Chapter V

As the battle of Ankalla was waged below him, sending tremors running through the walls and the floor, Uma Miyon stood in a near-empty corridor that was silent and tense. Barron was in front of him, his red armor glittering in the firelight and his glaive gripped in both hands, raised before him. Fifteen yards down the hall were two Masters of Ijiria. Nakoma Taurus, the Master of Fire, was a man Uma had confronted once and had succeeded at getting the drop on by using his magicless weapon. It unfortunately hadn’t been enough to kill him, resulting in a destructive duel between him and Barron that ended in a draw. His presence was dangerous for the sole reason that he was one of their few enemies that was personally familiar with the way Uma and Barron fought. It also meant that Uma’s gun was unlikely to work a second time, or at least not as effectively as it had back in Hiriech. The Master of Wind, Koroha Rhitta, was Nakoma’s antithesis in that Uma knew very little about her and she would lack the past experience in combating them.

However, if Rhitta is here with Taurus, then she’ll have long since been briefed on how to go about defeating us… This is bad… This is so ridiculously bad that I can feel the dread taking root in my stomach. We couldn’t break the stalemate with Taurus back when Barron’s armor was operating at full capacity and the Master was alone! Right now, we’re weaker and he’s stronger… The only thing we have going for us are these…

The improved gauntlets and boots that were fused into Uma’s bloodstream were the only ace they had. In their original battle with Nakoma, Uma had not been able to act as a combatant, and while he doubted his ability to go toe-to-toe with a Master of Ijiria even with his abilities, he at least took solace in the fact that they were better than being completely unarmed.

“You’re strangely quiet, Miyon,” Nakoma suddenly called out to him in a mocking tone. “I recall you being a lot more noisy—a lot more confident. Could it be that the time has finally come that you aren’t the one playing with an advantage? Could it be that we’ve actually taken you by surprise?”

The Master of Fire smirked smugly as orange flames erupted around his hands and began to coil his wrists and upper arms, displaying his eagerness for battle. Watching this, Uma swallowed back his embarrassment and shame, for Nakoma was correct. The magicless man always loved to taunt them and talk to them as a way to prove his dominance over them. After all, if he could laugh and play in the midst of a fight to the death, then he was wordlessly communicating that he wasn’t afraid of his opponents—that he knew as an absolute fact his victory was assured. Given that, instead of greeting Nakoma and Koroha in his typically excited fashion, he found himself trembling. For the first time since he joined the Kosah-Rei, Uma Miyon was at the mercy of another and he hated it with all his being. The likelihood of Tali’s deceit grew with each passing second, increasing his anger with it. He was furious at the prospect that she had hidden this attack from them, and horrified that if she had, then it meant somebody, at the very least, was going to die in that fortress on that day.

And as I face down one of the most destructive Masters in existence, I can’t help thinking that it may be Barron and I whose tomb Ankalla will become… He took a deep breath, deciding that for the sake of his pride, he would need to pretend that these Masters hadn’t rattled him. Put on a show for them, Uma… Don’t let these Ijirian freaks take away everything you’ve worked for. This is your life—your dream! If Nakoma Taurus wants to steal it all from you, then you need to unleash hell against him!

“Please, don’t mistake my silence for fear,” Uma finally retorted, though even he had to admit that his voice lacked its typical power. “While I will admit that I hadn’t expected today to be our inevitable reunion, Master Taurus, I am more than willing to resume our unfinished battle.” He then twisted his lips and fixed the crimson-haired man with a merciless smile. “That is, assuming Master Rana’s violence doesn’t interrupt us again?”

He was testing the waters, wanting to see what Koroha Rhitta would do or say if he alluded to the creature Nyx Rana became back in Hiriech. They had never known for certain whether or not the Masters were aware of Nyx’s condition, and by Tali’s orders, they didn’t bother trying to expose it on the off-chance that it was a secret shared only between Water and Fire. The Voice had argued that it would lead to another Master of Water being appointed in her stead, which was undesirable for one very important reason. If Nyx were unseated, then it was quite possible that Rennigan Glaus would be appointed in her place, if only to cooperate with Kloras, and the last thing the Kosah-Rei needed was a stronger alliance between the Masters and the Council of Elders. Therefore, Nyx’s secret was kept as a card in their back pocket. Now, however, Uma no longer gave two shits about what Tali Firrik wanted, so he would pull out any card he needed to if it meant saving his own life.

Yet, Koroha’s features didn’t shift whatsoever, which told Uma that she either knew the truth or was simply very good at not reacting. Either way, the magicless man could only click his tongue in irritation.

“Miyon, let’s get right to the point, why don’t we?” Nakoma continued, also not showing even a hint of panic at his comment. “By law, magicless who come into contact with the magical are to be erased…so I’ll give you one chance to surrender. If you do, erasure is all that’ll happen to you. If you don’t, you will die right here and now. After all, Kristoff’s armor is no longer sufficient enough to protect you.”

Uma narrowed his eyes with disgust, not only at the fact that Nakoma confirmed their suspicions that The Angel relayed the secret of the armor to the Ijirians, but also at Nakoma’s utterly nonsensical suggestion.

“You say that like death isn’t the superior option!” Uma spat. “Do you think I want to be forgotten by the world?! Do you think I want my legacy wiped away, with nothing left behind to remember me by?! Fuck you! If it’s my fate to leave this reality, then I would far prefer you to sever my head and let it all end the traditional way! No matter what, I will not be erased!” Laughing coldly, almost more to himself than to the Masters, the magicless man summoned his magic through his gauntlets and boots, knowing that these two mages would not allow the conversation to progress much longer. “Do your worst, both of you, and I will prove why you’ve made a grave mistake challenging the Goddess Rei in her most precious of sanctuaries!”

Nakoma grinned with sadistic pleasure as he replied, “Very well… Then I will prove to you that your Goddess either doesn’t exist or has abandoned you. See you on the other side, Miyon.”

It was as the Master spoke, that Uma noticed a strange movement in his glasses resting slightly lower on his nose. He’d been keeping them in his peripheral vision, wanting to know the exact moment when his opponents would strike, but the sight within those spectacles was a blur he couldn’t quite decipher. Then, at Nakoma’s cue, Uma received his answer.

He felt the sudden surge in magic around his body too late before what he realized were ropes of wind wrapped tightly around his torso and pulled him backwards, sending Uma soaring down the corridor in the opposite direction from where Barron was blocking the Masters. Realization flashed through his mind in a split second as it dawned on him what their strategy was. Uma and Barron had been a strong duo in combating Nakoma in the forest outside Hiriech, so they intended to split them up so that Barron could not take advantage of Uma’s foresight. Based on the use of wind magic, Koroha must have uttered Condite under her breath, then attacked from behind despite being ahead of them, her magic pulling him away and spinning him through the air so that he couldn’t tell the difference between up and down.

Shit! Shit, shit, shit!

He had no idea if either of the Masters were pursuing him or if there was another Ijirian there to attack from behind, but regardless of what was going to happen, Uma knew he had to do something to defend himself. Tapping into the power within his inventions, the man ejected a wild burst of fire magic from all four limbs, sending those flames flying everywhere and destroying things he could not see. All he knew was that this random attack managed to sever the ropes binding him, so he quickly replaced the fires in the boots for wind that surged through his soles and exploded outwards, acting against gravity and enabling him to slow his flight enough to orient himself. He twisted his body midair, turning his chest parallel to what he now identified as the floor a mere foot below him, then jammed his metal hands and feet into it, using the friction to finish his deceleration and come to a complete stop.

And the second his head snapped upwards to stare down the length of the hall, he saw through the spectacles barely still on his head the sight of Koroha Rhitta flying through the air, her magic carrying her straight towards him at a speed that was almost inhuman even for a mage of wind. Uma used his boots’ equivalent of Proto to jump to the left, pressing his body right up against the wall and watching as Koroha soared past him hardly a millisecond later, some sort of metal weapon he hadn’t previously noticed sliding barely an inch away from his exposed neck. Even with his future sight, he only managed to avoid her by a hair—something that served to remind him of the simple yet obvious fact that she was the Master of Wind.

Ever since their grand debut in Hiriech, Ryokumo Caeli had always been the wind mage they were the most cautious of, for his speed, boldness, and willingness to take risks made him a hell of an adversary. In a lot of ways, Uma considered Ryokumo as their greatest threat that wasn’t an Iiji or a Master, and this woman was naturally going to be better than Ryokumo in every sense of the word. He was a talented student of wind, but Koroha Rhitta was the Master.

Uma spun on his heel, realizing now that if Koroha was going to be the one attacking him, then it would be critical to keep her in his sight. If she got behind him, his glasses would be useless, and there was no question that if he couldn’t see the future, she would kill him in a heartbeat.

In the second between her attack missing and Uma spinning around, Koroha had corrected her course and planted her feet onto the wall behind him, the subsequent Proto so violent that the stone exploded outwards and created a hole in the fortress that exposed the outside and allowed the gray light of the overcast morning to suddenly bathe the corridor. This time, Uma had nowhere to move being in as tight of quarters as they were, so using his precious foresight, as well as his instincts, he opted to block her advance as opposed to dodge. A shield of wind erected between them, again just a millisecond before what he now could tell was a dagger in her hand could be plunged into his chest. But of course, a mere shield of wind was not going to stop her for long, and with a reaction speed that didn’t rely on cheating, she sent a burst of wind right to the tip of that dagger before jamming it into his shield.

The shockwave it caused yet again launched Uma off his feet, but this time, he began to fly back the way he had come. He could just barely make out the flickering of orange somewhere in the distance, indicating that Nakoma had chosen to confront Barron while Koroha dealt with Uma. This was ideal since it meant they were still close by, for Uma knew he stood no chance in hell if he fought alone. Even if it meant he and Barron would have to fight both Masters, at least then, Uma’s foresight could help the both of them. Unfortunately, Koroha was swift enough to make sure that didn’t happen. The speed of his flight made it far too hard to identify her positioning within his glasses, so as a defense, he raised both arms up and erected shields to either side of him. Koroha suddenly appeared on his left, her wind-enhanced foot colliding with his protection and altering the course of his trajectory towards the wall on his right. If not for the fact that he had erected two shields, he probably would have died when his body impacted that wall and flew right through it. Koroha’s kick and the collision with the wall shattered both shields, but Uma’s body remained intact as he found himself outside the fortress and in the middle of the air.

Shit!

Panic set in as he began plummeting towards the fatal rocks down below him, and up above, Koroha Rhitta had already launched herself after him, wind soaring around her entire body as a number of slight distortions appeared in the air around her. Uma’s magicless nature made him unable to use his senses to identify what was happening, but the sight in his glasses of nearly a dozen blades of wind hurtling towards him told him just in time that she had cast Perkari. Either he would die from hitting the ground or her spell would chop his body to pieces. It was a miraculous feat of ingenuity that allowed him to survive what would have certainly ended the life of any other typical magicless. His future-predicting glasses combined with his gauntlets and boots were already helping him hold his own, but there was one other thing he had previously tossed into the mix that gave him just enough edge.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

Back in his quarters, he had taken two pills from a canister he kept in one of his drawers. They were more or less a form of magical steroids that were spreading rampantly across the Ijirian south and most of Norania by drug cartels and other illegal operations. They had been banned by almost every country in the realm because they unnaturally increased one’s magical power and heightened their senses, but they were very easy to overdose on and could lead to a bipolar swinging of emotions that had led many mages into a drug-induced rampage. Uma, however, did not biologically produce mana, and as such, after experimenting with them, he found that the only effect they had on him was the heightened senses. Using Leiolai’s nature magic as a fallback should they damage his body, he increased the dosage and found that he could handle much higher amounts while still keeping decent control over himself. So, having expected to find himself in combat, Uma took the drugs mere minutes ago, and was now beginning to feel them properly kicking in.

As he plummeted, it felt as if the world began to slow down, like he was watching reality at half speed, and thus, even though he was probably suspended in midair for only a second or two, it felt like much longer as he gathered his bearings, noted the outer walls of Ankalla to his immediate right, and spotted one of the rare windows one story below him. Any mistake would result in Koroha’s blades finishing him, but Uma Miyon refused to die, so he extended his left arm, sent a shockwave hurtling through the gauntlet, and propelled himself to the right just in time to fly through the glass.

Even with all of his artificial upgrades, one of the blades pierced the side of his waist, taking out a sizable chunk of his flesh and splattering blood across his left side. Meanwhile, the shards of shattered window cut up parts of his face, leaving him grateful that he didn’t take any to the eyes as he slammed into the carpet harder with a grunt of pain before sliding to a stop just against the opposite wall from where he entered.

Since he knew Koroha was horrifically fast and outmatched him in every way, Uma wasn’t about to return to combat with her, and since he knew he was on either the third or fourth floor, he swiftly decided he needed to reach the ground levels and rendezvous with any allies he could find. If he could join Quill or Vesh, he may be able to spin this situation into his favor.

Though, I’m sorry that I have to abandon Kristoff… Against Master Taurus, well…

Deep in his gut, he had a nasty feeling that he had seen Barron Kristoff for the last time, so he shoved the red knight from his thoughts, rolled onto his hands and feet, then protoed down the unfortunately empty corridor, towards the entrance to a spiral stairwell that was a mere twenty yards away. Of course, he wasn’t optimistic enough to think that Koroha wouldn’t be on top of him instantly, so after propelling himself, he spun around midair so that his body would face where he came from and sent more magic into a shield that fully protected him. He didn’t have the chance to check his spectacles, because just as the shield was erected, he found himself watching as a shockwave tore through the corridor, shattering every window, destroying the firelamps on the ceiling, and ripping apart the carpets, wallpaper, and decorative portraits as this distortion in the air rampaged right for him.

His pathetic shield shattered on impact just before he took a direct hit. The speed of his flight sent him tumbling straight into the stairwell before his back collided with the dark stone wall. He felt his spine shatter and his head crack as it jerked back, his skull smashing against the stone before he flopped forward and fell not onto the stairs leading down but past them as he descended down and down and down and down.

Yet again, he plummeted in slow motion, allowing him to mentally command his gauntlets and boots to simultaneously start pumping every ounce of nature mana they contained through his limbs and back. He knew that, while he had the power to heal his body, it would use his entire supply of nature, meaning that any further wounds dealt to him would be ones he could not fix. He could feel his spine start to crack back into place as the fracture in his skull that luckily hadn’t been instantly fatal fused back together, meanwhile the slice in his waist closed itself up. Unfortunately, as the bottom of the stairs came into view, he was forced to exert the last of his wind mana to stop his descent with a final, meager burst below him that made the eventual collision hurt less. However, his body still slammed into the ground with more force than he intended, leaving him lying on his stomach, stunned, for a second.

I can do this… Come on, Uma, get up! So what if you’ve used up all your nature and wind mana! Tap into rock, fire, and water! Use everything you have to survive! You don’t need to beat Rhitta! Hell, you probably can’t! All you need to do is claw your way out of here and reach your allies! If Rhitta kills you, then what the fuck has this all been for?! What the fuck did you waste your life doing?!

Gnashing his teeth together and grunting to drive the blood back to his head, Uma rose to his feet, only to instantly grow suspicious at the fact that there was no sign of Koroha. Given the ungodly speed she had been displaying and the time he spent stunned on the ground, she should have already been on top of him, if not sending a barrage of Perkari like she attempted outside. She was plotting something, that much was obvious, and given that he had never met her before this very moment, he couldn’t say with any confidence what it might be. He had to be ready for anything, so he adjusted his glasses and put them right over his eyes, having to now look past a spider web pattern of cracks that scattered across the lenses.

N-no… I can’t see as well through them…

He squinted, desperate to try and gauge how soon he’d have to move and react, when suddenly, a possibility hit him like a truck.

Distortion!

Jutting his arms out, Uma decided to take a very dangerous gamble as let out all of his remaining fire mana and blasted it into the air in a terrifyingly hot wave of flames. Much like Koroha’s shockwave from before, he tore apart the stairs, forcing him to bolt for the currently open door before the crumbling stone could crush him. Even if he couldn’t kill Koroha with that attack, it would either wound her or cause so much debris to crumble that the door he bolted through would be barricaded from that side. Uma kicked the door shut behind him then turned and sprinted down the corridor he now found himself in, one that was on the first floor and therefore, very close to the rest of the battle. The only problem was that he was in the back of the fortress, so there was still a significant distance left between him and reinforcements.

But that’s fine! I’ll make it! I’m not going to die here!

He kept sparing glances over his shoulder, but the closed door of the stairwell never opened—something that would have to happen even if Koroha was distorted. Pleased, Uma grinned confidently, and just as he was about to turn back, an impact on his leg sent him tumbling into the carpet with a grunt.

What the hell?! What hit me?!

Pushing himself to his hands, he furiously glanced back again, only for his eyes to go wide with dread as he gaped at the sight of his legs laying a few feet behind him, severed at the kneecaps and covered in blood. His eyes wandered to the stumps connected to his body, the pain having yet to process in his brain.

H-how?! When?! Who attacked me?!

Then a distortion dropped and he found himself staring at Koroha’s stoic face a mere few inches from his own. The blade of her dagger was pressed against his neck, though it had yet to cut into the flesh, as if she were merely threatening him. He had no idea where she came from, but he realized now that she must have severed his legs with Perkari and had been distorted outside in the hall. Given that the door didn’t open, she had been there before he fled the stairwell, meaning nobody was up there when he wasted the rest of his fire mana. The only way she would have done that was by flying past him and sneaking outside without ever making a noticeable sound, then waiting for him to run by. It was her means of bypassing his future sight and he fell right into her trap.

Her lips pursed, as if to finally speak to him, but Uma wasn’t going to lay down and die. He still had his gauntlets, as well as his concealed gun, meaning he had access to some of his tricks, and unlike any other opponent Koroha Rhitta had likely faced, he could use it without the casting of a spell or the drawing of mana. Much of his rock supply was ejected from the gauntlets before spreading up his arms and to his neck and head in the blink of an eye, covering him in an albeit thin layer of rock armor. It wouldn’t be able to withstand the damage a rock mage could, but against a wind mage, he would take his chances.

Screaming with raw hatred, Uma swung his fist towards Koroha’s skull, but she was faster than anybody he had ever met. Her head was out of his reach before he’d even swung at her, and before his arc was completed, her foot collided with his head, causing it to snap backwards due to the force of the wind magic that enhanced it while his glasses shattered completely, their remains falling to the ground at his side. The armor stopped him from feeling pain, but the momentum still sent a stunning tremor through his skull. Then, Koroha’s other foot was jammed into his chest, tossing his body like a blood ragdoll into the wall behind him. Uma cried out with anger, but without speaking so much as a word, Koroha appeared right in front of him, her left hand grabbing hold of his head while her right cocked back to punch him.

“Stop,” he uttered, but Koroha didn’t heed him as wind exploded behind her elbow and her fist was jammed into his face. “Please…”

She cocked her arm, then punched again, this time managing to fracture the rock. Uma quickly sent the last of his rock magic to reinforce it, and while it did mend the crack, he knew it was only going to delay the inevitable. He was facing down a Master of Ijiria, and he didn’t get even a single hit on her. He was proud that his genius had enabled him to survive as long as he had, but it wasn’t going to be enough. How could he stand against such raw speed—such raw power? Everything was going so well, the Kosah-Rei had won every major battle they ever waged, yet out of nowhere, Ijiria just appeared and within twenty minutes, he was potentially staring his death in the face?

It wasn’t fair!

He didn’t want to die!

Who even was this woman?! He’d never met her in his life! Why should she be allowed to kill him?! If he was going to die, then where was his poetic finale?! Where was his grand moment?! She wasn’t the dark lord! She was just some pathetic follower! How dare she make a mockery of him?! How dare she look down on him like he was so far beneath her?! He was the protagonist of his own story, and he would not allow this person to end it prematurely! After all, it couldn’t be over yet! He still had his water mana! He still had his handgun! He had options! He could freeze her! Or he could burn her face with concentrated steam! Or he could try and put a bullet through her skull!

There had to be something!

“GET THE FUCK OFF OF ME!” he roared with all the strength he could muster, but as if somehow sensing what he was about to do, she ceased her relentless attacks on his face, shooting her arms out and gripping the middle of his.

“Perkari.”

Wind blasted from her palms, ripping through his flesh, muscle, and bone to separate his lower arms from his upper. He could feel his connection to his artificial magic suddenly vanish, and with it, his last ounces of strength and determination were stolen. His glasses had been destroyed, his inventions were now stuck to limbs no longer under his control, and his heightened senses were meaningless without the ability to move. Koroha then turned back, cocked her arm, and as if the severing of his gauntlets weakened the armor, one final punch shattered the protection around his face and neck, causing the thin layer of stone to crumble to the floor with the rest of his hopes.

“N-no…” he uttered, feeling his vision begin to grow dark with the loss of blood from all four stumps of his limbs. “Stop… I don’t want to die… This isn’t fair… It’s not fair…”

“If there’s anything you can take away from this, it’s that you can say without a doubt I’ll fight until my last breath, sacrifice whatever I must sacrifice, to defeat the Citadel. I have learned that my childhood dream is possible…and I will never give it up willingly.”

As if to taunt him in his final moments, his declaration to Keskivaara returned to his thoughts—a meaningless declaration that he had not been able to uphold. He did everything he could, but Koroha beat his ass so thoroughly that all of his plotting and inventing achieved was extending his life a mere few minutes longer. Barron was probably dead, killed by Nakoma’s hands, and Uma feared he was about to join him.

But why?

Where was the Goddess, Rei? Had she truly abandoned him, after everything he sacrificed for the Kosah-Rei and for her utopia?! He took on a Master of Ijiria at Hiriech in Her name! He went through a living hell in the dungeons of Saientia because Tali needed him to be their bait for the royal team! He didn’t even want to attack Stellareid! He respected Stellareid and what it stood for, yet he did as he was asked and obeyed her orders because he was told he would be allowed to properly live his dream, free from the threat of Ijirian erasure, if he listened! But after sacrificing what he did and risking all he did, was he about to be tossed to the side and abandoned like trash?! Was he about to be unceremoniously killed by a woman who hadn’t said a word to him, who hardly acknowledged him as a person, and who he hadn’t stood a chance against?! How could they do this to him?!

IS THIS WHAT I GET AS A THANKS?! FUCK YOU, FIRRIK! YOU’RE A GODDAMN LIAR! I KNOW YOU ARE! YOU KNEW ABOUT THIS! YOU SAW THIS, DIDN’T YOU?! FUCK YOU! I HOPE YOU DIE!

Koroha gazed at him emotionlessly, as if pondering something, and to his surprise, she reached down and placed her hand to his forehead seconds before a meager amount of healing magic flowed from her palm, through his body, and towards his bloody stumps. He could feel the loss of blood easing as skin grew to cover the open wounds and prevent him from dying. Uma furrowed his brow with confusion, but any relief that may have spawned out of her suddenly sparing him dissipated completely when she spoke a single sentence to him.

“Our law dictates that there is only one fate for you…”

Uma’s eyes went wide as she reached down and grabbed him by his hair before turning and beginning to stalk down the corridor, dragging his feeble, limbless torso behind her. He weakly shook his head, knowing what it was she was sparing his life for, but he had no means of fighting back. He could see his severed limbs laying discarded on the ground, his inventions still strapped to them, but he could not reach them.

It was over.

For all his bluster and confidence, in the end, he could not deny the inherent truth to his identity.

No matter what he did, “Uma Miyon” would always be nothing more than an imposter…

Nothing more than a magicless man.