In the cabin Milli was struggling, a fierce wind had picked up, hurling it's strength into the sides of the airship. "What's going on?!" Haruki yelled over the roar of the outside winds.
"We're about to enter an ever-storm!" She shouted back, "I didn't know that Ios had any ever storms that passed through it!"
"Give me the pilot's seat, why the fuck did Phyre park olympic near an ever-storm?!" Haruki yelled over the wind that battered the steel structure. He entered the pilot's seat and pulled the steering wheel. The ship jolted to the right, barely missing a close lightning bolt. He reached back and grabbed Astar, yanking him into the co-pilot's seat. "Put the seatbelt on!'" He called over to him.
Milli looked around, the strapped herself into one of the passenger seats at the back of the room. Once they were all secured Haruki put the engine to full throttle and began to charge the mantis straight into the storm.
Lightning threatened to strike and thunder bellowed. Astar covered his ears and curled in on himself, such loud noises could be heard down in The Society of course, but they were never anywhere near a powerful storm like this. Astar looked up, keeping his ears covered. The thunder was loud enough for him to burst an eardrum. The storm pelted rain down, but the mantis prevailed. Astar was sure that they would crash but the mantis pushed on.
Haruki flicked the compass on the control panel.
"Fuck!" He exclaimed, "The storm is messing with the compass, I don't know which way we're going!"
"Don't worry, I've got this." Milli pushed through beside the two pilot seats and closed her eyes. A book floated out of the case on her leather belt and opened, glowing a soft mint green. "Grimoire of Enchants, Page 386, Forward Path" she whispered. A soft mint light matching the one that coated her grimoire appeared in front of the mantis and began to turn to the right. "I should be able to get us out of the storm and towards the general direction of the Titania Stronghold."
Haruki nodded and followed the mint light. Abruptly, the storm stopped and they were met with complete silence, devastating silence.
"Milli," Haruki whispered, "you're not taking us through the centre of the storm are you?"
"I don't know," Milli said. She whispered it so quietly that it was barely audible even in such a loud silence.
A bang.
The mantis was sent flying.
Not good.
Astar screamed and Haruki grunted as he tried to pull the mantis away from its attacker.
"A leviathan! Get us out of here Haruki!" Milli cried. Astar's heart raced, he had about them, the legendary beasts known as leviathan. These colossal serpentine creatures, akin to the dragons of old, possessed a fearsome power - the ability to harness Aeili (weather) mana. They were the stuff of nightmares, the scourge of adventurers and seasoned mages alike. Even the most skilled S-Class mages found themselves outmatched in battle against these behemoths.
As he glanced out the window of the small airship, Astar's blood ran cold. There, on their tail, was one of these monstrous creatures. Its scaled form twisted and writhed through the air, its eyes glinting with a primal hunger. The airship trembled under the weight of its presence, threatened to be swallowed whole by the gaping maw of the leviathan.
A shiver ran down Astar's spine as he realized the gravity of their situation. To face such a creature was to dance with death itself. The airship seemed to shrink in comparison to the looming menace behind them, a mere speck in the vastness of the sky.
"We're in big trouble," Astar whispered, his voice barely audible over the pounding of his heart. The realization sunk in like a stone, heavy and suffocating. In the face of such a creature, there was little hope of survival. They were at the mercy of the leviathan, and it hungered for their destruction.
But the leviathan who crept in the shadows of the storms often has a weakness. Light. Astar gulped. Him, fight off a leviathan? He wouldn't consider it for a second, why had he even thought of something so ridiculous?
The leviathan once more slammed the side of the mantis. Milli flew backwards into the wall, she let out a gasp and coughed.
Astar got out of his seat and walked his trembling legs over to the door.
"What are you doing?!" Haruki yelled.
"I'll fight the Leviathan." Astar's face sat blank, but was betrayed by the way his voice wavered unsurely.
"Are you insane?!" Haruki argued.
"Maybe, but I know you'll protect me if something goes wrong won't you?" Astar asked softly. Haruki hesitated before he slowly got up and handed the wheel to Milli.
He walked up to Astar and grabbed him by the shoulders. "What's the plan?"
"I distract the leviathan with my light while you attack it with your swords and shadows." Astar suggested.
"How are you meant to distract it?" Haruki asked sceptically.
Astar paused to think. "I'll ride on the roof of the mantis."
"No, absolutely not," Haruki said firmly.
"It's the only option!' Astar combatted.
Haruki sighed deeply and mumbled to himself. "Oh cosmos, you're so stubborn you know that?" "Fine, you ride the mantis. On my conditions."
"Deal." Astar agreed.
"Open the door Milli," Haruki said.
"You're sure about this?" She asked them.
"Yes," both Haruki and Astar said at the same time. Milli lowered her head and gave a small nod. She reached out and pressed the button to open the door.
"Guess now's time to test our combat compatibility," Haruki joked.
Astar laughed nervously. "Let's hope it's high."
A dark form loomed above the two of them as Haruki's wings unfurled. The door opened and a gust of wind pushed against them. Haruki leapt out of the doorway, taking Astar with him.
The soft winds from the raging storm that surrounded the eye of the storm brushed their faces and tousled their hair. Haruki soon landed on the roof of the mantis. Astar leapt onto the cold metallic surface, his feet slid slightly across it's surface again.
He lowered into a crouch. The roof of the mantis turned dark, as a dark purple liquid swirled beneath his feet.
'Don't worry about falling, just focus on distracting the leviathan.' Haruki told him.
With a swift and decisive motion, Haruki catapulted himself off the back of the mantis. His eyes scanned the area, searching for any sign of their monstrous adversary, the leviathan.
Heart pounding, Astar whirled around, his gaze darting frantically through the murky surroundings. Panic clawed at his chest now that Haruki had gone. He struggled to locate the looming threat. Then, amidst the shadows, he beheld it — a colossal serpent, its sinuous form weaving through the darkness with an ominous grace.
The beast's scales shimmered with an eerie blue hue, blending seamlessly with the gloom of the environment. Rows of jagged teeth gleamed menacingly behind its parted lips, dripping with a viscous drool that displayed ravenous hunger. Astar's breath caught in his throat as he witnessed the sheer magnitude of the creature, dwarfing the mantis in comparison.
Each of its eyes, a fiery yellow slitted with malicious black, seemed to pierce through Astar's very soul, freezing him in place with terror, turning him to ash. In that moment, all courage melted away, leaving only a trembling shell of a boy, overwhelmed by the daunting reality of what stood before him.
Regret flooded through him like a tidal wave, washing away any semblance of courage he had mustered. With trembling limbs, he sank to his knees, his gaze locked in a desperate trance upon the serpentine leviathan. Every fiber of his being screamed for escape, yet he remained rooted in place, helpless against the looming threat that now consumed his every thought.
No, he could do this. He could break scissorstone and had Haruki the A-Class mage to help him. The leviathan froze, it's unblinking eyes found Astar and it's ugly whiskers twitched. Astar stared into the yellow eyes of the leviathan, the colour was dark. Unlike the soft yellow light his magic gave off. His magic was calming, not fierce and hideous.
"Blink," Astar said, menace coiled throughout his voice. A small ball of fuzzy light appeared over Astar's right hand. He lifted his left hand to the top of the orb and began to pull his hands apart, stretching his magic larger and larger.
The Leviathan's monstrous form loomed over Astar, its massive body coiled like a mountain of sinew and scales. Its eyes, those abyssal orbs, narrowed into slits, then widened in a predatory focus. Astar felt a shiver run down his spine as he stood his ground, hands steady despite the tremors of fear that threatened to shake him apart.
With a deafening roar that seemed to shake the very earth beneath their feet, the Leviathan unleashed its primordial fury. Lightning flashed and thunder sounded. Astar staggered backward, struggling to maintain his stance against the sheer force of its bellow. Yet, through gritted teeth, he held on, refusing to yield, his hands weaving intricate patterns in the air.
The magic flowed from him in a torrent, a desperate effort to keep the Leviathan's attention fixated on him. But with each passing moment, he could feel the strain taking its toll, his magic reserves dwindling like a candle flickering in the wind.
Then, amidst the chaos, a sudden sound pierced through the discord of roars and screams. A sharp, defiant cry that cut through the air like a blade. Astar's eyes widened as he turned, just in time to witness the impossible.
Haruki, standing tall and resolute, his sword gleaming in the dim grey light, had launched into action. With a swift and practiced motion, he struck out at the Leviathan, his blade slicing through the air with deadly precision.
Astar's breath caught in his throat as he watched in awe. The Leviathan recoiled, a guttural shriek tearing from its throat as Haruki's blade found its mark. A spine, one of the massive protrusions that lined the creature's back, was severed clean off, sending a spray of ichor into the air.
It was a sight to behold, the sheer audacity of it all. Those spines, forged from the hardest of bone, had seemed impenetrable, yet here was Haruki, wielding his sword with such skill and strength that he made it seem effortless.
And as Astar stood there, his heart pounding in his chest, he realized that in this moment, they stood a chance. With Haruki at his side, he had regained his courage.
Once again, Astar was left speechless at the abilities found in such a young mage. He wouldn't let Haruki show him up though. The leviathan turned around once more, screeching in pain.
There he was met with Astar who'd struck him with his magic right in the back of the neck. The scales on the back of the leviathan's neck had melted and fused, a few more of those shots and the leviathan would be beaten! However, Astar was becoming light-headed, he was still trying to maintain blink, and casting such a high-level spell as sunburst at the same time as blink had drained a lot of his remaining magic from his mana core.
He blinked his eyes rapidly as small black spots clouded the edges of his vision, blink began to flicker, it wouldn't hold much longer, but it wasn't distracting the leviathan very well anymore. He let blink flicker out as he released the spell and fell onto one knee. The leviathan sensed this moment of weakness and launched to strike, its jaws spread open and its saliva flew out of its monstrously hideous jaws.
Astar cursed himself, how could he let his guard down? He leapt to the side, grabbing onto the antenna of the mantis to keep him from falling into the gaping abyss that was the storm. He hung there for a second before he felt a tug on his ankle, looking down he found a tendril from the shadowed floor holding his ankle firmly, he reached down with one arm and grabbed the tendril, using it as a rope to climb back up the face of the mantis.
He saw the leviathan's tail swipe just in time to duck out of the way, but he dropped the rope and fell, crashing his back into the front glass of the mantis. He winced as he hung there for a second.
"Astar!" He heard Milli yell. She was standing in the doorway, no, floating was more accurate. She flew over to him and grabbed him under the arms, helping him up. They stood on the roof for a couple of seconds, catching their breaths.
"What are you doing here? What about piloting the mantis?" Astar asked frantically.
"I put it on autopilot, you guys need help," she said as she clutched his shoulder, "let me regenerate your mana."
She whispered a mantra under her breath as her grimoire floated beside her, flicking through its thousands of thin pages until it landed on the one she needed. A sharp pang hit Astar and he keeled over onto his hands and knees. He cried out in pain, but soon that pain turned to a sense of relief as he felt his mana growing inside his mana core, it was refilling, replenishing.
He stood up and braced himself into a defensive stance. Over with the leviathan he found Haruki, he was putting up a real fight, but the leviathan was angry, it was slowly gaining the upper hand.
{`}
Haruki winced. Strike two. A bloody gash appeared on his chest as he once again dodged just inside the leviathan's reach. He flew back. If he wanted to win he was going to have to try harder.
He shouted over the thunder. "You want a fight? Let's go!" Haruki's body slowly began to transform, long angular legs appeared in a shadowy form, armoured chest plates appeared and his long tail unfurled, twisting out behind him. Spines flicked out one by one as they made their way up to his head, where a line of five large spines grew out of his white hair.
Inky jaws closed around his face, forming a protective mask, finally, his six large wings were traded for two smaller wings that sat just above his hips. Lurking Shadows. His spell granted him greater agility and speed.
Haruki harnessed his newfound speed, drew his wakizashi and flew forward at an outstanding speed. He pushed off the leviathan's nose and ran his wakizashi along the tough, armoured scales along its forehead. Sparks flew and scales cracked. The leviathan shrieked, but Haruki wasn't done. He drew his katana, and pushed off the leviathan's forehead, aiming straight for the large, ridged horns that grew from the back of its skull. His curved katana covered itself in shadows, shadows that grew until the katana was as long as Haruki was tall. He slashed his katana forward as he impacted with the horn to the right.
A crack. A bone-shattering cry from the leviathan, and a gasp from Astar as the horn broke right at the base and began to fall, down, down, down into the storm below. Haruki flew up, and made a sharp turn, pushing off the air with such force it sent him flying straight down, his katana disappearing as his arm slowly covered itself in dark purple scales, like that of the leviathan's murky blue ones. He drew his arm back as he neared the leviathan's upturned snout. He launched his arm forward, delivering a punch that sent shockwaves throughout the atmosphere. Milli and Astar were knocked off their feet, and the leviathan was put off balance and sent flying a kilometre downwards.
Haruki floated in the air for a second as he caught his breath. He didn't have long though, because the leviathan flew up underneath him with its abyssal mouth open wide, ready to strike. Haruki dodged quickly to the left, a sharp wind cut past his face and he felt blood rush from a new cut on his cheek.
The leviathan was missing quite a few teeth after the last attack Haruki had landed on it, but the remaining teeth still posed a fatal threat. Now the leviathan was furious. It paused, facing Haruki. A hissing sound whispered out of the back of his throat, and the air began to swell and circle near the leviathan and gather near its mouth. Turning past Haruki, he aimed his shot at the mantis. "No!" Haruki yelled, but he couldn't move quickly enough. A blast of mana erupted from the mouth of the leviathan and flew straight towards Astar and Milli.
"Dome of Salubrious!" Milli shreiked. Her grimoire glowed brightly, and a dome of transparent mint light appeared over the top of the mantis. The beam of concentrated mana struck the shield and Milli flew backwards, off the mantis.
"Milli!!" Astar screamed.
"I'm okay!" Her voice came from over the edge. She floated up and stood back on the shadowed floor, bracing her hands out in front of her to reinforce the shield.
The shield began to crack and splinter but it did not shatter. Astar hadn't been aware of how powerful Milli was behind her happy-go-lucky additude. She summoned a second, smaller shield behind the cracked one just in time. The larger shield dissolved and the mana beam flew into the new one. Milli dug her heels into the shadowed floor as she slid back, the beam was weakening. Finally, the beam came to a halt and Milli dropped to her knees. Astar scrambled over to Milli.
"Milli! Milli!" He shouted in a panic.
"I'm fine, just out of mana," she breathed. Astar let out a breath he'd been holding in. He looked up to Haruki, it was up to him now. Haruki flew past the leviathan's face, he was angry.
"You're fighting me, asshole." He said in a low, threatening tone. The leviathan growled back at him, flashing its remaining stained teeth. It swiped a clawed foot at Haruki, but he dodged easily. He lifted his arm as an inky purple spear appeared and clutched the grip. He backed up and braced to throw the spear. There was one problem, the leviathan was in a bad spot, if he threw the spear from this angle then it wouldn't be a fatal wound. A bright light abruptly shone from behind Haruki.
It was Astar, he was using blink, but this time the spell was as large as him, it was so bright that Haruki had to shield his eyes. He turned back to face the leviathan, unwilling to leave an opening for it to strike, but the leviathan wasn't focused on him anymore, it was shrieking in pain and had its eyes closed. Its head was swinging wildly around and its mouth hung open, the light was hurting it. "Keep it up Astar!" Haruki yelled over the pain-filled roar of the leviathan.
He looked down at Astar, he was struggling, and dark circles were forming under his eyes. Haruki would need to hurry before Astar got hurt. He aimed his spear at the leviathan's open mouth. The spear grew larger and longer. Haruki let out a loud cry and threw the spear. As the spear flew through the air time seemed to slow as all three of them looked on, hoping that it would impact. The spear flew into the leviathan's mouth and struck the back of its throat.
A horrific tearing sound echoed throughout the silence of the storm centre as the spear broke through flesh, bone and scales. The leviathan went silent and its body went limp as it began to drop. It dropped further out of the sky before finally vanishing through the thick clouds below.
There was a loud thud as Astar finally collapsed.
{`}
When Astar came to he found himself lying in a bed. He stood up and rubbed his head, he still had a bad headache from using too much mana. This room was unfamiliar and now that he paid attention the airship was eerily quiet, the other two were missing. He walked over to the door and opened it.
The room he now stepped into was the same room where he had gotten trapped in the net. Astar started to climb the ladder up to the cabin, which was made increasingly difficult by the pounding headache he had.
When he got to the cabin he found it empty, it was then that he started to get worried. The door was open and he ran over to it. The ladder had been let down.
He let out a sigh of relief and climbed down the long rope ladder when he saw that Haruki and Milli were outside. They seemed to be training by fighting one another. Haruki would attack and Milli would defend, but that was all they did, they never swapped.
'Why don't you swap places?' He asked from his place by the ladder. Haruki and Milli stopped clashing and turned around, both of them were gasping for breath.
'Haruki's a combat mage, but he's already really good at defence so he's focusing on combat, meanwhile, my magic is suited to support so I'm practising my defence more while enhancing my abilities and his at the same time. It's good practice,' said Milli as she erupted with loads of information. Astar slowly nodded.
'Can I join?' He asked.
'Yeah sure, you can go against me first to practice your combat abilities.' Milli said. Astar eagerly ran over to the spot where Haruki had been just before and braced himself. He'd seen before how powerful Milli was, so he wouldn't underestimate her.
He placed his hands out in front of him and summoned sunburst. Just as quickly as sunburst shot out from his hands Milli cast a hexagon shield. His spell was repelled and came flying back straight at him.
Astar let out a sudden short yelp and fell to the ground with his hands over his head. Sunburst flew over him and collided with a large tree near the forest edge, the tree trunk burst into splinters and the tree crashed to the ground.
Astar rolled over onto his back to catch his breath when he felt the cold touch of steel brush his neck.
"That's you dead," Milli said triumphantly. She'd snuck up on him with a dagger while he'd been distracted. Maybe he wasn't taking this seriously enough. He felt a drop of blood as it beaded down his neck. If this were a real fight his neck would have been slit. Milli helped him to his feet and gave him a pat on the shoulder. "Let's go inside, you're probably still tired." She suggested.
"No," Astar said, "let's do that again."
Milli looked a little surprised, but then she smirked. "I like your attitude kid, alright let's go."
They both took their stances, waiting for the other to make the first move. The early morning sun appeared over the tops of the trees behind them, temporarily shining light in Milli's eyes. Now. Astar launched forward and slid on his hands and feet, knocking Milli's feet out from under her. She flipped around in mid-air to prevent a fall on her back and pushed herself up the second she hit the ground.
Astar would have to work faster. He remembered the spell he'd found in his book, it would work well. He hadn't tried casting it before so he hoped it would work. Milli thrust a dagger towards him but he dodged, however, it was a close call. He made his mana swell and tighten in his chest. His body began to glow as he imagined it shooting down to his feet. All of a sudden the world slowed a little.
He looked around, everything had slowed including the trees and wildlife. Now he understood, this magic didn't just speed him up, it allowed him to slow down the very space around him by sending his mana through the ground. He ran up to Milli and she slowly turned to block him, he landed a hard punch right on her stomach and released his spell. The world sped up again and Milli fell back as she coughed.
Astar felt bad about hitting her, but it was his payback to her for making his neck bleed. He stood over Milli and smiled.
"Alright, good match!" He said cheerfully as he offered her a helping hand. Milli gingerly took his hand and thanked him quietly, then, something struck Astar in the stomach, sending him flying backwards into a tree.
He coughed and gasped for the air that had been forced out of his lungs. He hadn't noticed Milli's grimoire leave the case on her belt, nor had he noticed her lips softly chanting a mantra. She had hit him with a fist of green light and sent him flying. She shot her hands out and a sphere of green light surrounded Astar and lifted him into the air. "Hey!" He shouted as he hit the sphere with his fist.
He sat down, considering all the possible ways for him to escape his current situation. He considered sunburst but decided against it. He summoned blink. Although the spell was just a light source for him, it was extremely hot to the touch for others. Perhaps he could melt the orb. The second he summoned blink though, it flickered out. Astar panicked, thinking he was already out of mana. He felt a bit tired but he certainly had enough mana left.
He tried summoning blink again to no avail. This sphere must have been blocking him from using mana. When he began to pay attention again he noticed that the sphere seemed to be getting smaller. He was right, the sphere was shrinking faster and faster, if this continued then he'd be crushed to death. Astar considered his options. He could try summoning sunburst but risked getting himself blown up as collateral damage. He remembered the two daggers he'd tied to his boots before leaving. He pulled a dagger out of the strap on his left boot and tried to stab the sphere, but the knife went straight through, except for where his hand held it. Astar was perplexed, this sphere made no sense whatsoever. Unless, it could be the fact that the dagger contained no mana, but he did. That gave him an idea. He got onto his knees and raised the dagger above his head, launching it in Milli's direction.
"Woah!" She said as she jumped to the side. As she did this, she released her grip on the sphere ever so slightly, reducing the effect of the mana-repelling force which gave Astar a chance to hit the base of the sphere with blink. The sphere hissed as the physical form it had been given was compromised. Astar began to fall through the bottom of the sphere as it fizzled out around him. Luckily he wasn't too far off the ground which allowed him to land on his feet in a crouch.
He drew the dagger from his right foot as he pushed off the ground and ran at Milli in a zigzag pattern. She stood her guard as she summoned another hexagonal shield made of magic. This time Astar skidded around it, sliding in the mud. As he cleared the shield he became an arm's length away from Milli and slashed the knife towards her throat, using the tip of the blade to hold her chin.
"That's you dead." He said through buffed breaths. His chest rose and fell and he heavily breathed in the thin morning mist. This win had felt more triumphant than the one against the leviathan.
Loud claps sounded from behind them, Astar turned to find Haruki walking up to them. "Excellent work you two," he said, commending them. Astar stood proud, the compliment had felt like a trophy, a prize. One he craved. Haruki walked up to them and placed his hand on Astar's head. "Your improvement amazes me, along with your ability to analyse and adjust to your surroundings." He said as he ruffled Astar's thick brown hair.
He touched his fingers to the shallow wound on Astar's neck. "How is it that you're always managing to get yourself injured?" He pulled out a roll of bandages from the pocket of his coat and began to carefully wrap some of the rolls around Astar's neck, securing it with a tight knot. He stood there for a moment, his hand still on Astar's neck.
"Well, we should begin our trek to Springfell now." He said after a while.
Astar looked around, trying to remember the name of this forest. "What's this forest called?"
"I think this is the Boisgus Woods," Milli said thoughtfully, "It's said to be a place full of traps and deadly monsters, no one's visited it in years, not since Springfell fell to The Knights of Kezran."
"Springfell has fallen?!" Astar asked in a shocked voice.
"Wait, you didn't know?" Haruki asked. Astar stepped backwards, his legs were shaking.
Milli helped support him. "Did you know anyone who lived here?" She asked softly.
"Do you guys know a lady named Vyltria?" He asked in his shaky voice.
The other two turned to look at each other, their faces said it all.
"No. No, no, no," he cried softly, "please don't tell me she's dead."
Milli dropped her head and nodded, a tear fell from her cheek.
"She was our old guild master," Milli told him, "she died protecting this place six years ago."
Astar stood up straight, slapping his leg to stop it from shaking and held his head high. "I'm sure she didn't die in vain, she died a hero." His voice betrayed his now stoic face as it cracked and rose.
"May I ask what your connection to her was?" Haruki asked.
Astar stepped back and analysed the faces of these young mages before him. Vyltria had meant a lot to them, but he understood why. "She was my adoptive mother," he whispered.
Haruki nodded and sighed. "I expected so," he mumbled.
Fury welled up in Astar's chest. The sting of betrayal clawed at his heart. He hadn't expected Haruki to keep such important information from him. Astar tried to calm down. He understood why Haruki had put it off. He'd just recently been rescued from the talons of The Society and had to learn about life and magic all over again. He wasn't just trying to spare his feelings, he was trying to protect him. Astar could see the visible guilt on Haruki's face.
Haruki regretted not telling him earlier, but he had no choice, Astar would have been distraught. He was distraught now, but they had something to focus on. He was also stronger both physically and emotionally after he challenged his previous mentality. He walked up to Haruki and leaned against his chest.
"Thank you." His voice came out muffled as he talked to Haruki.
Haruki rested his hand on Astar's back. "You're welcome," he whispered.
Astar stood back again, with a newfound resolve. "Alright!" Astar exclaimed, "Let's go find this key sword."
"Yeah!" Milli cheered as she wiped a tear from her cheek.
They grabbed their gear from inside the mantis and began to hike the downward trail through the Boisgus Woods towards the ruined town of Springfell.