Chapter 45 - Papa. I missed you! >//<
"Brotheeeeeeer. S-Save me pl-"
As the rays of the sun attempted to penetrate the murky depths of the valley, a desperate voice cried out in a trembling, wavering tone that reverberated through the steep walls of the terrain. The word "Brother" was drawn out, stretched to its limits with a sense of dread lingering like an evil mist. The voice quivered with fear and desperation, barely able to form the next words as it continued to plead for help.
The valley itself was a desolate and dirty wasteland, with dirt and grime covering every inch of the rocky terrain. The walls towered high above, their steep incline a reminder of the treacherous climb that lay ahead.
The grimy hellscape trembled as the ground shook with an overwhelming foreboding. A huge tear formed in the ground and a spike emerged from it, metallic rings coiled around it.
The cry for help melted into choked sobs as the spike impaled the little girl in her sternum.
Arthur stood at the bottom of the cliff, his sapphire eyes gleaming with an oppressive aura as it physically materialised from his eyes.
"B-Brother... why?"
Ellie's delicate voice trembled with emotion, giving way to a choked sob, which reverberated through the air.
Suddenly, there was a sharp thump, as the towering figure behind her collapsed, bringing back memories of years gone by. It was the very same lessuran responsible for Sylvia's demise, now holding Ellie hostage.
His massive frame hit the ground, a gaping hole in his chest as well, leaving a deep indentation in the earth beneath him, as Ellie's petite body tumbled down the steep hills, causing a gruesome symphony of bone-crunching impacts against the jagged rocks.
Finally, her motionless form came to rest beside Arthur, whose stormy gaze remained eerily tranquil, threatening to unleash havoc upon the world at any moment. Ellie's body twitched weakly, attempting to escape its violent fate, but to no avail, as multiple sharp spikes sprouted from the ground, viciously tearing her apart limb by limb, until nothing remained but a grotesque heap of shattered bones and flesh.
"Hmmm... HMMMMMMMM... HMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM" The subtle humming sound started meek and barely audible to loud grumbles of frustration as Wren descended from the sky, sitting on a make-shift throne with sharp stones that could act as projectiles hovering around it like a vicious halo.
"Your perception... It's scary, brat. To think you would see through my dummies. Although, I didn't put much effort into it, a lesser couldn't detect it. Even at your core level," Wren remarked while itching his head and mumbling incoherent words and curses as he looked at the data provided to him about Arthur. His tired eyes widened as he smacked his fist into his palm, "Unless... you have a better understanding of that element."
Wren looked back at the multiple parchments, "There is no data on your earth mana usage. That, you've hidden it pretty well. Hey, Arthur, tell me one thing." Wren said and a grim look appeared on his face.
"What?"
"Since when did you know Windsom was spying on you?"
"..."
Arthur stayed silent, not a word coming out of his mouth, his eyes set on Wren.
"Well say less. I won't press this matter. However, your training needs to improve. It really seems like you don't care about anyone. Killing your beloved sister without a moment's hesitation with such calm composure and using friendly golems as shields. Your selfishness knows no bounds."
"It seems the most logical thing to do. If something needs to be sacrificed, It will be sacrificed."
"Well yeah, I was supposed to teach you a way to fight in a war by saving your allies but it seems like sending people with you would just hold you back." Wren paused before looking down, "Well, it's about time I do this." He said and got down from his throne. Walking towards Arthur, he took out a small stone from his pocket.
"Give me your hand."
Arthur held his hand out as Wren grabbed it. Just as he was about to stab his hand with the stone, Arthur's other hand moved instinctively, skimming out any wasted movements as he grabbed Wren's arm and placed one leg between his legs and got closer to him.
"Chill, little pup. If I wanted to kill you I would've done it in your sleep. Well I just tried to do that in case you chose to save your sister but eh, chill. I don't wanna get my hands dirty with a lesser's blood."
Arthur looked at him from the side of his eye before loosening his grip over him.
Bringing the rock to Arthur's eye level he spoke, "This right here... is an acclorite," Wren let Arthur observe it properly, "Like I said, I don't forge weapons. I create them. While creating a weapon takes decades after a brief inch-to-inch study of the wielder, desperate times need desperate measures. The acclorite will feed on your mana. The feather from Lady Sylvia that you used before to hide the presence of your beast will, Lady Sylvie's draconic scale and your own mana will act as catalysts for this weapon to grow. As you grow, the weapon will grow alongside you."
Arthur regarded his words for a while before motioning his head and presenting his palm towards Wren. He smirked and with one swift movement stabbed his hand with the acclorite. Blood sprouted out from his hand but Sylvia's will was faster, healing it in a near instant.
The little stone disappeared beneath Arthur's healed skin as it returned to its pristine condition.
"Well then, continue with your training." Wren said with a huge smirk. Arthur looked at him with confusion but soon realised as he heard the familiar rumble of the ground. An ice lance formed in his hand as he looked back. There were no ally golems this time. Neither did they have any particular shape. However, there were hundreds of thousands of them this time.
Shutting his eyes close, he let in a deep breath. Just as he had practised. Use the primary core strictly to fuel his body augmentation. With a firm grip on the ice lance, he opened his eyes and planted his feet firmly into the ground. The tip of the lance was engulfed in glacial cold flames that clung to the spearhead like a tenacious parasite.
His muscles tensed as he gave his hips a subtle twist, winding up to release the deadly projectile. The ice lance seemed to take on a life of its own as it hurtled through the air with deadly accuracy, aimed directly at the incoming army of hundreds of thousands of golems. With a thunderous crack, the lance struck its target, shattering the golems into a million pieces of debris that scattered like a swarm of locusts in the wind.
"Woohoo! 90,869 in one go. Not bad. But not impressive either." Wren let out a triumphant cry, a broad smile exposing his teeth in childlike glee. The bags under his eyes only added to his comical appearance.
Arthur looked at Wren from the corner of his eyes one final time before he levitated his hand over the ground. Chunks of landmass uprooted as pitch-black clouds covered the horizon.
[Gravity Magic: Pressure Craft]
A chant left Arthur's lips as the gravity around the risen chunks of the earth increased in a systematic manner. The irregular mess of stones crafted themselves under the immense pressure as each one of them transmuted into a unique weapon, each one the size of a manor. His feet slowly rose above the ground as he stood amidst the hundreds of weapons that had been formed by the sheer force of his gravity magic.
Arthur looked down. His eyes set on the goal.
A chill crept up his spine as he raised his hand above his head, his finger uncurled. Looking down he saw the Golems had stopped moving. Like they had a life of their own, they seemed to be marvelling at the cause of their death. So majestic and destructive that even if this attack was going to destroy them they couldn't help but be mesmerised by it.
With a flick of the arm downwards, the multiple weapons came hurtling down, crashing and obliterating every golem. Not only the golems but the surrounding landscape. Like the day of judgement, everything seemed to come to a quick end as the weapons augmented in flames and powered by wind mana obliterated every single moving thing in its vicinity. The intense heat of the flames and the force of the winds consumed and levelled everything, leaving nothing behind but devastation and ruin.
Landing on the scorching ground below where lava had started forming from the intense heat of his flames, Arthur landed right on top of it. Looking around he scratched his head, "Maybe that was too much?"
Just as he was about to look at Wren, the world around him turned achromatic, losing all of its colours. The motes of mana and aether became visible around him, the aether particles dancing in a vivid merry display all around Arthur.
"Fascinating."
A voice said from behind. Arthur's instincts flared up and shivers ran down his spine. Looking back he saw Kezzes standing behind him, his eyes fixed on the aether that surrounded Arthur like they were clinging to their favourite thing. His eyes changed shades, changing from an extremely lighter shade of amethyst that gleamed to a darker lavender as he stepped away from Arthur.
"Lord Indrath." Arthur bent his neck a fraction of an inch and lowered his eyes.
"No need for formalities. I wanted to drop... Sylvie with you. For today, you are free. After one year you go back to the dicathen."
Arthur looked up, a certain look of understanding in his eyes.
"Yes, the war has been hastened." Kezzes said and disappeared, once again taking Arthur by surprise, making his heart beat like that of a young horse galloping wildly in the open fields.
"Papa. I missed you." A dulcet, juvenile voice echoed with the timbre of a child's innocent lilt, submerged in otherworldly innocence.
Arthur tilted his head as he looked down at a young girl who twirled in her little dress and held the corner of her frilled skirt, "How do I look, papa?"
(Author's Note)
Quick note, I have a serious throat issue going on which is taking my deep ahh voice away from me. Although, it doesn't impair my writing capabilities, the amount of pain in tonsils is still pretty bad. So, until I get it surgically removed, slow and short chapters and updates.