Obsidian Sky

by Julius St. Clair

  “But no one’s going to do that. No one cares about the people lost in Advent. Only what they got out of it. Again, I don’t blame you, I would have done the same. I have done the same. But because Lowsunn doesn’t prepare you for reality...once I was out there, I realized just how much I wanted back in. So I did things. Killed a lot of people. Eventually I got a decent reputation. Got some weak people to follow me and I used them the same way the Elders use all of you. I had them chip at the barrier, just at one spot in particular. Took a while. Many Yen used. But finally it was enough to get through.”

  Aidan tried his best to stay still. Duncan had many Yen at his disposal and all he could think about was breaking back into Lowsunn?

  “You think you were so safe and secure,” Duncan mocked them. “Do you have any idea how angry the people are out there? Some are so crazy that they even want to drink your blood. They want to feast on your souls. And I’m inclined to let them. Unless, you’re willing to make me the sole Elder. Grant me that honor, and I will teach you all how to survive this harsh world.”

  “May I ask a question?” Elder Serah Thine asked. Duncan nodded. Aidan found it interesting that her interruption was not worthy of death.

  “How will you protect us?” she asked. “How will you prevent others from entering our village in the same manner you just described?”

  “The game of Yen could go on forever,” he replied. “You waste them to reinforce the shield. We waste them to take it away. The problem is that there are far more of us out there than you have in here, and people are desperate. They are willing to sacrifice their pitiful lives for an attempt on yours, just to see that smile disappear. How will I put a stop to this? I have information on the legendary artifact.”

  Based on the Elders’ gasps, the crowd was even more intrigued.

  “One and the same,” he smiled. “The legendary artifact known as Choate. With it in hand, any humin, natural or reborn, could make one ultimate wish and have it granted, without the permission of the Judge himself. With Choate in hand, one can theoretically make Lowsunn immortal.”

  “You’re lying,” Elder Thine said, a waver in her voice. “How could you have come by such knowledge?”

  “I don’t have the artifact itself,” Duncan said, dodging the question. “Nor am I close to retrieving it, but if the villagers of Lowsunn can become my soldiers, I can prepare them for battle, and fight our way to it. I hear it is guarded by an army that no Yen can break. We would have to defeat them with our abilities.”

  “You desire an army of your own.”

  “Yes. But I need your blessing.”

  “And if we refuse?”

  “Then I will take what I want,” he said, clenching his fists. “With your deaths, the people will succumb to my will.”

  “We could kill you at any moment of our choosing,” she said. “All we would have to do is wish it.”

  “Yes, but don’t think I came alone,” Duncan said with a grin. “When my colleagues learn of my death, they will confer and plan out your assassinations.”

  “Or they will do the exact same thing you say the people of Lowsunn would do. Fall to a new leader.”

  “You’re really going to use a Yen against me?”

  “No,” she said, sitting back down into her chair. “There’s no point. Especially since you no longer have any to counter. I think having you executed here and now will suffice, with what we already have at our disposal. No use of Yen required. You underestimate the power of Lowsunn, and for that you will fall. We will venture out and get the artifact ourselves.”

  “You old fools,” Duncan sneered, backing away. “If that’s how you want it…”

  “NO!” Aidan shouted, rising to his feet. Duncan stared back at him in shock as Aidan brushed himself off and approached the Elders.

  “Aidan, I swear –” Elder Thine began but Aidan stretched out a palm towards her.

  “NO! YOU LISTEN!” he shouted. Everyone, including Duncan, stepped back in shock. “You need to let this man go! If he’s lived long enough to make it this far, including getting others to join in his cause, then he’s far more dangerous than you’re willing to admit. Don’t be blind. Let him leave or kick him out. Use a Yen to reinforce the shields while we prepare for his return. Attacking him now will only end in death for us. We don’t know who else is hiding in the village or just beyond our borders. Let’s leave this in peace while we at least consider his proposal. We all have a lot to gain from this.”

  “The boy speaks truth,” Duncan replied. Elder Thine stuck up her nose.

  “Duncan is a liar, and a bad one at that. There are more than enough soldiers here to put him down. We stop him now, locate any of his men within the shield, dispatch them, and then move forward. Allowing him to live is not an option I’m willing to entertain.”

  “They are not soldiers,” Aidan shouted, pointing at the crowd. “We like to claim they are, but they know nothing of the battlefield. And with all due respect, neither do you! Out of everyone in this room, there will only be a few of us engaging this man. The rest will run, hide, and keep their Yen for themselves because they understand the storm that’s headed our way if you attack him!

  “Yes, only a few of you will defend us,” she said, pointing directly at him. “The headstrong. The hotheaded. The foolish. What loss is there if you, and any one bold enough to say they’re your ally…dies right here.”

  “You can’t mean that.”

  “If you believe in his ambition so strongly, then you can join him in the execution.”

  “You tried your best, friend,” Duncan replied, glaring at the Elders.

  “Don’t call me friend yet,” Aidan replied. “I still stand with Lowsunn.”

  “What? After everything you’ve just said? After all you’ve heard?”

  “It’s complicated.”

  “Because you make it so,” Duncan replied. He looked to the Elders. “If I am to be executed, then we will do this outside, where I can enjoy the fresh air. And so you can witness my power in all its glory.”

  Duncan stretched his hands out towards the roof and Elder Thine pointed at him and screamed.

  “Kill him quick!” A few villagers sprinted towards him, but he was already done unleashing his dark powers into existence. A booming sound was heard from above. The contents of the ceiling were sucked into the middle as if it were at the center of a black hole. The residue that was left showered down onto the audience with a rain of fine gold, diamond and marble dust. Then the walls on all four sides followed suit in the same manner, one at a time. Before anyone could react, the entire grand hall had been reduced to nothing more than a cracked foundation and a few scattered pillars. The first scream started a chain reaction as the crowd began scattering in all directions, running for cover in the forest. Duncan laughed as Aidan stayed where he was.

  As he watched Duncan cackle in delight, Aidan knew that he should act now if ever. When his opponent was off guard. But he was so sick of hiding. This man had been a product of Lowsunn, and yet he had amassed a following. How was this man any better than he? He who had spent nearly half his life outside the village’s shields?

  “A fine lot,” Luca Lorde muttered, brushing the dust off his clothes. “Running from a little magic trick.”

  “That was no magic trick, my friend,” Duncan replied. “I’m just getting started. In a few minutes, your precious village will be nothing but ash. And don’t be fooled by what has been displayed so far. The implosions were only when I was casting with concentration. See what happens when I’m in the heat of battle.” Duncan snapped his fingers, and one of muscular pillar men was blown up in a fantastic explosion, sending shards flying in all directions. Duncan turned back to the master weaver. “Now imagine if I did that to a person.”

  “I imagine it would be quite messy,” Luca admitted, backing away. “But I’m a man of technicality. Excuse me if I don’t stay for your…performance.” He turned and ran away, leaving only Aidan, and a still-prete
nding-to-be-dead Leah in what used to be the grand hall. Even Frederick had run off.

  “Shall we begin?” Duncan asked him. Aidan responded with a swift punch to the man’s face. Sending him reeling backwards, Aidan planted his free hand on Duncan’s abdomen and sent a burst of fire from his palm. The flames spread over his clothes and engulfed him. He stepped back and screamed in pain as he fought to remove his clothing. When he realized that he wasn’t succeeding, he stopped for a second, and then the clothes burst into dust, putting out the fire in one swift move. Aidan took note.

  Like everyone else, he thought. His abilities have no effect on him. But I can’t sit back and watch. I have to keep his mind on the pain, and not on where to aim.

  Aidan cast several fire shields around him and sprinted forward while Duncan recovered from the little fire that had singed a bit of his skin. He was now shirtless and covered in soot, but Aidan could still see a smile spread across his lips as he approached.

  Duncan snapped his fingers a few times at Aidan, eliminating a few shields just before they collided. Aidan tackled him to the floor and tried to set him ablaze again but with a push of Duncan’s hands, he was sent flying, straight up into the air, and further up than the roof had once been.

  “Just die,” Duncan said as he reached out towards Aidan. He held his hand out palm-up, like he was going to receive a gift, and then closed his hand like he was crushing a bug. Aidan summoned as many fire shields as he could, but once the explosion came over him, he knew it was far too little. It was like a bomb had detonated in the sky, so enormous that it sent a shockwave throughout the night sky, rocking the foundations of every building within a five mile radius. The remains of Aidan fell at Duncan’s feet in a cloud of dust, ash and smoke. Duncan laughed as he waved a hand through the soot, but then he stopped altogether.

  There wasn’t just a pile of ash and dirt like he had expected, but a cocoon of dense rock. Once it hit the floor, it cracked, and inside was an unconscious Aidan, having safely been cushioned from the bulk of the attack. As Duncan took a step forward to investigate, a large ice spike, the size of a pipe, rammed through his stomach. He immediately reduced it to ash with a finger snap and created miniature explosions around the wound to cauterize it. He looked past the rock cocoon and saw his attacker clearly.

  The girl.

  Leah was encased in an armor of rock, a web of lightning forming between her outstretched fingers.

  “No one messes with my man,” she declared, before sending a lightning bolt straight into Duncan’s heart.

  * * *

  “Is that your doing?” Morrigan asked as the shockwave streaked across the sky. Isaac stopped struggling and took a heavy sigh.

  “It’s not.”

  “Then what is that?”

  “How would I know?”

  “You’re telling me that the village is under attack, right now, right as I was about to kill you.”

  “Stranger things have happened. Maybe it’s fate. Maybe destiny is saying, ‘you two were meant to be together forever. Don’t crush his spine.’”

  “I don’t believe in fate.”

  “Well, something’s going on. And it’s not me. We should go check it out.”

  “Yeah, right. Like I’m going to let you go.”

  “Our village could seriously be under attack.” Morrigan stopped to consider it. Isaac decided to keep it up. “We have to go help. This is beyond you and me.”

  “Tell me why you wanted the list and who you were looking for so I can tell the Elders afterwards. You tell me that and I’ll let you go free.”

  “We want to control who goes on the missions, that’s all. And as far as who I’m working for…it’s Aidan.”

  “Aidan’s behind all this?”

  “Yep.”

  “Hard to believe he could organize a heist of this caliber.”

  “What heist? I got caught in seconds.”

  “Good point,” she said, letting him drop from her grip. The blue aura was still around her body, but at least he was free. He rubbed his neck and placed a hand on his dagger.

  “Now that I’m free,” Isaac grunted. “I have to tell you the rest.”

  “What is it?”

  “I just lied about everything,” he said, sticking out his tongue. Morrigan fired off another beam of energy from her body, but Isaac made the surface of his sword so large that it became a shield. He dug his heels into the roof as she pushed, and once he felt the pressure disappear, he transformed the shield back into a sword and lunged forward. Morrigan didn’t expect that, and just as he had hoped, her large energy releases had to be charged. In close proximity she wasn’t as powerful. She fired off little beams from the tips of her fingers, as thin as pencils, but he parried them off his blade with ease. Once he reached her, he crouched down, swept her off her feet and caught her in mid-air with one smooth move. His sword still in hand behind his back, he held her in place, staring deep into her chocolate brown eyes.

  “Until we meet again, my love,” he whispered to her lips, and then he head-butted her in the face. She was knocked out immediately, and he let her gently down onto the rooftop. Once he was sure she was safe, he shrieked and clutched his forehead, dropping his sword in order to attend to his wound.

  “No more head-butts,” he whispered into the cool night air. “No more head-butts.” He closed his eyes, picked up his sword and sheathed it once it had shrunk back to dagger size. Glancing back at where the explosions had come from, he sighed and prepared to investigate.

  There’s no point in bringing her back, Isaac figured, glancing back at Morrigan. If the village truly is under attack, the mission list is going to change drastically. There’s no telling who will still be alive to go on it.

  Chapter 8 – Rupture

  The moment the lightning struck its target, Leah realized she should have unleashed more of it. Duncan fell as he should, collapsed lifelessly as one who had just been struck would…but the smile on his face. It was not one of someone who had just been defeated. It was a terrifying, maniacal smile so wide that it was as if he had enjoyed the electrocution. She thought she heard a shout and she turned around to see Aidan pounding through the cocoon. She released him with a wave of her hand, and it crumbled. He fell to his knees and coughed. She ran over and helped him up but his mind wasn’t anywhere near securing their safety.

  “Where is he?” he demanded, his voice harsher than she had ever heard. “Did you kill him?”

  “No – I –”

  “Stand back,” Aidan huffed, gently shoving her behind him. “I hope we’re not too late.” He placed the palms of his hands together and concentrated, summoning the liquid fire within him, boiling it, making it fester and rise to a point in which there was no holding it back. The sensation was undeniable. It had to be released. It had to consume, and Aidan had the perfect victim. Once he was sure it had reached its maximum temperature, he let one arm fall to his side, and extended the other directly at Duncan’s fallen body. He grit his teeth, accumulated the surge of energy into the middle of his palm, and then released it.

  Nothing visible shot out of his hand, but Aidan felt it leave him all the same, and in the next second, Duncan’s lifeless body exploded into flames. A pillar of flames shot out from the center of his body and up into the sky, spreading slowly over him, covering his legs, the tips of his fingers, his feet, his hair. The pillar of flames stayed there as long as Aidan kept his hand towards the body, the heat growing feverishly, devouring even the trees that hung nearby. He wasn’t sure how much would be enough. How much this man could endure.

  All he knew, was that Duncan’s body was not being consumed.

  And that meant something was still keeping him whole.

  “I need you to help me,” Aidan ordered Leah who stared at him in surprise.

  “What do you need me to do?”

  “Fire. As much as you can summon. Right at him.”

  “Okay,” she said, beginning to concentrate, when two hands suddenly
spun them around. It was Bailey. Back in her plaid shirt and jeans.

  “What are you two doing?” she barked.

  “Stopping him,” Aidan said. Bailey shoved them off the grand hall floor and out into the grass. The pillar of fire that had been on Duncan vanished.

  “You didn’t think it all through,” she snapped at them, still pushing them away. “That’s a valiant effort, allowing everyone to escape, but all you’re doing is weakening yourselves at this point. You think he would just allow you to set his body on fire and just lay there like he was getting a tan? You were feeding him.”

  “How could that be?” Leah asked, as Bailey shoved them behind a tree, far enough from the hall to be hidden, but close enough to see what Duncan would do next.

  “Aidan, what did you notice about your brief encounter with him?”

  “I hit him and blasted him with fire. He took some of my shielding. I set him on fire again. He took away more. He nearly killed me, and then…”

  “You’re feeding him,” Bailey nodded. “After every attack, he performed an even bigger one upon you. He can make things explode all right, but not after he’s gotten a healthy dose of energy from someone. The energy he used to take down the grand hall was probably what he walked in with. Remember. No one’s ability is unlimited.”

  “How much do you think I just gave him?” Aidan asked lowly.

  “Hard to say until he gets started,” Bailey sighed, peering out. Duncan was just beginning to yawn and stretch. “But don’t beat yourself up over it. Your effort was more than anyone else was willing to give.”

  “I was so concerned for the others that –”

  “Did you just hear a word I said?” she snapped at him. “Forget about it. Keep your head.”

  “Right.”

  “Do you think he’ll leave now?” Leah whispered. Aidan shook his head profusely.

  “Not a chance. I saw that smile on his face. He’s turned.”

  “You really think so?” Bailey asked in concern, snapping her head towards Aidan. “Are you sure?”