More than Simple Aura

Days slowly passed, as we created more and more weapons of war. Before Crow returned, we had four more weapons at our disposal. Crow's expedition was a success. It turned out that the Dead Forest wasn't comprised of Mordars only. Although we had a few loses, it wasn't anything major. Crow was able to take care of the leftover Mordars without the use of Voltic Orb. This was great news, as we could use it for the impending battle. Additionally, all the soldiers and warriors brought some wood with them. With that, we resupplied ourselves with wood, which should be enough for walls and for the weapons of war.

Now that the army was back, I utilised them to help us with the weapons of war. After all, we needed to make as many of them as we could. With the use of templates, a few explanations and general plan, we were able to increase production exponentially. While we were at it, I asked Crow to make a trip to Obsidian Mountains. "Do you want to ask the Royal Army for help?" he asked. I laughed at what he said. I was quite certain Lizards wouldn't send anyone. I wasn't after their people, but their resources. I said, "No, they will not agree anyway. What I'm after is Ore. We need more Ore, or weapons. Good weapons. Lizards should be alright, their weapons are not that bad. But Atols? Their weapons are still rubbish. We need to upgrade them, and if we can upgrade the Lizards too, it would be great".

He asked, "Will they just give us some resources though? We are allies and all, but Arrangard will need them too". I replied, "There are a few ways we can get resources. For one, we can threaten them. After all, if Sedon falls, they will have one less ally to fight the war. You can mention Boltier as well, if you choose to go that path. Or you can talk with specific people. Harlin, Lazar and a certain Blacksmith in Olrad… If he's still there. I'd say he is not due to his knowledge of Flash Blurite Steel. Either way, they should be able to help you out. Harlin will do whatever is in his power to help. I'm not sure about Lazar though. There is one more thing, I will need you to check".

"What's that?" he asked. I said, "I need to know if Alicia returned. I'm getting worried about her. I understand that Lunite can be hard to work with, but I'm starting to suspect…". He stopped me, and asked "Lunite? Are you telling me you got your hands on Lunite?". I shrugged my shoulders while saying, "It belonged to my family. Anyway, something might have happened to her. She lives at Lazar's place, he has a new house in Olrad. He can tell you that himself. If she is there, get my new weapon from her".

Crow asked "What is she refuses to give it to me?". That could be a problem. I thought about it, then said "Just tell her, my right arm will not be happy about it. She should get the meaning". He nodded, and went to collect a few of his people. I assigned two units of Atols to join him. After all, it was better safe than sorry.

While Crow and the rest left, I supervised the guys working on the new weapons for a while, but then left. They were doing alright. Besides, the blacksmiths could take care of the rest. Instead, I visited Ama. She already fixed the first weapon of war on top of the wall, and even had a name for it. "I want to name it Scorpion. With the arrows so fast and destructive, just like the tail of a scorpion. With your knowledge of medicine, I'm sure you will use some poison on it too. Therefore a fitting name for our new weapon of war".

I agreed, it was a good name. "We shall call them Scorpions from now on. There are a few more you can fix already, while I'll be leaving for a while. I want to scout the area, check for enemies and such. You should be alright here". She nodded, and bid me farewell. I left Sedon, and headed directly towards the Mordar Forest. I wanted to scout the enemy myself, and check on their progress. From what Crow said, they were advancing towards us, but slowly.

A few days away from Sedon, I saw the Mordars over the horizon. 'This is bad indeed. The Dead Forest was nothing in comparison' I thought. The huge Mordar at the back, was bigger than what I faced, at least it looked bigger. The normal Mordars were few in numbers, most of them merged together to make even more annoying opponents. Those fused, were not that big. I estimated that ten of them fused at most, ad as little as three is some cases. The size of Mordar Army though, was large. Although they went for quality over quantity, they didn't lack the quantity either. 'From what I see, there are around 260 Mordars, not counting that huge one. Around 210 of them, are merged Mordars...They are serious on getting Sedon… Really serious' I thought. Our weapons of war, might not be enough.

Our army comprised of around 130 Atols, and around 240 Lizards. Although bigger numerically, our forces wouldn't stand a chance against the Army of Mordars. I didn't count the Shades, but even then we would have serious issues. 'I need fire… Flaming arrows are not a bad idea, but would they work? With the huge Mordar behind them, I doubt we can win like that, but it's always something' I thought and left that place. Poison could be used too. The problem was, I didn't have those strong poisonous herbs yet. At the rate those Mordars advanced, I wouldn't have those herbs for the battle either.

"We have around two weeks, before they stand in front of our gates. We need to make the most of that time" I said to myself. One army advancing towards Sedon, another camping outside Boltier. If my prediction was right, Golems would attack Obsidian Mountains. Although my actions might've been ruthless, we had one less enemy to worry about. 'See Fox? Would you argue with my actions now? Do you think we had to sacrifice Obsidian Mountains first, before attacking Golems?… It's a shame you didn't understand' I thought to myself.

Now I was sure we needed better weapons. I was sure I needed my weapon, but that was wholly dependant on Alicia. 'We need more than we have. We lack soldiers, we lack materials… I'm starting to think that we are fighting a war we already lost' I thought. I stood in front of a choice as well. I could abandon North, leave and never return. Or I could stay, and fight. I decided to fight. Not because I wanted to play a saviour, but because my friends needed me. "Throughout my life, there were only a few people… and creatures, I could call friends. Crow always helped me. Lazar also helped, even though he had his own bias. Harlin is the same. How could I call them my friends, if I abandoned them now?".

It was time for me to test some things out. During the battle with the huge Mordar, I noticed some things when I used everything I had at my disposal. More precisely, my Auras were not that simple… No, no Aura was that simple. Auras could create shapes too, it could manifest instead of just affecting people like a wave in the sea. If what I experienced was correct, this was the door to my mastery of Arts. The more I thought about it, the more stuff I realised.

"That is how Yater was able to create illusions. That is how Irwin tamed his rage, and became a master. That is how Nathan became a hidden weapon himself. The answer to all their skills, is Aura" I said to myself. The Aura that could manifest hidden weapons. The Aura that could manifest illusions. The Aura that could manifest the rage. 'Three Arts… No, four Arts. Four masteries, four ways but one method' I thought. Something in my mind clicked, when I realised all that. Everything became clearer. Everything made sense. A smile appeared on my face. "So that is the secret of Arts. Humans could practice Arts, because Humans could use Auras" I said to myself.