Chapter Eleven
Alex tore through the water, swimming as hard as he could. He spotted a shining blue object sinking through the water, his sharpened vision penetrating the murky darkness of eternal sea. There it is! he thought, diving for it.
The six Adepts floated in the water, feeling helpless and lost. "Is Isaac…dead?" Ivan asked.
"It doesn't look hopeful," Sheba replied. "He should have had to go up for air long ago!"
Meanwhile, Alex kicked harder and harder, and he reached out, his fingertip grazing the Jupiter Star before him. Just…a bit…farther! he thought.
He grabbed hold of the Jupiter Star. He then swam to the surface, breaking for air. "YES!" he yelled aloud. "Another element is mine!" He held the Jupiter Star high above his head. He then pointed it beneath the water, and it lit up, firing a beam through the dark depths, striking Isaac's body, stripping him of his Wind Alchemy. Alex then pointed the Jupiter Star above his head, claiming the remaining Wind Alchemy from the Golden Sun.
Alex beat his wings and flew high above the waves, then paused, breathing hard. "Yes…" he said, new power coursing through his veins. "NOW FULL WATER AND WIND ALCHEMY IS MINE!" With a loud bellow, he threw up his arms and created a great typhoon, a great hurricane swirling through the waves, scattering them across the entirety of Weyard. Through the rising cyclone rose Isaac's battered body, and he appeared as though dead, suspended in space. The Venus and Mars Stars were also swirling around, the shiny stones glittering brightly.
"YES!" Alex hollered. "COME TO ME!" He reached out with his arm as the two Elemental Stars hovered through the air toward him.
Garet saw the time was now. "What are you doing?" Jenna demanded as Garet swam desperately for the swirling typhoon in the center of the sea.
"I'm doing what needs to be done!" he yelled over the rushing winds. He allowed himself to be swept up by the swirling winds, and as he was tossed around in the air like a rag doll he kept his eyes on the Elemental Stars.
Mia and Piers caught a glimpse of Garet flying around in the wind. "What the hell is he doing?" demanded Piers.
"I think he may be saving Isaac," replied Mia.
Alex put out his hands as the Elemental Stars neared his waiting fingertips. "Yes…" he said. "Almost…"
Due to pure chance, or perhaps sheer determination, Garet was flung by the winds directly at the Elemental Stars in midair. As he tumbled through the air he snatched the Venus and Mars Stars in midair. He then plummeted down to the seas below, out of the typhoon's reach.
"WHAT?" Alex demanded, completely shocked by the turn of events. He looked directly below him. "GIVE BACK TO ME WHAT IS MINE!" He went in a complete dive bomb toward Garet.
Garet hit the waves hard, but he kept his head above the surface, pouring all of his energy into this moment. "GET AWAY FROM ME!" yelled Garet, holding the two Elemental Stars high above his head. They lit up with red and yellow light, and they fired beams that struck Alex directly in the chest. Alex let out a cry of anguish as the Venus and Mars Alchemy within his body was stripped from him, encapsulated within the Stars. Alex fell to the water below, temporarily stunned, and Garet held the Stars above his head, claiming the remaining fragment of the Golden Sun within the two Stars. The Golden Sun was completely gone now, and the skies slowly grew darker.
Alex regained his composure. "GIVE THOSE TO ME!" he yelled. "GIVE ME MY POWER!"
"NEVER!" Garet cried, and he pointed the two Stars at Isaac's body, still swirling around the winds above the sea. He fired both beams, and they struck Isaac, filling him with full Earth and Fire Alchemy.
Just as the Stars were emptied into Isaac, Alex plunged his sword through Garet's chest. "Next time, don't step out of your boundaries," said Alex, and he withdrew his sword from Garet's flesh, casting Garet's dead body aside.
The others were completely aware of what had happened, having witnessed the battle through their Psynergy. "NO!" Jenna shrieked, weeping uncontrollably.
"GARET!" the others cried, and they all mourned his death.
"First Felix…now Garet…" said Piers. "When…when will this madness stop…" He turned his face to the heavens. "WHEN? TELL ME! TELL ME!"
Mia was overcome with grief, unable to take all of this bloodshed anymore. Ivan put his arm around Sheba's shoulder as she wept bitterly. Another death…
Alex turned. "Why do you weep, all of you?" he demanded, his eyesight great enough to see all five scattered Adepts across the sea. "FOR YOU WILL ALL DIE SHORTLY!"
"I wouldn't count on it!" a loud voice declared.
All eyes turned to the eye of the cyclone, and there in the air was Isaac, his great golden wings spread wide, his sword in hand. One hand glowed yellow as the other glowed red, and he possessed the full Alchemy of flame and earth.
"You're still alive?" Alex demanded, beating his wings, taking flight again, rising to Isaac's level. "So I guess it seems together we are the entirety of Alchemy – I possess all the world's wind and water, you possess all the world's earth and flame."
"Then my first act shall be to rid this land of all of this water," said Isaac, and he put out his hand. Immediately the sea began to wane, and so slowly the flooding waters were gone, the amount of water returned to as it was. The five other Adepts stood at the base of their respective lighthouses, and they had a new hope in Isaac, although lessened by their grief for Garet.
Alex cocked an eyebrow. "Do away with my seas, do you?" asked he. "Well, then I guess what happens next is obvious. We must continue our battle, and the winner will possess the entire Alchemy of Weyard."
"No," replied Isaac. "I have but one last task before I face you."
"What do you mean?" asked Alex.
Isaac put out his hand, and Garet's carcass floated through the air, landing limply in Isaac's arms. Alex grinned at the sight. "That fool got in my way," he said. "He deserved his fate."
"He is not yet dead," replied Isaac. "He possesses very little life, and he will die soon…but his heart still beats." Isaac then closed his eyes and cast a greater Cure Psynergy than ever before, using the full might of Earth Alchemy to heal Garet. Garet was completely healed, and he opened his eyes.
"Isaac?" asked Garet.
Isaac swooped down and placed Garet on the ground. "Good friend," said Isaac. "You allowed me to live; now I have done the same for you. If not for your sacrifice, Weyard would be under Alex's rule by now."
Garet grinned. "No problem, Isaac," he replied. "Us Vale boys have got to help each other out. Now go out there and kick his ass!"
Isaac smiled, and he took flight, drawing his sword. "Alex!" he yelled. "The time is nigh! This will be our final confrontation! This will be the deciding battle for Weyard!"
"You say that so much it's lost all meaning," Alex said with a grim expression. "Old foe, I'm going to enjoy sending you to Felix."
Isaac was filled with rage. "Do not speak that way," he said angrily. "Felix was an honorable warrior and a good friend! AND YOU SHALL PAY FOR HIS DEATH!"
Isaac charged at Alex, but Alex threw a wall of ice in front of him. Isaac swung his sword and shattered the ice immediately, aiming for Alex's heart. Alex thrust out his arm and blew great wind blades that battered and shunted Isaac, ripping his wings, ripping his clothes, but Isaac forged on, fighting on. Blood poured down his face, and he was covered in wounds, but he continued.
The swords of Alex and Isaac clashed, causing a shot to ring out round the world. The war for Weyard had begun.