“Brother. You know you do not have enough strength to defeat me.”

Samuel’s head was pounding furiously as he tried to force himself to stand. He was halfway up when his legs gave way, and he dropped down to his knees. Shigeru was doing no better. He’d been driven against one of the many boulders thrown against the mountainside, and lay still. Samuel might have thought him dead if he weren’t feebly stirring.

This is not a good situation. Arcana’s voice came to him without warning. As it stands, you will not survive this. You must assist the Ancient in defeating his foe, or none of us will live.

Forcing resolve into his shaking limbs, Samuel attempted to stand once more. He managed it this time, but his legs were unsteady, and he had no idea where his weapon had gone. So instead, he channeled mana into his thin frame to bolster it. That helped quite a bit.

“You seem to think that I am alone in this.” Grimr was retorting, glaring across the short distance to Neratas. “I have allies beside me.”

Neratas laughed. Despite the eerie markings and obvious corruption in him, his voice was still soft and melodic. It was very pleasant to listen to. It had a way of soothing the nerves and calming the soul. Samuel imagined that, before he fell to corruption, Neratas had been a very inspiring figure. Now all he offered was dread and sickness.

“You think two mortal men would be of much use in a fight between the two eldest Ancients?” Neratas sneered. “I think the millennia have addled your brain, little brother.”

Grimr’s eye twitched slightly, but he gave no other sign that he had registered the insult. “They will undoubtedly serve a purpose.”

I see the answer now. Arcana had returned to him. I will pass on to you one new piece of knowledge that has occurred to me.

If it will help in this fight, why didn’t you give it to me with the sword? Surely it would have seemed pertinent.

That would not have been possible. This knowledge did not exist until this very moment.

Samuel, unnoticed by everyone, rolled his eyes. Well, what is this new knowledge you wish to impart upon me?

Eighty seconds.

What?

Do not let him touch Grimr. Eighty seconds.

Samuel would have loved to cry out in anger and frustration, but he didn’t think he could manage it, his throat being so tight with the tension of the moment. He wondered how Neratas touching Grimr would be such a bad thing. Then he didn’t have time to wonder, as he saw Grimr grip his weapon tightly and dart forward.

It was only then that Samuel saw the short sword in Neratas’ hand. He brought it up to block Grimr’s stroke, stopping the smaller blade with a resounding clang. Then he twisted his wrist and thrust at Grimr’s face. The Ancient swayed to the side, withdrawing his own weapon and striking again with astonishing speed. Neratas stopped it yet again, responding with a quick slash.

Grimr ducked low under the blow, flicking his knife to the other hand and slashing up. This attack connected. It didn’t draw blood but knocked Neratas’ head back. Grimr gave him no time to recover, swinging his arm back to stab his brother in the chest. Neratas darted back just in time, and the bone knife cleaved through thin air.

Neratas flashed one hand out in an attempt to strike Grimr, but the Ancient sidestepped the blow. Neratas followed up with his sword, forcing Grimr back yet again. Then the two figures moved in a blur, striking and parrying and dodging faster than Samuel could see. Neither could gain the upper hand it seemed, though Grimr was obviously tiring. It was the first sign of exhaustion Samuel had ever seen from the Ancient.

Don’t let him touch Grimr. The words came back to him. Grimr seemed to understand that this was something that could not be allowed to happen, even if Samuel didn’t understand the danger in such a thing. He looked around quickly for his weapon, trying to see where it had fallen. He spotted it after a few seconds of frantic searching.

The blade had gone dull, resembling a long piece of glass, but flared back into life as his hand closed around the hilt. He forced mana into his legs and dove towards Neratas. He tried to move as quickly as possible, swinging the sword down in an execution stroke at Neratas, but he wasn’t nearly as quick as he needed.

Neratas didn’t waste any energy on blocking his weapon. Instead, he swerved to the side, spinning in a lethal slash at Samuel’s back. Surrendering to his instincts, Samuel felt his way through space and teleported ten feet forward, but Neratas was there to meet him.

“You are interfering in a family matter,” He hissed, his face only inches from Samuel’s. “Begone mortal.”

He swung his short sword down with brutal force. Samuel knew that his body wouldn’t be able to react in time to stop it. So he relied upon his other assets, his mana, and the knowledge that Arcana had given him. It may have been a temporary body, but if he lost this, he sensed that he would lose his companions.

“Brukil!” The air solidified between himself and Neratas again, catching the sword and knocking it back.

Unfazed, Neratas brought the blade around in a wide slash and struck again. This time the barrier couldn’t resist, and there was a brief flash as the protective energy faded. Then the Ancient angled his body back and kicked Samuel in the chest, sending him flying three yards away with ease.

There was the tree again, Samuel thought dully as he collided with it. This time, the force upon his body was considerably greater, and it shattered the fragile trunk, sending Samuel through it and smacking him against the tree behind that. That was not a light blow by any means. His body gave up on him again and collapsed onto the forest floor.

With his sudden closeness to the ground beneath him, Samuel noticed a change. The ground was no longer black and sickly looking. In fact, it was just dirt. There was no sign of the moss that had covered the forest floor before. And as he forced his head to turn, he realized that many of the smaller plants had gone as well. That was curious.

He watched, helpless to contribute, as Neratas resumed his assault on Grimr. The Ancient ducked and wove with astonishing speed, but he was too busy blocking or avoiding Neratas’ attacks to even have a chance to counter. He darted back and forth, and Samuel sensed that Grimr was trying to keep the focus on him so that Neratas could not finish Samuel off.

Not that there was any need, Samuel thought wrily. Having been made of mana, Samuel could sense his body’s condition very well, and knew that it could not move anymore. Neratas’ last attack had crippled it. If it had been his original body, the ribs would have been crushed, piercing his heart, and killing him instantly. As it stood, he was merely paralyzed, unable to control his limbs.

Thirty seconds. Arcana’s voice sounded again. Samuel felt a brief flare of hope at the words, then the feeling was crushed. Thirty seconds was too long. Grimr was falling behind in the momentum of the battle, and there was nothing that his companions could do to save him. Any second now, Neratas would break through his guard, and it would all be over. Just as he felt this morose thought overwhelm him, the tree behind him dissolved. So did the one that he’d gone through. And the one next to it.

Shocked, Samuel looked to where Grimr was. It was a slight change, but, gradually, he was beginning to catch up to Neratas’s speed. It wasn’t enough to shift the tides in his favor, but he was blocking the black sword with more confidence and clearly anticipating where his enemy’s strikes were coming from. And all around him, the black trees were dissolving into nothingness. In fact, the forest around them was disappearing.

Grimr parried Neratas’ last blow with his dagger, sending his brother staggering, and slashed back for the first time since the flurry of attacks had begun. Neratas avoided it, but it had been a feint. Grimr’s dagger seemed to appear from a different direction and slipped through Neratas’ guard to thrust into his chest.

Neratas staggered back, a look of blank shock on his face as he craned his head to look at the dagger. Then he looked up to his younger brother, surprised further to see the fierce grin that was covering his face.

Ten seconds.

“Matunaw!”

The shouted word from Grimr rang out in the open air, and there was a tremendous flash of green energy. Neratas was knocked back further than Samuel, and the bone dagger was ejected from his chest, returning to Grimr’s hand.

Neratas was up on his feet again in a flash, bearing down upon his brother and going on the offensive once more. But Samuel couldn’t help but notice that the runic markings that had covered his face and arms were no longer there. His eyes were also green now, not yellow. Whatever Grimr had done, it seemed that some of the corruption had been purged from Neratas.

Grimr was forced to jump back and resume his dodging, but he gave as good as he got. For each attack that failed to connect, he swung back with savage force, forcing Neratas to dart back. They went into another blur of movement that Samuel could not keep up with, the ringing of their clashing weapons a constant high-pitched metallic scream.

Five seconds.

Grimr had Neratas on the run now, his small bone dagger describing a deadly pattern of movement as he beat tirelessly down on his brother’s guard. Neratas was showing signs of slowing down now, and Grimr, his feet finding firm purchase on the now barren forest floor, lunged in one last time, his dagger jamming into the crook of his brother’s sword arm, sinking into his shoulder to the hilt. Samuel let out a victorious cry, the sound echoed half a second later from Shigeru, who was starting to sit up now.

Three seconds.

There was a sense of urgency in Arcana’s words, but Samuel disregarded it. What threat could there be to Grimr’s life now? Neratas’ weapon fell to the dirt, and he staggered heavily as Grimr withdrew the knife. His arm was now hanging limply by his side, completely useless. He was entirely at Grimr’s mercy.

Let us pray that I am in time.

“What?” Samuel said aloud, forgetting, in the heat of the moment to reply via his thoughts. Then he felt his entire being break apart, and stopped thinking altogether.

Every aspect of his being, from the temporary body to his exultant soul, and even his tired mind, simply shattered. It would have been undoubtedly excruciating, except that he couldn’t feel anymore. He stood alone, stranded in an empty space, blind to the mercy of the world. He was quite simply gone.

All that stood around him was a blank, uncaring void. The only attribute that could be given to it was a color. White. There were no walls. There was no ceiling for him to reach, nor floor to support him. He floated alone, feeling the chill of nothingness around him.

Be still, young Samuel.

He turned abruptly to face the voice as it sounded in his mind. There before him was a man. He was bland in the extreme. Long straight black hair hung down to his shoulders, framing dull brown eyes and a rather ordinary face. He wore a simple white robe that blended in with the space they occupied. Samuel had never seen this man before in his life but knew at once who he was.

“Arcana?” He asked hesitantly, sure he was right.

The being smiled at him. “My true name is Isip. Though I did not remember this until now.”

Samuel peered intently at him. There was nothing about the body that was remarkable, yet he couldn’t help but feel that he’d known him all his life. There was an unmistakable feeling of belonging when he gazed upon Arcana’s physical form. He could feel the full force of his mana but felt no discomfort in it. It was an embrace, clothing him fully in its power, and protecting him from the void around them.

“What are you?” Samuel asked in wonder. “You’re clearly neither mortal nor Ancient.”

“I am Isip.” the man said simply. “Once, before time began, I stood by Ahya’s side. I was her mind. I stood atop the domains of magic and knowledge. I knew all. I could foresee all.”

“Then what-” Samuel said, but Arcana, or rather Isip, spoke over him.

“I grew impatient, you see. I thought my life would be easier if I could descend to the mortal plane and seek knowledge myself. I wished to mix with the children of Ahya and share my knowledge freely with them. I could teach them, I told myself. Then they, in return, could teach me.”

“But they didn’t want to learn from you,” Samuel said, remembering what Arcana had told him before. “They hunted you.”

“Not at first,” Isip replied. “I was welcomed warmly in the early years by men. They accepted my teachings without hesitation, and their civilizations flourished. But alas, this did not last.”

Samuel held his questions in, confident that Isip would continue his story without prompting. He already knew what had become of these times.

“Eventually, the greed of the mortals overcame their sense of awe and wonder. What was previously the worship and adoration of a god-like being quickly turned to avarice, and spite for what they saw as a proud and superior man. I was mortal, they decided, so I should die. They could steal my knowledge and the mana that came with it, and carry on without me.”

“In the end, I saw them coming and fled. I met one of the young Ancients who had just been created, and he assisted me in my escape. He led me away to a mountain top, and bid me hide and protect myself. I did not want to harm the mortals, but I had no choice if I wished to survive. It was only then after I had wiped out my pursuit, that the full weight of my mistake was known.”

“What mistake?” Samuel asked tremulously. “What could be worse than the people you trusted turning against you?”

“As I said, I was Ahya’s mind. I should never have left her side. Now there was an imbalance. Certainly, my absence was not enough to harm her. But for true balance, I had to return.”

“But you weren’t able to?” Samuel asked, then answered his own question. “Your body died. You couldn’t return.”

“Indeed,” Isip said sadly. “I had spent so much time as a mortal that my body could no longer take the strain of holding my mind. It still exists, deep inside the mountain, but I can no longer inhabit it. I knew then that I had to find one to carry my essence for me so that I could ascend again.”

“Peran,” Samuel said quietly.

“Yes. I could not use an Ancient for my purpose, for they already had one. They were created to roam the land and uphold the balance. That left only the mortals. If I was to return, I needed the help of those who had turned against me. But even then, I was weak and needed to sleep. After many years, I awoke, and began to search for one to free me. I thought I had found a promising mage, young enough to be convinced, and strong enough to accomplish the task.”

“But he was the wrong choice,” Samuel said simply. “But why was I the right choice? I’m much weaker than he is.”

“I employed the most ancient magic I knew. I sought to create the vessel I needed.”

“What?” Samuel asked incredulously, thrown by this statement. “You… created me?”

“I met a man with no magical talent and reached into his mind. I bid him find a woman, and together, they should produce an heir worthy of carrying my essence. I planted in him one part of the being that would one day come to my aid after it touched magic. I gave it a mind. Now it needed a body.”

“Me,” Samuel said shortly. “I needed a body?”

“Yes. The man, your father, completed the task I had set him. You now had a body. I released him then, so that he may continue his life, with no memory of what I had made him do. This is a taboo practice for a being such as I, and I did not want the man burdened by my interference. Then I slept again, awaiting your own awakening.”

“I found magic,” Samuel said, remembering Arcana’s words in the vision that had come to him. “I was never normal, was I? I was destined to become your Champion, even before birth.”

Isip shook his head. “On the contrary. You were as ordinary as it is possible to be. You had the mind of the most Ancient of beings, but you lacked the body of one. You were, for all purposes, mortal. And as a mortal, you had something I did not. The right to choose.”

“I may have had a choice,” Samuel said, “but I couldn’t leave you to fade away. Even if I don’t have the ‘soul of an Ancient’, I knew I had to help you, for some reason.”

“That is the curious thing about souls,” Isip replied with a grin. “They can make remarkable changes, depending on their experiences. You grew a mortal, were trained a mage and served as a companion to one of the eldest Ancients. Did you not find it surprising that Grimr trusted you from the start? It was because he saw you for what you were. Kin.”

“You mean to say that I am an Ancient?” Samuel asked, not sure if he was understanding.

“You can be,” Isip said. “If you choose to accept my gift. But for now, you must return to help Grimr complete his purpose. After you do, return to me.”

“I will lend him all the aid I can muster,” Samuel promised. “But why did I have to come here?”

The white void was beginning to fade around him as Isip’s voice called out to his mind for the last time.

It was a necessary step. You had to be reborn.

Samuel’s eyes opened again, and he found himself back on the dirt ground where the forest once stood. All signs of the black trees were gone now, leaving nothing but barren soil as far as the eye could see. There was no sign of corruption, nor of life. It was neutrality incarnate. He glanced over to see Shigeru sitting up, holding his head in his hands, obviously still in too much pain to move.

But then he glanced towards Grimr, noting that his position was much the same as it had been before. He stood in front of his elder brother, holding the bone dagger in his right hand. But he didn’t strike. Either he was just as tired as Neratas, or he felt conflicted at the last moment, and was unwilling to fully commit to taking his brother’s life.

In any event, Neratas didn’t give him much of a chance. As Grimr’s hand dropped limp in hesitation, Neratas’ one good arm lifted the limb practically dripping with the dark corrupted energy. It seemed to happen in slow motion, but Samuel knew that there would be no time for Grimr to react. He felt terror for his friend swell up inside his heart, distraught that he could do nothing to help him escape what was coming.

But could he do nothing? Armed with newly powerful mana, in a body built to be strong enough to carry the essence of a being higher than the Ancients, coupled with a mind that was home to ancient secrets of mana, couldn’t he do something to stop this? He only had to search inside himself in that minuscule window of time to find his answer. Yes. Yes, he could. He now understood what Arcana had meant by the knowledge not existing until now.

He didn’t know how it had come about, but he was sure that this one piece of knowledge was all he would need. It was the key to saving Grimr, and also defeating Neratas, in one instant. It had appeared alongside Samuel’s new body, yet another priceless gift from the being he had signed away his life to serve. And as if he’d mastered this magic long ago, he felt his mana awaken with the speed and force of a roaring flame, leaving his body without physical guidance, and flashing across the space between Neratas and himself in the span of a single heartbeat.

“Laban!” He cried out, pointing his hand at Neratas, his eyes burning with conviction.

The corrupted Ancient had no warning, nor any chance to avoid what came next. As his arm flashed out towards Grimr, the dead energy flaring to capture its prey, both arm and energy met an invisible barrier. Unlike the barriers Samuel had conjured previously, however, they did not stop at halting the attack. The energy itself was reflected back, turning against its source with the same amount of power. Neratas had burned all of his considerable remaining energy on this last-ditch attempt at victory. Now he was faced with that same energy, no longer in his control, rearing back at him and striking. For the briefest of seconds, Samuel saw the fear in his eyes as he saw his imminent death rushing in.

There was no sound as the wave of necrotic energy blasted back into Neratas, so fast had it turned. Then the explosion sounded, a roaring sound of defiance to match the mage who had set it into action. A bright flash of light, then too much white to see clearly. Samuel shaded his eyes reflexively and heard Shigeru cry out in surprise as he too cowered from the bright light.

The noise faded as quickly as it had been born, and Samuel felt it was safe to look once more. Neratas still stood where he had, but there were great gashes in his body, and he stood frozen as if his form hadn’t caught up to what had happened yet.

Barely visible to the young mage, Grimr let out a long breath. He had seen, all too clearly, that he could not have avoided the treacherous attack. That energy would have latched on to him and devoured him in seconds, leaving him like his brother. Then he smiled, offering a silent prayer of thanks to the Mother for his life, and struck. The bone knife made no noise as it connected, and Neratas dissolved just as the trees had done. He broke apart into innumerable pieces and simply faded away on the summer breeze.