The Esoteric Design: Civilization Lost

by A. R. Crebs

  “What are those?!” Lita shouted.

  A new kind of being had arrived. The creatures were tall and spindly. With scaly skin, some were olive green, others were flesh colored. Their faces held large grins of jagged teeth. Their arms and legs were elongated. Sharp talons stretched from each finger like blades. The beings hissed and drooled. Some walked on two legs while others crawled on all fours, their joints bent backward. Those that crawled held the olive skin and fiery red manes. A barb sat at the end of their hair, most likely venomous. These were creatures not meant to walk on Earth. Their oversized eyes were like black voids.

  “Those…are demons,” I’Lanthe whispered. She quickly directed her attacks at the monsters, giving them no time to wreak havoc. “Focus your attacks on them!”

  Euclid’s laughter consumed the land. He flew up high, observing his war.

  “I’m gonna get him!” Lita growled. “I’m gonna pin his ass to the ground!”

  “Lita, don’t!” I’Lanthe ordered.

  “No! I’m tired of sitting by and watching him foil us time and again! Dovian can’t fight, and I know he’d be going after Euclid, not wasting time with these monsters and humans!” Lita ran closer toward Euclid’s position, directly into the line of monsters.

  “Lita!” I’Lanthe protested, but she quickly turned to Karter. “You cover her! She has no experience! You must protect her!”

  Karter was already on it, following the lavender-haired woman.

  Despite this being her first battle, Lita handled herself wonderfully. Leaping over the downed bodies, she also managed to dodge numerous attacks sent her way. She fired arrows in the skulls of the demons, their bodies quivering and igniting to ash. Between shots, she focused on other ranges of enemies, her weapon morphing into the falchions as she swiped at those nearby. A rogue human would sometimes find her, and she’d strike them enough to take them down, missing any critical parts so to do as little damage as possible. Left, right, she cut down her enemies. Turning and twisting her weapon, she fired a few arrows.

  One of Euclid’s men rushed her, and she ducked beneath his swinging broadsword. He swung repeatedly, and she haphazardly sidestepped. He was fast, bound to get her. Lita connected with her falchion, sparks igniting, and stumbled back. He had the strength that she lacked. She rolled to the side, her weapon morphing and extending into a double-sided spear. The enemy was not suspecting it, and one blade dug into his stomach. He gurgled, eyes glaring. Lita stood and wrenched the weapon free. Still, he followed through with another clumsy swing, a blast of energy soaring her way. The power collided with her, and her small barrier shattered. Lita toppled over, crying out in pain.

  The blackened Sorcēarian towered over her, lifting the sword over his head with one arm, his other hand working at healing his wound. As he motioned to cut through her, one of Karter’s arrows dug into his knee. The warrior dropped to the side, his weapon cutting into the earth. Lita quickly hopped to her feet, turning to slice across the man’s neck. His head drooped to the side, his helmet rolling across the ground. She paused, taking in his facial features. The man was a regular at Lucinda’s café. He had joined Lita and the others many times in conversation and always seemed pleasant.

  Karter placed a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t think about such things right now. Focus on the objective ahead. There is always time for mourning later.”

  Lita took a deep breath, nodding. And the two went right back to work. They stood back to back, each firing arrows into the crowd. Lita took on any foes that got too close. As her weapon morphed between the three phases, Karter adjusted accordingly. Their moves synchronized. He’d turn, duck, and roll as needed to avoid Lita’s attacks with the swords and staff. She’d cut down enemies on either side of them with a single twist. She was proficient with her weapon. Karter was pleased to know that all their hard work had paid off. Eventually, they cleared a circle on the battlefield. I’Lanthe worked from afar, tossing chunks of earth and other elements their way to help with overpowering foes and walls of demons. The three of them had developed an efficient strategy.

  Lita scanned the sky as she finally received a long enough lull to catch her breath. Her heart rate quickened. Euclid was nowhere to be seen. A blast of energy ruptured against her back, sending her sprawling and sliding across the mud.

  “I’ve had enough of you!” Euclid shouted.

  Karter fired an arrow. Euclid slapped it out of the air and summoned a lasso of energy which wrapped around Karter’s throat. He yanked, and Karter slapped into the mud. Euclid slowly approached Lita, dragging Karter with him. The Scarlet warrior gasped, his fingers clawing at the noose.

  “Look at how cute you two are, fighting together, synchronized, like this war is your dance floor!” Euclid wrenched the lasso around his fist, tightening it. Karter choked, his face turning purple. Lita scrambled to retrieve her weapon.

  “Lita!” Karter squeaked. “Gah, runnnn.”

  Lita lifted her spear, glaring at Euclid. Her eyes flitted to Karter.

  “You even try, and he’ll die.” Euclid wrenched. Karter pushed himself closer to the dark man, trying to loosen the slack. “I’ll snap his neck in an instant.”

  Karter’s auburn eyes glimmered like molten metal. He gave Lita a knowing look. They had spoken before about situations such as this. Lita was never to hesitate. Karter didn’t want her to feel weak because of him.

  Lita took a deep breath, morphed her weapon, and launched an arrow at Euclid. As he moved to crack it out of the air, she marched forward, transforming the bow into a sword. She sliced across Euclid, but the man apparated to the side, dragging Karter with him. She retaliated with a spin, the sword returning to a spear. They exchanged attacks, Lita changing forms as needed. Euclid quickly became annoyed. Karter’s weight was a nuisance, and more than anything, Euclid wanted to see Lita gone.

  “You’ve always been an irritating pest,” Euclid snarled.

  He avoided a few more attacks. Though Lita’s offensives were easy to evade with his expertise, Euclid was impressed by her skills. The thought alone made him nauseous. Was everyone in the Gaius lineage so powerful without trying? It wasn’t fair. And for once, Lita did not respond to his antics, another irritating point. It had always been easy to frustrate the woman. Euclid would have to reach shallow measures to break her spirit.

  As Lita twirled and continued her assault, Euclid would toss energy her way to throw her off guard. He was toying with her, and eventually, her impatience grew. Using Euclid’s own tactic to teleport behind him, she swung at his head, but he ducked. Lita darted back and forth, swinging high and low, repeatedly. Faster and faster, her attacks became more ruthless and less elegant. Finally, she teleported again, but appeared high above, energy pulsing from her spear in a raging bolt. The blast ignited against Euclid’s shield, black fire burning against it. Euclid’s eyes widened at the immense power Lita housed.

  He turned, backhanding the woman across the face as she tried to surprise him again from behind. Lita moved once more out of sight, and Euclid pulled on the lasso. Karter was barely conscious as he was tugged upward to stand. Euclid held the dazed man in place, using him as a shield as Lita’s spear lodged into his middle.

  A sharp gasp escaped the woman as her body tensed.

  “Oh, Karter,” she whispered.

  Karter wobbled, his head sagging as his shaking fingers lightly touched the entry point of Lita’s weapon beneath his rib cage. Blood trailed down the staff, saturating her leather gloves. Lita squeaked.

  One second, Karter was standing before her, the next he was ripped from her spear tip and flung away. Lita stumbled forward from the pull, her eyes locked on Karter’s flying form. As the warrior crashed and limply rolled, Lita’s emerald eyes shimmered. She screamed, launching the spear at Euclid. Quickly following through, she palmed an immense amount of power. It spiraled toward the evil man as he sidestepped away from the spear, but the whirlwind collided with him. A loud shout ruptured from him as he sailed into t
he fighting crowd, his body trampled by the others.

  Lita immediately rushed to Karter’s side, dropping to her knees. “Karter!” She removed his helmet, her hands cupping his face. Noticing the blood smeared on his cheeks, she quickly cleaned her hands on her robes. “I didn’t mean to! I didn’t mean to!” she stammered, sobs escaping as she inspected him, tried to heal him to no avail. She housed plenty of dark energy but never could produce enough light to cure.

  “MEDIC!” she shrieked.

  A deep shade of purple lined his neck. His robes darkened in color where the blood soaked through. Lines and dents covered his armor. His bow was not to be found. A raspy, curdling sound rumbled from within his chest.

  “I didn’t mean to!” she cried.

  “L-Lita,” he managed.

  She gazed into his eyes, watching the light fade. A weak smile twisted the corner of his mouth.

  “You did well.” He tried to clear his throat, the sound worsening. “Did well.”

  He didn’t move after that, and the raspy sounds faded to silence. Lita’s face scrunched as she held back a high-pitched wail, her fingers digging into his clothing.

  “Wait for me,” she whispered. “You…you have to wait for me.”

  “LITA!” I’Lanthe screamed across the battlefield.

  Lita twisted just as her own spear sank into her side. She fell over Karter’s body, gripping the edge of the rod.

  Euclid soared to her position, his eyes gleaming with hatred. “Such darkness resides within you,” he hissed. “I could really put good use to that power.”

  Lita grunted, pulling away from him. The pain was excruciating with each move she made. She focused her energy into the wound, the dark light pressing against the blade.

  “Interesting,” Euclid chuckled. “How quick you are to learn. We can be quite the team. Join me, and I’ll heal you. Right now, no more fighting.”

  Lita continued crawling, clawing at the earth. She watched I’Lanthe fight back the hoards. A few Ferals had joined the Violet’s side. Lita’s vision swirled. The events tugged at the back of her mind. A vision was beginning to surface.

  ‘Not now,’ Lita thought.

  “Lita! Don’t ignore me!” Euclid shouted.

  Struggling, she tried to stand; her hand gripped tightly on the staff. Lita’s sight fogged over, everything swirling together in blobs of brightly lit colors among the darkness. I’Lanthe’s power was so great. Lita could hear the tug of the earth as her friend pulled at the elements as a source of power. Electricity tingled in the air. The smell of rainwater intensified. The warmth of fire heated the field. Lita’s legs buckled, and she yanked the weapon from her side. A burst of energy expelled against her back, burning her wings, forcing her to the ground once again.

  From somewhere, she heard a male scream echoing.

  “Dovian,” she whispered.

  Lita lay in the mud, her hand reaching out. Her weapon had slid from her grasp, but she couldn’t see it. Her reality blended with a premonition, making it difficult to focus on anything.

  “Karter…is dead,” she mumbled. “I’Lanthe…she needs your help.”

  Lita heard Dovian crying out in pain. Could hear the pounding of the stone walls, the growls of him fighting against the electric bars.

  “He can’t hear you,” Euclid’s voice reverberated in her ears.

  Euclid stood over her. He held the spear in his hand, debating on how he wanted to end her. The use of her power was tantalizing, however, could he deal with her bothersome behavior throughout time? With his decision made, he readied to plunge the spear into her spine.

  The ground beneath Euclid’s feet upheaved. Lita’s body rolled away from the tilting earth. His footing fumbled, and he dropped to his backside.

  “How is it possible you are still alive?!” Euclid growled. “Where are my men?”

  I’Lanthe marched directly toward him. A large dome raised around them, confining them from the other warriors. “They’ve been properly disposed of,” she proudly replied.

  A trio of Ferals held up the shielding, their singing chants rolling through the valley. Even Euclid hadn’t the strength to break such a power. He clenched his teeth, his molars grinding together.

  “And how are the human numbers?” he arrogantly quipped.

  I’Lanthe didn’t give him the pleasure of an answer. Truthfully, most of the human forces had been obliterated. The weaker race had no chance to begin with, which was exactly what Euclid wanted.

  “The silent treatment?” he chuckled. “My offer still stands to you and Lita. Well,” he peered at the specified woman, “if she’s still alive.”

  “The only offer I’ll settle with is your death.” I’Lanthe pointed her icy weapon at him, her face stony.

  Euclid sighed, pressing his fingertips together. “Your loss.”

  He sped forward, and she blocked his attack with a pane of ice. As he punched through it, the barrier shattered and splintered into his arm. While I’Lanthe and Euclid fought, exchanging powerful blows, Azera maintained a balance between the human and traitorous Sorcēarian forces. He moved in and out of the battlefield, helping with damage control inside the city. As needed, he commanded the Ferals, who mostly focused on feeding strength into Gaius’ shields and overpowering the demonic forces.

  I’Lanthe absorbed the electric energy in the air from the thunderstorm, countering Euclid’s powerful attacks with crackling blows. No matter how well he dodged her spells, she could follow up with another on either side of him. Fire, ice, water, earth, lightning. He never knew which force would seek to destroy him next. Further back he moved until he felt the tingle of the powerful barrier behind him. He hesitated. One touch of the shield and he’d be fried.

  Gathering all the moisture within the dome, I’Lanthe summoned a roaring wave, shoving it toward her enemy. The tips of the curling tsunami reached the height of the ceiling. Euclid couldn’t fly above without touching the protective shield, which left him with the single option to take the brunt of the force head on. Teleporting would prove futile as the wave formed a circle to all edges. And as I’Lanthe pushed outward, she cast lightning from her fingertips, electrifying the inside of the spell. Euclid powered his own barricade, focusing his energy on protecting himself. He hadn’t the spell book, but there were a few more tricks up his sleeve.

  As I’Lanthe’s wave washed over him, Euclid punched the earth, creating a crater beneath. He ducked inside just as the top of his barrier cracked. As the water collided with the sides of the dome, lightning sparked throughout. Euclid fought against the bolts as they shattered each shield he cast. Defending against such an attack was dreadfully draining. He wasn’t sure he could withstand another.

  I’Lanthe stood in the center, catching her breath. Her hair partially covered her face as she slouched. Watching the wave slosh to the sides, disappointment set in. Of course, Euclid had avoided the brunt of the attack. Still, she could not relent. Raising her arms over her head, she pulled the liquid back toward her, preparing for another round. A flicker in the crater caught her eye, and a group of jittering shadows flitted across the area. Left, right, forward, backward, she couldn’t keep track of the forms. A shiver tickled her spine as she detected a presence directly behind her. Leaping and turning, she tossed a gush of water at Euclid, pelting him in the face. He stumbled back, and I’Lanthe suddenly looked to the sky, her wings carrying her to the edge of the rounded shield. She quickly guarded herself.

  Euclid’s gaze fled above as well. Lita soared through the air on charred wings, pulling back on her bow. Black energy swirled around her. The arrow of light grew to an enormous size, sizzling with an intense, unstable power. She released and immediately cast a sphere of protection around herself, the arrow spiraling toward Euclid with a noisy zap. He could barely react. With a pop, the arrow splintered into an array of projectiles, raining upon him.

  POP, POP, POP, BOOM!

  The energy detonated upon the man, bursting outward. Shards of energy r
icocheted, and burst again, filling the enclosed space with a cloud of smoke. As the energy cleared, it was plain to see every member inside the dome had collapsed. Lita lay to the east, I’Lanthe to the north. Euclid rest further south within a fresh crater, his clothing singed and skin raw from burns. He growled, his fingers digging into the dirt.

  “I…will not…be done in by you!” he howled.

  His rage fed him more negative energy. Pressing against the ground, Euclid flew to Lita. She tried to move, her bow slowly morphing into a spear. Weak, she could barely lift the weapon as she remained sprawled in the mud. Euclid ripped the item from her grasp. Twisting the spear above his head, he drove it into her middle, pinning her to the earth. A strangled gasp passed Lita’s lips as she gazed at the swirling energy housing their private battlefield.

  “Euclid!” I’Lanthe shouted from her corner. Lita’s blast had injured her as well. She struggled to her feet, her face held a look of pure contempt for the man.

  Euclid apparated behind I’Lanthe, his clawed fingers wrapping around her neck. He held her firmly.

  Lita watched, breathing shallow breaths. “Don’t…don’t.” The quiet whisper reached Euclid’s ears.

  “How on earth is she still alive?” Euclid seethed.

  I’Lanthe didn’t say anything but sadly watched her dying friend.

  “She…she’s pregnant,” Lita whispered. Her green eyes darted to the side to watch Euclid and I’Lanthe. In her mind, she heard Dovian’s screams. He could see through Lita’s eyes.

  I’Lanthe’s blood ran cold.

  “Leave her alone,” the soft mumble barely escaped Lita’s lips.

  How would Lita know such a thing? I’Lanthe’s mind whirled. Was she pregnant, or was this some sort of rouse to gain Euclid’s mercy?