Unbound

Poison Resistance is level 32!

Atar shook his head, trying to clear the sharp ringing from his ears. The world tumbled end over end, but the solid, unmoving ice beneath his fingers told him it was a false sensation. What wasn’t were the chunks of masonry that rained down upon them, glancing powerfully off of a tall blue bubble of force Mana.

“Can you stand?” Alister shouted. Blood had trickled down his ears and onto his starched collar.

“Yes!” Atar did just that, taking in the devastation that they had come across. The large building to their right had been blown to bits and was in the process of being consumed by an eager, hungry inferno. Screams and shouts echoed from every direction. Why do things keep exploding near me? Where’s the Legion? What—His blurry Mind clicked into focus. A finger of icy dread ran down his spine. “Poison Resistance?”

Atar looked down and saw a thin blade embedded in his thigh. “Alister! We have a problem!”

No sooner than the words left his mouth, the force shield was riddled with three powerful impacts. Blades identical to the one in Atar’s thigh hit and stayed, suspended in mid-air as Skills discharged around the weapons. Alister shouted something and the shield pulsed, hurling the daggers back the way they’d come. They flew hard, shearing into the road, a low garden wall, and a lamppost—each one blasting out fist sized chunks of stone or metal.

Alister squinted against the glare of the burning building beside them. “Where are they?”

“I don’t know!” Atar limped in a circle, pain forgotten. The light didn’t affect his vision at all, but he still couldn’t spot the bastards. “There!”

Orange, green, and white. Liquid Mana flashed from three separate places as Skills were activated. Alister twisted his hand and his own power flowed from his palm and feet, setting his barrier spinning. The formless Skills crashed into it and were redirected down into the road, where they exploded into flames, wind, and viscous slime.

More screams echoed in the night, but this time they were fewer. Atar’s Perception could pick them out—innocent citizens hiding in their homes, even a pair of children peeking out of a window. Their attackers, however, might as well have been invisible. Yet as the screams quieted the ringing in his ears didn’t stop.

It moved.

I can hear them. Atar studied a patch of darkness on the opposite side where he heard the ringing. No. Not them or their Spirits. What is this? It came to him in a flash. Sounds heard countless times during his work, each unique in pitch and timbre. I can hear their enchantments. They're using artifacts to hide from us!

The figures moved, the sound of their artifacts trailing them like echoes, and Atar spun, thrusting his hand forward in the same motion. Thirteen Stars of pure white flame shot into the dark, so hot they boiled the air, so fast they were no more than a blur. Yet their assailants were faster…or their artifacts did more than stealth them.

Ice screamed, steam burst, and stone turned molten where his Stars landed. “On the left!”

Alister drew his rapier and thrust. “Pillars of the Domineering Sentinel!”

Square pillars of blue force Mana ripped up from the ground, tossing snow, trash, and debris hurling into the air. Atar could hear the others still fleeing; all but one. That one was thrown high by Alister’s Skill and was sent tumbling up onto a nearby roof.

“Stars of the—!” Before Atar could get the Skill off, the vague, shadowy figure slipped across the peak of the roof…and vanished entirely. “Damnation!”

“They’re gone,” Alister announced before shaking his head in disbelief. “Assassins. What did you do?”

“Me? Why would it be my fault?”

“Which one of us has Diplomacy as a Skill? And which one of us has the power of Super Arrogance?”

“Astrum Revelation doesn’t—”

Behind them, the burning building rumbled as pieces of it fell to the street. Alister’s good humor evaporated immediately. “Can you put that out?”

“Yes.” Atar stepped up, shedding his heavy cloak as he drew nearer the blaze. “Flame. Do your thing.”

“What?” he asked, but his mini Urge refused to answer. “Blood and ashes. I’ll do it myself then!”

Inexorable Enkindling!

The heat and fire from the burning building stuttered as if a giant had blown a great swath of it out. More remained farther in, which frustrated Atar. If Flame had cooperated, they could have absorbed all of the fire and heat Mana within a hundred strides. Atar stumped closer, his Body quickly absorbing the last of the inferno and leaving behind the smoking corpse of a building.

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Inexorable Enkindling is level 83!

“Couldn’t help me, even a little, Flame?”

release these bonds and my aid shall be unending.

Atar spat. His spittle came out black from all the char he’d breathed in. “No.”

you do not yet see the majesty before us, atar. or the danger.

Deep within the mage, a bird spread white wings, careful to stay within the bounds of the restriction array.

you will, soon.

“What does that mean?” Atar demanded. “Flame? Answer me, dammit!”

The heavy tromp of boots through snowmelt pulled Atar’s attention away from his irritating passenger. He stepped out of the burnt ruins just as forty armored men and women came to a smart stop right in front of him. “Legionnaires,” he muttered. “You’re a bit late.”

An Elven woman with crimson hair and a golden crest across her chest recognized Atar immediately. “Glyphmaster V’as! Did you stop the fire?”

“I did.”

“Glad to hear it. Legion! Secure the site! Recover any survivors!”

“Aye!”

The Legionnaires flowed around Atar like a river of armored efficiency. Earth and wind Skills shifted debris as they searched the wreckage, while others spread out into the nearby homes, knocking on doors until people answered. Small, scattered fires were extinguished and people were rushed to a space they had made off to the side, where Legionnaires with white sashes administered potions.

Assassins. The word was sour and acidic in his Mind. Like I don’t have enough to deal with right now.

Alister came up to him, pressing a white kerchief up against Atar’s leg. “You’re injured.”

“Oh. Right.” In all the commotion, he’d honestly forgotten about it. “I seem to have lose the knife I was holding in it.”

His boyfriend made a disapproving noise as he inspected the wound. “Was it poisoned?”

“Enough to level up my Poison Resistance.”

“It looks clear enough now. Your Body must have burnt it up once you resisted its effects. Here. Take one of my potions.” Alister pressed an oblong crimson bottle into his hands. “I have plenty.”

Atar sighed but opened it and took a swig. It wasn’t worth arguing with the man. “How’re your ears? And your—” Atar gestured to his mouth, nose, and chin region. “It looks a mess.”

“Healed. I took my own medicine already.”

With a loud thump, a giant of a man landed among the scored and charred road. He was dressed in armor very similar to the Legionnaires, save for the long blue jacket emblazoned with the crown and eye of House Nevarre. He had dark hair, darker eyes, and a jawline sharp enough to cut a man. Even had Atar not seen his face, the man’s bearing and ridiculously large sword would have been enough to identify him. “Commander.”

“Glyphmaster,” Darius Reed, Hand of the Duke of Pax’Vrell and current Commander of the Fiend’s Legion. “Lord Knacht. What happened?”

“I could ask you the same, Darius. Didn’t think a simple explosion would get you outta your fortress.”

“One would be a blessing,” the large man admitted. His square-jawed, handsome face was looking a touch haggard. “This is just one of three fires tonight. Two were in the Scale, relatively close to each other so they built into a real danger, real quick.”

“Three?” Atar didn’t understand. If there were two other explosions, what was the play? Were he and Alister the targets at all? Were they even assassins?

“We just barely got those put out before I could afford to send anyone out here. I appreciate you two taking care of it.”

Atar waved his hand absently, still thinking. “We were in the area.”

“Does this have anything to do with the explosion a few weeks ago?” Alister asked. “The clothier near Savina’s.”

Darius rubbed his chin. “I recall the event. I haven’t seen a link yet, but I’ll keep it in mind. Several other attacks have happened around town. Small things like robberies and muggings. The usual stuff in a city…but it’s all been amplified these last few weeks.”

“Since Felix left,” Atar said.

Darius pursed his lips. “The man makes for a good deterrent.”

“Or it’s something more,” Alister suggested.

“Mages or not, I don’t appreciate vague hints. Do you know something?”

“We fought the people that did this,” Atar said.

Darius straightened, his dark gaze intense. “You did? How many? What do they look like?”

“No clue. They were using stealth enchantments. Well-made ones.”

The Commander gave a low whistle. “Expensive. Who could possibly afford to outfit enough thugs to set three, simultaneous attacks around the city?”

The answer laid between them all, unspoken but heavy. The Hierophant could afford that and more.

Darius cleared his throat, but it sounded more like a growl. “Enchantments like that would be Tier IV or V, correct?”

“In order to remain totally unseen by our Perception? A Master Tier artifact would be required,” Alister said. “Your suspect pool would be very small. The number of people that could survive the backlash from utilizing a Master Tier artifact while at a lower Tier themselves are incredibly rare.”

“Could be a lesser inscription, perhaps boosting their own Skills,” Atar added. “That’d reduce the strain on their channels and allow Adept Tiers to use them.”

“Increasing our potential perpetrators by an order of magnitude.” Darius ran a hand across his face. His square jaw bristled with a beard he hadn’t gotten around to shaving. “Siva’s Grace, but this is a mess. If these artifacts are so good, how did you spot them?”

Atar hesitated. “I can…hear them. I think I can counter them, too.”

Darius raised his eyebrows. “Truly?”

Atar nodded. “Come see me in the Glyphworks tomorrow. I’m…going to be building some things for an expedition first.” Alister smiled through the blood on his cheeks and chin, and Atar’s heart clenched. “I’ll fit you in, Commander.”

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