CHAPTER 808: OCEAN VIEW

The battle was over in seconds. Korra and Gayron stood on opposite sides of the great hall, panting lightly. Bodies littered the room, few still drawing breath. Crimson blood stained the tile, flowing in rivulets into the streams cut between the tiles, turning the water red.

I led R’lissea and Fable to the east entrance, gingerly stepping over corpses. Emlica followed after us, diligently remaining within my aura, else she’d disappear. About halfway to the exit, I passed a young man, perhaps twenty, dressed in beginner’s leather armor, still breathing, but I restrained myself from healing his wounds. Emlica’s gaze burned into my back, the remnant remaining by the shard. Every spell I cast was taking a gamble with my mana; I couldn’t risk our chances of returning on the life of a single soul.

R’lissea had no such restraints, soul casting a fifth-circle spell that filled the entire cathedral with life magic. It wasn’t enough to wake anyone lucky enough to survive Korra and Gayron’s attacks, but with any luck, they’d live long enough for us to leave, and for help to arrive.

"What’s the plan now?" Korra asked, jogging over to us, Gayron on her heels.

"Anyone who didn’t feel the mana fluctuations of our arrival will quickly learn from those who fled the cathedral," I said. "Nithalee is the only ninth-level being in the city, but there are two eighths, and they’re undoubtedly on their way already. We can expect more and more resistance with every passing second, from adventurers, soldiers, and priests alike."

"Sounds fun," Gayron said. He sent a spurt of fire over his sword, burning the blood from the blade. "Korra and I can carve a path through. Just tell us where.’

"The northern keep. It’s overlooking the harbor," I said. "Nithalee’s staying there. In all my visions, she’s never left it. I think she’s waiting for us to come to her. A test, of sorts."

"I suppose it’s too late to ask if you’re certain she’s going to help us once we get there," Gayron muttered.

"We can only pray. Now let’s go. Our time is short," I said.

I climbed onto Fable’s back, offering a hand to R’lissea. She shook her head, stepping back as she soul cast a sixth-circle spell.

"Wings of the Archon!"

Life magic flowed out of her upper back, forming twin wings of translucent green light. She stretched the glowing wings, craning her head to watch as they caught the light of the shard. A soft, almost shy smile touched her lips.

Korra and Gayron sheathed themselves in their own auras, rising a few feet off the ground. They exchanged a look, and both jerked a few feet higher, earning matching frowns. I sighed, shaking my head.

"It’s not a competition," I muttered.

"Sure it is," Korra said, grinning. "Now let’s get out of here. It’s been forever since I’ve seen the southern continent."

We burst out of the hall at a run, entering a series of short passages with doors leading off to rooms. Most of them were closed, but I sensed weak souls on the other side. From my visions, I knew them to be instruction rooms of a sort. The cathedral here was the closest thing this city had to a school.

Shouts and screams echoed through the halls as we fled, but the priests were too disorganized, not to mention weak, to put up a resistance. Those who tried soon learned just how quickly a group of seventh and eighth-level beings could move. From the time they saw us and began to chant a spell, we’d long since streaked over their heads.

As we approached a set of massive double doors, I leaned even lower over Fable’s shoulder, bracing myself. Korra started gathering mana in her fist, but my wolf was faster. Kicking off the ground, he blurred forward, nearly dislodging me from his back. I let out a shriek as we slammed into the door. The resistance I was expecting never came, and when I raised my head, we were still airborne from his leap, nearly twenty feet over a crowded market street. Shards of wood filled the air in a thick hail around us, all that was left of the massive, magically reinforced doors.

Faces below us turned up, mouths gaping open in shock and horror. There was no silence, no calm before the storm, as people registered the appearance of a twenty-foot wolf. The market erupted into chaos before we even hit the ground. Screams rang out, children cried, and the acrid stench of panic stung my senses.

Fable landed hard, cracking the cobblestone pavement for a dozen feet in all directions. He turned sharply, gathering his bearings, as I adjusted my grip on him. A young mother with a child in her arms, and another clutching her skirt, had fallen from the force of our impact and was now sobbing uncontrollably. More distraught humans were everywhere, lost in the confusion of the fleeing masses. Gayron, Korra, and R’lissea flew overhead, heads swiveling as they searched for any immediate threats.

"Over there!" I cried, spotting a large keep rising above the nearby buildings.

Fable leaped again, taking us atop a large two-story building. Tiles crumbled under his weight, clattering off the peaked roof onto the street below. My heart leaped as the entire structure swayed, and I threw my arms around the wolf’s neck, hanging on for dear life as he moved again, traveling across the rooftops.

From my vantage point, I was able to get a good look at the city as a whole. The buildings were tall, uniform half-timber homes with stone foundations. The walls and tiled ceilings were washed white with blue details, with very few exceptions. The streets were neat and orderly, filled with throngs of people. Visible ripples of panic radiated in our wake as people pointed, screamed, and fled the sight of demonkin. It was massive, extending for miles in either direction, before abruptly ending against a plain of endless blue. I stared at the horizon, blinking, before realizing what I was looking at. The ocean. That was the ocean.

I’d seen the ocean only once before in person, in either life, when the archon took me from Brithlite to the Divine Throne. But that had been at night. The endless void it had been then terrified me. Neither that, nor the visions I’d seen of this very city, had done the real thing justice.

Towering cliffs framed the harbor the city rested on, topped by towers and walls facing the open sea. Towering fortifications lined the water, with towers sprouting mana cannons and ballistae every few hundred feet. The water within the bay sparkled in the noonday sun, as bright and beautiful as any jewel. Crests of breaking waves drew white lines that grew more defined and vivid as they approached the shore. The breeze was heavy with moisture and sharp with the scent of salt. The first few breaths burned, though the discomfort quickly faded.

Ships, some larger than Fable in his true form, anchored beside long piers, flying colorful flags representing dozens of different nations and organizations. A particularly large vessel, some three hundred feet long, was painted white and red and flew the colors of the Divine Throne. Several mana cannons decorated the prow, their crystals dull and depowered. A military ship?

Alarm bells began to ring, echoing from towers across tiled roofs. Powerful auras rose in guard houses sprinkled throughout the city, one in particular rising from a small keep overlooking the harbor itself.

Biting my lip, I gingerly let go of Fable with one hand and summoned my staff. As dangerous as this mission was, I couldn’t risk a Nexus and all the spells I would have to cast to shield our party. But that didn’t mean I had to leave everyone to fight for themselves. Even so...

I glanced at Emlica, flying right behind Fable. She raised her eyebrow then, as if reading my mind, shrugged.

With her permission, I quickly soul cast a sixth-circle spell, wrapping Korra, Gayron, and R’lissea up in it.

"Mind Link."

The spell flared, sinking into their souls. There was a second of silence before their minds abruptly opened up, revealing their surface-level thoughts and intentions.

"What the hell?" Korra’s voice practically shouted.

I winced, touching my temple. R’lissea’s thoughts came far gentler, directed at Korra.

"Careful, the link is very sensitive. Just think normally and it’ll transfer just fine."

"Oh. Sorry," Her thoughts were much softer this time.

"A mind link? I wasn’t aware you knew this spell," Gayron said.

"How’d you hear of it? We could have used this kind of thing before now!" Korra grumbled.

I could hear the shrug in his response. "There were a few mind demons under my command before I gave them to Luke. None were powerful enough to actually cast the spell, but they communicated by telepathy, just like Mind Link. I asked if there was a spell for mortals, and they explained this much."

"I learned it in Haven," I answered.

"You’re welcome," Emlica grumbled behind me.