Leah: What are you going to tell Damien?
JÒN: I'm going to tell him the truth.
Leah: He isn't going to believe what I said to you. I have no proof to back up my claims.
JÒN: Don't worry, we'll figure something out!
Leah doesn't seem to share my optimism on the matter, but she decides to drop the subject for now.
As we make our way back to Damien, we find him leaning against an oak tree, with his arms crossed and a displeased look on his face.
Damien: Took you long enough.
Leah (coldly): My apologies, I promise I will play hopscotch everyday from now on, so I won't be a burden to you the next time you stab me in the leg.
Damien ignores her retort and turns to me.
Damien: So? What did she tell you, then? It better be good
Before I get the chance to answer him, I hear a woman's gasp coming from our right. Rachel, who came to check up on us, is now looking at Leah's leg wound and covering her mouth with both hands.
Rachel: By the gods, who did this to you?
Leah: Just some lowly thugs. No need to worry, I already took care of them, and the wound isn't very deep. I'm sure Damien can fix this up in a jiffy. Isn't that right, Damien?
Damien (frowns): Of course.
Damien starts casting his healing spell on Leah, and as her wound closes, I can see him hesitate for a few seconds. He then joins his fingers together and hits her leg with them, in three separate places. As he finishes, I can sense Leah's magical energy go back to its normal flow. Damien must have cancelled the effects of his spell disrupting manoeuvre from earlier.
Damien: We'll continue our earlier discussion at a later date.
As he gets up and grabs his backpack from the ground.
The four of us resume our journey, but it doesn't take long before we are interrupted again, this time by a violent earth tremor.
Damien: What is this, an earthquake?
Rachel: Please don't be a dragon, please don't be a dragon, please don't be a dragon.
As the earthquake intensifies, we start seeing a human figure in the distance, getting bigger and bigger, until it reaches a height of fifty feet. The giant man is dressed in leather armor, he has a black beard that reaches down to his chest, and he has a big grin on his face. As he starts to speak, his voice is so loud that it completely drowns any other sound within a five mile radius.
Hagrid: Now that I have everyone's attention, I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself. My name is Hagrid, but my friends call me "the dwarf". I came to this tournament for only one reason: to test my strength against the strongest mages in the world! So what do you all say?! Shall we have a little sparring match before we get our objectives? I'll be waiting right here for any challengers! I'll try to hold back as much as I can, but I can't make any promises. Ahahahahahahaha!
His laugh is loud and jolly, kind of laughter you hear from friendly bartenders and innkeepers. What's wrong with this guy? Doesn't he realize what kind of place this is?
The giant starts to shrink slowly as he's laughing, and eventually he disappears behind the trees.
Damien: Damn! That's some impressive shapeshifting. He must have a lot of magical power to be able to turn into something this big!
Leah: Do you have no knowledge of even the basics of shapeshifting magic? You can't just turn into something ten times bigger than your normal size, no matter how powerful you are. It violates the fundamental principles of shapeshifting. This was obviously an illusion.
Damien: Oh yeah? Since you're so sure it was an illusion, could you perhaps care to explain how he managed to make such a realistic earth tremor, while he was busy maintaining the illusion spell?
Leah: How am I supposed to know that? Maybe he has an ally that specializes in earth magic. How is that even relevant?
JÒN (to himself): Something isn't right here. Although the fundamental principles Leah speaks of should indeed prohibit the use of shapeshifting in such a manner, an illusion isn't that correct either. There's no way any illusion could reach this far out, no matter how powerful the mage is. There must be something we're missing. Or perhaps the man who calls himself Hagrid managed to find a way to temporarily surpass the laws of magic as we know them?
JÒN: I'm sorry to say that I don't really agree with any of you.
Both Damien and Leah simultaneously turn towards me
JÒN: Leah is right about the fundamental laws of shapeshifting. But an illusion spell would be just as improbable. There are no illusion spells that can reach this far, no matter how powerful or skilled you are as a mage. There must be something we're missing.
Leah: Well, it doesn't matter either way. This is obviously a trap. I honestly can't imagine how anyone could be so stupid enough to fall for something so--
Suddenly, the bodies of me, Leah and Damien all start to vibrate loudly, as we get enveloped in a white light.
Leah: Oh, no...
Rachel: What? What's happening?
Damien: Rachel, catch!
Damien throws Rachel his transceiver. As soon as she catches it, the three of us get teleported away at the same time.
It feels almost as if every fiber in my body is being decomposed and then slowly reassembled, while I maintain full awareness of myself throughout the entire process. When I regain all of my senses, I find myself surrounded by a few dozen mages, with Damien and Leah standing right beside me. The mages are looking all around themselves, confused.
It seems we weren't the only ones that were teleported here all of a sudden. I recognize one of the mages as being the giant that gave an open challenge. He is surprisingly smaller than I expected him to be. I don't think he's much taller than four feet. That explains why they call him "the dwarf".
Judging by the position of a very tall tree I'd chosen as a landmark when we left, I'd say we've been teleported right in the middle of the clearing where Hagrid first made his appearance a few moments ago. Is this the dwarf's doing?
We all look up at the same time and see a little brat floating casually in the air, with his hands in his pocket and his eyes closed.
JÒN: Theo. Of course it'll be Theo.
Theo: Good evening, gentlemen. I am deeply sorry for interrupting you all from your daily activities, but I thought this would be a splendid opportunity for all the participants of the tournament that were in the area to get to know each other better!
He then raises his eyebrows, and starts looking all around him, with his eyes still closed.
Theo: Huh... In all honesty, I was expecting this to be a trap of some sort, or at least a well thought-out ambush, but it seems I was mistaken. How disappointing.
Damien (whispers): Jòn. Take out your transceiver, and tell Rachel where we are. Tell her to come towards us, and we'll meet her halfway, as soon as we manage to get out of here.
JÒN: Okay, I'm on it.
I take out my transceiver and set it to its lowest volume. I put it close to my ear in order to hear properly, then I tap the device lightly with my other hand.
JÒN (whispers): Rachel, can you hear me?
There's no answer
JÒN: Rachel, you need to tap the device once for me to hear what you're saying.
Rachel: Jòn? Jòn, where are you? What happened?
Jòn: Rachel, listen to me closely, I can't talk for long. We were teleported to where the giant appeared a minute ago. Do you remember where that was? Can you make your way to us?
Rachel: Yes, I know where that is. I'll be right there. Be careful!
As I finish talking with Rachel, I notice that there's a loud murmur coming from the people around me, and everyone is moving to clear the center of the clearing, where Theo and Hagrid are both taking their battle stances, as if they were preparing for a duel.
JÒN: What's happening?
Damien: They're going to duel without using any magic.
JÒN: What?! How did it come to this?
Damien: The dwarf challenged Theo to a fight, and the stillborn said it would be rude to decline his challenge after coming all the way here. He also said it would be boring to kill the dwarf with a flick of his fingers, so he suggested the 'no magic' rule.
As Damien talks, my attention is drawn towards an old mage in front of me. He looks oddly familiar. Upon taking a closer look at the old mage, I suddenly realize that I know him all too well.
It is impossible to live in the western continent and to not have seen this face at least once in your life. His picture appears almost every month in the newspapers. The man standing in front of me is none other than the legendary Gaius, the Sage of the West.
There are many strong mages in the world, but only four of them are officially recognized to be the elite among elites. They call them the four sages, and each of them represents one of the four major continents in the world. The sage title is earned through yearly contests that are held by the leading nations of each continent. Given that each of the four major continents is named after the cardinal point that represents its position on the world map, each sage title also carries the appropriate cardinal point in its name.
The Sage of the West looks exactly as I've seen him in the pictures. An old man, almost seventy years of age, with a white beard as white as snow, holding a long wooden staff in his right hand, and wearing traditional wizard robes. He's a living example of what most people would imagine when thinking of a mage.
Damien: Jòn! Hey, Jòn!!! Are you listening to me?
I must have spaced out, because I have no idea what Damien's been talking about for the past second.
JÒN: I'm sorry, could you repeat what you just said? I don't think I caught all of that.
Damien: I'm was saying that this is the perfect opportunity to get out of here. They won't pay any attention to us because they would be too focused watching the fight.
JÒN: Actually, I think we should watch the fight for a little while before we leave.
Damien: And why's that? Give me one good reason!
JÒN: Gathering Intel. Remember how Theo easily dodged all of your attacks the first time we met him? Since he isn't going to use any magic, this should give us some very valuable information regarding his martial arts training.
Damien: Valuable enough to risk our lives for it?
JÒN: Yes, actually. You do realize we'll likely have to fight him at the end of this tournament, don't you? Shouldn't we take advantage of every chance we get to try and find out his weaknesses, even at the risk of our own safety?
Damien grumbles, the way he always does when he can't find a good enough counter argument to throw in my face. Eventually, he calms down and steps forward, to get a better look at the battle that's about to begin.
Leah, who has heard our discussion, is also stepping forward in order to see the fight better. She is wearing her hood and covering herself in her green cloak, in order to hide the fact that she's a woman.
The two combatants are now circling each other. Theo is smiling as usual, and the dwarf has a big grin on his face. Neither of them are holding weapons, so they plan on fighting barehand.
The fight starts suddenly, without any warning. Both fighters lunge at each other at the same time, and Hagrid initiates by jumping into the air, raising his right leg as high as he can and bringing it down like an axe, in an attempt to smash the stillborn's skull. Theo steps casually to the side and the dwarf's boot hits the ground, which makes a small crater and sends rubble flying all over the place. The stillborn wastes no time and hits Hagrid in the chest with his right palm, his strike sending a powerful blast of air all around him and pushing the dwarf back ten feet.
Mage 1: What the hell is this? They've barely even started fighting and they're already using strength enhancing magic.
Mage 2: They're not using any magic. I've been closely monitoring their magical energy since they started, and they've been no fluctuations so far.
Mage 1: What, you're going to tell me that they just did lots of squats and push-ups? You can't get this powerful just through training.
Yes, you can, in theory. There's a kind of magic that helps with surpassing the limitations of the human body while doing physical training. The downside is that unless you have a lifespan of hundred years, you'd have to spend most of your life training in order to reach their levels of strength.
The two contenders are now moving so fast that I can barely follow them anymore. Theo is landing most of his hits, but the dwarf doesn't seem to be having much trouble taking them. Hagrid, however, hasn't managed to hit the stillborn once. Whenever it looks like he's got a decent chance, Theo flows like water and effortlessly gets out of his way, subsequently using the dwarf's momentum against him in order to make him lose balance.
Damien: This bastard... He was going easy on me the first time we fought. Hell, I'm not even sure he's being serious right now.
A few more minutes pass, and the fight still doesn't seem to be going anywhere.
Red robed mage: You are all pathethic. They're dozens of you and you're still scared to take on a single stillborn? Don't tell me you're actually planning to watch the fight until the end?
Theo and Hagrid have both stopped their battle and are looking at the mage who just spoke.
Gaius: Calm down, my friend. He already told us that he's not participating in the tournament. Why should we attack him for no good reason?
Red robed mage: You're a fool to believe him, old man. A fool and a coward. If you're all too scared to attack him, then I'll do it myself.
He turns towards Theo and raises his hands in the air
Red robed mage: Behold, stillborn. Behold, the power of Delray, the strongest fire elementalist on the Eastern Continent!
As he speaks, there's an enormous spinning ball of fire forming around him.
Delray: I see you've already accepted your fate. You're not even trying to raise a magical barrier around yourself. Don't worry, I'll make this quick. I can't really guarantee you it'll be painless, though. YAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Theo looks at him calmly, with his eyes closed, and he raises an eyebrow.
Delray: DIE!!!
The mage screams, as he sends all the fire towards the stillborn in the form of a beam. Before the flames reach him, Theo stretches his right arm in front of him, with his palm facing the elementalist mage. All of the fire stops and gets condensed into a small bright sphere, floating in front of his hand. The sphere then gets sent back towards the original owner, with shocking speed, incinerating the elementalist in an instant. The flames disappear just as fast as they appeared, leaving only a pile of ashes where the mage stood.
Hagrid: Damn! You sure don't pull your punches.
Theo: Neither did he, for all the good it did him.
He then looks towards me, with his eyes still closed and smiles wickedly.
JÒN (to himself): Oh no. He must have just realized he also teleported me here along with all the others. What is he plotting this time?
Damien: I think we've seen enough, time to go.
The three of us start heading out of the clearing. Leah is moving very cautiously, to avoid attracting any attention to herself. As we make our way out of the crowd, most people are simply ignoring us, while they try to make their way to the center, in order to get a better view of the fight. At this rate, we'll be out of here in no time!
Mage 2: Hey, watch where you're going you little runt!
I look behind me to see what the commotion is about. A very large man that's at least a head taller than Damien is now furiously looking towards Leah, who seems to have bumped into him by accident. She tries to move silently past him, but the man grabs her by the cloak and lifts her into the air.
Mage 2: Don't you dare ignore me, you son of a--
As the hood drops from Leah's head, and her face is revealed, the large mage paralyzes with fear for a few seconds. He then immediately drops her, backs away three feet and starts screaming at the top of his lungs.
Mage 2: MONSTER!!!! Stay away from me!!
Everyone's attention has now been directed towards us.
Damien (sighs): Not this again.
A mage standing opposite direction from me, wearing white robe with blonde hair, who appears to be some sort of healer, slaps him on the head.
White mage: What are you screaming so loud about, you fool? It's just a cortana. They're dozens of us here she doesn't stand a chance
Mage 1: It's not just a cortana, she has allies. I saw her speak to those two over there a few seconds ago.
Leah: What kind of Cortana allies herself with mages, you fools? Don't insult me, I've come here alone and I'm going to end you all by myself as well.
For a moment, her words confused me,but then I realized she must be trying to protect us. When I try to step towards Leah, Damien stops me.
Damien: Hey now, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Why should we risk our lives just because she refuses to get purified? We can't go on like this forever.
JÒN: I'm sorry, Damien, but I can't just abandon her like this. You don't need to do this if you don't want to.
With these words, I leave Damien behind and take Leah's side on the battlefield.
Leah: What are you doing?! What the hell is wrong with you? Don't you understand that this fight can't be won?! I was going to buy you enough time to escape! You weren't supposed to come here!
JÒN: Man, you really know how to ruin the mood. And here I was, thinking that this would turn into a touching and inspirational moment to strengthen our friendship.
Leah: The only thing about to get strengthened is an ice club, that I'll use to smack you in your stupid head!
JÒN: Heh, I should be mad, but somehow this scenario seems a lot more fitting for our final moments together.
White mage: How pathetic. You should have just stayed back and let the Cortana fight us. Do you seriously think you can make a difference?
JÒN: I don't know. Why don't you tell me? Do you think a stillborn could make a difference in this fight?
White mage: You're no stillborn! You're just some ordinary guy who's trying to bite off more than he can chew
Theo: Nonsense! Surely, you must have seen him battle a dragon in the sky singlehandedly a few hours ago?
There's a loud murmur again, as many of the mages confirm having seen me duel the dragon.
JÒN: He speaks the truth. That dragon was in my way, so I had to get rid of him. But you don't need to worry about that. Unless of course you plan to stand in my way as well...
The mages start talking amongst themselves, but are hesitating to respond to my provocation.
White mage: You're all just playing into his hands. Stillborn or no, the fact remains that he hasn't cast any sort of spells since we paid eyes on him. Do you think that's a coincidence? No one can possibly fully replenish their magical energy in just over two hours after a fight with a dragon. He must be in a vulnerable state. Now is the best time to strike and kill them!
I put my hands in my pockets and start walking slowly towards the white mage, trying to mimic Theo's casual demeanor and laid back smile. As I approach him, the mages that appear to be part of his group are starting to panic, and they're stepping aside in order to clear my path. When I stop right in front of the healer, looking at him with a smile on my face, I can see his sweat dropping from his forehead. Just as I thought. With the exception of Damien, healers are all bark and no bite.
JÒN: What's wrong? Didn't you say that this was the best time to strike? Well, I'm right here. Give it your best shot.
The mage attempts to grab his dagger, but his hand is trembling too much to unsheathe it. I can see the fear in his eyes as he desperately looks around him for some support from his allies, but they are all too scared to say anything.
White mage: Y - Y - You're in luck stillborn! I've changed my mind. I would much rather fight you on equal terms, after you've recovered. Come on men, we're leaving.
The white mage heads for the forest, and about ten mages are slowly starting to follow him. After the whole scene has ended, I can see Theo smirk from afar, as he takes his leave as well, by teleporting out of the clearing.
Just as I was beginning to think that the danger was gone, I suddenly find myself surrounded by ten rock golems, each of them being at least twice my size. So there was also a powerful summoner among these mages. I was careless to let my guard down, just because I scared off a few weaklings.
Summoning mage (standing behind the rock golems): What's the matter, stillborn? Why don't you try and walk up to my golems like you did with that cowardly healer? Maybe you'll scare the off too!
Damien: JÒN!!
Damien screams as he slashes through one of the golems and joins my side.
There's still nine to go, and they have us surrounded. Damien won't be able to destroy them all by himself, while also defending me.
It's all or nothing. I take out my dagger and lunge at one of the golems in front of me.
My strike was definitely powerful enough to cut through the golem but my dagger was not. My weapon shatters before my eyes, and the creature seizes the opportunity to bring one of its huge fists down on me.
Luckily for me, I am fast enough to get out of its way and manage to escape unharmed. Damien is mowing down the golems a lot faster than I expected. He's already downed three of them, and he's moving to the fourth. There's enough room for me to manoeuvre around, and golems are pretty slow, so they shouldn't be a danger to me anymore.
They're several loud and painful bird screams coming from above us and almost immediately afterwards. We see five large hawks falling on the ground at the same time, each of them having been impaled with at least one icicle through their chests.
Leah is standing behind us, with her hood off her head, and her signature cold look in her eyes.
Leah: Typical summoner's tactics. Distract the enemies with cannon fodder and then use a surprise attack from above. I am surprised you actually managed to survive this long without knowing this, Damien. You must have been living quite a sheltered life while you were out on your heroic campaigns.
Damien: Shut up! I was going to deal with those birds when they came down. Not everyone has fancy unlimited range attacks to use at their leisure.
A lot of mages who seemed to be on the fence about this whole fight until now are slowly starting to join the battle as well, in order to kill Leah. Hagrid is also quickly running towards us, probably looking to join in on the fun.
The summoner mage is filled with joy thanks to this latest turn of events. Now that I get a clear look at him, I see that he's about six feet tall, and that he has long pointy ears, green eyes and a blonde hair. I've traveled a lot in my life, but this is the first time I've actually seen an elf in the flesh. Usually, they are very isolated from the rest of the world and rarely go outside the Elven Nation from the Eastern Continent. I heard that they were invited, but I wasn't actually expecting any of them to show up.
Summoning mage: Hah! This is what you all get for siding with a cortana, you lowly peasants. It's time for me to prove to you why us elves are superior to you in every way. And I'm going to start by dealing with that monstrosity that killed my poor little hawks.
The summoner prepares to call more creatures into battle, but before he can act, Hagrid places himself between Leah and her attacker and starts panting heavily.
Hagrid: Hold on... Just... give me a sec... Man... I just can't get used to running with these short legs...
Summoning mage: Is this supposed to be some sort of a joke? You dwarves have always had a sense of humor beyond my understanding. Step aside, if you know what's best for you.
Hagrid: No can do, I'm afraid. I can't just stand idly by and let you hoodlums treat a lady with disrespect.
Summoning mage: A lady?! I must admit, I've heard the rumors about dwarves drinking so much that they have ale running through their veins instead of blood, but I never thought them to be true.
Hagrid: Aye! And I never expected that old saying about elves never leaving home without a stick up their arse to turn out to be true, either. It's a crazy world we're living in, I'll tell you that!
The summoner scowls upon hearing the dwarf's words.
Summoning mage: That "lady" you're so keen to protect is a Cortana. She's a plague upon this land which must be dealt with immediately.
Hagrid (grins): Oh? Is she, now?
Summoning mage: If you're not going to get out of my way, then you can join these fools in their deaths. I've heard enough of your idiocy for one day.
Just as the summoner and all of the other mages are preparing to attack, a loud shout from Gaius the Sage freezes everyone in place.
Gaius: Enough!! There will be no more bloodshed this day. If any of you toddlers still feel like raising a ruckus, I'm the one that you'll be fighting next. Do I make myself clear?
Summoning mage: What?! Have you gone mad?! Do you realize what will happen if we let this evil monster roam free?
Gaius: I am well aware of the consequences, and I am willing to take full responsibility for my actions. You are, however, free to challenge me to a duel if you believe your cause to be the righteous one.
The summoner looks as if he were about to explode, but he ultimately decides to simply turn around and leave, without saying another word. The other mages who were about to join the fight are now all sheathing their weapons.
Gaius (looks at us): I'm deeply sorry for not stopping this ridiculous fight sooner, my friends. I'm afraid that curiosity got the better of me and I couldn't bring myself to end this without getting the rare opportunity to see the great hero Damien in action!
JÒN: Why are you helping us?
Gaius: Well, I couldn't just stand by and watch these overgrown bullies attack a defenseless young lady.
Leah: Defenseless!!
Damien: Young lady?
Before they get to finish their conversation, a mage dressed in black robes and with a snake tattoo on his bald head interrupts them by making a loud tsk-tsk sound.
Zack: This will not do, Sage of the West. This simply will not do.
Gaius turns to him, smiling calmly.
Gaius: A follower of the God of Death honors us with his presence? If I did anything to offend you, then by all means, state your complaint!
Zack: My complaint is simple, Sage. My god requires more sacrifices to be had this day, and you deprived him of them by interrupting this fight.
Gaius: Oh? But I was quite sure that despite his title, Ulrake, the God of Death, only delves in necromancy and is not actually ruling the realm of the dead. Why did he suddenly begin to take an interest in the affairs of people who are still alive? If you're simply in search of fresh corpses, I assure you that there are plenty to be found lying around these parts after yesterday's events.
Zack: Do not question the great Ulrake's judgment, heathen. Your actions have angered my god, and now you'll feel his wrath!
A mage who is wearing a silver circlet on his head and green robes grabs the necromancer by the arm.
Totti: Calm down, Zack. There's plenty of time left till the end of the day. We can just kill some more people after we get out of here and the number of deaths will be the same.
Zack: Unhand me, fool! I'm only traveling with you because my god ordered me to. Do not presume to tell me what to do! This matter has nothing to do with you or your God of Fate.
The necromancer pulls himself out of his ally's grasp and starts casting a spell.
Zack: Tell me, Gaius! Have you ever heard of the still night?
Gaius: I've heard several accounts of it when I visited this continent in the past, yes. But none of them were what I would call reliable. Supposedly, it was a great war that was waged between stillborns and the ancients some six hundred years ago.
Zack: Indeed! But what would you do if I told you that the remains of the stillborns who died in that war can still be found deep underground, scattered throughout the continent.
As the necromancer speaks, dozens of skeletons are starting to slowly surface from the ground below us.
Zack: What would you do if I told you I could bring these stillborns back to life as my puppets, with almost all of their former magical prowess still intact?
The skeletons are now starting to attack all of the mages around us while they're running away, screaming in terror. The sky itself has darkened as it started literally raining fire and brimstone. Leah is struggling to keep an icy roof above our heads to shield us from the flames, but it's melting almost as quick as she's reinforcing it.
Zack: What would you do, sage? Tell me!
Gaius (smiles): Well, since you asked me so politely. What I'll do is this...
The Sage of the West smashes his staff into the ground, and I can feel a very intense vibration in the air all around us. The skeletons have suddenly stopped rampaging and are all just standing in place, vibrating loudly. After a few seconds, all of their bones shatter into pieces at the same time, as the rain of fire is brought to a halt, and the sky is starting to clear up once more.
Zack, the necromancer appears to be dumbstruck, as he desperately looks around himself to see if there isn't at least one of his undead minions that escaped the onslaught.
Gaius: That was an impressive spell, no doubt. But in the end, despite their ridiculous amount of magical power, those skeletons were only a bunch of old dried up bones bound together with magic. A powerful enough sonic attack can shatter any object as long as you correctly match its vibration frequency. Now, if I'm not mistaken, that spell of yours has a duration of five minutes and can only be cast once per day. Unless you have some other trick up your sleeve, I believe there are a few persons who would like to have a word with you and your companion...
All of the mages that were being chased by skeletons a few moments ago have now surrounded the necromancer and his ally, and you can see that they are thirsting for blood.
Totti: I'm tired of your crap, Zack, Every single time like this. I'm tired of always having to save your sorry behind. Next time we're in a town, you're the one buying the drinks.
The mage with the circlet on his head then throws something on the ground, which explodes and fills the whole area with a thick gray smoke.
Mage 1: Quick! Disperse the smoke! Don't let them get away.
Immediately an air bender blows all of the smoke away, and we can see Zack and Totti a few hundred feet from us, running towards the trees.
Mage 2: After them!!!
They all start chasing the two of them. Eventually, the mages disappear into the forest, the only persons remaining in the clearing being me, Damien, Leah, Hagrid, Gaius, and a young boy likely in his late teens who seems to be the sage's loyal servant.
Gaius (stroking his beards): It really never ceases to amaze me how easily people can be fooled by simple illusions like that!
JÒN: Illusion? Don't you mean smoke bomb?
Gaius: No, no, I was talking about what happened after the smoke. The mages you saw run towards the forest were in fact decoys. The real mages waited invisibly for everyone to leave and then they teleported away. I figured they learned their lesson, so I let them off with a stern warning for now.
Rachel: Jòn! Leah! Damien! Thank the gods you are okay...
Rachel shouts from the other end of the clearing, and as she approaches, she pauses to catch her breath. She must have been running all the way here.
Rachel: What happened? How did you all end up in this place?
Damien: It was Theo! He teleported us here along with another fifty mages, probably in the hope that he'll get to watch us all kill each other, but he eventually got bored and teleported away. Most of the other mages left in a hurry few minutes ago, chasing after some necromancer who tried to kill us all but failed miserably.
Rachel: I see...
She turns towards Hagrid and walks over to him, offering to shake his hand.
Rachel: You must be the shapeshifting giant from before! I'm very pleased to meet you! My name is Rachel. Did you manage to find the challenger you were looking for?
He then grabs her hand and shakes it as he replies...
Hagrid (grins): Aye, lass, I believe I have!
JÒN (to himself): Did he just take a quick glance towards me when he said that? Oh gods, I hope not. Maybe it was just my imagination.
Rachel: That is good to hear!
She then turns towards Gaius
Rachel: I'm sorry, do I know you from somewhere? You look very familiar.
Gaius: I do not believe we've met before, but my portrait appears in the newspapers every now and then, so you may know me from there. My name is Gaius, pleased to make your acquaintance!
Henry: Master Gaius, I do not mean to be rude, but may I ask why you chose to intervene in this fight? Weren't you the one who taught me that Cortanas are foul demons that are not to be trusted?
Gaius: Henry, I've told you many times before, there's no need to be so formal when you address me. You can simply call me Gaius. As for your question, before I answer you, I must ask you this: Do you remember the first lesson I taught you about cortanas? Do you remember why cortanas need to possess human or animal bodies in order to survive?
Henry: Of course! The cortanas were originally born on the magical plane of existence, but they were banished long ago, and curesd to live the rest of their lives on our earthen plane. On this plane, it is not possible to live for long without a physical body, so the cortanas were forced to adapt, by stealing the bodies of other living organisms. Once it is seized by a cortana, the body stops aging, but due to the incompatibly between the cortana's soul and the physical body, the link between the two will decay overtime, which forces the spirit to change hosts once every few decades.
Gaius: Very good! Now, tell me, do you sense any kind of otherworldly vibe radiating from this woman's body? Does her magical energy appear in anyway to be different from that of any other mages you've encountered in your life?
Henry: No, but, I do not understand... How can this be?...
Gaius (smiles): That is because she isn't a cortana. She is a woman with magical powers. A woman mage, if you will.
Damien: What?! How can you be so sure? You can't possibly tell me that you're basing your entire reasoning on something so vague!
Gaius (strokes beard): You surprise me, healer in armor. The way you phrased your last sentence suggest that you don't believe this woman to be anything other than a cortana. And yet you seem to travel alongside her. Most particular
Damien is looking a little flustered after hearing the sage's remark, but Gaius pays him no mind and instead steps towards me.
Gaius: What about you, Jòn? From what I could gather, the four of you are all traveling together. How would you describe your relationship with the young woman named Leah?
JÒN: She's a friend.
Gaius: A friend? Do I take it that you've known her from before this tournament?
JÒN: No, we've only just met yesterday.
Gaius: Interesting... May I ask you then if you know about the Institution of Truth?
JÒN: Yes she...
I take a short glance at Leah before I continue.
JÒN: She told me everything.
Damien: Wait a minute... Didn't Theo say something about the Institution this morning?
JÒN: Yeah, he said that Leah was a survivor from there.
Damien: A survivor? Yeah, now I remember. And he didn't want to tell us what that meant. What is this Institution of Truth, anyways?
Gaius: To put it bluntly, the Institution was a human experimentation facility disguised as an orphanage. It's purpose was to create mages artificially. Leah's magical powers are a direct result of those experiments.
Damien: She's...what?...
Rachel (surprised): Leah, you are a mage?
Leah: Yes... What did you think I was?
Rachel: Well, those mages we met in the forest this morning kept shouting that you were a cortana, so I kind of thought that's what you were... Everyone seemed to know what it meant, so I didn't want to appear dumb by asking.
Leah (laughs softly): I guess labels aren't really very important to you, are they, Rachel?
Hagrid: Still, I have to admit, I didn't really expect to meet two survivors from the Institution in the same day. This tournament is really something else!
JÒN: Two survivors? You mean to say that there's another artificial mage here on this continent besides Leah?
Hagrid: Aye! And she's mighty strong too! She took me out with almost no effort. I'm pretty sure that she was using lightning in the same way benders would use water or fire. Being an artificial mage sure has its perks!
Leah: Do you know where she was headed
Hagrid: She and her friends with dark blue robes have a camp set up not far from here. From what I understood, they had no plans to leave until later tomorrow.
Leah (blurts out loudly): Could you take me to them?!
The dwarf looks slightly taken aback by Leah's sudden request.
Leah (lower pleading tone): ...Please
Hagrid: Hmm... You're asking quite a lot of me, lass. I only barely escaped with my life the last time. Is this woman your friend?
Leah: Yes... She's a very old friend...
Hagrid gives Leah a long pondering look before he decides to speak.
Hagrid: Tell you what, I'll agree to lead you to your friend's camp on one condition!
Leah's face suddenly lightens up
Leah: Name it!
Hagrid grins as he turns towards me.
Hagrid: Your friend over here has to beat me in a duel!
Leah: Jòn?! You want Jòn to defeat you in a duel? You can't be serious! Why him of all people?
Hagrid: Well,I don't know if he's a stillborn or not, but I'm quite positive I saw him singlehandedly fighting a dragon in the sky a few hours ago.You rarely get to meet a worthier opponent!
Leah looks at me hesitantly, probably wanting to see what my reaction is to all of this.
Hagrid: I'm not looking for an all out fight. We wouldn't want to wear ourselves out completely before the tournament even begins. A short sparring session will do! No magic, no weapons, just like my fight with the other stillborn. And since we're in a hurry, whoeverakes the other one fall to the ground first will be declared the victor. So what do you say, Jòn? Are you in or are you out?
JÒN: Sure, why not? I'll give it a shot.
Hagrid: Hah! That's the spirit!
Leah: Jòn, wait! You don't have to do it. You'll get yourself hurt!
JÒN: I'll be fine!
I move to align myself with the dwarf, leaving about twenty feet of distance between us.
Leah doesn't try to stop me anymore, but I can see that she has an uneasy look in her eyes. The others are now stepping aside in order to give us the space we need to begin our fight.
There's something that's being bothering me ever since we got teleported here. I'm not sure if anyone else noticed this, but the dwarf has been shapeshifting the entire time. I can tell by the flow of his magical energy, this is not his original form. As far as I know, shapeshifting magic can only be used to change your size, or to transform yourself into another creature. It cannot be used to disguise yourself as someone else. What possible benefit could Hagrid get from transforming himself into a dwarf?
I then suddenly remember his first appearance.
JÒN (to himself): Of course! Now it all makes sense! Why didn't I realize this sooner? Shapeshifting magic cannot be used to turn yourself into a giant, but it can be used to turn yourself into a dwarf. He didn't use magic to become fifty foot tall, he just reverted to his original form. Hagrid is a giant! The reason he's masquerading as a dwarf is likely because giant's were never invited to the tournament and he fears that they will find out the truth. This explains his inhumane strength from before.
When shapeshifting into something smaller than yourself, you usually retain a small part of your original mass and most of your original strength.
JÒN (to himself): Now that I know he's a giant, I can use this information to my advantage! Since he chose to transform into a dwarf and not a human, his body proportions are completely different from that of his normal body. I'm willing to bet that this is affecting his sense of balance somehow after all he did say that he wasn't used to running with short legs. I just need to use techniques that aim specifically to knock him off balance.
Hagrid is now grinning and cracking his knuckles.
Hagrid: Well, Jòn! Here I come!
The dwarf comes charging directly towards me without bothering to use any evasive maneuvers. Just before he reaches me, he picks up speed and appears right in front of me, almost as if he'd used teleportation.
Instead of going for a punch, however he attempts to jab me with his index finger. Jab or no, if that hit connects it will certainly throw me off my feet.
I manage to sidestep away at the last moment,I pull his right arm with my left hand, then I push his left shoulder with my right hand, in order to make him lose his balance. As he trips over his feet, he tries to grab onto me in order to regain his balance, but he can't hold on in time. Without anyway to stop his momentum, the dwarf falls on his back with a loud thump.
Hagrid: Well, I'll be damned! You totally caught me off guard there, Jòn. Well fought!
Damien comes from behind and pats me hard on the back.
Damien: Haha, I can't believe you actually did it! Maybe I've been wrong about you all this time. That move you did there was really impressive!
Hagrid: Aye! This wasn't really the exciting fight I've been looking for, but a deal's a deal. Pack your bags, Leah, I'm going to lead you to your friend.
Leah looks as if she's about to cry
Leah: Jòn, I don't know what to say... Thank you so much...
JÒN: You're welcome
Leah: I feel so terrible for all the things I've said and done to you until now... I don't know how I could ever repay you.
JÒN: You don't owe me anything, it was just a sparring match,I didn't even get hurt or anything. I'm fine, really!
Leah (smiles faintly): It's just like you to say something like this.
She then turns to Hagrid
Leah: And thank you as well... I have a lot of money with me, I promise I'll make this worth your while.
Hagrid: What are you talking about? I already said that we have a deal, didn't I? There's no need for you to pay me anything. Now hurry up and get your bag. It'll be a lot harder to find our way through the forest once it gets dark.
Leah: Of course, I'll be right back!
Gaius: My friends, it has been a great privilege to meet you all, but I'm afraid we must take our departure as well. I only have one question before we leave... I couldn't help but notice that the four of you seemed to have been acquainted with the young stillborn from even before he teleported us all to this clearing. Would you by any chance know any information that could prove useful if we were ever to have to face him in a battle?
JÒN: We don't know very much about him, really, since we only met him this morning. From what I could tell, he has a ridiculous amount of magical power and has multiple types of bending at his disposal. He also seems to be able to completely ignore the traditional laws of magic. When we first met him, he just bypassed all of Damien's magical protections and put him to sleep with a simple wave of his hand. Oh, and one more thing. He appears to be virtually undetectable when he turns invisible. I couldn't even sense a hint of magical energy when he was hiding his presence.
Gaius smashes his staff into the ground, and feel a wave of air hit me in the face.
Gaius: Well, unless he found a way to completely eliminate his physical presence from this plane, we can be rest assured that he isn't at least listening to our conversation right now. I just used a sonar spell to detect all objects and persons in the area, and we are the only mages in the clearing. I also have another question for you. Do you know if he has any enemies here on this continent?
JÒN: Yes, he does! Qaerys, the dragon I fought in the sky earlier was looking specifically for Theo and wanted him dead. I believe he's made an enemy of the thackeray as well. He told us to deliver a message to any ancients we find, and tell them to "remember the still night". Given what I've heard you say about the still night earlier, I can only assume that it's meant as a threat.
Gaius (strokes his beard): I see! This could prove to be invaluable information, if we are ever to make an enemy of him ourselves. The stillborn said himself that he wasn't participating in the tournament, but it never hurts to be too careful. Thank you for sharing this with me.
The sage's pupil approaches holding a map in his hands
Henry: Master Gaius!
Gaius: Gaius... Just call me Gaius
Henry: Yes, Master Gaius
Gaius (sighs): Tell me, Henry, what is it?
Henry: I noticed that there's an unusually large concentration of magic around this area (pointing at the lower side of his map). Perhaps it could be what we're looking for?
Gaius: Perhaps... At any rate, it's not very far from here, so I suppose we could make it there before it gets too dark. Mark the location on the map.
Henry: Understood
As Leah comes back with her bag, Gaius turns to us
Gaius: Goodbye, my friends. I wish you all safe travels, and I hope we'll meet again.
We all wave at them as they take their leave
Rachel: Goodbye, Gaius! Goodbye, Henry! I'm sure that our paths will cross again someday!
Henry looks back towards us with a surprised expression on his face. He probably isn't used to people acknowledging his existence as he travels alongside the Sage of the West. He nods curtly to Rachel, and then hurries to catch up with Gaius, as they both slowly distance themselves from us and disappear into the depths of the forest.
Leah: Well... I suppose I should get going too
Damien, Rachel,and I all turn to look at her simultaneously.
Leah: I...guess this is goodbye... We've had our up's and downs, but I'm really glad I got to spend this short time with you. Thank you all very much for the patience you've shown me!
She then takes a deep bow and prepares to take her leave
Rachel: Leah, what are you saying all of a sudden? You do realize we're coming with you, right?
Damien: We are?...
I immediately hit him with the side of my elbow
Damien: I mean, uh... Of course we are. Naturally!
Leah: What?... No, Rachel, you can't! What about all of the sick people waiting for you in your hometown?
Rachel: Oh, you don't need to worry about that! With all of the shortcuts we've been taking so far, I am days ahead of my original schedule. Accompanying you is the least I could do to pay you back for protecting me. And besides, Hagrid said that the camp you're headed for isn't that far from here.Isn't that right, Hagrid?
Hagrid: Aye! It's true
Rachel (smiles): There, you see? Everything works out just fine!
Leah: But... I couldn't...
Hagrid: It's settled then! We all go to see Leah's friend! Now come on, follow me, I'm going to try and take a shortcut.
With these final words, we all grab our bags and follow Hagrid. Leah just stands there for a few moments, unsure of what to do, but then she decides to follow him too, and before long, she starts walking with us side by side with us again, as if our previous discussion never took place
We walk in complete silence for a few minutes. Leah has always been the silent type,so I'm not really surprised about her, but I don't think I've ever seen Damien go for more than a minute without opening his mouth. He must still be in shock after what he's heard about the Institution. He's probably still having a hard time processing that information, given how adamantly he's been holding on to the opinion that Leah was a cortana until now.
Hagrid: Boy, you guys are sure a quiet bunch! Fine, I'll break the silence then. Come on, ask me anything!
Leah: Could you tell me how you and Gwen met?
Hagrid: Gwen? Oh, right, that's what your friend was called! We met by chance this afternoon, while I was searching for a powerful opponent to fight. I mistook her for a cortana, and was excited at the prospect of having a one on one battle with such a strong challenger. Unfortunately for me, she proved to be a bit too powerful, and she neutralized me with a single spell. Her friends in blue robes ordered her to finish me off, but she refused to do it. They eventually stopped trying to reason with her and told her to just make sure I don't stand in their way anymore.
Leah (surprised): She... defied the ancients?
Hagrid: Aye! When I realized that she was actually serious about sparing my life, I asked her if she was really a cortana, and that's when she told me all about the Institution of Truth and artificial mages.
Rachel: Could you tell us why you like fighting so much?
Hagrid: Why does a bird flap its wings? Why does a snake slither on the ground? I enjoy fighting because it's in my blood! My father was a warrior, and his father before him, and it goes the same for all the members of my clan.
JÒN: Doxa Zoe
Hagrid: Doxa Thanatos
He replies me without thinking, but then realizes the trap that I've laid for him, and starts laughing loudly.
Hagrid: You got me there, Jòn. Well played!
Rachel: I'm sorry, I do not understand...
JÒN: Glory in life, glory in death. Many of the giants on the Northern Continent live and die by this credo, and some of the clans even use this as a salute between member. I read about it once in a book that describes the races and culture of the Northern Continent.
Rachel: But why would a dwarf like Hagrid know about this credo?
JÒN: It's because he isn't actually a dwarf. He's a giant shapeshifting as one.
Damien: What?!
Hagrid: That's some really impressive deductive skills you got there, Jòn. How'd you figure it out?
JÒN: Well, ever since I saw you at the clearing, I could tell by your magical energy that you were already shapeshifting. But shapeshifting magic can only be used to modify your siz or to transform yourself into another creature. You cannot use it to disguise yourself as someone else. So I figured you needed to have some sort of reason to make yourself seem smaller than you actually wer. It was then that I remembered your giant form from when you first called out to us. Normally it should be impossible for someone to transform himself into a giant, because it would break the laws of shapeshifting. That made me realize that it must have been the other way around, and that the giant form was actually your original form.
Hagrid laughs again
Hagrid: Well, you found out my secret. What are you going to do now? Will you report me to the organizers so that they can kick me out of the tournament?
Hagrid: What? No don't be ridiculous. If I did any of that, what would stop you from also reporting me for joining this tournament as a normal human? The reality is that the organizers just don't care. They let hundreds of ordinary people like me join this tournament without considering the implications. Why would they care if they also let in a giant or two?
Hagrid: I think you my be right. Well, I guess that's enough questions for now. If we go on like this, I may as well end up giving you my home address . Hahahaha!
As we advance thorough the forest, we start seeing some bright yellow lights circling around the trees.
JÒN: What are these, I wonder? Overgrown fireflies?
Rachel: Oh... Oh no... This isn't good. We need to get out of this place as fast as possible.
JÒN: Why? What's wrong?
Rachel: These aren't fireflies, they're spirits of the forest. We must have entered their sacred woods by accident. We're not allowed to be here!
JÒN: Not allowed by whom?
Rachel: The great golden vixen. ẞhe is the strongest of the guardian spirits, and she isn't known for her merciful nature.
Damien: Doesn't explain why we aren't allowed to be here.
Rachel: Because only animals are allowed in the sacred woods. Please, there's no time to talk! We need to get out of her before it's too lat--
Rachel is suddenly interrupted by a woman's voice coming from behind a tree.
Gwen: Leah?... Leah, is that you?
As the woman appears who appears to be Leah's friend reveals herself, we see that she has a rather muscular physique, although it doesn't by any means make her look unattractive. She has blue eyes, blonde hair that's standing up on her hair, likely as a side effect of her electrical powers. She's wearing tight leather pants and a gray tank t-shirt. She seems to be same age with Leah and has a burn scar on her left arm.
Leah: Gwen! I can't believe it's really you... You don't know how long I've been trying to find--
Gwen: You FOOL! Why did you come back? You aren't supposed to be here!
Leah: Gwen, listen to me, I came back here to save you... I came back here to take you away from this place.
Gwen points at her neck to show Leah that she isn't wearing a collar anymore
Gwen: I don't need to be saved! I am working with them of my own free will.
Leah: What?... But, why? I don't understand...
Gwen: It doesn't matter! What matters is that you need to get out of here. Quick! Before the ancients come back. And stop looking for me! Please!...
Leah: No! I'm not leaving here without you!
Gwen: Yes, you are!
Gwen eyes starts glowing bright, and electrical currents start flowing around her. I start to feel the hair on my skin stand from the static electricity around me.
JÒN: Leah, maybe we should retreat for now.
Leah: No, if she doesn't plan to see reason until I beat some sense into her stupid head, then I'll --
Before Leah gets to finish her sentence, there's a sudden powerful surge of electricity in the air around us, which shocks us all and then makes us fall to the ground in unison. Out of the five of us, I appear to be the only one who's still maintained his consciousness, although I can barely move.
As I look towards Gwen, I can see two men in dark blue robes approach from behind her. They are both wearing their hoods, so I can't see their faces clearly.
They look like they are arguing, probably debating on whether to kill us or not. As expected Gwen is opposing them and looks like she finally convinced them, because they are about leaving. Once the two of them are no longer visible, Gwen turns back towards the five of us, and she notices that I'm still conscious.
Gwen: You're still awake? Strange ... That high a voltage should have normally made you all lose your consciousness. So why are you the only one that was able to maintain his awareness?
When she gets closer to me, she looks shocked for a brief moment, and then she smiles
Gwen: I see, you are a Thackeray. Leah must really trust you if she's willing to travel with you despite this fact.
JÒN (weakly): Wait, why are you--
Gwen: Take good care of her, will you?
She smiles, as she puts a finger on my forehead
Gwen: I'm counting on you to keep her safe from now on!
She then sends a surge of electricity throughout my entire body, and the last thing I see is her sad smile, as I slowly lose my consciousness and everything goes dark.
>>>End of Chapter 9<<<