Damn, when is this gonna end?!
Zephyr cursed inwardly, the thought a burning ember in his strained mind.
It had been almost ten minutes since he and the Baron had launched themselves at the colossal Mistborn.
Ten minutes of brutal combat against a creature that defied common sense.
They had managed to sever its legs and arms multiple times, each limb vaporizing into swirling snow, only to regrow with terrifying speed.
Worse, the monstrosity had suddenly surged with even greater power just a while ago, its attacks becoming heavier, more oppressive.
Now, they were at their limit; their bodies screamed in protest, every muscle fiber taut with exhaustion.
They probably couldn’t take this thing down even at their peak state.
They couldn’t even risk another potion either; their systems were already saturated, threatening to seize up entirely.
Zephyr’s aura flickered around him, a pale imitation of its earlier vibrancy. In another minute or so, the blessing would disappear too.
He risked a quick glance around.
The blizzard raged, obscuring the full extent of the devastation, but he could see enough. Several sections of both the middle and lower Keep buildings were now shattered ruins, gaping wounds in the stone where the Mistborn’s attacks had landed.
His gaze darted to his communication bracelet, an insistent, futile reflex. Still no signal. The unit sent to the central core anchor wasn’t responding at all, leaving them isolated.
Aman’s not contacting either.
At this rate, they were going to lose. Badly.
The realization hit him with the force of a physical blow, even as he blinked out of existence, reappearing a dozen feet to his left just as a volley of ice boulders, each the size of a carriage, pulverized the spot he’d occupied an instant before.
Zephyr gritted his teeth, the chill of the blizzard doing little to cool the fire of his desperation.
He blinked again, reappearing directly beside Baron Nusayel.
The Baron had just cleaved a colossal ice boulder in two with a roar, but Zephyr could clearly see the toll it had taken.
Nusayel’s entire body trembled from the impact, his heavy breathing misting in the frigid air, sweat already beading on his forehead despite the cold.
"Sir, we need to get away!" Zephyr roared over the howling wind, his voice strained. "I need an opening!"
The Baron barely had time to glance at him, his eyes wide with exhaustion, before Zephyr’s instincts flared. He didn’t hesitate, throwing himself to the ground and yanking the older man down with him.
A split second later, a massive, jagged icy claw, easily the size of a wagon, swept through the space just above where their heads had been, leaving a chilling gust in its wake.
"P-potion..." Nusayel mumbled, his hand absently scrabbling for his pouch.
"Sir, we need to escape, let’s go!" Zephyr shouted again, more urgently.
"E-escape... alright..." The Baron’s voice was hoarse, but he pushed himself up.
They both scrambled to their feet, dodging another blow that landed with concussive force beside them, throwing them off balance.
With a guttural cry, Nusayel gathered the last reserves of his aura. Flames roared to life on his spear.
He plunged the blazing weapon into the frozen ground. A searing wave of fire erupted, blasting outwards, incinerating the falling snow and clearing a small, temporary pocket in the raging blizzard.
Zephyr didn’t waste a second.
He flung out his hand, and a swirling portal yawned open in the cleared space. He grabbed the Baron’s arm, already feeling Nusayel’s strength wane, and began to pull him towards its depths.
But the Mistborn was too fast, too relentless.
Before they could reach the portal, a torrent of razor-sharp ice shards, dense as a wall, slammed into the space between them, blocking their path and sending fragments of shattered ice everywhere.
Just as Zephyr’s mind raced for another tactic, a firm, almost gentle shove propelled him forward.
A new wave of flames erupted from behind him, creating a temporary barrier against the ongoing rain of shards. Zephyr’s teeth ground together in a furious snarl.
His mind screamed, recognizing the desperate, selfless act.
Despite the blinding fury, his instincts took over. He blinked to another spot just beside the portal. It was foolish, perhaps even suicidal, but he couldn’t leave the Baron alone.
He already failed once; it alone was enough.
His gaze darted to the portal. Its edges were already shimmering erratically, becoming unstable. He should close it, quickly. Better to be safe than sorry, to prevent anything else from coming through.
But just then, a thought surfaced: What if I don’t close it...?
What if this was their last, desperate chance to survive, or a way to turn the tables?
"What are you doing!" Baron Nusayel’s shout startled Zephyr out of his contemplation. "Go, get away fro-gah—!"
Before the Baron could finish, a large ice boulder, unseen in the swirling snow, slammed into his back. Nusayel’s body arched in a silent scream of agony, flung through the air like a rag doll.
"Sir!" Zephyr yelled, instinct kicking in. He tried to activate Blink, but nothing happened. The blessing had run out.
Cursing, he switched to Void Step, the familiar drain on his aura instantaneous but manageable. He appeared in the path of the falling Baron, catching his limp body in mid-air.
The momentum was still immense, sending both of them careening backward. They slammed into the already ruined wall of a nearby building, the impact shaking the crumbling stone.
Just then, Zephyr’s eyes snapped back to the portal. It was flickering violently, on the verge of collapsing.
It’s too unstable... It is gonna explode.
He stretched out his hand, gathering his remaining aura.
But even as the portal began to collapse inward, a brilliant white shadow shot out from its rapidly shrinking maw.
Zephyr’s mind momentarily overrode his exhaustion and the pain radiating from his back. He stared at the impossible sight, his focus narrowed.
The newcomer hung in the air, roughly seven feet tall, its wings of crystalline ice barely stirring against the furious blizzard. Where a head should be, an icy-blue vortex swirled softly, and its body was made of flowing, ethereal white robes, shimmering like starlight through snow.
As if sensing his gaze, the creature’s luminous head-vortex slowly swiveled towards them. It held his attention only for a moment before its focus snapped away, turning entirely towards the colossal Mistborn.
It’s not an enemy... right?