Omega's Rebirth-Chapter 795: Locked Down ()

If Neveah had wanted a sign that the Fae were fully aware of what was headed their way, the sign came not long after.

A barrier roared to life, enclosing Aloria in a pulsing wall of Arcane. The inner barrier of Aloria had always been there, dormant, a myth whispered about in dragon scrolls and Fae songs. Neveah had heard of it, it was an impenetrable wall of protection that could hold through anything, or at least it had held so far.

It was the Fae’s attempt to keep, if nothing else, the royal forest and the royal bloodline safe from whatever terror dawned on the lands.

The books had said once erected, the barrier would hold for months, even years, if need be. And the lush and fertile terrain of Aloria, as well as their nature magic, was more than sufficient to supply all the food and rations the Fae within might need to survive the period.

That very same barrier now shimmered like molten silver and lightning, a living wall that groaned under its own power. It was a cage, not just a defense. A failsafe. A last breath before drowning.

A cruel and sadistic reality that the Fae had abandoned every other forest and every other clan to their fate, but those within the boundaries of the royal forest.

"How characteristic..." Neveah murmured.

She stepped back, tilting her head up to follow the arc of the barrier as it stretched toward the clouds. Her wolf senses stirred uneasily. The barrier reached too far, too high. It would disrupt all flight patterns. Not even the second squadron could find a way over it, except going around.

Aloria had locked itself in.

Not the dragons who had come to lay siege.

The Fae had sieged themselves first.

Whether it was an act of desperation or precision, Neveah couldn’t yet decide.

What was more concerning was how Jian would react to this. Setting the entire forest on fire had not been considered as an option previous, but now...

The trees shuddered with magic and the weight of the barrier. She turned on her heel and hurried back. Outside the perimeter, Jian and the second squadron were gathered around a carved trunk map etched in shifting light and mage magic. Their murmurs paused as she arrived.

"Beloved..." Jian began to say, probably wondering what order she had given the mages that led to this.

"It wasn’t us," she said without preamble. "The Fae sealed Aloria. The whole forest is under Arcane lock."

Jian looked up from the map, brows tight. "Why would they trap themselves?"

Before she could answer, a shadow soared above, circling the outskirts of Aloria in search of a suitable landing place.

"Kirgan?" Jian murmured, his gaze also fixed on the skies where the emerald scaled dragon soared.

Moments later, Kirgan hurried towards them, robes scuffed with soot, cloak damp from toxic mist. His grim expression alone drew silence.

"I thought Veah ordered you to accompany Menarx." Jian said, walking over to meet Kirgan.

"We have a problem, My Liege." he said, chest heaving. "A big one."

Jian straightened. Neveah moved closer, watching Kirgan with apprehension.

"Menarx and I ended up on the trail of the sorcerer, Beoruh," Kirgan began, eyes locked on Jian. "He’s been drawing soul magic. Old soul magic. From places of mass death."

Neveah felt it like a pinprick in her chest. Mass death... she always wondered why Keila had chosen the volcano of all places. "Like the volcano..."

Kirgan nodded grimly. "And the toxic forest. He’s been leaving a trail of ancient rune circles...canyons and shadow toxin. All along we believed he was building a shadow army, but that wasn’t it. He’s been preparing to anchor something."

"Anchor..." Neveah didn’t particularly like that word.

"Not a part of the stronghold to the dimension of Forlorn like was done with Fort Blazed. The opposite. Garron believes he’s anchoring the dimension to the stronghold."

The words settled heavily. Jian’s face didn’t move. But the light in his eyes sharpened. "He’s trying to bring the beasts here."

"Yes, and Garron says he’s been very successful in his efforts." Kirgan continued. "Anywhere could become an entry point now. A crack. A bleeding point between the two realms realms."

Neveah’s hand touched the bow at her hip. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. "But the beasts are imprisoned in the dark sea, and with the dimension collapse... They can’t break through the seal...unless..."

Kirgan nodded grimly. "The seal is intricately entwined with the dimension. That’s why magic isn’t supposed to work there."

Jian already knew where this was going. "But we released that binding. When we reversed the rune. We gave him what he needed."

"He allowed your escape," Kirgan said quietly. "Because he wanted that release. The reversal created a ripple, something strong enough to tear open the dark lord’s seal over the Black Sea. The seal is broken. The Forlorn can... and will cross."

The mage map on the carved trunk blinked, suddenly flaring in a new section. A jagged line now split the edges near Aloria.

"Is that...?"

"A forming canyon," Kirgan confirmed. "Another entry point. Menarx and Garron found two already. We cannot let Aloria become a third."

A tremor rocked earth and jolted through the trees. The birds didn’t scream. They had long since fled.

The ground around them cracked.

Neveah stared at the soil splitting, a hiss and black smoke poured through the cracks.

Shadow toxin...or dark miasma as it was called in the Dunes.

"This is getting out of hand. How can Keila allow this? Aloria is right in the center!" Lord June snarled.

"She must believe she’s safe and we’re exposed. We can pack up and leave. Prepare for war on our end. With nothing else around, the bloodthirsty beasts will turn on Aloria before heading to us." Lord Egwain suggested in a dark tone.

"At this point, I don’t hate the plan." Neveah admitted.

"No." Jian made clear. "Aloria is a part of my stronghold. I can choose to destroy it...but I won’t let anything else be so daring."

It was not unexpected. Before he was anything else, Jian was Dragon King.

"Garron says if we can find the exact location Beoruh placed the marker to make this an entry point, we can stop the canyon from forming." Kirgan reported.

"I can bet it’s in Aloria." Neveah murmured. "The barrier makes sense now."

Jian reached out, placing a hand on her shoulder. Not with affection. With resolve.

"We will have to go in. Demevirld can penetrate an arcane barrier and you have the best hold on it." he said.

Neveah didn’t hesitate. She couldn’t have had it any other way. "Of course."

"Kirgan will take command of the second squadron." Jian decided.

"I should go too..." Kirgan began to protest, but another voice cut in.

"Why would you go when I’m still here?"

Xenon strode in, shadow slicing across his jaw, cloak catching in the wind. When he landed, no one could say. His presence shifted the weight of the clearing. Still, yet powerful

"The first squadron is under Kaideon’s command now."

Jian nodded once. As if he’d known.

It wouldn’t be surprising if he had. The two were always in communication.

"We’ll have to go on foot," Xenon added. "It will be harder to penetrate the barrier in dragon form. We don’t want to alert Beoruh...and if they see Jian..."

He didn’t finish. He didn’t need to.

Neveah turned to Kirgan. "What do we know about the rune? What is Beoruh trying to complete?"

Kirgan hesitated. "Garron said the rune is old. Not just Arcane. It’s a key, Neveah. A convergence symbol. Meant to open and bind dimensions together. If he completes it with the last piece..."

Jian’s voice cut low and sharp. "Then the Forlorn will flood into our realm. Not just cracks. A gate."

"He wants the stronghold completely ruined... like my father ruined the dark empire."

The silence that followed was more than silence.