Jerome flew out of the mountain and into the open, breathing in the cold air of the frozen north. The Itakars were stranded between a rock and a hard place — well between twelve unbound and a very long fall down a steep mountain. He could tell they were too exhausted to fly, if not they would have flown away a long time ago.
The unbound were relentless in their pursuit it seemed and flying away wouldn’t save them even if they could. The unbound would sniff them out with their superior senses. And Jerome was sure these mutated creatures could jump very high in the sky, judging from their unique physique.
When he was within firing range, he spat out a condensed flame of lethal blue energy. The blue flame instantly disappeared into the distance, toward the battle, and split into eight different fractions of itself, yet not losing its efficacy.
Painful roars broke the silence of the day and he quickly reached the supposed sight of the battle. “I leave you guys for a few seasons and you get into trouble like this. Tsk, tsk, tsk,” he said with a playful tone as he took in the appearance of his friends.
Bram looked up and chuckled, saying, “Well, think of the daimon and he shall appear.”
“You’re not out of trouble yet,” Jerome said as he landed, his tone turning serious. The Itakars rushed him and Trudhorn, crushing them in bear hugs. They were happy to reunite with a friend they thought they had lost forever and from the looks of it, they had lost a few of their teammates. Jerome sympathized with them in his heart but they still had other adversaries to worry about.
“Jerome, it’s so good to see you,” Selene smiled at him, and Jerome nodded at her with a smile of his own. “What do you mean we’re not out of trouble yet?” Everyone stopped to listen to them.
“The creatures that were chasing you. They’re called ‘unbound’: an evolved race of wolves that were enslaved by the Fae a long time ago. There are still more of them, many more, and my friend, Csala, here can teach us how to deal with them. And we’ll be needing your help too.”
They turned their attention to Csala who strode forward boldly to address them.
~~~
Csala could feel the humans sizing her up. The ladies among them felt threatened by her presence and the men, the men just wanted what all men wanted. She wasn’t the same succubus she used to be before meeting Jerome however.
“Play nice,” Jerome said to her with a raised eyebrow and a knowing look.
“Some of you might find it uncomfortable to be around me but bear with it. I’m different from anyone you’ve ever met and yes, to answer the question you’re all thinking. I’m not human.”
As if to prove her point, some moon howlers, probably, tamed by the humans came sniffing at her. One even tried to remove her hood and reveal her face.
“Calm down everyone, she doesn’t bite,” Jerome said to calm the growing tension around the group.
Csala silently thanked him for that. Humans were just like any other race of beings. They responded to the unknown with fear. And when you’re afraid, you tend to lash out. But she had to put that out there. Instead of them finding out at a later time and thinking she was hiding her heritage.
“Well, let’s get to it then. First, we’ll need to find a defensible position. This place is too open. Inside the mountain would do. With mountain-sized walls around us, the unbound would be limited in movement.”
“Come everyone, let’s go.” Jerome began leading everyone back the way they came. “They are watching us right now. Afraid to come close enough, lest they be burned to cinders. But that wouldn’t last long.”
“Walk confidently and show no fear or uncertainty,” Csala took over the conversation. “They can smell our emotions with their heightened senses.”
“They can smell emotions,” Selene said. “I read about some species of wolves in our world that can do that.”
“What is that by the way? Wolves,” Csala asked and stopped to look back at the silver-haired human. She was uniquely beautiful. Csala had only ever seen hair like that on older succubi. But it fit her frame, giving her an air of nobility.
Deep blue eyes turned to her, uncertain, yet not wanting to offend.
“Moon howlers,” Jerome supplied. “Come on everyone. We can delay with the unbound but we can’t with the other problem we need help with.” The crunching of snow resumed and they all filed down the mountain.
The wind began to pick up. A storm was coming and with it, the unbound would bring their fury. They had just lost twelve members of their pack. They won’t be toying with the humans anymore. No, they would come for blood.
Csala looked around one last time and went into the hole Jerome just made in the side of the mountain.
~~~
The mountain wall crumbled and everyone trooped inside. Selene felt like she was seeing an illusion. The ease at which Jerome accomplished this action was beyond her level of understanding. She didn’t feel his core spin, didn’t sense any essence leave his body, what she did sense was the earth caving in as he walked toward the wall. There was no hand gesture, no mental energy.
She looked at Trudhorn to see if he knew of this but her lover was just as dumbfounded as she was.
“Abnormalities are normal with him,” Csala said. The mysterious lady dressed in all red sounded as if he did this all the time. “And trust me, you never get used to it.”
Selene had no words to say. She had only seen sages wield essence like that. According to her mother, Sages had the ability to command the essence and the forces around them and use them as weapons. Upon entering the Sage Realm, the core is once again transformed — evolved would be the right word for it — to accommodate more essence, and the body and mind are reborn, or more like reforged, by the will of the Spirit, and the fire of the Soul. Soulfire, her mother had called it.
Selene could only look forward to the day she would be capable of wielding power like that. But here was a Sprout younger than she was and he was already wielding essence like a Sage.
The hole in the wall expanded continuously, causing the mountain to quake and shift. She watched as Jerome continued to move forward. He never lifted a finger, just walked forward. When he got to the center of the newly created cavern, he slowly clenched his fist and the rough ground smoothened out, the walls also. The cold wintery breeze poured into the newly created cavern cooling down the warmth in the air.
Jerome raised his arms slowly above his head and four pillars rose from the ground to support the ceiling. The pillars rose slowly. He took a stance, made a gesture with his hands and the roof of the cavern solidified into rock. Everyone watched with bated breath as the stone pillars hardened as they rose to meet the ceiling. Selene understood what was going on, but the efficacy of it all left more to the imagination.
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Bram whistled in awe. The others among her teammates just stared at him open-mouthed.
“That is a magnificent skill you have there, Jerome,” Ajax said. “When did you learn to do that?”
Jerome just smiled. “We’ve been in Terra Praeta for a really long time. I’m sure everyone must have picked up on one thing or another.”
True. It may be an artifact. Like Ajax’s artifact that allows him to cross over fifty feet of space around him. Or it may just be a skill. Selene never saw any object with him. “Whatever it is, we are grateful that you use it to help get us to a safe place.”
Jerome gave her a weird look as he walked toward the entrance. “Of course, I would. You're my friends.”
The redhead beauty chuckled. Selene looked at her curiously. What did she find funny about what was going on? But she spoke up to clear the air soon after.
“Jerome, you are the dumbest and yet the smartest person I have ever met, you know?” she said and every other person chuckled loudly.
“Hey now?” Jerome knelt by the entrance and looked back. “Should I take that as a compliment or an insult?”
Csala snorted. Very unladylike. Ah, Selene smiled in thought. A woman after my heart.
“You’ve clearly grown stronger than your friends, Jerome,” she turned to Selene and her teammates and quickly added, “I mean no offense.”
“None taken,” Selene replied.
“They see it and it births a chasm between you and them,” the red-haired beauty continued. “But you don’t see it, even though you feel it.”
Jerome scoffed, “No, they don’t.” Then, he looked toward her for confirmation. Selene could only smile and look away. What could she say? To the strong goes the spoils of war, and to the competent goes leadership. That was all the confirmation he needed to confirm the truth in Csala’s words. Whatever he did with that fact was up to him now. But Selene hoped he would be the same Jerome she met a few moons ago.
Jerome was quiet for some time, doing heavens know what on the ground that was starting to take on snow. His hands and fingers were moving and his brows were wrinkled in concentration. But Selene could tell his mind was elsewhere, brooding over what his friend had said.
The lady was bold to have come out and said it like that. She wouldn’t have had the confidence to admit weakness, even to a friend. Although Jerome couldn’t lord it over her due to her status, he could lord it over her teammates. And that would bring friction into their bond that she wasn’t ready to deal with.
Suddenly, a golden ring of light appeared mid-air. It blocked the entrance, pushed out the cold air, and warmed the cavern. The ring was surrounded by tiny unknown scripts Selene had never seen before.
Selene felt her body relax, fatigue threatened to overtake her all of a sudden. Her shoulders sagged as her body soaked up the warmth like a hungry predator. She could hear sighs and moans of relief all around her, the ring of light that appeared out of thin air at the entrance of the cave all but forgotten.
“Is that an array, Jerome?” she asked, walking over to the entrance of the cave. She could feel the heat emanating from the formation. With a touch, the array rippled in the air but stood firm.
Jerome nodded, “It won’t hold for long, but it’ll go a long way to help us reduce their numbers.”
Selene was a little bit confused. He created an array out of thin air? With no tools? No power source and no conduit? Even the elites of House Rurik, the House of Arrays couldn’t do that. Selene found questions piling up in her mind but she knew this wasn’t the time to ask them.
“Guys,” Jerome walked toward them. “I’m still the same person you met a few seasons ago.” His voice was soft and imploring. “I’m not gonna change just because I may be more powerful than anyone around. No, I’m not that kind of person. And I’d like for you all to relate with me as you always have. Nothing’s gonna change about my attitude, at least not for the worst.”
Nia sighed, “Yer sure ‘bout that, Jerome? People change, you know? And many times it’s not for good — no matter how much they mean well. Power changes people.”
Selene noticed her words were restrained. Like she was watching herself so as not to offend Jerome. Selene sighed. She knew Nia. Her friend wouldn’t have cared if it was someone else. She would have not put any effort to show deference. And for her friend, this was deference enough — at least for a start.
“Well, if I ever try to change negatively, I have you all to help remind me of who I am.”
Even before they began to work together, this was already happening. Maybe that was why the red-haired lady put it out so they could talk about it, instead of keeping it in their hearts. She looked at the red-haired lady who was focused on the conversation between Jerome and Nia. Selene walked up to her and decided to have a little discussion with the mysterious woman.
“Since when did virtue become a problem among us, eh?” Bram said. “He said he wouldn’t change his attitude toward us, if he does, we give ‘em a smack on the head, eh?... eh?” He looked around at everyone but no one supported him. They all looked away.
“Hmm. You can do so,” Jerome said, smiling. “Csala does it all the time.” The redhead in question snorted and looked away. That calmed everyone a little but it also brought another question to light. How powerful was Csala to be able to smack him in the head without consequence?
~~~
“I mean well, Selene,” Csala said as the silver-haired beauty walked up to her. “It was best to get this out so no one feels like they are losing themselves in your team.”
“You must have a lot of experience leading a team to come up with such a drastic approach. I never would’ve opened up about something like that.”
Csala shook her head. “I’ve not, actually. I just know him a lot.” She looked over at Jerome who was smiling and laughing with the members of Selene’s group, or at least she assumed it was Selene’s group. She stood out as the leader among them. “He doesn’t concern himself with power, unlike other people.”
“Yeah, I guess that’s a good thing about him. He had always been very powerful. A few seasons ago I didn’t…we didn’t concern ourselves with it…probably because his powers were quite relatable to our level of advancement. We thought of him as just extremely gifted. But now,” Selene sighed. “Someone who can wield essence without drawing from his core is very, very…powerful.”
“You mean dangerous,” Csala raised an eyebrow at the Sprout, but Selene wouldn’t see it because her hood was still up. Csala could understand why she was weary. She was once weary around Jerome too. But Jerome had proven he could be trusted. Selene and her teammates just needed more time with him.
~~~
Boom!
“Okay, everyone. It’s time to get rid of these guys for good,” Jerome urged everyone. “The barrier you see is unidirectional—”
Boom! Another unbound crashed into the barrier but it held still.
“It will hold, right? Not that I’m doubting your skills or anything,” Bram asked.
“Shut up, Bram, and focus on killing,” Ajax retorted.
Jerome looked between both of them, surprised at their interaction. Ajax had changed a lot since he last saw him. He used to be the one with the air of uncertainty, even if he tried his best to look confident and powerful. Now, he was very confident — confidence that Jerome sensed was borne from experience, and he carried himself better. Jerome smiled to himself. He liked this new Ajax better.
Csala coughed, bringing everyone’s attention to her. “Make sure to aim for the neck and eyes if you can. The neck, because that’s the easier option. Another part of their bodies you can hit to deal a heavy blow — I repeat, a heavy blow, not a fatal one is their armpits.
“That part of their bodies is sensitive for some reason. Makes them twitch and lose control of their bodies, long enough for you to stick an arrow in their necks or through their eyes.”
Boom!
Everyone looked at the scripted circle and fanned out. The booms were coming more frequently now.
“This is a nice change of pace. We’ve been trying to survive on the run for so long, this almost feels surreal,” Ajax said and his teammates agreed. He let loose an arrow that should have sunken easily into the neck of the unbound that slammed into the scripted circle.
Bram and Darryl burst out laughing. He turned to Csala with a raised eyebrow. Jerome watched the exchange. If it was a few months ago, Ajax would have taken offense at that and made sure to say a few choice words. The guy had really grown.
“Their hide is as tough as steel,” she said, and Jerome quickly killed the beast with a string of living steel. “They use essence to strengthen their bodies so they can shrug off the impact of normal weapons like it’s nothing. You must imbue your arrows with essence if you want to pierce their hides.”
Jerome watched as they all sighed in frustration. He could tell they were not just tired but depleted. They had probably used up all the essence crystal they had with them. Without a word, he strolled to the center of the cavern and squatted down again. He started crafting another scripted circle to help draw ambient essence.