The Ancients

by Adam-Clay Webb

  The sages flashed their attention to an appearance of sudden floating redness. Argros gasped as he felt a denting force upon his chest, which pushed him off to skate several meters on the hard, coal ground. He clenched his teeth, supressing his fright.

  The red cloud was just clearing out, revealing clearly the commander-in-chief of earth’s army.

  “I trust he will be enough to turn the tides here,” Azar said to Ohm. “I leave urgently.” With that, Azar vanished, appearing in some distant battle to continue his management.

  Mike was just lowering his fist. He looked down at the man Silver, Rebecca, Tiger and Copper had told him so much about, it was like he already knew everything about him. Mike, covered wholly in the legendary armour, knelt down over Amorphous and touched his chest. Even swifter than Argros had healed Aragan, Mike’s iodium made the floored Ionide whole again.

  Swirling about in Mike’s head were a million questions, a million stories to tell, and a spectral mix of emotions. He held his hand down to the fallen fighter, and Amorphous grabbed it. Upon that moment, a silver glow radiated from the Ionides’ grasping hands. Ohm grabbed on to his head and fell to his knees, feeling what he could only perceive to be a painful strain on his very mind. In that fraction of time, the hollow dullness in Amorphous’ eyes disappeared, replaced with a flicker of animated silverness. But then just after, the hollow emptiness returned.

  Incredible… Ohm thought, his headache vanishing as suddenly as it had appeared. He managed to stand again. Some buried spec of consciousness surfaced within Amorphous. There must be some transcendent connection between him and this boy…

  Mike looked down into the eyes of the summoning, seeing, in that impossible moment, his father. Surely, that one moment was not enough, but it was all he would get. Amorphous, with the help of Mike, found his way up to a straight stance. Mike knew from Azar’s quick and frightful briefing that Amorphous was now a mere puppet, a summoning whose soul was cruelly replaced by Ohm’s control. The boy looked over at Ohm with a glare that made the old man shiver. Then he faced the enemy ahead.

  “Dad, let’s show this guy how outdated he is,” Mike said, looking over at Amorphous, and seeing, probably by virtue of his wishful imagination, a slight smirk of agreement.

  “Wind Dragon!” Ohm used the little mana that he had managed to recover in the break to call forth the swift beast. Jumping up on its back, he knew that he only had one role in the rest of the battle – to stay alive. His trust was now completely in his summoning and this mystery Ionide.

  Ohm laughed wildly like he had no sanity, narrowly missing Aragan’s streams of fire, which often scattered themselves into the Ionides’ battle (of course, with no effect). Meanwhile, Argros was finally made to fight seriously. Mike realized that firing spikes at Argros yielded no effect, but the boy’s hard punches seemed to be doing something.

  As Argros made another swift dodge, the tight breeze from Mike’s fist grazing his face, Amorphous, in a burst of speed, wedged a hard punch into the sage’s chest. A wave of force rippled across Argros’ being, and he skated back, but Mike was already upon him with a jump-kick, his foot making a shallow dent in Argros’ armoured chest. Argros glanced behind him as he skated further back. His eyes dilated, as Amorphous, already behind him in a flash of unseen speed, grabbed his arms in a masterful lock. A wave of wind pushed the wind dragon off its course and sent Ohm flying off to hit the ground from a dangerous height. Aragan too was sent hurling without control. Mike’s forceful attack sent cracks through Argros’ armour. Amorphous’ strong hold meant that the impact was as hard as possible, as the Metal Sage did not move back, but endured the full blunt of Mike’s blow.

  With clenched teeth, Argros gathered his fortitude and pulled against Amorphous’ constraint, but somehow, he could not escape. He’s become stronger! Argros’ mind said. Who the hell are these Ionides?! His eyes bulged noticeably as he witnessed the ominously familiar glow on Mike’s fist. So he too has achieved that power. Taking that hit is more than undesirable. “Metal Art!” the sage commanded, and shifted his left foot on the earth. “Silver Binding!” The wind dragon shot up into the sky as Ohm jumped aboard. Aragan too was moving frantically, dodging the tens of thick grey chains that burst forth from the ground, springing up tiny quakes. The chains wrapped around Mike tightly. The boy stood there as chains bounded him from all directions.

  Argros clenched his fists tightly, and a silver glow appeared all about him. With a quick elbow jab, he sent Amorphous skating back, grabbing on to the cracks on his chest. As Amorphous skated back, his right fist glowed as Mike’s did, and his iodium regenerated with urgency. Argros shifted his right foot and more chains emerged from beneath the earth, digging up the dirt and dust, and wrapping around Amorphous tightly.

  “These chains are unbreak--”

  “Ion Blast!” the duo blasted in unison, and with a speed rivalling teleportation, they reached up to the clueless Argros who was unable to react. Ohm’s dragon flew further up as there was a terrible force and a massive quake. The earth was dug up for miles, and a massive crater formed at the unspeakable impact. Ohm slowly moved the back of his hand from shielding his face from the strong wind and scattering of dust-sized bits of iodium. The sight that remained before him left the old man wordless.

  “Brother…” Aragan muttered with a pitiful fright in his eyes. His muscles weakened, and he nearly keeled over. The dust settled to reveal Mike and Amorphous facing each other, their glowing fists touching. Nothing was left of Argros. The dual attack had dissolved his body – unbreakable armour and all – into unseeably small pieces.

  Mike finally lowered his arm with a proud smirk. “Is that really it, dad? That’s all the sage had to offer? It appears I’d have to battle you to get a true challenge.” Mike’s face greyed in the instant that a bright yellow glow enveloped Amorphous and stole him away with no warning. “Dad!” Mike grabbed at him, but only the scattering of light was left behind.

  The frightened Ionide spun quickly, looking up a scene that equally surprised even Aragan. The Ionide’s eyes traced the long green vine that had run through Ohm’s back, boring through his chest, the remaining length of it swaying relaxedly in the blood that freely oozed from the old man’s punctured chest to drool down on the dragon’s back. Ohm was standing on the small dragon, his life fleeing. Mike’s eyes finally reached to the other end of the vine, which was the palm of Aven’s outstretched hand.

  “I got word you and Argros are in trouble. Where is Argros?” Aven asked, not any evident hint of worry in his voice.

  “Argros is…”

  Aven’s face visibly changed now. He appeared perplexed over all else. “Dead?”

  “More than dead,” Aragan’s voice came in almost a stutter.

  The movement of Ohm’s body finally plummeting from the dragon caught everyone’s attention. A cloud of dust stirred as he thudded from the terrible height, and his summoned dragon vanished in a final black scattering. Aven’s vine, now shrivelled and brown, collapsed entirely and dissolved into a soft string of mulch.

  What is this… weakness… Mike felt his body grow feeble, and his iodium cracked all over him, until finally, the Legend State was no longer. He tried to move, but the only response his body gave him was a light-headedness and a pulsing headache. “It must be that one,” Mike muttered to himself, looking out at Aven, who was staring at him with clear puzzle. Now Mike was beginning to feel even sleepy. Except the sleep that was calling out to him was a sleep permanent.

  As his head slouched down and his knees nearly buckled, he finally noticed tens of tiny green strings, which had sprouted up from the ground, wrapping around his feet.

  “I have drained his life energy,” Aven finally said, as Mike’s armour cracked until it fell off, leaving him nakedly vulnerable. “You can deliver the final attack if you wish,” he told Aragan.

  “A consolation I’ll take with little shame,” Aragan said, and ran up to Mike with a pulled-back flaming fist. The Fire Sage w
as quite surprised when Mike caught his attack. Iodium had managed to cover the boy’s right hand, protecting it from being consumed by the white fire. But by the time Aragan pulled back his fist, Aven’s vines had done enough damage that not even that bit of armour could longer be maintained. Aragan stepped back as Mike dropped to his knees.

  ***

  “King Azar!” Ruben’s voice alarmed as Azar, clothes tattered and smoking, appeared in the tower.

  Azar’s breathing was heavy, and his mana so low that his head swirled with dizziness. “What’s the report? And where the hell is Vis?” he asked, seeing emptiness where the arcanine had been sitting in deep focus. “Did he go after Lex?”

  “I don’t know. He just vanished.”

  “What is your report?”

  “Ohm is dead. If you move now, maybe you can rescue Mike. The Fire Sage is about to kill him. The Leaf Sage is also on site.”

  ***

  Azar would have made no delay in shifting to Mike, but even having mastered the art of mana-economical shifting just to fulfil this role in the war, his mana had come to its limit. A few times, he had had to use some of Viknor’s mana, but even that was no longer an option.

  But seeing how well Azar had been doing, fate decided to give him a hand. A blue cloud brought in Star, who still struggled to stand upright. Without greeting, Azar rushed upon Star and grabbed her, denting her mana with a mana theft technique Viknor had taught him. The tizzied king and the confused witch appeared at the scene of Mike’s execution.

  Aragan flashed his eyes over to the intruders. Mike had just enough strength to spare a weary glance, still on his knees, unable to rise. Aragan was about to vaporize his skull. Star darted forward toward the sage, blue swords already in her hands. Azar jolted back as Star moved with a vigour that seemed to come out of nowhere. Aragan jumped back, and white fire roared around his body. Azar ran up to where Star stood and Mike knelt. Star clenched her fists and reddened her mana, erecting a strong shield to fend off Aragan’s stream of fire.

  The sage lowered his hand to see that they indeed were not burnt up. Star’s shield had guarded them well, and to Azar’s surprise.

  “Where the hell is the Ionide?” the sage asked, looking about.

  Aven sighed heavily.

  Star had felt another sudden plummet in her mana while she was keeping the red shield erected. “You’ve used my mana to power a reverse summoning,” Star said, showing Azar that she wasn’t a novice to these gimmicks.

  “He should be safe now. Your mana is quite resilient. Even so, we cannot fight these enemies. Let’s grab Ohm’s body and disappear.”

  “So you are this Azar I have been hearing about,” Aven greeted. “Commander-in-Chief of earth’s defences.”

  Star grabbed Azar and shifted with him, appearing over Ohm, whose tattered clothes were drenched in the pool of blood beneath him.

  “You have my respect,” Aven said, sounding sincere enough to bow. “You do a great and honourable thing, leading the world into a stand against us villains.”

  “I had the honour of meeting a descendant of yours,” Azar said. “He led your race into the Black War, and defended this world with his very life. He had done a great and honourable thing.”

  Aven’s eyes were sunken. But he looked up from his ponder of guilt, that had merely spiked from the low, constant conscious hum that lay upon his mind since the war’s beginning. Aven looked up at the distanced creature many miles out.

  “A wind dragon,” Azar realized. “Friend or foe, we leave with Ohm’s body immediately,” Azar said. “Grab hold of it. It will be important if we survive the war.” Still, Azar and Star were gazing up at the approaching wind dragon.

  Star’s eyes widened and the hairs stood up on her arms and legs as she felt a grip on her ankle.

  “I am not dead yet,” Ohm’s mutter came in. Aven saw Ohm’s movement, and like Aragan, wore eyes of total disbelief. “Young witch, your life will be traded for my final act. This will be your greatest deed,” Ohm’s declared. He gripped Star’s ankle firmly and her entire body shook. In a single moment, Ohm had used a level of mana theft that only he could use. Star’s entire body grew pale and clammy; lifeless. Azar stood as petrified as the sages were bemused.

  “Final Summoning!” Ohm declared. Everyone had to cover their eyes quickly as a blindingness swept across everywhere. The light was hot and tense, almost like Aragan’s fire. As the light filled the space of miles, Star’s body, cleared not only of mana, but of her life energy, fell just beside Ohm’s. Nothing beyond resurrection would have been enough to bring her back.

  As the light slowly aired out, the wind dragon made a landing nearby Azar and Ohm.

  “Get him up here. Hurry. Leave the girl,” Shade’s quick instructions came. Azar grappled up Ohm’s soaked body as carefully as he could, and Shade helped him to hoist the somehow-still-alive man up unto the small dragon. Shade grabbed Azar’s forearm and helped him up as well.

  Azar immediately took his own shirt off and flung it around Ohm, tying it around the gaping hole in his chest that should by all logic have already left him dead. Azar held him up awkwardly, himself quite exhausted.

  “Three minutes,” Ohm said. “That is how long I have left. The Vine Sage’s poisoning will kill me by then. And at that time, my summonings will disappear. Bringing them forth came at a regrettable cost,” he said, then caughed up blood, making Azar grab on to him more tightly in reflex. Azar looked down at Star. Even though the light was still too bright for him to make out who or what the summonings were, he could somehow manage to look at Star’s body. He was still rendered speechless by how easily Ohm had stolen her life. He was even more frightened of himself for seeing her death as a necessary tool if it meant having a chance to kill the sages.

  In a rough moment of introspection, Azar considered just how indifferent toward individual lives he had become.

  “…So listen carefully,” Ohm continued. “Keep me within 300 meters of each summoning at all times. Protect me from attacks at all cost. For three minutes. After that…”

  “Understood,” Shade’s cool voice stopped him. Then the wind dragon ascended. Azar held on to the old Elder as he struggled to keep them from toppling off the quick dragon. Azar had made Ohm to sit upright and lean back on his chest. Ohm’s blood had already soaked the wrapping and was all over Azar’s chest.

  “With these summonings, you have outdone us all,” Shade said as he managed to see through the remains of the clearing light.

  Ohm snickered proudly.

  “Who are they?” Azar asked curiously. Who could he have brought forth who are stronger even than Amorphous?

  In a fear and perplexity that rendered him speechless and shivery, Aragan found his way beside Aven, but he too had the same paleness on his face.

  This is… impossible… Beyond impossible. Father, what the hell is going on? Aven thought.

  Chapter 34: The Lost Sages

  Under the white robes that clad the two men who stood facing Aven and Aragan, were detailed tattoos of golden writings and symbols that stretched across their entire bodies, sparing not even their faces. One had short white hair. The other was slightly taller, almost Aragan’s height, and had long grey hair. Their eyes were blank, much like Amorphous’ were, but being even more wearisome summonings to control, Ohm had to use special binding spells to make using them less troublesome.

  “Jeerkia… Appa…” Aragan finally spoke.

  Aven looked up at the wind dragon. He knew that the summoner must have been mere moments from death. Focusing on the summoner, though, would mean paying less attention to the new enemies, which would spell doom without question.

  “Aragan, focus!” Aven snapped, himself just shaking off the fright that had frozen him up. “The summoner will die within at most two minutes. All we need to do is hold out until then. I know you’re exhausted, but you must pull yourself together. Get rid of your questions for now so you can live to search for answers.”

  A
t this, the Fire Sage clad himself in white flames.

  “I suppose in the end it required sages to defeat sages,” Ohm muttered proudly, his looming end not nearly grim enough to overshadow his pride and excitement.

  “Impossible…” Azar breathed. “How…”

  “Regarding us Elders, the less you know, the better, young king,” Azar heard Shade say.

  These ‘Elders’… Just when I thought I’ve seen the limits of their ridiculousness…

  ***

  “Oga, what is this impossibility I am seeing at Notherland?” Kizer’s tone made the question sound like an accusation.

  The gods were still in their hidden place, eyes closed in total control of their massive armies.

  “These summonings. They are… my sons who were killed in the war. How can this be?”

  “As I had professed at the beginning of our truce, I know nothing of what happened to their bodies. As far as I can imagine, they were destroyed by the attacks of my children.”

  “So you say…” Kizer sounded more than just slightly suspicious of Oga.

  “The purge is almost complete. If you wish, I can go ahead and deal with the summonings personally,” Oga said, pretending to overlook Kizer’s mistrust. “If they are at the peak of their strength, then they might very well destroy Aven and Aragan.”

  “I’d rather leave them be,” Kizer said. Oga’s brows crawled together. The men’s eyes were still closed. “The battle of the four sages will certainly sink Notherland, hastening the purge. Remember, Notherland has the highest concentration of survivors. Their battle will definitely flatten the continent.”

  “I suppose.”

  “Besides, there is an even more pressing concern that you would have to deal with first. Something ominous is approaching. It must be him.”

  ***

  “Even with time on their side, we have two clear advantages,” Ohm said. The wind dragon was as distanced from the summonings as it could have been without breaking Ohm’s hold on them.