240: Departure (Patreon)

Vir walked around the room in a daze, mind reeling from all that had just occurred. The world with the floating islands, Ekanai, Maiya… they’d all disappeared. Had it all just been a dream?

Vir’s Artifact Chakram lay on the ground nearby, but the orb that had contained Maiya’s soul was nowhere to be found.

Had she even been there in the first place, or had she been fake, like everything else seemed to be? It certainly appeared as though that entire world  had been fake. Why not the characters within it, too?

Gods, what if it was real? What if Maiya… What if she’s…

Vir’s breaths came quick and ragged, and his heart beat madly. He opened the Foundation Chakra, allowing its energy to flow into him, calming his addled thoughts. 

Keeping it open for long taxed him, making him feel spent and weary. He’d wondered why demons didn’t simply keep their Chakras open all the time—now he knew. At some point, he’d simply fall over from exhaustion. Not physical, but of the soul.

For now, however, the Foundation Chakra cleared his mind enough to think. He didn’t know if Maiya was dead or alive. Or even if it was the real Maiya who’d been in that… illusion. For all he knew, she could be completely unaware of everything. Initially, he’d feared that possibility. Now, he hoped for it.

I gotta contact her.

He had an orb. An orb Cirayus had proven he could use.

The Demon Realm. I have to get to the Demon Realm!

Until now, there had been no rush. Not with the time flow difference in the Ash. He’d used the opportunity to grow stronger. Now, however, his top priority was ensuring Maiya’s safety. He only needed to hear her voice, and all would be right again.

But what if I don’t?

Whether the orb would function in the Demon Realm was anyone’s guess, but if it didn’t, Vir knew what to do.

He’d turn right around and head back to the Human Realm.

Until then…

Until then, Vir would focus single-mindedly on that goal. The Garga and the Akh Nara could wait—Maiya came first.

Vir took a deep breath, clearing his thoughts, then surveyed his surroundings.

The room in which he stood was unlike any he’d seen before. The ‘floor’ was more a messy tangle of dark green trunks, resembling a wildly overgrown forest more than anything constructed by humans or demons.

Or, for that matter, anything built by the Imperium. Vir had been to their city. He’d seen their architecture. He knew their style. Angular, tall, ordered.

No, this feels different. Very different.

And yet, it somehow also felt familiar. Like he’d seen something similar before.

Where have I…

An inky black pool of liquid forced Vir to jump over it to reach the exit—an ovaloid doorway that resembled a doorway.

Vir froze, then turned slowly back at the liquid. He knew exactly where he’d seen this.

The Ink of Clarity.

It was the same liquid he’d peered through at Saunak’s tower, a year ago.

Vir hesitantly approached the pool. Perhaps, if it worked similarly to the Ink, it’d show him visions.

Maybe it’ll show me Maiya.

Vir dreaded what he might see. What if it confirmed his fears? What if Maiya was…

Shaking his head, he pressed on and peered deeply into the pool. Seconds passed, but the liquid showed him no visions. He saw only darkness.

Vir breathed a sigh of relief, but the feeling was quickly replaced with dismay.

He turned away and headed for the doorway.

The door, it turned out, was no regular opening. It was an Ash Gate. Perfectly stable, and just large enough to admit him through.

Peering through the Gate, Vir found far more familiar surroundings. Beautiful blue-lit Imperium architecture stood in star contrast to the almost natural trunks of the room he was currently in.

Vir took one last glance behind him, then stepped through.

The Gate vanished, as if it’d been created solely to admit him.

In the distance, he heard a rhythmic thumping.

Footsteps. A trap?

Prana Current surged, and Vir melted into the shadows. The room he’d entered was well-lit, but there were still plenty of exits from the Shadow Realm. Vir peered through the shadows… and found a very familiar figure.

Vir exited the shadows, sighing in relief. “You’re safe?” he asked, though he immediately regretted it.

Cirayus whirled and Balancer of Scales activated. Vir felt his weight multiply twenty-fold, but to his Ash-strengthened body ripping with Prana Current, it was nothing more than a mild inconvenience. It would be a different story if he had to fight Cirayus in that state, but there was no danger to him.

It was Sikandar he was more worried about. The gargantuan blade flashed with terrifying speed. Vir might not die from a single blow, but he certainly wouldn’t emerge unscathed.

Vir brought his katar up to defend.

Cirayus’ eyes went wide in horror. He immediately canceled the ability and halted Sikandar… just a hair’s breadth from Vir’s neck.

Tossing aside the blade, which clanged noisily on the stone, he dropped to his knees before Vir.

“I apologize, my liege. I should have identified who it was before attacking. I have no excuse.”

Vir dismissed his apology. Cirayus had apologized several times to him over the past year. As they grew closer, it seemed like the giant’s deference toward Vir only grew. Or perhaps it was due to Vir’s growth. He couldn’t say.

Regardless, he hated it whenever Cirayus acted this way.

The demon stood, then embraced Vir in a great hug. “I feared for the worst, lad. I thought I’d lost you.”

Vir remained silent. He wasn’t once worried for Cirayus’ safety—few beings in the world could truly harm him. Again, his thoughts drifted to Maiya.

“I-I see Shan made it out fine, too,” Vir said, partially to distract himself. “Where were you two?”

“I cannot speak for the wolf, but I was thrust into an illusion most foul. When I left that horrid place, I found myself in a room full of gnarled branches and an ancient tree at its center. Departing there, I ended up here. Shan found me soon after.”

“That’s… pretty much what I went through,” Vir said. “Do you know what any of this is about?”

“I wish I knew,” the demon replied. “I take it you met certain characters from your past?”

“Kinda,” Vir said. “I met Ekanai. Reaper Ekanai, my predecessor. And… Maiya.”

Cirayus stroked his beard. “I see. I met my dead family. It was… not a joyous reunion, to say the least. But a necessary one, I think.”

Vir couldn’t imagine what Cirayus must’ve gone through. If it was anywhere near as traumatic as Vir’s experience, he was sure the demon had suffered a great deal.

“Cirayus, do you know if any of that was real?” Vir asked.

“Can’t say, lad. In my illusion, I met a certain character. Someone who knows more about the mystical arts than I. She suggested that though the illusion was not real, the energy giving form to the characters we met had to come from somewhere. As for where, exactly, your guess is as good as mine.”

“D’you think… if someone dies in there, do they die in reality?”

“In my case, all the ones I’d met were already dead.” Cirayus frowned in concern. “Maiya?”

Vir nodded. “I don’t know what happened, and it’s driving me crazy.”

They took the next several minutes summarizing their experiences, and Vir realized that his own ordeal must’ve paled next to Cirayus’. To face down ghosts of his family who’d died. Who bore a grudge against him… Vir had no confidence he could’ve made it out of that situation nearly as well as Cirayus had.

Vir once again had Cirayus try to activate the communication orb, but to no avail. Though the orb glowed with Cirayus’ prana, nothing else happened.

“You did well to deal with that situation, lad. I’m unsure I could have opened a Chakra in that state. Good that you heeded the lass’s advice.”

Vir knew Cirayus was saying these things half to comfort him, but he appreciated the words, nonetheless.

Cirayus seemed genuinely proud of the way Vir acquitted himself. That counted for a lot.

“Reaper Ekanai was a formidable warrior. Even as you are, with all of his bloodline arts and vast experience, it is difficult to say who would win.”

“Yeah, well… Let’s talk once I have a few of those tattoos myself.”

Cirayus laughed. “That’s the spirit, lad! Hmm, but yes, I see. You’ll be wanting to head to the Demon Realm as soon as possible, then? To see if your lover is safe?”

Vir nodded. “I think I’ve had quite enough of the Ashen Realm for now. Just… your Artifact was supposed to lead us to an Ash Gate. Not some bizarre life-or-death illusion. Where even are we? How do we get out of here?”

Cirayus held up a hand. “You needn’t worry, lad. I have already located the Gate. It certainly leads to the Demon Realm. As for where, your guess is as good as mine. Regardless, we should be able to use it to get through.”

“O-oh,” Vir said. All the plans he’d formulated for locating an Ash Gate went right out the window.

— —

The Ash Gate was an unadorned oval in the center of a nearby hall. As best Vir could tell, they were now in the tunnel network he’d spotted underground. An Imperium tunnel network. Why the gods built this system, Vir couldn’t say, though that was true for the great spires in Mahadi as well.

The tunnels ended either in cave-ins large enough that even Dance of the Shadow Demon couldn’t get through, or they simply dead-ended. It was almost as if they’d been constructing this place when the Imperium fell.

Peering through the Gate, Vir found barren, red soil. Whether it was truly red, or simply dyed by colors of the settings sun, Vir couldn’t tell. It was his first actual glimpse of the Demon Realm. While he’d experienced it in some of his memory visions, seeing it second-hand wasn’t quite the same.

Cirayus stepped through the Gate first, crouching to fit. Shan bounded right after him.

“Well, lad? What are you waiting for?”

Vir couldn’t say. To think the Gate was finally here, before him, felt unreal. Even disregarding the recent bizarre events, this moment was the culmination of almost two years of his life, though it’d be considerably shorter than that to denizens of the other Realms.

During that time, Vir had seen much. He’d learned so much. He’d witnessed the Imperium’s crown jewel city and seen the very moment of their fall, millennia ago. He’d found a real, living goddess and experienced the Imperium’s vast magic. He’d met Saunak, fought endless hordes of Ash Beasts, and penetrated deeper into the Ash than anyone.

And through all that, he’d grown. Physically, he doubted there were many in either realm who could pose him a genuine threat. The powers he’d gained, the Artifacts—he could now say with confidence that he was truly strong.

Yet despite this, his strength gains paled when compared to where he’d developed the most—As a person.

Vir had entered the Ashen Realm a boy. A demon raised in human lands, always ostracized, always wondering who he was and where he truly belonged.

He would leave the Ash a man. Forged not only through the endless hordes of beasts, but by all the experiences he’d gained along the way. His promise to Ashani, which rang like a bell in his head each and every day. His encounter with Saunak. And, most of all, through Cirayus, Vir had learned who he truly was. He’d struggled with, and finally embraced his calling. And now, he was about to return to the land of his birth.

Having vanquished the demon in his head, who’d tormented him for so long, he’d matured. But had he matured enough for the trials he was about to face? Only time would tell.

There was a new world on the other side, and he’d kept it waiting long enough.

Vir took a great breath, steeled his mind, and stepped through.

End of Arc Five & Book Three.

- -

And so we come to the end of the arc and the book! Gimme your thoughts! Did you enjoy it? Did you hate it? XD

This arc ended up being way longer than I'd originally anticipated, which seems to be a recurring pattern with Ashborn. Originally planned for six books, it's looking like it'll be more like 9 now. Whether that happens or it gets an earlier ending will depend on its amazon performance. On that note, book one publishes on amazon in March of next year. I'll make an announcement here when it does.

Have an awesome weekend! Monday's chapter will be something different - RR has indicated an interest for a Vir vs Cirayus fight once Vir returned from the Mahadi realm, so I added that. That'll be Monday, then it'll be onto arc 6! WooT!

What are you excited for in arc 6? Knowing that is incredibly helpful for me as an author. I'm trying to deliver a fun, exciting read, and this is exactly the feedback that allows me to accomplish it!