The Beginning After The End 08

by Turtle Me

  The carallian crumpled to the ground, and its spine snapped. As it convulsed on the ground, I shifted my head to the left to avoid the carallian I had tripped. Two well-placed thrusts later and both carallians had been added to my pile of corpses.

  My eyes swept across the battlefield, looking for the next target for my blade. It was only when I couldn’t find any more enemies that I finally noticed the sky had turned back to blue and the corpses strewn around me were slowly fading.

  There were several ascender corpses mixed in with the fading carallians. Five ascenders had apparently died in this wave, a number that didn’t mean much to me, but I was sure the teammates of the deceased didn’t feel the same way.

  Daria and Trider were two of the seven left standing. Daria was in fairly good shape aside from a few cuts on her legs and tears in her robe. Trider was cradling the stub of his bleeding left arm, face pale, his breath coming in heavy, panting gasps. Both wore odd expressions that I couldn’t quite make out.

  Was it fear? Anger? Something in between?

  It didn’t matter. These people were just as much my enemies as the carallians were. Even if they decided to attack me, I was confident I could defeat them easily.

  Regis remained quiet. I kept my body clad in aether, and my grip tight around my dagger.

  Despite my distracted state, decades of fighting and honing my instincts warned me as I felt, rather than saw, someone rapidly draw near.

  Spinning on my heels, I grabbed my surprise attacker’s wrist, pressing the tip of my blade against their throat.

  I paused, surprise forcing me to hold my attack, and in that split second the hand holding my white dagger was in turn grabbed by a huge fist and I found myself face to face not only with Caera—whose wrist I had in my grasp—but also Taegen, who was attempting to restrain me, and the swordsman, whose humming blade was aimed at my exposed side.

  “What is this?” I snarled, the anger I’d left behind hours ago boiling back up to the surface.

  “Unhand her,” Taegen ordered as he attempted to crush my hand within his own.

  “She attacked me.” Though I responded in a level tone, the aetheric pressure I emitted affected even Caera’s protectors, and their expressions grew strained.

  “I thought I was imagining things,” Caera muttered. Her quivering red eyes were fixed on the white blade just a few inches away from her throat.

  “But I was right…” Caera’s eyes locked onto mine, her expression harsh. “Why do you have my brother’s blade?”

  274

  Trading Knowledge

  Caera regarded me with bloodshot eyes, and her voice was dangerously quiet as she said, “I asked you why you’re wielding my brother’s dagger.”

  “Answer, Effeminate One,” Taegen commanded in his harsh growl.

  I thought I heard Regis chortle in my head, but it could’ve easily been one of the other ascenders around us. Either way, I was growing impatient with the situation. Despite the temporary reprieve I had felt upon seeing other people in these desolate, beast-filled ruins, being with them had quickly become more of a hassle than a comfort.

  “Would you like to test whether your blade is faster than mine, swordsman?” I challenged, turning to meet the brown-haired ascender’s eye.

  I felt Taegen trying to pry my hand away from Caera’s throat, but I held firm, keeping my unflinching attention on the swordsman.

  After a beat of hesitation, he dropped his sword and held up his hands. Taegen released his grip and reluctantly stepped back. Despite her position, Caera’s gaze never faltered, as if she still expected an answer.

  “I found it on one of the zones I encountered before arriving here,” I answered.

  Caer’s face was a motley of expressions; she somehow seemed afraid, happy, crestfallen, and hopeful all at the same time. She opened her mouth to speak but hesitated, almost afraid at what she might hear.

  My gaze flickered between Taegen and the swordsman. Their eyes told me they were still looking for an opportunity to strike, but I didn’t mind. It was obvious that both were prioritizing Lady Caera’s safety over anything else.

  Letting out a breath, I spoke. “I’ll tell you what I encountered in the zone I found this dagger in, and I’m even willing to part with it…” I said, letting the words linger, “but I want something in exchange.”

  Her response was rushed, the words tumbling out of her desperately. “We don’t carry money in the Relictombs, and we’ve yet to find any accolades, but once we leave, if you come—”

  I shook my head, cutting her off. “I don’t need money or accolades. I just want some answers.”

  Caera’s narrowed eyes peered into me, as if she were trying to see my intent shining back out of my own eyes, but in the end she only nodded. I released my grip on her wrist, sheathed the dagger, and gestured away from the other ascenders.

  The four of us walked away out of earshot of the others, who looked on warily. Perhaps they worried Caera’s team and I would kill each other, or maybe they were hoping for it. I still hadn’t had the chance to clarify why this wave of carallians had been so much stronger.

  “Shall we start?” I asked, calmly regarding the trio.

  I could see Taegen’s body bristle, the striations in his muscles literally stiffening as he prepared to defend Caera against anything I might throw at them.

  Letting out a sigh, I took a seat on the hard ground.

  The swordsman’s eyes narrowed as he studied me. “You could’ve kept Lady Caera as hostage and simply forced answers from us. What keeps us from simply killing you now and taking what rightfully belongs to Highblood Denoir?”

  “Arian, enough. We both have things we want from each other,” Caera said curtly.

  If Alacryans referred to family as “blood,” then did “highblood” mean that Caera was from nobility? It made sense considering that she had two highly capable guards more than willing to risk their lives for her.

  “The three of you seem too noble to do something as backhanded as that, unless Lady Caera was in danger,” I said, giving them a knowing look. “Besides, I can assure you that killing me will by no means be ‘simple’.”

  “We’ll answer your questions to the best of our ability,” Caera assured me, lowering herself to the ground as well. Even apart from her proper and refined swordplay, her movement and behavior made clear the fact that she had a very strict and proper training on behavior and etiquette.

  I paused to think for a moment before speaking again. “I’ll ask a series of questions, some that I already know and some that I genuinely want answers for. You will not know which is which. You can’t ask why I am asking the questions I ask, and if you don’t know the answer, simply say so.”

  Taegen dropped to the ground with both his arms and legs crossed and glared at me. “Make haste, Effeminate One. We’re wasting our resting period before the next wave.”

  This time, I definitely heard Regis chortle.

  “How many more zones do we have to cross until we’re able to leave the Relictombs?” I asked.

  “The number and difficulty varies depending on the ascender, since the Relictombs adjust to the abilities of the ascenders within their respective zones,” Caera answered immediately.

  “Then how are parties able to travel through zones together if everything changes depending on the individual ascender?”

  “Simulets,” answered the swordsman simply.

  I let out a sigh. “How do ‘simulets’ work?”

  Caera took over again. “If I recall correctly, the Caster from the Lehndert blood offered one to you. Team members each hold synched simulets, which ensure that any gates they travel through lead to the same zone, although the difficulty is still determined by the strength of the ascenders present.”

  I nodded before asking the next question. “Why do ascenders come into the Relictombs?”

  Taegen shot up angrily. “Even unads know th—”

&n
bsp; “Taegen.” Caera’s voice was sharp, and it was enough to make the large, muscle-clad mage promptly sit back on the ground with the rest of us.

  “Only the strongest mages given the title of ‘ascender’ by your dominion’s Scythe are allowed to explore the Relictombs. In turn, ascenders are able to gain treasures that would never be found on the surface called accolades. Furthermore, if a relic of the ancient mages is found and given to your Scythe, it is said that the ascender will be taken to the mighty Sovereigns themselves and be bestowed a powerful regalia,” Caera explained.

  “Right, the Vritra,” I affirmed.

  Caera’s eyes narrowed into a sharp glare, but she didn’t respond to my words.

  I recalled some of my encounters with the Alacryans back in Dicathen. I couldn’t only ask these basic questions. Thinking back to the noble Alacryan that I had questioned in the Forest of Elshire, I asked, “How influential is the—the Vale blood?”

  Arian’s gaze turned inquisitive as he answered. “Blood Vale is one of the few military bloods in Etril, so compared to the other named bloods in a dominion known mostly for its farms, they’re influential. But in terms of influence in Alacrya as a whole? They’re nowhere near any of the true highbloods.”

  The sudden mention of a specific family must’ve thrown them off, because they began answering my following questions more seriously.

  Despite the conditions I had set for our conversation, I was limited in what I could ask in terms of learning more about Alacrya itself. Instead, I tried to learn more about the magic system that Agrona had devised. These questions didn’t seem to raise any flags to the three since I had some basic knowledge from my questioning of Steffen Vale.

  Interestingly enough, their “mark-based system”, as I so casually dubbed it, was largely a mystery to the Alacryans as well. Because of the awakening process that all children went through in order to become mages, the Alacryans thought that magic was given to them by the Vritra themselves, or “the Sovereigns” as they called them. Thus, non-mages—or “unads”, which seemed to be the widely-accepted slang for unadorned—were widely discriminated against since they weren’t blessed by the Sovereigns.

  Just like Caera was afraid of hearing what happened to her brother, I was afraid to hear the answer to my next question.

  Taking a steadying breath, I asked, “What was the last news you heard about the war going on with Dicathen and… how much time has passed since then?”

  “The latest news, which was delivered to my estate right before we prepared for our ascent, was that Scythe Cadell had managed to conquer the Dicathians’ sacred flying castle,” Caera said with a hint of pride. “Taking into account the time flow within the Relictombs, I’d say it has been almost two weeks since then.”

  Almost two weeks. It hadn’t been more than a week at most since I fought against Cadell and Nico. I had hoped for time to work differently within the Relictombs due to the abundance of aether, but I couldn’t help but feel relieved knowing that, despite everything I had gone through, not much time had passed.

  “Do you worry for a member of your blood out in the war, Effeminate One?” Taegen asked. “It is a shame that an ascender’s exemption from the war does not extend to their blood, but know that it is an honor for them to serve.”

  I was a little taken aback by the sincerity of Taegen’s words, and responded only with a nod.

  Silence lingered for a time before I eventually stood up.

  “Last questions,” I said. “How far is the power source from here?”

  “It’s about another day’s march at the pace we’ve been moving, and that’s not including the time it’d take to fight another wave or two.” Arian frowned. “You’re not planning on going off alone, are you?”

  “I’ve wasted enough time in this zone,” I replied curtly.

  “The effect your presence has in this zone speaks for your strength, Effeminate One,” Taegen said as he stood up. “But even if you manage to survive the next wave by yourself, it’ll be impossible for you to fight the guardian protecting the power source alone.”

  I tilted my head. “You know, the more you speak, the more I realize you’re not the meathead I thought you were.”

  A vein in Taegen’s forehead pulsed at my comment, but Arian responded with a stifled laugh. “Taegen indeed gets that a lot. It doesn’t help that his temper is shorter than a husked boarling with its behind on fire.”

  Taegen stomped down on his comrade’s foot, but Arian casually dodged the attempt.

  Turning to Caera, I tossed her the dagger. “A deal is a deal.”

  Her lips curled up into a smile for a split second as she squeezed the dagger tightly. “What about my brother?”

  “I didn’t see your brother in that zone. However, there was a beast in there both large and powerful enough to eat ascenders whole, and judging by the pile of human-sized equipment left in its layer where I found that dagger and this cloak…” I let the sentence trail off, not having the heart to finish.

  Her expression remained calm despite the news, but it was easy to see the emotions she was holding back. Her trembling hands gripped her brother’s dagger with such strength that her pale fingers turned several shades lighter.

  I stared out into the distance where the power source would be once the sky turned red again. As I prepared to leave, however, someone shouted at me, forcing me to pause.

  Daria was running toward us with most of the other ascenders behind her. It was a nervous looking group that approached us.

  “I knew it. You’re thinking about going off on your own,” she huffed, her thin brows furrowed together.

  “Is that a problem?” I asked, hiding my annoyance.

  “Don’t you have any sense of responsibility? Because of your presence, the carallians have been augmented to such a degree that five of us died in that last wave! That’s unprecedented in convergence zones!”

  Caera stood up, storing the dagger in her dimension ring. “Even if he leaves, a part of the wave will follow after him, and if he dies the carallians will revert back to their previous form. Where exactly does the problem lie?”

  “H-he should take responsibility and stay here to protect the rest of us until we get out of this zone!” Daria sputtered, her cheeks red with anger.

  A few of the other ascenders nodded in agreement. Trider, I noticed, was just idly kicking a loose clump of dirt on the ground, pointedly not meeting anyone’s eye.

  “Don’t you mean, he should stay here and protect you?” Caera asked scathingly.

  Daria scoffed, then turned her cold gaze to me. “So this is why you didn’t accept my offer. I didn’t realize you were a dog of the Denoirs.”

  “Careful, Miss Lehndert,” Arian said, standing up and patting the dust off his matte armor. “While exploiting your blood name is frowned upon in the Relictombs, everyone here should know that Lady Caera doesn’t take lightly to insults, and the Denoirs are rather known for settling scores.”

  “Enough. I plan to reach the power source before the next wave begins.” The dirt beneath my feet lifted from the ground in little eddies as I cycled aether through my limbs. The ascenders blanched and stepped away from me as they felt the pressure I was exuding. “Anyone who can keep up is free to follow me.”

  275

  More Than a Weapon

  “Wait!” Daria’s honeyed voice called out as I turned to leave.

  I looked back over my shoulder, locking eyes with the willful young Caster. “What is it?”

  Daria flinched under my gaze but steeled herself and glared back at me. “Assuming that everyone here follows you, by the time we reach the power source, most of our mana will be too drained to face the guardian.”

  “So?”

  “You don’t seriously think you’re strong enough to take on the guardian by yourself after sprinting a marathon, do you?” Daria snapped, stomping toward me. “You’re going to need all of our help. Hell, even if y
ou see all of us as dead weight, at least you’ll need to be at full strength, right?”

  I frowned down at her, and she glared up at me. “Just get to your point.”

  Her brows furrowed and she opened her mouth to talk back but stopped herself. “To be honest, I have no confidence in being able to get past whatever monstrosity is waiting for us after fighting against the last carallian wave.”

  Daria turned around to face the rest of the ascenders listening in.

  “Therefore, I have a proposition, but I’ll only do it if he accepts,” she said, pointing back at me with a thumb over her shoulder. “I have a way that would allow all of us to travel while the burden of mana usage falls solely on Orid and me. We will get everyone there in top condition at the fastest possible speed, but our safety must be prioritized.”

  Immediately, a few ascenders started protesting. I let them bicker amongst themselves for a minute before I finally spoke up.

  “I agree.”

  Judging by how many of the ascenders were willing to tail behind me, my usage of aether would be limited. And with my only weapon gone, it was safe to assume that this final stretch would be more tedious than the waves I’d already faced. The chance to travel the remaining distance without burning through my aether was worth staying with the group just a little bit longer.

  Daria’s large eyes glimmered as she beamed at me. “Great!”

  I honestly didn’t know what to expect. Daria seemed like a capable mage, and even if Alacryan mages weren’t very flexible with their elemental manipulation, I had hoped for something… a little more impressive than what we got.

  After making a big show of getting ready, Daria conjured what amounted to a large sled made entirely of ice with a tarp hanging off a tent pole as a makeshift mast.

  “You expect all of us to ride this?” Taegen asked, towering over the ice sled.

  “I’ve condensed the ice several times, so it’s sturdier than it looks. I got the overall structural shape from the oceanriders, and I’ve tested it several times myself.” Daria stood on top of the ice vehicle and glared out at the rest of us, looking for all the world like some buxom pirate captain standing at the prow of her ship.