"Stay where you are. I will bring Ryson to you shortly," the wizard offered in a mental message that Linda could hear, but not with her ears. It was more of a distant memory that suddenly came into the forefront of conscious thought.
It was going to be alright. She knew it. Ryson had found a way to save them… to save her. Despite what she had gone through, she realized the world was not as dark as it could have been. There was hope even when none should have existed.
Back within the gray emptiness, Ryson retained his hold on the slink ghoul. He fought against every move Baannat made. Even as the ghoul would break free, it only lasted for the slimmest instant. With deliberate quickness, the delver would regain his grip and bind Baannat to his person.
Despite the struggle, he managed to take several glimpses at the glowing form he knew to be Linda. When he saw that light fade out of the shadows, relief rushed over him, but he had to be sure.
"Is she safe?" Ryson called out.
"She is," Enin replied.
"And we can still get out of here, right?"
"Of course."
If he could have exhaled a heavy sigh of relief, he would have, but his essence did not retain sufficient physical existence. Instead, Ryson released Baannat with a heavy shove and then stood ready to react to any attack the ghoul might throw at him.
The ghoul did not respond. Instead, Baannat crouched, waiting for his foes to make the next move.
"What do we do about him?" Ryson demanded. "I don't want him to ever get away with anything like this again."
Enin understood and agreed, but with the magic flowing freely through him, he gained a greater insight into their situation. He had thought Baannat had cheated death, but now he believed he saw a clearer picture. The powers of good and evil fought a constant battle. There was both a place for angels as well as demons, but the emptiness of Baannat's creation served a new purpose. The dark realm had its monsters. Uton had its heroes. The inhabitants of both realms chose their paths and met their destinies. Now there was a final home for those that chose a life of pure evil.
"That may not be up to us," Enin admitted.
"I don't like that answer," Ryson responded with gritted teeth.
"What would you have me do? Kill him? We tried that once before and it didn't work. I'm not even sure we could kill him here. He's not really alive."
Baannat snarled but otherwise remained quiet. He could sense that Enin had regained a substantial portion of his magical powers. There was little he could do.
"You can't just obliterate him?" Ryson asked.
It was not a foreign concept to the wizard. He even attempted it once before, before the war had started, but he was surprised the delver would offer it as a possible solution. He wondered if Ryson understood the significance of the request.
"I could try, but is that what you want?"
Ryson honestly considered the question. He remembered the shags he himself killed, how hundreds of them lay dead in the desert. They died at his hand. It caused him more than simple regret. It left a heavy burden of guilt within. He didn't want to kill, but the decision was forced upon him… by Baannat. The delver thought of all that Baannat had done, the terror he caused. For him, the answer was clear.
"Absolutely."
"That may be, but is it wise? Wanting something done is not the same as accepting the wisdom of a decision."
"Leaving him around isn't that smart."
Unable to disagree, Enin stepped up to Baannat and peered into the depths of the ghoul's essence. He saw the horrors of pure evil. It pained the wizard to see such inherent cruelty. Unfortunately, he saw more. The ghoul was beyond life and death. His evil soul festered into the remnants of what was left of his physical presence. The line between mortal and immortal had been blurred to a point of no return. Enin saw eternity within the core of Baannat's existence. He didn't understand how such an entity could exist, but he couldn't deny the truth of the situation.
"I'm afraid he is beyond obliteration. He is here to stay."
The thought left Ryson cold. Even in a place of nothingness, he felt the icy dread of leaving the slink ghoul capable of further havoc.
"We can't just leave him here. He'll just start it all over again."
With that said, Enin looked around at the gray shadows of nothingness. He sensed a growing connection between the emptiness and the slink ghoul. They were becoming intertwined, and Enin knew it. With that knowledge came a possible answer.
"I'm not so sure."
"You have an idea?" Ryson pressed.
"Not an idea, more of an understanding."
Baannat finally questioned the wizard.
"An understanding of what?" the ghoul hissed with a mocking disgust.
"Something you might not yet see yourself, but you will."
"And what is that?" Baannat demanded with a sneer.
"This place that you have carved out for yourself…it is becoming a part of you… and you a part of it. In essence, you have chained yourself to this emptiness."
"Is that supposed to concern me, brother?"
Enin would not accept that title, certainly not any more.
"I never have been, and never will be your brother. Even you will eventually admit that. You used to talk of the similarities between us. They will all end when I leave here. You, however, will not be so lucky."
"You think I'm trapped here? Then go ahead and leave. I will see you again soon."
Ryson didn't quite understand what Enin was saying, and he pointed out his own assumptions.
"He's right. This isn't a prison. He was able to leave before. He showed up in Uton disguised as Lief. He was in the cave in the dark realm."
"And he still can penetrate the outer worlds," Enin confirmed, but then he quickly offered a shred of hope, "but there are limits. This plane was created when you destroyed the vessel he made to capture his evil magic. He dwells in it as a sanctuary from true existence, but he is also now bound to it. He can never exit this place completely. He is, in fact, chained to this place forever. When he reaches beyond, he can influence, but he can't directly assault. It may not be the perfect prison, but it will be sufficient."
"How can you say that? He took my sword away from me in the cave."
"He used magic on a magical artifact. That was all. Did he cast any spell of power against you? Did he cause you any direct harm?"
"He did in here. He tried to fry me with his magic."
"That was here. I'm talking about limits on what he can do outside this realm."
"He was able to send an army of dark creatures into Uton. They captured Linda and threw her in here. He ordered them to attack the algors. He'll do it again."
"No he won't"
Without explaining further, Enin released more of his magical power. White energy crackled about him and then poured out of the shadow portal.
"What did you do?" Ryson asked.
"I altered the portal that links the dark realm to our home. He used that portal to send his minions against us. I will not allow it to be used in such a way again."
"You lie!" Baannat screamed. "You have no power over that portal. It is mine now."
"Not anymore. I made the mistake of creating a rift in the echo of Heteera's incomplete portal. You were able to usurp that portal since you stood in a realm of nonexistence, but I stand here as well. I now have infinitely more power than you, and I reclaimed the spell and removed its flaws within reality. The portal is still open, but it is fully under my command, not yours. It no longer moves in and out of existence. We shall use it to leave this place, and then I shall close it for good."