That was something I really wanted to avoid. There were enough surprises and mysterious factors in this situation as it was. Adding in a little more uncertainty was not a good thing. I’d rather prevent it than let it grow.
“How are we going to get closer to these people?” Krof asked.
“I’d say we should wait for an opening, but I don’t see that happening anytime soon,” I said. “I don’t really have any plans for how we should get closer.”
“That’s what I thought,” he said. He pointed his index finger in the air. A thin beam of sharp light shot to the sky, quickly disappearing within the clouds above.
“What was that?” I asked, worried that someone from the squadron might have sensed his magic.
“You’ll see,” he said. “And don’t worry, my magic isn’t that easy to sense. That spell is quite well shielded for someone to be able to sense it on a whim.”
“Ah,” I said. “That’s good.”
About a minute had passed when the spell finally came into effect. The light around us began to dull, as though someone had turned the sun down to a low setting. I looked up and saw that the gray clouds from before had now darkened. Not only that, they seemed thicker as well, as though each cloud had somehow multiplied in mass in that short time.
Rumbling came from the sky, and the winds around us picked up, soft snow slowly filling the air. Our vision deteriorated until the group in front of us was nothing but the faint outlines of people. This even though we were only about seventy or eighty yards away from them.
Such an unnatural weather change, I noticed, and then I realized what had just happened. I turned to Krof. “Was this your magic?”
He grinned. “Weather manipulation.”
“How on earth is such strong magic not supposed to be traceable?”
“My spell doesn’t force a change in the weather but rather sets up conditions that allow it to develop into this on its own. For a spectator, there’s too little forcing of a weather change for them to suspect something. All I did was chill the temperature up there a bit and send a lot more moisture as well.”
“Ah,” I said, impressed by what a clever system that was. There was still a lot for me to learn regarding the ways I could use spells. I was more of a blunt-force kind of guy at this point, so learning the subtleties of magic was something I had to delve into soon.
“Very soon,” Nyx chuckled.
“Shut up,” I smiled.
“We can now head closer to the squadron ahead without worrying about being caught,” Krof said.
“If we can find them first, that is,” I said, looking at the snow-filled air. I could kind of see an outline of maybe one or two people, but there was nothing to say that image wasn’t just a product of my imagination. For the most part, however, I did know which way the Alliance was heading down, so just keeping on that path should be enough to bring us near them soon. And since the storm had now been summoned, their visibility would be down as well, meaning it’d be easier for us to sneak closer to them.
“What’s our plan for when we get close enough?” Krof asked as we headed down the mountain. The terrain had now become rougher for some reason, and we maneuvered through small boulders and rocks as we kept on track.
“Ideally, we want to be able to find out where Freya and Nazu are,” I said. “I doubt we’re going to be able to do it just like that, so there’s probably going to be quite a bit of running around before we actually uncover their location.”
“Are we sure they’re in there, though?”
“Nyx, check the map,” I said.
“Freya is around there,” he said. “I can’t check on Nazu since he’s not a part of your party.”
“Ugh, should have added him too,” I said. I relayed the info to Krof, and the wizard seemed a little more confident that there was a purpose to what we were doing.
“Worst-case scenario, how are we getting out of there?” Krof asked. “My teleportation spell is still recovering from its last use.”
“So is my Shadow Travel skill,” I mumbled. “Ugh, I hadn’t thought about what to do for that.”
“Well,” he sighed. “There’s nothing we can do about it now. We’ll just have to make something up as we go along, then.”
“Sounds good,” I said.
We headed down the mountain for another few minutes, inching closer to the group ahead as we did. I could see a few shadows every once in a while, but I was still unsure whether this was the Alliance’s squadron or just some random image I was conjuring up in my head.
The wind and snow picked up fast, turning into a subtle snowstorm soon. Krof seemed quite proud that he’d managed to do all this without using too much mana. I, on the other hand, was worried that the weather change would seem too unnatural to the enemy. The last thing I wanted was for them to think there was something weird going on around them.
“Why are you so wary of these men?” Nyx asked. “If this was some other group of people holding Freya or Nazu captive, you’d have charged them down already.”
I stayed silent for a few seconds, listening to the wind howl in my ears. “The Alliance of Light is not just another group of people,” I said.
“Sure, and this has nothing to do with the fact that you just faced off against a man who killed you pretty effortlessly.”
“What are you trying to do here, Nyx?” I asked.
“Look,” he said. “You’re the Phantom Lord. That doesn’t mean you’re always more powerful than everyone else. It means you never succumb to strength. There’s a reason all the Eternals went against you and only managed to keep you sealed away. Do you really think all of them put together were still weaker than you were?”
I kept quiet.
“It’s been a while since you had to face off against someone who outmatched you this much for strength,” Nyx said. “But that doesn’t mean you’re automatically the loser just because your opponent is much stronger.”
“I understand,” I said. “Thanks, Nyx.”
I heard a whoosh beside us and immediately alerted all my senses. This wasn’t just the wind; I could tell.
“Diablo, what’s wrong?” Krof asked, obviously not having sensed the presence yet.
“Krof, we need to—”
A shadow charged at me, and I jumped into action immediately, planting my foot in the snow-covered ground and shoving my fist forward, right at the figure. Strands of sleek black hair emerged from behind the snow, and I immediately realized who this was.
I stopped my hand midair, and a blast of wind shot from it, just from the motion my fist had made.
“Wow.” Freya stepped out of the snow, a stunned expression on her face. “I did not want to get hit by that.”
“What the hell were you thinking?” I yelled and stepped closer, putting my arms around her and giving her a tight hug.
“It’s good to see you too.” She smiled, putting her hands on my shoulders. “We don’t have time for reunions, though. Nazu is still in there.”
“Hello, elven assassin.” Krof smiled. “Glad you were able to get out of there on your own.”
“They never took me captive,” she said.
“They didn’t?” I blinked. “What even happened after I, uhhhh…died?”
“I…the moment I realized the man in white armor had you beat, I decided it was important to protect Nazu, because it was obvious he was going to go after him next. With my unsealed form, I managed to get back to the Kobold and take him away with me. But for some reason, I reverted back to my normal form much more quickly than before, possibly because I’d expended a lot of my power in that battle. Anyway, when Nazu and I headed down the mountain, Jelal was there waiting for us, and there was no way I could take him out on my own.”
“What about the Alliance of Light?” I asked as we headed closer to the squadron ahead.
“The man in white and everyone else attacked had the chamber in the Ulhur Mountains when Jelal had taken us there, and nearly murdered everyo
ne but me and Nazu. I managed to get away during the slaughter, but Nazu wasn’t so lucky. He got taken away while I was distracted with a Knight, and by the time I noticed he was gone, it was too late.”
“Fine,” I said. “He’s with the Alliance of Light now?”
“The squadron up ahead.” She nodded.
“Good,” I said. “How many people?”
“More than a hundred, easy,” she said.
“Are the Lumina Knights in there?” I asked.
She shook her head. “Not as far as I can tell.”
“Fine, then,” I said. “Do you have any ideas about how we can get to Nazu? Where is he being kept?”
“He’s in a carriage in the middle,” she said. “They’ve got soldiers all around him.”
“Dammit,” I cursed. That removed the option of a stealth removal. We’d have to face off against the Alliance if we wanted to take Nazu back.
“Pardon the intrusion, but why does the Alliance of Light want the Kobold?” Krof asked.
Oh yeah, forgot to ask that, I thought, realizing I had the same question as well.
“They said something about resurrection, but I didn’t understand what they were talking about.”
I looked at Krof, who was already looking at me, and I could tell we were thinking the same thing. “Acnologia,” we said at once.
“What?” Freya asked.
“We’ll fill you in later,” I said, picking up the pace. “If what you said is true, we need to get Nazu back, and fast.”
“This doesn’t make sense, though,” Nyx said. “Why would they even want to resurrect Acnologia? And even then, aren’t they supposed to head back to the chamber with the sign if they want to resurrect the Shadow Dragon? Why are they headed down the mountain?”
“I’m as clueless as you are, Nyx,” I said.
I could make out shadows in front of us now, all of them sharp and clear. We were about ten yards away from the squadron, and all three of us went silent, not speaking a word to one another. The wind howled loudly, the accompanying thunder of the storm keeping our footsteps silent in the ears of the enemy.
I could make out the nearest carriage from us, the box-like shadow surrounded by about ten men. I figured this wasn’t the only carriage in the squadron, which meant it was likely Nazu wasn’t in here. A part of me was a little impressed that these carriages were actually traveling down a mountainside in a snowstorm. That was some good build quality right there.
“Yes, that’s a very important thought to have right now,” Nyx sighed.
All of a sudden I saw a shadow of a Dragon head in front of me and my body froze, my heart nearly jumping up into my throat in the sudden shock. I stepped back and blinked, hoping the image would disappear.
But it didn’t.
A man stepped into our vision. That man stepped into our vision.
His white armor nearly blended in with the snow, both of them the exact same color. The gold streaks were the only thing that kept the thing noticeable.
“Hello there, Diablo,” he said, amused. “How nice of you to come visit me.”
“So he’s with the Alliance of Light after all,” I muttered.
“I guess the white armor and gold accents were kind of a dead giveaway.”
“Why are you doing this?” I asked him. “What’s in it for you? Why are you working for the Alliance of Light?”
He laughed. “Why am I working for them?” He touched the inside of his helmet, and I heard a hiss, as though something was depressurizing. His helmet expanded a bit, and he lifted it off his head.
Brown locks of hair emerged, and radiant sky-blue eyes looked at me, amusement within them. One glance and I realized my question had been answered.
I knew who this man was.
Markus Goodfield.
***
CHAPTER NINETEEN
I had expected the man in white to be someone from the Alliance of Light. The color of his armor had been a pretty good indicator of that.
However, I hadn’t expected the man to be the leader of the Alliance of Light himself.
DING!
Congratulations! You have completed the quest:
Who is the Dragonborn?
You have found the Dragonborn’s true identity to be Markus Goodfield, the King of Aingard. What repercussions this will have for your plans is yet to be seen. Reward: 1800000 Sol. Reward 1000000 XP.
I swiped at the screen, closing it and turning to the man in front of me, annoyance in my eyes.
“Surprised?” Markus asked, an amused smile on his face. He looked right at me, his gaze piercing my mind. I felt uncovered, as though this man could read my emotions, forward and backwards. I was uneasy in his presence, for there was nothing I could predict about him.
“You’re the Dragonborn,” I said.
“Indeed,” he said. “Took quite a bit of effort to get even this far. I’m glad to see it all paid off. I must be quite powerful if even an Eternal can’t face off against me.”
I gritted my teeth but said nothing. My power right now was quite nerfed, but that was a statement that wouldn’t enhance this conversation in any way. I needed to be diplomatic about what I said and what I did right now.
“Why are you trying to resurrect the Shadow Dragon?” I asked. “How does that have anything to do with the Alliance of Light?”
He sighed. “I expected you to be brighter than this, Diablo,” he chuckled. “Maybe the old wizard can help you understand better.”
I calmed myself down, not giving in to any outbursts. “If you’re trying to resurrect Acnologia, then why would you be heading in the complete opposite direction from where the chamber is?”
He smiled. “Now that’s a more interesting question,” he said, glancing up at the sky at the now hidden sun. “You did a good job with changing the weather, wizard. I hardly noticed the mana from your spell until a few seconds ago.”
That’s how he found us out, I realized.
Markus put his hand in the air and uttered a word. A sphere of light lit up in his hand and expanded out in a flash. Within the span of half a second, every single storm cloud in the sky had vanished. The snowstorm ceased, and the winds slowed to a calm state once again.
“There, that’s better.” He looked at us. I could now see his whole squadron behind him, all of them staying put. He’d probably asked them all to stay there until he got back. There were three carriages in total, and the one in the middle seemed the most heavily guarded.
That’s where Nazu is. I made a mental note.
“So, Eternal.” Markus stepped forward, his helmet in hand, a comforting smile on his face. “How would you like to do this? Surrender or battle?”
“Give me back the Kobold and you can have all the peace you want,” I muttered.
“You realize we found the Kobold before you did, don’t you?”
I stared at him. “What?”
“That tower.” He smiled. “What do you think that tower in the desert was for? Decoration?”
My eyes widened. “You were scanning for beings with Dragon blood.”
He nodded. “The Kobolds have many with Dragon blood within their ranks. However, the race in general is stupid, since they kill most of the Dragonbloods off when they realize their hybrid lineage. The tower was meant to help us find one of the few Dragonbloods left so we could capture and use them.”
I kept staring at him, everything falling into place now.
“So as you can see, you took away our Kobold. Not the other way around,” he said. “So it would do you good to stand down and walk away from this. No one needs to get hurt.”
I stood firm, my fists clenched. “Don’t hold your breath,” I muttered.
Markus sighed. “Why is it so hard to be understanding?” He thrust his hand up, palm facing me. I heard a blast, and the next second pain shot along my nerves, partially paralyzing my limbs. I felt heat cover my skin, as if I’d been roasted over a fire.
“Ah, you’re still stand
ing,” Markus said, looking surprised. “Maybe I should have used something stronger.”
“He just attacked you with some lightning move,” Nyx said. “It’s from the Wind Arts and seems very strong. Your health’s down a fifth already. We need to find a way to counter his attacks.”
“Got it,” I said. “Arm me first.”
“Done.”
A stream of lights swirled around me, and in an instant, I had equipped my Berserker armor. I shook my limbs a bit to get rid of the lingering numbness and glanced around quickly, noticing that Freya and Krof had fallen back to a few yards away from us. That was good, because now I didn’t have to worry about them getting caught in either my attacks or Markus’s.
I looked to the Dragonborn and put my hand up. “Uher!” I yelled, summoning my go-to move. The dark phoenix rose from the ground, charging right up to the Dragonborn. I didn’t stop with that, though. I charged right behind. The phoenix sunk into Markus, and I followed, grabbing Dawnbreaker and sending a strike right into his chest.
Markus flew through the air, crashing into one of the rock formations and slumping down to the ground.
“That seemed to work,” Nyx said, sounding hopeful.
“Ugh.” Markus stood up, rubbing his head. “Should have used this before.” He put on his helmet and tapped something on the inside. A hissing sounded once again, and the helmet locked into place. “Better,” he said.
He shot towards me, his fists aimed at my face. I threw my hands into the air and shifted my body weight to resist his attack. His blows struck my wrists, soundwaves blasting from the impact points, and I was pushed back, my legs sliding across the snow. My health went down considerably from the flurry of strikes, now just a bit over the halfway line.
I’ll have to depend on health regeneration to keep me alive here, I thought, and that meant stalling between moves so that I had enough time to recover.
“You’d have to stall for quite a while in order for that to happen though,” Nyx said.
“I don’t have another choice,” I said and pushed forward, my legs rushing across the surface. I pulled Dawnbreaker out fast and struck Markus right on the helmet. He went flying to the side, sliding down onto the snow. I didn’t waste the opportunity and headed after him, summoning spells as I approached.
The Eternal: A Boxed Set (World of Ga'em Book 6) Page 42
