Chapter 36 - Zoren vs Ares' Champion

Ok. I know most of you are gonna rage about this. Sigh. This chapter is a sneak peak onto the Greek mythology with a lot of original ideas and concepts interwoven. Please 🥺 enjoy it. We're about to finish up with the Atlantis arc.

Check out my other book on Pat.reon. It's dooope as f*CK.

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A look at what a Champion is capable of. Hope you guys enjoy.

(Zoren's P.O.V)

"I have never met your kind before but from what I know, you're not welcome in this universe."

Zoren's smooth voice flowed out, emotionless. The strange woman snarled and answered with a wave of hand sending countless piercing weapons forward to the millennia old sorcerer. A magic circle with an infinity symbol in the middle appeared before the veritable hail of metal attacks.

The attack was swallowed and then reflected back at twice the speed. The woman's eyes shone with an interesting gleam as her reflected attack dissolved around her into nothingness. 

"I'm glad that my Lord sent me here to investigate what the high magical discharge was about. It had everyone in Olympus surprised that such a huge amount of energy could still appear in the mortal world. Who would have thought that I could come across such a strong foe. I'm very happy right now!"

She finished with a shout as she blasted off towards Zoren at a high speed. Zoren shook his head. 

"I should have known. You're a battle maniac. I despise your type the most."

Zoren's tightly controlled magic was loosened slightly. It's weight was so heavy that a sporadic scene of colorful effects surrounded his form. The colors flashing around in uneven intervals.

The world overturned at his command and the scenery changed to an arena. The woman didn't stop herself before impacting with the walls of the new space harshly. A dust cloud exploded out from the area of contact and a second later a cough was heard.

"That wasn't nice."

She said.

"I don't believe you're in the business of being nice."

Zoren shot back.

"You're right. My full name is Ivyone Lucelli. But you can simply call me, Conquest. Your life shall be a good offering to my Lord."

Zoren shrugged.

"So impertinent. Have you probably forgotten where you are? This is my domain."

She snorted.

"A fitting place to make your last stand. My lord's mission will be carried out. No matter the cost."

She twirled a spear that had appeared in her hands and moved.

Zoren immediately teleported out of the way. A mushroom cloud of dust appeared at his previous position. At his command, a low tier earth spell activated. Spikes of earth shot out of the earth to pierce Conquest. Conquest swung her spear in a wide arc and destroyed the spikes. She had a mocking smile on her face.

"Such an attack is useless. Next time I'm taking it head on with my body."

Zoren mentally sighed.

'It was a probe, you battle crazed fool.'

"Aiyahh! Take that!"

Another barrage of weapons shot out of black portals heading towards Zoren. He evaded but this time, the weapons followed closely behind him. A low tier air spell negated the air friction so he drifted on the wind he had generated smoothly. As he did this, his mind was racing with thoughts. She had said that she'd been sent here to investigate the high discharge caused by Jin's Runic Trance. So suffice it to say that she and her master hadn't had prior information about Jin. If so, maybe there was a chance for reconciliation?

"Fight me like a real man, you coward!"

Nevermind, she probably wouldn't listen to reason. 'Champions are trouble,' Zoren reiterated. He didn't know the reason why the age of the gods had ended. Not even the grand sorcerer was made privy to that information. However, from what he knew, Champions were powerful beings, chosen by a patron god to serve as their avatars in the mortal world. He'd read of worlds where the gods could walk among humans but those were places too intertwined with the mist. A magical phenomenal that worked to shield the mystical side from the mundane. 

That information had been contained in the records of one of the more renowned Grand Sorcerer who had taken space-time magic, a combination of elemental and nature magic to absurd levels. He had been capable of constructing gateways to other worlds and controlling time in a localized area, where he had complete dominion over it. For this universe, the ambient magic in the air was not only tainted but had also been growing little. The world wouldn't be able to completely hide a god's presence hence they had their Champions carry out their missions by proxy. 

But ever since the age of the gods ended, there had been no other Champion to appear after that. That had been many years before the birth of Zoren. Champions had a weird personality trait. They usually acted like their patron gods. A champion of Zeus would be prideful and lustful, a champion of Poseidon would be wrathful when wronged but easy-going most of the time. A Champion of Ares would be a battle maniac and bloodthirsty and so on.

There was one unrefutable claim however, Champions were freakishly powerful. They drew upon their patron god's domains with no upper limit. The only limitation being their soul and body's capability to channel that much energy. They excelled in the art of destruction. Zoren was a grand master for a reason  and pure strength wasn't something he had lacked during his prime. A stage in life that had long since passed. Even with the lessened power, his control and finesse would ensure that even when fighting a stronger foe he would still prevail. 

That wasn't what was most worrying to him though. Not even the very likely possibility of Conquest having innate abilities as all champions usually did, fazed him. It wasn't the fact that the Champion had stumbled upon Atlantis, a place with treasures abound and was most likely planning to plunder it after his death either. No, it was in the simple fact that everything that had happened, had Jin stuck right in the middle. 

Before his arrival, Zoren's life had been quiet and boring but then after he came...the whole city had reacted. He'd sensed Jin's divine side. It had instinctively laid claim to the symbol of Atlantis' authority. The trident of Poseidon. Most likely due to being a demigod of the sea. Something that had puzzled Zoren since day one. How had Poseidon's own son come to be in this universe that was so far past the god's era? Maybe a rift in space? If a Grand Master sorcerer could travel in between worlds then it wouldn't be too out there to say others could to. 

An unexpected explosion caught Zoren on the shoulder but luckily his tightly layered shields blocked all of it. 

"Gotcha now bastard!"

Conquest said triumphantly. 

'She has managed to get me into close combat. Too bad that, close quarter combat isn't a weakness I share with average sorcerers.'

Zoren's eyes changed as two tiny magic circles appeared in both of them. Then his turn to move came. 'A sword swipe to the left, then duck. Dodge a kick, reflect back the swords aimed at me from the back then upper cut her on the chin. When she's in the air, blast her with a point blank fire bomb.'

The explosion from Conquest's front set off multiple other explosions that appeared around her from everywhere. Zoren closed his eyes and when he opened them, the magic circles were gone.

"I still can't sustain that high tier spell while still coating my body with magic to interact with the physical world. It would be a good spell for Jin to learn. Too bad, he still stubbornly refuses to see the bigger picture."

Zoren mused to himself. 

"Hahahaha."

The laugh started slow but quickly built up to a crescendo.

"Yes! This is what I was talking about! Show me what you're fully capable of sorcerer. Starting now, I stop holding back."

Her disheveled appearance did little to hide the menacing eyes and ferocious smile. One hand rose to the air in a dramatic move that almost made the Grand Master cringe.

"I call upon the fallen in battle, heroes, villains, kings and peasants. All who's final rest is on the Lord's mighty blood soaked ground. Led me your strength."

There was a brief silence before ethereal hands began appearing everywhere around Conquest. Wails and cries from millions of disembodied voices sounded along with a happy and heartfelt laughter from a psychotic woman. Streams of purple energy, evil strong enough to make Zoren frown started flowing into her without limit.

Magical attacks aimed at incapacitating shot out from Zoren's hands non-stop. Binding spells, ice spells, nature spells, debuff spells none of them worked. Pillars of stones joined together to form golems with mighty swords. They tried attacking the stationary woman who was still getting power from what was no doubt Ares' domain to no visible effect. The swords broke on contact and the explosion of air followed by the clash of 2 durable things almost sent Zoren flying back. The Grand mage managed to anchor himself to the ground. 

"I can't let her finish. Otherwise, this whole place might collapse."

Zoren decided to move on to more destructive spells. Murky black beams, waves of green fire and severing spells that cut space at a designated area all fell down on Conquest. Seeing the attack that was magnitudes stronger than before, countless war shields appeared at her front to block everything. The shield's structure deteriorated in contact with the black beams and the green fire ate away at most of her hastily put up defense. The final nail on the coffin came in the form of the severing spells that cut away at her defense.

He eyes widened at the impending doom and she pulled more of her master's power into herself. Something she normally wouldn't do. Her laughter changed into screams of pain as she channeled more energy than she could safely contain. Zoren knew trouble was abound so he quickly cast a foresight spell. A top tier magic that was near his limit at his current state.

For the first time ever during the battle, Zoren's demeanor changed from impassive to urgent.

"I can't stop what she's about to do!"

No matter what spell he cast on her directly, Conquest would still manage to release an attack called 'War call' that would wreck everything around her in a 500 km range. It would not only affect Atlantis but even the outside world. The attack itself contained a concussive effect that would ensure that Jin would die no matter what. Zoren wasn't strong enough to block such a thing at this close range. 

Which left him with only one choice. Every Grand Master's trump card of trump cards. A spell that would drain most of his power away and leave him weakened for a time.

"I invoke the will of the fallen city and it's people...Grand Treasure Atlantis, awaken."