078 - Resonance

A strand of Vigour burst up, shattering cobblestones and stabbing at Domitia, halting only inches from her face against an invisible barrier; the circle of Animus on the ground flashed as another strand shot out from a nearby wall.

"It'll hold!" Pontius poured his Animus into the barrier, controlling the loose whip to lash at a strand of Vigour. The red and blue energies collided in a shower of sparks, both dimming and collapsing at the same time.

"There are reactions from every direction, for several blocks!" Dong-Geun called out in a panic. "Retreat! We must retreat at once!"

"Nonsense! Valerius, marking glyphs! Zaynab, Baqir - aim for the roots of the strands, we need to drag this Celestial up into the light! Dong-Geun, stand your bloody ground and be ready, damn your eyes!"

"The marking glyphs won't form Magister!" Valerius called out, several half formed glyphs collapsing as soon as they left his fingertips.

"Keep marking! Just keep sending glyphs out! Domitia, keep trying to set an anchor no matter what!"

"Yes Magister!"

"Alright. Move!" Pontius led them down the length of the plaza into the next street, all the time warding off strands of red and pouring his energies into breaking them apart.

The spirit form people who filled the city streets were gathering around them, a mob quickly swelling to thousands, marching towards them from every direction. At a distance, no longer ignoring or going about their daily business, the people silently watched, backing off as Pontius took his circle down one street and into another.

"At last . . the black river!" Pontius panted, his circle barely holding together, the last of his strands now tattered and pinched between two fingers. Ahead was the black river, the same one they'd seen from above meandering through the ash-grey grass flat expanse . . now, with it right before him it was a simple matter to determine the exact location of the forest.

"Baqir! The three blocks to our front, if you please!"

At his command the Mithraic seers shot out a condensed blast of their chants, the buildings evaporating like morning mist revealing . . revealing a garden of over grown tulips in neat rows. The walls quickly reformed, the facade of the city returning to normal.

"Not here? NOT HERE?" Pontius gnashed his teeth in frustration. He'd been certain that the this was the exact location, the right damn place by the bloody river. Now all he could do was curse and stomp his feet, around them another three threads of Vigour emerged immediately assailing his circle.

"Magister, we were meant to just locate the Celestial," Dong-Geun spoke again, his hands trembling. "Just discovering that it exists, is that not enough? Can we not -"

RrrruuuUUuuuuUUuuu . . .

A tremendous tremor shook the Ether, the cobblestones beneath their feet rattled and clanged, a great swell rising all around. Like a volcanic eruption, from right under the Alchemists circle - the street rose up throwing them all to the ground. From below a bright red light - the air turning dry, each of the seven feeling as if they were stood on a river of fire.

"She's here!" Valerius cried out, falling over himself to get away.

"Stay within the circle!" Pontius maintained his fierce composure. "Glyphs, more glyphs! If you can't mark the area, we'll mark it directly! Stay next to me, all of you. If we cannot find the source of that golden light we can at the very least cripple this blasted Celestial . ."

Combat within the Ether dealt with dealing damage directly at other spirit bodies; those spirit forms of the Celestials were far more robust than any humans, but the Alchemists, together with the Martial Courts and Seers, had long since developed many methods of suppressing and striking their spirit forms. Dangerous . . Pontius saw the fear and hesitation with the others eyes - certainly dangerous, like fighting a tiger within its den, but . . .

A grin spread across the old Alchemists face.

Red spilled over, a tide of strands pouring over streets, breaking against the circle. At the center of the red mass Kujata glared, her eyes fixed on Pontius - Pontius staring back unblinking.

"Humans, you are not welcome here. Begone!" Kujata sent out a dozen strands of Vigour, Baqir and Zaynab responded instantly with a Mithraic chant forming a wall of white energy in the strands path.

"How dare you come into my place of power and injure my people!" Kujata stood atop a thick vine like strand of energy, riding it above the streets. "Know your place!" The thick vine smashed into the Seer's wall shattering it, the two Seers fell to the ground, scrambling to stay within the circle.

"Our place? How dare we? HA!" Pontius flicked his wrists out, "We dare, Celestial! We'll do far more than dare! Surrender at once, give yourself to us and join the other Celestials in their rightful place!"

Kujata trembled with rage, the thick strand of Vigour snaking out and smashing against the Alchemists circle again and again.

"Mark her directly, Valerius, Domitia! Prince Dong-Geun, Sung Hu - do I need to remind you to act? Attack the bloody Celestial!"

Pontius command shook the Martial Court Prince out of his stupor, his aura of Mens focused instantly to a long blade of yellow energy, slashing out at the encroaching strands of Vigour.

No matter how many strands smashed against the circle, with a wave of his hand Pontius sent more and more energy flowing into it.

Above, high above the city and the fighting, the several remaining threads of Animus that Pontius had formed into a cage begun to twine together, making a single Alchemical sigil - the shape of bird within a cage. As they fought Kujata on the streets he secretly maneuvered the sigil over her head.

Wait for it . . wait . .

When had the Alchemists got so powerful? Even in here, in my totem I can't break a single protective circle! Kujata gathered a dozen strands of Vigour, lashing out at the formation.

The ground shook violently, erupting up in a shower of ghostly bricks and stones as more strands of Vigour assailed the circle from all sides. Prince Dong-Geun misstepped, his foot landing outside the circle for a fraction of a second - a minor mistake, but in that instant a red strand coiled around his foot. He screamed; Sung Hu leapt to his side, slashing out and cutting the strand, too late.

Dong-Geun's leg, up to his thigh, was entirely withered - a mass of red lines rapidly spreading up and turning his spirit body to mulch. Sung Hu slashed again, cutting the princes leg off entirely, then picking him up and throwing him back to the centre of the circle.

Kujata's eyes blazed, her attacks doubling in intensity. They will break! I will break them!

Now!

The old Alchemists nostrils flared, the lines on his face suddenly seeming far deeper than they had even a moment before, as if he had aged a hundred years in an instant. He chopped down with the edge of his hand; from up high his sigil descended like a meteor, right onto the Celestials head.

"No!"

At the last second Kujata raised her arms, a blaze of fiery red light bursting over her head. The Alchemical sigil burnt through the air, breaking through strand after strand of red energy, but ultimately fizzing before it reached its mark.

"Blast!"

"Magister, we must retreat! The brands are not working!"

"Stuff that, you - take the . . . take . ."

Pontius words died in his throat, even Kujata froze in place

From a series of nondescript roofs and houses a bright golden pillar burst, magnificent golden light filling the entire Ether.

"Ah ha! It was right here! Right here! Now, lets see what it is you are hiding, Celestial! Baqir, make a path!"

The two Mithraic Seers begun their chants - Zaynab's higher tones harmonized with Baqir in a way that made it feel like a winters wind suddenly blew through the city streets. The sky itself dimmed, their voices together forming a whirl of white energy that condensed into a snow white blade.

The blade buzzed through the air, a series of complex and enchanting words sailed with it into the side of the houses, bursting countless wall and dwellings into smithereens and revealing what lay beneath.

What lay beneath . . .

A thick soup of white mist and trees, the mist pouring endlessly inwards, turning gold, forming into a single gold pillar.

"Go! Come on!" Pontius rushed through the rapidly reforming city blocks, his red robes flapping. The six others desperately keeping up.

"Magnus . . oh Magnus . . what the hells is going on?" Kujata sent out strand after strand, but no matter what she found she could not approach the mist, only watching helplessly as Pontius charged in.