by Aaron Oster
“I’ll make sure to come back as soon as I can. No one will ever be able to come here and hunt you for as long as I live, either.”
And Morgan meant it. Sure, he’d have to hunt down the rest of the keys, since staged zones had more than one. But he would do it. He felt a strange kinship with this beast, one he’d never felt towards any in the past. This made him wonder if he had any drake DNA in him, or if it was just a part of his bestial nature to not want to kill her.
He stood there for another couple of minutes, lightly running his hand across her muzzle, but he knew that he should get going. He’d saved himself a lot of time and injury by not fighting, but the North needed him, so he had to go. Before he did, he decided to ask the drake one last question.
“Do you have a name?”
The drake blinked, tilting her head to the side, as though surprised. Then, her jaw split open and she let out a low huff. It seemed that no one had ever asked before, but she did indeed have a name, something which Morgan had not expected.
“Lumia. That name suits you,” he said with a light smile as she removed his hand from her snout.
“I’ll be back to see you soon, Lumia, and I might even have someone else for you to talk to.”
Lumia gave one last huff, nudging him with her nose.
“Don’t worry, I always keep my promises,” Morgan said with a laugh.
Then, he turned and entered the portal, leaving the beast zone without having killed a single beast for the first time in his life.
35
Sarah whipped her arm up, sending a wall of freezing water back at their pursuers, solidifying it as soon as it covered the horde of angry monsters and froze them in place. Up ahead, Katherine was struggling through the deepening snow and desperately trying to open a portal. Sarah already knew it wouldn’t work. The Pinnacle King had locked down the area with his power and was stopping any portals from being opened.
“Damn it all!” Sarah yelled as more monsters poured around the wall, their shaggy coats billowing in the howling wind.
Snow whipped all around them, making visibility all but non-existent. They’d been running for hours now, pursued by hordes of monsters that fell upon them in waves. It seemed they’d been found out and the Pinnacle King wasn’t too happy about them stealing his prisoner. Gwendolyn was still unconscious, and the longer they took to return, the more danger she was in.
The cold was leeching away at what little vitality she had remaining, and the blizzard that was now surrounding them wouldn’t help her at all. Katherine finally had to give up trying to create a portal when monsters appeared out of the blizzard, now both behind and before them.
“Damn it!” Katherine screamed, echoing Sarah’s earlier curse as she summoned her Reality Blade and began slicing the monsters to ribbons.
The cold bit at both of them, whipping their hair about their faces as they grimly battled the horde of twisted monsters hell-bent on their destruction. This was the third such wave since they’d left, and this one was the most intense. Snow stung Sarah’s face as she pulled water around her in a ring, then blasted it out, throwing all of the monsters back and giving herself a moment to catch her breath.
Gwendolyn was lying on the ground between her and Katherine, bundled up in spare cloaks to keep her warm, but the swarm was growing thicker and Sarah had to wonder if they’d be able to drive them all back. Her face and arms were numb with the cold, and even her shield wasn’t doing much now.
Growling, Sarah whipped another stream of water over her shoulder, throwing a snarling monster back. She ducked under another, slamming her palm into its stomach and releasing an Icicle Trident right through it. The projectile tore through the monster, catching several more behind it and taking them down.
She then slammed her palms down, using her Icy Wave to create a veritable river of knives. Icicles shot from the ground, shredding any monster caught in the attack to a bloody pulp and clearing all those in the immediate area, but Sarah knew they weren’t even close to finished yet.
Her Ice Golems rose from the ground next, four in all, and charged into the storm to begin buying them some time. Sarah whirled then, dashing back to Katherine who was tearing into the monsters faster than they could swarm her. The problem was that they were making their way around her, slowly flanking her.
“Not on my watch!” she yelled, throwing a wave of water into their paths before beginning to build up barricades.
They weren’t much, just a few feet high, but they would create a buffer between them and the monsters. And in a fight like this, every second would count.
“Good thinking,” Katherine said, dropping back momentarily as one of her golems charged past to give her a reprieve.
Normally, both of them could keep going. However, the cold sapped their strength and will to fight. They were also both going on no sleep for over two days by this point, their time spent in the glacier turning out to be far longer than they’d thought. And now, they were fighting monsters in negative two-hundred-degree weather with a wind so cold it was almost unbearable.
And still, the monsters kept coming. For the next twenty minutes, both Sarah and Katherine fought them back, twisting and striking through the whirling snow as monsters, their coats a perfect camouflage, dove out just a few feet before them. There were several close calls, but thankfully, they managed to fight off the wave, collapsing in exhaustion right after and using Sarah’s walls as a windbreak.
Being out of the wind definitely helped, but it was so cold that their breath froze when they breathed, making it more difficult to do so. The cold was so intense that neither of them could feel their bodies anymore. The numbness was truly setting in now. Even as strong as they both were, Sarah knew they couldn’t keep going for much longer.
“Can you get a portal open yet?” Sarah asked through chattering teeth.
Katherine, too cold to even speak, simply shook her head. That wasn’t what she’d wanted to hear, but despite the bad news, Sarah forced herself back to her feet. She, more than anyone, knew the dangers of the cold and what it could do, and right now, sitting still was the absolute worst thing possible.
“We need to get…” Sarah began, but was cut off as Katherine reached out and yanked her pant leg, throwing her completely off balance and taking her to the ground.
Sarah was very aware of the glittering blade swishing through the air where her head had just been, and despite the abrupt meeting of the ground and her face, she was glad she wasn’t dead.
“Who the hell are you?” Katherine demanded as Sarah sprang back to her feet.
Sarah could see who she was addressing, though it didn’t fill her with any great comfort. Three monsters, each well over seven feet tall, stood in their path. It was clear to see that these were a cut above the rest and Sarah didn’t need Morgan here to tell her that they were strong. The way they carried themselves with arrogant assurance told her all she needed to know.
“We’re Octagon the Bitter’s Big D’s,” the monster with the sword said.
Despite their dire situation, Sarah still found herself cracking a smile at this little group’s name. If anything, it seemed the Pinnacle King had a sense of humor. They now also had a name to put to the terrible beast that had been ravaging the North for months now.
Octagon the Bitter, Sarah thought. Definitely a fitting name for a beast of ice and snow.
“And I assume you’ve come here to stop us,” Katherine said, leveling her Reality Blade at them.
“You assume correct, wench,” the monster said, brandishing his own blade.
Then, without further warning, they attacked. The lead monster, the one with the sword, went straight for Katherine, while the other two broke around her. Sarah threw a wall in their way, but they smashed right through it, with seemingly little effort. But it gave her a second or two to prepare, and Sarah began hurling half-moon blades of ice at them, trying to overwhelm their defenses.
One of them, the one with a black mark on his
forehead, moved in front to intercept, his hands whipping up and dispersing the ice with blasts of steam.
Well, shit, Sarah thought, knowing that he was a really bad matchup for her. Still, she had other weapons in her arsenal.
Pulling all of the snow and ice around her, Sarah used Condense Water, melting it down to liquid form and sent it in a concentrated blast right at them. The water was focused down to a finger’s width, so it would have the power and velocity to cut through stone. The monster tried to intercept, but didn’t manage it completely, being hurled back under the extreme pressure.
The other dodged, avoiding being struck and closed with her in a blink. Sarah stomped down hard, bringing a spike of ice up right in his face. The monster was caught under the chin, but he was made of tough stuff. The blow knocked him back, but only punched partially through his defenses, his dark blood running down his chest and painting it red.
Sarah held her arms out then and used Bitter Frost, using the power of the storm to enhance the skill. She could already tell this monster was going to be a problem, so slowing his movements would be essential. A gout of steam erupted from the ground before her, forcing her to stagger back.
Though steam was a form of water, Sarah’s ability Freezing Water, focused on cold-based attacks, and thus, gave her little control over steam with her Condense Water skill. Still, she wasn’t going to go down that easily and retaliated by sending a wave of water at the monster, forcing him to dodge to the side.
The water froze halfway, making a solid barrier between the two of them and giving her the chance to create new Ice Golems. The hulling creatures rose from the ground and moved to attack the two monsters, who tore through them without any real effort. Sarah gritted her teeth as she started bombarding them with icy shrapnel.
Her MP was beginning to run low, and she wasn’t doing enough damage to either of them. Had she been able to concentrate on a single target, she might have been able to succeed, but having to fight two at once was just too much for her. Katherine was in a similar bind, though her opponent was holding her all by himself.
Had they not been in the middle of a blizzard and half-frozen, Katherine could likely have easily beaten him, but with her body numb and reflexes dulled, she was having a hard time. Their blades clashed over and over, sparks flying in the air as Katherine fought to cut his head from his shoulders.
The monster didn’t even seem to be trying all that hard, fighting with careless ease as he slowly backed Katherine in a circle. She tried to retaliate by using one of her more powerful attacks, but the moment she started to focus, the monster moved in to disrupt her. Mobility was the hardest thing for Katherine right now.
Her fighting style heavily relied on the use of her portals and short-range teleportation. Without those, she would have a difficult time winning against anyone of her level, though the monster fighting her was hardly her equal.
As Sarah fought to stay ahead of the two monsters, she began to get a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. These monsters had all the advantages out here and had attacked only after the two of them had been forced to expend a lot of energy against their inferior allies. Now, with the cold sapping what little strength they had left, they would soon be moving in for the kill.
Gwendolyn still lay unconscious, protected from the snow by a small overhang Sarah had fashioned above her body. However, if they couldn’t break free or take one of these monsters out soon, this would be the end of them. Both her and Katherine.
Sarah didn’t want to die out here, in the middle of nowhere, hundreds of miles from home. She didn’t want to die, didn’t want her last conversation with Morgan to have been an argument. But as the grim reality set in and her MP began to falter, she realized that without another fighter, they would lose. And it wasn’t a matter of if, but when.
36
Morgan stepped through the portal and directly into the throne room of the castle in City Eleven. He hadn’t been sure what to expect, but he certainly hadn’t expected to find the room completely empty and dark. Brows furrowed, Morgan headed to the doors, preparing himself for the worst, but when he exited into the corridor, everything seemed to be fine.
None of the tapestries had been torn, the floorboards were intact, and the torches burned brightly in their sconces. He figured then that she might be in her office, so he set off at a light jog, moving swiftly through the abandoned corridors.
The entire palace seemed abandoned and he couldn’t sense a single aura in the place, but still, Morgan knocked all the same. There was no answer and when he tried the doorknob, he discovered that it was locked. Stepping back, Morgan closed his eyes and extended his senses outward, trying to find some semblance of life.
The moment his perception reached past the palace walls, they lit up and Morgan let out a huge sigh of relief as he felt the regular red and blue of human mages and supers. Opening his eyes, Morgan headed for the nearest window and yanked it open. As soon as he did, it became apparent why the palace was empty as it was. Storm clouds blanketed the sky in every direction, blotting out the sun and casting deep shadows over the entire land.
The chill hit him as the shutters were opened, and Morgan pulled a heavy cloak from his pack and draped it around his shoulders as he drifted out the open window. Figures swarmed about below, running back and forth as they gathered weapons and prepared for the coming attack. Morgan couldn’t help but notice their depleted numbers and the mix of uniforms, denoting more than half the troops were there from City Twelve.
What in the hell is going on here? And why don’t I see Katherine?
Morgan couldn’t find the Queen’s aura anywhere, which was extremely troubling. Katherine’s aura should stand out like a beacon with how powerful she was, yet he couldn’t sense her anywhere in the city. For just a moment, he feared the worst. He spotted Bell, one of Katherine’s generals, standing atop the wall and yelling orders.
“What’s going on?” he asked, drifting out of the sky and startling the poor woman.
“Oh! Morgan, I wasn’t expecting to see you here,” she said, looking flustered, troubled, and highly stressed at the same time.
“What’s happening here, and where’s Katherine?” Morgan asked again.
“We’re coming under attack again, though it doesn’t seem like they’re committing a very large force this time. As for Katherine, I thought you knew,” Bell said, seeming confused.
“Knew what?” Morgan asked, feeling the pit of dread creeping up once more.
“She and Sarah headed to the Pinnacle King’s lair to try and save Gwendolyn. They thought it was their best option, given —”
“Shit!” Morgan exclaimed, cutting the general off mid-sentence.
His mind began racing then, going back over everything that had happened. It was clear why they’d gone after her. Gwendolyn was a supermage, and with him gone, they’d need someone to find him. Plus, another supermage would help their case when trying to convince the other Kingdoms to join, even though he’d lost. Up until now, it hadn’t been worth the risk, despite how important she was to him. But now…
“Bell, do we have any Advanced beast cores?” Morgan asked, feeling the urgency of the situation rising.
“I think Katherine might have had a stash in her office, but…”
“Are you sure you can hold out without me?” he asked quickly.
“I mean, it would be better if you stayed, but we should be fine,” Bell said uncertainly.
“Good. I’m going after them. In less than twenty-four hours, King Herald and Queen Le’vine of the East will be arriving with reinforcements. Can you make sure they have a way to get in?”
It was as though a thousand-pound weight had been lifted from the general’s shoulders, and for the first time since he’d arrived, Morgan saw a wide smile stretch across her face.
“That’s the best news we’ve heard in weeks! Yes, you can bet your ass we’ll have a way open for them! Fuza’s going to lose his shit when he hears about this
!”
Much as Morgan wanted to stay and watch that, he knew that he had yet another mission. The risk both Sarah and Katherine were taking was immense, not to mention foolish and horribly thought-out. To go to the enemy’s lair without backup or a real escape-plan was just stupid. Yes, they were desperate, but they should have thought it through just a little more. Worst of all, Morgan knew that should anything happen to them, it would be his fault.
“Good luck in the coming battle, and I really hope you send those assholes packing,” Morgan said, then took off at top speed toward the palace.
He hoped Katherine wouldn’t be too mad that he was going to steal her cores, but he needed the energy and AP if he were going to unlock a specific skill. He’d been thinking about what the mystery god had said about Gravity Warp, and how it should be his next skill to unlock. The more he thought on the explanation, brief as it was, the more he thought he understood.
If he was correct, the Gravity Warp skill would help him travel great distances in just a few moments. He wasn’t sure exactly how it functioned, but it was an extremely expensive skill, costing 3,800 AP. Right now, he only had a bit over 1,300, which meant that he had to hope Katherine had over 2,400 AP worth of cores stored away. Otherwise, he was pretty much screwed.
Here’s to hoping her secret stash is good, Morgan thought as he barreled towards her office.
He really hoped she wouldn’t be mad at the invasion of privacy, but he knew that this was a life and death situation. She might not forgive him even if it was, but Morgan thought he could handle her being a bit mad if she was still alive as a result. He did hesitate outside the door though, standing there for a few long seconds before reaching out and snapping off the doorknob.