Ezekiel found himself floating in the Void once again. Alone, this time, as Shine was nowhere to be seen. This was something that would usually be a major concern for him. But given his current circumstances, he knew that he had bigger things to worry about.
Specifically, the massive number of rips and tears that split the cosmos that he was within. The endless expanse of stars was ultimately marred by these cracks in space and time.
They swirled and mixed erratically. The majestic sight that once brought him awe was now an utterly wrecked and ruined canvas that he did not know how to restore.
Staring at the stars in the distance, he could feel a pull, the tiniest of tugging sensation that attempted to draw his eye towards them. But he found himself unable to fall into a state of enlightenment.
Instead, he felt a hollow numbing sensation. One that was a stark contrast to the feeling of an endless expanse that his mana usually gave him.
Holding out one hand, he attempted to channel his mana. He had expected pain. Perhaps even an agonizing burning sensation that would run through his veins like fire. Such descriptions were common among those that had damaged their Spirit Paths.
Instead, he found something far more terrifying. A complete and total lack of anything.
No pain. No burning agony. No exhaustion. No sluggish movement of mana.
There was Nothing, and it scared him.
----------
----------------------------------------
Pained groans were the first thing heard when Exalt Harras had one of his followers rip open the door to Ezekiel’s medical room. The small lights being used to illuminate the sealed chamber had been broken when a pulse of magic had been released from Ezekiel’s body.
However, other than having been flung into the wall, and receiving some bruises in the process, each of the Scholars was okay.
“Harolt!... Harolt! What happened?” Exalt Harras didn’t move from where he was being treated, but he shifted enough to get a look into the room.
“Explosive backlash. Extreme measures were taken, and it caused all the magical energy in Ezekiel’s body to be purged. Including the Ichor.” Harolt didn’t know this for sure. But given what he had learned about Ezekiel and Shine’s apparent plan, the Grand Scholar felt that he could safely assume his words were correct.
If they weren’t, then he could just claim that it was an unexpected reaction to the attempt that was made. Dealing with Ichor was always an unknown worry, after all. Especially when it involved Void man, which they still knew oh so little about.
“And Mister Luminance? Is the hero of the hour, okay?” As the Scholars all climbed to their feet, Harolt looked to the table where Ezekiel was laying.
Rather, the table where he should’ve been laying.
“He’s gone! Must’ve been a reaction to the purging of his magic. He should be somewhere within a couple of kilometers of us. Probably won’t be too hard to find. So long as nothing gets to him while he’s out.” Hearing Harolt say that Ezekiel was gone, brought Naeri and the others to awareness much faster.
“Why the hell are you so calm about this?” Harolt just looked confused for a minute, before Naeri noticed that his eyes seemed cloudy and there was blood running down the side of his head. “Dammit! Come here, get yourself checked over before you do something stupid.”
Holding her own head in pain, she stumbled out of the room. Very few healers were left to help. Most of the ones that had been in the room with her were also injured in some way or another. But it seemed like head injuries were few and far between. Just Harolt and one other had gotten struck in the head with any significant force.
“Lord Exalt. Given the amount of mana that Ezekiel had left, which was basically none, his ‘Jump’ spell wouldn’t have gotten him far.” Naeri sat down in a chair as an Apprentice healer that had been dragged along as backup started examining her. “Please send out a team of people that you trust to try and find him. Usually, with the Cruor’s retreat, I’d say that our presence would ward off most things that would try to kill him. But we can’t be certain of that. Especially since I’m fairly certain he’s still unconscious.”
Exalt Harras looked conflicted between asking for more answers and going with what Naeri suggested. He still needed Ezekiel alive to be of use at some point.
It would do him no good if word got out that he let the man die after doing so much to save him. Even if his existence was a pain in the ass when trying to keep the Empire stable. Potential tools needed to be treated well, after all.
“Adrian. Assemble a team led by at least two of my household to ensure that Mister Luminance is found.” Adrian moved to do as told, but not before leaning in, to whisper something into the Exalt’s ear. It was completely silent to everyone else in the room, but Harras’ looked annoyed, yet resigned, as he motioned for Adrian to proceed with his task.
“Recover quickly. We need to move as soon as Mister Luminance is found.” The assembled Scholars nodded in understanding, and Harolt’s eyes were beginning to clear up as the fog faded from his mind. Each of them was looking forward to getting out of there. Even if it was simply to return to the ruins that were once their home.
They had won the battle and, for now, the war. There were preparations to be made. Both for mourning, as well as the eventual celebration.
Harkem City might’ve been destroyed, but the land remained in humanity’s hands. It was only right that they take care of it, and build it back up, better than before.
----------
----------------------------------------
It was roughly ten minutes later that a runner came back from the group that had been sent to find Ezekiel. There was much confusion when he insisted that they needed the Grand Scholars to accompany him back to the site. But as they approached, it became obvious why.
Lying in the air, several feet above the ground, Ezekiel remained motionless as he floated above a perfectly smooth concave hole of earth and roots. One that was nearly twenty feet wide.
It was as if something had taken a spoon and scooped out that ground beneath Ezekiel. But in such a way as to not otherwise mar the landscape.
From what those that had assembled could see, whatever had caused him to ‘Jump’ to this place had seemingly destroyed anything and everything on his person. Not that there was much, as his clothes had long been cut off for his treatment.
What was strange, however, was the fact that his body had clearly undergone some kind of metamorphosis. Before he had fallen into the ichor, his skin was a relatively warm and slightly tan color. Due mostly to his years in the Archipelago.
When he was thrown into the pool, his complexion turned sickly pale, nearly gray, and his veins were clearly showing through his skin.
Now, his hair seemed to glow with a faint white light, and his skin seemed to shine with the same opalescent sheen that the blade he held against his front did.
“Why haven’t you taken him down yet?” Naeri and the Scholars were prevented from moving forward when Adrian asked this. He had been sent with the Scholars when Exalt Harras couldn’t go himself. The man was getting sick of these unexpected delays.
Rather than saying anything, one of the Mages, a Flame Adept, raised a finger before pointing it at Ezekiel. Slowly, a stream of fire flew in Ezekiel’s direction. Naeri nearly screamed at him to stop. But what happened next shocked her into silence.
As the flame hit the invisible boundary of the spherical area around Ezekiel, the fire immediately dispersed. The mana was fading away, rather than being absorbed. But it was still startlingly similar to the effects of the mist. Though not so surprising that the Scholars could say that they’d never seen it before.
During his testing and training, Ezekiel had shown off the effects of his ‘Nothingness’. Something that the exalt was also aware of. But for those that weren’t in the loop, this was scary development.
“As you can see. None of our magic works when we cross that boundary. I didn’t want to risk my people crossing it physically. Not even Cavern Mages can do anything. Their constructs just crumble as the mana is dispersed.” Adrian frowned as he listened to the scouts' report. This would make things difficult. Especially since it wasn’t likely that any volunteers would be willing to go into the hole directly.
“You folks really have lost your minds. Haven’t you.” A sigh from Harolt drew everyone’s attention to him. “Watch and learn, children.”
The man then walked over to a fallen tree. Snapping off a fist sized piece of wood from a branch, he lobbed it at Ezekiel. He ultimately ended up beaning the Void Mage with a dull ‘thud’. At which point, Ezekiel’s head moved to the side, and whatever force was holding him up faded, as did the light that was emanating from his body. Unceremoniously dropping him to the ground.
To test his next steps, Harolt spat out a small cloud of miasma that drifted and settled just within the previously existing boundary. It wasn’t dispersed in the slightest.
“There. Problem solved. Now, let’s go save our hero, and get him back to Harkem. Where he can be treated properly.” Under the dumbfounded gazes of his fellow Mages, and a few confused Spirits, Harolt strode forward, jumping into the hole, and picked Ezekiel up with a grunt. He then threw the young Void Mage over his shoulders like a man half his age would. He didn’t forget to pick up shine from where they had fallen either.
“To be honest with you all,” Harolt looked at the Mages that were still staring at him from atop the hole in the ground, “I am done with this war, done with this ruined landscape, and done with not being in a bed. I’ll worry about propriety and appearances after I’ve slept. Now, can we move on?”
Holding out a hand as he approached the lip of the hole, Naeri seemed to shake herself out of her tired stupor. Reaching forward, she helped pull Harolt and Ezekiel out of the hole. Before immediately putting a glowing blue hand against his head. Just to be sure that the concussion had been treated properly.
With a tired sigh, she slapped Harolt’s shoulder before following after him. Just as the rest also moved to follow. While they were confused at what had just happened, they could all agree on one thing.
Harolt was right. They all wanted to go home, and rest in a proper bed.
----------
----------------------------------------
The journey back to Harkem was surprisingly calm and swift. It took longer to return than it did to get to the battlefield. The trip took a full two days thanks to the lack of need to rush, but it ultimately meant that people were able to recover as they traveled.
Of course, Not once did Ezekiel wake up during this trip. Instead, he was kept within a private carriage alongside the Scholars. Adrian, having slightly more information regarding the secret surrounding Ezekiel, spoke briefly to Harolt and Naeri. Ensuring that they knew what was going on, and that they knew they needed to keep things vague for the time being.
Fortunately, both the Grand Scholars felt a dark joy in knowing that Harras and his household needed to hamstring themselves due to their sense of duty. The Scholar’s primary loyalty was to the Church of Ten, after all. Though that didn’t mean they would be spreading the information. Oaths had been sworn, and Scholars had no desire to spread chaos and discord through the world, after all.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
Besides, they both needed to work on the state of the Church. While they would get support from the other Cathedrals, it would still take some time before they were operating at full capacity. Something that they knew certain factions would take advantage of.
Especially since the Exalt would be heading back to the capital, now that the Cruor’s presence had retreated. Though there were still some concerns regarding this plan of action.
“Unfortunately, there’s nothing I can do about it. The Emperor has declared that the matter regarding our border has been settled, and that it is not my responsibility to overlook the reclamation and resettlement myself.” Harras had more or less fully healed from his injuries. Though he did still have a few scars that made moving in certain ways somewhat difficult. “It’s not like you Scholars want me here anyways. Especially since I might find out something I shouldn’t know about.”
“You mean, something that the Emperor shouldn’t know about.” Harolt had a solemn look on his face. He knew that the Emperor was likely a part of the factions that were going to be against the Church’s recovery in Harkem.
“Indeed.” Harras was blunt in his reply. While he respected the position of Emperor, the current one clearly had no concern regarding the state of the Empire. Something that was shown in his behavior regarding the recently settled conflict. “But that is not your concern. Here.”
Harras held out a contract to Harolt, who took it with careful hands. Looking over it, he let out a sigh of relief as he glanced over the contents.
“This is good. Thank you for releasing him from his contract.” The document in Harolt’s hands was an official recognition of services rendered by one Ezekiel Luminance.
It basically freed him of all previous contractual obligations and ensured that Ezekiel was free from all previously imposed punishments. As well as ensured that all previous crimes were pardoned. Including any that might’ve popped up during his service. Which there weren't’, but this covered all the holes that other nobles might try to take advantage of.
The Emperor might be able to overturn this document, but not without breaking faith with the nobility, on top of creating further friction with the three Exalts.
“I heard that his family was reuniting in Tollren, correct?” Harolt looked back to Harras upon hearing this inquiry. “From what I understand, that is where the Alkena family, one of the Luminance family’s supporters, has moved their operations to.”
“Indeed. That is the case, from what little I paid attention to. Why?” Harolt was somewhat concerned. He didn’t want the nobility causing further problems for the Luminance family. They had suffered enough. Especially given the number of contributions they had made.
“Nothing major. Just know that that is the hometown of my fellow Exalt, Talia. While not directly under her jurisdiction, she does like to keep a hand on things that happen there. Make sure that the Luminances know this. We Exalts have a responsibility regarding those that reach a certain threshold of power. Even if that won’t be an issue with Ezekiel.” Harras tone turned dark, with a hint of frustration that showed his annoyance at what had happened.
It was something that everyone who had bothered paying attention to had noticed. Though it had taken several hours after his recovery from the hole he had made for himself.
Whole his body had recovered in full, even though he hadn’t woken up, he didn’t seem to be regenerating his mana. Something that the Scholars that were treating him noticed first. After Harras had found out about it, he had declared that it would be kept a secret. Though it was implied to be a method of keeping Ezekiel safe, those with more political knowledge had other thoughts.
Specifically, they figured that it wouldn’t look good for the Empire if the Church of Ten’s greatest contributor to modern Void Magic was now a cripple. Especially since it had happened under an Exalt’s watch. They’d be lucky to continue enjoying the same level of cooperation with the Church in the future.
Given that the Empire had also lost an important potential tool, Exalt Harras also had little reason to keep being as kind as he had been. He would grant Ezekiel all that he deserved, of course. But he wouldn’t bother investing into a lost cause. Though he did make a note to keep track of the Luminance family’s twin sisters.
If Ezekiel took a hand in training them, even as crippled as he was, they’d likely grow up to be powerhouses in their own right. These were thoughts the Exalt decided to put aside for now, and revisit later, when it became more relevant.
Regardless, having given the document over to Harolt, Harras and his household swiftly vacated Harkem. Recovery and construction relief had been sent by the Empire, the Cathedral, and some of the neighboring towns and cities that had been barely affected by the Cruor.
No nobility had been officially assigned to the city as its Ruler, but that would likely happen after the repairs were finished. If not just before. As it was, it was the few Guild Leaders with ties to the nobility that were given the temporary power of authority that were currently acting as the administrators and government officials.
Something that usually wasn’t permitted due to the Guild, officially, not having ties to influence ruling and governing factions. The only exceptions were when proper governing bodies were unavailable.
For Ezekiel, none of this mattered, as he continued to sleep. But for the rest of the world, time kept going forward, and so did they.
----------
----------------------------------------
It wasn’t until nearly a month after returning to Harkem that Ezekiel finally awakened. At which point, the first thing he noticed was that the only thing he could feel was an all-encompassing numbness that spread through his body.
It was like when a limb fell asleep from laying on it wrong. But this was everywhere.
Seeing that Shine was still with him, he tentatively tried to reach out to them through the connection he was certain he could still feel.
All he got was static. A faint voice could barely be heard. But nothing he could understand.
Needless to say, when Naeri entered the room to see him quietly crying while holding a sword to his chest in a death grip, with his hands bleeding from how tightly he was holding on, she immediately called for assistance to keep him from hurting himself even further.
It took nearly an hour before Ezekiel was fully caught up on what had happened. Most of that time had been spent having several Scholars try to pull Shine from Ezekiel’s death grip. But it seemed like, although he had no apparent mana available to him, his body was even stranger than before.
After her examination, Naeri determined that Ezekiel was, physically, as strong as a Tier four Cruor. Something that hadn’t been expected by any of them. Though it was apparent that this didn’t matter to Ezekiel. His lack of mana was enough to nearly put him into shock. All his years of hard work had disappeared in an instant.
“Ezekiel...” It was only after Naeri had left Ezekiel alone, ensuring that he wouldn’t do anything stupid before she did, that a quiet and muffled voice called out to him.
Turning to look at Shine, the tears that had stopped not long ago started up again. It had been so long since they had last used it, that Ezekiel had nearly forgotten that Shine could technically speak aloud now. Hearing the Void Spirit’s voice, as faint and unclear as it was, brought him significant relief.
“Shine... I’m sorry... I don’t know what happened, but I don’t think I can feel our bond anymore.” After his first failure, Ezekiel continued to try and reach out to Shine. But after enough tries, he realized that he was tricking himself with a false hope. While he believed he could feel his bond with Shine, his inability to actually connect with the Spirit had shown him that he was likely just false hope.
“It’s okay... I can feel it... Our bond... it’s still there... just blocked...” Hope swelled once again in Ezekiel’s chest. But it dimmed somewhat. He couldn’t help but feel like he had heard of something like this before. A story of a man whose punishment was to forever have food and drink just out of reach.
That was exactly what he was feeling right now. After thirteen years of having a companion literally connected to his soul, the sudden lack of that feeling, but knowledge that it was there, was enough to make him feel hollow.
Determined to find out what the hell was happening, Ezekiel fell into a state of meditation. Feeling himself entering his inner world and seeing the motes of mana floating about all around him, Ezekiel felt relieved to know that not everything was broken.
But as he examined himself further, he realized what had happened. His Spirit Pathways had shattered. Like branches of a tree that were blown off by the wind, the pathways that his mana used to flow when he used his spells or reinforced his body were broken into pieces.
They weren’t even twisted or mangled. They were simply in pieces. The amount of his soul that his consciousness could access was basically a one-foot-tall stump, compared to the several meters tall tree that it once was. Worse yet, it almost seemed like he could sense where the different pieces of his Spirit Paths had ended up. Like splinters that were spread through his body that, for some reason, he couldn’t feel.
From what he could tell, it was one of these areas of his soul, where his Spirit Paths were disconnected, that his bond with Shine directly manifested. Thus, his bond hadn’t been severed, but his ability to sense it had been cut off when the channel that interacted with it was cut off.
He was still greatly confused, however, as he knew that such injuries should’ve meant that he was in an endless loop of pain. Portions of his soul were literally shattered. Sure, it was mainly the pathways that ran through his soul that were broken, not his soul as a whole, but it still didn’t make sense.
Coming out of his meditation and looking toward Shine, Ezekiel determined his next course of action.
“We need to speak with Naeri and Harolt. Now.”
Needless to say, neither one was happy when Ezekiel, unused to his new physical strength, broke through several doors trying to find them.
----------
----------------------------------------
Needless to say, after calming down and hearing Ezekiel’s explanation, Naeri and Harolt directly examined him again. This time, bringing in a Life Mage to cover anything they might’ve missed. Naeri was good at healing the physical aspects of the body but given her element she wasn’t as good when it came to the soul. Though she was still far better than most healers.
Unable to find anything out of the ordinary, besides the obviously broken Spirit Channels, the Adept Life Mage was dismissed, and it was only Naeri and Harolt that were left with Ezekiel to discuss things.
“So, any ideas on what might be wrong?” Ezekiel looked to Harolt with an incredulous expression on his face. He had gone to the Grand Scholar to ask for his expertise. Not get questioned on it.
“Don’t give me that look. You’re too smart to be so confused. At this point, I have some ideas, but I’m pretty certain you already know the answer. You just haven’t connected the dots yet.” At this point, even Naeri was looking at Harolt in confusion. “I’ll give you a hint: emotions.”
Ezekiel and Naeri still looked confused for a moment. But as Ezekiel connected the thought of emotions to his magic, he realized what was happening.
“You’re saying that, somehow, I’m enacting a state of Elemental Emotional Influence onto my body. Thus, numbing the pain and other physical sensations I should be feeling right now.” The more he thought about it, the more it made sense. When he allowed it to, his mana would numb his emotions to the point that he could push past any sort of traumatizing experience and operate at nearly peak efficiency. So long as his stubbornness didn’t get in the way.
“Indeed. I believe that it is likely a side effect of what is probably happening to your mana right now. I don’t think that it’s not regenerating, but rather, since your Spirit Paths are so broken, your mana is flooding your body as it regenerates.” Harras explained his own theories, which he was almost giddy to think about as this was a completely untouched field of study. “It also likely has to do with your ‘Nothingness’ as well.”
How so?” Ezekiel knew that his seemingly ingrained understanding of the concept of ‘Nothingness’ was deeply connected to his theories regarding reaching Tier four without a Spirit but wasn’t sure how it concerned the current situation.
“It is not well understood but, as you theorized, Spirits and Mages obtain a certain level of understanding that is ingrained in them when they reach the Legendary level. While not obvious, this understanding has a subtle influence on how a Hunter will use their magic.” This was new information to Ezekiel. He had always thought that a Hunter or Mage’s magic use was determined on their training, and the traits of their bonded Spirit.
“Naeri, for instance, gained an understanding of water and Glacial magic that, ironically enough, had ties to life, thus leading her to be an incredible healer, even though she is not a Life Mage. Whilst I obtained an understanding relating to ‘the spread of death’ which is why I am particularly good at gaseous poisons and other airborne means of death.” Ezekiel got chills up and down his spine as Harolt casually implied that he was basically a living plague. “Not that this knowledge is common anymore. Since we both have long since left the active battlefield. Except for wartime, of course.”
Naeri quietly snorted in the background. Ezekiel figured there was some sort of inside joke that he wasn’t privy to, so he didn’t question it.
“Regardless, it’s likely that, once you opened your fourth Chakra, and your understanding became one with your mana in full, rather than an influence you needed to impose, it started affecting your body more easily. Hence why you only feel a numbing sensation, rather than all-encompassing pain.”
The reminder that Ezekiel had, technically, broken through to Tier four brought about another wave of regret. He had finally reached what was considered the top of humanity, with Mythics being beyond humanity, only to find out he couldn’t use his magic anymore.
“Hold still.” As Harolt suddenly grabbed Ezekiel’s arm, he grew confused for a second before he saw a black rot spreading from where Harolt had grabbed him.
“Harolt! What are you doing!?” Naeri nearly screamed as she reprimanded Harolt, ripping his hand off Ezekiel in the process. But before she could begin healing him, Ezekiel’s arm began reverting to its original color.
“Hmmm... Seems like that theory is right as well. You are immune to external influences of magic.” Ezekiel and Naeri just stared at Harolt as he looked over Ezekiel’s arm.
“But... that doesn’t make sense. We used magic to heal him. To observe him. How could he not be affected by magic?” Naeri had used her magic on Ezekiel several times. There didn’t seem to be any issues at the time.
“You weren’t actually healing him though, were you? You said it yourself when he was first checked over after we recovered him from that hole. He was physically fine, just needed to recover himself. Maybe you thought you were aiding him, but more likely your mana was just dispersing like mine was. Something that happens to a healer's mana when they expend it to heal their patients.” Harolt’s explanation turned Naeri silent. Until she reached forward and tried to use a spell on Ezekiel.
It was a simple healing spell. One that helped with blood flow for patients with gaping wounds. It was also one of the spells that she would notice the effects of, given Ezekiel’s currently healthy state. But the magic just faded away, like there was nothing there.
For his part, Ezekiel just looked lost. His ability to use magic had been taken from him due to his own issues. But it seemed like he had gained something new. The ability to passively, and totally, dispel any magic that came into contact with his body was useful when fighting Mages or Spirits.
His body being as powerful as the average Legendary Cruor was also great. Both of these things meant that he could still fight and defend himself against threats. But there was a nagging feeling in the back of his mind. He wasn’t sure what it meant, but he could tell that, so long as he didn’t have his magic, the future was going to be grim.