Adamagika: The Spirit Within - 39. Ch 39: A Prophecy Fulfilled

CHAPTER 39: A Prophecy Fulfilled

The battle was over. We had lost.

Blood stained the sun as it shined over the horizon, shedding its rays on thousands of bodies lying dead on the ground. The metal skins of enemy tanks glinted lightly in the light, their husks empty and broken. Smoke billowed from various areas as small fires raged across the battlefield.

I was seated cross-legged on a large pointed rock. I was in my frayed Aerophalanx robes watching as mangled faces accused me of their deaths. And the thing was, it was my fault they died.

Tears were leaking down my face as an overwhelming sense of loss and guilt engulfed me. I couldn’t understand why but I just knew it was my fault and after everything I had done, I didn’t deserve to live. I couldn’t go on like this. I took a deep breath convinced on what I must do.

“What are you doing here?” Jacob asked. At some point, he must have come up next to me. He was seated next to me on a rock the same level as the one I was on. I didn’t even notice there was a rock there earlier. Actually, I could have sworn there was no rock there moments ago.

“It’s entirely my fault,” I said without looking at him. My voice sounded hollow to me as though I had long ago forgotten how to use it.

“You did this?” Jacob asked as he looked around.

“Yeah,” I said. I surveyed the battlefield and I wanted to look away. Yet, a part of me couldn’t. I was compelled to see the evil I had done, all the lives I had taken away.

Jacob shrugged. “Doesn’t look like your work.”

Doesn’t look like my work? I lifted my head and with great effort forced myself to look at him. He looked back at me with a soft smile on his face as though he could see nothing out of the ordinary. I realized then that something about Jacob looked unusual. He looked perfectly clean and out of place in a battlefield. His hair was windswept as though he had just flown here. Moreover, his facial features seemed… younger. I squinted at him despite our close proximity and I realized that he was younger by a few years at least. “You look different.”

He chuckled at me and stretched his body. He was clad in linen pants and a vest which exposed a great deal of his arms and chest. The skin underneath was tight and muscled as though he ran a lot. His underarms were void of any hair, something I was quite sure was not supposed to be the case. “Noticed that, did you?”

I frowned at him. How could he be chuckling after everything that’s happened? How can he afford to smile with hundreds of dead bodies around us? And… how the heck was he so young?

“Who are you?” I asked.

He laughed with an innocence that could only come with his age. “Wow, I thought it would take me a lot more to get you out of this state. It certainly took you long enough to even notice that I was sitting next to you. But I suppose it isn’t really your fault. You do have a bit of a hero complex, you know. You think everything and everyone is your responsibility. So, when things go wrong, you blame yourself much more than you actually deserve to be blamed for.”

I frowned at him. “You didn’t answer my question. Who are you?”

He laughed. “No, I didn’t. I am Jacob.”

“No, you’re not.” I realized I sounded childish but it was all I thought I could say.

“Actually, I am,” he grinned toothily. “I am Jacob. Well, a part of him anyway. At least, I think I am.”

“You’re not making much sense.”

“I know,” he laughed, “but that’s okay because I usually don’t make any sense to the mind.”

I frowned even deeper at him. “What?”

He smiled understandingly at me. “Look around you, Adam. What do you see?”

I hesitated only for a moment but I did as he told me. I didn’t want to look because I already knew what I’d see. “I see dead people. We lost the fight. Arantiva has fallen and everyone I ever loved is now dead. I’m… I’m alone.” I wiped at my eyes.

“Are you sure?” he asked kindly.

“What do you mean am I sure?” I asked irritably. “Look around you. You can see it for yourself.”

“If this is the aftermath of the battle at Arantiva… then where’s Arantiva?”

I glared at him. “It’s right there…” I pointed at an open patch of land behind me. Yes, it was an open patch of land. Many dead bodies, yes, but an open patch of land nonetheless. I could have sworn the city was right there but it wasn’t. No ruins or anything – just an open patch of land. “Well… it’s supposed to be there.”

The younger looking Jacob laughed. “No, it isn’t, Adam.” He placed a hand on my own. I realized that my hands were stained with blood and dirt and for a moment, I was worried about getting Jacob’s perfectly clean hands marked. However, none of the blood or dirt seemed to stick on his skin. It was like he was completely resistant to it. “Look again, Adam. Where do you think you are?”

I looked around again paying closer attention to our surroundings. I definitely noticed that there was no city nearby. That was obvious enough. We were surrounded mostly by trees as though we were at the edge of a forest. The sun was shining but it seemed unusually still. I noticed that the light didn’t flicker and I could look at it almost directly without flinching. The clouds were motionless overhead as though they were frozen in time. Dozens of gryphons littered the floor among the dead mages and soldiers. But despite all the carnage, there was no smell. The air wasn’t rancid or foul. It was somewhat dank, like air that’s been contained far too long in an underground cave. In the distance, I could see a jagged and charred spire reaching up to the sky like a dirty finger.

“This is,” I paused as I realized exactly where I was.

“Yeah,” Jacob nodded and smiled. “This is the failed attack launched by the Aerophalanx against the obelisks. Well, at least it’s what the battlefield looks like in your head.”

“In my head?” I asked. “You mean this isn’t real?”

“Oh it’s pretty real. But it’s all in here,” he tapped the side of his head and then paused. “Well actually, in here,” he corrected as he reached over and tapped my forehead.

My head? Well that would somehow explain why Jacob didn’t look like he was supposed to. Yet, why did he look so young? “If this is all in my head, then why am I here? And, who or what are you? I mean really.”

“I told you,” he smiled, “I’m Jacob. But since you asked what I am, I am many things yet nothing. I am Jacob, first and foremost. There is a name given to me by scientists back in the Northern Kingdoms. They called me the subconscious. Sound familiar? I didn’t think so. You mages are so preoccupied with your study of magic and the power you can harness from it that you often fail to realize that a great power also exists within the human mind, even in those incapable of wielding magic. Perhaps when the day comes that you understand my importance, you might be able to unlock some of our world’s greatest secrets.

“Now a name is useless if you don’t know what it means,” he said as he tilted his head from left to right as though he had a cramp in his neck. “Think of me as the mind beneath the mind. I’m the one who exists in the background of human thoughts. I am the unpleasant ideas, the unacceptable beliefs, the traumatic experiences, and the painful emotions buried within. I am also the human desires, the greatest wishes, the dreams, and the hopes. I am the dark side of thoughts, the light in the darkness, the end of conscious being, and the birth of ideas and understanding.”

“You’re losing me,” I interrupted.

He laughed and it was surprisingly good to hear him laugh. “Well I can’t really expect your mind to cope with me because I exist in a different plane of existence. I am like the current that runs beneath your understanding. Your thoughts always flow above mine like a sponge only partly submerged in liquid picking out only that which it can handle. That’s why you’re here isn’t it? Something happened that your mind couldn’t handle. Something happened to bring you here in this place,” he waved his hands around.

I thought about it as pictures seemed to flash briefly in my thoughts. “I think so. I think… someone died.”

The young Jacob nodded. “Could be, that can cause a person to withdraw into that which I am, to hide away from the world, to wallow in self-pity.”

“Hey,” I complained.

“Don’t interrupt. That’s what you’re doing. Wallowing in self-pity.”

“You’re not very nice.”

He laughed. “I’m not supposed to be. Besides, I’m not yours so it’s not my job to deal with your thoughts.”

“What do you mean you’re not mine? This is my head, isn’t it?”

“Oh yes, it is,” he said agreeably. “Very much so, though I don’t like what you’ve done with the place. This is quite a recent addition though. And it’s born of magic and not thoughts. Someone did something to your mind to create this place. It’s a shell. A vault. A depository of unpleasant thoughts and feelings. Frankly it’s a prison for the subconscious which is why I’m drawn here, I think.”

“Mason,” I said more to myself than him.

“Yes, yes perhaps,” he said brightly as though he had just come to a realization. “His work is quite impressive I must say. This place… it makes me feel safe as though I’d want to stay here. I can leave when I want though unlike your memories and feelings here. Oh the surroundings don’t bother me. It’s your mind so this place has no bearing on my being. However, the place has a general feeling in it that encourages me to stay.”

He paused and smiled at me. “Now before you say again that I didn’t answer your question, I’m going to. But understand that even I don’t fully understand. I really do not think about these things, you know. Well of course you don’t. Anyway, I can interpret them or at least try to.” He paused as he placed a finger on his lips licking it slightly as though he could derive conclusions from it. It looked kind of cute and I wondered if Jacob was this talkative when he was younger.

“Well?” I asked after the moment stretched too long.

“I know that I am Jacob, therefore I must be his,” he continued, breaking out of his stupor as though there was no pause in the conversation. “As to why I am in your head, I don’t know. I think I was the product of the bond that was strengthened between you two when you released Ho-o’s power into your world. I am likely an extension of her power. A manifestation of it. One aspect that just happened to have formed in your head and likely in Jacob’s head. There is probably a me of you in his head. I am a part of Jacob that is always deep inside you. Know what I mean?”

“You mean… kinda like sperm?” I said.

He looked aghast at me before he broke out laughing. “Well, not quite that shallow but I suppose the idea is there. In all my time here, I didn’t realize you had such a green mind.” I grinned at him and nodded for him to continue. “Anyway, I do think I serve an extra purpose. I think it is through me that you and Jacob can communicate in your minds. I can’t be sure but I know that any conversation you have directly between your minds pass through me. So maybe, just maybe, I am your link to each other.”

“So when I talk to Jacob in my mind, I’m actually talking to you?”

“Yes and no. It passes through me, and through me, he can hear you. So I’m more of a medium than the end.”

We sat in silence for a while. I was trying to digest what he said and what it meant. I had no idea what he was thinking. I mean, does he, the subconscious, even think? I didn’t really understand it but from how he explained what he was, he sounded like a memory and yet more than that at the same time. He does not have my memories, thoughts or whatever else. He was Jacob’s, apparently created by Ho-o. “You said you were a manifestation of Ho-o’s power or something like that. Do you know where she is? I haven’t heard from her in awhile.”

Jacob winced and got a pained look on his face. “Well, Jacob knew at the back of his mind that it was a bad idea. I’d know because I am the back of his mind. He did something terrible, Adam. He made a deal with death. He exchanged his life for yours.”

“What?” I asked. I could feel the ground tremble beneath me.

“Relax a little please,” Jacob said a little nervously. “You’re going to tear this place apart. Yes, you heard me right. He made a deal with death. The prize was your life but the price was his, well ours really.”

“Explain,” I said a little harsher than I probably should have.

He smiled kindly as though to say you asked for it. “You, Adam, were destined to save Arantiva. And you still are though perhaps not in the way you’d think. Do you know that through Ho-o, Jacob has the power of sight? That’s precognition or divination, the ability to see the future. However, such power can manifest itself differently with each host. Some like the Seer can see select visions of the future when another being comes into contact with her. There are also rumors of seers able to draw or paint the future, or even to see it in the world around them.

“I, or rather Jacob, dream of it. Sometimes the knowledge makes it back to the mind but most of the time they stay in the current beneath thoughts – in me. They are drawn out when the event occurs in proximity. Like when he knew something terrible was going to happen in your attack against the humans. Or like when he saved you on that platform from Madame Rooste. He dreamt about it but the memory did not return to the forefront of his mind until the situation was presenting itself.

“Now, I have dreamt of your death. Yes, he has seen it. You will die to save Arantiva. Make no mistake he will die too as the power of Ho-o flows back into his body and burns him into a crisp. You two would be Arantiva’s greatest heroes – loved, honored, cherished, but unfortunately dead. I suppose you can say he couldn’t live with that. He couldn’t see you die and suffer like you did in the battle that is to come. So he set in motion a series of events that would inevitably unwind the tendrils of the future. He’s changed it. Now, instead of both of you dying, only he has to die.”

“What are you talking about? No one has to die.”

“No, Adam,” he said kindly and I could almost feel him willing me to understand. “I’m afraid someone has to die. The only way you will defeat your enemies is if you combine your powers into one host. You cannot do it. Your body will not survive the process. And when the power flows back to Jacob, he will with time die an agonizing death. Is that what you want? No, I’m sure it isn’t. You will have to be the one to channel your powers to him.”

“How is that any different?”

“It’s different because I have something you don’t. I have the blessing of death.” He paused. “My body will trap the power within, and with my death, the power shall not flow back to you. You will be safe.”

“You want me to do that? To sacrifice you? Jacob?”

“Yes, Adam. You have to. It will work. I’m sure it would. I’ve dreamt it. You will live. What I haven’t seen is what happens after. What happens to my body? Will it just crumble to dust? What happens to all of Ho-o’s power? I wish I had more time to figure out the answers to those questions but I’m afraid that time is up.”

“Why doesn’t Ho-o do something to stop all this? I know she’s a powerful spirit. Why can’t she do something to save both of us? I don’t think she would be one to stand by and watch one of her hosts die.”

“That is a good question, Adam. And one I wish I had the answer to myself.”

After a short paused, I asked, “what’s your interpretation then?”

He chuckled. “Well, I think something terrible happened in her past. I have no idea what it is but I know it’s relevant to the way she is now. I don’t know really. This is just speculation at this point. I know Jacob did something to suppress her ability to communicate with you. But to be honest, I think she can break through any bonds that Jacob or perhaps even Lord Raezhul placed upon her if she really wanted to. I think she just refuses to. As to why though? I dunno. That’s the golden question, isn’t it?

“I think it might be because it would damage Jacob in ways that would break not only his body but perhaps his soul, his spirit. And breaking him will turn you against her. Without a host or hosts on this world, she will be thrust back to wherever spirits without bodies are to await the next opportunity to be reborn into our world. All spirits need hosts in our world, you know. Without us, they are nothing. The odd thing is that if her power is trapped within Jacob as he dies, wouldn’t that be the same as her dying? I mean she can’t exactly go back to you without barbecuing you, right? Perhaps she knows something we don’t.”

“How do you know all this?” I asked. “I mean Jacob never really gave me the impression that he knew this much about Ho-o and magic.”

He laughed. “No matter how true that statement might be, don’t ever let him hear you say that. While you have a hero complex, he has an inferiority complex. Haven’t you noticed how he thinks the world of you? And how he becomes easily jealous or hurt when he thinks you might fall in love with someone else?”

“Yeah, I kinda noticed,” I laughed as I recalled the many instances he showed his jealousy either discretely or overtly. “So again, you didn’t answer my question. How do you know all this?”

He shook his head, grinning madly. “I do get easily sidetracked, don’t I? Well, dreams mostly. When you have the gift of seeing the future, you tend to understand more. But don’t get me wrong. All this knowledge is buried deep within me but he doesn’t have free access to it. I am not one to be browsed like a book. It would take great effort to unlock me… great effort or perhaps something like a traumatic experience.”

Adam… came a faint voice from the heavens. Baby, please come back to me…

“I think your mind has had just about enough of me,” Jacob chuckled. “He’s calling you back.”

I looked at the younger Jacob. He was smiling so innocently at me. “What do I have to do when I get back?”

“Well that’s up to you, really,” he shrugged. “I can’t make any choices for you. But if I really had to answer you, I’d say that you let me, that is you let Jacob, do what he has to do to save you and Arantiva. I can’t really experience deep emotion. I am what I am. It is for him to feel those things. But I do know he loves you very much with his heart, his life, and his soul. He loves you above all things and it would destroy him to see you die. He would suffer far more feeling your death than anything Ho-o’s power can do to him. It’s a choice of saving him or everyone else. Who dies is up to you now. The choice is and I think has always been yours.”

“So you’re asking me to let him die?” I asked. My voice cracked and I could feel tears slide down my cheeks.

“Yes. And you know that’s the choice he would want you to make. He has already chosen his path and it will only work if you help him make it work. I would cry with you if I could but I can’t. I’m really sorry, Adam.”

I sniffed and looked away. Was this all real? Was Jacob really, perhaps through his subconscious, asking me to let him sacrifice himself to save everyone? Why was this happening? Why did it need to happen? I thought the Seer said only one would die. And I know someone already died though I couldn’t be sure who it was at that moment. I was sure though that it wasn’t Jacob. I wiped away the tears hurriedly. “Will I even remember all this? How do I know my own subconscious thingie won’t lock away these memories?”

He actually laughed aloud and it made me feel good to hear him so happy. “I don’t think your subconscious would appreciate being called your thingie. But as for your question, I don’t know if you’ll remember. But it will always be at the back of your mind and it will come to you when you need it. I know I always do when Jacob needs me.”

I nodded, tears still leaking from my eyes. “Will you stay with me?”

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“Will you stay with me here in my head when you know… when Jacob is gone?”

He frowned. “It’s not good to dwell on the painful memories, Adam. You will have to move on.”

“I will, eventually. Probably. I don’t know.” I really didn’t. I didn’t want to. Why would I want to live if Jacob would be gone?

“You have to,” Jacob said as though he was reading my thoughts. “I don’t know what future awaits you. In my dreams, you died but soon after the world was plunged into darkness. Something terrible is about to happen very soon. I can feel it. I have seen it. Then my dreams changed and you lived, and suddenly there was hope. There was light in the darkness to come and that light is you. It’s not over for you. This war will not end in Arantiva. You still have quite a bit to do.”

I shook my head.

“Please,” he almost begged. “You must live.”

“If I must live, then I need to know that a part of Jacob will always be with me. I need to know that he, that you, will always be inside my soul. I… I want… I need him to continue living even if it’s just inside me. I’d rather share my body with him, with you, than knowing that you would be gone forever.”

He smiled and I could have sworn his eyes were forcing themselves to tear up. “I… I don’t know if I will still exist after Jacob is gone. But I promise you this. I will stay with you as long as I can even if I have to lock myself in this gory little place in your head. I will stay here as long as you want me to and as long as I can. If it is within my power, I will stay with you for all eternity.”

Adam… came the whisper from the stars.

The young Jacob placed his forehead against mine. I closed my eyes and felt his gentle touch on my neck, the warmth of his face on mine, the love of his whole being on my own. “I promise. I will do everything in my power to be with you forever. And if we can’t be together in this life then I will find you in the next. I promise. I’ll find a way.”

“We don’t have to wait for the next,” I whispered. “If I have to use all the magic in the world, I will find a way to bring us together. If I have to suffer a hundred times over, I will bring you back to me. I will find a way.”

“Adam, please come back to me,” Jacob said, his voice sounding different, frantic and older. “Please, baby, snap out of it. I need you to be okay. Please.”

I opened my eyes and found myself staring at Jacob. His eyes were red and moist with tears. He was shaking uncontrollably and gently caressing my arm and my face.

“Jacob?” I asked, my voice sounded hoarse as though I spent the last hour talking non-stop.

“Oh thank god!” He yelled and crushed me in his arms. “I thought I’d lost you. You were just staring into nothing, just frozen in place. You almost scared me to death.”

“What happened?” I asked as I looked around and then it all flooded back to me – the Crystal Prison, Madame Rooste, and Phillip. “Oh my god, Phillip, is he?”

“He’s gone, Adam,” he said, fresh tears streaming from his eyes. “I’m sorry but he’s gone.”

I looked over to where Javier and Marcus were. They were looking worriedly at me with sad red eyes. I looked down at the pile of robes at their knees and I just knew Phillip was beneath all that. Javier and Marcus had apparently used their mage robes to cover up Phillip. I think that was the decent thing to do.

“What happened to you?” Jacob asked. “Where did you go?”

I frowned. “I… I don’t know. How long have I been out?”

A faint explosion ripped somewhere above us. I could hear it even through the thick walls. Its vibrations shook through the ground beneath us.

“Too long,” Jacob said.

“That sounded close,” Javier said as he stared up at the ceiling.

“We’ll come back for him,” Marcus said as he placed a hand on Phillip’s body. “We have to figure out what we will do now.” He looked at the weapon we had recovered from the Crystal Prison. I didn’t realize it but I was apparently still gripping it in one hand. “Do you want to take that as far away from here as possible?”

I shook my head no as I looked down at the weapon that had shrunk into a red sword. It had a menacing quality about it while at the same time looking beautiful. “It won’t do any good. They’re not after the weapon. They just think we have a weapon down here that we will use against them.”

I moved towards Phillip’s body. Javier looked like he was going to do something to stop me but Marcus held him back. I removed the robes covering Phillip’s head. He was looking pale and his lips were already turning blue. Nonetheless, he looked peaceful. I made a silent promise to avenge his death and to make sure that he did not die in vain.

“What are we going to do?” Jacob asked.

I covered Phillip’s head once more and stood up. “I say we do exactly what they think we’ll do. Use this weapon against them.”

“Do you even know how?” Javier asked.

I shook my head no again. “No, but I suppose I’ll have to figure it out really soon.”

“What if you don’t?” Jacob asked. His voice was filled with worry and concern.

“I will. I have to,” I added as I looked down on Phillip’s covered body.

“Then we should go,” Marcus said. “There’s nothing more we can do down here.”

I nodded at him. With one final look at my departed friend, we started heading up to the door that lead back to the oval room where the guards should have been.

I looked at the weapon as we walked back. It felt surprisingly balanced in my hand as though the weapon was built specifically for me. I could see little rubies scattered along the blade. I wondered how I was supposed to tap into the blade’s magic. It took us a surprisingly short amount of time before we were making our way through the oval room where Master Clarke’s body still lay cold on the floor. The door didn’t even ask for a password and merely opened up as we approached.

The same thing happened when we reached the second door that lead out to the hallway in the Administrative Tower.

“Maybe I should have let him go back,” Javier said sadly. “He could have gotten out and he wouldn’t have…”

“Don’t blame yourself now,” I interrupted. “Nobody could have known what would happen.”

“The Seer did,” Marcus interrupted. I looked over at him. He hung his head as though in shame. “She told me that I needed to make a choice this day to help someone or not and my choice would make the difference on who lives and who dies. She knew I was going to help you today. And all this time I thought you would…” He stopped as he looked over at me.

“That I would die?” I asked. He nodded at me. “Well, it didn’t quite turn out that way. Besides, I don’t believe in everything the Seer says. I still think we control our fate no matter how many things she gets right.”

“Do you really believe that?” Jacob asked. “I mean that we can change what will happen.”

We had already reached the hallway that led out of the Administrative building. I could see the light coming from outside. I stopped to look at Jacob. I knew by the tone of his voice that the question was important to him.

“Yes, Jacob, I do believe it. She’s right about many things but I’m not going to let my future be defined by what she says especially if I don’t like it. I have a choice to change things. We all do.”

Jacob hugged me and kissed me before I could stop him. Somehow, I didn’t think I wanted to anyway. “Thank you,” he whispered.

“For what?” I asked short of breath.

He ran one finger down the side of my face. “For believing for me.”

I would have asked him what he meant if I wasn’t distracted by the sudden explosion overhead. The ceiling shook and dust fell from it.

“That sounded like it came from upstairs,” Javier said. “They’re hitting the tower. The shields must be completely down.”

I squeezed Jacob’s hand in mine before I pulled away. He wouldn’t let go though. “Jacob, what is it?”

“I have to do something,” he said. His voice was a deathly whisper.

“What are you talking about?”

“Do you remember when I asked you if you would give me your power if I asked for it?”

I recalled those not being quite the same words I used but I nodded to him anyway. I didn’t know where this was going but we did not have the time to argue about details.

“Well, I’m asking for it now,” he said. “I’m going to need it.”

“What are you talking about?”

“There is something I have to do. You’ve done your part. Now, let me do mine,” he kissed me, long and hard. “Do what you have to do and I’ll do what I have to. You trust me right?”

“With my heart, my life and my soul,” I don’t know where that came from but I knew it was true.

Tears came to his eyes. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

“Guys,” Marcus interrupted. “I mean is this really the time for this?”

Jacob smiled at me, kissed me once more, and ran away to a different direction. He disappeared down another corridor.

“Where’s he going?” Javier asked. Marcus looked confused too.

“I think… I think he has something to do, something important. I don’t understand it but it’s like I just know, you know?”

The walls shook again and a crack appeared on the wall next to us.

“Shit!” Marcus said. “We have to get out there. This is not looking good.”

Javier and I nodded to him and we started heading out the building to the north face of the city. We jogged the last few steps as we exited the tower. I felt my jaw drop as the city’s state came into view.

“Damn them,” Marcus yelled. Damn them indeed. From our raised spot, we could see several sections of the city on fire. Smoke was billowing from several buildings especially the ones closer to the wall. I could still see gryphon riders flying around over the wall in the distance. I could see a lot of activity at the walls. People were running around but from this distance, it was impossible to tell if they were friendly or not.

“We need to get to the walls quickly,” I said.

“I know a way,” Marcus said. “It’s a spell we were taught for retreating but I can use it to bring us to the walls quickly.”

“What kind of spell is it?” Javier asked.

“It’s a rapid movement spell,” he replied. “I can engulf us in magical energy and bend light and the world around us to travel significant distances rapidly. It will drain me but it will bring us where we need to be.”

“Can it transport all of us?” I asked.

“Yeah,” he said. “Give me your hands.” He held me with one hand and Javier with the other. He closed his eyes and his hands started glowing. After a few seconds though, the glow disappeared. Marcus frowned and concentrated again. Once more, his hands glowed momentarily then returned to normal.

“What’s wrong?” I asked him.

“I think I might be too drained,” he said. “I can’t get it to work.”

“It’s not just you,” Javier said. With his free hand, he tried summoning what looked like a ball of fire. It flickered to life and after a moment dissipated.

“Clouds,” I said as I looked up at the sky. “There are clouds in the sky.”

“What about them?” Marcus asked with a frown as he looked up at the massive cloud formations over the city. They were so thick that they were almost completely blocking out the sun.

“There are never any clouds over Arantiva,” Javier answered before I could. “That means there isn’t enough magic in the area to push the clouds away.”

“It must be the obelisks,” I said. “Without the shields, it’s draining all magic from the area, even our own spells. That means they must be close to exploding if what Madame Rooste said was true. We have to find another way to the wall and to warn everyone to run away.”

A mighty roar emanated from above. I watched as a shadow came over us. Aida landed swiftly by my side.

“Woah,” Javier said as he watched Aida stretch her wings out.

“Perfect timing girl,” I said. “Can we get a ride to the wall?”

She squawked agreeably.

“Can she support all three of us?” Marcus inquired.

“I don’t think so. Just one more probably but not all three of us.”

“You two go ahead,” Javier said. “You’re the ones with more combat training. I’ll see if I can find a way here to get everyone to evacuate the city.”

I nodded at him knowing that was the best solution at the moment. I looked over at Marcus and he nodded back at me. “Let’s go then.”

Aida knelt down allowing Marcus and I to mount on her back. As soon as we were secure, she raised herself, beat her wings, and soared into the sky towards the wall. As we flew higher, I could see mages running near the wall. Many buildings were already reduced to rubble and fires were burning around the northern side of the city. Looking back, even the Silver Towers look like they took several hits.

A section of the Academy had a gaping hole on it in the higher levels. I hoped there weren’t any students there when it happened. If anything, I hoped it was Madame Rooste’s quarters.

As we flew further away from the tower and towards the wall, I saw what looked distinctly like the crystal over the Administrative Building impaled in the Trade District. It still glowed with power and I wondered why it wasn’t being drained by the obelisk and how it ended up all the way there. I also wondered if the Ice Queen’s Taverna had been struck as it fell. A stab of pain and guilt passed through me as I thought of Phillip.

Aida landed on a section of the city wall that was still standing. In the distance, I could see two bright pillars of light which I knew to be the obelisks. Bright streaks of multicolored lights would surge out of it then get pulled back. It seemed even the non-mages around it were keeping a considerable distance unaware that their deaths would come very soon.

“Where the heck have you been?” Bruce roared. He wasn’t on a gryphon anymore but rather on foot along with the other mages manning the walls. He was no longer wearing his Aerophalanx helmet.

“Had something to pick up,” I said as I dismounted Aida. Marcus followed me off. “What’s going on here?”

“Well, we’re losing and quite badly if I might add.” As he spoke a section of the city wall behind him exploded. He seemed unfazed by it though. Aida on the other hand roared angrily. “Our attack didn’t do squat against the obelisks and they’ve completely drained the city of magic. We have nothing but our own magic left and even that’s hardly enough.”

“Who’s in command?” I asked. I needed to get him or her to get everyone as far away from the city as possible.

A section of the wall exploded. “I am, at least of what’s left of this wall. Our spells last for only a few seconds before they are drained by that thing. We’re trying to protect what we can of the city with the limited magic we can use.” He looked over the city walls towards the invaders. The tanks had moved more than halfway towards the city walls from their original position the last time I saw them. It looked like they stopped and were now bombarding the city from a safe distance. I could see many mages in the front lines struggling to reach the tanks. They weren’t having much success though. I felt a knot in my stomach as I saw the hundreds of bodies that now littered this side of the city, most of whom were in mage robes.

“We have to get everyone out of here,” I told Bruce. “And we have to stop using spells. Those obelisks are going to cause a massive explosion once they’ve drained enough magic. I don’t know how much more time we have left but judging from how unstable those lights are looking, we don’t have much time.”

“What are you talking about?” Bruce asked. “You mean those obelisks also act like a weapon to destroy the city.”

“Not just the city,” Marcus said. “But everything around us, the humans, mages, even the damned trees. Everything will be destroyed. We have to get everyone out of the city, fast.”

“Shit,” Bruce shouted. “How do you know all this?” He then shook his head violently. “You know what, it doesn’t matter. We’ve been trying to issue the signal for a full retreat for a while but those things are preventing the red orbs from reaching the sky. We can’t get the signal out for them to retreat and there’s no way we can get to them quickly. And our damn soldiers are too noble or too loyal to not defend the city until they know we’re abandoning it.”

“What about gryphons?”

“Most of them have been wounded,” Bruce said. Aida turned with an accusing glare at Bruce. “Don’t look at me like that. We tried an aerial assault earlier but it was almost like we were handing ourselves to them, you know? Our spells didn’t even dent the damn things. If anything, we even gave it more power. Where were you anyway? We could have used you earlier. And what the hell is that thing?” he asked referring to the weapon in my hand.

“Something that could save us,” I said. “If I can just figure out how to use it, we might have a chance.”

Another wave of sounds exploded in the distance and several dark objects were hurled to the city. The mages still at the walls attempted to block them but their shields hardly lasted long enough much less block the explosions that came from the impact. I watched as an entire section of the city’s walls finally gave way and crumbled to the ground. Several mages were thrown into the air and landed on the ground far below. They didn’t get back up.

“What are we going to do?” Marcus asked.

Just as I was about to answer him, a gryphon’s roar came from above. It was unlike any roar I’ve heard before though. It seemed stronger and more ancient. I watched as a gryphon soared overhead with its rider heading straight at our enemies.

“That was Saphiron,” Bruce said as Aida roared at her kin.

“That was Jacob,” Marcus yelled.

What are you doing? I yelled to Jacob. For whatever reason the image of a young, clean, and perky Jacob came to mind. I shook my head and made the image go away.

Give me your power, Adam, he said. All of it.

What? What are you trying to do? I asked. And you know that it would kill you if I gave you all my power.

No, it won’t, Jacob said almost too casually. Do you remember my meeting with Lord Raezhul? He gave me something that will protect me from harm. Give me your power, Adam. My body can take.

Jacob, what have you done? What did he give you?

Remember what you told me, he said. If I asked you for your power and you knew you had to give it to me, you would. This is that moment, Adam. I am asking you to give it to me. I need to do this.

What will happen to you if I do?

I have to do this, Adam. I didn’t immediately notice that he didn’t answer my question. Trust me.

I trust you Jacob. It’s Lord Raezhul I don’t trust.

We don’t have a choice. I’ll be fine. He said it in such a way that I knew he doubted those words himself. Before I could point that out to him, Saphiron swerved as it dodged projectiles being fired at him. Now, Adam, do it now! He yelled this as his gryphon flew through the enemy who were then focusing on him.

Although a part of me was screaming not to do it, I knew I had no choice. He would die out there without my help so I willed my power to Jacob. I could feel it coursing out of me and pouring into the air away from me. I didn’t feel any of the pain Jacob described he felt when I asked for his power. I kept pouring until I felt so much magic leave me that I felt tired and almost numb.

In the blink of an eye, Saphiron exploded in fire. Flames shot forth from every inch of his body. I could see the heavy rise and fall of his wings as fire engulfed the ground beneath him throwing tanks into the air like leaves in the wind. Those that managed to aim correctly and fire their weapons at Jacob were disappointed as the black shells disappeared into the flame, not even releasing the slightest of explosions. Jacob was unstoppable.

“Wow,” was all Bruce managed to say as we watched Jacob pass through the army unharmed heading straight for the two obelisks. The whole city seemed to hold its breath as we watched the fiery figure of a gryphon approach the two pillars of light.

My heart jumped as I saw Jacob reach the first obelisk. At first, I thought he would do the same thing I did before and fire a fireball destroying the thing. Instead, I saw tendrils of fire reach out from Saphiron and latch themselves around the massive fortress. Effortlessly and without slowing down, Jacob turned towards the other obelisk and the fortress beneath him was lifted into the air and dragged behind the streaks of fire that followed in his wake. It looked like a miniature star was streaking through the air except its fiery tail was preceding its body.

“What’s he doing?” Marcus asked.

I smiled. “He’s taking the obelisks away. It might explode if he tries to destroy it killing all of us. So, he’s taking it away.”

“How…” Bruce stuttered. “How is he doing that? How can he possibly have that much magic when we can’t even do anything at this distance?”

For a moment, I worried as I saw the flames around Jacob flicker. It looked like a lot of the flames were being absorbed into the obelisk.

“He doesn’t have much time,” Marcus said, probably seeing what I saw.

Explosions ripped behind us as several buildings were demolished. We ducked as some of the debris showered the wall. By the time I turned back to Jacob, he had already reached the second obelisk and was pulling it up into the air. The two bright beams of light converged into one, making it difficult to look at them and impossible to see Jacob.

Higher and higher his gryphon flew. I only knew because of the bright rainbow lights of the sky. The sky above darkened as the sun was completely obscured by the storm in all directions. Day turned into night before our eyes as the storm loomed over us. The thick clouds moved rapidly as they concentrated into a dark eye in the sky as though the storm centered on Jacob as he ascended. Thunder crackled in the city and little streaks of lightning coursed through the massive clouds. They all swirled around Jacob as he ascended in a blinding light like a meteor returning to the heavens to be reborn among the stars. Jacob, Saphiron, and the obelisks were swallowed into the darkness.

We watched for a few moments anticipating what would happen next, the only light coming from the burning buildings behind us and the occasional lightning that would streak across the sky. The clouds continued to churn where Jacob had vanished looking ever more menacing.

“Is that it?” Marcus managed to ask before a strong gust of wind suddenly ripped through the air knocked us down on our feet. Aida strained not to be knocked off the wall. I could see dust being hurled into the air and several gryphons in flight suddenly careening off course to disappear behind buildings as they fell to the ground.

“Whaaaaaaat’s haaaaaaappeeeening?” Bruce yelled against the wind. A sudden wind was ripping through Arantiva from the Northern side of the city as though all the wind in the world had been dropped over our heads.

“Duck!” Marcus yelled and I managed to lower my head just in time as one of their metal machines easily bigger than any gryphon came flying over our heads. It rolled on its side several times before finally smashing into a building and reducing it to rubble.

“Jacob,” I yelled out loud hoping and knowing he could hear me.

Something felt wrong. Something was very wrong. There was a feeling of relief and finality flowing from Jacob. It was mixed with a sense of peace and joy. I gasped as I realized what my feelings must have meant.

“No!” I yelled just as a massive explosion ripped through the skies over Arantiva where Jacob had vanished. A sudden emptiness filled my heart and I felt a something snap within like a cord breaking. A blinding light preceded the strongest burst of wind yet as the two obelisks finally exploded in a massive fireball. Huge sections of the city’s walls and entire roofs went flying into the air.

The clouds, which were momentarily thrust outwards in all directions, suddenly merged once more and huge dark funnels dropped from the sky. Lightning crackled as three massive tornadoes reached down angrily like the arms of some creature of nightmare. The funnels seemed almost perfectly aimed as they smashed into the metal machines they called tanks, lifting them into the air to disappear into the darkness. You couldn’t hear the screams of the soldiers as they vanished in the roar of the wind.

“Look,” Marcus yelled, his voice shaking slightly at the sudden cold from the wind that engulfed us. He was holding a perfectly stable green orb in his hand. I had no idea what kind of magic it was but seeing it meant only one thing. Magic was working again.

Bruce pointed his finger at a flustered looking soldier from the Mage Army. The young soldier seemed rather terrified by the sudden attention being given to him. “You, get command to issue the signal for retreat. Now!”

The terrified looking soldier nodded and shielded himself against the wind through a section of the wall that was still standing. He spoke towards a metal pin that was on his tattered robes. Within seconds, three red orbs flew into the sky from somewhere deep in the city and hovered overhead, illuminating the city. They seemed to be straining against the wind coming from the tornadoes.

The air beyond the city walls hummed with energy as thousands of mages in the battlefield were engulfed in brilliant balls of light. I understood then that this was what Marcus was referring to earlier. I also realized that I had seen this once before – Magister Aenhol had used that spell to rescue me from the village.

As the exodus began from the battlefield, the air north of Arantiva was illuminated by the thousands of brilliant lights flying back towards the city walls carrying mages within them. The massive tornadoes ripped through the human army swallowing everything in its rage.

“Adam!” Marcus yelled. “Why aren’t those things stopping?”

He was right. The violent tornadoes had already ravaged most of the human army. Hardly any of the tanks remained on the ground and anything unfortunate enough to be near them was swept up to disappear to who knows where. Yet, the tornadoes were not losing momentum. They were moving steadily towards us as the storm surged overhead, moving undoubtedly towards Arantiva.

“Everyone! Get out of here now!” Bruce yelled as his robes whipped his face. Even he understood that the tornadoes would not stop at destroying the human army. His command was unnecessary though as the defending mages on the walls were already fleeing the city walls in an attempt to outrun the unnatural forces descending on the city.

I tried to call on Ho-o, the spirit that dwelled within Jacob and me but I could barely sense her. In fact, she felt absent. She could not help me then.

The wind continued whipping around as dust and bits of metal were hurled everywhere, dropping the temperature even further.

“Adam, we have to go,” Bruce said as he grabbed my robe.

“No,” I said. “Jacob’s out there somewhere.”

“Adam,” Marcus said so softly I was surprised I could even hear it in all the noise. “You saw what happened.”

“No!” I yelled as I tore away from Bruce’s grip. “He’s there. I know it. I… I have to stop this. I have to save him.”

“We have to get everyone to safety,” Bruce said. He spluttered as a leafy and wet branch smacked onto his face nearly flicking him off the wall.

“Go,” I heard Marcus tell Bruce. “I’ll stay with him.”

“You can’t! If you stay here, you’ll die,” Bruce yelled.

“I know,” Marcus said.

The two of them looked at each other as though they were silently coming to an understanding.

“Take Aida with you,” I told him at which she began protesting. “Please girl, not you too.” I knew she understood. Her eyes were misty though I wasn’t sure if that was due to the weather or something else. I didn’t know how she knew Saphiron but somehow I was sure they had shared something different, something special. I wasn’t the only one in pain. “Go, please. Take Bruce to safety.”

Aida nodded just as she roared at Bruce as though daring him to object. He looked nervously at her for a moment before shaking his head.

“You females,” Bruce said as he mounted Aida. “Always have to get your way.” He looked at me and nodded. “Good luck,” he managed to say as Aida spread her wings catching the wind blowing towards the city. She flew into the air gliding as the wind pushed her away from us taking Bruce to safety.

“You should have gone with him,” I told Marcus.

He shrugged. “You already know I wouldn’t have. I think you can use a friend right about now.”

It felt weird being there with him that moment. His hair was whipping everywhere across his face. His metallic grey eyes looking back at me with a conviction that I never thought I would ever see from him. He would stand by me until the end. I nodded at him.

“So you figured out how to work that thing yet?” he asked. He actually managed a smile.

I knew what he was talking about. If there were any hope to save this city, I’d have to use the weapon we recovered from the Crystal Prison. Something about the blade felt evil and I knew using it would somehow, in some way, destroy me. But in truth, I didn’t really care at that point if it did. After what I had just seen… after what I had just felt… it didn’t matter. I raised the blade in my hand as it seemed to grow warmer perhaps sensing the power and destruction coming towards it.

It spoke to me.

SO, YOU THINK YOU ARE WORTHY TO WIELD MY POWER. It was not the same warm, protective voice that I often heard from Ho-o. This one was cold, haggard, and dripped with cruelty.

“Yes, I am worthy to use your power,” I said out loud unsure if it would hear me if I merely thought my words.

AND WHAT GIVES YOU THAT IDEA? It laughed in my head.

“Do you sense that? The power that is headed for us? That comes from the spirit that resides within me.”

OH, BUT SHE IS NOT WITH YOU NOW, IS SHE? It asked mockingly.

“She is always with me.”

Its laughter echoed in my head. YOU PLACE TOO MUCH TRUST IN YOUR SPIRIT. YOU SHOULDN’T DO THAT YOU KNOW. WE EACH HAVE OUR OWN AGENDAS AND IT RARELY EVER INCLUDES THE FATE OF MORTALS SUCH AS YOURSELF. ESPECIALLY HER…

“I trust her with my life and she trusts me with her power,” I said. A sudden thought occurred to me. “Besides, you need me.”

OH? This seemed to catch its attention. AND WHAT COULD YOU POSSIBLY HAVE TO OFFER ME?

“I know what all spirits want. You want freedom and power. You’re power is incomplete without a being to wield you. If you don’t help me now, I will make sure you are destroyed. And if I can’t find a way to destroy you, I will make sure you are never found.”

The blade seared in my hand and it felt like my skin was holding a kettle rapidly warming over a fire. I could feel the spirit’s anger towards me. I refused to let go though.

WHAT GUARANTEES DO I HAVE THAT YOU WILL NOT RETURN ME TO MY PRISON AFTER THIS? It was still angry but I could almost hear uncertainty in its voice.

I felt as though I would regret my next words but I knew I would have to say them if I wanted to save my home.

“If the mages do not let me keep you, then I will leave this city and take you with me.”

Marcus looked intently at me after watching the closest tornado. “Whatever you have to do, do it quickly because that things is about to give Arantiva a major makeover.” Indeed, the dark funnels ripping from the sky to the ground were only moments away from the city walls.

“What say you?” I said, perhaps the last thing I ever would.

Just when I thought all was lost, the blade turned in my hand. Despite the frigid wind surrounding us, I felt it burning through the palm of my hand with immense pain. It seemed to spread from that point to all over my body warming me ten times over. I wanted to let go then but it wouldn’t let me, I could smell my flesh burning and its power course through my fingers. The blade raised itself into the air by its own accord and from its jewels sprouted a red tinged light.

A second passed before the light surged forward in an intense beam stabbing through the closest tornado, splitting and then stabbing through the other two. The roar of the wind sounded like the anguished cries of a wounded animal as slowly the light spread across the dark funnel pushing it back. Beams of light connected until all three tornadoes were being pulled together. Before they could fully form one massive shaft of wind, they exploded and dark debris was thrown in every direction as everything the tornadoes swallowed was regurgitated into the air.

Marcus covered his ears as the most unearthly sounds screeched into the air. The strongest magics were tearing at each other and the world shook as the two violent forces clashed.

I, however, did not cover my ears. Beyond the horrible sounds, I could hear one stand out that did not make me cringe or fearful. This one sound made my heart jump. For the briefest moment, I heard Jacob’s voice and I saw his face smile at me. I felt his gentle hand on my cheek. I love you, he said.

I love you too, I replied.

As the darkness that hung over Arantiva parted, a tear made its way down my cheek where Jacob touched me moments ago. A single ray of light pierced through the cloud, and then another, and another. I looked up hoping to see him laughing, cheering, feeling the same ecstasy I had the first time I’d flown. But no, the only sign that he had even been there were the dark clouds that were slowly rolling away to the east.