Chapter 8: Waying up

Zack

One hour after departing Sanctuary

Zack grunted as he stepped over a large fallen tree trunk. Both Yami and Zack struggled to wade through the thick luscious forest that was enhanced by mana. The trees towering over them like giants, vibrant with lush colors of green and brown as the sun shone through in rays through the leaves

“Is this your idea of a shortcut?” Zack asked Yami with a confused and irritated tone. As he stumbled on a branch.

“Aye,” Yami said as he shook his crimson coat off from the grass and leaves that stuck to it. “Sorry if it’s no anything grand but it's oot the way of any Atlus patrols. I’d say that's plenty fine.”

“We would have been there by now if we had taken my route” Replied Zack

“Aye, and probably ran into Atlus troops and god knows what. Besides were nae going straight to the battleship. We've got a wee detour first lad.”

“What? Where?” Zack asked, confused and frustrated as he had only just been told this.

“We're going to stop by a wee village on the way. I know some folk there so we’ll spend the night”

“Spend the night? We don’t have time to waste Yami! That ship could set a cruise back to Vholeria whenever it feels like it”

“Calm doon mate, were going there because Thomas will be there too. He got a headstart before we left. He should have some good intel aboot the ship.” Thomas? Oh that guy that was with Yami when I met him, don’t think he liked me too much. Still, what does his opinion matter? Yami turned and stopped Zack.

“Besides, you’ll want to be well rested an that so you can take on the Vholerians, aye?” He said raising an eyebrow to Zack and waiting for his acknowledgment. Zack sighed deeply

“Fine,” Zack said begrudgingly as he closed his eyes. Yami smiled and patted him on the shoulder.

“Good lad” He turned and the two continued through the forest devoid of any path or any real sense of direction but Yami seemed confident in where he was going regardless of that.

“Keep your eyes peeled mate, as you probably know. Atlus dosnae patrol through areas for twa reasons. Nae mana or too much mana.” Yami shouted back to Zack

“And in this case, it's the latter,” Zack shouted back

“Aye so thell be beasts a plenty due to all that mana. Nothing you cannae handle though? He said with the tone of asking a question.

“As long as you carry your weight” Zack replied snidely

“You can thank us later pal, for that and the shortcut,” Yami said smugly. Zack continued to follow him. The difference between the forest Sanctuary sat in and this one was like night and day. To the point that even the smell of the forests was different. The amount of mana made it smell a lot stronger but also less natural, removing the less desired aspects of nature's smells and giving him a smell like it was unnatural but at the same time natural, he didn't quite have the words to describe it. He took the site of an apple from a tree to his side and quickly grabbed it from its stalk. He took a quick bite out of the fruit as he continued to follow Yami. Zack wasn’t enthusiastic about eating but he made sure to do it to keep his strength up, though admittedly it was nice to taste things outside of the same meals he got as an assassin.

“Suprised you can eat that bloody stuff, foliage roond here's been pumped filled with so much mana it's like putting too much salt in a soup.”

“That's how all the meals were in Atlus, I guess I've just grown to prefer it.” He said taking another bite.

“Pftt not for me mate, Wouldnae even feed it to the dug.”

“Then how do you grow your food? Surely you don't just eat meat?”

“The way yer suppose tay, with some seeds, compost, and a wee bit of effort. Bloody kingdoms are all too used to using earth magic to make plants now, all so they can pump out a few more fruit that they wouldve” He was right, Atlus way of agriculture was the same as Yami's method but they often would grow the stalk from earth magic which made the plant more bountiful and produce more and larger fruit and veg. They practically relied on that method to feed the population of some cities. The two continued to walk through the forest some more. Zack’s only thoughts were about when he would get the chance to kill The Dark Slayer, still, he had to admit he didn't know a lot about him and he would have to be realistic about his approach.

“So what do you know about devil relics Yami” Yami turned back looking confused

“Whadya mean exactly?”

“I mean what should I know about Devil Relics users, what am I up against when I face The Dark Slayer.”

“Ah, well I’ll give you a wee crash course. Theirs aboot seven devil relics the world knows aboot and they're all owned by the top slugs of the world. That includes yours truly” He says with a grin receiving a predictable eye roll from Zack. “They all work a bit differently from each other, you've seen a bit of mine already but essentially, I can summon and manipulate phantom swords as a weapon. It puts me above any magic user and frankly, that goes for all devil relic users. Magic is easy to understand, documented, and used by many people. Whereas Devil Relics, are not. Their unpredictable, not to mention powerful and have more potential.” Zack and Yami both moved passed a collapsed tree as he continued to explain devil relics. “As for this Dark Slayer chap. All I know is his sword can cut through anything. I know that’s nothing new but I've never seen the man. Honest, but I would still expect the unexpected, Devil Relics can be…weird like that.”

“So you don't know anything I can use against him,” Zack said frustrated at Yami's explanation.

“I wasn't finished yet, mate. Seeing you don't have a Devil Relic, your best bet is to rely on your magic.” Zack gave him a confused look

“I thought you said relics overpower magic?”

“Aye, they do. In terms of their potential and raw pooer, the catch is, Devil Relic users cannae use magic.”

“What?!” The leaders of the world, The Dark Slayer, Yami…they all can’t use magic

“Aye, they don't tell us that because it makes us look weak to not have magic but it's true.”

“Still, how does that mean magic trumps devil relics?

“Think of it like this, The body is a vessel that's big enough to hold two marbles. Your soul is one of those marbles and your innate magic prowess is the other. So in your case, your lighting magic. Now when someone gets ahold of a devil relic. The very devil that resides in the relic bonds to the body, but seeing as there is no room for a third marble, it kicks out the magic and leaves only your soul and the soul of the devil relic.”

“Still I don't see how magic will work for me”

“Well here's a secret. Everyone in this world, has magic, even the magicless, they just have so little of it they can't use it but it's still in their body. Sooo when the devil relic kicks out the magic, it leaves nothing left and the body isn't as accustomed to magic as it should be with that marble of magic. So, say if you were to get hit by a bolt of fire magic… it's gonna hurt, obviously but without that innate magic in you to build up your immune system to magic. It will hurt a lot more. Believe mate it stings like you wouldn't belieeeve.”

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

“So devil relic users are weak to magic?”

“Aye, obviously they know that and are trained to avoid it but that's why I say it's your best bet if you really want to see through with killing him” Zack stood quiet for a moment after taking in the information. What is this guy on? Does he think he can just redo the way magic works?

“Do you honestly expect me to believe you?” Zack snapped at him

“Believe what you want, you did ask, and I have delivered,” Yami replied back with a nonchalant tone and a wave of his hand. Yami hadn’t done him a bad word so far so Zack decided to take his word for it.

“You could have just told me they were weak to magic. That's all I needed”

“Sorry mate, Suppose this old man just wanted to tell a few stories.” As Zack continued to step over plants and wood, he stepped on a vine that seemed to move under him. He looked down and saw that, indeed, it was moving. He traced the vine all the way to the plant it grew out of. He looked to his right and saw it led to a plump flower-like plant. Plant may it be it was definitely alive. Plants that had moving vines that throbbed like a human vein were signs a plant had been exposed to too much mana and had become sentient, perhaps even hostile. However, a mana-exposed plant would be no issue, the worst it could do was trip you up as it wouldn't be very intelligent. Zack decided to eliminate it, however. He strode over to the flower and drew his squared blade. Upon a closer look, the plant was much larger than any regular one, even in the royal's gardens he hadn't seen plants this big. As he got closer he saw the plant rising and falling, almost like it was breathing. Zack quickly raised his blade and thrust it down in a swift motion. Extinguishing the life from the plant as it flopped over in a wilted state. Better safe than sorry Zack thought to himself. Some of the really mutated ones could spew a fatal poison and he couldn't let anything slow him down.

“Oi mate, you finished gardening yet!?” Shouted Yami further on ahead. Zack looked up and saw he was further on ahead down a small slope. Zack quickly caught up to Yami after sheathing his sword.

“Didnae think you were one to have a green thumb,” Yami said with a cheeky grin. Zack rolled his eyes and walked on ahead.

“If you want to keep making your bad jokes then you too better watch out for those plants,” Zack said dryly. Yami laughed and quickly jogged up with Zack.

“Haha I’m only winding ya up mate,” said Yami.

“Well don’t, I’m not in the mood” Replied Zack

“Aye well if I dinae it will be a long and quiet journey,” Yami said. Zack looked back at Yami with annoyance in his eye.

“It will be shorter if you shut up. I only agreed to go with you to hunt down The Dark Slayer. I never said I'm joining your little group” Zack and Yami stood quietly for a moment before Yami approached Zack, lowering his voice.

“Listen. I don’t know what happened to make you hunt this man and I won't pretend to know how you feel, but I know this much. You cannae live your life consumed by vengeance and hate for the world. Life is too short to live, don't waste it like this Zack.” Zack began to have a fury in his eye and grabbed ahold of Yami’s undershirt. Completely disregarding what Yami was trying to explain.

“You think this effort is a waste! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU KNOW ABOUT ME! WHO THE HELL DO Y…”

“DUCK!” before Zack could finish yelling. Yami grabbed Zack and dived down, both of them hit the soft soil on the ground. Two large avians swept over both Yami and Zack, barely missing them. As Zack and Yami got up, Zack got a better look and could see the creatures flying between the tall trees like goalposts. They resembled eagles but were more monstrous and ravenous. Not to mention they were far larger, about 2 or 3 times bigger. Obviously, animals that had been mutated due to much mana in the forest

“Sorry bout that mate,” Said Yami as he got back to his feet

“Save it, I’ll deal with these,” Zack said as he drew his sword from his hip.

“Aye, Let's see what you can do,” Yami said as he backed away and gestured to Zack with a wave of his hand. Yami planted his back against a large tree and folded his arms. Bastard is testing me, fine, I'll do this myself. Both the beasts began to fly in different formations. Damn, I’m already at a disadvantage on the ground two is going to be tricky. Zack stayed calm and tracked their movements with his right eye and freehand, open and ready to fire a bolt of lightning. Both took turns in swooping down to strike Zack. He was only able to narrowly dodge their attacks with how large and mutated their claws were. Not only were they deadly, but quick, Especially for creatures of their size. Zack could track them but his reactions weren't good enough, bolts of lighting he shot would only hit the surrounding trees, scoring the bark. Zack dodged another dive from the creatures, one managed to scratch his remaining pauldron as he recovered from an evasive roll, sending sparks flying from the metal that was inches from his shoulder. I can't shoot them out the sky, I need something else Zack knew he could parry one of the birds but there would be a high chance the next one would deliver a fatal blow to him next while he counterattacked the first. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Yami standing with his arms folded in a relaxed leaning against a tree. Zack couldn't help but be annoyed that he was being tested. He knew Yami would have no trouble with these, but Yami also knew Zack was at a disadvantage. Zack knew he would have to get creative. With his sword out he could only fire one bolt at a time he needed a way to predict their movements so the shot would hit. Zack held his ground, he reached into his small leather purse and pulled out a small metal ball. With only one, he could infuse it with lighting faster than a handful. He closed his hand into a fist. Blue specs rose for a moment before jolts of lighting began reverberating from his fist. He caught a glimpse of one of the beasts, a blur to him, but he could still track it. The other would most likely have been behind him. If he made this quick he could pull this off. He raised his hand and threw the marble at the creature just slightly ahead of its path. The metal ball flew as fast as a bolt of lightning and left afterimages as it ran through the air. Zack had used this technique of infusing metal balls as a tool quite often as distractions working as an Atlus assassin, it required minimal mana and was cheaper than something like a smoke pellet. With the amount he had used, his aim had become quite good. Just as he expected the avian rolled out of the way before being struck by the ball full of shock. It struck the tree behind, going so fast that the ball disintegrated and left behind a small score on the bark. Not a moment after. Zack raised his now empty free hand and fired a bolt of lighting, with the avian rolling right into the strike, unable to change its plan mid-movement. Zack had predicted that if he could divert the direction of the creature with a metal ball, he could then strike the beast with a shot of lighting he had still stored within his palm, while still keeping his sword in his hand in case he needed to parry. The beast fell from the sky, the electricity ran through its bones and made it fall limp and down to the ground, out of sight and out of worry. It wasn’t over though, that last beast was behind Zack last he checked, but with the first one gone, he could parry the next one with no issues. As he heard the monstrous screech from the creature increase in volume as it got closer, Zack made his move. Zack flipped his sword in a reverse grip and quickly spun around to face the beast. With a quick motion, he thrust his sword into the bird's throat, using his free palm to push the pommel of the sword. The beast was only feet away from swiping off his head. Blood sprayed all over his blade and his front. It resembled regular blood but had specs of black intertwined, often found in creatures that had been mutated by mana. The creature flayed and spasmed with its last breaths of life until it hung lifeless on the edge of Zack's sword. Zack tipped his sword down as the weight of the creature was too much to hold up on the edge of his sword. The avian fell off and thumped to the ground, spilling blood all over the forest soil. Zack huffed as he flung his sword out to throw the blood off before sheathing his blade.

“Not bad mate,” said Yami as he approached clapping behind Zack. “You didn't handle that too badly” He paused for a moment “but let's be honest, it wasn’t effortless was it?” Yami walked towards Zack to face him. “If I can’t stop you from hunting down The Dark Slayer, then I least need to make you aware you don’t have what it takes to kill him, at least not on your own. That there was me showing you just where you stand in the world. You may be able to take down a couple of beasts, but Devil Relic users are in completely different leagues. I’m not telling you to stop, but don't throw your life away.” He was right, as much as he didn't want to admit. If he had any difficulty with beasts, then what chance would he face against a Devil Relic user? If he had any hope of avenging Matthew, then he had to trust Yami, even if he was unsure what Yami got out of helping him. Zack straightened himself out and sighed before meeting his eye with Yami. He gave a content expression and nodded to him. Yami understood this. “Good, just don’t want to see you pop ya clogs anytime soon mate” Yami quickly threw his right arm out with his hand open, not breaking his gaze from Zack. Above Yami, materialized a silver translucent sword, the same kind Zack saw when he was saved by the man a few days ago. It materialized above Yami and flew out, striking the first creature Zack had knocked out but had not finished off. The beast was not dead and tried to recover but Yami had clearly noticed this when Zack had not. This finished off the beast instantly. Zack had to do a double-take as this all happened in under a second. Yami looked up and smiled at him.

“You gonna clean that blood off?” Zack looked at himself. Too caught up in the moment to realize he was covered in blood from the beast earlier. Zack’s body began to show small specs of blue light rise from his body until it suddenly began to surge small bolts of purple electricity across it. Not strong enough to do serious damage to someone, but enough to zap someone who touched him. The lighting ran through his body and slowly sizzled off the blood with the heat it generated, slowly rising into steam above Zack with an audible hissing sound. Yami raised his eyebrows and widened his eyes, drawing his lips to a line as he nodded and folded his arms.

“Neat little trick, You’ll have to show me how to do that.” Zack turned to him and gave a deadpan stare, almost as if he was going to roll his eyes. Yami cracked and began to laugh, he patted Zack on the shoulder as he passed him.

“C'mon mate, the village should just be upahead.” Zack sighed and began to follow

What have I got myself into he thought.