18. Voice
Zael expected to die.
He never had any experience with aerial combat, not really. Even as he fell, remembering a time when he rode a gryphon (why was he on one?), he doubted that he really knew how to maneuver one.
A strong, steady force suddenly caught him mid-air, and Zael gasped, looking around. Whitish, yellow light glowed under him, cushioning his fall, and slowly lowered him to the ground. As he felt his body touch the ground entirely, the light faded, and the stony coldness underneath permeated his skin. He grimaced, getting up, just in time for Arganan to rush over to him.
"What the hell was that? Are you…" Arganan's jaw tightened as he looked up at Mitra, soaring above the group with another roar, before looking down at Zael. "Are you okay?"
"I'm okay," Zael managed, but he grimaced at how weak he sounded. "Thanks. For saving me."
He noticed Arganan avoid making eye contact with him. "You're welcome. Asthar would've tried catching you, but I don't think it would've ended well, considering that he's dead."
"Right." Zael tried his best not to laugh at that, as he got up, before looking up at Mitra flying around. "How do we get it down?"
"Crossbow?" Arganan supplied. Zael frowned, before he vaguely recalled the past fight with Mitra; spells, flung back at Mitra after the beast shot them at the group first…
"I know how." Zael managed. He paused, looking towards Arganan. "Can you get your Holy Magic up as a shield, if Mitra tries any spells? We can deflect their attacks right back at it and get it down that way."
"Right!"
"It's preparing an attack!" Therius called, and Zael looked up to see Mitra glowing with a white light, before sending it towards the group.
Arganan immediately put up a magic shield with Holy magic, and Mitra's attack bounced off the shield and hit Mitra in return. The beast roared as it plummeted to the earth, landing on the ground so hard that the impact echoed through the entire room.
"Now!" Zael called, and he ran towards Mitra, ready to attack. In his mind, he apologized to Mitra for what he had to do, but he did it anyway.
The battle this time was longer, grueling even. Mitra managed to get a few decent hits in on Zael, neutralizing his use of the Outsider's power temporarily with its silence magic at times, but Zael and the others persisted.
With one final hit from Zael, Mitra roared one last time, tilting its head up at the sky, before it faded into shimmering blue light. Zael noticed Arganan wince and take several steps back, not wanting to be touched by any of it, and Zael didn't blame him for doing so. Before Zael himself could do a thing, however, he saw the blue light rush at him, and…
Remember, Zael.
Remember.
A multitude of memories came to him at once.
A dark-haired mage, smiling patiently as she ate hundreds of muffins.
The blond, ice-wielder who always flirted with every woman possible.
The red-haired swordswoman who never went a day without a drink if she could.
The light-haired mage with the eyepatch, brooding in his seat.
A man with dark hair and golden eyes, leading them and swearing that they'd all be knights one day.
They were with Zael at some point. Their names floated at the edges of his tongue as he tried to remember them.
And then the memories shifted.
A woman with platinum-white hair. Zael felt that he saw her before. As she spoke, he realized that her voice was familiar.
It was the same voice that woke him up.
"Zael!"
Zael gasped, and he looked up to see Therius, who tried to grab his shoulder but couldn't, due to his deceased ghostly state.
"Are you okay?" Therius asked. Zael saw the way his brows furrowed, but Therius kept speaking. "After the light got absorbed into you, you just…stared into space."
"Wait, what?" Zael looked down at his right hand, seeing it glow blue before the glow vanished. "It got absorbed into me?"
"Yes." He looked up to see Asthar approach, his mouth a grim, thin line. "We were worried. Are you feeling alright, lad?"
"Yes." Zael nodded, swallowing a bit. "Sore from the fight, but fine. I think I remember a lot more, now."
He noticed Asthar and Therius look between each other, before Therius asked, "How much, exactly?"
Zael tried to think. "I'm not sure." He admitted. His head felt a bit heavy. "But it's a lot. Not all of it, but I think a good chunk of it?"
"That's helpful." He heard Arganan mutter, and Zael looked towards him to see Arganan pointing to the Outsider rock that was now present again. "And Mitra's gone, now. So…"
Zael sighed, looking towards the glowing blue Outsider rock, and then towards Arganan and the others. "I don't think there's any turning back after this. Are you ready?"
"Ready as we'll be." He saw Asthar smile lightly, now. "What about you?"
Zael nodded once. "I'm ready," He breathed.
With that, Zael approached the Outsider rock and held up his right hand, hoping for the best as it, and the rock, both glowed blue.
