Chapter 186 - They Are Mine (Patreon)

Mark The Hiss

Markhiss gazed downward at distant sandy dunes through the obscuring darkness of a densoon cloud. The vile cloud-stuff twisted and squirmed against his skin; a perfect match for the murderous voices screaming inside his thoughts.

A long line of soldiers trudged northward toward what rumors were already calling, ‘The Last Battle.’ Markhiss scoffed at their lack of even a single decently tiered commander. The fact anyone above tier seven wasn't permitted to serve in the active military had always been a thorn in his gums. It was just one more proof that the weak and the common-born were no more than feces to be shoveled into the fire, all in hopes one or two would emerge as a malleable lump of coal worthy of gifting the truths of the aspects.

I don't die need to expose them any longer. All I have to do is deal murder with the things in the shadows. If I can clean up the burn them all mess I helped create, then surely the Truthbringer will accept me. That's right, the lies and kill inequality in the empire aren't my responsibility any longer. A much more worthy person has come rip the flesh who will surely absolve us of those sins.

The thought was a freeing one that brought a moment of respite to the voices. Markhiss’s only mission now was to erase the scum that might get in his way. Since cutting ties with the Voicers and Shadow, Markhiss had been operating in the dark. When he became aware of their unusually brash operations in the desert he had rushed with single-minded purpose to uncover their motives. He still wasn’t entirely sure why the voicers were actively intercepting forces from reaching the Last Battle, but he was sure it would be a hindrance to the Truthbringer. And when these foul zealots learned the truth about his motives, they would surely come for his head.

That must not be allowed!

Markhiss's rage surged and his vision flashed red. Luckily, targets he could release his ire upon were right beneath him. Teleportation brought him to the ground in an instant. His boots crunched against the sand as he crouched and a moment later, he blasted toward his first prey.

The woman was laying on her belly, her head poking over the top of a dune to observe the line of soldiers on the far side. She didn't wear any memorabilia of the church, but her squad of assassins had made their allegiances clear after killing the last battalion of soldiers to come through this stretch of the desert.

She rolled quickly, her well-trained reactions a match for the strength of her aura. It bunched together before crashing into him but his fury had already been released. The list of people in the empire that could withstand his aura was rather large, but this insignificant woman wasn't on it.

His aura blasted through hers, splitting it apart like a rotten fruit before his hand closed around her throat. She didn't make a sound even before he grabbed her, after all, noise was the sworn enemy of assassins. A menacing grin stretched his face uncomfortably as he locked gazes with her terror-stricken eyes. His dagger found her chest, punching through tough leather armor and tier five flesh with equal ease. When he pulled the blade free to pierce her other lung, the soft hiss of air escaping was music to his ears.

Jiran of Madra

The battle in the distance was progressing well as far as Jiran could tell. The Forkara had split into two groups, each slowly withdrawing toward the areas just south of the two opposing mountains that marked the entrance of the northward pass. Reinforcements continued to dive from the open portal high in the sky and they smoothly chose a side to join without any apparent oversight.

Less than a tenth of the Graymin were engaging the withdrawing Forkara, the rest were spreading out into the vast open space between the city and the new formations. As Jiran was musing about how the mass of beasts looked like a balloon being filled with ants, a prideful voice snapped him back to the conversation happening around him.

“You've learned something truly ridiculous this time. To think you can transfer mana to those above tier seven.” Lenton puffed out his chest as if Jiran’s accomplishment were his own.

A tier nine that hadn’t bothered to introduce herself yet was quick to interject with a dainty wave of her hand, “Well, if it can only be used during densoon, it's of limited use, even if it is a blessing for us today.”

Not wanting the misunderstanding to proliferate, Jiran corrected her, “That’s not true, this was originally a technique that could only be used against beings with a manapool. If the densoon hadn't arrived, we would have taken the mana directly from the Graymin. Absorbing chaotic density from a densoon cloud isn't something that can normally be done. Only by matching the frequency of the density before it changes to that frequency, can you absorb it.”

The woman recovered from her shock quickly. She arched an eyebrow at him while planting her hands on her hips, “How—”

“I'm not going to teach that today. Not to be rude, but it’s unlikely any of you will be capable of converting chaotic density. We have a lot to cover and not much time to do it in. As for the original mana absorption technique—Mana Siphon—I’d be happy to go over that with anyone who has the required molding subskill, but not until later.” The most powerful people in the empire listened to his every word with rapt attention, even if some of them were pretending not to be.

Jiran's chest swelled with pride that he was finally contributing to the strength of the empire in a meaningful way. First, he had taught the emperors, and now these ancient figures whose legends were known by every child. Who would dare even dream of standing on the same stage as them, let alone teach them.

His minds raced, contemplating what he should and shouldn’t reveal. He wanted whatever he taught to be passed on without the risk of anyone being dragged off to an arena, which meant holding back significantly. He also had to make sure he increased their strength enough to survive the coming battle. After all, these few tier nine and tens were going to have to face nearly a hundred beasts just as powerful as themselves. And behind those monsters, were supposedly thousands of tier eight bishops. Meanwhile, the number of tier eights on the empire's side numbered less than fifty.

Before Jiran got started, there was one more thing that needed to be resolved, “Now that everyone’s mana has been fully restored, if you would follow me, I have a quick errand and then I’ll begin my explanation on the truth of the elements.”

Jiran dropped to the ground, not needing to check if they were following him as their powerful auras revealed that they were. He pulled two green crystals from separate pouches, reflexively checking that the remaining three were still securely fastened in place on his belt. He accessed their options through the interface, triggering both to form portals between their mated pairs, and then threw them.

“He’s got more of those?!”

“No wonder you tried so hard to find him, Lenton. This child is a treasure trove!”

Lenton chuckled nervously as the portals stabilized. The smooth surface of the first rippled as nine of the Matrons stepped through. One by one, they saluted and greeted Jiran with their heads held high. The mature Timberlings lined up behind the matrons began dashing through without a shred of hesitation. Even though the portal led to a battlefield that could easily kill them, not a single one so much as flinched. Jiran couldn’t help but be impressed at their resolve and bravery as emerald arcs of lightning danced around them.

The second portal revealed the serious expression of the Aahmra as he led The People through it. He stopped to give Jiran a deep but silent nod before stepping out of the way and allowing his warriors to dash through and line up behind him. The bruising on his cheek had been completely healed and his steadfast eyes passed over the higher-tiers, the first sign of nervousness appearing in his countenance as he tasted their auras.

Mayalyn came through at a random point in the line and took her place within the ranks as if she were any other warrior. She stared straight to the north, not saying a word or locking eyes with anyone.

Good, just like we planned. Clearly, I shouldn’t have been worried she would have a hard time ignoring me. So long as there’s a chance one of these people would try to use her against me, we need to hide our relationship as best we can. Obviously, it’s not possible to hide her for long since she made such a big splash in Mortan, but that’s the other side of the empire. They probably only know her general description which matches a dozen other girls from the tribe.

I hope she had enough time to take care of the other back-up plans she came up with. It’s going to be hard to get her alone to ask with these higher-tiers around. Their auras are impossible to block in the normal way.

Jiran addressed both groups simultaneously while using Elemental Castigation to draw an image of the current battlefield in the air with weaves of light, “Split your forces in two and send them to these points at the northwest and northeast. For now, leave the fighting to the Forkara. Do not engage until I’ve arrived. We aren’t used to working together and you can’t speak each other’s languages so I would prefer we not even try joining our forces unless it’s an emergency.”

The matrons saluted in unison but only the Matron of Hunting responded, “We understand, the Great Spirit’s command.”

The Aahmra was sweating bullets and spoke with a forced smile, “I’ll not recklessly throw away a single one of my children.” He swallowed heavily, clearly concerned Jiran would force him into something they hadn’t agreed on now that the rankers were threateningly lined up behind him.

Jiran alleviated his fears with a smooth tone, “The People will not be fighting on the front at all, I have another plan for you. For now, head to the back lines and be ready. As soon as I’m done here, I’ll find you and we’ll discuss the best way to utilize your skills. All of you should keep in mind that the enemies you’ll be seeing shortly are only the scouts, the real fight will come later. Use this chance to observe and strategize as I’ll be asking for your input later.” After Jiran’s ominous warning, the two groups continued filing out of their respective portals while splitting in two and heading toward their designated positions.

Lenton, standing beside one of the electrified green portals, jabbed it gingerly with one finger, “These are nothing like the one you disappeared into a year ago.”

“That’s right, don’t expect me to explain them. Just because I’m revealing so much to ensure the safety of my homeland doesn’t mean I’m going to disclose things that are unnecessary for you to know. After all, it was you, Master, who taught me that knowledge should not be given freely.”

A neatly shaved man with slicked back hair and gaudy jewelry spoke with snide disdain, “Lenton! You damn scoundrel. See what your greedy ways have wrought? And who are you, a mere child, to speak that way to us. If we—”

Lostrifar had not spoken since Jiran annoyed her earlier. Her sharp tone filled the air along with a pulse of her aura and it was more than enough to create instant silence, “Leave it, Pherish. If anyone attempts to extort any of this boy’s secrets again, I will kill them.” Somehow, her young, childish voice carried a note of finality that left even Sagrinar and Pierro fidgeting nervously.

Jiran didn’t know much about Pherish other than he was a member of Astarte’s Prosperous—one of the three groups of active tier nines in the entire empire. Pherish bowed deeply, his voice turning pleasant even though his eyes still contained a hard glint, “Of course, Master Lostrifar. None would be so foolish as to extort such a renowned individual. I was merely reminding him of the natural order of the tiers. On that note, I had heard rumors of a girl with strange ears and a tail in the east. Apparently, she commanded a storm of lightning far beyond her tier. Even after Lenton confirmed the Mortemer who appeared in those rumors was you, Jiran of Feylon, I didn’t believe them. Now, after all you’ve shown us today, I have no choice but to admit I erred. Tell me, are you at least willing to discuss the nature of these strange people you have brought into our homeland?”

I’m going to have to watch out for this bastard. I… think I’ll keep a few extra cards hidden that I had planned to reveal, just in case.

“The girl you heard of is from a civilization that refers to themselves as The People,” Jiran motioned toward the line of warriors trailing behind the Aahmra. “As for the ones with wings, they are called the Forkara and these people with bark and leaves are the Timberling; each has their own entirely separate culture, history, and language. What I’m sure you will find far more interesting, Is that they also have completely different skills and techniques from each other, and us.”

A dangerous hint of greed flashed within Pherish’s mana and Jiran’s tone turned dangerous as he bared his teeth at the men and women who could easily crush him like a bug, “I should also mention... that they are mine, and I am theirs. Just as I belong to the empire, I belong to them. I’ll do whatever it takes to protect them. So, I hope you treat them as well as you would me.”

The tier tens glanced at each other and nodded, though none of the three chose to enunciate whatever they had silently decided.

While the tier nines appeared thoughtful, some even impressed, Pherish merely snorted, “Can these strange people be trusted? Once we are engaged,” He spread his arms to indicate the rankers clustered around Jiran, “you’ll really be on your own back here, and if we die, who’s to say what could become of the empire then…” He trailed off suggestively.

None of the others are stepping in to help, they must be testing me. I can’t let myself get too angry.

Mana Omnis caused Jiran’s eyes to glow as he scoured Pherish’s energies for a hint of his true objective. Finding only the rapid beating of a fearful heart, Jiran’s smile turned predatory, “It’s a few beasts your own tier. Such an easy fight shouldn’t become a joke where you mention your life ending. To answer your question, I trust most of them with my life and the others will be kept in line by the ones I trust. Whatever happens with my allies, it’s best if you stay out of it.”

Pherish’s nostrils flared and he spoke through clenched teeth, “My apologies. I did not intend to insult you and I’ll not mention it again. Be sure to coordinate with Princess Oliviala, she is the commander in charge by right of conquest. Law and order must be upheld, even in the most dire of circumstances.”

I really don’t like dealing with people more powerful than me. But, there’s always a bigger fish. I bet he’ll shut up if I remind him of that.

“Of course, I would never dream of undermining Olive’s authority. She is, after all, one of my closest friends and if Dominus had his way, we would be engaged already.” The casual use of their names and the implications of Jiran’s backing were more than enough to get the nasty Pherish to step back with an awkward smile plastered on his suddenly sweaty face.

Jiran scanned each of the powerful figures one at a time, thankfully not finding any others who appeared to harbor ill intent. “Now, if there are no more questions, I think we should begin with the elements of fire and ice since they are the most closely related in their natures.”