by Clayton Wood
“I think we lost it,” Kyle observed.
“We need to lose that,” Kalibar countered, gesturing back at the Behemoth. Kyle twisted his head around, spotting the gigantic war machine as it stepped forward onto the three-story fence surrounding the Secula Magna, the black metal crumpling under its incredible weight. The lawn beyond buckled, the foot sinking deep into the soil as it touched down, creating a massive crevice there. As Kyle watched, the Behemoth's eye flashed once.
“Watch out!” Kyle shouted.
Kalibar dipped downward and to the left, making Kyle's stomach flip-flop. Kyle kept his eyes glued to the Behemoth, watching as its lone eye pulsed one more time.
And then it turned blue.
A tidal wave of blue light rose upward from the earth around the Behemoth, traveling upward instantly to be sucked into its eye. Light burst forth from the buildings around the machine, all condensing into blindingly bright rays that were pulled into that massive eye. Kyle looked down at his arm, saw the gaps in the mud caking his clothes start to glow blue, rays of light shooting toward the Behemoth's head. He saw Kalibar's shield waver, felt gravity take hold of them, pulling them into free fall.
“Give me your magic!” Kalibar shouted, shooting forward in stuttering bursts, then losing control of his gravity boots. Kyle responded immediately, streaming magic toward Kalibar's forehead, which – with extraordinary good fortune – happened to be wiped clean of mud. Kyle felt Kalibar gain control of their fall, slowing their descent while picking up speed forward, gaining distance from the Behemoth. Kyle saw Goran and Urson far ahead of them, trails of faint blue light shooting backward from their mud-caked bodies.
“Get to ground!” Kalibar shouted at them, descending at a steeper pace, clearly struggling to maintain control of his boots. Kyle grit his teeth, his magic continuing to drain.
“I'm running out,” Kyle warned.
Kalibar veered toward the ground, decelerating rapidly and touching down behind a small hill. A patch of grass before him tore free of the earth below, and Kalibar crouched down, creating a small waterfall to wet the dirt. He grabbed handfuls of mud and rubbed them on himself.
“Replace your mud,” he instructed. Kyle did so, covering himself with fresh mud. The blue light seeping from his body faded, the fresh mud insulating him from the Behemoth's terrible eye. Goran, Ariana, and Urson dropped through the air to land next to them, and Kalibar instructed them to cover themselves as well.
“We need to get out of here!” Goran exclaimed. Kalibar stared at the Behemoth grimly, then shook his head.
“There's no point,” he countered. “Xanos will find us wherever we go.”
“So what then?” Goran shot back. “We lay down and die?”
“No,” Kalibar answered, studying the Behemoth. “We fight.”
“What?” Goran exclaimed. “You just said we'd already lost!”
Kalibar said nothing, studying the Behemoth and the countless Void spheres dotting the landscape for a moment longer. Then he turned to Urson.
“The Void spheres sense magic,” he stated. “You should be invisible to them if you're insulated enough. If the Behemoth uses the spheres to help track us, that should make it harder for it to track you.”
“What are you talking about?” Goran pressed.
“I'm going to fight that thing,” Kalibar replied. When Goran opened his mouth to protest, Kalibar held up one hand. “I'm going to use the Void spheres against it.”
“What's your plan?” Urson asked. Kalibar turned to the High Weaver.
“The Void spheres are attracted to magic,” he explained. “If I fly near them, they'll sense my magic and come after me...which means I can lead them to that,” he added, pointing at the Behemoth.
“You'll never make it,” Urson protested. “Those spheres will drain you.”
“Not if I insulate myself,” Kalibar countered. “I can leave a part of me exposed so they'll sense me, but drain me slower.” Urson shook his head.
“That's a suicide mission,” he stated. “We need you to organize the evacuation. I'll go instead.”
“Guys!” Ariana interjected, pointing toward the Behemoth. Everyone turned, seeing the giant killing machine in the distance. Its diamond-shaped eye facing the Southwest Quarter. The eye flashed, a beam of white light shooting outward and striking another set of buildings, reducing them to molten stone.
“We need to act now,” Kalibar stated. “Urson, I make more magic than you do,” he reasoned. “I have a better chance of making it.”
“But wait,” Goran interjected, “...doesn't he make more magic than you?” he stated, pointing at Kyle.
Kyle blinked, staring at Goran, then turning to Kalibar. It was true, he realized; he made significantly more magic than Kalibar. If anyone had a chance at leading the Void spheres to the Behemoth, it was him.
“Not an option,” Kalibar stated.
“Why not?” Goran pressed. “He has a better chance of succeeding than you do.”
“It's too dangerous,” Kalibar insisted. “I won't risk my son's life over my own.”
“So you'll risk the entire Empire instead?” Goran pressed. Kyle hesitated, then cleared his throat.
“He's right,” he spoke up, turning to Kalibar. Kalibar frowned.
“Kyle...”
“I'll do it,” Kyle interrupted. Kalibar shook his head.
“I won't let you.”
“Ampir saved his family instead of the Ancient Empire,” Kyle reminded him. “And millions of people died.”
“Yes, but...”
“If I don't do this,” Kyle continued, “...then I'll be just as guilty as he was.” He stood up straight then, taking a deep breath, then letting it out. “And if you stop me, then you will be too.”
Kalibar stared at Kyle silently, his jaw dropping. Then his mouth clicked shut, and he sighed, his shoulders slumping.
“You're right,” he replied at last. Then he turned to Goran and Urson. “We should give Kyle our magic,” he stated, reaching into his pockets and pulling out the gemstones he'd gotten from the gem shop earlier. Some were still glowing faint blue, protected by the mud on Kalibar's clothes. “Take these,” he added, handing them to Kyle. “Drain them of their magic.”
“Ok,” Kyle agreed. He felt magic flow from Urson and Goran into his mind's eye; it wasn't much, but it was something. He placed the gemstones in his pockets, then reached down, scooping up more handfuls of mud and smearing it on his body, making sure he was covered completely, save for a small section of his forehead. He hesitated, then covered that too while Ariana helped cover his back.
“You'll need to expose part of yourself,” Kalibar reminded him. “Otherwise the Void spheres won't follow you.”
“They will if I use these,” Kyle countered, pulling out one of the gemstones. Kalibar glanced at the gemstone, then chuckled, shaking his head.
“Good idea,” he conceded. He reached in to give Kyle a hug, then stopped himself, clearly not wanting to mess up Kyle's mud. “You're going to make one hell of a Runic,” he murmured.
“I'll go with you,” a voice stated. Kyle turned to see Ariana standing there, her hands on her hips. She faced Kalibar defiantly. “I can sense that thing's thoughts,” she explained. “I'll be able to anticipate its next moves and protect Kyle.”
“Ariana...”
“I'm going,” Ariana interrupted, her tone final. “Kyle needs me.” She walked up beside Kyle. “Come on,” she urged.
“Cover yourself with mud first,” Kyle stated. Ariana nodded, doing so with remarkable quickness...far faster than a mere mortal could have. Then she climbed on Kyle's back. Kalibar sighed.
“Good luck,” he stated. He took a deep breath in, then let it out. “I love you both,” he added. His lower lip quivered slightly, and he turned away, facing Urson and clearing his throat. “Urson, I need you to create a diversion.”
“Tell me what to do,” Urson replied.
“After Kyle gets airborne, get the Behe
moth's attention and hold it for as long as you can,” Kalibar commanded. “Gather as many Battle Weavers as possible to mount an attack.” Urson frowned.
“An attack?”
“You'll know when to strike,” Kalibar replied. Urson hesitated, then bowed.
“Yes your Excellency.”
Kalibar turned back to Kyle, swallowing visibly. Then he nodded.
“Go.”
Kyle streamed magic to his gravity boots, flying upward, the wind tearing at his clothes. The boots' stabilization runes kicked in, pulling Ariana to his back and minimizing her weight. He accelerated forward, aiming for a cluster of Void spheres in the distance.
“Hold on,” he called out.
Accelerating quickly, he zoomed a dozen feet over the ground, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a gemstone. He held it in his palm, then flew within a few feet of one of the Void spheres, watching as blue light streaked outward from the gemstone. He passed the sphere, aiming for the next one. Ariana gave him a squeeze.
“It's following us!” she confirmed.
Kyle zoomed past a second sphere, then a third, then cut to the left toward another cluster of Void spheres in the distance.
“Slow down,” Ariana urged, giving him another squeeze. “They're falling behind!”
Kyle complied, glancing at the gemstone in his hand. The blue light streaming from it was fading fast; he thought about dropping it, but then realized that it might make the Void spheres follow it instead of him. He placed it in an empty pocket, retrieving another gemstone. Bright blue light emanated from it.
He flew forward over more Void spheres, until at least a few dozen were trailing behind him. He found that he could tell how far away they were based on how bright the light streaming from the gemstone was. At a distance of about forty feet, the spheres still followed him, but they drained the gemstone at a relatively slow pace compared to when they were closer. Still, with so many following him, the gemstone was being drained quickly. He replaced it with another.
“That's the last of them,” Ariana yelled as they zoomed over yet another Void sphere. “Watch out,” she warned. “The Behemoth sees you!”
Kyle glanced at the Behemoth, perhaps a half-mile in the distance. The monstrosity's eye was looking right at him!
“He's going to attack,” Ariana warned, giving him a squeeze. “Dodge to your left,” she added hurriedly. “He's going to sweep to our right!”
The Behemoth's eye flashed.
“Hold on!” Kyle cried.
He cut to the left, feeling the G-forces pull the blood from his head, his vision blackening. An impossibly bright beam of pure energy shot outward from the Behemoth's eye, cutting across the night sky. It missed Kyle by a few dozen feet, sweeping rightward...just as Ariana had predicted. Still, the heat of the passing beam was so intense that it burned Kyle's skin; he grit his teeth against the pain, focusing on maintaining his magic streams.
“It's going to attack again,” Ariana warned, clutching him tightly. “Stay the course,” she added.
“What?” Kyle shouted back.
“Go straight!”
Kyle swallowed, glancing at the gemstone in his hand. Its light was fading...he replaced it with another. He was already halfway through his supply...he needed to reach the Behemoth, and quickly.
The Behemoth's eye flashed again.
Kyle took a deep breath in, resisting the urge to dodge out of the way, aiming straight for the Behemoth. Another deadly beam shot outward from its eye...to Kyle's left. It swept leftward, no doubt anticipating that he was going to dodge that way again. He let his breath out, not realizing that he'd been holding it. They were only a few hundred feet from the Behemoth now.
“I'm going to circle around it,” Kyle shouted. It'd be safer to lead the Void spheres to the back of its domed head, where its deadly beam couldn't reach them.
“Watch out!” Ariana cried. “It's going to create some sort of gravity pulse!”
Then the air around the Behemoth's head exploded.
The Behemoth's eye turned away from them, its head rotating slowly. Dozens of small lights flew across the sky toward the Behemoth; Kyle blinked, realizing that the lights were coming from black-cloaked figures flying high above the campus.
Battle-Weavers!
The Battle-Weavers swooped around the Behemoth, keeping their distance from the deadly machine. Flashes of light shot from the Weavers, slamming into the Behemoth's metallic armor. Or rather, into the blue gravity shields surrounding its body like a second skin.
“Change crystals!” Ariana called out. Kyle glanced at the gemstone in his hand, realizing it was fading quickly. He grabbed another, then aimed to the left of the Behemoth's head, blasting past it. He slowed abruptly, cutting to the right, circling around its head. He felt Ariana's arms tighten around him, felt her slip down to his waist.
“Hold on!” he cried.
He continued to decelerate, stopping ten feet from the back of the Behemoth's dome-shaped head. The huge, black metal plates covering it stood before him.
“Kyle!” Ariana warned, pointing at the dozens of Void spheres flying right toward them.
Kyle grimaced, realizing that the Void spheres still hadn't absorbed enough magic to switch to their other phase. If he didn't give them more magic – and soon – his plan wouldn't work. The Behemoth was perfectly insulated, giving off no magical energy. It wouldn't activate the Void spheres by itself.
He reached into his pockets, pulling out the rest of the gemstones, holding them outward.
Cords of blue light shot outward from the gemstones, converging on the rapidly approaching Void spheres. He resisted the urge to retreat, knowing that they'd have to be as close as possible to the Behemoth's head when they activated.
Come on...
The Void spheres zoomed up to him, dozens of them surrounding him. Blue light shot outward from the gemstones, making them shine like a miniature sun.
Suddenly the rays of light began to wink out.
Kyle felt his heart leap into his throat, and he reacted instantly, pulling a cord of magic into his mind's eye, redirecting it into his boots.
“Hang on!” he shouted.
He burst away from the Behemoth's head, the air screaming past his ears, his gut dropping sickeningly with the sudden acceleration. He glanced back, seeing the Void spheres congregating around the Behemoth, hovering motionlessly behind its head.
Then they activated.
Layers of spinning gravity fields appeared around each Void sphere, a sudden gust of wind pulling Kyle back toward them. Kyle grit his teeth, focusing on his mind's eye, pulling more magic into it and streaming it to his boots. He accelerated, but much more slowly now, barely moving forward. The combined vacuums of the Void spheres were too powerful.
“Kyle!” Ariana warned, her voice rising in alarm. He realized that they'd stopped moving forward...and were starting to slide backward toward the Void spheres. He streamed even more magic to his boots, realizing that it was getting significantly harder to do so; he was running out of magic. They stopped sliding backward...but barely.
Suddenly he heard a loud screeching sound coming from behind them, and glanced back. A large metal plate from the back of the Behemoth's domed head was being pried off by the Void spheres' devastating power, exposing green crystal underneath. As Kyle watched, the plate tore off completely...and more plates began to peel off of the gargantuan machine. But he hardly had time to celebrate...they were being pulled backward again.
“Kyle!” Ariana shouted.
“I'm running out!” Kyle yelled, struggling to stream more magic to his boots. But he'd nearly run out of magic, his skull bones holding on to the magic they had greedily. They slid backward toward the Void spheres, accelerating at an alarming rate. They were only forty feet away now, and the distance between them was rapidly shrinking.
“Fragel zin morf!” Ariana cried.
Kyle blinked, then realized that the magic in his earring was depleted. Not t
hat it mattered...even if he had understood Ariana, there was nothing he could do. They accelerated backward toward the Void spheres helplessly, now only a dozen feet from the nearest rotating gravity field.
Shit!
Kyle struggled, tearing magic from the bones in his skull, but he had nothing left. He closed his eyes, clutching Ariana's hands in his own, waiting for the end.
Suddenly he felt Ariana's hand slip from his, felt her slide her hand across his forehead, flinging the mud from it. Magic burst into his mind's eye, filling it with bright cords of light. He grasped at them desperately, shoving them into his boots. They stopped sliding backward abruptly...but even with the magic coursing into him, he still didn't have enough to gain any distance from the Void spheres' deadly gravity fields.
Then, without warning, the Void spheres' gravity fields vanished!
Kyle burst away from the Behemoth's head, careening through the air at incredible speed. The blood drained from his head, stars floating at the periphery of his vision. He cried out, feeling Ariana's arms slipping from his waist. He slowed down, trying to grab her arms, but he was too late...she fell from his back, plummeting toward the ground!
“Ariana!” he screamed.
Suddenly, a dark shape flew underneath Kyle, colliding with Ariana...and plucking her out of the air! It was Kalibar, he realized.
“Go!” Kalibar shouted, gesturing for Kyle to fly away from the Void spheres. Indeed, blue rays were already starting to converge on the dozens of spheres. Bright rays shot outward from the crystalline flesh exposed on the Behemoth's domed head where the metallic plates had been pulled off. Kyle glanced down, realizing that rays were also coming from him...the mud on his body had dried and cracked, much of it having been pulled off by the Void spheres' powerful vacuum. Magic was leaking from those cracks and draining into the Void spheres.
Kyle complied, bursting away from the spheres and following Kalibar as the old man flew toward the campus ahead. They descended steadily, until Kalibar landed on the ground a few hundred feet from the Behemoth. Kyle landed beside the Grand Weaver, turning to look at Ariana. She was slumped lifelessly in Kalibar's arms, her eyes open but unseeing. Kyle remembered the burst of magic he'd gotten right before he'd fallen into the Void spheres' clutches...Ariana must have given him her own magic, depleting herself completely. She'd sacrificed herself to save him.