Allistar stared at her with his frosty blood red eyes.
Death lords usually could not enter planes of the living. They had an abundance of death magic and it passively drained the life force of everything for miles around. Due to this death lords could not break the barrier into a realm of the living.
She assessed the two beings. They were wrapped in a thin layer of green-black light that had a hint of Allistar to it. She realized that it was a barrier and wondered if it hindered the death lords' abilities or just protected the realm from them.
"They are my servants and have been for over two centuries. They will behave."
Allistar nodded to the two death lords and they descended into the ground as if on some type of elevator.
Anabel could sense their progress into the inner ring of trees.
It did not take long and Allistar spoke mere seconds after their departure. "Their seems to be a barrier of some kind encircling the falls." Allistar looked up and the air rippled before them and they saw a scene within the forest. Anabel assumed it was within the inner ring of trees.
There were hundreds of pairs of eyes looking back at them. Both Allistar and Anabel could sense that the eyes could actually see them. Anabel's spine twitched and she smiled slightly.
She cracked her neck twice and looked at Allistar. He closed off the connection and looked intently at her. His eyes smiled but his mouth did not move. He looked to the tree ring.
"You always loved battle." He sighed and stretched. 'I have not seen Nellasway in many years and never in this dimension."
Nellasway were a hybrid cross between fairies and gremlins. They were usually small and always traveled in groups. When there are fifteen or more they were considered a swarm because it was difficult for most people to handle fifteen of them alone. For some reason fifteen Nellasway could manipulate magic together on a level superior to a divine.
Anabel nodded. "But it makes sense that they would be near something like the ebon falls. That type of magic would be irresistible to them. More medicinal than addictive."
She thought for a moment. "That means the barrier is a combination of magics and from their numbers it could be an infinite combination. We will need to determine the combination to destroy it or destroy every Nellasway."
Allistar nodded. "You're right. Once erected only one is needed to maintain the barrier. I will have my servants examine the barrier more closely."
"Good. With the Nellasway there we know there are no other major threats inside. They would have killed any other powerful beings by now."
"Do you have any servants that can handle them?"
She hated when she called her wards servants but she let it go. "Of course. All of my guard can handle them. Now that we know it is a swarm of Nellasway we can easily handle them. I will talk to them and plan an assault. Once you understand the barrier we can act."
Allistar nodded. "The barrier has a dense weave. Just looking at it normally I can see ten strands of different magic. I will come up with a way to open it."
"Okay. You and I will lead the assault on the Nellasway and our wards can be support."
"I do not have wards. I have servants and slaves."
"Hmmm. You have a vast part of Amethyst's soul. Is she a servant or a slave?"
"She is a part of me." He answered without hesitation.
It was odd. Their daughter was a part of both of them now, in the truest and most complex sense of being a part of something.
She walked away from him without responding and deep in philosophical thought.
Three hours later Allistar and Anabel walked silently through the ring of trees. Anabel's wards and Allistar's servants were in flanking positions maintaining a distance of twenty to thirty feet from Allistar and Anabel.
They spoke telepathically to the others only as needed. Nellasway were unique creatures and could sometimes sense telepathic waves.
But Anabel and Allistar had been together for so long they usually did not need to speak during a mission, but if they did they had developed a way to speak through the soul a long time ago. When it was used there was a small ripple of soul energy released but it only registered as natural emissions to anyone monitoring such things.
It surprised Anabel when her soul twitched, telling her something was entering. She was even more surprised when she realized it was Allistar communicating with her.
'How long will you be angry with me? I am not sure how much longer I will be able to endure this.'
Anabel almost stumbled and she actually imagined herself lying face first in the soft blue grass beneath her feet.
They moved forward and she pretended she had not heard the question. She wanted to end the mission and turn back to begin again tomorrow.
'Why are you so flabbergasted my love? Did you think that we would be a part for all of eternity? Can you even exist like that? Can you truly live without me?'
Was she hearing emotion? What the hell was going on!? Why was he not focused? This is about their son not him!
'Can we please focus Allistar? We are here for Jolan, we can talk about us after.'
There was a long pause. 'You can speak to me and complete this. You are more than capable of that.'
Anabel gritted her teeth and told herself to calm down. Still a torrent spilled forth.
'And why should I want to be with an emotionless cretin?!? Why should I want to be with a man who ruthlessly used our daughter to advance and become the emotionless cretin he is today?!? Was it worth it Allistar!? Was binding our daughter to you for an eternity worth the power you gained!?'
For a long moment there was nothing and then a small quiet trickle entered her soul.
'No. Not if I lose you.'
With that Anabel did stumble. She did not land on her face and was able to continue moving silently.
'We have been together since we first learned our first spells, and before that. We have been through too much together for me to ever want to be without you. I do not know how to apologize. You have always told me that and it is true. I shouldn't have created the ritual. I shouldn't have asked Amethyst to sacrifice herself for me. But it is done my love. She split her soul, half stays with me, and the other was recreated into am extremely powerful divine spirit being. She is happy. Why can't we be as well?'
Anabel wanted to laugh. 'How can I be happy? Will you use Jolan the next time you want to advance?'
He answered her rhetorical question as she fumed.
'No. I have found new ways to advance and he would never agree to it.'
She wanted to slap him. Just as she was thinking to send a soul slap out to him she saw the first of the Nellasway. It was time to reach their goal. She needed to focus and collect the ebon water.
First there were ten, then fifty, then two hundred, now she had no idea how many nellasway were swarming them. She had never seen them so vicious. As she sent a shredding spell forward shredding ten nellasway and dispersing into a tree she thought about the ebon water. She knew it was a powerful item. So powerful she had thought it could never exist on this planet let alone this dimension. But here it was and it had super powered nellasway protecting it.
She sent out two shredding spells and three pulverizing spells in three directions. Allistar was behind her covering her flank and decimating nellasway just was quickly.
Tiny corpses were piling up around them and still the nellasway kept coming. A sparkling blade passed close to Anabel's face. She flinched as her hand raised and a bone breaking spell flew forth and shattered the bones of fifteen of the small creatures.
Nellasways were fierce and did not cry out in pain when injured. Instead they let out high pitched battle cries that incited their comrades.
"This is ridiculous!" Allistar's anger thundered through his body and hundreds of the dead nellasway rose and began attacking their living kin.
"Use Amethyst Anabel! She can sweep the playing field clean long enough for you to use your completion spell."
Anabel was stunned for a number of reasons. The first being the fact that her completion spell would kill every living thing in a wide swath of the forest. But she did not hesitate. The truth was she wanted her son to not only survive but also grow stronger.
'Can you help Amethyst?'
'Of course Spirit Warlock'
Amethyst manifested on Anabel's shoulder. Her bushy tail thinned and elongated.
'After this you will have a tattoo and we will entwine a bit more. Are you okay with this?'
Anabel's yes was instinctive and she said it before anything truly registered.
Amethyst's tail wrapped around Anabel's arm, from the shoulder to the wrist down here hand and to the tips of her fingers. The tail melded into Anabel's arm and an intricate dark purple and silver tattoo etched itself into her skin.
Blood flowed down the tattoo and began to stream from her fingers. Amethyst spoke in a combination of ancient languages and the blood streamed forward like spider silk and began entrapping nellasway. As the blood webs caught hold of them they were drained of vitality.
Power and strength began pouring into Anabel. When she started feeling saturated with power she fed it to both Amethyst and Allistar, when she sensed they were at their limit she fed it to her wards.
All this happened in a matter of seconds.
Anabel understood the situation. As she watched nellasway desiccated just as more ran into the blood silk she knew she needed to end this. For some reason there was an endless supply of nellasway and she could only think of her completion spell as a viable solution to end this.
Allistar being right was a bit frustrating.
Anabel scryed runic spells in the air before them and above and below the nellasway. Runic symbols quickly appeared and focused the power being drained from the nellasway into the spell.
Anabel wore two pendants that focused and stabilized her spells. They both glowed brightly as the spell hit its crescendo and enacted. Spirit magic poured forth in a torrent and blanketed the area.
Everything froze for two seconds then shields flared around all of Anabel's allies as all the nellasway turned to dust. The ground trembled and a large curator opened up before them stopping just a few feet from where Anabel and Allistar stood.
The runes flared one last time just as the blood stopped flowing and was drawn back into Anabel's body. With the blood came spirits and souls. Anabel's eyes widened as the purple tattoo brightened then dulled to thin black lines etched in her skin like a fresh tattoo.
Anabel could hold billions of spirits and souls in her soul sea but taking in so many at once was a bit daunting and she swayed. Allistar supported her as most of her guard circled her in case she needed protection.
She pushed away from Allistar and swayed a bit once more before she stabilize and was able to focus.
"Let's go get that ebon water."
"We can rest for a minute Bell."
She stomped forward, walking over the creator as if a bridge had been lain over it, pretending she could hear nothing at the moment.
Allistar pursed his lips and followed. He could not walk on air like Anabel so one of his minions used a levitation spell and he floated to her side.
"You do realize that you are behaving like a child?"
They did not look at each other as they spoke.
"And how am I behaving like a child?"
"Firstly you are actually stomping away. Secondly your fists are clinched. Lastly we are marching forward and we do not even know who was controlling the nellasway."
Anabel stopped instantly. She stood above the crater and looked at Allistar. Her fists slowly unclinching. She wanted to curse. She felt the energy swelling below her.
She flashed back to the edge of the creator, half dragging half pushing Allister with her. As she moved back to the edge both she and Allistar were enacting spells. Right before they made it to the edge of the crater five spells poured down into it like a waterfall of magic.
The center of the crater burst upwards just as the spell reached the bottom and everything shook violently.
Anabel coughed as dirt, dust, and body parts flew everywhere.
"How many years will it take for me to get over you?"
Allistar was instantly at her side pulling her into an embrace.
When he spoke he spoke to her soul which made her involuntarily shiver. 'I will never allow you to be over me. I don't even know what that means when it comes to you.'
She didn't struggle or push him away. She just melted in his arms and allowed it.
Why fight against the current. It was time to choose a new direction.
What were they just doing?