Julius and Joyce jogged through the halls, passing by doorways and arches leading into various rooms. Storage rooms, weapon and armor vaults, alchemy lairs, and more. The stronghold was oddly large for the island it resided within. “Julius! Slow down please!” pleaded Joyce. Her breasts jiggled from being thrusted around corners. “Ugh. Alright fine. We’re almost to the staircase anyways so I guess we’ll slow down.” said Julius, rolling his eyes. He slowed down to a walking pace, and Joyce stumbled towards him.
“How many rooms did we pass?” Joyce asked. Julius put his hand to his chin and squinted one eye. “I would say… maybe three? We passed by the living quarters and the kitchen, as well as the stairway leading to the alchemy lair and the weapons bin. If we just continue down the path we’ll wind up at the next set of stairs.” “That’s good. Honestly, this whole thing with one long hallway connecting to multiple rooms is hypnotic.” “I couldn’t agree with you more.” Julius began walking towards their destination. He gazed around at the flat stone walls. Torches hung on metal rings, illuminating their path.
The flames danced from left to right, and each step felt like Julius was stepping into a new dimension. He closed his eyes at every wave of heat he would pass, diverting his attention away from the fire as often as he could, paying attention to the occasional painting or map of the stronghold framed on the wall. He then stumbled upon a label. STUDY, it read. The door had been left open as well. Julius took a glance inside, and noticed a cluster of books and papers scattered, and the shelves half empty. Soon enough, his feet drifted towards the door and he found himself walking into the study.
It was a homey room, lit by a chandelier in the ceiling. The study had two portions. The archives, and the study itself. It’s entrance lead straight into the study, possessing a singular desk alongside many tables and chairs. Bookshelves surrounded the desk, and also lined the walls surrounding the rest of the furniture. Past another door, would lead into the archives. Joyce trailed curiously behind him. “Julius, why are we in the study?” She glanced at the messy room and cluttered bookshelves. “It’s so messy here! Did Lance or Apollo not clean up?”
“Yeah that’s what I’m wondering. I noticed the mess as I peeked in. Another thing to note is that the door was left open too.” Julius made his way to the desks and the bookshelves surrounding it. He knelt down to examine the fallen books.
“Could we… have an intruder?”
“Nah I doubt it… Lance would have sensed their magic aura immediately. Unless we’re talking about someone super strong, but the only entrance into the stronghold is from the front. Our emergency exits have to be blown open by a strong magic attack.” Julius picked up the books, trying to make out their titles. Each one was written in arcane symbols. “If only Vega was here, then we could find some clues…” murmured Julius.
“Since when are you so interested in these kinds of things? Usually you’re just clueless to your surroundings.”
“Hey,” Julius stared at her unimpressed. “I’m not that clueless. I can pay attention to details too. I would’ve had a spear shoved in my abdomen back at the Oasis if I had zero spatial awareness.” He continued to rummage around the piles of fallen books.
“Maybe the books fell from Apollo’s training with Lance. They’ve been rowdy this entire time. It’s why we’re heading towards them in the first place.” said Joyce, following along with Julius’s investigation.
“Ha! Dear Gods no. Even with how hard they’re training, no shockwave would be able to rumble the bookshelves and cause this many to fall down. Lance is the only one that uses this room. He always goes into the study whenever he leaves us to train.” Julius burst up in frustration. He scratched his head, confused at the whole situation. What’s really going on here? He thought.
“What are you trying to say?”
“Not saying anything just…” Julius’s eyes stared at the desk. A single peculiar book was laid on the table atop parchments of maps and drawings of islands. “Just yet…” He repeated. Julius picked up the book. It was different from the rest, as it’s front cover had been outlined with a golden border. Julius looked at the title. He could translate one word. “Anomaly.” He said aloud. Joyce’s attention was suddenly piqued. Her eyes widened and she leaned over Julius’s shoulder to get a peek for herself. “You translated that?”
“Got a peek at Vega’s dictionary when he was writing down the description for Sea Curses as Lance explained it to us. Told you I’m not clueless.”
Julius opened up the book and flipped through its pages. Suddenly, a piece of folded paper fell out of a page. Julius stopped all movement. He picked up the paper, and unfolded it. It had been neatly stamped with the symbol of a large eye on the back like a letter.
The paper was written entirely in the language he could understand. “Joyce, come over here.”
He read out:
BOUNTY: ???
The mysterious wizard wields a variation of Lightning Magic. One that is faster and more explosive and destructive than conventional lightning. Witness reports a wizard with a green hue emanating from afar. One such claims to have seen a green flash by a street, leaving himself fatally cut in the chest and dozens that were in the street with him, killed. He says that he survived perhaps out of luck, as his wife behind him was killed. So far, the wizard is on high alert in the Terragon Empire, and is a natural enemy of Dark Wizard Societies. Some claim him to be the next King of the Underworld. However, we now know his name. Learn it well Lance. I’ll be searching for him myself, and keeping my distance. He must be sealed at all costs. His name, is-
“What? Are you shitting me?” Julius slammed the paper on the desk. “The name… it’s just ripped off…” said Joyce meekly. “Yeah! Then just signed by a weirdo named Charon. Like who the hell is this guy?” questioned Julius. He quickly folded the letter exactly as it was, and shoved it back into the book. He scrambled to place the book back on the desk, adjusting finely to get it to its original position. “Julius, is it just me or does the air feel a bit tense.” said Joyce. Her voice squealed like a mouse. “What? How can you even feel the air being tense? But we should go anyway…” Julius grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the room. He turned to Joyce and grabbed her shoulders. “We don’t question anything, we pretend that nothing happened here.” “But nothing really did happen-” Julius pointed his finger at her. “Exactly. Good job.” He continued to drag her along, and the two headed towards the stairs and walked silently down the stone stairs.
The two finally made their way to the training area of the stronghold. It was the largest portion and the deepest underground, going below the island itself and held together by walls fabricated out of arcanium metal, and hidden by the underwater ecosystem. Julius and Joyce shivered at the chilling walls. Joyce brushed her fingers against the walls as they strode down the hallway and into the first dojo.
“Oh my. It feels like these walls could just come crashing down at any moment.” said Joyce, seemingly amazed and nervous all in one.
“Yeah no kidding. But you’ll get used to it once you come here more often.”
“I’ve only been here once. Kinda regretting it now. This place is a labyrinth!”
“Well it’s fairly simple. This place is just a bunch of different training dojos connected to each other.” Julius pointed towards their right. They were approaching a set of thin doors, painted elegantly with the crest of an eye. Julius slid open one of the doors, bisecting the eye. The two headed inside the first dojo. It was a small space with a large bamboo mat in the middle. White lines marked the perimeter of the arena. On the walls and around the dojo were various stands that held up a variety of wooden training weapons. The whole room seemed almost unnatural, as the stone walls transitioned into the bright beige of birch wood.
“There’s just more dojos just like this. Three more smaller ones identical to this one, and two larger ones. Then there’s the outside…” Julius said as he and Joyce passed through the first dojo, and into the next. It was much larger than the one they had just stepped in, but structurally similar. Julius looked up. The crest of the eye stared down at the two of them. RUMBLE!
A large shockwave shook the dojos, followed by a stream of yellow magic that lifted Joyce and Julius off their feet and suspended them in the air. “Ah! What’s happening?” screamed Joyce. Julius filled his fist with purple lightning and punched through the stream of light magic. “Is this from Apollo?” questioned Julius as he landed. “Come on Joyce! They’re getting too out of hand!”
Julius grabbed Joyce’s wrist, and dragged her through the dojos. More light magic flowed through the training hall as Julius burst through each door, until he finally arrived at the Grand Arch. The large red pillars signified the entrance to the outdoor arena, locked behind a long dark tunnel. Julius and Joyce made their way with ease through the darkness, aiming for the light at the other end. The sound of rain got louder and louder as they approached the outside. It’s aroma of raindrops and damp grass grew more intense, until suddenly they were blinded by the light and thrusted into the outdoor arena.
It was a large expanse, on another section of the archipelago. The tunnel had allowed them to travel underwater, and appear above the surface. A flat land with the well placed rock and tree to allow for environmental interaction. Lance had called it ‘The Warzone’.
Julius suddenly remembered Lance’s words. We’ll use ‘The Warzone’ once we’ve seen some substantial progress. For now, it’s off limits. “So then, Apollo must have…” Julius trailed off with his thoughts, continuing to leave Joyce in the dark. “Watch out!” screamed Joyce.
Without a word, Joyce shoved Julius aside, and a large blast of Aether magic crashed nearby them, forming a large crater in the ground.
From the dust, Apollo appeared in front of them, unaware of their presence. Lance flew through the air, unleashing more Aether blasts. Apollo ran across the field, dodging each blast that trailed behind him, before leaping into the air and firing off a beam of light, striking Lance directly.
Lance simply shrugged off the beam, and in the blink of an eye he dashed towards Apollo. Apollo summoned two magic circles below his feet, and he propelled himself out of the way, narrowly dodging the strike. “What the? I couldn’t even see Lance dash! How did Apollo react to that?” shouted Julius. Joyce simply stared at their battle in awe. “That’s amazing…”
Lance launched several more Aether blasts in the air as Apollo fell. Almost instantaneously, Apollo summoned a shield of Light magic to block the incoming blasts whilst falling.
He landed gracefully on two feet, and held his ground as the blasts bombarded his shield. the Explosions of Aether magic filled the entirety of the arena. The blasts exploded on the shield, and burst into smaller blasts, blinding everyone with its brightness and intensity. “Joyce get down!” shouted Julius, grabbing Joyce and pulling her close, before he fell to the ground to shield himself before his eyes were flashed with light.
Dust was lifted high into the air, cutting off all vision as the barrage of Aether blasts subsided. Julius peeked over his shoulder as the dust began to settle. He could see the outline of Apollo, standing around on guard. Apollo turned his head viciously, scanning each area in front of him in search for Lance. Suddenly, from above, Lance came hurling with his fist out.
Apollo stepped out of the way as the air from Lance’s speed thrust away the dirt around them. He then rushed towards Lance and unleashed a right hook. Lance walked towards him, and rotated his entire body to dodge. Lance’s eyes locked onto Julius and Joyce, cowering on the ground in the distance. Without warning and his guard down, Lance takes a blow to the face, and falls to the ground. Apollo leapt into the air to follow up on his blow.
He manifested a magic circle, and prepared an attack. Lance dodged, and burst upwards in front of Apollo in the air, and struck him down. He crashed down like a meteor atop of him, stomping on his chest and abdomen. Apollo hurled a chunk of vomit, as Lance stood above him.
“You did well Apollo.” He stated, and reached out his hand. Apollo grabbed it, and he was pulled up by Lance and promptly patted on the back. Julius rushed off from his place and ran towards Lance and Apollo, followed by Joyce. Apollo turned around at the sound of footsteps, and his eyes widened in excitement. He extended his arms wide to greet the two with a hug. Julius approached him, but ignored his greeting. However, Joyce gladly hugged him. “Hey Apollo it’s nice to see you!”
“Nice to see you as well! It’s been a while! Was everything alright at the Oasis?” asked Apollo.
“How is that possible? It’s only been two days, and your movement and just overall magic power has amplified by so much. I feel an entirely different aura from you now.” yelled Julius, gesturing with his arms as he spoke.
“I’ve just been training with Lance for the past few days almost non stop! I’m exhausted but I know that I have to keep on going!” Apollo declared.
Joyce looked over at Julius’s face. It was far too obvious that Julius was frustrated. Julius turned towards Lance and approached him next after having received his answer.
“Lance what-” SLAP. Joyce cut off Lance’s sentence with a hard slap to the face. “Hey! What the hell was that for?”
“You’re losing your temper right now. Please don’t make rash decisions.” Joyce explained to him worryingly.
While this was happening, two figures came from the tunnel. Asura and Vega waved at the group. Lance and Apollo waved back, almost ignorant of the situation. It had just seemed like another one of Julius’s outbursts. All of them had been soaked from the rain. “Food’s ready guys! Let’s get dried up and go eat!” shouted Vega. “Alright! Thanks for letting us know!” Apollo shouted back. “What perfect timing. Let’s go eat guys!” said Lance. Joyce sighed in relief, that the situation had calmed down. Oh my gosh thank you so much Vega! Joyce thought.
They all promptly headed towards the tunnel, while Julius stood in place in disbelief. He clenched his fist, and dashed to the tunnel. The others already made their way there. “So Vega, what delayed you guys for so long? It seems like you all ended up okay.” asked Lance.
“It’s not what it seems. We were fortunate in the end to recover so quickly, but the fights were rough. I’ll explain everything during dinner.” Vega replied.
“I can’t wait to hear all about it! I’m just glad to have you all safe and sound.” Lance said with a great smile. However, Lance had noticed the hesitancy in Vega’s tone. It was obvious that he was hiding something. Fights huh. Just who did they fight to delay them for so long? Don’t think you can hide those burns either Vega. pondered Lance.
Suddenly, Julius dashed in front of them as they were about to enter the tunnel and plunge into the darkness. He stood with his arms extended straight outwards, like a bird stretching its wings.
“Wait. There’s something we need to discuss first.” He said through heavy panting.
The others waited for his argument, growing impatient by the second. Food couldn’t wait.
“How is this something you guys can just be so casual about? Lance. All of us went into the Oasis and you expected us to return the same day. Yet we came home nearly three days later. Aren’t you the least bit concerned? Same with you Apollo!” Julius pointed to Lance and Apollo respectfully. He slammed his hands on his pants and sighed. “I get that you’re happy to see us back and that we aren’t dead to the hands of the Sixth Plate or the Jaw Pirates, but where’s the concern? Some of us nearly died! Kaladin, Vega and myself!” shouted Julius, first pointing towards Vega then with both fingers he pointed at himself.
Lance’s eyes widened at the mention of the Sixth Plate. He let his magic energy fluctuate for a millisecond. Vega curiously glanced over at Lance, and looked back towards Julius. “I don’t think it’s right that the two of you just sat aside here, just chilling and training while the rest of us killed and watched others be killed.”
“Julius, I’m not disagreeing with anything you’re saying, but Lance and Apollo had no control of what happened there. I think we should just move on from this whole thing and just be glad that we’re here right now.” said Joyce. “Please… can we just get out of this rain at least.” she pleaded. “Even still… it’s not right,” responded Julius. He clenched his teeth and stared down at the ground, holding back the incoming tears. He’d already looked like he was crying from the raindrops rolling down his face.
Asura stepped up towards him, which surprised everyone. They all faintly said “Huh?” in unison. “Julius, you shouldn’t be worried here. You don’t know what’s right and what’s not.”
“What do you mean? At least I’m making sense here, right?”
Asura shook his head. “You’re a fool. Stop dwelling on big ideas like this and just stick to being dumb. We’re hungry and tired. Move.” He walked forward. Julius blocked his way with his arm.
Asura glared at him intensely. “You’re a fool. Please, move.” Julius summoned a magic circle at the palm of his hand, maintaining his position. Asura stepped back, and Julius put his hands down and the magic circle faded away. “You’re honestly a useless idiot. If it wasn’t for your Nova Lightning, your existence would amount to nothing.” spoke Asura harshly.
Suddenly, Apollo jumped over Asura and planted himself between the two of them, extending his arms and pushing the two away. He kept them at bay with his palms. “Enough!” shouted Apollo, holding onto his smile. “I’m truly sorry Julius, wait no. I’m sorry and in debt to all of you. I don’t know exactly what happened, but I’m sure things would have gone much smoother at the Oasis, had I been there. You must all be tired from fighting and from the journey, and it seems that your fatigue is getting to your heads. So please, friends. Let’s stop our infighting and enjoy our first meal reunited on a good note.”
“Thank you Apollo, but now there’s something else that’s pissing me off.”Julius shoved Apollo’s arm aside and pushed forward as he spoke. “Asura you bitch. Take back what you said.” commanded Julius. Asura remained silent. BOOM! Thunder roared through the skies as the rain continued to fall. The droplets crashing down were blinding, and all of them were wiping rain off their faces.
The voice ushered Asura again. *Get rid of these pests. Asura’s eyes widened with animosity and fear. BOOM! Thunder struck once more. Asura summoned a magic circle on his right hand, and aimed it directly towards Julius. Julius did the same.
“BLOOD BOMB!”
“Nova Spear!”
A sphere of crimson water and a bolt of purple lightning surged out of the magic circles and collided into each other. The explosion thrust all of them backwards. Crimson and indigo magic circles appeared through the dust.
Instinctively, Apollo, Vega and Joyce jumped in between Asura and Julius. Light, fire, and ice all ready and prepared to cast and deter any incoming attacks. “You two! Stop this now!” shouted Vega. “Dissipate your circles!” The wizards held in their attacks, waiting for someone to strike first.
Suddenly, a stream of Aether magic coiled around Apollo, Vega and Joyce. It held them tight and dragged them out of the battlefield. The trio were planted beside Lance, and the stream wrapped around even tighter. Not a single one of them could move their limbs. The stream had coiled around their entire body, like they’d been held hostage. Vega stared at Lance. His eyes were narrower and sharper, and more devious. His smile had matched the qualities of his eyes. The yellow glow emanating from his eyes was not of friendliness, but now of malice.
“Stay back you three. Let the duel commence.”
I had some extra time on my hands, so I managed to dish out Part 2 a lot earlier than expected.
Question: I’m in a similar predicament to Shellseaswing. Should I release the 20+ chapters that existed prior to the first chapter I posted on the forums, or continue going with the next chapter?
Past chapters would contain all the details about characters + the events and battles from the Oasis Arc.
- Next Chapter
- Past Chapters
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