The journey took longer than expected, with the group arriving at the fort as the sun shot it's dying hues into the sky.
As they approached the coast, dark clouds formed overhead sending water down towards them.
Once close enough, they advanced cautiously on foot along the top of a cliff that stood overlooking the ocean, careful to both not to alert any sentries to their presence and fall to an untimely death. The sounds of waves crashing into the shore acted as an extra layer of protection, masking their sounds with its violent assault. Dead vessels haunted an abandoned harbour, crying out into the night in a desperate attempt to not be forgotten.
Marcus added to the orchestra of noise with a snap of his fingers, whipping the wind into a wild frenzy.
The fort was a shell of its former self.
The stone and mortar that it was made of was reclaimed by nature, time taking its tax. The resulting damage was only worsened by the corruption that followed the cultists around, taking root wherever they touched. Growths spread along the outside of the fort, shoring up any structural weaknesses. Despite this, the fort remained wounded by a gaping hole taken out of its side.
They were forced off course as they neared the fort by a patrol of cultists exploring the cliff.
Once they were a suitable distance away, Tess cast a shroud of shadow around them. They waited for the patrol to pass, before returning to the man-made path.
Approaching the mouth of the fort, they pressed their bodies down to avoid detection.
"Seek," Tess commanded, setting a pack of shadows towards the fort to seek out cultists. Satisfied their path was safe, she led them closer.
"Marcus, up there. Bring it down."
*Snap*
A gust of wind dislodged a section of the rotting rock from the structure, toppling the cultists who stood atop it. As she fell, she was pierced by shadows thrown out by Tess.
Marcus manipulated the air to carry the four of them into the maw of the fort. Once inside, the group glanced at each other.
"So, now what?" Roxy asked.
They all looked at Elanor, expecting her to have thought of something.
"I didn't prepare anything, sorry. Maybe we should quietly take a look around?"
"Nah," Marcus said with a snap of his fingers. "Let's show them pain."
Multiple sources of flame engulfed the area in which they stood, cleansing the walls of the vile corruption that tarnished it. Ahead of them lay a long, dark, narrow corridor.
Roxy grinned as she uttered an incarnation and rained lightning down from above, decimating the shell of the fort. Rubble crashed down around them, the sound rising over the waves and the wind.
Marcus snapped his fingers once again, illuminating the corridor by igniting the ceiling.
"Come on," he said with a glance behind. He led the others down the corridor, scanning his surroundings as he went. "Someone keep an eye out behind!" he called as he ran.
The corridor was narrower than it looked, the sides pressing in to make room for whatever was behind. Wooden door lined the wall. Satisfying his curiosity, Marcus snapped his fingers and opened one with a gust of air.
Inside lay a mix between a bedroom and a defensive point.
The room was large enough to fit multiple people in. Opposite the door stood a large window, one that would provide a decent line of fire onto the courtyard in case of an attack. Tucked in the corner lay a small bed, one so small it was questionable if you could even call it a bed.
As they continued along the corridor, he noticed an array of weapons hung on the walls, easily detachable by a person as they were moving past.
At the end of the corridor lay a choice. Ahead of them lay a flight of stairs that led downwards, and to their right the corridor carried on around the fort, courtesy of a harsh bend.
"Okay, where now?" Roxy asked.
"Everyone above should be dead, and no one has come from the other side of the fort, so down?" Elanor suggested.
"Down it is," Marcus agreed, leading them downstairs.
He snapped his fingers, generating a flame in his left palm. He held his hand out, illuminating the stairway as he descended. As he turned at halfway, he saw the open ground ahead of the stairs.
"It must be the courtyard," he muttered.
At the bottom of the stairs the area spread into a square-shaped yard. Immediately at the foot of the stairs, and all around the perimeter, the infrastructure above them provided cover from the weather. Alcoves opened up along the length, providing access to the outside while supporting the fort above.
In the centre of the courtyard lay a ritual site. Dozens of cultists swarmed around it, offering twisted worship to their dark god.
Corruption spread through the ground beneath their feet, pulsing with energy as though it were a vein in the body of the fort.
The ritual burned with fire, filling the air with a putrid stench and leaking a sickening ichor everywhere.
Atop the fire lay the latest victim of the cult.
A child, younger than Marcus, writhed upon the platform he was trapped on, desperate to escape the flames. He stretched his neck upwards in a forlorn effort, hoping there would be someone reaching down to lift him up to safety.
Marcus hid as he saw the scene, and gestured for the others to do the same.
"What are you doing? We have to help him," Elanor whispered in a confused tone.
Marcus shook his head. "Their god has already claimed him. Nothing much we can do about him now."
"But he's a child!"
"So were we. We survived."
"I thought you wanted to show them pain?"
"I do, but I'm not going to be an idiot about it."
He looked up, scanning the surroundings. It seemed there were no others at the courtyard but those at the ritual.
Marcus quickly formulated a plan.
"Tess, be ready to restrain one with your shadows. Roxy, on my signal I want a barrage of lightning."
"What's your signal gonna be?"
"Take a guess," he responded flatly.
*Snap*
One of the cultists was thrown towards them by a focused gust of wind. Muttering a quick incantation, Tess slammed them into the ground with her shadows, before binding the shadows into the ground to stop the cultist from moving.
Lightning rained down upon the ritual site, electrifying a score of the cultists.
*Snap*
Pillars of fire erupted around the ritual, burning any unlucky enough to have survived the lightning assault.
Marcus watched the flames dance until they died. Satisfied that none were left alive, he turned to the captive.
"What is the cult doing here?" he asked aggressively, tearing their hood down. "What is your goal?"
The cultist laughed. "As if I'd ever tell you," he said, spitting on Marcus's shoes.
Marcus tore the hood off the cultist's robe. "Lox, water please," he said as he flattened the hood.
"What for?"
"This bastard's being funny." He smashed the hood onto the cultist's face and held it tight. "Now, just give me water until I say."
"Are you insane? We're not torturing someone!"
"Elanor! These people destroyed our home! Killed the people who raised us and took the children we lived with! You weren't there, so don't tell me what we are and aren't doing!" He took a deep breath and stepped away from the captive. "You agreed that the only condition was that we don't harm innocents. Well this creature isn't innocent."
She was silent for a moment, shocked at his sudden change in tone. "This isn't about them, it's about you. I don't want you to lose yourself."
"Sorry to tell you, but he's not the sweet, innocent child you once knew. I'm surprised it took you this long to find out," Roxy said, entering the conversation. "Although, I guess it isn't too surprising..."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing, not really. Just that he seems to take extra care when dealing with you, as though you're a fragile object."
"Roxy, shut up," Marcus warned her.
"You know, if it wasn't for you these people would probably already be dead. You're an anchor to the past for him. All you do is weigh him down and hold him back. Anything they do as a result is on you."
"Shut up," Marcus repeated. "And you can be quiet too," he said to the captive, who had started laughing at the commotion.
"Or what?" the cultist asked, goading him.
Marcus snapped his fingers to summon a flame to his hand.
Nothing happened.
He tried again.
Nothing happened.
He tried again, ignoring the mocking laughter of the cultist that had restarted.
At the point of impact between thumb and finger, a spark flew.
Then another joined.
It wasn't long before a current of electricity danced around his hand.
"You going to tell me what I want to know?" he asked the cultist while admiring the electricity.
"I would rather die," the man answered. "Not that it matters. His return is inevitable, and you have too little time to stop it, regardless of how long it takes."
A smile grew across Marcus's face. "I'm glad to hear it. I'm a quad-elementalist, I'm pretty good at defying the odds. Now, die."
*Snap*
Electricity arced from his hand, striking the man on the forehead and instantly killing him.
"Y... you killed him?! Why?" Elanor asked in a shocked tone.
"He didn't want to answer. And someone wouldn't help me," Marcus said, emphasising a certain word.
"How are we going to find out what they're doing here now?"
"Easy. Hard work." He looked towards the stairs, noticing another staircase that led further down. "Roxy, Tess, look around up here. Elanor, with me. We're going down there."