Tale of Eldramir

It had been several hours since Ezekiel had been taken captive by the Red Stone Guild member. After being knocked unconscious, he had slept relatively peacefully; dead to the world as he recovered from nearly twenty-four hours of non-stop travel. The efforts to avoid and fight off the handful of bandit groups had taken a toll on Ezekiel.

At this point, he was just glad that the Red Stone wasn’t so corrupt as to have just killed him on sight. Or worse, been infiltrated and turned to the side of the Cult of Light. However, since that wasn’t the case, he found himself waking up in a relatively dingy cell. It had a single horizontal slit window with bars across it near the ceiling, and reinforced barred doors with runic script running up and down them.

Besides that, there was a bench lining one of the walls, and a drain and bucket in one of the corners. It seemed like the Red Stone guild also kept their cells relatively clean. Whether that was out of respect for prisoners, or as a punishment for recruits and Apprentices, Ezekiel wasn’t certain. But he was thankful for it either way.

Ezekiel was surprised at just how comfortable he was as he sat within his cell within the Guild District. The Red Stone Guild apparently had their own holding cells within their Guild’s property. He’d only been within the confines of the cell for a few hours, but other than the boredom, he wasn’t actually that bothered by the situation.

He could tell from the lack of any other inmates that this was either something new, something rare, or something that had changed and become an unexpected development. Although, according to his own knowledge, while Guilds were permitted to make arrests, though not required to, they were required to report such arrests to the city government.

This was done for the purpose of ensuring that the Guild’s did not impose their own personal sense of order onto the inhabitants of a city. The balance between Guild, Church, and Government, was a strict one. Mostly upheld for the sole purpose of ensuring that humanity didn’t turn on itself for personal gain against the Cruor. Though the recent years of relative peace have made it difficult to maintain.

“Oy! Will I be able to speak to any sort of official at all? Believe it or not, I do know my rights in regard to how I am to be treated as a foreign Mage!” Ezekiel called out to the sole Tier two guard who was dozing off at a desk near the entrance. “The fact that you’re breaking the law like this isn’t something that’ll look good for you in front of the Church.”

The guard slowly woke up, took a moment to register Ezekiel’s words, and then laughed at him. Walking towards Ezekiel’s cell, the guard stood at the door with his hands on his hips. His Spirit, a brown fox, sat next to him on the ground.

“You think a criminal like you has any right to talk about laws?” The Hunter asked. “The fact that one of our captains caught you red handed with those bandits is more than enough proof to lock you up forever.”

“I wasn’t with those bandits. If you would just let me have my Void Pouch, I can show you my Archipelago citizenship documents. All stamped and signed by the Grand Scholars of the Sanafalls Cathedral.” Ezekiel’s words brought a worried look to the guards’ face. But he quickly regained his confidence.

“If that were true, then our captains would’ve come down here already and let you out.” The guard said. “The fact that they haven’t means that you’re lying.”

“The fact that they haven’t means that they’re too incompetent to get past my security enchantments. Which, by the way, will cause an explosion to occur if they are broken.” Ezekiel stated. “You might want to let your captains know this, so they don’t accidentally blow up one of your guild buildings.”

The worried look came back. The guard was starting to fidget now. Seeing Ezekiel’s uncaring attitude and generally relaxed posture. Even laying down, the guard realized that Ezekiel didn’t look worried in the slightest. As if he had everything under control.

“You’re bluffing. There’s no way that’s true.” The guard said.

Ezekiel just held his hands up. The manacles were still glowing. This indicated that they were working, and that he shouldn’t have any access to mana, at all.

Ezekiel pulled his hands apart, shattering the manacles in front of the Apprentice level guard. As the pieces of metal clattered to the ground, the guard stumbled back a few steps. As far as he was aware, only Adept Hunters, with the help of their Spirits, could break through mana suppressing manacles. That meant that, as far as he knew, the prisoner in front of him was a whole Tier stronger than him; at the least.

The possibility that Ezekiel was a Void Mage, and therefore unaffected by the manacles, didn’t even cross his mind as a possibility.

“You sure you don’t want to go get your captain at this point?” Ezekiel asked.

The guard didn’t bother sticking around to answer. He just ran away as fast as he could. Screaming for help as he exited the prison. His fox Spirit chased after him, yipping and calling out alongside their partner.

“That was a little bit mean, don’t you think?” Shine’s voice flowed through Ezekiel’s mind. It sounded far away but was still clear enough to be heard. For Ezekiel, this meant that they couldn’t be more than a hundred meters apart. Any further and Shine’s voice would barely be a whisper.

“Perhaps, but it does mean that we’ll get to speak with someone with a bit of authority. Hopefully sooner, rather than later.” Ezekiel said. “Though I am starting to feel a little bit concerned for my safety. How’s your mana? We might have to Jump sooner than expected.”

“I’m good to go whenever. Are you sure we can’t just jump now and sneak our way to the Cathedral? They haven’t managed to get past the protective enchantments just yet, but that doesn’t mean I like these strangers just picking me up and passing me around.” Shine complained. “It does look like they might be triggering the explosive beads on your Void Pouch. Are you sure the pouch will survive?”

“I tested it with a stronger explosion than what those beads will make. So, yes, I’m certain the pouch will survive. You will as well, as we both know.” Ezekiel said.

“Well-” Shine’s voice suddenly cut off from within Ezekiel’s mind.

Shine remained silent for a few seconds. Ezekiel wasn’t sure what happened, but didn’t allow himself to worry, as he could feel amusement coming from Shine’s side of their bond.

“Sorry, an apprentice just barged in and stopped one of the Adepts from setting off the explosive. It looks like you’ll have company soon. They just rushed out of the room.” Shine said in an amused tone.

“Thank you for the heads up. Get ready, just in case.” Ezekiel said. Shine silently gave a feeling of confirmation.

Hearing the stomping of boots, Ezekiel readies himself as several Hunters charge into the prison. As a handful of Adepts line up in front of his cell, Ezekiel opens his mouth to speak. But before he can get a word out, two of the Hunters yells something that makes his blood run cold.

“ANATHEMA!!!”

Ezekiel barely registers Shine’s shocked exclamation in the back of his mind as he channels his mana. Within the blink of an eye, he Jumps out of there as his cell is lit up in flames and lasers.

Outside the building that was previously holding Ezekiel, a large explosion occurred. Blasting a hole in the wall leading to the courtyard of the Red Stone Guild’s property. Shouts of shock and concern filled the Guild as several more Adepts and Apprentices flooded the area. But the target of the attack was nowhere to be seen.

“Move! We need to find him! We need to kill him! Now!” The Flame Hunter that had attacked Ezekiel in his cell screamed as she took to the sky on her Avian Spirit.

The Radiant Adept didn’t follow, his Spirit not being suitable for flying. But he did weave past several other Guild members as he moved to leave the Guild, whispering to them as he passed by. Similar looks of hatred and fear crossed their faces as they followed the Radiant and Flame Hunters in hunting down Ezekiel.

“What is going on here!?” A loud holler rumbled through the Guild district. Suddenly, the pressure of a Legendary Hunter filled the area, but the members of the Cult of Light had already left.

A heavy weight prevented the remaining Guild members from leaving the courtyard. Striding into the area, the ground quaking beneath his boots, was a powerfully built, but fairly stout, man. He was wearing a stereotypical mining outfit but had greaves and gauntlets that were obviously enchanted.

His head was utterly bald, from what little could be seen of it from beneath the hooded cloak he wore over his clothing. But he had a large mustache and beard that were both immaculately groomed. He was also smoking a large cigar. Something of a rarity in the desert.

Beside him was a group of Adept Scholars that were carrying paperwork and other supplies. As well as a few Relics and Artifacts that were recording what was happening for future reference.

“You!” He called out, pointing at one of the Adepts that were climbing through the hole in the prison building. “What the hell happened here?”

“Guild Leader Alphonse!” The Adept stood up straight and addressed his superior. “The prisoner from this morning broke out of his manacles! When the Apprentice on guard reported it, along with the likelihood of the prisoner’s belongings being booby trapped, I and several other Adepts went to secure the prisoner more tightly. But when we got there, two of our number screamed, ‘Anathema’ and released lethal wide area attacks into the prisoner’s cell.”

“What the hell? What prisoner?” Alphonse called out. “There weren’t any arrests reported to me, or the city guard.”

“Phil made the arrest. Apparently, the prisoner was found outside the city fighting off several bandits. He was brought in for fraternizing with enemy forces.” The Adept continued.

“That stupid-” Alphonse felt like tearing his hair out. He was already in trouble because of his Guild member’s bad behavior.

The fact some of them, including Phil, had already accosted several Hunters that had arrived the previous night had brought the Church’s Scholars down on him hard. However, before he could start barking orders to his Hunters, the Scholars behind him spoke up.

“Excuse me! But did you say that the two called out ‘Anathema’?” The Scholar asked.

The Adept looked confused but answered with a confirmation.

“Guild Leader Alphonse, it seems you have a much bigger problem than you thought.” The Scholar said. “However, if you take some steps to help us out, we might be able to forgive some of yesterday’s issues. This, Phil, character will need to be given to us for questioning, but I think we might be able to look over some things.”

Alphonse looked both hopeful and apprehensive. While the Church of Ten was never an organization that approved of the darker dealings that happened in the desert, that didn’t mean that they wouldn’t wring you dry if given the chance.

“What do you need me to do?” Alphonse asked.

“Those two Adepts, the Flame one, and the Radiant one, will need to be captured, and restrained. As well as any of your other Guild Members that chased after them.” The Scholar explained. “I am officially declaring them as being under investigation of the Church, and the city of Dross itself, for the crime of treason.”

The courtyard fell silent at the Scholar’s declaration. Such a thing was only barely within the boundaries of a Scholar’s authority. Even then, it had to be a senior Scholar that had made significant contributions to their city and Church. Usually, only a handful of Scholars could do this. Not including the Grand Scholars.

“... May I ask why?” Alphonse asked. He was well aware that this had become much more serious than expected. But even so, he needed to know just what his Guild members had done to warrant such a declaration.

“The word, ‘Anathema’, was coined by the Cult of Light, and is used solely when referring to one person, in the entire world.” The Scholar explained, much to the shock of the surrounding Guild members. “One, Ezekiel Luminance, who you might know as the creator of the Com-Slates. A device that has become incredibly useful in expeditions over the last few years. He also created the framework for the various Void Meditation Techniques we’ve been developing. Needless to say, we would also like it if you could assist him, this prisoner of yours, in avoiding the Cult as best you can.”

Alphonse looked like he was going to explode. His face had turned red, and the veins on his neck and forehead were bulging as his anger peaked. Behind the lead Scholar, the others were all sending messages via their Com-Slates. Alerting the Cathedral of what was going on.

“You’re certain?” He asked. His voice sounded like the grinding of gravel beneath a boot.

“As much as I can be. I don’t think you’d even heard that word spoken before now. Only the Cult has ever used it as a title for someone.” The Scholar said. “I’m, honestly, willing to stake my badge on this.”

Those words, even without an oath, spoken in front of several dozen witnesses, were enough for Alphonse.

“WELL, WHAT ARE YOU ALL WAITING FOR?! GO! CATCH OR KILL THOSE CULTIST BASTARDS!” Alphonse’s voice shook the walls of his Guild’s buildings. “SAVE THE VOID MAGE WHILE YOU’RE AT IT!”

The assembled Hunters didn’t say anything as they immediately dashed to do as they were ordered. None of them wanted their Guild Leader’s anger brought down on them. Some of them were still apprehensive about arresting, and possibly killing, their comrades. But given the situation happening in Tarquessa right now, they knew they couldn’t afford to show mercy against potential Cultists.

The hunt was on. Now, it was only a matter of time before someone got caught.

Ezekiel was currently hiding beneath a pile of scraps and trash in a back alley as he avoided the Hunters that were tracking him. He was fully Shrouded and would be able to keep it up for several hours, so long as he didn’t expend any mana for anything else.

“Tempest! Seven o'clock.” Shine called out.

Ezekiel immediately Jumped several dozen meters away. Trying to run from a Tempest Mage would be difficult, as they could sense the air pressure within a certain radius. He realized that it was better for him to simply not be there, rather than pass through space where they could sense him.

The two of them had been doing this for a while now, and Ezekiel was starting to run low on mana. He had hoped that, since they were in a city, the Red Stone Guild members would be forced to hold back their efforts. Clearly the rules were less strict when it came to what Hunters could and couldn’t do. Ezekiel figured it was either that, or the Cult didn’t care about the law anymore.

“Up there!” A voice called out from street level.

Ezekiel knew he was still Shrouded, so there shouldn't be anything giving him away in such an obvious manner. Looking in the direction of the yell, Ezekiel was surprised to see members of the Red Stone Guild taking down the Tempest Hunter that had been tracking him.

“You bastards! Don’t get in my way!” The Tempest Hunter exclaimed.

He avoided the attacks of the Mages that were after him. It was obvious that the Hunters on the ground weren’t trying to kill the Tempest Mage, nor his Spirit, but it was too difficult for them to capture him otherwise.

“Look, just turn yourself in! The Church will ask you a few questions, and then the Guild Leader will let you off! That’s how it works.” One of the Hunters on the ground called up. “So long as you’re not a part of that damned Cult, things will work out fine!”

The Tempest Mage was silent for a moment before he replied. The area was still and silent as everyone waited for the Tempest Mage’s reply. The declaration by the Mages on the ground had shaken all those who were witnessing what was happening.

“Get out of my way.” The Tempest Mage ordered. It was clear that he had no intention of coming peacefully. Something the other Red Stone Guild members realized.

“Take him down!”

At that order, the Red Stone Guild members started attacking. It was a difficult fight, as it was clear that the Cult member had no intention of worrying about civilian casualties. While the Red Stone Guild had to at least appear as if they were being careful.

Seeing that the fight wasn’t going to be settled anytime soon, Ezekiel and Shine made their way out of the area. Luckily, the chaos was causing everyone in the nearby area to run away as fast as they could. So, it wasn’t likely that he would be caught as he invisibly blended into the crowds.

As they passed by a cross street, Ezekiel saw something in the distance that brought him a sense of relief. An incredibly large building that stood above the rest. One he couldn’t see due to the alleys and other buildings being too close and blocking off his view.

It was the Dross Cathedral. A place that would hopefully grant him some safety from the Cult. So long as things weren’t as horrible as expected by Riker and his other friends.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Shine asked. “I thought we were taking steps to not be put into debt with the Church.”

“Like I said before, we need to adapt the plan. Besides, we don’t necessarily need to join up with them. Just get close enough that the Cult wouldn’t dare to strike at us.” Ezekiel replied. “Besides, we’re the ones that brought the Cult out of hiding. I can’t imagine that the Church would’ve let them stick around like this, so technically, we helped them out.”

With those words, Ezekiel made a mad dash towards the Cathedral. While his Shroud was up, he could make his way through the city with little issues. But as he traversed the street, he saw the reason as to why the Cult wasn’t catching up to him.

All around the Guild district, and in some areas outside it, battles were taking place as the loyal Red Stone Guild members fought with the suspected Cultists. Ezekiel could roughly assume the numbers of both sides as he traveled. The Cultists made up barely half the number of loyalists. He figured that the battle would be over soon.

However, just as he reached the halfway point between his previous position and the Cathedral, a large hand made of stone reached out of the ground and wrapped around him. He tried to Jump out of its grasp, but it quickly slammed him into the ground before he could. His Shroud immediately broke.

Dazed and confused, Ezekiel could barely stop the world from spinning, let alone stand or Jump.

Footsteps echoed through the street as the ground seemed to crack beneath the man that was walking towards him. Ezekiel hadn’t seen the stout Legendary Guild Leader of the Red Stone Guild before, but he could easily tell that the man was dangerous, and extremely pissed off.

“That’s him! Thats-”

Ezekiel didn’t listen to what the Adept that had accompanied the Legendary Hunter was saying. While he was certainly unable to Jump, given the state of his mind right now, that didn’t mean that Shine couldn’t. So, they did.

Only to find themselves wrapped up in another stone hand as they set foot on the ground. Ezekiel found himself slammed into the ground once again. This time, he and Shine stayed still. Neither of them wanted Ezekiel to be slammed into the ground again.

This time, however, it wasn’t a stout and burly Hunter that approached them. Instead, the ground opened up, and a small brown mouse that looked like it was made of cobblestone climbed out of the ground. Moving towards Ezekiel, it climbed up and sat on his back, pressing down on his entire body with more weight than such a little Spirit should’ve had.

Beaten, bruised, and utterly defeated, Ezekiel let his head fall to the ground. He accepted that he wasn’t going anywhere.

Meanwhile, back with Alphonse and his still loyal Guild members, the Legendary Guild Leader couldn’t help but feel somewhat impressed. Even as he felt a rage boiling inside him at the thought of Cultists being a part of his Guild.

“That brat’s got guts.” He muttered with a deep and heavy rumble. “I’ll have to see what I can get out of him when this is all over.”

“Sir! It seems like most of the fighting has finished. Is there anything we should do at this moment?” One of the Adepts asked as they approached.

“You mean they’re not all dead?” Alphonse asked. There was a hint of disappointment mixed in with his rage.

“No, sir. A few of our groups managed to knock them out. Otherwise, it seemed like they really were Cultists.” The Adept said in a pained voice. “They refused to surrender, fighting even harder when we told them the Church would be checking their loyalties, and we had little choice but to kill some of them. None have managed to flee, however, so there is that.”

Given the situation, their defiance in the face of a Church inspection basically cemented their guild in the eyes of Alphonse, and the Scholars. Alphonse couldn’t help but give a sigh after he took a long drag from his cigar. Tossing away the butt of it when it was finished.

“How many fights are still ongoing?” Alphonse asked.

“Half a dozen or so.” The Adept replied.

Alphonse raised a leg into the air. Stomping on the ground, he immediately became aware of all the battles currently taking place. While he couldn’t see the fighters with his cavern sensing, he could tell where all the fighters, at least the ones on the ground, were fighting.

Raising his other leg, he slammed it down into the ground even harder than the first, and the Mages and Spirits on the ground all found themselves immediately bound in stone hands. The Guild members, knowing what this was, calmed down and stopped moving. But the Cultists, also knowing what this was, continued struggling, ever more frantically.

One of the Cultists actually managed to crack the hand that was holding him and his Spirit. They died a second later as the hands crushed them without a second thought.

Looking into the air, Alphonse took stock of the situation happening with the fliers. Seeing two flying Spirits carrying their Mages on their backs as they faced off against a lone Tempest Hunter, Alphonse confirmed that it was the Tempest Hunter that was the problem.

A stone spear formed from the ground, detaching as Alphonse grabbed the compressed rock weapon. Pulling his arm back, his entire body glowed with mana as he tensed his entire body. Letting out a powerful yell, he launched the spear forward, the air cracking as it broke the sound barrier.

The Tempest Mage and his Spirit didn’t simply fall to the ground as the spear passed through the both of them. They splattered into bloody red chunks as the force of the impact spread through them.

The remaining flying Hunters looked at their Guild Leader. Both swallowed nervously as he waved them down. With their heads hanging low, they glided down, ready to be berated.

Alphonse said nothing, however, as he was simply doing this to confirm that the two were both loyal to him. As well as to confirm that they weren’t going to run away at the first chance they got.

“The rest of the Cultists have been captured. Go deal with them. I need to make sure that that brat is still alive.” Alphonse ordered. The Adepts all gave their affirmation before dashing off to do as they were told.

For Alphonse, he calmly strode the several blocks between himself and Ezekiel. Turning into the alley that the Void Mage was being held in. Looking at the somewhat comical scene of a nearly grown man being sat on by a stone mouse, Alphonse couldn’t help but chuckle as he pulled out a fresh cigar.

As Ezekiel looked up at him, Alphonse realized that he didn’t have his matches on him. So, he was stuck looking at his cigar in disappointment.

Suddenly, a rustling sound brought his attention back to Ezekiel. He had reached into his Void Pouch and was pulling something out. The Spirit and Alphonse both tensed up, readying themselves for an attack. But Ezekiel just pulled out a small device that looked similar to a flint lighter.

“Need a light?” Ezekiel said in the most deadpan voice he could manage. Squeezing the device and creating a small flame that floated above the glowing enchanted scripts.

Looking at Ezekiel in bemusement, Alphonse leaned down to stick his cigar into the flame. Standing back up, he took a long drag before letting out a sigh. Glaring at Ezekiel out of the corner of his eyes, he grunted in thanks.

“You’re still in trouble, you brat.” Alphonse growled out.

Ezekiel just let his head drop to the ground as more Guild members approached their position. He was finally starting to think that this might have been a bad idea.