One of the Tier 2s shouted something, and swung their sword, projecting a crescent moon of light towards Edgar’s back. The man was too slow to dodge, and Jonathan heard him curse as it sliced through his side. Edgar kept running however, and he was not too injured. The attack had gone slightly off course on its way, which meant that rather than bisecting Edgar, it had only cut through the side of his stomach.
“We need to head for the gate!” Jonathan screamed over the noise of the pursuing forces. “There should be a gap in it from when I came in!”
Edgar simply nodded, and Jonathan took a hard left at the next intersection, using the wall as a guide to his direction. His enhanced memory allowed him to remember where exactly he had come in, and they were quite close to it. More and more projectile attacks came streaking through the air towards them as they ran, increasing in volume and power. Even worse, a field of static electricity was starting to descend on the area, and the air seemed to be suffused with ominous might, coming from the tower. A red glow hovered over the tower, which heralded the buildup of a powerful spell. If it was on the same magnitude as the one earlier in the day, then they were toast. However, Jonathan debuted that they would use an attack of that magnitude within the limits of the city. Granath might have been arrogant, but he was no fool and he would not destroy great swathes of his city to catch two people. Or perhaps he would, and he was simply biding his time.
They both gritted their teeth as their stamina bars steadily dropped, and Jonathan’s was heading below halfway empty at this point. The gate came into view a few minutes later, but it was guarded by hundreds of guards, led by a trio of armored figures with a variety of powerful weapons. More Tier 2s. This would be the hardest stretch yet, not even accounting for the burgeoning ball of light over the tower in the distance. As they ran, more and more soldiers streamed out of the shadows to join the group standing in front of the gates, and as Jonathan and Edgar approached, they stopped, knowing that there was nothing that they could do. The two men paused about two hundred feet away from the soldiers, and watched as one of the Tier 2s stepped forwards, seemingly interested in talking rather than attacking, at least for now.
“Surrender to us now, and you might have a chance of living. The Lord has taken interest in you.”
“That’s too bad, as I cannot say the same,” Jonathan replied, making sure to project as much authority into his voice as he could. He knew that he was probably about to die, but he could at least go out with dignity. It was better than being a slave to Granath in any case.
“How da-” the guard captain began, but he was interrupted.
“I almost feel hurt by that refusal,” a deep voice came from behind Jonathan, one that he recognized all too well. “Do you not find me an honest and just ruler?”
“Granath,” Jonathan said. “I was wondering where you were.”
He could feel the warm breaths of the titanic worm on his neck,and turned slowly around to see the worm himself curled around a nearby building, watching him with curiosity in his eyes. A large burn mark was visible on his body, and Jonathan smiled, glad that he had least been able to do something against the monster, if only because of his amulet. Behind him, the soldiers fell to their knees, prostrating themselves before either lord. Edgar stood resolutely behind Jonathan, looking up at the worm with a measure of fear, but also resolve, in his eyes.
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“I was originally planning to kill you and devour your soul, as is my right, but after you pulled out that little light show, courtesy of the Church of Redeeming Light, I had to find out more for myself. It has been eons since I had last dealt with their ilk.”
Jonathan felt a chill run down his spine as he heard the worm’s words. He had almost instantly connected him to the people who had once lived within that ruined city out in the ash. Jonathan supposed that was only fair, given that Granath had fought against them in the past.
“What do you want from me then? Would you not be better served simply killing me?” Jonathan asked, wondering why.
“Because those pathetic fools were thought to be long gone from this circle, to the point where nothing of them remained. I know of that ruin in the desert, of course, but I had thought it long plundered of its riches. All of the gold and artifacts from the Church are safely ensconced within my treasury. However it seemed that a few things escaped my notice. I always wondered where the diary of that fool Patrulanus had been stashed. I can only assume that you have it.”
Jonathan did not respond, slowly plotting a way out of this place. He knew that the diary was basically useless to Granath, as it would destroy itself before allowing the worm to read it, but he could only assume that it would be better to not let it fall into Granath’s hands at all.
“I can tell what you are thinking. You believe that the book will destroy itself before letting me read it. However, who says that I have to read it? You can always do it for me.”
Jonathan instantly realized what Granath planned to do, and why he had kept Jonathan alive, rather than simply killing him in an instant. He needed him to read the book for him, to expose the secrets of the diary to himself, and Jonathan knew that Granath’s methods of persuasion would not be pretty. He could stand pain, but he suspected that the circle lord had methods that even he could not imagine.
Jonathan gave Edgar a look, and the man nodded, suddenly summoning a whirlwind around himself and Jonathan, briefly obscuring them from view. Granath roared in rage, and sped forward, moving like a blur. However, he was a tiny bit too slow, given the distance, and Edgar managed to levitate into the air, along with Jonathan, before they were caught.
Jonathan sent his Void energy into the swirling wind around himself, focusing on empowering it, rather than unbinding it. He did this by removing the obstacles of air resistance and friction in his way with the destroying power of his element, rather than trying to blend it with the Air elemental energy that Edgar was using. It was an inspired use of the element, and he could feel his mastery increasing as he did so.
They streaked off like a comet of white and purple, narrowly avoiding a storm of projectiles that came their way. A moment later, there was a thunderous boom, and the horizon turned red as the attack that had been brewing above the dark tower was set loose. Jonathan turned to see hundreds of red energy bolts flying up into the atmosphere from the top of the tower, before streaking down towards him. The attack blanketed a wide area, and there was no apparent way to avoid it. Jonathan would have to protect Edgar with his body. It would tax his already damaged armor to its limits, but if he managed to limit his contact with the energy, he could possibly make it out of this mostly unhurt. Jonathan shook his head a moment later. Who was he kidding? This was going to hurt a lot.