MLII C5, P8- "You Should Have Known"

"You Should Have Known" is the eighth Part of "Miracula Luxia II" 's fifth Chapter. It was released on 11.04.2021.
== Plot ==
Jared finally comes face to face with Ess-Kalyn, the Manburner within her domain. His plan to defeat her is set into motion and there is no going back anymore.
Unfortunately, even though she is cornered and unable to make a comeback, Ess-Kalyn is still a sore loser. In a desperate attempt to finish what she started, the cruel leader takes over the minds of Jared's dearest friends- John and Annie and forces them to fight him.
Jared is unable to defeat his own friends in battle. The situation gets more and more dire with each passing second. Our hero slowly loses confidence. HIs friends' attacks weaken him.
Everything seems to be over...
Until a new ally joins the battle and turns the tables for good.
== Story ==
John and Annie draw their weapons. Surprisingly, they obey Ess-Kalyn's command without hesitation. 
It seems like her control them is absolute. There are no flaws that Jared can take advantage of, no ways to get past them without a fight.
The only way Jared will be able to stop Ess-Kalyn... is by fighting his dearest friends.
He leaps away just in time to avoid John's attempt to kill him and witness his weapon getting stuck in the stone floor.
Instead of wasting time to pull it out, he leaps to his feet, draws a small dagger and swings it towards Jared.
Meanwhile, a possessed Annie sneaks behind Jared and prevents him from backing away.
Unable to avoid this fight, Jared is forced to draw his weapon and defend himself from his possessed friends.
However, instead of trying to stab them, he does his best not to cause any harm and simply pushes them away from him.
He watches in horror as they continue to get up after each attempt to be driven away. His muscles get weaker and weaker.
Soon, he is unable to handle the pressure that he is forced to endure. He falls to his knees, dropping his weapon in the process.
Ess-Kalyn approaches Jared, pats John and Annie on the shoulders and picks up Demonslayer.
She looks at Jared and grins.
"So, this is the mighty Jared Kaos that I've heard of."- She says- "Always ready to fight evil, but too afraid to fight his own allies if it means that he will succeed. How unfortunate."
Jared shakes his head.
"Why? Why do they have to be involved in our confrontation?!"- He yells- "They are good people. They would never hurt their own friends. And what did you do? You broke them! Broke them!"
He grabs John's dagger and points it at Ess-Kalyn.
"Die, you monster!"- He yells and throws it at her.
She takes a step to the left, narrowly avoiding the flying dagger and watches as it hits a nearby wall.
"Foolish. So foolish."- She says and shakes her head- "Even though it is cornered, even though it has no chance for salvation, the prey always tries to fight back. It always tries to prevent the inevitable from happening, to save itself and its companions."
She sighs.
"I would love to kill you personally, kid."- She continues- "But I've got work to do. My minions will finish you off and there's no escape."
She walks back to the altar. For a few seconds, she watches Jared struggle against his possessed friends.
"Amusing. Seeing one of the world's greatest heroes trying to save his friends from the inevitable is such an entertainment for me."- She says to herself- "It's a shame that this struggle will end soon."
Jared takes another step back, away from his friends. He shakily aims his bow at them.
"St-stay away!"- He stutters- "Stay away, my friends! I beg you! Please, listen to me!"
There is no sign of rebellious thoughts within Ess-Kalyn's henchmen. It is as if both John and Annie had their thoughts wiped out before being possessed.
Meanwhile, Ess-Kalyn holds Demonslayer for a few seconds. Then, she places it on the altar and laughs.
"Excellent!"- She exclaims- "Demonslayer contains the energy of many souls- former heroes who manifest it and give it the strength that makes it so unique and powerful!"
She grins.
"This is the perfect tool for the final phase of my master plan!"
She grabs a hammer from nearby and slams it into Demonslayer, trying to break it into pieces.
Unfortunately for her, the blow does no damage to the surface of the blade. Not even a scratch is left behind.
Jared smiles.
"Good luck trying to destroy Demonslayer!"- He says- "It is very durable, forged by the finest smiths in Avernum! You will not succeed, mark my words!"
Ess-Kalyn slams the hammer into the blade once more. And then again. And again.
Infuriated, she slams the altar with her fist and grabs Demonslayer.
"Oh, I will show you!"- She growls and tries to break it with her bare hands.
A thin crack appears on the left side of the blade.
Jared realizes that Ess-Kalyn is succeeding. He aims his bow at her and tries to shoot her down, but both of his friends stand in the way, protecting their master.
Ess-Kalyn laughs.
"Yes! Yes! It's working!"- She yells- "It is working!"
Just as she is about to break Demonslayer into pieces, something unexpected happens.
First, a nearby window breaks. Second, a person climbs up and steps out of it. 
Before Ess-Kalyn can turn around, he picks up a chunk of broken ceiling and throws it towards her head, hitting her and forcing her to fall on her knees.
Then, he pulls out his weapon and stabs her in the back, making sure that she cannot do anything else.
Seeing that Jared is in danger, he rushes to his aid and tries to kill John and Annie.
"No! Do not kill them, please!"- Jared yells.
The stranger stops for a second and decides to simply get them out of the way. He pushes Annie to the ground and punches John in the face, disorienting him.
Once the deed is done, he helps Jared stand up and regain his senses.
"Are you okay, kid?"- The stranger says to him- "Your grandpa said that you're in danger, so I came to help you."
Jared takes a closer look at him and gasps.
The person who saved his life is Allister- the old warrior who tried to kill his grandfather. The one whom our hero saved not long ago!
"Mr. Allister!"- He says- "Thank you so much!"
Allister smiles.
"No need to thank me, kiddo."- He says- "Now go. Kill this lizard before she can get back up!"
Jared nods and points his bow at Ess-Kalyn. Before he can shoot her, he is tackled by a possessed John who has managed to recover his sword.
John points his sword towards Jared's chest and tries to stab his best friend. 
However, something stops him in the last second. A thought that tells him to step back.
"No."- He says as he pulls the weapon away from Jared- "I'm not going to hurt my friend! I'm not!"
Seeing that his friend is finally regaining control of his own body, Jared tries to speak with him.
"John, please! Fight back!"- He yells- "Do not let her stir you away from the right path! Do not let the darkness overwhelm your emotions!"
"I believe in you, John!"
Jared's words manage to break the spell that is possessing John. He stands up, draws his weapon and points it at Ess-Kalyn just as she stands up.
"I will not let you mess with my mind!"- He declares without a doubt and charges- "Die, you fiend!"
He swings his blade at her and manages to slice her abdomen in the process.
As she takes a step back and tries to recover, she hurls a fireball at him, but it misses.
John continues to attack her, not giving her a chance to fight back. He is doing his best to kill her.
"I promised myself that I will get rid of you before Jared is forced to arrive!"- He yells- "And I'm planning to keep that promise! Nothing will stop me from helping my friends! Nothing!"
It seems like John has the upper hand. However, this soon changes when Ess-Kalyn grabs him by the throat and shocks him with a bolt of lightning.
John stumbles back. Completely disoriented, he falls to the ground, unconscious.
Jared is horrified. Seeing his best friend hit by a deadly spell reminds him of the nightmare that he saw before he fought the Darkside Loyalists. The time when all of his friends died because of the mistakes that he made.
Once again, he sees all of them around him. The corpses of all of his friends, killed by those whom he failed to defeat.
"This dream... "- He says to himself- "No! I cannot allow this! I will not allow this!"
Instead of shooting an arrow at Ess-Kalyn, he grabs the bow and uses it as a sword.
"Leave them alone, Manburner!"- He screams and charges.
Ess-Kalyn tries to cast another spell, but is interrupted by Jared who slams his into her head as hard as he can.
Once she is on her knees, he slams the weapon into her head once more, sending her flying into a nearby wall.
Ess-Kalyn manages to stand back up, but with a lot of difficulty.
"Impressive. Seems like you aren't going to give up that easily."- She mutters, trying to cast a spell with one hand and holding her wounded head with the other- "Your father trained you well."
Jared shakes his head.
"It does not matter who trained me or why."- He says- "Now, I am here. I am the menace that you must take care of before making your unholy plan happen."
He takes Demonslayer from the altar and points it at her."
"And I will... destroy you!"- He proclaims, taking a step further.
Meanwhile, Annie manages to break free from Ess-Kalyn's control and falls to her knees. Allister rushes to her aid.
"Ugh. My head."- She mutters and looks at the old man- "What happened? Where am I?"
Allister sighs.
"You were possessed by an evil mage."- He says- "Believe me, it has been a traumatic experience for all of us."
Annie's eyes begin to focus. She takes a good look at Allister.
"You... you're not Jared."- She mutters- "Who are you, sir?"
Allister smiles.
"It doesn't matter, young lady. Not right now."- He responds- "For now, we need to get elsewhere. A war is raging and we need to stay safe."
Annie gasps.
"Wait! I remember now!"- She exclaims, stands up and looks around frantically- "John? Where's John? Where is my friend?!"
Allister points at John, who is still unconscious.
"Your friend is here."- He says- "Wounded, but still alive.'
Annie sighs. She takes a closer look at him and gasps again.
"Who... who did this to him?"- She asks- "Who harmed John?"
Allister points at Ess-Kalyn.
"It was her."- He responds- "She brainwashed both of you and forced you to fight Jared. Your friend broke free earlier than you did and tried to kill his master, but fell unconscious after she struck him with lightning."
Annie is horrified, both by the fact that John was wounded by Ess-Kalyn and that she was forced to face her dearest friend in battle.
"I'll kill you, you monster!"- She yells, grabs her sword and charges at Ess-Kalyn.
Jared notices her as she gets closer.
"Annie, no!"- He says- "Stay back! I will take care of her!"
Annie ignores her friend's pleas. She swings her blade at Ess-Kalyn, only to be thrown back by the raw magic that she uses against her.
Ess-Kalyn grins.
"Even your friends are like you, foolish until the bitter end."- She says- "You're all digging your own graves right now!"
Allister watches sadly as Annie gets back up. She tries to attack Ess-Kalyn once again, only to be stopped by the old warrior who takes her away from the battle.
"Let me go!"- Annie yells- "I want to help him!"
Allister shakes his head.
"You heard him right. He's got the situation under control."- He says- "Let's give him the chance to be a hero."
He grabs an unconscious John by the shoulder and looks at Jared.
"Hey kid!"- He says- "This battle is too dangerous for them! I'm going to take them to safety!"
Jared nods.
"Yes! Go ahead!"- He responds- "Do not let them join me! It is too dangerous!"
Allister nods and takes Annie and John away from the commotion.
The three of them descend to the second floor and notice that one of the stairways has been cleared of rubble.
"This is your chance, children!"- He says- "Run!"
Annie is surprised by Allister's words.
"What about you, sir?"- She asks him, concerned.
Allister smiles and draws his weapon.
"Don't worry about me."- He responds- "I'm going to go upstairs and help your friend survive."
Annie shakes her head. Tears start to fall from her eyes.
"No! I don't want to abandon him!"- She says- "I want to be by his side, even if it means that it will be the end for me!"
Allister places his hand on Annie's shoulder and smiles again.
"Look. I know how much he means to you and how much you mean to him. Back there, he did not send you away without calculating the consequences of his actions. He sent you away, because he loves you."
Annie blushes.
"He... he loves me?"
Allister nods.
"Now, go!"- He says- "Don't let the boy's sacrifice be in vain! Save yourselves while you still can!"
Regretfully, Annie runs down the stairway while helping an unconscious John.
Meanwhile, Allister climbs the stairs and approaches the room where Jared and Ess-Kalyn are fighting.
"Here I am, kiddo."- He mutters- "I'm not going to let you fight this fiend alone."
Just as he enters the room, he notices Jared get thrown into a wall.
Ess-Kalyn's eyes glow fiery red. Both palms of her hands are enveloped in crimson flames. Her muscles are pulsating and glowing.
"You."- Allister mutters- "You're not the Manburner. Who are you?"
Ess-Kalyn turns to him and grins.
"I."- She says- "Am your worst nightmare!"
== Trivia ==
* The last sentence of this Part (Spoken by Ess-Kalyn, the Manburner) is a reference to the lyrics of a song by "Fall Out Boy" that is known as "Novocaine" ("I am your worst/I am your worst nightmare")