Wright sat at his study alone.
He seated himself near the edge of the balcony, looking down at the empty scene before him. His mind raced as the events of the previous day unfolded again. He recalled rushing Nessa to the infirmary, desperately working with the healers to correctly bring her back from the edge of death. He remembered the blood transfusions that Nessa unconsciously burned away to repair her life force, and the pulses of magic each healer poured into her to keep her stable.
Wright recalled the stares of disdain and fearful glances. He felt reassurance knowing Nessa began her recovery, but ultimately every memory led into fueling his guilt. The silence in his study broke as his crow familiar perched itself on the balcony.
The crow dropped the golden gem from its beak into Wright's open palm, proceeding to fly off to await its next task. The gem flashed runes out in his vision, ultimately piecing together Clair's name in its array of lights. Without a moment of hesitation, a spark of mana fled Wright's fingers into the gem, causing it to glow even brighter.
Wright set down the gem, letting it pulse as it crackled with a distant yet familiar voice.
"Wright?" Clair's voice rang through, but not with her usual spirit in her tone. "Are you there?"
"I'm here," Wright calmly answered with a smile briefly forming on his face before fading away as quickly as it came, "Is everything alright?"
"I was going to ask the same thing." Clair's voice slowed as the concern in her voice became more apparent. "Saul contacted us about what happened. He told us about the verdict too."
With that mentioned, Wright took a look at his wrist. He looked at the translucent green bracelet hovering over his wrist and sighed.
"Yeah, I'm not allowed to leave the city for the time being," Wright admitted in an exasperated tone, "I suppose they really don't want me wandering off again, but it'll be alright." He leaned back in his seat, attempting to forget about the bracelet's existence.
"Wright." Clair's voice spoke in what was only a whisper crackling through the gem's brilliant pulsing light. "You don't need to put a brave face on with me. You can tell me if something is bothering you."
Wright was left silent for a few moments as he pondered how to continue, "I am a little worried," he finally admitted, "I don't know if I can handle this all alone. Even if I could, I can't right now. I guess I'm just stressed is all.
"Maybe you can't handle it alone," Clair replied almost immediately, as if she had the answer prepared, "But that's why you're not alone, right?"
Wright shifted in his seat, letting his gaze travel below the balcony to the now empty desk that Nessa used to work at.
"I know Hela and I aren't there right now," Clair continued, "But there are still those willing to help you. There are those that care for you, just as you care for them. I want you to know that you'll never be alone again." Her words struck a chord with Wright, and he felt his heart drop and rise in one swift motion as she concluded her attempt to cheer him up.
"Thank you," Wright finally replied after a few moments stuck in speechless silence, "That means a lot, Clair."
"It's the least I can do," Clair's voice picked up back into her usual tone, "Don't expect me to continue all this sappy niceties next we speak though." She snapped at him playfully.
"Oh, thank the gods for that." Wright couldn't help but chuckle in response.
Clair's genuine laugh audibly rang as music to Wright's ears, even through the static of the gem.
"I love you Wright." Clair spoke the admission softly as a farewell for the time being.
Wright smiled as he reached for the gem to end the connection, "I love you too Clair."
Silence returned to Wright's study as the connection with Clair was concluded. With newfound determination and a path forward, Wright stood up and left the study.
Nessa spent the past day in recovery from both the physical toll on her body as well as the sudden loss of a friend. The grief process felt impossible for her to get through. As much as she tried to move on, it felt impossible to her.
Terr'Ignus was still out there somewhere, and his shadow seemed to loom over Nessa everywhere she walked. The dread that surrounded his new future sat on the edge of her mind at all times. All while the guild claimed there was nothing they could do to follow up, presumably due to Ignus's supposed influence over the guild itself.
All of it piled up for Nessa. It felt like she and everyone else had let Ilz die for nothing. Nessa ultimately felt helpless. Despite these emotions that swirled in Nessa's mind, she tried her best to stay strong while she waited in the back of a small crowd in a grand catacomb on the edge of the city.
A murmur of conversation and the faint sounds of crying was all that Nessa could hear from the crowd that she stood a fair distance from. The memorial that was soon to start was dedicated not just to Ilz and his team, but other adventurers who met their end recently as well. Nessa scanned the crowd a few times over, not finding anyone that could've been family to Ilz. Even though she saw many other adventurers in the crowd, Nessa still thought she didn't belong amongst the other mourners.
After a few more minutes of waiting, a half dusk elf in priest robes of Aunderr approached from deeper in the catacombs. He opened a dusty black tome and calmly flipped through the delicate and worn down pages.
"Good morning children of the divines." The priest spoke softly, yet his voice traveled through the quiet catacombs with ease. "Today we gather as friends and family of the deceased adventurers, so we may pay respects to those who lost their lives on the field of battle this past week. Allow Aunderr and the gods you hold dear into your hearts as we walk to their final resting places and memorials." The priest began the ceremony as he guided the small crowd further into the catacombs.
Nessa walked with the crowd. However as they went further in, she found herself stalling and lagging behind the group. Soon, a significant distance was made between herself and the crowd of mourners, eventually they turned a corner out of sight.
"You're bound to miss the whole ceremony if you don't catch up."
Nessa heard a familiar voice and turned to find Wright standing a few meters behind her. "Wright? What are you doing here?" she asked, quickly wiping her eyes to dry the tears about to fall.
Wright let a slight smirk paint his face as he raised his wrist up to inspect the bracelet of green runes. "Well the catacombs are still within Eil'Drawwt's borders, so I am actually allowed to be here."
"You know that's not what I meant," Nessa sighed, "If you're here to comfort me, I don't need it. I can handle this."
"Maybe you don't need the comfort, but I imagine it would be nice to have someone to talk to right now." Wright stepped over to lean against the wall. He took a seat and motioned for Nessa to sit next to him on the cold floor of the catacombs.
With a few seconds of hesitation, Nessa sat next to Wright with her knees drawn to her chest.
"Sorry. I'm sorry for what I did against Ignus. I just," Nessa instinctively began to apologize, pausing as she tried to figure out what to say. "I just couldn't think of another way. I thought that if I just stopped holding myself back that I could do the right thing, even if it was going to kill me." Nessa looked down at her hands, trembling as she recalled everything. "But even that didn't work."
"It wasn't ever going to work," Wright spoke softly, inclining Nessa to turn her attention back to him in curiosity and confusion. "Blood magic is an art of sacrifice, but not everything can be solved with sacrifice. If you just throw your life away with reckless abandon, you won't get anywhere." Wright attempted to comfort her with one of his hands resting on her shoulder. "I should've been more clear about that, and I shouldn't have pushed you away."
"Is that why you stopped teaching me?" Nessa tilted her head as she proposed the question. "Because you were worried I was going to throw my life away?"
"That, among other things," Wright admitted, his gaze shifting away to scan the catacombs around them, "But I realize now that you didn't need someone to teach you magic. You needed someone to guide you and to be there for you. I failed you in that regard."
"I don't believe you failed me." Nessa smiled. "You're here now for me, aren't you?" Wright couldn't help but smile back following her kind words.
"You're way too forgiving," Wright mumbled as he stood back up, reaching down to offer a hand up to Nessa. "Regardless of your forgiveness, I want to be here for you in your struggles, and not just with magic. I don't want you to ever feel alone again."
Tears welled in Nessa's eyes as she looked up at Wright. Without hesitation, she stood up not to take his hand, but instead wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. Wright froze up in surprise, but soon returned the hug to her happily.
"Thank you, Wright." Nessa brought herself away to wipe away at her tears with a smile still on her face. Though he was happy to hear her gratitude, a realization led Wright's smile to fade.
"There's one more thing I came here for, Nessa." Wright shifted to a more serious tone. "After that adventurer's passing, this fell into the guild's hands." He pulled Ilz's journal out from his coat and presented it to Nessa.
Nessa's heart sank seeing the journal that Ilz would show off his notes and research to her through. She instinctively reached out to grab it slowly, but it took a few moments of hesitation to truly accept it from Wright. Her hands trembled as her grip tightened. Her gaze was fixed and she looked for what words to say.
"After a quick scan through it, I thought it'd be best in your hands." Wright broke the silence while Nessa held the journal close to her.
"Best in my hands?" Nessa repeated Wright's words back to him in questioning.
"Maybe you don't understand now, but hopefully soon you'll figure it out." Wright turned his attention to where he came from. "Let me just say, Nessa, I have the utmost faith in you. If you put your heart and soul to a task, I know you can see it through to the end, even without blood magic. I'll see you around, and if you ever need help with anything, feel free to come to me." With his last thoughts vocalized, Wright went on his way to leave the catacombs without another word.
Nessa watched Wright leave, happy to receive encouragement from him and to know he will always be there for her. Though that was on her mind, she also found it strange that Wright thought the journal was of some importance. Curious as to his intentions, Nessa flipped through the later pages of the journal, determined to uncover what Wright meant, and what Ilz might've left before his death.
Back in the halls of the guild, Mair and Fausm strolled to the training grounds in silence. Mair stared out the windows that led to the rest of Eil'Drawwt. He was lost in thought, and uncharacteristically silent for the past few days. Fausm meanwhile searched for the right words to say, but even he has had trouble justifying the situation they've been put in. The inaction they've been forced into infuriated them both as they waited anxiously for the eventual moment when Ignus made his next move.
"Your form has been improving, Mair," Fausm said in an attempt to break the silence, "It's only a matter of time until one of these days you actually beat me, I swear." He concluded with a light chuckle.
"What does it even matter," Mair replied in a defeated tone, his gaze still fixed to the windows, "I always end up being useless. I can't protect my sister, or anyone even."
"Come on, kid. That type of thinking won't get you anywhere. The future may be uncertain, but the guild will take care of that bastard," Fausm lied through his teeth. He was as doubtful as Mair on whether Ignus would be properly dealt with. Despite his doubts, he didn't want Mair to lose hope.
Before Mair was able to talk back, the two of them were interrupted by frantic footsteps rushing towards them from behind. They turned to see Nessa approaching them with a journal in her hands as she shot worried glances around the otherwise empty hall.
"Sis? Aren't you supposed to still be at the ceremony?" Mair questioned as he tried to piece together why Nessa was so anxious.
"I had to leave," Nessa answered after catching her breath, "I know where Ignus is, and we need to stop him. Today." Nessa's words caused both Mair and Fausm to recoil in shock at the sudden and absurd revelation.
"Slow down, Nessa," Fausm proceeded with his own questioning, "How are you certain where he is now, and that we need to attack now? If we rush blindly into a trap it could mean disaster."
"I'm not certain," Nessa took a deep breath before opening up the journal and showing it to Fausm, "But Ilz was. Before he died, he wrote his predictions, and they all point to one possibility."
"Well what is it then?" Mair asked excitedly as the fervor to take action overtook him, "Where is Ignus?" More than anything, Mair wanted to make up for his past failures. The chance to find Ignus was what he needed to fix his mistakes.
Nessa flipped through the pages and listed off what she found. "The star crystals above Eil'Drawwt that the Solferres brought millennia ago are designed to function parallel to the light of the sun on the surface. Today on the surface is the sun's solstice, and as a result the star crystals here will burn the brightest today than any other."
"Doesn't Ignus want the star crystals to go dark? Why would he act when they're at their brightest?" Fausm questioned to better understand the situation.
"That's exactly what he would want. When I first saw the darkened crystals, it was clear they were overworked to the point where they eventually burned out. Ignus plans to burn out the sun and all other lights in the underground in one fell swoop." Nessa opened up the journal to her team on a map of the underground. "And he plans to do that in the epicenter where all star crystals source from. The Solferre Ruins above the city!"
"Wait, but if we know where he is and what he's planning. Then shouldn't we tell the guild, right?" Mair added on, looking to Nessa with worry.
"I hate to say it, but Hidden Star won't help us," Fausm growled in annoyance, "Ignus wasn't lying when he said he had a foot in the guild. If we tried to bring this to their attention, no doubt they'd try to stall for time. It's exactly why Wright got put on a temporary detention for acting out of line. If we're slowed down, it'll give Ignus enough time to complete his goal. We have to finish this alone."
Nessa nodded in agreement. "Wright brought this journal and its contents to my attention. I know he desperately wants to help. But, if he were to do anything, then the guild and by extent Ignus would be immediately notified of his actions. He has faith in us, and I don't want to let him, or Ilz, or anyone else down."
"Then let's go to those ruins while it's still early!" Mair was ready to prove himself this time. He was going to defend his sister without fail this time. He was certain of it. "And of course we have to make sure no one knows where we're going."
The team of Ral'Kacet agreed on their mission. They all stood determined to stop Terr'Ignus before he could bring the underground into darkness. Even if failure and death was all that would be their fate, they still had to take that chance. With that determination fueling them, they started on their way to the ruins above the city of Eil'Drawwt.
As they left the hallway that they assumed to be empty, something shifted in the shadows before stepping out from their place of hiding. Eve stood in the center of the hallway after eavesdropping on Nessa and her team. A worried expression was painted across her pale face, and she soon rushed out of the hall to pass on the information she had gathered.
Far down at the end of one of the many tunnels above Eil'Drawwt, a long-forgotten entrance to a temple was left to the whims of erosion and time. The aging marble of the temple's entrance conflicted with the dark stone of the cavern around it, and yet it did not stand out as a blemish upon the underground's beauty. It instead stood as awe inspiring and an architectural wonder of its time.
Nessa, Mair, and Fausm finally arrived at the entrance alone, stopping to catch their breath after the quickened pace they took to even reach the ruined temple.
"Did we have to rush that fast? It was excruciating," Mair complained as he recuperated.
"If Ilz was right, then we don't have time to spare. No doubt a few hours have passed. Who knows how long there is until Ignus acts," Fausm added on, taking a closer look at the temple's gate before them. Nessa walked beside Fausm and noticed a set of runes carved into the marble above the closed gate.
As much as the team tried, none of them could find a way through the closed gate, and the indecipherable runes proved to be the only clue to possibly gaining access within the ruins.
"Fausm? Do you have any idea what this says? Or even what language it is?" Nessa asked as she took a few steps back to see the whole inscription.
Fausm didn't answer, instead a familiar voice sang out suddenly from behind them. "It reads 'Let they who carry the light of Aunderr walk through his heart'." Ral'Kacet collectively turned to the voice behind them to find Revilis standing casually as he flipped a dagger between his fingers. "Perilian, the language of the gods apparently. Never thought knowing that would come in handy." Revilis chuckled.
The adventurers stood on guard, uneasy with the aeriie's sudden appearance. Each of them held their weapons and tome at the ready in case Revilis tried to engage them.
"Come on, now! What's with all the cloak and dagger?" Revilis laughed as he walked around the team and stood next to the closed gate. "I can understand Nessa's caution, but I helped you two track down Lord Terr'Ignus didn't I? I expected at least a little gratitude."
"I recall you were only willing to help after you were cornered," Fausm noted, "How can we be sure you have the same intentions now?"
"Well there's only one way to prove it now isn't there?" Revilis motioned over the gate. "As you can see, it takes divine light to enter this here temple. It just so happens Ignus used the Solferre Halberd to let himself in and closed the path behind him. There's no other way in, except he forgot one important thing."
"And what would that be?" Nessa questioned. She was still put at unease, but willing to accept assistance, no matter how it came.
Revilis raised and opened his other hand to reveal a spectral shadowed aura around his palm and fingers. "The natural world of the Vy'es Dela'ramar is one that The Shadow Aeriie call home. However, we can not lie where mortal men have tread, and thus we find our homes in the wild, or reclaim what was abandoned. We possess the will to navigate these caverns no matter the obstacle, to take what has been left behind." Revilis concluded by slashing his shadowed palm against the marbled gate. His magic tore open the space in front of him, creating a bizarre dark portal that led further into the temple ruins.
"I do not betray Ignus with these actions. I am merely doing what an aeriie must do. Reclaiming our home." Revilis paused and looked away from the adventurers. "Ignus took that too far. He seeks to reclaim what has not been abandoned. He has twisted our ideals to that of tyranny. For that, I would not mind to see him stopped, perhaps even brought to reason." Revilis addressed the adventurers one final time. "Go on now, make with your fate and engage your destiny."
Revilis offered the portal out to them and stood by waiting for them to take the chance. Fausm looked back at Mair and Nessa with a glance of understanding. "Guess we owe you for this then, though I'd argue all the chaos you started cancels it out." He chuckled before stepping through the portal and disappearing through it.
Mair paused briefly, but a glance from his sister told him to go on ahead first. Though his mistrust of Revilis was plain as day, Mair hesitantly stepped through the portal and faded into the dark.
Nessa was the last one left alone with Revilis, and in that time alone she decided to speak with the aeriie one last time. "Revilis, I'm don't think we can bring Ignus to reason."
"Oh worry not, dear Nessa. It's just hopeful thinking from me. In truth, I saw from the beginning that your fate is tied deeply with Ignus's. One of you will bring foil and ruin to the other, it is simply the conflicting trajectory of your souls," Revilis commented, still staring off past Nessa.
She struggled to find a way to respond after Revilis's strange prediction, but she ultimately decided to step towards the portal. She considered expressing her gratitude, but after everything that transpired between them, Nessa decided it would be best if she didn't respond to Revilis at all. She stepped through the portal, and disappeared through it.
Deep within the temple ruins, Terr'Ignus kneeled in an empty and open chamber filled with nearly collapsed pillars and carvings depicting life on the surface. He held the halberd in a cold grip as he stared down the one wall carving that truly mattered to him. A depiction of the war that kept his people down in suffering and turmoil for all this time. The events before him were twisted and not to his understanding.
It depicted the war as one that was ended peacefully, and one without lasting consequences. The revisioned reality that played out before him made Ignus's blood boil. He shot to his feet and lashed out at the carving with the halberd. The weapon desecrated the stone easily, destroying the history with each fell swing of the blade, until all that was left was an indiscernible mess.
As Terr'Ignus stood at the destroyed scene before him, he sensed something accompanying him in the dark ruins of the temple. He slowly turned to what had joined him. Ignus's sight pierced the darkness, and his crimson eyes fell upon Revilis, standing silently in the chamber.
"Why have you come here?" Ignus questioned slowly, tightening his grip on the halberd, "Haven't you done enough?" His voice was cold and yet he hid conflicting emotions behind that exterior.
"I just want you to reconsider this, Ignus. Say the words and I will take you back to the safety of our coven, never to be troubled by the society of mortal men again," Revilis begged out to Terr'Ignus. The dusk elf refused to respond, and intended to glare down the aeriie until he left. "Ydda would not have wanted this."
Ignus's grip on the halberd loosened at the mention of that name. His gaze trembled and he struggled to recompose himself. "Ydda?" Ignus repeated quietly, "What do you know of what she wanted? Do you know what she wanted?" His tone grew heated, raising in volume. "My mother wanted to live. She wanted to not be burned at the stake by humans who did not understand her." Ignus's scar stung from him just reminiscing on those old memories.
"Go. I want nothing to do with you." Terr'Ignus concluded. With his final words, Revilis disappeared as easily as he arrived.
Before Ignus could properly readjust to the silence left by his former friend, the echo of distant footsteps rapidly approaching drew his attention to one of the entrances of the grand chamber. By the time Ignus turned to address the approaching company, the adventurers of Ral'Kacet stood across from him on the opposite end of the pillared room.
"So Revilis has utterly betrayed me," Ignus announced to the adventurers, "But not just me, for he has dragged you into inevitable death. You have failed against me once. It will happen again." The dusk elf prepared the halberd as if it were his staff for the ensuing altercation.
Fausm and Mair both waited for a signal from Nessa, however she merely walked in front of them with Ilz's journal in her hand instead of her tome.
"Ignus. If you succeed, not just Eil'Drawwt would be affected, but all of the central region underground. All over, without solace, there will be cold and darkness. Livestock will run wild and food will grow scarce." Nessa turned her gaze away from the closed journal where she pulled this information from and looked straight into Ignus's eyes. "You won't be creating a mass migration. It will be a genocide. They won't be able to run, and they won't be able to survive. Is this what you want?"
Terr'Ignus couldn't help but look away from Nessa at the realization. His thoughts ran rampant and his grip trembled ever so slightly as his few options were laid out before him. He recomposed himself just in time to respond to Nessa, still not meeting her stare.
"If that ends up as their fate, then so be it." Ignus slowly approached the adventurers with the halberd trailing along at his side. "Humans attempted genocide upon us long ago. It will only be karmic justice should that be their fate now. Nessa, you can not so easily sway me."
"I expected nothing else." Nessa swapped the journal for her tome and motioned for her team to engage Ignus.
The altercation between the adventurers and Ignus began with no holds barred. Nessa stood her ground, flurries of violet mana bolts flew from her palms while Fausm and Mair charged at Ignus.
The earth trembled beneath Terr'Ignus, and as he struck the ground with the blunt end of the Solferre Halberd, spires of stone and marble shot out to defend himself from Nessa's onslaught as well as delay the approach of the remaining adventurers.
Even with the spires to slow him down, Fausm still closed the distance between himself and his target with a ferocious leap that led him descending upon Ignus. The plunging slash of Fausm's broadsword met with the Solferre Halberd in a clash that shook the very air in the chamber. Their duel ensued with overwhelming force, Fausm's strength barely keeping up with the natural advantage a magical artifact held over his barely-scripted sword. Though Fausm was at least able to push Ignus back a few steps, this soon backfired as Ignus reached out to the pillar next to him.
The pillar shuddered from Ignus's influence. All too quickly, it shifted to collapse upon Fausm and Mair, who had finally caught up with him. Thinking quickly, Fausm reached overhead to hold up the collapsing pillar, momentarily pulling himself out of the fight while Mair held Ignus back with the reach of his pike. Terr'Ignus focused more on dealing with Nessa with several beams of frost than he did to her younger brother before him. Mair tried to use this to his advantage, but by the time he engaged, Ignus caught his blade with his hand encased in stone.
"I've no time to waste with you!" Ignus hissed as he tried to swing the golden halberd across Mair's chest. Mair narrowly dodged back, and even evaded the jab that Ignus had hit him with in their last encounter. Tiring of the continued display, Ignus pushed his hand forward so that a wall of earth knocked Mair several meters back and to the ground. The ground reached up to swallow up his hands and immobilize him.
Mair found himself in the same situation as before, helpless and powerless to keep fighting because of Ignus's magic. He pulled back in utter desperation, hoping he would find some hidden strength to break free, but to no avail. The overwhelming despair he felt faded as he felt a soft hand quickly clasp around his shoulder. His older sister knelt down beside Mair, and waved the fluttering pages of her tome over the earth beneath him. A pink light ran under the earth, appearing like veins under skin. Soon, the earth cracked open to free Mair.
"Keep fighting, I have your back!" Nessa said through rushed breath as she helped her brother to her feet. Nessa immediately followed up with a beam of violet mana that shot out from her palm. The beam struck at the halberd, reflecting it out towards the ceiling to distract Ignus from Fausm who still struggled from holding up the collapsing pillar.
With a sudden surge of strength, Fausm heaved the collapsed half of the pillar over and threw it towards Ignus. Shocked and caught off guard, the dusk elf was forced to cut the debris in two with the halberd, leading the artifact to be driven into the earth. The pillar split in two and collapsed on opposite sides of him. Fausm used the situation to his advantage, driving his sword between the transition of the halberd's blade. He deactivated his scripts to increase the weight of his sword, keeping the halberd grounded with the sheer weight of the broadsword holding it in place.
Ignus's eyes widened in shock as the artifact was kept out of his grasp. Though his shock was cut short as Fausm's fist struck his face to send him reeling back. Fausm threw another punch at the reeling and disarmed dusk elf, nearly knocking Ignus to the ground from the brutal swing. The reptir warrior prepared one final blow to his gut, but Ignus caught the blow with his hand encased in stone. The two of them proceeded to trade blows with neither one seeming close to giving up. They eventually locked grips as to hopefully outright overpower one another. Though Fausm proved more powerful, Ignus's magic kept him in the fight long enough so that he would eventually outlast the reptir entirely.
"Nessa! Mair! Take the halberd and run!" Fausm yelled out as he gripped onto Ignus's hands, determined to keep him from interrupting. The two siblings immediately acted to take the halberd. Mair activated the scripts to move the sword out of the way while Nessa attempted to pull the artifact out from where it was lodged in the earth.
"No," Ignus growled as a black aura surrounded his form, "I have sacrificed too much for you to take it all away!" The dusk elf released a pulse of dark magic from his palms, knocking Fausm away with his back to a pillar. The black magic swirled around Fausm's chest like a disease as Ignus turned to unleash a beam of darkness to Nessa. Narrowly noticing the attack, Nessa formed a violet barrier over her body. Her shield stopped the beam, but she was pushed back by the pure force of the burst of magic, keeping her away from the halberd.
With one final bout of dark magic, an extended claw of shadows reached out from Ignus that grabbed the artifact and pulled it back to him. As Ignus gripped back onto the Solferre Halberd, his dark aura simmered away as the light consumed it almost immediately.
Mair wasted no time in attempting to disarm Terr'Ignus again. He stabbed out at his target's arm, barely nicking it before retreating to favor a defensive position. Ignus lashed out with the halberd with a series of slashes and swings. Ducking and dodging away with each one, Mair struck back with caution and decisive movements. Finally, Ignus attempted to fire a beam of frost from the halberd down at Mair, only for him to redirect the attack at the ceiling by locking his pike beneath the halberd's blade.
While Mair dueled with Ignus, Nessa rushed to Fausm's side, carefully inspecting the damage done to her companion. Dark magic still coursed over the reptir's chest like a stream of smoke, seeming to slowly eat away the parts of his body that were hit the worst.
"Stay still, I think I can dispel this," Nessa whispered with a hint of worry in her voice. A violet light pulsed off her hands as she worked to heal Fausm of his wounds.
"You noticed it, didn't you?" Fausm choked out through heavy breathing, "His dark magic, he's not using it while he has the artifact." He slowly picked himself up as Nessa's healing aided him back to fighting condition.
"Yeah, I noticed. It's terribly concerning that he hasn't been using his greatest weapon this whole time." Nessa admitted while her healing spell concluded and exhausted a majority of her mana.
"Our best bet is to disarm him and let me distract him long enough for you and Mair to escape back to the portal Revilis created." Fausm rose to his feet with his vision dead set on Ignus.
"Fausm...We can't just-" Nessa wanted to protest but she knew she couldn't convince him there was another way. She opened her tome and let her fingers trail over the pages in a circular motion. The spell Nessa prepared slowly took effect as she eyed the fight continuing between her brother and Ignus.
Mair was still holding his ground against Ignus through defensive maneuvers alone, though it was only a matter of time until a misstep would cost him. As Mair found himself backed against a pillar, Ignus lashed out in one final swing of the halberd, forcing Mair to block with the shaft of his pike. The artifact cut through the shaft of Mair's weapon with ease, disarming him as the two halves of his weapon fell at his feet.
Ignus prepared to kill Mair with one final stab of the Solferre Halberd, but his movements were halted as a swirling whirlwind formed at his feet. Terr'Ignus fell off balance as Nessa's spell created a vortex of wind that kept him at bay away from Mair. He attempted to raise the earth out to disrupt the magic winds, but the wind eroded swiftly at his molded stone, amounting to nothing. Ignus found his attempts cut short as Fausm rearmed himself with his broadsword and engaged him. As Nessa stood back to manipulate the winds, Fausm continued to drive Ignus back until he was cornered.
Fausm drove the edge of his blade against Ignus's shoulder, pinning him to the wall. The stone armor that Ignus surrounded himself spared him from dismemberment, but the pressure placed on him grew more and more unbearable. Nessa redirected the winds around Ignus's wrist and hand, attempting to free the artifact from his grasp one more time. Eventually, the pressure overwhelmed Ignus. He released his grip on the artifact, allowing Nessa to move the weapon to Mair's feet.
Ignus reached out to the artifact in a desperate fervor. Before any of the adventurers could take it for themselves, he wrapped the blade in a cocoon of stone with the flick of his wrist. With the light of the artifact out of his grasp once more, dark magic swirled in Ignus's free hand to take the form of a shadowy claw. He slashed across Fausm's chest to free him from the pin against the shoulder before reaching down to the ground below him. The dusk elf held his hand out waiting as the ground below him trembled. Finally, his staff shot out from the ground into his extended hand.
With his staff at his disposal, the dark aura around Ignus heightened to an overwhelming level. The pure essence of dark magic radiating off of him extended into tendrils that shifted like spider legs off his spine. The sharp pointed tendrils lunged out to stab into Fausm's body. Though the reptir was able to block some of them with the flat edge of his sword, he was still pierced through his body and left crumbling to the ground.
Ignus slowly walked over Fausm, who was left reeling in excruciating pain, towards Mair. Desperately trying to tug at the artifact buried in the earth, Mair noticed the dark mage approaching him with the tendrils surrounding him stained in Fausm's blood. Before he could even think how to react, mana bolts fired off from the side at Ignus. Nessa intercepted between them, keeping barriers up to protect Mair and stop Ignus from approaching. All the while, Mair still tried to free the halberd out from its prison.
Everything seemed to slow down around Mair. He glanced over at his sister, barely holding back against the onslaught of dark magic that was thrown against her barriers. It was only a matter of time until Ignus overpowered her, and there was nothing he could do. He was always powerless. Always helpless to watch things play out without his intervention. His grip tightened over the weapon's shaft, but Mair felt his strength slipping as if he were to pass out right then and there.
In the moments before slipping away completely, Mair remembered his training with Fausm. He couldn't give up. There had to be another way besides pure strength. As long as he kept trying, then he could think of something. Mair looked down at the glint of the blade he could see under the earth. Under the golden radiating light, he could've swore he saw glimpses of symbols beneath it all. Mair's grip tightened, he attempted to connect with the weapon and activate any scripts that could be on the artifact.
While Mair focused on the halberd completely, Nessa still stood to defend him no matter what. The tendrils of dark magic that Ignus used to attack tried to slip under any defenses she raised, but she remained stalwart and determined in the face of the danger before her.
"Did you really think I hadn't noticed?" Ignus glared daggers at Nessa as his dark magic slowly broke every magical barrier she put up. "You've avoided blood magic this entire time. The one thing separating you from the rabble and you deny its utility."
The tendrils sank through Nessa's barriers, shattering them and leaving her completely defenseless. "I see right through you. You fear being stripped of your power. It's all you have, and now you refuse to resort to it in fear of losing the one edge you have," Ignus declared as he reeled his free hand back, a blade of ice formed around it before he plunged it forward through Nessa's abdomen.
A cold gasp of pain escaped Nessa's throat as the frozen blade sank through her flesh. Ignus withdrew the blade and let Nessa collapse at his feet. Her hand instinctively covered the wound left by Ignus, hoping to prevent herself from bleeding out even as it slipped through her fingers.
Mair wordlessly watched his sister fall to the ground. His mind felt emptied of everything in that moment. No other thought crossed his mind as he witnessed the scene before him. Mair's ears rang and his vision blurred. In this moment of absence, all of his doubts, fears, and worries vanished. This moment of nothingness was the last spark Mair needed. His body instinctively moved to pull the halberd out from the earth in a blinding light.
Ignus took a few steps back, eyes widened at the sight of the artifact wielded by a mere adventurer at this strength. He hardly had the time to consider his options before Mair swung the halberd through the air and loosed a shockwave of light mana around the ruins chamber. Ignus used his tendrils of dark magic to defend himself, but they easily dissipated in the boundless light emanating from the artifact.
A golden dust floated around the room, flowing to Nessa and Fausm as they picked themselves up off the ground. Though they couldn't yet get onto their feet, the light healed their wounds and slowly eased them from the severe pain they felt. With Nessa's wound healing, Mair couldn't help but find himself distracted and filled with glee. The light faded from the artifact in his grasp, to which he couldn't replicate any of the scripts he had just activated.
Ignus stumbled to his feet, relatively unharmed even after the bout of light that hit him. "This means nothing, I will still kill every single one of you!" A blizzard formed around him as ice magic charged within his palm and at the end of his staff. The dusk elf prepared to end Mair in one freezing spell. Mair tried to raise the halberd to defend himself, but his attempts to reactivate the halberd were made futile in the face of Ignus's impending spell.
Terr'Ignus reeled back his palm to release the ice magic, but in that very moment he was interrupted by a sudden surge of electricity and a loud boom of thunder.
The adventurers of Ral'Kacet watched as a bolt of lightning appeared from out of nowhere and struck the back of Ignus. Terr'Ignus fell to his knees, sparks traveled across his body, and he struggled to pick himself up following the surprise attack. Filled with anger and hatred, Ignus turned to see who would dare intervene.
Standing confidently at the entrance of the chamber, a demiserpus twirled a copper sword like it was a toy to him. Sparks danced around his body as he stepped further in to approach Ignus.
"Hey Nessa," Rex announced with a familiar smirk painted across his face, "Heard you needed some help."