Elias put a hand on the hilt of his sword. He let his bag slide to the ground where a ploom of ash encircled it. “If you won’t listen to reason then I will have to forcibly stop you,” he said as he drew his sword.
“It is already too late for that,” Alice replied, her tone unusually pitched."
Elias dashed forward and slashed at Alice’s side. Almost faster than he could see her hand turned toward him and a bubble of energy surrounded herself as the sword bounced off harmlessly. His arms tingled.
“So quick to violence when I am doing what must be done in the end.”
“You are becoming something worse than dead. Alice, you may not realize it yourself, but I do. This process you are enacting will kill you and bring forth a body and true mind for the corruption to inhabit. Every ritual, every cleansing was taking the corruption into yourself and not truly destroying it. I should have realized it, and I am sorry. In many ways, I have failed you.”
Alice's gaze softened momentarily, a flicker of the woman Elias once knew shining through the shroud of determination and resolve. "Elias, your heart has always been in the right place, but you fail to see the bigger picture. I am not just a vessel for destruction. In me, the corruption meets its end. My life for the countless others. It's a sacrifice I am willing to make."
Elias shook his head, his grip tightening on the hilt of his sword. "It's a false choice, Alice. There's always another way. We can fight this together, find a solution that doesn't require your life."
“You can’t be so naïve. The process can’t be undone and even if I could do so I would choose this every time. I almost wish you could feel the power coursing through me. The understanding of my magic I have gained and my understanding of the nature of the corruption. I will finish this process. You will not stop me.”
The tree continued to wilt exposing more of its insides. There were only two more branches left on the tree before the power would start turning the base of the tree to ash. Elias raised his blade again and attacked. His sword rattled but his grip was firm. He attacked again and again. The sword struck the barrier that Alice raised with a hand. Even as he shifted where he attacked and moved to the other side of the tree the barrier stayed firm.
Alice didn’t even turn her head toward him and kept her focus on her task. The effort of keeping up the barrier seemed to slow the process of the wilting tree, but it kept going. Elias started to grow frustrated. He felt the power of the Sword Breath through his body during every swing, but it did not change the status of the barrier.
Elias took one final swing and sighed. “If you won’t consider my feelings and words as your friend and master then consider those of Thompson. What would he have wanted you to do? Would he have approved of this? Accepted this? His life was taken so that you could still be alive to save the world. I still think that you can save the world.”
He waited and it took Alice a moment to respond. “I am saving the world in my way. The corruption will bring in a new status quo. One that will fix many things. It will bring it back to a state of balance.” The final branch fell off the tree and disintegrated into ash.
“I’m not even sure what you mean anymore,” said Elias. “Maybe it would bring great change to the world. More than it already has, but it will bring even more deaths. That is something I can’t stand by and let happen.”
Elias raised his sword with a new focus in mind. His breath steadied and his mind was clear. For the moment his anger and all other emotions were set aside. He let his Sword Breath take over. The glowing sword came down hard on the shield. It stopped right above Alice’s hand as a wave of cracks spread out from where he struck.
Elias realized what he was doing wrong, and Alice hid a wicked smile. “It seems that you do know how to use your Sword Breath power. Finally, you have unleashed it externally instead of holding it inside yourself. Unfortunately, you are too late,” she said as large cracks spread through the base of the dying tree.
The blade glowed once more and stayed that way as Elias swung his blade through each of the sword forms he knew. The cracks in the shield spread and then retracted in a dance as each attack met the shield. Elias let his practice guide him and let his intuition guide the use of his Sword Breath. He went through the sword forms once then twice. His power flowed through the blade intensifying right before the moment of impact. The cracks steadily grew through both the barrier and the tree. The bark peeled off and melted into ash.
Undaunted, Elias continued his offensive. His desperation grew when he saw Alice release her grip on the base of the tree. The cracks on the shield glowed. Its pieces shimmered before finally shattering completely. Then he hesitated. Alice rose from her spot and Elias barely switched into a defensive stance as her attack came for him.
He slid back while barely keeping himself upright. Alice stepped slowly toward him as the base of the tree turned into ash joining the rest. She smiled with her grin growing wide as her hands mimicked the gesture. Her hand reached for the center of the ash and grabbed her blade darkened by the soot. “You had your chance a few moments ago, but even now you don’t wish to kill me. Feel my power,” she said as she raised her blade.
Her eyes were ringed with a dull black. Ashen skin stretched out from her hands holding her altered blade. She rushed at him in a blur with the full strength of her magic. Her blade held low, Elias recognized the sword form as a version of the second form, Rising Mountain Strike. He twisted his sword and angled the sword to the right moving to intercept the incoming attack. It grazed his sword creating sparks between the two weapons.
He blocked the next strikes on instinct and stepped back up the crater. His eyes barely caught the start of her movements before he reacted to the sword moves he knew by heart. They moved quickly enhanced by their powers. He waited to counterattack when he could find an opening in the fight. The battle was much like their previous spars except faster and the new inclusion of Elias having magic. With it, his body grew faster, and his blade was able to imbibe the magic he put out.
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Elias took another step up the crater before using the height to his advantage. He was already taller and had a longer reach which compounded the effects.
Elias brought the sword in a wide, circular arc above his head swiftly thrusting forward in a straight, piercing motion using the height to his advantage as he pointed his sword slightly downward. In a flash of energy, a slight barrier appeared as Alice’s sword followed through to block his attack.
“I have learned all of your tricks as you have most of mine. You are already slowing from wasting your energy on destroying the shield that you would never break-in time. It is disappointing really. You could have lived for longer, happily with whatever friends you had left if you had listened and left. Instead, you had to follow me and now you will die quicker.”
Alice attacked with more ferocity and Elias sidestepped to block effectively. His feet slid back toward the center of the crater. He felt exhausted. The effort just to arrive on the island had drained him mentally. Now he was burning through the extra physical energy given to him through his magic.
Elias gritted his teeth, determination burning in his eyes despite the fatigue weighing down his limbs. He knew he couldn't let Alice's words shake his resolve. Every parry and thrust was with the hope that he could end this fight in a way that could save her.
“Alice, you're mistaken,” Elias stated firmly, despite his body's protest. "I haven't come here just to stop you or to mourn what you've become. I'm here because I believe in the Alice who once stood by my side, the one who dreamed of a world free of this corruption, not consumed by it."
Alice did not waver as the ashen skin was visible up to her shoulders. "You cling to a past that no longer exists, Elias. I am not that person anymore. This is the only way."
The battle raged on, their blades clashing in a deadly dance. Elias, fueled by his conviction, found a new surge of energy. He remembered their past battles, sparring, and their shared techniques. As he took another step back he felt his bag at his feet. Suddenly, Elias feigned a high strike, only to quickly change his trajectory, aiming a swift, low sweep at Alice's legs. She stumbled, caught off guard, and for a moment, her defense wavered. It was the opening Elias needed.
He lunged forward, not to strike her, but to close the distance between them. She twisted her blade, and her magic flooded her weapon. It seemed to absorb the light around them, and no sound was made as the two blades met. Elias’s blade shattered. Its tip fell into a million pieces leaving only the hilt and a few inches remaining.
She swung again aiming for his head. Elias kept the broken blade up as the attack came. He felt a wave of calmness as the attack neared. Her blade moved around his simple defense and slid toward him. He considered what he could have done differently, what had gone wrong, and where had he gone wrong. Would he be able to fulfill the prophecy or was it destined for someone beyond himself and Alice? Sir Callum’s words echoed in his mind as he knelt down in a desperate attempt to delay the inevitable.
“The path ahead of you is fraught with challenges. Trust in your instincts and the sword skills I've imparted to you. Your potential is vast, and your heart is pure. I believe the corruption will come to an end and that you at least will be there to see it.”
The shield of energy that protected him was as much a shock to Alice as it was to Elias. He had subconsciously used his magic in the same way Alice had. It gave him a few precious moments to react. He felt the bag at his foot and with it was Sir Callum’s blade.
Elias's fingers curled around the familiar hilt of Sir Callum's blade, a wave of memories and strength flooding through him. The sword, imbued with his strengthening, hummed with a resonance that seemed to counter the corruption oozing from Alice. He rose, his stance grounded, his eyes clear. In his other hand, he kept his broken blade.
Their eyes locked, a silent conversation passing between them. For a moment, the battlefield was still, the only sound being the soft crackling of the disintegrating tree.
Suddenly, with a cry that seemed to hold the pain and determination of her entire journey, Alice lunged forward, her corrupted blade aimed straight at Elias's heart. But this time, Elias was ready. Moving with a precision and grace honed by years of training, he deftly parried her strike, using her momentum to spin her around. His shield held the blade back as he counterattacked with the ancient blade.
With a deft twist, he sent her weapon flying through the air. Elias gritted his teeth and threw his broken blade to the ground. Tears fell from his eyes as he gripped Sir Callum’s blade with both hands and swung downward. The motion was quick and effortless. His weapon glowed as bright as the sun for a moment as it met with the densest corruption in and around her body.
The blade connected, and a burst of light enveloped them, a searing wave of energy that seemed to cleanse the air itself. The corruption that had taken hold of Alice began to dissolve, evaporating under the purity of Sir Callum's blade. For a moment, it was as though the world held its breath.
Alice's body, now free from the dark tendrils of corruption, collapsed into Elias's arms. The core she had taken in now dying with her. Her skin, once ashen and stretched, regained its natural hue, the life returning to her eyes. But it was clear that the effort had taken its toll; the vitality that once animated her was rapidly fading.
Elias, tears streaming down his face, held her close. "Alice, I'm so sorry. I should have found another way."
“Thank you,” she said as she fell, her head resting in the ash.
A gust of wind hit the crater and kicked up the ash blowing it into the air. The remains of the energy left within Elias seemed to expand to his senses and melt away the ash like Alice had done to the tree. And with that, Alice's eyes closed for the last time, her body going limp in his arms. Elias held her, his tears mingling with the ash and dust of the battlefield.
Elias wished to say more but her life was gone with his words. He wasn’t sure what to do for a while, so he sat with her body next to him while crying. The last day and then weeks came back to him in a flood of emotions. The exhaustion pushed deep into his soul. The sun had long started to rise, but Elias was long lost in thought, pain, and tiredness.
Eventually, he stood up, carrying her body gently in his arms, he looked towards the horizon. A new day was dawning, a world reborn from the ashes of its past.
0-0-0-0-0-0
Sometime later.
Elias's boots squelched in the soft, yielding mud, each step a reminder of the long journey behind him. The air was ripe with the scent of fresh earth and new blooms, a tapestry of life reawakening. Spring had worked its tender magic, coaxing vibrant colors from the once-barren land. As he walked, the chorus of birdsong filled the air, a stark contrast to the silence that had accompanied much of his travels.
He'd had lots of time over the recent weeks to reflect and consider the future. the trials faced, the lessons learned, and the losses mourned. His heart ached for Thunderstruck, his steadfast companion on many roads. He could almost hear the horse's steady breath, and feel the rhythmic beat of its hooves. Even the feel of his blade now a shell of its former self wrapped in his pack.
As the familiar cottage came into view, nestled amidst the riot of wild grasses now dancing in the gentle breeze, Elias felt a wave of emotion. The stable, standing forlornly to the side, awaited its occupant, much like he awaited a return to life once known. The sight of the empty stable pricked his heart, a sharp reminder of what was lost and what remained to be reclaimed.
Pausing, Elias closed his eyes, letting the warm sun wash over his face. He considered how good it was to be back at home. The consequences of removing the corruption remaining in the land were now behind him. Others would take care of the finer details. It was now over. He could rest.
The door opened as if his wife had been expecting him at any moment. "Welcome back, Elias!" she called, her voice carrying the warmth of a thousand suns.