Bridging the Gap

While watching Cariel try to duke it out with the lich, Mike waited for a good moment to break in and help. On occasion, he would throw a spell or two to disrupt the Skull Lord's own magic, but otherwise continued his observations.

The paladin's haphazard method was having some effect, but he honestly felt that her sword would have been more useful. It certainly seemed to do more damage. Anyway, her glowing fist was obviously threatening enough for Kultanis to do his best to avoid it.

[Whatever method he's been using to heal himself doesn't seem to have a limit, or at least we haven't found one yet. Killing him instantly or simply damaging him faster than he can heal might be our only options.] He thought while observing the swiftly regenerating injuries Cariel managed to inflict on him.

Experimentally, Mike tried throwing a few Elemental spells at the lich, finding himself suddenly able to make better use of his Dual Casting skill. Although he was still only able to use one chant at a time, he could now direct the flow of mana in two very different directions simultaneously.

Hitting Kultanis with a lightning bolt seemed to do little, and even the Stone Javelin that accompanied it couldn't bypass his defense, but the force of the blow did cause the undead to stagger for a few moments. Cariel took the opportunity to land a solid hit on his jaw, cracking his teeth again.

[Hm, so energy based attacks are still fairly useless, but physical ones can do something. I wonder...]

Using Earth Magic, he created a simple sphere of metal, about 20 cm in diameter. He decided to try something he'd been experimenting with ever since he unlocked lightning magic, but had never succeed in using it.

Charging the air in front of him with electricity, he concentrated on manipulating the resulting magnetic fields to pull the sphere into the air. It was tremendously difficult to do by feel, and only his rudimentary understanding of the phenomenon derived from half-remembered physics classes made it possible at all.

The sphere hummed and crackled, caught in the chaotic effects which were trying to pull it into several different directions, and quickly began to glow with the resulting heat. Focusing all of his newfound willpower on the task at hand, he lengthened the magnetic fields into an invisible tunnel nearly ten meters long, creating a titanic amount of unseen tension.

Arcs of electricity began wreathing the length of his makeshift railgun, and it was all he could do to keep the forces at work from going out of control. Finally, when he near his limit, he called out. "Cariel! Get back!"

Thankfully, her usual airheadedness didn't seem to extend to combat, and she quickly reacted by throwing herself back several meters. Kultanis, perhaps sensing the danger he was in, swiftly created another of his bone shields in an attempt to block.

[Wrong choice.] Mike thought as he focused on his target.

Firing the metal projectile was surprisingly easy. He simply had to release his hold on the field that was keeping it immobilized. From there, it was just a matter of physics.

Faster than even his newly enhanced eyes could see, the sphere disappeared, creating an intense wave of air pressure and a thunderous crack as it instantly bypassed the speed of sound. It moved so quickly, that he didn't even get a chance to see the impact itself, only the aftermath.

Kultanis's shield had disintegrated under he force of the blow, while the lich himself had been shattered into bone fragments. These had been blown into the air, showering the battlefield with grisly shrapnel.

Mike allowed the lightning fields to disperse into the atmosphere before sagging slightly. Maintaining those effects for so long had taken more mana than he'd anticipated. Although he still had quite a bit left, thanks to his significantly improved reserves, he didn't think it would be wise to attempt that attack method a second time.

He glanced down at his arms and watched his electrical burns begin to heal. [Definitely needs some refinement. Perhaps I could concoct some sort of device to channel the force better?]

"What was that?!" Cariel exclaimed, having run up to him while he was lost in thought. The golden wings on her back had disappeared and she was covered in small wounds from her earlier fight, but remained exuberant nonetheless.

"A technique I'm still working on." He replied mildly while flexing his hands to make sure that he had full range of motion again. They were a bit stiff, but still far better than the charred mess they'd been a few seconds ago.

She crouched down to inspect the trench which had been gouged in the ground by the projectiles shockwave. "That wasn't finished yet? Awesome...Hey, do you think you got him?"

Mike frowned, he didn't detect any hostility from nearby, but that wasn't really a good indication. "I'm not sure. I don't think he managed to dodge at the last second, but it's possible that enough of him survived to regenerate. I'll check to make sure."

He started to lift off into the air, surprised again at how little effort it seemed to take now, and was about to fly off when he heard a distant shout from somewhere to the southwest.

Glancing in that direction, he caught sight of a group of humanoids working their way towards him across the corpse strewn field. It didn't take him long to determine the identity of the one in the lead, since the greatsword slung across his back was a bit distinctive.

[Hm, what could Brenden want? Or rather, why is he here?] The group was still a few hundred meters away, but the urgent waving seemed to indicate that he had something important to share. Unfortunately, other matters took precedence.

A sudden burst of hostility made him fall swiftly until he was nearly on the ground, and summon a mana shield around himself. He turned just in time to see a battered and still reforming Kultanis complete a spell. Vein-like manifestations of dark energy sprung up around him and swiftly dug through his shield to make contact with his skin. A wave of sickening weakness swept through him as something invisible tried to reach out and claw at his essence.

The sensation was bizarre and unpleasant, as he could actually feel the malevolent energies working towards the center of his being. After a few moments, they finally contacted...something deep within him, and then recoiled. With a snap the spell shattered, and he was left none the worse for wear.

By this point Kultanis had sunk back to the ground, looking close to his demise. Even the orbs of light floating in his eyes sockets had dimmed, suggesting that his reserves of power had finally reached their end. Mike landed a few meters away from the lich and got ready to bring an end to the fight.

"How...What are you?" The undead asked weakly. "Even a Tier 4 should not have been able to shrug off an attack on the soul so easily."

Mike didn't answer. Instead, he charged his right hand with Healing Magic and stepped closer.

"Ha...This is the end of our duel, then. A pity. I still had a few strategies I still wanted to employ. I suppose I shall save them for next time."

That brought Mike up short. "Next time?"

Kultanis began to laugh maniacally, "HAHAHA, Fool! I am lich! Did you think that destroying this body would be enough to end me! As soon as I reform, I will begin planning my revenge! Fear not, you will not be my first targe. No, I shall hunt down your every friend, ally, and acquaintance and make them die slow, painful deaths. You will know true despair before I bring you miserable life to an end!"

Mike waited for a few seconds before responding calmly. "Are you done?"

"Are you in denial?" The Skull Lord asked with a laugh. "Did you not listen to a word I said?"

"Oh I did. Based on what I know about liches, you probably have your soul stored in something like a phylactery, which is most likely hidden somewhere safe. Since you seem to be largely acting under your own initiative, I would be surprised if you left something so valuable back in Lacot. My guess is that you've hid it a bit closer, perhaps with some trusted minions back in Tennundi?"

The undead was silent.

Mike continued while stepping closer again. "I also suspect that it will take you some time to finish reforming, so I should have an opportunity to find it before you're back up to fighting strength. That said, doing so is actually my back-up plan. I have another idea I'm interested in trying."

Before he had a chance to react, Mike grabbed the lich's head with his mana infused hand.

He'd come to a realization after breaking through to Tier 4. Healing Magic, at its fundamental basics, worked by repairing the body. When he first acquired the skill, he'd thought that it was just a matter of speeding up natural healing processes, but his later improvements suggested that there was more to it.

The ability to completely regrow limbs, cure disease in an instant, and even purify curses spoke of some other force that Healing Magic used as its base. When he cured Selene of her Vargulf condition, he'd begun to suspect that this extra force might be the Life element he'd learned about in class.

It had harmed her initially, but he'd still been able to heal her in the end. So, when he was fighting Kultanis, and the lich seemed strangely wary of his Healing Magic, the whole thing had begun to bother him.

Based on his understanding of how Necromancy worked, he could guess that something like the Life Element would be its antithesis, which would explain the Skull Lord's reaction. But then, why did Selene not die under his ministrations. She did become a familiar, but that didn't really explain the process.

When his understanding of magic improved as part of his breakthrough, he came to realize that the Rank 1 effect of his Advanced Healing Magic might be the reason for this conflict. The desctiption in his <Status> specifically stated that he had the ability to cure magical transformations and even afflictions of the soul. As such, it might even be able to heal someone that couldn't benefit from usual healing. This is what he was trying to do now.

As the lich roared in pain, Mike reached down into the depths of the undead creature's being and located the spiritual injury. It felt like a raw and gaping hole had been torn Kultanis's soul, as if a piece of it had been ripped out, leaving the rest to fester.

Directing his mana towards it, he began the healing process. As he did so, he sensed a connection with some other distant point, likely where the lich's phylactery had been stored.

It didn't take long to finish repairing the wound, simultaneously severing the faint connection. Standing back up, he surveyed his work. For the most part, Kultanis look the same. However, there was one indication left behind by the experience. A hand print was burned into his skull, still smoking from the power that had been channeled into it.

After a few moments the orbs of light reappeared and focused on Mike. One skeletal hand reached to brush the hand print. "What...what did you do?"

"I healed your soul."

"That...That couldn't...That shouldn't be possible. How..." He trailed off as the bones of his hand started to disintegrate slowly.

Mike sighed. He was feeling pretty mentally fatigued by this point and wanted nothing more than for all of this to be over. "This is the end, Kultanis. It seems that your current state won't support your body."

The lich chuckled. "Of course. If my soul is healed, then it must mean that you've severed its connection to my phylactery. Without that, my body will lose cohesion." He glanced down at his legs, noting that they were starting to fall apart as well. "How unfortunate that I ran into an opponent like you."

Sitting down on a small mound nearby, Mike watched as the disintegration spread. "Not long now, from the looks of it. If you have any last words, I'll at least listen to them."

"HA! How generous of you. There is one thing I wanted to ask. You have no obligation to answer, I suppose, but perhaps you will humor the dying." Kultanis paused for a moment. "Are you a Reincarnator?"

Mike stared down at him for a moment, then looked away. "Something like that."

"I thought so. You lacked the aura of a Godblooded, and there are few other creatures out there capable of acquiring power as quickly as you have."

"Godblooded?"

The lich didn't seem to hear. His voice became quieter as the disintegration reached his chest. "A word of advice, Reincarnator. Do not think that you are safe now that I am defeated. This world stands on the edge of a knife. Forces are at work that will bring an end to all that we know."

Mike waited, not wanting to interrupt.

The orbs of light in the undead's eye sockets finally faded as his last whisper echoed forth. "One day death will come for you as it does for me now. When you finally...pass...I...will...be...waiting..."

With that, the lich finished disintegrating, leaving only a rune-carved bit of bone and pile of grey dust.

Before he had a chance to do anything else, Brenden called out to him again. "Mike! There's trouble!"

The beastman was running towards him, with several armored humans following. As he got closer, Mike could tell that his friend was in bad shape, so he jogged over to meet him.

"What's going on?" He asked while touching Brenden on the shoulder and channeling a little Healing Magic into him to cure his fatigue.

"The Cabal took Sera a little while ago. I tried to track them, but they covered their tracks too well. I thought you might have something you can do."

Mike frowned and sent a quick mental message to Selene. After receiving her reply, he opened his extradimensional sack and began rooting around in it. Eventually, he pulled out a small, transparent orb coated in arcane runes and bearing a smudge of dried blood.

"What's that? Some kind of tracking device?"

"Better." He replied while throwing the sphere at the ground. It shattered, releasing a puff of white smoke. As it cleared, it revealed Sera's prone form.

He reached down and channeled a little Healing Magic into her, checking her condition. "Hmm, she seems to be fine, just unconscious. While I could wake her, it might be better to let her rest for the moment."

"Wha...did...did you just summon her?" Brenden asked, clearly shocked.

"Indeed. It seemed like a good way to prevent kidnappings, don't you think?"

[It's unfortunate these things are just one-time use items. If I could make them work repeatedly, it would give me a lot more options.]

"Are you supposed to be able to...ah, forget it. I don't know why I even bothered worrying." Brenden replied, a familiar look of chagrin on his face.

Mike leaned over and gathered the unconscious Oracle into his arms. "By the way, who are your new friends?" He asked, having already used on Appraise on them.

The group of knights had been waiting at a polite distance. With his implied invitation, one of the younger ones stepped forward. "I am Prince Johnathan of Almir, Sir Dragonknight, and I wish to congratulate you on your mighty victory. Truly, we owe you a great debt of gratitude."

Mike shrugged, "I've been promised some fairly hefty compensation for this, so there is no need to thank me."

Wanting to limit the amount of time he had to spend interacting with the royal heir, he sent a mental message to Red, asking the dragon to land.

"Nevertheless, you have my personal gratitude for bringing an end to the great shame of my family." The prince replied with a slight bow.

"Hm, I don't follow."

"It's a long story, and I can tell you are in a rush to care for your companion, so I will spare you for now." He explained, pausing as Red landed nearby causing a mild windstorm. "When next we meet, I will make sure to give you the full story."

[A considerate prince? How unusual.]

"Very well, I'll hold you to it, your highness." Mike said with a chuckle as he hoped onto the dragon's back. "Coming Brenden?"

For a moment, the beastman hesitated, but then shook his head. "I've got some followers of my own to take care of. I'll catch up with you later."

"Alright. I'll see you soon." He yelled back as Red took to the air.

It wasn't until they were already on their way that he realized he'd completely forgotten about Cariel. He surveyed the area, but couldn't see any sign of the paladin.

[Ah, well, I'm sure she'll be alright. She's a tough one after all.] He thought while pushing her out of his mind. There were other things he needed to focus on now.