Chapter 43 - Silver Light
Forest Outside Magrath, Vanstead Dukedom of Augustein Year 995
The Aberration’s body pivoted around, isolated from its still head. In the darkness, its toothless crescent smile looked like a void that matched the inky night surrounding them. The creature was the same height and roughly the same shape as a human, but little details—arms that reached too long, a disproportionately thin neck, a spine curved in the opposite direction—combined together to form a picture that was deeply, unnervingly wrong.
The flesh along the Aberration’s shoulder rippled, and Amara barely brought her axe up in time to block the spike that shot straight at her. Her feet skid in the earth and she grit her teeth, her arms shaking as she struggled to push the appendage back. Like the rest of the Aberration, it was a stark, ghostly white. The pointed tip was as sharp as a needle, but its surface remained matte like skin.
Amara jerked the axe back, dodging to the side and jumping behind a tree as a second spike speared the ground she’d just been standing on. Dirt sprayed, and the Aberration’s head spun to follow her.
The muscles in her arms pulsed, and her grip on the axe was weak. Her magic reserves bubbled, and she could still feel the lingering weariness from training that day—a sensation that was only heightened by the heavier weight of the axe she’d taken.
A second spike shot through the tree. Bark splintered, and Amara jerked back. She felt something warm dripping down her arm, but she ignored it, instead turning around and running deeper into the forest in a zigzagging pattern. In her current state, she wasn’t sure she’d be able to get close enough to finish the creature off, not when those spikes shot so far and fast. She glanced back, narrowing her eyes and pushing her legs to move faster as more jetted after her, slicing through tree trunks and digging deep into the earth. She needed to buy herself time.
Branches snapped, and she leaped over tree roots and stray stones. Up ahead, a bit more moonlight filtered through as the trees thinned, lighting the forest in a silver haze.
Just as Amara approached the clearing, a spike shot out from her left. She stumbled, rolling onto the dirt and through the line of bushes separating out the edge of the forest. She felt dirt in her mouth but ignored it, pushing herself back up as quickly as she could.
The hills now surrounding her were familiar. In the moonlight, the constant clouds of dust drifting in the air looked mystical and wondrous, a far cry from their appearance in the day. Wagons of stone gleamed and sparkled, and the shadowy silhouettes of the dirt mounds looked like sleeping beasts. She’d reached Magrath’s mines.
Through the trees, Amara could make out the Aberration’s pale white form lumbering closer, and she hurried deeper between the hills. Out in the open, she had no hope of defeating it, but if she could use the maze of dirt and stone to her advantage, she might have a chance.
Her feet pounded against the hard earth, and more clouds of dust rose. The mines were even larger than she thought, extending far beyond the edge of the town. She wove around mounds of stone and entrances closed off with tall boulders. If she strained her ears, she could hear the Aberration behind, its slashing spikes digging into dirt as it moved.
Amara quickly realized that she had no idea where she was going. She could just as easily end up trapping herself in a dead end. Her eyes rapidly scanned her surroundings, trying to distinguish them from each other, but half obscured by shadows, everything looked the same to her.
A familiar voice sounded from her left. Amara’s eyes widened in recognition. She glanced back at the Aberration and forced her legs to speed up. Up ahead, a particularly large mound rose higher than the tree line, and she circled around it, veering away at the last second to dive in the direction of the voice.
Hidden behind a hill, half obscured by wagons of rubble and rocks, was Levent. The man’s uniform was a bit ruffled and scratched, but other than that he looked none the worse for wear. He frowned at her. He was still gripping the arrow from before, Amara noted.
“Is that Aberration still there? You—” He stopped, his brows furrowing as they landed on her arm. The glove had been torn, the fabric barely clinging to her skin, and blood trickled down from a cut that was a lot deeper than Amara had initially realized. Levent cursed, leaning forward to inspect the wound more closely. The remaining tattered strips of her glove fell in the process, and she could see the moment his gaze landed on the array of scars. Grey eyes widened.
“It’s fine,” she said automatically. She pressed her other hand to the bleeding cut. “It’s not as bad as it looks.”
Levent opened his mouth to argue, but the sound of cracking stones interrupted him.
The wagon slammed into the side of the hill, the pile of rocks spraying everywhere as one of those sharp appendages hurled the wagon away. Sharp stones flew at them, and Amara instinctively raised a hand to shield her face as she dove away. She heard Levent land behind her, and with a shared look, the two jumped to their feet and bolted.
“How long has this thing been following you!?”
Amara took a second to answer as she leaped over an overturned barrel, her breaths sharp and heavy.
“Since I saw it!” she called back, and Levent let out another string of curses. Amara’s eyes darted back, and she could see multiple spikes piercing the surroundings. Too many to be able to dodge forever.
As they passed by another boulder, an idea popped into her head. She turned back to Levent, who was faster than his sickly appearance suggested.
“Are any of the mine entrances open?”
Levent glanced back. “I saw one earlier,” he said. His voice sounded strained. He swerved to the right, the Aberration just barely missing him with another attack, and he grit his teeth. “Why?”
Amara’s mind churned. “I can trap it there with magic,” she said. A single blast should be more than enough to cave in the tunnels.
“That would take a massive fucking output,” Levent argued. “How—”
“Just trust me.”
Levent stared at her, those grey eyes wavering as he considered their options. Finally, they hardened. He nodded, and as they passed the next hill, he turned, Amara right on his heels.
Her muscles ached, and her breaths were growing increasingly ragged and uneven the longer they ran. But up ahead, she could see a mine entrance that had been left open, just like Levent had said. She tightened her grip on the axe, squeezing her fingers as much as she could, and she felt her magic reserves simmer in anticipation.
White flashed in front of her eyes as a spike shot across the front of the open entrance, cutting it off. Her feet skid, unable to stop fast enough, and she raised her axe in a desperate attempt to deflect the blow. She only halfway succeeded, and she felt a sting in her other arm.
In the corner of her eye, another spike thrust towards her. She twisted away, but in the process, she lost her grip on the axe, and the weapon fell to the ground. Amara leaned forward to grab it, but another onslaught stopped her in her tracks, forcing her to leap back.
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Behind the rising clouds of dirt and debris, the Aberration strode forward in crooked, uneven steps, that crescent smile as sharp and unchanging as ever. Its skin rippled again, and more of those strange appendages grew, fanning out like the petals of a flower.
It was all Amara could do to dodge the worst of the blows. She felt new cuts forming as her movements grew increasingly sluggish, but she didn’t dare waste time examining them. A few feet away, Levent wasn’t faring much better.
She grit her teeth, straining to try and find an opening within the barrage of attacks. The mine entrance was just behind the Aberration, its dark opening outlining the pale figure in harsh edges. If she could just get close enough, she might be able to force it into the tunnels.
Adrenaline pumped through her veins. Amara’s eyes followed the movements of the spikes, trying to find a pattern to them. They only moved in straight lines and sharp, angular turns. If she could predict where they would go, she might have a chance at running through to reach the main body of the Aberration.
Amara’s eyes darted over to Levent. The servant was panting, his breathing punctuated with sharp gasps. He was covered in thin cuts and wounds as well, and Amara noted a particularly nasty wound at his shoulder blooming scarlet where one of the spikes had pierced through. The dark liquid dripped down to the earth, staining the ground in red droplets. They had to finish this soon.
The Aberration took a crooked step forward, its head tilting so far to the side that it looked completely detached from its neck. It was still smiling, and its skin bubbled again.
The moment the spikes shot out, Amara acted on instinct. She surged forward, weaving around the places she pictures the appendages landing, one hand outstretched as she pulled at her magic reserves. The distance between her and the creature grew smaller and smaller; she was almost there.
At the last second, a new spike formed. Amara’s eyes widened and she attempted to change direction, but it was too late. The needle-like end flew towards her. She craned her neck, twisting her body to avoid it as much as she could, but she could tell it would still hit her. She inhaled, preparing herself for the inevitable pain.
Mere inches away, silver light enveloped the appendage. A small ripple passed across its surface, and the spike bent, ever so slightly, to the left. It was less than an inch, barely even perceptible, but it was just enough.
Amara’s cheek stung as she slammed into the ground, skidding across the dirt. She coughed up dust, blood trickling from the fresh wound, but she was alive. She gasped for breath, craning her neck to take in her surroundings. She’d flown past the Aberration and landed just within the mine entrance.
In the corner of her eye, the same silver glow faded, and she looked over to see Levent crouched a foot away from her against the tunnel walls, one shaking hand raised towards the Aberration, his jaw clenched in grim determination. Beneath the rips in his sleeve, curling silver markings climbed up his arm, the pattern twisting and coiling like rising smoke. A familiar array lingered on the back of his hand.
FORM | MAJOR
Magic Reserves: 704,442 → 704,438 / 998,624
Maximum Output: 4
Variability: 2
External Range: 94%
Before Amara had the chance to process the numbers, the Aberration was on them again. A new spike shot past, digging deep into the earth, and the Aberration itself slowly approached them.
Amara quickly realized what a bad position they were in. The mine tunnels were cramped, leaving little room to maneuver, and their one escape route was blocked by the Aberration. She couldn’t use her blasts freely either, or the entire tunnel could collapse on them. She rose shakily back to her feet. The Aberration kept walking forward. She had to attack before it entered the tunnel proper.
Amara narrowly dodged another attack, and rocks fell as the spike veered upwards into the tunnel ceiling. They clattered and rolled deeper into the mines, fading into the darkness. Amara’s muscles tensed, watching as the creature took more steps, moving closer and closer.
And then it stopped.
In a sudden burst of speed, the Aberration leapt forward, diving at Amara and pushing her backwards. She thrust her elbow into its grinning face, using all her body weight to try and throw it back outside the mines, her magic reserves burning and ready to flare up at a moment’s notice.
That unchanging, smiling face stared straight into her eyes, and a flash of violet light blinded her vision.
Magic. It’s rank D. It—
Before she could finish the thought, a cold, icy sensation washed over her, drowning everything else out. In one moment, she felt adrenaline pumping through her veins, and in the next, an inexplicable dread surged forward like a rising tide, so sudden and all consuming that her entire body froze.
Her surroundings blurred, and only that pale smiling face remained sharp and crisp in her perception. She thought she heard muffled yelling, but she couldn’t process anything beyond that feeling, that emotion, coursing through every fiber of her being.
The metal table flashed in her mind. That same icy fear she’d felt when she’d first stared into the lumbering mass resting atop it. When she’d finally processed what it was.
Outstretched fingers clawing towards her. Ice and burning.
Deep in her core, something sparked, and she let her magic explode.
ENERGY | MAJOR
Magic Reserves: 62,031 → 62,009 / 110,876
Maximum Output: 22
Variability: 1
Amara flew backwards from the impact. Her back hit the hard tunnel walls, and she heard the distant sound of stones falling. Numbly, she watched as the Aberration lurched away, its skin burnt and still glowing red. A rumble resounded across the tunnels, crescendoing into a roar as more and more stones fell. Amara thought she felt something grab her arm, but that iciness was still there, still present, still—
“Get up!”
Amara blinked, and Levent was in front of her, desperately tugging her away as more and more of the tunnel collapsed around them. His grey eyes were wild and frenzied, darting back and forth between Amara and the Aberration staggering forward, rising on spindly, burnt limbs. He cursed.
“Damn it!” Levent yanked his arm away and spun around just as the Aberration lunged. A spike shot out, slower than before, and grazed his already wounded shoulder. The man winced and grit his teeth, but he didn’t slow his advance. One hand held onto the appendage, pushing its sharp end as far away from himself as he could, while the other tightened its grip around the arrow still in his hand. Reeling his arm back, he thrust the arrow into the Aberration’s smiling face, stabbing the arrowhead directly into that crescent mouth and twisting it around, digging the point as deeply as he could.
The creature made no sound even as its body jerked and contorted, a stream of dark liquid overflowing around the corners of that unmoving grin and splattering to the ground. The skin at its back twitched, and Amara surged forward, her own hand grabbing onto the new spike pointed at Levent and straining to push it back, to stop it from reaching its target. Her muscles ached and her arms shook with exhaustion. The Aberration’s skin began to ripple again, and in a final act of desperation, she pulled at her magic reserves.
Red and orange light flashed in her eyes, and the attack weakened just enough for her to shove the Aberration back at the same time as Levent yanked the arrow from its bleeding mouth.
Rocks and dirt tumbled down in an increasing cascade, burying the contorting creature beneath. Amara scrambled back as more and more of the mines caved in, pushing Levent with her, and the two tumbled and slid across the tunnel floor until they finally hit the bottom of the incline.
A few stray stones rolled past them, but the dull roar of falling rock and earth had finally stopped. Gasping for breath, Amara raised her head to see that the exit had completely collapsed. She felt her magic reserves ripple, and the fiery light of her markings slowly began to fade along with the array on the back of her hand.
ENERGY | MAJOR
Magic Reserves: 62,009 → 61,987 / 110,876
Maximum Output: 22 → 23
Variability: 1
Reduction: →19%
Amara stared down at those numbers, distantly processing them. When she looked up, she caught Levent’s grey eyes staring at them as well.
The glowing markings finally vanished completely, leaving only her bare skin behind, and the two of them exchanged a look of mutual understanding as the tunnel was plunged into darkness.
They were trapped.