No swinefolk appeared on the walls as they approached the ruined gate, but Clay still watched the ramparts warily. The last thing he needed was for some monster to get lucky with a piece of brick.

As they entered the gate, however, there was another trap waiting for them. His ethereal senses suddenly clamored for his attention as they entered the arch of the doorway, and Clay jerked as his gaze rose to the ceiling.

A ceiling where half a dozen small holes had been cut, just large enough for a flesh eater to stick their hands through.

"They're above us! Dodge!" Clay put his own advice into action, throwing himself out of the way as orbs of destruction rained down. Olivia moved as soon as he did, already hurling a slingstone up into one of the murderholes. The Baron hesitated only a heartbeat, but he still moved with incredible speed. His hand rose, and lightning suddenly shot into the holes, striking the eaters that had been hiding there.

A few more strikes, and the danger was past. The Baron was shaking his head, patting at a spot on his armor where the metal had been warped and ruined. "I do not think I approve of these things. Almost as bad as the cursed spiders."

Clay shared a grin with Olivia. "I think I agree, my lord. Shall we continue getting rid of them?" The Baron nodded, and they continued forward.

They found themselves in a broad courtyard, surrounded on all sides by walls. Ahead of them, there was another closed gate, while smaller doors were set into the other walls. Clay sighed the moment he set foot in the place. It looked incredibly familiar, enough that it would have set off alarms in his head even without his ethereal senses picking out the swinefolk in their hiding places.

Olivia looked at him. "Another trap?"

"Yeah. They're waiting in the walls." He glanced at the Baron. "We're probably going to want to fight back to back here."

The Baron nodded. "An excellent plan. Just warn me before you unleash anything… substantial, all right?"

Clay grinned and started the Flame-Tongued Song. Olivia did as well, striding out into the middle of the courtyard.

They made it about halfway into the open space before the doors opened and howling swinefolk streamed out. More ran out along the ramparts of the inner walls, ready to hurl debris or spells down into the courtyard. Howls, grunts, and squeals of glee filled the air.

The Baron reacted instantly, lashing out with his lightning at the creatures on the wall. Bolts of power plucked the smashers and eaters from existence, one after another, cutting them down before they could unleash their fury on anyone else. A pack of squealers darted in to try to stop him, but Olivia and Clay were already there waiting for them, both spear and scythe rending through flesh and bone. Smashers crowded in next as the courtyard began to fill with enemies, all ready to kill and consume.

Then the [Chants] finished, and flame engulfed the space. Clay waved his stream of fire across the incoming creatures, settings dozens of them alight. Olivia did just as well, clearing the immediate area of attackers. Swinefolk screamed and howled as they ignited, staggering forwards in an attempt to get in one last blow before they were overcome. Those who came close met the edge of the Baron's sword, the point of Clay's spear, or the blade of Olivia's scythe.

When the last of the swinefolk had fallen in the courtyard, Olivia and Clay set aside their weapons and took up the bow and sling again. Clearing the remaining eaters did not take long without their fellow swinefolk to cover for them.

Moments later, standing in the middle of the smoldering wreckage of dozens of swinefolk, the Baron wiped sweat from his forehead. His armor had a few more dents and scrapes, but he'd handled things well enough. There had even been a few mid-ranked monsters in the mix, and he'd still killed more than his fair share of the things. He was still giving Clay and Olivia a side eyed look, as if wanting to chastise them for making the temperature even hotter, but Clay ignored it. They had other worries.

He looked at the next gate and sighed. "I can break it down, and then we can run through whatever traps they have in the tunnel. Or…"

"Or we can do things a different way." Olivia pointed at the top of the inner wall, where the corpses of the eaters were still draped. Clay nodded, and he started the [Chant] for Pursuing Leap just after she did. He focused on one of the arrows lodged in an eater's neck. A few heartbeats later, both of them flew up to the top of the wall and hoisted themselves up and over the ramparts. Clay turned and dropped a stone down for the Baron to catch. Another quick [Chant], this time the Cycle of Return, and he was helping the Baron up and onto the wall.

This time, however, there wasn't a courtyard waiting for them. Instead, the swinefolk had dug a massive ditch between the second and third walls, with only a small bridge leading across it. Clay could already see eaters and other swinefolk waiting on top of the fourth wall, ready to begin a barrage on anyone who would dare cross.

Clay spent a long moment looking out across that bridge. He sighed. "That doesn't look pleasant."

Olivia muttered something underneath her breath. "We can smash the gates, but there's not much we can do about the bridge. No cover at all there."

The Baron broke into a smile. "I believe I might be able to help, then." When Clay and Olivia turned to look at him in surprise, he raised an eyebrow. "I do have my uses, even if most of the [Chants] you use are beyond me." He looked out over the bridge again and nodded. "I can get you across the bridge, but we'll have to move fast. You'll also have to handle the gates on your own. Can you do that?"

Clay nodded. The Baron grimaced and looked at the drop on the other side of the wall. "Then if you would do me the favor of helping an old man down the wall?"

A few moments later, they stood together at the start of the bridge. The Baron looked at both of them and nodded. "I'll need to stay behind here, but you should be fine to carry on without me. Don't stop running, no matter what happens."

The seriousness in the Baron's voice was sobering to hear, but Clay nodded and offered his hand. He saw a flicker of surprise and amusement in the Baron's eyes as the [Noble] shook it.

Then he turned to face across the bridge and raised his sword. "Go. Now!"

Clay and Olivia both began to run. He was already starting the [Chant] for the Canon of Rock; he could hear her running through the one for the Ballad of Air, as if she meant to knock any incoming debris aside. It was a good way to anticipate things, but he didn't know if it would be enough to turn aside the magic as well, especially when—

A lance of brilliant light tore across the bridge and illuminated the interior wall. The swinefolk on top of the fortification squealed and howled; those that were lifting chunks of rock dropped them as they tried to shield their eyes. When Clay glanced backwards, he could see the Baron holding his sword aloft as it shone brighter than the noonday sun above it.

He turned his attention away from the Baron's [Charm] and kept running. The beam of light was already fading, and the swinefolk started to recover. Eaters were beginning their spells, and smashers were bending over to recover their stones to throw.

Then a second burst of light flooded over them, drawing out another chorus of pained cries, and Clay grinned. He sped up slightly, aiming his spell at the very center of the oncoming gates. A moment later, the boulder gathered above him and shot across the intervening space with incredible speed.

It struck the middle of the gates like a battering ram, smashing into the doors and fragmenting into a hundred pieces. The doors shook under the blow, but they held, and Clay began the Refrain. One way or the other, they were getting through those doors.

He heard Olivia's [Chant] finish next to him, and he glanced up to see tendrils of air reaching out towards the battlements. For a moment, he wondered if she was going to try to pull herself up and over. Instead, each tendril simply stretched towards an eater or a smasher and wrapped around a limb or a head. The swinefolk had a mere handful of moments to react before she pulled them from the wall, letting them drop down into the moat below. Their terrified screams cut off as they struck the bottom.

Clay finished the Refrain and struck at the doors again, seeing the boulder smash into them. This time, the doors shuddered a bit further back. A gap appeared in between the two sides, and he could see swinefolk milling around in the space beyond. Focusing, he began the Refrain again, knowing that they'd be almost to the doors when it finished.

The battle over the wall top continued as he spoke. More bursts of light left the swinefolk screaming and blinded; Olivia continued to pluck them from the battlements and send them hurtling to their dooms. One unfortunate smasher actually managed to brace themselves against the rampart, just long enough for her to yank it backwards so that it fell back into the space behind the wall. Another eater fell face first onto the bridge in front of them, landing with an unpleasant crunch.

He shoved all of it to the edges of his perception and focused on the doors. They needed to get through. If they didn't, their mission would fail. It had to work this time.

The boulder formed, and Clay poured every ounce of his concentration into it. It spun into a mass that seemed far denser and compact than any he'd used before. When it hurtled towards the gates, it struck like the fists of the Trickster herself.

He let out a shout of triumph as the boulder smashed its way through, tumbling into the herd of squealers waiting behind it. More of them were crushed as the great doors collapsed onto them. They recoiled in shock, as if unable to believe that their defenses had failed. A blast of light completed their shock, blinding them.

Before they recovered, Clay and Olivia were among them, slashing and cutting. It felt like he was part of a moving storm of steel as they tore through the disorganized horde in front of them. Smashers and squealers rushed forward, trying to bury them under the weight of numbers, but they only lasted a heartbeat before they were cut down. On the wall, eaters tried to join the fight and ended up being plucked from the wall by Olivia's continued [Chant].

Clay began a different [Chant], seeing the real enemies still ahead. There, beyond a small knot of mid-ranked monsters and another, smaller group of screechers, shakers, and soul eaters were three different swinefolk. They stood head and shoulders above the others, their frames massive even compared to the shakers. Each of them held an oversized chain made of dark iron, one which had a spiked ball on each end, and their eyes were dark holes filled with glittering red vortexes.

They were the Guardians. He had no doubt that he was looking at the masters of the Lair, and the way they waited for them suggested they were in no hurry to finish things. Clay finished the Orison a moment later, letting his gaze linger on one of them long enough to get the confirmation he needed.

[Guardian Consuming Taskmaster (Squealers)]

[Rank: 10, Type: Swinefolk, Status: Lord of the Hidden Valley Lair]

[Type Kills: 0, Deaths Caused: 71]

[Instincts: Guardian, Creator, Commander, Eternal]

His lips bared in a snarl as the last of the lesser swinefolk began to fall away and their higher-ranked superiors rushed in. If he could reach those things, the power of the Lair would be broken. He didn't even know if the rest of the monsters would still fight, or if they would flee without the power of the taskmasters driving them forward. All he had to do was strike, and they'd soon find out.

Then, just as he struck down an incoming shrieker and put a thrust through the nearest crusher, he heard it.

The noise rose above the chaos of the battle. It was a clear, frantic signal, something that could cut across the dying screams and enraged roars of the swinefolk. Clay's heart sank as he recognized the horn that was supposed to warn them of incoming interference. He spun and saw that the Baron was already running back towards the exit. Hopefully, Pellsglade would be able to hold off the adventurers with some excuse, at least until the Lair was done.

Olivia tore out a crusher's throat and then cut the legs from a pair of shriekers. She used the Ballad's tendrils to pull an eater into another eater's spell, killing it and confusing the survivor long enough for her to send a slingstone right between its eyes. Then she ducked low beneath a crusher's swing, and Clay killed it with a stab to the chest. As it fell, she spun around behind him and slew another shrieker as it tried to dart in.

They both had to dodge and weave as orbs of destruction whirled in towards them. One of them struck a smasher that had somehow survived until that moment. A crusher shoved the dying creature aside and died as Clay struck it through the head. "We don't have much more time!"

She cut down another shrieker and gave him the signal to go forward; she was halfway through another [Chant], this time the Canticle. Clay nodded and started the Carol of Wind. If he could barrel through the swinefolk, it might let him reach the Guardians before anything else showed up.

His hopes were ruined a moment later as more swinefolk suddenly poured out of the tower behind the Guardians, their eyes glowing with the mark of the taskmaster's control. More minions, only meant to wear them both down.

The eaters among them immediately died as Olivia picked them off with her [Chant]. She started the [Chant] for Floating Step and darted in closer to him. He shrugged and continued his own [Chant] dodging and striking as quickly as he could while she guarded his back.

Then the Carol completed, and he tried to dart away from Olivia. She jumped closer instead, and he watched helplessly as the wind carried her up with the swinefolk nearest him. Unlike the flailing monsters, she seemed completely unalarmed; in fact, she casually lashed out and struck at a panicked crusher and relieved it of its head. As he pushed forward, she pushed off the corpse in order to stay with him, and Clay was forced to grin as they charged together across the distance.

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As the lesser creatures scattered, Clay saw the more elite among them brace for combat. The shakers lifted their weapons; the eaters gathered the power for their spells. In front of both, the screechers formed a solid wall of flesh, all inhaling in preparation for a scream that Clay was sure would have shaken even him to the core.

Before they had the chance, he dropped his [Chant], letting the Carol of Wind fade away. There was a crusher who had been bracing in front of him, ready to be thrown aside. Instead, its beady eyes grew confused as Clay ducked in front of it.

A literal wave of sound crashed over him, and despite his temporary shield, Clay still was pushed backwards. The crusher in front of him crumpled almost instantly, and Clay was forced to hold the bulky thing up as it thrashed, bracing it against the blast.

His ears were still ringing when the noise finally ended, but he could still feel the shift beneath him. He dodged to the side as a forest of spikes leapt up. They shot in all directions, nearly catching him as he darted through the maze of eruptions. As inconvenient as it was, he noticed that the same spikes cut him off from the lesser creatures, forcing them back towards the shattered gates.

When he broke past the spikes, however, he found the screechers preparing for another scream. It would catch him point blank this time, and the eaters behind them were already hurling their spells forward. Even if those things failed to destroy him, the shakers were lifting their hammers, ready to begin the process again.

Then Olivia struck, diving among them like a hawk on an unsuspecting pile of rodents. Her scythe flashed out as she carved through two of the screechers in a brutal swipe, and she spun as she skidded forward past their startled, collapsing line. Floating Step carried her another three strides into the ranks of the elite monsters, to the point where she was in among the shakers, still lashing out with her weapon on all sides. Her feet finally touched ground as she began a new [Chant], and she jumped and dodged as the eaters turned their attention to her.

Clay didn't give them a chance to recover. In four long, leaping strides, he hit the panicking screechers just as they were turning to face her. His spear tore through them as if they were made of parchment; their blades shattered like they were glass. A new [Chant] filled him, the Madrigal of Ash, and he signaled for Olivia to keep her distance as he charged past her and through the closest shakers.

She nodded, and he thought he recognized the Flame-Tongued Song as he went by. Her scythe tore a vicious rent in the torso of a shaker, and she caught a screecher out of the air like it was a mosquito that was buzzing too close. Clay grinned, killing another two shakers before they could retreat, and dancing across the earth as they set it to shaking with their hooves.

The eaters saw him coming, of course. Several of them brought up their defenses; others were bringing their orbs back around, trying to weave them back through the stumbling screechers and the stomping shakers. One of them called it too close and blew a hole in a shaker that had been reaching for Clay; he thanked the wounded swinefolk by dispatching it with a thrust.

Then he darted in at the eaters, almost daring them to leap forwards. They did, trying to hit him with their shields. Others lashed out with their spiked whips, trying to tangle him in the coils. He ducked and dodged and evaded, always keeping enough distance to make it seem like they might reach him, if they tried hard enough.

Just when it seemed like they might succeed, he finished the Madrigal, and the air filled with ash. Clay had a beautiful view of the horror in their four eyes as the cloud engulfed them; their squeals of panic cut off into terrible, wracking coughs. He stepped forward, watching for shapes in the ash. When he saw one, he drew out his bow and put an arrow into it.

The figure fell, and Clay searched for the next target. A soul eater stumbled into the open to his left, and he struck it with his spear before it could bring up its shield. He heard another pair crash into each other; their shields exploded, and both didn't rise from where they fell.

Behind him, there was a sudden bloom of red light. He sensed a wave of heat beyond what the ash and the sweltering air could create; the smell of frying flesh filled his nostrils. Clay shook his head, shot another eater dead, and continued forward.

The ground crackled beneath him, and Clay dodged to the side as a spike rose from the floor. He casually sidestepped the erupting spear, and picked off another half-blind, choking eater. At this rate, the entire fortress was going to be empty before—

His thoughts cut off as he heard a whirring sound over the noise of the dying monsters. It sounded like someone was swinging a sling, though it was much, much larger. Clay's eyes widened as he realized what it must have been. He dodged backwards, taking shelter next to the earthen spike.

It shattered a moment later as the dark iron chain of one of the taskmasters came hurtling through the smoke. Clay was knocked flying, though at least he didn't run into anything. He hit the ground and rolled, bringing up his spear to be ready for the next hit.

Instead, he heard a sound like a hundred screechers inhaling. His eyes went wide as the cloud of ash around him began to be sucked away, tumbling and fading as it was drawn away from him. The air became clear, and he felt himself being drawn in as well.

In a panic, he released the Madrigal and started the [Chant] of Firm Step. When he did, the last of the ash was ripped away, hurtling to where it was being drawn into the distended maw of one of the taskmasters. Another was stepping forward, the chain already whirring in its hands. It swung, and Clay barely managed to get out of the way before the spiked metal head smashed into the stone where he'd been standing. The impact left a deep crater, though the taskmaster had no trouble yanking the thing free again.

Clay grimaced as the wind suddenly disappeared. He abandoned Firm Step and watched as the Guardians stepped towards him. Both of them were maneuvering their chains like they knew how to use them. Taking a hit from one was not a good option; if they could crack stone, his ribcage would not fare any better.

Their glowing eyes fixed on him as they stepped forward, and suddenly he realized that the third one was not headed in his direction. He felt a moment of surprise; every Guardian he'd ever encountered before had specifically tried to destroy him before anyone else. After all, they seemed to be able to sense what he could do to the Lair if he got past them. He'd assumed that the same would be true here.

Except now the Guardians knew he wasn't alone.

The third taskmaster was stalking towards Olivia. She was still ripping her way through the last of the shakers and screechers. There was only a handful left of each, and they were rapidly falling before her blade. Clay made as if to move in that direction, and the two in front of him shifted. He barely had time to jump back before another spiked ball shot through the space his chest would have occupied. Somehow, the taskmaster had managed to throw it straight at him, like it had been shot out of a crossbow. Only the length of the chain brought it to a halt.

He grunted, turning his attention to the taskmasters themselves. They watched him with something like triumph in their eyes, and he snarled at them. With his eyes still watching them, he raised his voice to a shout. "Olivia, one of them is headed your way."

She paused long enough while she was gutting a shaker to signal she'd heard; she was already partway through another [Chant]. He nodded and hoped the Trickster was watching. Troublesome as she might be, the least she could do was see Olivia safely home.

Then he moved forward, starting the Canticle of Ice. It would at least tell him how they would respond to being stabbed. If he was lucky, it might even kill them outright, given that he was far over their level now.

If the [Chant] worried the creatures, they didn't give a sign of it. Instead, they separated, moving carefully so that they could come at him from two sides. He watched them move, seeing the confidence and cruelty in their movements. The chains in their hands swung and whirred through the air. He glanced in Olivia's direction, and saw that she'd started to face off with her own opponent, circling one another.

The Guardian to his left snapped a ball out at him, aiming to take his head off. Clay ducked and charged, hoping to close the distance. There was a howling sound behind him, and he jerked to the side, just barely avoiding the vertical strike from behind. As the ball made another crater, the Guardian ahead of him swung the second ball out horizontally, trying to sweep him aside.

This time, Clay jumped, clearing the whirling chain. When he came down, the other Guardian had spun and snapped out another ball. He deflected it with his spear, sending a shower of sparks through the air. A glance behind him told him his original target had spun as well, bringing its left flail around in another horizontal strike. He lunged backwards, letting the spiked ball spin past him, and then jerked to the side as it brought the second flail down in a vertical strike.

He was forced backwards as the second Guardian followed those strikes with more attacks, both of them working to keep him off balance and moving backwards. Clay grit his teeth as he retreated, deflecting when he could, dodging when he couldn't. Every time he thought he saw an opening in one Guardian's defense, the second one covered it with a strike that could have killed him.

Then he finished the Canticle, and Clay sent over a dozen spears of ice at one of them.

He expected the spears to at least distract it. Instead, it simply paused and opened its mouth. A sudden, voracious wind engulfed the incoming spears, drawing them towards the all-consuming maw. In the space of a blink, every single one of them had vanished into the taskmaster's throat.

Clay blinked. He drew back a step, and the two Guardians stepped forward, a vicious satisfaction in their glowing eyes. There was a roar of flame, and he glanced over to see Olivia unleashing the Flame-Tongued Song on her opponent. Once again, the taskmaster had simply unhinged its jaw, and was swallowing the flames completely. There was only a hint of charring, which was healing even as he watched, and Clay grimaced.

Clearly, ranged attacks weren't going to work. He needed a new strategy before the other swinefolk…

He paused, realizing that the remnants of the lesser creatures weren't even starting to form up to interfere. Instead, they had completely vanished. The sounds of a distant battle, beyond the rock wall and the shattered gate. Were the [Nobles] helping? At least they weren't being useless, apparently. Clay shook his head and started the Refrain, focusing on the taskmasters. They were separating again, their chains spinning and ready to lash out at him.

Clay didn't wait for them to start this time. He darted in at the one on the right this time, leaping over a horizontal swing from the left. It lashed out at him, and he dodged to the left to avoid the spiked ball. A burst of speed had him evade a vertical strike from the left, and then he was lunging in at the taskmaster, extending his spear in a thrust.

The taskmaster's eyes glittered with fear and malice as it turned the strike aside with a doubled length of chain. Clay kept pressing it, refusing to let it backpedal out of range. He darted around to the right side of the thing, trying to put it between him and the other taskmaster. It continued to dodge and deflect; all he needed would be one opening, and he'd have it. Beyond it, he could see the second taskmaster moving to try to get a clear shot at him.

He got his chance as the Refrain finished a moment later. The spears of ice formed and shot forward almost in the same heartbeat; the taskmaster barely had enough time to open its jaw to devour them. Most of the spears shot straight down its throat. A handful actually avoided the terrible, ravenous inhalation, piercing through its shoulder and legs.

More importantly, however, the taskmaster had taken its attention off Clay directly. In that moment, Clay lunged forward and stabbed his spear deep into its left shoulder, sinking the blade in up to the crossguards. The taskmaster squealed, dropping the chain and trying to reach for him with a hand larger than his head. Clay shook off its grip and brought his hand up. He slammed it down on the spear haft, ripping the blade down and out of the taskmaster's shoulder in a spray of green blood.

The taskmaster squealed again, staggering backwards, but Clay was already spinning. He brought the spear up and around in a brutal descending strike. It caught the taskmaster in exactly the same spot, severing its arm at the shoulder.

It staggered as the limb flopped away, but even with its chain dangling uselessly in its remaining hand, its hatred remained bright. Clay's eyes widened as it lunged toward him, its jaw open and sucking in air. He barely managed to jump backwards, avoiding the fanged maw as it snapped shut a hairsbreadth from his arm.

He landed and brought his spear back up. In the next instant, he delivered three quick stabs to the wounded taskmaster's chest. The blows shoved it backwards, staggering on unsteady hooves as green blood sprayed through the air to coat the stones. It fell backwards, and Clay stepped forward to finish it.

Then he heard the rattle of chains and spun to face the second taskmaster. He barely deflected the incoming ball, turning it aside in a block that nearly knocked the spear from his hands. The second ball was already in a descending blow, and Clay was forced to dance backwards as it marched successive vertical hits along his path.

As he backed away, he glanced at Olivia, and was surprised to see her taskmaster stumbling as the earth shook beneath it. She ducked a strike, and then darted in at her opponent, chopping another wound in its side; the creature was already covered in rents that were closing as he watched. Clay grinned for a moment.

Then he realized he hadn't gotten a notice about the first taskmaster, and turned his attention to it for a moment.

It was crouched over the limb it had lost, reaching for it with one hand. Clay grimaced at the sight of the stump still pumping out green blood. Then it grabbed its own severed arm and stuffed it down its throat in a single bite.

Clay ducked another swing from the intact one, and watched as the first taskmaster's arm began to reform. A wash of reddish flame spread from the severed stump, and flesh followed. Muscle and bone reknit itself from nothing. In only heartbeats, the taskmaster flexed its restored limb and turned back to face him.

He knocked away another chain strike and began to circle them. Regeneration, an ability to consume magical attacks from a distance, and the ability to regrow severed limbs. Not the best list of things to hear about a pair of opponents.

All the same, Clay wasn't done yet. He started a new [Chant], this time the Stanza of Steam. He darted back in to start the dance of evading their attacks again. For his plan to work, he'd need to be in close enough that the thing couldn't swallow his next attack whole.

It was easier said than done. The taskmasters continued to coordinate their attacks, swinging and striking in perfect harmony. They seemed to be instinctively competent about avoiding any chance to get their chains tangled, and covered each other with each strike. Neither seemed desperate; even the one he'd wounded earlier appeared to have no fatigue at all.

Yet as Clay fought them, he grew used to their patterns. He began to anticipate the narrow pause that happened when the spiked balls made craters in the stone, and the swinefolk had to yank them free. There was another pause when they had to pull the chain back in after a direct strike as well; their strength had to fight the momentum of punching the ball out directly, and for an instant, the weapon was still.

He used every moment to push in closer. The [Chant] continued to spill from his lips as he worked his way towards the left Guardian, searching for the best opening he could find. When he reached the mirrored section of the spell, he went over it again. A double vertical strike spread cracks across the ground, and Clay moved closer, repeating the phrase again. Behind him, a strike nearly took him in the back; only a dodge based on pure reflex saved him.

Clay repeated the phrase a fourth time, then a fifth. He was three strides from the taskmaster, then two. A sixth repetition, and a seventh as he knocked one ball skyward and dodged another strike from behind. The taskmaster ahead swung hard, spun, and brought the other end around in a vertical strike.

It smashed into the ground next to Clay's foot. He stabbed his spear down through one of the links of the chain, punching the spearpoint straight into the rock; it stuck the chain fast. The taskmaster's eyes widened as Clay left his spear behind and darted in close, using the last strides to finish the last of the Stanza.

The taskmaster was still yanking at its chain when it realized how close Clay was. It recoiled, reaching out to strike at him with one rock-solid backhand. Clay blocked it and then dodged low. He brought up one hand, palm out, just as the Stanza finally completed.

A superheated lance of steam left his hand at a pressure that nearly made it a solid bar of heat and fury. Clay swept it up and through the taskmaster's body. Flesh, bone, and cloth seared away in moments. The taskmaster made one aborted squawk of agony as the steam bisected it, cutting it in two from groin to crown.

{Consuming Taskmaster slain! Soul increases by 100}

Clay spun and brought his hand back to point at the other taskmaster. It had punched another strike at him; steam met dark metal in a burst of power. The flail was thrown back in its direction, and the Guardian spun to strike at him a second time. He knocked it back as well, but the steam was already fading now. The [Chant] was done.

Still, there was only one left to deal with. The other was still slumping to the ground in two pieces behind him. Clay grinned.

Beyond the remaining taskmaster, he could see that Olivia had managed to hamstring her opponent. It was on its hands and knees, and she chopped down through one shoulder. Clay's smile grew. "Don't let it get up! They can get their limbs back!"

She spared him a frustrated glance and signed that she'd heard. Then she cut across the swinefolk's spine and belched fire into the wound.

Clay snorted. Obviously, she had her own ideas about how to finish things. He lunged forward and yanked his spear out of the ground. The taskmaster he faced was whirling its chains again, its eyes flickering with something close to fear now. If he waited too long, it might call its minions back to defend it. Better to kill it now and put an end to the whole thing.

He advanced on it, deflecting a strike that would have knocked his head from his shoulders. An instant kill was unlikely, but he could probably disable it long enough to do some real damage to its skull. It probably couldn't regenerate its head by eating itself, probably.

It recoiled a little more as he smiled, and Clay glanced back over at Olivia. Sure enough, she was delivering what looked like a third strike to the other taskmaster's head; the creature was still burning as well, and it had gone still. She straightened up, wiped a bit of green blood out of her eyes, and started over to join him. The battle was almost done.

Then an arrow slammed into Olivia's shoulder with all the force of a lightning strike.

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