In a large room, two men faced each other from opposite sides, while others, wearing robes of all colors and sizes. Some were old, while others were young, but they all shared something in common. A mysterious aura flowed around them, wrapping them in power and projecting it unto the world. It was not something so intangible as a feeling someone gets from another person, but rather a true aura, one formed with a real power. This held true for the two men facing each other, but their auras were stronger, more defined than the others.
One stood proud and haughtily, dressed in a green and gold cloak, wearing a jade crown upon his head. In his hand, he held a metal staff, shaped like two serpents twisting over each other, eventually ending with the two heads locking a perfectly cut red jewel at the top of the staff. His dirty blond hair was left rather long, longer than many men would grow theirs out. Yet despite the abundance of hair on his head, his face was completely clean. His eyes were an endless black void, almost as if empty of life. His handsome face was currently graced with an arrogant smirk, one that seemed to look down upon the one he was staring at.
The other was most definitely meek in contrast. A young man that seemed to still be in his college years, sitting in a wheelchair, wearing the clothes of a normal person, quite unlike the robe-wearing men and women in the room. His face was thin and his black hair a mess. His eyes were a cloudy blue, with prominent dark circles under them. Perhaps, not too long ago, he may have been an attractive man, but his current state only seemed to mock the idea. Unlike the man across from him, he held nothing in his hand, and his expression was not of arrogance or confidence, but of apathy.
“Alex, I shall give you one last chance,” The crowned man began to speak in a commanding tone. “Apologize for your crimes, lick my feet, and maybe I shall grant you a painless death.”
“...” The crowd remained silent at the man’s arrogant words, as though it was completely expected.
“Heh.” The wheelchair youth, Alex, simply gave a short laugh.
“… I shall take that as your last act of defiance. Very well. Uncle, please raise the barrier.” The crowned man spoke to an older man sitting at the front.
“Hoh?” The crowned man’s uncle seemed surprised. “Do you actually think you’ll have a problem with this crippled trash?”
His words were harsh, but seemed to be spoken as if fact, not purposefully and for slander. In fact, all but one of the spectators seemed to easily accept the words without a complaint. This sole person was none other than a young girl, about the age of 15 or 16. Like the rest of the spectators, she too wore the robes of mages, hers a royal purple, along with a crimson red cloak, embroidered with golden markings. In her hands was a staff as well, but it was not as grand as the crowned man’s. It was a simple, polished wood staff that ended with a simple flat top. The only notable thing about it was the faint markings at the top of it, not even the craftsmanship seemed unique in any way. Like the crowned man’s uncle, she too sat up front, but on the other side of the empty space between the crowned man and Alex. Angered by the slander cast upon Alex, she opened her mouth as if to say something.
“Elaine, please don’t.” Alex stated lightly.
“But, how can I-” The girl, Elaine, stood up and began to emotionally protest.
“I said, please don’t.” Alex said, his voice stern and commanding for an instant.
Elaine bit her lip but sat back down. Seeing such, the crowned man, who had been gazing over at Elaine since her outburst, returned his sight back on Alex, his face distorted with anger.
“I am afraid that this trash used a mind spell on madame Elaine before she awoke to her power, how else would she be willing to follow this cripple?” The crowned man stated, his voice full of disgust. “If he were to activate whatever hidden measures he left in that spell, I’m afraid that I might accidentally hurt her in retaliation.”
“Very well, little nephew. Finish him quickly though, give him no chance to use whatever devious methods he had up his sleeves.” The crowned man’s uncle said, then flourished his hands.
For a moment, a dome surrounded the crowned man and Alex, flashing blue before turning transparent. With this, the crowned man tightened his grip on his staff, his aura collapsing in on itself as the gem on the staff began to glow faintly.
“Aqua. Circumacito. Water Bolt.” The crowned man spoke, pointing his staff at Alex.
A ball of water formed in front of the staff head, about the size of a fist. As suddenly as it appeared, it began to spin, then shot forward, directly towards Alex, who didn’t move. The water bolt was very fast, traversing the distance between them in just over a second. But despite it’s fast speed, Alex simply lifted his hand… and slapped it aside. The water bolt lost no power, and impacted the barrier, causing the affected area to light up blue.
For a moment, the crowned man was stunned, shocked that the magic he used was deflected so easily. However, his shock quickly turned to wrath, and he gripped his staff tighter.
“Aqua, Terra, Ventus, Ignis, Fulmen. Circumacito, Simul. Quinta-Element Bolt.”
A magic chant was incited, the elements that were spoken in Latin appeared, and fused together, creating a spinning ball of golden energy. The crowned man smirked, once again pointing the staff at Alex.
“These fools and their fixation on the elements of magic… is your understanding of our world so limited? That you cannot even see the truth?” Alex mumbled, just loud enough for everyone to hear him.
The crowned man, who had waited until Alex finished speaking to cast his spell instantly turned furious. He recited his incantation once more, twice, thrice… Now, there were ten balls of spinning golden energy, nine of them with the extra word ‘Augeo’. With ten bolts primed, the crowned man was filled with a sense of victory. An arrogant grin on his face, he released his spell, sending the ten balls hurtling towards Alex, who had no way to avoid it all.
An explosion followed, which rocked the barrier, turning it completely visible, and even cracking it slightly. It did not give off much smoke, as the explosion was not physical in nature, but it left many blinded from the bright, magical light of the explosion. People rubbed their eyes, urging their vision to focus, so they could glimpse upon the pitiful figure that was the wheelchair-bound Alex.
But as their vision cleared, they did not see the outcome they expected. Elaine, the only supporter of Alex was shell-shocked, her eyes completely blank. The outcome was indeed not as they expected. To be so utterly and completely defeated was unimaginable. And glimpsing upon the figure of the loser, the crowd collectively sucked in a sharp breath. The loser had been so utterly charred from the explosion, nothing left of his original features could be seen. They would’ve thought him dead, were it not for the fact that his aura continued to persist, signifying that there was still life in him.
“It’s my win.” The winner stated.
Slowly, as if time was grinding to a halt, the loser’s charred body fell to the floor, what little power he had left focused on keeping him alive. The winner didn’t bother to move, and only spoke one word.
“Elaine.”
Flustered, Elaine stood up, and hurried over to his side. She nervously looked at his face, her eyes darting about. The winner simply smiled and shook his head.
“Let us leave.”
“Yes, of course.” Elaine said, trying to sound calm.
Thus the two left the building, leaving behind only a blackened husk.
“N-nephew…” The crowned man’s uncle muttered, gazing upon the black body that was his nephew.
“Alex Reid… I swear I will kill you...” He growled, vengeance in his bloodshot eyes.
-_-_-
“Master, are you alright?” Elaine asked, driving the car out of the gravel parking lot.
“Yes, of course. I only deflected his first bolt – a very weak one – and countered his ten merged bolts. I hardly used any mana.” Alex said calmly, sitting in the front passenger seat next to his disciple.
“You said it yourself though, ‘I cannot use my magic, lest the ones that are chasing me discover me.’ You just handed them the map and said ‘here I am!’ And who are these people that are chasing you?”
Alex sighed. “Yes, I broke my own rules, but we are close to our objective, so we won’t need to run much longer. Take a right up here.”
“Our objective? We weren’t just running around aimlessly?” Elaine asked, quickly turning onto the main road.
“Of course not. Do you think I am some coward who only knows how to delay the inevitable?” Alex gave her a strong glare.
“N-no, of course not master,” Elaine apologized. “It’s just… I was certain we were going to be on the run our whole lives...”
“...” Alex felt a pang of guilt in his heart. “Worry not, I have a way to ensure that our pursuers will never touch us again.”
“You do?!” Elaine was shocked.
“Yes. This contingency I set up – there’s only one in this world. Anything that Earth can throw at us, be it a natural or man-made disaster, this contingency will solve everything.”
“That sounds…” Elaine seemed uncertain.
“Too powerful? Impossible? Exaggerated?” Alex offered.
“Yeah.”
“Well it’s not. When I say that it can solve everything, I mean it.”
“...” Elaine was surprised by her master’s sudden seriousness. While she still had trouble believing it, she was convinced that it would be of great power, at the very least.
“You haven’t said, who is it that’s chasing you?” Elaine asked.
“Hmm… Well, I’m not sure exactly who they’ve sent after us, but it’s Fifth World that sent them.”
“Fifth World...” Elaine sucked in a breath.
Fifth World was an organization of summoners, who were said to reside in a special ‘fifth world’, hence the name. The first world was naturally Earth, and the material plane in general. The second and third were heaven and hell, while the fourth was purgatory. Though called a ‘fifth world’, it would be more apt to name it ‘fifth plane’, as it was a completely separate plane of existence. There, magic flowed far more freely than in the material plane. Fifth World, the organization, was so notoriously famous in the mages’ world because of their monstrous combat prowess that came from their ‘fifth world’. They were indisputably the greatest power on Earth.
“That bastard Monspiet is too cowardly to come face me himself, so he sent out his hounds.” Alex bit his nail and murmured.
“Hounds? I thought you said you didn’t who they were?” Elaine asked in confusion.
“I said I didn’t know exactly who they were. Meaning I don’t have names. But I know what they are, and how many of them there are.”
“What are they?”
“5 high demons,” The originally serious atmosphere instantly turned tense. “With their power fully released.”
“… Fuck...” Elaine muttered, her eyes losing all spirit.
“Pay attention when you’re driving. And like I said, my contingency will solve all our problems.”
“You keep speaking of this contingency, mind telling me what it is?” Elaine asked powerlessly.
“… No, can’t risk it. Those five after us might be listening in.” Alex began rubbing his chin while musing. “I can’t give the best directions like this, so I’ll just show you instead.”
“Show me? What- AAAAK!” Elaine started as Alex put his hands over her eyes, nearly causing her to crash the car. “What are you doing?!”
“Hold on, just drive straight.” Alex ordered calmly.
Elaine, despite being so rudely blinded by her master, settled down and continued driving. She couldn’t help but feel cold sweat run down her back. She might accidentally crash into someone and ruin things right then and there. But she was also worried what her master was doing. She felt some magic, but couldn’t discern it’s properties or use. In fact, she could hardly even feel the magic at all. With her master being so good at hiding his magic, it was a wonder that the demons, despite being immensely powerful high demons were able to find him at all.
But she knew. She knew just how terrifying even a minor demon could be at a quarter of its power. That was something she could never forget.
“Done.” Alex said, and removed his hand.
“… What is this?” Elaine asked, waving her hand in front of her eyes, trying to dispel an illusion of a yellow arrow pointing forward.
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“It’s just directions. Follow it, and we’ll be there within the hour.”
“… And how close are they?” Elaine asked nervously.
“… Very. It’s seems we’ll need to take a shortcut.” Alex nodded gravely.
“A shortcut? But didn’t you already… AH!” Elaine let out a startled cry as the arrow changed direction, suddenly pointing to the right.
“I’ll guide you manually. For now, follow the directions.
-_ Five Minutes Later _-
“Right, into the treeline!” Alex screamed as another bolt of energy destroyed the ground next to them.
“Right!” Elaine slammed on the brakes and swiftly turned the wheel right, slamming on the gas once she had fully turned. “But won’t we hit the trees?!”
“I got it covered!” Alex shouted, suddenly slamming his hand onto the dash.
Elaine could only identify that he used some sort of voiceless spell, before she drove right through a tree, as if it didn’t exist. She was shocked. The trees that should’ve stopped them in their tracks were simply fog that they could breeze through. What was even more shocking was the fact that they could do it in the first place. Immaterialization was a legendary technique that was only mentioned in myths. How had her master mastered it?
“Just keep driving, I can’t keep it up for long.” Alex’s voice was more strained than usual, and his face had gone pale.
‘It seems that immaterialization takes a lot of mana, I need to hurry.’ Elaine though to herself, pressing the gas pedal harder, but to no effect. Suddenly, her side mirror was sent flying off, and a second later, the other one joined it. ‘What?!’
“Shit… I’m getting rid of the backseat.” Alex said.
“What?! What do you mean by that?!” Elaine demanded, but was answered when the back of the car suddenly became material, and crashed into a tree. Thankfully, they were unaffected, but the tree and back of the car were not.
“Just a bit more… just a bit more...” Alex was muttering to himself. “Elaine, prepare an fitting aegis around yourself.”
“N-now?!” Elaine shrieked.
“You wanna become meat paste?” Her master asked, he himself suddenly shimmering with a blue light as a barrier sprang up around his body, right above skin level.
“3...2...” Alex began the countdown.
Elaine quickly cast her own fitting aegis. Despite the comparative shoddiness of it, it should be able to withstand the impact of hitting a tree at this speed. And since she had a good idea of what her master needed it for, she was certain that was exactly what she needed.
“1!” Alex shouted, then a tree slammed into them both.
Despite the aegis, Elaine felt her consciousness nearly slip away from her. Alex, on the other hand, immediately tore himself from the wreckage of the tree and grabbed Elaine. However, what was most curious to Elaine’s partly conscious mind was that her master was not using a wheelchair, but running with his own two feet. A part of her laughed at that idea, as she knew her master’s situation better than anyone else. But another part was certain of what she saw.
The majority of her mind was still screaming internally about the 5 high demons hot on their heels, however.
“Here!” Alex suddenly threw her to the ground and skidded to a halt. She rolled for a bit, but managed to stop herself.
“Good, it’s still here!” Alex shouted delightedly, and suddenly began making weird hand gestures.
“What is? What’s here.”
“The teleportation set-up. Teleport!” Alex shouted, breaking his hand seals and thrusting his hands into the air, causing them both to vanish from their position. It was luck really, that a beam of energy hit the exact spot Alex just was, instantly liquefying the ground. The high demons had caught up.
-_-_-
“What is this place?” Elaine wondered out loud.
“Not the time.” Alex wheezed.
Elaine turned to face the voice, and was shocked at her master’s condition. He was covered in dirt from head to toe, but that was not the only part. His jeans and shoes were torn, and blood covered the area below his knees. To make matters worse, his ankles were left bent at impossible angles, and she could swear she saw bone peeking out from his left kneecap. Blood ran from his nose, and the minor scratches he had suffered from the high demons’ earlier attacks seemed to have intensified twofold.
“M-master...” Elaine uttered in horror.
“Elaine, please, we need to hurry. There is a magic circle, that way,” Alex pointed to his right, at some lines carved into the floor. “Drag me into the center, I can handle the rest.”
“The center…?” Elaine looked over the surprisingly small magic circle. From her limited knowledge of magic circles, she recognized summoning, sacrifice, recall, and even soul related aspects of the magic circle. While she had no idea what it did, she had an inkling as to just what the purpose of it was.
“Master, you can’t possibly-” Elaine’s horrid fears were present in her voice as she spoke.
“No, I got a free pass,” Alex explained. “I get to summon her once, free of charge. So just drag me into the circle, we don’t have enough time.”
“Summon… just who are we summoning?” Trusting her master, Elaine picked up his limp body and slowly moved him to the center of the summoning circle.
“The one who taught me everything I know. My master. She is your grandmaster.”
“Your master? Who is she?” Elaine put him down in the center of the circle, but stayed by his side.
“Don’t ask questions, she’ll explain everything. This ritual will leave me in a coma for a month or two, so don’t be afraid when I don’t wake up after she leaves. Also, my master can only stick around for a week, maybe two if she’s lucky. She’s very strong. She’ll protect you.”
“Master...” Elaine felt tears well up in her eyes as she heard her master speak what sounded like his last words.
“I’ll be fine, just leave the circle. I don’t want you to get caught up in it.” Alex laughed, his voice strained.
“Right.” Elaine nodded her head, and left the circle.
Alex began to chant.
“Three dreams for the sleeping Queen.
“Two lives bound by the shifting fate.
“One favor for the brave caller.
“With my call, feel the red flow through your veins.
“With my call, feel the shackles of death lift from your body.
“With my call, hear me, and return to life.
“Come to me,
“Elf Lord.”
And thus, Alex died.
That was what Elaine heard and saw. After he chanted his spell, his magic aura ceased, and his arm fell limp. His eyes lost their light, and, after listening for a moment, not a breath was heard. Elaine felt her heart shatter as her master died and his call left unanswered. At the same time, she felt the presence of five powerful beings pop into existence behind her. A shiver ran up her spine. She knew that feeling. That feeling that creeps upon the surface of the skin. The feeling that dances within your mind. The feeling that grasps your heart.
Demons.
She slowly turned. She was no match for them. The least she could do is see the faces of her master’s killers before she died. They may not have killed him directly, but they drove him to his death. Ever since they became master and disciple just a bit more than a year ago, they were on the run. He was always a kind teacher, and a great man. She, who had no parents to love her, had finally found someone who cared for her. He was her idol, everything she aspired to be. And now...
He was dead.
The least she could do, was flee, escape, and become powerful.
Powerful enough to exterminate the Fifth World, tear it down, brick by brick, leave not a single being left standing. She would hunt their souls and offer them as tribute to her deceased master.
She. Would. Kill them.
And so, when she turned around, she would memorize their faces. She would run like a coward, and hate herself for it. But she would be back. And she would have vengeance.
But it all came crashing down. She would never have her vengeance. For the instant she turned around, they were dead. There was no physical wounds on them, but demons were not physical beings in the first place. They were spiritual beings that feasted on souls, they had no need for a physical body. Which is why they guard their souls more than anything. You can defeat a demon in the material world, but you cannot kill it. Not unless to strike directly at their souls, and quickly enough so as they don’t simply flee their physical bodies and return to hell.
Which is why, when she saw the five soulless demons before her, she momentarily blanked. These were demons, and not just that, high demons, a powerful species of demons. Five, dead? In an instant? How is that possible? It wasn’t! There was no mage powerful enough to kill a high demon that quickly, much less five! Even Monspiet, the ruler of the Fifth World, was said to only be equal to two high demons!
“Bastard small fry, how dare they target my apprentice!” A woman’s voice came from behind her.
Elaine slowly turned her head back. Her eyes widened upon the sight. There, floating in the center of the circle, right above her master’s body, was the speaker. She was a beautiful woman with long, flowing jet black hair. Her eyes glowed a dark orange, flowing like a fire. Her ears poked out from her hair, revealing elongated, point tips, like that of an elf. She wore a black mages’ robe, embroidered with silver lining. But unlike other mages, she wore a set of silver shoulder plates, shin plates, arm guards, and even an intricate silver breastplate. Even more unlike the mage she was reported to be, Elaine noticed a sword handle peeking out from behind her, and the end of a scabbard behind her waist.
What she saw in the woman’s hand shocked her even more. Elaine had been taught little of the matters concerning the soul. The best explanation she got was ‘mind magic is not soul magic,’ and absolutely no elaboration after that. But even with her limited knowledge, she could recognized what the woman held in her hand were the souls of the five high demons. Five, black balls of light that furiously flew around above her palm.
“Y-you… what…?” Elaine fumbled over her words as she desperately tried to get her thoughts in order.
“Hm? You do not seem to be one of my apprentice’s hunters, who are you?” The woman asked, her voice ringing in her ears.
“I-I am m-master’s, disciple.” Elaine stuttered.
“Ah, yes. A perfect explanation,” The woman mocked. “Had I any idea whom you might be referring to.”
“M-my master is Alex… Alex Reid. T-that’s him… by… by your feet...”
“Ah?” The woman looked down at her feet, and saw Alex’s face, which instantly became colored in shock. “This bookworm actually got a disciple? Am I dreaming?!”
Elaine wanted to ask how she could be so calm when her own apprentice was dead, at her feet, but her voice got lodged in her throat. The woman, as if reading her mind, spoke up.
“Don’t worry girl, he’s still alive. He was dead for just a few seconds after his soul left his body. He’ll be in a coma for a month or two, but he’ll live.” The woman comforted her, speaking softly for the first time.
Elaine glanced up in shock. Indeed, now that she searched for it, her master still had his magic aura. She could see his chest slowly rise and fall. He was alive. Oh god he’s alive.
“Since you are Alex’s disciple, I suppose that makes me your grandmaster. Introductions are in order then.” The woman clenched her fist, causing the souls of the five high demons to explode into powder and fade away from the material plane.
“I am the Elf Lord of Dirak-Feûr, Isil von Caligo. It is a pleasure to meet you.” Isil said, bowing slightly. “Might you state your own name, or do you require a cloth and some time?”
“No, no. I’m fine...” Elaine muttered. “I am Elaine Carter, disciple of Alex Reid. It is a pleasure to finally meet you, grandmaster.”
“Of course. Now, tell me all about those who are chasing you...”