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CYRUS
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“I will protect my brother’s life with my own,” Cyrus threatened. It was a paltry threat, and even though he was clearly overwhelmed, no one laughed. The situation was too dire, too dangerous, with an alleged Sin on the loose.
Over thirty Soldiers, spread out in an arc, charged them. The fox proved hard to pin down, but the Hydromages invoked all sorts of entrapping Scripts at it. Cy, on the other hand, was quickly surrounded by the men. They pointed pikes and spears at him from all angles. Cy stepped back. Gotta get back to—
Men filed in to separate him from his burning friend. They closed in their circle around him. Cy surveyed them to find the weakest one. I’ll break the line there.
The fox let out a bloodcurdling squeal, like the shriek of a banshee. Cy whipped around. One of the soldiers had pierced it with a pike. Its legs and body were restricted by a Hydromages’ vines, and it writhed and thrashed in pain. The sight both broke Cy’s heart and enraged him. He let out a battle cry and thrust his spear at the closest soldier, who was caught off guard. The spear slid through the man’s chest and Cy continued his momentum to break out of the circle. No one reacted to him.
First, Cy felt the oppressive heat singe his exposed back. Then, he heard the cries and pleas of the man who'd held down the fox. Finally, he saw the demon, engulfed in flames. It bashed the pikeman’s head against a tree again and again until there was nothing left to grip.
“Halt, Demon! We’ll harm your friend if you come any closer.” The demon hurled the headless soldier's corpse at the man who’d dared threaten him. Just like whatever beast was at the Shrine…
Some men dropped their weapons. Others fled. Another plunged his sword through the demon’s chest. No—not a demon. That’s Jules.
Jules grabbed the blade with both hands. Its wielder screeched, released the hilt, and held his burnt and blistering palms up to his eyes. Jules ignored the man and walked toward Cy.
“Jules,” Cy whispered. He backed up slowly and tripped over a root. He continued to retreat, scooting back. That’s definitely not Jules.
Arrows and shards of ice and earth struck Jules’ back and nudged his body slightly to one side. The demon redirected its attention. Another set of arrows struck his chest and face. The demon howled a visceral roar at them and stalked toward new prey.
Cy scooted back until he bumped into the fox, who healed its own wounds. The blade of the pike in its side had broken off the shaft. Cy ripped it out of the fox, and it gasped. I hope that was a sigh of relief.
Ten Soldiers surrounded the demon now. They slashed at him with swords, struck him with spears and pikes, and one pounded him with a warhammer. It gave heed to neither pain nor force. It slashed at them with claws, grabbed them and tossed them aside, and halted their weapons with its bare hands. Despite its overwhelming strength, it still struggled against the sheer numbers. It looked up at the sky and bellowed.
“WHERE ARE YOU?”
A column of light burst to the sky a short distance away. The demon spotted the beam, swept all the men out of its way, and ran to it.
“Fox, that light, is that coming from the Shrine?” The fox squealed once. “Is that—Is Jules still in there?”
One more pitiful squeak. Cy scooped up the fox and followed the demon, followed Jules. What little remained of the platoon checked for other survivors. Still, Cy ran through the shattered hole in his earth wall.
“They’ll regroup and attack again, but he’s running to hundreds more. Do you know how to stop him?”
Two groans. Shit.
The beast moved with inhuman speed, but when Cy finally caught up to it, it was surrounded again. The Warg and a massive pack of wolves pinned the demon on one side, another wave of Navy men posted on the opposite side, and a group of Hydromages flanked between it and the Shrine.
The Warg roared, and the wolves rushed in. They jumped on Jules’ body and ripped his arms with their teeth. Arrows pelted him from the other side, ice shards and earthen spikes from the front. Enemies approached him from all angles. Spikes emerged from the ground and pierced Jules’ legs. He was trapped in a makeshift cage. The demon flung the wolves off of him, snapped protruding arrow shafts—but he couldn’t keep up with the onslaught.
The yellow and orange flames surrounding Jules’ body slowly dimmed down. The wolves squealed and retreated to the Warg. Cy looked at the battle and dissociated.
I'm daydreaming. None of this is really happening. He felt guilty for his morbid curiosity; he couldn't look away from the onslaught.
More than anything, I want to be an Alter—Well, wanted. This is the end of the road for me. Their fundamental principle is power—but this—this is the power of a Sin. Can an Alter even touch this level?
Jules’ flames completely faded away. The archers and Hydromages prepared for one last assault.
Even if I Ascended the Alter, could I ever be this strong?
Who was I kidding? Who was I trying to impress? I was just born an orphan. Abandoned by even my parents. I wasn’t born special like Jules. I wasn’t born Arcanic. I’ll never wield a power like that.
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
Is that really what I wanted? And if it is…
Jules looked up. His eyes turned to yellow embers, to orange, scarlet, then crimson. Finally, they turned darker than coal, and black flames licked the air around his eyes.
…Is that really so bad?
Black flames grew and spread like wildfire across Jules’ eyes. Or what used to be his eyes. Not sure who that is anymore. But this power, and this sensation I’m feeling. Like I’m Regenerating myself…
Cy swiped his left hand into an L-shape to open his menu. He ignored all the System Notifications he’d received in the battle and fixed his gaze on his Ryoku stats.
“No, I'm not healing. Then what's this feeling?” Cy whispered. He looked up again and saw the black flames had stretched out past Jules’ eyes like small wings, but didn’t touch the rest of his face or body. It has to be coming from Jules. No other explanation.
The Hydromages braced themselves for another assault. Ice spears and shards and earthen spikes braced for launch. The Naval Archers invoked Scripts on their arrowheads to bolster their attack; some lit on fire, some froze, others turned to black mist.
“Fire at the Sin,” a commanding officer shouted, and all the weapons released at Jules, at the Sin, at the demon.
Jules roared another deafening battle cry and emitted a shockwave that blew back most of the weapons and Soldiers. Cy’s ears rang as he looked on in terror again. Not Jules, not Jules, not Jules.
Many of the arrows and ice shards incinerated instantly. Only the black mist arrows slipped through the wave, and one protruded from Jules’ neck. He ripped the arrow out and fell to one knee. A small black cloud clung to the open wound. The Hydromages were in disarray, but the more seasoned Naval Archers had already knocked a fourth or fifth round.
“Black Mist arrows got through, men—Use them now!” shouted the commanding officer. “We’ll not let another Sin escape us.” Cy looked at the Archers, then looked back to Jules. What can I do, what can I do? No one is paying attention to me—Use that to my advantage.
> « Air » [₹2,650 // ₹10,000]
Cy's hand tattoos and eyes lit up a brilliant white. He, too, waited for the order.
“Fire!” Just before the soldiers loosed their arrows, Cy released his charged Script. It pushed as many Archers’ aims and arrows off course as his Skills allowed. Only a few connected, bought some time.
The Warg retreated with his dwindled pack of wolves, and the Hydromages regained their composure. Jules Regenerated faster after each assault, and the black flames had now spread to his clenched fists, which ripped out more arrows. Liam, if you’re here, now’d be a good time.
Cy invoked his Rune again, ready to repeat his strategy until someone discovered him. Anything to buy time for Jules to escape or…to handle the situation.
“You little urchin.” Cy immediately recognized the voice and the insult. Bookstacker must have snuck up behind me in the chaos.
Fresh adrenaline flushed Cy's mental and physical exhaustion from his body. Maybe it was the mystique of fighting so close to a Sin, maybe it was the opportunity for some payback that fueled Cy. Either way, one thing’s sure. I don’t have time for this guy. Gotta make it quick. Cy raised his hands in defeat—though he didn’t discharge his Script, so his body still glowed.
“I just want to save my friend.”
> « « ??? ??? Air ??? ??? ??? » »
Cy never even saw Bookstackers' tattoos glow. Still several feet away, the Scholars recruiters' punch blasted Cy's cheek and flipped him upside down, midair.
> « Air » [₹2,400 // ₹10,000]
Cy invoked the Rune to soften his fall, and landed with all four limbs on the ground like a cat, though certainly not as gracefully. He stood up and wiped his face. Idiot. Couldn’t even decipher half of his Script. But his affinity is definitely air. If I can’t see it coming, then…
> « Ice » [₹2,200 // ₹10,000]
Tiny shards of ice formed above his head, much too small for combat. Bookstacker cackled.
“I've been watching you for a while, child. Those shards get smaller every time. What a joke you are. Seems you’re at the end of your Ryoku pool, and the end of your rope.” Rope, now that’s a good idea.
“You’ve been watching me?” With caution, Cy circled his opponent. “So what, you waited until I was weak to attack me?”
“Hmph. I simply waited for my enemy to exhaust their resources—”
“Tsk, tsk, 'Stacks. Sounds awfully deceitful to me. And remember: Deceit is not a core principle of the Scholars.” Good, he’s enraged. Bet he doesn’t have much battle experience. Use that edge. “What’s your specialty, anyway? I can’t translate your Script.”
“Obviously I’m a Wind Mage, you sad excuse for an Alter.” Cy edged closer.
“Wind Mage in Coralith? Hm, smells fishy to me. Although that might just be your musk. You should use that little breeze of yours to blow it away.” Can’t use wind against him. Stick to the others.
> « Earth » [₹2,050 // ₹10,000]
Bookstacker leapt back to a defensive stance, but nothing happened. Again, Cy invoked his Rune.
> « Earth » [₹1,900 // ₹10,000]
“Dammit.” Nothing happened again. This time, Cy leapt back from his opponent. Just as he landed one foot on the ground, the ice crystals above his head shifted slightly in one direction. He followed their lead and dodged into that direction, away from another blast of wind.
“Out of Ryoku already? To think we’d accept some nobody like you into our midst with that—that demon.” Bookstacker walked slowly, confidently, toward Cy. “The Scholars Guild is not for you. It’s not for people like you, or that blasted Hydromage, Tack. It’s for people like me.”
Bookstacker wildly punched the air. Each one launched a blast of wind with the power of a tornado. Cy dodged each one—though a few left shallow gashes—and every time he dodged one, he came one step closer to his opponent. Just a few more steps…
> « Water » [₹1,500 // ₹10,000]
The dull green light of Cy's tattoos, which hadn't faded away since his last invocation, shifted to bright blue. Two water whips formed, one in each hand. Cy lashed at Bookstacker, who easily dodged each blow. It’s obvious from his face that he’s toying with me. Let him believe it for just a few more seconds.
“Enough.” The Scholar invoked another indecipherable Script, and wind shredded Cy’s water whips apart and ripped deep cuts all along his arms and barren chest. All of Cy's water rained down to the ground, and Cy collapsed with it, beyond exhausted from the day’s fighting.
“You know, I should thank you," Bookstacker said. "You’ve made me rich beyond belief. The Iron Maidens’ Bounties have no match, and you two will make a lovely set for them.”
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17
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