*
Elsewhere in the crystal maze, Barsch was running for his life. Bolts of lightning fell where he trod, each missing him by mere inches. The stranger was calling out his name with increasing anger, which grew whenever a bolt failed to find it's mark. Thankfully, Barsch's sheer, abject terror had faded rapidly once the stranger had started using him as target practice, and his fight or flight reflex was more or less returning to normal.
In testament to this, he had regained enough of his wit to bring out Lanista, and it had only taken three shakily-handed attempts to get it started. The roar of the chainsword was actually rather comforting, as it helped to partially block out the sound of the deathly lightning bolts. Once or twice, while rounding a corner or dodging a falling thunder-strike, Barsch could have sworn he saw Alza or Kingston in the distance, but they were always gone by the time he reached them.
A thought occurred to him after he rounded what seemed like his hundredth corner, “This is pointless! Either I finally run out of luck and get hit by a bolt, or I run out of energy and he catches me! I can't keep this up forever! My legs already feel like they're on fire, and the pain in my chest is getting worse! What should I do? What would Alza do?”
With that thought in his mind, Barsch skidded to a stop. He turned, Lanista roaring with bloodlust, and faced his attacker. The lightning bolts still came, but they were no longer aimed at him. Instead, they danced around him, scorching the earth into a rough semi-circle. Within seconds, the stranger was there, wearing a triumphant smile.
“So, you have chosen to face your death head-on? I would congratulate you on your bravery, but gods do not compliment vermin. Now, are you going to beg for mercy? Or will you be foolish enough to attack?”
It was then, when the stranger's attention was on Barsch and Barsch alone, that the re-mech struck. With sparks still plaguing his metallic body, and one of his eyes dark, he had managed to crawl towards his friend, whilst following the lighting. His chassis was burnt black, and his sonic cannon lay uselessly at his side, but he still refused to submit. His remaining eye was brimming with power as he lifted his mining laser and, with only a moment's hesitation, fired.
He missed.
Barsch's heart fell as he saw the beam narrowly miss the stranger, and continue off into the distance. The stranger, in response, turned to the fallen re-mech and smirked.
“It appears that you have yet to learn your lesson. Don't you realise that attacking me is futile. In fact, you have only succeeded in angering me further. I know now that my previous punishment was insufficient... this time, there will be nothing left but scrap metal. Now, prepare for the end!”
Barsch wished to turn his head away, to block out the sight of what was to come, but he could not. He could still hear the re-mech's screams of pain in his ears, and he was helpless to prevent a recurrence. However, his helplessness was unfounded, and Maloch was standing with a confident, fearless pose. When he spoke, it was in a calm, confident tone, as he said, “You are the one who should prepare for the end… because I never miss!”
At that moment, Barsch heard the returning zip of the previously fired laser. It had come back with a vengeance, and sped past Barsch's crouched frame with absolute certainty. It struck the reflective surface of one of the crystals with pre-planned accuracy, before splitting in two and continuing to rebound. The beams began to multiply, as each strike against a crystal produced more and more replicas. Soon, the area was filled with hundreds of emerald beams that bathed the area in light. Amazingly enough, not a single beam strayed off course, and not a hair of Barsch's hair was singed. Maloch, too, was unharmed. As for the stranger, it was a different story. Dozens of coin-sized holes had been burned into his cloak, and blood ran down his face. He wore a face of fury, yet he could do nothing but stand there and take the karmic punishment. The lightning had stopped falling the moment the first beam made contact, so there was no danger of heavenly retribution.
For an instant, Barsch allowed himself to hope. Maybe they could win this…
And then, the stranger spoke, killing his fledgling hope, “I tire of this. You are a nuisance, Barsch La Tergan, but I have decided to cease this tiresome endeavour. I think I will leave you to my champion, or perhaps I will let his Master keep you as a lab rat?”
In an instant, it was over, as the stranger called down a bolt that struck a single crystal, which in turn refracted the light and created another beam-splitting effect. The lances of light spread out and intercepted Maloch's emerald beams, as lightning cancelled out laser. It was a light spectacle, but Barsch was far too busy thinking about the stranger's words to properly appreciate it. “Champion? Master? Just how many people are we going to have to fight?”
With the beams gone, the stranger began to rise into the air, whilst riding a column of wind. He was soon standing unsupported in the clouds, but his thunderous voice could still be clearly heard below as he called out, “Here, a parting gift!”
As he spoke, hundreds of bolts fell from the sky, though they seemed not to be aimed at anyone in particular. They landed with a unified roar, with most striking empty ground, but a significant amount hitting the pollutant-laden crystals. Barsch could only watch in horror as the cracks spread, before the crystals began to shatter, one by one. The sound of the crystal shards breaking on the cold earth soon replaced the roar of the lightning, until finally, silence reigned.
In mere seconds, an entire ç'aether forest had been reduced to a heap of shattered crystals, whilst their corrupting contents rose into the atmosphere. Barsch could already see the dark cloud forming, it's underside tinged with violet. It was a dangerous omen, and he knew not when the cloud would unleash it's devastating downpour. As for the destructive stranger, there remained no trace.
“Barsch! Maloch! Are you alright?”
It was Kingston, to Barsch's eternal relief, scrambling over the broken crystals to reach them.
“Kingston! We're-” Barsch looked at his charred surroundings, and Maloch's burnt exterior, before continuing, “We're alive, I guess. What about you? Did you see... anyone... strange?”
Kingston thought of telling Barsch about his younger doppelgänger, but decided against it. He would tell Barsch the truth of his past when he was ready, and that time was not now. Instead, he said, “No, I didn't see anyone like that. I was alone the whole time. What about you? And what happened to the ç'aether?”
Barsch spent the next several minutes explaining what he had seen: the stranger who wielded lightning; the words about the champion and the master, and what had happened with the ç'aether.
“Wearing a black cloak you say? And wielding lightning and wind? Sounds dangerous. I'm also quite curious about this whole 'master and champion' business, but it looks as though we won't find any answers here.”
“Okay, but what about Alza? We still haven't seen any trace of her? What if she's hurt somewhere?”
Just then, a familiar voice called out, saying, “I am unharmed.” She appeared from behind one of the few remaining crystals, looking exhausted beyond belief. But he could see now visible wounds on her, and that was good enough for him.
“Alza! What happened to you? Where did you go?”
For a moment she said nothing, and Barsch wondered if she would tell him the truth. “Nothing happened that concerns you. Now, shall we go?” she replied.
Apparently not.
“Um... I guess there's no real point in sticking around?” said Barsch, while anxiously eyeing Maloch's damaged frame. Barsch took another look at Kingston and Alza, noting that the former looked as though he had been crying and the latter seemed disturbed by something.
“Well, I guess if they wanted me to know, they would tell me. It's probably none of my business anyway.”
With only a single glance back at the remnants of the crystal maze, the four companions moved on. Above, the released miasma continued to accumulate, resulting in the ominous cloud blanketing the land in shadow. As they made their way over
the shattered crystals -taking care to avoid the razor-sharp shards- they became aware of how close to the city they had come. Within minutes of leaving the destroyed maze, they found paved roads which led them past row upon row of fractured buildings. Overall, the city was significantly smaller than Carçus, but it still took a while to reach the city proper. As for the name of the city, there were no clues. Almost every sign had been weathered away to the point of illegibility, and the buildings were no more than burnt out shells, so there was no point in looking for answers there.
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