I made my way towards the Land of Mirages, not stopping at any city. There was no time, and I had a bad feeling about everything. No enemies blocked my path, not a soul was around. Everything was too quiet for my liking. I ran like crazy, passing Sludge Factory and Sedon, until I finally arrived at the Land of Mirages. All was quiet, no one else was around. No one walked in or out of the mist. 'I can't stay here for long. There is no way I can deal with all of them, if they find out I'm here', I thought and equipped my mask. While focusing on the mist from afar, I didn't notice anything. 'Getting closer is not something I want to do, but seems I have no other choice', I thought. Just as I approached the mist, I saw a figure emerging from within.
'What the?...', I asked myself. It was Fox, but that was impossible. It was obviously an illusion, but didn't attack me in any shape or form. Fox just stood there, inviting me inside. I wasn't stupid enough to enter, but there was a bigger problem. Although I met an Eterian with the ability to show me those I wished to meet, that mist was no simple Eterian. The whole mist was basically a "visible" illusion, that could show me anyone I wished for. Like a mirror that can reflect your desires. I tried focusing on the mist, while ignoring the "Fox" inside.
The more I stared, the more figures emerged. Nick, Shelly and even my parents appeared next to Fox. I knew these were illusions, but I still wanted to go there and meet them again. My body took a step forward by itself, but I managed to regain my thoughts. 'This place is really dangerous. It tries to lure me in, by displaying the ones I love or respect', I thought.
'There are no Elements here, nothing. This is not a Formation, or not a Formation that gathers energy from outside', I thought. There was nothing I could do, but then I got an idea. 'Perhaps the mist can't be absorbed with the use of Elements, but what about dispersing it with the use of wind?', I asked myself. I could feel the currents and predict them, but I couldn't control the wind. 'I can't control it, but I can try and make some', I thought and took out my Bastard Sword.
With its flat side and Formation active, I swung the sword from side to side as quickly as I could. This raised a small storm, but didn't affect the mist whatsoever. I then got another idea. I infused my Domineering Aura into the sword, and released it while swinging. This time, the effects were much more apparent. 'So, that is its weakness. No wonder they wanted an Aura Sealing Poison. If Humans attacked, they could somehow poison them, and deal with any amount that came to their front door. If Auras are sealed, they are pretty much invincible', I thought.
I stopped swinging my sword, and hid it back to my Storage Feather. I had an answer, or rather the weakness of the mist, but it was nothing to be happy about. I rushed back to the Grey Lizards, this was not a place I wanted to stay for a longer period of time. I stopped as little as possible during my return journey. 'Maybe Lizards will have some sort of idea, how to fight that… But I fear they can achieve nothing', I thought. A lot of running later, I made it back to their camp. I was barely walking at that stage. To return as fast as I could, I barely rested and only ate while running. After activating the Formations, I appeared inside the base. 'I need to rest', I thought and fell down onto my ass.
A while later, a few Lizards appeared out of the corridor. When they saw me, they quickly ran over and asked what happened. " I just ran at full speed for a long time. I need some rest, but bring Alicia and others here, I have some news to share with them", I replied. One of the Lizards quickly made his way back, while the other two stayed behind. They asked for an explanation, but I told them to wait.
Alicia appeared first. "So, what did you find?", she asked. I told her to wait, before others arrived. We didn't have to wait for long, the others arrived shortly after Alicia. "What's going on? What did you find out?", Tulin asked. I told them what I found out. How Auras were effective against the mist, and how it wasn't any sort of Formation or rather a Formation that collected Elements.
Alicia spoke first, "That is bad news indeed. In other words, only Humans can possibly do something about that mist. Since you mentioned that poison, Eterians have nothing to worry about so long every Human is affected". Although the poison was not permanent, it lasted a long time. There was no known cure for it either. 'Humans became rather rare in the North, but it would be wrong to assume the Emperor doesn't know about the war. If he sends people to stop Eterians and they are affected by the poison… It will be a total annihilation', I thought.
I wasn't sure whether that was what Eterians aimed for. Tulin asked, "Can't you go back to your Empire? Ask Humans to come here?". I snorted, "I don't have to do that. They will arrive sooner or later. As long as the Emperor or Royals learned of the Eterians' return, they will most probably send an army towards the North". He replied, "Isn't that good? Under your leadership and knowledge, you can defeat the Eterians".
I shook my head, "Under my leadership? These are Royals we are talking about, don't be delusional. They might not even believe me when I tell them about the poison. Moreover, people like me are hunted down by Royals. As soon as they spot my Arts, they will treat me as an enemy". Alicia said, "We might not have a way to disperse that mist, but we can defend and weaken them. As long as they come to us and we defeat them, we can buy more time".
In theory, it wasn't a bad idea. Theory didn't mean reality. "What if they arrive with something, we simply cannot defend against. That is the problem, we simply don't know what to expect", I said. Tulin argued, "We just have to wait for the Human reinforcements. They were able to win last time. With all of us combined, we can do it again. Don't show them those Arts of yours, simply convey the message about poison when the Human army appears".
I could do it, but it wouldn't solve the problem anyway. "We will see how this plays out. Either way, did you finish improving all the stuff I brought?". Tulin shook his head, "You were gone for a short amount of time. There's no way we would finish that quickly". "There is more to do, but I will trouble Alicia about it". Alicia scoffed, "Trouble me? Go die bastard! My hands are already full with that damned weapon and armour of yours". "Let's just talk", I said, and slowly picked myself up. "Oh, I would like some food too". They looked at each other, and shook their heads.
Alicia gave up, and told me to follow her. We went to get some food, and then back to her private room. "So, what is it?", she asked. "I have a bad feeling about this", I stated. She asked, "About Human army? Just don't show them your Arts, and you should be fine". I shook my head, "I couldn't care less about some Human army. They will not solve this problem. A deep seeded hatred, passed down from generation to generation. Do you think I will be around here in a hundred years, stopping whatever is happening?". She asked confused, "Wouldn't you be though?".
"What are you on about. I will either die or became an old fart. Humans don't live that long". She asked shocked, "You don't know?". I wasn't sure what she referred to. Humans didn't live that long, compared with Eterians we had a very short lifespan. She laughed a bit, "So you don't know? Maybe that's for the better". I asked, "I don't know what exactly? Am I supposed to live more than 100 years at this stage? Where did you get that from?".
She replied, "You will find out, when the time is right. It's not my place to tell you anything it seems. But back on the topic, you want to own the North, right? That was your purpose, that is why you joined this war. You could've just left, live however you liked". "You are wrong, but right as well. I don't intend to become the protector of the North, its ruler or emperor. It's true, those were my intentions", I replied.
She asked surprised, "What made you change your mind?". I leaned back, "An Eterian". She stayed quiet for a while, before asking, "Do you mean, you belie…". I stopped her, "Just like you, I also uncovered a lot of stuff. I saw much more than you could ever see. What you told me, only confirmed my suspicions".