Chapter 247: A Dark Beginning Part 1

 

  Deep in the Violet Realm, in the Duality Mountains, ash and fragments of rock rained down from the darkened sky as Mt. Mov roared in a deep rumble of magma and smoke. Half the Eastern Forest had already burned to cinders and the runoff lava seemed nowhere close to stopping.

  There had been no hint of Mount Mov’s eruption, not even a whisper in the earth. No one had seen the disaster coming, not the soothsayers, not the nobles, not even the gods themselves, but it was the mountain folk who paid the price. The Florains had abandoned their burning mountain villages and rushed down the mountains, hoping to escape what followed behind them.

  One woman did not run down the mountains, nor did she try to avoid the lava that crept down the rocky slopes. 

  Yara ran through the forest with flitting strides, each step imbued with agility magic. The orange mana coursing through her veins halved her body’s weight and enhanced her nimbleness. She jumped from branch to branch with ease, avoiding the lava altogether.

  She stopped and rested on the branch of a particularly tall tree that had yet to be touched by the lava. Even here, away from the fiery destruction, the air was thick with smoke.

  “Just my luck,” she sighed.

  The trip to the Violet Realm was meant to be easier than her regular undertakings. It was supposed to be a nice and quiet respite really. All she needed to do was visit the Eastern Forest, study the rare flowers that grew on the eastern side of the mountain range, and speak to some of the villages’ soothsayers about the local fauna. She could spend the rest of her stay whatever way she pleased.

  She had never expected the largest peak of Duality Mountains’ to explode in an infernal storm that made the Bronze Realm’s volcanoes seem like a mild breeze. As if the destruction of the Eastern Forest wasn’t bad enough, Silverderin Keep had been built on Mount Mov. 

  The fortress’ impenetrable magical barrier had kept the dark monsters of the Western Forest on their side of the mountains since the Sundering Age. For thousands of years, Silverderin Keep and its legendary warriors had protected these mountains and the lands to the East.

  Mount Mov’s eruption had ripped half the mountain apart and obliterated anything in a two-league radius. In a single instant, everything had been lost. Silverderin Keep was no more, not a single white brick left. The Silverderin Paladins were no more, their bodies nothing but ash in the wind. The magical barrier was no more, the dark creatures of the Western Forest were free to step into the East for the first time in thousands of years.

  The few villages that had survived the eruption’s initial explosions were now overrun with monsters. When Yara had arrived in one of the last remaining villages, the soothsayers and warriors were busy fighting off half a dozen monsters.

  Yara by chance met a small group of survivors, running down with what little they could carry on their backs. She planned to stay hidden up in the trees until they passed, but she recognized the old woman leading the group.

  Yara jumped down the trees and landed on the ground with a quiet soft step. The survivors stumbled backward, fear and anxiety clear in their eyes. Instead of glancing away to reassure them she was not a threat, Yara found herself staring into the white pupils of the Florain people. It was an uncommon trait, even she had rarely encountered it in her travels.

  “Everyone calm down, she is a friend,” the old woman stepped forward. “I cannot tell if it is fortune or an omen that you have arrived at this tragic hour. Tell me, are you still a friend to my people?”

  “As you once told me, a fellow mage is always a friend in these mountains. May the mountain goddess bless you, soothsayer,” Yara bowed in the customary greeting. She lifted her index and middle fingers and touched the sides of her head, where a Florain’s horns would be.

  The soothsayer looked haggard, but she forced herself to smile anyway. She brushed her burnished orange hair back and touched her silver horns. “Thank you for the kind gesture, but I’m afraid that will no longer be possible.”

  Yara sent her a questioning look, “This is a tragic day that will not be forgotten, but you can always rebuild, the story of you and your people does not end today.”

  “Big words from an outsider who has never cared to lift a finger for us,” the soothsayer said bitterly.

  “I am but a simple observer, nothing more,” Yara said politely.

  “Spare me your lies,” the soothsayer shook her head. “It’s just that you don’t care, like everyone else. There will be no help for my people here, the mountains are lost. Silverderin has fallen.”

  “I saw,” Yara stared at the smoking and burning remains of Mount Mov in the far-off distance. “The volcano’s eruption can be seen far down the mountains I reckon. The kingdoms will send their armies to quell the monsters from the west.”

  “No… no they won’t.”

  “The queens and kings can be a stingy bunch of assholes, but even they will not ignore the calls of the mountain. They will answer.”

  The soothsayer closed her eyes painfully, “Not if the mountain goddess is dead.”

  “What…!? How?” Yara frowned in confusion. “Was she caught in the eruption?”

  “No…”

  “Then how do you know she is dead? There is nothing in these mountains that could ever harm her. And even if there was, she could always fly away.”

  “...I saw her body,” the soothsayer mumbled. “Our goddess died in those trees,” she pointed a shaky finger to the mountain across from them. 

  “How?” Yara whispered.

  “She was defending our people… I did not see what happened, but a few hunters from another village said they saw a great ape-like monster emerge from the west. The goddess defended our people… and that monster killed her.” The soothsayer closed her eyes, but the tears slipped down her cheeks anyway. “...So you see, no king nor queen will send their armies here. There is no hope left on these mountains.”

  “...Where will you go?”

  “Some of the other villages, what is left of them at least, are hoping to find refuge in the plains. However, we and a few other villages are trying to reach the Duality’s central river. The waters will keep us safe from the lava and hopefully whatever monsters lurk in these trees.”

  “But the mountain river leads away from the plains?” Yara furrowed her brow.

  The soothsayer smiled, “We are not going to the plains. We are wise enough to know we will not be welcomed down there. The rest of the realm finds our horns unsettling, our yellow skin strange… It is time we strike out on a new path. The elders and I know of a realm bridge.”

  “Realm bridge?” Yara’s eyes widened. “This is a risky plan, even for you. Those paths are more dangerous than you think.”

  “...The realm bridges are the only way to travel to another realm, far from the politics of these lands,” the old woman said. “A few other soothsayers have crossed the bridge before. We have friends in the Azure Realm; there is a town on a small island, protected by a sea guardian. They will take us in.”

  “Even still, this isn’t a good idea. Crossing a realm bridge is anything but safe,” Yara shook her head. “It is a fragment of land and raw magic twisted in space and time. If you are not careful it will close around you, your people would be lost to the Null forever…”

  “You speak as if you are terrified of them. Yet did you not cross such a bridge to arrive in our Violet Realm?”

  “That’s not the same and you know it. I’ve learned to navigate through the bridges. How many of your people can say the same?”

  The soothsayer bit her lip, “...You could come with us, help guide us through the realm bridge… We could really use your help.”

  Yara made a reluctant face and took a step back, “Unfortunately, I have more pressing matters.”

  “I should have guessed,” the old woman sighed. “Outsiders are all the same, no matter how often they proclaim to be our people’s friends.” The soothsayer stepped around Yara and kept walking down the mountain.

  “Wait,” Yara called out. “Please.”

  The soothsayer glanced back at her, a small glimmer of hope in her white pupils, “Yes?”

  “This monster, the one that killed the mountain goddess… where can I find it?”

  The soothsayer’s expression turned to disgust, “That is what you care about? The monster from the dark side of the mountain? Nothing good comes out of the Western Forest!”

  “You don’t understand,” Yara swallowed. “A monster capable of killing a goddess? Don’t you see? I mean, think of the possibilities!” Her eyes widened with excitement, “What sort of creature is this? With that sort of power, it could very well be a beast from the Age of Memory! If I could just even get a glimpse of such a creature, it would be a tremendous learning experience.”

  “...What is wrong with you? That thing killed our goddess, it killed my brothers and sisters! And you want to what? Play with it!?”

  “Study it, preferably. Learn from it if I can,” Yara said earnestly.

  “You really don’t care about any of us, do you?” the soothsayer turned her back and kept walking.

  “Wait! Which way did the monster go?” Yara called out.

  “No one knows, it ran back into the forest, it could be anywhere,” the soothsayer muttered angrily.

  “...Right,” Yara nodded to herself. “Thank you and good luck!”

  The soothsayer didn’t bother to answer. The rest of the villagers followed behind her and occasionally sent Yara looks of disdain.

  It didn’t bother Yara, the mountain folk could keep their opinions. There was something far more interesting wandering through these mountains and she was determined to see it for herself.

  Yara leaped up to a nearby branch and made her way through the Eastern Forest, jumping from one branch to another. The fire had yet to reach this far out, but it was only a matter of time. She needed to find the creature soon. There were only so many places it could hide, the forest was growing smaller with each minute.

  After an hour of fruitless searching, Yara noticed a pair of bulky beasts lumbering down the mountain. She hid among the leaves and observed them.

  Their bodies were covered in a bright blue shell that reminded her of a species of beetles she had seen in the Aurous Realm, but that was where the similarities ended. Long tendril-like tongues slithered out from the beasts’ mouths, gliding on the ground with erratic movements. Their bulbous yellow eyes moved separately, each pupil staring at something different.

  The repulsive creatures were clearly from the Western Forest, yet they did not seem aggressive as was often the nature of such beasts. No, their movements were shaky, almost guarded.

  Yara narrowed her eyes. “They’re scared,” she muttered.

  The beasts’ heads snapped up at the noise, their long tongues shot out at the tree where Yara hid. The branches shattered into a rain of splinters, but Yara was gone, only a few flecks of orange light among the branches remained.

  Above the ash-covered canopy, the air crackled as Yara’s body was pulled back into existence in an explosion of orange sparks. She landed on top of a tree with an unsteady stance. Her head stomach churned and she resisted the urge to vomit.

  Even now, after years of practice, casting a flicker spell still made her nauseous. Among the true chromatic magics, flicker magic was said to be the most dangerous to cast. But Yara didn’t care, she refused to part with the ability to slip through space itself.

  Instead, she recalled her training and focused her breathing. The nausea and lightheadedness quickly dissipated a few breaths later. Before she could take a moment to recollect her thoughts, she spotted a peculiar sight in the distance. The forest groaned as tree after tree toppled over in a straight path away from the inferno that was left of Mount Mov. Something big was moving through the woods and it was moving fast, running from the raging forest fire.

  Yara tried to get a better look from her vantage point, but she was too far, the ash and smoke too thick. Still, she had a pretty good idea of what it could be.

  Yara smiled, “I found you.”

  She bent her legs and stood back up in a quick series of stretches. It would take several flickers to reach what she hoped was the god-slayer beast. The strain on her body would be troublesome, but worth it, if the soothsayer’s story was to be believed.

  As Yara channeled orange mana into her body she stiffened to a halt. The fallen trees, the path being made by the creature… it was headed towards the river.

  “Oh no,” she swallowed.

~~~

  Yara ran through the forest, flickering through the trees as quickly as she could. She reached the edge of the river faster than she had hoped. There was no sign of the creature yet. The villagers were packing what little they had into a few dozen canoes.

  Yara waved her arms frantically, “H-hey! You need to get out here, NOW!”

  A few of the villagers turned around at the sound of her voice. They furrowed their brows and called out in a questioning manner.

  “Ah shit,” Yara frowned and tried to steady herself. The backlash of the magic was getting to her. Her vision blurred and her senses grew dull. She slowed her breathing and tried to focus on not puking.

  A deep roar bellowed across the river. The villagers yelled in fear and looked at each other in panic. The treeline suddenly burst, giant chunks of wood flew out and crashed into the water. A colossal monstrosity emerged from the woods in a rush of strength and speed.

  The beast towered over thirty feet. Its body resembled an ape, but its face was feline. Silver stripes stretched across the thick white fur that covered its body save for the arms. Deep purple scales coated the beast’s arms and clawed fingers.

  The monster roared and leaped into the river, smashing apart half a dozen canoes and the men and women inside. The other villagers screamed in terror and jumped out of the canoes. The monster swiped into the water like a bear catching fish, and tore apart their bodies with its sharp claws.

  The village soothsayers and warriors yelled in defiance and stood in between the monster and their families. Yara turned around and flickered into the trees and out of sight. The warriors threw their spears and fired their arrows, yet the weapons glanced off the beast’s fur without harm.

  Yara had expected no less, this creature had held its own against the mountain goddess. While she lamented the fact that the villagers had to find out this way, she was nonetheless interested in seeing how the beast fared against magic.

  But as the soothsayers raised their hands and channeled their spells, Yara’s face paled with fear. The purple scales over the monster’s arms shivered and darkened. The soothsayers’ spells were forcibly pulled towards the monster’s arms. The scales flashed bright and reflected the spells back at the soothsayers. The magic tore at the villagers in a storm of blood and water.

  The monster didn’t feast on the corpses or even bother with what was left of them. Instead, it waded through the river and made its way down the mountain, anger, and excitement clear in its eyes.

  Yara watched in silent horror. She had been wrong. She had been so terribly wrong. This creature wasn’t a beast from the Age of Memory. No, this monstrosity had lurked in the Western Forest long before that. This thing was why Silverderin Keep had been built in the first place, to protect the realm from the horrors few dared whisper. This was a dark god from the Sundering Age.

  “I need to leave,” Yara whispered.

  This was way above her capabilities. She needed to get home as soon as possible. She had to let the others know what she had witnessed.

  As Yara turned to leave, a faint whisper drifted into her ear, “...help… em.”

  Yara frowned and looked back at the river. A young woman lay broken at the rocky shore. Her legs were mangled and a shard of rock jutted out of her stomach, but the Florain woman was still alive.

  Yara sighed to herself. Leaving the woman alone would be unnecessarily cruel, the least she could do was put her out of her misery.

  Yara looked around carefully and made sure the dark god had left before she made her way back down to the river. She walked over to the dying woman and drew the dagger from her waist.

  “I’ll make it quick, I promise,” Yara whispered gently.

  The Florain woman swallowed a mouthful of blood, “Help… them…”

  Yara glanced around plainly, “There is no one left. You can rest now, you’ll be with your family soon.”

  “N-no… the children…”

  “Children?” Yara frowned. Now that the woman mentioned it, Yara hadn’t recalled seeing any children on the canoes. “...Why do I have a bad feeling about this,” she muttered. 

  Yara didn’t want to ask, this wasn’t her problem, but some small part of her couldn’t help but utter the words. “Where are the children?”

  The dying woman weakly glanced down the river.

  Yara shook her head without hesitation, “I’m sorry, I can’t help you. There is nothing on this mountain that can stop that ancient monster. Your children are as good as dead.” She turned around and walked away. She stopped in her steps and glanced back. “...Dammit.”