I twisted frantically, dodging the lance of gray energy by only a hairs width. It disappeared behind with a speed that made shudder. That was entirely too close.
Talias shield fended off the worst of the shadow gale protecting us from the lethal, face-lting effect the eldritch magic might have had. But it did nothing for the windstorm of pressure that swirled around us, continuing to build.
My summon pressed forward, head low, teeth bared as she struggled to advance. It was all I could do to keep a hand on her and manage my footing without being uprooted and swept away.
How much longer? I asked, stealing a glance to the side. With in hand, I could still see the vitals of Nick, Gawain, and Sir Kay still holding the sa formation. For now, at least, they were still standing. We needed to hurry.
Hard to say. Talia grunted. Her nails scraped on the marble ground as the wind blew her back a few inches, and I went down on one knee to brace and steady her. A light blue eye acknowledged . Thank you. Her attention returned to the gale. When we first entered the circle, it was more focused. Unyielding. It seems far more scattered now.
Any guesses why?
Unsure.
I squinted, trying to make out anything in the darkness. There was nothing but swirling shapes, lines that almost ford discernible characteristics only to vanish into malevolent mist. The only constant was
Tendrils?
They were almost tangible. Not in the shadow itself, but the negative spaces. There were dozens of them. They reminded of the threads, the connective tissue for everything when was active.
Suddenly paranoid, I checked my abilities to confirm. was still in deep cooldown from when Id used it in the first ripple against the grilings. Thered been no accidental cast.
Can you see them? I murmured to Talia.
She searched in the direction I was looking, then turned back to with a worried expression. See what? Theres nothing but darkness.
Intrigued, I picked one out and traced it to its exit point. It swirled and wound a path of nothingness, all the way to the edge of the mist. They all did, each lining up with the glowing vitals of the knights beyond.
My true-sight ability is on cooldown. Talia cant see them. So why can I?
There was one just outside the shield. Nearly in arms reach. The rest seed to be intentionally avoiding it, moving quickly, barely discernible spaces that moved with an unnerving serpentine grace.
I withdrew from my inventory. The daggers sharpness was fleeting, but it could punch through steel. If I was attempting to cut through sothing almost intangible, it was the best tool for the job.
With a deep breath, I swung the blade outside the barrier, directly towards one of the translucent tendrils, aiming for its center. The dagger passed through it with no resistancebut the tendril snapped away, severed portion emitting an audible squeal.
Bingo.
But the reprisal was swift and furious. A dozen smaller tendrils wrapped around my wrist before I could withdraw it into the shield, too fast for any warning, coiled tightly enough to cut off my circulation almost imdiately. Tal
I cut off mid-sentence as it yanked out of the shield, into the black.
Darkness washed over , frigid and complete.
Sothing pressed in on my mind, building pressure in my skull. I got an arm free, only to have it snagged by another tendril seconds later, grip significantly stronger than before. Whatever it was, it wasnt trying to kill yet. But whispered that itd be more than happy to break if I kept struggling.
Be still. A voice commanded, abrasive and sibilant.
I went limp, playing at surrender. When I acted, it needed to be decisive. The tendrils grew thicker, closer together. The pressure in my mind grew, degrading Talias panicked attempts to reach into nothing more but noise.
Getting closer to the source.
The pressure intensified. You will serve .
I will serve. I answered.
During your tenure in my service, you will obey my commands, and destroy all enemies of the round.
I will obey. I could almost see him now. He struck an unimpressive silhouette in the gloom, almost half-skeletal. There was a void where his nose should have been, the flesh that surrounded it withered and black. He smiled widely, gums receded, teeth discolored and long. His chest was caved in, and a dozen tendrils emitted from his sternum.
Once your tenure is complete, you will host my soul, and deliver from this godforsaken place.
I maintained a blank expression. Between Gawains assertion that the wizard was the one driving the knights to violence, and the nature of the commands he was giving , it was obvious. He had powers similar to mine. They werent working, but he had to think they were. Probably the only reason I was still alive.
He brought closer, making a show of inspecting , leering. Out of every candidate in the cosmos, the Allfather chose you? So honorless whelp?
I am unworthy. I said, placating him.
Ill enjoy wearing your skin, boy. Correcting every flaw, erasing the weakness. Destroying any potential attachnt that could lead you astray. Creating the perfect vessel.
I suppressed the rage. Bottled it. Id use it soon, but not until the perfect mont. I could feel Talia, struggling to close the distance, getting closer.
He drew inches from his face. Oh, the fun well have. Suddenly, his gleeful expression faltered. What
Now.
The effect of Talias purification shield was imdiate, and the wizard scread, his leathery skin bubbling. The tendrils loosened as I fell with him, twisting in the air so my knee aligned with his chin, my full weight crushing his jaw against the floor. I wielded the vorpal blade like a scythe, slashing through the tendrils at his mid-section, hacking through the ghostly apparitions, trying to sever as many as I could before he could rally.
Even through the roar of the storm, I heard seemingly endless clanging as multiple knights collapsed to the ground. Once the tendrils were gone, I put the blade to his throat.
He laughed a wet, blood-filled cough, uncaring as his throat bobbed against the blade, drawing beads of red. Thought I slled it on you. The lithids touch.
What about it? I growled.
He raised an eyebrow, grinning through broken teeth. If youve already t one, youre more damned than I realized.
Belatedly, I realized it was Eldritch favor that saved my ass, preventing the wizard from enslaving . If we got out of this, I needed to shore up my ntal defenses. Talias shield flickered. She warned silently that she couldnt hold it for much longer.
If the shield goes, were probably back where we started.
There was no ti. Still pinning the old man down, I drove my dagger into the nerve cluster in his shoulder, bracing him as he scread. Only chance. Tell sothing useful, and Ill make it quick. Why do you have powers similar to mine? Are you an Ordinator?
He giggled, halfway between delirium and agony. You have no idea
I twisted the knife, backhanding him to shorten the resulting howl. What about only chance dont you understand?
He panted, his breaths small moans. Eldritch favor was keeping alive, but I could see the holes and tears in my armor slowly and steadily being eaten away, consud by the shadow despite multiple layers of protection. As with any pure magic User, it was only a matter of ti before he got to .
Did you think you were the only one? So childish. So impossibly nave. He coughed twice, then fixed with a blank stare. The slow plunge into dark waters, unknowing and uncaring of what lies beneath. Who are you doing this for?
Still fixated on the first thing he said, I could feel the blood draining from my face. There are other Ordinators?
Sickly daughter. Lover in dire straits. The family he smirked. There it is. Yes, I think so. The family.
I growled subconsciously, deep in my throat. Think Ive never seen a cold read before, asshole? This isnt getting under my skin. All youre doing is making this harder on yourself. Tell about the others!
Youre jaded. The old man nodded. Thats good. Hold on to that. Youll need it.
Last. Chance. I reiterated, putting more weight on the knife.
Then... The man grunted. Ill tell you a secret. How strong you are? The power and influence you hold? None of it matters.
Myrddin. Talia was calling my na. But the faraway look in the old mans eyes transfixed . So unfathomably vast, filled with bittersweet regret.
He spoke slowly, as if every word aged him. Even if you bring the world itself to its ancient knees, it wont matter. Because no matter how careful you are, the core flaw remains the sa. The people youre discarding your humanity for? Theyre as damned as the day they were born. You cant save them. Because you cant protect them from yourself.
An icy chill went through . I refused to show any reaction, make any movent to give away the distress that rampaged through my psyche, but hed gotten to in a way so few people could.
Matt! Talia roared.
Sohow, I ca back to myself just in ti. The old mans eyes caught fire, violet fla transforming them into a charred ruin as he opened his mouth, violet illuminating his throat.
Suicide attack.
I gripped his head tightly with both hands and snapped his neck. Gouts of fla escaped his mouth, singing my fingers, and I leapt off him as the fire consud him from within. In a matter of seconds, his tattered robe and the flesh beneath was consud, leaving nothing but a blackened corpse.
Well. Almost nothing.
There was a glittering at the center of his chest, refracting the light of the last few embers of his body that had yet to burn out. At first I thought it was a monster core. But the shape and color were both wrong. It was a trilliant cut gem, the color of an amber so dark it was almost black.
I reached down tentatively, ash crumbling around my fingertips as I gripped it and pulled. It was hot to the touch, even through the thick material of my gauntlet. As soon as the gem ca free, the swirling shadows thinned and dissipated, revealing the chamber beyond.
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