Did she just want to check in? I wondered. It had only been a few minutes since we’d left the village. Had something gone wrong? Thoughts plagued my mind, and I dropped back a few steps from the adventurer group to get some privacy.
I long-pressed the reply icon on the screen, and two new icons rose up in front of us, one with a miniature keyboard and the other with a soundwave. I tapped on the soundwave, and a small screen with a gauge emerged.
“Yeah, everything is fine,” I said. “By the way, I made you an assigned leader for the village.”
A loading icon appeared on the screen as my voice processed, and a text message appeared, transcribing what I had said and then sending it to her in an instant.
“Zoran?” Joseph looked back at me. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah.” I smiled. “Don’t worry.”
He looked at me a bit hesitantly. “If you say so.”
“He doesn’t seem that confident,” Nyx noticed, sounding confused.
He’s had a rough day. It’s fine. I looked at my screen.
DING!
I know you made me an assigned leader. I get notifications too, you know. You could have at least told me before you actually made me one.
“Well, she doesn’t seem too happy,” Nyx chuckled.
No, she doesn’t. I sighed. I was about to tap on the soundwave icon and reply back when a sound echoed through the air. It sounded like mumbling to me, but I couldn’t make out what the voice was saying.
The adventurers in front of me all stopped, their demeanor changing as well. I quickly closed down my screen and walked up to them, wondering what was going on. The wind picked up around us, sending mud and dust surging through the air.
“Joseph.” I clasped the man’s shoulder. “What’s going on?”
He threw my hand off and turned around, the friendly look in his eyes now all but gone. “I apologize, Zoran,” he said. “But we lied to you.”
All of a sudden, what had been a still sky and a quiet ground erupted, the sands of the earth rising up in a tornado around us. One second we had been on calm land, and now we were in the nexus of what seemed to be a twister of sand and dust. The adventurers looked at me stone-eyed, any emotions they had shown before now rushing away.
“Who are you?” I asked. “Why are you doing this to me?”
“It isn’t me,” Joseph said. “It’s them.”
All of a sudden, shadows fell around the ground, as though liquid darkness was moving through the earth. The black color rose off the surface in an instant, as though the very shadows themselves were taking on lives.
The Valdar? I panicked, reminding myself of a not-so-cherishable memory from long ago.
The shadows morphed, taking on human shapes and then dissolving away. A squadron of dark-clothed men appeared from within them, about forty or fifty of them in total. They wore short-hooded cloaks of black that fell to their knees and had sleeves that went halfway to their elbow. The rest of their limbs were covered in scaly silver armor, the material weathered but still shiny in the dull light.
All of a sudden, a man materialized from a shadow in front of me, wearing the same outfit as the others but also holding a large sword in his hand. He pointed the weapon at me, the tip of the sinister blade right in front of my face.
“Welcome, Phantom Lord,” the man chuckled. “The Black Guardians have been awaiting you.”
***
CHAPTER FOUR
My eyes fell upon the silver pin on the men’s cloaks, the object shaped like an eye with no pupil.
The Black Guardians. The name floated in my head, Nyx and I both trying to remember if we knew anything about such a group.
We didn’t seem to.
“I’m more concerned about why they know you’re the Phantom Lord,” Nyx said.
The sand twister around us rumbled and constricted, pushing us all into a tighter circle. The man in front of me slid his blade closer to my skin, threatening to slice into it.
“It will be hard for you to get yourself out of this one, Eternal.” He jabbed his blade right at me.
I dodged to the side, away from the swing and right into the twister. Sand and wind blew in my face for a few seconds, and then I finally came out.
Only to find myself inside the twister once again.
What the hell just happened? I blinked.
“You can’t get out of this,” the man chuckled, and he shot to me, blade pointed at my chest.
I stumbled back, thrown off by everything around me. I managed to thrust my blade out just as he swung in. The weapons clashed, and I was thrown back. My body flew into the twister again, and I found myself thrown back out into the center once more.
“There’s some kind of enchantment in this thing,” Nyx said.
That makes things a lot harder. I gritted my teeth as my momentum took me forward.
The man was already facing me, sword pointed at my chest, his allies next to him, ready to attack as well. I put all my weight on my right leg and leaped to the side, making sure I got over them and still landed before the circular winds.
I quickly gazed at the man and activated my Analyze skill.
DING!
Name
Lazarus Titanus
Race
Human
Level
402
What the hell? I blinked. Why is he so strong?
“He seems to have done some kind of specialized training too,” Nyx said. “Your Analyze skill says his companions are all in the low 300s.”
I looked at this man, this “Lazarus,” his and his cohorts’ weapons still pointed at me. I could make out Joseph and his group behind them, standing nonchalantly as though they’d done nothing. The twister around us constricted a little more, and its speed kicked up, spraying harsh sand against my back.
I need to nullify this thing first. I put my hand up in the air. “Arkerius,” I yelled. A black ball of energy condensed at the tip of my fingers, and strong waves of darkness shot out of it, cutting the twister at multiple locations.
However, nothing happened.
“Your spell wasn’t strong enough,” Nyx said.
“What do you mean, it wasn’t strong enough?” I looked at my hand, and then the twister. “I’m more than a hundred levels higher than him.”
“You can’t nullify this spell just like that.” Lazarus smiled. “A mass spell from my men takes more than one strike from an Eternal to nullify it.”
Dammit, I cursed. I held Dawnbreaker out in front of me, my eyes jumping between the men advancing. I had to work with what I had, and at the moment, that meant fighting these people without nullifying the twister.
When did they even cast that mass spell? I muttered.
“They must have been hidden when Joseph and the others led you here,” Nyx said. “That would have given them enough time to cast a mass spell of that caliber on you.”
“Die!” Lazarus slammed at me, blade swinging, his companions pushing in from all sides.
I grasped my blade with both hands and swung hard, sending a blast of wind at the incoming enemy. The force from my swing pushed them back, but Lazarus cut through, heading right for me. I quickly managed to hold my blade up above me, and a thundering clang sounded from the impact of the weapons.
“Just die, you Eternal.” Lazarus looked at me, his eyes rabid.
I felt myself being pushed back by his strength, and confusion rolled through me. I was so much stronger than this man. How was he able to push me back so much? Worry seeped through my mind. I’d been afraid of getting a critical hit from a low-leveled enemy before, but it seemed like this man and his abilities were even more worrisome.
Stress riled me up as he pushed my sword further back. Strike after strike swung into the weapon, each one too fast for me to find an opening and attack. I kept defending for a few seconds, unable to do anything else. Scratches and cuts formed on my skin as Lazarus’s sword fighting turned faster and faster.
Tch. I clicked my tongue.
I quickly let my feet give away and dropped down, sliding to the side and immediately swinging around. I flipped my blade so the flat end was facing Lazarus, and I smacked him hard, sending him sliding across the ground.
“Ha-ha,” he chuckled as he brought himself back up. “This is fun, Phantom Lord.”
“I need to end this,” I said.
“I don’t think you have any other choice at this point,” Nyx said.
I nodded and threw my hands up in front of me, my eyes focusing on just the man and his companions. I felt energy boil within me, and I let it all loose.
“Uher,” I yelled. A phoenix of darkness surged from the ground and shot towards the men, intensity in its very presence. I set myself up, pointing my hands in the air and using my Chain Casting skill to cast one more spell, a support one.
“Beltair,” I said. The light around us dimmed quite a bit, and power surged through me. The bird of darkness screeched as it shot towards the men, its body growing in size the moment I cast my second spell.
“All Dark Arts attacks have been boosted,” Nyx said.
Lazarus smiled at me from afar, the bird of darkness just inches away from him. “Oyir!” he swung his hands outward. A blast of darkness surged out of him, like a sphere that was expanding. The walls of black surged into me, throwing me hard against the ground. I coughed as I hit the surface, my body stiffening up on contact.
What the hell is going on? I asked, struggling to get up. I glanced ahead and saw the men of the Black Guardians standing there, a few bruises on their skin but nothing else. It was like my attack had been greatly nullified.
“I’m confused,” Nyx said, sounding quite worried. I was worried too. I was the Phantom Lord. The Dark Arts were one of my specialties. It was not plausible that another man could nullify my own attack and cause significant damage to me, especially with the kind of difference in levels Lazarus and I had. However, what was going on right now was going against that plausibility.
“You cannot fight us alone, Eternal,” Lazarus said. “Something big is coming, and you will not be able to survive it.”
“Shut up.” I stood. I didn’t want to kill anyone, but this man was not making that easy. All I wanted to do was leave, but that seemed impossible at the moment. This mass spell was keeping me locked in like a trapped animal.
“My turn,” Lazarus chuckled and put his hand up. “Oyir Lezut!”
A combinatory spell. My eyes widened.
The ground beneath me rumbled, and my legs turned heavy, as though they were slowly being turned to stone. I moved forward, only to stumble to the ground.
“This power—” Nyx said.
Another mass spell. I grunted, looking up at Lazarus. The man grinned, and behind him, Joseph and the adventurers stood there with their eyes closed, mumbling something inaudible.
“They were setting up mass spells while you were distracted with these men,” Nyx said.
The ground beneath me cracked open, and darkness burst through, surging into me with immense force, knocking the wind out of my lungs as I struggled against the blast.
“Zoran!” a voice yelled.
I felt an arm on me, and all of a sudden, I was out of the darkness. An elf’s face appeared in my dazed vision, her long obsidian locks tickling my skin as she looked down on me.
“Freya?” I blinked.
“Thank God you’re okay,” she sighed, relief evident in her tone. She stood me up quick, and I could see the enemy standing a ways from us, confusion on their faces.
“How did you get in here, elf?” Lazarus asked, annoyance in his voice.
“Was I not supposed to be able to?” She smiled, sliding her sword out of its sheath.
“Tch.” The man looked at us. “It doesn’t matter how you got in,” he said. “You’ll never be able to get out.”
My eyes widened. “That’s it,” I said.
“What?” Freya glanced down at me.
“Get ready to cast your strongest Light Arts spell.”
“What?” She blinked, sounding even more confused this time.
“Just cast it when I give you the signal.” I held Dawnbreaker tight in one hand and threw up the other. “Asgionis!” I yelled, and a flame covered me for a brief moment, boosting my agility. I lowered my body weight, ready to strike.
“This won’t help you, Eternal.” Lazarus smiled.
“We’ll see,” I shot forward.
The Black Guardians were ready for me, but I missed them entirely, swerving to the side and running straight into the twister. Sand and dust dug into my skin, but I shot through.
And came out from the other side of the Black Guardians.
I slammed my blade down on the first two Knights I saw, cutting into the arm of one and slamming another to the ground. Lazarus looked at me in confusion for a second, but I just kept going, surging across the ground and into the twister once more.
Faster, I urged myself.
I picked up the pace, charging out the twister, this time from behind the Black Guardians. I went straight for Lazarus, Dawnbreaker’s blade ready to dig into his back. I heard a clash as I struck him, and a force pushed against my attack.
“Ah, I see,” Lazarus said, his sword against his back, blocking my blow. The man turned around, a grin on his face. “Clever.”
I backed away fast. “Freya, now!” I yelled.
The elven assassin threw her hand up into the air. “Peona Ilius!” she yelled. A wave of miniature white spheres emerged in the sky and shot to the ground, striking the Black Guardians. They tried to fend them off with their weapons, and that was exactly the distraction I needed.
“Got you.” I surged to Lazarus immediately, my blade in my hand.
The man caught a glimpse of me and brought his sword up. I swung from the right, and he moved to the same side to block.
Check. I grinned. I let go of my blade and, in a burst of speed, rushed up to his chest.
“Uher,” I said.
The bird of darkness surged out of the ground, thundering into him and pushing him into the twister. The winds of sand and dust picked up for a second, turning chaotic.
And then they died.
A wave of mud sprayed me, and I shielded my face. When I put my hands down again, Freya and I were the only people left. I looked around, searching for anyone else.
But they were all gone.
“That mass spell gave them an escape route too,” Nyx said. “Clever.”
“Yeah.” I sighed.
“Are you okay?” Freya walked up to me, concern in her eyes.
I nodded. “Thanks for coming to get me,” I said. “It was pretty hard taking on those men alone.”
“I noticed.” She smiled. “Didn’t think the Phantom Lord would have trouble with something like that.”
I laughed. “In all seriousness, though, it’s quite worrying.”
“I know,” she said. “They seemed to be evenly matched with you. What was that about?”
“I’m not sure,” I said. “My thoughts are that they probably specialized in the Dark Arts, and that was why it was hard for me to take them down.”
“Aren’t you a specialist in the Dark Arts too?”
“Lazarus seemed to know a lot more than I did.”
“I see.”
“Also, just saying,” Nyx started. “It’s very likely that mass spell they cast for the twister cut down your strength as well.”
“You mean like a handicap?” I asked.
“Sort of.”
Hmm. That’s possible.
“How did this even happen?” Freya asked, sliding her sword back in.
“I was ambushed,” I said. “Joseph and his adventurers were a trap all long.”
“Oh.” She squinted.
“Yeah,” I said. “Some group called the Black Guardians seems to have come after me.”
“Any idea why?”
“No clue. They knew I was an Eternal, and that I was the Phantom Lord.”
&n
bsp; “Yeah, I figured as much when I saw you use your more specialized moves.”
“Their leader, Lazarus, did say that something big was coming,” I said. “Although I’ve heard that line from enemies too many times to take every instance seriously.”
Freya smiled. “I think it’s best you relax for now.”
“Wait, how are you even here in the first place?” I asked. “How did you even know where to find me?”
“Well, for one, you never responded to my message on the Ga’em messaging service, so I got a bit worried,” she said. “I decided it’d be best to come after you, so I got Ijyela to look after the village and then came your way.”
“Oh, Ijyela is at Ikarius right now?”
“She was close by anyway, luckily for us,” she said. “The place is in safe hands, don’t worry. Ijyela will take good care of—”
BOOM!
A soundwave rushed through us, loud enough to be felt, but not strong enough to hurt anyone. My head instantly turned in the direction of the source.
“What was that?” I asked.
“No clue,” Freya said, curiosity in her voice. “It seems to be coming from far off.”
“We need to check that out,” I said.
“How far is it, though? It looks like it might take us a while to get there.”
“Meh.” I grabbed the elf’s waist and lifted her up in my arms.
She immediately turned flustered. “Wait, wha—”
I blasted forward, my legs carrying us at top pace. At Level 500+, my agility was enough to get me around quickly. Of course, I could have used an instant teleportation skill, but that trick tended to work well only when one had a clue about where one was going, and in this case, we had absolutely no idea.
BOOM!
Another soundwave radiated through us, this one a little stronger than the last.
Good, we’re getting closer, I thought.
“Closer to danger,” Nyx said.
“Do you have no clue what that is?” I asked, ignoring his sarcasm.
“No clue.”
The Eternal: A Boxed Set (World of Ga'em Book 6) Page 28
