Mara stepped to the front of the stairs and raised her bow. She placed her fingers above the arrow's rest. Icy blue energy sparked from her fingertips. "Well, at least it isn't a surprise this time," she said.

Josh watched her trace the arrow into existence and swallowed. His heart hammered against his ribs. "And we have Aharon on our side."

They also knew how to stop the reaper, but he fought the urge to look at Moshe.

Stone crashed somewhere down the hall. A hollow noise vibrated through the room, like wind wailing through a skeletal forest. Josh licked his dry lips and glanced at Aharon. This reaper didn't sound right.

Eli moved even closer to Josh and bunched up part of his brother's t-shirt in his fist. "Josh..."

"You'll be safe. I'll make sure of it," Josh said, putting as much conviction as he could into his words. After all, Eli wasn't a firstborn, so he wouldn't be the reaper's focus.

"Eli. Moshe." Xander stepped off the dragon statue, Aharon on his heels. Despite using the power of the dragon's scale rather than his own, Xander had grown pale, sweat beading his forehead. "Come with me. We'll be safer further back."

Eli hesitated. Josh nudged him. "Go." He barely managed to speak the word before another ghastly wail shook the air. This one was much closer.

Eli opened his mouth, fear and worry warring on his face. He swallowed back whatever he planned on saying, but when he turned to run to Xander, his eyes gleamed with unshed tears.

Josh faced forward, eyes glued to the entrance. Every second draggedpast. The noises from the hallway drilled into his senses, trying to provideclues about how long he had. Of how many quieter voices hid behind the reaper'scrashing movements. How many enemies had the monster taken down already, andhow many would they be facing now?

A particularly loud screech pierced the air. A large chunk of stone crashed nearby, and vases shattered all around. The creature burst through the entrance, and all of Josh's thoughts came to a grinding halt.

The reaper—if he could still call that anymore—didn't look at all likethe other one. Its front half mirrored a shi'raz. Insectoid head,over-large eyes, snapping pincers, and a mammal body except for the weird,pronged feet. The shi'raz body only continued part of the waybefore turning into a billowing tail of the reaper's original cloak-like body.It would try to thin, momentarily forming a barbed spear, before jerking backout into its cloth-like form. All the while, shadows seemed to drift from itsbeing, writhing and spurting with every harsh movement the reaper made.

Aharon bit out an angry string of words before running off the dragon statue's back. He fell through the air, white lightning crackling to life in his palms. As he fell, he directed the lightning into the reaper's face.

It screeched and swiped at Aharon. He landed on the ground and ducked before the pronged hand could slice his head off. The reaper's tail thinned and struck before it had time to expand again. The barbed end crashed into the ground where Aharon would have been if he hadn't rocketed across the room.

"Come on," Cale said. "We need to get down there."

They couldn't do anything, not without Moshe banishing the reaper. The light pad of running footsteps reminded Josh the reaper wasn't their only issue.

Taking a deep breath, he willed his body to work against the freezing terror and followed Cale down the steps.

Josh summoned light to his palm, a glowing aura prepared to turn into a blast at a simple desire. He reached inward, and Boomer reacted instantly. His dragon's presence swept through Josh, sharpening his focus and heightening his senses.

The reaper slashed at Aharon, managing to create the smallest of cuts on his bicep as he moved inward and released a torrent of white lightning into the creature's underside. It reeled back. Josh and Cale released their own blasts of light.

"When will your brother change back?" Cale called.

Aharon rolled back to dodge the reaper before its body crashed back down on the floor. Cracks spread out from under its claws.

"When he believes there is the most risk, sadly," he replied. "Eli and Xander seem to be the ones he trusts, so he will have to believe he is protecting them."

Josh gritted his teeth. He didn't like the sound of that. He focused even more light into his hands.

Before he could attack, the reaper's tail rose into the air and zipped toward him. He brought the shield between them. The force threw him back, the barbed tail following him as it tried to penetrate his defense. He tried to plant his feet, but he couldn't with the driving force shoving against him. The wall quickly approached—

The reaper screamed, and the pressure of the tail vanished. Josh's feet skidded across the ground. He couldn't come to a full stop, but when he hit the wall, it provided balance rather than an explosion of pain.

He lowered his shield. A wiggling sheet of shadow disintegrated while a stub of a tail waved angrily in the air, purple gas gushing from the end. Cale's sword glowed with light energy.

Josh opened his mouth to shout his thanks, but the words shriveled into a lump in his throat when pieces of the shattered vases shot at Cale.

A blue arrow cut through the air. Someone near the doorway screamed. Cale spun, perhaps sensing the oncoming attack. "Terrath praetimus!" The earth wall only reached his hips before the shards were on him. His sword flashed through the air, but half a dozen sliced open his skin.

Another arrow flew through the air, and this time Josh followed its path. It pierced the wall near the entryway, at least three feet from the dozen Shadow Knights that had reached them.

Josh's thoughts screamed too loudly while saying nothing at all. He knew he should move and doing something useful, but Aharon had wrapped his lightning vines around the reaper while channeling attacks with his other hand at the Shadow Knights that were making their way into the room.

So much magic. So much more powerful than he was, and maybe than he'd ever be. What was he even supposed to do?

The reaper thrashed against Aharon's cage, drawing his attention long enough for a Shadow Knight to throw a spear in his direction. It caught his ribs, and a flurry of red specks exploded from the bleeding wound.

The reaper. Nothing but a mindless beast intent on killing. It could hit hard, but Josh could take hard hits.

I don't like this idea, Boomer said.

Me neither, but I need to do something. Josh swallowed. "Aharon, release the reaper."

Aharon met Josh's eyes, brows knit in confusion, then nodded. He retracted his lightning trap and, with a flick of his wrist, brought the attack down on the Shadow Knights instead.

The reaper went to turn toward Aharon, but before it could, Josh charged forward, channeling light into his blade, and thrust. It sunk in with ease. The overly large eyes flashed purple as the reaper glowered down at him.

Josh forced a smirk. "Bring it." He pulled his sword back and performed an underhand slash.

Gas gushed from the wound on the reaper's foreleg, and it screamed. It raised its other arm, pincers-fingers pressing together, and brought it straight down at Josh.

He danced back, forcing himself not to gape at the hole the reaper left behind.

The creature was large, so to give Aharon—and Cale, as Josh spotted him clashing blades and summoning earth spikes—enough space, Josh backed up until he stood on the steps. He snaked his sword between the reaper's pincers and teeth, delivering cuts wherever he could. Not much, but enough to be annoying. It helped that this new form grounded the reaper, giving Josh a height advantage as he scaled the stairs.

Josh's eyes flicked up to its tail. The purple gas was solidifying, becoming a threat once more. He couldn't forget about it.

Boomer's awareness yanked Josh's gaze down in time to intercept another attack from the reaper. He batted it away with his shield and brought his sword across one of the pronged fingers.

The reaper shrieked, the extremity vanishing in a cloud of gas. It clacked its mandibles. They closed around Josh's shield, and the reaper pivoted, flinging Josh. He hit the wall with a grunt.

Something dark darted through the air. Josh fell to the side on the steps. The barbed tail smashed apart the place he had been. Quick as a snake, the tail pulled back and started forward once more. Unlike before, Josh wouldn't have the time or the space to move.

A beam of blue-white light slammed into the tail's end, flinging it off course.

Josh blinked, shook off whatever daze remained from the wall collision, and scrambled up. He caught Mara's figure growing closer from the corner of his eye.

The reaper tried to turn on her, but when she was close enough to be in its range, she hit the ground sliding. Her dagger glinted with its light before she vanished beneath the reaper.

Its scream was a mix of agony and fury. It jabbed under its belly, where more purple gas seeped out.

Mara rolled out from beneath the reaper, wisps of clouds following her movement. She hopped to her feet and rushed to Josh before the reaper could turn on her.

She grinned, but it didn't meet her eyes. "I figured two firstborns would be more distracting than one." When she turned to face their opponent, her gaze flicked toward Cale and Aharon before leveling on the reaper.

She didn't want to be in combat. She wanted supply support everywhere. Josh winced, reminded once more of how overwhelmed he was here. Even in the one thing he thought he could do, he needed help.

"Well then," he forced himself to say, "let's distract it."

It proved very easy to distract as they fell into a rhythm of attack. Josh went in, shield up and light surrounding his sword. Mara darted in while he was the reaper's entire focus, delivering annoying slice after annoying slice with her dagger. Sometimes she used beams to throw the reaper off kilter when it got too close to seriously injuring Josh.

After what felt like hours but could only be minutes, he only had a few scratches and scrapes. He didn't want to know what it would be like if Mara hadn't shown up.

With her there or not, though, he couldn't escape the exhaustion that settled into his bones. Constant energy usage. Constant attacks. Constant defense. It wore at him until it felt like his body couldn't escape the reverberations of the reaper's attacks and his muscles only knew how to move.

And during every passing second, the crushing pressure of the room's energy pressed down on him. Lightning never stopped crackling. The earth jerked beneath his feet. Temperatures flared with the burst of fire. More than once, he thought he bled to find it was water that had dropped on his cheek.

He couldn't tell which exhausted him further—battling the reaper or standing against the onslaught of energy pressure. How could the others seem so unaffected?

The question drew his eyes toward the fight, as if he would see that he wasn't the only one dealing with this, but instead he saw something much worse. He froze.

"Josh!" Mara snapped, barely blasting the reaper back before its pincers snapped at him.

Aharon kneeled on one knee before a crater, lightning spilling around him, but both it and his figure were almost lost in the storm of red energy erupting from his injuries.

He was missing a hand.

He was dying.

Cale held his own, looking no worse for wear than Josh or Mara, but he could only assume that was because of Aharon protecting him. Once Aharon was gone, though...

They would soon be overrun. They needed Moshe.

"Joshua!"

This time, Mara's yell jolted Josh into action. He lifted his shield to block an incoming swipe and countered with a slash of his own.

You're going to hate me, Boomer whispered. He tried to keep back the fear and guilt thrumming through him, but some still trickled through the bond.

Can't hate you if I'm dead, Josh shot back, forcing himself not to look at the center of the room again.

Moshe will only return if he feels the ones he trusts are in danger, Boomer continued. What he meant to say next came through the bond before he spoke, and it took all of Josh's will not to freeze again. Which means he needs to know they're also in danger.

Josh's heartbeat thundered in his ears as he gave the barest shake of his head. No, I can't do that to Eli. Even as he spoke, though, he knew Boomer had the best idea. He didn't want to possibly put Eli in danger, but if he didn't try, his little brother would for certain be at risk.

"Mara." His voice shook as he spoke, and Boomer streamed through unending apologies. Don't, Josh said. You're right.

"What?" Mara appeared at his side. She used the motion of her approach to put a fresh wound in the reaper's cheek.

"I need to take the reaper up to Moshe."

Mara almost tripped in her retreat. Further proof Josh was insane, but he pressed on.

"Moshe trusts Xander and Eli. He has to know they're also in danger before it's too late." He glanced back at Aharon.

Somehow, the ancient Paladin had risen to his feet, peppering the Shadow Knights with a rain of lightning bolts. He swerved the attack toward the right to block a Shadow Knight that got too close to rounding on Cale's back. The moment left him distracted, and only Cale's quick creation of an earth wall kept a woman from driving an earth spike into Aharon's ribs.

Mara was silent for a beat. "Okay. I'll guard Xander and Eli as best as I can," she promised. Her footsteps signaled she was racing up, so Josh began his slow backward climb after her.

The reaper, both to Josh's relief and dismay, pursued.

Josh blocked and parried incoming attacks, sometimes hopping back a couple of steps to avoid strikes. Every step he climbed, the more the ball of worry weighed down his gut.

He forced himself back until he felt the smoothness of the top level's floor. While the reaper still had more to climb, Josh spun on his heel and darted toward the others.

Xander had hidden them behind a pillar on the opposite side of the room. Both he and Mara kneeled by Moshe, Eli pushed back to the deepest part of the corner. Mara glanced up at Josh, then turned back to Moshe and pointed a finger in the reaper's direction.

Moshe trembled, a hand pressed to his temple.

Josh took a deep breath, hope swelling in his chest. Yes, this was it. Moshe would cut his palm. He would banish the reaper. He would be an adult, and maybe everyone would be healed like before. Then, together, they would all turn their focus on the Shadow Knights.

Everything would be okay.

The earth rumbled. A scream. Cale's voice, calling words that Josh couldn't hear over the buzz that filled his head with a sudden surge of energy.

He turned.

A Shadow Knight woman stood on an earth pillar that moved up higher and higher, Aharon on the end.

He shot lightning in the woman's direction, but she spun her sword in front of her, dispelling the attack.

A flaming red spear arced through the air in Aharon's direction. He ended his assault on the woman and moved his lightning to intercept the spear.

The red particles around him intensified. His energy flickered out before it could wrap around the fire.

Aharon's head jerked back as the spear drove straight through his skull. He went slack, bloody particles forming a tornado around him.

Josh screamed. There may have been words, but if so, it was overtaken by the shout of someone else.

"Brother!"

Moshe's guttural cry reverberated through the room. Energy dripped off the word, shaking Josh to his very core. The energy output rose until the air felt drowned in it, wrapping him in puppet strings and stilling his movement.

Then, as if directed by a snap, it all cracked. Light flashed, and the pressure ceased. Josh regained control of his body in time to throw his arms in front of his eyes.

"You will not get away with what you have done to him," a familiar yet new voice said.

Josh dropped his arms. Before him stood a dark-skinned man with shoulder-length, curly hair. Moshe. The true Moshe.

Sparing all the ones with him a moment's glance, Moshe strode across the floor. With every step, yellow flames sputtered to life from every part of his body. It expanded, lifting Moshe into the air. The flames squirmed and parted, slowly forming a shape.

Before Moshe reached the end of the platform, the fire created a secondary body around him, towering at least ten feet in the air with its host in the center.

Moshe had made an avatar of fire, one he used to leap over the statue of Nizar and come crashing down with a flaming fist. The room trembled. The Shadow Knights cried out.

Another noise sounded, barely noticeable underneath the combat, but it still rose the hairs on the back of Josh's neck. He spun back toward the steps.

Aharon's death had summoned Moshe, but his return had been too soon.

The reaper stood at the steps, purple eyes trained on Josh. Its mandibles slammed together in a terrifying promise.

Fun Fact: In the original version of the ending, I was going to have Josh's main adversary during this scene be the guy who could use wind that attacked his house.  But, honestly, it felt a bit shoehorned in.  Instead... We get a mega reaper >:3 

So... Is it a death scene when the character wasn't fully alive? Does it count as writing my first character death? And boy, things just aren't going right at all. Get Moshe... at the cost of Aharon with the reaper still there. We only have three chapters left in this book, so Josh and the group doesn't have long to figure things out 👀

Let me know your thoughts on the chapter down below, and if you enjoyed it, don't forget to vote and comment! I also have a discord open to anyone who wants to join, and we have a section there to discuss the book :D It's in my bio if you'd like to join!