Chapter 11: "Road of Shadows"**

The air hung thick with the metallic tang of blood and the acrid smell of burnt spell components. Looking around after the fight, it made me sick. How many people did I need to kill to get what I wanted? Gareth especially, who seemed to be one of the few true people on my side.

Gareth coughed, a wet, rattling sound that sent a jolt of renewed fear through me. He’d taken a nasty hit to the ribs, but his eyes, though glazed with pain, still held that familiar spark of determination. Lyra, her face streaked with dirt and sweat, was tending to his wounds as best she could with the limited supplies we had.

"We can't stay here," I said, my voice raspy. The shouts had probably been heard, and we couldn't sit around as easy targets. "They know we're heading that way. The Royal Family will never rest peacefully as long as they know what we know… they’ll send more." I hated how true those words sounded.

Gareth nodded slowly, wincing as Lyra pressed a makeshift bandage against his chest. "Elias is right. This little… disagreement… probably got their attention. A visit to the temple after what I explained wasn't going to go unnoticed." To put it lightly. "We need to get you both somewhere safe, somewhere outside city walls." He smiled weakly. "I know a place. A… specialized relocation service, shall we say. Helps those the Royals take a… dim view of."

Lyra frowned. "Sounds… shady."

"Shady? Absolutely," Gareth agreed, grinning. "But reliable. And discreet. Trust me, it's our best bet." He paused, his expression turning serious. "Getting there won’t be easy but, as long as we get to the safe zone, we are golden"

"Alright," I said, rubbing my temples. "What's the plan?" The pounding pain in my head wasn't helping anything, but I tried to focus on what would keep us all alive. I couldn't lose another person. First Kael, then maybe Gareth too.

Gareth pushed himself up straighter, ignoring the hiss of pain it elicited. "First, we eat. And drink. Can't run on empty stomachs. If people are going to try assassinating us, we should at least be fed!" He laughed that stupid laugh.

Lyra grunted in affirmation: "Also, we need to get a new plan. I think that the safe path no one can reach, isn't safe anymore. We are lucky to be alive right now"

We raided the meager provisions we had left, a handful of dried meat, some stale bread, and a flask of surprisingly potent brandy. It wasn’t a feast, but it was enough to stave off the worst of the hunger and give us a moment to gather our thoughts.

"So," I said, between mouthfuls of tough meat, "this… relocation service. Where are they?"

"A few days' journey," Gareth replied, "We'll head west, towards the Blackwood Forest. There's a hidden trail only locals know. It leads to… a rather unconventional settlement. From there, they can get you anywhere you need to go."

"The Blackwood," Lyra muttered, her eyes narrowing. "That's… dangerous. I've heard tales of that place: beasts in the woods."

"Tales, mostly," Gareth said dismissively. "Are those assassins that chased us nothing compared to beasts?" said with sarcasm. "Besides, we're not exactly defenseless... or maybe only me?"

He grinned at us, but a hint of sadness flickered in his eyes.

He opened his bag, and gave to each of us different magical items: mana potions, invisibility cloaks, protective amulet, and some food. "These won't last forever, so use them well."

After all of us taking the gear, it was time to move up.

"Let's get moving before the sun goes down," I said. "The faster we get to this 'relocation service,' the better."

The sun dipped below the horizon, casting long, distorted shadows that danced like specters among the gnarled trees of the Blackwood Forest. The air grew colder, biting at our exposed skin. An hour in, and Lyra was already starting to complain.

"It felt like the safest path," Gareth kept saying, as if it wasn't being useful for what it seemed.

Silence fell over us: it was suspicious. It felt all too convenient and it made me wonder if something was wrong, that maybe just maybe, someone was snitching to all of us. It does not help that Lyra trusts less in Elias.

Suddenly, a volley of magical projectiles ripped through the air, illuminating the darkness with streaks of emerald light and crackling energy. We barely had time to react, diving for cover behind the thick trunks of ancient trees.

"Ambush!" I yelled, adrenaline surging through my veins. "Shadow magic! The family must have sent their best."

Lyra cursed under her breath, drawing her own sword. "How did they find us? This path was supposed to be hidden!".

Gareth's face was grim. "They probably tracked us from the temple. No one is going to be happy with that thing anymore". "Everyone, hold!"

The air crackled with magical energy as shadowy figures emerged from the darkness, their faces obscured by cowls. They moved with unnatural speed and grace, wielding daggers that seemed to absorb the surrounding light. I casted a firebolt, but someone quickly casted a barrier in front of him.

Each of them were using different magic, from plants to fire.

"We need to move!" I shouted: "Focus on the assassin!"

We returned fire, weaving spells of fire and ice that clashed against the assassins' shadowy defenses. The air filled with the scent of ozone and burnt leaves. One of the assassins darted forward, his dagger aimed at my throat, but I managed to deflect him with a blast of fire magic.

With their combined magic, it was possible to hold for a while. But it would not be enough. Gareth knew that, and he had decided it.

"Elias! Lyra! Get out of here!" Gareth bellowed, his voice strained. "I'll hold them off!"

"What?" Lyra exclaimed, disbelief etched on her face. "Are you crazy? We're not leaving you!"

"We don't have a choice!" Gareth shouted back, weaving a spell of blinding light that forced the assassins to recoil. "They're too many. And I said, follow me!" In a high tone.

He placed his hands on the floor, closing his eyes. "I was never the best mage anyways, but if there is something that I'm happy about, it's my control over others, as limited as that can be"

Energy started radiating from him, glowing the forest around him. Magical glyphs and runes started apperating in the florest, drawing the atention of enemies around to him.

"You were never the best mage", said Lyra: "You were probably the better mage, because you were smarter than all of us"

I hesitated, torn. Gareth was right; we were outmatched. But the thought of leaving him to face those assassins alone… it was unbearable. "Gareth, no—"

"Now go!" he roared, unleashing a wave of pure magical force that sent the assassins flying backwards. "I'll catch up! I promise!"

His face was strained, but his eyes held a fierce determination. He knew what he was doing. He had already accepted what would happen if he did that, and he had committed to it.

There was a long pause before I agreed.

Lyra grabbed my arm, her grip tight. "Elias, come on! We can't help him if we're dead!"

The battle was lost. It was just a matter of time before we either escape or, die.

With a heavy heart, I obeyed. We couldn't afford to be sentimental. We needed to survive, and Gareth's sacrifice was giving us the chance to do just that. "I'll see that whatever you did, doesn't go to waste. So I don't die in vain", I whispered.

I took one last look at Gareth, his figure silhouetted against the magical light, then turned and ran, plunging deeper into the darkness of the forest.

The sounds of battle faded behind us; the clash of spells, the shouts of the assassins, Gareth's defiant roars. The guilt ate at me, a gnawing emptiness that threatened to consume me. My face started heating up, as if all of those battles that I saw had made me cold, and just now, I had awaken from my hibernation.

"Damn it!" I spat, kicking a loose stone that skittered away into the undergrowth. "Why does this always happen? Why does everyone I care about end up sacrificing themselves to save my sorry ass?!"

Lyra walked close to him again, grabbing his arm.

Lyra didn't say anything, her face pale and drawn. She was grieving, too. Gareth was her friend, as well. We had all been living these last few days under a tension, to see who was going to betray the others. And in that moment, it seemed stupid to care. Why was that the case?

Her silence only fueled my frustration. "Don't you get it? He did that to save us! To give us a chance! And now we're just running away, like cowards!"

Finally, she spoke: "And what do you want to do? Try to fight all of them? That's crazy!"

"Maybe it is!", I snapped. "But at least it's not just… giving up!"

With shaking hands, I tried grabbing a mana potion, but it didn't go well. Lyra ended up grabbing it, and gave me herself. That gesture angered me even more.

"Lyra, is because of you that all of this is happening: if it weren't for you to be that smart, nothing of these would've happened!", I shouted to her face. She grabbed me too, even with my anger, but with no use. It was as if I was a feather, and she a stone.

"No, Elias. Enough. First, we need to move. Can we talk? Sure, but not now! And do not say all of that was my fault: it was just the family being as greedy as every family tends to be"

I pushed her away. "Just… leave me alone."

I stumbled ahead, blindly navigating the treacherous terrain, the image of Gareth's sacrifice seared into my brain. I let revenge and hatred take control of me. I started this mess, and now everyone was paying for it.

"Elias, wait!" Lyra called out, her voice laced with a mixture of concern and exasperation. "We need to stick together. We can't afford to—"

I ignored her, the need to escape the suffocating guilt driving me forward, deeper and deeper into the darkness of the Blackwood Forest. The only thing that I cared, was that these memories can finally go away. But that won't be the case. Now even Keal with Gareth were now permanently etched in my mind. It will be hell to live alone, but that's the correct way: I won't make people suffer because of me.

The forest was silent, save for the rustling of leaves and the distant hooting of an owl. The memory felt like a dream, slowly disappearing. But the sound has awoken something in me. What if Gareth was not dead?

As they escape, Gareth manages to leave behind a cryptic clue hinting at the location of a soul weaver hideout before falling to the assassins. He also manages to display that something is wrong with the assassins. They all work for different people, and they all move with different motives, and that someone is in control of said motives.

I stopped as I noticed weird behaviour: the assassins. They were moving oddly. There were a lot of assassins, using a lot of different magic, and all of them had something weird in common with them.

"Lyra," I said, my voice barely a whisper, "did you notice anything… strange about those assassins?"

Lyra looked at me, her expression wary. "Strange? What do you mean?"

"The way they moved… the way they fought," I said, struggling to articulate the unease that was gnawing at me. "They weren't coordinated. It was like… they were all acting independently, like puppets with tangled strings." I thought of the feeling of freedom that possessed me after the encounter, and how suddenly it all collapsed.

Lyra frowned, her brow furrowed in concentration. "Now that you mention it… It did seem a bit disjointed. They weren't working together as a unit. It was strange"

"Exactly!" I exclaimed, my heart pounding. "And their magic… they were all using different types of magic, from different schools. It was like they were pulled from different factions, or… different masters." Or, that whoever did all of it in the forest, had no idea.

"What are you getting at, Elias?" Lyra asked, her voice tinged with suspicion.

"I think… I think someone was controlling them," I said, the realization hitting me like a physical blow. "Someone with enough power to puppet them all, to override their own wills. All of them coming at different points in the realm. Someone very strong, even more than I thought".

I stopped, and started focusing to use a sensing spell that allowed seeing if there was anyone else. But because the fight was very recent, it didn't work like I wanted.

"Gareth," Lyra whispered, her eyes widening. "You don't think…?"

"He said that his best ability was not magic, but controlling people for a short amount of time...", replied to her. "But the control of him should have been very limited, and none of them showed a sign of it going down"

"But how is that possible?" she then asked.

"I don't know," I admitted, "but I'm almost sure of what I saw: Gareth at his last time wasn't able to control all the assasins."

The thought of what had happened back there started. In his last moments, Gareth had managed to leave us a clue, something tucked away in one of his pockets, something we might have missed in our hasty retreat.

I started patting myself, but Lyra already was in my bag.

"There is another reason why he asked for that specific zone", I concluded "We should find that last message". The chapter closes on cliff hanger that leaves Lyra and Elias wondering what exactly they witnessed as Gareth dies and gives details on the hideout: in reality, it was not that thing!