up almost all my reserves of mana.

«NOOOO!»

I crawled desperately along the floor, sobbing and screaming. I reached Aldric's legs and reached out a hand.

An unseen force prevented me from touching him and burned my hands.

«AAAAAH!»

I slumped to the ground, pounding my fists on the floor.

Finally I looked up.

Aldric was holding a hand in front of Amy's face.

It was glowing.

But the girl wasn't looking at him...

Her gaze was fixed on me, a pained smile on her mouth.

«PLEASE, I BEG YOU, DON'T DO THIS!»

A flash of light.

That smile lit up like a star in a dark night.

And then it faded... never to shine again.

«NOOOOOOOOOOO!»

I let go completely, closing my eyes and pressing my face to the floor.

Nothing made sense anymore.

I felt a faint thud.

It was probably what was left of Amy falling to the floor.

Footsteps.

A bright light piercing the darkness even though my eyes were closed.

"We'll be together again, Amy... side by side..." I thought.

I felt a hand grab me and pull me violently away.

«Elizabeth...»

I opened my eyes wide.

«S-...»

I didn't even have the strength to speak.

Sophia laid me down against the wall. She was still pale, but her hands seemed steady as she drew her sword.

"No... I can't lose her too."

But my body refused to move.

Sophia lunged at Aldric, who had remained motionless.

Her blade fell on him and... an explosion sent her far away.

"NO!"

Sophia landed on the ground.

Aldric took a step towards her.

"No... don't take her from me too..."

But something was off.

For the first time, Aldric's eyes were no longer on me, but on Sophia.

The wizard stopped suddenly and put a hand to his head.

The ominous aura that seemed to be hovering around him grew stronger. Aldric opened his mouth and a wail seemed to come from it.

For the first time, something lit up in his eyes... what seemed like a small, insignificant flicker in a bottomless pit.

A glimmer of consciousness.

My mind cleared for a moment.

I grabbed my wand.

"What can I do... spells don't work on him..."

But as I looked at him, my eyes fell to his feet.

I saw a beam of light coming from a crack in the floor, illuminating his boots.

"... Is there something under the floor?"

There was no time for questions.

«FLARE!»

I aimed at the crack, using every last bit of mana I had left.

The crack widened, the floor collapsed and Aldric's figure disappeared from my sight.

Soon I felt my consciousness begin to leave me.

But not before I heard a voice,

«25 students remaining... the event is over.»

Fate could be unfair.

It was too late.

My promise had been broken.

A star in my sky had gone out forever.

I would never hear her call me Lizzie again.

We would never go home together.

And I would never see her smile again.