Chapter 45: Master of the Tower

Darius could feel the tension rising from his father's back, his own mind spinning with the cold reality that crashed in on him, 'It's over. The towers know.'

Across the field of ruin, Rainslif Crowley was kneeling besides Crelos's body. He placed his hand upon the boy's chest, a soft green light covered him until he finally dissapeared, the young fire mage vanishing in twister of light.

Jarek reached back, pressing his hand against Darius's chest, his eyes focused on Crowley. 'Darius, do not speak, respond with your thoughts, understand?'

Surprise flashed on Darius's face before he responded, 'yes father'

'Use the sigil ring and make a one time use portal. Stay behind me and be quick.'

Darius suddenly froze, a wave of confusion washing over his face. 'I already thought of that, but the permanent portal was destroyed along with the library. If we head to the Vault now, who knows where we will end up once we leave."

Rainslif rose, his eyes shifting towards the distant edge of the battlefield. In an instant, he vanished within a whirlwind, only to reappear further off as he stepped out from another, his movement fluid and seamless.

'Darius do as I say! Hurry and make the portal!'

Darius jolted, with a swift movement, he crouched and set down Haku, his back turned to Rainslif. Fingers moving rapidly, he etched the portal's array into the earth.

'He knows if we use this, when we exit the Vault, we could land anywhere on Gaia. We might end up on the other side of the world. If mother is left alone...' Darius's thoughts raced as he swiftly etched the array into the ground.

Jarek's eyes narrowed, his body coiled like a spring, aura honed to a fine edge, ready to unleash at a moment's notice. He watched, every muscle taut, as Crowley bent to pick up the shattered remnants of Ramman's black scimitar.

Before the silence could stretch further, Crowley's voice, sounding as though he stood beside them, shattered the tension. "You know, Jarek, it is quite rude to just stare without announcing yourself."

Jarek stepped forward, his aura spreading in an attempt to shield Darius. "No intentions of being rude, Tower Master Crowley, its just been quiet the night and my nerves are a little on edge."

Rainslif chuckled briefly before facing Jarek and Darius. His height and slim build were accentuated by his sharp features and cold, grey eyes. The destruction seemed a strange backdrop to his composed demeanor, his black hair settling smoothly down his back. Dressed in a suit jacket with rolled sleeves and elegant tails that reached his heels, alongside an open white shirt and a black vest, he presented an image of effortless ease. "Indeed, the night has been eventful for you both."

Darius sprang up, pivoting to face his father. He placed a hand reassuringly on Jarek's back.

Jarek stiffened momentarily under Darius's touch before inhaling deeply. "What transpired tonight was a private matter between two knights of the Union. I trust Master Crowley will understand and not complicate matters further." Mentally, he added, connecting with Darius, 'Be ready for my signal.'

Rainslif let out a sigh, his face wearing a look of resignation. "Ramman was destined to face his end sooner or later. His... tendencies made him quite the sore spot for many." Hands tucked into his pockets, Crowley began to advance towards them.

"I'm relieved to find common ground then," Jarek responded, his tone apologetic yet urgent. "Forgive my abruptness, but I wish to take my son home now. Given all that has transpired, I'm concerned we may not be..."

He was cut off mid-sentence, "The issue, Jarek, lies in what unfolded here tonight. As you put it, a matter privately settled between two knights."

'Now!' Jarek's command thundered through his thoughts to Darius.

'But what about mother?!'

"However, your son's actions, eliminating my men, present a different dilemma." As Crowley spoke, the air around began to stir, escalating into fierce gales of wind mana, sweeping across the battlefield's devastation.

Abruptly, Jarek's aura burst, a tempest of fury. "Mythrender!" He called, and from the heavens, a bolt of golden lightning struck, revealing the primordial sword plunged into the earth before him. Grasping the hilt, Jarek roared as he funneled his mana into the weapon. In an instant, a protective dome encased them, materializing faster than the blink of an eye.

"Interesting," Rainslif's gaze sharpened, his eyes igniting with a green glow at the sight of the ancient blade. "In your hands, I'm sure this will prove disappointing, but I've long been curious about that sword."

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Raising his arms, he ascended, his aura unfurling around him like a monolith of green and white wind mana, roaring with untamed power. The battleground transformed into a colossal vortex, with debris and nature's fury hurtling towards Jarek's hastily erected barrier.

Darius, caught in a moment of hesitation, remained connected to his father, his face a canvas of confusion. Jarek, undistracted, maintained a steely gaze towards Rainslif's towering form. In the roar of the hurricane that enveloped them, Jarek's command thundered through Darius's mind, 'Open it now! This barrier won't hold!'

'We can't leave mother! They will come...'

'She is gone!'

Darius shook his head, his eyes confused, 'Did you warn her somehow? She's safe then? But, I was with you...'

The land trembled, air howling with the fury of a hurricane unleashed, as Jarek's aura strained at its limits, barely holding the barrier against a relentless storm of debris, 'Darius, your mother is dead.'

Darius's hand slipped from his father's back, his voice soft and disbelieving, "You're lying. You have to be." He moved quickly to look at his father's face, seeing something he'd never seen before: his father, strong and fearless, with tears flowing.

Jarek turned, his gaze pleading, "I'm sorry Darius! But your mother gave her life so you could live! So you have to open it! NOW!"

'Dead?' Darius recoiled, stumbling backward to fall. He gazed up at his father, eyes wide, mouth open in shock. His thoughts spiraled into chaos, the surrounding world blurring as if slipping from the edges of reality.

Within the hurricanes fury, Rainslif's voice emerged clear and sharp, "This barrier is impressive." Around the shield, dust and debris hurtled wildly, the world shrounded in a swirling, roaring cloud. From out of the swirling chaos, electricity flared, revealing a hand as it gently stroked the surface of the barrier, "What are you hiding?"

"DARIUS!"

The sudden sight of Rainslif's hand, combined with his father's urgent shout, thrust Darius into survival mode. He clawed his way over to Haku, seizing the unconscious fox. With desperate haste, he reached the array and thrust his signet ring towards it, "Open!"

The array etched into the earth awakened, its glow intensifying until a radiant burst cleaved through the ground. Within moments, a man-sized portal, its appearance mirroring the vast expanse of outer space, unfolded on the ground. Darius, clutching Haku, stood at its brink, calling out with urgency, "Father!"

Suddenly, the hurricane blowing around them stood still. Darius felt a surge of wind mana from outside the barrier that froze his heart.

In that moment, where Darius felt closer to death than he had ever felt in this life, time seemed to slow as his survival instincts went into overdrive.

Before Darius's thoughts could catch up, he was suddenly staring at his father's face. Behind Jarek, a vast green aura flared to life. Mouthing something that Darius couldn't catch, Jarek, with a swift push, propelled both him and Haku into the portal.

As Darius plunged through the portal, his final glimpse captured the barrier shattering. In that instant, his father was ripped back, vanishing into the raging hurricane.

----

As the world spun and the winds roared, Jarek pushed himself up from the ground, standing tall within the eye of a raging green tornado. The world around him a blur of violent winds and debris, yet he remained a point of calm in the chaos. Lifting his gaze, he focused intently on a spot amid the swirling tempest. A soft, almost inaudible whisper escaped him, "Good luck, son."

"Luck? Why prolong the inevitable, Jarek? Distance is meaningless within my domain." Rainslif's voice echoed, smooth and cold.

"That was a long-range teleportation spell my wife developed. It won't be as easy as you think." Jarek's gaze sharpened, blue arcs of lightning beginning to dance around his eyes, his aura slowly expanding, claiming the eye of the storm as his own.

"You've seen his abilities, I presume?" he continued, the intensity of his aura escalating, strands of lightning reaching out, challenging the tornado's swirling edges.

His question was answered only by the tempest's indifferent howl, a cold, roaring silence enveloping them.

Jarek's laughter, light and unfettered, wove through the air. Behind him a golden light flashed, then above him, the darkened sky parted for a moment as a golden bolt of lightning descended, converging into his outstretched hand. There, amidst the chaos of the storm, Mythrender materialized, the primordial artifact radiating a presence as ancient as time itself.

"You mages and these new knights—you all repulse me. Cowards and degenerates. Power-hungry madmen devoid of any honor. So, tell me, Rainslif, are you alone in your knowledge of my son? I find it hard to believe a mage would willingly share a treasure trove like him with others."

Slowly laughing, "I've always respected you, Jarek, for your observance." Slowly Rainslif emerged from the raging winds, his steps casual, his hands in his pockets, "We can consider this a form of compensation. You've raised such an exceptional gift for me, so let this serve as a minor reassurance. Yes, I intend to keep your son's existence exclusive to myself. For now, he will be my sole focus."

Jarek nodded, offering a smile, "Reassurance? Yes, that's one way to put it." Suddenly, his eyes erupted, he raised Mythrender, his voice booming through the stillness, "World-breaker!"

Rainslif sighed, a touch of resignation in his voice, "Pointless." As he exhaled, green mana flowed from his breath, weaving into the tornado. In a moment, the tornado's peak narrowed sharply above Jarek, then plummeted towards him, transforming into a devastating cascade of wind mana.

Just as Jarek's sword began to unleash its power, his expression shifted, revealing a hint of sorrow. "I'm sorry, Amara."

Jarek Valdene; the Blue Wolf of Gaia, holding his ancestral blade, was engulfed, his last words lost within a roar of mana.

Above the upheaval, Rainslif maintained his stance, his aura serving as a shield against the explosion's force.

Instead of watching, he closed his eyes, a slight crease forming between his brows as he his eyes began to rapidly move beneath their lids.

As the dust settled, the outline of an immense crater became visible, its sides spiraling downward as if carved by a colossal drill. At the heart of the vast depression, the Valdene family blade rested alone.

Crowley withdrew his hand from his pocket, extending it towards the sword while his eyes remained shut. The artifact trembled, then levitated towards his grasp. Securing the blade, his eyes opened to examine it closely. "He was correct. I underestimated her spell. No matter, he will be found in time." With these words, Rainslif Crowley faded away, disappearing into the ether.

----

In an expanse dominated by an endless desert, a lone mountain stood, towering and unyielding, its pinnacle piercing the clouds that dared to cap its summit. This silent monolith, a sentinel amidst the shifting sands, served as a watcher to the lifeless expanse it oversaw.

On a high ledge of this mountain, Darius knelt, his movements frantic as he carved another array into the stone. His hands shook uncontrollably, "Calm down!" His voice echoed off the mountain's side, a bitter reminder of his solitude.

'It's your fault!'

His eyes, swollen and red, mirrored the strain on his flushed face as he struggled to steady his labored breathing. With trembling hands, he frantically began etching another array into the rock, only to angrily obliterate it moments later, starting another in frustration.

'You failed, again!'

"Please! Pleeaaassseee!!!" Darius's desperate cry echoed as he completed the makeshift portal. With a forceful slam of his hand, he commanded, "Open!"

'It's over!'

As soon as the portal fully materialized, Darius tumbled through, finding himself instantly upright within the Vault, the entrance snapping shut behind him. Without hesitation, he bolted to the All-room's center, where Haku dozed off to one side, "Exit!"

'You should have died, not them!'

Darius, fueled by desperation, repeatedly plunged in and out of the Vault, each attempt driven by the hope of returning to Fang Root.

Across Gaia's vast expanse, he witnessed myriad landscapes, yet every effort proved futile. Each gulp of mana felt alien, every aroma, every vista, wholly unfamiliar.

After hours of failure, in a small valley of white flowers, bathed in the evening sun's waning light, Darius etched an array into the tender earth. His actions, measured and slow, bore no trace of the fervor that once drove them. Tears fell from his expressionless face, merging with the soil below.

Darius stepped through the portal that appeared before him. His gaze fell on Haku, and he began to slowly walk towards the fox, each movement a struggle.

Darius collapsed beside the ember fox, pulling Haku into a tight embrace. His voice was a mere whisper against the fox's fur, "I killed them..."

Darius, the sole remnant of the Valdene lineage, found refuge within the ancestral Vault. Clutching Haku, his solitary companion in a world now devoid of his family's warmth, his soul bore a weight no words could capture.

'I hate you...'

Amidst his cries of sorrow, a small, dark ember sparked within his soul, unnoticed.