COI C68
“So entertaining . . .”
Quill is not amused of Sanquin’s delay his equipment, the first fight of him desperately surviving. Something interferes them while in the middle of their fight. Sanquin takes her fun a bit too long, those three moved somewhere else will have their chances from her blessings. Sanquin admits that she is getting too far, the entity appeared and help Haw was her doing and made the fight into a stage. No magic involved and they continue to fight expecting the elf it will happen. That would’ve been great to see if they are all ready, Quill checks on the others as the fight rages on.
Meanwhile the teachers witnessed the transformation. Haw looks like a World War 1 soldier with something dangerous at hand, while Thean and the others are trying to get away from the elves. Quail is implementing a new update on the sphere as they got it to work, as the limits of their computer are reaching max. The memory is full and the performance had already reached high. Their other programs ceased and only left are to see the sphere inside and the new features are added. All five people stats and information already picking up, Sanquin contributes them with secret traits on them.
They read it with admiration from her.
“Redemption (Sanquin) . . . Instant heals on all status effects and item condition when reaches certain threshold level (3 charges)”
Andui asks her friends “Is there a chance that we can use that buff?”
Coral answers “I don’t know, but I have mix feelings on her way of things . . . but geez that woman gives Haw so much trouble”
Iggy agreed “Yup, and she waste one on Haw on her buffs too”
Everyone starts to go multiple screens on them individually. The suspense from the elves, from the other side of the screen, is going to be thrilling to watch.
The simulation room turned into a theatre as they are watching men versus elves. Somebody opened the door and the teachers were surprised, their colleagues come in along with the principal. Some of the teachers did post a scene at the beginning where the fight starts, and shared it on social media. The temptation of their co-workers come in and announced their excitement.
“You post something nice, we thought we could see it live”
Quail raised her eyes in a big surprised “Hey! This is not a cinema”
“I’m sorry, but you showed us Coral’s clip. We don’t miss another one”
Every teacher on this school had come and saw it, and wanting to see what the sphere can do for their school. Nervous laughing as they are trying to send the message to Sanquin. The foolery what she did before is ok, but with the staff involved . . . This won’t be good, and as for Quail send it through the computer, the reply is swift and answered with emoji to the end of the text. An evil grin with horns
“Of course . . . maybe . . . Tempting emoji*”
It was sent so fast when sphere manipulates time. What is she trying to say under those few seconds? Few seconds here is more than a minute in the sphere.
The fifth elf is interacting with the monument. Elven mana flows through the sands and stones down to the place they fall. Searching through the complex passage, hallways, and even secret routes, there is no stopping for this monument to raises up and control the sands. Running through every corridor they could fine, and landscape they could form. The disaster breaks through the inside of the area they are now. Dripping like water with every demolition they could make in order to slow down the chase.
The three elves walk confidently, the wisps are becoming a stepping stone to their target, and endearing of them not losing their sight. The wisps surf their way to the Agatheans without any problems, passing through obstacles and debris as it passed them. One wisp comes close where Second’s wisps come to combat it. It moves around each other like water splashing the two currents together. Smoothly flowing in the air where the rest of the wisps are coming along in larger droves.
First leaves his magic marks on the steps and setting traps as they passed by, the wisps passed and negate it carefully. The signs and symbols glow where the elves moved it on their own like no threats on their way. The marks activate on its own and the wisps protected them, multitude of spells gathered and formed to attack them. Quickly absorb by the massive currents of wisps, and the meantime on this chase, Thean casts his magic above to make more traps. Thoroughly marking at the top where they will break their chase.
They sense the magic coming going up where the wisps are phasing through. The magic hidden in return as they circled around them up. First blasts through the walls and floors to break the magic being build up. Wisps roamed hidden inside the stones and broke free from Thean’s traps. Mist of wisps blocking their view as they rushed further, hearing the elves starting to run, the mask elf is closing in and gathering the essence of their magic. Forging through his swift movement, the weapons he brought and made secretly merging their mana together but not as one as whole.
Forced it to unify those two mana types and the weapon strengthened. He raised his sword and slash in the air, the magic appeared and directly aim at them. The cut goes through the walls to their direction. A shield appeared from the team and the slash bounces off partially to the wall. The shield withstood the attack hidden through the walls. It starts to lose control as it changed into a portal, the Agatheans left it and ran as they are coming. The elf appeared from the portal and blown the area, the mask elf walks forward and sees them run. Closing in where the portal continues to persist.
The chase is close to an end, and the elves already surrounding them within their magic. Thean and First build up the magic they wield, trying to help Second being cornered from the attacks stealing his shields. The mask elf is hitting them into the tight spaces where they can’t rely Second’s defensive magic. Barrier after barriers, his wisps trying to save them, and the assaults only let him going through the shattering magic they cast. On that moment, Thean throws his sword where the elf appeared from the blast.
The elf catches it and pulled Thean to him, both collide quickly with no rooms to escape. Thean quickly set his stance where the elf mimics with his own sword. The elf forced grip his magic sword where Thean used more mana than he should. Thean breaks off the connection with his magic sword, and the elf throws it away immediately and brings out his own weapon. Thean blocks his attacks with his face disgruntled of how he got permanently disarmed from one of his magic swords. The mask elf gives his impatience for his tricks.
Thean is pulled by Second, but the elf’s wisps stop him. They got repositioned closely where the two got flashed from the elven light. The elven wisps come close and surrounding the two swordsmen. Forcing them further away where they stand starts to crumble, the floor is crumbling from the other location. An elf pushes it up with the ring’s power. He punches right above with intense strength and breaks through the floor further. Dashes upward with the clones he brings, the light glows on his body as he looks like a dead old warrior, the elf is now here and the ring brings the legends of horror.
The wisps are surrounding them, parts of the wisps made a portal where the elf who controls the wisps appeared between each side. To Thean or to the two, First and Second, he watches them in both sides where the wisps are ready to quake the area. Waves of light on the floor start to emit vibration, the current of wisps going all around on it, it sounds of elven tunes and Enders echoes. This is the first time they could hear the choir of the east mountain through their light. First and Second witness the images of souls raised their arms at them as familiars.
Whispers distinguish the wind and sands through this imagery of countless bright souls walking on foot as men or any upright creatures existed, and shown them the past of great warriors. Endless, unknown, superficial, and glowing as wisps, then the wind starts to darken. First starts to open more magic taken from the inner realms, his equipment interacts with it, and many more links to open its secrets. Second tries to see through the wind, many movements slowly coming to them. The elf is walking as he hides behind these countless wisps.
The wisps from First and Second were unleashed to battle, the wisps are formed in ‘warrior’. Battling themselves out through their shining glow, First’s wisps are enchanted and more dangerous as it shines. The elves see the wind erupted through the battle. Thunder booming inside this place, cold and hot air starts flowing through their magic. The ring bearer uses his ring and touches the flow of the torrent, and it starts to act like water and freeze it through the ring’s touch. Tilting to blow along the torrent, he pushes it back to neutralize the both magic. Then the elf looks up, he waits his partner to act on it.
The wisps elf is above from what is happening, where the remaining dark wind and the wisps fighting like they are forming a storm inside. Lowering his hand as he casts down like rain, he let it worsen. A storm will form and rooms for the wind to move in different directions. Cyclones, tornadoes, hurricanes, and typhoon lied inside those small areas. One last wind of wisps covering this extravagant mayhem, the wisps who are covering them starts to mend with the darken wind. Their glow starts to shine alike and becomes night. It is the fight that they cannot comprehend.
Thean and the mask elf are dueling inside the trapped barrier. The wind won’t let them escape even with their magic, but neither of them would allow each other to show no hesitation. Thean sees his weapon forged in mid battle with his mana released, now merged into it and took what elf carries. The sword play becomes thicker where their strength focuses on their steels touch on the edges. It becomes the extension of their arms like they are wrestled each other by brute force.
Thean blocks with every movement he did backing away, forcing back as the elf follows through the dashes of his speed. The elf breaks through and rebound from Thean’s sword. Thean lunges forward and the elf block it and guide his weapon upward where the steels held together. Frustration on both sides where the limits put them on edge, the elf taunts him further as he waits for him unleashed what he is hiding. Thean’s image come and go in a flash but won’t stay long after used, the elf suspects something about it.
As for Thean, he carefully hid his image as it tries to overexert itself. He can’t let the elf know as it improved, it exists but never been seen before. It makes him want to see why no one with the right power to awaken it. The mask elf quickly comes in and the image reappeared and disappeared like a nightmare, the elf stops then return to his stance. The two are not going play fair and the fight won’t keep going if either the two try to fear themselves.
The enclosed barrier changed dark where the two noticed it. The mask elf moves away as Thean sees him backing. He chased the elf like no other then something comes with a shining light. A wisp warrior appears to him and attacks but he breaks through the attack like it is just light. He hits the wisp with his fist, the wisp held on to his hand where its body faded slowly, as more of them appear. Strikes on at the back as he tries to break free, one hit after the other, the wisp warriors hit him once then vanish.
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Impact from them charging then disappeared, the strikes are menacingly numerous as they charge hidden by the darken wind. The mask elf appeared doing the final blow, and Thean’s image appeared trying to block it. The wisp sacrifices itself and change places where the mask elf was, from the back to the front. He lands the blow to the head. Thean’s magic armor opened as the elf continues striking it down to break his armor. The armor breaks through only a small hole appeared, changing the strike into a stab, the elf strikes him down with every opportunity he sees.
Thean’s image appeared blocks his attacks, sliding its sword to counter him, and changed into a parry. The image is looking at Thean as it is now awakened, where its eyes shine a fragment of the wisp dripping down one of its eyes. His image siphoned back in, and intently guided the parried attack to his head. As it shows to him, it is not pleased to use it that way. The image rebelled, and Thean sees the flawed of not knowing how to use it. The mask elf stops as it pierced through the armor, the tip of the blade only touched his skin. He noticed that the image is possessed.
The mask elf pulls away and vanishes. The possessed image looked at his creator, without hesitation, kicks him down and struck his head through the opening. The image disappeared as he slays him. Thean’s trait opened up and brings him back, the realization how he can’t coordinate well with his new profound power. The mask elf returned to him with his own images in place. Gathered all the forged weapons he made after the chase. His expression is hidden but more so everything around Thean is getting riled up. He is guessing from the mask elf that he is disappointed.
Back to the surface, the Fourth elf had patiently waited for Haw to bear what he wanted to face. There are no complaints on the elf as long as he can see what the present had done . . . still weak but believes they preserve their history well, and then look at Sanquin for a moment. He didn’t know what is the truth on this matter. Only he could do now to relive the fight against this war machine. Haw hears the whispers, not from Sanquin, for how long he listens on his head but Quill’s, maybe the demon might had given her permission.
“I think Enders are more noble against each other, you can’t see what happened to your companions but you sure have given patience from your adversary”
“. . .”
“Even you don’t have such spell to reply, I for one believe you could make a better fight without magic. Rune Isles is an exceptional place for your way of life”
Quill finished using her telepathy on him as Sanquin made preparation for this moment. Both want to see a good fight because they have an Enders here, and below probably trying to make worse if they abused the settings.
Haw and the Fourth ready themselves one last time, all equipped and menacingly shown, where the first fumes released by Haw and the elf brings a cloth and covered his face. Haw’s gas mask breathes heavily as it is heavy and hot with his coat on, the tank on his back and the gun nozzle almost imitates his old companion’s weapon. He switches the dial to release the toxic fumes on the floor. Dense fume that can’t be float in air and stay on the ground like dust, still light enough to move around and lethal enough when breathing it.
Fourth elf covered his face and couldn’t see, with relying on his senses as he felt the dampness on his feet. Moving step by step and no mana needed for him to see him and many tricks to here when the gun starts laying on them. His elven agility leaps away to the side as he runs to him, jumping over where the spread landing down than up. Haw brings his potions smashes on the ground pulled up a hand shovel and scoop up the substance as the fumes are materializing. Turning to sand as it is sizzling acids on his shovel.
The elf covered by it feels the burns through his skin, Haw swipes the dense fume up to the elf consecutively. The cloth protected his face as he breathes it, and marches his way towards him hidden through the toxic cloud. Haw blows off the raising fumes and sees him gone, as he looks around where he the sound of his heavy suit making noisy steps. The smoke moves as it something is prowling underneath the dense fume. Haw moves slowly and waiting for the elf to attack him. Carefully watching for the agile elf, a stone bounces off the other side as he looks there. He shoots at it and sees nothing.
The fourth elf pounce him from behind as he grabs the gun. Haw loosens his belt to drop the potions down. Fragile potions fell on the ground and the glass cracks as the elf steps on it. The potion’s leaked and combined with other fluids, now mixing together into the concoction, the two struggles to hold the gun as Haw tries to wipe the leaks on the ground with his boots. The elf steps something thick as it grabs on his feet, it shreds his boot and see scratch mark. He kicks the dense fumes and sees a rapid growth of fungus trying to cling on to them.
The elf pulls him up but pushes away as Haw retaliates, the two broke off and the elf quickly hides under the dense fumes again. This time he didn’t hid but to run away. Haw switches the dial to cleanse the fungus infection, aimed at the ground as he sprays and purges the fungus as it settles. Then he switches to neutralizing as the remaining infection in stagnation. Haw gets hit to the side, and the elf throws the stone as he raised his claymore at him. The blow from the thrower pushes the fumes away from the elf, and Haw dodges the way where the elf swings and lunges to his gun.
The elf moves passed him as he falls down uses his sword to break into a hole, Haw stared at the hole as he tries to check. He steadily moves in as he prepares the fumes for the next fight, and then he hears something. The dripping of dense fumes falling down to the hole where he heard something, stones crumbling and the sound of the elves weapon slashing at the same time, Haw looks around and see there are holes and floors being crumbled. The fumes covered the rest of the leveled ground as he felt his feet being falling off.
He continues to hear more slashing below as it heard in different place echoing above. The fumes start to sink below where the rest starts to dry up. Haw picks the stone and aimed at the other side of the floor. Once landed, something thrown at it as it crumbles into the monument. The floors are starting to crumble as he tries to find the place to get inside. After the fume clears, he sees the floor is shattering and the elf below starts to strikes his sword above. The floor starts to sink in after the other. Haw looks down as the dark wind flows upward.
To the last steps of the floor crumbling down, he jumps down where he slammed himself slight leaning debris and rolling down inside the dark wind. He released the fumes where the winds panic and flee away from it. The fourth elf surprises him and hits his tank at the back, he moves forward as the impact is too powerful for his footing to stand up properly. The tank held on and the elf uses his hilt on the gas mask. Multiple times in quick precision, Haw counteract by pulling out the hand shovel. The elf quickly pushes him down as the weight of the sword overwhelmed him forward near the edge.
Few potions were accidentally falls off from Haw’s belt, as the elf pushes. It exploded, immensely hurting his leg and including Haw, both of them drag their feet on the ground as they both crawl. Haw checks his back and feels a hole where the explosives were hit, the elf negate his own mana as he bears the pain of his torn off feet, and sees Haw daringly crawls his bloody legs towards him pulling out something hanging from his back. The elf spits out blood and the cloth covered his face tainted and blocks his breathing. The fumes mix with the spilled blood as it starts to harden the cloth by the toxic fumes.
The elf tastes it as he will be accepting his defeat, with only strength he has now with his sword raised it up and breaks the claymore to the length of the dagger. Both of them committing the madness of their fight, both of them know the opportunity like this was accident. The elf removed his covered face from his tainted bloody cloth consumed by the poison. No words for them as they grit their teeth with the pain of their limbs torn off. The explosions surprised them and powerful enough to shred their limbs off including their bones.
The elf stabs him as Haw brings something bigger explosive at hand. Hitting him that nearly activates the trait, he endured it as he tries not to use it. Haw had gulped down the painkillers as he was waiting for him from above. Now the things the elf did as he already torn off his arm held firm with the grenade. The elf looks at him like a fanatic willing to be martyred. Now he aimed him at the head. The gas mask withstands it until the lens being chipped and pierced through his eyes. Haw is lucky to beat an elf during that incident.
The grenade blows up as they fell down deeper to the monument. Everyone sees the scene how dark the fight took after one accidental moment from the explosives. The teachers can’t unsee what they witness but made them more aware if they are facing people like that, even that is Haw doing it. Quail empathizes the elf, as Haw being the desperate killer. Being overpowered means something when they can’t stop them and one in a lifetime chance they have, they are willing to do it as long as the powerful one fell for good.
Haw didn’t activate the trait yet as the painkillers improved his limits, lost an arm and both of his feet, and this maimed enemy fell faded within the dark wind as he fell. The wisps see someone fell as it approached him, the remains are someone who is being torn to shred. Its presence gathered the other wisps as it roams around him falling out from the monument. Haw appeared somewhere inside the night wind around.
The clashes of magic colliding as he starts to lose conscious, heal emits somewhere on his body, his arm returns and his feet being jangled around. It was First who is doing it and Second is getting to try to heal him with his wisp. With his equipment still junked up, only he has now is the potion hidden in his coat. First pulled his leg up and twirl his body up, and then he said
“Welcome back, looks like you survive and even use my prescriptive medicine”
“You are one to talk in the middle of the fight”
Haw was talking to the image of First, where the real one is out there fighting against the ring bearer as the real second is switched with him falling down from the monument as he casts his wings to fly back up. Haw didn’t know they are copies where the scrolls they used from the inner realm. Haw is trapped inside as he is being nurtured there alone as the wisps are trying to protect him from the other wisps. Now facing one by one from everyone else, the fifth elf is observing in the far distance.
From the above where they watching by the other source, the fifth elf walks to the remains of his comrades. He picks up the broken sword as he fixes it to a less feeble dagger. The darken winds turn to night as he watches over the fight. The wisps elf glide down to find Second, the ring bearer tearing in thunder as the lights erupt in his way against First, and lastly the mask elf pulling up the fight against Thean. Everyone has their duels and lost their coordination one another. Working together will soon be upon them as they try to reveal the tricks the opponent has.
The disassembling of the claymore into the dagger dented to his owned craftsmanship. The wisps guide in flames and forge through the wind as he crafts it, the incident show what they never seen. The plague thief had more than toxins, and more explosives that is near identical to the founders are using. It is surprising for him to see such weapon used when both sides won’t survive from it. Sanquin’s blessings added from it and now the fourth elf failed to slay Haw. The elf let the wisps grind the blade to sharpen it, keeping the size of the handle as he only fixes the blade.
He spoke “Enders, having that mindset to attack us, I am sure that man haven’t fought an elf before. Hmph”
Sarcastically so “Or maybe Lady Briannca wants a normal pace in this fight. My brothers, rally them as we have one of us lost by accident”
The nightly wind comes forth and moving the sands unevenly, the monument starts to fix itself as they rose up to the surface. Invisible platforms are formed and magic hidden through everyone’s eyes. It is starting to shines as the sky beam down by the sun.
Quill and Sanquin looks up where the light beamed down to them. The sun’s cleanse comes forth as the flames fell and the sand gathers. Repairing itself back it was, the wind churns along with the sand. Both of them shield themselves and continue to watch the fight. Haw is recovering and Quill sees once again the trick they did in the second landmark.
“That thing . . . powerful than any liquid medicine, what is that?”
“They will update for you, you have time, right?”
The monument grew higher as the heat is affecting the nightly view. First feels the burn and the ring bearer cherishes it. His magic already shows nothing of his old set of magic, his aura turned vicious and his spells fully under control. The spells he casted waited for him to use again, disappeared to nothing and tricking the ring bearer to strike. First attacks again and the spells returned forcing its way against the torrent of wisps negating it. The ring bearer replicates his spell as he stops his magic to gather around him.
First and Ring bearer collide in each side by only First’s magic. The ring bearer dashes forth cutting, parried, and endured the magical projectiles in a straight forward. He bears the magic as the ring absorbed it as he heals. Swinging with his sword breaks First’s spells and controls it with his own. The ring bearer swings around nothing then teleported at First’s back. First’s spells block it with his gathered mana. Not fully prepared to this kind of find, as he is against the ring bearer’s ceaseless assaults.
Teleporting back and forth to fight the delusions of the magic he is using. First stops moving as the elf stops as well, the two left in motionless moment where both of their magic getting eroded by the ring’s presence. The shine of the rings blinks as it changes their mana sporadically. The fragments of magic both elven and neutral shatters like it was crystallize. The ring sudden in motion as they move and fought, both of them are going through mental break as its presence starts whispering as it used.
Whispers of the ring mocks them both as their aura turns corrupted, the soulfate ring builds up to the point as it fed well. First couldn’t resist stopping it or the elf strikes him as he focuses his ring. Both taken the risks as the ring awakens of its feast and reserved mana for it to gather, elven mana contained by the ring bearer starts fading, continuing its curse. Distributed to their mana and weapon alike, the two are ignorant wanting it as they are trying to beat each other with the powers they have.
That moment they returned back to fighting, First’s magic ignored the rings control as the ring suddenly lightens up and burned around the ring bearer. First was pushed back as the burns reach him, powerful soulfate magic and its destructive spell ignoring all First’s defenses. The ring bearer feels the demonic magic scourging First in as the ring enforce it quickly as the elf tries to resist the hidden urge of wrath. The elf still amazed who made this ring captured something alive in it. Concealing the wrath of the soulfate as he always wanted to keep using it.
The ring bearer easily heals himself as the elf’s wisps are coming to help him, then hold still as the ring tries to break free from its concealment. He looks at First melting away as his ashes kept his soul from getting away from his dying flesh. First activates his trait as his organs already broken apart. His painkillers had no chance against his internal organs were purged. First returned to his senses and see the elf stood still, he can’t handle this elf and had to regroup. They look at each other in the eyes where the night wind covering their view, like smoke, as they see each other fading through the wind.