The Forsaken Hero

”A foolhardy notion, hero, but I can think of no better situation in which to reveal your allegiance,” Fyren said, agreeing with Victor. ”Xiviyah, can you link him into your nexus? It would be best to have a free line of communication.”

I looked at the demon in surprise. It was rare for him to involve himself so proactively. He caught my gaze and nodded, just once. Without another word, I reached out, linking Victor into the shimmering web of souls.

”Victor?” Korra’s gasp was immediate. ”The hell are you doing? Weren’t you supposed to be-”

”No time to explain,” I said, ”I’m going to cast a shield over the city.”

”Good idea,” Selena said, ”We’ve successfully lured the arbiter beyond the city limits, and Luke’s about to engage. I won’t be able to shield Duskwood from the consequences.”

My lips parted, but no words escaped. The magic and shockwaves already tearing through the city were terrifying, but if Selena was already shielding us from their full power, how much worse could the devastation get? The thought sent a shiver down my spine, and my tail coiled tightly around my leg. Not doing something was no longer an option.

”I’ll be joining you lot at the grove. Save a few inquisitors for me,” Victor said.

I left them to the conversation, withdrawing into the solitude of my own mind. Fyren and my guard followed me into the depths of the Azure Wing, our footsteps echoing on the grating as we descended. The ship shuddered, groaning with the strain of the battle raging miles away, but Captain Melvet’s crew had done well. We were safe for now.

The door to the secondary cargo hold hung open. The prism flickered as if in welcome as we entered, rainbow sparkles dancing around the darkness. Taking a deep breath, I summoned my staff and sat before it, the only sounds my breathing and the gentle clinking of the chains suspending the artifact.

I shook off Fyren’s disapproval as I reached out to the Prism, brushing it with my soul. As before, it responded, its light swelling to greet me. I focused, drawing on it as I would a shard, a mere trickle of power at a time.

But the instant the ribbon touched my soul, it awakened a mind of its own. The trickle opened to a torrent, saturating every fiber of my soul in an instant. I braced myself for the ripping and tearing I knew was coming, but it didn’t. Instead, the power coursed through me gently, slowly, a circuit forming between myself and the prism, emptying even as it filled me. It stretched with the pleasantness of a full stomach, but no further.

. When I opened my eyes, I could see the stars of fate, and the omnipresent currents of mana that knit them together. My aura was brighter than I’d ever seen it, filling the room with golden incandescence.

”That’s new,” I whispered, trailing a hand through an eddy of mana, watching it trail behind my fingers.

”What did you do?” Fyren asked warily.

I shook my head. ”I wish I knew. But this artifact seems to have some connection with Fate. Why would they bring something like that to us?”

Fyren frowned and extended his hand toward the prism. The lantern lit up, and I shivered, my nostrils filling with the scent of ash. I could feel his mana rub against my own, somehow sharing the space within the prism. His touch was foreign, far colder and more distant than the fiery warmth I’d grown used to, like he’d put on a gauntlet. Or, even more unsettling, that he’d finally taken one off.

The demon let out a long breath, black flames flickering around his body. Slowly, he closed his fist, and they extinguished, his connection with the prism cut. A strange resonance rang in the depths of his soul, and he jerked back, closing his hand in a fist. His connection with the prism severed, the dark flames extinguished.

”What was that? That didn’t feel like fire mana,” I said curiously.

He shook himself, a strange, guarded look steeling his expression. Even his soul retreated, letting nothing through our bond. ”It’s nothing. But I can tell you this artifact isn’t attuned with fate, any more than fire. It’s called a prism for good reason, amplifying the nature and attributes of the one attuned to it. Think of it like your staff, yet capable of morphing to support anyone’s magic.”

”But only attributed souls?” I asked.

”I couldn’t say for sure, not without more research, but it does at least that much.”

”Then it’s fine if I use it?”

He hesitated, then sighed, nodding. ”It’s safe enough. But like your staff, it may have a deeper purpose, so watch yourself. Don’t draw on any power you don’t understand.”

I nodded, staring into the depths of the prism. Already, I could feel its allure, a subtle urging to draw on it deeper, to explore the depths of its power. It was the same feeling I felt the first time I tasted magic, locked in the cage in the warehouse. A desperate desire, a yearning for more.

”I just need it for an Aegis,” I murmured, as much to myself as Fyren.

Taking hold of the mana coursing through my soul, I began to weave a spell, compressing it within the constraints of my soul. One circle, then a second, and a third. When I got to the seventh circle, my soul couldn’t bear the weight any longer.

”Victor,” I whispered, nudging him through the Nexus.

”On it,” was his only response.

A tremor coursed through the Azure Wing as I felt Victor’s soul surge from the deck, erupting with a force that seemed to pull at the very air around our ship. My grip tightened on my staff as I held the spell within, the swelling pressure building to an unbearable burn. Pain lanced through my soul, sharp and insistent, demanding release. When the agony became too much to bear, I finally relinquished my hold, allowing the spell to erupt from my soul in a blinding flash of golden light.

The ship bucked violently beneath us. The walls groaned as if under an immense weight, and the protective wards flickered like dying embers. The magic circuitry woven into the ship’s frame whined, temporarily overloaded by the sheer volume of mana released in a single, overwhelming burst. My stomach lurched into my throat as the Azure Wing plunged downward, the deck tilting precariously. Overhead, though I couldn’t see them for the ship around us, I could feel my magic circles spinning, continuing to absorb the boundless mana from my soul. They were exposed now, spreading miles across Duskwood.

Just as suddenly, the systems recovered and we stabilized. But no sooner had I caught my balance than the ship rocked again, riding the currents of a shockwave bearing Victor’s mana. I could only pray that whatever move he’d taken had been flashy enough to draw the eye of the inquisitors in that split second when my magic had manifested. Otherwise, they would surely have seen the magic circles emerge from our ship to take their current place in the sky.

”Shining Aegis,” I whispered, bringing the spell to its end.

A hush fell over the ship, the groaning of strained metal falling silent for the first time in what felt like an eternity. The violent trembling ceased, the deck steady beneath my feet. One second passed without the thunder of a shockwave, then two, then three. I drew a long, deep breath, slowly letting my connection with the prism go. It left me feeling empty and cold, filled with a strange yearning for Luke’s arms.

I pushed myself to my feet, looking at Fyren.

”That’s it?”

I nodded. ”That’s it.”

Together, we made our way back to the deck, leaving the prism glimmering in the darkness. As the door opened, and we made our way into the open again, I looked up, lips parting in awe. A golden, shimmering dome stretched over the city, like a sea of liquid starlight. It spread so far I couldn’t see the edges, knowing from the draw on my mana alone that it touched almost half a mile outside the outer city’s walls.

Shockwaves from the west, from the battle with the arbiter, rolled across its mirrored surface in visible waves, rebounding and echoing back the way they’d come. Even the chaotic mana release within the city was absorbed by the thick, ambient fate mana that permeated every star and thread of fate within the spell. Arts and spells still landed with full power, but their backlash and shockwaves were effectively nullified.

”Shining Aegis?” Fyren asked, turning to me.

I nodded, tugging my hair, a little self-conscious at the wonder in his gaze. ”I built it after seeing the World Barrier. It takes the seventh-level Grand Aegis and combines it in an eighth-level array with Mirror Lock. That lets it deflect the brunt of magic attacks, letting it withstand a lot more. Also, I got rid of the need to specify souls, though in exchange, it now works equally against anyone.”

”And if a ninth-level spell strikes it? Your aegis is only eighth, isn’t it?”

”I tailored it to Adaptive Resistance. Anything that my ability isn’t strong enough to absorb, it simply lets through. So if the arbiter or Selena aims something directly at the city...” I shrugged helplessly. ”But at least I can protect everyone from the battles raging around us.”

”I noticed you severed your connection with the prism. How long are you going to sustain it?”

I tilted my head in thought. ”Hmm, at this rate, probably a few days?”

He blanched. ”Days?”

”Yep! As long as I’m conscious, I can use Adaptive resistance to reinvest the mana it absorbs into itself. Unless it’s hit by an attack strong enough to break it outright, the Aegis just grows stronger the more it’s hit. But, to be honest, the drain is considerable. Once all the fighting stops, I probably won’t be able to sustain it for more than a few minutes on my own mana.”

”Genius,” he muttered, rubbing his forehead. ”But if you can only sustain it by being conscious...not exactly reassuring.”

”I know,” I said, sighing as I sagged against the railing. ”I’d say it’s no problem, but I do tend to pass out during fights like this. Guess you’ll just have to protect me, right?”

”You’ve grown a bit too comfortable with that,” he grumbled, then straightened. ”Seems like the Justice Hero made good on his word. I haven’t sensed a single hostile signature locked onto this ship.”

”Thank goodness,” I said, fingers curling against my chest in relief. Turning to the helm, I waved at the captain, drawing his attention. ”Captain, please take us back to the grove. The battle should be nearly finished by now.”