Omega's Rebirth-Chapter 812: Earth Restoring ()

A dark mist loomed over the gorge. It was impossible to tell how deep it ran. From the distant echoes, the earth still cracked, like it dug deeper into its own self. The sound of rushing water was unmistakable, but it was too far below to be seen.

A storm had begun. Like the skies mirrored the devastation wrecking the earth. Or maybe the essence of the realm was being fractured by the invasion of another realm.

Dragons soared overhead. The first and second squadron had merged at the location of the gorge.

The third squadron and the mage unit had been reassigned. To the nearest human settlement to Aloria.

The Fae would take the place of the mage unit. And their battalions made up for what the dragons lacked in manpower.

They still actively evacuated Aloria. No one wished for the worst case scenario, but everyone was clear on what it was.

Kirgan had joined Lodenworth in the hunt for Beoruh. With a newly born child in hand, he could not have gotten far.

Cassian, though not fully recovered had returned to command of the first squadron. Eagerly.

He had a vendetta against the forlorn and had shown up without being summoned.

The skies bled. The downpour was so heavy, the flight was treacherous. Neveah held on as Jian banked to the side, narrowly escaping a bolt of lightning. He steadied his flight, hovering above the gorge.

Xenon, like a shadow of black wasn’t far behind.

Neveah squinted. It was impossible to see ahead. The storm was unforgiving. Her hair was drenched and at some point, she had tossed off her cloak. It was soaked through and only hindered her.

The wind was frighteningly cold. Her wolf lurked on the surface, regulating their body temperature as best as they could in human form.

Scouting down the length of the gorge was a troublesome affair. But it was necessary.

Out here, there was no black circle. Nothing to limit the forlorn from charging in an unexpected direction.

There were no rules. No challenge. No victory. It would be a brutal battle to suppress the beasts. Whichever rose first.

The scouting team could easily have taken on the trouble. But then, there was shadow toxin. And Neveah’s arcane stood the best chance to contain it.

The toxin was not as abundant as it was in the Dunes. It wasn’t as potent either. Aloria had claimed its decent share of lives over the centuries, but it was a place of tranquility rather than mass death.

Even so, this was the largest gorge Beoruh had been able to rip open so far. It was also the first he had opened, harnessing the Fae origin rune.

The other gorges Kirgan reported were yet to show signs of activity. Or any traces of the black sea spilling over.

Aloria, no thanks to Keila, was to be the first successful point of entry.

Neveah couldn’t tell if this had been Beoruh’s plan all along since forming the alliance with Keila, or he had just let the events lead themselves to this result.

"There’s something down there." Xenon’s mental voice echoed.

Her gaze trailed his. It took a few moments before she sighted it. The black sea still flooded the gorge. But now, the already troubled waters had begun swirling and crashing. Magic crackled on the surface of the water.

Like something was struggling to break out.

The black sea was meant to be a magical prison. But without the anchor of the forlorn dimension, it was losing its ability to contain what was within.

A massive clawed hand broke the surface. The black sea crashed more violently, like it attempted to drag the beast back down into its depths.

Neveah hissed beneath her breath. She stirred the arcane.

"Don’t." Jian dissuaded her. "The magic of the black sea is dark in nature. If you feed it...it might contaminate yours." 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

She faltered. The beasts had originally been imprisoned by the Dark Lord. The most powerful sorcerer to have existed. Traces of his magic lingered.

Arcane was fierce, but could it withstand the most ancient dark magic?

There was a reason the High Queen, wielder of the all powerful Arcane never confronted the Dark Lord in a battle.

Their magic was both powerful, but strongly contradicted each other. It would take just a wisp of darkness to taint light, compared to what it would cost for light to banish darkness.

Hence why seven Fae tribes had easily turned dark, whereas not one sorcerer had repented of their dark ways.

And what Neveah had was but a fraction of Arcane.

Jian swerved and made for the perimeter. When they landed, Cassian was waiting.

Neveah dismounted. Running a hand through her hair to get the water out. It didn’t do much good. The rain still poured.

"How is it?"

"We will have company soon. I can’t say what it is yet." Xenon replied.

Cassian nodded once. "It matters not. I am well acquainted with the forlorn."

He turned to Neveah. "You should get some rest, Your Grace. You have consistently expended magic. Leave the rest to us."

Neveah wanted to protest, but she felt the exhaustion creeping in. The shadow toxin didn’t seem to be spreading. The dragon lords would hold the line. Jian, Xenon and Cassian were the finest battle lords the realm had.

There was nothing more she could do here.

She didn’t get to decide.

A portal split open and Garron walked out of it, lips curled in disdain.

For a moment, Neveah waited. The portal closed up and she averted her gaze.

Garron’s expression softened at the sight of Neveah but he approached Jian first.

"My Liege." He bowed. "I came as soon as I heard."

"We failed to get to the marker in time and prevent the gorge." Xenon said. "Thankfully, Beoruh seems to have only mastered forming dimension cracks. We won’t be overwhelmed."

"I found another way." Garron said, pulling out a scroll. "We can still close this dimension crack. If the Fae cooperates."

---

"The Fae binding ritual..." Lord Fintan murmured, examining the scroll Garron had brought. "It is an ancient rite, it hasn’t been performed in...a millennia. Where did you even find this?"

Garron shrugged. "I collected a lot of ’lost’ volumes over the decades of the uprising. It took a lot of searching...but I found this."

"What do you think?" Neveah asked.

"The Fae binding ritual is earth restoring magic. A very powerful spell to banish darkness tainting the Earth. It was created to keep our forests untainted during the dark age, where the residues of dark magic bled into the earth, contaminating everything."

"But it can only take effect on Fae territory where the ley lines bear our sigil. Because...well, we never really made provision for others." Lord Fintan murmured awkwardly.

It wasn’t news to anyone.

He cleared his throat and continued. "Theoretically, it might be potent enough to close the dimension crack. It won’t be as effective in any other terrain."

"My findings reveal the same. But at present, this crack is the priority." Garron asserted. "If we can deter the forlorn, even temporarily. I believe it is a chance we must take."

Lord Fintan hesitated. "It won’t just require cooperation from the Fae."

"The key catalyst of this ancient binding spell is the Arcane..." He glanced at Neveah.

"And the sacrifice of a piece of themself, from a Fae of royal blood. Since then, the arcane was an attribute of the High Queen." His tone was grim.

"We can force Keila to give it. Rip out her heart if we have to." Cassian didn’t mince his words.

"It has to be a willing sacrifice." Lord Fintan replied, shaking his head.

Neveah frowned. "I happen to be in possession of Adrienne’s memories. A piece of themselves...will that be enough?"