The Forsaken Hero

The coming night vanished in a surge of golden radiance, as a second sun burst into the sky, replacing the natural one as it slipped below the horizon. It was as hot as it was bright, bathing the forest in summer heat. I shielded my eyes against the glare, trying to see if the spell was functioning as we’d anticipated, but it was too bright.

”The hell?” Korra asked, not bothering to shut her gaping jaw.

Luke raised his arm, blocking out the light. ”Gods, what is this?” he gasped.

There was something off about his voice, a wavering note that caused me to turn and clasp his hands. They were cold and clammy. I could feel his pulse, sharp and erratic, like his heart was trying to escape his chest.

Without a second thought, I soul cast Link Ability, smothering him in the stars of Adaptive Resistance. He shuddered, panting lightly as his body quickly calmed itself, the color returning to his face.

”Sorry,” I said, embracing him. ”I...I didn’t even think of that.”

”What happened?” Korra asked, finally tearing her gaze from the sky.

”We designed the spell to counter the curse mana woven throughout the black mist. And, well...” I hesitated, squeezing Luke tighter. ”He’s practically made of curses.”

”It’s alright, I’m not going anywhere,” he chuckled, stroking the back of my head, mussing my hair. ”No need to get so possessive.”

But I just squeezed him tighter. ”It doesn’t hurt, does it?” I asked, looking up, biting my lip.

He shook his head. ”It reminded me of Victor’s aura, actually, though not quite so potent. But I’d guess my curses are at least a level weaker under this light.”

”It shouldn’t be this bright. It’s burning through my mana pretty quickly,” R’lissea said, scowling at the sky. ”We must have miscalculated something somewhere.”

Giving Luke one more look, searching his soul for abnormalities, I finally let him go and went to the railing. I gripped it hard, whitening my knuckles, and leaned over, peering at the forest below.

”At least it’s working,” Korra said, joining me at the railing. ”It’s melting in the light like normal mist.”

”How long do you think you could channel this spell for?” Luke asked, rubbing his horn.

”Um, a few hours, I think. But R’lissea’s right. The spell’s too intense. I think we could get away with a third as much power,” I said, glancing up at the sun. ”If we refine it a bit more, I might be able to sustain it on my own for a few days at a time, maybe longer. All depends on whether we can balance the drain with my natural mana recovery.”

”But even if it’s close, that would be too dangerous. As long as we’re in the mist, you won’t be able to recover mana. Anything extra you expend on spells or wards would only make you more vulnerable.”

”That’s not entirely true. Right now, R’lissea and I split the mana burden. But I’m actually gaining mana.”

”How is that possible? I don’t think I can last two hours at this rate,” R’lissea asked.

”It’s because I’m absorbing the power of the black mist. It covers the entire drain, letting me recover mana naturally at a positive rate. The deeper we get into the black mist, the more power I can siphon. If we fight mages at any point, my wards should be able to sustain themselves off any spells they block.”

”That’s...is that real?” Korra asked, staring at me. ”That seems a little, I don’t know, unfair?”

R’lissea nodded fervently. ”It definitely is. I’m starting to think I got shafted on the ability front.”

”Same, though Tranquil Soul has saved me more times than I can count, and water mastery let me create my own fighting style. So I guess I can’t complain too much,” she said, tossing her hair.

”True,” R’lissea said, pursing her lips. ”I suppose your resistance is only this strong because of how much you’ve suffered. If you hadn’t the Divine Curse, your curse resistance never could have reached this point.”

”I think you’re both forgetting something,” Luke said, putting his arm around me, grinning wide. ”Resistance is just one of her abilities. You can’t discount the whole vision thing or her mastery over time.”

Korra made a face. ”Don’t remind me.”

”Actually, I think that might be an even sharper double-edged sword than her resistance,” R’lissae said. ”I’ve seen how much those visions weigh on her, how much a burden they really are.”

I nodded, snuggling up against Luke. Even if he was teasing me, I couldn’t resist a hug.

”Well, looks like the armies are ready to move. those that aren’t staring up at the sky,” Korra said, ”We should probably tell someone this was your doing before they freak out.”

”Good point. Ready?” R’lissea asked, looking at me.

I nodded, and we raised our staffs. Together, to prevent backlash from unbalancing the mana draw, we ended the spell. The sun winked out, leaving a residual glare in the sky brighter than the moon, which slowly faded until it winked out entirely. The black mist, which had crept around the five or so mile wide bubble we created, collapsed inward, sweeping over the forest. The Devoted and Last Light Company had already evacuated those sectors, keeping ahead of the advance.

”I’ll go tell Aerion what we’ve discovered. I’m sure he’ll be delighted to know we have a way to hold back the black mist for days on end.”

”Perpetually, if we rotate casting the spell,” I said.

She nodded and sprouted a pair of translucent wings, flying over to the Seraph. As she landed on the deck, some quarter mile away, I leaned back against Luke, closing my eyes as I communicated our discovery with the leaders of my Horde, and instructed Zephyriss to forward my explanation to Bethiv.

Once the last stream of soulspeak faded into memory, my eyes fluttered open, and I rose on my tiptoes, giving Luke’s cheek a little peck. He blinked, looking down at me, and a faint blush crept into my cheeks.

”What was that for?” he asked, his tail curling around me, the tip brushing my waist.

”Just practicing,” I whispered, squirming out of his grip, not quite meeting his gaze.

Korra rolled her eyes. ”You two are adorable.” She snagged my hand, pulling me to her. ”I’ll see her to her room.”

Luke’s hand rose, brushing his cheek where I’d kissed him. ”I was planning on doing that.”

”Not with that look in your eye. You think I didn’t notice the tail thing? Gayron always does that right before he...er, that is to say, I’ve seen Jenna seem more innocent,” she finished lamely.

”Hey!” Jenna said, looking over sharply from where she and Luxxa were speaking, ”I heard that!”

Korra stuck out her tongue and dragged me away. I gave Luke a helpless look and a small wave, but he didn’t seem to be paying attention. He stared after Korra, his brow furrowed, an oddly agitated twitch to his tail.

”What did you mean by that?” I asked once we were safe in my quarters, and she let go of me.

”Hmm?” she raised an eyebrow.

”That Gayron...whatever it was about the tail. Isn’t it normal for demonkins to show affection through their tail? It, um...feels right.” I admitted, blushing gently.

”Ahh, that,” she leaned against the door, folding her arms beneath her breasts. ”You needn’t worry about it. I was just teasing him...mostly. And he got the message, I think.”

”And that was?”

She chuckled. ”You’ll figure it out at some point. Hopefully not too soon.”

My lips twisted in a pout, but she’d left before I could protest, leaving me alone with so much as a goodbye hug. I sighed, slipped from my boots and clothes, and quickly fell asleep. But even then, I didn’t rest much, passing through the weave of fate. I’d exhausted most of my mana, but as a vision manifested, it was brighter and clearer than ever. Yet another side effect of taking on the Soul Binder.

I was in a demon gate. That much was clear by the thick swirls of infernal mana that blotted out the sky. The environment was sharp and metallic, with trees of iron bark and delicate steel leaves. Even the grass was metal, each blade a razor-sharp knife. I’d never seen one, yet this could only be a blade gate.

A crunch sounded behind me, like boots sinking into frozen snow. I turned and gasped, recognizing Evla, the Apostle of Gravity. She looked well, her stark white horns lustrous and polished, her skin with a healthy flush. But she wore a tight frown, glaring at a demon with a sixth-level soul. Apart from them, the gate was empty as far as the eye could see.

”What do you mean, no?” Evla asked, putting her hands on her hips. ”You would reject the mark of the horde?”

The demon’s answer was cold and snide, scraping a rasp. ”No, not the horde. Your horde.”