Chapter 43

With a splash Melia and Ryder both landed in the pool of pure mana that awaited them below, the pool though was deeper than one would imagine.

Easily deep enough for the two of them to be submerged in, falling deeper down ever so slowly.

It was a strange feeling, like that of bathing in the waters of creation, yet slightly different… it was just enough that Ryder couldn't put his finger on it.

Yet the warmth that washed over him was relaxing, soothing, it made his mind begin to fade.

[RYDER!]

A burst of black flames snapped Ryder to his senses, causing him to look around, he was still in the liquid and he couldn't hold his breath much longer.

Quickly he looked for Melia, a wave of fear running through him as he saw her writhing in pain, trying to swim but getting nowhere.

[Grab her now! This stuff is toxic to normal people!]

Not wasting another moment he quickly swam over to her, pulling her close and swimming to the surface as quickly as possible.

Upon breaking through he noticed the outside surface was rigid, just like in Omen's False Zone.

Quickly he pulled himself and Melia through with ease, getting her up and out of there before it was too late.

[Quick, drop a few embers on her, let them leech what excess may remain on her.]

"Sorry in advance if this hurts…" Ryder quietly says before placing a few embers on her shoulder, the tiny black sparks already getting to work as Melia looks up at him weakly.

"How…" her voice was weak, hoarse from the pure mana working its way into her lungs.

"Just lucky, you stay there though, now that you're on the surface you'll be fine." Ryder stands up and turns around, spotting the fight they were now in.

Towards the back of the room is Saint Lucent, sitting on a twisted throne made of tree roots.

Her honorable knight, Tavish, standing in front of her, hammer at his side ready for a fight.

Though he has not engaged yet, only watching the two of them.

"You there, Lord marked by the Slumbering Chaos, why have you come?" Tavish's voice was cold, yet curious.

It held an authority to it that shook Ryder to his core.

"I'm here to defeat the other lords and secure a path home! The only way to do that is by reaching the end of the world!" Ryder responds as honestly as he could.

"I see, you dream of saving yourself and those around you, do you not?" Tavish asks, now resting one hand on his hammer. "How can you do that when you do not even know yourself?"

"What-" Ryder freezes, feeling Tavish's words cut deep, deeper than anything he's felt yet.

"You are simply playing pretend, I can see it in your eyes…" Tavish looks back at Lucent. "A true Lord knows what needs to be done in order to better the world around them, they know when to heal and when to strike." with one quick heft he heaves the earth-shattering hammer onto his shoulder and looks back at Ryder. "Show me that you know when it is time to strike someone down."

Before Ryder could respond, Tavish dashes in, swinging hard and connecting with Ryder.

The hammer hit hard, harder than Teach and sent him flying back, Ryder only barely managed to catch himself and not land even harder.

That singular attack should've been enough to do most of his health, though it didn't why?

[The Mana, you're healing from it.]

[The poisoning effect from it seems to be triggering one of your skills, allowing you to heal further.]

[The damage you're taking is being healed at a remarkably fast rate.]

"Good, that means I don't have to be as cautious as I thought." Ryder mused to himself while readying his sword, pointing it directly at Tavish.

In an instant Tavish slams his hammer down, causing the mana to splash up into a wall, blocking Ryder's view.

Cautiously Ryder prepares a fireball in his hand, waiting for a sign as he stares at the wall, only to be shocked as the hammer flies through, aiming right at him.

Ryder only barely avoided the hammer, only to be caught off guard as Tavish charges in, punching him right in the gut, grabbing him by the leg and throwing him to the opposite side of the arena.

It was a painful combo, but nothing he couldn't take as he stood back up.

Lightly he coated his sword with the black flame, now curious as to how much damage that hammer could take before breaking.

He couldn't stay on the defensive either, who knew what tricks that knight had up his sleeve.

Without wasting a second he hurled a fireball at Tavish, who blocked it with his hammer.

The flames exploded violently upon impact, seeming to engulf Tavish whole, but he emerged from the flames with barely a scratch.

Yet now the tables were turned as Ryder had dashed up to him, letting out a heavy swing aimed right for the hammer.

A loud screeching was heard as the blades made contact and the flames raged, whatever the hammer was made of was slightly resisting the flames but not enough to counteract them.

With a strong push Tavish knocks Ryder away, retreating ever so slightly.

It was clear what damage the flames had done though, as there was a clear cut in the hammer now.

He just had to keep up the aggression.

Meanwhile on the outskirts of the arena Melia was still recovering, forcing herself to sit up now as she felt a strange power coursing through her.

Had Ryder evened out enough of the poison for the pure mana to act as a power boost now?

Looking over she could see the battle raging on, Ryder and Tavish fighting to the death in pure all out combat.

She felt so helpless, she was here to do something and now she was just dead weight.

No, she wouldn't be, she could still fight, she could still help.

Quietly she stands up and begins tracing in the air, noticing her usual blue glow now being a mixture of azure blue and black strangely enough.

It didn't matter though, she knew what needed to be done and quickly drew the magic circle.

Putting all her power into it she clapped her hands together and mimicked the motion of pulling a bow back, a bow made of black and blue flames appearing in her hands.

"O divine huntress of old, spirits of the fallen hunters, let my arrow find its mark… ARROWFALL!"

As Melia let the arrow fly it shot forward with a startling amount of force, flying through the air and connecting with Tavish's side, launching him away from Ryder and burning away part of his armor.

Tavish collapses to one knee, coughing up a bit of blood and looking over at Melia with surprise.

"Ryder! Keep fighting, I'll cover you as best I can from here!" Melia calls out, preparing her next spell.

"Right!" Ryder responds, now readying himself once more by pulling his dagger out with his free hand.

With Melia's assistance he should be able to go for more damage than he normally feel safe.

Letting out a roar of frustration Tavish charges in, swinging down hard on Ryder with as much force as possible.

The hammer connects with Ryder's sword as he attempts to block it, his blade cracking under the weight, though not falling apart yet.

Just then a second arrow pierces Tavish's back, causing him to stagger and lose his footing, giving Ryder a chance to push the hammer aside and stand up.

Ryder quickly swings his sword at Tavish, cutting through his armor and then follows up with a quick stab to the side.

Tavish groans and uses the hammer to swat Ryder back, connecting with the sword once more and furthering the damage on the sword and itself.

However Ryder stands his ground, pushing back against the hammer, trying to cut through it.

Seeing this as an opportunity Melia readies another arrow, this time pointing directly at the weapons.

If she was right this would turn the tides of battle.

After calming her nerves she let the arrow fly, hitting the weapons dead on.

A huge, violent, explosion of magic rocked the arena, launching both Ryder and Tavish away, their main weapons now broken and unusable.

Ryder's sword had broken into bits, the only salvageable part being the handle and guard.

Tavish's hammer had been broken into two heavy slabs of metal, the handle splintering into an unusable staff.

The passive healing was working wonders for Ryder though, he stood up, body aching but still alive.

Meanwhile Tavish looked like he could barely stand, covered in wounds and hobbling, but he wouldn't give up.

With a roar he charged in once more, putting everything into this one last punch.

It connected, but at the same time, so did Ryder's attack.

A dagger, right to the heart.

It was simple and effective, draining the last of his health in one fatal move.

Gently Ryder grabbed Tavish and lowered him to the ground, the knight sputtering his last words as he tried to look back to the throne.

Before Ryder could pull the dagger out he felt Tavish grab his hands, looking him deep in the eyes.

"Please, I beg of you, give her a proper death… free her."

With that, his hands went limp, falling to the ground.

Cautiously Ryder withdrew his dagger and looked towards the throne where Lucent awaited, eternally dreaming.

"Ryder, are you alright?" Melia asked as she ran up to him, looking far more exhausted than Ryder.

"I'm fine, thanks to your assistance back there." he admits, a small smile on his face. "Now save your energy, I've got a Rite to claim."

Melia nods, but looks rather nervous as she watches Ryder walk up to the throne, would everything really be alright?

Ryder's heavy footsteps echo through the room as he approaches the sleeping saint, a tinge of sorrow going through his heart as he places a hand on her head.

Quietly he activates the Rite but feels a sharp pain shoot through him, her memories and knowledge overwhelming him initially before he powers through.

A blinding white light filled the room… and then as quickly as it came it was gone, though that wasn't entirely true.

That light had brought everyone out of the dungeon, back into the open field.

In front of them was Ryder, a mournful look on his face as he held his hand out, a blossom of knowledge forming and being blown away, scattering on the wind freely endlessly.

Petals like feathers gently drifted across the open fields, bringing life back to the area, an area that Lucent and Tavish had cherished so dearly.

"Ryder, what did you see?" Teach asks as he approaches behind him.

Ryder remains silent for a moment, contemplating what to say.

"A life long past, one that sought only to right the wrongs of so many others… someone who didn't deserve the ending they got."

Teach rests his hand on Ryder's shoulder. "At least you set her free, you set them all free with that."

"Right…" Ryder replies, now looking down at his hand bearing a stronger looking Rite than ever before.

Was this truly the right thing to do?

Could he ever possibly know?

There was no way to know for certain.

With a heavy heart he steeled himself and looked back at the group.

He couldn't falter now, he still needed to stay strong.

Not only for them, but for himself as well.

All he could do now was keep moving forward.