The Seventh Spirit

by Adam-Clay Webb

  “Anam Resal!” Hawthorne commanded, releasing a strong burst of mana toward the hovering spectacle. The beam engulfed and seemed to consume the woman.

  “Anam Resalrepus!” Oromaru shouted, and a purple beam, twice the size and strength of Hawthorne’s, jetted out from him toward the troublesome host. The two magicians lowered their hands, panting, squinting to see through the blinding light.

  “Impossible…” Hawthorne muttered. The sorcerers stared in grave fear, unable to respond to their vision. Unharmed and unmoved by the powerful attacks was the black-eyed witch, protected by the legendary seventh grade mana.

  “I suppose I’ll have to try this attack,” Oromaru said to himself. “All of you! Stand clear!” he commanded, and they spaceshifted back a few meters. Purple mana flared around the old man, the council’s second in command, and probably one of the strongest wizards born in his time. The purple mana grew darker and richer, but couldn’t quite reach the stage of blackness. The man made a series of hand signs, intriguing the others.

  ***

  “So he knew an attack like this all along…” Oga muttered, quite impressed.

  ***

  “I might as well go all out too then,” Ellisa considered, a smirk appearing on her face. Purple mana darkened around her. She clasped her hands, then brought her fingers down between one another. “Forbidden Art!” She and Oromaru uttered in chorus.

  “Are they serious?!” Claybourne blasted. Forbidden techniques cost a sorcerer their ability to produce mana altogether… Is this really what it has come to? Hawthorne beheld her superiors, knowing full well the cost of their high-level techniques.

  “Demon Snake Fury!” Oromaru commanded.

  “Elemental Sage Art! Power of Kizer! Hand of the Lightning God!” Ellisa commanded.

  “Forbidden Art!” Claybourne joined in, unwilling to be outdone by his peers. “Elemental Sage Art! Power of Kizer! Breath of Hell!” In unison, three of the greatest spells of pre-arcane magic were spoken into being. Hawthorne watched and trembled. Thick bolts of gold lightning tore down from the heavens toward the possessed Jadena. Massive black snakes emerged from the ground in their hundreds and zoomed out to the black-eyed witch. A white fire rose out of Claybourne’s mouth and sped up to her, the most powerful level of fire that existed. As the three attacks met their target at once, there was a blinding, powerful blast and the earth quaked wildly.

  “Anam Garadan!” Hawthorne commanded, and a purple shield covered the four. The relatively weak witch struggled to keep the shield alive.

  ***

  “Your legacy isn’t as dismal as I thought, Oga,” Kizer said, and snickered a little. “They could almost pass for second-rate magicians back in our day.” A stern look remained on Oga’s face.

  The four elites stared up at a sight they tried not to believe. Totally unfazed by the forbidden attacks was the black-eyed Jadena, black mana still orbiting her. No word could escape their mouths. There was the despondent look of hopelessness meshed in with the disbelief of what they beheld.

  “Oga Art,” the black-eyed witch said calmly with a sort of solemnity and reverence. “Stone of Judgement.”

  The frightened, helpless, pathetic-looking sorcerers stared up at a nightmare made real. A meteor the size of a village, maybe even a town or city, had suddenly blocked the sky from their view, and was coming down with much speed. There was absolutely no running away from it. It fazed through the black-eyed witch and struck the earth, sending tremors through its crust and shifting plates geologists would later study about. The powerful sorcerers were only a small number of the total victim count. They had lived to see the power of a god – the power of Oga.

  ***

  The swift and raging swordfight between Azar and the black-eyed bender grew more intense by the second. The god of the elements watched the battle of two of his descendants with great interest, not certain himself who the victor would be. As swords were swung and spheres of darkness and fire were exchanged and powerful spells were cast, the upper hand changed nearly every moment.

  ***

  Hawthorne appeared atop the meteor, looking up at the impossibly powerful woman who wore a sad expression on her face. Tears felt the councillor’s eyes as she felt the spirit of hopelessness. “Oga… Where are you?” the woman cried. Oga looked down at the crying woman through the black eyes of the destructive witch. A black teardrop ran down Jadena’s face. Hawthorne had just enough to spaceshift her way from under the meteor; she had no time to save her mentors and peers. “This is the power of seventh grade mana,” the woman whispered. “This is the power… of God.”

  ***

  “Oga, what is this new development I perceive?” Kizer asked, a slight look of puzzle on his face. “I am feeling a strong force approaching this very moment,” he said. “This is not a part of the plan.” Oga placed his middle and index fingers at his temples in deep focus.

  “A man with the power of lightning,” Oga reported.

  “I sense the level of his power is as one of the three black pieces we are now wielding,” Kizer said, more interested than troubled. “Give me the details of this being.”

  “One is slightly more powerful than each of the pieces.”

  “So there are multiple?” Kizer asked, now sounding a bit concerned.

  “Two. The second is significantly powerful as well, but not as strong as our pieces… What do you propose we do?”

  “Is that all the information you can attain?” Kizer asked, sounding unimpressed.

  “Lord Kizer, should I be more keen on them, my grip on Trium will be loosened dangerously.”

  “Very well then. Stay in control. I will probe.”

  Kizer closed his eyes for a second, then opened them. “I see…” A scheming smirk appeared on his face. “The two are not mere lightning benders, but lightning makers, and are from another world. One is far stronger than the other. The weaker is of no interest to me, but the stronger can become an interesting piece in the game.”

  “What are you contemplating, my Lord?”

  “I already calculated its exact speed and trajectory. I have devised a plan. Contemplate your mishap with the third we sent to Notherland. I noticed that for a moment, the spirit was being pulled toward the vial that the Magmalian prince had set up.”

  “My apologies,” Oga said, just knowing that Kizer had noticed that miniscule blunder.

  “Your clumsy mistake was pivotal in making this plan,” Kizer continued.

  “I see, so you have calculated the speed and direction that the spirit was being pulled in, and also the lightning maker’s speed and route. I should release the spirit from the witch’s body on timing so it collides with the lightning maker,” Oga deduced.

  Kizer snickered a little. “Sharp as ever, Oga.”

  ***

  The battle between the couple and the little boy began to head down hill, and fast too. Lex’s ice energy was facing depletion, and Zen’s force fields and mind waves grew weaker. The one thing that seemed to remain constant was the enemy’s strength and vitality. Lex and Zen stood side by side, panting and sweating, their enemy before them clothed in the black aura of power. Lex moved off to the boy, an iceball quickly developed in his right hand. On reaching the boy, he shoved the sphere down at him. The boy made an effortless jump, grabbing on to the iceball, which quickly began to freeze hand and arm. But before the process could be finished, the boy blasted Lex with his other fist. Lex flew back quickly, moving past Zen. He landed and rolled, but quickly stood again to face the enemy. The ice on the boy’s arm and hand shattered and two more wings appeared on his back, making six in total. The boy flew up to Zen, who materialized as strong a force field as she could. The boy tore through the shield and struck Zen, sending her flying past Lex.

  “Zen! Maximo, please! I need your strength…” the boy prayed. His ice energy was completely used up and his enemy seemed to still be at full strength.

  ***

  “Oga, I have revised our plan.” />
  ***

  I need more time, Lex.

  “But there is none!” the desperate boy blasted. The kid walked up to the iceless Icemaker. He floated up to Lex’s height and pulled his right fist back.

  SLAM!

  The Icemaker’s bones vibrated and blood flew out of his mouth as he was sent back again through the air. The six-winged boy had already reached behind him and slammed him into the ground with a heavy kick. Lex watched as the boy slowly walked away from him as if to tell him that he was an unworthy opponent. Lex struggled to stand another time, blood draining from his mouth and pain waving though his body. He clenched his fists, barely standing, but no power came to his rescue, no ice, no darkness. The little boy turned and faced Lex, and flew up half a meter. He put forth his right hand, and dark matter began to gather. Lex watched the sphere grow larger and denser by the second until the shadowball stage was far behind it. Soon, the boy held the sphere above his head with both hands, and its size resembled that of the massive shadow shell Lex and Azar had struggled to build together. A devilish laugh came from the little boy’s mouth. Maximo… Is this how it ends? With a mighty roar, the boy sent the shadow shell to destroy Lex.

  There was a massive blast – the force of the shell sent Lex and Zen flying. Lex hit the ground hard, rolling about five meters. He opened his eyes, but the place was all black. But… How… Why am I still alive? I’m certain it was hit directly… He looked over at the unmoving Zen, wondering what miracle caused their bodies to be in one piece. Kyle… Clover… Where are you? Clover… Did I really betray you? Tears welled up in his eyes as he felt his consciousness slipping away.

  Get a grip, Lex… He heard Maximo’s voice try to drag his consciousness back.

  ***

  Kizer looked down at the orb, a look of intrigue and slight concern on his face. He smiled a little, moving a silver piece onto the board. “So officially the world’s most powerful defenders have joined the party set up by these three beasts… I wonder just how strong this boy is, though… He did manage to wipe out a few thousand weaklings... Maybe all he has is brute strength, but even so, he deserves my attention…”

  ***

  Lex looked up slightly, still lying in his blood, his vision hazy. He saw standing before him, between himself and the black-eyed boy, a boy made of a strange metal, his back turned. “Sorry I’m late,” he heard Mike’s voice greet. “I was finishing up some business.” His mind flashed back for a second to the hideout he had made his home, the one that Silver had introduced him to. There, he had been training inhumanely, and had slaughtered more hosts than any one man or woman across the globe.

  “Mike,” Lex said, smiling slightly.

  “No matter how tough this kid is, he’ll only add one to my count, so I’ll finish him quickly if you don’t mind… My level of strength is equal to the entirety of Trium… I am the ultimate,” the boy boasted.

  “Don’t get too cocky, now! I only need you to buy me some time until I recover some energy!”

  Enough greetings. If you meditate for five minutes, you’ll be ready for the road. The boy struggled to sit in his meditative position. He closed his eyes, putting his life, Zen’s life, in Mike’s hands.

  “So all I have to do is shell this kid while protecting Lex and this cutie,” Mike analyzed. “Two minutes sounds about right then.”

  ***

  “Anam Resal!” Azar blasted, sending a beam of bright red mana toward the winged Vinebender. As the prince had expected, she made a quick jump, reaching above the beam of raw mana, while sending an army of shadowballs at the supposedly blinded wizard. The black-eyed demon reached to where Azar was in a short moment, jamming her swords down, but all her sword penetrated was waste mana. “It’s over,” Prince Azar said calmly, holding the bright mana sword, which was already half way through the woman’s back, boring through her left breast. The brightness from his attack was just fading. Without hesitation or further closing remarks, Azar rammed his other mana sword through the enemy’s neck, beheading her. He saw, in a flash, darkness fly form the woman before him and head to the vial. “This power,” Azar said to himself, turning around quickly.

  ***

  Mike watched as the darkness in his opponent’s eye faded, and the boy fell dead. Mike’s face contorted slightly, but he kept his cool, knowing that this demon wouldn’t just run away. He glanced about quickly. Zen was still lying unconsciously on the ground and Lex was still meditating, the darkness in his eyes slowly growing denser.

  ***

  “The calculations were on point, Lord Kizer. The lightning makers are ours to control. I drew magical energy from the witch so I could possess the stronger one, as his element would have proven problematic otherwise.”

  “Good.”

  ***

  Azar looked at the two men before him. They stood with grim, lifeless faces and more killing power than Azar would be happy to fight against. Who the hell are these guys? He knew for sure that they weren’t weaklings, and he was in no condition to jump right into another battle. He looked intently at the two androids with blue metal hulls. One had an ‘E’ on his forehead and the other a ‘P’. Their eyes were densely black, and what appeared to be black lightning buzzed and fluttered about them. I might be way in over my head here, but running away won’t get me anywhere at a time like this… Everyone has their hands full. He clenched his fists. The blue fire had already faded from around him along with the mana. He could barely muster up any more power. A very faint red mana wrapped itself around Azar’s body and he whispered some ancient words under his breath.

  “AAAAH!” The prince cried out with bulged eyes and his magical energy vanished into the air. Black electricity wrapped him up and was frying his cells. Still balancing in pain and electrocution, the prince managed to weave two hand signs to accompany the words he had muttered. The lightning makers just stood there, their powerful electricity being conducted to the magician by the blood on the ground. Finally, the wild shaking and loud cry ended, and the black ropes of strong electricity faded, and the fried man fell to the ground, black smoke rising from his body.

  ***

  “You were intriguing to the very end, young prince,” Kizer said, sounding satisfied, though he wouldn’t have minded a bit more entertainment from him.

  ***

  The lightning makers shot off into the air and quickly landed by their next target, which probably wouldn’t be as easy an opponent as the beat Azar. A smirk arose on Mike’s face, as he was beginning to get impatient. He looked at the two men before him. “I see you did tell on me,” the Ionide said and snickered a little, confidence, even arrogance in his posture. It wasn’t quite Electron and his older brother he was up against though – it was a far deadlier force.

  ***

  “Oga, see if you can get rid of the Ionide without using up the dark matter. Control them to utilize their own power.”

  “I will, my Lord. Do not think lightly of this boy, though.”

  ***

  Mike wondered as he saw black lightning disappear from around the men. Electron wielded the familiar blue electricity while Proton had at his disposal a superior gold electricity. The men folded their fists and current rushed out from them through air and ground. The man with the glowing ‘E’ jetted off toward him suddenly, his eyes black as sin, but his power purely his own.

  I see. He knew this fight wouldn’t be so straightforward. As Electron rushed on with a frontal attack, gold bolts of electricity rushed out from Proton’s outstretched hands and curved around Electron, converging to strike Lex. The Ionide took a solid jump backward. I can’t evade, or Lex and that babe will be in trouble. Electron pushed forth a bright blue beam of electricity from his left palm, adding to the gold power of his brother. Mike clenched his teeth and stretched out his arms that none of the electricity would escape him. There was a bright and thunderous bang as the current of power crashed into Mike. He skated backward, blue and gold power buzzing about him. Mike laughed with thrill a
s deadly spikes flew out from his Ionic coating toward the aliens. Three of the spikes plunged into Electron, flinging him back, boring his hull. Proton, without movement, sent bolts of gold current to arrest spikes and fling them aside. Electron rose from his back, pulling the spikes out of his chest.

  “Let’s begin!” Mike bolted toward Proton excitedly, sending a strong fist at his face. Proton easily caught the boy’s fist, and an immense amount of current surged out into the boy, flinging him back with unexpected force. As Mike landed, a blue bolt struck him from Electron, flinging him off his feet. He landed and rolled and skated. He looked up at Proton, who was hovering above his head already. The Ionide stretched out his hands and sent forth some speedy spikes, but none could penetrate Proton’s hull. Gold current shot down from Proton’s hand, grabbing Mike. The android slowly motioned his hand, and the beam of buzzing gold moved him up from the ground and suspended him in the air just before Proton. Mike clenched his teeth tightly. Why am I feeling pain in this state?! What kind of lightning is this??

  ***

  Kizer looked down at the crystal ball with wide eyes as he saw that the Ionide, now being pressed by two thick streaks of current, was laughing wildly.

  ***

  The brothers lowered their hands and Mike fell to his feet, crouching down on one hand. The gold and blue electricity were still sparking about him.

  “Ionides of long ago… Watch me and behold the might of our power.” He slowly rose to a straight stance, a silver glow shining from his eyes.

  ***

  “The Legend State,” Kizer said to himself, sounding quite impressed. “If he has mastered this level of power…”

  ***

  Spikes slowly crept out of Mike’s surface, and a sword-sharp tail crept out from the base of where he usually had a spine, lined with many tiny spikes.

  “I will become legend,” the boy declared, a tone of confidence and great pride in his voice. Proton clasped his palms, then carried them apart slightly, forging in them a dense gold sphere capable of powering an entire city in a technological world for a few days. He held his hand forward toward Mike, who was just looking on, unimpressed and unafraid. Lightning tore down from the skies and slammed into the gold sphere, increasing its size. Blue current buzzed about the gold ball of bright power. Proton flashed his hand out toward the still composed and aloof Mike.