The world was a blur...everything that was once clear now looked like nothing more than a fogged up image I couldn't discern.
What was it...a blast?
My memory had seen better days--but surely there was something stuck in the very back that could help me remember.
Where was I last at?
The office?
No, I got fired...fire...d
Fire--lots of it. That's what I saw, wasn't it?
I couldn't breathe, something was blocking my throat from letting air through. Yet regardless of how much I blindly searched, all I touched was my own charred skin.
There was fire, but why? What caused it?
A muffled voice called out to me, it was loud enough for me to know what it was but muffled enough to make its words illegible.
Again...this time louder, angrier--concerned perhaps?
A third time, this time quieter and more frantic; its words almost slipped past me for a moment before a random memory finally decided to click in my mind.
"HEAL!" Mes' voice echoed in my mind, a shiver running through my body as a lime glow outlined it.
At a rather exaggerated pace, my vision cleared and my body rejuvenated--clouds of dust and ash surrounding me as I struggled to stand steady.
"Mes?"
"MORON!" She quickly yelled out, a sharp pain stinging my head as though a superheated nail had just been driven through my skull.
"First doom flare now Múspellsheimr?! Have you gone insane?"
"Quiet, damn it!" I barked back out, gripping my head as I balanced my breath again.
That's what happened...that damn spell.
The impact of it all must have taken my own mind, thoughts and entire self to a whole new dimension.
It was risky pulling another high-end magic straight out of my ass in such a tight space. The only reason I survived doom flare was because of the amphitheater setting we happened to be in; throw a grenade into a box and stick your foot in it--you'd probably be in a better state that I was.
It was dumb but necessary.
I couldn't tell you how it all unfolded even if I tried to; the first person to feel the impact of a spell is its caster--the weaker they are, the harder it'll hit. My eyes got blinded by a radiant pillar of flames that burst from my palms, everything else was a daydream after that.
"Incredible..." Grat's deep voice rumbled as he coughed out his words, "...to think a kid like you could carry this much fire power."
"Incredible indeed, my brother!" Alexander chimed in, their figures emerging from the dust ahead of me--a dead guard being tossed by Grat as his comrade pulled out his blade.
With a deep inhalation, Alexander swung his blade with an almost explosive force that sent a wave of air fleeing from his direction. A quick way to clear the already gathered clouds and a quick way to view the damage...if there was anything we could view.
what was once a well hidden fortress was now nothing more than nearly flat lands. Some walls had succumbed to the blast whilst those that stood couldn't hold a candle to my own shoe in terms of size.
"You nearly died, idiot." Mes butted in, her tone more motherly than Adelaide herself when she scolded her team, "I'm capping your soul well until you truly understand the meaning of 'High-tiered'"
I'd heard her complain other times, but it seems I'd really tightened her screws this time. Couldn't argue either, I was most definitely in the wrong here, but what had to be done was done.
"Did everyone make it out?"
"You'll have to thank Lance for that." Grat responded, examining his gear for any damage, "...could barely see the damn guy flush the place empty."
"Worry not, Holy knights prioritize lives over plans." Alexander continued, holstering his blade as he placed an arm on my shoulder. "You caused no death other than those deserving."
"The plan has begun now, your explosive signal should have reached them for sure." He added on, turning his gaze towards the kingdom's walls that felt further than they actually were.
The simple part was done, now all that was left was to head back to Adelaide who was most definitely in combat.
I could tell, the spell that kept my mask holding felt weaker than it initially was--that and there were multiple pillars of smoke coming from within the kingdom's walls.
"Shall we go then? The earlier we join them, the better."
"Took the words right out of my mouth, boy." Grat growled out, charging forwards in a mad dash; the ground below him cracking beneath his feet as he sprinted.
Alexander was quick to follow, his pace being only a fraction slower than that of his pal.
As for me, my body felt like it was gradually breaking down despite being healed; but I held my own. One step after the other, the pain quickly numbed down.
Credit where its due, Aeron truly took care of his body. Practicing the blade wasn't his only past-time activity, his hardened body was probably the only reason why my limbs hadn't been completely burnt off in the blast...whoever initiated the one within the kingdom was another story.
They were going ham, the whole damn area probably knew there was a revolution going on. It looked chaotic enough outside the walls, I wouldn't like to imagine how it looked from within.
Explosion after explosion, bits of the kingdom's walls crumbled down; those attacking from above were quickly sent flying down for a...not so soft landing. Fireballs big enough to rival meteors flew down from the sky, Assa's dragon form letting out skin crawling roars as she flew around the entire are; taking down anyone she could see.
On her back, Leilatha pistoled out arrows like a mounted sentry gun. Her precision was superb--admirable in fact; being someone who loved bows back in my mundane life, it took me everything within me to stop running and start clapping. Enchanted or not, those arrows struck anyone with a punch nasty enough to have them probably crippled for life--that is, if it didn't end their life on the spot.
"The girls seem to be handling this on their own..." I blurted out, shifting my focus back to the path ahead of us.
"Don't be fooled by the fireworks, boy." Alexander responded, narrowing his eyes as he charged forwards, "...the counter-fire they must be receiving is far worse than you can imagine."
Right...this was an entire kingdom we were talking about here. They were drunk bastards for sure, corrupt to the core, but still armed to the teeth with people who've seen more wars than anyone could imagine.
That coupled with the fact that they had a tramp card stashed in their deck...what we were doing was practically smoking out the bees with a matchstick.
"We've been spotted..." Grat growled out, brandishing his weapon with his pace not faltering, "Give them hell boys"
Ahead of us, an army charged. Scattered and well armed...it was fair to say they had enough to take down three guys had they been ordinary warriors, hunters or soldiers. My confidence had grown, especially with two brute beings charging ahead to clear the way...breaching their defenses was practically a no-brainer.
Expecting a catch?
What?
No faith in your own main character's words?
Good...hope and positivity are mirages I wished I'd shaken off the minute I blasted that prison to bits.
Far and hard to discern, his figure seemed like a false image created by my mind after randomly thinking him up. Kind of how you'd think of an unearthly monster as a child then end up seeing its figure in the darkness of your room...only for me, it was bright enough for me to tell--that was no random figure.
Within a second, a chill ran down my spine as a cold feeling quickly took over my entire body. My breathing felt constricted and my strength felt depleted as a shadowy image came into my view--foresight.
The ability I'd learned I had during my fight with the beastly dungeon boss. It had been long since I'd seen it but ever since I knew what it was, I hoped I didn't see it at all.
"Fore-image?" Mas' voice echoed within my mind, a familiar scene playing out briefly.
"What? I thought you already knew of this," I responded, grabbing an apple from the bag beside me, the cart's shaking nearly causing it to fall back in, "...just like you knew about my infinite soul well before I even had it."
"Your soul well is a blessing I traced due to the behavior of an architect's blessing"
"So you're saying I'm pulling stuff straight out of my ass despite knowing what I saw?"
"Not at all" She calmly responded, going silent for a second before resuming, "...what you have is more of a feature prince Aeron seems to have developed through practice."
"Be more specific, I don't have any memories of him ever seeing images of his enemies before they attack."
"Probably because it was a natural reaction for him."
"A natural reaction?" I questioned, nearly having my thoughts come out of my mouth.
Seeing mirages of your foes before they attack then forgetting about it simply because it's a 'natural reaction' was beyond bullshit for me. Though, there was no benefit she'd get through lying to me.
For a moment, I couldn't help but feel a sort of admiration towards Aeron himself grow. Not only was he constantly aiming to improve himself in terms of combat, but also managed to gain a passive skill he didn't even know he had...all while having casual duels with the commander of Velmoria's army as his only combat experience.
"Indeed." Mes responded, flashing a memory to me, almost like a film being placed right in front of my eyes.
Within it, he was focused on his opponent, the commander--and for a flash of a second, the commander's image attacked before the commander did.
"That was a lethal blow, his body was warning him about it to have him react sooner." Mes continued, returning my vision back to the reality we were in.
"Each time it happened, it acted as a warning. Only a lethal blow that threatened his life managed to trigger it."
So why exactly was there an image of Baldwin--Blackheart's A ranked threat...the blackhearted butcher, sprinting towards me with the edge of his blade right at my throat.
It hadn't reached...but I felt it. It stung, an unbearable pain that hadn't yet been driven into my body--the man himself was probably a whole soccer pitch away.
With how solid the mirage looked...there was no avoiding this.
For a moment, everything slowed to an almost complete stop. All audio around me being replaced by my breathing and my heartbeat, each seemingly slowing down as the seconds flew by.
"Die..." A deepened voice growled out in a low, cold tone with an offensive stench following it.
I didn't need to cock my head up to see who it was; the reflection on his blade showed his image entirely. And although I couldn't see his face, I could imagine the eerie grin he'd drawn on his face.
"Spawn of evil..."