Tyler’s eyes snapped open, his consciousness stumbling through layers of sleep to catch up. He could feel something smooth pressing against his mouth, rough stitching digging into his cheeks amidst faint smells of earth and wax. In the darkness of the tent, his bleary eyes barely made out a silhouette but nothing further, no matter how much he blinked. He didn’t need to see further to know someone had pinned him down.

  He grasped at the person’s wrist with both hands, and thrashed and kicked out as wildly and violently as he could. He twisted his body, shuffled upon the thin mattress, tried to throw his assailant off.

  “Bro, stop,” a voice whispered, deep and hoarse. He stopped kicking. They removed their hand from his mouth.

  “Kiri?” he whispered into the darkness, his breaths a little shallow.

  “Yes,” she whispered back. “Get dressed. We need to go.”

  She left him, and squatted by the entrance to the tent with her back to him. The flap was slightly open letting in cool air from outside as she looked over the proceedings. He could hear a voice out there. A male voice. A newcomer, but judging by Kiri’s reaction, not a welcome one. He rolled out from under the thin linen covers, enough to have kept him from getting cold during the night but not thick enough to keep him warm. His [Uncommon Pants], [Uncommon Shirt], [Uncommon Tunic], [Uncommon Boots] lay discarded on the mat that had been laid above the pebbles to the side of his makeshift bed.

  In the dark, he fumbled with his clothes, twice putting his head through holes meant for his arms, before finally pulling his shirt on. He stood up, blinking at the pants he held, as if somehow that would help him see the dark hole in an even darker tent. He pushed out a leg. Nope. And again, catching the hem of the pants and almost falling over. The third time, he wrestled with the pants as if fighting in a world championship match and he was not about to lose. Eventually, pants and shirt on, he grabbed the tunic, again putting his head through a hole meant for an arm but only once this time. Finally, he grabbed the boots. The struggle was less but he had no idea if he had put the boots on the right feet. Whatever. It was the least of his worries right now. He wondered if he needed his [Uncommon Club] and then imagined how he would look besides Alina in her violet armour and greatsword and him in his pants and tunic with a club. He thought better of it. He sidled up besides Kiri and looked outside.

  A large orb hovered above the remnants of the campfire, its light reaching as far as the logs they had earlier sat on. The stream was several metres off to his right, the forest just as far to his left. He spotted Alina in full armour, standing with Emelyn and Imanie in front of the tent a couple over, just beyond the reach of the orb’s radiance. He looked around and found Mira and Celeste halfway behind that tent and the forest’s edge. He recalled Alina’s words about magic users needing distance. Sadie was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps hiding in the shadows or already on her way back as commanded earlier.

  Right in the middle of the light, ten or so metres from where Tyler sat was the man who was speaking, if it was a man at all. He towered over anyone else there, a good nine or ten feet tall. He was dressed in a figure-hugging black outfit that covered every inch of his body, leaving only his eyes visible. The glow of the orb slithered and writhed across the outfit, making it seem like some living liquid metal, molded to his body and ready to protect him with all the fervent devotion of a loving guardian. He had no weapons that Tyler could see but that otherworldly guise suggested he didn’t need one.

  “Who are you?” Alina asked, a hand on her weapon. For all the confidence she displayed, Tyler heard the slight crack in her voice. All the women were as tensely wound as the bowstring that Imanie held, ready to let loose. Even sat at her side as he was, unable to see her face, Kiri’s anxiety was evident, her breathing measured, like a hushed alarm that made his own pulse quicken. From what he had seen, these were not women easily frightened.

  “I am called Reaper,” the man said, his voice smooth and firm. “I’m here for the one called Tyler Smith.”

  “There’s no such person here,” Alina responded.

  “Of course there is,” Reaper replied. “He hides in the shadows there.” He pointed directly at the tent that Tyler was in, and Tyler felt his pulse quicken further. The others pointedly didn’t look in his direction.

  “What do you want with him?” Alina asked.

  “I assure you, young Princess, that no harm shall come to him.”

  “That doesn’t answer my question.”

  “He is not of this world. He does not belong amongst you.”

  “That still doesn’t answer my question,” Alina said, her voice firm now. “What do you want with him?”

  “He will be brought before The Nexus Primeval and be given the option of joining the Riftborn.”

  “You’re from the Rift? You’re a demon?”

  The man’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly. It was the first hint of emotion Tyler had seen from him.

  “The Riftborn are not demons. We are the defenders of this world, at the bidding of The Nexus Primeval. I go where my master needs me.”

  “I think we need to go now,” Kiri whispered to him, her eyes firmly on Reaper.

  “I’m not going to argue with you,” Tyler whispered back, almost surprised he was even able to speak.

  “Follow me and do as I do.”

  Kiri lay down and slithered out of the tent, making as minimal movement as possible, careful not to disrupt the flap and give them away. He followed her lead, lying as flat as possible against the pebbles at the entrance and doing his best to shuffle out of the tent like she had. As he moved, he kept his eyes partly on her, partly on the events unfolding ahead. Once out of the tent, Kiri slowly slithered towards the forest’s edge, less than ten metres away, and Tyler followed.

  “STAY WHERE YOU ARE.”

  The words exploded in his mind, reverberated around his skull like he was on the inside of a bell that had been struck. Instinctively, he curled over and held his head in his hands, vaguely aware that Kiri was no less impacted, though she seemed to be doing her best to fight against it. Ahead of him, he could see Mira and Celeste looking at him and Kiri, worry on their faces as they edged closer to the forest. They did not seem to be affected by the command, and through the fog in his mind, he could hazily see Mira motioning with her hands but not at him. It looked like she was preparing a spell. He glanced at the other three, and like Mira and Celeste, they did not look affected at all. It seemed the command had been isolated to Kiri and him.

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  “There he is,” Reaper said.

  Tyler turned to Reaper to find the man looking at him. The effects on his mind had stopped, though the excruciating pain of someone shouting right into your head was still subsiding. Reaper kept his eyes on him briefly, before turning his attention back to the three women. No. Not at them. He was looking beyond them at Mira and Celeste.

  “Were you aware of the demons in your midst?” he said to no-one in particular, but all eyes turned to the direction he was facing. To Mira and Celeste. For a moment, no-one said anything but from the looks on their faces, none of them seemed surprised. Just ahead of him, Kiri focused on the two sisters like a hawk in flight with pigeons below. She seemed poised to attack, one palm on the ground – ready for an explosive pounce – another gently placed upon one of the knives at her hip. She seemed like she had been expecting this.

  “We knew,” Alina responded, “and we had a plan to deal with it, which you’ve unfortunately ruined now.”

  “You have my sincere apologies,” Reaper said, “but I cannot ignore their presence.”

  “What did your master send you here for?” Alina said, turning back to Reaper. The other women did not. They kept their eyes firmly on Mira and Celeste. Both sisters seemed prepared for an attack themselves, their postures defensive and Celeste gripping her staff.

  “I was sent to retrieve Tyler Smith. But my primary function is to kill demons. Especially those escaping beyond the Rift. I wouldn’t usually bother with these lesser ones in the Riftlands but they should not be here.”

  “You know what they are, don’t you?”

  “Shapeshifters.”

  “Then you know the originals are held somewhere. We need these two alive until we can get our real sisters back.”

  “Then shall we strike a deal?” Reaper said.

  “What’s that?” Alina asked.

  “Rightfully, I should kill them and take Tyler Smith. There is nothing you could do to stop me. But, I understand your desire to get your companions back. I was human once. I remember the yearning for attachment.

  “Give me Tyler Smith, and I shall be gone. You can kill them both once your companions have been located.”

  Ahead of him, Kiri, who had remained motionless, shuffled at the suggestion, her head turning slightly in the direction of Alina. Alina hadn’t looked at him at all, but she remained quiet, as if considering the proposal. What was there to consider? She had to save her companions. Yet, Alina was looking at the pebbles on the floor. Taking too long to answer. It made no sense. If it had been him, he wouldn’t have needed to think twice.

  As he watched her struggle, he began to understand exactly what kind of leader she was. He understood why she was struggling. Understood why she didn’t want to make the decision. He smiled softly to himself, looking at the beautiful girl who had threatened to cut his head off earlier. It wasn’t fair for her to make this decision. It wasn’t fair for him to make her make the decision.

  He felt a sense of sorrow that those shoot of feelings he had begun to feel hadn’t even had the chance to put down roots.

  He stood up. “I’ll—”

  “Do you think we have no say in this,” Mira bellowed, cutting him off before he had the chance to finish his sentence. Nobody even looked at him.

  Kiri tugged at the legs of his pants. “Get down, you idiot!”

  A brilliant light flared across the area, causing Tyler to shield his eyes. The glare lasted only a moment and when it was gone, two large discs hung motionless in the air – one behind the sisters and one near to Reaper. The one behind the sisters looked into a room, it seemed and he could see the vague outlines of two figures. The other one seemed to look into pitch black water, though there were faint contours of rocks and craggy outcrops.

  Without warning, Kiri pounced, speeding in the direction of the two sisters. They didn’t even seem surprised. Celeste quickly ran through the gateway with Mira hot on her heels as Kiri closed the distance. Out of nowhere, large fireballs – three of them – appeared and hurtled towards Kiri but she focused on the sisters getting away. Tyler wanted to shout after her, to warn her but before he could, the fireballs crashed into her like flaming asteroids in the night. When the lingering sparks dissipated, Kiri was unharmed. She hadn’t even been knocked off stride as she ran impossibly fast and plunged through the closing gateway.

  “Tyler,” Alina screamed. “To me.”

  Turning back to the other three women and Reaper, who seemed just as surprised as them at the turn of events, Tyler then noticed what was coming out of the portal.

  It bellowed out blue and green fumes, the pungent acrid smell like vomit mixed with shit. With it, out poured nightmares given flesh, like cockroaches scattering from a disturbed home, and spreading out as quickly as they could. Some looked like the Demon Sprite Tyler had escaped earlier, their nostrils flaring, taking in the smell of blood in the air. Others were grotesque, small, fat, with hairy bellies and small curly horns protruding from their heads like an experiment crossing stunted humans with deficient rams. Those ambled out of the gateway on legs too short and weak for their large torsos, saliva drooling from their goat-like mouths. Winged creatures burst through, with elongated heads and serrated teeth in cavernous mouths. Their torsos were skeletal and thin, and they screechd as they reached for the sky.

  Tyler ran as quickly as he could and took cover behind the three women.

  “Bags,” he shouted, and the blue screen appeared displaying a three by five grid, with only one of the fifteen slots filled. [Uncommon Club]. He pressed it, and it appeared on the ground by his side. There must be an easier way, he thought to himself as he shouted “Bags.” The screen disappeared, as he picked up the club. It was useless. He knew it was useless. But it was all he had.

  Reaper, stood not far from the portal, sprung into action. His fluid armour writhed and wriggled, the metal pushing out from either side of his abdomen, sculpting two great swords, as if they had been contained within his body, waiting for this moment. He swung both swords with the graceful motion of a dancer, and where he sliced, several demons fell simultaneously. As he danced through their ranks, the liquid metal on his back shot out like grappling hooks, piercing through the wings and torsos of the beasts above, pulling them down to the earth so Reaper could finish the job. Golden fireballs appeared in the air from several places around them, striking the demons that managed to get out of the portal, but none made it more than a few metres before they were hacked down.

  Tyler and the three women watched in awe and he knew now why they had been so fearful, so apprehensive of Reaper. The man hadn’t lied when he said he could have killed Mira and Celeste and taken Tyler and there wasn’t a damn thing any of them could do about it.

  But even with such ferocity and might ahead of them, the demons didn’t stop pouring through. If anything, it seemed their numbers swelled, and their desire to push through became frantic as they clawed past each other. Even coming through the portal, seeing Reaper there, knowing what they were walking into, it didn’t stop the demons from surging through.

  And then they saw why.

  A large trunk of a leg, far taller than Reaper and almost as thick, crashed through the portal and pounded into the ground, squashing multiple demons with it. The earth shook with a tremor, the pebbles around them clattering against each other, as they fought to keep their footing. A second leg followed, then another, and another until six legs attached to a body the size of a large house had emerged, each textured like an elephant and just as big. Above the body was a massive torso, chiselled from dark green and grey muscles with four arms at the shoulders, each holding swords or spiked clubs that dwarfed some of the trees behind them. The head was bulbous, blue and green flames swirling around its nostrils and mouth. Two large horns protruded from its forehead, and curled all the way back to its shoulders.

  Reaper stood in front of it, staring up at the face.

  “Oh, fuck.”