Meridias

  “Yeah I was checking on her,” Elunduil said.

  “Why?” There was a hardness in her voice. Elunduil frowned not quite catching on to her tone. “What, didn’t you hear what happened?” he asked. “There was a battle here.” Alicia was confused. “What battle?” she asked suspiciously.

  Elunduil told her about what had been happening when he’d arrived in Meridias. There was a large worm creature called a World Eater floating around and swooping down at people. Ark had been there too and together they’d manage to get the creature to flee into space. Afterword he’d gone to check on Maria since she’d nearly been eaten and she’d wound up telling him about her past. “Oh, so that’s what was going on,” she said more to herself than to Elunduil. A surge of relief flooded her body. Thank goodness. “That reminds me I never did grab an APL device,” he commented as he looked around.

  “Well then let’s go get you one!” Alicia said with a cheerful smile. Elunduil nodded and they went inside the tower. Soon Elunduil was donning his blue robe and they were heading towards the transports. Together Elunduil and Alicia boarded the transport with a few other people and then they were off to Ellicia to meet with Cooper.

  A few hours before the attack of the World Eater Ark was at the ruins going over the data he had recovered. He had been poring over the data for a couple days now. He had taken the data cores that he’d gotten from the Dahyen and had placed them back into the nook underneath the floor that they had been stolen from. Once he activated the machine he had found a vast collection of information. A lot of it had been reports of the experiments and inventions that the people here had once been working on but some of the data was fragmented from the passage of time. Ark hadn’t found anything so far in regards to Elunduil’s condition but paused when he had reached an interesting log.

  2023.18.2: … Object that is coming from space… Evacuation alert sent out….

  Ark frowned. The date on the logs corresponded to a few years from now if it had been on Earth. This civilization had been gone for centuries though. It was hard to say from how long ago they had begun counting the years. He continued reading.

  2023.18.18: All attempts to stop the object have failed… composition is unlike anything we’ve seen. There will be one final attempt to divert… I only hope we succeed.

  2023.18.25: … Impact not as devastating as calculated for an object of this size. Only 70% of the city was destroyed. We are sending teams to investigate the object.

  2023.18.26: The object penetrated deep into the soil. It’s black- unable to retrieve samples from it.

  2023.18.27: Creatures have appeared around the object. They are hostile and the research team has been lost… military is taking action…

  2024.1.02: … Creatures ravaging the land. They’re becoming resilient to our weapons… civilians have been forced to retreat further into the forest… possible solution to trap creatures… use pillars as cage…

  2024.1.15: Project A.R.CH.A.NG.E.L. has been repurposed it- though we still have yet to find a way to activate it. We are running out of time.

  2024.1.18: … Aether. Utilizing Project- we may activate the machine. If only I could thank that man who appeared when I was at the end of my wits…

  2024.1.22.05: The facility is being overrun. We must work until the end. Project A.R.C.H.A.N.G.E.L. is almost done.

  2024.1.22.08: Our machine has risen. I am the last one… my final task… I only hope my body holds out.

  Ark stepped away from the machine. He pondered if these people had succeeded or failed in defeating whatever enemy had appeared back then. Of course if they had failed then this world would probably be swarming with these creatures. The object that fell from the sky though… he remembered that there was a large crater in the forest between here and Tellia Armon. Perhaps that was where this story was referencing? Either way it didn’t matter. There wasn’t anything to help Elunduil in here so he might as well return to Ellicia and tell the elder about this place. The information might be of interest to them.

  After he’d returned to Ragnarok and fought the World Eater with Elunduil he had left Thunder Fist and made his way to Ellicia and went to the town hall. Given the time of day the elder was probably waiting for people from Earth to come so that he could teach them magic. He walked through the main entrance and past the statues until he came to the large room that Angurvadel usually waited for his students. He entered the room and found Angurvadel waiting. The elder’s eyes were pensive as always as he greeted Ark. “Ah, you have returned. I was concerned when you went after Elunduil but didn’t come back. Did you find something?” he asked. Ark nodded. “There were some ruins from an ancient civilization that the knights discovered. Some of the machines were intact and… well I found some interesting logs from when the facility was active.” Angurvadel looked intrigued and Ark told him briefly about Project A.R.C.H.A.N.G.E.L. and what the logs had contained.

  When he was done Angurvadel was thoughtful. “I see. We don’t have many records from that time. Our brothers and sisters at Tellia Armon have some information about that era but nothing quite as extensive as what you’ve found. We will have to see if we can’t retrieve the information you found.” Ark nodded. The knights would probably be willing to help so his part in this story was done.

  “Have you heard back from your kin yet?” he asked. He was anxious to hear anything regarding Elunduil’s condition. Angurvadel nodded but from his expression it wasn’t what Ark wanted to hear. “There is nothing about how to cure his condition but we do know what it is and how it affects Elunduil.” Ark looked curiously at the elder. “They call it Life Necrosis. Well at least the final stage of it is Life Necrosis. I’ve witnessed it happen once myself and what I’ve heard matches with what I saw. When he loses his connection with Life it is as if his progression stops which is similar to his time stopping. He probably isn’t aware that it happens until after the fact. This stage is called Life Blink since it is brief. The more that time passes the longer these periods will become until minutes and hours pass before he’ll move again. That stage is called Life Drought. Then it all finally ends with Life Necrosis. It would seem that we have a few years to remedy Elunduil’s situation before it begins to severely affect him from what my kin tell me.”

  Ark thought about what the elder said for several moments before speaking. “We should bring Elunduil to Tellia Armon,” he finally said.

  “Hm,” Angurvadel thought for a moment. “Not now, but perhaps if his condition starts to affect him in his world than we will have no choice. However in the meantime I would like you to remain close by and keep watch over Elunduil so that we can monitor his condition more closely. You can remain unseen better than I.” Ark nodded in agreement and turned and walked out of the room. “Ark.” The elder called out. He looked back. “Elunduil has taken to learning from our eldest elf Cooper. He resides within a plain looking home with the brown and green hues of the forest,” he said. Ark nodded and left the room. His mind was devoted to his task and would carefully watch over Elunduil without revealing himself. He felt a small pang in his heart at the thought of hiding from Elunduil and wondered why.

  ***

  Elunduil and Alicia arrived at Cooper’s house and went inside. Today he didn’t have any books out and greeted the duo with a hearty smile. “Ah, you are sooner than I expected. Well than let me get started,” he said as Elunduil and Alicia sat down. “Mhm, so today I will be telling you about something that was a specialty of a comrade of mine. I will warn you that you may not be able to use this ability right away as it involves keeping a certain state of mind. With time you may be able to master it.” Elunduil and Alicia nodded eager to hear what the elderly elf had to say.

  He chuckled. “Ah, the wonders of youth! Always so eager to gobble up new things. Now then the subject matter for today is auras. I’m sure you’ve heard of them in your world, but every living thing has an aura. Not just people but the trees and animals and the little bugs that crawl on the ground.�
�� Elunduil chuckled. “There are some who grow up being able to see auras and some who train their eyes to see them. Now when you throw magic into the mix and use it on your own aura what do you think will happen?” Cooper paused and let Elunduil and Alicia think of an answer.

  Alicia was the first to take a guess. “Uh, maybe make it visible?” she said. Cooper chuckled and looked to Elunduil. “Err, well in most video games I’ve played an aura is something that can either bolster the user and their allies or to weaken and cripple their enemies,” he answered. Cooper nodded.

  “Well neither of you are wrong. Using magic not only makes an aura visible but also affects the people in the vicinity of the user. There is a rare ability to manifest one’s aura and to utilize it for attacking and defending. In the past those people were called Aura Wielders. It is possible to manifest your own aura through training. However an Aura Wielder is born with the ability to do so without the aid of magic. Now then let me show you how to use an aura.” Elunduil and Alicia watched Cooper. They didn’t see anything at first but after a moment they could sense magical energy building up.

  After a few moments they felt a sense of calm wash over them. Elunduil noticed that Cooper’s magical energy was concentrated around his body and emanating into the room. The feeling faded a moment later and the elderly elf spoke. “Well then did you get a grasp of how I did it?” he asked. Elunduil and Alicia nodded. “Good! Now, as you felt, I was able to project a calming aura to you two. There are two main conditions for using your aura. First you must be able to concentrate your magical energy around yourself and out into your surroundings. Second you must maintain the state of mind of the aura you are trying to use. This is probably the most difficult part for most as you have to keep your other emotions in check. Now then how about you two give it a try?” Elunduil and Alicia nodded somewhat hesitantly.

  They spent the next hour simply trying to mimic how Cooper had made his magical energy concentrate around him. It seemed really basic but the main problem was keeping their energy from simply flowing away from them. “It’s like trying to use a leaky hose,” Elunduil murmured which caused Alicia to snort. Cooper chimed in.

  “Well then you’ll just have to find a way to get it to where you want it then. Another way to think of it is covering yourself in a shell of some kind.” Elunduil and Alicia nodded. After several more attempts Elunduil managed to control his energy to the point that it had stopped flowing out. Now he was attempting to get it to surround him. Alicia on the other hand had managed to control her magical energy and was now completely shrouded by it. “Good Alicia! Now you just have to focus on projecting your energy and your presence outwards.

  Elunduil glanced over. “Huh, looks like you beat me,” he commented.

  “Yeah but using healing magic has helped me learnt to control my energy pretty well.” Elunduil had to concede to her point. He himself hadn’t really been learning how to precisely control his own magic until now.

  Alicia attempted to find a certain state of mind and project it outwards. It took her a bit to shut out her other emotions and then she began to try and project her emotion to her surroundings. Several times she lost her concentration but finally she managed to keep her mind on one emotion. She was calm, tranquil, drifting without any worries in the world. “Ah, that’s nice…” Elunduil said. Alicia was startled until she realized that he wasn’t hinting at anything. Cooper chuckled.

  “Well it seems you’ve managed to find your way. Good for you.” The elf winked at Alicia which caused her cheeks to flush in embarrassment. Elunduil didn’t seem to catch on and continued trying practicing. At some point they stopped to eat a delicious lunch that Cooper prepared for them to restore their stamina before they resumed their training. “Elunduil, if I could divert your attention for a moment, has Angurvadel talked about nodes yet?” he asked. Elunduil nodded. “Ah, good. Then you should know that every mage has them, usually on their extremities. Which one do you tend to use?” Elunduil thought about it for a moment.

  “Probably my hands. Actually, I think that’s all I’ve ever used,” he answered. The elf nodded. “Perhaps then what you should do is try to concentrate your energy in different parts of your body and see where you can release it from. It may help you to find your nodes.” Elunduil nodded. If he could distribute his magical energy from the other nodes then it would make things easier than trying to spread it from just his hands, but first he had to figure out where the other nodes were. He decided to start with his feet and released some energy from there. He attempted to use his hand and feet nodes to shroud himself in magical energy but still couldn’t quite get it. Sighing he decided to see if he could find other nodes on his body. He remembered Angurvadel say that there was one at the head and concentrated his energy there. Once he confirmed it was there he decided to try and use all five nodes that he’d found.

  He got distracted by a sudden feeling of warmth washing over him and realized it was Alicia discovering another aura. Shaking his head he went back to concentrating on his task. It was difficult concentrating his energy out of five different points at first but he slowly got the hang of it. He carefully concentrated the energy around himself and started to focus it outwards. His body suddenly constricted and his breath became labored. He felt as if he had been shattered like glass. What was happening? He felt like he would be crushed under the weight of this feeling. It was like… he was broken. He couldn’t hold his concentration any longer and when he stopped releasing energy the brokenness dulled.

  The world came back into focus and he realized that he had fallen to his hands and knees at some point. “Elunduil!” Cooper’s voice called out from above him. He looked up to see the elf with a concerned expression on his face. “Are you alright now?” he asked. Elunduil looked around and saw Alicia with a similar expression to the elf’s. “Uh, yeah I guess,” he said and got up. Cooper thought hard for a moment then said, “I think that right now using auras is something you should not attempt. I will consult with Angurvadel as well but I think that for today we will conclude this training.” Elunduil looked to Alicia who shrugged.

  They thanked the elf and showed themselves out. “So what happened?” he asked as they walked to the transports.” Alicia bit her lip.

  “I don’t know. You just kind of fell down with this pained expression. Like something was hurting you.” Elunduil didn’t say anything in response. The pain still hadn’t left him but he didn’t want to worry her further by mentioning it. They met up with Tim, Felras, and Tanis and took the transport back to Ragnarok. Once they got back they talked about what had happened for a bit and the others were surprised at what had happened, but it was more surprise that Elunduil hadn’t been able to use auras right away. “Well maybe you just have a good sense for more combat types of magic,” Tim mused. “You don’t feel the pain anymore though right?” he asked referring to the incident.

  No, he still felt the pain. Elunduil shook his head and his friend nodded. “Good, well I guess let’s go home,” he said and they made their way to the portals. When they returned to Earth Elunduil was surprised that the feeling was still there. Maybe it was just an emotional reaction to it all? Regardless Elunduil told the others that he would be off on vacation for the next couple of days. Everyone told him to enjoy himself at the beach and they went their separate ways for the day.

  Elunduil woke up the next morning and noticed that the pain in his body was gone. It was probably something like psychological trauma that the virtual world had stimulated. He got off the top bunk bed and jumped to the floor. The bags that he and his brother had packed the night before were sitting on the floor. He yawned and changed out of his pajamas and into shorts and a t-shirt before heading downstairs to eat some breakfast. The rest of the house soon came to life as Elunduil’s family got ready to leave for the beach. After everyone was done they grabbed their bags of clothes and then went to the car and left for the beach. On the way they picked up Elunduil’s grandma and then the next couple o
f hours would be spent staring out into the countryside.

  Their destination was a small house near the beach that belonged to someone that Elunduil’s Grandma knew. They were letting his family stay at a reduced rental rate so long as they also cleaned up the place a bit. When they arrived it was just about time for lunch so they unpacked the few things they had brought into the bedrooms and then ate the sandwiches that they had prepared beforehand. After they were done they decided to go take a walk down to the beach. Felras and Elunduil carried buckets and a small shovel so that they could build sand castles. The sun peeked down from the sky and a steady gust of wind assailed them. They also heard waves crashing on the shore in the distance as they walked down the road to the beach. “Boy it’s a nice day,” Grandma said. Elunduil’s mom agreed and soon after that they made it to a small staircase that led down to the beach.

  They saw other people walking along the beach and a few brave souls splashing around in the cold ocean water. They followed Elunduil’s mom up the beach a little way until they reached a small pool of water that had formed up on the beach. There were other people and kids playing in the little pond and having a good time. Elunduil and Felras found a spot and went to work on building a sand castle. They used some of the wet sand nearby since it would hold together better while they molded the walls and ramparts. Elunduil paused to look up at the ocean and wondered if Meridias had something like a leviathan at all.

  “I wonder if Meridias has a leviathan?” Felras mused. Elunduil chuckled at his brother’s comment. “I was thinking the same thing,” he replied. He thought in silence for a few moments. “So… how’s your magic training been going?” he asked.