Tale of Eldramir

Ezekiel sat in the corner of the room. He simply watched over the man who had helped him so much over the past decade. The man who had welcomed him into his Guild and had contributed the most to his eventual breakthrough to Tier five.

It had been two days since he’d arrived in the city. After finding out what had happened, he had nearly rushed off to check up on Wolken’s condition. Headren had intervened, and Ezekiel instead went to get a rundown of the current forces stationed at the border.

Now, on the day of his departure, he had finally gotten the chance to look over a man who had been a mentor and Guild Leader to him for several years. Only to discover that there was nothing he could do.

“I don’t think that he’d want you to stay here, wasting away when there’s still work to be done,” Shine spoke softly, but Ezekiel could hear the apprehension and frustration in their voice.

While it was to a lesser extent, Wolken had helped Shine make progress as well.

“You’re right... I’m just sick of this shit happening. I know that we can’t stop the world from moving forward, but you’d think that, as the most powerful person in the world, I’d be able to help more than I already am.” Ezekiel rose from his seat. Wolken remained in his bed, his Spirit coiled around him. Both were unresponsive to everything in the room. “Goodbye, Guild Leader. I’ll make sure to stop by with Riley when this is all over.”

The two Void users were silent when they left. Rows of Hunters lined the walls, all were guards meant to provide protection, and aid should it be needed.

“No response. There’s just... too much missing for me to repair. It’s just like Headren said. Wolken’s soul is like a soap bubble. The slightest touch would see it collapse.” He addressed the elderly Tempest Mage who stood nearby.

Wilma, Wolken’s sister, and the ex-voice of the Void Remnant, had circles under her eyes. Among the Legends that had been on guard, she had been the most vigilant.

“Thank you, for trying, at least,” she spoke in a soft whisper that felt like a flutter in the breeze rather than the sound of someone speaking. “We will continue to watch over him. Even if further progress is lost to him, if things go well for you, he will hopefully wake up to see a world that is free from the corruption of the Broods.”

Ezekiel nodded, “Given how I owe him more than my life at this point, bringing about such a world is the least I could do.”

Turning back, Ezekiel bowed to the door to Wolken’s room. He heard shuffling, and when he stood up, he saw that the other Hunters, all Prime Guild members, had also bowed to their Guild Leader.

“I’ll be off. I have a border to clear, and then a few more things to do. I promise you all, before the year is up, this war will be over. One way, or another.” Walking past the rows of Hunters, Ezekiel witnessed their expressions twist into angry snarls, their hatred for the Cruor and their Broodmasters brought forth at just the mention of the war.

Yet none of them stepped forward. Ezekiel could see it in the way they trembled, however, and knew that they all wanted to fight. Each one was holding themself back.

He just nodded in approval. If they had tried to step forward, or demanded that they get to join him, he would’ve knocked them out and left before they could recover.

At this point, only Mythical beings could risk going to the places that they intended to visit.

Anyone of a weaker level would just be cattle for the slaughter. He didn’t need that on his conscience right now.

Upon leaving the specially constructed medical center, Ezekiel expanded his senses, looking for a semi-familiar signature. One that belonged to his most recent ally.

Finding the aura of Death just outside the city walls, he flexed his mana and [Jumped] to his destination. Headren sat on a rock, dead grass and flowers surrounded him. A perfect circle, three meters in radius, wrapped around his position.

“So... I think we need to talk.” Ezekiel glared at the man in front of him.

For his part, Headren didn’t even flinch at the growl in Ezekiel’s voice. Instead, he merely rose from his seat on the large stone before turning and walking away.

“Indeed, we do. Now, come along. We can talk as we fly toward your first destination. I’m unneeded here and have recovered enough that rejoining the frontlines will be good for everybody.”

Ezekiel said nothing as they both rose into the air. A sphere surrounded them that isolated them from external forces, and Headren just looked at him, his features hidden by the cloak he was wearing.

With a sigh, Headren began telling his tale, and at his request, told Ezekiel of how his father was doing in the quest to hunt down the nests and other forces eating Eldramir from the inside out.

----------

It was several hours later that found Ezekiel on his own. The talk with Headren had been fairly long, but not enough for him to have reached his destination before they finished.

The Death Hunter had departed at a different area. One that would let him meet up with the forces that would see the most gains from his presence.

“Are you okay?” Shine asked after some time had passed. “You got what you wanted, right? You know that your dad’s okay, and you know how Headren can still see through the eyes of his Remnant but can’t otherwise communicate with it.”

“Yeah... I guess I just wish that I could send a message back, and let my dad know that I’m okay.” That had been the most frustrating part of the conversation. To know that he could get updates regarding his father’s situation but could do nothing to help with his mission was something he hated.

“For now, let’s focus on what we’re doing right now. The border is right there, and we’ll want to clear out the nests and other gathering points as soon as possible.” Shine directed Ezekiel’s attention to the large gathering of Cruor and Umbral Beasts that were gathered around the very edge of the border of the Desolate Lands. “I figure that, since there’s no civilizations that we need to worry about, we can just bomb them en masse. The defensive fortifications at the edge should be strong enough that the Hunters and Mages that are fighting here won’t be harmed, so long as we keep our efforts to the Desolate side of the border.”

Ezekiel’s gaze went back and forth over the rapidly approaching enemy forces. Shine’s plan was simple, but it would be quick and effective as well. So, he started charging his mana up for their run.

“Your plan is as good as any other at this point. But keep an eye out for any possible approach from the Broodmasters. I doubt that they’ll leave whatever preparations they’re making unprotected, but you never know at this point.” He felt the shift in Shine’s focus.

A part of him became dedicated to paying attention to his [Danger Sense] and other predictions. At the same time, while Shine was helping with those, he also formed several dozen spheres of mana around him. All contained and controlled by his [Will].

From his Void Pouch, he pulled out several mana crystals, each one was filled with different elements. He tossed them into the mana spheres he had created, and they changed color.

His [Danger Sense] flashed a warning, but nothing happened just yet.

“That seems like overkill, wouldn’t you say?” Shine sounded surprised, but Ezekiel shook his head.

“We want this done as soon as possible. Let’s wrap this up in a few minutes.” His mana flashed, and his figure disappeared. Instead, a streak of light strafed the small army of Cruor and Umbral Beasts that were moving into Quintessa’s territory.

They were mostly composed of Rot Cruor, with several hybrids making up the largest beings in the army. Yet none of them were capable of defending against what was about to happen.

Falling like meteors, the spheres that Ezekiel had formed flew down from the sky. They made contact with the earth, or with larger beasts that couldn’t avoid the attack.

In an instant, countless explosions filled the world with noise and light. Flames, the element most dominant in the spell that he had cast, spread outward, changing color as the effects of his [Will] tempered them in such a way that they were forced to spread faster than what was natural.

“This area won’t be inhabitable for decades, if not centuries, after what we just did.”

Ezekiel just nodded along with Shine’s statement. It was true.

The entire region had basically been turned into glass. The small forest of fungal growths and spores was eradicated, and the earth and rocks beneath it had been melted from the heat.

At the same time, the fire from his spell was still spreading. It would likely burn for several days but would hopefully not go too far into Quintessa. It had been made to burn the Rot, after all.

Pausing for just a moment, Ezekiel checked on both his mana, and the supplies that he had gotten from the city. He still had a surplus of both.

“Let’s do a few more runs, then we’ll head north a bit, clear out the bases that we can’t just bomb, and then loop around the tundra before making a run through the Empire and heading to the desert?” Ezekiel prepared several more spell spheres while he spoke.

“Sounds like a plan to me. Let’s get rid of as many of these bastards as we can!”

With that declaration from Shine, Ezekiel turned into a streak of light once more.

Like an angry god looking down on the world, Ezekiel covered the ground with blinding light, while fire consumed this small portion of the world.

In truth, these additional runs weren’t needed, but by the time he was finished, Ezekiel certainly felt better than he had when he had set out this morning.

----------

On the other side of the world, Ezekiel’s actions hadn’t been missed. While their communications were not as capable as the Com-Slates created by the Church and other, now freelance, artificers, Radiant Chaos was still capable of his own unique communications system.

Specifically, he was still connected to the pieces of himself that he had directly infused into the bodies of numerous Cruor. Originating from each of the different Broods, he was capable of gaining information from them at the cost of them giving up their lives.

The passing of the host body’s soul when they died acted like a signal that released the information that was stored inside the host.

This method was useful in gathering information but could not be used to transmit orders or messages, since Radiant Chaos couldn’t convey anything to them after the corruption had been spread.

Thus, while he was in the middle of harvesting one of the smaller human towns in the northern regions of the Empire, he paused to look to the east.

“Radiant Chaos, what is going on?” the Rot asked once she had finally noticed her brethren’s distraction. “Did you get a message from one of the puppets you spoke of?”

Radiant Chaos shook his head. While not entirely necessary, he had still told his fellow Broodmasters of his corrupted puppets, and how they could convey information to him when they died.

“Not a message that was intended to be sent, unfortunately,” he rose into the air, speaking more loudly, and causing the earth to rumble. “We need to finish up here as soon as possible. Then, once we return to the Fang seal, we will need to decide who goes to the eastern border to fight the Herald.”

Both Rot and Blood paused in their actions. A few humans tried to take this chance to flee, since they weren’t simply being killed off, because their mana was needed to feed the other Broodmaster’s bodies. However, they were utterly unable to match the senses and reactions of the Broodmasters in question, so they were swiftly captured once again.

“Would the Herald even be willing to fight us? Isn’t he best at running away, rather than going into a no-win situation?” The Blood Broodmaster asked. “Without any bait, why would he bother sticking around?”

“I shall handle that. In all honesty, any fight between us would purely be for the sake of damaging the human forces or keeping the Herald busy so that he can’t find a way to break through. Keeping that from happening is our primary objective, after breaking the seals, of course.”

Radiant Chaos’ form shifted when he spoke. The golden oil that made up his body turned into countless strands that reached out to all the humans and Spirits that hadn’t yet been captured.

“I will take this moment to finish this faster than intended. It is draining, but I will be able to feast when we return. Some of my puppets will also come to us soon. The power of a few Legendaries will be enough to regain my peak power in an appropriate time frame.”

Within minutes, the originally slow and cautions harvest was finished, and the Broodmasters turned, their enslaved Cruor and Umbral Beast followers moved to take on the burden of transporting the majority of the captives.

It wasn’t long after, lost in thought while they traveled, that Radiant Chaos reformed his humanoid body. A wide smile suddenly crossed his face.

“Did you think of something to keep the Herald in the fight?” the Blood Broodmaster spoke once more. “I believe that that is an expression of glee on your face, is it not?”

The golden figure said nothing for a moment, he just rubbed his chin in thought.

“Let’s pick up the pace. I have an annoying violet pigeon I need to capture if we want to keep the Herald in our sights. Though, I suppose we won’t all be able to go and fight him... We’ll need to leave an ambush, if possible.” His muttering grew quiet as he pondered more and more possibilities.

A plan had begun to form. One that Radiant Chaos knew would hinder Ezekiel’s progress, if not outright kill him, if they were lucky.

No... I can’t kill him just yet. He’s the whole reason I was able to convince my brethren that we needed to focus on breaking the seals as soon as possible. If the Herald dies, they might change their minds, and choose to take the slow and steady route, once they know that the biggest threat is no longer handing over their heads.

While he wanted Ezekiel dead more than almost anything else, he was well aware that his ultimate plan required the Herald of the Void to remain alive for a few more months. Only after he was fully released from his seal could the Herald die without hindering his plans.

For now, he would have to arrange a battle between the Herald and whichever siblings he had that could make it seem like a close battle, but also utterly lose.

The thought made his let out a rumbling growl. All this planning was getting annoying, and the laughter in the back of his head wasn’t helping.

There was nothing he could do to ease it, however, so he simply plotted, and prepared for when he would finally be released to spread his corruption freely once more.

----------

The journey between his first stop and the more southern areas, where the Hunters had more closely gathered to defend the line, wasn’t short. It’s just that there were more than a few instances where he needed to take the time to clear out an area of Cruor and Umbral Beasts that were moving in from the more northern borders.

It wasn’t enough to stop the Cruor’s advance entirely, especially when the Broodmasters were doing something to more actively spread their influence, but it would slow things down to the point where the human and Spirit forces would be able to regroup and more efficiently organize their forces.

“It looks like we’re coming up on the first base with actual Mythical Hunters and Spirits stationed. Do you think Invera will be at this one, or one of the more southern ones?” Shine’s question brought Ezekiel out of his semi-meditative state. “It would be nice to see the old bird again. We missed her when we cleared out that first fungal forest, didn’t we?”

Ezekiel nodded, a slight frown forming on his face while they approached.

“I did sense a powerful Lightning signature when we departed that first forest. I hadn’t thought much of it, since we weren’t staying for long, but it was likely her.” A wave of worry passed through him. The fact that things had gotten so bad was known to him, Roc’s presence had made sure of that, but to know that all the Mythical Wild Spirits were gathered, or all the ones he knew of at least, was still unsettling. “I do not believe that she is present here, however, or else we’d see more lightning flying about, rather than the relatively weak magic that’s being thrown about right now.”

Small flashes of elemental light filled his vision. Indicators of the different mana types being thrown about. None of them were powerful enough to cause any serious harm, had he been the target of these attacks, but there was an undercurrent of desperation with each flare of power.

“That doesn’t feel so good. We should hurry up. We have the mana to handle this. For the most part.” Shine sounded grim, their voice quiet, yet firm, and the mana flowing through Ezekiel increased, indicating the Spirit’s intentions. “We’ll have to delay the rest of our journey until tomorrow.”

Ezekiel nodded. “That should be fine. We had intended on pushing into the Desolate Lands after relieving pressure on the different border camps anyway. It’ll be at least a few more days before we can truly head to the desert.”

He turned to the Desolate Lands on his right. The broad and seemingly endless expanse of miasma lingering in the air was oppressing, even for him, the strongest human in the world.

Even now, it would take hours for him to cross it on his own, at his top speed, and at the expense of his mana draining at a rate that he couldn’t accept. It would still be the fastest route, but one that he hoped to only take after his problems in Quintessa had been dealt with.

He had promised his help, after all.

“Let’s clear up this area, check in with whoever is in charge here, and then we’ll rest for a night. It’s getting late anyway, and a decrease in the Rot would certainly be welcome here.” Ezekiel’s form lit up in flickering opalescent light. Both of his and formed shimmering blades of mana and a set of wings that looked like shattered glass spread from his back.

“That’s new,” Shine muttered with a sense of awe that filled Ezekiel’s chest. “It seems like you’ve found another way of channeling magic without increasing costs... It seems like this spell warps space around us... A speed increase?”

Ezekiel smirked. “That’s correct. It has to do with my [Logic] and [Rules] with the idea that [Wings are for Flying].”

The imposed rule that Ezekiel had used on this spell made his voice warble as the world accepted his declaration. The formation of these strange wings immediately lifted some of the burden on his mana usage. It was a minor decrease, but the increase in flying speed was significant, though the focus and [Willpower] that he was using meant that it wasn’t something he could maintain for long periods of time.

“Let’s wrap this up quickly.” Turning into a flash of light, multiple sonic booms echoed as the air failed to get out of his way fast enough, even with his [Spatial Warping].

In the back of his mind, he lamented the lack of bombs he now suffered from. But given the base they were now supporting was an actual city, it was likely that they would be able to restock their arsenal before moving on in the morning.

For now, they would both content themselves with the deadly dance of mana and Ichor as they flew through the battlefield.

It was only minutes later that they had finished clearing the immediate area, and an hour later that the fires he had helped spread finally fizzled out. The Rot had been cleansed, and now it was time to rest.

Hopefully, after reaching their next destination, they would be able to see an old friend.

----------

Unfortunately, it was apparent that Ezekiel and Shine’s plan to set out first thing in the morning was not going to happen. Instead, they were woken up in the middle of the night and directed to the frontlines alongside the Mythic Hunter that was holding the line.

“I’m sorry to have woken you up when you were meant to be resting,” Strom, surrounded by several floating boulders, spoke up when Ezekiel returned from wiping out another area filled with Cruor.

There was a downturned expression in his eyes. Ezekiel could sense a certain amount of fear in Strom's voice. He figured that it was a lingering sense brought about by the difference in power, and the fact that the Cavern Hunter had acted against him not too long ago.

“It’s fine. I highly doubt that you had anything to do with the command and direction of the enemies currently charging at us.” For the most part, Ezekiel knew that there had to be something more to this attack than what he could see right now.

The Broodmasters had been careful in how they utilized their armies up until now. However, this was basically an open charge against multiple Mythical Hunters that could wipe them out.

By himself, Strom might not be able to take out the sheer numbers on his own, but the Cruor wouldn’t have been able to push much further without one of their masters leading the charge to clear the way. Something that couldn’t happen, since they needed to keep their own VIPs safe within the Desolate Lands.

“I am worried about why this is happening now, however... Even if I were to go all out, I would likely be drained, and my departure would be delayed. Simply from the sheer number of these bastards.”

Ezekiel grimaced when he saw that the hole he had made was filled up right away. Given how close they were to the populated area of Quintessa, taking a more destructive approach wasn’t possible right now. Instead, he had to be more precise, yet still swift enough to prevent them from being overrun.

All these factors, when added together, made him wary to commit much more than he already was. Along with the fact that his [Danger Sense] was giving out a passive thrum of warning. Not to himself, and not something immediate, or even present.

It was more of a bad feeling, telling him that something was wrong. Likely something that would hurt him in the future if it wasn’t dealt with now.

The same feeling had overcome him several times in the past. Usually just before tragedy struck one of the people he cared about. At least in situations where he could, for better or worse, interfere with whatever was happening.

Situations like when he was in Eldramir’s Spirit Paths, and unable to sense Wolken’s situation, were the major exceptions to this kind of bad feeling.

“I feel like I can recognize that expression you’re making... You can sense that there is more to this battle than just a rush... Is it due to your presence, perhaps?”

There was no accusation in Strom’s voice, but the question itself made Ezekiel pause before answering. Was his presence the reason behind this increase in numbers attacking them?

I don’t think that’s quite right... I’m almost certain that, if that were the case there would be more to it than what is currently attacking. One of the Broodmasters would need to be here, at the least.

Ezekiel pondered over both Strom and Shine’s words. He couldn’t help but feel that both were right. However, there was something missing that could’ve cleared things up properly.

“... Whatever the reason for this bad feeling I have, there’s nothing stopping us from clearing out this batch of fodder before moving on. We’ll just have to move a bit faster than we had originally intended.” Ezekiel shifted the flow of his mana to enact his flight spell once more.

“... Thank you for the assistance.” The gratitude in Strom’s voice was clear so Ezekiel nodded at the man before they both took to the air.

Stars rained from the sky, while the earth was shattered and reformed. Utter destruction ran rampant through the largest and most congested sections of the Cruor’s army. Hybrid beasts wailed in pain before going silent once their lives were cut short, or they were crushed beneath the earth.

However, the Cruor and Beasts just kept coming, and it wasn’t until nearly an hour later, when even Ezekiel was panting from exertion, that the attack finally stopped.

Now, with over a third of his mana drained, Ezekiel had to decide if he was going to rest and recuperate, or if he was going to burn more mana to reach his intended destination.

Both choices made him feel like something would be lost, yet he knew that he needed to make a decision. Else he would lose even more in the process.

“... Let’s move out... I can’t help but feel like this is a trap, but one we need to spring, else someone else will be caught up in it instead.”

After making that declaration, Ezekiel gathered what supplies could be spared, while the rest of the Hunters and Spirits defending this area would bunker down and reinforce their defenses.

Hopefully it would be enough to hold their ground before even more forces moved in. He had gotten some reassurances that there was going to be a supply group that would be there to support them soon, so it wasn’t like he was leaving the defenders with nothing, but he still felt guilty when he left.

The sight of those that had been injured by the Cruor that had made it past himself and Strom was something he always hated seeing, but there was little he could do. The sheer number of enemies had been too much.

“What do you think we can expect when we get there?” Shine asked once they had taken off.

“... An opportunity to extend our time frame... One I’m almost certain that we’ll lose out on.” He hated how his voice wavered, the nervousness he thought that he had overcome had returned.

Given their short timeframe, he wasn’t willing to waste even a few seconds making predictions. Even then, with the distance between them and their destination, he wasn’t sure how accurate any predictions he made would be.

Instead, he had to trust his gut, which hadn’t steered him wrong so far.

But, just in case, there were steps he could take to tilt things in his favor.

“Help me prep some beacons. I want to be able to get out of there as soon as possible, if needed.” Left unsaid was the fact that he was nearly certain that they would be needed.

So, silently, Shine began helping him prep several beacons, all the while they flew on, the sun peeking up on the horizon.