“Please elaborate,” Madam Astera insisted, leaning in closer.
And so, I showed them the medallion and told them about the refuge shelter that not even the Alacryans would be able to find, let alone break into. I told them that Commander Virion and General Bairon were both there, along with General Arthur, a powerful diviner, and even an emitter. I told them about how the diviner had prepared supplies in advance and that all the necessary components are there to sustain hundreds, if not thousands, of people.
But by the end of my hope-filled message, the three of them stared back at me with looks of indignation.
“So the outcome of this entire war had been predicted? We were doomed to lose from the start?” Nyphia muttered, horrified.
My heartbeat quickened. “What? N-No! I mean—”
“Did the Commander, General Arthur, and General Bairon run away from this battle to save themselves?” Madam Astera asked, her voice seething with controlled rage.
“Of course not! They had been attacked by a scythe at the Castle. They barely made it out of there alive,” I reasoned, not expecting this sort of reaction.
Madam Astera’s head sunk as she buried her face in her hands. Her shoulders bobbed up and down as she took deep breaths, until finally she looked back up with a hardened gaze.
“Last question, and please answer honestly,” she said, sending a chill down my spine. “Did they know?”
My brows furrowed. “Excuse me?”
“Commander Virion. General Arthur. General Bairon. Did these three people know what was going to happen here?”
“No!” I snapped. “No one but Elder Rinia, the diviner, knew! No one was more angry than those three for not being told about all of this. They blame themselves more than anyone for how this war ended, but they’re still there because they know it’s the only chance we have in taking back Dicathen!”
After long minutes of tortured silence, Madam Astera let out a breath. “I understand. So what’s the plan? Did you travel here because the diviner knew our location?”
I bit my lip, unable to answer. It was the opposite…I had snuck out here alone on this selfish quest to bring back my parents, only to fail and be chased away and found by Madam Astera’s group.
“I’ve come to find Dicathians and bring as many as I can back with me to the refuge shelter,” I lied.
The only consolation was seeing Herrick and Nyphia smile at each other, excited at the fact that they’d be safe once they were there. Even Jast raised his head, his gaze sober and hopeful.
Madam Astera nodded but I couldn’t read her expression. Regardless, they had agreed to go with me to Telmore City, where we’d either sneak in or fight our way to the teleportation gate there. All we had to do was wait for the rest of Madam Astera’s group to arrive.
An hour trickled by as we waited impatiently for more people to come, but no one did.
“They shouldn’t be out there for this long,” Madam Astera growled as she paced back and forth inside the cave. “I’ll go take a look alone. Stay here.”
“Wait,” I called out. “It’ll take too long if you go out and search for them by yourself, then come back. We travelled north to get here from where we were all at, if we go together and meet up with the rest of the group further down, it’ll be en route to Telmore City.”
“It will shave off at least half a day, depending on how fast we’re able to locate them,” Nyphia chimed in.
“I don’t like it, but you’re right. Princess, do you have any experience in tracking or scouting?” Madam Astera asked.
“I’ve had some training from my previous teacher on using wind magic for scouting but my actual experience is minimal,” I responded, tightening my leather boots.
“So you specialize in wind, good. That’ll be useful out there,” she replied, turning to Jast. “How do you feel? You had another one of your episodes again.”
The boy named Jast stood up slowly, slinging a sack over his shoulder. “I’m a bit better now. Thank you Madam Astera.”
“Then let’s get moving,” the leader said curtly.
We left the cave through the small entrance we had covered in foliage; from the outside, the little hideout was nothing more than a slope at the base of a hill.
Staying low and several yards apart from each other, we made our way south through the forest. The forest here weren’t nearly as dense or lush as the Elshire Forest—even the wildlife was scarce and timid.
I missed home, more than I ever did in the past. I had spent years in Sapin while I was at school, but the fact that I might not even have a home to go back to now really hit me.
Even if the castle that I grew up in was still there, what was the point? My parents were gone.
No. Not now, Tess. I swallowed and took a deep breath. I didn’t have the chance to properly mourn for my parents despite seeing their corpses put on display to send a message. Now, even their bodies were gone.
I took another breath, trying to calm myself. There would be a time to grieve once we’re all safe. For now, I needed to focus on getting everyone back to the shelter.
Distracting myself from my own thoughts by searching for the missing members of Madam Astera’s group, we continued backtracking our route.
I wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but suddenly, Madam Astera let out a trilling whistle like a bird. This was her signal for all of us to stop and lay low.
It only took me a few seconds to catch on to what the leader had seen and heard—just a few yards southeast from our position was the shuffling of shrubs and snapping of twigs. It was too large to be a rodent or hare, and it seemed too clumsy to be a deer.
We waited for Madam Astera to slowly stalk whatever was there, barely catching the reflection of her thin sword. She moved with ease, as if gliding through the trees and foliage as her presence was barely detectable even as I was watching her.
Despite the situation we were in, I couldn’t help but admire her prowess. She would be a powerful ally that could help smuggle away more people away from the Alacryans once she got settled.
I continued waiting—observing—my entire body tensed, as Madam Astera was almost upon the thing, when she jolted to a stop and gestured for us to come.
With a sigh of relief, we all hurried over to where she was, only to see her crouched over a figure I couldn’t quite make out.
Getting closer, my eyes widened at the sight of the injured soldier. He was a mess with his armor and clothes basically dyed with his own blood.
Beside me, Nyphia let out a gasp. “That’s Abath.”
She ran towards the injured man and I followed until I got close enough to hear the last part of what he was saying. “…was killed…a boy.”
Before I could even get the chance to interpret what he had said, my beast will suddenly ignited and every fiber in my body stiffened.
It was as if a heavy blanket of this carnal and unabated bloodlust had fallen over me. I was barely able to remain on my feet. Both Herrick and Nyphia fell on their knees, trembling while Jast had curled up into a fetal position, shaking violently.
Desperate, I turned to Madam Astera, only to see her staring behind me, wide-eyed, and lips trembling as she muttered, “Y-You…in the battle.”
I knew—my entire body knew—that unlike at the city center, it was too late to run away this time. Willing myself to turn around, I saw a person that I hadn’t seen in years. A person that I thought had died and had almost forgotten, but a person that couldn’t be more familiar.
His name escaped my lips as I stared at him. “E-Elijah?”
Chapter 246: Dear Old Friend
Even as I said his name and knew who he was, Elijah had changed tremendously. Aside from the fact that
he was now a head taller than me with skin as pale as alabaster, his short jet-black hair and sharp eyes made him look almost completely different.
Elijah let out a chuckle, his gaze fixed on me. “Long time no see, Tess. How’s Arthur doing?”
I shuddered as a sharp chill ran down my spine. Elijah and I had gone to school together—he was Art’s best friend. So why were his words so threatening?
“He’s doing fine,” I mustered, trying to stand taller as the pressure Elijah gave off continued to weigh down on me.
“Of course he’s doing fine. That fool has been as resilient as a cockroach for as long as I’ve known him.”
My brows furrowed at the unfamiliar word. “Cock…roach?”
“Guess you wouldn’t know yet,” he smiled, taking a step closer to me. “Come. Let’s go.”
“Go? Where?” I asked, my heartbeat quickening. “Elijah, what happened?”
Elijah flinched slightly at the mention of his name. “I’ll explain on the way. For now, it’d be best if you come with me.”
“Don’t!” a voice croaked from behind. I looked back to see Madam Astera back on her feet, her sword in hand.
“Impressive that you can talk despite the pressure I’ve put on you especially,” Elijah said. “But I advise you not to speak again.”
Madam Astera raised her sword, hands trembling. “H-He’s the…one…battlefield.”
I barely had time to think when I sensed danger. The instincts embedded into me through assimilation with my beast will caused me to tackle Madam Astera.
Glancing back to where she was standing before, there was an all-too-familiar black spike, jutting from the ground with blood dripping from its point.
Madam Astera groaned in pain, but my eyes remained glued to Elijah. “Y-You? How…”
We were told that the only ones able to conjure those black spikes were some of the scythes and their retainers. So why—how—was Elijah able to use it?
“A-Are you with the Alacryans?” I asked.
Elijah’s expression turned serious. “The Alacryans and I both have something we want to get out of this war. That is it.”
Realization dawned on me. “It was you—you were at Etistin. W-Were you the one that…”
Elijah took another step toward us. “Step away from the woman, Tessia.”
“I refuse,” I said through gritted teeth.
“G-Get out of here, Princess. It seems he can’t kill you,” Madam Astera whispered. “We’re no match. He’s the one that slaughtered scores of soldiers at the bay shore battle. There’s no mistaking it.”
“I’ve trained and suffered, waiting years for this, Tessia. Come with me and I’ll leave the others alone.”
I tightened my grip around Madam Astera.
Elijah let out a sigh. “Okay. I really didn’t want to leave any distasteful memories, but you leave me no choice.”
Another chill ran down my spine, signalling danger.
With just the faintest rustle, another black spike was conjured, piercing through the wounded soldier we had just found.
But it was too late.
Madam Astera jerked within my grasp, trying to reach her fallen comrade, but I kept her down.
“Come with me, Tessia,” Elijah repeated.
My mind spun as I tried to think of a way out of this. I knew I couldn’t go with Elijah. He was purposely keeping me alive for something. My first thought was that he was going to use me as a hostage, but then Elijah said he didn’t want to leave any distasteful memories…
Another chill ran down as I felt the fluctuation of magic. This time, there was only a surprised grunt in the distance before I saw it.
Jast had been pierced through the chest and hoisted into the air…just like my parents had been. The traumatized soldier’s expression wasn’t of pain but of surprise and confusion as blood dripped from the corners of his mouth.
“No!” Madam Astera screamed, trying to pry herself away from me.
“Now…” Elijah held out a pale hand. “Come. With. Me.”
My gaze shifted from Jast’s corpse to Madam Astera and to Nyphia and Herrick.
I was caught between two choices: relent until everyone but me was killed, or go with him.
Desperation sunk in, and I decided to make my own third option.
Grabbing the blade of Madam Astera’s sword, I held it by my throat. “Don’t.”
A look of surprise skirted across Elijah’s face before he revealed a smirk. “You’re not going to kill yourself.”
Without another word, I pressed the edge of the blade against my throat until I drew blood.
This was a dangerous gamble, one that could get myself and the people around me here killed, but I knew I couldn’t go with him—I knew something far worse might happen if I went with him.
Fortunately, the gamble paid off. Elijah visibly stiffened and his brows knitted in frustration before he snapped. “Stop.”
I held the blade in place, keeping my expression firm despite the sharp pain radiating from my self-inflicted wound.
Fear bubbled up in the pit of my stomach. I didn’t want to die now. I didn’t want to die.
The hand holding the blade trembled, and it barely lowered because of my hesitation, but that was all Elijah needed.
Instantly, a thin spike shot through Madam Astera’s sword, knocking it out of my hand.
“I’m sorry I had to risk your life like that, but I’ve waited too long,” Elijah said sincerely as he walked towards me.
I fell back and scrambled desperately away from the man that was once Arthur’s friend. What had happened to him?
I hated myself for being so weak. Because of me, everyone here was going to die and I couldn’t do anything about it.
Elijah flicked his wrist, and another black spike shot up from the ground…through Herrick. I closed my eyes, unable to watch as Nyphia’s scream pierced through my ears.
My heart hammered against my ribs as my breath turned shallow. I tried to keep calm, but I was suddenly reminded of the battle in the Elshire Forest—all of the deaths that had been caused by me. I opened my eyes again to see the world spinning and tipping. I felt like I was drowning underwater as the only noise I could hear was my frantic heart beating and the short desperate breaths coming out of my mouth.
Then, suddenly, a hailstorm of golden white light rained down on Elijah. Clouds of dust enveloped the entire area as trees fell and the ground crumbled.
A dragon as black as the conjured spike a few steps in front of me appeared. Moments later, even through my blurry vision, I could make out the all-too-familiar figure with a head of long auburn hair, holding someone. Faint golden markings glowed just beneath his eyes as he appeared. As he looked at me, a mixture of emotions washed over me as my vision darkened: embarrassment, guilt, but most of all, relief.
“I’m sorry,” I said, not even able to hear my own voice.
I could make out more of Arthur’s face as he got closer. He was sweating and his usual composure was nowhere to be found. His mouth moved but I couldn’t hear what he said as the world faded into black.
ARTHUR LEYWIN
I dropped Nyphia, who I had practically pried away from her dead friend, and caught Tess as she fell unconscious. Slinging her over my shoulder, I snapped my fingers to get Nyphia’s attention.
“Help Madam Astera onto my bond,” I said sharply, jutting my head over to Sylvie, who was walking towards us.
Nyphia, who had been staring at me blankly, snapped out of her daze and nodded. She slung Madam Astera’s arm over her shoulders and helped her up onto Sylvie.
“What is this?” Madam Astera marveled as she got on top of my bond, her right ankle bleeding profusely.
How easy would it have been if I had full control over Aevum like Lord Indrath; I could’ve kept time frozen as I took everyone to safety. Of course, if I had the powers of an asura, things would never have escalated to this point.
‘Are you okay? You used borrowed aether arts for much longer than you’re used to,’ Sylvie asked, her concern emanating onto me.
I’ll be fine. Were you able to get a close look at that Alacryan though? From those black spikes and the pressure he gave off, he was at least a retainer and one we haven’t seen before.
‘I wasn’t able to make out his face either,’ she answered. ‘But he’s already approaching us.’
I sensed it too. We had already reached above the thick blanket of clouds and had already cleared several miles but I could feel the Alacryan’s presence not too far off.
Madam Astera was the next to sense our enemy’s approach. She jerked back, her face pale and expression grim.
She and I both knew that as soon as we landed, a battle would be inevitable. But that didn’t matter. I just needed to hold this person off until Madam Astera and Nyphia can get Tess through the portal safely. With the artifact she and I had, the portal would take us to the refuge shelter where the rest of them were waiting.
‘We’ll make it back,’ Sylvie assured. ‘We’re much stronger than we used to be.’
Without Dawn’s Ballad and the fact that I barely managed to wound a scythe out of sheer luck, I couldn’t help but feel a lingering doubt. Still, there were people waiting for me.
We continued flying through the air silently. Nyphia, who was around my age, was coping with her loss, trembling as she clutched something in her hands. I found myself staring at Madam Astera’s back as she held onto Tess. I didn’t think I’d meet the old soldier again after seeing her briefly at the battle of Etistin Bay… or even before that as a cook.
TBATE Volume 7 Page 41
