The rumble in the ground acted as a warning to all of those in the camp, a threat to us that what we were about to face was powerful. As the iron chariot started up and began to gain more power. It started to move across the cleared out dirt of the camp.
And it was moving fast.
It was faster than I had ever seen a strig go, and it was darting around the camp, running between the buildings. As it drove around, I could see it finally get a better look at its design. It was an angular metal machine, covered in thick armor with no openings in sight. There wasn’t any large opening to view out of, but small metal slits in the front which presumably allowed for the driver to see out of. The wheels were thick and heavy, denser and more sturdy than any wagon I had ever seen. Its movements were sharp as it curved through the landscape, given life by some powerful mechanism within it. It was a machine which was entirely fitting of the name iron chariot.
After a few seconds of driving around and surveying the camp, something on top of it appeared to flip open, and a man in heavy metallic armor appeared out of the top. In his hands was a weapon very familiar to myself- an igniter, but with a thick sheet of metal surrounding the front acting as a shield for the user. The raiding party scrambled for cover as the soldier winded up his first shot and fired in the direction of their barracks. Some of them tried to fire back, but the chariot was simply moving too fast for them to have an easy target. When their shots hit the outside of the chariot, they simply fizzled out and left only small burns on the metallic armor. The magic that the slaves launched at it didn’t seem to damage it either, whether it was water or fire.
“EVERYONE IN THE REFINERY NOW!” Elm yelled, rallying everyone to take cover inside.
Normal burners don’t hurt it, but maybe my weapon can?
I wound up my igniter, standing ready to fire. I could hear the sounds of my team yelling at me to get inside to take cover, but I tuned them out as I focused on it. The soldier hadn’t spotted me yet, which meant I could do some damage. I took a deep breath, steadied my arm, and fired. The igniter shot burst through the air and hit the side of the chariot, but it fizzled out just like the burner fire. It left a much more noticeable burn, but it wasn’t pierced by my weapon which was known for piercing armor. As I took in the information, I felt Elm grab onto my shoulders and start to pull me inside. I gave in and followed him along with all of the other slaves, huddling inside.
All of us stood around the large machinery which refined the magore, wondering about the safety of others. There was a small opening which one of the slaves was peering out of to watch the fight.
“It’s focusing fire on the barracks! We have a few men running our wa-” As he spoke those words, the powerful hiss of an igniter shot through the air, and the blue beam of energy melted off the slave's face. He stood there for a moment as if his body had to catch up with the fact that he had just died.
Oh fuck.
There were a couple of screams as he hit the floor, their surprise and shock shared by almost everyone. This entire raid had been going well, but now we were fighting something that we couldn’t even hurt. As more men came running into the refinery, we heard shots continue to be exchanged. Nobody was apparently doing anything against it that caused damage. After only a few minutes, we had nearly 40 people inside the building.
Hoping to find some answers, I turned to Elm who was focusing on the walls near the front of the refinery, his eyes closed. The stone from the earth began to rise up and shatter the floor of the refinery, covering the walls near the door.
Alex was scratching again at his face as he spoke.
“They can just start camping us out, can’t they?”
Elm shook his head, but he didn’t look happy.
“They might, but the chariots ain’t good for the human body. You’re sitting next to an engine which runs on a lot of magore, and the guys running it start to get poisoned. If they decide to sit still and not run around, they can hold us down here, but they won’t want to for long. Doesn’t mean we’re not fucked.”
I looked between the two men who both had military experience, searching for something to reaffirm my beliefs that we could win. Neither of them looked confident, and those around me were gripped by fear.
“Elina’s probably still out there, taking cover. Ireborians are pretty used to fighting these things on their own. She knows the best thing to do is to wait it out…”
As Alex spoke those words, another igniter shot burst through the walls of the refinery, hitting a piece of machinery and melting it. The entire room yelled at the sudden breach.
“Why aren’t they just trampling this place and bursting through the wall?” I asked. The thing looked like it could topple fortresses with ease.
“Kid, they don’t want to destroy the refinery. This is too important for them. That’s why I said we stay in here… but it looks like they don’t mind roughing the place up a bit. The stone reinforcement should probably help a bit, but I don’t think I can cover the others as easily.”
I looked around, panicked. “Do we have another stone mage who can help reinforce the walls?”
“He just died…”
The person who got his head melted off was our only other stone mage? Oh for fucks sake.
“I’m working on figuring something out, but I don’t think we’ve got too much time.” Alex looked around, a grimace on his face. “This building is the most protected, but it also has the most unrefined magore… it’s not too bad for me, but we can’t stay in here forever. Eventually, they’ll be able to take us out easily once we’re poisoned enough.”
I felt it too. The slight unease of the entire building creeping along my neck told me all that I needed to know about this location. The mines had given us a strong tolerance for it, but this much of it without being layered in stone or in such small pieces was going to make anyone, even those with aptitude start to feel unwell.
“So it’s just a battle between who gets mana poisoning first, while they’re able to take free shots at us and we can’t even dent the chariot?”
Neither of them said anything. Mell appeared to be huddling with the other people, but Ruby appeared to be focusing with her eyes closed. As I also took some time to think, I noticed the lack of rumbling.
“They’re circling us. It’s slower, but the person with the igniter has a full shield.” Ruby’s voice shook as she spoke. The sudden shift from victorious raid to complete shut down in a single moment.
“So they’re not going to get poisoned as quickly.” I mumbled, cursing my lack of foresight. If we stepped outside, they would shoot us immediately and we would be unable to hit them.
I have to think of something.
“Maybe we could use the unrefined magore and refined stuff to make a reaction? Like the one Elric used for the mine? Get it in the hole where the guy is, and it’s done, right?” I said, praying that they would give me some affirmation. Instead, Elm just shook his head.
“Ain’t gonna be strong enough. If we miss it might throw it off but I’ve seen it done to it before. Plus, you plan on hitting that thing while it’s moving at such a long distance? You’d also need to get small enough pieces to make the explosive, and we only have the large bricks. I’d have to chip off pieces to make it and I don’t think we have the time.”
That was one solution already gone. Still, there had to be some way to beat it. The voices of the other slaves in the room talking in fear didn’t help my mentality. I needed to do something and do it fast.
“I think Elina is probably waiting in the distance for us to do something, but I don’t think we can rely on her…” Alex said, scratching at his freckles.
Think North, think. What do we have which we can use? We have a bunch of slaves who all have magic, none of which is damaging the chariot. We also have a lot of magore weapons, none of which damage it. Then we have me, who can turn invisible and blind people.
I pondered whether or not I could go invisible, then use that to climb on the chariot and take it out from there, but I don’t even know how I could straddle onto such a thing. It was moving pretty fast and could easily shake me off the second they noticed my presence. Getting outside also meant I had to create a hole, and they could just fire at that hole or the door if I tried using it.
No, there has to be something here.
I took a moment to survey the room. My erratic stare seemed to hurt the confidence of all of those in the room as I searched for a solution to what felt like an insurmountable problem. Almost immediately, my eyes wandered back over to that massive brick of refined magore. I mulled the thought of the explosive over and over again in my mind, trying to call back on some knowledge I had about the material.
My igniter wasn’t strong enough to damage it, so why should an explosion do that either? It isn’t focused or made to melt through armor, and they could just close the hole at the top.
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My headache got even worse as another igniter shot passed through the wall, narrowly missing a couple of people.
I’ve gotten stronger with my magic and skills yet I can’t even think of a plan in a moment like this.
I looked at my left hand. I was powerless then, and I felt just as powerless now as I did back then. As I clenched my fist in frustration, an idea finally came to mind. It was slow, but it formed more and more as I stared at my hand, opening and closing my palm.
Oh, this is a terrible idea. This is going to get me killed for sure.
I looked at the large brick of magore before turning back to Elm and Alex, now filled with a new idiotic resolve.
“I know how we can beat it.”
***
“Oh fuck, I know that look. Kid, what’s going on in that head of yours?”
I ignored his statement, continuing to focus on my plan.
“Elm, can you surround that magore brick with stone like a tube? As best as you can, to make sure that there’s not too many cracks?”
Elm almost immediately recognized my idea and his frown grew deeper.
“Kid, that’s not going to work. You want to use it like a normal reaction as in a burner?”
I nodded, seeing Alex now starting to connect the information that was passing between me and my mentor.
“Doesn’t matter. Can you do it?”
“Yes, but it won’t work. Magore reactions like a burner require a primer, and we don’t have that. They only make refined bricks in one size, and the primer always needs to be smaller than the main piece in order to release any energy? Even then, how do you plan on hitting them together?”
Although it wasn’t right for the moment, I couldn’t stop myself from smiling. Elm’s information on the magore was entirely correct. He’d drilled that information into my head very heavily during my apprenticeship. However, I wasn’t thinking exactly how he thought I was.
“We don’t need another piece.”
Elm looked baffled at the statement. “What the fuck do you mean, we don’t need another piece?”
“Because I’m going to be the primer.”
***
There was a collective “what?” that followed my statement from all those who were listening, which now included both Mell and Ruby. That was a good thing.
“The only requirements for a normal magore reaction are for two things that emit pure mana to collide with each other, right? I figured out how to control pure mana, which means I can do the same thing. All I need to do is surround myself with pure mana and then hit the magore with enough force, and that should cause a reaction.”
Elm, being the one with the greatest understanding of magore tech, immediately stepped in.
“Kid, that… might actually work. But how in the hell are we even going to get it out there?”
I looked at the people around me and took into account everyone’s abilities.
“We just need a short opening. At its fastest, an igniter takes about 4 seconds to fully wind up for another shot. If we can get him to fire preemptively, we can use that as a window. I’d need it to be slow enough to work, so it’d be best if we could stop them completely. I need a straight shot at them, so we need them to be as slow and static as possible.”
Before I could continue, I heard a mocking yell come from outside.
“HEY FUCKERS! HOW ABOUT YOU STOP HIDING IN OUR BUILDING AND COME THE FUCK OUT HERE AND HAVE A REAL FIGHT!”
Welp, glad to know they’re enjoying themselves.
I shook off their provocations before continuing.
“Ruby, they’re moving slow, right? That means that if we can get them to stop or move in a straight line, when they start to round the corner of the building and get near the front door, I want you to blow it open with as much wind as possible to see if we can bait out a shot. Got it?”
Ruby gave an emphatic nod, still looking shaken from the regular fire of igniter shots.
“Mell, I’m going to need you to carry it. It’s going to be heavy, and we need to move quickly. Alex, I’m going to need you to help Mell aim it.”
Both of them gave a nod of affirmation. I could see Alex look a bit like his old confident self at the camps.
“Elm, I need you to come out as well with us and try to slow them down in any way possible.”
His eyes wandered over my body. I couldn’t tell what emotion he was feeling, but it wasn’t sadness or happiness, but something in between.
“4 seconds is probably not enough.”
He’s right. If I could focus my light, I could blind them, but I haven’t figured out how to do that very well. Unless…
“Mell, can you tear me off a large piece of the metal paper covering the magore brick?”
He did and handed it to me, whereupon I wrapped the metal around my left hand and created a cone of metal.
“This should focus the light. Once they fire, I’ll use this to blind them. That should give us more time.” I took another second to rethink the plan only to turn back to Ruby.
“Oh and Ruby?”
“Yes?”
“I’m going to need you to catch me.”
Ruby paused, her face shifting from panic to confusion.
“What?”
“It’s too hard to explain. Just stay behind me when we run outside.”
Ruby gave a reluctant shrug of agreement. Taking a deep breath, I looked around the entire room of slaves. If I wanted to save them, this had to work. It was very likely going to kill me simply from the amount of mana that I was going to be fighting back against, but I didn’t have a choice. We had to hit it with as much power as possible.
“COME ON OUT YOU PIECES OF SHIT!”
Oh trust me, we will.
***
I stared at the large magore brick as Elm focused on it. Slowly, the earth around it wrapped around it. It was a beautiful process as the earth that came up from the floor started to cover it and create a tube shape. It wasn’t a perfectly round tube on the outside, but it was consistent enough to protect the material. As Elm finished, I could see him bend over and let out a loud groan of pain.
“Sir?”
With his hands on his knees, he turned up to me and gave a weak smile.
“I’m fine, kid. Just a lot in one day.”
That didn’t sound like an “I’m fine” type of groan!
“Just focus on the mission. You can worry about me afterwards.”
I offered him a hand, and he pulled himself up to face me. Mell grabbed the now covered brick of magore and picked it up with ease. Holding it in his hands. Alex grabbed the other side, although it was clear that he wasn’t caring as much weight. I walked up to it, placing my fist next against the stone.
Yeah… this can work.
“Just hold it at a height where I can punch it.”
“That’s not that high.” Mell said, completely unaware of the fact that he was mocking me. I ignored his statement and turned to Ruby, waiting for her to give us the signal. She had her eyes closed, focusing on the wind. The entire room was silent, waiting for me to pull off the plan. There were a few shots during that time, but the chariot seemed to be taking a short break from firing and had spent that time mocking us.
Ruby’s eyes opened and she turned to me, giving me the go ahead.
“GO!” I yelled, and Ruby immediately followed it up by blasing a massive gust of wind through the door, causing it to fly open and nearly come off of its hinges. As if on queue, an igniter shot passed through the doorway, and all of us ran outside. I adjust to the change in light quickly and spot the driver. We lock eyes, and I immediately lift up my left hand and focused light into it, blasing a large amount of it his way. Both the driver and the guard appear to be hit by it, and the chariot slows down slightly. I stop the flow of light immediately and begin focusing on channeling pure mana and surrounding my body with it. I was combining the idea of emitting light from all of my body and the process of removing the energy from it.
While I focused, Mell and Alex stopped in place and ready it for me. I could see the chariot just above the magore brick, its wheels hitting a small jut in the dirt which Elm presumably caused. I readied my fist, checking to make sure that Ruby was standing behind me.
“NOW!” I yelled, as both Alex and Mell held the brick firm, and I readied myself. I put all of my focus and energy into the punch. My fist soared through the air as I twisted alongside it. As my fist grew closer to the brick, preparing to cause a reaction, I let out a small prayer inside my head.
Mana, please don’t let me die.
Of course child…
My punch connected with the stone and caused a reaction. Almost immediately, I felt the energy begin to push back in my direction. I placed all of my mind and body into emitting as much pure mana as possible from my body to counteract it. It felt like trying to fight a river, pushing back against a torrent with just my attunement and body. I struggled to stand as I put more and more of my energy in front of me and into the magore. I was going to win this fight with all of my being. The energy within the magore, because it couldn’t go out the sides or in my direction, went out the front, and fired.
A massive beam of blue energy came out the front of the brick, tearing apart all of the area that is in front of it. It destroyed all of the air and earth in its path towards the iron chariot, upon which it burnt through it as if it weren’t there. The previously untouchable vehicle now was being torn apart by the energy, and its entire top part completely melted away along with the driver and the soldier on top. Even as the energy destroyed the ank, the magore was still fighting back against me. As I began to hear cheers of victory from my comrades, I could feel my grip slipping. The brick contained so much energy that I wasn’t entirely prepared to handle it, even with the force of my own mana. As the blue beam faded in the front, my body lost its war.
And I was immediately launched backwards.
***
As I opened my eyes and tried to move, I immediately regretted it.
“Everything hurts…”
Pushing myself that hard was something I wasn’t prepared for. If I had faltered even for a second during the reaction, I would have been completely melted away just like the chariot. It was one of the most insane plans, and yet I was still alive. There was one thing about the entire event that stuck out to me and was bothering me beyond the simple pain.
Did the mana talk back to me?
That was a revelation that was already causing me a headache, so I decided to save it for later. As I laid there, I noticed that whatever I was lying on was fairly soft, rather than being the hard dirt. I turned up to see Ruby’s face hovering my own and realized that I had almost forgotten a part of my plan.
“Hey North, do you mind getting off of me?”