Tales of Revenants

Chapter 92 – Warming Up

The wind breezing inside the carriage's window is brushing ever so slightly on Luciella's cheeks, appreciating the landscape of vast greenery, clear-blue skies where birds flutter freely, and where the slight warmth of sunlight has perfectly subdued temperature and is probably good for sun-bathing.

Since there's no way that Laken cannot take care of the roaming Nightbeast very lightly while he's the coachman, Iser wielding his Durandal and Fertious supports Laken above the carriage fending off any kind of flying Nightbeast or those following them on the back that can potentially destroy the wheels behind rendering the vehicle useless. And they only borrowed the carriage from Xenon so they must take care of it with vigilance and awareness.

The three of them were silent, especially Alisa who's sitting next to Luciella on the left passenger's seat with a distance, her original body was tightly unconscious below them on a soft expandable cotton cushion, preventing her from injuring her skull. They can't leave her body inside the Emperor's Domain because their party may be helping them scot-free, but when every bargain is given with each side and clinched the deal, the entire Balakh Empire would become their enemy.

After all, they were a third party of the empire and Archreverie's temporary alliance so they can defeat the first Demon Lord. They cannot tell where they will turn with each other but for now, Laken and his comrades were sure Queen Nimrie and Empress Marielye wouldn't do something that could ruin the alliance.

The party has only one goal, collect all Shards of Creation so Luciella can have the perpetual power and they shall decide the rest once their objectives have accomplished. Even if God, Demon Lord, Nightbeasts get on their way, he will make sure to burn them all until the darkness wouldn't be able to interfere anymore.

He's aware more than anyone that light and darkness are correlational with each other. If there's no darkness, there's no light guiding their way, and it applies on sides without distinction and indifference. Just like how the sun rises, so does the two moons light up the starless horizon.

While they travel towards Sikari Ocean, Alisa's restless where her banshee's sitting, lest she couldn't bring up the topic regarding the Shards of Creation from Luciella who's just blankly staring outside the window, motionless as if there's a subtle change on her demeanor. She's not Luciella and she's herself at the same time.

Aching from knowing the truth, Alisa just needed to spell the words out or else she might regret it later, "Hm... Luciella? Can I ask something?"

The carriage bumped and edged when Luciella turned her attention, "Yes?" Surely Alisa witnessed her innocent emerald eyes while her blonde hair breezes over the wind, certainly princess Luciella never changed and maybe her long face as she thinks of what would follow from here on out was a sign of maturity.

Accepting the world as a whole and pondering what's important made Alisa realize she used to be like her, innocent not minding everything except Laken, her brother whom she will sacrifice everything just for his happiness.

"The Shard of Creation... how does it work? I mean I'd like to know myself because I'm pretty sure by now, Beholders from the Tower of Sorcerers already knew you can wield the perpetual power of the shards, so we must take precautions to outwit them." Alisa told while she's staring at her material form.

Luciella held her chest feeling the throbbing heart that was subjected to the price of power when he reverted the whole spacetime continuum just so she could change the fate of her friends.

Slipping away and hiding her pain, Laken glimpses at her non-verbally saying Luciella could forgo Alisa's questions she didn't like to, and that's exactly what she did. Because she's planning from keeping the information from everyone, Laken somehow pulled it out of her tongue learning the truth before it was hidden.

Not sure how to respond, Luciella held her pointy ears managing her fault before she answered, "I'm not sure myself but... it seems the Shards of Creation manifest its power using the thought of imagination. When I was a child, I like flamboyant dresses and stuff so..."

Luciella's just bashful about how the color and design of his mage dress changes whenever she enters her Magus Incarnation. The shards drive her imagination into reality and alter the appearance of the user.

She can turn her physical character into a dragon if only she had enough cognitive fabrication once the flux of shard's power inhabits her body. Nevertheless, it didn't bother Alisa since she's somewhat envious of her ability.

"To put it in a much simpler way, the shards directly give you power whenever you wanted right?" Now Alisa's just grilling her.

"Yes, I can enter Magus Incarnation whenever I wanted, though there's something mysterious about it that I can't explain..." Luciella frowns while her pointy ears were wiggling.

"Mysterious? What are you implying?" Alisa tilts her head wondering.

The Shards of Creation are the embodiment of all elements around the world. Each has power equivalent authority of the heaven itself, though it cannot be easily wielded since only the Magus can override its overwhelming potential.

"It's just when I call for the shard... an image of myself is formed acting as a voice of some sort talking with me. But don't think too much about it! There's no problem regarding it, I'm telling it confuses me a little bit." Luciella puffed as she held her wand closer.

Alisa couldn't help herself but be perplexed too. She's pondering if the shards are just too powerful it also manifests an alter personality of the wielder wherein it shouldn't even be possible since such ability suggests that the shard's power is actually separating her character from her perception itself.

Meaning, Luciella can use the shards in the first place because her material form, mind, and heart are copied by a corresponding specific shard whenever she animates Magus Incarnation. Alisa's unclear theory isn't completely one-hundred-percent true, but if it ever was, then Luciella's might be in a detrimental situation that she's undergoing in a physical-related change.

Of course, Alisa would also notice Laken's indirect body language that he's hiding something. There's nothing she could do so she dropped the thought and focus what's ahead of them.

"Iser!" Alisa called him, seeing the carriage still has a plentiful amount of energy and it should last until they get back to Emperor's domain.

"Milady," Iser replied. He entered the carriage since he didn't sight any Nightbeast for over half an hour, which is really troubling since something is odd going on.

"Are you sure you aren't detecting anything? It's so unusual. We're nearing the ocean's shore so this place should be packed with roaming Nightbeast that came from the seas, but we have only sighted boars and underground worms so far." Eirisse wasn't quite sure why the air and winds became stagnant, they are about to access the outside border and enter the edge of the coastal plain.

"I think there should be–" Laken reined in the horses when a blinking red signal from the device on his wrist was accompanied by ticking sounds notified him. Xenon and Eirisse's team have a message and click the one and only button in order to talk with them.

"Hello? This is Xenon, we are about to finish raking thunder iron, Eirisse shall speak now." He told.

"Be fast, I reckon something odd is happening," Laken told over the line.

"Hello this is Eirisse," Her voice was fluctuating, "Speaking of odd, we were attacked by a group of Nightbeast Vulture, and I presume they were being controlled by Balakiel. I mean there's no way that–" Her message was cut off.

Laken deemed there's some internal problem or what since he can't handle complicated technomagic devices, constantly clicking the button thinking that would work.

At least he received Eirisse message concerning Nightbeasts that attacked them were manipulated. Besides he wouldn't wonder if he learns that a Demon Lord can control such ferocious monsters when Balakiel can freely control Dark Entities.

When they are nearing Sikari Ocean's shore, without further notice, Iser clashed his sword and exclaimed, "This is bad lady Alisa! I can now sense them, they are below the grounds!"

"I also suddenly felt them, three four... no, there are about a hundred Nightbeasts!" Luciella's perception of darkness has grown stronger, she can feel if there are monsters of the night in the vicinity.

"Laken! Speed up the carriage or else–" Alisa widened her eyes when she saw from the window a Nightbeast Worm slithered out of the terrain forming pits and crater, searching for life upon unburrowing.

The land tremors and hundreds of Nightbeast Worm and other types that can only be seen underwater started popping out of the soil as if they are waiting for their arrival, they aren't on the shore and yet they were thwarted by countless creeping monsters.

"So this is what Eirisse was talking about... Balakiel, why did you succumb to the deepest of the abyss?" Laken asked a rhetorical question.

The only choice Laken had is forward, he picked up the Lance of the Returner, firmly holding its shaft ready for the hellbound battlefield he's going to deal with.