Or'do drew a sharp breath, recoiling as the monster advanced, churning the air with a frenzied swarm of blades; four swords that seemed to become a thousand in her swift, dexterous grasp. The air before her seemed a whirlwind of steel; a thunderous tempest that bore steadily upon him even as he retreated. She advanced slowly, either supremely confident, or merely incapable of swifter strides, yet all the same, the formidable reach of her slender swords left him capable of little more than surrendering ground, and analyzing her patterns, seeking a moment however brief when he could strike.

***

"Or'do!" I growled, slamming an iron fist against the earth. He had forgotten it seemed about the clairvoyance the new Flame lent me; or perhaps he merely did not care. The damn fool had challenged one of the Dark's last acolytes without me! I knew well that he meant not to spite nor belittle me, merely to protect me as I wished to protect him; yet all the same, frustration tightened my jaw and drove my fingers into the cracks between plates of stone as I tried without success to rise.

He did not wish to slight you, Ashen One.

"I know." I flailed about, looking to all the world like a morbidly obese fish gasping and flopping upon the shore. "But I cannot let him do this alone."

Why not? 

"Because without me, he will die." As the words crossed my lips, I knew them to be true. The Dark feared us, and while it did covet our place in the light, did indeed with furious envy gaze into the realm they were denied, they dared not challenge us both. Whether fear or respect stayed their hand, neither would protect Or'do. They had descended upon him once, testing him with their weakest, perhaps hoping to instill a deadly confidence in us by the ease with which their soldiers fell. Only stronger beasts lurked beyond that fraying veil, and without me at his side, I knew that they would abide no further delay.

***

The clash of steel on steel came ringing forth as Or'do struck back. His blade became a silvered crescent that smashed against his foe's foremost blade, jarring the Nurse out of her rhythmic stride. All the louder did metal wail as he lunged onward, his sword scouring flecks of metal and radiant sparks from hers. He whipped his blade up and to the left, jarring her once more and scoring a light gash upon her bicep, then another equally shallow slash to her calf as he surged past, pivoting on his trailing heel to face her once more.

Ponderous and mute, she advanced upon him in that slow, ominous gait, her four blades lashing out to all sides, driving him back and filling the air with roused wind's indignant howl. Over steel and beneath cloak, the displaced air crept, shivering her dark robes and accentuating her silent stillness. As if stone she had become, she stood like a monument carved in testament to days long past, her hidden eyes perhaps closed, or perhaps watching intently, eager to discern his next move.

Then, the darkness deepened and congealed, clinging to her emaciated arms, her broad all obscuring cloak, and pressing its immaterial hands tightly against Or'do's eyes. He jolted and cast about, yet she had vanished, lost among the unnatural night, vanished like a stone swallowed by benighted sea. Fled she had not, nor had she any intent to surrender: a blade raked across his side, throwing him back and igniting the darkness with the scarlet gleam of blood on steel. Again she struck, her weapon crashing into his arm where it met his shoulder, hurling him to his knees where he had not time to finish his pained exhale before all four blades were carving an X across his chest; the first pair scoring his armour, the second biting deep into his flesh. As he tipped backward into the lightless depths, a single, attenuated cry was torn from his crushed lungs, then the gregarious Or'do fell silent and motionless as the stones upon which he lay.