The Forsaken Hero-Chapter 970: An Unexpected Interloper

The city blurred below me as Fable bounded over the rooftops, clearing dozens of streets with every leap. Sari clung to my waist, insisting on following despite my better judgment. Ahead, the cathedral loomed over the surrounding estates, its low walls lined with guards oblivious to the storm of mana gathering above.

"My Lady, I sensed a disturbance," Zephyriss sent. "The Lord and Ash and I are making our way to your location."

I nodded, returning my feelings of gratitude, mingled with a sense of confusion. The two were together? Fyren hadn’t mentioned doing anything other than wandering the city as normal.

We landed in the courtyard, startling a few priests and guards. Those devoted to the divine had already been exiled or slain during the revolt. Still, especially here in Sylvarus, there were many sympathetic to the elves’ cause who cared more for healing the wounded than influencing politics.

"Oracle!" a sixth-level life mage said, running up to us. "Lady Sunginer and the Life Hero are waiting within. We don’t know what happened; the shard just activated on its own."

Fable lowered himself to the ground, extending his foreleg as a sort of ramp to help me dismount. I offered Sari a hand, but she jumped the five feet or so without so much as grunting.

"Not on its own," I said, turning to the mage. "Someone’s using it as a reference for teleportation. Muster the guard. We might have company soon."

A sudden pulse emanated from inside the cathedral, strong enough to trigger my Aegis. I raised my arm against the breeze, squinting through the golden flare of my wards. Once it settled, I hurried into the building, Sari chasing behind me.

I found Selena and R’lissea in the central chamber, with the shard shining brilliantly over their head. Both held their mana, surrounded in arrays of defensive wards.

"You’re here!" R’lissea said, relief washing over her face. "I wasn’t sure if you felt this."

"Someone’s teleporting in," I said, hurriedly explaining the situation to them.

Selena’s expression hardened. "Are you certain? Teleporting through a shard never causes this much of a stir. We were in the midst of linking the Arboreal World when this happened. Perhaps we just triggered a latent backlash."

"I’m positive, but you’re right. Something must be wrong. Or they’re teleporting far more souls than I’ve ever seen before."

Before I could speculate further, a magic circle materialized on the floor, drawing directly on the shard’s power. It was smaller than I anticipated, relatively the size of the spell we’d used to invade Port Vesna. So why the commotion if not to bring an army?

There was no time for speculation, nor did I feel ready for whatever came through that circle. Fyren and Zephyriss were only a minute away, but that was a minute too long. I focused on Fyren’s soul, drawing his presence into the Final Star.

"To me," I said, raising my staff.

I felt the stars of fate shiver, beginning to align into a gate, but my hold was tenuous. I felt a sort of resistance I’d never experienced before, like trying to force two magnets together. No matter how I pushed, I couldn’t get it to open.

Gritting my teeth against the backlash, I switched my focus to Zephyriss, and resistance vanished. A gate opened up, revealing the two flying through the skies of Duskwood. Zephyriss. Without flinching, the two dove through.

"What’s wrong?" Fyren asked, placing a steadying hand on my shoulder.

"I...I couldn’t call you."

"Of course you couldn’t. My soul hasn’t assimilated to the point I’m subject to your mark."

I stared at him, my lips parting, but I had nothing to say. Unassimilated? But he’d been with me the longest after Kahlen and Fable! And Zephyriss was a demon lord! A fraction of her full soul, but even so...

The magic circle resolved before I could even begin to compose my confusion, and the light coalesced into a single figure. A woman in rich purple robes and an aura that filled the room, challenging Selena’s.

"Nithalee?" I gasped, tail going stiff. "What are you doing here?"

The elderly mage looked around at the massed soldiers and priests, not even blinking at the many weapons pointed at her. Her gaze came to rest on me, and her lips curved in a smile.

"There you are. I was hoping to find you, child."

She stepped out of the fading wisps of mana, approaching me. Fyren stepped between us, hand on the hilt of his sword.

"She asked you a question," he said.

Nithalee arched an eyebrow, not looking the least bit concerned. "Since when do powerful demons stoop to mortals?"

"Fyren," I said, stepping by him, resting a hand on his arm. "It’s alright. I think."

"Indeed. I haven’t come to harm you. Quite the opposite, actually. Lord Magic has ordered me to forsake the land of the divine and come to you on his behalf."

"Forsake? But you’re...they let you leave?" I asked warily.

Her chuckle felt out of place in the silence. "Of course not, child. Surely you sensed the rather...unsophisticated manner of my coming. I was rather...pressed. It’s hard to know whether they believed I’m defecting or not, but they certainly weren’t pleased."

"So are you?" Selena asked, stepping out. Her aura remained primed, a spell on the tip of her tongue.

Nithalee’s gaze turned to her, her eyes widening slightly. "Ninth level...? I heard the rumors, but I can’t believe one of the elves has truly ascended. Selena, wasn’t it? I remember you at the Divine Throne some decades back. You’ve grown into a remarkable mage."

"Thank you, Lady Nithalee, but please, answer my question. Our kingdom has recently gone through some upheaval, and I’m in no mood to play games. Why have you come to Sylvarus?"

"I already told you. I mean you no harm, least of all Sylvarus itself. I can already feel that...upheaval you mentioned. It pollutes the very air. Just how many ninth-level spells were thrown around out there? And how does this place still exist despite them?"

"Perhaps to spite them," Selena muttered, folding her arms. "If you’re telling the truth, I welcome you beneath our shade. Gods know I don’t have the time to bicker with you, should it come to it. So please, for all our sakes, don’t cause trouble."

"Don’t worry, after I’ve conveyed my Lord’s wishes, my only other interest is this child. She’s indebted to me something awful, after all," Nithalee said, turning back to me. "The time has come for me to collect."

"Your Lord? You mean...it’s time?" I asked.

She nodded. "It is. Now, convey me to your mistress. There is much I have to tell her."

The others tensed, but I sighed, shaking my head. "Very well. Please, come with me. Selena, it’s alright if I take her to the manor, right?" 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

The archmage nodded, a dubious look on her face. But she let us leave, all the same. I gave R’lissea a little wave as we exited the cathedral, hoping to assuage her worry.

"You mean to run?" Nithalee asked. "If I recall, the lesser noble mansions are gathered quite some distance away."

"Why run when we can just fly!" Sari asked.

"Not everyone has the privilege of the magic we do," I said, giving her a smile. "But...given what you’ve come here to discuss, I don’t suppose there’s harm in showing you. I don’t like the idea of you riding Fable with me."

"Fly? Truly?" Nithalee asked, raising her eyebrows. "I’ve heard Lysander’s made some progress in that field, and that demons were spotted in the air."

"Not just demons," Fyren grunted. He looked at me. "Are you sure?"

I nodded. "As a gesture of good faith. Watch closely, Nithalee. Wings of the Archon!"

I cast the spell, but held it a thread from completion. I’d picked it up in the last few weeks, almost by accident. I had no intention to fly, ever, but I could only watch others cast it so many times before it was burned into my mind.

Nithalee watched with absolute focus as rune by rune appeared. "Chantless casters. Think we’re all blessed with their comprehension," she muttered as I finished.

"Don’t play dumb, mage," Fyren said, scowling at her. "You’re hiding plenty of secrets yourself. Just cast the spell and let us get on with this."

She chuckled and waved her hand. Runes appeared, forming six magic circles at a slower rate than mine, but with almost perfect mimicry. Had I not seen the lack of light around her soul, I might have assumed she had some sort of Eyes ability. But no, she was just perfectly replicating my runes, brute forcing her way through the spell.

"Amazing," she whispered as translucent, feathered wings sprouted from her back. She stretched them experimentally, wobbling a few inches off the ground. "You can really fly with these?"

I shivered violently, reaching out and curling my fingers in Fable’s fur. "Not me. Never."

"And yet you know the spell." She turned to me with a predatory look. "I’m rather looking forward to collecting my debts. That hidden realm of yours must be quite something. Please, show the way."