Book 3: Chapter 71: Smoke and Mirrors

Book 3: Chapter 71: Smoke and Mirrors

With each person that praised Barry’s actions, his soul vibrated. If he were the older version of himself, the one without an enhanced awareness of his own being, he’d have preened like a proud rooster. Now though, he was all too aware of his ego and its inflation. It wasn’t a problem in and of itself—an ego was only natural. He was human, after all.

The discordance came when that ego clashed with the version of himself that he wanted to be.

Barry was the stand-in leader of the Church of Fischer. As such, he should be the person that Fischer’s followers could look to for guidance. A paragon of virtue. Yet here he was, reveling in the praise. It was... fickle. For him to derive his self-worth from others’ perception of him was to put his happiness in their hands. He tried to deny it. Tried to push it down and pretend it didn’t exist. But it wasn’t working anymore.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t a new development. He hadn’t consciously admitted it before, but this shameful inclination of his was why he’d been pushing Fischer to take control of the church. Barry gritted his teeth, tuning out the outside voices heaping more accolades on him.

I don’t feel worthy of my position...

His core hummed, something deep within him resonating with that acknowledgement.

I don’t feel worthy of being a leader...

Something sloughed away as he admitted that truth, a weight he hadn’t known was there. The world’s chi felt alive around him, gathering and dancing as Peter and the tree spirits sent ever more flowing over the battlefield. Voices called out to him, trying to get his attention and reef him back to the present. Barry ignored them. He had to get to the bottom of this cognitive dissonance.

Was he truly unworthy of being a leader? If he was a little too proud—a little too vain—what did that matter? Even if failing those present would bring him discomfort, it would be temporary. He would never give up. He would strive nonstop, fighting to get back to a position where people were proud of his actions.

If his pride was a motivator, though, did that mean he would betray his comrades? If there was a choice to make, one that would hurt those he cared about in order to boost people’s perception of him, would he take the self-serving option...?

His answer was as immediate as it was true. No, he wouldn’t. His ego might chafe, but he’d still choose the wellbeing of others every time. His core shook, as did the surrounding clouds of chi, urging him on.

Oh... Barry realized, possessing unwavering clarity. I am a good leader...

It wasn’t his vanity talking, either—it was fact. In spite of his pride, Barry would readily sacrifice his happiness if it meant improving the wellbeing of others.

The world agreed.

All at once, the surrounding essence slammed into him, filling his core to the brim. His body seemed to soak up all it could, his muscles swelling and skeleton changing. The next moment, excess power exploded out of his core as its bounds increased.

***

Even though I wasn’t physically there, I recoiled from the explosion, instinctively backing away. The blast was different to the blade-like chi of Roger’s ascension, yet it was just as deadly for anyone caught in the detonation.

Luckily for the surrounding defenders, everyone now knew what a breakthrough looked like. Danny had tried to get Barry’s attention at first, even giving him a little shake for good measure. But the moment the world’s chi started gathering, he ordered everyone to back up. Just in time, too, because it had slammed into Barry a moment later.

I’d been keenly aware of Barry’s thought process, the network I was connected to relaying his deepest thoughts in real time. I had no idea that Barry was dealing with such doubt, and now that he’d overcome it, I was beyond happy for him. The explosion that resulted from his breakthrough had thrown up a cloud of dust, and as it settled, I raised a mental eyebrow at Barry’s body. The homie was absolutely jacked. Like ten years of weight training and a healthy dose of anabolics jacked.

“Frack me,” Danny said, shaking his head in disbelief as Barry sat up. “What has Helen been feeding you, buddy?”

Barry blinked down at his glistening arms, which had literally torn their way out of his shirt. He opened and closed his fists, testing his new strength. The surrounding defenders gaped at his new form, their faces ranging from stunned, awed, and everything in between. Which wasn’t really surprising considering he looked like a Greek God. Though all of their reactions were positive, another person on the battlefield was far from happy about the event.

An inhuman scream came from the flames, leaving no doubt as to who the sound came from. The king’s hatred was reaching new heights. Most of the flying wedge had been taken out by now, only three of them still standing. As the scream slowly tapered off, the inferno raging atop the field ebbed. Thick strands of corruption flowed from around the defenders still standing. When their protective flames were gone, the streams continued.

“What the...?” Roger said, his eyes wide as he gaped at the downed enemies. Despite none of the king’s protective chi surrounding them, torrents of power still flowed from their cores. Their patriarch wasn’t just retrieving his own power. He was also stealing theirs.

It poured into his outstretched hands, flowing through his body and down into his core. There, his nexus of power expanded, the walls stretching to accommodate the vast swaths of essence coming in. Though his eyes still held indescribable madness, there was a hint of bluster there too.

He planned this, I realized.

I’d assumed he’d gone completely insane, spewing so much power that the lining of his core stretched to such a degree that it ripped. But it had been intentional. He had damaged himself so that his core could hold more power. As I sent my awareness closer, inspecting the king’s nexus, new tears appeared along its surface. Just as quick as they came, the wounds were cauterized, his sickly chi sealing them shut. It was an unending process, yet his core remained stable.

A silence settled over the defenders as the flames continued shrinking. It was late now, the sun having almost fully set over the western mountains. The burning fires had made the scene bright, but now that they were disappearing, darkness crept in. As the last of the streams left the attackers, they collapsed, their leader having sucked them dry.

They were all potent, but nowhere near as powerful as the last.

Teddy’s entire body glowed red, his face contorting in anger. Unlike Anna, his legs never wavered, a palpable torrent of injustice coming from every one of his pores as he stared at the king. His was the rage of a sleeping bear, awoken too soon by some foolish invader. Like a den mother that saw every defender as one of her cubs, Teddy was furious at the king’s actions.

Barry absorbed each of their transformations in an instant. “Drop the shield long enough for us to exit.”

“No need.” Deklan shrugged nonchalantly, as if they were discussing what to eat for dinner. “You guys can pass through it.”

“Good,” he replied, the timbre still in his voice but his tone cold. “Tsunami formation.”

The response was immediate.

All those that had experienced a breakthrough, other than the two brothers, strode forward and left the shield. Teddy took up the vanguard position next to Roger and Trent, everyone gathering their chi. The king, seeing their approach, paused. He looked like an elemental spirit, only his shape now reminiscent of the human he had once been. Orbs of bright-white flame watched everyone, his sickening chi oozing out to feel their power.

He laughed, then. At least I thought it was a laugh. His head rocked back and a sound like a house-fire came from his throat, casting heat into the night sky that distorted the air. He cocked his arm back, holding it there as he gathered an unbelievable amount of power.

Before another cloud of doubt could cross my mind, the voices of the network below shifted to an elated chorus. They directed my sight toward the east, and though it made the impending clash leave my mind’s eye, I let my vision shift. I needed to know why the remnant copies of my pals felt victorious.

When I found the being flying over the sand, my jaw dropped open. Though he was already moving at an incredible clip, the little deviant unleashed a blast from one claw, rocketing even faster. His core was almost empty, but the power he possessed... it had changed. He was strong.

“What the frack is he carrying?” Maria asked, her attention on the woven basket nestled against his darkened carapace. “And where did he get it?”

“No idea what it is,” I replied, daring to hope that he could turn the tides of battle. “And if I had to guess where he got it, I’d say it’s stolen. Probably from a small child. Or a puppy.”

Unaware of the incoming reinforcement, the king unleashed his blast. If the earlier attack was train-sized, this one was the size of an aircraft carrier. Wider than the battlefield, his flames roared forward like a vengeful spirit, seeking to consume everything in their path. Though his human features were hidden by flame, I could sense the arrogance radiating from him. He believed that his attack would tear right through the party of defenders charging his way.

Busy unleashing hellfire as he was, the king didn’t notice the sapient creature sailing in from the east. The defenders were similarly occupied, gathering their chi and preparing to unleash it against the king’s inferno.

Only one being noticed. Perhaps it was their connection that made her look back and search the sky. Maybe it was her longing for him, her desire to see him once more. Or, possibly, it was just chance that made Sergeant Snips turn and look up, scanning the sky with a lingering gaze. Whatever caused it, the result was the same. Her visible eye went wide, her mouth-parts undulating in disbelief as she spotted the Xianxia-land equivalent of a stealth-bomber.

Rocky, playing it way cooler than I knew he could, simply shot her a wink and tipped an imaginary hat as he sailed over the defenders.

He landed before the incoming death-sentence, set his woven basket down, and reached in to retrieve something. He withdrew a slender item just as the wall of corrupted chi slammed into him. Though his chi now felt like an active volcano, I still held my breath as Rocky’s core absorbed the king’s flames. He would be fine against fire, I was sure of it, but what about the corruption...?

It was over in seconds, Rocky’s body parched of power and all too happy to soak up the ship-sized conflagration. I hadn’t noticed before, but he was covered in red lines that seemed to glow from within, standing in stark contrast to his now-black carapace. Was it reflective of how much chi he held...? Before I could consider it further, he shook violently.

I honed in on him, sending my awareness down toward his core. Just as I’d suspected, it was the corrupting chi. It was seeking to infect him. Seeking to change him. Snips flew forward, tears streaming as she scuttled to his side. Rocky’s eyes were closed, his entire awareness focused on fighting back against the corruption. What was he...?

With what felt like practiced ease, he cast the corruption out. Just like that, he simply... released it. A cloud of dark green vapor flowed from his mouth. Waving a claw through it, he dispersed the sickly smell, making a displeased face.

In his other claw, he held the slender thing that he’d removed from the woven basket. One end was glowing, the king’s flames having caused it to catch fire.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me...” I said, not believing my eyes.

Rocky held the stick to his mouth, giving Snips a reassuring pat with his other claw as she burst into tears.

“What is that?” Maria asked, her attention also on Rocky. “And what is he doing with it?”

I shook my head, struggling to find the right words. I’d seen inside the basket—it was filled to the brim with the same objects. The little prick had hundreds of them.

“Where the fuck did Rocky find cigarettes?”