Ezekiel sat silently as he watched the Guild Leaders and the Exalt discuss their plans. It was obvious that there were those that didn’t want to see him there. But it was just as clear that no one wanted to kick him out after he had been called in by the Exalt. He was ultimately in the same boat, and didn’t want to be there either.
Glancing around the room, he saw Garrad give him a brief look from another spot in the room. Neither of them made any indication that they had seen each other. Nor did they show any relief at seeing each other after the battle from earlier. It wouldn’t be good to have anyone see and bring attention to them.
So, as Ezekiel redirected his gaze, he started examining the occupants of the room to see if there was anything he could glean from the various Guild Leaders. He failed but did notice something that Shine also caught onto while they looked around the room.
“There’s not enough of them...” Shine trailed off as they made this observation. “There’s nowhere near as many Legendaries here as there should be. They’re also all Guild members... Where’s the Noble Legendaries? Where’s Duke Harkem?”
That last one was the most glaring detail that Ezekiel noticed. He had only ever seen Duke Harkem once before, but the situation at the time had been dire enough for him to remember all of the Legendaries that had been there at the time. The fact that every Legendary there also had a sash to indicate their Guild affiliation meant that none of them directly belonged to the Empire.
“I see you’ve noticed.” Exalt Harras said, his voice cutting through the murmurs and the chatter of the assembled Legendaries. But to Ezekiel’s surprise, none of the Legendaries turned to look at either of them. It seemed like the Exalt was speaking in a manner that the others couldn’t hear.
“I heard that too.” Shine said in a grave tone of voice. Ezekiel’s thoughts stalled for a moment. He knew something was wrong with that statement but couldn’t figure out what. “I heard it myself. In my soul...”
A chill ran down Ezekiel’s spine. He wasn’t certain of what that meant. Both regarding his safety, and the Exalt’s abilities, but he knew that he didn’t like it. Not when he knew nothing of what was happening. Something the Exalt seemed to notice.
“I’m not reading your mind. If that’s what you’re wondering.” Exalt Harras said. “I’m simply conveying my own thoughts to you via my soul. This can be done, even by those at your Tier, by expanding your Soul Sense. Difficult to do, and the range is extremely limited before you become Legendary. But indispensable if you wish for a private conversation.”
The words that Ezekiel was hearing in his head were very different from the words that Exalt Harras was vocalizing. But given he wasn’t bothering to listen in to the conversations going on around him, it didn’t seem to matter that much. The explanation also gave him some relief. Though the fact that Ezekiel was currently within the boundaries of Exalt Harras’ Soul Sense was disconcerting. As it also meant that he could be struck by lightning at a moment’s notice.
“I’m sure you’re wondering why I called you in here. Quite simply, Guild Leader Garrad explained some of your situation when he gave his report. I found the fact that the Cultists that were captured were only here for you to be very useful. It will ensure that we can prevent some of the reforms that they are not so subtly pushing for via their puppets in court.” Exalt Harras said. “Of course, we only managed to capture two of the four that went after your parents. The other two that accompanied them prior to their arrival at Harkem have yet to be found. But that is of little consequence right now. Though you should be wary of knives in the dark all the same. They are Glacial and Radiant Hunters, by the way.”
Ezekiel couldn’t help but swallow nervously as he listened to Exalt Harras’ words. He knew that things weren’t likely to end when it came to the Cult of Light. But that didn’t mean that he wasn’t hoping that the Cultists would’ve died in the battle. Worse yet, there were two more that were unaccounted for.
It was fortunate that the Empire would be able to impose sanctions and other restrictions on the Cult for their current actions, but that didn’t help him right now.
“Other than that, I want you to take part in the mission that we will be undertaking in the next few days.” Exalt Harras said. “For the moment, we will simply be cleaning up the surrounding areas of lingering Umbral Beasts and Cruor. We should have the Harkem territory fully under control within the next month, if things work out.”
“After that, the might of the Willowbrush army will be ready for the push into the north. So, as long as there are no delays, we should be able to clear out the lands that were taken before they are fully converted to Desolate Lands.” Exalt Harras stopped his mental conversation, vocally expressing his intentions to push into the Cruor’s new territory.
Ezekiel hadn’t been following the verbal conversation prior to that statement. But he could tell that whatever was being discussed before that was something that disturbed the Legendaries in the room.
“Reconstruction of the city will be a priority for all those not clearing out the Harkem territory. Other than that, steps will be taken to refill outranks. Your Guilds have all been given their orders and areas where they will be clearing out. Guild Leader Garrad!” Garrad turned to Exalt Harras upon being called. “The Void Hunter will be joining you. I am ordering this in my official capacity as an Exalt of the Empire, and as the interim ruler of this city.”
Ezekiel straightened up as he heard this. The fact that Exalt Harras was the interim city ruler could only mean one thing. Duke Harkem was either dead or otherwise out of commission. To the point that he wasn’t able to take part in any of the administration. At best, his Spirit had died, and he was no longer capable of making any progress in increasing his Tier. Thus, removing him from rulership.
“By your command, Exalt. But if I might ask a question...” Garrad said. Exalt Harras nodded in consent. “Why has he been called here? If it was simply to assign him to my Guild, that could’ve been done at any other time.”
The other Leaders in the room looked on in curiosity. They were wondering the exact same thing. It really was strange that Ezekiel was there when he was merely an Adept. One at the lower Steps at that.
“I was curious as to what kind of person the ‘Anathema’ of the Cult of Light really was.” Exalt Harras said. “I am also curious as to how capable he really is. So, along with letting him know about the situation with the Cultists, he shall be fighting me with everything he has after this meeting.”
Ezekiel could practically hear tires screeching to a stop in everybody's minds as they heard this. Exalt Harras wanted Ezekiel, and Adept, to fight him to the best of his abilities.
“I’ve never fought a Void Mage before. Let alone a Void Hunter.” Exalt Harras said as he looked Ezekiel over. His eyes landed on Shine who was hanging at his waist. “I hope you and your partner can entertain me.”
Neither Ezekiel nor Shine said anything, as they were too stressed to move. Let alone reply to the man who could destroy them with a flick of a finger. A man who they would be fighting within the next few hours. Hopefully they wouldn’t piss him off with their performance.
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Ezekiel sat through the meeting of the city’s Legendaries for nearly an hour before things seemed to finally wrap up. Although he hadn’t been addressed again during the entirety of that time, he received more than a few pity filled looks as the various Guild Leaders couldn’t seem to take their eyes off him. It was obvious that they were curious about just what he was capable of. Very few, if any, Adepts would gain the interest of an Exalt like he had, after all.
There was also the matter of the Cultists that had been captured. Wish was the only topic that Ezekiel bothered to focus on. When the issue was brought up, Ezekiel was frustrated to see that the Guild Leaders were split between keeping them alive and killing them. He was a part of the latter group but wasn’t given a chance to voice his concerns. However, he did nod in agreement when it was brought up.
There was no point in keeping those that wanted him dead alive. Fortunately, it seemed that Exalt Harras was in agreement regarding putting the Cultists to death. Though it was decided that their interrogations would finish first. Then Exalt Harras would execute them privately. They would die within a day, but for now, Exalt Harras had other things he wanted to focus on.
So, it was right after Exalt Harras had called an end to the meeting that he physically dragged Ezekiel out of the meeting chambers. He only paused to call for a handful of healers to follow after them, so that Ezekiel wouldn’t die from their fight.
“That’s a wonderful thought, isn’t it? Calling for healers to make sure we survive.” Shine mentally called out sarcastically. “He might as well just beat us into the ground in front of everyone. There’s not much point in dragging us out here.”
‘Here’ was the center of the large crater left behind by the Broodlord’s attack. It was an empty and barren area. So, there was no need to worry about any damages that might occur. Though, Ezekiel wasn’t sure if that was a consideration for him, or for Exalt Harras.
He was certain that the Exalt had the control needed to not damage any buildings, so it was mostly a consideration for Ezekiel. As he would now be able to fight without worry. But nonetheless, it wasn’t as if he would’ve held back if he was in the city proper. Fighting, or rather, surviving, the attention of an Exalted Mythic Hunter wasn’t something that Ezekiel would even consider holding back for.
“Alright! Now that all the boring administration work is out of the way, I’ll let you ask some questions before we begin.” Exalt Harras said as he dropped Ezekiel on the ground. From his shoulder, his Spirit flew to a piece of rubble that was nearby. Ezekiel saw this and wiped some sweat from his brow in relief. It seemed like Exalt Harras would be fighting alone. The Exalt just laughed when he saw Ezekiel doing this but didn’t bother calling him out.
Looking at Exalt Harras, Ezekiel ran through some questions in his head before deciding on one.
“Who is going to be the new ruler of Harkem? I know you won’t be able to remain, and the decision still needs to be finalized, but as an Exalt, you must have some idea, right?” Ezekiel asked.
Exalt Harras looked grim for a moment. A flash of annoyance and frustration crossed his face before he settled for a neutral look. It was obviously a topic that he didn’t like discussing. Something Ezekiel felt sympathetic for. He hated politics as well.
“It will likely be one of the nobles from the capital. None of the surrounding areas have a Legendary Hunter that they can assign to the position.” Exalt Harras said. “So, it’ll be someone incompetent and otherwise incapable of ruling properly, since they won’t know the current political situation of the area. Beyond that, I don’t have a specific name for you. However, I would advise you not to stick around if you can help it. Move to Gates, or one of the other, more citizen friendly towns or cities that are nearby.”
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The sheer vitriol in Exalt Harras Voice was a shock for Ezekiel. He hadn’t expected one of the primary pillars of the Empire to have such negative feelings towards the nobility. From what he knew, all Legendaries that were a part of the Empire were tied to the nobility. Whether by birth, or elevation. The only exceptions were the Guild Leaders, who weren’t supposed to have ties to factional influence.
This, of course, was the official ruling by the Prime Guild. It was also kept when the Leaders of a Guild were blatant in their ties. But the Willowbrush Empire had been sweeping such things under the rug for years. There was basically no chance that the nobility didn’t have a fair bit of influence on the Guilds.
“Anything else you want to know?” Exalt Harras asked when Ezekiel remained silent for a bit.
“Do you know if my parents are alright? They’re--”
“A Radiant and Obscure Hunter duo with feline based Spirits, right? I know that such a pair reported to one of the recovery areas around the time when the fighting stopped yesterday. But other than that, I don’t have much more info. I only know that much because I wanted to know who the Cultists were chasing.” Exalt Harras said, cutting off Ezekiel’s explanation. “They’re still alive, however, if that’s any consolation for you.”
Ezekiel nearly slumped to the ground in relief. Just the fact that they were still alive was enough to remove a significant amount of the pressure from his shoulders. Now he knew that he could still face his sisters, without being the bearer of bad news. At least for now.
“What will happen if we can find the other two Cultists?” Ezekiel finally asked after a few seconds passed. “If they decided to stick around.”
“Oh, they stuck around. I’d know if anyone had tried to flee from the battle. I already executed a few cowards that tried.” Exalt Harras said. “If we find them. Then they will be executed as well. Even if they helped. Those that would use the Empire’s conflicts to take advantage of the situation and further their own goals, at our expense, are not to be granted mercy.”
Ezekiel nodded his head in understanding. Though a part of him felt concerned. Wasn’t that exactly what the various conscripts were doing? Taking advantage of the conflict to obtain a pardon that would allow them back into the Empire without consequence.
“Alright, I think that’s enough of the questions for now. It seems like the healers have caught up. So, let’s get started.” Exalt Harras said.
Ezekiel had entered a ready stance the moment Exalt Harras had said ‘enough’ so he was prepared when Exalt Harras threw a lightning bolt at his face. Jumping to the side and managing to not get hit. Though he was slower to dodge the follow up attack. Resulting in his already damaged cloak becoming singed.
“Good reflexes! Let’s see what else you’ve got!” Exalt Harras called out with a massive grin on his face. “A fight without consequences is so much more fun than one where there’s lives on the line! Wouldn’t you agree?”
Ezekiel couldn’t agree. Not at the moment, at least. He was worried he’d bit off his tongue with how fast he was being forced to move in order to dodge. The few bolts of lightning had been turned into a storm that rained down on him. He wasn’t even able to flee, or else the lightning became stronger, and forced him back towards Exalt Harras.
Even though he had just woken up not a few hours ago, Ezekiel was already ready to go back to sleep.
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The battle went on for several minutes before Ezekiel decided that he needed to do something other than play defensively. Dancing around the bolts of lightning being shot at him, Ezekiel mentally cursed over and over again as the electricity in the air continued to build up. It was getting to the point that even moving around seemed to hit Ezekiel with shocks of static and other painful bolts.
“Dodging isn’t working. We need to fight back!” Ezekiel determined. “He’ll just keep playing with us if we continue like this.”
“How can we do that? He had a defensive screen up. We can’t get close, and I don’t want to risk Jumping behind him, in case he decides to reflexively strike at us. He won’t be holding back nearly as much if that happens.” Shine said.
In order to test the waters, the pair had tagged several pieces of rubble with their Push-and-Pull, causing Exalt Harras to be attacked from all sides by miscellaneous debris. But Exalt Harras hadn’t even needed to move, or even make a counterattack against the rubble.
Instead, a cage of lightning appeared around him, basically vaporizing the rubble in an instant. He then flexed his mana, removing the tag that Ezekiel had placed on him. Though he looked at his chest in curiosity as he did. Clearly interested in the bizarre new magic he had never faced before. But with the lightning cage still up, any attempts that Ezekiel made to tag him again failed.
“Well, we need to figure something out. The air is getting more and more charged with electricity, and I’m fairly certain the only reason we haven’t already been fried is because he’s not letting it happen.” Ezekiel replied. “I don’t think simply breaking the perimeter he created for our battlefield will be useful either. He’d probably just expand it if we tried to do that.”
“Fair point. But what do you think he wants from us?” Shine asked. Ezekiel had to take a second before replying to dodge more lightning. The number of bolts that were coming for him at once was now three, and it was apparent that the longer they held out, the more that would appear.
“No Jumping. But maybe we can get close, Dispel his cage, and at least make contact. That might be enough to satisfy him.” Ezekiel said.
“I can’t help you with that...” Shine muttered. They were still frustrated that they couldn’t use the dispel magic that Ezekiel had.
“It’s fine. You can handle the barriers we’ll need to make when the lightning comes for us.” Up until this point, they hadn’t used much of their magic. But they had more than a few Void Panes shattered when Shine had done their best to defend Ezekiel from attacks he couldn’t dodge. “You ready?”
“Ready!” Shine exclaimed.
Suddenly, Ezekiel turned on his heel and dashed towards Exalt Harras. He jumped and dodged out of the way of several lightning bolts. Making his way closer and closer. But before he could get into contact with the lightning cage, half a dozen bolts fired at him at once.
Exalt Harras had a smirk on his face. As if to say, ‘what will you do?’. Ezekiel and Shine replied by setting up a multilayered barrier around them. It managed to absorb and deflect most of the lightning. In part due to Ezekiel infusing some of his Nothingness concept into the barriers.
For a moment, Exalt Harras’ eyes widened. Barely enough to be noticeable, but he had clearly felt his spell disappearing. But he didn’t react before Ezekiel made contact with his lightning cage barrier. Instead, he allowed Ezekiel to proceed with whatever his plan was. Smiling as Ezekiel enacted his plan.
Throwing a fist forward, Ezekiel channeled as much mana as he could, alongside his ‘Nothingness’ and just barely tore a hole in the lightning cage as he dispelled the mana holding the spell together. All the while, Shine held up several Void Panes to deflect the lightning that was raining down on them.
As the hole in Exalt Harras’ defenses grew, Ezekiel drew back his hand that was holding Shine. As if to stab them forward and strike at Exalt Harras directly. But his movements were so obvious, and openly telegraphed, that Exalt Harras couldn’t help but frown. He knew that this wouldn’t do anything to him, and he believed that Ezekiel should know this too.
But before Ezekiel had fully drawn his hand back, Exalt Harras jolted in shock. Ezekiel found himself frozen, unable to move at all, as Exalt Harras exerted his ‘Will’ though his soul Sense. Preventing Ezekiel from moving even an inch. Eyes widening in fear and panic, Ezekiel couldn’t even call for help as he was kept utterly motionless. The only thing he could move were his eyes.
Exalt Harras, on the other hand, gingerly raised a finger to the side of his face. Pulling away his hand, he looked at the blood that had spilled from the cut that Ezekiel had made from nearly four feet away. Then, as he noticed Ezekiel’s eyes moving around, he was even further shocked, since Ezekiel shouldn’t have been able to do even that.
“... Interesting... Free yourself. The fact that you can even move your eyes, when you are only an Adept, means that you should be able to do this.” Exalt Harras said. “I’ll give you a hint, to see if you can figure it out. Only Legendaries can move under the influence and might of a Mythic’s ‘Will’, even if they can’t do this like Mythics can.”
Ezekiel, listening to Exalt Harras’ words, understood that there was something unique about Legendaries that allowed them to act under the power of a Mythic. Quickly going over the things that he knew that could possibly be tied to the Legendary Tier, Ezekiel focused his ‘Nothingness’. From there, he expanded his own Soul Sense, just enough to cover his body.
He immediately felt something surrounding him. Something that he hadn’t sensed before. Like a blanket that had wrapped around him, and was still trying to push down on him. In the back of his mind, he heard Shine give a gasp of shock as they seemed to be relieved of an intense pressure that had been pressing in on them.
“What was that?” Ezekiel asked as he nearly fell to his knees. Exalt Harras didn’t bother with replying. Instead, Ezekiel felt the pressure increase once again. This time to the point where he wasn’t certain he could stand up to it.
“If you can last another half-an-hour, I might just tell you.” Exalt Harras said.
Ezekiel didn’t have any time to process that statement before he felt a fist crash into his face. Flying backwards from the blow, he staggered to his feet. His ‘Nothingness’ flickering, and causing his movements to falter, ever so slightly. Looking at the Exalt, he paled as his blood ran cold. A number of arrows had appeared and surrounded Exalt Harras. Each and every one of them was pointed at Ezekiel.
“Continue to impress me!” Exalt Harras exclaimed. A massive smile on his face as the arrows shot forwards, much faster than the lightning bolts from before.
“Shit!” Ezekiel shouted, barely throwing up as many barriers as he could, infusing each and every one of them with his ‘Nothingness’. But it didn’t matter. The moment the first arrow hit the barrier, the Void Panes he had summoned shattered in an instant. He found himself skewered by over a dozen electric arrows, quickly falling unconscious as the pain numbed his mind.
He could vaguely feel Shine be ripped from his hand as a couple of the arrows hit them directly. The impact wrenched their handle from Ezekiel’s grip, sending them flying away. But that last sensation was all he felt before the darkness filled his vision. He never saw Exalt Harras’ impressed look, nor the shouts of panic as the healers were summoned forwards to help him.
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Watching Ezekiel fall unconscious, Exalt Harras couldn’t help but smirk as he once again ran a hand over the cut that Ezekiel had given him. It was a small thing. Barely an inch long, and not more than a couple of millimeters deep. But it was more damage than he thought was possible for an Adept to do.
Approaching The healers that had run forward, he looked over Ezekiel’s body. Seeing that he had succeeded in not hitting anything of vital importance, he sighed in relief. He had no desire to cause any permanent harm. But he knew that a certain level of adversity would be needed, or else Ezekiel’s soul might start to backtrack, and their progress towards the higher Tiers would stall.
He could tell that Ezekiel’s soul was strong. As strong as several Legendaries he knew. But it wasn’t enough to reach Tier five. Not yet. So, he figured he would give Ezekiel a bit of a push. The fact that he had already acquired an ‘Understanding’ of his element, when his Spirit had not, was also impressive. It was more than Exalt Harras could’ve expected from literally anyone.
Speaking of Ezekiel’s Spirit...
“Where do you think you’re putting that?” Exalt Harras idly asked one of the healers as he approached. They all looked at him in concern, but the one he was focused on was particularly pale.
“Sir?” The healer asked. Their Spirit was staring at Exalt Harras in concern. A small green cat with its hackles raised. But before it could move, it was pinned down by a violet bird sitting on it.
“I saw what you did. While I’m surprised that it worked, given that it’s a Spirit, you’ll not be taking the boy’s partner away. Your Void Pouch. Give it here.” Exalt Harras said. He had been focused mainly on Ezekiel, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t aware of his surroundings. He had clearly noticed the healer in front of him taking Ezekiel’s sword into his Void Pouch.
Panicked, the healer dashed away, not even bothering to look back. But a bolt of lightning fell from the sky. Melting flesh and charring his skin. He fell to the ground unconscious. His Spirit tried to help him, but Harras just gave his Spirit a mental command. The small green cat found itself without a head a moment later. Holding out a hand, the healer’s Void Pouch flew towards him.
With a flex of his will, the binding on the pouch was broken, and he was able to reach in and take out the opalescent sword and put it back in Ezekiel’s hands. The healers that were still working on him gingerly moved out of the way, making sure not to stop their work.
“Get him ready for battle as soon as possible. We have work to do, and he’ll be a part of it.” Exalt Harras said. “And make sure that sword doesn’t leave his presence.”
With those final words, Exalt Harras strode forwards. Picking up the healer that had tried to run by the back of his coat. It seemed like the Cultists were more thorough than he had expected when it came to infiltrating the Guilds and other forces within Harkem. It seemed like he’d be busy looking for more traitors over the next couple of days.