The Pillar of Enera

[Book II Chapter 110] FILIA: Johanna Loubor

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Filia creeped cautiously behind Terragon as the huge land dragon continued its plodding patrol. The entire valley was this apex sukemon’s territory.

<> Cici whispered in her head.

<> Filia answered. <>

Coming around a bend, she spotted a grotto and smirked. Made it! By following the Terragon, she’d avoided all the other dangers.

The rock under her trembled as she reached the entrance. She glanced back, listening to the distant echo of an explosion. The sounds of battle were unmistakable.

<> Cici observed.

<> Filia added. <>

Inside the grotto was too quiet for her tastes. Even with Cici’s echolocation, she sensed no life. Could we be facing ghost types? Or… Her thoughts trailed off. Above a stone altar, a card floated inside a ray of light.

<> Cici exclaimed.

<> Filia sighed, her excitement tampered by the realization that her journey through the sukemon realm was coming to an end.

She picked up the thin sheet of cardboard and read the words on it. Titania, the herald of the left. On the front was a dragon knight reminiscent of Oberon, but clad all in white. This was the first legendary card she’d acquired on her own. She carefully placed it in her deck holder.

She exited the grotto to see the terragon collapse, beheaded. His killer approached, riding an areal mount. Behind her, dead sukemon lined the valley.

“Johanna Loubor, what are you doing here?” She asked apprehensively.

By the blue skin and small horn, she judged the immortal was currently fused with demonice. The stormelk she rode on marched through the air as if on a solid surface, its large purple antlers glowing ominously. Around them fluttered a blazeagle, its fiery figure resembling a phoenix. Lastly, on the ground below, was the largest Frenzyraptor she’d ever seen. Twice the size of daizy, its hide was dark brown instead of green.

Only a blazeagle’s wings are supposed to be on fire, and the antlers of stormelks aren’t that color. These are illegal evolutions… While it was normal for sukemon to transformed into stronger versions as they developed, some trainers resorted to forbidden magics to force desired traits upon them. The resulting unnatural monstrosities were forbidden from all official competitions.

<> Cici observed.

<> Filia responded curtly.

“I’m here for the card, same as you.” Johanna said. “You have it don’t you? Hand it over.”

Hans Leveson must’ve found an immortal to retrieve the card. Filia wasn’t amused. “You want me to give up the prize I risked my life for?”

“I’ll give you something for it.” Johanna relented, slouching over her steed. “Don’t make a fuss, I’m in no mood to return empty-handed. Getting here was more of a chore than I’d imagine.”

Whatever compensation you offer will be a fraction of its true worth. It was her first time being shaken down like this. She could refuse, but Johanna was rumored to be ruthless. If it came to violence, she didn’t stand a chance. I hate that the HEAVENLY DAO allows this.

“On the day of tournament in Rosaria, where were you?” Filia demanded bitterly. She would report this to the Adventurer’s Guild, but she doubted Johanna would care about the hit to reputation.

Johanna studied her lazily, before abruptly sitting up. “You’re the one who fought Geordan Price in the finals. He gave his cards to you…”

She let out a wild laughed. “You still have them with them don’t you? This makes things so much simpler.”

The Frenzyraptor released a shockwave from its bladed limb, which Filia barely dodged. “What are you doing?” She yelled out frantically.

“Killing you to recuperate the card and Price’s deck of course.” Johanna explained.

It took Filia a second to process this information. “You’re working with Laughing Man!”

Johanna smirked viciously. “Ripper, tear her to pieces.”

Filia took off, as the Frenzyraptor pounced towards her. Unfortunately, the dungeon’s barrier prevented her from flying higher than the valley. She was forced to desperately dodge countless wind scythes from her pursuer below.

Johanna followed with her two remaining sukemon, watching the chase. “Holo, knock her to the ground.” She commanded coldly.

The blazeagle surged forwards. Filia saw it coming, but was too busy evading to do anything. It soared above her and exploded. The blast slammed into her, sending her plummeting. Bracing for the pain, she crashlanded hundred yards shy of the valley’s exit.

Struggling for consciousness, she found the frenzyraptor barring down on her, intend on finishing her with its claws. However, before it could strike, another figure smashed into it. Filia’s eyes went wide. It was Daisy! Her sukemon flung the larger frenzyraptor back.

“Stop this pointless resistance!” Johanna raged, swooping down on her stormelk. “Ice stakes!”

The frozen javelins descended on Filia, but were deflected by a lava blast. Tetris, her volcanor, had appeared besides her, along with her slushpup, Rex, who used its a water whip to intercept a firebolt from the stormeagle.

<> Blitzer, her elerret, zapped by her, returning fire with lightning bolts.

A cry of agony rung out. Johanna’s Frenzyraptor had sent Daisy tumbling, a deep gash in her side. It leap to deliver the final blow, but was crushed by a falling snorlots. Outraded, the frenzyraptor tried to throw Sammy off its back, but Vineweep’s vines tied it to the ground. Meanwhile, Velvet appeared beside Daisy, spreading her fox tails and casting Lunar Cure.

<> Happy materialized overhead, flapping its duskull wings and rising towards the stormelk. <>

They’ve forcibly manifesting themselves… Snapping out of her daze, Filia panicked. If they fall in battle, they’ll be gone forever!

“Wait… Don’t…” She wheezed, attempting to stand. Suddenly, large talons closed around her, and she felt herself lifted into the air. She glanced up to see a blizzowl carrying her off.

“No, go back!” Filia frantically tried to free herself. Unfortunately, the talons proved immovable, and she felt Cici working against her efforts.

<> Blizzy said softly.

“Johanna’s an immortal! They’re all going to die! Go back!” She cried, tears streaming down her face. All these years, this was the reason she’d never summoned her sukemon in dungeons. The fear of losing them terrified her. By only relying on fusions, she could ensure she’d never outlive them. How could they betray me like this. She wept silently.

<> Blizzy warned, turning to unleash a Winter Vortex. Johanna’s blazeagle pushed through the tempest and exploded again. She was flung loose and fell on a grassy field. As she stood, she felt her strength leave her as her skin returned to its ordinary hue. Cici had separated from her body.

“Not you too…” She pleaded, watching the galebat flap away.

<> The galebat turned back and smiled awkwardly. <> With that, Cici joined Blizzy in battle.

A dark shadow approached from behind and picked her up in its arms. “Oberon!” She cried in shock. “Why only now?” Apart from that first day, the legendary sukemon had rebuffed all her attempts at communication.

<> Oberon answered solemnly. <>

The landscape zoomed by. They were quickly retracing their steps through the sukemon realm until they were back in the overgrown temple city. As they neared the rift, the blazeagle appeared behind them. Filia chocked down a sob, understanding what that meant.

<> Oberon observed.

By the time they were out of the Amalgamation, it had caught up. Oberon used dark blades to ward it off, but there were noticeably less of swords than last time. Filia was wondering about this when the dragon knight dropped down and deposited her on a strip of earth.

<> He said, vanishing in a swirl of black mist.. <>

With resignation, Filia looked up and watched the blazeagle circle overhead. … Why isn’t it attacking? Her eyes widened in realization. Johanna ordered it to stop me without killing me. She must be afraid it might damage the cards and plans to deal with me herself!

Of course, this didn’t help. She was still stranded deep in the twisted lands in the middle of nowhere. This remoteness is why Hans Leveson didn’t want the card’s existences to leak. None of her remaining sukemon would let her take down the blazeagle, and, if she ran, it’d just blast her until she stopped moving.

I can’t give up, not after everything. The Amalgamation was a dungeon, and there might be adventurers around. She had to chance it.

She fused with her loudjaw and took a deep breath. “ANYONE THERE? I NEED HELP!” She kept yelling until her voice went horse.

“Look at you crying out so pathetically.” Came a mocking voice. “Have you lost your dignity to fear?”

The stormelk trotted forward through the air, Johanna on its back. Both mount and rider looked ragged, and the frenzyraptor was nowhere in sight. Serves her right.

The immortal glared down at her with loathing. “I have half-a mind to torture you for the trouble you put me through. Sadly, I don’t have the energy for it, so you’ll luck out with a quick death.”

“Ice stakes!” She shouted.

Filia closed her eyes, but the expected pain did not come. Instead, there was the sound of a shattering impact. A knight in icy armor stood before her and had parried the attack with an enormous white greatsword.

“Don’t worry.” He said. “I’m here."

“We’re here.” Corrected a woman in a green cultivator robe. She appeared out of breath. “It’s so hard keeping up with you when you rush off like this.”

Another woman joined them, this time in a red dress. “Oh god, he’s picked a fight with an immortal this time…”

Johanna watched the new arrivals with anger and apprehension. “This doesn’t concern you. Scram now, or, I swear, everyone one of you will perish.”

“Unlikely.” Said a man in the most elegant and vibrant robes Filia had ever seen. He released a talisman which flew off and attached itself to the knight’s back before shattering. “The Soul before you now is not someone you can face.”

Soul…? That’s Astra Skyfell’s son! In his glistening armor, the boy was almost unrecognizable from the recording she’d seen. That’s why Johanna is acting so cautiously, she knows he has a weapon that can hurt her.

“Fine.” Johanna said venomously. “Holo, except the girl, burn them all to a crisp.”

The blazeagle’s feathers flared up and it screeched, preparing to dive.

“Careful.” Filia warned. “That bird is dangerous.”

Soul nodded and swung his sword in an uppercut. “Heaven Splitter!”

With a powerful beat of its wings, the blazeagle lurched to the side, narrowly avoiding the frozen shockwave. “Nice!” Johanna shouted with savage glee. “Now incinerate them.”

However, Soul swung his sword again… and again, and again. Without ceasing, he sent out invisible blades that sliced the world in two. The blazeagle scrambled to evade the terrifying assault, but the fifth one landed dead on.

“Noooooo!” Johanna shrieked. “How dare you——”

Without missing a beat, Soul released another heaven splitter aimed straight at her. The immortal went pale as her stormelk dodged and ducked behind a chunk of bedrock.

They waiting anxiously to see where she’d re-emerge. Eventually, the well-dress cultivator smiled. “She’s not coming back.”