A/N: The long-awaited chapter is finally quote Cards Against Humanity (TM): "They thought we were insane. They thought Chapter 29 couldn't be put into Retribution. They were wrong." I bet you all thought it was never going to happen.
Enjoy!
Warnings: Blood, dismemberment/mutilation
It didn't take the team long to reach Whitefall Town from the abandoned fortress—barely half a day. The drakes plowed through the deep snow with happy snuffles, occasionally diving into a drift to scatter it, much to their riders' dismay. By the time they pulled their mounts to a stop on the outskirts of the snowy town, their fur armor and cloaks were weighted down with freezing slush and ice. The team slipped down from their mounts and looked around, gripping the chain leads tightly in hand.
"It's awfully quiet," Anna finally noted.
The others nodded. The town looked and sounded abandoned. There were no people loitering in the streets or children playing in the snow. The few snowmen still standing alongside buildings and benches were partially snowed in and many had fallen apart. Wind whistled between buildings, and carried no noise of chatter. In fact, the only sign of the town actually being inhabited was the fact that smoke curled from multiple chimneys.
"Maybe because it's so cold out," Lance suggested after a few minutes. "It can't be any warmer than ten below, right now."
Matt shrugged and stepped forwards, leading his drake. He sank up to his thigh in a hidden pocket and shuddered as some snow got into the leg of his armor. "That, or the snow is just too deep," he muttered. He jerked his head to signal at the inn, and held his lead out for Lance to take. "I'll go in there and see if I can figure out where Beth and Sam are."
"Shouldn't we travel in pairs?" Natalie asked with a concerned frown. "Now would be a really bad time to get split up and injured or killed."
Matt hesitated before gesturing at the drakes. "I don't think you or Anna can hold onto two drakes at once by yourself, and there's nothing to tie them to. And I somehow doubt the town would appreciate them running around alone," he explained. "If I'm not out in five minutes, then you can turn the drakes loose and come after me."
Lance nodded, "Alright, five minutes, starting now." He watched Matt trudge to the inn and shove his way inside. He glanced at Natalie, who still looked fearful, and decided maybe a little humor was in order. "Look at him, planning ahead and considering potential problems," he joked. "I think we've been a good influence on him."
Anna grinned as she shot a glance at him. "Let's be honest here: he was just getting an excuse to be inside."
Natalie cracked a faint, but still tense grin as she added, "Think he'll manage to down some beer while he's in there?"
Lance tilted his head as he pretended to think that through. Finally, he smirked and said, "I bet he could get three tankards down." As he'd hoped, Natalie was relaxing again, letting out a small laugh.
"It has been awhile since he's had some beer."
Anna opened her mouth to joke that maybe they should have specified telling Matt that they weren't here to drink when the door to the inn opened and Matt came back out. The swordsman's face was grim as he made his way back through the furrow he'd left in the snow. He also had a paper wrapped package under one arm that steamed slightly in the freezing air.
"No one here has seen Shawn in weeks," Matt informed them as soon as he was beside them. He jerked his head towards the Crystal Cavern entrance and added, "On top of that, a fairly large group of cloaked people went into the caverns three days ago."
Anna's face darkened, "They must have caught wind that Sam and his cohort were spies…"
"But why would they relocate their entire fortress to deal with a couple spies?" Lance murmured with narrowed eyes. He shook his head and tugged on his drake's lead, "Come on. We'll follow them through the caverns… and check on if Shawn is okay."
"At least it'll be warmer by the crystals," Natalie sighed.
A few faces peeked out of windows at the team led their mounts through the snowy streets, but no one came out to greet them or ask questions. The guard who'd been stationed outside the Crystal Cavern's when they'd last been before rejoining with Anna was nowhere to be seen. Until Natalie's drake curled its neck and nosed into a mound of snow. The mage paused in tugging on the lead to get the creature moving when she saw a dull flash of light. Her eyebrows pulled together and she shoved drake's head aside to brush the snow away herself. Her breath caught and she jerked her hand back when she realized she was seeing a chest plate.
"Did he freeze to death?" Anna asked, peering over Natalie's shoulder at the corpse.
Natalie shook her head and gesture to a small patch of frozen blood showing from under the man's back. She refused to uncover the man's face from the snow. "No, he was murdered, for sure—probably stabbed in the back by Origin when they came through here."
Matt blew out a long sigh before gesturing to go, "We'll mention that he needs a burial when we come back, but for now, we need to go." His shoulders were stiff, and he had an anxious gleam in his eyes as he looked at the entrance. Still, he took a step forwards, only to pause when Natalie snagged his wrist. "What's up?"
"Just wanted to let you know I'm going to be fine going into the caves," Natalie murmured. She smiled at him and added more firmly, "No kidnapping, no imprisonment, and no madness are going to happen. Okay?"
Matt relaxed with a soft laugh. He leaned over to brush a kiss on her cheek. "Thanks."
Lance and Anna cast curious glances at their friends for the soft conversation, but said nothing. Then the team entered the caves and swung back up onto their drakes, thankful of the high ceiling and broad passages that allowed them to ride comfortably. It was just a few minutes before they reached the room full of the glowing crystals. The drakes let out excited sounding whines and strained against their riders' wishes, trying to get close the glowing gems. It took several sharp commands and whistles from Matt to get them all moving again, which attracted the attention of a friendly face.
"I wondered if you four would be through here again, soon."
Anna twisted around with a bright smile to see Shawn watching them from beside a different crystal. Her smile faltered some at his expression, which was set in a frown, and the way he looked far too skinny. "Hey, Shawn…" Anna hesitantly greeted. "I'm glad you're okay. We were worried a group had come by to kill you."
Shawn face darkened further, and he glanced over his shoulder. "I'm fine. My children aren't, however. Why would you allow them to do something so gods-damned stupid as infiltrating an assassin cult?"
Lance frowned at the accusatory tone and the way it made Natalie violently flinch. "For your information, we had no idea Sam was infiltrating Origin, or that he'd involved Beth as a safe house until after that whole debacle. In fact, we didn't even know they were your children until Beth told us so." he replied coldly. "Furthermore, the last we heard from them, they were going to try to fall out of sight until we'd dealt with the threat."
"I can see how well that went," Shawn muttered bitterly. "And you've showed up days too late to help. And why is Origin still a threat if you're supposed to be stopping them?"
Matt cut off Lance's acerbic shot back, raising a hand and casting the gunner a warning look. He could tell that Shawn was upset, and rightfully so, and that telling him his own children were to blame—whether true or not—was not going to be helpful in calming him down. "Are either of them still alive?" Matt calmly asked.
"Yes. Both of them."
"Do they need healing?" Natalie softly asked.
Shawn's expression crumpled as he turned back to face them. "Yes, and badly," he whispered.
Anna swung down and turned her drake loose. At Matt disgruntled look, she said, "The drakes will hang out near the crystals, and need a break, anyway. Lead the way, Shawn. I'm sure Natz will do everything she can to help."
Natalie nodded firmly and was the first to follow behind Shawn as the older man wove through the crystals. They soon reached the miner's camp to see three people lying still on the ground. Natalie sucked in a sharp breath at the bloody bandages surrounding a stump on Sam's wrist where he'd clearly lost his hand. Beth's face had been badly cut—mutilated, almost—and one of her eyes was completely covered with bandages. The third man was sweating and obviously suffering from infection and fever.
"I… I can't help with Sam's hand," Natalie told Shawn in an apologetic whisper. "But I can seal the end of the limb, heal their wounds without leaving scars, and cure their friends' fever. How bad is Beth's eye?"
"The bastards missed the eyeball, thankfully, but there's a slash that goes down to the bone running right beside it. I think the group was in a rush, and, by some of the shouts, they hadn't expected to find Sam here. Otherwise, I doubt any of us would be alive."
Lance's eyes narrowed as Natalie set to work healing the injured people. "So it was chance that they found you? Did they give any indication of where they were actually headed?"
Shawn's gaze was cool as he glanced at the gunner, but he replied, "No, they didn't. Sam mentioned a buried sealing chamber beneath Greenwood, however, so perhaps they were headed there."
Anna's eyes widened, "The Primordial's seal is underneath Greenwood?"
Shawn shrugged, "That name is unfamiliar to me. But Sam and Beth both spoke of a sealed demon and sacrificial offerings." His eyes drifted to where Natalie was carefully purging the infection and fever from Sam's friend, and his entire expression softened. "I'm… sorry for what you suffered through, Miss Natalie."
Natalie's shoulders tensed slightly before relaxing, and she lowered her staff as she finished her healing, her three patients now resting peacefully. "I owe Sam so much for his aid back then. Maybe he couldn't free me right then, but the fact that he cared and was looking out for me meant the world," she whispered. She turned to look at Shawn with tears in the corners of her eyes, and added even more quietly, "And I'm so sorry that this was what happened to him for helping me."
Matt stepped forwards to wrap an arm around the mage's shoulders, and he pressed a kiss to the crown of her head. "It wasn't your fault, Natz. Sam made his choices independently, and he made the right ones. And whatever fucked up thing Origin does and did is definitely not your fault, alright?"
Shawn nodded and added, "Matt is right. Sam was always an impulsive boy with too big of a heart. I'm proud of him for doing the right thing; I just wish it hadn't come back to haunt him in such violent way. The same is true for Beth and Kyle. Thank you for healing them."
Natalie drew in a shuddering breath and wiped away her tears as she nodded. As soon as she had herself under control, she raised her head and told Shawn, "They'll be fine, now. Just make sure they get plenty of rest for a few days."
Matt pulled out the package he'd gotten from the inn and held it out to Shawn. "Here, I got this from the inn a little while ago. It was supposed to be our lunch, but they'll need something tasty and filling while they recover; it should go well with some of that bat stew you make."
Shawn smiled slightly as he accepted the package and peeled back one corner to see a loaf of freshly baked bread, still warm from the oven. He looked up at Matt with a nod. "Thank you. And I'm sorry for my words earlier. I've been caring for them alone, and was so worried about them. But that doesn't excuse what I said. Your team can't be in two places at once, and I know you never meant for my children and their friend to get hurt. Make sure you get an extra hit in from me against Origin."
The team nodded, and they left with quiet promises to return as soon as they were able. They'd just pulled their drakes away from where the beasts were curled around a massive orange crystal when Shawn came jogging up. He went straight to Natalie and held out a small wrapped package. The mage curiously opened the gift and her eyes widened at the sight of her orange crystal pendant.
"Where…. How did you get this?" the mage breathed through a smile as she pulled the leather cord over her head.
Shawn's smile faltered slightly as he said, "I saw it being pawned off in Whitefall, and I recognized it immediately. I knew you would never have given it away, so I figured that it had been stolen from you, and I traded a larger crystal to get yours from the merchant."
Natalie threw her arms around him for a brief hug. "Thank you, Shawn," she whispered as she pulled back. She moved to swing up onto her drake and grinned down at the man and added, "Remind me when we get back to help you test the crystals' reactions to mana a little more, and tell you what we've been using them for besides lighting."
Shawn grinned, "Will do. Safe journey, you four. Good luck."
And then the four were riding away, down the dark passage towards Ashwood. The drakes seemed to have new energy from having rested by the crystals, and were soon darting through the trees at high speeds. Ashwood Forest was currently experiencing a heavy snowstorm, and the ground was packed with deep snow, and the trees coated in ice, but it didn't hinder the group's pace. Before long, they were bursting into sight in the clearing that had once been Greenwood Village. A group of twenty Origin assassins were waiting for them, weapons already drawn and ready.
Natalie scowled at the sight of them and brought her Shooting Star Staff around to blast four of them with powerful Firestorm spell. An arrow from Anna's Iron Tooth flashed past, tearing into and clean through a second man, throwing him into two more. The three went down and were promptly trampled by Matt's drake as the swordsman slashed at them with Equilibrium. His blows were a little clumsy for using only one hand with the massive weapon, but the extra reach of the blade was perfect for mounted combat, and more than strong enough to kill anyone he struck. A roar of pure mana shot from Lance's Super Snipe as he fired off a Hyper Beam, disintegrating the remaining assassins.
The brief battle left the drakes tossing their heads in excitement, and the team had suffered no injuries; they had killed all twenty assassins before even one attack could be launched against them. Their eyes soon turned to the massive fissure in the center of the clearing, the burned scar still melting any snow that touched it. None of them said anything as they guided their drakes to the hole and allowed the beasts to pick their way down the wall. A rope hung down the pit on the far side, signaling that someone had descended ahead of them.
"I can't believe the seal was under Greenwood all this time," Anna murmured over the scraping and scratching of the drakes' claws on stone, her voice echoing slightly.
"I suppose that explains why the Primordial was always more… violent… around Greenwood," Natalie quietly added. "Seals almost always have an allowance range to a certain distance around them. I wouldn't be surprised if the sealing chamber itself is massive, and the Primordial just stays in it, not actually sealed as an immaterial force."
Matt gave a strained chuckle, "Pacing around like some kind of derange zoo animal?"
"A deranged zoo animal straight from a horror story?" Anna joked.
"I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if the Primordial isn't a tad touched for the centuries of solitude," Lance grunted. "Of course, it may not feel or know anything, per say, at least, not as we'd understand. The writings seemed to describe it as a force rather than a creature, after all."
"That's a little too deep for me," Matt snorted.
The steep climb abruptly leveled out into a carved tunnel that was obviously man-made. The air was strangely warm and humid, and they took the opportunity to dismount and change into the armor they had worn to fight Godcat. Anna donned her Ninja Dress with the Dark Baubles. Matt and Lance pulled on their Golden and Dragon Armors. Natalie swiftly dressed in her Pope's dress. They remounted the drakes and set off once more, determined to end the nightmare that Origin's Grandmaster was after.
The only sounds in the tunnel were from the drakes' claws clicking on the stone. Metal supports braced the walls, a decrepit mine track was laid out on the floor, running off into the darkness, there were spot on the walls to hold lights, and the stone was too straight and smooth to be natural. The drakes rumbled as they padded down the tunnel, following the mine rails deeper, though they didn't seem threatened or afraid. Matt leaned down to one side in his saddled as they passed a pile of quarried stone, and snatched up an old pickax. The wood splintered in his grip, but he caught the head before it could fall, and peered down at it in the light given off by his crystal pendant.
"Huh, this mine must belong to my family," Matt mused aloud as he ran his thumb across a symbol printed on the ax head. Rust flaked off under his brush, but he didn't pay it any mind as he studied the simple mark of a dragon claw.
"Really? That's kinda cool," Natalie commented as Matt tossed the ax head to Lance at the gunner's request. "Think it connects to Crystal Cavern? There were mine tracks there, too."
"Nah, we—or rather, I don't own the Cavern's," Matt replied as he ran his eyes over the many signs of one of his family's old mining ventures, "The carts and tracks set up there are from individual diggers and small groups. But we're close enough to there that a shaft might connect to it once or twice."
A dull clang echoed as Lance tossed the head of the pick ax away. "But why'd your family abandon this one? There's plenty of mineral, still." He gestured at an obvious vein of silver as they passed it, the streaks of the ore glittering in the light from their crystals. A couple more discarded pickaxes lay on the ground below the vein as though dropped there as their owners left in a hurry.
"Dunno," Matt shrugged, turning his eyes back ahead. "All of the mines had been abandoned by the time I ran away, and I never bothered to figure out why. This one looks like it was abandoned in rush, though, doesn't it? I can't imagine just leaving behind the rails and tools like this. And those carts up there… There're mined minerals in them. We can ask Allen about it when we get back."
And sure enough, the carts were piled high with chunks of stone rich with ore of various kinds—mostly silver, but a few gems and some gold. The drakes snuffled at the carts, and Lance's shoved one to set it rolling a little ways with an unearthly screeching sound that caused them all to cringe. There was no need to prevent the drakes from pushing anymore. They seemed to travel for forever, seeing more abandoned mining posts, tools, and carts. Nothing leapt out at them, monster or assassin, and there were no turnoffs.
"Think we killed the last of the grunts up there?" Anna finally asked to break the silence.
"Probably, unless the grandmaster has a bodyguard or two," Lance agreed. He hesitantly glanced at Natalie before asking. "What does he look like? Is he strong physically or magically?"
The mage's face tightened as did her fingers on her drake's reins. But despite her visible unease, her voice was calm as she replied, "He's about as tall as you, and a little overweight. He wore a black robe every time I… saw… him. He's got a cultured way of speaking, but isn't very patient. I doubt he's anywhere near as physically strong as you or Matt, or even Anna, but I don't know about his magical talent. I was under a syphon the entire time, so I couldn't tell that. But if he was the one who cast that syphon spell, then he's very skilled; it was a twenty-four hour effectiveness spell, and more than enough to keep my own magic sealed."
"We have to keep in mind that he has the three Jewels, too," Anna added grimly. "If he's a skilled magic user, which he probably is if he thinks he can undo the seal, then he can certainly use the Jewels to augment his own powers."
Lance made a soft humming sound, his eyes narrowed in thought. "I doubt he was the one to cast the syphon… Markus was working for him by that point, after all."
"True, but Markus joined Origin after it was already formed and plotting, so I doubt he helped at all with planning to unseal the Primordial," Matt stated from the front. He reined his drake in, causing the others to stop behind him as they came upon an atrium with a massive stone door. "Think that's the place?"
"Oh, yeah…" Natalie whispered.
The base of the stone door had been blasted off, leaving a sizeable hole for an entrance. A massive, carved relief of the Primordial was set in the door, and glared down at them from over twenty feet in the air. Several empty sconces led up to the massive door, some tipped over, while others sat as they had for centuries. A few mining equipment pieces littered the area here and there, some snapped, while others were stained with ominous dark smears. There were no corpses or skeletons, and the blood stains were very old, but, clearly, some kind of battle had happened here. The drakes were letting out uneasy whines and shifting in places, their tongues flicking out to taste the air. And there was an ominous aura filling the air, seeping out from beyond the stone door.
"This is it," Matt finally said. He turned his head to look back at his friends, his face set in its usual grin. "You guys ready to kick some ass?"
"Or get our asses kicked?" Lance muttered under his breath. Despite his words, his eyes were determined and fierce.
Anna chuckled at him and said, "You can't die in there, Lance. You'd miss having sex with me too much." Her face hardened as she turned her eyes to the door, and she looked more than ready to avenge her people. "Let's butcher ourselves a madman and his god."
Natalie decisively nodded once, "He dies today."
She glanced at the gleaming golden staff sticking up over her shoulder, and hoped it would be enough to win them the battle. But as she looked at it, she remembered their last battle against a god, and her unease rose. The others had died in that fight, and she still had no idea how she had revived them. But maybe Lance's words back at Village were the key. And so, after a few seconds of thought, she withdrew her Seraphim Staff from her adventure pouch and slung it across her back as well. The silver wings and blue crystal gleamed from over one shoulder, while golden stars glinted over the other.
"We may need it," Natalie explained quietly when the others shot her curious looks. "I don't know if it was what let me cast Genesis during our fight with Godcat, but it can't hurt to have it ready if… if I have to revive you guys again."
Matt's grin faltered for a moment at the thought, but soon widened as he summoned NoLegs. "Good plan, Natz, but hopefully one we won't need. Okay, what's the basic plan, Lance?"
"Getting the Jewels is our main priority, if he hasn't freed the Primordial already—killing him is secondary. Natz, I want you well back from any kind of marks in there. Maybe your blood can only free it on the full moon, or maybe it won't work at all since you're no longer virgin, but I don't want to take any chances. If he's already completed it when we get in there, then we'll distract the Primordial while the furball retrieves the Jewels and starts calling for Godcat. Natz, Anna, and I will be hanging back where our weapons will do the most good. Matt… you and the drakes are our front. Do what you can to the monster's legs and feet—maybe ride a drake up a leg to go for the back and necks. Watch out for the fangs and venom, and don't hold anything back, guys."
"Right," the other three chorused, NoLegs adding a meow.
Matt nudged his drake's sides, and they shot into the room beyond the door. The oppressive aura grew much stronger as they broke out into a perfectly circular chamber with a soaring roof covered in stalactites. Bleached bones of limbed cats and humans were littered all across the floor, some in splinters and others in entire skeletons still donned in tattered and rusted armor. The stone was unnaturally smooth, and looked as though it had been melted that way from an intense fire. But the team hardly took in the evidence of the ancient battle; their eyes were fixed on an impressive and terrifying display at the far end of the chamber.
Wild energy crackled in the air, and stray bolts of mana blasted the stone, sending chips and shards skidding across the floor. It flashed with dark red and purple lights that arced between the three stolen Jewels, which were levitating in the air, and flying in a circle so quickly that they were blurs of green, blue, red, and gold. A low, grinding sound was reverberating through the air, and the floor faintly trembled.
In the center of the maelstrom of power stood a man in a black robe with his hands raised over his head. A blood stained knife was clutched in his left hand, and the free hand was equally stained. At his feet lay four, dead Origin assassins; their throats had all been slit, and one had clearly tried to crawl away before bleeding out. None of the team needed to look at Natalie's pale face for confirmation that the cloaked man was the grandmaster of Origin.
Anna's eyes narrowed as she drew her drake up short, and wheeled it to face sideways. She nocked an arrow against the string of Iron Tooth, and pulled it back to a full draw. Her shoulders trembled some at the heavy weight, but she held the arrow back as she sighted her shot. She let the arrow fly, and knew the shot was good even before the arrow had struck. The machete head of the arrow slammed straight through the center of the man's back, slightly to the left of his spine, sending his staggering forwards, though not knocking him down. The shot into and through his heart should have killed him, but he didn't even turn to look back, but resumed his ritual as his blood dripped to the stone below. The energy surrounding him became even more wild and fierce as it was fed yet more lifeblood. Anna cursed, and nocked another arrow.
A little ways away, Lance had slipped down from his drake to prop Super Snipe on the ground, lying on his stomach to peer down its scope. It had been awhile since he'd done actual sniping, but his muscles smoothly fell back into the familiar motions, and he set his sights on the man's head. He was about to pull the trigger, but paused when he saw Anna's arrow strike and not kill the man.
"What the hell?" Matt asked, having seen the same thing. He and Natalie had been hanging back to leave clear shots open for their friends. "He should be face down in his own blood."
"A lich, maybe," Natalie suggested in a low, tense voice, "or he's being bound by the ritual, and can't die until it ends."
Lance clicked his tongue, and settled back down to the scope. Anna's second arrow had sheared one of the man's arms off at the shoulder—a miss from trying to hit his head. The gunner charged mana into Super Snipe. Originally, he'd been planning to blow his enemy's head off his shoulders, but if Natalie was right, and the man was a lich or being sustained for as long as the ritual lasted, then taking his head off wouldn't stop him. So instead of a mana-charged bullet, he fired a Hyper Beam. The blast roared across the chamber, throwing shadows out from all the debris scattered across the floor. It slammed into and engulfed the grandmaster, and the wild energy petered out.
The Hyper Beam slowly shrank to a narrow line before vanishing. The grandmaster was nowhere to be seen, and the Jewels had quit spiraling, though they remained in the air. Lance pushed himself to stand up, and propped his rifle against the ground. His eyes scrutinized the dust cloud and devastation left by his attack. He couldn't see anyone, but his gut told him he'd failed to kill the man.
"Where did he go?" Anna asked in a low tone. Clearly, she knew the madman was still alive.
NoLegs suddenly lunged through the air, using a burst of magic to propel himself. He slammed into Natalie's shoulder, sending her staggering sideways off her drake to hit the ground. In a flash, Matt was at her side, not questioning the cat's sudden action. His eyes fixed on a bloody dagger that had slashed past, right where the mage's neck had been, and followed the figure that nimbly leapt to the ground, dodging the snapping of two drakes. He pulled Natalie further back, and lunged at the robed figure while clicking his tongue to order the beasts back.
Equilibrium hissed through the air with a deep thrum, only to hit some kind of barrier and be held at bay as the grandmaster raised his glowing arms to sustain the magic. Matt growled and forced down against the barrier, while Natalie started a spell. In a flash of light, the barrier cracked under a Dispel, and the sword slammed into the man. A puff of smoke escaped from the sleeves and hood as the cloth crumpled under the swing and was dug into the stone with a loud, metallic grinding sound. Matt yanked his sword back out, and scanned the chamber with steely eyes. Lance and Anna had slipped back to the others to form a tight ring with their weapons at the ready. NoLegs had vanished from sight, as had the Grandmaster of Origin. The drakes had gathered in a cluster not far away, hissing and growling.
"Where did he go?" Anna muttered.
As if in answer, the man reappeared under the glowing crystals. The robe was gone, leaving him in a pair of black pants and boots, and a dark blue shirt stitched with some kind of gold thread—at least the parts not stained with blood were blue, curtesy of Anna's arrows. His dagger glinted in his hand, and his dark eyes glared at them from beneath a mop of black hair. His left arm was gone entirely, but he didn't seem to feel any pain from the wound.
"It must have been some kind of double just a second ago," Lance murmured. "He had both his arms when he attacked."
"Well, at least we can identify which one is the real one," Matt growled.
Anna let loose another arrow alongside a bolt of ice from Natalie. Both attacks were incinerated in thin air by a black fire. The Jewels had begun to pulse with light before separating in three directions behind the Grandmaster of Origin. The drakes the team had ridden in on went silent and still, watching the Jewels with rapt attention. A massive black portal opened in the space between them and an even more ominous aura filled the space. A single head emerged from the portal, and was followed by two more and a long body and massive, clawed limbs. The four could only gape for a moment as the Primordial emerged from whatever dimension it had been sealed within and stood at its full height, seeming even larger than the last time they had seen it. Three matching snouts cracked open and a fearsome screech shook the space, knocking dust and dirt from the ceiling. Spiked tails lashed behind the monstrosity, crushing stalagmites, and gouging deep scores into the floor that sizzled from the same venom that dripped from its fangs.
"Fuck," Lance swore, though the curse was lost in the sound. He felt Anna press a little closer, and could feel her trembling.
Natalie's arm had gone slack, leaving Shooting Star pointed at the ground as she gaped with wide eyes at the Primordial. Matt's face had gone white, and his knuckles were equally white around the hilt of Equilibrium. Behind the god, the Jewels dulled in color and fell to the ground, though no one took any notice of them. The Grandmaster of Origin turned and bowed to the god before vanishing in a puff of smoke as one of the heads lunged for him. Acid sizzled against the stone and steam rose up from the dissolving rock. It hissed its displeasure at losing its target, but soon turned its attention to the four humans staring at it. No eyes tracked its prey, but it didn't need eyes
Suddenly, Matt brought two fingers to his lips and let out a piercing whistle. One of the drakes broke away from the others to come racing over. Without a word, he swung onto its back and wheeled it to face the Primordial, before kicking his mount forwards. Natalie's cry to stop was ignored as Matt bent low to the drake's neck, trusting it to get him close and not be hit. The other three drakes swarmed forwards as well, to do what they could, or, at the very least, distract the god.
Lance watched with wide eyes as Matt charged off before shaking himself out of his stupor. The swordsman was following the plan, and they needed to do the same. And so he jostled Anna's shoulder and nudged Natalie.
"Start bombarding the freak. Don't hold anything back. Remember: no magic of any kind of element."
Anna swallowed and nodded before darting off to the cave wall to climb up to a narrow ledge to gain a vantage. The Primordial was too tall to reliably hit anything from the ground. Natalie formed as powerful of a barrier as she could around her and Lance before focusing her mana on attacking. Shooting Star began to glisten with light as Super Snipe hummed with power as the pair began their assault.
Lance set his sights on one of the god's hind legs, hoping to upset the monster's balance, if not take out a limb entirely. Beside him, he could feel ripples of pure, unadulterated mana coming from Natalie. It was more than he'd ever felt from the mage at once, and he considered telling her to pace herself before deciding that she knew her own limits better than he did. Meanwhile, Matt had succeeded in getting right up next to the god and was hacking away at the dark scaled limbs. He'd shorn off two claws of one limb, and two of the drakes had scrambled up the god's legs to begin biting at its neck. And though their teeth didn't puncture the thick hide, it was clearly an irritation for the Primordial, and two of the heads had changed from trying to bite Matt, to twisting and trying and bite the drakes off its back. The beasts were fast and smart, however, and doing remarkably well at avoiding being eaten.
Suddenly, one of the tails came sweeping towards the swordsman too quickly for him to dodge. Matt braced himself for a painful impact, only for the limb to be diverted into the ground by three arrows. The god shrieked in pain and frustration, a shriek that only got louder when Matt seized the opportunity to hack the tail off as high up it as he could reach. Black blood poured out and sprayed through the air as the god lashed the wounded appendage. A blast of lighting shot in the ranger's direction from one of the god's mouths, but a flash of green light appeared, and the blast was blocked by the imposing form of Mighty Oak.
Anna gaped at the steaming outline of the wooden guardian of her village. She hadn't summoned him, but he'd come to aid her, anyway. She wondered if they were still within Greenwood's protected boundaries as she murmured her thanks under her breath. She drew back one of her arrows for a Power Shot, aiming for the base of The Primordial's necks. As she waited for the opportune moment, a focused Hyper Beam shot across the room, barely missing Matt and one of the drakes to blow one of the god's legs clean off. Anna cheered as she watched the Primordial stagger before steadying itself on its three remaining limbs. Its retaliatory blast of fire and ice canceled each other out and created a cloud of steam that blocked all view of the battle.
That didn't stop Natalie from unleashing streaks of light into the steam. The Star Shower rained down over the entire field, and by the shrieks, she was hitting and harming the god. Beside her, Lance aimed a Shock Wave at the ground in front of them, hoping to blow away the steam. Just as the spell went off, however, Matt came careening out of the cloud to hit the barrier and slump down to the ground. Blood was leaking from where a broken bone had stuck through his shoulder, and from the corner of his mouth. Equilibrium was nowhere in sight as Lance reached through the barrier to drag Matt behind it for safety as he recovered. In a flash, Natalie was healing the swordsman, her eyes wide with worry, but also relief that he'd only been injured, not killed.
A ripple of power had Lance looking up to see Anna's Power Shot scream through the air and hit the Primordial in the base of its necks. Two heads fell limp as they were all but severed from the body, and the other let out a choked shriek as blood gushed from its jaws. With the steam gone, they could see that only two of the drakes could still be seen on the beast's back, still biting and clawing with a feral fury. The god's hide was pockmarked and smoking from magical burns, and was losing color.
"This has been going better than I thought it would," Matt suddenly groaned as he sat up and rolled his shoulder.
"Don't jinx it," Natalie muttered as she rubbed his back. "Did I get everything?"
"Where's your sword?" Lance asked before Matt could answer.
Matt shrugged with a guilty look. "I must've dropped it when its tail hit me. I don't think my drake made it, either."
A warning shout from Anna had them looking up to see a mysterious energy surrounding the Primordial. Before their startled and horrified eyes, the damage they'd done to the god was being rapidly regenerated. The limb Lance had shot off regrew, the marks from Natalie's Star Shower healed over into thick scars, and the claws and tail Matt had lopped off also regrew. Last but not least, the two head's Anna had taken out fell off and melted into shadows that reformed on the beast's neck, and the hole from the Power Shot sealed off with only a divot remaining to show where she'd struck. An energy wave blasted out from the god's back, sending the remaining two drakes flying into walls where they slumped to the ground, dazed, but not dead.
"We'll never win if it can do that," Natalie murmured in despair.
"Where the hell is NoLegs?" Lance demanded. "He's supposed to be summoning the queen furball!"
Matt shook his head, "I saw him by the Jewels from the corner of my eye. Godcat may just not be coming if she hasn't shown up yet."
Lance let out a string of curses under his breath before shaking his head bitterly. "Get your sword back. We'll just have to hope us and our weapons will be enough. Maybe his regeneration has a limit."
None of them pointed out how slim of a chance that was and how their endurance had very real limits. But there was no more time to talk as the Primordial began tromping towards Anna, who was unprotected aside from Mighty Oak. A few Piercing Shots struck embedded themselves in the god's heads and necks, but did nothing to dissuade it. Lance slung Super Snipe around and let loose with a hail of high-powered bullets of pure mana that his friends had never seen before. But aside from an idle lightning blast that broke on Natalie's barrier, the attack did nothing to stop the god. Matt swore loudly and lunged out from the barrier to try and locate Equilibrium while Natalie began charging another spell.
Mighty Oak, tiny before the Primordial, swung his arms out to grapple the Primordial's front legs. The guardian remained unmoving, growing roots into the stone floor to ground himself from being pushed or flung. Acid dripped onto the wood, but sizzled harmlessly as whatever magic powered the guardian protected it from harm. Vines extended from Mighty Oak's arms to begin tangling around the Primordial's legs, winding up to its necks.
Anna was scrambling down the rocks as fast as possible. An innate sense told her that Mighty Oak was only holding the Primordial off—he couldn't stop it—so she needed to get to the barrier Natalie had up while she still had a chance. A blast of heat and a crackling sound followed by the scent of smoke told her the Primordial was breathing fire on her guardian. What she didn't know was that what the god was doing was freeing one of its necks to bite at her.
"Anna! Get down!" Natalie screamed.
Without questioning it, Anna threw herself to the floor. A blast of pure mana exploded over her head, close enough that her skin prickled. Anna squeezed her eyes shut and gritted her teeth as the Primordial shrieked over her head and the floor shook from it trying to stomp backwards only to be held in place by Mighty Oak. When the noise and power kept going for several long seconds, she decided to risk scrambling forwards in a low crouch.
Lance's heart was in his throat as he lost sight of Anna in the light and power of Natalie's attack just before the Primordial's jaws closed around her. The mage had snapped that the ranger was fine and to shut up so she could focus on her mana, but he wouldn't believe it until he saw Anna. Then, to his immense relief, the ranger came scrambling into view where she staggered to her feet and sprinted for the barrier slamming into his arms. Her hair had been burned raggedly short so that it fell just past her ears in uneven clumps, leaving one of the Dark Baubles to dangle by one ear, but she was unharmed. She was shaking and panting from the close call, but still pulled back to look at the Primordial.
Natalie's attack finally ended, leaving only half of the god standing. The hind legs staggered backwards, dragging the back half of the torso along the ground as the tails lashed about. Across the room, Matt had frozen with Equilibrium in his hands to gape at the damage Natalie had wrought. Lance and Anna, too, were staring at the mutilated mess, not noticing that the barrier the mage had been sustaining had flickered out or that Natalie herself had slumped to her knees with Shooting Star sparking in her grip. Mighty Oak stood unharmed, though firmly planted in the ground, and with a sooty dust covering his body.
"Holy…" Anna finally mumbled in a hoarse voice as the Primordial collapsed sideways on the ground to twitch. "Natz, that was…"
"Incredible," Lance finished in an awestruck tone.
Natalie gave a tired, half-hysterical chuckle. "Don't ask me to do it again."
At that moment, NoLegs appeared with the three Jewels in tow and a worried gleam in his eyes. Each Jewel was a dull gray in color, aside from the gold accents on them. He meowed a short sentence to Natalie with his ears drooped.
"He says they're completely drained of energy," Natalie tiredly informed Lance and Anna. "They won't work to summon Godcat."
"I don't think we'll need them," Lance commented as the Primordial remained down and out, not even twitching anymore.
Anna tentatively smiled, "That would be-" Her words cut off as she spied a new figure beside the mangled form of the Primordial. "Grandmaster's back," she warned as she lifted her bow.
Matt was already racing forwards to attack the man, following through on Anna's arrow as it slammed through the man's chest once again. He swung Equilibrium horizontally through the man's torso, cutting him into two pieces that fell to the floor. The swordsman scowled down at the unmoving chunks before turning away to head back to his friends. A low chuckle had him freezing and whipping around again.
"Thank you for weakening the Primordial for me."
Matt gaped in shock at the pieces of the Grandmaster before gripping his sword to cut his foe into even smaller chunks. A blast of mana prevented him from doing anything, however. And when Matt regained his feet only a few yards from his friends, the pieces of the Primordial were glowing an eerie green color before melding into a wobbling, spherical bubble. Lance and Anna's attempts to stop whatever was happening were merely absorbed into the sphere, and Natalie was far too drained to do much more than push herself to stand up. The bubble was steadily drawn to the Grandmaster of Origin, where it absorbed him as well before beginning to shrink. When it faded, the man was whole and upright once more and faintly glowing.
"Come on," Matt growled. "You've lost, so just die already!"
The man laughed long and loud. "Lost? No, I've not lost. I've won. The Primordial and all of its power is now mine. Now you face me for real, and you will never win. I cannot tire. I am immortal. My will guides the Primordial's chaotic essence with a purpose far sharper than its former mindlessness."
Each member of the team felt a chill run through them. But before they could do anything, the man pointed at Matt's feet, and the stone beneath the swordsman erupted upwards, sending him flying through the air into Lance, knocking them both to the floor. Anna tackled Natalie aside when the man pointed at the mage, but they were shot out of the air before they'd landed by some invisible force as strong and solid as a physical blow. Anna groaned as she sat up to see Lance dazedly disentangling himself from Matt. Both men looked winded and confused, clearly having knocked heads at some point, and could hardly stand up straight.
Anna summoned her healing spell to restore their senses, but was cut off as she suddenly couldn't breathe. Her eyes widened and her hands shot to her chest as her mouth opened and shut, trying to suck in air when her lungs wouldn't cooperate; it was as if they'd been paralyzed.
Natalie scrambled upright when Anna curled over with a red face, and she began trying to heal the ranger, only to find nothing physically wrong with her—all that happened was that Natalie wasted what little mana she had left. Her eyes whipped around to the Grandmaster of Origin, knowing he'd done something to Anna. The man's eyes were glowing bright green, and were intensely fixed on the ranger. He seemed oblivious to anything else, so Natalie pointed Shooting Star at him and pulled on her nearly exhausted mana reserves. All that happened was a pathetic spark of electricity that died before leaving the staff. Anna was blue in the face by this point, and her eyes were glazing over and sliding shut, and Natalie didn't know what to do.
Then, miraculously, vines erupted from the ground around the Grandmaster. They snapped shut around his arms and legs, and rapidly wound around his head and torso. Soon, he was encased in a cocoon of vines that shrank inwards to crush him within them.
Anna sucked in a sharp breath and began coughing for air with tears streaming down her cheeks. Her face was purple from no air, but rapidly fading to red, and then closer to her normal complexion. Natalie flung her arms around the ranger, relieved that she was okay. Anna, her breathing finally mostly under control, shakily returned the hug with one arm as she shot a grateful look at Mighty Oak.
A split second later, the guardian dissolved into ash, and Anna felt her connection with him vanish. It took a few moments for what that meant to sink in, but her eyes quickly widened she sucked in a sharp breath. And even after she knew what had happened, she didn't react for several long seconds. Mighty Oak had been destroyed—completely and utterly destroyed so that no presence of him remained. And it had happened so fast. One of the last remnants of her home was gone for good.
"No!" Anna shrieked as tears suddenly poured down her cheeks.
Lance shook off the remainder of his daze at her scream, and twisted to look for her in time to see her lunge at the Grandmaster with a feral-sounding snarl. He shot forwards, too, with a shout of warning that fell on deaf ears. Anna was blasted back, but twisted in mid-air to hit the ground on her feet to lunge forwards again. This time, she weaved as she charged—the motions seemingly random, but in fact instinctively driven to dodge a minute ripple of mana that heralded an invisible attack.
Lance's eyes widened as she managed to get right up next to the Grandmaster and tackled him down. Matt sucked in a sharp breath of amazement, having finally found his feet, and inwardly cheered Anna on. A flash of light flickered through the air as the ranger drew her dagger and slashed it across the Grandmaster's neck before stabbing him over and over where ever she could reach. Soon, the man's face and upper body were mangled beyond any recognition, though that did nothing to stop Anna. She was cursing him in a sobbing voice as she continued stabbing him, letting out all of the anger and pain she'd kept inside for his slaughter of her people.
Finally, however, Lance stepped forwards to pull her back. He doubted the Grandmaster was dead, and he didn't want her to get caught up in the next attack, whatever it would be. She struggled against him, sobbing about how vile the man was between unintelligible snarls of anger. Lance quietly murmured that he understood and that she was fine and needed to calm down as he pulled her away. He pressed a few butterfly kisses to her temple as soon as they were a fair way back, though he knew distance wasn't going to help them. A glance at the Grandmaster showed him reforming as the Primordial had; he grimly figure the Grandmaster basically was the Primordial, now. Slowly, Anna calmed, shuddering out a few sniffles, but no longer struggling against Lance.
"We need Godcat," the ranger whispered after a moment. "She's the only one who might be able to stop him—no, stop it."
"Then we need the Jewels," Lance replied quietly, glancing back at the dead objects. "Maybe they can be recharged?"
Next to the Jewels, Natalie was discussing much the same with Matt and NoLegs. The cat was certain that it could be done, but they would need time since Natalie had exhausted her own mana. Then, Matt had a brilliant idea.
"Your staff—the red one with the bat wings—it drains mana. Use it on me," the swordsman suggested.
"That's genius! Okay, hold on," Natalie breathed with her eyes wide in excitement.
She pulled the staff—Demon Tail—out of her Adventure Pouch. The blood-red staff with the orb perched at its tip was one she rarely used as it was relatively weak, but its ability to drain the mana of her foes was an invaluable one—though she had hardly used it since their quest to defeat Akron. A slight push against Matt's chest syphoned the mana from his body into her own, and she let out a sigh of relief at the rejuvenating feeling.
"We'll still need more time, just not as much. You guy's will have to distract him," Natalie told Matt. She leaned over to press a kiss to his cheek and added. "We've got this, right?"
"Right," Matt agreed with a tense grin before he stood up. He glanced at NoLegs and added, "Stick with Natz, and get Godcat here as quick as you can."
"Meow!"
It took only a few seconds to pass the message on to Lance and Anna, and then the three turned to face the Grandmaster who was just plucking Anna's dagger from his chest to toss carelessly aside. Lance quietly noted that the man, or whatever the Grandmaster was now, must not have as good of a grasp on the Primordial's powers as the god had—pointing out that his regeneration was much slower. He also told them that although the monster could attack them in an instant, he could only target one of them at a time, and that that gave them a little wiggle room for joint attacks.
"The weapons should still work. Matt, you might not be able to get close to him, and if you can't, then lob some Holy Swords."
"Got it."
"Anna, you're our healer for now. Matt will use his regeneration spell, but be ready for all of us, just in case," Lance went on with a glance at the ranger.
"You can count on me," Anna promised firmly.
They each readied their weapons and face the monster down. A few bullets from Lance were disintegrated from the air before connecting, as were Anna's arrows. Matt repeatedly tried to charge forwards, distracting the Grandmaster from blasting Lance and Anna off their feet. Anna cast little healing spells here and there to fix sprains, cuts, and fractures as they happened. Each of them knew they would never be able to take the monster down on their own, but they also knew they didn't have to. Not yet, anyway.
The Grandmaster seemed amused as he fended off their attacks with laughable ease. In his mind, he commended himself on successfully absorbing the Primordial, granting himself god-like status. The four heroes, no matter how strong they were, could never beat him. But scheming was in his nature, and as such, he couldn't help speaking to them, to try and turn them from their goal, even if he didn't have to.
"Such hatred for me in each of your eyes… But what if I told you the Primordial's power can resurrect the people of Greenwood?" he slyly offered.
The three battling froze, their jaws dropping, and Lance's wide eyes darted to Anna. The ranger was frozen, her face blank. Even Natalie had opened her eyes in shock from having them shut in concentration as she channeled her mana. She barely noticed NoLeg's begin arranging the Jewels to start summoning his creator.
"Well? I can bring them all back. You could see them all again, just as they were before," the Grandmaster said in a smooth voice.
Matt shot a questioning look at Natalie as she came up beside him. A slight nod from her told him she'd charged the Jewels, and he tilted his head in askance at the Grandmaster.
The mage shrugged and murmured, "He's probably right. Chaos has greater power than any magic I've ever seen. Personally, I just want to kill this guy, but it's up to Anna."
The swordsman shifted slightly. "But to bring them all back to life? There's got to be some sort of catch."
Lance shifted closer to Anna. "Well? What do you want, Anna?"
Anna remained silent. She closed her eyes for a few moments then reopened them to reveal a glitter of tears. "More than almost anything, I would love to see everyone of Greenwood alive again," she finally whispered.
The grandmaster smiled a thin, evil smile, but before he could speak, Anna slowly shook her head.
"Still, no matter how much I may wish to see them again, I never will and that is how it should be. Even if you can bring them back, even if there were no strings attached, I refuse to choose their resurrection. The people of Greenwood wouldn't want me to choose their resurrection. Life is a cycle. We're born, we live, we die, and then something new is born. There is no going backwards, no undoing the past, no return from death—no matter how much we might wish otherwise. I have made my peace with that fact, and I know that I am right. All I could truly want from you now is your death."
The grandmaster's face twisted into a snarl and he raised his hands. But before he could blast them with the stolen power of the Primordial, the dead jewels of Greenwood flashed. There was a ripple of power from each of them—power he had believed was lost. Each Jewel lifted from the ground, glowing and humming with mana. They circled in the air, and in a flash of blue, green, and red light, mana exploded outwards. The light cleared to reveal two very familiar figures hovering above them. Godcat had come after all.
The twin avatars lowered to settle on the ground, humming with energy. Behind Her, NoLegs bowed low and mewed a greeting. The Goddess' nodded to him, but turned Their eyes on the Grandmaster. The human's each started at hearing Her voices in their heads. It had been a long time since they'd last experienced telepathy.
"I had hoped you four would have stopped this abomination before it was freed," the Destruction avatar hissed.
"But it matters not, it has been weakened considerably by binding to a mortal shell," the Creation avatar smoothly went on in a merciless purr. "And We admire that you have undertaken the task of banishing it once more. We have watched your battle from afar, and We more than dub you worthy of Our aid. Behold the might of Godcat."
"You cannot stop me!" the Grandmaster spat. "You could not stop me those eons ago without the help of Your pathetic food, and even then, You only managed to delay me! And now I am a focused force where once I was merely a mindless beast! And I will reclaim what is mine!"
Godcat's eyes glinted in triumph and immense satisfaction. "Such arrogance, to think you are the Primordial's equal. And foolish, to think you are stronger than Us. For one who has read the inscriptions and planned his doomed conquest so long, you have made a simple and grave mistake. It was devastating because it could shift, but you have trapped it to one form and restricted its limitless possibilities to only the simple means and that your human mind can comprehend. You could never be as great and terrible as it once was, nor could you possibly hope to keep it contained."
A twitch of one paw was enough for Creation Godcat to lift the Grandmaster into the air. He lashed out with his own magic, and was alarmed and confused when it did nothing to help him. Destruction Godcat floated up to in front of his face and bared Her teeth in a snarl.
"Once, the Primordial could speak as We do. Years beyond count of imprisonment and torture had broken it. For the arrogance of trying to supplant a god, we banish you to join your vaulted god," Destruction Godcat hissed. "May you enjoy the same fate as it once did."
A slash of one paw ripped open a jagged portal. The Grandmaster's eyes widened with true fear as he was brought up to the portal. He could only hold the Goddess's burning crimson gaze in silent terror and disbelief.
"For slaughtering and torturing My Children, I curse you to continue to live forever." Creation Godcat spat with the protective fury that only a mother could display. She drifted up to, drawing the man's eyes to Her icy blue ones. "May you enjoy your dream and conquest of life as you suffer."
"Be gone!"
The joint words cracked across the human's minds. With a final, desperate, and defiant shriek, the rip closed around the Grandmaster, and he was gone. The avatars drifted back down to hover just above the ground before the team. For a few moments, there was silence. Then Anna bowed low.
"Thank you, Godcat."
Natalie and Matt followed suit. Lance, after a half a moment, followed suit.
"Thank you for helping Us succeed where We had failed. We could never have accomplished this had he not summoned the Primordial, and he would never have absorbed it had you not defeated the god. Know that your battle and victory today were ones that history had never before witnessed nor ever predicted."
"That victory was all Natz," Matt admitted dismissively with a proud smile at the mage. "That last spell of hers was amazing."
"True, but no human ever managed to corporally wound the Primordial, yet each of you managed as such. The artifacts that you retrieved were meant only to contain the god, not defeat it. Your strengths made victory possible. Take pride in that achievement, and know you have Our Blessing. Whatever wish that you have that is within Our Power, We will grant."
Lance nudged Anna forwards after a brief look of silent askance at Matt and Natalie, who both nodded. "You choose, Anna. You've been hurt the most by all of this."
Anna hesitated, glancing at the ash pile that was Mighty Oak. "I don't suppose you could…"
Creation Godcat drifted to settle on the ground, and shook Her head. "We cannot revive the villagers of Greenwood, Anna. Death so long past is beyond even Our abilities to recover."
Anna nodded, "I understand, but I was actually hoping that maybe you could protect Ashwood and Greenwood in some way? Mighty Oak is… gone… now, and the forest no longer has a protector. Sarah and I can't possibly watch the whole forest by ourselves. And I don't know if I even want to after all that's happened there. I want a new life since my old one is gone."
Godcat nodded slightly, and a gentle, warm, and powerful pulse of mana rippled outwards from her. "That, We can grant. First, We shall restore Mighty Oak to restore and maintain the forests as he always has. Second, we shall melt the frost that has taken the world with the Primordial's presence. And finally, we shall instill new guardians to protect the trees and beasts. Thank you, Anna, for the generations your people have followed Our command. We relieve you and yours of your duties, though you shall always be welcome among the trees, should you wish to return."
Anna bowed low. "Thank you."
Destruction Godcat landed before Natalie and waved her paws. The air between Her and the mage shimmered, and a familiar staff appeared for Natalie to take. Natalie's eyes widened in amazement an lit up with happiness as they traced the familiar redwood staff with the gleaming crystal set in the tip. And as her fingers closed around the worn grip, she felt a strange humming run through her body, and he skin briefly glowed.
"We return your Crystal Staff. Do consider using it demolish Origin's fortress," the destruction avatar hissed.
"We also grant you the ability to revive your allies, should you find yourself in a situation to do so, even if you did not need to today," the Creation avatar purred.
Natalie blinked in amazement before bowing as low as Anna had. "Thank you so much. I'll make it a blast worth watching."
The twin avatars swirled up into the air to hover over the team's heads. "Farewell, and know that We will always be watching over you."
And then the avatars were gone with a final pulse of magic. For several moments, the four could only stare at the space where they had been. Then Matt let out a disbelieving laugh and spun to catch Natalie up in a hug and kissed her.
"We did it!" he crowed after they separated. "We really did it!"
Anna blew out a shuddering sigh and slumped against Lance's shoulder, snuggling into his side when he wrapped that arm around her. "It's over, finally over." Tears burned in the corners of her eyes and she tilted her head back to accept a kiss when Lance touched her cheek. "Thank you for everything," she murmured against his lips.
Lance pulled back with a brilliant smile, one wider than he'd ever given before. "You're welcome." He wiggled his eyes brows and leaned down to her ear to whisper, "Now about a more physical thanks…"
"Gods above, Lance, you can wait until we're back at Matt's place," Anna playfully scolded. She twisted her head to grin over at Matt and Natalie. "Well? Shall we go gorge ourselves on yummy food?"
The other three cheered before beginning the long journey back to the surface.
A/N:Sweet heavens, the hump is done. Longest chapter in the fic by far (over 11 thousand, just for the story part! x.X). I thought about splitting it up, but since I made you all wait so long, you get it all now. Now there's Just a little epilogue left and I'll be marking this 'Retribution' completed at long last. Definitely one of my better fight scenes, and I always love me a good "you cursed" line or two. I'll be wrapping up little loose ends with a happy little party at Matt's mansion in the epilogue, and since I'm on break and have about a billion and one ideas for it, it should be up in a few days—maybe even before Christmas. If not, Happy holidays to you all, and I hope to see some relieved reviews!
Responses to Guest Reviewers:
Little Follower: You'll probably have to reread your review for this. :P
There are probably tons of typos in this one, so feel free to go to town pointing them out for me. :P
Natalie is back up to full power, and can sustain a mana orb of light with a very large range now, where as in the Crystal Caverns, her magic and stamina were weaker due to a lack of use, so she could only manage a tiny torchlight and for a relatively short period of time. Like magical muscles: you don't use 'em, you lose 'em. Think that activating and deactivating them is like flipping a light switch on or off in your house; it'll use electrical power, but you don't need to be constantly worrying about whether they'll stay on or if you need to run a manually-powered motor. As for the light amount, the crystals were a convenient way to create light with a very efficient mana drain for the amount of light produced and concentration needed, and create plenty of light for normal walking or running speeds. But the drakes were moving very quickly (like galloping quarter horse, quickly), and needed to be able to see well ahead of themselves to know when to turn or to avoid obstacles.
It was a huge pain, but not as much of one as this chapter. T_T
Plenty of dismemberment/mutilation here. I don't feel sorry for either of them, though. XD
Insert name here (Smash Gunner): Talking Boot is still a go. It'll likely be in the next drabble chapter. I hope you enjoyed this final serious chapter for Retribution.
