by Turtle Me
Caera slumped, her left arm still slung around my neck as she put away her sword.
“I won’t be able to do that again,” she said, her voice barely audible over the rush of wind.
My mind was a jumble of thoughts and questions, but I didn’t have the time or wherewithal to puzzle through the nature of those familiar black flames. Instead, my gaze turned to the ground, which was rapidly rushing up to meet us.
Regis, where are you? I asked, unsure if our connection would even let us communicate when Regis wasn’t in my body.
Relief flooded through me when I heard his familiar voice sound in my head. ‘I got Daria and used the guardian’s tail to get down to the ground, but I don’t think I can make it to where you are in time!’
My plan had been to use Gauntlet Form to mitigate some of the impact from the fall, but that only worked if Regis could reach me.
There was no other choice but to use the aetheric beam. While using it to counter the monster’s breath attack had been nothing more than a fool's hope, using the force of the blast could counter the speed of our fall enough so that the impact wouldn’t kill us both.
Of course, by using the aether-beam, I also risked draining all of my aether reserves and dying if Regis wasn’t close enough to get here in time…
Pushing aside the doubt clouding my mind, I focused on the aether art that I was about to cast.
It seemed like Caera had caught on that I was about to do something, and she clung to me even tighter.
My aether reserves had increased since my first two attempts at the aetheric beam, but because of the repercussions it caused and being in such a dangerous zone, I’d had no opportunity to test the attack again.
Letting out a deep breath that got lost in the wind, I concentrated a majority of my aether into fortifying my arms, shoulders, chest, and spine so that my body could withstand the burden.
The purple, rune-like marks extended out from my palms and spread through my fingers.
The hardest part of the maneuver was in the timing. If I fired the blast too early, we would pick up speed again before slamming into the ground and likely dying. If I fired too late, the blast wouldn’t dampen our speed enough before we slammed into the broken surface, likely dying. So I aimed both my palms down at the ground, shoulder-width apart, and waited.
Caera’s fingernails clawed into my shoulder as she watched the ground rise up, but I held back my spell.
Finally, just fifty feet above the ground, I unleashed the aetheric blast.
A deep, forge-fire roar accompanied the eruption of a torrent of violet flames from my palms and into the ground. I immediately felt my shoulders and back protest, but I held firm, unwilling to let my body fail me.
The platform that had first allowed me to unlock this ability had naturally forced out the aether from my body. Now that I was no longer impacted by that effect, the control that I had over how much aether to expend was much greater.
My fingers forced the aetheric blast to remain aimed forward rather than just exploding out. Even with my body strengthened by aether, I knew that my arms had already begun to fracture, and my aether reserves were depleting at a terrifying pace.
Still, we were slowing down. I began decreasing the output of aether, and the noise that it caused subsided somewhat, and I realized Caera was screaming as she clung to me like a baby koala.
“Brace yourself for impact!” I roared as I turned to face the sky, making sure that I’d be the one to land first as we crashed into the ground while cladding both of us in as much aether I could afford.
By the time I came to, I knew that I hadn’t been unconscious for long by the clouds of dirt and dust still rising from the crater that I had made upon impact.
My body felt like it had been ripped apart, welded back together, and then ripped apart again. It took all of my mental fortitude to keep from passing out from the pain only seconds after waking, but Caera seemed to have fared better.
She was still unconscious, but she had been able to supplement my aetheric shield with the use of her own mana to protect her body from fatal harm.
What little aether I had in reserve immediately went to work repairing my broken body, but I couldn’t afford to lay in the dirt and just wait.
The ground shuddered beneath me, growing stronger with each deep thud: the guardian was approaching.
“Arthur!” a husky voice growled from the edge of the crater. It was Regis. Daria was riding on his back.
“Regis,” I gurgled before coughing out a mouthful of blood.
Daria gasped as she slid off Regis’s back. “Merciful Vritra, how is he still alive?”
The two of them ran toward me, and before either Regis or I could do anything, Daria had withdrawn a glass vial from her dimension ring and held it against my mouth.
“Drink this,” Daria said as she leaned in closer and raised my head. “An emblem Instiller made this. It uses the mana in your body to heal your wounds.”
“Can’t,” I managed to choke out around the mouth of the bottle. “Won’t… work.”
Her thin brows furrowed in confusion before a look of realization washed over her. “Oh, you can’t.”
Relieved that she understood, I closed my eyes and rested my head against her warm hand.
Regis, I need some of your aether if I’m going to be able to—
My thoughts were interrupted by the sensation of something silky soft pressing against my lips before a lukewarm liquid entered my mouth. My eyes shot open to see Daria’s mouth locked against mine, her eyes shut and cheeks red.
Without the strength to even lift my arms, and her strong hands resisting my attempt to twist my face away, I was forced to swallow whatever contents were in that vial.
Daria finally pulled away, her composure slipping away as her face turned bright crimson. “I-I had no choice since you didn’t have the strength to swallow.”
Little pockets of pain exploded inside me with each cough that I forced out. “Y-you… the vial wouldn’t…”
“As my master is so eloquently trying to explain, it wasn’t that he couldn’t swallow the elixir that you so generously mouth-fed him, but that it wouldn’t work on him,” Regis explained calmly, an annoyingly amused expression on his lupine face.
I shot the black and purple wolf the most piercingly cold glare that I could muster. With a snarky grin, Regis trotted past Daria, who looked on in puzzlement, and dove into my body.
A cool rush of energy spread from my core and I could feel my rate of recovery increase.
‘You get a free kiss along with my recovery services.’ Regis snickered. ‘I’d say you owe me.’
Bite me, I responded sharply, but it felt good to be annoyed by him again instead of suffering through the long hours of stony, brooding silence.
With Regis’s help, I recovered enough to get back on my feet, unable to ignore the shaking earth any longer.
‘Don’t you die on me, princess,’ Regis sent, his voice weak.
Rest up, buddy. I looked down at Caera, whose injuries were slowly fading due to the effects of the elixir Daria had just fed her. She didn’t seem like she was going to be in any shape to keep fighting against the titanic guardian, though.
Reaching down, I unclasped the buckle that held the leather sheath and dagger by her waist, then strapped it on before climbing up the edge of the crater. “Keep her safe. I have some questions I need to ask her.”
“Where are you going?” Daria asked. “You’re not thinking of actually fighting that thing, right?”
“No,” I responded. “I’m thinking of killing it.”
277
Back to Basics
Ahead, two ascenders were fighting against the towering, bat-headed dragon creature. From a distance, they looked like fanged mice scurrying desperately around a giant orc. I knew without looking who the two were—Taegen and Arian were the only ones capable of staying alive and keeping the titan occupie
d for this long.
I rushed toward the colossal guardian, tearing divots into the barren ground as I gained speed. My hand gripped tightly around the curved handle of the white dagger; compared to the size of the monster I was facing, this dagger couldn’t even serve as its toothpick, but having it in my hand helped to give me the confidence I needed.
Expending most of the aether from my core in one quick aetheric blast had the same benefit as going through the three stages of refining my core and aether channels—albeit with the added risk of death.
I could feel the complex, minute differences in the way the aether flowed through my body.
Using aether for the first time after forging my new core had felt like I was trying to regulate the direction and speed of the aether’s flow using a kitchen strainer. Now, however, I felt like I had a proper floodgate installed, and the aqueducts leading to various points throughout my body were slowly being tunneled and constructed.
I was physically stronger and sturdier than ever, but I knew it wasn’t enough to face off against the Scythes. Not yet.
My entire arsenal had been taken from me, and I was given a single, ethereal weapon in return. I was finally learning how to wield it. To make up for the versatility I had lost in mana, I needed to be able to utilize aether at a level far above not only the Indrath Clan, but also the ancient mages.
Every fight is just another test, I thought as I watched the titan slam a foot the size of a house down on Arian, just missing the nimble ascender. Some tests are just harder than others…
The colossal beast was the first to notice my presence. Its bat-like face whipped toward me and let out a furious shriek that rippled visibly through the air. Its maw lunged downward, as if it intended to swallow me whole.
As I channeled aether to my legs, accelerating to meet the beast head on, I was surprised by how much more naturally the action came. Everything but the beast’s snarling face became a blur as I sped toward it.
I leaped from the ground, spinning to gain momentum for my attack. Even the guardian wasn’t prepared for the sudden increase in my speed, and it tried to pull its head back up and out of my reach.
It wasn’t fast enough.
The dagger turned into a shimmering streak of white and purple as it pierced through the side of the ugly, folded nose. The sound of thunder erupted from the impact, sending out shockwaves of force that kicked up a storm of dust and debris all around us. The titan’s head whipped to the side, causing it to stagger to the side and creating an opening for Arian to charge up and unleash a flurry of golden crescents. Taegen, who was now adorned in an intricate earthen armor, hammered away at the thick legs like a blacksmith shaping iron.
The barrage of golden arcs and the devastating mace strikes were barely able to draw blood, but it was enough to sweep the beast’s legs from right under its body.
With an enraged roar, the titan crashed on its side, shattering the ground and sending out a wave of tremors that nearly toppled the very tower it was trying to protect.
Both Taegen and Arian had to fall back or risk being crushed under the titan’s body, something I doubted even the most powerful mages could survive.
“Effeminate One! Is Lady Caera safe?” Taegen yelled, the tall ascender scowling around the battlefield hoping to lay eyes on her.
“She’s recovering at a safe distance with Daria!” I shouted back, my gaze fixed on the giant beast, now trying to get back up to its feet.
“Looks like we’re in your debt,” Arian replied, his voice quiet but oddly clear despite his distance and the noise coming from the titan.
Judging by the powerful vibrations that pulsated from his sword, and those golden crescents, it seemed that his magic focused on specific subsets of wind and gravity affinities, which would have been a very rare combination on Dicathen.
Taegen surprised me even more, as his magic didn’t stop at just the earthen armor. Every step he took seemed to manipulate not only his own armor but the earth around him. Even as he swung his mace, chunks of the ground would envelop his weapon, molding around it to form a larger mace.
I didn’t waste the opportunity either, landing several more attacks at the titan’s face in order to prevent it from getting back up for as long as possible.
Despite its colossal size, however, the beast was surprisingly deft, and was able to recover by pushing off the ground with its long tail. As soon as it was back up on all six of its feet, it whirled both its neck and tail like a whip, gouging huge troughs from the ground and launching shards of earth all around it in an attempt to keep us at a distance.
I weaved through chunks of dirt the size of carriages as I attempted to stay within striking range. With my aether core nearly empty, I had to rely on my physical strength and speed.
The problem was the beast’s size: it was so large that no amount of stabbing or hitting was going to do any significant damage unless I found a weak spot—if one even existed.
A loud crash sounded over the chaos, and the beast buckled. Just as I thought the blow might have done some real damage, its tail lashed out. Taegen, looking more like a golem than a human, was smacked away like a dung fly. He crashed into the ground and vanished under a thick cloud of dust and debris.
Reaching its front left leg, where Arian had previously launched his attack, I found some deep gashes in the thick hide. Seeing my opening, I kicked off the ground and plunged my aether-infused dagger into a particularly deep wound in the three-story-tall leg.
Pinkish blood spilled everywhere, covering me almost entirely. A giant shadow blocked out the red sky and I whirled, prepared to meet the titan head on. The mouth gaped open like a cave, the teeth within like rows upon rows of stalactites and stalagmites. Aether rippled over my flesh, though I wasn’t sure it would be enough to survive a bite from the titan.
A swirling sphere of mana struck just above the beast’s jaw, interrupting the attack as its head twisted around to snarl at the attacker. Arian was several yards away, his body giving off a tremendous aura.
The swordsman’s expression darkened as he prepared to face the colossal monster, and an idea came to my mind.
“How much stronger of an attack can you launch?” I yelled. The beast kept its head high, keeping both of us in its field of view… as if it was trying to decide which one to kill first.
“Perhaps five times the strength, but I would need more time to prepare,” Arian answered, his voice as clear as if he were standing right beside me. “Why do you ask?”
“You’ll have to trust me on this!” I shouted before turning my attention back to the beast.
I unleashed a flurry of strikes with my small blade, dancing within the titan’s six giant legs as I dodged and cut, spun and stabbed, the dagger driving into those gashes again and again in an attempt to keep the colossal beast’s attention solely on me.
The earth shook with each step it took, and the wind whipped like a hurricane whenever its tail lashed out. It stomped around drunkenly, trying in vain to crush me. My focus was largely on actively limiting my output of aether, controlling it as efficiently as I could, waiting for the perfect time.
“I’m ready,” Arian said from afar, his figure no larger than a white crow from where I was.
A flash of gold suddenly filled my vision, and a second later a deafening explosion thundered across the battlefield.
Arian had unleashed a giant blast of cutting force directly at the beast, enveloping its entire head in a bright golden surge of light.
I leaned forward, crossing my arms in front of me to keep from being blown away by the attack.
It wasn’t just Caera. Her guards were also hiding their strength while in the convergence zone, I realized.
Despite the dire situation we were in, I couldn’t help but think to myself how little a chance Dicathen truly had in winning the war. Had Arian, Taegen, and the ascenders all joined their people to fight against us, the war would’ve been over much faster.
The beast’s head snapped back on its long neck from the force of Arian’s attack. Like an angry toddler throwing a temper tantrum, the guardian attacked the closest thing it could find: me.
I needed its attention focused elsewhere, and it had to be mad enough to use its breath attack again, but in its rage it had locked onto me and redoubled its efforts to crush me beneath foot or tail. Its mad stamping caused a storm of dust to rise up, obscuring my vision and allowing the full force of the tail to strike me from behind moments later.
The world turned white as blinding pain spread throughout my body. By the time I came to, I was on the ground, several dozens of yards away from the titan. This had likely saved my life, as all six enormous feet were still stomping on the ground, making the earth quake.
I pushed myself up, a groan escaping my throat. My vision blurred and the world seemed to be tilting a bit, but overall, I was fine.
‘Still barely a scratch on Mr. Big-and-nasty, huh,’ Regis chimed in.
“You’re awake,” I managed to say before letting out a ragged cough. “Can you help?”
‘No. I haven’t been absorbing aether from your body to heal, since I knew you’d be fighting,’ Regis replied.
“Damn.”
‘There is one alternative, though.’ Regis was nervous about something, I could feel it.
My brows furrowed as I continued watching Arian and Taegen, who had managed to return to the battle, bombard the guardian. “What is it?”
Regis hesitated. ‘The Destruction rune. Just your aether reserves should be enough.’
Anger and fear rose up in me at the thought of Destruction’s dire effect on my psyche. “No.”
For once, Regis didn’t push me. He remained quiet as I let the last scrapes and bruises on my body heal. I wanted to use the Destruction rune more than anyone, but the last attempt had led me to stabbing myself to keep from descending into a state of madness—and I had barely used its powers.
There was also the added problem of witnesses. Both Arian and Taegen would see, and even if Caera was able to use the corrupt flames, I’m sure a purple fire capable of destroying a nine-story-high beast would raise some questions.