Zed wasn’t sure if he liked or hated how things were going.

For one, Jennifer wasn’t dead. For another, anyone still alive inside the ship was at the mercy of Andker, third command to the rebellion. Sounded like a supervillain name if it was set in a militaristic world.

He couldn’t say he disliked it. It was suave. And the man carried himself well. Zed already believed that there would be no raping in his pillaging.

Regardless, he couldn’t let them have Festus.

Four of Andker’s men went down the crater.

They approached Jennifer and the still standing Olympian slowly. It said a lot about the Olympians. Jennifer looked like she was going to keel over at any time, yet with their guns and shields they were still cautious.

One of them went behind Jennifer and kicked her knee out. There was a small grunt as Jennifer went down, but nothing more. He placed her on her stomach and handed his riot shield over to one of his companions. When the shield was gone, he began cuffing her.

Zed was surprised by the amount of relief he saw leave the man when the cuffs were securely placed.

Where the cuffs special?

“Exit the suit of armor!” another member of the group barked at the Olympian.

The process was slow and pensive. And Zed realized he’d never seen someone coming out of the suit. Or entering it for that matter.

The Olympian did not take off his helmet as Zed expected. Instead, the back of the suit hissed sharply as it split down the middle, then opened outward. The Olympian displayed just how tired and tapped out he was in the way he came out of the suit.

He did not step out or stagger out. He fell backwards and two of the men caught him before he hit the ground.

At least they were being gentle. Out in the open, the Olympian was breathing heavily.

Zed had heard that the suits tapped from the mage’s core when it ran out of its own power source, but just how heavily did it tap from the mage. The man looked like he’d run a marathon.

When they took the helmet off, Zed let out a sigh of relief. He recognized the man’s face but didn’t know him.

Her face still down on the floor and shoved in the dirt, Jennifer turned her head to check on her comrade.

“Get in the ship,” Andker announced. “Flush the rest of them out.”

The men looked to him then shuffled forward. Their steps were hesitant, questioning. Nobody wanted to go into a VHF ship that still had Olympians inside. It seemed the fear of the Olympians was a greater power than Andker’s leadership.

Andker grumbled so low that Zed heard none of the things he said.

For a moment, he thought Andker would do something less leader, but he didn’t. Instead, he raised a hand.

“Zero.”

There was a shuffle here and there, then a man came out from the crowd. He was a man with a square face and his hair tied back in a pony tail. He walked up to Andker and stood beside him easily.

His stance was casual enough that Zed wondered what place he held in the hierarchy of the team.

“Want me to blast them again?” Zero asked.

Andker didn’t reply, instead, he held his gun out to his side and the closest man to him reached to retrieve it. He put his free hand behind his shield and brought out a thick round object. It had three spider-like legs with a soft blue glow at the center of the circle.

Zero groaned. “Do you think it still enough charges left? I’m up for continually zapping them, but we don’t want to run out of juice.”

Andker glared at him and the man raised his hands in defeat.

“You’re the boss, Boss.”

Zero took the device from Andker and placed it gently against his chest. He sucked in a very deep breath and turned the device.

It let out a brief beep, then the three legs shot into his shirt. He winced from the pain, but only for a moment. The soft blue glow at the middle of the device shone brighter and Zero let out the breath he’d taken.

“Shit. That’s always a fucking rush.” He rolled his shoulders and raised his arms, pointing at the ship and everyone in front of it. “SHIELDS UP!”

All the men at the bottom of the crater scrambled to quick attention. They held their shield up and raised it towards him.

What’s going on? Zed wondered.

His question was answered almost immediately. Zero mumbled a few words under his breath, then the ambient mana around him shook. It trembled violently, then a burst of power shot out of his hands.

It was massive and came out as shockwaves. It carved a hole in the ground as it traveled forward, expanding with every distance it covered.

Then it went through Jennifer and everybody in the crater. Jennifer groaned loud enough for anyone to hear, and the Olympian beside her screamed in pain. Zed watched a cloud of colorful mana burst out of them, dispersed by the force of the blast.

Around them their enemies hunkered down. They planted the butt of their shields in the ground and held on for dear life. Everywhere the wave of whatever spell Zero had cast hit the shield, the shield dispersed it to the side along its curves, shielding those behind it.

The spell swallowed the entire ship, then dispersed.

When it was done, Zero staggered.

“Let’s do that again.” His voice was weak and the words came out in a slur.

Andker slammed his hand against the man’s chest, right on top of the device and ripped it out gracelessly. “No.”

Zero staggered forward when the device was pulled, and Andker didn’t even attempt to stop him from falling.

I guess he doesn’t like him very much, Zed thought. Good, a cracked team is easier to break through.

It was not his own thoughts, but it didn’t mean he couldn’t appreciate the wisdom in them. When it was time to attack, it would serve him best to attack Andker or Zero only in the presence of each other.

For now, it was time to learn more.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Slowly, he eased himself away from the tree he was hiding behind. His first step landed on a twig and he froze before he could put his entire weight on it. In his ear it was already more than loud enough.

He looked at the group of men with riot shields and was happy to find no change in their attentions.

Most of them were already going down into the crater, making their way for the openings in the ship.

“If they resist, you have my permission to kill them!” Andker declared.

The smoke from the ship had reduced greatly and the forest was no longer as dark. The sunlight streamed in as the men rushed into the ship from the exit the Olympian had made when he was coming out. Zed couldn’t see how large it was because it was on the other side from where he was, but it had to be massive because none of the men even bothered to crouch as they charged into it.

Zed watched the procession as the men ran in one behind the other. He lifted his foot from the twig slowly and replaced it behind the tree.

Wow, they’re really investing all their man power into this.

Their numbers above the crater continued to dwindle until only Andker, Zero, and a handful of men remained on the high-ground.

Then the noises started.

The sounds of gunshots flared from within the ship. Jennifer bucked at the sound, tried to move, and failed. Whatever spell Zero had cast on her had left her spent.

Zed didn’t need an overactive brain to know the spell had been what had tried to knock the mana out of him when he’d been on the ship. What he was trying to figure out was what role the device played.

Did it grant him the spell or did it amplify it?

He didn’t know which was worse. A device that could amplify spells or a device that could grant spells.

At least it’s not infinite.

Zero had spoken about how it had limited uses. So that was a good thing.

One of the men flew out of the ship and hit the ground with enough force to make a small crater of his own. It startled Zed and drew everyone’s attention to him.

I guess they’re all mages, if not there’s no way he’s making a crater.

More gunshots erupted inside the ship, some coming from different parts.

Andker held his hand out casually to his side and the man who’d taken his weapon earlier handed it back to him.

He raised it casually and aimed forward.

Another round of gunshots erupted and there was a loud, explosive bang in another section. Whatever was going on inside didn’t seem to be favoring the men that had moved in to apprehend everyone.

There was another loud bang followed by a piece of the ship being ripped away. Another of Andker’s men followed the piece of metal a moment after and hit the ground. He wasn’t moving.

Well, that says it all. Zed was certain there would be no peaceful end to this. The Olympians inside the ship had made it clear that they would not surrender.

Wait. If they just got hit with the mana pulse thingie, then who’s shooting who and… oh…

Zed almost smacked his forehead. They have guns on the ship.

He couldn’t believe he’d forgotten that. There was a possibility that they were fighting with their Olympian armors but Zed discarded it immediately. With the mana pulse blast there was no way.

Which meant there were people in the ship who could still actively move around even after being blasted by the mana pulse spell.

That was a good sign. It meant he wouldn’t have to fight alone when he joined in the fray.

When the chaos came to an end, a total of six people stepped out of the ship, each of them from different new holes in the ship.

Zed recognized them immediately, and breathed a sigh of relief.

Ronda and Kid came out of the same hole. They were a large mess, wounded and bleeding so badly that Zed wondered how they were still standing. Kid’s chest was heaving so heavily that his shoulders kept rising and falling with every breath.

He removed the cork a small vial with yellow liquid inside it and tipped its contents into his mouth.

Andker didn’t seem rushed. He allowed the action without worry.

Judging by how quickly Ronda’s breathing was coming back under control, Zed suspected she’d taken a potion as well, probably before stepping out.

Festus stood on another part of the ship, surveying the land above the crater with relative disinterest. He seemed unbothered, merely curious. But he had enough blood on him to worry Zed. But his breathing didn’t even seem strained. And judging by the lack of tears in his clothes, Zed was beginning to wonder if any of the blood even belonged to him.

But what tickled Zed’s bones and brought a smile to his lips was the axe rested on Festus’ shoulders. The old man had brought [Titan’s Axe] with him. Zed could hug him if they weren’t still in such a precarious position.

On another part of the ship Daniel walked out with two other Olympians. He had visible injuries but didn’t seem particularly strained. There was a gash above his left brow that streamed blood over his eye, giving him that action movie badass look, and held the eye shut.

Beside him were Olympians Zed didn’t recognize.

Weren’t there like sixteen of them? Zed asked himself, counting how many Olympians he was seeing. Sixteen minus four? Twelve. We lost twelve of them?

He wasn’t sure how he felt about the death toll. There was a part of him that catalogued it away as nothing more than a statistic but he was left struggling with the other part that couldn’t get over the fact that twelve people had just died.

You’ve killed too, his mind chided him.

He couldn’t argue it, but he hadn’t been himself when he’d done it.

But you chose not to be yourself. You chose it so you could do it.

Zed paused. Is talking to myself going to be a thing now, because I can’t say I like it. It’s giving me schizophrenia vibes… No. More like mad scientist vibes.

After a while Andker addressed those still standing. “Is this all that is left of you?”

He didn’t sound pompous, merely curious.

Festus and the others turned their heads in his direction. Kid and Ronda were the closest to him so they simply shifted their feet so they faced him bodily. Daniel spat to the side and started walking around the ship and in his direction.

Festus didn’t move.

When no one answered, Andker continued. “I am Andker, third command of the rebellion. I believe it is safe to assume that my men are dead. Regardless, I will give you a chance. Surrender yourselves, get down on your knees and place your hands above your heads, and I will grant you leniency. No lives will be lost.”

He really gets into the benevolent villain character quite well.

Festus finally started walking.

He walked sluggishly enough as was fitting for the age he looked. Zed would’ve believed that was his speed, suffered from the constant blast of mana pulses, but he lifted [Titan’s Axe] too easily for it to be believable.

“Are you the one?” Festus asked when he was finally in clear view of Andker.

He stood beside Kid and Ronda, and the four men who’d secured Jennifer and the Olympian Zed did not know trained their guns on them.

“Am I the one?” Andker asked.

“Yes.” Festus let [Titan’s Axe] slip from his shoulder so that it’s bladed head embedded itself in the ground. “Are you the one that interrupted my meal?”

“No.” Andker shook his head. “That was my colleague, Zero.”

Zero looked at him in confusion. “What? I was only doing what you told me to. Don’t go throwing me under the bus just because he looks familiar.”

Festus nodded.

“So this mess.” He slipped [Titan’s Axe] from the ground and gestured around with it. “This was your doing. Why?”

“The people you are with have something we require.”

You have got to be kidding me, Zed groaned. If you say you require the mana surge I’m going to blow a gasket.

“And what makes you think I am with them.” Festus drew a casual line in the sand with the axe. “Have you considered the possibility that they are with me?”

Zero took a sudden step back, fear holding his face in a grotesque rigidity.

“That’s not a Bishop,” he stammered. “That’s not a Bishop, Andker.”

Festus frowned. “It is rude to take a look at a mage’s rank without permission, boy. Especially one much older than you. For that crime, and the crime of killing my student, I guess you’ll have to die first.”

His words reminded Zed of another member of the team. Eitri hadn’t made it out. It was a pity since he was beginning to like the guy and his portal powers.

“Don’t go killing me off just yet.”

As if summoned by his words, Eitri crawled out of the small space Jennifer had torn in the side of the ship. He dragged himself out, heaving, then flopped down on his back.

Festus didn’t even look at him. “I’m talking of my original student. But it’s good to know that you’re alive.”

“Why the hell are anti-mages trying to kill us?” Eitri groaned on the ground. “What did you damned Olympians do?”

He had everyone’s attention for only a moment before they turned back to Festus.

Zero was still panicking. His hand was pointed at Festus and shaking as if he stood in the snow.

“We’ve got to get out of here, Boss. I’m not taking on anything stronger than a Bishop.”

Andker didn’t seem bothered. “You hit him with mana pulse. We’ll be fine.”

“Is that what that was?” Festus asked, curious. “I was wondering what kind of spell could do that.”

He raised a finger and drew a rune in the air. Everybody raised their shields immediately, and guns were pointed.

It was saying a lot that no one opened fire.

When Festus’ rune was complete, it merely fizzled out without activation.

“You children have messed up the ambient mana in this place.” He looked around, somehow meeting their gazes. “Was it worth it?”

Andker nodded solemnly. “Yes.”

“I see.” Festus scratched his jaw. “That’s unfortunate. And what, if I may ask, do you require?”

“The same thing that brought the Olympians all the way out here.”

“Don’t say it,” Zed muttered to himself in frustration. “Please don’t say it.”

“The mana surge.”

ARRRRGGGGHHHHH! You fucking retards! We don’t have it!

Festus took a moment to think on it, then he looked up at Andker. “I see. Then I guess you’ll have to kill us for it.”

Zed’s frustration was replaced with confusion.

Wait! What?