082 - Resonance

Devour!

Magnus grinned madly, his gold eyed twin exactly like him; grinning in the same mad way. Devour! Of course . . hahaha . .

Pontius gasped desperately for air, his throat held almost entirely shut in Magnus vice like grip, his eyes bulging. The old Alchemist tore at the fingers, poured strand after strand of Animus from his fingertips, but Magnus simply hoisted him up - holding him in the air with one hand. From his other hand a single strand of red and gold emerged.

Pontius coughed up a mouthful of blood, every one of his fingers were crooked and bleeding, his fingernails cracked open - but his eyes were still very much alive. From each of his fingers a solid strand of Animus, bright electric blue, shot out, wrapping around himself in a tight knit cocoon.

The last protective measures of a doomed Alchemist? Not at all - fast, much faster than Magnus could react, the bright blue strands of Animus tightened around Pontius, shrinking in and stabbing into his own flesh in a thousand places - Magnus felt the flesh of Pontius throat burn, frenzied sparks explode with the force of a thunderstrike.

Even with Magnus' grip on his throat Pontius laughed grimly. "Ah ah ha . . Celestial, I die, you die!"

Magnus hesitated no longer; The red-gold strand coiled through the air like a shining snake, responding to Magnus intent - with a wild laugh he directed it into the Alchemist, piercing right through the cocoon and into Pontius’ eye - right up his optic nerve and directly into the old man's brain.

The blue strands collapsed, the Alchemists flesh and bones that were infused with Animus erupted out - a blast of force rupturing his skin in a thousand cuts, his bones bursting open - breaking and cracking. Magnus bore the full brunt of the explosion, a torrent of wild energy and gore flying out in all directions - but!

It was too late! The golden strand had already entered into Pontius inner world - in that single instant before his self detonation was complete. Magnus entered into that inner world - the sea and sky full of clouds and light, his red-gold strand multiplying, a thousand mouths blossoming from every strand and biting into every cloud of light all at once; swallowing the sea and the skies with a ferocious appetite.

It had never been so smooth before; to Magnus it was as if he were gulping down an overripe fruit - in the space of a single breath he had devoured in seas, swallowed the storms and the skies, cracked open the inner world and taken it all.

All the memories, all the things that were Pontius . . all!

A new face appeared on the tree above Sung Soo and Lars - the peaceful sleeping visage of the old Alchemist, eyes closed.

Everything that was Pontius Magister Preater . . his whole life . . every detail, every friend and lover, every student and relationship - everything, all laid out, all neatly filed away.

The most recent memories, Pontius leading the hunt for the Celestial within the Ether - everything became clear to Magnus, from the names and roles of the six who'd come with him, their abilities - the Alchemists mission and knowledge, down the most minute detail - Magnus knew it all.

At the same time he now knew just how bizarre this place was - his forest, the golden light - hells! This reflection!

"Am I really that strange?" The second Magnus said. "Tsh. Don't call me that!"

"Call you what? I ain't said a bloody thing!"

"Second Magnus! I ain't no second Magnus!" The second . . the reflection with the gold eyes replied excitedly.

"Not reflection either."

"No? Alright, what do you want to be called then? We can't both be Magnus." Magnus wiped the bits of Pontius from his jacket, the remaining fragments of the old Alchemist withering away in a matter of seconds and turning to dust.

"Ok . . ok . . . call me Rolf."

"No. Not Rolf." Magnus frowned.

"How about . . Telemundo? No? Ok . . yeah . . that'll do. I'm Hob. Hob is fine, right? Thats me, Hob the me. You know," Hob jabbed a finger into Magnus' chest. "Hob that is you, Hob."

"Hob? Hob the me?" A flicker of doubt flashed across Magnus face, Hob didn't seem to be overly concerned "Yeah, whatever. You can read my mind?"

"Nah mate," Hob shook his head. "How can I read your mind when you are me? We just think the same things - your thoughts are mine and my thoughts are yours."

"Like a reflection?"

"NO! Like . . like two sides of the same coin, ok? Not a reflection."

"Ok. So you are me and I am you . . why can't I hear your thoughts?"

"C'mon Magnus, didn't I just say? You can! One and the same, right? I don't 'hear' anything, neither do you - it is all just us, you and me - the same."

"Ah . . ah hells . . ok. The same? So . . . what was that golden light?"

"Dunno. Pontius here seems to think it is something that the Celestials are hiding, some sort of superpower."

"Is it?"

"You tell me."

"Ah."

Magnus and Hob fell into a mutual silence, examining each other for a time. He is exactly like me, a perfect reflec - ah, perfectly like me in every way! When Magnus raised a hand, Hob did too - reaching out they both clasped each other in a firm handshake - Hob's skin rough, calloused in the same ways as Magnus, the same blemishes and unkempt fingernails . .

"What about the rest of 'em?"

"Do you even need to ask? Look -" Hob gestured to the far side of the forest clearing. "Baqir and Zaynab, right on time."

From between the trees on the far side of the black water stream stumbled the two Mithraic Seers. Their colourful clothes frayed and torn - caught as they'd run on the thickets and brambles - through swirls of white mist they'd run - blindly fleeing from the clearing only to end up entering it once more.

Baqir froze, catching sight of Magnus covered in chunks of Pontius, the leaves and roots around him stained deeply with blood - he and Zaynab recoiled in horror, quickly fleeing back between the trees.

Magnus sighed, following unhurried. "Bad luck . . truly bad luck . . " a devilish smile plastered on his face.

***

“North! No . . West! Blast! Which way, dammit? I can’t see Sung Hu, which way is it?” Dong-Geun couldn’t put the slightest bit of weight on his leg, only able to keep moving while being supported by Sung Hu. They had lost sight of the two young Alchemists and Seers within moments, left to stagger on through the blind mist by themselves.

Dammit! Of all the luck, why had he insisted on being a part of this cursed hunt? For the first time in a hundred years a Celestial had been detected - a hunting party formed. The Segye Imperial Palace had already sent out several cultivators for the Alchemists auction, Dong-Geun thought it a stroke of fortune! He had been perfectly placed to answer their call - to take part in the search for the Celestial, to be amongst the first to mark it out.

Now? Sung Hu gritted his teeth, his Mens weakening with every step, Dong-Geun hopped on frantically,. This white mist blocked everything, every sense that might be improved and amplified could penetrate no deeper than a couple of feet, beyond that they were blind.

“Prii-iiince! Priiiii-iinnce! Little Prince!” A voice sang out from deep within the mist.

Dong-Geun and Sung Hu felt their blood run cold. The voice seemed to come from everywhere all at once - they both knew who it belonged to - the Celestial!

The mist before them cleared, Dong-Geun and Sung Hu stumbled on together - over roots and leaves, onwards - the only way that was clear . . right back into the clearing.