Chapter 1018: Three Days

Chapter 1018: Three Days

Darkness and frigid cold; Leon and his team found themselves immersed in both for a brief moment as they were teleported away from the hill they had stood upon. The tunnel was short, and a light shining in the darkness showed them which direction to move. Leon, Mbana, and Serena all began moving almost at the same time, while Leon called out over his shoulder to the other three, Follow us! Without much hesitation, Mari, Tir, and Nara took off after the tenth-tier mages.

The tunnel was so short that barely even a few seconds passed before the end was reached, letting Leons team spill out into a vast chambertheir destination, it seemed.

Leon, Mbana, and Serena, having all been in teleportation tunnels before, took their reappearance well, not even stumbling as they reappeared. Maris Ulta suit, meanwhile, crashed to the ground hard enough to shake it, while Tir and Nara barely managed to remain on their feet.

Fuckin shit! Mari exclaimed as she sprang to her feet, showcasing her suits spectacular range of motion.

The chamber they found themselves in was massive and utterly desolate. It was twelve-sided, with a ceiling that stretched so high that Leon thought it made up the entirety of one of the smaller sub-towers adjacent to the main tower. Hugging the wall was a thick border of dirt, with only a few lonely bits of petrified wood sticking out to indicate what had once grown there. What Leon thought mightve once been a magical river even flowed through the chamber, running around the twelve-sided platform they now stood upon, though the stone riverbed was now dry and covered in black stains.

The walls were likewise stained, while the air was so thick with darkness magic that Leon felt an intense pressure close around his mind. He quickly called upon his light magic and Nestors lessons and did his best to inscribe a simple shield rune in the air, concentrating fully on repelling the darkness saturating the environment.

Much of the darkness was pushed back, it still leaked through the invisible shield Leon had erected like water through cloth. Still, it was better than nothing, and given how quickly Leon had thrown the ancient rune up, he was surprised it was working at all.

Clever, Mbana observed. Youre quite the enchanter, arent you?

I have some meager skill in the art, Leon admitted.

And humble, too. Well, Leon Raime, if youll allow me to indulge my own humility, you have quite shown myself and Serena up! Our labors over these past weeks havent availed us at all, and yet you found a way inside in such a short time!

We wouldve found a way, Serena bitterly growled.

Of course, of course, Mbana said. Now, I believe were in the reception hall?

You know where we are? Leon asked. Thankfully, the chamber was, aside from the intense concentration of darkness magic, devoid of obvious threats, allowing the group to relax a bit, though Nara, Tir, and Mari all retreated slightly to flank Leon, something Leon took note of.

Given the way Serena glared at them, Leon thought she noticed as well, though no one addressed it aloud.

Our Grave Wardens gave us maps of Qo Weylekhs palace, Mbana freely admitted. They were incompletethese Grave Wardens do love their secretsbut what weve been given ought to be enough to find what were here for.

Were looking for the core of the enchantment loosening the Primal Devils seal, Leon said. Or more ideally, a way to escape this plane.

If its the latter, you only need to follow us, Mbana said. After we finish our taskwhich ought to only take a few minutes, assuming nothing else gets in our waythen well head for a private arkyard, where a possible escape ark may be located.

How convenient, Leon drily whispered. This isnt going to be that simple.

Mbanas omnipresent smile thinned. No, I fear you may be correct. And yet were here now, and nothing seems to be attacking us. Aside from the air, I mean. The dark-skinned man waved his hand and the air around him pulsed, pushing much of the darkness away.

Wind mage, Leon thought, filing the knowledge away just in case Mbana made himself out to be a threat. He just hoped his suspicions turned out to be incorrect.

I was not given such a map, Leon said. Would you be willing to share yours?

Of course, Mbana said as he took out a small crystal from his soul realm. I hope you dont mind a cruder method of sharing informationIm terribly ill-versed in using darkness magic.

All who strive for virtue ought to spurn the magic of the devils, Tir murmured.

Close-minded fool, Serena responded, eliciting a glare from Tir, which she reciprocated.

Behold, Mbana cut in, drawing everyones attention just as Leon was about to step between Tir and Serena. The crystal in his hand then created a projection of light on the ground of the entire tower complex. With this, Mbana explained, I can move the map around and see as much within the tower as we were given.

To illustrate, he manipulated the crystal a bit and the projection zoomed in on one of the towers in the outermost ring, revealing the interior to be one massive empty chamber.

This is where we are now, Mbana said.

The projection then moved into the adjacent tower and revealed a veritable hive of passageways and more moderately sized chambers.

Rooms for visiting dignitaries and the like, Mbana explained. He zoomed out again and back in on a tower in another branch of the tower complex, which housed another large chamber just beneath the roof. The arkpad. He paused and tossed the map crystal to Leon. Try it for yourself.

Are we going to give a full tour or are we going to get on with this? Serena interjected as Leon caught the crystal and barely managed to keep himself from immediately examining the intricate enchantment work that had to have gone into such a magical device. The longer we stay here staring at the map, the less time we have before something comes and tries to stop us.

His tone brokered no argument, not even from a Prince, and he and his team ran through the halls as fast as Maris Ulta suit could manage. Fortunately, the tower was grandiose enough that the halls and doors were all sufficiently large enough for the suit to fit throughat least, for a while. It was in the fourth tower that the halls started turning less monumental and more human-sized, and Leon unhesitatingly began blasting through with lightning magic, heedless of the damage to the tower he may be causing.

The stone around the doors practically disintegrated under the weight of his power, taking him by surprise at how effectively he blasted through. Hed have figured that the tower wouldve been more heavily warded, but he supposed the Primal Devils power mightve eroded those wards.

[Leon,] Xaphan piped up as they blazed through the halls, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake as Leon did all he could to ensure Mari could follow without having to bail out of her suitand consequently expose herself to the darkness around them with only her sixth-tier power and Leons shield runes to protect her.

[Demon! In a hurry!] Leon shouted back.

[As you should be!] Xaphan retorted, his crackling voice sounding strange. [You havent much time!]

[How long?!] Leon hurriedly asked.

[I think maybe three days?] Xaphan responded.

Leons jaw fell open as the lightning bolt he was about to launch out of Iron Pride almost fizzled out.

Three days? he asked aloud.

Three days what? Nara responded.

He speaks with the demon within him, may the gods protect his soul, Tir explained.

Xaphan knows how long we have, Leon explained. Demon, you said we have three days?

[Yes,] Xaphan confirmed. [Thats my best estimate, anyway.]

[Its accurate enough,] the voice of the Thunderbird confirmed. [Leon get off this plane. Heed nothing else. Leave. Immediately. You can feel it here, cant you? The power of the Primal Devil piercing the walls of its cage?]

Leon strained with his magic senses as he blasted through another door for Mari. [Not really, Ancestor. Ive been sensing the Devils power since I arrived on the plane. What am I specifically looking for?]

[Willpower, direction, intent,] the Thunderbird answered.

[Origin power,] Xaphan added. [Theres a hint of it here, infesting these halls. Magic of a density youve never experienced before. Based on how its resonating with the enchantment three days at the most is all you have]

Leon nodded as the halls began getting so cramped that Mari was really having to squeeze through, slowing their progress down fairly significantly. Fortunately, they were in the seventh tower by now, with only about thirteen to goincluding the largest central tower. With this slower pace, Leon could spare enough attention to reach out with his magic senses again and try to feel what was being described.

However, all he could feel was darknessa deep, unfathomable darkness that threatened to swallow him whole if he didnt turn away from it. But once he saw it, he couldnt turn away, and it drew his eyes to the central tower, and then far below it. He barely noticed himself coming to a stop as his eyes widened and his heart began to beat with an intensity he hadnt experienced in a long time.

Darkness filled his vision as he felt something gently scratch against the mental defenses hed placed upon his helmet and then slip right past them like they werent even there. Nine fingers brushed against the defenses hed erected in his mind like nails against a chalkboard, and only then did Leon regain his wits and flood his body with the Thunderbirds lightning, freeing him from whatever had ensnared him. Just as the darkness was banished from his vision, however, a single eye opened in the center of that darknessan eye the size of the sun that orbited Aeterna, and the light it shed filled Leon with utter terror and a fear of death so complete that he suspected the only reason he hadnt gone mad was the Thunderbirds lightning.

eon!

He heard dim shouting and a hand on his chest.

[Rise, boy!] the Thunderbirds commanding voice roared throughout his soul realm. [GET UP, LEON!]

Leon blinked and found himself lying on the floor of a black corridor in the tower, Nara and Tir standing over him while Mari, hunched over to fit in the hallway, looked on. He thought himself imagining it, but he could almost see a look of worry in the suits one blue eye.

Leon! Tir shouted. By the Mothers Above and Below, what happened to you?!

How long was I out? Leon asked as he shot to his feet, grateful that his body was responding without any problems, any lingering effects of that vision banished by the power hed inherited from the Thunderbird.

A few seconds Tir answered.

Ah, Leon replied. Use discretion with your magic senses. I looked into the central tower and at what lay beneath. Dont repeat my mistake. Now, lets keep moving.

Right Tir responded, and the old monk shared a look of alarm and worry with Nara. Neither was able to respond to Leon, though, as Leon took off running through the corridors again, with the other three barely managing to keep up.

Through the halls Leon led them, any doubt as to the impending release of the Primal Devil now well and truly quelled. They had three days to stop this ritual or get off the plane and somehow get a message to Ambrose. If they didnt

Leon could only hope that three days would be enough time