Before he could complete his statement, Achlys yelled as she clasped her hands together with all the strength she could muster. A spine-rattling, red wave of Mana burst out of her and cascaded towards Ulak like a tidal wave.
He brought his hands forward and made to defend against it, but the rolling wave of Mana passed through him as though it was non-existent. It was an incorporeal attack that bypassed every physical barrier, and went straight for Ulak's mind, soul and essence.
As soon as the rolling wave sifted through his body, it halted and flared vibrantly like a phoenix's wings. Then it shrunk into him in an instant, coagulating into a vibrant red sphere. It was so bright, the elves could see it within him from where they stood.
Ulak staggered about like a drunken man as he felt his soul and essence wavering. His psyche was also being distorted.
Ulak was an otherworldly being that had been sealed for a very long time. Whoever or whatever group had sealed him must have died or forgotten about him, because the seal weakened each passing decade, causing his aura to slowly spew outward, into the void.
Meelos were creatures that could warp the void with their eyes. No one knows how they came to be, but since they've never posed a threat, they were left to thrive in the Blood Forest.
Ulak began to use them as a medium to tether to Ostaria. Thus, the birth and emergence of the Black Meelos.
His seal weakened each time he connected to a Meelo, and now, he was able to share a part of his consciousness and essence with the Black Meelo.
Achlys was oblivious to Ulak's origin, but she made a rough analysis from what he had said. She didn't know if he was a true deity or some cosmic being, but she knew she had to server his consciousness and essence from the Meelo. That was the only shot they had at winning and leaving the Blood Forest alive.
Sure, it was a temporary solution, since Ulak was still sealed somewhere else, but at least it'd buy them enough time to inform the Castle about the recent development.
Achlys was bleeding from her orifices as she struggled to keep her palms together. Her Mana was fast depleting, and if care wasn't taken, the spell she had cast, would begin to eat up her life force for sustenance.
Hazel could sense this and she ran to her mother's side, holding her left hand shaking it, "Mother! You have to stop!"
Achlys's eye slowly drifted to a close and she gradually lost consciousness, but her hands were clamped tightly against each other.
Ulak had fallen to his knees, bellowing and scratching at his body as he struggled to keep the connection in place. The vibrant sphere in his chest glowed brighter.
"No, no..." James turned and rushed towards Achlys as he saw the colour of the sphere turn white, which was the colour of life force energy.
He grabbed Achlys's wrists, burgeoned his muscles and managed to separate her hands in one thug.
Achlys's face went pale immediately and she fell into her daughter's arms.
Every other sound seemed non-existent as the radiant sphere within Ulak mimicked the sound of a whistling bomb, whilst glowing brighter.
Everyone braced for impact, combining their Mana and erecting another protective dome.
But was that really enough?
A sudden whoosh filled the air as Alaric bolted past them, grabbed Ulak, and took to the skies in one bound. He couldn't fly but his jump force was enough to push them through the rumbling clouds.
In the next second, a bright explosion ensued in the sky, clearing the dark clouds in a whim. It made it seem as though they were never there, just that bright, rumbling explosion that almost looked akin to the two suns that were slowly drifting behind the horizon.
The elves had their mouths opened wide as they stared at the sky. Hazel and her cousins were crouched around Achlys, trying their best to resuscitate her.
James on the other hand, fisted his hands and tightened his calves and thigh muscles. He inhaled shortly and exhaled, relaxing his muscles.
With a subtle boom, he shot upwards, leaving a shallow crater on the ground.
By the time he attained a high altitude, the explosion had ceased, leaving nothing but a puffy cloud of smoke.
Plummeting out of the smoke was an unconscious Alaric and Ulak's body. James caught Alaric just in time and turned, diving back to the ground.
He landed rigidly on his feet, birthing a sparse shockwave. Then he dropped Alaric, who had regained consciousness.
His durability was quite frightening.
"Did that do it?" one of the elves asked with a cracked voice. They all had pale faces as they felt completely useless. They felt as though they were brought along to amass numbers.
Achlys and Alaric were just enough to handle Ulak's avatar.
Panting for breath and leaning against a tree, Alaric answered, "Nothing could have survived that. It was an attack against the soul. Even a Deity would be shaken. I'm only alive because I wasn't the explosion's target."
He knew Achlys well enough to understand what had happened. He had also heard some of Ulak's words as he ran towards them.
The elves heaved a sigh of relief.
However, at that very moment, a chilling ambience befell the land. It shook everyone to their bones. And though the sky had been cleared, another veil of darkness encompassed the forest.
Floating out of the shadows was Ulak, whose body had almost lost form. His body was dripping drops of darkness as though it was goo.
On his face was the outline of a zigzag set of red teeth. He also had eyes now, or rather, spherical holes that brimmed with crimson volatile energy.
Some of the elves struggled to draw their weapons or even take a stance, as his presence was too choking.
He cocked his head to the side, fixing his gaze on the unconscious Achlys. He hummed with an exasperated tone, "Witches... Very annoying creatures."