Chapter 35

The Giant’s Power

The combined armors, which Daedalus began to call Goliath, raised its massive sword over its chest with both arms. It bent it’s knees as the silver sword gleamed with red-orange hue, and an eerie and barely audible vibration - a very rapid, yet stable pulse - emanated from the sword.

Daedalus immediately recognized the spell. He then smiled and demanded the Kordoza’Pareo to soar higher, unmindful of the burning heat of the sun. He keenly watched as the Goliath leaped after a few more beats, releasing a massive shockwave. The sudden outburst of pressure caused the grasses in the area to hug the soil while pebbles and medium stones scattered in the air; and a shallow crater emerged from where Goliath previously stood.

Goliath soared in the air like a bullet. Once close enough to one of the kordozas, he stabbed his sword forward and aimed to pierce the queen’s abdomen where it’s main heart resided. In reflex, she made a stiff pitch upward and flew vertically before slightly tilting to the side to dodge the attack. However, to her surprise, the sword grazed one of her six feet. In that instant, the vibration of the sword coursed through her leg and turned it into smithereens.

She gasped at the sight. It was the first time she saw her exoskeleton turned to dust. Besides, it wasn’t even a critical hit, in fact, the attack barely touched her and yet, and yet… Clouded with confusion, she remained still, not realizing that Goliath had changed the trajectory of his sword and spun his body before he began falling to the ground. When she realized her predicament, it was already too late as Goliath’s sword slash was about to sever her abdomen from her thorax. Then without a second, a large fireball that blasted from above hammered Goliath that caused him to fall at tremendous speed. He hit the forest floor with loud bangs and creaks, the trees becoming his cushion.

“Do not underestimate that arisen, Queen Kaleva,” the kordoza flying above her spoke.

“Queen Kareya,” Kaleva remarked, her voice low and breaking, as she gazed above.

“Kareya’s right,” another queen said roughly as it approached from behind. “The Mother Queen wouldn’t have asked us to swarm him if one of us could defeat him alone.”

“I’m sorry, Queen Kaveda,” she answered nervously while glancing sideward. “I’m sorry for my lack of experience…”

“Do not be too hard on her, my fellow queens,” a soft voice interjected from afar who also began to approach them while another queen followed behind her. “Kareya’s not even a queen for a year. Bless her with more leniency.”

“Shut up, old hag,” the last queen said, audibly annoyed as she flew towards them. “That stupid bitch shouldn’t even be one of us-”

“Careful with your words, Kabera,” Queen Kapeha, the kordoza who followed the fourth queen interrupted sharply. “You’re talking to Queen Kasheda, the eldest of us. Have you also already forgotten that the Empress is observing above us?”

Kabera hissed as all of them looked above. And sure enough, the Kordoza’Pareo had flown so high in the sky that she looked microscopic in their point of view. Then not a second later, they heard metal clatterings below, pulling all their attention back to their opponent. To their surprise, they didn’t see a single dent on the armor as though it didn’t take any damage from the fire spell and the impact of the fall. Goliath simply got up on his feet and picked up his sword. we

Goliath raised his blade with one hand, pointing it towards the kordovas. A gust of wind swirled around him before a big magic circle appeared at the tip of his weapon. A few more seconds and a massive torrent of red flame blasted from the same circle and rushed to the assembly of the queens. All the kordovas didn’t move. They took the spell head-on, confident of their defensive power. Once the fire subsided and the smoke dissipated, the queens emerged unharmed, their golden carapace even shining under the sunlight.

Goliath then changed his stance and stepped his right foot forward, bending his knees as he began to wield the sword with both hands. The blade shone once again and pulsated in a faint, yet very rapid succession. In that instant, the queens scattered and watched carefully as the armor leaped again in the air.

Before Goliath could reach Queen Kaleva, Queen Kareya and Kaveda invoked a strong bluster of wind, followed by a fireblast by Queen Kasheda. Wind and fire merged into a large flaming tornado and whipped through the giant armor. The queens waited, and waited, and waited for Goliath’s trace of mana to disappear. However, as the unified spell neared its two-minute time limit, they never felt it vanished. It didn’t even wane for a bit. Knowing this, both Kapeha and Kaleva cast their fire spells to extend the spell for another minute. And behold, once most of the flames died, Goliath still emerged at the center of a large area of dark soil, coal, and smoke, unharmed and unscratched.

“What the...?” Kareya uttered in disbelief while letting out a burst of nervous laughter. “How in the world did that thing even survive?”

“Survive?” Kaveda added in a cold sweat. “That thing didn’t even take any damage-”

“And you call yourselves the proud queens of Kordozas? Kareya? Kaveda? Are you seriously losing your head against such a mindless being?” Kabera scoffed. “Pathetic…”

“But that can’t be helped, Queen Kabera…” Kasheda said calmly. “Battling that Arisen almost felt like we were fighting against the Empress herself.”

“Pardon Elder Queen,” Kaveda said upon recovering her composure. “However, I’m deeply offended by such remarks…”

“We can’t deny it though,” said Kareya. “Our magic did not affect it. Not to mention that the Arisen can use Wave Magic similar to ours.”

“I’m afraid that’s only half correct, Queen Kareya,” Kaleva interjected nervously. “When the arisen obliterated one of my legs, I felt some vibration and immense heat coming from the sword…”

“Wait… are you saying that-”

“So you haven’t noticed, Kareya?” Kabera mocked once again. “It’s not a simple Wave Magic spell. It’s a compound Magic.”

“Yes…” Kasheda seconded. “By integrating small but very rapid vibrations into fire magic, the sword produces a destructive pulse that turns everything it touches into ashes.”

“So in other words, the reason why it emits some light is not because of the overflow of mana, but because of the immense heat the sword creates, correct?”

A brief silence enveloped the sky, confirming Kareya’s question.

After a while, Kaveda, Kareya, and Kaleva unknowingly hastened the flappings of their wings as though they were trembling. As the three youngest kordozas, they never truly saw any human before. They only heard them in the tales of their respective nest as powerless and helpless beings. And yet now, the power that they were so proud of couldn’t even damage the creation of a mere human. “Such a simple yet powerful spell to exist…” Kaveda uttered. “I guess we overly underestimated humans. Now, I can’t help but wonder, just how powerful his master must be...”

“Fret not, my queens,” the empress’s majestic voice filled the air, prompting the kordozas to raise their attention to her. “You are now allowed to use everything in your arsenal.”

“Really?” Kaleva exclaimed excitedly, though she immediately looked away when she noticed the other queens giving her a severe look. A few more seconds and a cold wind began to encircle each of the kordozas and their exoskeleton turned silvery, reflecting different colors as the sunlight touched their carapace.

“Do not fail me!” the empress commanded. “Defeat that monster!”