“Everyone listens up!” Rollo said, addressing the room of strikers. “I just got word that Black Steel is not in the city. Cull’s team has been sent after him, so Astrid and Shadow Boy are our only targets.”
Rollo noted that many seemed to be relieved by his announcement. No matter how many times he explained Brand's mage craft, the fact that he killed Vara left a sense of awe that couldn’t be dispelled by simple words. Rollo himself felt conflicted about apprehending him.
Sure, attacking several Vellian nobles without orders could not go unpunished, but killing Vara more than made up for it in his biased opinion. He relished the pain she must be in from the spell backlash or death curse as the ignorant gods called it. Rollo would make sure Brand’s team got off easy as a little thank you from himself.
“That's too bad, I was looking forward to kicking his ass,” said a striker Rollo honestly wished wasn't on his team.
Ooba, without mincing words, was a fucking idiot. He was a capable adept mage with equal part physical strength and mana, but all strikers were capable in their own right. The problem was that he was good for nothing but simple tasks. Anything more than, ‘go there and kill that,’ he seemed to screw up.
His stealth skills were basic, tracking even worse. He only mastered two of the ten languages strikers used regularly. He had the patience of a toddler and the foresight of one too. His brain seemed to shut down during any lesson not involving combat like dancing and formal edicate. Such lessons were essential for infiltration and information gathering which was half of what strikers did. And sending him on solo missions was definitely not an option seeing how he loved to pick fights at random to show off his strength.
That strength, and an impressive ability to take a beating was the only reason he’d been made a striker. Out of all the new recruits over the last few years, Ooba was one of the best when it came to combat.
Lightning was extremely difficult to defend against. Now that he had a modicum of control over his power, most wouldn't stand a chance against him, save for Brand of course. But Ooba seemed to not be convinced of that fact and definitely didn't realize that finding any captain that wanted him was a challenge.
“Count yourself lucky that he’s not here,” Cora said disapprovingly. “Brand could probably kill you in seconds, Sparky.”
The young striker had only grown stronger since she left the Hall, but she was no match for Ooba. Although that wouldn't stop her from talking down to her junior.
“I would turn that little shit to ash if we ever fought. You too,” Ooba said with a sneer.
“The way you fight would only make him stronger,” Dagfinn interjected while his near-invisible mana threads inched towards Ooba. “Weren't you listening during the briefing? Most of us can only face him with half our strength. I wouldn't be surprised if Cull’s team gets wiped out.”
Cora looked a little offended at that. “My father would never lose. Brand might be-”
“Enough about Black Steel!” Brunhild shouted. “He’s no longer our concern!”
“That’s right,” Rollo said, taking control of the conversation. He didn't want Brunhild to even think she was in charge of anything. After this incident was taken care of, he’d personally make sure she lost her captain position. Regardless of whether killing Ragnar was the right move or not, she put up with far too much disrespect from her subordinate.
“This is what happens when you’re weaker than those under you.” He thought. “It would have been better if Brand was under Cull from the start”.
“What’s the progress on tracking them down?” Rollo continued. He looked towards the only tracker in the squad and gestures for her to speak.
“They’re still in the city, but move around constantly. They also leave pockets of their own mana to dull my senses. Uhtred has also been disappearing into the shadows for days at a time so, um, there’s really nothing I can do.”
“We can force them out by going after the gangs they control,” Brunhild offered.
Rollo rolled his eyes. “You assume they give a shit about those gangs. Chances are, they were only acquired because they supply Fenrir. A hell of a good idea by the way.”
“We’ve already been here for a week. We have to try something to flush them out.”
Little did Brundhild know, the operation to capture both renegades was already underway. Rollo couldn't tell her or most of the strikers present because of Brand’s tendency to place listening spells and sometimes viewing spells on people and things.
Every safehouse Brunhild used, including the ones she thought were secret to all but herself, was covered with the intrusive spells. The spells were also covering the woman herself and what remained of her team.
Finding the spells was difficult and mana intensive. One had to flood an area and pay close attention to see if there was a small point of inconsistency. There was also the problem of Brand leaving his spells in unexpected places no one would think to check.
Brunhild had spells on her inner thigh, underclothes, inside her mouth on several teeth, and somehow, on the inside of her skull. How Brand had placed the last one was truly impressive. He would have needed to place it in her sleep and make sure Brunhild didn’t move an inch while constructing it. She was probably drugged when he did so.
Rollo was sure Uhtred and Astrid had access to those spells and were listening in at this very moment but he wasn't depending on this entire group to apprehend them. All Rollo needed was Helga, and by the gesture she gave, she had just found one of them.
Wordlessly, Helga sent a tendril of mana to Rollo that he used to establish a link in order to have use of her focus. It was a simple ability to control and communicate with most birds. She currently had a link to one such bird high above North Bastion that Rollo now also saw through.
The bird was looking down at Uhtred on a roof with a woman Rollo couldn't see clearly. It seemed he believed himself safe in knowing all of his pursuers were on the other side of the city several miles away, but Rollo would prove him wrong.
After a nod to Helga, Rollo cast a spell so mana intensive most thought only apex magi like himself capable of using it. “Greater Teleportation.”
In an instant, Rollo’s mind left his body passing through every obstacle in his way until he found the bird he was seeing through. He then came to a stop behind Uhtred, his feet landing on the tiled roof with a clunking sound. His wand was already drawn and pointed to the back of Shadow Boy’s head.
Making gestures with his empty hand, Rollo sent a mage bolt from his wand while casting another spell simultaneously. “Dimensional Lock!”
*******
Right as Uhtred felt a Dimensional Lock pass over him, the spell form Brand carved into the back of his head came to life and burned with the intensity of hot irons. The pain caused Uhtred to scream, but the feeling quickly faded as he saw Runa flung from the building from whatever exploded against him. Thankfully, she corrected herself in midair, falling with purpose out of Uhtred’s view to the streets below.
With her safe, Uhtred’s focus returned. He tried to dive into the shadows on reflex but failed. With his usual means of escape disabled, he brought forth a large shield meant to be wielded by a jötunn to his back, happy that he still had access to his over enchanted armory. The ward Brand made was only good for one use and would have failed as a second mage bolt came from his attacker.
Uhtred ran to gain some distance, right before he heard the shield shatter. Looking over his shoulder, he saw his old teacher Rollo with long canines and beast kin ears adorning his head. They were probably real, grown in by his strange ability. Wearing a worn hood and an unkept stubble on his chin, he looked no different from anyone wandering the streets. The only thing of worth on the man was the black wand in his hand that constantly crackled with magic .
“I haven't left Vellia's capital in over ten years,” Rollo said, spinning his wander around his fingers like a toy. Despite his previous attack, he seemed more intrigued than angry as he continued. “But when I heard you left Nadia beaten, burnt, and bruised, I had to come see what the Shadow Boy had made of himself since leaving the nest.”
“Shadow Man!” Uhtred corrected a bit forcefully.
“Whatever,” Rollo said with a shrug. “How about you show me some of those overly enchanted weapons of yours.”
“How about I don't?”
Uhtred turned and ran for his life sending out a wave of shadows from his feet in hopes of concealing his escape. The shadows climbed high into the sky and were visible from just about anywhere in the city ensuring that guards and military would show up in short order. There was even a chance more than one of North Bastion’s apex magic users would appear, forcing Rollo to retreat or be held up while killing them.
“Catch me if you ca-” Uhtred’s taunt was cut off when his face collided into the mana shield that appeared in front of him. It was shaped in a dome of blue light and was far more conspicuous than the shadows mostly due to it covering almost two city blocks. By the raw power he felt coming off the spell, breaking through it even with his magic weapons would take time.
Uhtred turned back to Rollo and dashed to the side as the striker fired another mage bolt. The explosion still caught him, sending Uhtred crashing into a nearby roof. He rolled with the impact, breaking roof tiles and decoration with his body before coming to a stop with blood pouring into his eyes from a nasty head wound.
Without bothering to drag himself off the cracked roof tiles, Uhtred erected a turtle shell of metallic shields around himself from the shadows. “What the fuck is wrong with you?!” he exclaimed while wiping the blood from his face. “Every gods damn-” another one of Rollo’s mage bolts exploded against Uhtred shields, the force not able to penetrate the shell but demolishing the building around him forcing him to fly or fall.
“This was never going to be quiet,” Rollo said, still twirling his wand. “You’re probably counting on us taking it easy to avoid attention.” Rollo’s wand came to a stop pointing directly at Uhtred. Its shiny black surface reseeding as lines of dense mana crept through it like the veins of a living creature. “So I decided to do things your way, loud and in the open. Now get out of there so we can fight, surrender so we can go home, or wait so this part of the city becomes one hell of a battlefield.”
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Uhtred took a moment to consider his options even as another mage bolt defended him with an explosion. He couldn't run thanks to Rollo’s shield and he definitely couldn’t wait. Rollo was already breaking his shields and he only had so many stored in his shadow.
“And the metals they’re made of are expensive,” he thought offhandedly as one constructed with ten percent mithril with a thin layer of Damascus steel began to warp.
Regardless, until Rollo’s shield came down, he could only do one thing, and his recent victory against Nadia made him feel no better about his chances.
“Won’t have to do the fighting my ass,” Uhtred muttered thinking back to when Brand was convincing him to join in on the madness of his schemes.
With a deep breath to steady his nerves, Uhtred opened the crumbling shell of metal protecting him. In his gauntleted hand appeared a wand, but it was nothing like Rollo’s finely carved masterpiece. Uhtred’s was an ugly weapon of his own creation with a filled beast core as a base covered by magically mutated wood from the deepest part of the elven forest, and with a mana pool infused with so much power it might as well be a torch made of paper.
Uhtred kept his weapon at his side and placed his free hand on his chest. Like he’d hoped, Rollo mirrored him, accepting the dual as a proper mage despite the ocean of difference between their power. Without a basically broken weapon, Rollo could probably end Uhtred with a toothpick, but he still observed the customs of a battle between magi.
It would have been a strange sight to anyone watching. A middle-aged vagabond and a criminal dressed like a bandit bowing to each other. After a pregnant pause, they both rose and pointed their wands.
Before any spells were even fired the world seemed to warp between them, like a distorted image in anticipation of the arcane destruction to come. Nearby flowers bloomed before burning into ash. The smell of ozone came from the newly charged air making sparks flicker about. Rubble moved weightlessly around the two strikers, orbiting them as if they were heavenly bodies. These were the telltale signs of apex magi about to clash.
Uhtred, of course, was no apex mage. If he were, his stomach wouldn’t be doing flips. If he were, his eyes wouldn’t be stinging from the nervous sweat drenching his clothes. If he were, there wouldn't be a slight tremor in his wand he couldn't control.
Uhtred was no true apex mage, but with his wand that threatened to burn through his gauntleted hand, he might as well be. It radiated heat that quickly reddened the gauntlet now that he’d activated it. If not fired in the next minute, the wand would explode so the striker bit down his fear and unleashed its power.
*******
“What the fuck!” Astrid exclaimed as she saw Rollo disappear from the room of strikers she was spying on.
She turned to the other viewing screens in the observation room. Rollo did not have a tracking spell on him, but maybe he was in the vicinity of someone that did. Astrid’s hunch paid off immediately as she saw Uhtred take a mage bolt to the back of his head. Right after, she felt a Dimensional Lock spell pass over her. It held the familiar feeling of Rollo’s mana sending a shiver down her spine. If she was feeling him here then the striker had covered almost half the city with his spell and was now after Uhtred without caring one bit about being spotted.
The thrumming of a crystal ball grabbed Astrid’s attention. “What!” She barked into the crystal.
“The city is under attack!” Gorm shouted, his voice projected from the crystal Astrid had given him for emergencies.
“I know,” Astrid said. “We’ll handle it. Don't send anyone in to get in our way.”
“But whoever cast that spell over the city has to be extremely powerful.”
“I don’t care!” Astrid growled. She could practically feel Gorm back away from his crystal in fear. “Vellia has obviously sent at the very least one apex mage, but unlike those humans we can't afford to lose any of ours. Shadow Man is already engaging the enemy, so don't get in his fucking way!”
Astrid shut off the device before Gorm could answer. She was sure he’d listen. The noble was terrified of her and even more of Brand. One mention of ‘The Phantom’ would shut him up. Ever since the yule festival, she and Uhtred could tell him just about anything if the king didn’t object.
Floating towards the room's exit, Astrid was forced to collect the blade scattered about by hand. She'd need every drop of mana she had and couldn't afford to waste it on mundane tasks. It would be up to her to intercept the striker heading towards Uhtred.
She'd been putting off taking care of them mostly due to Rollo, but Uhtred could handle him. There was even a chance he could defeat their old teacher. Uhtred himself probably didn't think so. He didn't realize just how powerful he was.
Astrid had no problem admitting she was the least capable of the team. Giving Brand anything more than a paper cut was impossible and if Uhtred put his mind to it, he could defeat her. He just needed to be cornered by someone that he couldn't run from.
******
Uhtred’s wand crumbled in his hand, but its job was already done. The mage bolt it released collided with Rollo’s and exploded showering the area in a rainbow of colors. Before any more got that close, Uhtred pulled a baculous from his shadow. With it held out and a flash of magic, the next bolts turned away giving him a few precious seconds to rearm.
A ring appeared on his finger growing to fit the gauntlet that kept his hands from burning. It spread spell forms over his arm, then with a gesture, a flaming serpent's head burst out, its fangs aimed at Rollo. He avoided it by skyrocketing through the air while his wand drew out a spell.
“Water Dragon!” Rollo cast gathering moisture into a serpent of his own.
The creatures of fire and water bit down on each other exploding into steam. Uhtred didn't bother using the mist as cover. His ring was now molten metal so he pulled out a jeweled orb that fired dozens of condensed lines of destruction before cracking like a dropped egg.
Rollo erected several layers of mana shields to protect himself but they failed spectacularly and shattered like cheap glass under the power of Uhtred’s over enchanted spells. Rollo still managed to dodge by spinning through the air, but one line caught him in the shoulder carving a finger sided hole through his flesh.
“You got me,” Rollo said in a jovial tone unbothered by the pain. He pointed his wand at the wound and it disappeared along with the blood that poured down his arm. “Maybe I can stop taking it easy on you?”
“It's your own fault!” Uhtred said. “If you lower this prison shield I wouldn’t stand a chance.”
“And let you slip away, I don't think so.”
Rollo’s mana surged out of him, forming a bright spell circle with Uhtred at the center. With a raise of two fingers, the spell activated, leveling the city block with a massive explosion. It left a huge plume of smoke that continued to grow as uncontrolled fire spread through the broken remains of the abandoned buildings.
Amongst the smoke and ash, Rollo could see Uhtred. His garb had changed from a dark leather hood to an armor fit for a knight. Its shiny exterior was caked with soot and cracked as Uhtred lowered his arms from his face. Within moments, the armor fell away in scraps revealing he was without so much as a sunburn.
“I have to overwhelm him,” Uhtred thought. “Force him to use as much mana as possible so he has to drop the shield, hopefully before I empty my armory.”
Uhtred called on his goddess using a blessing only offered to him once per day. “Black sea!”
Shadows gushed from Uhtred washing over the ground in a tidal wave. These were not simple shadows of darkness. They swept up debris and rose, filling Rollo’s shield prison with a layer of pitch black fluid. The pool of shadow’s kept rising well over Uhtred’s head. If not for the love of Amra, he would have drowned along with the rats, but those waters were made of his faith hiding him from Rollo's scenes.
“Is this your best?” Rollo taunted. “Because I’m not impressed. Hiding will only force my hand.”
A golden ball of energy appeared at the tip of Rollo’s wand as he pointed it skyward. In an instant, it expanded becoming larger than a house. “Let’s see your shadows protect you from this.”
Rollo sent his ball of compressed magic hurtling to the ground. It was the kind of spell used against armies and would force Uhtred from the black water or parish, but he wouldn't need to. His preparations were complete and it was time to attack in earnest.
“Shadow Clone!”
Ten dark figures burst from the black sea, each dawned in the same hooded garb as Uhtred. What made them unique was the weapons they all held. They were armed with shields, swords, bows, and more from the shadow armory. Some even had armor but all were connected to the black sea by a shadow tendril coming from their back.
One shadow clone armed with a greatsword slashed at the magic headed their way. The ball of magical destruction split in two without anything visible releasing from the weapon. Rollo didn't need to see it coming to dodge, flying out of way to avoid being cut in half. The other armed clones closed in, forcing Rollo higher. He began raining down magic but clones hefting shields defended those without as they steadily grew closer.
“You think this is enough to overwhelm me!” Rollo shouted.
With a flick of his wand he created a complex web of circles that would rain down spells numbering in the hundreds, but his attack was cut short.
Uhtred, in the safety of the black sea, aimed a twisted magic staff and cast a de-spell that shattered the weapon along with Rollo’s magic.
Eyes wide with surprise, Rollo conjured a hastily made mana shield just before a clone stabbed at him with a flaming sword. It cut into the shield stopping just out of range but still forced Rollo to recoil from the heat.
“I see how Nadia los-”
The beast cores within the clone exploded sending Rollo falling from the sky.
“Talking during a fight is the fastest way to lose one,” came Uhtred’s voice from the remaining clones at once.
Rollo managed to catch himself in time to avoid another of the clone’s attacks. They came at him, all with one mind, determined to cut him down. When the striker attempted to destroy them, the shielded ones got in his way. From the dark water below Uhtred continued firing spells replacing each wand, baculous, and staff as he went.
“I take it back,” the shadow clones voiced as one. “Don't bring down the shield. With it using the bulk of your mana, taking you down is easy.” The clones began laughing with the shrill bark of cruel children. “And don't count on the other strikers showing up.” A line of blood was cut across Rollo’s chest from a blade that extended to thrice its length before breaking. “Astrid is capturing them now. You were the only thing in our way.” One of Rollo’s attacks finally landed but the clone’s body shifted impossibly and continued to close in. “And we own this city. No one’s coming. So who’s trapped in here with who!”
“Enough!” Rollo belowed.
The shield keeping them both imprisoned vanished, the mana returning to Rollo in a rush. He then exploded with undirected fury destroying the shadow clones instantly. “Just try to run Shadow Boy!” he roared. “You still can't escape me!”
Uhtred just laughed at his old teacher as he rode the currents of the black sea to safety.
******
“I’m never going to live this down,” Rollo thought.
The dark water of Uhtred’s blessing was now gone, evaporating without a trace a minute after the prison shield went down. It probably meant Uhtred found a place to hide, but Rollo was sure there was still hope of finding him. The dimensional lock was still active, so he wasn't in the shadow realm. With some luck, the day would not be a complete loss.
Rollo stopped flying as he spotted someone. From what he could see, she was a woman leaning against a wall amongst the rubble. No one else was present, the few who were in the area having run when the explosions started.
Rollo flew down to the woman ready for a fight. He didn't expect to recognize her, but did, immediately leaving him speechless.
“Long time no see brother,” Amra said with a wave.
“Amra!” Rollo sputtered. “Is that really you? You’re a beast kin?” Rollo didn't wait for her to answer. He ran to the goddess lifting her off the ground with a hug. “Gods, I’ve missed you.”
Despite his advanced age, tears welled up in the striker's eyes. Decades had passed since he was thrown from Gilmi. Vara did not abide those of her children without her angelic present, mainly those without wings.
Amra chuckled but then turned a bit serious. “Where have you been?”
“Where have you been?” Rollo demanded right back. “It's not like you have a church I could visit.”
“Well Midgard is a big place,” Amra said poking Rollo’s chest. “And your face has changed, more than once I’m guessing. If not for Uhtred, I wouldn't know it was you.”
“You know Uhtred?” Rollo said without thinking.
“He’s my boyfriend,” Amra bragged. “He even built me a church.”
“Seriously,” Rollo said.
“Yep, but you’re trying to get in his way and I can't have that.” Amra pulled Rollo in closer holding him in an iron grip. “Let’s catch up after this plays out.”
Rollo felt a hot breath on his neck along with a bestial growl. He didn't have time to see it. The shadow beast bit down severing his head in a single bite showering Amra in her sibling's blood.