The Forsaken Hero

I shook my head, unable to take my eyes off the fight between Fable and the monstrous centipede. In his monstrous form, the wolf was more able to compete in size and strength, yet no matter how he engaged, the fight led nowhere. Letting out a sigh, I met Korra’s inquisitive gaze with a shake of my head.

”It’s not good. The monster’s just too big to fight properly, and its armor deflects anything that might be able to hurt it. Even when Fable got under its armor, I doubt he did any substantial damage. I can’t see any weaknesses in its soul either, though, oddly enough, it’s not using any magical techniques. How about you? Are your arts having any effect?”

Korra scowled and crossed her arms beneath her breasts. ”Same problem. I can slow a few of its legs, or even its jaws, but it doesn’t last long. I think it floods any place I attack with mana, overwhelming and breaking the debuffs after just a second or two.”

”Mana?” I echoed faintly.

Frowning, I gripped my staff tightly and gazed intently at the monster. Even with the passive effects of the Oracle of Eternity, which was akin to the active Eyes of Fate, I couldn’t make out any such movement of mana. In fact, all I could see was its soul itself, which was why I assumed it wasn’t using magical techniques. But if it were stopping Korra’s arts, then it had to be using mana. Was there something blocking my vision?

”It’s only a guess, but it’s the only thing I can think of,” Korra added, mistaking my silence for doubt. ”I suppose it might also be because the difference between our souls is too great, so it doesn’t stick.”

I shook my head, pursing my lips thoughtfully. ”No, that isn’t it. If that were true, it would work like Adaptive Resistance and wouldn’t affect it at all. I wonder...”

My thoughts raced, and I closed my eyes and recalled the battle against the demon apostle Gayron. If I could just recapture that feeling, then maybe I could...

My eyes flashed open, filled with the light of fate, and the entire world slowed to a crawl. Before I could even look about, I became aware of an unbridled rush of mana flowing from my soul like the uncorked tap of a barrel. Just like last time, the merest glimpse of fate required an absurd cost, and I stumbled back a step, already struggling against a growing feeling of weakness.

This wasn’t right. If this ability was supposed to be this difficult to use, I shouldn’t be able to access it at my current level. The soul had built-in protections that prevented one from pushing too hard too fast, like requiring third level to use the Eyes of Fate. But what was I doing wrong?

Guided as much by instinct as conscious thought, I found the pulsing warmth that was the Oracle of Eternity and focused on it. It worked seamlessly within the natural cycle within my soul, spinning my mana together like a spindle thread. From there, I followed the flow and traced fine, nearly imperceptible threads of mana out into the world, weaving between the fabric of fate in an ornate, highly complex pattern. These threads accounted for nearly all of the mana, and must have been responsible for the slowing of time.

I didn’t need to slow time, not by this much. Fable had been able to make good use of it but for me? Without the ability to inflict actual harm on someone, it was completely wasted.

So, taking a deep breath, I consciously slowed the flow of mana to the ability I slowed the draw of mana, hoping it would restrict the spindle’s access to my soul. For a moment, nothing happened, then, gradually, the world began to accelerate. Over the next seconds, the world returned to normal speed, and I was delighted to find that the stars of fate remained behind.

Korra was still looking at me as though nothing had happened, which of course, it hadn’t. Not for her. As I met her gaze, she tilted her head, confused.

”Why did you start smiling? Did you think of something?” she asked, eyes lighting up with expectation.

I froze, lightly touching my lips with my finger to find my lips curled in a slight smile. After a moment, I nodded and said, ”I think I understand myself a little better now.”

With the enhanced power of the Oracle, an entirely new world was shown unto me, one so delicate and fine my eyes had been entirely unable to perceive it before. The entire world thrummed with mana, a driving force behind every operating law and principle. I could have sat there for hours, just watching the beautiful eddies of light swirling through the air, but an ear-splitting screech from the centipede reminded me of the battle raging at our feet.

Turning my gaze, I quickly found the centipede’s soul. My eyes widened, a shocked shiver running down my tail, as I beheld a scene even more wondrous than the stars of fate.

Mana coursed through every fiber of the insect’s carapace, as tightly woven as a master’s tapestry. It formed a delicate network as comprehensive as its nervous system, a fine, tangled web infinitely more complex than any defensive spell. Just a simple glance revealed a thousand flaws in my own control of mana, as well as the true strength of this sixth-level monster.

Whenever Fable’s claws scraped against its armor, a pulse of mana erupted from its soul and flowed through the network, instantly negating any damage the wolf might have inflicted. The process was impossibly smooth and natural. This was no magical technique or conscious defense, but the workings of some sort of ability. Was this the true power of the Oracle of Eternity? Did it allow me to see not only my own, but other’s unique powers as well?

”You were right,” I said softly, glancing at Korra, ”It’s using mana to protect itself. Given its strength, unless we manage to disrupt it, hurting it’s going to be impossible.”

Still standing with her arms folded, Korra frowned, her fingers tapping thoughtfully against the inside of her forearm. ”I don’t suppose you could hit it with a dispel magic?”

”No, that won’t work. With how Dispel Magic works, I’d have to suppress its entire soul to cancel the effect. Maybe if it were a level or two below me, but something this strong?”

I flinched as one of the centipede’s legs caught Fable from behind. The Blade Ward held, but the blow sent a dozen cracks spiderwebbing across the golden sphere. If I couldn’t figure out something soon...I bit my lip, holding back a sigh. Again and again, I found myself helpless against this world. I would have fallen to VIthrass if the Glory Chasers hadn’t arrived. I couldn’t even fight the demons in this world alone. If it weren’t for Korra, I would have–

I stiffened, a shock running through me like I’d just been hit by a bolt of lightning. I’d almost done it again, almost convinced myself I was alone. But I wasn’t. I didn’t have to solve this by myself. Even now, the solution was staring at me with warm, beautiful green eyes.

”Korra,” I ventured, tail twitching a tentative rhythm against the broken stone, ”You said you can...emulate spells? With your Arts?”

She blinked, amusement flickering across her face. ”Yeah, but I only have a few arts right now, all of them fourth level or below. I have the slow, armor break, and a few that help with my mobility. It takes a ton of study and work to isolate the part of the spell I want to copy, so I can only do it if I’m intimately familiar with the spell. And now that I can’t even cast? I’m pretty limited.” she shrugged sadly.

I nodded slowly, the nervous tremor fading from my tail. ”Then what about this?”

Ignoring her dubious expression, I waved my hand and summoned the magic circles for Dispel Magic. As I neared the completion of the spell, I cut off the flow of mana, leaving it hovering motionless, fully on display for Korra to see.

Holding my breath, I focused, not on the spell as a whole, but on the delicate threads of magic connecting each rune. Something like this should have been impossible. At the very least, it had never been attempted in this world. Then again, neither had arrays, and if I could use those to synthesize two magic circles, perhaps I could do the opposite.

The sounds of the battle faded away, drowned out by the rush of blood in my ears. My tail twitched in time with the rapid beat of my heart as one by one, the runes winked out, the intricate pattern unraveling until only a single slender coil of magic remained.

Korra’s sharp intake of breath broke my concentration. Her eyes, usually so warm, shone with an intensity that matched the shining mana in her soul. ”Xiviyah...” The word hung in the air, a mix of disbelief and dawning excitement. ”You’re a genius! This might actually work!”

Before I could respond, her chest rose and fell with a single deep breath. A moment later, her mana surged out of her soul, saturating every fiber of her being with power. She lifted an open palm and stared at it, concentrating for a moment, then closed it in a fist. Water materialized around her fist, every droplet and thread overflowing with a familiar dissonance.

”You did it!” I gasped, clasping my hands together.

She stared at the writhing mana contained in the water for a moment before relaxing her hand, turning to face the battling monsters. Her muscles tensed as she gathered her mana in her legs and I quickly took a step back.

”Don’t blink,” she warned, flashing me a grin, ”I’d hate for you to miss the maiden strike of our new art.”

I nodded quickly, shielding my eyes as her soul erupted and she kicked off the ground, soaring toward the centipede. The stars of fate seemed to part for her, ushering her forward in a blaze of light, and I found myself holding my breath. It was time for the true power of the Water Hero to be known.