ULTRAMagic Prelude - Chapter 21
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“Blood! Wake up!”
“Huh? What?” Blood-Wraith was incredibly groggy as someone shook him awake.
“I found it! The planetoid I couldn’t write down the location of!”
Finally coming to, Blood-Wraith saw Dragoslava above him. She was all ready to go exploring. “Sister? Can I eat breakfast first?”
“Sure, but make it quick!” Dragoslava picked him up, carried him to the bathroom, then to the dining room. She could not stop talking about the dream she had the night prior.
“Hold up… you were on the planet in your dream? And that’s how you found out?”
“I’m pretty sure.” As she sat Blood-Wraith down at the table, Desislav began serving him breakfast.
“What’s all this?” Blood-Wraith asked.
“Good morning, Blood,” said Desislav. “Sorry for all of the commotion, but you and Dragoslava need to hurry. We’re not sure what this new planet is all about,” he answered as he poured some syrup on the pancakes. “But it sounds like something gave you two an invite.”
“I see…” Blood-Wraith said as he started eating.
“Apparently it’s just for you, Drago, and Leif at the moment. Don’t worry, I’ll keep an eye on Aureolus.”
“Desislav told me about how these adventures can get dangerous,” Aureolus commented. He was sitting right across from them.
Anticipation was eating at Dragoslava as Blood-Wraith took his time. Naturally she began pacing in the living room. The excuse was that she was doing some last minute planning, but in reality she was growing impatient. Blood-Wraith took the moment to discuss the dream he had had that night. It was a simple one where he and the others were at the beach. Whether the beach was similar to Dragoslava’s dream was unclear. Just as Dragoslava’s groaning was about to start, breakfast was finished.
“Don’t worry sister, I’m coming…” Blood-Wraith said with one more yawn. He grabbed Voidborne and made his way to the door.
“GOOD, finally…” She stepped outside and whistled for Leif.
“Ready to go, you two?” Leif asked as he landed.
“Yes! Let’s roll!” Dragoslava said with enthusiasm.
Leif sighed.” Alright then…”
“What’s the matter, Leif?” Blood-Wraith inquired as he climbed up onto his back.
“Not to sound dramatic, but I think this may be the beginning of the end for me…”
That was an unsettling statement, and it definitely made the trip a bit uneasy for the two. Dragoslava was still eager to go, but she would be lying if she said that did not send a chill up her spine. The new planetoid was quite beautiful, despite being surrounded by the bizarrest of things. Colossal creatures of indescribable nature that bore resemblance to whales flew around the area. Were they protecting this world? That seemed to be the case as they stopped Leif for a moment. Once they were certain things were okay, they let the dragon continue on.
Sparkling, azure water stretched on forever as the group entered the atmosphere. The sky was a brilliant cerulean and darted with white, fluffy clouds. After some flying, they found an island to touch down on. It was tropical and lush with flora possessing large leaves. The sounds of birds and insects were everywhere, creating a tranquil symphony of sorts. Dragoslava loved how nice this planetoid was. She even went over to a fruit on the ground and picked it up to eat it.
Blood-Wraith had to admonish her. “Sister, what if that’s poisonous?”
“Heh, nah. It’s tangy.”
Leif shook his head. “Oh dear. Anyways, I’ll wait here. Call me if something happens.”
“Is there something…”
“No, I just don't want to trample the plants.”
Dragoslava snapped her fingers. “Ah, I see.”
“Shall we go explore then?” Blood-Wraith asked as he picked up his own fruit.
The tropical island forest was fairly dense, but not impossible to maneuver. Plants brushed against their faces and animals darted away as they approached. Moving deeper in revealed the presence of buildings, ancient in nature. Dragoslava made a note of these, but that was about it. She did not get very far in her journal as there was not much to take notes on. The structures were simple and a far cry from the temples of The Roaring Mountains. Plus they lacked complex details which made it hard to discern a definitive culture.
“Blood, what the Hell am I even supposed to write? Other than RUINS. BRICKS. SIMPLE?”
Blood-Wraith shrugged. “That? The Central Unlight Explorer’s Guild aren’t picky, are they?”
“No, I just feel like I can do better.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it. Do what you can… can you open this for me?”
“Sure…” Dragoslava was handed a coconut-like object. She cracked it with her metal skin. “This planet is so normal. Compared to the others this is a walk in the park. I both love and hate expeditions like this.”
After finishing his juice, Blood-Wraith burped. “Excuse me. Well maybe that person at the top of the temple can help us…”
“Temple… Person… SHOOT! Blood, get down!”
Over at the pyramid, the person in question saw the two duck into the bushes. He laughed. “Guys? I’m the one who invited you two. You can come out of there.”
Dragoslava stuck a metal hand out of the bush, mimicking a mouth as she talked. “How do we know you’re friendly? Or…uh…foe-ly…”
“I see Tusk left out a few details I needed him to convey.”
“Well actually I think he was getting around to that” Blood-Wraith replied as he stuck his head up. “Hey, wait a second… Are you The Lich of Old?”
“No… and yes.”
The two stepped out of their cover and walked up the steps. At the top was a skeleton in a simple, hooded robe. His bones were shiny black and his eye sockets had fiery, orange orbs in them.
“So if you’re not uncle Lich, who are you?” Blood-Wraith asked.
“Call me Deimos, the half the Lich cast out of him. I’ve been waiting for you two for a while now.”
Dragoslava took a seat on a large, stone brick. “So what’s your story?”
“Have you noticed that the Lich seems… incomplete? Disregarding his foolish ambitions for the moment.”
Blood-Wraith nodded and spoke up. “Yeah, something felt off when I was fighting him back at the Metal Oasis, before my sister stepped in.”
“That’s because that nitwit thought it was a good idea to remove his fear and dread…” There was a hint of offense in Deimos’ voice. “Sometime ago, The Colossus of Old went dormant and The Child of Old finally took on his reincarnated form. This left Leif and I as the last two rogue primordials… or the ones that mattered at least. Of course my mind and body had become cowardly and wanted to avoid reincarnation…”
Blood-Wraith nodded again. “Yup. See, Sister? The Lich was complaining about that, going on about all of his accomplishments.”
“...as to be expected,” Deimos continued. “Did he mention that ridiculous Prima Materia sword?” He could feel his regret flaring up.
“Yes… I think.”
“Oh good lord! He makes that sound like a big deal when it’s really not. I created that realm as a place where I could focus on my alchemy. Nothing more, nothing less. And I could have done a way better job on it too…” Deimos then resumed his explanation. “Anyways, I don’t fully blame him for being proud, just his arrogance. So thinking his emotions would betray him, he went looking for a mad man who could remove them while leaving his desires intact. Enter Milosh Proch, Dunja, and Valerie Ter Avest.”
“Wait!” Dragoslava interrupted. “If you’re his emotions, then why did he sound relatively normal before?”
“Well like I said, his drive is still there. He’s essentially a husk at this point. Think of him like an automaton following a script. Now Milosh had been experimenting with manipulating reality artificially, a big no-no for the Descendants. Obviously I don’t need to go in depth there. The Lich struck a deal with Milosh: If he split the Lich, the Lich would help him and Dunja conquer and subjugate the Iron City.”
“Uh-huh, just as Corentin speculated. Also jeez, don’t tell Tusk that. He’ll have a stroke…”
“He already knows, to a degree. Now cue me waking up here, royally confused. I wandered for a bit until I finally realized what had happened. I was angry and insulted… so I got thinking. How could I screw over my other half? And then it struck me: I’ll train a mage to throw a wrench into his plans every step of the way!”
“Hold up!” Blood-Wraith cut in. “I’m not a pawn to you, am I?”
“Oh no no no no, absolutely not! I may have done some manipulating and string pulling behind the scenes, but it is all in favor of stopping the Lich and furthering your future, Blood. There is something important coming up that you need to be involved in.”
There was a look of mild skepticism on Blood-Wraith’s face. “Hmm… Alright, continue…”
“Ahem, so next up was to convince The Monolith of Old to reawaken one of The Nightmare of Old. This would create a chain reaction leading to Blood-Wraith’s birth. This entire thing was a massive gamble as I could have accidentally created another ANTIMagic mage… that would have been bad…”
“Oh, okay…” Blood-Wraith was having a slight existential crisis. “I… I don’t know how to feel about all of this…”
“Blood, I’m sorry me and your actual father couldn’t be there for you. He’s off dealing with his own issues and I had to keep a low profile, lest the Lich snuff you out before you could even react.”
“Couldn’t you have protected me though?”
Deimos looked guilty and regretful. “The Lich took our power… I barely have enough to keep myself safe at the moment.”
“So how do you plan to fix all of this?” Dragoslava questioned.
“The Dark Grand Desert. The Screaming God, one of the Unspeaker’s children, told me about the place. My other half wants to turn himself into a true immortal with all of the free flowing Prima Materia there. And this isn’t like say eating a magical apple or wishing on a dragon born from mystical orbs or something similar. He plans to add more matter to his soul, enough to make himself a god. My plan is simple: We all go there, cancel the transmutation, and reclaim my power.”
Dragoslava was skeptical of this plan. “That’s all? How do we know we can trust you?”
“I hear you and I anticipated your hesitance. Trust me, I fully understand...” Deimos held out his hand and in it was an orange flame. “As a sign of good will, I offer you a fragment of my soul, Blood-Wraith.”
He stared at the flame for a moment, completely stunned. “That’s… that’s all I need. I can just have it?”
“I insist. If you can beat the Lich with this power, you can easily defeat me.”
Blood-Wraith took off his mask for a moment. He was grinning. “Let’s do this!” Taking the fragment turned his fire orange, then coalesced in his last eye. Things went silent for a moment until he rose into the air and emitted a blinding light for a couple of seconds. He put his mask back on once he had stable footing again. “Thank you, Uncle Deimos. Sister, we can trust him.”
“HOLD UP! Just like that?”
“Yup. I get a good look at someone’s soul when I do that” Blood-Wraith replied.
“Oh, really?”
“Yes. Tusk feels jaded by his skill and guilty for his inaction, Corentin feels guilty for not being able to get back at Milosh, Kresimira regrets abandoning Corentin, uncle Colossus is riddled with anxiety over his future, and you considered dying because everything’s happening so fast and you’re madly in love with Desislav!”
Dragoslava turned red with embarrassment and began stomping down the steps. “I’M…I’M GONNA GO CHECK ON LEIF!” She then tripped and tumbled down the rest of the steps. “I’m okay!” she called out, skin completely metallic.
“Is she okay?” Deimos asked, a bit concerned.
“Yup. I’ve noticed my sister has issues expressing her emotions sometimes. I think that’s why she’s so bold and adventurous.”
Deimos paused. “Huh, this is going to be interesting. Funny thing she went to go see him as I need to do a little cleaning up around here and whatnot. I figured it’d be a good way for us to get to know each other and show you some stuff you can do. Interested?”
“Absolutely, Uncle Deimos.”
The two began their walk carefully down the steps. “Say, have you unlocked the form associated with the fragment from the Colossus?”
Blood-Wraith shook his head. “Um, no, I don’t think so.”
“Well then we’ll have the perfect opportunity to get you into it. We’re going to need some muscle for what we have to do.”
“Ooh, how interesting,” Blood-Wraith remarked.
Next: Chapter 22
ULTRAMagic Alternate © 2022 William Ford II (ChaoticTempleKnight)
Master Post - Patreon
“Blood! Wake up!”
“Huh? What?” Blood-Wraith was incredibly groggy as someone shook him awake.
“I found it! The planetoid I couldn’t write down the location of!”
Finally coming to, Blood-Wraith saw Dragoslava above him. She was all ready to go exploring. “Sister? Can I eat breakfast first?”
“Sure, but make it quick!” Dragoslava picked him up, carried him to the bathroom, then to the dining room. She could not stop talking about the dream she had the night prior.
“Hold up… you were on the planet in your dream? And that’s how you found out?”
“I’m pretty sure.” As she sat Blood-Wraith down at the table, Desislav began serving him breakfast.
“What’s all this?” Blood-Wraith asked.
“Good morning, Blood,” said Desislav. “Sorry for all of the commotion, but you and Dragoslava need to hurry. We’re not sure what this new planet is all about,” he answered as he poured some syrup on the pancakes. “But it sounds like something gave you two an invite.”
“I see…” Blood-Wraith said as he started eating.
“Apparently it’s just for you, Drago, and Leif at the moment. Don’t worry, I’ll keep an eye on Aureolus.”
“Desislav told me about how these adventures can get dangerous,” Aureolus commented. He was sitting right across from them.
Anticipation was eating at Dragoslava as Blood-Wraith took his time. Naturally she began pacing in the living room. The excuse was that she was doing some last minute planning, but in reality she was growing impatient. Blood-Wraith took the moment to discuss the dream he had had that night. It was a simple one where he and the others were at the beach. Whether the beach was similar to Dragoslava’s dream was unclear. Just as Dragoslava’s groaning was about to start, breakfast was finished.
“Don’t worry sister, I’m coming…” Blood-Wraith said with one more yawn. He grabbed Voidborne and made his way to the door.
“GOOD, finally…” She stepped outside and whistled for Leif.
“Ready to go, you two?” Leif asked as he landed.
“Yes! Let’s roll!” Dragoslava said with enthusiasm.
Leif sighed.” Alright then…”
“What’s the matter, Leif?” Blood-Wraith inquired as he climbed up onto his back.
“Not to sound dramatic, but I think this may be the beginning of the end for me…”
That was an unsettling statement, and it definitely made the trip a bit uneasy for the two. Dragoslava was still eager to go, but she would be lying if she said that did not send a chill up her spine. The new planetoid was quite beautiful, despite being surrounded by the bizarrest of things. Colossal creatures of indescribable nature that bore resemblance to whales flew around the area. Were they protecting this world? That seemed to be the case as they stopped Leif for a moment. Once they were certain things were okay, they let the dragon continue on.
Sparkling, azure water stretched on forever as the group entered the atmosphere. The sky was a brilliant cerulean and darted with white, fluffy clouds. After some flying, they found an island to touch down on. It was tropical and lush with flora possessing large leaves. The sounds of birds and insects were everywhere, creating a tranquil symphony of sorts. Dragoslava loved how nice this planetoid was. She even went over to a fruit on the ground and picked it up to eat it.
Blood-Wraith had to admonish her. “Sister, what if that’s poisonous?”
“Heh, nah. It’s tangy.”
Leif shook his head. “Oh dear. Anyways, I’ll wait here. Call me if something happens.”
“Is there something…”
“No, I just don't want to trample the plants.”
Dragoslava snapped her fingers. “Ah, I see.”
“Shall we go explore then?” Blood-Wraith asked as he picked up his own fruit.
The tropical island forest was fairly dense, but not impossible to maneuver. Plants brushed against their faces and animals darted away as they approached. Moving deeper in revealed the presence of buildings, ancient in nature. Dragoslava made a note of these, but that was about it. She did not get very far in her journal as there was not much to take notes on. The structures were simple and a far cry from the temples of The Roaring Mountains. Plus they lacked complex details which made it hard to discern a definitive culture.
“Blood, what the Hell am I even supposed to write? Other than RUINS. BRICKS. SIMPLE?”
Blood-Wraith shrugged. “That? The Central Unlight Explorer’s Guild aren’t picky, are they?”
“No, I just feel like I can do better.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it. Do what you can… can you open this for me?”
“Sure…” Dragoslava was handed a coconut-like object. She cracked it with her metal skin. “This planet is so normal. Compared to the others this is a walk in the park. I both love and hate expeditions like this.”
After finishing his juice, Blood-Wraith burped. “Excuse me. Well maybe that person at the top of the temple can help us…”
“Temple… Person… SHOOT! Blood, get down!”
Over at the pyramid, the person in question saw the two duck into the bushes. He laughed. “Guys? I’m the one who invited you two. You can come out of there.”
Dragoslava stuck a metal hand out of the bush, mimicking a mouth as she talked. “How do we know you’re friendly? Or…uh…foe-ly…”
“I see Tusk left out a few details I needed him to convey.”
“Well actually I think he was getting around to that” Blood-Wraith replied as he stuck his head up. “Hey, wait a second… Are you The Lich of Old?”
“No… and yes.”
The two stepped out of their cover and walked up the steps. At the top was a skeleton in a simple, hooded robe. His bones were shiny black and his eye sockets had fiery, orange orbs in them.
“So if you’re not uncle Lich, who are you?” Blood-Wraith asked.
“Call me Deimos, the half the Lich cast out of him. I’ve been waiting for you two for a while now.”
Dragoslava took a seat on a large, stone brick. “So what’s your story?”
“Have you noticed that the Lich seems… incomplete? Disregarding his foolish ambitions for the moment.”
Blood-Wraith nodded and spoke up. “Yeah, something felt off when I was fighting him back at the Metal Oasis, before my sister stepped in.”
“That’s because that nitwit thought it was a good idea to remove his fear and dread…” There was a hint of offense in Deimos’ voice. “Sometime ago, The Colossus of Old went dormant and The Child of Old finally took on his reincarnated form. This left Leif and I as the last two rogue primordials… or the ones that mattered at least. Of course my mind and body had become cowardly and wanted to avoid reincarnation…”
Blood-Wraith nodded again. “Yup. See, Sister? The Lich was complaining about that, going on about all of his accomplishments.”
“...as to be expected,” Deimos continued. “Did he mention that ridiculous Prima Materia sword?” He could feel his regret flaring up.
“Yes… I think.”
“Oh good lord! He makes that sound like a big deal when it’s really not. I created that realm as a place where I could focus on my alchemy. Nothing more, nothing less. And I could have done a way better job on it too…” Deimos then resumed his explanation. “Anyways, I don’t fully blame him for being proud, just his arrogance. So thinking his emotions would betray him, he went looking for a mad man who could remove them while leaving his desires intact. Enter Milosh Proch, Dunja, and Valerie Ter Avest.”
“Wait!” Dragoslava interrupted. “If you’re his emotions, then why did he sound relatively normal before?”
“Well like I said, his drive is still there. He’s essentially a husk at this point. Think of him like an automaton following a script. Now Milosh had been experimenting with manipulating reality artificially, a big no-no for the Descendants. Obviously I don’t need to go in depth there. The Lich struck a deal with Milosh: If he split the Lich, the Lich would help him and Dunja conquer and subjugate the Iron City.”
“Uh-huh, just as Corentin speculated. Also jeez, don’t tell Tusk that. He’ll have a stroke…”
“He already knows, to a degree. Now cue me waking up here, royally confused. I wandered for a bit until I finally realized what had happened. I was angry and insulted… so I got thinking. How could I screw over my other half? And then it struck me: I’ll train a mage to throw a wrench into his plans every step of the way!”
“Hold up!” Blood-Wraith cut in. “I’m not a pawn to you, am I?”
“Oh no no no no, absolutely not! I may have done some manipulating and string pulling behind the scenes, but it is all in favor of stopping the Lich and furthering your future, Blood. There is something important coming up that you need to be involved in.”
There was a look of mild skepticism on Blood-Wraith’s face. “Hmm… Alright, continue…”
“Ahem, so next up was to convince The Monolith of Old to reawaken one of The Nightmare of Old. This would create a chain reaction leading to Blood-Wraith’s birth. This entire thing was a massive gamble as I could have accidentally created another ANTIMagic mage… that would have been bad…”
“Oh, okay…” Blood-Wraith was having a slight existential crisis. “I… I don’t know how to feel about all of this…”
“Blood, I’m sorry me and your actual father couldn’t be there for you. He’s off dealing with his own issues and I had to keep a low profile, lest the Lich snuff you out before you could even react.”
“Couldn’t you have protected me though?”
Deimos looked guilty and regretful. “The Lich took our power… I barely have enough to keep myself safe at the moment.”
“So how do you plan to fix all of this?” Dragoslava questioned.
“The Dark Grand Desert. The Screaming God, one of the Unspeaker’s children, told me about the place. My other half wants to turn himself into a true immortal with all of the free flowing Prima Materia there. And this isn’t like say eating a magical apple or wishing on a dragon born from mystical orbs or something similar. He plans to add more matter to his soul, enough to make himself a god. My plan is simple: We all go there, cancel the transmutation, and reclaim my power.”
Dragoslava was skeptical of this plan. “That’s all? How do we know we can trust you?”
“I hear you and I anticipated your hesitance. Trust me, I fully understand...” Deimos held out his hand and in it was an orange flame. “As a sign of good will, I offer you a fragment of my soul, Blood-Wraith.”
He stared at the flame for a moment, completely stunned. “That’s… that’s all I need. I can just have it?”
“I insist. If you can beat the Lich with this power, you can easily defeat me.”
Blood-Wraith took off his mask for a moment. He was grinning. “Let’s do this!” Taking the fragment turned his fire orange, then coalesced in his last eye. Things went silent for a moment until he rose into the air and emitted a blinding light for a couple of seconds. He put his mask back on once he had stable footing again. “Thank you, Uncle Deimos. Sister, we can trust him.”
“HOLD UP! Just like that?”
“Yup. I get a good look at someone’s soul when I do that” Blood-Wraith replied.
“Oh, really?”
“Yes. Tusk feels jaded by his skill and guilty for his inaction, Corentin feels guilty for not being able to get back at Milosh, Kresimira regrets abandoning Corentin, uncle Colossus is riddled with anxiety over his future, and you considered dying because everything’s happening so fast and you’re madly in love with Desislav!”
Dragoslava turned red with embarrassment and began stomping down the steps. “I’M…I’M GONNA GO CHECK ON LEIF!” She then tripped and tumbled down the rest of the steps. “I’m okay!” she called out, skin completely metallic.
“Is she okay?” Deimos asked, a bit concerned.
“Yup. I’ve noticed my sister has issues expressing her emotions sometimes. I think that’s why she’s so bold and adventurous.”
Deimos paused. “Huh, this is going to be interesting. Funny thing she went to go see him as I need to do a little cleaning up around here and whatnot. I figured it’d be a good way for us to get to know each other and show you some stuff you can do. Interested?”
“Absolutely, Uncle Deimos.”
The two began their walk carefully down the steps. “Say, have you unlocked the form associated with the fragment from the Colossus?”
Blood-Wraith shook his head. “Um, no, I don’t think so.”
“Well then we’ll have the perfect opportunity to get you into it. We’re going to need some muscle for what we have to do.”
“Ooh, how interesting,” Blood-Wraith remarked.
Next: Chapter 22
ULTRAMagic Alternate © 2022 William Ford II (ChaoticTempleKnight)
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