Some time earlier. Melissa had dragged Valentine to the dungeons. Throwing her in one of the cells, then pacing around its entrance with her head bowed and hand on chin.
"A grand spirit? Aren't those things basically immortal?" Melissa shook her head as a fleeting image of Augustus engaging the monster flashed in her mind, "He won't survive."
"I didn't even know she'd be here! I'm a big fan, by the way!" Valentine blabbered, her tone quite cheerful even in her situation. She drummed on the dungeon door, "She's cute!"
"Oh, shut up." Melissa facepalmed. She had dealt with lesser spirits back when spirits weren't chased out of these parts by Al' Rak and his minions. They were cute little things.
Spirits could take the form of many things, but only the grand spirits could make that form 'material'. To do this, they wound be bound to the rules of mortality until it's ended.
"If I could catch it unawares during their fight, I could kill it for sure!" Melissa hyped herself up, but her feet was rooted to the ground, "Dammit, I've never fought one before."
"You could kill what?" Valentine scoffed from inside the dungeon, then fell silent. She left Melissa staring at the dungeon's door for a few minutes, leaving themselves in silence.
Melissa broke the silence after a few minutes, then narrowed her eyes. She recalled an interesting weapon the village had kept for slaying evil spirits, "It's kept in that treasury."
Going into the treasury at this time? Melissa lowered her hand from her chin, turning to the dungeon's door, "It was why they are here in the first place. I'd be exposing it then."
For what it's worth, this is a very important decision. Melissa could try betting on the chance a dangerous spirit wouldn't move on to attack her village after Augustus is killed.
She could also try betting on the chance she'd reach the treasury before its too late or if no one would try visiting with her. There were a lot of chances she'd need to take here.
"Valentine stay here, I will be back…" Melissa ordered, her voice trailing as she burst out the door and slammed it shut behind her. Leaving Valentine in the dungeon to silence.
"Okay, I'll stay here…"
Valentine, wearing an expressionless face, drummed her fingers on the dungeon door, the fiery shackles lay broken apart beneath her. Her eyes rolled to the side, quite distant.
"…and wait for you."
——
"So, this is the stuff, huh?"
Melissa stood with Aaron, outside the emptied out treasury with a spear in her hand. The body of the spear was made out of rough iron, and the tip out of a sharpened bone.
Melissa turned to Aaron, raising a brow, "Of course this is the stuff. This spear was kept here for more than a few generations, and it should have—"
"No, that's not it. How do you know that would be enough to bring down a grand spirit? Aren't spirits immortal?" Aaron asked, pointing at the spear in Melissa's hand.
"Well, it's not a given… I guess?" Melissa cleared her throat, shifting her glance. A cold gleam flashed in her eyes as she thought about it, "I will try using my true flame."
"That's wouldn't be enough to kill a spirit!" Aaron stepped back, his eyes widened as Melissa threw him a dead serious glare. He shook his head and facepalmed, "You're nuts."
"Augustus did something, and my flames control grew." Melissa shoved the spear into Aaron's grasp, stepped back to create distance and held out her hands, "Observe, Aaron."
A spark appeared, then it turned into a streak of fire. In an instant, a fiery needle was forged out of thin air, hovering above her palms, "A «Second-Level True Flame Control»."
"He did that? Impo— No. Wait." Aaron stepped forward, reaching out his hand to feel around the blazing needle, his pupils contracting, "I have felt something like this before."
"Well, we have to hurry." Melissa crushed the needle in her hands, absorbing the fires back into her body, "I don't think Augustus could hold out any longer than this… can he?"
"What are you thinking about now?" Aaron frowned seeing the thoughtful expression on Melissa's face, glancing from side to side, "I can guess it's not something smart, is it?"
"Of course not. Oh shit, wait." Melissa blinked then shot Aaron a vicious glare before shaking her head and walking away, forcing him to follow her with his furrowed brows.
——
'Of course, I was going to fight a bit harder. Did she expect me to soften up?' After he waited for minutes, Augustus contemplated the risks of throwing his blade, 'Not possible.'
He turned to the sides, then he decided to be patient. The owls gathered, then they all swooped in at once to attack him, forcing him to lash out with his blade, cutting the flock.
Feathers danced to the ground, and blood rained. The next few waves were met with a fiercer assault, forcing Delusion to retreat far into the skies, giving Augustus some space.
"Esmeralda said that the princes were gathering for another war, building influences. Guess what they need now more than anything?" Delusion shifted back to normal, "Yes!"
Augustus, who'd barely thought of anything, felt his eyes twitch hearing her scream yes. He pinched the bridge of his nose, "They need more land? Oh wow, what a surprise."
"You're wrong!" Delusion shouted, laughing out maniacally as Augustus gave her an annoyed glare. She opened her mouth to speak, then her eyes widened, and time slowed.
There was an explosion of sound, and in a blinding ray of light, Delusion was struck down from the skies, leaving a trail of feathers. Her eyes widened, and lip corners bled.
She landed on the ground with a loud thud, causing dust to rise in the air. Sighting that spear at the last moment, she tried to revert back to owl form, but it was too late.
"Indeed. They are targeting the lords themselves." Augustus stepped towards a cold eyed Delusion, crouching before her with a calm gaze, "Have you asked yourself how?"
Augustus stood to his feet, turning his back to Delusion, "They plant seeds in their ranks and watch the lords reap fruits they never sowed. It eats itself up from inside."
Delusion staggered to her feet, rushing Augustus's wide open back. She she thrust a shifting arm at his chest, he turned to stare out of the corner of his eyes, smiling softly.
"When attacking someone from behind, look out for your own back first." Augustus advised as Delusion staggered forward, vomiting blood from her mouth then collapsing.