Immovable Mage

– Era of the Wastes, Cycle 216, Season of the Setting Moon, Day 11 –

“Just die already!” Terry channeled mana into his mana sublimator and unleashed another blast of intense fire-aspected mana towards the large blurry outline of a black snake with wings.

“Hiss!” The shadow-aspected creature flickered and retreated into the shadow plane.

I hate creatures that can fully step into the shadows! How is anyone supposed to sense these things?! And putting wings on that damned thing is just fucking obnoxious.

Terry cursed inwardly. The shadow-aspected snake creature was the second time that he could not avoid getting entangled in a fight on his way. The first time, Terry had been able to get away comparatively quickly, but this mana-corrupted snake had already cost him more time than he could reasonably afford.

A part of Terry was glad that this mess was his alone.

“Please stay away this time,” pleaded Terry with the shadows around him.

Terry glanced towards the blood-aspected area that was not far away. His mana sense had already warned him of the rapidly approaching horde a while ago. The speed of the runners indicated that they had picked up his scent.

Terry’s mana-empowered eyes could already make out the details in the frenzied visages among the zombies. Terry exhaled sharply and sprinted towards them.

Between Terry and the approaching horde was a slightly sunken pit that was at the center of the pure blood-aspected anomaly. Terry’s gaze was glued to the edge and to the pit’s bottom that became increasingly visible with every inch he got closer.

As soon as Terry could identify the shape of a crimson tulip, his eyes became bloodshot and he subconsciously burst his mana beyond his limits. Terry’s eyes and mana sense raced over the flowers to count the leaves before his feet had even touched the bottom of the pit.

He instinctively controlled his breathing while retrieving the tools to harvest the tulips. He dug out the first and placed it into a specially prepared wooden container that already contained one set of the other ingredients they had collected.

Right after finishing with the first four-leaved blood tulip, Terry continued with a second one while keeping part of his attention on the approaching death-aspected signatures. Terry refused to blink while he put the spare blood tulip into the same wooden container. He put the container together with a sheet of paper into the miniature crafter’s pendant belonging to Brynn’s dragonfly construct. He channeled mana into the lower wings of the dragonfly. Finally, the dragonfly construct soared into the air and buzzed off while Terry heaved a small sigh of relief.

What if something goes wrong on the way?

Terry’s pulse accelerated even further and he clenched his fists. He immediately began harvesting another pair of four-leaved blood tulips. He placed the tulips into the second box of ingredients he carried.

Simultaneously, he retrieved a wand and a metal ingot. Terry used the wand’s imprint to cast the Liquify Earth spell and used the Shape Metal imprint in his armor to surround the box and his second written note with protective metal. He pushed the box into the muddy earth. Terry retrieved his signaling cube and activated the configured flash sequence on several links. He pushed the signaling cube into the muddy earth as well. Terry used the wand’s second imprint and cast Harden Earth to protect the ingredients, his written message, and the signaling device.

Knowing the location is no use if the horde is destroying everything here.

Terry gritted his teeth and air-jumped out of the pit. The closest zombies were only several meters away from the pit’s edge on the other side. With grim resolve, Terry air-jumped towards the zombies while retrieving items from his storage bracelet.

*Bam* An intense blast of fire-aspected mana erupted from Terry’s mana sublimator and engulfed the closest zombies.

“Come get me, you rotten flesh bags!” Terry darted further east-northeast to attract the horde’s attention away from the blood tulips. While running, Terry retrieved his Guardian card and set all links to off so that the signaling cube was the only available signal for him.

His mana sense was already warning him of flying death aura creatures that were in pursuit. Terry cycled a burst technique to increase his speed. His mind was overcome with a single, all-consuming thought.

Run!

***

In one of the training grounds inside the Libra Outpost, the whole area looked like a mess. There were large holes in the ground, the earth had been completely overturned, and rock structures were piling up randomly.

At the center of the chaos was a dwarven woman with a grim look in her eyes. She used up her mana as quickly as she regenerated it and only paused to occasionally check an item from her dimensional storage.

“You better come back,” muttered Lori in a low voice. She cast her empowered Shape Earth spell and followed up with Harden Earth to turn her shaped structure into rock.

“You better.” Lori somersaulted backwards and then shot several stones at the rock structure with her Propel Rock spell.

Lori wiped the sweat from her forehead and clenched her fists. “You promised to always come back.”

From the side, Miguel occasionally took his eyes from his training targets to shoot worried glances at Lori. When he caught sight of another figure approaching, he immediately nocked a coldfire-aspected arrow and narrowed his eyes.

“Where is Terry?” Patricia walked up to Lori while staring at the destroyed training grounds. “I don’t see him with you.” As soon as her gaze arrived on Lori’s face, Patricia flinched.

Lori looked as if she was ready to murder someone. “None of your business! Piss off or I’ll make you.” She placed her hands on the hilts of her inscribed daggers.

“I just…” Patricia made a complicated expression. “Look, I’m sorry for taking you hostage back then. I talked to Dhruv. I would like to talk to Terry, but I can’t find him. I just—”

“He’s not here,” snapped Lori.

“I just want to talk to him,” insisted Patricia.

“He. Is. Not. Here.” Lori clenched her daggers tightly.

“Then where is he?” asked Patricia while observing Lori’s expression.

“HE’S STILL IN THE WASTES!” Lori yelled with red eyes. “My brother is trying to save our parents.” She punched a nearby rock wall. “My whaka is in danger and I’m not there.” She clenched her teeth. Lori heaved heavy breaths. “If you have a way to cover a large distance quickly, then I’m all ears,” growled Lori while shaking her head. “Otherwise, leave me alone. I don’t care what you want. If I had a way to get to my brother, I would have used it already.”

Patricia was at a loss for words.

“Lori!” Miguel jogged over.

“It’s nothing,” said Lori with an indifferent glance to Patricia. “She was just leaving.”

“No, that’s not— Check Terry’s signal!” urged Miguel.

Lori hurriedly did so and furrowed her brow. Meanwhile, Siling and Calam were already rushing over as well.

“What does this mean?” asked Calam. “I didn’t even know the signal could flash like that.”

“It can’t,” said Miguel. “At least the Guardian cards can’t send a signal like that.”

“He did not use the Guardian card,” said Lori. “This is a pattern from his signaling cube.”

“Okay, but what does the pattern mean?” asked Siling.

“That’s one of the default patterns in the cube,” said Lori. “Means the job is done or mission completed.”

The companions looked at each other.

“That’s good, isn’t it?” asked Calam with some excitement. “That probably means he has found the blood tulip, right?” He was confused by the troubled expressions of the others. “Does this mean that we should begin our return trip?”

“The signal doesn’t seem to be moving.” Lori pointed out.

“It is a large distance,” reminded Siling. “Terry would have to move a lot for that to be noticeable for us.”

“We could ask Guardian management to triangulate the signal and check to be sure,” proposed Miguel. He frowned slightly. “Do they even have the equipment for that here?”

“I’m having a bad feeling,” muttered Lori.

Their attention was drawn by a commotion at the entrance to the training grounds.

“What’s going on there?” asked Miguel with narrowed eyes. “The cultists seem agitated again.”

“A death hunter has arrived,” interjected Patricia, who was also watching the people at the entrance.

“Why are you here again?” Siling eyed Patricia with suspicion and hostility.

Patricia ignored Siling and began jogging to the entrance. Siling and the others looked at each other, shrugged, and then also followed.

“This is troubling news,” murmured Dhruv. Next to him, Emily was looking distraught.

“Is this intel reliable?” asked Cadence with intense worry.

They were all looking at a woman dressed completely in black with a rapier and a one-handed crossbow at her waist.

“I’m afraid so,” replied Elenec. “We’ve received multiple reports already. Countless garrisons and whole settlements have been flattened in a single night. From what we know, some very powerful mages from Arcana are taking revenge for the destruction of the barrier.

“The worst part is that dimensional mages appear to support them,” said Elenec. “They can move through the whole empire instantly. They can open a dimensional gate to invite monsters right into the middle of a city.”

“What is the Guild going to do?” asked Dhruv.

“That is a good question,” said Elenec. “From what I can tell: nothing.”

“Nothing?!” asked Cadence with shock.

“I don’t know why either,” said Elenec while shaking her head. “But the last news I received is that upper management is insistent on not issuing nominated missions. I heard that they even threw out the last imperial censor who tried to put pressure on them.”

“Seems like Arcana is finally showing its true colors,” sneered one of the channelers. “Vicious beasts.”

“That’s certainly one way to look at it,” said Elenec flatly. “But as I’ve mentioned already, this is revenge for them. According to our information, Arcana’s barrier was sabotaged by a group of different factions. Two of the main instigators have closer relations to this place: the Preacher and Bright Willow.”

“WHAT?!” “Lies!” “Watch your mouth!” “A Bright would never…” The followers of the Bright Lady did not take kindly to the accusation. Further in the back, Luminous Anem was lowering his gaze.

“If you had the means, you could verify the information as well,” said Elenec coldly. “I can assure you that this has already been checked repeatedly. The information is accurate.”

“Pah! As if anyone would trust the words of a death creature,” spat one of the channelers of the Bright Lady.

Elenec simply smiled.

“You step forward!” ordered Cadence and pointed at the person that had just insulted Elenec.

“Yes, Luminous.”

“How dare you speak to anyone like that!” Cadence glared at him.

“But she is a creature of death!” objected the channeler. “That goes against the light of the Lady!” A few others of the channelers were nodding slightly.

“The Bright Lady does not condemn people for the nature of their existence.” Cadence stared furiously at the offending channeler. “Don’t you dare shame the Lady’s name with your despicable rubbish! Of all people you actually chose a death hunter to insult, don’t you feel yourself to be ridiculous?!” Cadence shook her head in indignation. “Lady Elenec has probably cleansed more lands of death than all of you here combined.

“Doing good does not require a specific aspect, nor does doing evil.” Cadence spoke solemnly. “You better remember this or you will one day find yourself standing on the wrong side.”

“Are you going to stay here?” Dhruv asked Elenec.

“That is my intention, yes,” replied Elenec. “It’s only a matter of time before the vengeful Arcanians will reach this place.” She glanced at Emily. “Me and a few other death hunters have made a promise to watch over the little sister of a friend of ours.”

“Thank you,” said Cadence in a heartfelt tone. “It is reassuring to have a few capable Guildheads in the city.”

“Still, if I were you, I would prepare for the worst,” said Elenec. “From what I’ve heard, these mages don’t negotiate. Best case scenario, we will have to fight off a large horde of undead.”

“That’s the ‘best case’ scenario?” Cadence’s face cramped up.

“Exactly,” said Elenec with a slight grimace. “With all the holy channelers in this place, you would have a better chance against an undead horde than against a comparable demon army. If they transfer a large group of hellspawn, we’re probably all done for anyway and surprisingly, that would still not be the worst case scenario.”

“What’s the ‘worst case’ scenario?” Cadence asked with a bad premonition.

“From what I’ve heard?” Elenec smiled wryly. “The worst case scenario is that one of the dimensional mages directly joins the fight.”

Elenec turned around and found herself standing in front of a dark-haired elven woman staring at her.

“Can I help you?” asked Elenec cautiously.

“Hm?” Siling blinked. “Ah sorry, I didn't mean to stare. I’ve just never met a vampire before and got curious.”

“Curious?” Elenec raised an eyebrow. “You say that with a smile. That’s rarely among the first reactions I get.”

“I feel that,” muttered Siling wryly. “I can relate.”

“Huh?” Elenec furrowed her brow.

“They’re friends of Terry,” interjected Cadence. “From Arcana.”

“Any chance that Matteo is coming too?” asked Elenec without much hope.

Lori shook her head.

“Any chance that you could convince your fellow Arcanians to back off?” asked Elenec with even less hope.

Lori clenched her fists and turned pensive. “...maybe.”

“Wait, what? Really?” Elenec stared at Lori.

“Uhh, I meant that if a dimensional mage from Arcana shows up, I have something to ask them anyway,” said Lori determinedly.

“I don’t know,” said Cadence with concern. “Perhaps it’s best that you all use your transfer scrolls. This area is going to get very dangerous.”

Many of the surrounding Guardians from Tiv wore dark expressions when hearing Cadence. Some felt hostile to Lori and the others to begin with and their resentment intensified when learning that they were under attack from Arcana. Others were envious of their transfer scrolls and the chance to escape the incoming calamity.

“Isn’t that…?” Calam spoke up before realizing what he was doing. “Ahem, isn’t that a reason to stay?”

“Yeah, this outpost seems more than a bit understaffed,” agreed Miguel. “I may not like some of the people here, but that’s another topic.”

“Guardian duties aside, we’ve already made some new friends here,” added Siling. She and the others looked at Emily with concern.

“And I have to speak to the dimensional mages,” insisted Lori.

Miguel looked intently at Lori.

“I have to ask them if they can transport us to Terry,” muttered Lori quietly while clenching her fists. “No matter what.”

“Very well,” said Cadence. “We could certainly use some more Guardians.”

In the vicinity, many of the people from Tiv made surprised or skeptical expressions. Two people among the crowd were wearing particularly complicated faces. One was a woman in grey leather armor encrusted with spiders. The other was a silver-robed man.

***

Terry carefully cycled his burst techniques to lessen the strain on his mana channels during his desperate run. Several death spears were flying towards him from behind and Terry’s mind raced to analyze the best course of action.

First, he dodged two death spears by accelerating further. When several death mages placed their casting centers right in the path Terry was running to, Terry had no more choice. He changed his path slightly and adjusted his movement so as to catch as many death spears as possible inside a smaller area. Terry unleashed his disruption pulse that obliterated the incoming magic attacks.

With his path freed, Terry darted forward and tried his best to pull some of his discharged mana back into himself before it moved outside his reach. It was at this point that Terry realized he had made a blunder in his desire to protect the area with the blood tulips. He had successfully drawn away the attention of the horde, but he had also cut himself off from every path that any sensible person would take. A part of the horde was now to the south from him, which meant that it blocked his retreat away from the Wastes. At this rate, Terry was only left with three options.

Continue deeper into the Wastes.

Terry glanced north, to the left, while simultaneously reacting to a trace of a shadow-aspected mana signature that had appeared in his path. He jumped and thrust his brightfire spear forward to kill the shade before it had a chance to attack him.

Engage the undead horde that is blocking the path to the heartland.

Terry glanced south, to the right, while dodging the crimson mana blade of a death executioner. He cast a fleeting Immovable Object spell on one of his armor’s septimum pearls to adjust his position with the help of his own inertia.

For a brief moment, Terry considered sacrificing another mana core to deal with the death aura creature. He knew that he could not afford being inflicted with maledictions by the death executioner.

Terry grit his teeth and instead used his bidirectional attraction glove to pull another small metal ingot from his Academy bag. He used up the last available charge in the Shape Metal imprint of his left bracer. He burst his mana beyond his limits and dived closer to the death executioner. He shaped the metal around one of the creature’s vertebrae and immediately followed up with the Immovable Object spell.

The death executioner nearly split in half from his own momentum. While the maneuver had not finished it off successfully, it had bought Terry some breathing space.

Or continue running east.

Terry looked straight ahead. For several breaths, Terry thought about nothing while dodging attacks and saving his mana as much as possible.

Determination flashed through Terry’s eyes and without interrupting his run, he summoned a barrel of lamp oil. Terry stabbed holes into the barrel with his inscribed dagger. He air-jumped up, turned the barrel on its head and transfixed it in this position. While Terry continued running, the lamp oil poured onto the undead pursuing him.

Terry repeated the action with two more barrels while moving through the air in a quick circle. He picked the locations so as to make sure to hit as many creatures as possible.

Afterwards, Terry hurriedly retrieved a fire-aspected arrow, an old throwing needle, and some rope. Terry felt extremely lucky when he remembered the fire-aspected arrows he had found in the abandoned village during the investigation with the Captain. Without those, Terry would not have a good way to ignite the oil.

Terry hurled his improvised ignition helper at one of the areas drenched in oil. The fire quickly caught up with the oily creatures as well.

Terry continued running east while paying close attention to the happenings behind him in his mana sense.

Terry cursed inwardly when he sensed a growing blood aspected mana signature. He glanced backwards and confirmed that among the burning zombies, a blood abomination had begun acting out. The blood abomination absorbed the surrounding zombies and a horrifying wave of flesh formed to rise from the ground. Limbs and rotten heads were sticking out everywhere.

Terry pushed down the rising feeling of nausea. It did not take long for Terry to feel the mind-altering effects of the blood abomination’s aura as well. He consciously noted his own rage welling up.

Run. Run. Run!

Terry kept repeating to himself that he needed to run. He resisted the urge to engage and fight. He suppressed the urge to battle to his heart’s content. He knew these urges were neither his own nor in his interest. The experience made him sympathize even more with Elena’s trouble when bursting her blood-aspected mana.

Terry thought back to the fight at the Bulwark and how the blood abomination there had attracted the giant centipede. This gave him pause and helped him to push down his rising bloodlust even further.

Terry recalled one of the Veilbinder’s companions during the war in the Deep. A dwarven man by the name of Tuara, who had been one of the most renowned people in the war even though he had remained manaless until the very end. Tuara was a leader from the Stonewardens and later became one of the Veilbinder’s first major allies in the fight against the False Gods.

The reason that Terry had thought of Tuara was one of his documented quotes: ‘One enemy is a challenge. Two enemies is an opportunity.’

Terry continued running east while searching for traces of other creatures in his mana sense.

Opportunity.

***