Chapter 144: Black Amber

“Rhian, get Stryg and the Mora girl out of here. Maximus, you’re with me,” Loh shifted her feet and entered her battle stance.

“Understood, Mistress,” Maximus gripped his ax tight and glared at the two dozen valley warriors.

“Master, wait, what are you doing?!” Stryg asked in panic.

The two strange warriors had said they were high-master magi, the same rank as Loh. She was at a complete disadvantage. They all needed to run away. Stryg tried squirming out of Rhian’s embrace, but he could barely feel his limbs, let alone move them.

“You heard Loh, we need to get you out here. There’s no time to waste,” Rhian threw Stryg behind her and unto the saddle.

Rhian ignored his futile struggling and strapped his legs tightly on the saddle. She then kneeled next to Maeve and motioned her to hop on.

Maeve looked around, fear and confusion crawling all over her face. She hadn’t dreamed of any of this. What was happening?

“My siblings, they’re still here. They might be in danger,” Maeve mumbled.

“Sorry, Miss, but I’m here for Stryg. We are leaving with or without you. Are you getting on or not?” Rhian stared at her with hard steel-grey eyes.

“I…” Maeve opened her mouth, but the words did not come out.

She nodded glumly and got behind Stryg on the saddle. The goblin was lurching to one side, she wrapped her arms around his chest and pulled him upright.

“And where do you all think you might be going?” The elf, Kyriil, stretched his arms.

“Funny you should ask,” Loh narrowed her eyes.

Kyriil thrusted his palms forward, white mana condensed in his hands, the bright spell flared to life, light bursted in a wave of magic. Loh’s arms swiped to her sides, a dome of shadows wrapped around her group. The ardent light tore away at the dome, cutting the darkness into ribbons.

Kyriil smiled, his bright spell had overwhelmed the shadow spell. He frowned as his light spell faded away, the dark elf and her friends were unharmed.

“There’s no doubt about it, the dark elf is a high-master mage,” the axlean, Grim, muttered to his elf comrade.

“I never did like dark elves. As if they were somehow related to elves, We’re nothing alike,” Kyriil sneered.

“We’ll subdue her quickly,” Grim stepped forward.

“Rhian, this is the 1st floor. Jump, now.” Loh kept her eyes on the enemy, yet she pointed to the large glass panels behind her.

Rhian nodded in understanding. She hurled her spear at the window, the steel-head shattered the glass and flew to the courtyard outside.

“Maximus, you deal with the warriors, I’ll deal with the magi,” Loh said sharply.

“Gladly!” Maximus charged the valley raiders without hesitation.

“Master, we need to run!” Stryg yelled weakly.

Loh smiled sadly at her apprentice, “Keep him safe, Rhian.”

Loh ran at the two enemy magi.

Stryg watched Loh’s back disappear into the fray as Rhian jumped through the window. He felt as if the world slowed down as Rhian vaulted, the stone window-sill came up past his vision and cut off his sight of the battle. Rhian landed on the courtyard with a crack of thunder. She pushed off the cobblestone and sprinted onwards.

Maximus dived at the valley raiders with a fury of a dozen men. He swung his large ax in a wide arc, slicing two raiders in half. The others ducked under the attack, one threw her spear at the centaur, grazing his chest, tearing the skin in a splatter of blood.

Maximus grimaced, his lack of armor had made this far more difficult. He roared in anger and kicked the raider in the face, smashing her head into a pulp.

Water appeared and condensed around Grim’s arm and froze into two feet long razor-sharp needles. With a flick of Grim’s wrist, the frost needles shot forth with a screech of wind. Loh snapped her hand out, a roaring vortex of flame blasted out and evaporated the frost needles before they reached the exposed Maximus.

Loh twisted her lips, the tall axlean mage was willing to attack his own men if it meant killing Maximus and her.

Kyriil cupped his hands together, a blazing orb of light grew in between his hands. A laser materialized from the orb and zipped out, burning a hole into the marble floor. Kyriil shifted his hands above the orb and angled the direction of the laser. The bright beam seared the floors and marble pillars and went straight at Loh.

She casted an orange agility spell into her legs, her veins turned a dark grey, granting her enhanced speed. She bolted away from the laser, yet the beam kept up with her with ease. Loh jumped in the air, the laser cut upwards, she twisted at the last moment, the beam missed her by a hair’s breadth.

As Loh fell through the air she glanced at Maximus, he was covered in cuts. The elite raiders fought as a team, bringing their shields together to block Maximus’ attacks and counterattacking with quick precision and unity. Maximus was being pushed back into the corner by the enemy.

Loh landed softly and flexed her hands, orange mana crackling at her fingertips. The air grew hot and blurred. An inferno blazed into existence around her and scourged the floor, forming a cyclone of flame that reached the ceiling. Maximus had made it easy for her. By being pushed into the corner he wouldn’t be caught in her attack.

Loh could feel the high-master class spell consume her orange mana at a rapid pace. But this wouldn’t be the same as when she faced off against the frost wolves. She wouldn’t allow the spell to burn for long, instead, she would make it burn far hotter for a single moment. One moment would be enough.

Kyriil’s eyes widened in fear, he tried bringing his orb’s laser down on her, but it was too late.

Loh smiled viciously, Infernal Cyclone.

The orange flames howled and blazed through the ballroom, scorching the ground and consuming all within sight. The wooden beams were burnt to charcoal and the metal chandeliers warped and melted. The valley warriors did not have a chance to scream before their bodies were roasted to the bone. Maximus covered his face, but he could feel his hair being seared from the intense heat.

The cyclone of flame disappeared as quickly as it had destroyed the ballroom, leaving only black-scorched floors and pillars in a rain of ash. Maximus collapsed, exhausted.

“...No,” Loh’s eyes widened.

A dome of silver-ice wrapped around the doorway. Cold mist floated around the dome, cooling the burning embers outside. Layers of crystalized ice crumbled off the dome, its structure barely holding, but the ones inside were unharmed. A large chunk of ice trembled and fell off the dome, the last chink in its armor. The silver-ice dome collapsed around its caster.

“I’m impressed, to think that my greatest defensive water spell barely held. You truly are incredible, dark elf,” Grim said solemnly.

“I really didn’t want to be saved by you. Don’t tell Lysaila,” Kyriil stepped out from behind him

He ignored the elf and looked at Loh, “I am Grim, a proud axlean of the Azure Realm, servant of the Azure gods, and an elemental high-master water mage. May I have the honor of knowing your name?”

“...Loh of House Noir,” she wiped the sweat from her brow.

“What are you doing? Our identities are confidential,” Kyriil admonished angrily.

Grim glanced at the burnt skeletons of the raiders, “I didn’t have time to protect our warriors. You torched them too quickly, Loh of House Noir.”

“As if you ever cared for any of them,” Loh panted and rested her hands on her knees. She could feel her insides overheating from her spell-casting.

“Cared? I try to avoid getting emotionally attached to people who will most likely die. That does not mean I did not value the lives of our warriors. They were loyal and useful to our lord. Their deaths will not go in vain,” Grim said.

Kyriil created his orb of light once more. “Don’t worry, pretty dark elf, we won’t kill you.”

“You’ve honored me with your greatest spell, Loh of House Noir. Allow me to honor you with mine,” Grim raised his hands above his head.

“Wait, we’re not supposed to kill her!” Kyriil yelled.

But Grim’s milky eyes were set on Loh. Dozens upon dozens of silver-ice shards formed around him. Water mana condensed into droplets of water mid-air and began to spin, growing with each moment, until waves of water rose above them. The waves weaved together, the silver-ice shards seeping into its flow until the water spell formed the shape of a large snake.

Loh looked up at the titanic serpent helplessly, there was nowhere to run.

Grim yelled, “In the name of the Azure gods and Lord Marek -”

“Grim, stop it!” Kyriil tried shaking the axlean water mage.

“I sentence you to death!” Grim swung his hands down.

Loh felt her muscles tighten, Marek?

The water serpent hissed, a crackling of silver-ice scratching on each other within a torrent of rushing water.

The faces of Loh’s love, Tauri, and her brother, Aizel, flashed in her mind. Her guilt felt like a weight keeping her in place.

Loh sighed, I guess you were wrong, grandfather.

The serpent sprang down on her in a torrent of water and magic.

~~~

6 years ago…

Loh fell to her knees. She could barely feel her legs, her lungs burned, and her arms felt like stone. She could taste fresh blood on her tongue.

“Get up,” Elzri Noir said coldly.

“I can… hardly breathe,” Loh gasped.

“Do you think that changes anything? Do you think your enemy will wait for you to catch your breath?” Elzri walked around her.

He flicked his finger, a gust of wind blasted her away. She bounced painfully on the stone floor several times before a tree painfully stopped her momentum.

She coughed up blood and lay still. Elzri walked up to her. She tried standing, she couldn’t even manage to sit up.

“You’re weak, Loh. I taught you better than this.”

“I don’t understand. Why are you doing this?” She looked up at him with one eye, the other had closed up from the swelling.

“Because you need to learn.”

“Learn what? That you are stronger than me? That I can’t beat you?” Loh cried.

“No, you already know that. The simple truth is you can’t defeat a mage more powerful than you. That’s the way the world is.” Elzri crouched down, “The question is, what are you going to do when you find yourself in the same situation out there in the real world, not in a training courtyard.”

“Die?”

Elzri slapped her, “Don’t you ever say that again. You are a Noir and my heir. Act like it.”

Loh spat out a glob of blood and spit. She took a moment to try and think of his question. “...Fight harder?”

“No. Fight smarter. Survival is most important, Loh. You must survive, no matter how powerful your opponent may be. Your goal is to live. That’s how you win, not by defeating your opponent, but by surviving to fight another day. Do whatever it takes.”

Loh bit her lip, “But what if I can’t? What if my opponent is so powerful that no matter what strategies I use, I can’t defeat them or escape? I mean, look at you. There’s no way I’d be able to get away from an archmage.”

“You would be surprised. There are ways to survive even against an archmage. Granted, most of them require great power and tenacity, but I believe you will be able to achieve such feats someday.”

“And what if I can’t?”

Elzri gripped her wrist and pointed at her silver bracelet, “You see this? It’s the same as the one I wear. It represents the sacred bond between master and apprentice. And that means I believe in you. You are my pride and legacy, Loh. So long as you have the desire to live another day and are willing to push yourself to the point of sacrifice, then no matter who you face, you will win.”

~~~

You were wrong, grandfather, Loh thought as she watched the titanic water serpent crash down on her. I don’t care to live another day…

Loh felt orange mana flood through her arteries, filling her entire body with power. Her veins darkened to a pitch-black as the agility spell took hold. Her body disappeared from sight, the water serpent crashed down on an empty floor.

Kyriil’s head shot up. Loh hung high above them, her shadow formed tendrils that gripped onto the ceiling.

She had quickly multi-casted the shadow tendril spell to latch on to the ceiling after her jump. The familiar shadow spell had been easy enough. However, she could already feel the backlash of her other spell. Her muscles screamed in pain and her blood felt like it was boiling, her body was breaking down. The blood vessels in her eyes popped, tears of blood ran down her cheeks.

Loh took a deep shaky breath, so long as she could kill Marek and his damn magi, she didn't care what she sacrificed. Arch-mage agility spell, Black Amber.

“Up there!” Kyriil pointed at the ceiling.

Grim threw his hands upwards, the water serpent sprang at Loh. She kicked off the ceiling, her figure flashed.

Kyriil’s ear twitched, a soft breeze tickled his nape. From the corner of his eye he saw Loh’s foot smash down on Grim’s spine.

The 10-foot axlean flew through the air, his body smacked into a pillar, spun, and crashed into the wall. The water serpent broke apart and rained down on the ballroom. Loh stumbled, her shadow tendrils pushed off the floor and kept her standing. She raised her head slowly and turned to the stunned elf, as if a spider watching her prey, shadowy limbs trembling with rage.

Loh’s silhouette disappeared.