“Told you.” The vortex guardian struck the poles that pinned him from both sides. This time, several of them snapped.
“I don’t think this will be as efficient as before, dear boy,” Adzorg said, weaving a second cube spell. “I’d suggest a tactical retreat.”
Dallion slashed twice more with his harpsisword, but even in the process of doing so, Lux pulled him back. The firebird instinctively felt the threat emanating from the guardian and wanted to get as far away from it as possible.
PARTIAL ABSORPTION
Your MAGIC TRAIT is now 36
One of the attacks hit, but at this point, magic was the last thing on Dallion’s mind.
“You didn’t tell me they could absorb one another!” Dallion shouted as he performed a music spark attack.
Threads of light burst from the harpsisword striking the guardian along with any unfortunate aether wasp in a five-hundred-foot radius.
Dozens of red rectangles emerged, but even after all that, the guardian’s health just fell down to eight percent. As Adzorg had said, the vortex was adapting and the guardians along with it.
Sadly, that wasn’t the greatest issue. The other twin had also broken out of its “robotic” state. Splitting into twenty instances, it plowed through the chainlings like melting snow. His actions, just like his expression, were a lot more human-like, as if having a point of magic absorbed had woken him up.
I’m an idiot! Dallion gritted his teeth. The reason his opponent had allowed him so many free strikes wasn’t just to chat. Now both twins were conscious, which brought the battle to a whole different level.
“Don’t!” Adzorg said, flying next to Dallion.
“Don’t what?”
“Don’t use the Moonstone. You’ll never get another.”
Dallion was about to ask what other option there was when it came to him. There was one alternative left—one that he had been using for millennia until the rebellion at the Academy. What the old man was proposing was to guide him once again from within his awakening realm.
“You want me to let you inside.” Dallion looked at him.
“You have the strength, I have the knowledge. Until we combine the two, we don’t stand a chance, even if I use your magic threads to cast spells.”
“I don’t want a symbiote!”
“It won’t be! I vow by the Moons I won’t influence you or invade your realm. Once we escape the vortex, I’ll be out of your realm.”
There was undoubted logic in the offer, but after what Dallion had seen, he was more than a bit reluctant. Symbiotic echoes were able to transform children into highly experienced mages and fighters, but they also took complete control of a person.
Harp, what do you think? He asked.
I can protect your realm, the nymph said without hesitation.
Should I do it?
There was no response.
Harp?
I can’t give you advice on this. Do what you think is best. I’ll stand by you either way.
The harpsisword’s words suggested that there could be an alternative way of dealing with this. The twin Dallion had been fighting had claimed the opposite. The nymph hadn’t confirmed that. On the other hand, she hadn’t been vehemently opposed to Adzorg’s plan.
Damn it all! “Go for it!” Dallion flew to the old mage and grabbed his hand. Instantly, an echo appeared in his realm. “Don’t touch the Moonstone!” Dallion hissed beneath his breath.
Dear boy, I wouldn’t dream of it, the echo said. Now just relax a bit and try to get a sense of what I’m doing. You’ll need it once this is over.
“Why?”
Do you seriously think this will be the only vortex?
The way he said it made Dallion shudder. In the grand scope of things, everything he had gone through in the last few hours was nothing but an insignificant speck of reality. The capital of a dwarven kingdom might well be destroyed as a result. Possibly the entire kingdom was doomed, but that was just one incident. If Adzorg continued to meddle with his device, there would be many more… In fact, there already was evidence that they were going to occur. All the gleams that had been on the front were proof of that. Vortexes with levels in the double digits meant that the layer was weakened to such an extent that only the strongest banished “exalted” had a chance of keeping it whole.
“You—”
Relax, the echo interrupted. I give you my vow that we’ll talk immediately after we’re out of here.
It wasn’t the best offer, but for the moment, it would have to do.
I’m not taking control. I’m just showing you what to do.
“And how would that work?”
Just follow the markers.
No sooner had he said that than markers appeared in front of Dallion. Similar to schematics showing him what to do and how to do it. Unlike the usual markers, though, there were notes within every line—notes that someone with the magic trait could see.
You sneaky old man, Dallion thought.
If his mind trait had been any less, he wouldn’t have been able to remember everything he was seeing. It also helped that he had good enough reactions to copy it. There was only one minor setback—Adzorg could only help in regards to spells. Dallion still had to deal with the actual combat himself.
“Here goes nothing.” He started casting the suggested spell.
Dozens of instances were killed off every second as the vortex guardian charged at Dallion. The desire for a calm conversation had gone, replaced by a desire to erase him from existence. Only a sliver of curiosity was left, and that was precisely what Dallion focused on with his music skills.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“The Order isn’t as strong as it once was,” he lied, as Harp increased the water covering the harpsisword. “Kingdoms and empires rule the world now.”
“They used to say that in the past, too. The Order is still here, the empires aren’t.”
“Did Star cultists infiltrate the Order in your time?” Completing the spell with his aura sword, Dallion let it go.
Wings of aether extended from the spell-oval he had formed, then burst into feathers doing absolutely nothing.
What? Where did I go wrong? He asked in his realm.
That’s supposed to happen, Adzorg assured him. Focus on the next spell.
Why am I casting spells that do nothing?
What we’re doing, dear boy, is casting composite spells. We need to prepare the groundwork before we can do any actual harm.
Do it faster!
In the distance, the voidling army had been reduced to a few hundred members. Even chainlings that had nothing to do with the giant fight were swarming, feeding it with their own void matter. The aether wasps had also changed their behavior. Sensing weakness, they had stopped focusing on Dallion and his group, swarming to surround what void remained.
“I saw one of them personally.” Dallion filled his voice with doubt, while simultaneously casting another music attack.
Neither of his attempts succeeded. Ignoring his words, the guardian twin slashed through the music strands as if they were cobwebs, then pierced Dallion’s right shoulder.
MAJOR WOUND
Your health has been decreased by 50%
Out of all instances, there wasn’t a single one that fared better. In some cases, the wound had even managed to pierce him through the chest, resulting in an instant kill.
“Lux!” Dallion shouted, completing the second spell.
This time beams of magic shot in all directions, creating a mesh between Dallion and the guardians.
Get close to Diroh! Adzorg said.
You could have said that earlier! Dallion frowned. Thankfully, the firebird was already on it, thrusting Dallion to where the fury was.
“From here on, stay close,” he whispered.
“What about the wasps?” she asked.
“Forget the wasps.”
Like lasers reflecting in mirrors, the beams bounced off invisible points in the sky, creating a mesh everywhere around. The guardian’s attempt to cut through resulted in his sword being severed in the process, earning him another one percent in damage.
No time for complacency, dear boy, Adzorg urged. Keep on casting!
The entire environment of the vortex swirled, reacting to the previous spell. The ever changing terrain below suddenly flattened, turning into an endlessness of threads. All features of the sky vanished, replaced by complete blackness. There was no sun, no Moons or stars, just nothing.
“What the heck am I casting?!” Dallion shouted, flying back as he held onto Dallion and Adzorg.
Same as before, the beams of magic bent to let him pass, repulsed by his presence.
Nothing that you should cast outside of here, the echo said.
“I know that much!”
In the simplest terms, I’m making the vortex attack itself. The effects aren’t immediate, but since the guardians and the vortex are one and the same, it’s bound to—
“Look out!” Diroh shouted.
Ignoring the damage dealt to him by the beams, the weaker twin had thrust for Dallion, aiming for the kill. Immediately, the otherworld burst into instances, but he knew that it was too late. Even if he managed to make two hundred, they’d be clustered close enough for the outcome to be the same.
For a fraction of a second his life flashed before his eyes. He saw his path all the way from the simple days on Earth to his arrival in Dherma village, through all the challenges that had brought him here: his relationship with Euryale, the fights against the Star, the hunts in the wilderness, gaining his familiars, losing Gleam, even the talks with the Moons… It was a long road spanning hundreds of years with its ups and downs. Now, it seemed to be over. Even if he stopped the spell he was casting, he wouldn’t be able to cast a protective spell of any significance. In slow motion, he could see the water of his harpsisword increase in an attempt to create a protective barrier. Even the armadil shield emerged a few feet away on its own accord. Sadly, neither of the two had the power to save him from his fate.
That sucks, Dallion thought. At least it was a good run.
The only thing he could do—the thing he should do—was try and complete the third spell. Even if he were to die, if he succeeded in killing the vortex twins, the rest of his group would get to escape.
Magic symbols suddenly emerged all over Diroh’s body. There were hundreds of them, composing a spell that Academy mages would have issues with.
Before Dallion’s very eyes, the fury lost substance, shifting into the slime form of a copyette. Teleporting between him and the guardian, the copyette took in the blade. Tendrils shot out, wrapping themselves around the twin’s hand and body.
“You owe me one,” a voice that Dallion didn’t hear before said.
TERMINAL WOUND
FION’s health has been reduced by 100%
FION has been absorbed by AGENELIN MURSER
Red and purple rectangles emerged, marking the death of the creature.
At that precise moment, the harpsisword moved on its own, striking the entangled guardian in the neck. Harp has seen her chance and took it without hesitation.
MAJOR WOUND
Your health has been decreased by 50%
FATAL STRIKE
Damage dealt has been increased by 500%
Magic flowed through the weapon, entering Dallion’s arm. The experience was brief and painful, as if he had grabbed hold of a bolt of lightning. Instinct made him try to let go, but his fingers wouldn’t obey, retaining their grip.
PARTIAL ABSORPTION
You have absorbed AGENELIN MURSER
Your MAGIC TRAIT is now 59
The sky of Dallion’s realm turned purple. Abilities that required decades to develop kicked in. In one single instant, he was able to see the instructions on threads that had been unreadable. A few spots remained unclear, but he understood how the threads of the vortex were keeping it whole, as well as the instructions Adzorg was injecting to make it turn on itself. But that was not all. The new level of his magic trait had given him a sudden new perspective of magic and reality and shown him how wrong he’d been about one major thing.