Page 43 of Daemon Master

For the third time, Adrian studied his opponent from across their impromptu arena. Seymour radiated confidence, Tremorfist shifting lazily beside him. Adrian couldn’t wait to wipe that smug expression off the watcher’s face. Heartrender yipped questioningly, and he kneeled to scratch her head. She leaned into the motion, letting out a soft purr.

“This isourmoment,” he said, eyes fixed on Seymour. “No matter what happens, I’m proud to be your daemon master. Ready to take that spirit-cursed man down a few pegs?”

Heartrender’s determined growl was answer enough.

As he regained his feet, he covertly palmed a broken rock in one hand. “Ready!” he shouted.

Seymour nodded, adopting one of the battle stances he’d taught Adrian over the last few weeks. “On the count of three.”

Adrian mirrored the watcher’s stance. “Stick to the plan,” he murmured, more to himself than to Heartrender. “Disguise. Divide. Distract.”

The instant Seymour shouted, “Begin!” Adrian was already dashing forward. He didn’t intend to sit back and let the watcher dictate the pace of the battle. Not this time.

While he sprinted across the field toward their waiting foes, Heartrender stood in place, glowing as she readied her aether. Adrian had feared a swift counterattack, but Seymour seemed content to wait and see what Adrian intended. Hopefully, that arrogance would cost him.

Adrian was about halfway to the other side when he skidded to a halt, dug his toes into the loose soil, and started kicking up plumes of dirt.

“Is that supposed to intimidate me?” Seymour said. “When I asked for new tactics, throwing a tantrum wasn’t what I had in mind.”

At some silent command from the watcher, Tremorfist lumbered forward. Adrian suppressed a grin. So far, so good. Time to see how Seymour reacted to their first trick.

Disguise!he sent through his bond to Heartrender. His daemon released her gathered aether in a flash of azure light. A roiling cloud of dust mimicking those Adrian had kicked up engulfed him and the rest of the field’s center. She might only be able to create illusions of what she could see, but nothing said those replicas had to be to the same scale as the original.

Heartrender’sMirror Imageblocked Adrian’s sight as readily as it did everyone else’s…everyone, that is, except Heartrender herself. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and reached out to Heartrender with a partial Fusion. Her senses swiftly replaced his own. No longer locked in place from her channeling, she darted through the smoke toward him.

“Clever, using a simple image to conceal yourself!” Seymour called from beyond the dust cloud. “Quite effective against a daemon like Tremorfist, who relies on his physical attacks. But what now? You can’t hide in there forever.”

Via Heartrender, Adrian watched Seymour examine the edge of theMirror Image. The watcher gestured, and Tremorfist released aStunning Howlat the smoke. Against actual dust, the kinetic blast might’ve dispersed the cloud, but it had no effect on the illusion.Good.The distraction should give Adrian time to get into position for the second phase of his plan.

Heartrender reached him and settled herself by his side. Relying on her vision to guide him, he charted a cautious paththrough the illusory smoke, fending off a wave of disorientation at the unsettling disconnect between his skewed perspective and his body’s physical motions.

Through the dust, he spied Seymour glaring at theMirror Imageas if it were an affront to his existence. “If you think me foolish enough to pursue you in there, think again. Your daemon can’t sustain this illusion forever, and I’m patient enough to wait out your ruse.”

Adrian ignored the watcher.Divide,he ordered silently. Hefting the stone still clutched in his hand, he aimed with his melded sight to the far right of Tremorfist. More aether flared around Heartrender as she conjured anotherMirror Imagecentered on the rock.

Praying to the spirits this worked as well as it had during practice, he hurled the stone. Heartrender’s technique required binding her images to a single point…but that didn’t mean that point couldn’t move after theMirror Imagehad been properly formed.

The rock soared through the air, an image of Heartrender superimposed on top. Seymour shouted, his finger tracing the rock’s path as it arced above the cloud of dust and landed somewhere to the right. Tremorfist bounded after it.

Time for the last phase of their plan.Distract, he sent. Trusting in Heartrender’s guidance, he charged Seymour. The watcher reacted admirably, spinning to face them a split-second before they emerged. What hecouldn’tanticipate, however, was Heartrender dismissing the initial dust cloud and replacing it with a far smaller version anchored directly on his head.

Seymour cried out and swiped at the illusory dust covering his face. Adrian took advantage of the slip, canceling his partial Fusion and crashing into Seymour’s chest. They tumbled together to the dirt. Even distracted, Seymour’s potent aetherand superior training trumped Adrian’s own. Had it been a fair fight, he would’ve lost in seconds.

But since when was a fight ever fair?

Heartrender latched her fangs around Seymour’s arm before he could punch Adrian in the gut. Seymour let out a strangled cry, but Heartrender didn’t relent, raking claws down his side.

“Do you yield?” Adrian demanded.

“It’s not over yet!” Seymour hissed in reply.

He jerked his body to buck Adrian off, but Adrian held tight. This was their one chance at victory, before Tremorfist reached them, and he intended to take full advantage of it.

In the distance, Tremorfist bellowed aStunning Howl, momentarily paralyzing Heartrender and him. In the time it took them to break free, Seymour mentally fought off theMirror Imageobscuring his sight and flipped Adrian onto his back, pressing his good arm against Adrian’s throat. That was one downside of anchoring the illusion directly on your opponent—they could dispel the technique with a strong enough shroud or through sheer force of will.

“A noble effort,” Seymour said. “But I think it’s time you—”

Yowling, Heartrender released Seymour’s arm and lunged for his neck. The watcher cursed, ducking to the side. That gave Adrian the opening he needed to wrench an arm free and slam his fist into Seymour’s stomach, knocking the wind out of him. While the watcher wheezed for breath, Adrian regained control of their grapple, setting his knee against Seymour’s solar plexus.