Part 6 –

An enormous dragon soared into their airspace, taming the turbulent winds with its grand wings. With each stroke the airships rocked, causing the Demi-humans to flee to the centre and indoors as they clutched to whatever they could find.

Many had never seen a dragon, let alone so closely. It majestic scales that seemingly glowed beneath the moonlight were a stark contrast to the protruding horns that lined its back like daggers. The front end of its wingspan cleaved through the air with minimal resistance, and they could not help but to imagine that it would do the same to their throats.

The tip of its wings were lined with a metallic material which were sharpened to an insidious degree.

This dragon in particular was a Jo’lacer, translated from Dragos to Ecloma as the ‘cleaver’. It was not a dragon capable of breathing flames. Instead, it used its wings as its primary weapon. As a result of its razor-sharp wings and sleek nature; it was absurdly fast.

So fast in fact that if it passed through them at full speed, they’d all be inflicted with ruptured eardrums and impaired vision. A veil of air surrounded it at its top speed, hence why it appeared like a comet. A more striking comparison, as in the eyes of Black, would be like a fighter jet moving at mach speed.

The sound it emitted was deadly in itself and was used by the dragon to hunt swarms of migratory birds.

As such, this was why Phase had erected [Physical Barriers] to protect Inkshard and Lizen.

The dragon clasped onto the side of the Commander’s airship with its hind legs as it heaved itself to a complete stop, rearing its enormous body. Afterwards, it steadily lowered its head towards the Exrenity as if it were no more than a pet.

Instead of a guttural noise that usually accompanied creatures of such size; a shrieking cry of a girl captured the attention of all.

“Please – Save Lizen! Exrite! Please… You’re the only one I know who can!”

Inkshard emerged from the back of the dragon, her face drowned in tears as she begged for Exrite to save Lizen’s life. Her appearance was surprising to say the least. But Exrite didn’t wait a single second more to speculate on Inkshard’s intentions.

She needed help. There was nothing else she needed to say. As swiftly as they arrived, Exrite lunged straight past them, landing on the rough back of the dragon where she saw the mangled Lizen.

Miraculously, she was still alive. The girl wheezed in her final moments; her chest painfully crushed under the compressed metal plate. The five golden orbs of Exrite’s [Agonised Restoration] followed behind like a pack of balloons, each hovering directly above her. At the same time, just as a precaution, she set up her [Cursed Stasis] to keep Lizen alive given that she could practically count how many breaths she had left before death.

As the golden spheres captured Lizen in their targets, Exrite looked back to White for help. The injury wasn’t something she could tend to immediately. If she were to regrow her limbs while she was encased in her twisted, metallic tomb, she’d be subjected to a mind-rending agony.

White swiftly approached, taking a knee down beside Lizen as did Exrite. Once she slit her thumb and dripped a few drops of blood into Lizen’s wounds, they immediately began to pry away at the curled metal. It had eaten and burrowed itself deep into her flesh and bone. The bleeding had mostly subsided, as congealed blood and brown, purulent discharge leaked like murky water from a rusted pipe.

To call her survival a miracle was an understatement that baffled Exrite and White alike. In the short following their procedure, a plethora of questions to how this was possible riddled their minds. But before Exrite could indulge herself in thought, she needed to address something else with the wailing Priestess.

“Inkshard… you are going to tell me exactly what happened. But first… tell me, is Truebirth still standing?”

“It – it is! Please – I’ll tell you everything! Just save Lizen first! I’m begging you! I’m begging you… You’re… you’re the only one I thought who can!”

“You thought right. Inkshard, you can stop crying. She’ll live. I guarantee it.”

Exrite spoke the words she wanted to hear the most for the last 12 hours. It wasn’t long before Frosty climbed onto the dragon’s neck and comforted the Priestess with open arms, happy to see her again after so long.

“What happened to her?” Frosty asked in shock.

“I don’t know… I – I found her in Palvel. She was the only survivor out everyone around her! She – She was alone! I’m scared the others are already –!”

“Shhh. Inkshard. Calm down. Tell us what happened.” Frosty cooed, brushing the girl’s hair as she pulled her into an embrace.

“… may I speak in her stead?” Phase asked with uncharacteristic timidness, her voice echoing in everyone’s mind.

Thankfully, the Demi-humans seemed to be excluded by her telepathic voice.

“You may not.” Uru rejected, standing before the great white dragon with a presence that easily dwarfed it. “Bold of you to show your ugly mut in front of me again. Let Inkshard speak in her own stead.”

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“… Uru, please – We’ve come here specifically for your help –”

“What could you possibly require my aid for?” Uru snapped.

“Please Uru… I’ve cast everything away to come here for your help. Desire – she sent the Well of Wishes into Palvel! Everyone’s trapped in there with the Undead! It took my mother as well!”

Uru’s demeanour shifted sharply after she heard this. No doubt, a part of her believed her words, but at the same time – she refused to acknowledge it.

“The Well of Wishes? Phase… do you take me as a fool?”

“You must believe me. Please Uru – Please believe in me!”

“I’ll believe it when it comes from the lips of the Priestess. For now – you’re forbidden to speak.”

“But –!”

Uru pointed her claws just an inch away from Phase’s giant eyes. A faint orb of light appeared in the centre of her claws, reminding Phase of Uru’s true power. She was no longer malnourished like she was back when they first fought in Colight. She had all the mana in the world to unleash a [Solar Core] to utterly obliterate her from existence if she so happened to wish it.

The only reason she was still alive was because of her nameless mother… and in remembering her, Uru unexpectedly drew her hand back and spoke with a vitriol-driven groan.

“What is Desire thinking? Phase… I’ll come. I need to see this in person. On the condition that your mother’s soul appears to be in peril. Shame on you for allowing her to suffer again.”

“… do you think I don’t already know that?” Phase choked with boundless guilt.

“White. Doesn’t this look like shrapnel?” Exrite pointed out, scrubbing a finger across Lizen’s sunken chest plate

There were ridges smaller than a fingernail, with various pieces of metal shards embedded within, some being as long as her hand. The amount of force needed to penetrate cobalt armour, especially for tiny, metal shards needed to be extraordinary.

She could not imagine the cause from being anything other than an explosion. A bomb was almost certainly the culprit, and her hunch was confirmed.

“It is. From our bombs most likely. We left twelve of them a parting gift to aid with the war a while back. Huge kegs of metal filled with explosive powder. But I’m curious if they underestimated its yield. She must have been directly in front of it. Look. That’s a part of her shield suck to her shoulder.”

Indeed. A quarter of an oval shield was skewered onto the right side of her body. At that moment they both quickly realised that Lizen had tried to shield herself from the explosion. The result was what laid before them.

“The only survivor… I’m sure she tried to protect them.” Exrite whispered to herself. “Inkshard. Have you calmed down yet?”

“Y-yes *hic*. Truebirth… everyone – they’re all fighting in Palvel. Everyone… my mother. The King of Pathfist… the Heroes. Everyone.” She sniffled; her face partially buried into Frosty’s stomach.

“The Undead? Is it that bad?” Exrite wondered.

“Terrible… but there’s more. So much more – A back orb sat in their sky! It threw everything across Palvel! Buildings – everyone was on fire! Everything was! Everyone’s trapped inside! I don’t know what’s happening… I don’t know why – but something evil is happening inside of Palvel. The black beams; the black sun; the Maw of the Uboros – I don’t know what’s happening anymore! But – they’re fighting in there regardless! Please… everyone… please save them… Hope told me you were our only hope.” After a lengthy outburst, Inkshard quietly whimpered her final words and nearly fainted into Frosty’s arms.

She was mana depleted. For 12 hours she had been healing Lizen with [Progressive Restoration] without rest. Combined with her worry and mental stress – it was no surprise that Inkshard, a mere child, was at the brink of losing her mind.

“A black sun… Despair?” Exrite whispered to herself, just loud enough to be heard by Phase.

“You know of the Well of Wishes!?” Phase blurted out.

“Is that what the black orb is called? I think I’ve seen something similar to it before. I thought it was just a way for her to collect despair…”

Exrite said, remembering seeing the object in two separate occasions. The first being in the Domain of the Children of Balance, and the second within the Trial with Despair.

“By the way Uru – thank you for acting right away.” She added.

“I’m always a step ahead for your pleasure. No one can overhear our conversation. Offer no explanation for Phase’s unsightly appearance. It’s better if they do not know of the dragons of Jo’Logos.”

“Black’s also managing them.” Khaos noted, looking at the Colour who hastily explained the situation to the Demi-humans. Of course, she fabricated a glorified story to inspire hope into their broken hearts.

What surrounded them was an [Eighth Tiered] [Illusion] magic called [Minor Illusion – Vocal Proximity]. It essentially blocked all sound from entering the invisible barrier, as well as from leaving it. One could easily traverse through the barrier with ease, for it only targeted sound.

This was why Black could not be heard as she reassured the Demi-humans aboard and afar.

“The Well of Wishes…?” Nav spoke, surprising Phase immensely.

“Did… that [Gear] just speak?” She asked as invisible question marks popped above her head.

“That’s Nav. Be nice to them… Is there any metal we haven’t found yet?” Exrite asked White as she prepared to restore Lizen to health. By now her armour had been pried away, revealing what could hardly pass as a human body. “… it doesn’t look like she was just hit by a bomb. Was she crushed as well?”

“I was thinking the same thing. She’s cleared. I’ve flushed out all traces of metal with my blood through her auxiliaries. I’m still amazed she was able to survive for this long.” White stated, curious behind the reason for this. “No signs of a functioning RAAS response. Blood volume unstable… she was barely holding on with magic. Interesting. I’d love to get my hands on something like that.”

“It could be a blessing as well. Alright… I’ll start. Dammit… what the hell is going on in Palvel?”

Exrite growled as her [Agonised Restoration] began to work its magical wonders on Lizen’s near stark naked body. As her limbs and flesh steadily regenerated, Exrite threw her outer garb over Lizen’s body.

“If Inkshard cannot speak, then I will tell you everything in her stead. Please allow me to, Exrite!” Phase begged, asking her directly instead of having to go through Uru.

As Exrite set her sights in the direction of Colight beyond the vast plains, she recalled her vow to protect the place and the people who had showered her with unconditional warmth.

It went without saying that Exrite was set to return and lend them a helping hand, just as they did for her. With boundless conviction and fury to obliterate those that threatened her friends, she spoke with a voice that seemingly managed to bypass Uru’s barrier, for the Demi-humans instinctively froze.

“Everything. Tell me everything from beginning to end.”