“I can tell this energy you are using is not your own,” he said and added more force into his spell. Ember’s beam was shrinking, and his white beam hummed as it became larger. The phantom suz spell, it was meant to shut all her senses. Sight, touch, sound, taste, smell, as well as the sixth sense. Akielas plotted to shut all her senses and leave her as an empty shell.
Ember released her purple beam and dodged his phantom suz. Akielas quickly shot lightning from the blade of his sword. Ember became paralyzed, stunned by lightning in midair, unable to move.
“I…will…make sure you are dead this time.” Ember struggled to speak as lightning shocked her. With a roar, she canceled Akielas’s spell, overpowering his maju in a pinch. From her cloak, she pulled two black swords made of kaminyte. She dived down and clashed blades with her old master. Spark flew, flame buzzed, and they battled with all their might.
Auron
Outside the village of the Amaranths, Auron walked through a field lined with ancestral statues. He walked with his mother and three elder sages. Leaves fell from trees, red, orange, and yellow, like the autumn of Burnahdujf. A soothing warm wind came from the east where the sun rose. Auron gazed at the blazing sun. It seemed to shine brighter than on the eastern continent. His skin was bronzing like the tribesman. His body was becoming resistant to all the fire maju that radiated within the village and its people. As he walked amongst the statues, he could feel a ghostly presence within them. The statues felt as though they would come alive. They were twenty feet tall. Some held spears; others had fists covered in thorns and dreadlocks carved on their heads as well as tattoos. Most statues were men; a few were women with suns tattooed on their forehead. There had to be nearly one hundred statues on orange meadows.
“What is this ghostly presence I am feeling?” Auron asked one of the sages. The old Amaranth was a foot shorter; he was losing the crimson of his hair with age, his skin sagging, and his thick eyebrows almost covered his bright brown eyes.
“Their souls are trapped inside the statues,” the old man answered and pointed at the statue. “You see that piece of metal on each of their foreheads?”
Auron followed the old man’s scrawny finger. He had seen it but did not pay much attention to it. There was a silver hemisphere bedecked on the forehead of each statue, and when sunlight touched it, multiple hues were seen like a fading rainbow. It had the glossiness of zeustoss, the metallic appeal of kaminyte, and the crystalline effects of mythium. It seemed like the perfect steel.
“The souls of your ancestors,” Auron said.
“Yes. These leaders wanted their souls to remain in the islands,” said the sage, “however, we stopped following this tradition more than two hundred eclipses ago. We entered a new era, and our new leaders no longer wanted their souls trapped in statues, and we no longer had the appropriate supplies to create such fine steel. That hemisphere on their forehead keeps their souls within the statues. They are not ready to leave this world just yet.”
“Why would they want their souls inside a statue?” Auron was mesmerized by the piece of metal. “I thought a person’s soul was supposed to be flying free beyond the skies or drop to the underworld. Were they afraid?”
“That is confidential,” Blossom added to the conversation. Auron looked over his left shoulder and found her smiling at him. “Some of our people can communicate with the souls of our ancestors. One day, they will tell us when they are ready to be free.”
Auron broke eye contact, having no desire to know more about these statues. The only thing that captured his attention was the metallic hemisphere on their foreheads.
“What are those metal pieces made of?” he asked.
“As I said, we no longer follow this tradition. That knowledge is long gone,” said the sage. “However, it is said that they were forged with the flame of the Crimson Cosmo Jewel. Only the jewel’s flame burned hot enough to melt these metals.”
“So then, these leaders were users of the cosmo jewel,” Auron concluded. He felt as though the answer was getting closer.
“Perhaps. I am not sure. If they did know how to use the jewel, then you would have to speak to them,” the sage said.
Auron suddenly clutched the sage’s shoulders and shook him. “Speak to them? You can speak to the souls inside the statues?”
“Yes,” the sage hissed, trying to break free from Auron’s grasp. “All we need is the Crimson Cosmo Jewel to call our ancestors, and we can hear their voices and sometimes look into their past. Now please, let me go.”
“I am sorry. I got too excited.” Auron let go of the sage and mulled. He pulled the necklace that held the tiny fragment of the Crimson Cosmo Jewel. He showed it to the sages and asked. “Is this enough?”
The three old men gaped at the piece of jewel. One sage zoomed into it, holding it in his hands.
“Yes, this is more than enough to speak with our old leaders,” said one sage.
“How did you acquire this fragment?” another sage asked.
“It’s a long story. Now, if you would show me how to speak with my ancestors,” Auron said. At that very moment, the teleport crystal started to vibrate in his kidney belt. He took it out, and it shined blue. Akielas is sending me a signal, just when I was in the middle of a great discovery. This is going to have to wait.
“Something has called my attention. A friend seems to be in danger,” he told the sages then turned to his mother. “I have to go. It’s important.”
“You are always welcome here, my dear,” Blossom said. She brought Auron’s head down and kissed his forehead.
“I will be back,” were his last words, then he ran back to the village. The orange meadows streamed at his side as he ran. Once he reached the village, he pushed through the crowd, and the tribe snarled and cursed at him in their language, but Auron paid them no mind. Whenever the teleport crystal vibrated, it meant Akielas was in danger. It would take him to wherever Akielas was located.
“Open the gate!” Auron shouted as he reached the exit. He was sure that the guards heard him, but they refused to open the gate. Auron had no time to stop and argue, so he used aeromancy and propelled himself up with a blast of air, leaving a cloud of dust. He was able to jump over the wall as wind carried him then landed softly outside the village. Up the rocky slope he went, zigzagging from rock to rock until he reached the top.
He stepped on the pentacle, and it began to shine blue. The light rose from his feet to his head, caging him in a cylinder. His body felt as if it was falling through the sky, like wind rushing through his body. Then everything stood still, and all that was blue began to fade.
He was no longer in Amaranth Island. He now stood on a mountaintop. Wind whistling and moaning. The sun rising from the east. He could see the rice fields of where he once lived. There was a forest to the west, and when he looked south, he saw the capital city of Burnahdujf; its buildings were smaller than anthills and pebbles. He knew where he was.
“The Sainos Mountains of Burnahdujf,” he said. Auron had been here before when he was a mercenary. He had befriended the Dwarves, and they had forged weapons for him. He looked at the cave ahead. Two statues of warrior Dwarves stood by the entrance, and a stone path led inside. Smoke billowed from the cave and from up high. Auron could feel the maju of his friends radiating from the cave.
“They must be fighting fiends, but wait…is that?” Auron felt Ember’s maju, as well. He felt her presence inside the cave. He wanted revenge so badly that he never forgot the essence of her maju. “I won’t let her get away again.”
He drew his sword from his back and ran towards the entrance. He heard the growling of a creature echoing inside the cave. A gargoyle and a silver dragon flew out clawing each other, slamming into the walls of the mountain. The silver dragon had its fangs in the gargoyle’s neck and pushed the beast into one of the Dwarf statues. The impact broke the statue, and it tumbled. Auron dodged the fallen rocks, sliding back, and watched as the two creatures fought each other. He then rea
lized that it was Akielas’s silver dragon. He looked up at the dragon as the creature pinned down the gargoyle and bit into flesh. Akielas was riding the dragon, shouting commands. Auron concluded that Ember must be the gargoyle. He didn’t want to interfere, watching the dragon near victory.
The gargoyle unleashed a jet of fire from its mouth onto the dragon’s face. The dragon growled in pain, and the gargoyle was set free. It flew up and blasted more fire. The thick scales of the dragon were not easily charred, and it recovered quickly.
“Cleyross, follow her!” Akielas commanded its Eedahlan. The dragon flapped its wings, spreading up to a hundred feet. Its wings thudded like thunder. The dragon roared and pierced the sky, chasing after the gargoyle. It shot beams of white energy from its mouth, and the gargoyle hurled balls of fire.
“Not this time. I won’t let you fight her alone,” Auron said. He removed his right leather glove and looked at the mandarak tattooed on the back of his hand. He clapped his hands together and chanted the ancient words. “Aerobos Garuda.”
Auron pressed his right hand on the ground. The mandarak glowed on his skin then appeared beneath his feet. A magic circle with the symbol of air swirling at its center. It glowed yellow with illustrations of feathers, Elfin leathers, and stars. The mandarak expanded up to thirty feet in diameter. A shriek echoed from the dimension of the magic circle. Auron stepped away and watched his Eedahlan rise from the circle with a sound like the breaking of glass. Its wings spread black and red, wider than its body. It had a falcon head, and yellow stripes ran down its belly. When it descended, it tore rocks with its talons and stood on two legs. It crossed its muscular arms covered in black feathers and fur. Its hands had only four fingers with sharp claws.
“Garuda! Let’s take down that gargoyle!” Auron shouted. The Eedahlan shrieked, kneeled down, and lowered its head. Auron rubbed its beak and patted its head. Garuda’s eyes were a great yellow like a panther. Auron mounted it. A saddled had already been adjusted on its back. The giant avian beat its wings and rose into the sky, its shriek echoing.
Wind whistled as he flew on the Eedahlan’s back. The sun irritated his eyes, and he squinted, searching for Akielas. Then he saw an explosion below. The gargoyle was shooting fireballs at the silver dragon. Garuda dived towards it. As the two beasts were fighting, Garuda bashed into the enemy, grabbed one of its legs, and hurled it to the mountain walls. The gargoyle crashed, and an avalanche fell upon it.
The silver dragon approached, and Garuda shrieked.
“Easy there, Garuda. That is a friend,” Auron told his Eedahlan.
“It took you long enough,” Akielas said on the back on his dragon. “Just in time to save my arse.”
“I am guessing that gargoyle is Ember, isn’t it,” Auron said.
“Who else would it be? Let’s finish her together. I won’t be holding back any longer,” Akielas said.
“You finally came to your senses,” Auron replied and laughed.
Below, the gargoyle growled. Its body became black smoke and began to shape-shift back into its human form. Ember floated in the air, her cloak billowing.
“Today, you meet your end, Ember!” Auron shouted, and Garuda dived, closing its wings like an eagle to its prey.
“Odiack pikan lems!” Ember yelled and unleashed a wave of black flames on Garuda. The Eedahlan spun in the air, trying to dodge the black flames, but its right wing caught on fire. It was even hotter than blue flames and consumed Garuda’s wings. The Eedahlan shrilled and fell, unable to flap its wings.
“Frostass rora!” Auron shouted a spell. He inhaled deeply then let out a frosted breath on Garuda’s right wing to shut the black fire, but it was futile. The black flames were too strong, and the right wing was stripped of its feathers burning the skin. Garuda crashed on the mountain walls. Auron jumped off his Eedahlan and landed roughly on boulders. It hurt him to see his Eedahlan in such pain, and the creature’s body began to disappear. Its body shattered into golden dust with a blinding white light.
“I am sorry, Garuda,” Auron whispered. He then stood up and clashed both of his fists together and chanted, “Terriora levracks.”
Rocks shook around him. Earth thumped beneath his feet. As he clenched his fist, cracks ran across mountain walls. Earth was his innate element and his most powerful spell. He pulled the element with his maju, and when he pumped his fist, islands cracked and levitated off the crust of the mountain. It was like yanking roots from the ground with his maju. Auron stood on an island of rocks and stones floated around him. His rock islands cruised through the sky towards Ember.
Cleyross showered Ember with its white breath, and she fought back with black flames. Such dark magic did not work on the divine dragon. She was struggling, and Auron could feel her maju diminishing.
“Akielas! Paralyze her!” Auron yelled.
“Trondass chains!” the master shouted. Akielas used the only spell that could paralyze Ember. Electric strings shot from his fingers and pierced Ember’s body. Her muscles cramped, and her body stiffened.
Auron took advantage of the moment for his earth spell. “Terriora sphia,” he chanted, clashing both his fist. All rocks assembled around Ember, sealing her body. Islands of rock shattered and flew through the sky, merging with other rocks. Auron was sealing Ember inside a sphere of stone.
“One way or another, I am going to kill this bitch,” Auron swore. He plotted to crush her body or she would die without air to breathe. “I don’t care how much maju I have to use. I won’t let her get away this time. She won’t disappear again. Now, I have her trapped. Even if she survives my earth sphere, she can’t run anywhere or use any spells. Let’s see who holds out longer.”
“Well done,” Akielas said. His silver dragon growled, its wings beating. “I no longer feel her maju. Is she dead?”
Auron had used an incredible amount of maju when he summoned Garuda. He was soon to reach his limits. “No. She is still alive. I can still sense her inside the earth sphere. She won’t escape easily.”
Auron clenched his fist, signaling his maju to tighten the earth sphere. The cracks closed and the stone smoothed. It was as if Auron was sculpting the sphere with his maju. He was making sure there were no holes for Ember to breathe or any cracks that she could take advantage of. He could feel her struggling inside the earth prison. She was trying to mold her maju to cast a spell, but every time she budged, Auron clenched his fist squeezing her body in.
“By the dragon gods. Auron, this is brilliant. Only an earth mage would be able to escape from such a spell.” Akielas beamed with hope. “Why didn’t I ever think of doing that?”
“Because you were too soft, remember,” Auron answered.
Akielas could only laugh and say, “Well that is why we have you around, isn’t it? Sometimes, I wish I was as cold as you, Auron.”
“Just watch my back. Ember’s masked friends could show up any minute,” Auron reminded him. “Keep an eye out for them. Let there be no interruptions until I make sure Ember is dead.”
This wasn’t the first time Auron had killed someone slowly and cold-bloodedly with magic or steel.
“Watch out!” Akielas screamed.
Auron glanced over his right shoulder. It happened too quickly, but he noticed the white mask. He was bashed off his floating rock island. It was one of Ember’s companions. Auron fell from the sky, pain blasted on his abdomen, and his armor had dented. It was a deadly blow that took all his breath and made his head spin. He saw Akielas’s dragon diving to save him and caught him with one of its claws.
“Arg…No…Ember!” he screamed. He had lost focus of his spell, and now, Ember was breaking free from her prison. He saw the earth sphere cracking open. A red beam pierced through it, and Ember cleaved her way out of the prison. She soared up and met with her masked companion.
“Akielas! Hurry! You have to stop her!” Auron screamed, desperately. Cleyross brought him up to its back, and he sat behind Akielas on the dragon. When Akielas and Auron looked at
Ember, she disappeared with a cloud of black smoke.
“Damn it all. We were so close.”
Willow
She clashed steel with the Specter. Her Dragontooth parried Hertha’s scythe. They deformed the cave, hurling rocks at each other and levitating the ground. It was a battle of terramancy. Hertha was faster on land, but her spells were slow, while Willow was quicker. Spikes rose from the ground, and Hertha flew, avoiding the attack. Willow wrapped her in vines and slammed her foe on sharp rocks. Blood dripped from Hertha’s torn leather tights; only her white mask remained untouched.
“Is that the best you can do?” Willow smirked, pressing her maju on the ground, her vines rising.
“I am nowhere near defeat. I have yet to scar that pretty face of yours.” Hertha snickered, despite the blood and wounds she received from Willow’s vines and thorns.
Using her scythe, she cleaved thorns and vines that tried to bind her. Willow refused to let her escape again. Last time they fought, Willow took a blow to the back of her head and fainted. In blurred view, she had watched Hertha take the Emerald Cosmo Jewel and disappeared.
“I am going to capture you and take the jewel back, then I am going to kill you,” Willow threatened. Wood grew from the walls and coiled towards the enemy. Plants released poisonous spore, but Hertha’s mask protected her. Every plant that Willow summoned, Hertha cut through. “Either you give me the Emerald Cosmo Jewel, or I will kill you.”
“So far, you are failing to take my life. What makes you think I will surrender the jewel?” Hertha replied and laughed. “You are just an Elf loving harlot from the forest. A feral girl. Did you have apes thrust between your legs before that tiny Elf took you and tamed you?”
Willow hated Hertha’s laughter. It was a mixture of a hyena and a spoiled princess. The combination made her seethe with anger. “Naturass grotsmo!” she pressed more maju into her spell, and more plants bloomed and rose from the ground. Vines, wood, thorns, and carnivore flowers with sharp teeth. As she fought Hertha, her plants would defend her against fiends, as well. A war of Dwarfs and fiends still raged around her. Eckxio and Ganicus fighting with all their might. Stalactites falling, smoke billowing, and homes burning.
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