POV Gale
Our night had been beyond restless, countless times had I checked my equipment, repairing even the smallest of damages. My spear had suffered the worst, unhappy with its sharpness I had redone its sharpening over and over. In the end mother had been forced to take away the whetstone which only made me worry more.
Today was the day of battle, would I be able to win? And even if I managed to break that seal, could we escape from a place so filled to the brim with powerful people? Remembering the dreadful aura that had emanated through the ranks made my fur stand on end. At least some of those people would be a fair match for sister or beyond that. Especially a regal looking old man had scared me greatly. It was not the aura that he emitted that had done the deed but the entire absence of any aura at all!
That tiny human with his long, white beard looked so easy to squash, so perfectly weak, so why did my instincts yell at me to run to the ends of the world and find a rock to hide under?
I must have flinched as his gaze wandered over me but suddenly the man smiled, a nice smile on his face that would have looked good on a kind village elder but it made me sweat buckets. How had the man even noticed that I had thought about him?
Remembering the previous day at least helped to divert my attention enough to not collapse before the fight had even started.
Fully geared and ready I found myself in the ranks of challengers, how I had walked here without noticing made me worry even more. Bit by bit the crowd began to assemble, a merry atmosphere had spread throughout the cave. Food and drinks were sold to the common spectator while the higher guests were served by their personal servants, how could they eat anything at all in a place that so reeked of blood and murder?
The announcer was the last to arrive, strapping himself to his harness he was lifted up to assume his position over the pit.
The air vibrated once again as his enhanced voice prepared the voice for the coming bloodshed.
“Ladies and gentleman. Another day, another chance. Welcome to the second day of our grand tournament! Challengers get ready to find wealth or glory in death!”
It took a moment for the cheers to die down. “Do we have a challenger?”
As if struck by lightning I shot up, all eyes fixated on me. Intense pressure made me hesitate but a moment. “I Gale challenge the new number one!”
The pit once again drowned in cheers, a guard indicated me to follow. Stairs led down into the lower rooms, each step the workmanship that had shaped the stone got more crude until I arrived in natural caves that had been reworked to fit the owners needs. The loud noise of the arena only arrived dampened in the spacious cave. Nevertheless I could easily understand the booming voice of the announcer.
“A new challenger has appeared, will Gale earn glory or will the pit save some gold in feeding the new CHAMPION?”
Like on a cue the gate in front of me began to lift upwards. The guard gestured me to go inside and only a few steps took me inside the pit. The giant gate had been raised in preparation, behind me the cave I had come from sealed itself again.
“Now do we have some conditions for the match?”
A few seconds passed as those with money decided how much of a challenge I would face.
“DEATHMATCH!”
A huge weight dropped onto my shoulders, unlike the dead knight Ulfar I did not even get a time-match.
“A generous donation! An anonymous donor has provided some help to the young Gale!”
The picture of the elder human popped into my head unbidden. No why should he help a stranger?
Pillars raised from the ground forming a forest of poles on the border of the pit.
“And there it comes, the CHAMPION!”
I could feel the air vibrate as the beast heaved its form out of the tunnel leading into the arena. Its eyes were filled with malice and bestial hunger as it mustered the surroundings. Not a single reaction showed any signs of recognizing.
Shutting the announcer's annoying voice out I tried to reach Kai mentally, talking to a wall would have had the same effect, as it only served to attract the attention of the beast.
The metal bars separating us creaked and then came free as the barrier thundered downwards. In the pit the noise of its fall was far louder than it had been outside. The beast charged, its maw closing half a meter in front of me, ripping the space I had occupied to shreds. Only a fast jump backwards had saved me from an early death!
Finally I could see the thing that was causing all this, a small circle of runes faintly glowed on her left temple. Never before had I seen such a complex array of interwoven symbols, with great fear I realized that the entire thing was made of multi-runes!
With the small circle as target I prepared my attack. Lightning surrounded my paws and my obelisks left my bag. I would destroy that magic and get my sister back!
An amplified lightning strike rocked through the pit, my hope crumbled, a smoking wound had opened but I had missed. The array was still active.
Now the beast knew I could attack from a distance, using its tail and breath a wild chase started. Unable to cope with its speed I had to retreat into the pillars. A thick green jelly barely missed me scattering through the pillars. Unlike the scales of the drake the metal poles proved no adversary to its corrosive prowess, in seconds a few of the poles began to topple over.
Utilizing hit and run tactics proved ineffective, the beast used its tail to absorb or deflect any lightning that was getting close to its face and my forest of poles had been greatly decimated.
It would not take long before every last bit of cover was gone!
Deep in my brain a desperate plan was born, the chance of succeeding was low and the chance of death even higher. Giving up on the cover I charged the beast, the moment of confusion was enough to get close. But it was not enough its maw closed around my legs, I felt the cold sensation of its teeth penetrating my flesh. Only the two obelisks that I had used in an attempt to shield me prevented the jaws to fully close and rip my legs off.
I felt the poison invade me, but that did not matter, pouring my entire manapool into a single spell my crackling paw came to rest on her left temple. I could only hope that the resistance I had built to her poison would allow me to survive this, with a smile everything became dark.
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POV Kai
Pictures......no those are memories?
Fragmented at first the scene became clear, a grand hall golden figures congratulating us. We had won, the demon-king was dead. A wish for the mighty, victorious heroes, clad in holy silver plate I awaited my reward. One by one the heroes were led away by their patron god, a graceful female approached me, her bell like voice rang through my head.
“Mighty hero, you have fought bravely I have a reward for you.”
Her silk like hand caressed my face, coming to rest on the left side of my face. Pain spread through me as my vision went dark, a twisted smile ruined the perfect beauty in front of me.
Her words would haunt me for a long time, “You are mine mortal! No matter where or when you will forever belong to only me!”
The pictures fragmented again...
Being born again, the first thing I saw was the face of the goddess as her arm plunged into my chest.
Over and over it repeated, every incarnation she would wait next to me. Thousands of times she would wait for me to open my eyes, to see her face before she ended me once again.
One fateful time, I was not born but created, a powerful elemental born of a young planet. I already felt her approach as my own hand came to rest on my temple. I could hear her scream, rage incarnate as my whole life-force erupted out of my palm. A taste of earthen blood filled my mouth as my existence ended.
I was born normally again, no goddess waiting next to my crib, the seal she had placed on me was shattered but not removed. Many lives I worked tirelessly to crush it into so many tiny fragments it would never hold sway over me again.
The taste of blood got stronger, why was this familiar taste here? A name echoed through my head unbidden, Gale! Who is Gale? Why did that name sound so important?
My mind reeled as it strained against the shackles that cursed it to watch from the sidelines. A sharp pain thundered through my very core as I snapped back to reality. Disoriented I found myself in a stone pit of sorts, a grid of metal bars spread over me.
Then I saw her, Gale was stuck in my maw, the taste of blood that had invaded me was HER blood!
Carefully I placed her down, she had lost much blood and my poison was coursing through her body. My healing was barely able to stabilize her, my rage bloomed like a flower in the spring. I would tear this place down to the last stone!
A puny human strapped to a chain was yelling something, suddenly figures began pouring into the pit. Warriors of all forms and equipment began spill from hidden door,s all the while the annoying human kept yelling.
A short burst of flame breached the bars and finally shut the enhanced voice one up permanetly. My short lapse of attention was not without consequences, spells and projectiles covered me in searing pain. It were simply too many, mages and warriors pressured me to become more defensive by the second. The faintly breathing Gale below me forced me to remain standing where I was. It was only a matter of time before they would overwhelm me.
Then everything stopped. All movement froze, only my eyes could dart around in panic as my lungs pumped the desperately needed air in my aching body. A tiny man in a robe approached from my side, ignoring me he grabbed one of Gale's earrings and removed the stone inlaid in its frame. He inspected the stone without a care for the chaos around him.
“Impressive workmanship, created by your own hands I presume?” His gentle voice was in stark contrast with the immense power I could feel from his tiny frame.
He waved his hand and the bars over us vanished into nothingness, frozen like all of us the remaining members of my family floated downwards; Held up by tendrils of power emanating from the short man they came to rest next to Gale.
“You have collected a great amount of positive karma old-one, your time of death has not come on yet. The strings of fate are moving and you are one of the central pillars that may allow it to prosper once more.”
The stone grew as it returned to its original form. I could see as the tendrils of power that stretched from the tiny man activate the inlaid structures of the obelisk that should have been only accessible by Gale or me.
“Reclaim your power, if this world is to have a future you need to become stronger than you have ever been. I hold great expectations for your future!” Those were the last words I heard from the man as the world started to spin around us.
One moment later we reappeared in a broken down monastery on a mountain. The transport formation had worked flawlessly. The day had changed to night, wherever it had taken us, we were far away from where we had been a moment ago.
Mother was the first to react as she rushed to Gale's side, I could feel her energy come free as the spells continued where I had left off. Inspecting our surroundings could wait until we made sure all of us would survive the day.
At the same time in a small separate dimension a hooded figure was sitting on a floating chair, its entire concentration focused on a golden construct in front of it. Made of countless revolving metal bits only the figure knew what its use was. Metal plates and wires would randomly appear, interweave and disappear. The sheer size of the chaos would have overwhelmed those of weak soul. Gems would pop into being only to disappear seconds later as their remains gave birth to more metal pieces that would spiral in random paths before they too would disappear again.
It was but a moment, one of the small gems lit up. Cracks spread through the walls and floors as the figure shot up. Dust rained from its cloak as a bell-like voice spoke a single sentence that made the space crumble away. “Found you!”
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A tad shorter chapter which explains some things people had problems with in the last chapter. Don't hesitate to voice any concerns you have, I am posting this story here on RR here to get feedback that can help to improve my storytelling.
Chapter20 up enjoy
MfG: Dr_Dac