The Forsaken Hero

Their new magic was a remarkable spell that took our combined knowledge of healing sunpurge and Corruption and pushed it in an entirely new direction. While Requiem focused purely on cleansing the taint and scars from one’s body and soul, it directed that same energy into a large-scale support spell. What’s more, because of its core in Fate Magic, it could lock onto specific souls, differentiating between friend and foe.

Such a feature was unheard of for large-scale buffs. Even Nexus was different, merely distributing a single-target spell to multiple people. True large-scale support magic typically affected an entire area indiscriminately. Using them in battle was risky, as there was a good chance you’d strengthen your enemies as much as your allies.

”I got the inspiration from your Grand Aegis, actually,” R’lissea said, beaming with pride. ”The ability to lock onto souls is unique to Fate Magic, and you unconsciously built that foundation into Requiem.”

I nodded slowly, rapidly reverse-engineering the spell to understand the process they had used to create it. It was an incredible feat of magic, but not overly difficult to grasp. I felt confident I could replicate the spell, though expecting anyone else in Enusia to achieve the same would be unrealistic.

”So it can strengthen either the body,” I muttered, tail swishing in thought.

”Hey!” R’lissea giggled as my tail swiped over her folded legs, the tip dragging across her stomach.

I froze, blushing as I realized she was still sitting right behind me, brushing my hair. Apologizing, I quickly snatched my tail and held it in my lap.

”It doesn’t just make your body stronger,” Elise added. ”It actually strengthens magical techniques! We did a little testing, which made Fable’s fifth-circle attack break through one of R’lissea’s sixth-level shields!”

”My defensive magic’s not the best,” the Life Hero admitted, ”But the effects are pretty impressive. The only problem is that it takes a lot of mana to sustain, even more, if you’re casting it over a wide area.”

I nodded, mind racing with the possibilities. It latched onto the body, linking it directly with fate, or in other words, the weave of the realm itself. It wasn’t so much empowering the technique itself as giving it special ”privileges.” Mana was used to change the natural order of things to produce incredible effects, but a good deal of a spell or technique went into overcoming the realm’s natural resistance to that change of order. When one is linked with fate, it seemed like the realm recognized the technique as a part of the natural order, thus allowing the full power of the attack to manifest.

I sat back, my tail twitching excitedly to the point it nearly escaped my grip. ”Did you try it with souls, too? Or just the physical body?”

They shared a look, and Elise shrugged.

”I don’t know much about souls,” R’lissea admitted. ”My specialty is in healing and strengthening the body.”

”Would that even work?” Elise asked, eyes glowing again at the thought. ”Wouldn’t that mean...it might work for spells, too?”

”Only one way to find out,” I said with a shrug.

They both stared at me, wide-eyed, as I mustered my mana and began to cast, replicating the spell they had spent the week developing. It took a few minutes to work out exactly how to do it, and then a few more to shift the target to one’s soul. The second part was actually easier than the first, as targeting souls was something I had fully mastered in my studies of Fate Magic.

By the time I figured it out, R’lissea had finished with my hair. They sat in silence, watching the runes slowly march into place until the spell was completed.

”There,” I said, giving a satisfied nod. ”Here goes nothing.”

I clapped my hands, and a golden light joined the green mist R’lissea had summoned. The two curled together like colored threads in a tapestry, combining yet never fully mixing.

”Incredible,” Elise breathed, letting the golden mist soak into her soul. She raised her hand and cast a first-circle light spell, which appeared with at least twice the brightness as usual.

”It actually works!” R’lissea said, clapping excitedly. ”Now we can just find a way to combine the two!”

”Have you thought of a name yet?” I asked.

Both shook their heads.

”We didn’t think it was right to do that without you. You did come up with its whole framework,” R’lissea said.

”And now I’m doubly glad, as you just totally improved it,” Elise agreed. ”Did you have any ideas for a name?”

I pursed my lips, falling deep into thought, before shrugging. ”I’m... not very good at names. The mist does kind of feel like a hug, though. Maybe something like that?”

”That’s definitely an idea,” Elise said, covering her mouth to hide a smile. ”But I’m thinking something a little more dramatic for our new secret weapon.”

”Oh,” I sighed, disheartened but not surprised. ”Then what about something with the stars? It uses the stars of fate to connect with the body and soul, and you can actually see them in the mist?”

”What about... Celestial Grace?” R’lissea offered.

I blinked, staring at her. How in the world had she even come up with something like that?

”You don’t like it?” She asked, worry dancing in her eyes.

”No, nothing like that. I think it’s good,” I said quickly, reassuring her.

”Then let’s go with that,” Elise said with a nod.

”R’lissea, Elise,” I asked, glancing between them, ”does anyone else know about this?”

They both shook their heads, and I breathed a sigh of relief. ”That’s probably for the best. If the apostles learned about it, they would definitely force us to teach them, and this world is dangerous enough with superpowered demons running around.”

”That’s true,” the Life Hero said, ”And besides, it’s not like it’s finished. With your eyes, we can refine the spell and increase its efficiency.”

”And we need to combine the two versions,” I added. ”But this is a perfect start.”

We talked for a while longer, moving on to lighter matters, like what had happened over the past few weeks. The apostles had been treating them well, apparently, which brought me no small amount of relief.

I steered clear of heavier topics, like our future plans, but at some point, we would have to face them. For now, I simply basked in the company of my friends. Throughout my life here, I carried burdens I couldn’t lift, problems that constantly weighed on my mind. First, it had been the slave crest, and with each subsequent, more dominating iteration of the curse, I sank lower into despair. When my soul shattered, breaking my ability to engage in magic, the one thing I truly loved, the darkness had grown smothering, lingering no matter what light shone into my life.

After Soltair sold me, things only worsened, and even after I was free, there was always some matter distracting me. How could I enjoy myself when Sari and Elise were enslaved by Alverin? Both healing my soul and destroying the Circle had loomed over me like storm clouds. Sure, even now, our circumstances were precarious, and I longed to reunite with Korra and the Last Light Company, but that was nothing compared to the darkness I had endured.

I had tasted this feeling just a week ago when we developed Requiem, but now, I felt it in full force. Haven’s looming threat had been the final burden, now lifted from my shoulders. I finally felt something akin to a normal life, like a regular sixteen-year-old girl, and I was content to savor it for as long as possible.

Our joy was short-lived, unfortunately. A looming presence soon darkened the doorway, and we looked up to see Fyren leaning against the frame, arms crossed, and dressed in his typical adventuring attire.

”And just what are three beautiful girls whispering about so early in the morning?” he asked with a friendly smile.

”Fyren!” Despite his presence signaling the end of our leisurely morning, my eyes lit up, and I quickly got to my feet. ”Thank you for before.”

He raised an eyebrow. ”Before?”

I nodded, blushing slightly. ”For taking care of me after I fell asleep. I was too tired to even... well, you know.”

”Oh, think nothing of it,” he said with a dismissive wave and a chuckle. ”I simply burned my way through the city until I found a suitable inn. The Life Hero took it from there.”

”I, um, did my best,” R’lissea mumbled, avoiding his gaze.

I glanced back at her, frowning slightly, only to find Elise wearing an equally timid expression. She ignored my questioning look, suddenly fascinated by the patterns on the hardwood floor.

Fyren cleared his throat, causing the two to flinch.

”Xiviyah,” he said, his tone shifting slightly, ”if you don’t mind, I’d like to borrow you for an hour or two. The Apostles requested your company once you awakened.”

”What? But... um...” Elise began, only to stammer as Fyren looked at her. He hadn’t acted threateningly, yet she quickly trailed off, unwilling to meet his gaze. ”We haven’t had breakfast yet,” she finished in a small voice.