“This can't be it,” Racer said, looking ahead at the small island the team was approaching.
“If it's not this island then where could the right island possibly be? We have been travelling north for about an hour now, just like the explorer did,” Zupher replied.
The team docked on the island and walked towards the temple ruins. The closer the team got towards the ruins, the more sceptical Racer got.
“Look at the size of it. Are you telling me that a powerful stone is kept in bust-up ruins like this?”
“We still ought to investigate a little further,” Zupher replied, feeling a little annoyed.
“Stop guys!” Freya shouted.
Everyone abruptly halted.
“Can you guys see it? There is a green energy field a few metres ahead of us.”
Earl closed his eyes and opened them soon after.
“Ah yes, impressive. I must say, Freya, your clairvoyant vision has always been acute.”
Freya placed her hand on the energy field.
“It appears to respond to the aura of an individual. It will repel you if your aura is too low for its minimum requisite. You basically have to be 'worthy' of entering the temple grounds.”
Freya walked through.
“Come through guys, I'm sure we'll all be able to pass.”
The rest of the mages walked through with ease, with the exception of Oriel having a light struggle.
The team then proceeded to walk further towards the temple ruins.
The pillars and stones of the exterior temple were nearly all fragmented. The only part of the temple that was still fairly intact was its main entrance.
“That appears to be the only way in. Let's go see what awaits,” Freya said, looking onwards to the temple entrance. The team walked in the ancient temple ruins and found themselves in a large circular room. There were no other passages or doors in the room, aside from the opening they used to enter. Throughout the circumference of the room, there were ten perfectly aligned sarcophagi.
“Can you guys feel it? The energy here is potent, piercing. The stone is clearly not in this room, however, it’s definitely on the island. I wonder where exactly.”
Earl had been staring at a magical seal that was imprinted in the centre of the room.
“Earl, can you identify that sigil?” Racer asked.
“Aye, I'll have to have a look in my sigil book.”
Zupher walked over to one of the ebony sarcophagi and analysed its silver carvings.
“Hey Muriel, come check this out.”
Muriel came by.
“What is it?”
“I somehow feel that this place is familiar.”
“I know hey, the energy here is so mysterious, so clear.”
“What do you think is in the sarcophagus?”
“Who knows, it’s pretty solid, one can't really open it. Maybe it’s just here for decorative purposes?”
Earl called the rest of the team over.
“I have identified the sigil. It is an archaic sealing sigil.”
“Are you able to break it?” Racer asked
“Yes, but there's no telling what will happen once its broken.”
“Well, we need to progress further into these ruins, and by the look of it, this seal is the primary cause of prevention. We didn't come all this way just to turn back because our fear of the unknown domineered us. We are seven mages of the Arcane Society!”
“All right, I'll get on it.”
Earl read the incantation to break the seal. As soon as he finished, a mighty explosion followed and a rush of white energy poured out that flew into the sarcophagi. Moments later the top half of all ten sarcophagi burst open. Ten corpses stood up, with the white energy flowing through them. Eight of them were wielding iron swords and the final two, one from each side, held short staffs. One of the corpses with a staff pointed it straight in the direction of Oriel. Seconds later, a rush of white energy flew towards him. Unable to dodge the projectile on reaction, he was hit and instantly paralysed. A corpse that had awoken adjacent to Oriel's position then drove its sword straight across his neck, beheading him.
“Oriel!” Freya screamed.
The eight sword wielding corpses then rushed on to attack the remaining team. The two corpses with staves, remained close to the edge of the room. A corpse approached Muriel and swung its sword right at her neck. Muriel was able to duck the slow swing of the sword and slashed at it with both her knives from the head, down to the groin. Another corpse came rushing at Earl pointing its sword towards him. Earl casually stepped aside and revealed a destruction fairy. With a wave of its wand, the fairy incinerated the corpse, leaving it in a pile of ash. Bellona and Freya vaporised three more zombies by dual casting a lightning field. Two corpses came at Racer, from the left and right. He turned his back and reached into his pocket. The two corpses then launched themselves at Racer, sword bound. But with a flick of his wrist, Racer impaled the two corpses with throwing knives.
The last sword-wielding corpse viciously swung at Zupher. It kept on pressing him back until he found himself backed up against a wall. Just before the corpse could execute Zupher, Racer slashed straight through its torso, cutting it in half.
“Remember you have that knife lad! Don't be afraid to use it.”
The team regrouped at the centre of the room and looked at the two remaining corpses.
“Now let’s avenge Oriel! Be careful with their staff attacks. Try to create wards for one another in support if possible!”
The remaining two corpses both held their staffs in the air. White energy soon after started radiating from the tips. The points where each of the ten corpses were slain then started to radiate the same energy, and moments later, energy bodies in the shape of the fallen corpses appeared.
“What is the meaning of this?” Racer asked.
Earl nervously replied, “Seems like astral corpses. I have heard of necromancers performing sorcery like this, but not to this degree.”
“Have at them!” Bellona yelled.
Freya and Bellona shot a fireball each at two of the astral corpses. On impact the blast was nullified and absorbed.
“They're immune to our spells!”
“Earl, can’t you banish them?”
“My grimoire doesn't deal with astral corpses. We're going to have to destroy the two zombies with staves.”
Racer ran towards the staved corpses but was blocked in his tracks by an astral corpse. He then lashed out at it with his knife, only for it to pass straight through. The astral corpse then attacked and Racer barely dodged the swing of its sword and crept back to the others.
Bellona, Freya and Earl then ran in from different angles and shot ranged spells towards the corpses with staves, but the astral corpses quickly blocked the attacks.
“Zupher, use the invisibility potion!” Racer said.
Zupher reached into his pocket and picked out one of the tiny potion bottles Muriel had given him earlier. He closed his eyes, and in one gulp, downed all the potion.
Zupher opened his eyes, and looked at his hands. Nothing. He was completely invisible.
Zupher then snuck as quietly as he could through a gap in between the astral corpses and walked up to one of the staff-wielding corpses from behind. He then drove his razor straight through, where the corpse’s heart would have been. The corpse exploded along with half of the astral corpses. Once its staff hit the ground, the energy from it returned to the centre of the room.
The second staff-wielding corpse and the remaining astral corpses immediately diverted to their attention to Zupher's area. The second staff-wielding corpse then directed its staff and shot out a wave of energy. Zupher leapt to the side and somersaulted, barely evading the attack. The corpse then continuously shot waves of energy from its staff in an attempt to locate Zupher. Overwhelmed with the power of the corpse’s staff, Zupher was eventually hit, and his invisibility enchantment nullified. The staff-wielding corpse then let out a roar and raised
its staff into the air and started vigorously charging it. Just as it was about to release, its head came crashing to the ground. It exploded just like the first, and then all the white energy in the room returned to the centre.
“You managed to kill one of them and create a good enough distraction to let us kill the other. Well done lad,” Racer said, giving Zupher a pat on the back.
“Look at the centre guys!” Earl said.
The centre of the room, where the sealing sigil had once been, was now a portal, formed by the same energy that woke up the corpses.”
“It appears that those corpses were guarding whatever lies beyond this portal.”
“The power that woke them up is like no other I have ever seen. Could it be the stone's power?” Freya asked.
“By the looks of it, yes,” Earl replied.
The team then gathered around the circumference of the portal.
“One of our mages has fallen. Let this mission now be in honour of Oriel.”
“Aye,” Zupher and the rest of the mages said.
“The unknown now awaits us brothers and sisters,” Racer said, looking down into the void of the portal.
“On my count let’s jump. One, two, three!”
Chapter 30
The Stone of Elsira
Zupher emerged from the portal and slid down a transparent tube. The tube was underwater and led further into the depths of the ocean. Once Zupher reached the end of the tube, he had a look at his surroundings. He was in a large stone-like corridor, filled with glyphs and a script from the inhabitants of the temple. He only saw Muriel by his side.
“Where do you think the others are?”
“No idea. Maybe the portal transported us to different parts of the inner sanctum.”
“We better move onwards, and see if we can find the others.”
Zupher and Muriel walked onwards towards the end of the corridor. After a few minutes of searching, they figured that they were deadlocked.
“There's got to be a way to proceed further,” Muriel said.
“I don't see anything but solid stone. No openings.”
“Wait, look ahead, right at the end of the corridor. Isn't that the same sigil we saw on the floor of the temple’s entrance room?”
Zupher and Muriel walked up to the sigil.
“Yeah, it looks identical. But we don't know the spell to break it. I guess we're done for then,” Zupher said, feeling a strike of anxiety.
“Wait, hold on.”
Muriel knocked on the stone on which the sigil was printed.
“It's hollow.”
Muriel pressed on the sigil. The piece of stone on which it was imprinted then shifted into the stone.
A small opening, the size of an average door then appeared to their right.
“Let's go.”
Zupher and Muriel walked through the doorway and found themselves in a room filled with gemstones. The moment they both passed the door fully to enter the room, the door behind them closed. A concentration of gemstones directly ahead of them then began to vibrate.
“Keep your guard up,” Muriel said. “God knows what could pop out of that.”
A beam of light shot up, and a figure started to slowly fade before them. Zupher and Muriel stood dead still in awe at the sight they beheld – a levitating humanoid fox with glowing eyes of pure light.
“Behold a riddle you must perceive. Three chances you shall receive. Three times wrong and death shall await. Answer right and your path shall insinuate. What is both benevolent and malevolent, revealing and concealing, soothing and disturbing, internal and external?”
Zupher rubbed his chin and then looked over at Muriel.
“Anything come to mind?”
“Yes.”
Muriel turned over to the fox.
“Consciousness.”
“Incorrect.” After speaking, the fox’s eyes started to glow brighter.
“Water,” Zupher said.
“Incorrect.” The fox’s eyes then glowed so bright to the point that it was difficult to focus on it.
“Last chance.”
Muriel squinted her eyes in the sight of the fox.
“I think I now know. Light!”
Moments after Muriel answered, the fox started to spiral into the air. Beams of energy radiated from its spiral that formed another portal.
“After you,” Zupher said.
Muriel winked and passed through the portal, Zupher soon followed.
Upon exiting the portal, Zupher and Muriel found themselves in a diamond-shaped room. Next to them were the rest of the mages in the team. An altar was at the end of the room, decorated with a silky tyrian purple cloth, diamonds and symbols. On top of the altar and the obvious centrepiece was the stone that the team had sought.
“Let’s approach with caution; I have a feeling that we have passed the trials, however, one cannot be too certain,” Racer said.
The team slowly approached the altar, and upon reaching it, the team decided that Freya should be the one who picks the stone. Freya walked up a few stairs to reach the top of the altar and gradually reached out her hand to grasp the ebony-coloured magical stone. The moment her fingers touched the surface of the stone, Freya's aura shot up.
“This is incredible, this stone has boundless power.”
Within a moment Freya appeared right before the rest of the mages. Her eyes were radiating pure white light and her entire body glowed and emitted a static energy field.
“We can use the power of this stone to get right back to the sanctuary, at this very moment.”
“No way, it can't be that powerful, surely?” Earl asked, bewildered.
“You'll see.”
Freya reached out her right hand to Muriel and her left hand to Zupher.
“Grab my hands guys, let us create a circle link.”
Each mage in the team then joined hands in a circle. Five seconds after the establishment of the circle, and with a mighty flash of light, the team was back at the sanctuary of the Arcane Society.
Chapter 31
Xenos
Moments after the team’s arrival, Archmage Aegeus and Xenos appeared from their quarters.
“We can sense a power like no other. It could only be the stone.”
“Right you are,” Freya said.
Freya walked up to the Archmage and handed the stone over to him.
“This stone is truly an object of immense power. We are going to keep it in the hand of Archmage Sheridan's statue. This will serve as a gesture of respect to the peoples of the ancient temple, who were able to preserve this object of reverence for thousands of years. It will also serve as a preservation of our pride, for such a stone in anyone’s hands could result in diabolical evil. Lastly, it will serve as a means of preservation for the wellbeing of life as a whole, to keep it away from foul creatures such as Lord Auberon. I am going to meditate on the stone so that we can maybe learn means that are safe and honourable to harness its power and potential. It shall be forbidden in the highest degree for any mage to use its power solo.”
The rest of the mages bowed down in acknowledgement of the Archmage's words.
“I see that Oriel did not return. What happened to him?” the Archmage asked.
“He was killed by guardians of the temple. We were unable to save him,” Racer replied.
“How sad, he could’ve achieved great things. His participation and ultimate sacrifice in this mission will be honoured henceforth.”
The rest of the mages clapped. Archmage Aegeus then levitated up to the statue and sealed the stone against its hand. He then wove the rest of the mages off and moved towards Zupher.
“Now that we have this stone, we ought to learn and study it. I require a medium that will help me to better understand its power. Bark from the Aurea Elderwood Tree. I know that you are familiar with the location and the tree itself, so I ask of you to fetch some. Is that alright son?”
“Yes sure thing Archmage. Could I ask, is it possible by
any chance to take Muriel along with me? She is from the village where the tree is found.”
“I sense a great bond and love that emanate between you two. Love is a great force; the primordial force of the universe itself. I do wish for you to be in each other’s presence for as many relevant tasks as possible, for together your love shall do wonders for both of you in your pursuits and evolution in the Arcane. However, for the time being, Dahlia is in dire need of training, and Muriel is the only person in the Arcane Society who can train her accordingly. Your task is fairly straightforward, so you really don't need a partner.”
“I understand Archmage,” Zupher said.
Zupher left the Archmage and went to Muriel, who was sitting alone in the lounge.
“The Archmage has sent me on a task to go and collect some bark from the Aurea Elderwood Tree. I asked if you could tag along but he insisted that you remain here and train Dahlia.”
Muriel let off a gentle smile at Zupher.
“No worries, you shouldn't be too long, plus I actually like working with Dahlia, she is like a little sister to me.”
Zupher smiled and gave Muriel a short hug.
“You know, I reckon that we should have a means of communicating with each other over long distances. Just in case anything happens on either of our sides, we can easily contact each other. I asked Fae about this prior to our latest mission, and she gave me these two enchanted rings today. Wear this, and we will be able to communicate with each other no matter how far apart we may be physically.”
Zupher handed over the ring to Muriel and she put it on.
“How does it work?”
Press and hold the jewel in the centre of the ring and then speak out what you wish me to hear.”
“Okay great, that sounds simple enough.”
“Yeah and while I'm gone, please keep an eye out for Xenos, he is not to be trusted, as you know.”
“Most definitely,” Muriel smiled.
Zupher then gave Muriel a peck on the cheek and headed off to the Aurea Elderwood Tree.
Later that night, Muriel opened the foyer hallway door after hours of training with Dahlia. There was no one else in the foyer or in any of the training rooms, and Muriel was exhausted, eager to get some rest. A noise suddenly caught her attention. Someone had entered the foyer from the opposite end. Muriel looked back and noticed that Archmage Aegeus and Xenos were walking towards the central statue. Muriel quickly dashed behind one of the pianos, interested to see what their sudden presence entailed.
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