Chapter 74: Interception 4
Elania gritted her teeth as a gust of wind blasted her from below, hurling a spray of sharp metal shards against her [Demonic Aura] barrier.
The shards shattered, sending a shower of sparks back toward the giant arcane [Quillbeast].
She leveled her revolver at the creature and pulled the trigger, but instead of the expected blast, there was only a dull clunk.
“Yolani!” Elania shouted. “This is why we should fucking test things!”
Yolani dipped down, flying alongside Elania with the Silvers’ style flight pack flaring on her back. “Ice is reversed polarity!”
What the heck did that even mean?
Elania sucked out the [Power] she had dumped into the weapon and hurled the energy toward the monster as a makeshift bomb.
A purple field formed in the air before the creature, the energy digging into its spherical shield and splashing the entire area with lashing gold lightning.
Nearby, a loud boom signaled the firing of artillery from the Heart.
Another arcane creature charging at them in the distance exploded in a massive fireball, flattening and hurling trees in every direction.
Elania couldn’t help but think that the forest was utterly fucked as another wave of quills impacted her barrier.
Yolani slipped out of Elania’s wing shadow and raised a wand. A volley of blue spears flickered into existence. She shouted something indecipherable, and the projectiles flashed forward toward the quillbeast.
They shattered against its barrier, but spider cracks began to form, and the last projectile punched through, impaling the massive monster.
It shrieked loudly and fired back, but Elania flashed forward and flung a barrage of her own golden light feathers, overwhelming the incoming barrage. Now that the creature’s barrier was down, the feathers slashed it to pieces.
“Focus!” Yolani shouted at her.
Elania cursed under her breath. “You should have made it more intuitive,” she retorted.
“Reversing polarity should be easy!” Yolani countered.
Elania blinked as another creature exploded out of the ground, resembling a giant groundhog.
What the fuck was wrong with this world?
She reflexively aimed her revolver at it. The weapon clicked again. She drained the [Power] back out in frustration.
Flipping the weapon on its side and looking where she imagined the safety should have been, she found a switch. Safety wasn’t a real concept yet, so she figured maybe that was it.
The second she flipped it, she could feel the “polarity” change, like the mana shard behind the chamber did a backflip.
She pumped her [Power] into the weapon again and pulled the trigger. A deadly blue line formed like a laser pointer, and then kickback rattled her arm as she braced, her wings flaring with energy to keep her steady.
There was no sense of travel time for the projectile; the arcane creature simply exploded into a giant icicle that shattered instantly, sending a hurricane of ice shards away from her to impale the trees and flatten the forest for four or five hundred meters.
“What the fuck? This is ridiculous,” Elania shouted. “And it can shoot six of these?”
“Five! You already fired one!” Yolani shouted back.
Elania cursed again as they looked around. A lull formed. No arcane beasts…
“My pack is half drained!” Yolani shouted.
“Go back to the ship,” Elania told her.
Yolani nodded and headed back.
Elania surveyed the devastated area, with still-burning wildfires and flattened trees, as if a dozen different natural disasters had hit at once.
And they pretty much had.
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
Dead creatures littered the ground everywhere.
Elania glanced up at the Gold and Heart.
Their weapons had worked well in the fight, too.
Her [Regalia] had taken some work to figure out how the different elemental ammos functioned, but the results were far superior to her just hurling random energy blobs at things.
When nothing else seemed eager to try to munch on them, Elania started to survey their spoils.
Absorbing all the arcane beasts would grant her more [Power] and skills, but the ratio of [Power] to [Divine Power] was unfavorable.
The ships couldn’t possibly haul all of them, though. Leaving them to rot seemed like a waste, so they would need to confer and decide which ones to keep.
Perhaps sending the Gold back with their chosen corpses while she and the Heart moved on to the next site would be most efficient.
She lowered herself toward the deposit. This time, she had a special harvesting tool Yolani made. It was much more effective at chopping the nodes off than using—
Elania noticed Eziel on her back and cursed. “You could have helped during the fight, you know,” she grumbled.
[You did fine without me. It wasn’t necessary.]
“I got grabbed by a tentacle! How was it not necessary?” Elania hissed.
[You handled it well. The appendage never made contact with your skin thanks to your barrier.]
Elania suppressed the desire to strangle the arch-seraph’s hilt but couldn’t stop the low growl from forming.
[Your darkwalker is showing.]
Rolling her eyes, Elania picked up the hopper of crystalline metal by its two straps and pulled it into the air, aiming for the Gold.
As she deposited the package on the deck, sailors threw a tarp over the hopper, which constricted and sealed the metal inside to carry it safely and prevent the men from being exposed to it.
Elania waved to the flight master before heading back to the Heart to discuss their next steps with Yolani and Harlock.
After a brief discussion, they decided that Elania’s idea was the best option.
The Gold would transport one of the more impressive specimens along with the crystal metal back to Contia, while Elania would absorb the rest. The Heart would then proceed to the next crystal site to harvest, and the Gold would return to collect the resources.
The following two days passed similarly as they worked their way through the remaining sites.
Elania absorbed most of the creatures, feeling her [Power] and skills grow with each one. The ships’ crews worked tirelessly to ferry the valuable crystal metal, ensuring a substantial haul for Contia.
As they completed the fifth and final site, both ships turned their course back towards the city.
When Contia’s silhouette appeared on the horizon, Elania turned to Yolani with a grin.
“Want to fly back together instead of waiting on the ship?” she asked.
Yolani nodded. “Sure, we can test the flight harness I made.”
Elania blinked, surprise clear on her face. “Wait, when did you make a flight harness?”
Raising an eyebrow, Yolani gave her a pointed look. “Did you think I was idle the entire time on the ship?”
Heat crept up Elania’s neck. That had been exactly what she had been doing herself. “Ah, right? Go get it then!”
Yolani laughed and unhooked a large clasp from her leather belt, then attached it to a strap encircling Elania’s waist. “There, that should do it.”
“That’s it?” Elania questioned, eyeing the simple setup.
“I didn’t have that much free time,” Yolani admitted. “It should slide around my waist as needed for rotation, but otherwise, I’ll mostly be dangling.”
Elania frowned, concern etched on her features. “I’m afraid the clasp might snap or the tether could break. Shouldn’t there be more straps?”
Yolani shook her head. “The strap is strong enough as long as our outfits don’t get cut to pieces. Multiple straps without a careful design would just get tangled, so this is the best for now.”
Nodding, Elania pulled Yolani into a hug, excitement bubbling within her. “Alright, let’s go!”
Without hesitation, she leaped into the air, eliciting a startled cry from Yolani as they soared towards Contia.
They touched down gracefully in front of their estate, faces flushed with exhilaration from the flight. As they approached the entrance, Darius greeted them with a bow, a message clutched in his hand.
“My lady, a missive arrived for you while you were away,” he said, offering the sealed parchment to Elania.
She took the message, breaking the seal and unfolding the paper. Yolani peered over her shoulder. “What is it?” she asked.
“It’s a summons,” Elania replied. “It arrived two days ago. We’re required to attend a Tower Council meeting tomorrow.”
Yolani’s eyes widened. “What’s it about?”
Elania shook her head. “It doesn’t say, but it appears to be a general summons for a variety of people.” She handed the message to Yolani, who scanned its contents.
“It must be a big announcement,” Yolani mused, her expression thoughtful.
Elania nodded, then shrugged. “It’s a worry for tomorrow, though.” She turned to Darius. “Please have a nice dinner prepared for us. We’ll eat in an hour or two after a bath and cleaning up.”
Darius inclined his head. “Of course, my lady.”
The evening passed pleasantly, and the following morning found Elania feeling energized. Yolani helped her don her gear before attending to her own. Together, they made their way to the district council building.
A heavy Silver presence guarded the entrance, allowing only those with invitations to approach and enter. One of the Silvers took their summons and escorted them inside.
The council chamber was already partially filled, and Elania realized they were nearly late. They quickly found their seats, and moments later, the Four Towers entered and took their places.
Arlois ordered the building sealed, then surveyed the assembled crowd. “As you are all aware, Tiria has declared war on Contia. Each person in this chamber plays a crucial role in managing Contia’s efforts. Let it now be known that the Tower Council has declared war on Tiria and the Lightbringers.”
A hush fell over the room as Arlois continued. “The enemy has mustered their entire fleet and pushed into Joria to test our borders. Our response will be swift and decisive. Their fleet is currently airborne and vulnerable. Contia itself will sally forth immediately to crush this threat.”
Elania blinked, sharing a surprised look with Yolani.
Silence reigned in the chamber until Ember stood. “If it wasn’t clear, the entire city will be going into battle itself.”
Arlois nodded. “The council will now take questions.”
As if a dam had burst, the chamber erupted into chaos, voices rising in a clamor of confusion and concern.