Author's Notes:

Hey everyone! Sorry for the delay on my writing. I've been dealing with some personal stuff and it has been eating away at my time quite a bit. Still, I managed to give you at least one chapter for October. Even if it isn't very good, I'm just glad I was able to get it out. Thanks for reading guys! See you next time!

Chapter 75

Battered, worn out, and tired, Saito and his group of friends traveled through the bitter, snow covered wilderness of what Saito deduced was Finland from the map he had stolen from a now abandoned town.

They had stuck to traveling through the wilderness to avoid being seen by anyone, knowing that it would cause panic. Despite the numbing cold, there was torrential rain, making progress even more difficult than it would have otherwise been. They decided to rest in a nearby cave, tired of the freezing cold rain.

"We've been traveling for weeks." Alex said. "Are we there yet."

"The rain has gotten substantially heavier." Saito said. "At the very least, we're very close to the epicenter."

"What do you think we'll find?" Aigle asked. "I don't sense anything."

"Best case scenario, either someone very weak or no one at all." Sasha said. "Worst case scenario…I don't know what to expect."

"Aiko, or whoever was controlling her, said fisherman in the area saw a giant serpent underwater." Saito said. "It could be Lífþrasir."

"Are you sure?" Louise asked. "Wouldn't we be able to sense such a powerful being?"

"Well...yes, but I've been thinking about what she said to me once." He said. "She said the people in the place she resides thought she wrapped around the world with her length. That something bad would happen when she woke up."

"What does that have to do with us?" Max said, forcing the water out of sticks he gathered to make firewood.

"The people around here had a belief like that over 1000 years ago." He said. "The world was supposed to be sent into turmoil. The ground would be overflown with water and one of their gods would fight this 'world serpent'. Seems familiar, doesn't it?"

"We cannot base our actions on a centuries old legend." Shion replied.

"I know. They're just stories." Saito replied.

They sat silently, staring into the fire that Max had lit and warming their bodies.

"How do you think things are going back home?" Louise asked.

"My sons have the means to call us back should there be an emergency." Sasha said.

"If there is an emergency, you can take us back quickly." Mariel replied. "You shouldn't worry. Everything will turn out fine."

"Everyone should get a little rest." Sasha said. "We'll continue moving in a few hours."

"I don't think we have the time." Max said. "I think we'd all rather get home as quickly as possible. Who knows what the enemy is up to."

"Don't be so hasty, Max." Sasha said. "You of all people should know what happens when you lack the energy to continue fighting."

Although this was a rather low blow, it allowed him to understand that she was probably right, so he didn't argue. Everyone huddled together for warmth, then one by one, fell asleep. Except for Max, who sat near the entrance of the cave listening to the rain.

After about an hour, Alex noticed that his father was wide awake, so he decided to talk to him. He sat down next to him without saying anything, waiting for him to speak.

"I disappear for a few hundred years, and the world becomes like this." Max finally said.

"All of this was out of your control." Alex replied.

"Perhaps..." Max said, quietly. "What became of my village?"

"I don't know." Alex replied. "When I became 14, I left it to make my own life."

"I see..." He said.

"What are you going to do once this is over?" Alex asked.

"I'm going to visit my village, whatever is left of it." He said. "Then I'm going to live with your mother. How about you?"

"I have a nation to look after." Alex replied. "And I think...I want to start a family."

"A family, huh? Just don't end up like me..." Max said, rather sadly.

"What do you mean?" Alex asked.

"Nothing." Max said, after a slight pause. "Let's get some rest."

They both soon fell asleep from listening to the heavy rain outside. Everyone slept for about three hours before being woken up by Sasha. They quickly prepared by eating food they had found earlier, then continued deeper into the storm.

They traveled for another twelve hours. The world around them became dark as what little sunlight that shone through the thick cloud cover disappeared over the horizon. There was no moon in the sky that night, so all of them had to rely on their other senses for navigation. After their twelve hour journey, Saito finally stopped them from going any further.

"What's wrong, Saito." Alex asked.

"We're close to the sea. I smell it." He said.

"There is a town nearby." Louise said, using her magic to see surrounding objects. "It's by the coast of some body of water. Maybe we should go there."

"Which way is it?" Max asked.

Louise pointed in a direction southwest of them. When Saito looked in that direction, he could see that the town was inhabited by several people.

"There's people there." Saito said. "If we go, we can't be seen."

With that settled, they entered the town, staying on rooftops to avoid being seen. The town was on the shore of what Saito thought was some sea in the area, since the water smelled salty. The town's population seemed fairly healthy. In fact, they went about their lives as if nothing abnormal had happened.

"Something isn't right." Alex said.

"Yeah. Everyone seems fine here." Saito replied.

"I'm human. Perhaps I should go and find something out?" Max said.

"That's a good idea." Louise said. "He is the only normal one out of all of us. I'll place a spell on you so that you understand them."

"Good luck." Shion said, using a pair of wings as an umbrella.

He nodded slightly, then quietly entered the town and started to look around. The people stared at him, as if they knew that he wasn't from the area. He walked into a store that was selling fish. Inside, the clerk was a young man. His wife was in the corner of the shop, caring for her fussing baby.

Both the man and his wife seemed extremely happy considering what had happened in the world around them. Their eyes were bright and full of life. Even their mannerisms were filled with excitement and joy.

"Hello, sir. How may I help you?" The man asked.

"Hello. I would like to purchase some food." Max said.

"Ah yes, of course." The man said. "Our fishermen have been quite lucky of late, so we have quite a large variety in stock. Please take your time and choose what you'd like."

"Thank you." Max said. "Things seem rather happy here considering the state of the world."

"It's just a little rain, after all." The man said. "You're not from around here. Where are you from?"

"Just a small village further south." Max said, not knowing the names of the countries in Saito's world.

He grabbed dozens of fish, then brought them to the man to sell. He was obviously surprised at how much Max was buying, but ignored it for the time being.

"All this for yourself?" He asked.

"No. My companions as well." Max replied.

"Ah. That would be...€404." He said, after a slight pause.

Not knowing how to pay, he handed the man 4 gold coins he had in his pocket. The man stared at the coins for a few seconds. After a while, he simply accepted them and bid Max farewell. Max was surprised that he didn't ask if the coins were fake, but left anyway. He regrouped with his friends, who sat under a tree nearby the town.

"Find out anything?" Saito asked.

"They either don't seem aware of what's happening, or they choose to ignore it." Max replied

"Did they suspect you?" Aigle asked.

"I don't think so." He replied.

Just as he finished his sentence, the rain stopped falling and the sky cleared above them. The world around them became eerily silent. In the skies, birds rapidly flew away, back towards the rain the surrounded the lake.

In the forest, many animals, herbivores and carnivores alike, ran in the same direction. For several moments, no one in their group felt anything out of the ordinary other than the deafening silence.

However, after a few minutes, the water in the lake began to shift. Several waves crashed against the shoreline before the tide began to recede.

"Something's happening…" Saito said.

"Should we leave?" Louise asked.

"No." Sasha said. "Whatever is happening is most likely in response to our presence. We must stay."

After waiting for what felt like hours, but was only a few seconds, Mariel blew them all with a gust of air, drying them off. They were all confused for a while, but then noticed that the water around them was moving unnaturally.

It quickly made its way back into the lake, where it began to accumulate into several tentacle-like arms made of water. Without giving them a chance to observe the water, the water immediately attacked them, sending a large amount of dust and mist into the air.

Saito and his friends had no choice but to dodge the tendrils in different directions, splitting them apart. After several seconds of evasion, they each attempted to sever the tendrils that attacked them, but they simply reformed themselves.

"How are we supposed to fight back?!" Alex exclaimed as he just barely dodged an attack.

"Perhaps we should vaporize the water?" Sasha asked calmly.

"But there will still be water in the air…" Saito said, trying to think of a way to fight back.

"The only way is to seal it!" Aigle said.

"We can't seal a lake…" Saito said to himself.

"Not the lake, whatever is controlling the water." Mariel said. "There's something under the lake. Something powerful."

"How do we get to it?" Shion said.

"We can't. We have to lure it to the surface." Mariel replied. "Retreat for now. Its abilities must have a range."

"But the rain around the world is caused by the same being. Does it not have infinite range?" Saito asked.

"Creating rain lacks precision and control." She replied. "To kill small, fast beings like us, it will need to be closer."

"What about the town?" Louise asked.

"I believe the town was a trap, or at the very least, a beacon to alert the creature under the water." Mariel said.

"So those people..." Saito began.

"They aren't real." Mariel replied.

"Now is not the time for empathy, Saito." Sasha said. "My sister's analysis is correct. Let's go."

With their course of action decided, they waited for an opening to retreat, then, as quickly as possible, moved further and further away from the sea. The water that relentlessly attacked them followed them closely.

However, just as Mariel had predicted, after retreating to a significant distance away from the sea, the water that followed them began to thin before eventually, it came to a stop. After a few seconds, it receded back towards the lake.

The group waited for a few minutes for any reaction, also taking the time to catch their breaths. As they waited, a mist began to pass over the land, blocking out the sun and making visibility extremely bad. For another several minutes, the land became eerily silent.

Suddenly, a sharp shard of ice shot down into the ground just next to Saito. As they raised their guard, several more shards of ice rained upon them from seemingly every direction. Because of the thick fog, they couldn't see where they were fired from.

"Louise! Get rid of this fog!" Alex yelled, trying to figure out which ways to dodge.

As she dodged left, right, up and down, Louise fired several balls of light around them. They soon exploded into large bright spheres, destroying the fog and much of the land around them.

When the bright light disappeared and their eyes adjusted, they saw the thing that was chasing them from the waters of the sea. The blue serpent which only Saito was familiar with surrounded them with her long body.

Her gigantic, triangular, snake like head looked down at them with piercing blue eyes. She had silently wrapped her body around them, using the fog she created as cover, preventing them from attempting to run away again.

"What is that thing..." Alex asked, falling to his knees. "We can't possibly win..."

"It's Lífþrasir..." Saito said, also losing the strength in his legs upon seeing the massive serpent. "She must be under Brimir's control..."

"How are we supposed to beat something like this..?" Shion said with tears beginning to form in her eyes from fear.

"Its scales are probably too strong for our physical attacks." Sasha said, keeping a level head.

"They are probably too strong for magic as well." Mariel said, also looking at the situation calmly. "Even if we could create attacks large enough to significantly damage it, its armor would most likely negate them. Which means our only option..."

"Is void magic." Sasha said, turning to look at Louise, who was in awe of the beast.

"Aigle, Max, Alex. Protect Louise while she charges an attack." Mariel said.

"What are you going to do?" Max asked.

"Shion, Saito, little sister, and myself will hold the beast back." She said. "Once it recognizes Louise as a void mage, it will no doubt focus on her. We have to stop it."

"I'll need a while to charge an attack strong enough to harm it." Louise said. "That could take a very long time."

"You don't need enough to kill it. Only to disable it for a while so that it can be sealed." Sasha said, stretching her limbs and back in preparation. "That means you need enough to deal a substantial blow to the head. Don't worry about the rest of the body."

"And how will you all get away when I fire?" Louise asked.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it." Saito said, smiling at her and trying his best to put her at ease.

After some hesitation, Louise finally agreed to the Elf sisters' plan. She closed her eyes and began to recite the spell for an explosion. While she charged her spell, Aigle used her magic to help her retain stamina as she gathered energy. Max constructed a barrier of wood and stone around the two so that they wouldn't be hurt.

Once he was done, he joined his son outside the small bunker he made for them, ready to defend it against any incoming attacks. Sasha, Mariel, Shion, and Saito looked up at the serpent's head, thinking of the best ways to attack it.

After a few seconds of thought, the four of them sprung into action, well aware that this may be the last fight they ever have.