by Eric Vall
“Thank you for understanding, sir,” Ashla sighed with a relieved smile, “and know that if there is anything my men and I can do, we are willing to give life and limb.”
Sleet smiled, but said no more on the matter.
Nia and Orenn spent a lot of the evening after the meeting making travel arrangements as well as pooling all of our supplies. We wouldn’t have the resources to make any stops along the way, they told me, so we’d have to make due with what we already had, which wasn’t much. Between the four of us, we only had two general tonics, an antidote Doc gave to Orenn before they left, and an elixir we agreed was only to be used as an absolute last resort.
Now that we all had an idea of what was next for us, we found somewhere to sleep and one by one, we dozed off. The day’s events were long, harrowing, and depressing, and those were only the first three descriptors that came to mind.
Eventually, most everyone had fallen asleep, and I was left awake to stare at the hollowed bark ceiling. The silence that fell amongst us was deafening, and my mind raced wildly.
I’d always been able to run with the punches. Anything that life threw at me, I’d been able to handle with some amount of grace, skill, and with just a pinch of luck.
I was resilient. I was a fighter. I believed there was good in the world despite the bad and prejudices in it.
More importantly, I believed in magic.
I believed as a mage, I could change the world. If I helped save one life, then it was worth everything.
I’d saved hundreds of lives by now, maybe more. I should have been proud of that. I was proud of that, and yet it felt overshadowed by the amount of loss suffered today. The world above was in chaos, and the people running things were idiots. If Sleet was right, this was only the beginning of the demise of the human race. He was so sure there were answers in these books, that there was something to be learned from a history that had been kept from us.
Maybe he was right.
I had no idea what time of day it was, whether it was dusk or dawn, but most everyone was asleep. I stayed up, though. I watched over them, not because I was trying to be creepy by staring at people as they slept, but because I felt like I needed to.
For whatever reason, we were brought together. We were chosen for this mission, one that could potentially save the whole world. If anyone had told me that would be my life’s work in years prior, I would have laughed in their faces. I never thought I’d be anything more than a drifter moving from place to place and finding what work I could. Summoners didn’t have that great of a reputation, after all.
Here I was, though. I’d been beaten to the brink of death and faced horrors and monsters that only nightmares could produce. I’d experienced loss and grief, guilt and defeat.
But I’d also experienced hope.
I’d been given a wide variety of resources and ample opportunities to hone my skills and repave the way for future summoners. I’d made friends I called family, and I had a team that was diverse in ways that made them unique, but we all had the same goal: a life without the threat of monsters.
A glint of a sparkle caught my eye, and I slowly turned my head. My bandolier was draped over the bedside table, and my summoner crystals glittered in the dim light of the floating orbs. They all ranged in sizes, shapes, and colors now. Before I’d gone to the Academy, I’d only owned a small handful of monsters. They got me by, but I never much needed them for anything outside of doing some of my heavy lifting for me. On occasion, I’d brought one out to scare off some bandits or otherwise nasty critters, but it was nothing like this. Yet, the instinct to fight, to use them in tandem and expound upon their natural abilities, came too easily to me.
My eyes landed on the sun giant Maelor had given me before I first left for Varle, and a sad smile tugged on the corners of my lips. He was the first person I called family after my parents were killed, and I didn’t even remember them. There were no pictures, nothing that remained, aside from the small dagger Maelor had recovered and given to me. It was my father’s, he’d said, and I’d kept it close by since then. Even if I rarely used it, just having it on my person was a comfort.
The sun giant’s crystal sparkled brilliantly beside the newest of my collection. It was a collection I currently was referring to as the ‘too powerful to use club,’ and there were only two members thus far, the sun giant, and now the belial. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to use them one day. On the contrary, I certainly did. To be able to wield a power like that in the heat of battle would be mind blowing, but that was also the downfall. I didn’t want to bring either of those monsters out in the heat of a battle without first having trained myself with using them.
I’d gotten lucky with the baroquer and the roosa. Both of them were my captures, which made them relatively easy for me to control. Monsters caught by summoners in general were easier to handle than say crystals dropped or bought, because the summoner had to infuse their mana into the crystal to capture it in the first place. However, if the original master of the crystal died, then the monster within it, though still trapped, would begrudgingly serve another master, and thus give it more difficulties. The higher the grade, the more mana it took to control, and the harder it was as well.
I didn’t know if the belial would be easy to use in battle. I’d like to think it would, but this was a Double A grade monster. That was insane to me. There was only one step above that, which was an S class. There hadn’t been any S class monsters in Mistral, at least according to the records, that I could recall, but I supposed that didn’t mean they didn’t exist.
After all, the class had to exist for a reason.
The sun giant, though, that was another story. It had been in father’s before he gifted it to me, and just by holding my hand over the sun giant’s crystal, I could feel that the power was overwhelming. It made my pulse jump and my fingers twitch.
There was a lot of power there, and I wasn’t sure I could control it. Not yet.
I knew I would get to a point one day when I could, but it wasn’t going to be soon, and it wasn’t going to be in the heat of a battle. If I lost control over the sun giant or the belial, the consequences would be catastrophic. That wasn’t a risk I was willing to take.
The sound of papers shifting grabbed my attention, and I looked over to see Ashla poring over her notes as she sat up in the bed across from Arwyn. Her eyes were focused, and her brow furrowed as she read over her writing. Part of me felt a little bad for dragging her into all of this, but she sort of volunteered herself. Her interest in the ciphers and her desire for knowledge made her a great academic asset, and her battle skills with her axe and ice magic were second to none.
She was truly an amazing woman.
“You can stop staring at me anytime,” she muttered before she lifted her gaze to mine. There was a glint of teasing in her dark brown eyes, and it reminded me of just how beautiful she was in a low light setting.
“Don’t tell me you don’t like it,” I tossed back with a quiet chuckle.
Ashla gathered her papers and placed them aside before she stood from the bed.
I drank in the delicious color of her skin as she stepped closer, and I was able to get a better look at her. She’d been on the other side of the rift in Balvaan for the last two months, defending the port town with Orenn and half of the members of her mercenary group, the Wild Reds. The other half had accompanied Layla inside the rift to close it.
She looked tired, as though she hadn’t slept or eaten in days, and for all I knew, that could have been true. Balvaan had suffered a lot of flood damage from what I could recall, and the nasty little fish monsters, jettas, Orenn called them, were no joke, and had come out of the rift en masse.
I patted the bed beside me, and Ashla sat, though she was careful not to bump my arm. It would be another day or so until it was fully healed, Nehra had said on her return visit.
“What happened while I was gone?” I asked Ashla hesitantly. “How did you fare in Balvaan?”
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A dark look settled in her eyes as she sighed heavily. Now that she was closer, I could see the depth of the dark circles under her eyes. She truly was exhausted, maybe more so than any of us here, with the possible exception of myself and Arwyn.
“After you all jumped into the rift, we spent the next two weeks fighting off jettas,” Ashla began with a far away look in her eye. “People were living on their roofs, jumping into the flood water to try and swim to the mountain and get away from the battle. It was a nightmare.”
My heart sank.
“I’m so sorry, Ashla,” I apologized, but she waved it off.
“What matters is the rift is gone, even if it was open from sunup to sundown for two months,” she told me. “Night time was our only reprieve. We would do what we could for the short time we had, whether it was spell the water out of the town, or try to restore what we could in the process, but it always ended up the same. The next morning would come, and the majority of our work would have been for naught.”
“I can only imagine how helpless you felt,” I mumbled. My eyes drifted to Orenn then. He grew up in Balvann, and he’d lost so much, but here he was, ready to go back out and fight for all the villages and cities he could save, and for the ones that he couldn’t. His strength came from more than just his metallouge ability. He had a strong heart, and a strong sense of duty.
“We tried everything,” Ashla continued, and I turned my eyes back to her. “We tried to build a drain ditch, but that started to overflow. We tried to board up the area where we knew the rift would return, but it only made the rift gate explode with the force, and it was ultimately ineffective, not to mention that with every time it reopened, we’d have to fight more jettas. Eventually, we started using a net to catch multiple jettas at once, and then used an electric bomb Doc had devised to dispose of them in a large quantity. Even they came and went, though. Fewer and fewer started to show up after the third week, until we gave up and considered the town a loss. All we could do was keep the survivors happy and healthy until we were able to find ways for them to evacuate.”
I sat quietly as I took all of this in. So, Balvaan had also fallen, despite our best efforts. That wasn’t good. Losing a major trade outpost was going to be a huge hit on the economy, amongst other complications.
“I don’t know what to say,” I finally replied quietly, because I truly didn’t. Apologizing would get me waved off, and at this point it seemed almost insensitive to push it, even if it was sincere. We both knew there was nothing else that could have been done, but Ashla and I were similar in the regard that we felt responsible for everyone. We’d failed Balvaan, and now, we’d failed Hartmire.
“It’s just another shitty day,” Ashla joked dryly.
“Those happen from time to time,” I admitted, “as long as you can move forward, though, that’s what matters. I find if I recognize I’m having a shitty day, and that whatever situation I’m in is shitty, it’s easier to cope with.”
Ashla eyed me, then smiled a little.
“When did you get so philosophical?” she teased.
“Since I had to comfort you. Is it working?” I asked with a grin.
“Maybe,” Ashla giggled.
We were quiet for a moment, and I watched as her eyes drifted to Arwyn. Ashla’s lips fell into a frown, and her fingers gripped the sheets of my bed tighter.
I moved my hand over hers and ran my thumb over her skin. It was softer than I’d remembered and covered in small cuts. Her whole arm was, actually, and I sat up to get a better look.
“They’re nothing,” she told me. “The cuts, I mean. They’re nothing.”
“They don’t look like nothing, Ashla,” I insisted.
“When you’re fighting in water for two months, your skin softens, and you’re more vulnerable to cuts and other abrasions,” she explained, but she never once took her eyes from Arwyn. “Trust me, this is nothing.”
I nodded and kept hold of her hand. I thought she might try to pull it away, but she turned it over and laced our fingers together.
She’d been through so much in my absence, and though I was sure she handled it with the grace and power of a true leader, the fatigue had reared its ugly head. Ashla looked downright ragged.
“I hadn’t seen Arwyn in years until she came looking for you,” Ashla said suddenly. “I’ve seen her at her worst, her best, bloody, every emotion under the sun because we’d spent so much time together, but not once had I seen her look so desperate and defeated when I told her you’d gone inside the rift.”
My heart sank a little. I’d been putting Arwyn through some kind of emotional rollercoaster these days. Ever since our return from Bathi Highlands, everything seemed to be nonstop visits to the infirmary and needing some sort of medical treatment. My recklessness always had her on edge, always made her worried about my safety.
“She’s too good for me,” I mumbled with a sad smile.
“I don’t think so,” Ashla countered.
“No?” I replied in a bit of shock.
“Arwyn loves fiercely. It’s one of the best traits to have as a teacher, and as a leader,” Ashla explained. “It’s true people could consider that a downfall, but I don’t think so. If anything, I think it makes her better than the rest of us. She’s willing to give so much of herself to everyone, but she often neglects herself.”
“That certainly sounds like her,” I chuckled, and my smile brightened a little. “I should take more time to give back to her.”
“We all should,” Ashla replied, “and we should all be taking care of one another. The world is at war, Gryff. Now more than ever, we need to band together. If we start fighting amongst ourselves, we’re in for a bigger fight than we’re ready for.”
Ashla’s words were true, and as they sank into me, I realized we needed to take care of our little family, too. If we were the ones who were going to play a part in bringing about another era of peace to Mistral, then we needed to be there not only for the people, but for one another as well.
“I’ll do better,” I affirmed. “Besides, I’m no good to anyone if I’m dead.”
“True,” Ashla agreed, “but don’t let us hold you back either. The world needs a hero, Gryff, and you fit the bill better than any of the rest of us.”
I was man enough to admit I blushed with her praise, and I sheepishly laughed as she winked and brought my hand to her lips.
“Thank you,” I said quietly, and the two of us giggled at our silly exchange.
Ashla stood then, but before she left, she leaned over the side of the bed and pressed a soft, slow kiss upon my lips. She still tasted of the sea from all of her hard work in Balvaan, but there was something exotic mixed in that was all her.
I sighed as we parted, and Ashla smiled down at me.
“Get some more rest,” she whispered, and I could feel her breath dance upon my lips still. “You’ve a long journey ahead of you, but when you return, I’ll look forward to another blissful night with you. Deal?”
“Deal, and goodnight, Ashla,” I whispered, and the mercenary leader stepped away with a final wink.
I found it was a little bit easier to sleep that night despite everything. Down here, things were peaceful. We might wake up to impending doom above ground, but at least we would be afforded one more restful sleep full of tranquility before we went back into battle.
Chapter 5
“The Grand Mage is dead,” General Kenefick reported the next morning. “His body was found amongst the rubble of where Cottington Hall once stood.”
Silence hung in the air of the Underground. The room we were in, which was just big enough to house about ten small and moderately comfortable beds with scratchy sheets, had a tendency to fall into nearly perfect quiet at times, but it wasn’t ever awkward or uneasy.
With the news of Capricorn’s passing, however, the tension was thick enough to cut with a knife. It was true we’d only just met the man, and that he had tried to have us imprisoned, but it was still th
e loss of a life. Not only that, but it was a devastating blow to the masses. Losing Capricorn meant the position for Grand Mage was now available, and the worst was about to come out in everyone who wanted that title.
“What of the other members of the council?” Sleet inquired. “Has there been any news?”
“Nothing I have been made aware of,” Gallahar informed, “but there are thousands of bodies in the streets. It will likely take weeks to identify every casualty that occurred.”
As the words left his mouth, the weight of the situation on the surface settled inside my chest once again. I ran a hand through my hair and brought a knee up to my chest as I leaned back against the wall my bed was situated on.
Thousands, the General said. Thousands of innocent people lost their lives at the hands of monsters. I tried to look at the bright side, because there were survivors. They weren’t many, but they were alive all the same. Still, I couldn’t get past such a high volume of human destruction. This had to be the absolute worst of all monster attacks in our modern history, if not the worst of all time.
“I’m afraid we can’t wait any longer, Marangur,” Gallahar broke the silence. “We need to get everyone out of here tonight. Come morning, the reports of Capricorn’s death will have reached the ears of Mistral, and with it questions of his whereabouts and doings over the last several weeks. If it’s revealed he was looking into a way to try you and everyone you’ve conspired with for treason … “
“There is no need to raise unnecessary alarm, Gallahar,” Sleet hummed as he nodded and stroked his beard. With a long finger, he then pushed the bridge of his glasses up, and his glorious robes swayed behind him as he paced along the aisle between the beds. He didn’t even acknowledge us, even though all of our eyes were fixed on him.
“Marangur,” Gallahar started, but Sleet held up a hand and stopped him from continuing his sentence.
“That is my final word,” Sleet held up a hand and watched with mild amusement as Gallahar deflated. “Take Mr. Madox with you as we discussed, then call for your daughter. I need to be sure half of our rescue team will be in fighting shape.”
