THE ELEMENTALIST

The nagging thought of fleeing prematurely continued to annoy me as days passed with no signs of Cain or scouts entering the southern plains. I was taking shelter inside my underground lair on a windy afternoon, casually honing my control over Stone. It was pretty impossible to train appropriately without light. All I had was my Petty Night Vision, which did nothing in absolute darkness, forcing me to rely on Petty Sound Vision. I exhaled heavily as I sat in the darkness, playing with a smooth orb of stone.

I was fucking bored! I wanted to venture out onto the plains! But here I was, restricted and precautious about Cain! I crushed the ball of stone in my hand out of frustration. Signals from my familiars buzzed continuously at the back of my head—my arachnids were hungry, and if I did not feed them soon, they would wilt away. But critters and animals were hard to come by around here, and if it was a decision to feed either my arachnids or my hawk, it was not a hard choice.

My stomach growled, and I plopped down onto my back in annoyance.

PAIN

To damnations with it!

And for the rest of the day, I did nothing but lay there wallowing in my hatred for Cain. The feeling of being back in the basement of Fire Kingdom washed over me, only fueling my boiling anger.

I awoke in the middle of the night from the blaring signals of Petty Danger Sense. I sat, blinking into the darkness, thinking my eyes were still closed before activating Petty Sound Vision. I translated the signals my hawk sent me and saw the blurry imagery translated to me.

I sat up and focused on my hawk's signals—two kinans with two nearby horses were scouting the village. My heart raced as I crept through my underground cave, made a right, and went up a gentle slope.

It led me just underneath a room within the left wing of the manor. The floor had given way, and the second floor had collapsed, barricading the room on all sides. My head poked out from within a covered gap, and I could peer out the front of the manor through tiny holes I made myself.

No heat signatures were within the manor, and two signatures in front of the fountain remained. The beating of my heart was at my throat—worried if any of them had Petty Heat Vision or Scan.

I saw sound waves pulsing in the distance before my ears could understand the sound of horses approaching. The two individuals near the fountain move slightly, entering the moonlight—my jaws clenched at their classes—Siegfried, Kinan, Mage/Blaster, Thirty and Aluno, Kinan, Mage/Blaster/Archer, Thirty-seven.

Blasters, one of our elite forces, were a special class that the Fire Kingdom produced. They wielded Salvos, L-shaped puri-crafted instruments that fired off condensed rays of fire. I averted my eyes from them—their features replaying in my mind with only a glance, for I dared to look directly at them again, or else they may feel my stare.

I could only read the single (Physical Affinity) Leather Chest Plate, +10% Physical Damage Resistance enchantment Aluno wore. So, I ducked down and did my best to listen in.

SIEGFRIED

Nothing?

I heard him ask loudly,

ALUNO

.... everything's dead.

I made out his response. The galloping intensified, blocking out my vision with its sounds.

VOICE

We're leaving!

A pause.

VOICE

What?

I tried to listen while slinking lower and away from the holes, but I got no response. I squinted at the sudden thickening of the sound waves bouncing around my vision—becoming denser and more precise—they knew!

I peeked and saw them approaching my location—

SIEGFRIED

He's here!

I jammed my hand into the soil before me and called forth earthly spikes to rip out from underneath them. They were quick to avoid them as I took hold of my sword and flew up through the roof of the building. I soared into the sky and looked down at them—

ALUNO

Get out of here Dan!

I eyed the gent, Dan, upon the horse pulling out a Scryer. Hmph—my sword flung my body into the sky before zipping through the air. It flew after Dan and pierced through the Scryer. Part of Dan's fingers and hands were sliced off in the process.

Aluno removed the Salvos from his belts and focused on me. My sword returned to me just as Aluno fired off two bolts of condensed flames. Despite dodging the bolts, the heat seared my flesh and robes.

I focused back on Dan, who was fleeing, galloping down the slope bend. Combining Petty En Reflex and Petty Danger Sense, I avoided more bolts fired off by Aluno and flew after Dan. Meanwhile, fire shot out Siegfried's feet, allowing him to propel himself at me in an attempt to cut me off.

Siegfried materialized an Iron Halberd +3 and swung. My sword dipped downward in an instant, blocking the blow. I let go of my sword, somersaulted over Siegfried, retrieved my sword, and flew after Dan.

With my speed, I caught up, and while above him, I saw that he had only the Warrior class as I sent my sword forcefully down through his back and horse.

SIEGFRIED

Dan!

I smiled softly—if I ever see that gent Isaac again, it will be hard to resist kissing him firmly on the mouth for such a powerful gift.

SIEGFRIED

You think this is funny!

He cried and flew at me.

I commanded my sword through the ground to come up from beneath Siegfried. But, to my surprise, it glanced off a magical ward. The impact was enough to unbalance him.

Nearly about to crash into the ground, I called back my sword and grabbed hold. I took off south, keeping my height elevated as I watched my enemies. Siegfried barely avoided colliding into the ground—he reoriented himself using flames from his hands.

ALUNO

We have to—

SIEGFRIED

I'm killing him!

He wailed out in anger and blasted off again the moment he landed.

ALUNO

Dammit, Seig!

Perfect. Aluno gave chase—he, too, can fly through propulsion. But I had the advantage of better control—revealing this to them as I swung my legs onto my sword. I began to hurl balls of flame at them, but my aim was pathetic while in this position.

Siegfried blasted the air beneath him with his hands and feet, giving him a sudden boost as he flipped through the air and raised above me. Then, he materialized two Salvos and fired relentlessly at me. I swayed out of the way, but with Aluno firing as well, I lost balance and fell off.

Siegfried came after me, and my sword charged at him, striking him forcefully in the stomach. Dammit, it glanced off the ward again. Siegfried propelled himself—his Salvos glowing with heat.

Fine, come at me. As I fell, I clasped my hands and created a Lesser Sun. His Salvos burned with a radiant heat before firing out a condensed beam of fire. I let loose my Lesser Sun, and the two attacks collided in a conical explosion.

His beam pierced through my Lesser Sun, causing it to explode toward me. I braced myself and cast Water as the cloud of flames engulfed me.

ALUNO

Siegfried!

Through the steam of water, I saw Siegfried falling with a trail of smoke—the smoke trailing from his Salvos.

My sword returned, and I caught it—but not in time. I grabbed hold of the hilt as I crashed through several branches and tumbled along the ground of dead leaves. I grimaced in pain and slid my hand down my side to pull out a piece of branch. With my other hand, I seared the wound as laughter began to echo around me.

I glanced around, and their heat signatures became clear—elokos, dancing and laughing upon the branches of the trees. This must be their nest, and I just came crashing into it. Again, their heat signatures faded into a rhythmic blur.

These bastards were truly fast as they Quickstepped from branch to branch. I also realized they made barely any sound with their movements—their thunderous laughter gave their position away.

My reflex kicked in, and I bolted to the right—dodging a beam of flames. What a pain! I turned to face Aluno striding towards me with his Salvos radiating exactly the way Siegfried's did.

My sword flew out and circled in an attempt to slice off his hands, but he had a ward. The blow took his aim elsewhere, and the fire beams ripped through trees. This sent the elokos into a fearful frenzy as they fled in laughter.

I suddenly Quickstepped back out of Siegfried's assault from above. He crashed to the ground, and I called back my sword.

ALUNO

Kill him!

I glanced at Aluno; he had grabbed my sword and propelled himself away with so much force that the thrusting flames at his feet burned away at his leather pants and boots.

I dodged several of Siegfried's wild swings and jerked the command upon my sword. Aluno flailed at the sudden redirection of my sword.

ALUNO

Behind you!

My sword struck Siegfried in the back, but his damned ward caused him to be pushed toward me. I formed two balls of flame while he formed one, and we crashed with a fiery explosion. The blast drove me back, and I quickly dosed myself with Water.

Siegfried emerged unscathed primarily due to his damn ward.

SIEGFRIED

You cannot win.

This was the first time he was able to study me and notice my form.

SIEGFRIED

So that is why.

I noticed his pale white hands were scarred and reddened with mana burn. A smile curved up his pale face, parted by a dark green bar shaped like a large "U".

SIEGFRIED

Aluno,

He called his partner,

SIEGFRIED

Forget your Salvos! Ire here is a daywalker.

He stashed his sword and prepared his burning, raging fists of Fire. Aluno, pale white as well with green patterns flowing down his body resembling a happy skeleton, stashed his Salvos, and he too, conjured flames around his hands.

SIEGFRIED

We will burn him to death.

He grinned, and I scowled—to death?

He propelled himself toward me, and I slipped out of the way. But, to my surprise, he could maneuver midair by propelling fire from his hands and brought a spinning leg down at me.

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Missing, his leg collided with the ground of leaves and let loose a wave of flames. The flames were weak, but since I had an Aversion to fire, it only took a spark of flame to ignite my skin. I dosed myself off again with Water just in time to flip out of the way of Aluno's raging fists. I was distracted—does he think he can kill me? Did they have no clue I was immortal?

The woodland and forests were being covered in flames. This was likely their plan.

SIEGFRIED

You are eventually going to run out of mana!

He jabbed at me, and my sword collided with his torso, pushing him back slightly. My mana stores were indeed running low, but that was not the limit I was worried about. My Inventory slowed me down, and the more mana I used, the heavier I became. If I keep this up, my entire Inventory will be forced out.

But I continued to evade their attacks, fleeing backward away from them while occasionally pushing them back with my sword and Telekinesis. Each time my skin caught ablaze, I dosed it off with Water. Flames were now all around us, and the air was thick with heat and smoke.

SIEGFRIED

Nowhere to run, bastard!

I Quickstepped back as he and Aluno propelled toward me. And it finally hit me, a mind-numbing shock as a flash of white blurred my vision. I fell to my knees as Siegfried and Aluno's bodies forcefully expelled a bright blue light before lifelessly tumbling along the ground toward me.

I let out a sigh as their bodies began to wither.

PAIN

So, this was it?

A sudden flash of white and they were gone! Oralath's words echoed in my head.

For a moment, I thought my plan was not going to work. Their plan of setting the entire woods on fire backfired—they had no clue they were moving south as they fought against me. I waved my hand, extinguishing a path, and witnessed a few shriveled eloko corpses.

The numbing shock came again, and I withstood it. It was not at all painful—somewhat numbing and disorienting. I pushed myself back to my feet, but a burst of deep laughter echoing behind me tensed my entire body. I moaned as I turned to face a bulky eloko—an eloko elder with silver and black hair covering its body. When an eloko reaches old age, their aging rate slows by half, they become physically more robust but also slower, and their hair turns silver.

PAIN

I am not in the mood, and I am tired.

It roared, seemingly responding to me as my sword floated to my side.

PAIN

I was not the one who burned down your forest.

I tried to explain, but it let out a deep laugh and pounded the ground.

PAIN

Why are you still alive anyway?

It let out a war cry before leaping through the air at me. I sighed and readied my floating sword.

PAIN

So, you have chosen dea—

The numbing shock disoriented me, and the eloko elder bounced off the ground lifelessly. I stared at its shriveling body and shook my head in annoyance. The sound of a thick branch crumbling under the raging fire signaled that it was time for me to leave this burning nest before more elders arrived.

I sat upon my sword, lifted myself above the nest, and floated east towards the smell of water. I lowered myself to the river's edge and telekinetically grabbed out fish.

I sat and ate roasted fish while staring absentmindedly at the abandoned watermill up the river.

LOCNESS

Ire...

I tensed up at her voice echoing in my head and bit down painfully on my tongue. I grimaced and shoved the thoughts away.

LOCNESS

Ire...

Tears formed in my eyes, but I heated them away.

PAIN

I am going to find a way to bring you back... I promise.

I said through my teeth as the taste of my blood tainted my mouth.

Petty Danger Sense tingled, and I put out my flames and crouched. I scanned the northern plains, looking for any movement, and spotted two gents upon horses and four others upon foot approaching the edge of the burning nest.

Positive that at least one of them had some sort of searching skill like Aluno and Siegfried, I slowly positioned myself south to make the burning woods block our direct view. The spreading of the flames aided in covering my movements as I moved further south.

Still quite tired, I sat upon my sword, but the numbing shock forced me to lose focus and fall.

PAIN

It seems like I cannot fly the rest of the way.

I saw a shriveled corpse of a Blaster behind me, another corpse—a Warrior to its left and surrounded by shriveled elokos. They had enough time to roam inside its range before succumbing to it. There was a roughly ten-minute pause in between the numbing shocks.

Whatever was causing it was still tugging on my soul and was alluring me toward it. I turned and used the dead bodies of the Fire Kingdom soldiers to summon one cave arachnid, two black arachnids, and a caballus.

I waited momentarily, allowing my familiars to feast on the corpses that littered the area. Then, once my caballus reached its third stage, I mounted and grabbed hold of its mane. The numbing shock shook me again, but I endured it and galloped south toward the alluring source of magic.

We galloped at full speed—my cave arachnid skittering alongside me while my black arachnids performed their signature rolling and leaping. The shocks grew longer as we traveled deeper, and the planes became lifeless. I was also building up a tolerance to its numbing sensation, but it still clouded my senses with every jolt.

The land suddenly sloped downward, and my caballus maneuvered and hopped down the unforgiving terrain. The clouds parted, and before me, I saw a settlement worthy of being called a city-state. And with the parting of the shadows came the moonlight raising old corpses and critters to life. I commanded my sword to deal with them and moved on.

I scanned my surroundings and noticed I was entering a wide bay. The moonlight reflected off the mountainous rising sea behind the walled city. The river flowed through a gap in the city walls, and I saw a dirt road running beside it as I got closer. We jumped on it.

As my caballus snaked down the uneven terrain, my eyes were stuck gazing at the rising sea in awe. The water simply rose into the sky in the distance—a mountain of water that the adventurer in me sought to set sail and experience firsthand.

But the numbing shock brought me back, and I reoriented my focus on the collapsed gate the dirt road led to. My caballus and familiars jumped up and over the pile of rubble, and then we descended it to enter the city. The road led straight towards a gigantic mansion radiating with wealth.

Along the road, I saw decaying homes and stores—from them came wobbling skeletons approaching me from all angles. My sword crashed through them, and we dashed forward, passing another high gate and a change of scenery.

The houses on either side of the roads were cobblestone and elegant—many stood upright with minimal signs of decay. The more affluent district, I presumed. Afterward, I saw what seemed to be the leftovers of a busy market area at the edge of the road.

The road forked off into a large circle around the mansion. Galloping around, I noticed several other main streets leading to the center. The mansion had four entrances, but the stone steps had long crumbled.

I chose the best and most sturdy one, dismounted my caballus, and carefully tested the stability. I turned back, desummoned my caballus, and kept my three arachnids close. Back at the top of the stairs, something about this area felt familiar, but Recall Memory could not put any solutions together. Finally, I approached the door and noticed it was slanted and barricaded by debris.

The shocks had intensified, lasting whole seconds now. I quickly rounded the manor, seeking another entrance. I found a gaping hole, materialized my staff, and blasted it open with Telekinesis. The entire wall and part of the ceiling collapsed, but I was able to get in over the debris.

PAIN

If I get buried alive after all of this...

I whispered to myself. I crept into the darkness and lit the area with heat radiating from the tip of my staff. Nothing was moving in the shadows, according to my familiars. No moonlight, no undead.

I stepped forward—CRUNCH! I jumped back in fear and lit the ground. The entire floor was littered with bones. They were so old that it took little pressure to crush them. I refused to make any more noise and telekinetically pushed the bones off to the sides. I saw that I was strolling through a large hall and could look into the rooms along the way.

By the look of the bones and the clothing remains on a few, they were instantly killed by the energy. Finally, I saw a large door flanked by two piles of bones and sealed enchanted armor—sealed enchanted items never deteriorated. I approached and gave the doors a budge—it was locked.

The tugging shock was pulling me downward. I searched the halls with random turns, seeking a staircase downward. I found myself at a fork leading into a high ceiling and spacious foyer. I was surprised it still stood. I looked left and right and saw the pillars were thick with minor cracks, and the floor was made of marble and smooth stone.

PAIN

Probably the main hall.

I chose to turn right, but as soon as I did, I froze. A chilly air seeped into my body, engulfing me with fear. Petty Danger Sense flared—my familiar, and I saw a silvery object floating along the other side of the hall near a pillar. My body felt limp, and my Inventory seemed to increase in weight. The thing suddenly stopped, and I felt eyes on me.

A high-pitched scream ripped through the air and blasted us into the air. I smashed against a thick pillar and fell to the ground—my staff flying out from my hand. I regained enough strength to palm my ears as the deafening torrent of sound peeled at my skin.

I felt blood trickle down my ears while pinned against the pillar. My black arachnid rolled towards me and tackled me from out of the funnel of sound. I quickly rose to my knees. I blinked—I could not see very well— the deafening scream blasted my black arachnid down the hall.

I bit down on the existing cut on my tongue, and the pain pushed away the fear. Then, focusing a ridiculous amount of mana into my eyes, I blasted the hall with a cone of Telekinesis. The screeching sound wave stopped, but mana burn further scorched my eyes. The fear and limpness washed away, and my ability to move my arms returned. My arachnids quickly aided me in pinpointing the creature.

I slapped my hands together and used Lesser Sun. I felt the flaming ball of destruction smash against the other side of the hall, followed by the sound of debris crashing down. I dropped to all four as blood trickled across my face from my ears. I could not hear nor see, so I eagerly read signals from my familiar. Dust and debris—nothing resembling that silver creature was moving.

That cursed thing had to be a fucking banshee! I thought ghosts were considered undead, but seeing how there was no moonlight—I had no clue. My black arachnid retrieved my staff, and I climbed onto my cave arachnid. I used the tugging shocks to direct us through the hall and materialized two Tiny Vials of Healing to drink. It quickened my recovery, stopping the bleeding in my ears and burning of my eyes, but I was still very much blind and deaf.

After half an hour and the building up of anxiety, my cave arachnid found a staircase leading down—in my rush, I tumbled forward off my arachnid and fell down the stone staircase.

PAIN

Dammit!

I shouted as I rose to all fours. There was another flight of stairs, so I carefully climbed down using my arachnids' signals to aid my sight.

Once done, I sat back atop my cave arachnid, and we sprinted through a series of tunnels before coming across a dead end—blocked by fallen debris. My eyesight was returning, and I spotted a small gap within the barricade. I began to chip away at it with Telekinesis and used Earth and Stone to reinforce the tunnel's ceiling.

PAIN

Just one thing after another—gah!

The shocks were now four seconds long, with only a minute or two in between. But light began to shine through the gap, and I quickened my pace. My eyes were fully healed by the time I took my last blow at the opening. I shielded my eyes as blinding light came to spite me.

The shock tugged me forward, nearly pulling my body off its feet, and lasted ten seconds. Then, shielding my eyes from the light, I strolled in, attempting to make out the large room.

I was greeted by a strong gust of wind wrapping around this large altar room. My eyes scanned about quickly to take in the room before another mind-numbing tug came. I found a flight of stairs before me, leading to a blinding light at the top of an altar. The room was divided into four sections separated by cobble walkways. I saw old chairs and desks filled with small skeletons within the sections.

Judging from their deteriorating clothes, they were children. At the bottom of the stairs were the teacher's remains, noted by his (???) Robes. I moved up the narrow staircase. My eyes slowly attuned to the brightness, and I made out a floating book at the top. Its pages were flipping loudly and fast; it might as well be causing the gust within the room.

My jaws dropped once I understood what it was—an open spell book, which means—the memory hit me like a ton of books—this room was a teaching ground for scribes. No wonder the design of this altar looked familiar—within the Fire Kingdom, we had no altar in our classes but sat similarly.

I began to approach the book, my mouth agape in awe. I never thought it true because every scribe teacher had their own say in an open spell book. I watched the spell book before me, and since it was open, I had no idea what spell it was. Its hieroglyphic phrases were expelled frantically from its whipping pages. The shocks came and never ended at this distance—getting stronger with every step.

Standing before the book, I had no idea how to stop it. I reached for the book, feeling a spongy barrier around it, pushing my hands away. The whipping hieroglyphs started seeping into my eyes, and the intense sensation of learning a spell washed over me. I widened my eyes and stared into the book as the magical words seeped into my brain.

I pushed against the spongey-like barrier, forced my head through the warding energy, and grabbed at the book—and the brightness of light overtook my vision.

The light suddenly faded, pulling me into a gray and black void where the ground was riddled with dark, warping, protruding spikes. And for a brief moment, standing before me was a burning black silhouette of Locness with burning red flames for eyes.

LOCNESS

Ire...

Skills Acquired:

Petty Soul Harvest

Class Acquired:

Elementalist

Passives Granted:

Petty Elemental Control

*****

It was late at night, and within a gloomy throne hall within the Lightning Kingdom, an armored knight covered in gold puri plating and armed with a two-handed sword upon his back marched toward the throne. Upon reaching the several steps before the throne, he dropped to a knee.

Sitting upon the throne was a king, armored as well in gold puri plating. His gauntlets and sabatons ended in sharp onyx puri claws. He wore no helm revealing his slick back hair and yellow and white skin. The strong stare of his silver and black striped pupils fell upon the armored knight kneeling before him.

KING

General.

His calming voice echoed down the empty throne hall.

GENERAL

My lord,

He started, doing his best to calm his visible eagerness.

GENERAL

Our scholars and scouts believed they found it. The god item, Mjolnir.

The King's head tilted slightly forward.

KING

How far?

GENERAL

A week north on horses sire, near the Azure Mountains. But sire,

He looked up at his King with uncertainty in his eyes.

GENERAL

It is guarded by a Sky Dragon, a small number of keen adventurers are heading for it, and the area is located near North Star's border—

The King's gauntlets gripped at the silver armrest, and the King stood, towering over seven feet tall. He reached out and materialized Celestial Javelin Vel,

KING

I'll handle it. Let's go.