“How long do you think it’ll take before we’re locked up again.” Within a decrepit inn, Ebony spoke out loud in his mind.
He did not take his escape for granted. He still didn’t have a way to get off the planet. He could try flying into space but where would that take him? He didn’t know and he didn’t want to test that because he knew of the dangers of space from Kong Jing.
He was convinced that he would be found, caught and locked up again. It was just a matter of time. Catching the Guru off guard was one thing. But they were in complete knowledge of how to catch him. It boiled down to how prepared they were and what countermeasures they could come up with.
Like the Guru said, the volcano’s defences could easily kill him. Even if they didn’t want to kill him, it was easy for him to see that they had the means they just underestimated him once again. If the Saint or even a few of his children were around, Ebony wouldn’t have considered making this escape.
He was two whole Elcrian weeks of Flicker away from the Gearhart’s volcanoes. On a full stomach thanks to the food that Fifteen prepared for him. Fifteen was now down for the count, wild monsters here almost killed him.
The abandoned town was out of the way of the locals and no one came here. It did not have fertile lands, even for its volcanic plants.
The volcanic range was massive. Other than many small and large volcanoes, the lands around them were usually where towns and cities were located. Unlike Elva with barricaded cities, the civilization on Cinderash was always in danger of monster attacks.
A poor town had a hard time as they didn’t have proper defences. Most cities depended on modern weaponry like the pale cannons that shot through his body. Only weaker versions than the Saint’s personal weaponry.
The entire planet of Cinderash faced a big problem. Food and fertile lands.
Wild volcanic monsters were not enough to support a town, much less a large city. Very few plants grew around and even fewer were edible.
It was no surprise they had a small population in general.
They depended on importing large amounts of food, along with technology that helped with edible plant growth. For example, the extremely heavily defended greenhouse. Only the largest cities had them and these provided the majority of the citizen’s food. Seventeen wasn’t able to learn much about these greenhouses but they were far from normal.
The rest of the towns and arable land were used to grow Volcanic Cinderbloom. Cinderashians can drink its dew for water but it was a dew filled with sulphur and ash. After a few tests on his own body, Ebony figured that normal humans without tier 3 poison resistance would die after drinking a few litres.
As for him, he could drink it without any gain in poison resistance. The only problem was needing to urinate and even defecate more often.
While his clones could hunt and prepare meat and find a few wild edible plants, they had trouble securing enough water for him. And Ebony did not steal the spatial water bottle for himself.
Not that it mattered. With his conversion runes, and mana being filled up. Water was not an issue for him.
If water didn’t evaporate so easily, these Cinderashians would benefit from runic endeavours as long as they made a formula that worked with aether.
Cinderash was dominated by artists in the form of crafters, jewellers, weapon makers and also a warrior-dominant race.
Seventeen had made great leaps in progress with the Gia language. By now, Ebony’s Gia was no worse than Elcrian or any other language he knew. He took a risk by showing himself in the form of a different person and voice. There was no other way Seventeen could’ve gotten good information or supplies like clothes and raw materials.
They didn’t have books on Cinderash. Wood was not a popular material for obvious reasons. Plants that grow here don’t have large bodies. There were exceptions such as plants that had lava flowing inside them but wood was still rarely seen or used.
However, they did have information storage in the form of a rock. A cube to be specific. It required aether manipulation to read or access the information.
Aether manipulation was rare amongst the Cinderashians.
On Elva, the average warrior could learn techniques with mana as a Master or at worst, a Grandmaster.
But for the Cinderashians, most people couldn’t use Aether until King-ranked excluding some people like the Saint’s children or other crafter Saint’s descendants. None of them could perceive aether in the air. It was why they didn’t have magic perception that constantly scanned the surroundings. They were warriors first and foremost.
Even at the ranks of a King or Emperor, use of aether is always through a medium. It was due to the nature of aether as an energy. Aether was much thinner than mana and a lot harder to sense and control. It had weaker physical properties than mana. It was a lot less malleable than mana that could be used to convert to various elements.
They only used aether in limited ways. Prominently, it was used for crafting and their technology. They could do many things with aether that would require an advanced mage to do. Aether healing for one, was seen as the greater form of healing compared to arcane mages. It didn’t require knowledge of the human body or the creature they were healing.
Aether simply recovered the target back to its original state or put the body back to a shape that the body knew.
Space magic, when Kong Jing teleports one, it takes great effort, mental strength and mana. For an aether gun, bullet and space user. All Ezekiel needed to do was pull a trigger and the creation would do the rest of the job. In conclusion, Aether had a higher entry point for use but once used it was capable of feats that far exceeded a mage of equal level or tier. It might not be stronger, but it was an energy that achieved results differently.
Evolutionarily, there should be no reason why the Cinderashians can’t sense aether but they have been dependent on technology and weaponry for so long that there is little to no one that trains in perceiving aether. The need for a medium did make it a lot harder for them.
Aether would not listen to a mage’s control, it would slip away from mental control that mana would fall to. The energy preferred to stick itself onto natural materials and constructs. The warriors who were beginners with aether would use aether to generate a blade buffed by the creation itself. The energy blades cut through most mundane materials and even mana itself.
They used to have Aether Soccerers but the lineage died out to the growing technology that was far easier for the general public to use. Stories about Aether Sorcerers were just myths and the stories were only kept around to praise their technology to their younger generations. They saw mages from other worlds as the old Aether Soccerers who managed to keep up with the changing times.
It was thanks to that that Ebony only had blind warriors to deal with and his clones could walk freely without being noticed.
Fourteen made a successful escape but the Guru likely suspected him of having clones running around. Ebony only let his clones come to him for a refill of mana and never grouped them all together. Will could be charged over long distances without loss but mana would be wasted.
The duration of his temporary freedom was enough to fill his clones up with coagulated mana as well.
The rest of his Will and time went into the creation of a new Domain Core. Dusk the secondth that he hasn’t named properly yet. No matter what, he needed a Domain if he wanted the strength to combat the Cinderashians. If he was imprisoned and left without mana again, future escape attempts would only get harder. A secondary storage of mana was a must.
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Dusk the secondth didn’t have a tree shape or a shape at all. Concentrated Will was permanently bound to this abandoned town. It would take another Domain mage to notice his Will. To be specific, it was bound to a certain group of decrepit buildings, and the hardened rock under his feet. As long as these dozens of buildings and earth weren’t turned to dust, his Will would have a container and wouldn’t die. For a while.
He didn’t have enough Will or time to give it a life as long as Dusk.
The buildings here were made of igneous rocks, like unpolished granite. Surprisingly, they were cool and a good container for ice. Even better than most metals like iron and copper. For some odd reason, the older and more worn-out buildings were better containers for Will. Hence, the choice of decrepit buildings. The inn he was sitting in had a half-torn down ceiling and the second floor was mostly destroyed and the main core of his new Domain.
“I got it, your name will be Aegis. Frost Aegis, sibling of Frost Dusk.” Now that Aegis was properly born, Ebony put his Will to create more clones. The majority of his mana would go to Aegis but he could spare some for clones.
Today, he had an odd feeling. A seed of worry was transplanted in him from the core of his mindspace.
He couldn’t pinpoint the reason but he had a feeling it was from one of his clones or Dusk that was out of range.
‘Are they still alive? Have their Wills faded already?’ Ebony couldn’t help but ponder. He continued to perceive time on Elcrian scale and it wouldn’t be surprising if some of his clones just dissipated if they didn’t hibernate like he told them to.
He didn’t let their numbers be taken or reused. Every clone had its number.
Ebony rubbed the 4 legged volcanic rock beast’s, Lava-scaled Pangolin head to sleep. This was a monster nest and the one that rested on his lap was the alpha of the pack. A level 750 Grade 4 King that took everything out of Ebony to suppress and weeks to tame with his Will and soothing aura. Beating stronger monsters didn’t require direct strength. A proper set of lower-tier skills can take them down too. It was all a matter of compatibility and hunting skill.
They were almost as impressive to him as the Apex Apes but he would say that the Apex Apes were more difficult to deal with and still had greater strength if they had a King, which they did. The Grandmaster elder apes didn’t fight him but he knew how strong they were.
He was just not that impressed by their lava. Ning Xin’s blood ball with fire was hotter. They couldn’t even use it like magic, they just used their lava as a physical trait and skill. Leaking toxic lava and fumes from under their scales as protection while swinging their tails that were hardened with lava wasn’t that hard to deal with.
But their high levels were good for Ebony. The Cinderashian food hunters rarely came for this particular monster despite their meaty bodies. The lava and hardy defences weren’t a large issue for the strong Cinderashian hunters but the toxic fumes was a massive pain for them. It didn’t help that their flesh was toxic too.
The Pangolins were like its name, pangolins but their face were more dog-like than the pointy-faced pangolins’ Ebony knew of. They were the size of small bears and had a lot of muscles under their hardened lava scales. Their claws were thick but not sharp, used only to inject lava and toxic fumes into their targets.
Ebony didn’t eat any of them, they were his protectors and made his base less likely to be searched. He always kept his invisibility up so he tried not to contact them as much as possible but they knew of his presence here.
As for his initial plans for his clones, they didn’t go according to plan.
One was working and doing quests for the Mage Association back on Elva for knowledge.
Two to Five were back in their home, studying runes and combination magic while guarding their house.
Six, Seven and Eight explored the surface of Elva at their discretion.
He planned for fewer guards for Dusk but it changed during his time on the field with the Tetramyths. Nine to Seventeen had all been with him. He wasn’t sure what happened or was happening with Nine.
Ten and Eleven should have hopped onto Ning Xin.
Thirteen and Sixteen died in the escape from the Emperor Tetramyths.
Twelve was let out of his body to help with food gathering without making it obvious. Fourteen was still the dedicated scout that was planted as close to Gearhart’s estate and the Guru as possible but he was currently far away from the defensive turrets.
Fifteen and Seventeen continued with their initial assignments. The two of them were his contact points and also constant practice with increasing his range of Will.
Eighteen to Twenty-Two were all back on Elcra. Some were students at different academies, some went out to explore while others just experimented with magic. However, all of them just did whatever they wanted.
With his Will and mana delegation to Aegis, he couldn’t make new clones that fast. 4 clones were sufficient mobility. He was more concerned about a safe spot for himself in this foreign place.
Another nine Elcrian days passed in silence.
Ebony touched his cheeks. His right cheek had a sticky dried stream.
‘Ten has passed away. Nine days ago. That’s the transmission lag.’ He didn’t receive any memories or information. He just knew that Ten was no longer connected to him in his mindspace. Just like Thirteen and Sixteen, he was gone forever.
Now, Ning Xin only had Eleven with her and whatever he sensed from them would at least have a nine Elcrian day delay. And, he would only know if Eleven died. So far, information transfer with all of them including Dusk was not possible. He was still trying to reach them, but his connection would scatter after reaching out to his range limit and he would have to try again.
This range didn’t tell him direction either so he couldn’t use it to physically locate where the other planets were. Making it more pointless for him to fly into space which would serve himself on a silver platter for spatial and other scary creatures or beings.
“They are not searching for me at all. Oh, my new prison cell is complete? What did you learn about the cell?”
“Our previous chains are what they had in storage that mainly absorbs mana. They must have gotten better ones that are ice-resistant and physical shock-resistant, even better at mana absorption. The cell itself is made by a Saint, I am not sure what that Saint specialises in.”
“Our next escape would be very difficult.”
“Just focus on not being caught. We will try to find and appropriate a portal or another path to Teheil in the meantime.”
“Fifteen, what is the point in going to Teheil now? There is something here for us. It may be time to train or something material, like natural ingredients with enough energy for me to refine my physique further. We need to find out what made Xin trick us. As for fighting not to be caught, I will try my hardest. You continue integrating yourself here with Seventeen.”
“Not now, but we still need to find the way so we can leave any time we wish to,” Fifteen replied practically.
“Sure, you do that. I might have given you too much fighting spirit, don’t hunt so actively I won’t be able to charge you up that often.”
“They are taking their own sweet time.”
“Good for us. They know there is nowhere for us to run so he is preparing my new containment, people and equipment that counters all my magic. And the Guru can sense mental waves so I can’t hide from him, but you guys surprisingly don’t produce mental energy.”
“We move instinctively, by Will. We don’t think. You know that.”
“Still, stay far away from me when Fourteen gives the signal. They might have ice mana trackers and our runes can only maintain temperature, not hide ice mana.”
“I am working on developing that…there are too many things to do and us clones can’t multitask as well as you.”
“Twenty Three will help, Twenty Four will be out soon. Continue the hunt, I need to store as much food as I can.”
“Mashing organic matter into a ball and keeping it sealed in your body isn’t going to work… I’ve already traded for some nutrient potions and those are a much better use of space inside your body.”
“Better than nothing. You could only buy two bottles of that.”
“Hey, it was all they had. Bartering isn’t easy okay.”
The useless banter with himself was more fun when it wasn’t in his head.
Ebony trained, preparing for the inevitable.
‘Haha. This build-up is very exciting. Come on Guru, who have you prepared to send to catch me. Bellicose Savants? They said I was on a path of formless or some nonsense like that. They would send people with tier 5 mastery at the very least. No way they send a Saint at me right? Yes, no way. The Guru wouldn’t dare erase a Saint’s memory…unless Saint Gearhart personally came. I should expect people around or stronger than the Savants.’
A squad of Bellicose Savants would be more than enough to handle him. He didn’t have Ning Xin buffing him with her blood magic here. And this time, they would be prepared. An ambush wouldn’t work unless they walked into his Domain, which would definitely happen.
Ice was a great element for crowd control and weakening something but even his frostblaze wasn’t hidden from the Guru. He doubted they would come for him without the necessary countermeasures. The Guru didn’t know or see everything so Ebony had some tiny tricks that he could play but tiny tricks wouldn’t be good enough. His next escape for one, depended on the fire source or bomb hidden within his lungs.
The Guru might have seen him fighting with his Domain, but he did not know that Ebony’s strength was the effects of a Domain. Visual scenes did not show everything. The only time the Guru saw more clearly was when he was looking at his memories on earth but he didn’t know the language then.
He could have his clones help him in battle but he rather keep them hidden so they could roam free.