Alaric woke up to the sound of feverish knocks on his door. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, he heard the sound again, however, this time, it jolted him out of his sleep as he witnessed the very hinges of the door struggle to withstand the onslaught.
Rushing to the door, Alaric unlocked it. In walked a dishevelled Garin dressed in white pyjamas much like the ones Alaric was dressed in.
“Get all your things ready. We’re leaving,” Garin’s voice was urgent and commanding.
Alaric furrowed his eyebrows but rushed about the room, following the man’s instructions. What was going on? Why had he been forced to wake up in the middle of the night?
Then again, he was no stranger to the rumours of the trouble his existence stirred, “Did something happen?”
“The people after you have gotten more… impatient. Just who did you piss off, brat?” Garin asked.
“No one I can remember,” Alaric replied, his heart tensing up.
He reached for his attire only to have a hand wrap around his, “Keep the attire but don’t put it on.”
“But then what should I…”
BOOM
Thunder boomed, shaking the ground and the tower altogether. Caught off guard, Alaric struggled to keep himself upright, falling to the floor unceremoniously. The world was suddenly bright with white light spilling through the windows.
The pair rushed to the barrier in time to witness and giant ripple spread throughout the gargantuan barrier protecting the Tower. Beyond the barrier, the sky was eclipsed by a great round sphere of rock hurtling towards the barrier.
There was a moment of silence before the boulder smashed into the barrier, bathing the world in white light once more. A chain reaction beyond the barrier obliterated the rock until it was nothing but ash.
The ground shook with tremors as the barrier failed to contain the full force of the falling meteors.
“This is insane,” Garin hissed, “Leave that attire behind… and get this.”
Alaric received a bracelet from the man. The only difference between this one and the ones he was used to was that this bracelet was plain. It wasn’t made from any shiny metal and had no symbol of the Tower of Seekers, “You signed a powerful contract, so you will always be affiliated with the Tower, however, right now you are being hunted and flaunting your status with the Tower will only make you an easier target.
In that bracelet I just gave you, you’ll find a Face-Changing Mask, supplies, a few healing potions, some money to keep you going, a few changes of clothes and a sword. It’s not much but it’s a start. Use the healing potions only under critical situations.”
“You’re telling me to run?” Alaric breathed quietly.
Garin felt his heart sink. What would he tell Marla after all this? Alaric was strong for sure but the reports he’d heard were something else. Steel Temper Rank was two whole ranks above Wood Rank. Getting to Stone alone was costing Garin so much and yet they were up against Steel Ranks.
Gritting his teeth, he retorted, “Do you want one of those boulders to land on your head, Alaric?”
Alaric looked out just in time to see another one of the mammoth-sized boulders crash onto the barrier. A network of crash ran through the boulder as it crumbled from the repelling force of the barrier only to turn into dust.
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No, he didn’t want to get struck by one of those boulders even if it was impractical to get hit by one. What he didn’t want to do was face whichever Slayer was responsible for throwing them.
“Where would I go?” Alaric asked.
“The aim is for you to get stronger. Grow stronger, Alaric. I’ve seen you grow from a mundane human to a Wood Rank Level 2 in just six months. You have it in you to climb the Temper Ranks faster than anyone I know… and that’s what you’ll do,” the man ordered.
Alaric could feel his hands shivering. Out there, was a world filled with all kinds of danger. From magical beasts and wild aether zones to powerful demons. The man sighed, “What do you want to do, Alaric?”
“What kind of question is that, Garin? I want to protect the people I care about,” Alaric snapped at the man.
“Then you know that everything I’ve said has been in line with that way of thinking. If you go to the Academy as you are now, you’ll be assassinated before you know what hit you. Worse, you would be putting Finn and Darla at risk if they tried to protect you. Worst of all, you won’t be able to protect anyone with the power you have now,” the man responded.
Alaric knew what he said was true. He didn’t need convincing… but it all happened so fast that he barely had the time to react. His body was still aching from the strain he’d undergone the day before even though there was some improvement.
His mind was struggling to come to peace with the fact that he was switching from travelling to the Academy to completely avoiding it. How had it all changed? Who was hunting him? Why was he being hunted so badly?
“Just because I have an S-class guardian?” he wondered.
Garin felt a pang of pain in his chest, “S-class guardian…” He chuckled, “To hell with that. You became a Wood Temper Rank in six months. It took me five and a half years. Who knows what other talents you have that make you a threat?”
Alaric couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He’d done so much to grow strong enough but now that he was strong, he was suddenly being hunted. What kind of twisted world was he living in? Weren’t the strong the ones responsible for taking down demons and making sure the world was a better place? How did it become that someone with potential would be deemed dangerous? Had he crossed the wrong person at some point?
There were too many things to think about and Alaric didn’t even know where to start. There was one thing he could confidently ask though.
“So… I can only go to the Academy if I grow strong enough? Is that what you’re saying?” Alaric asked.
“Exactly… Grow strong enough and the Elite Guard will need you for the subjugation of High-Grade Demons,” Garin responded.
[ There are people who would want you dead because of your power… but there are also people who would want you alive if you proved yourself useful alive. Grow strong enough that the two forces collide enough to give you the protection you need to go to the Academy ] Alia compiled Alaric’s thoughts for him in a way he could understand.
With a grim expression, Alaric started moving about the room. He picked mundane clothes from the closet, focusing on warm ones as well as some light ones. After what Crystal had told him, these clothes were his to do with as he pleased.
He also made sure to take only those that didn’t have the sigil of the Tower of Seekers on them. He transferred the items in the Storage Bracelet he’d been using to the one Garin gave him and made sure everything was there.
Moments later, the pair was dashing down the side of the mountain in grey cloaks that matched the colour of the mountain. Staying clear of the road, Garin and Alaric dashed down the mountain slope like a pair of possessed shadows.
The grey cloaks blended with the ground so well that it concealed their location in addition to completely obscuring their aura. The steep descent plunged them into a range of barren stone mountains, obscured from the chaos of war and thunderous lightning echoing behind them.
The light from the barrier continued to bathe the mountains even when Alaric and Garin had gotten several kilometres from the Tower, lighting up the looming clouds like distant flashes of lightning.
When they were a great distance away, Garin finally slowed down to a stop. Pulling a metallic can from his storage bracelet, he handed it to Alaric, “Drink up.”
“Will they be okay?” Alaric asked worriedly.
“The Tower of Seekers is one of the most powerful organisations on the Continent. That display of power you just saw is a declaration of how much your enemies are willing to risk to get to you. Without you there, the battle will end soon, hopefully with minimal casualties,” Garin answered, “Elder Gregory will take care of it.”
Alaric nodded calmly.
“There is someone we’re going to meet in a nearby town called Melbourne. She’s good at disappearing and can help you train. Your path to power is entirely up to you. There is more than one way to become strong so find yours. And Alaric… Don’t die. Marla will kill me if you do.”
Alaric nodded again…
They started running again once they’d caught their breaths blending into the grey slopes with the cloaks.
With the Tower behind them, Alaric wondered what would become of his life now. There was no way he could get to the Academy now even though he qualified to study there.