by Clayton Wood
His jaw dropped.
Before him was a rocky path that extended forward an incredible distance, easily a half-mile. The path was narrow, only wide enough for two or three people to stand side-by-side before it dropped off on either side. And what a drop it was...a near-vertical drop all the way down to the mist-covered forest thousands of feet below. This, Kyle realized, was the Spine of Grimore. At its end, far in the distance, the enormous bulk of Mount Grimore stood, its sharp peak piercing the cloudy sky.
“You're doing very well, Kyle,” Kalibar stated, giving him an approving nod. “That was a difficult climb, even for me.”
“We should walk single-file,” Petra suggested, facing the Spine of Grimore. “And be careful...the wind can get very powerful here.”
Everyone did as she suggested, Petra going first, then Kalibar, with Kyle and Ariana taking the rear. They strode forward, the rocky path narrowing as they stepped onto the Spine. Without warning, a blast of air shrieked up from Kyle's right, a vertical wall of dense gray mist shooting upward into the sky. Within seconds, the wind died down, the wall of mist slowly dissipating high above their heads.
“What was that?” Kyle exclaimed.
“Wind,” came Petra’s terse reply. “It carries clouds up the sides of the spine.”
“Strange,” Kalibar said. “From up here, the entire forest looks like it's covered in mist, but there wasn't any mist when we were walking through the forest to get here.” Kyle nodded; he'd noticed the same thing earlier. Petra had promised to tell him about it later.
“No one knows why,” Petra admitted.
“They do keep prying eyes from seeing in,” Kalibar murmured, his eyes on the forest below. “I wonder...”
“Guys,” Ariana interrupted, stopping suddenly. She was staring forward, and Kyle followed her gaze. There, about a hundred feet ahead, another burst of mist was shooting up both sides of the narrow spine. Tendrils of the white fog pulled inward, forming a gray wall there.
“What is it?” Kyle asked.
Then a dark shape appeared in the center of the fog.
“Get behind me,” Kalibar warned, stepping in front of Petra.
A shadow appeared out of the mist, a tall figure in a long black cloak, its face hidden in a hood. It stepped toward them, stopping a few feet in front of the wall of fog, unmoving. Kyle could see only its hands emerging from the long sleeves of its cloak; its skin was as black as night.
“It’s a Chosen,” Ariana warned, taking a step back. Kyle’s breath caught in his throat, and he froze, goosebumps rising on his arms.
They found us!
“It’s an Immortal?” Petra asked, turning to Ariana, who nodded. “I will talk to it,” she stated. She stepped in front of Kalibar, striding toward the Chosen.
“Petra, wait!” Kalibar cried, grabbing her shoulder. But she pulled away from his grasp, continuing forward.
“Welcome,” Petra called out to the Chosen. “We have an Immortal girl here,” she added. “We’ve come to take her home.”
“Petra!” Kalibar warned.
The Chosen stood there as Petra walked toward it, its cloak rippling in the howling wind rushing up either side of the mountain.
Then it raised one hand toward her.
A burst of white light shot outward at Petra, slamming into her. She flew backward, colliding with the ground, smoke rising from her shoulder.
“Petra!” Kalibar cried, flying forward. He reached Petra’s side, a gravity shield appearing around them. The Chosen stepped forward, raising its hand again, a ball of fire shooting outward at Kalibar...just as Kalibar’s shields vanished. Kalibar flew upward, Petra in his arms, the fireball missing them by mere inches. Kalibar counterattacked, a bolt of lightning shooting down from the heavens, slamming into the Chosen.
Or rather, its shields. A dozen appeared in layers around the being, the lightning bolt scattering harmlessly over their surface.
Kalibar flew backward and downward, landing in front of Ariana and Kyle, setting Petra down. Then he stepped forward, standing tall against the Chosen.
“Leave,” he ordered, his tone one of utter confidence. “Or die.”
The Chosen burst forward, its cloak rippling fiercely behind it. Kalibar stayed where he was, more layers of gravity shields appearing around him. A barrage of fireballs appeared before him, shooting outward at the Chosen in rapid succession. At the same time, the Chosen’s gravity shields – all of them – vanished at once.
“Wrong choice,” Kalibar growled.
The fireballs flew at incredible speed, aiming unerringly at the quickly-approaching Chosen. But at the last minute, the Chosen dodged to the side, moving so quickly that it was a blur. Then it leaped into the air, flying right at Kalibar. Kalibar’s shields began to wink out, and the Grand Weaver took a step backward.
“Kalibar!” Kyle warned.
He saw Ariana burst forward then, moving with unnatural speed across the Spine of Grimore. She leaned over as she ran, picking up a large rock in one hand, then leaping over Kalibar, hurtling high into the air above the Grand Weaver’s head. She tossed the rock at the Chosen while they were both still in mid-air, and it veered out of the way at the last minute, shoved aside by a gravity field. At the same time, the Chosen threw a massive fireball right at Ariana.
No!
Ariana created a gravity sphere to her right, and it pulled her out of the way of the Chosen’s fireball at the last minute. She created another gravity field near the fireball – now far behind her – and it reversed direction, flying right back at the Chosen. A single gravity shield appeared around the cloaked figure at the last minute, the fireball smashing into it harmlessly. But the impact pushed the Chosen backward, and it fell to the ground, landing on its feet, its gravity shield shimmering faint blue against the fog wall behind it.
Ariana landed twenty feet from the Chosen, and burst forward, rushing it. She slammed into it, shields appearing automatically around her. Their shields collided, bursts of light shooting outward from both of them as their shards reacted. They flew apart, the Chosen backpedaling rapidly, Ariana sliding toward Kalibar, somehow managing to stay on her feet.
The Chosen stopped, regaining its balance. Its hood fell back, revealing a man’s face. His skin was black, darker even than Petra’s. Tattoos crawled up the sides of his head, and like Petra, scars fanned out like the bones in a bat’s wing at his temples. And in the center of his forehead, a green, diamond-shaped crystal glittered in the sunlight.
“A Joined!” Kyle heard Petra gasp. She rose to her feet, staring wide-eyed at the Chosen. “One of the Ancestors!” She strode forward, past Kalibar and Ariana.
“Stay back!” Kalibar ordered. But Petra ignored him.
“I am Joined, like you!” Petra declared, walking toward the Chosen. “We are your descendants...the people of the Barren forest,” she added. “We come in peace.”
The Chosen stood there, its cloak rippling in the wind.
“Please,” Petra pleaded. “We mean you no harm.” She stopped just past Ariana, still far away from him. “We’ve waited centuries to meet you,” she added. “To learn from you.”
Still, the Chosen stood there, saying nothing.
“Petra, get back,” Kalibar warned.
Then the Chosen burst forward, a ray of eye-searing light shooting outward from its palm at Petra.
“Petra!” Kalibar cried.
Ariana burst forward with inhuman speed, intercepting the beam right before it struck Petra. A dozen shields appeared around her instantly, the beam reflecting off of her outermost shield’s surface. She sprinted at the Chosen, a ball of fire appearing before her.
Then her shields vanished, her fireball blowing right back at her face.
Ariana screamed, her face and chest bursting into flames. A burst of light shot out from the Chosen, slamming into Ariana and hurtling her backward. She fell to the ground, rolling to a stop twenty feet from where Kyle stood, engulfed in fire.
“Ariana!”
Kyle shouted. He wove rapidly, creating a waterfall above her, snuffing out the flames. Steam rose from her body, hissing angrily. Kyle and Kalibar ran to her side.
“Ariana, are you okay?” Kalibar blurted out. A gravity shield appeared around all three of them. Kyle rolled Ariana onto her back, ash falling from her mask and left shoulder, revealing burnt, blackened skin. Ariana gasped, clutched at her chest, her breath coming in short gasps.
“Ariana!” Kyle gasped. Half of her face was horribly burnt, her hair gone, her scalp charred. She stared at her hands with one good eye, at her charred fingertips, and screamed.
In the distance, the Chosen strode toward them, mist shooting upward on either side of him. His black eyes dropped to Ariana, and he smirked.
Kyle glared at him, rising to his feet. He grit his teeth, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.
You son-of-a-bitch.
Kalibar stepped in front of Kyle and Ariana, facing the approaching Chosen. A barrage of bright white missiles shot outward at the Chosen, who flew forward suddenly, slamming into the missiles. They scattered before him harmlessly, and he shot forward at incredible speed, flying right at Kalibar. Kalibar’s shields flickered, then vanished, just as the Chosen slammed into him.
“Kalibar!” Petra cried.
Kalibar flew backward, rolling across the narrow path. He came to a stop on his back, his eyes wide open, gasping for air.
The Chosen flew past Kyle and Petra, landing before Kalibar, then walking slowly toward the Grand Weaver.
You goddamn son-of-a-bitch!
“No!” Kyle shouted, rising to his feet. The Chosen ignored him, striding toward Kalibar, who was still gasping for air, helpless on the ground. Petra burst forward, but Kyle stopped her with one outstretched arm.
“Kyle...” she began, but Kyle cut her off.
“Get back,” he ordered. “Get everyone as far away from me as you can.” Then he turned to the Chosen. “Hey!” he shouted. Still, the Chosen ignored him.
Fine then.
Kyle pulled magic into his mind’s eye, weaving rapidly. He threw the pattern outward, right at the Chosen, then threw a large amount of magic into his magic stream. A bright blue gravity field appeared to one side of the Chosen. It burst to the side instantly, hurtling off of the side of the narrow spine of rock, falling toward the forest thousands of feet below.
Kyle glared at Petra, who was still standing near him.
“I said get back,” he ordered, his tone cold. Petra’s eyes widened, and she nodded silently, rushing to Kalibar’s side and helping the Grand Weaver to his feet. She ran toward Ariana, who was already healing, her skin mending rapidly, her hair already starting to regrow...but to its original, full length. She got Ariana to her feet, sprinting away from Kyle, toward the far end of the Spine of Grimore.
The Chosen rose through the air to the left of the Spine, cutting Petra and the others off. It landed on the narrow path, its jaw rippling.
“Back toward me!” Kyle shouted.
Petra skid to a stop, turning about and running back toward him. The Chosen flew up into the air, landing between them and Kyle. A burst of flames shot out at Petra, Ariana, and Kalibar, and Petra created a gravity shield just in time, the flames parting before its shimmering blue surface.
“Leave them alone!” Kyle shouted. He activated his gravity boots, lifting upward into the air. He tore magic from his skull, feeling huge cords of it pull inward into his mind’s eye. Pain shot through his skull, agony unlike anything he had ever felt. He ignored this, weaving quickly, throwing out pattern after pattern, then shoving a massive torrent of magic into them.
A huge ball of punk appeared before him, as large as a house. Air rushed inward toward it, nearly tearing Kyle’s clothes from his body. The punk burst into flames, and Kyle created a gravity field in front of it, tossing the massive fireball outward and downward at incredible speed...right at the Chosen. It slammed into the Chosen’s shields, splashing across the ground, flaming gobs of it falling to the forest far below on either side of the Spine. The punk stuck to the Chosen’s shields, burning so hotly that Kyle could feel the heat on his face even from far above.
Kyle wove again, yanking even more magic into his mind’s eye, then weaving the gravity field pattern. He threw it at the Chosen, pouring as much magic as he could into it.
A huge gravity sphere appeared around the Chosen, punk flying inward toward the cloaked figure, air sucking violently into the sphere. The flames grew brighter and hotter; the Chosen’s gravity shields were no match for the sheer power of Kyle’s gravity sphere, and punk sucked inward past its shields, punk adhering to its body. Flames engulfed the Chosen instantly, burning hotter and hotter.
Its mouth opened in a silent scream, no sound able to escape Kyle’s gravity sphere.
The Chosen wove magic, blue light appearing at its shard. Again and again it wove, but it was no use; neither it or its shard could generate enough magic to neutralize the overwhelming power of Kyle’s gravity sphere. Flames licked greedily at its cloak, at its very flesh, consuming it rapidly.
And then crystal on the Chosen’s forehead flashed bright green...and the Chosen vanished.
Kyle blinked, cutting off the magic stream to his gravity sphere. A large section of the Spine of Grimore below him continued to burn, consuming the punk. Heat rose from the flames, the air rippling above the path. Kyle descended toward the edge of the flames closest to Kalibar, Ariana and Petra, his boots touching the ground. The others walked up behind him, staring at the fire.
Or rather, through it.
For there, standing at the other end of the huge swath of burning punk, was the Chosen, its forehead glowing like a miniature green sun.
How...
The Chosen faced them, its cloak in tatters. The flesh on its face was almost entirely gone, its charred skull and jawbone exposed. Its left eye had melted away, its right eye staring through the flames at them.
And then the punk exploded into dust, the wind on either side of the Spine of Grimore whisking it upward and away.
“Get behind me!” Kalibar ordered, pulling Ariana and Kyle back. The Chosen levitated forward toward them, its lone eye unblinking. Ariana ignored Kalibar, sprinting toward the Chosen. Petra followed, flying above the Spine, gravity shields appearing around her. Petra wove magic, rocks and boulders rising from the sides of the path around her, then shooting forward at the Chosen. Fireballs flew from Ariana, shooting right at the charred figure.
...who vanished again.
The rocks and fireballs flew through the spot where the Chosen had been.
“Guys!” Kyle shouted, staring behind him. There, hovering over the path, was the Chosen. He felt his blood go cold, the hair on the nape of his neck rising on end.
It can teleport!
Ariana skid to a halt, turning about and running back toward the Chosen. She leaped into the air, flying above Kyle and Kalibar’s heads, careening toward the cloaked figure.
Then her gravity shields vanished, and she burst into flames, shooting backward through the air and landing on the narrow path behind Kyle.
“Ariana!” Kyle cried. Ariana rolled on the ground, snuffing out the flames, then got to her feet. Petra shot through the air toward the Chosen, bolts of lightning shooting outward toward the Chosen...but struck its shields harmlessly. She stopped abruptly in mid-air, a gravity sphere appearing around her.
Then it began to shrink.
“Petra!” Kalibar cried. “Kyle, give me magic!” Kyle complied, streaming magic to the Grand Weaver. But the Chosen burst forward, slamming into Kalibar, shoving him across the narrow path...and into Ariana, who caught him. The sphere around Petra continued to shrink, shoving her head downward and forcing her into the fetal position in mid-air.
No!
Kyle clenched his fists, pulling magic into his mind’s eye and weaving rapidly. A powerful gravity field appeared around the Chosen, sucking inward. But the Chosen vanished again, appearing outside of the sphere...
and the sphere around Petra continued to shrink.
The Chosen stared up at Petra, its shard glowing brightly, what remained of its lips curling into a smirk.
“You cannot defeat Me,” its voice boomed, guttural and raspy. “Without Ampir, you are nothing.”
“Run!” Kalibar shouted, rushing up to Kyle’s side. “I’ll save Petra. Go!” But Kyle shook his head.
“I’m not running,” he stated.
“Kyle...” Kalibar began, putting a hand on Kyle’s shoulder. Kyle pulled away.
“I said no,” he declared. He turned back toward the Chosen. “I’m done running.”
The Chosen lowered its gaze from Petra, staring at Kyle with its single eye, its smirk never faltering.
“How brave,” it declared. “Perhaps the Dead Man was right about you after all.” It cocked its head to one side. “You’ll make an excellent Chosen.”
“I’ll die first,” Kyle retorted. The Chosen chuckled.
“Naturally.”
Kyle felt Kalibar grab his shoulder again, felt himself being pulled backward. He resisted, staring at the Chosen. He felt a strange calmness come over him. His eyes went to the Chosen’s glowing shard, noting the faint blue light there, evidence of the Chosen’s magic. But no ray of light went to the shard. Sabin was controlling the Chosen from a distance, that much was clear...but whatever signals Sabin was sending to it couldn’t be magical in nature. That meant the signals had to be something else.
Electromagnetic.
It was the only possibility...a signal that could travel miles, and was invisible. Perhaps radio waves, or something similar. A special frequency that could send information to and from the Chosen.
“I think I’ll kill her first,” the Chosen declared, returning its gaze up to Petra. The sphere around her started to shrink again...but Kyle ignored him.
Radio waves were electromagnetic...just like light.
Like light.
Kyle smirked at the Chosen, pulling magic into his mind’s eye, weaving quickly. A tight knot pulsed there, and he threw it outward at the Chosen, attaching a weak magic stream.
