Drazaria’s next attempt to steal Swordheart was… interesting.

To begin with, he changed the stage.

I suppose I’ll have to thank Heline if this works, the sorcerer thought, copying the ritual circle out of the book he was holding. It was in an old journal of a former Guardian and apparently allowed a formal challenge to be made outside of the Temple. Well, a formal challenge without the Guardian present. A change in venue could be just the shift in the balance he needed to beat the kids and get Swordheart.

When the circle was complete, Drazaria slipped the book into his wide jacket pocket and stepped into the center. He cracked his knuckles and took a deep breath - then recited the incantation that activated the magic.

“Between the ground and sky, between Vaseridan and the Cosmos, I call out to you,” he said, and the ritual circle lit up with blue light, “A challenger, warrior bold, believing myself deserving of power I do not hold. On a plane between this place and the other, I issue my challenge, and it must be answered - face me, O Guardian, for Swordheart!”

The circle flared into brilliant light, and suddenly, around its edge appeared Kendra, Tedi, Hik, and Vasskr.

“What the-!” the Guardian stumbled, appearing on the edge inside the circle, Companion next to them. Spotting Drazaria, their eyes went wide, and they called out, “By the might of the cosmos, I-”

“Wait, Guardian!” Vasskr stopped the teen with a shout, shooting Drazaria an uncharacteristically wild look of concern before schooling his expression.

Jax stumbled in surprise, “Uh… wh-why?”

“This ritual circle only summoned you here to answer the challenge,” Vasskr said, “The moment you accept, you and anyone else in the circle will be transported to a pocket dimension for this challenge.”

“Are you scared, Guardian?” Drazaria asked, putting his hands in his pockets and tilting his head. He knew goading his brother wouldn’t do anything, but the kid might be susceptible to the taunt.

“Uh, yes?” Tedi replied, wringing his wrists nervously, “At least they should be…”

“Uh…” Jax put a hand out, hitting a barrier that prevented them from leaving the circle while keeping most of their eyes on Drazaria, “What happens if I refuse…?”

“You forfeit,” Vasskr replied, “The same as the Temple - but had you accepted immediately, no one could enter to assist you.”

Kendra jumped into the circle immediately - she was lacking her ball-ended staff but settled into a fighting stance and said, “Ready when you are, Jax!”

“Wait, you want me to… in there?” Tedi squeaked, “In a pocket dimension?”

“It will be fine!” Hik said, thumping the young wizard on the shoulder, “Probably!”

“Come on, Tedi!” Kendra called out, “He hasn’t beaten us once!”

“He hasn’t beaten you once,” Tedi mumbled.

“You don’t have to join in this one,” Jax said gently, “Just let me know so I can accept, Tedi.”

The wizard sucked in a breath through his teeth - then quickly stepped into the circle saying, “Oh, I regret this already…”

“Thanks,” Jax offered their friend a smile for the effort.

“Can we start now?” Drazaria sighed dramatically, “Unless the Mentor has any other objections…?”

Vasskr clasped his hands tightly in front of him and carefully turned to address the teens, “Once the challenge has ended, the pocket dimension will open a door and collapse - you will have to run to it. If you remain in the dimension too long, it may create guards to attack you.”

Yeah, I knew that from the start, Drazaria just rolled his eyes - of course, forcing an outside challenge carried risk; otherwise, everyone would do it.

“What!?” Tedi groaned, “Why didn’t you say that before I stepped in the circle…?”

“Are you done mothering then, Mentor?” Drazaria called out - he meant for himself, but he knew the teens would easily believe the statement was about them.

Vasskr sent him a disapproving look before saying, “I have nothing more to add - good luck.”

“Right,” Jax sighed, then swallowed before raising a hand up and saying, “By the might of the cosmos, I accept your challenge!”

As the blue defensive Guardian magic enveloped them, the ritual circle flared to blinding white light - only for a moment, however, to deliver them into the pocket dimension. 

Drazaria found himself standing alone and took that moment to scan the area - everyone would be scattered to individual positions inside, so he had some time. He stood on a floating rock with crystals growing out of it in tree-like structures - and all around him were more floating islands and crystal trees. The endless sky around them was orange, with greenish smoke floating around randomly.

The sorcerer took a steadying breath and closed his eyes, opening up his magic senses. The entire area gave off a faint magical aura, stronger around the crystals - but nothing like the aura the Guardian and their Companion were emitting. He could hear the teens calling for each other, but ignored it as he gave himself magical claws and talons around his feet to jump from floating island to island, until he spotted his quarry.

“Guardian!” Drazaria called out, giving the teen just enough time to spin and deflect his blow.

“By the wrath of the cosmos, I heed the call!” Jax shouted out, armor and weapon changing to red. They didn’t miss a beat as they charged and swung at the sorcerer, cracking one of the crystal trees in half as the human dodged.

That’s more like it, Drazaria thought, rolling to his feet and turning-

-just in time to take a pair of hooves to the chest, flinging him off the current island.

He broke through crystal branches before hitting an island rock with force, coughing up blood from accidentally biting his tongue. Drazaria laughed, healing himself as he picked himself up, Guess I can’t be too soft anymore.

The sorcerer looked up, seeing Jax looking down at him with… concern, but mostly with a guarded expression and position. Still not that aggressive, though.

It was only because he still had his magic senses activated that he sensed the charge of the Companion and swung his arm back to knock the crystal tree behind him down, stopping its advance as the sorcerer rose to his feet. And because he was focusing too hard on his magic senses, he almost missed Kendra dropping down from above with a kick.

Almost, but not quite - he dodged back at the last moment and found himself in hand-to-hand combat with the girl. She was aggressive, not letting up on her flurry of punches and kicks. Drazaria let reactive barriers do most of the work fending her off until he saw an opportunity to throw her - towards another floating island with only just enough force.

Drazaria jumped back up to Jax and charged right back in - though this time, he danced between hammer blows and the Companion’s horns. Kendra soon joined them, and Drazaria felt himself… slipping.

The endless dance of blows was like hypnosis - it started to put his conscious mind to sleep and brought out the animal inside he used in real combat. Red spirals started to creep into his teal barrier claws, and Drazaria grinned as he managed to put the Guardian on the defensive-

Before lurching a few steps to the side by a bolt of attack magic to the face in a more successful repeat of Tedi’s first mistaken entrance into battle. Jax followed this up with a hammer swing that sent him flying into the side of an island, where he dug in with his claws.

Panting, he looked down at his magic-encased hands, then shook his head and forced the attack magic out. He tasted copper and swallowed as he looked over at the teens. They had gathered into a group on one of the bigger islands, all watching him carefully, though Tedi still looked nervous.

That expression reminded him he had been about to go all out on a bunch of kids, and he growled as he said, “You win this round, Guardian.”

“As always!” Kendra called up.

“Uh, Ken,” Tedi said, looking above the sorcerer, “I think we have other things to worry about…”

Drazaria frowned, then looked up just in time to have a crystal automaton punch him in the face and send him shooting downward. He landed on another island with a crack to his already barely healed ribs, wind knocked out of him in surprise.

His vision swam as he forced himself up, hearing the teens shouting and the sound of shattering. Drazaria could sense the door out somewhere above them and more crystal soldiers gathering on the islands around him. With a dry chuckle, he powered his hands and legs up with attack magic - just in time to be swarmed by the damn things.

Things got… messy from there. Drazaria smashed his way through crystal soldier after crystal soldier, all while jumping up and up as quickly as he could. He didn’t have time to consider how much time was left before the doorway collapsed, taking the pocket dimension with it - so he did something incredibly reckless and sent a pure blast of power out, expending most of his remaining magic.

But it cleared the path he needed to the door, and he started tossing swap stones to conserve what magic he had left -

And then one of the damned crystal soldiers appeared out of one of the rocks, and Drazaria powered up attack magic in one hand while tossing up a swap stone with the other-

Only for a familiar metallic whip to smash through the thing instead.

“Didn’t need your help!” Drazaria shouted, even as he grabbed the whip and let Vasskr pull him up.

“Maybe,” his brother didn’t argue, twisting to smash another soldier.

They were swarming again, and Drazaria cursed as he wrapped just his hands in attack magic.

Vasskr, on the other hand, immediately reached into his brother’s pocket and pulled out one of his swap stones.

“Don’t you fucking dare-!” the sorcerer said, but it was too late.

The kradreen threw the stone with enough force to send it all the way up to the doorway - then activated it.

Drazaria flew out of the doorway and rolled into a crouch, turning and grabbing the edges of the closing portal with magic and forcing it open. His chest heaved, and a blood vessel popped in his nose. He was going to run out of magic soon, but he knew his brother - he only needed to buy Vasskr a few extra moments to catch up and-

As soon as the kradreen jumped out of the portal, Drazaria released it - arms falling like they were suddenly made of lead.