The outer barrier shatters, Damon quickly rushing to replace it. Before he can, a second bolt of lightning strikes the ground at his feet, rupturing it and sending him flying.
Nen catches him before it's too late, a pair of black wings on his back as he sets the vice-dean down.
A third bolt destroys the barrier of green light, allowing us to see Ling now has runes covering his entire body. They weren't drawn on it, either but carved. Drops of blood are slowly trailing out of the many, many wounds, not a single part of his body unmarred.
His mouth starts opening, getting wider and wider, his lower jaw extending further than a person's ever should There's a loud crack as it shatters, the corners of his lips cut open as if by a blade, a wide grin carved onto his face.
A single, small, elegant, pale hand reaches out of his throat. No one makes a sound, incapable of doing anything other than watching, the
In the morning, I wake up before the other two. Well, I get up. Couldn't really sleep a wink. Not after all that.Diana should be waking up right about now, heading to the library. I head out to meet her, not bothering with the school uniform.The girl is like clockwork. Emergency or not, she keeps on ticking the same way. She'll try to remain calm, and go about her day as always a picture of sophistication and grace. Anyone who bothers to look will be able to tell she's out of it.She clearly hasn't slept, the bags of her eyes proof enough. Hasn't bothered with her hair and make-up, and her skirt hasn't been ironed, which for her just might be a first.I sit at her table so that we're facing one another. Without a word, she closes her book, making eye contact."How much did the teachers tell you?""That the man from last night was the one who killed Erik the first time, too. Other than that, nothing."Bastards. Even when it's this serious, they're keeping secrets. I understand not wa
lan shoots her an angry glare, wrinkles covering his forehead from how hard he's scowling "Easy for you to say. Not everyone gets to be a prodigy. You'll probably be safe no matter what."The girl walks into the room, her footsteps soft and barely audible. "Excuses. You're plenty strong. We're both aware of that. You're choosing to run.""Fine" he finally snaps, raising his voice. "I'm choosing to run. Have fun dying. Don't expect me to moum you"It takes him a few seconds to put on a pair of pants, and then he's storming out of the room. Not the outcome I was hoping for, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't expecting it.Diana has no time for my personal life, however, her brother being her only focus at the moment. "Can we do it without him?"Maya and Erik are out of the picture, lan is not doing it, and Rosa is cross with me. Who else can I ask? Can the four of us do it on our
Nobody answers, because nobody does. Diana was probably searching for clues in the library, but clearly found nothing. If a creature powerful enough to possess a teacher exists, I doubt the school has made it easy to obtain information about it"Seriously? None of you?"Wait, what? He's surprised?Does that mean he actually knows something?Sighing, Antoine adjusts his sitting position, making himself more comfortable. "The teachers mentioned The Pull That's the first stage of being contacted by that thing. His name is Choronzon, one of the creatures residing in the tree of Qliphoth."Qliphoth? That's related to the studies of Aleister Crowley, a famous occultist. I should've guessed some of that stuff was real or rather, that it created symbolism for real magic."What does he want?" Maria asks. "And what is he? A demon? A ghost?"Demons live in Gehena, while ghosts live in our world. Not surprised she doesn't know that."Beings from Qliphoth and Sefira are their own thing, as far as
ANASTASIAWe all feel it the moment it happens. The Silent One is here! He has joined our world once again!Oh, but it isn't permanent. His power is quite limited great, but limited. It will take some time for him to be his true self again.His voice, soft as a nightingale's, whispers in our ears in our hearts speaking of nothing but the truth. The glory of his presence makes me fall to my knees, an unworthy insect before his great might."Oh, Silent One! We have been patient! I have been patient! I knew you would be with us again! They all called me mad but I knewAnd you have never wavered?"Never, sir!" I cry out. "I would never! I am a true believer! I knew you would come! I knew!"Then why were you not there? Why were you not there to defend my host?I throw myself at the ground, hanging my fists against it. "I am sorry, my Lord! I could not get there in timel I didn't have the means if only I could, I would have! I would lay down my life for you!"Then do so.I pull my dagger ou
I take a step forward, but Maria holds out a hand to stop me. "Guys, look up."We do, and my heart stops when I see the figure in the tree. It's hanging from several vines, only their silhouette visible. Despite this, I can tell it's a person, a particularly thick vine wrapped around their neck, their body relaxed as it lightly sways through the air.I hold up my palm, creating a basic attack spell, if only for the light it provides. The moment I see Maya's face, my heart stings but only during that moment. I'm calm again a second later.Mac's breath hitches as he takes a cautious step forward, his boot sinking ankle-deep into the mud, which is now mixed with water. "That's not her, is it?""Probably not," I tell him. "She's already dead. It's only her soul that's here. That's probably a trap""Should we go around?" asks Rosa, yanking her foot free of a tree root. "If that body's the bait, the trap must be just beyond it."Diana and I reach the same conclusion, but she's the first to
With all of them either in the air or propped up by the tree roots protruding from the water, the crocodiles all have one target left me.Silent as a grave, they creep closer, perfectly ignorant to the spell I'm about to use.A single, powerful jolt of electricity fills the water all around us. A few bubbles follow, and then the whole jungle is silent. One by one, the crocs come to the surface, dead.Vines are quickly wrapping themselves around me, pulling me up into the tree tops. I guard my skin, but don't bother resisting the pull. Let's see what we're really being stalked by in here. About time to put an end to them.Three identical girls are up in the tree, each one shorter than I am. They're each wearing a black dress that completely exposes their shoulders, necks and arms. With hair and eyes identical to Choronzon's, it's not hard to imagine them. being his kids. I doubt that's the case, though.They're a part of the god himself. I can tell from the absence of anything when I l
Reaching for his neck to find a puise, I let out a breath of relief. Still alive. Somehow.I guide some of the water out of the swamp and onto his face, shaking him roughly Blinking rapidly, he tries to sit up, bewilderment written all over his featuresThen he screams, the pain of his ankle coming to him. Maria has to hold him down to stop him from rolling over into the water, and it's taking all her strength to do so"Anyone know any healing?" she asks, looking me in the eye.I've learned many different types of magic here - wind, flight, fire, abstract but healing is not among them. All I can do is shake my head."W-What happened?" the injured boy manage to get out, slamming his fist against the ground right after. "Dang, this smarts."Don't move," Diana says, landing beside him. "You'll only aggravate it more."We exchange a look, passing several sentences' worth of information in an instantHe's not going anywhere. Even if he could make it, he'd be a liability in the fight. He ca
More and more tendrils emerge, quickly surrounding us on all sides, the tip of each of them glimmering as though it were made of some sort of rock. Rosa is soon engulfed by them, screaming as the hair tears away at her shield. I feel her magic get weaker, like a light does after being submerged in water, and then her screams die out.When the hair retreats, it reveals her fallen form, alive but unconsciousMaria looks at her, then screams, sending three heat rays forward at the same time. Choronzon's hair goes out to meet them, taking the hits for him, getting burned into dust.A blade of wind follows, circling around to hit the god directly. He raises his hand to defend himself, his full attention on Diana, and I seize my chance.Slamming both of my hands down on the ground, I fill it with as much heat as I can, spreading it all around us. Circular waves start rippling across the land as though it were water, the air getting hotter and hotter as the grass turns to black char Orange s