Every bone in her body screamed for Kyra to run. The sight of the amalgamated wraith chilled her to the core. Its very existence was anathema to her vows as a priestess of Aliyah and it was clear both she and it were in opposition. She could feel countless eyes staring at her from the center of the Arcanum as the amalgamated wraith lashed out wildly towards her, failing to reach her outside of the door. She gripped her staff tighter and focused.

  Amara’s plan was a simple one that came to her after dwelling on Gene’s stories of superheroic adventurers. She could feel her internal mana reserves burning from the strain but she knew she had to push through to finish their mission.

  Eonis riffled through his pouches and produced a handful of seeds, showing them to Amara as he said, “These are called Aliyah’s Breath. When the gods first built the world, Tremmel, the god of the harvest, gifted each of the others an aspect of the natural world. This was his gift to Aliyah. They’ll enhance any holy effects in their vicinity. Coupled with Kyra’s new power this should be enough to destroy that thing.”

  Kyra nodded in agreement, rehearsing the Rite of the Sun in her head. She would nearly deplete her reserve of prayers but when looking at the horrific amalgam of suffering before her, she felt she had to set them free.

  “These won’t last long in his desecrated soil so we’ll only get one chance at this,” said Eonis, placing the seeds in his armor.

  They took their places, Amara standing between Kyra and Eonis as the Priestess began chanting. Eonis crouched down low, taking deep steadying breaths.

  His muscles tensed and he shot forth like a bolt launched from a ballista. His feet beat the pavement in rapid steps as he charged into the library, swords drawn. One blade was pointed backwards and as he charged, he made rapid gouges in the ground, dropping seeds with each jab.

  He sprung into the air, narrowly dodging profane tendrils that snaked through the air to ensnare him. He flipped off of bookcases as he planted seeds along a path around the center of the library.

  Outside, Kyra’s voice hummed with power as she kneeled down to pray. All around them, shadowy wraiths swirled, racing towards the Priestess until the resounding boom of her voice burst through the clouds above and into the heavens. For the first time in centuries, light shone down upon Balora, biding the shadows to recede. Her voice rang clear to Aliyah and the goddess answered her prayer.

  Aliyah stuck her hand into the undying flame, harnessing its raw power in a mote of holy light. She extended her hand, dropping the fragment of her infinite light into New Venturis. A halo of holy light washed over the area, forcing all evil back as the mote of power crashed down in front of Kyra, slamming into Amara’ reflective shield.

  The girl strained immense pressure of the holy power and Kyra reached out to her and cast a spell.

  “Divine Infusion!” shouted Kyra as she unleashed a torrent of mana, suffusing Amara with power to contain the force of Aliyah’s blessing until Eonis gave his signal.

  He bounced onto the ceiling, dodging a barrage of clawed tendrils with practiced precision. With one final sowing, he extended roots from his Everoak armor and threw himself out of the building.

  He chanted, “Root to Life!”

  In an instant, a spray of holy light shone bright as the scattered seeds rapidly grew, filling the library with light as they bloomed.

  “Amara, do it!” shouted Eonis.

  She wasted no time. Amara let out a guttural scream as she unleashed the torrent of power she had been holding back. She fell to her knees as the energy erupted from her barrier and began to rapidly erect dozens of barriers in the room. The brilliant light of the flowers shined brighter as the light of Aliyah’s sun exploded into the wraith.

  This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.

  Beams of light bounced around Amara’s wall of shields, searing through outstretched shadows as the amalgam failed to dodge the barrage. Amara’s mana reserves burned but she didn’t stop.

  Kyra continued pouring mana into her and Eonis reached out to do the same, chanting, “Bounty of Spring!”

  Amara cried out as the fountain of mana washed over her. She drew on the void around her, the holy mana of Amara, and the natural mana of Eonis to fortify her barriers. The holy conflagration within the library surged and with one final cascade of light, the barriers shattered and the light dissipated, leaving behind a smoldering column of ash where the wraith once stood.

  Amara collapsed but Kyra and Eonis caught her. They all panted with exhaustion and watched the flowers wilt before they let out a fatigued cheer.

  “Trick shot successful,” gasped Amara, a smile burgeoning on her face.

  Kyra and Eonis looked down at her, smiling with pride.

  He picked her up and said, “Well done! Let’s get this objective completed and regroup with the others.”

  They gathered themselves and raced into the Arcanum but their feeling of accomplishment faded as they thought of what was next to come.

  ?

  Gene stared wide-eyed at the eldritch horror that beared down on them and Kyrie watched Winnie tremble.

  “Winnie, what’s the move?” thought Kyrie, too terrified to speak aloud.

  “I–I don’t know. I’ve never heard of anything like this,” thought Winnie.

  She wracked her brain, trying to comprehend what she saw. She thought she would have time to understand what happened here, to study the ritual circle, but the Aeon made the first move. She looked up at the creature and thought, “I need to commence the ritual and figure this out in the moment.”

  The Pact Witch balled her fists and bit her lip, steeling her resolve as she stepped forward and Gene and Kyrie furrowed their brows in concern.

  “We’re with you Winnie,” thought Gene before countless eyes shot towards him.

  He froze and the void spoke.

  “Curious,” said the Aeon.

  Winnie threw out a hand to get its attention, unfurling her kit with a practiced motion.

  “Speak your name and let your truth be known!” she shouted into the void.

  The void smiled again, its row of jagged inhuman teeth, and then slowly, one by one, more mouths appeared.

  “Gladly, little pact forger,” replied the chorus of mouths. “I am the Outsider. I live within the space between spaces. I lurk in the corner of your peripheral vision. I am the known unknown and I will be free.”

  Pairs of eyes focused on Winnie, Gene, and Kyrie as Winnie stepped into the circle. She dropped handfuls of salt behind her, resealing the magic circle with each step.

  The eyes searched their faces and then the Outsider said, “Curioser. You seem to have some interesting tricks. Could it be…you.”

  Countless eyes stared at Gene and he stepped back reflexively. A strange sensation swept over him and he clutched his chest as his heart began to race.

  The mouths curled into devilish grins before they all said in unison, “Interesting. It seems I should be giving you a warmer welcome, Brother.”

  Winnie stopped, both her and Kyrie looked to Gene but his eyes were locked with the Aeon breaching their world. His mind spun.

  “What?” he asked quietly.

  “Quiet!” exclaimed Winnie, interjecting. “Don’t speak to it! Aeons lie and try to ensnare the unprepared in their webs. My subclass gives me all of the proper wards needed to handle this. Leave it to me.”

  Winnie glared at the Outsider and the mouths began to laugh. A raucous chorus of laughter in different pitches, tones, and volumes filled the air, chilling Winnie to the bone.

  “You’ll handle this?” said the Outsider, mouths asking each word in succession. “You don’t know what you’ve stepped into. Have you even asked yourselves what’s keeping the wraiths here?”

  They looked at each other but before they could think, the Outsider answered its own question.

  “My boundary is the only thing preventing those creatures from ravaging your world. I planned to consume them once I finished with this one’s soul but I think I have a better use for them.”

  The eyes began to glow and Gene’s mind pulsed. His eyes went wide as his senses went wild. All around them, he saw the ghostly creatures in his mind’s eye. Like a net being pulled taut, the barrier around Balora began to constrict, pushing the wraiths towards the citadel.

  He looked up at Kyrie and Winnie frantically, saying, “Winnie, do it now! The wraiths are coming, all of them!”