Chapter 27: Showing no mercy

In the treacherous landscape to the south of Ethan's position, a 40-man squad raced against time, cliffs at their flanks and an array of menacing beasts barring their way. Though the beasts fell under their combined might, each skirmish drained their energy.

"Wasn't this route supposed to be safe? Weren't the beasts supposed to be held back?" Henry's voice was tinged with irritation. The journey had taken longer than expected, and they were far from their destination.

"The beasts may have changed their territories," suggested Leo, a man with a golden beard that glimmered even in the dim light.

"Are you kidding me, Leo?" Amanda retorted. "These species are mortal enemies; they don't just cohabitate."

"You're the one who's deluded, Amanda. Just because you're Henry's right hand doesn't mean you're above questioning."

"Enough," Henry cut in, his voice icy. "Both of you are invaluable to me. Amanda for her strategic mind, and Leo for his unparalleled might. But if this bickering continues, you're both replaceable. Understand?"

"WHAT!? IT'S NOT MY FAULT THAT THIS B.."

"SHUT UP YOU STUPID MONKEY, DO YOU THINK I WOULDN`T FIGHT YOU?! BRING IT ON…"

"Enough! Both of you!" Henry's mental power pushed down on them like a heavy blanket. They stopped talking. Their faces were red, but at least they were quiet.

Henry looked at both Amanda and Leo. He felt something else was going on. They were in a dangerous place with cliffs and beasts. Was it just the stress making them act weird, or was it something else?

As he thought about this, he saw a quick flash in Amanda's and Leo's eyes. It was like, for just a second, they weren't really themselves.

Henry felt in his gut that this was more than just a fight; it was a risk he couldn't take lightly.

Using his telekinesis to probe the minds of his foes, a perplexing aura caught his attention. "Like I thought!" Henry exclaimed.

"Mana Sense." Casting his sensing ability like a net over his surroundings, he honed in on the disturbance.

That's when he noticed it—a shimmering cloud of almost translucent insects, their wings glowing with hues of pale lavender and soft blue, swirling in the fading twilight air. Mindmote Flutters.

These mystical creatures were tiny, their bodies nearly insignificant compared to the grandeur of their ethereal wings. Veins of liquid mana pulsed through those wings, lending the atmosphere an almost palpable charge. Henry realized the air was thick with something more than just the impending tension of battle—it was thick with the emotional dust released by the flutters' wingbeats.

The Mindmote Flutters were not inherently aggressive, but their presence was like fuel to fire in situations like these. Their wing movements released particles that amplified emotional states, particularly aggressive or combative emotions. He knew this swarm could escalate the conflict to dangerous levels, charging the combatants with heightened emotional aggression, thereby making their magical spells all the more potent.

Without a second thought, Henry focused his telekinesis, sending out a gentle but firm wave of force that swept the swarm of Mindmote Flutters away, dispersing them into the evening sky. Their ethereal wings shimmered one last time before vanishing into the distance. The charged atmosphere seemed to lighten instantly, the emotional dust they'd released dissipating without their presence to maintain it.

The shimmer in Leos and Amanda's eyes immediately dimmed. "Wh.. What was that?" Amanda shivered in fright. Her Actions were irrational and that's not how she operated. Leo did not feel good either. He looked in Amandas direction and then at Ethan. If he really fought here between the cliffs the outcome would be catastrophic.

"Something's not right," Henry said, knowing it wasn't their fault. "Why are the other beasts not affected? It feels like the beasts are only targeting us and not fighting each other."

Henry bit his lip in annoyance. "Someone is targeting us, either to get our goods or to hinder us. How far are we from the cave, Amanda?"

"Hinder us? From what?" Amanda was first confused but then realized the potential danger. "Wait, are you saying our scout troop is in danger?"

"I'm not sure, but something smells fishy. So tell me, how far are we?" Henry's voice grew agitated.

"If we hurry, we'll be there in 15 minutes, but we'd need to fight more recklessly," Amanda replied.

Henry took a deep breath. It was a tough decision to make.

*******************

"Ahh he is smarter than I thought. I should've bought you enough time. Until they get to you, your decisiveness has to get a great leap." somewhere on top of the cliffs, Oneiro was looking down on Henry's squad.

"And while a big part inside me is downing it for myself, I doubt that this won't help you on the long run. Ethan Stormborn, I am going to make you the strongest awakened in this world, and the world beyond."

Still eaten by his own guilt, Oneiro started telling himself that it was for Ethan's own good.

******

"Gravity Pull!" With bloodshot eyes and a hand outstretched toward the cave, Ethan activated his ability to yank the sword in his direction. Just as a series of attacks were closing in on him, Ethan caught the sword using its incoming momentum. He began to spin rapidly, deflecting the oncoming assaults. As he executed the maneuver, the ground quivered beneath him, and fissures began to form, as if the Earth itself was submitting to his magical power.

"'Gravity Push!'" Sensing the sword's momentum starting to wane, Ethan used his gravity ability to hurl it with renewed force. The sword sliced through the air, creating a vacuum in its wake. Loose stones and debris were pulled along, leaving a trail of upheaved ground and disturbed vegetation.

"Telekinetic Shield!" Before the sword could reach Fabrice's position, the latter swiftly deployed a telekinetic barrier to intercept it.

Ethan was far from done. "Levitate!" The dismembered spider parts scattered on the ground began to float, rising up with Ethan.

"Shoot him down! Don't let him get the high ground," Fabrice commanded, having deflected the sword but knowing the battle was far from over.

Though Ethan couldn't change the position of the spider fangs, legs, and claws, their weight was sufficient for his purpose. As he hovered twenty meters above the ground, Fabrice felt an icy shiver shoot down his spine. "Damn it, defend! Use everything we've got!"

From water barriers to telekinetic shields and shadow walls to light distortion, Fabrice and his squad employed every trick in their arsenal to thwart Ethan.

"Too late. Gravity..." Ethan began.

Realizing what was coming, Fabrice felt a subtle pull from the ground, and his telekinetic shield began to warp.

Ethan closed his eyes, took a deep breath in and then exhaled. "Crush."

BOOM THUD

The "Gravity Crush" rained down from above, amplified by Ethan's elevated position and the substantial mass of the hovering spider parts. Almost immediately, not even a full second passed before Ethan stretched his arm, opened his palm in the direction of Fabrice and added: "Gravity. PUSH!"

The spider parts didn't just fall; they were accelerated by Ethan's gravitational push, transforming them into lethal projectiles. The moment they hit the ground, craters erupted, sending shockwaves that ruptured the earth and toppled any remaining obstacles.

The impact was devastating. Spider parts rained down like deadly missiles, shattering through the magical barriers Fabrice and his squad had erected. One of the spider fangs tore through the thigh of a squad member, pinning him screaming to the ground. Blood spurted in an arc, painting the landscape.

The remaining members were bruised, their magical shields in tatters.

"Medic, get the medic!" shouted one of Fabrice, but their designated healer was already down, a spider claw jutting out from his abdomen.

Fabrice used his telekinesis to wrench the spider fang from his team member's leg, grimacing as he felt the man's pain through the psychic link he'd formed. His eyes flicked to another team member with an affinity with shadows. "Dark Laceration!"

At Fabrice's command, the squad member released a swirling vortex of dark energy, aiming it at the still-hovering Ethan. But Ethan simply smiled.

"Gravity Wall."

A sudden force field of compressed gravity appeared before him, absorbing the dark vortex entirely. The dark energy dissipated as if it had never existed.

Fabrice's eyes widened. "Water Torrent!"

He manipulated the moisture in the air to form a high-pressure stream of water, directing it with his mind straight toward Ethan. But Ethan was ready.

"Gravity Sphere."

He formed a sphere of intense gravity around himself, and the torrent curved around him, unable to penetrate the gravitational field.

"You can't escape forever!" Fabrice shouted, trying to mask his pain. "I'll bring you down!"

Ethan's face hardened. "Gravity Crush."

Fabrice felt the ground shake beneath him, his telekinetic shields bending under the enormous gravitational pressure. Then, with an almost casual flick of Ethan's wrist, the gravitational field exploded outward.

Rocks, debris, and even some of the lighter members of Fabrice's squad were flung out in all directions. Fabrice himself was hurled into a boulder, feeling ribs crack from the impact. Gasping for air, he glared up at Ethan.

"Is that all you've got?" Fabrice spat blood onto the ground.

Ethan floated gently down, landing softly on the earth. "No, it isn't. But the real question is, can you survive what comes next?"