[Melas] Chapter 112: Cool Tech (Patreon)

“Jack.”

The young boy glanced up from the water below the docks at the calling of his name. A Dwarf stood before him. A boy Dwarf— roughly of the same age.

“Didar,” Jack said, his feet still swaying over the splashing waves. “Did ya need somethin’ from me?” He was a Human, but he had a Dwarvish accent. His parents tried to raise him with a ‘normal’ accent. However, when he was out in the streets, he couldn’t afford to stand out more than he already did.

“Ye— guess what?” Didar had sidled over next to Jack, plopping down a small notebook to inspect. “I snatched that dumb Ainar. Guess what’s inside o’ it?

“You stole this? From Ainar?” The notebook was filled with names— not the names of people, but of locations. Jack flipped through it, eyes growing wide. “These are where his stashes, aren't they? Where he keeps his contraband!”

Didar winked and got to his feet. “Whaddaya say? Wanna nick some o’ his stuff and sell ‘em back to him and his boys? I reckon they’d give a good price for it, especially with their own supply missin’.”

Jack stared at the Dwarf boy, not saying anything back. The pair had met by complete chance— they had both picked the same night to try and rob the same shop, only to end up working together when they nearly got each other caught by the enraged shopkeep. Since then, they were inseparable.

While Didar had always been the more resourceful of the two, Jack had been the brains of their operation. And he realized now how stupid that was. “Are ye a fool?” The Human boy shook his head, disapproving. Before the Dwarf boy could speak, he raised a hand. “We don’t just sell it to him and his goons— we sell it to others too! Otherwise, they’d think we don’t got any other buyers!”

“Yer a genius, Jack!” Didar smacked him on the back, laughing. “See, this is why the two of us will always make the best team, aye?”

“Aye!”

—--

Jack stood in the present— in a warehouse under siege. Didar waited somewhere beyond. At least, that was according to Melas. The girl had her mask on, but she spoke with certainty when she said that the Dwarf was out there.

And that drove him to act. He started past the staring group— Sevin, Elda, and Melas— heading for the empty hallway. He could hear the heavy footsteps echo doing the corridor; there were probably dozens on their way in. More out there.

He tightly gripped the hilt of his sword. A short sword. Not recommended for combat against many. But that was all he had— it was what he was going to use to kill that bastard for betraying him. It was only when he heard his name being called did he stop.

“Jack,” Melas said, drawing his attention.

“You can’t stop me.” Jack’s voice was cold, as harsh as the sudden blizzard that had taken Jahar’taw not long ago. “I’m going to kill him.”

“I know.” She stepped forward, Frost Javelins hovering above her head. “However, you can’t do it alone. Don’t be a fool.” The spells launched out as her words cut him from his trance— the burning desire for vengeance within him was momentarily quelled.

Shouts— screams of pain and agony— came from behind him, from down the hallway, and he looked back. “I am not a fool,” he said through gritted teeth.

“Then we shall fight. Together.” More spell circles formed around the girl. She pointed her staff, warily aimed down the corridor. “Get ready. They’re coming.”

Growling, Jack turned around and saw the figures moving in the dark. They held their rifles— mana tech, not the type of gun that fired steel. But the blue, flashing bolts. He sliced apart the oncoming projectiles, pivoting and spinning as he danced across the floor.

The world was a blur around him. He thought he saw the spells being cast by Melas, the knives being thrown by Elda, and whatever tech Sevin had throwing back at their enemies. However, his focus was entirely on the mix of Human and Dwarf standing down the corridor.

Jack ran forward and exploded into a whirlwind of steel and metal. He sliced apart their weapons, tearing through them with his wild swings. They fell all around him. He would not stop until he saw Didar. Until—

A blast was sent down the hallway. It engulfed him and the other men within it. He heard a cry from Melas before the fire took him.

—--

“Jack!”

I yelled, running forward. The inferno washed over the corridor like a wave. It was a storm of fire, and there was nothing I could do to stop him. It wasn’t magic that caused that explosion. Perhaps some sort of mana tool was fired into the warehouse. But once it combusted, there was no longer any mana behind it.

So, I could not dispel it. I could only use my own magic to create a barrier, letting me wade through the flames. I reached Jack who was curled up into a ball. His clothes were burned. His right arm was charred— blackened, almost as if it had been turned to coal. I grabbed him and dragged him back as I saw another of the spherical objects launching our way.

It came through the front door, rolling for a moment before it shone brightly. Another blast took the corridor. It sent me flying back, my barrier absorbing most of the impact. I landed next to Sevin who hurriedly tried to help me up, uncorking a healing potion on his side.

“How is he?” The young man’s worried voice was barely audible through the ringing in my ears. I simply dropped Jack to the ground, letting Sevin tend to him as I turned my attention back to the hallway.

Its side walls were cracked— more than just fire damaged its foundations. The explosion seemed to have whittled away enough of its support, forcing the wall to crumble away, dropping the ceiling of the hallway crashing down. Dust and debris filled the air as I covered my eyes.

“They’ve just created a barricade against themselves. It’ll be enough to buy us some time.” I glanced over at Sevin who was tending to Jack’s wounds, then to Elda. “How are the side entrances to the warehouse?”

“Reinforced,” she said, picking up a knife off the ground. “However, that doesn’t mean they won’t be able to break through.”

“Especially if they have spellcasters on their side.” I shook my head. Sure enough, I heard an explosion coming from the side of the warehouse— the structure was enchanted, protected by both a sturdy infrastructure as well as whatever mana tech enchantments Gennady could put together.

However, it could still be breached. And the repeated attacks— they felt like Fireballs— must have eroded enough of the defenses for it to be destroyed. Another blast shook the building and I scowled.

“Grab Jack and bring him inside,” I said in a rushed voice. “I’ll check on the damages, make sure that they don’t follow after you guys.”

“What about you?” Sevin looked at me with a worried face. “Are you going to go there all by yourself?”

I nodded. “I can hold my own. And I’m not an idiot who will bite off more than I can chew.” As much as a glutton I was, I knew when I had my fill. “Just go!”

Elda ushered the young man forward. He was apprehensive— I could see the hesitation in his movements. However, they did as I told them. When they were gone, I steeled myself with a deep breath.

“You got this,” I told myself. “Just don’t die. That’s easy, right?” After all, I did have a guardian angel… or Demon, watching after me. Although I couldn’t be sure if she was here right now.

I ran to the side of the warehouse, crossing through empty hallways until I found the garage. Its large double doors were torn open by a blast of fire, the black scorch marks visible on their sides. Hiding within the shadows, I crept forward and tried to make out what I could see.

I saw the tail end of a group of Dwarves start down a corridor. They were talking amongst each other— murmuring about killing someone. I wanted to pull back and warn my friends, however I noticed that they went down a different path. Towards the basement?

My heart jumped as I thought of Gennady. I hurried after those Dwarves, thinking that my friend and mentor was in danger. But I soon realized that they were after someone else.

“There is that damned traitor!” They huddled around a room I recognized. It had previously been a kind of fortified storage room, but it was now used as a holding cell.

Zhanat, the Dwarf we had captured, was locked within. His shaking voice escaped through the cracks of the door. “Guys? Y-you’re here! You’re going to save me… right?”

“You wish, you damned snitch!” One of the Dwarves banged the butt of a rifle on the doorway. He glanced back at the others. “Find the keys. Then we’ll teach ‘im a lesson he won’t forget.”

Shouting came from within. “Oi— I didn’t snitch! I swear—” But they didn’t listen.

They spread out and began searching the room. I bit my lower lip, seeing this. Should I just leave? I could do something, but… that would be risky. These Dwarves managed to break in. They weren’t just a bunch of goons. They had to be spellcasters.

However, I couldn’t just leave Zhanat to die, right? Even if he did try to kill me. It was different, trying to kill someone out of self-defense, and killing someone for revenge. And maybe they didn’t even want to kill him. They might have been planning to torture him first.

I remembered Victor. I remembered the crying of the women. And I made my decision.

“Oi, I think I found it—” a man started, but was cut off as a Magic Missile blasted him back.

I stepped out of the darkness, into the brightly lit room. Magic Missiles were appearing around me by the dozens. One of the Dwarves spun around, facing me with wide eyes. He pointed a hand at me.

“You… Inferno—”

I snapped a finger. “Dispel Magic.”

His spell circle winked out of existence. He stared at his hand, then at the Magic Missiles. “Oh no…”

The barrage of spells struck everyone within the room. They tried to create barriers— conjure up shields that would protect them. However, they were probably better off trying to dodge and roll out of the way.

Not that they tried. Perhaps it was because I had the jump on them, but they were not able to put up a fight. The onslaught of Magic Missiles were too much for them to handle. Or maybe it was because of how much I had improved in magic. I did have the potential to be the greatest spellcaster that ever lived, after all.

When I was finished with the Dwarven spellcasters, I walked up to the bolted door to check on Zhanat. He sounded like he was trying to peer through the gap beneath the door. “Oh Goddess grace us— you have to get me out of here. They’re trying to kill me!”

I stared at the bodies lying all around me. Then at the metal door. “No,” I said simply. “You’ll stay put here. I’m not going to bring you with me, only to have you betray us once Didar shows up.”

“Wait, but—”

“I only saved you because I was around. However, I’m leaving. So, you better pray to the Goddess that no one else was sent to torture you or kill you. I have to get back to my friends.”

I scurried back out, heading up to where Elda and Sevin went with Jack. But just as I reached a stairway, I heard a loud clap. No— it wasn’t a clap. I spun around, quickly casting Fracture Side. The bullet swerved around me, sparking off the wall and sliding on the ground with a clink. I narrowed my eyes, facing the assailant.

It wasn't Didar standing before me. A Human man— a group of them— confronted me from the other side of the corridor. Each of them held guns. Proper guns. They loaded it, stepping forward as I conjured a barrier from the earth..

“Why are you people from the Puer Kingdom doing this?” I called out, gritting my teeth.

“Isn’t it obvious, you Goblin scum?” A voice replied just as another shot went off. I ducked under my Stone Wall, readying Frost Javelins from my side. “This damned country— sheltering all you cursed monsters, hammering us with embargoes and tariffs because we won’t let you in? And now, they’re creating all these new technology for war? After all your aggression in recent years? Of course we won’t be fools and let them invade us first.” The lead man looked between the others around him. “No mana tech. She’s a spellcaster.”

“Right!” they affirmed in agreement.

They began running forward— I could hear their footfalls rapidly approaching. I exasperatedly stood up, ready to unleash my spells at them before they could get close. However, before I could, a Dwarven voice broke out from behind them.

“Ya fools think that tech is something special?” A large, looming figure stood at the other end of the hallway. Gennady sat atop a Golem’s body, where the head would usually be. He was piloting it, cranking a lever and swinging one of its massive arms forward. “Think again you damned idiots!”

A mana crystal at the tip of the Golem’s hand shone. A flash of light engulfed the room as a beam struck out. It hit the center of where the men were gathered, before exploding into a spherical blast. Everything in its epicenter was disintegrated. The wall, the ground… everything.

I shielded my eyes from the light, looking away until the flash was gone. I glanced up at Gennady, staring at him with wide eyes.

“What is that?!”

“Pretty cool, right?”