Edgar was semi conscious at this point, and he only groaned slightly in response to the motion, causing Jonathan to worry about the state of his companion’s health. He didn't seem to have any broken bones or severe injuries, but he was still bleeding heavily from a score of wounds on his back and face that seemed to have been inflicted for the purpose of maximum pain. Jonathan clenched one fist as he ran, using the other to stabilize Edgar. He would come back for the mage who had done this to Edgar, and he would have his revenge.
The Tier 2s seemed eager enough to let them go, but that might have been because of the extent of their injuries. Jonathan already had a head start, and there was no way that they would catch up to him now that he was running. Earlier in the fight, they probably would have been able to capture him if he had fled, but at this point, with both of the fighters in dire straits, there would be no pursuers.
The only problem was that Jonathan was almost running on empty, and he knew that if he stopped, he would collapse, from a combination of having used Smite and from his injuries. He had gotten better at dealing with the aftereffects of the skill, but he still was affected by it, and in combination with his broken bones, it would be a fatal combination if he fell so close to his enemies. However, Jonathan drew upon his Divinity like a man dying of thirst sucking up the last drops of water available to him, and managed to prolong his skill for long enough to find some sort of shelter. The only problem was that there was none. The land around here was mostly flat, and every prominence on this side of the dungeon was covered by a watchtower or some sort of outpost that was likely teeming with soldiers. If Jonathan went to one of those in this state, he was as good as dead. He needed to find some sort of way to extend his Divinity, or else both he and Edgar would be captured before long, which was an unacceptable proposition.
Last time they had escaped because Granath and his forces had underestimated Jonathan, but this time they would be ready. There would be no waiting for a trial in a place where Jonathan could use his Void powers to escape. He would simply be imprisoned under the watchful eye of Granath himself, and Edgar would be dead.
As his Divinity ran to empty, Jonathan racked his mind for any way out of this situation. With a start, he remembered that his Divinity aspect had something to do with the Void. What if he drew upon that power to supplement his own? It was a long shot, but his only one left. Jonathan closed his eyes, relying on his enhanced senses to watch the world around him, and started to pull upon his Void energy. It coursed into his hands, racing down the normal channels, but it did nothing for his flagging energy reserves. Frowning, he pushed deeper, feeling that there was a hidden power within his Void energy reserves, and if he could find it, it would bolster his current state.
As he searched, he could feel a tiny resonance with his Divinity that seemed to be the right avenue to accomplishing his goal. He dove into his energy reserves, and started to tug upon that small nugget of power, tearing out a tiny amount of golden hued purple energy. It slotted into his Divinity reserves instantly, and he felt them fill slightly, allowing for him to keep going. He coughed up blood as he felt the reverberations of that spread throughout his body, but it was better than dying.
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Pulling more of this energy out of his reserves, Jonathan prolonged Smite, allowing him to keep running. He flashed across the land, heading for the horizon. As he ran, he could feel his body starting to break down, but he leaned into his Battle Trance skill, meaning to block out the pain. He would either run or die. There was no in between. As he ran, he started to lose track of what was going on around him, and some time later he simply collapsed, completely spent. As the darkness claimed him, he smiled faintly, glad that he was finally able to rest.
Jonathan was woken by a burning pain in his entire body, cajoling him up from his slumber. Edgar was sitting beside him, scratching absently at a wound on his back. A few monster corpses lay around them, perforated with the signature holes of Edgar’s wind related skills.
As Jonathan rose, Edgar let out a sigh of relief, and then pressed a small vial towards Jonathan’s hand. Jonathan looked down and saw that it was the health potion from the dungeon. Uncorking it, he downed it in one go, feeling its restorative effects spread throughout his body. His bones creaked as they melded back together, and he let out a sigh of relief. His skin started to knit together, and he eventually was able to stand. Edgar had mostly healed by this point, as none of his wounds had been especially deep, and he was now covered in scars from his experience.
“Where are we?” Jonathan asked a moment later, not recognizing the land around him. It was still the same endless expanse of ash as the rest of the Ash Heaps, but it seemed to be of a slightly lighter shade. Strange shapes jutted out of the ash at odd intervals, and a small stone wall was visible, weathered heavily in some places.
“We are in the remnants of a small town, lost ages ago to the encroaching ash. Do you not remember stumbling in here a few hours ago? You must have been further gone than I thought.”
“Yeah, I had to do some on the fly skill alteration to keep us going,” Jonathan replied, hiding some of what had happened. He was not ready to explain about his Divinity to Edgar.
Edgar took this in stride, and started to survey the land around the two men, mainly for the benefit of Jonathan.
“We traveled about a hundred miles away from the dungeon site, or at least as much as I can tell. I was unconscious for most of the time spent running. It seems like you have taken to being my mount quite well.”
Edgar’s face was flat, and Jonathan thought that he was being serious for a moment, but then he smiled.
“I mean, it seems to work,” Jonathan replied, laughing. “I must say though, you’re pretty hefty for a mage.”
Edgar scowled in mock anger, and then burst out laughing as well, revealing a side of him that Jonathan had rarely seen before.
“Maybe you need to add a few more points to Strength then. To imagine that you’ve come this far, and are yet to do so,” Edgar replied. ”On a more serious note though, what are our plans going forward?”
“Right. Here’s your armor,” Jonathan replied, remembering the suit of mage armor that he had claimed for Edgar in the dungeon. He pulled it out of his storage device, and tossed it over to the man.
Edgar nodded in thanks and then donned it, showing off the armor. It was a suit of golden chainmail, with a few plates of solid metal. A motif of a rising sun graced its chestplate, which seemed a little on the nose.