Transcendence?

by Andur

  “We are soon there. Just watch the sky.”

  I turn to the captain. “We attack as soon as we get in comfortable firing range. No need to hold anything back. Sarn is just half a day away with the ships. Even if we temporarily lose the col, we can return with our ships before they reach any important places. The Col hasn't the same meaning for us as for them.”

  Everyone nods while I walk outside again. A look over the railing confirms that we finally circled around the mountain. It's a pain in the ass to fly so deep. But I don't want to risk my ships before they got some necessary improvements.

  Despite their ability to fly, they are still very roughly built. I am afraid that the strong winds higher up could damage the ships. Another point is that wind travels in different directions at different heights. We would fly slower if we climbed higher, because the wind would be against us.

  Then the col comes into view. And the enemy army at the foot of the mountain. They are attempting to overrun the col, like Den said.

  There are about forty to fifty thousand people down there. I see the banners of Mislow and the Inquisition. They are really bent on taking away what's mine.

  I watch the pass-road being bombarded by railguns. But the foot soldiers of Mislow keep going. They climb up the mountain like ants, ignoring fallen comrades without any hint of stopping.

  Either they have a resolve like steel, or they are being manipulated by their own people. I guess it's mind magic. It's not necessary to manipulate the enemy in order to influence a battle decisively. You can also manipulate your own troops, making them believe that they are unbeatable, or that their own death is a reasonable price to pay.

  My fleet finally takes position over the enemy army. Red flowers start to bloom under us as the ships begin to unload mana bombs without holding back.

  Each hit deals a decisive blow, costing hundreds of lifes. The tightly packed army camp at the foot of the mountain is the perfect target. Unlike the naval ships, the Army can't deploy barriers which are big enough to negate the damage.

  A ship covers a relatively small area compared to columns and columns of soldiers. They may be able to shield small areas, but they loose their foot soldiers by the hundreds in return. Another big point is that bombarding their camp will destroy their supplies.

  And once such a big army loses access to food and water, the battle is essentially over.

  I watch as the defenders of the Southern Col start to use their close range equipment and my gatling-guns join the fray. I devised them as the final defence of my mountains. The guns are dug deep into the rock faces and have a nice view on the pass-roads.

  Den has to be running very low on ammunition for his railguns. Otherwise he wouldn't give away the well hidden positions of the gatling-guns.

  The enemy finally takes notice of us and attack magic starts to fly our way. Fireballs, ice shards and a few thunderbolts. Fortunately we are a little too high for them to reach us. Unlike the nation of Mist, Mislow doesn't have my sight orbs.

  We don't even have to aim properly for the other side. Just shooting down into the general area is enough.

  Then my flagship rocks without warning and I am thrown to the deck. It didn't feel like we were hit! Something else must have gone wrong! I jump to my feet and run into the bridge, where I find the captain screaming at two technicians.

  “What happened?”

  One of the technicians faces me. “Something went wrong with our mana core. It is collecting more power than it can handle! One of the buffers blew up!”

  I am out of the bridge and running to the engine room before the technician is done talking. I designed the buffers extremely robust. They can't blow up from one moment to the next!

  In the engine room, I find seven people trying to stabilize the mana core. A short glance at the engine gives me the full picture of the catastrophe. Not just any buffer blew up, it was the central one, directly under the core. A miracle that the core wasn't damaged. The core pulses and vibrates ominously. A fatal failure is at hand if nothing is done.

  “Get out, abandon the ship. You can't stabilize this thing without the central buffer.” I shove one technician away from the central console and place my hands on the magical circuitry. It's impossible to keep the control long enough with this crude mechanism.

  I release my mana into the circuits and take control while concentrating on stabilizing the core at least long enough to retreat.

  “But the ship!” A technician calls out.

  “Run now. We'll build a new one. Take the parachutes and tell the other ships to pick you up before you hit the ground. There are some unfriendly guys down there.” I close my eyes and concentrate on the flow of mana inside the core.

  “It should be no problem for me to stabilize it long enough to get the rest of the crew from board. Then I can jump off the ship myself with a levitation spell.”

  Slowly the technicians start to retreat and I can finally concentrate on the core. The damn thing is bucking and vibrating like a wild animal.

  I start to search for the problem because I can't imagine that the loss of a buffer is the sole cause for the failure. The technician from earlier was right. The core is really gathering more mana than it should be possible.

  It's practically being overloaded with power! I try to dissipate some of the mana into the surroundings, but it doesn't help. So much raw mana! Where is this coming from? It's almost the same as with the small core back then, when we attacked the fleet from the Nation of Mist.

  Something … Someone is interfering! Is it that hidden power which the Immortal Empress was talking about? How can they transfer so much mana into my core!? It would take dozens of magicians to accomplish such a feat!

  The ship rocks again and I feel weightless! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Did the circuitry for the levitation spell melt down? This is a really shitty situation.

  I place my feet on the console and push myself off towards the core. If I am going to die, I will at least solve this mystery.

  My hands touch the glass and I fuse my soul with the stored up power inside the crystal. Without further ado, I activate my clairvoyance spell from the orb of sight and power it with the mana from the core. I follow the flow of power with my mind to a far away place.

  There is a big table with four people in frilly clothes around it. I immediately notice the long ears. All of them emit an aura of power and self-confidence, like untouchable kings … or gods? On the table is a big map of the world. Two of them are women and two are men. One of the guys is holding an orb similar to mine.

  The two women are beauties, one has brunette hair and the other is small and almost childlike with red hair. The guys look athletic and both are blonde, while the one who is holding the orb is definitely older.

  He looks astounded at it, while the other three have worried faces. I realize that he is the one who is transferring all the power with the orb as a focus point!

  I gather all my power and concentrate on the orb. With and act of pure will, I force the orb apart and it splits within the hands of the old guy. I might as well use the chance to play with them, as long as I am on the longer end.

  “I SSEEE YOU!!!”

  The air vibrates all around them and they look up with shocked expressions. Then my mind is torn back to the engine room, as the connection between the orb and my core fades away.

  I am still weightless, still falling while hugging the core. “Hahahahahahaha.” A crazy laugh escapes my lips while I turn all the core's power into a single point. I might as well take the whole enemy army with me by creating the ultimate explosion.

  This will also answer my question of what happens if you compress mana to its utmost density. I always speculated that it would result in a huge explosion, so I never tried it. A small part of me still fears death and so I erect a barrier and pour all my power into it.

  All that's left to do is to wait for the impact, for death, for the next life.

  Sorry, Sera. I couldn't come back like you
wanted. I will miss teaching the little critter about my devices …

  54 - One shall stand alone.

  Norfolk, Sarn-Valley, Southern Col

  Ascathon

  “That one is dead too!”

  “This one is alive!”

  “Kill him!”

  “Aaaaah!”

  “Get all of those heretics!”

  “...”

  Ow... shut up! They are so loud. My whole body hurts. I feel like I got crushed by something really big … one moment! Now I remember! The ship! The core!?

  I open my eyes, but everything is dark. Is this the afterlife? Am I finally dead for good? No, there are voices. Sounds like the ship crashed directly into the enemy army. They are searching for survivors to finish them off.

  Crap, I can't move my left side. “Lumis!” A small orb of light dives my surroundings into a dim light. Looks like the ship is a complete wreck. I don't recognize the engine room any more.

  I am inside a small cavity, which is about a metre in height and two metres long. My left arm and foot are crushed under the remains of the mana core. The piezoelectric glass is broken and not an ounce of power remains.

  The experiment was a failure. Looks like I have to rethink some of my theories about mana. Nothing blew up! I try to move and am rewarded with unimaginable pain. Then I place my left hand on the remains of the core and try to push, but the rubble doesn't move.

  That's when I realize that my left is cramped into a fist. So I slowly open it and see a shining blue light. A small crystal is glowing in my hand, no bigger than my thumb. I have never seen something like it before.

  It feels like pure raw power. Is that the result of my experiment? The mana which is forced to a higher density doesn't search for an explosive release, but becomes solid? “Hahahaha.” Who would have thought about that. All my calculations were wrong!

  I tap into the small shards reservoir of power and am almost overwhelmed by the pure force behind it. The rubble on top of me lifts by a mere thought and I crawl out from under it. Then I let the stuff go and it crushes down again, creating a cloud of dust which forces me to cough.

  For several minutes I lie there in the darkness and concentrate on a regeneration spell. Just the blue glow of the small crystal lights the cavern. I think about the implications of this new discovery. If I can reproduce these crystals, I can completely pass on the production of the dangerous mana cores.

  Again, I tap into the well of power inside my fist to quicken my regeneration. I hear bones snap into place and I feel the awful crunching, as fingers are bending back into their original position.

  In the meanwhile the sounds outside grow louder and I become aware of distant explosions. Probably my fleet is avoiding to hit the crash site.

  I wait for another five minutes until I am sure that the healing spell has done its work. Then I sit up and concentrate my senses on the outside.

  There are people swarming around my ship. I feel their auras like small small flames dancing all around me. It's somehow strange, did my senses get sharpened by this accident? No, it wasn't an accident! It was sabotage!

  But now I know the faces of this mysterious enemy. Their little game can't go on much longer! … If I survive. Again, I bath in the power of the small shard in my hand. What should I call it? It looks like a crystal, but it's pure mana. A mana crystal?

  But I am getting distracted. The flames look like soul-fires. Did I somehow achieve something by fusing my soul with the mana of the core? A strengthening? I reach out for one of the weaker souls, probably a mere soldier without any magical ability.

  The flame wavers a bit, but I can't influence it further. Anyway, just influencing it from this distance is a tremendous feat, compared to what I was capable of before.

  Then I become aware of the strange web all around me. It's known to me, though not with this brightness. Again I reach out for it but achieve nothing. I guess solving that mystery too, was asking a little too much.

  My attention returns to my current situation. Let's think about it. I am caught in the middle of a huge hostile army and I got a sudden unexpected power upgrade. Hmmm. I clench the fist with the mana crystal tighter and start to grin with glee.

  ~Time to go on a rampage!~

  I wanted to vent my stress for a long time and now is the perfect chance! The last time I got to play was at the ball of Fellmar! That was ages ago.

  Without a thought, I tap into the vast power reservoir of the mana crystal and spread my hands while thrusting outwards. A shock-wave blows the wreckage around me apart and I get the first view on the crash site.

  My ship isn't much more than a big pile of wood, looking like it's ready for a bonfire. What did I expect after it fell from the sky. I was really lucky that the remains of the mana core formed a cavern for me. Maybe that was divine intervention too?

  A huge army is standing all around the wreckage like the sea. There are banners from Mislow and the Inquisition. Everyone's eyes are glued to me.

  “Looks like there are more than I can handle.” I tap my chin in thought. The crystal may be a huge power reservoir, but there are still tons of enemies. Well, I can't do more than as much as I can. And if I think too long, they will get over their shock.

  “Then let's start the battle for survival!”

  I call out as loud as I can and jump down into a sea of spears and other weapons while wrapping myself in a barrier. The enemy soldiers actually scrambled to clear my landing zone! Was my entrance really that frightening?

  Without losing any time, I whirl around and cast Inferno. There are no allies nearby, so I will train my best area of effect spells.

  A pentagram appears under my feet and a circle of fire appears around me. Then the ring of fire starts to grow fast and expands as it touches and burns the soldiers around me. Inferno is a nasty magic, because it feeds on everything it touches and consumes not only physical materials, but mana as well.

  But there are many mages under the army and here and there are pockets of properly shielded survivors.

  The wreckage of the ship behind me became a proper bonfire and I start my next spell while beginning to run. Attack magic is being activated all around me as the enemy mages start to wake up.

  “Lumis Lux Eternal!” Take that! A small sphere of light forms above my palm and I thrust it upwards. Then I drop to the ground and squeeze my eyes together while shielding them with my arms.

  Everything is dark, but then a bright flash turns my vision red. The spell is so bright that I am not able to shield my eyes completely against it while facing the ground. I feel my skin burn where it is exposed to the light. A heavy sunburn is the least I can expect from camping directly under my own spell.

  Explosions and sizzling sounds erupt around me. My enemies misfired their spells after being blinded by a light, brighter than the sun.

  I look up and a few dots dance through my vision. Even though I prepared myself, the spell still almost fried me, so I cast regeneration on myself to get rid of the itchy feeling on the exposed parts of my skin.

  A look around confirms that almost all of my enemies in the surroundings went blind. They are stumbling and crawling around like in a zombie movie. “In the land of the blind, the one eyed man shall be king! MWAHAHA!”

  I start hurling fireballs and ice shards around. Fired up by my attacks, some idiots start to cast magic blindly. Soldiers start to stab their weapons around in fear of being the next victim. Utter chaos breaks loose as enemies who weren't blinded start to deal with the rogue elements.

  Suddenly an ice shard hits me in the chest. The impact drives the air out my lungs and I am thrown backwards. But my barrier prevents serious damage. I land on my back and take a few breaths before sitting up. I shouldn't get overconfident.

  Three familiar faces greet me. It's Tendril Arenzien, my father. Andrus Arenzien, my older brother by two years is to his left and my second older brother by three years is to his right. His name is Areth Arenzien.

 
I pat my chest to get the dust off. “That was dangerous! You could have killed me if I hadn't been protected by my barrier.”

  “We will end this now! Once and for all.” Tendril points a hand at me and I feel his mind trying to invade my own. I evade the attempt by concentrating on myself. A basic exercise for mind magicians, but actually a very complicated task.

  “You know that I don't really care about what you think father? I suspected that you might join this war. But to think that both of my brothers are here too. It's almost like a family reunion! Just the female members are missing.” I get to my feet again.

  “We will take good care of your slave wife.” Areth grins at me with a slimy expression.

  “And your daughter will surely be fun.” Andrus joins him on an even lower level.

  Did he just threaten me with hurting Sera? Unforgivable! I thrust my hand at them and a storm of ice shards is unleashed. They disperse in perfect synchronisation and avoid my attack.

  Attack magic is coming my way from three directions and I simply rely on the power of the mana crystal to form a protecting barrier. I hit Areth with my shower of ice shards and they pass right through him. Clones? Phantoms?

  I close my eyes and search for their souls. Obviously I got caught in some kind of mind manipulation. There are no soul-fires where they were beforehand. Instead there is one … Andrus!

  A vicious grin appears on my face and I turn, jumping a step forward while wrapping my left hand in mana. Slashing at the empty air in front of me, I feel no resistance. Did I miss?

  But then I look at my hand which is red with blood. And it's not mine. The air starts to blur and reveals Andrus, who drops to his knees in front of me. Looking down at his chest, he is staring in disbelief at the wound where my hand passed right through him.

  Then he drops to the ground and lies still. I close my eyes again and concentrate on my surroundings. “~Come out, come out, wherever you are.~” I jump on my dead brother's back and turn in a circle while trying to find my father and my second brother.