—VISALIA—
I remained in my seat when Ieros had left my chambers, musing as I gazed out of the window. I watched the snow fall, allowing my mind to relax and drop all thoughts, just watching the falling snow. I probably would have continued like that for the entire night if it wasn’t for a knock at the door.
I called, “Enter.”
In stepped one of my lieutenants, a man that I could trust, although not enough to place my life in his hands. There wasn’t a single person in the world that I trusted that much, I knew that they would all betray me anyways.
I asked, “What is it?”
He bowed his head and said, “General, it is about the mage, I don’t understand why you would reveal your plan to him.”
I gave him a short look before turning my attention to the window, saying, “I thought I had managed to read him well, I thought I knew what he desired. I then offered it to him but my analysis was wrong, he did not care for power nor my body. It was a high risk, high reward gamble, one that didn’t backfire nor did it pay off.”
My lieutenant then proposed, “Then we should kill him.”
It was then I laughed, surprising my lieutenant because it was rare that I ever displayed such emotion before him, “I doubt that even the entire Northern Garrison would be able to lay a scratch on him much less kill him. You saw his army, didn’t you? He created them just like that and I wager he can create more. He is not a foe to be trifled with.”
He paled, “He is that powerful?”
I nodded, “Of course, I have spies back at the capital and they tell many tales about the Archmage of the East, the youngest mage of all time to reach such a title. If you’re wondering how old he is, he is eighteen years old, said to possess two magic traits of legendary quality. One you saw for yourself, Legendary Creation and the second is Legendary Darkness.”
If it was possible, his face paled even more and one could understand why he did so. After all, it was Darkness that swept through Agleon, banishing the gods and all of their children from Agleon for a hundred years. Agleon had not yet forgotten the terrors it has suffered, even the humans who possess short memories.
I asked, “Scared?”
He was silent, finally saying, “I won’t lie to your general, I am. It isn’t right for someone to possess that much power.”
I chuckled, “You may be right, but such power exists and I think such power should be used.”
He was silent and I asked, “Do you think I’m wrong?”
He finally said, “Yes, I think that you are wrong, wrong that you think you can control his power and wrong to use it.”
I smiled, “I can understand why you’d think that but I will control him, I will use his power to rule Athera.”
He looked like he was going to try and convince me but he gave up, sighing, “Very well general. I will follow you to the end.”
I then dismissed him, I didn’t feel like talking anymore and want to rest. I prepared myself for sleep, taking one last look out the window as I lay there, watching the snow fall. Unbidden memories began to rise, memories of a fire… running… darkness everywhere… lying on my back… staring up at the dark sky… snow falling…
She drifted off to sleep and Ieros’s observer maintained its silent vigil. Ieros was sleeping as well, at least his physical body was while the Surveyor was busy simulating various ways to extirpate the monster presence. It could go forth with the full strength of its stone army and slaughter them but that may be exposing too much of its ability. Perhaps if it were to use the Northern Garrison, supplementing their forces with stone soldiers that would obey human commanders, it would make this process far more believable. But then the variable of human error entered this equation and thus came the chance of failure. If possible the Surveyor wished to avoid this, it wanted a flawless completion for that would mean a quicker end to its mission in the North. Besides, it was alright to demonstrate at least some power, after all, Ieros has grown in strength over the years, it was to be expected that his mastery over creation would also increase.
Most of the night was spent like this and when dawn came, the Surveyor returned into the body of Ieros, having selected the most efficient strategy. He made his way out of his room, taking a walk through the halls of the keep towards the courtyard, exiting the inner keep and making his way to the walls. He surveyed his surroundings, his robes staying impossibly still in the raging winter winds that tore at the flags of the Atheran Empire. If one were to watch him closely, they’d notice that not a single snowflake landed within a one-foot radius of him, they were all stopped by some invisible force. As he stood there, he heard a familiar voice, it was General Visalia, making her way up the wall’s steps.
I was silent as I made my way towards Ieros, looking out from the walls as he was. He merely gave me a nod before returning his attention to the black forest that contrasted sharply with the sea of snow on the ground.
After a few more moments of silence, I asked, “What are you looking at?”
He said still staring, “I was just appreciating the beauty of the North. This is the first time I had the time to actually take it in. The cold, the dark colors, all of it is beautiful. Simple colors which can make the most beautiful of paintings… But I digress.”
He turned to me, “I will need a map of the Northern Region and the locations of all the monster nests. I go today with my stone army to utterly destroy them. ”
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I snorted disbelievingly, “I don’t think you will be able to destroy them all with just five hundred.”
He just returned his attention to the dark forest and said, “Upon my command is an army of twenty thousand stone soldiers. I am sure that they will be able to handle the rest of the nests with ease.”
I was stunned, twenty thousand? Just how much mana did he possess? He remained standing there, untouched by wind and snow.
I recovered, saying, “Well twenty thousand… not many armies with those numbers exist. Why, with twenty thousand of your stone soldiers, you could overthrow the Empire.”
Ieros merely replied, “That is something that I am not interested in. It will be more fascinating to let nature take its course. Now, I believe that I need to see some maps.”
He stood and gestured for me to lead the way. I didn’t deign to give him a response, instead walking down the stairs and making my way to the library, within should be the maps that he asked for. Within the library, he looked around the rather humble collection of books, selecting a few books to read.
I asked, “Shouldn’t you be going out?”
He apologized, “Ah, forgive me. It is just that I’ve never seen books like these before and I was curious. Mind if I scan them while you get the maps?”
I glared at him but he was already busy reading and remembering that it was best not to piss him off, I went to grab the maps. I ordered the librarian to gather the relevant material and waited for him to bring it, observing the Archmage who was currently was doing exactly what he said, scanning books although he took care to at least see every page. Then suddenly, he stopped, his hand stopping at a particular page. He was silent as he studied the page, finally closing the book. He stood and replaced it on its shelf, finally directing his attention to the librarian who was approaching.
He took the maps and thanked the librarian, spreading them out on a table and inspecting it, asking me for the locations of known nests.
Finally, he stood, “I shall begin the extermination. I will return once I’m finished.”
I asked, “Why?”
He kept walking, saying, “To bring you to the capital, the Emperor has summoned you. Don’t think of escape, one of my battalions will stay here to watch you.”
I grew slightly angry, my voice low and threatening, “Was that a threat, Archmage?”
The Archmage turned to me and said, “It is a warning, I do not wish to fail the Emperor. So please, make it easier for all of us.”
He then left, walking through the doorway and walking around the corner. By instinct, I went to catch him but when I rounded the corner, he was gone. I ordered a search of the entire keep but no sign of him was found. There was, however, a battalion of two hundred outside of the keep, led by a golem made of what looked like obsidian. It seems that I will not be able to avoid the Emperor’s summons, I had a feeling that the black golem was very powerful.
Meanwhile, Ieros was calmly watching her as ninety-nine groups of two hundred stone soldiers spread out to fight singular nests, moving on through the gates once they were done to the next nest. There was a total of three hundred and fifty-three nests but Ieros’s forces easily destroyed them all, the last of the nests being exterminated a week after he had begun. Finished, he returned, knowing that she had already escaped.
Truth be told, he knew that his general-class golem and the two thousand stone soldiers had been destroyed a few days earlier but he did nothing, it would be more beneficial to observe what she would do instead of capturing her on the spot. Another reason why he had not immediately intervened was because of her power, his army had been annihilated by her alone. So he was very interested in her, interested in the power that she had displayed. Of course, after study, he’d prefer to kill her but, of course, that would be rather problematic as he would have disobeyed the Emperor’s command. But enough time has passed so he located the observer that he had planted on her, creating a gate and walking through.
I muttered a curse under my breath as pain spiked through my wounds, the medic telling me that I’d have to deal with it a bit longer. Damn, I didn’t think I would be this hurt from fighting that black golem. If it wasn’t ordered to detain me, it would have killed me a long time ago. Even so, it still managed to gouge out a hefty chunk of flesh from my side and broke four ribs as well as my right arm. I still remember the last blow of our fight, it sacrificed itself to deal a blow that would incapacitate me, nearly succeeding. But it hadn’t calculated for the force that I would put in my strike, which caused its aim to shift and hit my side. It did so without any hesitation, keeping its soulless eyes on me as my sword shattered it.
But I still managed to defeat it, the stone soldiers under its command falling apart. It seems that his commander golems were an extension of his power, thus able to power the other stone soldiers, once we defeated the head, it took care of the rest. That made it so much more easy to defeat him, it was a relief to know that his army wasn’t invincible. But as I thought this, a strange black rectangle appeared before me and a familiar robed figure stepped through, his emotionless voice filling the room,
“So the hard way it is.”
And more black doors appeared, shadowy warriors stepping through. They surrounded me and blocked the entrance, detaining the medic who was tending to my wounds.
He then made his way over to me, raising his right hand. I closed my eyes, preparing to die but instead, I felt a cool, pleasant sensation. Warily, I opened my eyes to see my body covered in a silver glow as well as my wounds healing at an impossibly fast rate. Within a few minutes, I was fully healed and the glow faded, leaving my body tingling.
He then turned and walked to the black door, saying, “Follow me.”
I thought about running but I looked at those strange warriors and I decided against it, he had not created them, he had summoned them. It was highly likely that they were the infamous Teryo, the elite guard of Ieros. Tales of their feats and skill had reached the North, about how they ruthlessly crushed the enemies of the Empire and how even one of them was a match for a thousand men. So I complied, stepping through the black portal and suddenly into the throne room of the Emperor. I still remembered this place from when I was promoted to general, the stifling atmosphere was the same as it was fifteen years ago. I looked around, searching for Ieros but he was nowhere to be found.
Suddenly, the Emperor’s voice said, “Ieros has returned to the East if that is what you are wondering, hard to believe but his teleportation ability is no joke.”
I was silent, instinctively grabbing for my sword only to find that it wasn’t there. I relaxed, the Emperor chuckling in response.
He said, “I called you here because I’ve been having my suspicions about your loyalty, it has not escaped my attention of the clandestine activities you have been doing in the North. Now, I do not wish to kill you as you are a powerful asset to have, but if I must, I will. But for now, please explain yourself.”
I chuckled, “Your majesty, I did what I did for power. I want power, your power, to be the most powerful of all. This empire is but a stepping stone, your throne just another step on the stairway to world domination. I want to rule all things and I will not be satisfied with less.”