Astral woke up before the sun rose as he walked out to the face of the castle walls and stared to the east. Waiting and watching the waning sun rise. He smiled as his imagination of the worlds he helped create ran wild. 'The past is but a blur with those that I helped being smudges among time. I hope the future can be saved by me as well.'
Tina sat next to him as she rested her head on him as he stayed still. "I found some books last night that may be helpful to us." Tina tapped her side as both of them looked at the mixed purples and pinks across the sky.
"When do you want to begin?" Astral stood up as he looked into the valley ahead of him. It would be a hopefully peaceful day for them as Tina popped out right away and stood in a ready stance. "So eager, magic is a game of patience." Astral dashed backwards in the middle of the courtyard as he bowed to Tina.
She ran through their miniature camp as she faced him and bowed. "So many of the spells in here seem so impossible to use, and yet." Tina held a tiny ball of electricity. "They all have their own ways to be used by the user." She infused it with a larger sphere of water as she chucked it at him. It turning into a stray thunderstorm as the rain made him more conductive. Astral dodged the one bolt of lightning as he nods in approval.
"Many of these spells you can chain into each other. Like using sheer cold when your opponent is soaked and freezing their joints. Or using fire and ice to make a mist that only you can see through. With a variety of other spells that can boost allies and hamper enemies. Like using temporal distortion to boost reaction speed. Or mirage to make an enemy see multiple." Astral looked at the books with a familiarity as he knew every spell in them. Waiting as soon as Tina walked up to him. "All of them can be combined to overwhelm any opponent who has no powers."
"You should read them. Maybe they bring back a memory. I want to practice a magic type that is straining. Something you have used." Tina had happy feet with anticipation as Astral extended his hand. Tina rested the books in them as she stood to the side. She was working on a weaker barrier than the Crown Jewels as Astral sat down and started to page through them as he felt a tap on his shoulders. Turning to face the person there was no one. He scanned the area as James emerged out of his tent. Starting a fire to make them something to eat.
Astral took a deep breath, his focus wouldn't be shattered. With each page that he read he felt more and more of a bond loosening inside of himself. He heard laughter as he kept reading. All of these spells were so familiar even if most of them were unused from time to time. He heard the laughter again with a whisper. "I still am manifested inside of your fractured soul. I will never be freed. But you still have a chance to save yourself." Astral shook his head as he was confused.
"Hey James. Yell at me when lunch is ready." Astral echoed to him as he received a thumbs up in return. 'You know more than I, and yet I cannot pinpoint you. Refresh my mind and make me sane.'
"The one who did that to you will be the last one you kill." the voice echoed before fading. Astral left this alone for a bit as he finished the first book with all various elemental abilities and attacks. Astral paused for a moment as he felt like one part of his magic was segmented differently from the rest. His light magic wasn't in these books.
"Tina, do any of these books have any guide to manipulating light?" Astral turned to her as she was holding up a single cell of a barrier. A large hexagon was formed as Astral looked at her impressed. "Woah." Astral was in awe as that was a different form of magic from his.
"ASTRAL DIFFERENT PROBLEM!" James yelled at the top of his lungs as he pointed at the gap in the valley that was slowly filling up. As they were still covered by dawn. A few thousand in number filled the gap as they started to rush down the valley.
Astral sprang to his feet as he didn't have time to think. He felt his aura glowing as Tina pointed her hands at him. "THEY WILL SEE YOU AS A LEGION IF YOU RUSH THEM! USE YOUR SPEED AND DEFEAT THEM!" Tina yelled as Astral took one jump forward and landed in front of them. A few hundred feet from the wall as they all paused. Covered by the mountains shadows.
"You don't need that fancy spell when you could clone yourself." James looked down at Astral as he had no way of getting there quickly without hurting himself. He hopped down the overlook and slid down the wall. Rushing to the battle as Astral would need him.
"You dare try to kill my kind?" Astral held out his hand as it remained empty for a moment. He waited for a response with baited breath.
"You are but one man, we see through the spell placed on you. Human magic doesn't work on us enchanted by the lord of shade." A big black brooding lizard stood in the front line as he held up a twin blade.
"Then you will see otherworldly magic." Astral spoke as the voice wasn't his. Astral shook his head and backpedaled three steps as they all charged forward. Astral looked up as Muramasa filled his hand. Holding it preparation. 'Use your clones, they still exist.'
Astral took a deep breath. He was right. The more he thought the more he felt certain talents locked behind an invisible wall. He released his breath as a wall of ten clones formed all holding a different weapon from his armory. Astral had a flash from the past as he laughed. They all look at their enemies as his ears twitch. A bell was being rung from behind him. "This isn't like the last time where we are on the offensive. None of them can leak through us. We can manage that." Astral sprinted forward as he blocked the stab from the leading lizard. Blocking the backswing of the twin blade upwards as he pierced the chest of the leader.
The leader coughed up black blood as the clones rushed in following Astral. One used a spear and a shield, another two axes, the third used another shield with a short sword, the fourth his scythe, the fifth used a great ax, the sixth a great sword, the seventh used a rapier as the eighth used two gauntlets. The ninth and tenth used copies of his katana, but they were different as they all looked at the demons in front of them as fodder to be killed.
"Don't stop till they are all dead!" James shouted from far above them as he was still scaling down. Astral diced apart the lizard in front of him as two more took his place. His blade became a cyan blur as he charged forward. Blocking each swing at him with perfect precision. Each blow leading to a counter attack that proved fatal for all in his path.
All of the clones saw this as a challenge, the one to kill the most could have a chance of sticking around, they all looked at each other as a flash entered their mind of the four before them that lived and breathed like them. They had no regard for that. For they were loyal to the one who is them. They all clashed forward each of their weapons being a flurry of attacks as James made it to the outer wall. The sun had crested at the horizon right at the top of the valley as he saw a winged creature standing at the top.
He slid down the wall and charged forward to join Astral with his claws. Landing next to him as his arms were nothing but a sight to behold. There were no wasted movements as he flowed like one raging torrent. "We have backup! We will win this." James ignited his claws as he blocked a blade that was bound to strike on Astral. Astral nodded as the clones pushed forward faster. Catching up to Astral as the force of a few thousand demons was cut down by half.
James patted his side as he found it. The device made by him to lead the masses of his kind. It was a small whistle as he blew into it. It made a loud purring sound as they all heard a rumbling up at the crest of the valley. A wall of various creatures formed as they looked down on the demons, they were trapped. But not before they wounded one of the clones. Or they would die trying.
"THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR LOYALTY CHARGE FORWARD AND DON'T FRET, WE WILL BE MORE THAN ENOUGH TO TURN ANY TIDE!" James shouted as he blew into the whistle once more. His claws digging deep into a demon to his left. The demon fell as Astral made it to the back line. They all circled him and charged. Attacking in a perfect unison as Astral went faster to block each of their spears. Keeping their shields at bay and finishing them off with one swift stroke of his sword as he killed all in the circle that were attacking him. He got to see the hybrids charging down the hill as he whistled to his clones.
They knew that meant it was time to look out for who they were killing as Astral stood still. The demons tried to strike him as James defended him from a few attacks as Astral flipped over James and beheaded five demons in a single slice as a stampede of the hybrids as well as the clones cleaved through the remainder of the demons. James gave Astral a hug as the battle was over. There were no casualties of the hybrids or the clones as the battle lasted less than the sunrise.
The hybrids stood outside the large wall as the humans looked all out to the massive army that arrived with several thousand women and children. Astral opened three gates in the wall as the hybrids waited. They looked to James and Astral as they all had pause.