The first action, as Enri had said, was to find someone to act as the Soul. While Eric and Megan had no idea what that meant, Samuel told them not to worry. He would find the perfect candidate, and all they needed to do was catch an hour or two of rest. They were directed to a small room out of the way in the palace for this and obeyed the order eagerly. They tried to hold a brief conversation about the strange meeting that they’d just attended, but exhaustion claimed them too quickly, and they passed out.

Megan noticed immediately that something was weird, not that weird was all that uncommon in Ahya. First, she was dreaming. She rarely dreamed in her life. In fact, the last dreams she could remember were of Eric, and those had been revealed not to be dreams. So when this one started, she immediately assumed that she was not truly dreaming. Second, she wasn’t anywhere she recognized, and there was someone new in front of her.

With a small pop, Eric appeared beside her. His eyes were closed for a few seconds before he became aware that he was there. When he finally opened them and noticed Megan, they both looked curiously at the stranger. He was extremely plain in appearance, with simple shaggy brown hair and white robes. The only familiar bit of his appearance was the symbol of the unlidded eye on the shoulders of his robes. That was the well-known symbol of Arcana.

“Who are you?” Eric asked, ever the one for directness. He wasn’t keen to beat around the bush and was clearly annoyed to have his rest interrupted. “Are you one of Samuel’s fellow mages? You could have just as easily woken us up the normal way, you know.”

The stranger smiled. “You may call me Isip. I have indeed known Samuel for many years. Nearly as long as he has lived, in fact.”

Strangely, the true answer to Eric’s question came to Megan. The mana floating around this stranger was very similar. It was identical to Samuel’s, which meant that he could only be one person. If her feet were on solid ground, she would have dropped to one knee in reverence. Instead, she settled with lowering her head as far as possible.

“You’re Arcana,” She said. “Samuel’s God.”

“That is one of the many names I’ve had over the millennia,” Isip said. “But my oldest and true name is Isip. I am Ahya’s Mind.”

Eric sat in confused silence for a while before speaking. Megan wondered why he didn’t look more surprised to be in front of a god. Of course, she didn’t know of his previous meetings with Shigeru Tokugawa and Bora Bora Ciayol, two of the strongest gods in the world. She had no way of knowing that he was all too familiar with the interaction of divine entities by now, and disliked the experience.

“So why have you summoned us here?” He asked. “I think we finally understand our purpose here, so there’s no need to tell us. Not that you were ever planning to, I’m sure.”

Isip didn’t look the least bit offended by his statement. In fact, a wide smile was spreading across his face. “I understand your frustration, Eric Breeden. But you cannot deny that I have given you plentiful chances to learn.”

Eric crossed his arms, refusing to comment on the divergent topic. “Why are we here?”

“Eric!” Megan said in a hiss, her voice reproachful. “I apologize, Lord Isip. We’re just tired, that’s all.”

Isip turned to include her in his smile. “There is no need for apology, Megan Richards. He is correct. I have not been the most… forthright. But the time has come for me to explain everything.”

“But,” Megan said, unable to prevent herself from speaking. “As Eric said, we already know what our purpose is now.”

“Indeed, you do,” Isip said brightly. “So instead, we will move on to the second gift I can give you.”

Eric stiffened visibly at this, and a guarded look came over his face. “No thank you. You’ve given plenty.”

“Oh, don’t be like that,” Isip said. Megan thought that he spoke a lot like someone from Earth. Maybe he was just shifting his speech pattern to be more familiar. “I think you’ll really like this gift.”

Eric raised one eyebrow but didn’t say anything else. Instead of explaining further, Isip lifted his hands. Mana coursed through his body to the tips of his fingers, beginning to form two different objects. The spell was graceful and gradual but happened faster than she could blink. Suddenly, he had two bundles in his hands. With a gentle gesture, they floated across the distance separating the three of them. Megan lifted a hand to accept her gift.

It was a circlet. Formed of pure silver woven into a delicate braid, it fit her head perfectly as she tried it on. The sapphire in the center burned with energy as she slipped it on, and she felt the surge of power it held flood into her body. Along with the power came images, like distant memories she’d only just reclaimed. They were only words, gestures, and thoughts, but she knew that they were demonstrations of new magic.

Eric let out a gasp in spite of himself as he revealed his gift. Unwrapping a bundle, he pulled out a beautifully crafted sword in its sheath. It was crimson in color, and when he drew the blade, the spine was tinted with a deep blood-red color. There was a gem embedded in the hilt and end of the sheath of course, and her practiced eyes could see the energy they possessed.

“Consider them an investment,” Isip said quietly. “Much like when I made Samuel my Champion, I gifted him a weapon to aid in his purpose. I now do the same for you.”

Without warning, Megan’s vision went black. Someone was calling her name close by, and her eyes shot open even as she leaped to her feet, mana raised for the attack. But it was only a young man wearing the bright red uniform of a Royal Courier. He gave a shout of fright as Eric also sprang to his feet, his new weapon drawn, and jumped back across the threshold of the room. The door closed behind him.

After a short pause, once Megan and Eric had regained their senses, there was a quiet tap, and the door reopened slowly to reveal the same Courier. “I- I apologize for startling you, honored guests. Lord B-Bragg says that the preparations are complete.”

Eric let out a long sigh. “It’s alright, Courier. Where is he now?”

“He is taking part in the fighting. There has been a surprise attack launched from behind. He says you are to rush to his position so that the plan be activated.”

They’d already started the ambush! Megan let out a gasp and started running out the door. The Courier hurled himself out of the way just in time. Eric was much faster than she was, and he passed through the door first, Megan hot on his heels. They flashed down the hallway of the palace, startling guards and civilians alike as they ran recklessly for the exit.

The fight was audible even from the palace entrance, over a mile away. Smoke could be seen rising from the spot, as well as the diffused mana of cast spells and shattered enchantments. Both Megan and Eric could tell at once that Samuel had started the attack early for a good reason. The inner wall had fallen, and the defenders were doing their best to stall the Attosian invaders. They were making slow progress, but they were advancing through the Market District.

Dozens of shops and carts were aflame from the flurry of spells being traded between the two bodies of troops. Now that their defensive position, the soldiers and mages of Tyrman were focused only on slowing the progress of their enemies and killing them. A few dragons, friendly or hostile they couldn’t tell, were swooping around over the battle, fighting each other even as they wreaked havoc on the ground forces.

“We need to hurry!” Eric shouted as if there was any need for the reminder. Megan put as much strength into her legs as she could, fueling her sprint with mana. Her speed increased slightly, and Eric also sped up to keep pace. “Stay close to me when we get there. I’ll try to carve us a path to Samuel!”

Megan didn’t know how he hoped to achieve that, and she couldn’t help but fixate on how he’d used the word try. They might have finally figured out their purpose in being summoned to Ahya, but now they had a new, monumental, ugly challenge added on top of it. Could they regroup with Samuel before the dregs of defense broke and the city fell? Worse yet, could they reach the Archmage alive?

The mile seemed to fade in no time. Turning the final corner of the high street, they were greeted with the immediate barrage of sounds from the fighting, the spells flying through the air, and the roar of dragons overhead. They were close enough to distinguish friend from foe, now, and could instantly tell that there were pifitfully few of the former. Drawing his sword and letting out a battlecry, Eric charged towards the fray, Megan at his back.

When the white wolf appeared, it had distinct red tinges to its fur, and its eyes were a burning crimson, like the core of a roaring flame. Hunter leaped clearly over the defenders and crashed into the Attosians, his huge claws already swiping left and right, granting its allies a temporary reprieve. Eric made no attempt to follow the wolf, choosing instead to dart to the side and scale a nearby building.

Megan cast a basic flying spell to keep up with him as he gained the top of one building and immediately hopped to another roof. Four meters off the ground and able to see farther, they could see the signs of the counterattack unfolding. A small force of Tyrman warriors, no more than forty or fifty, were grimly engaged with the rear forces of the Attos army. The number of bodies in their wake as they’d carved a path was staggering, but they still looked woefully outnumbered.

Ehran’s white wolf was visible for a moment as it lunged in a straight line, sending dozens of soldiers flying, then turned in place and leaping back. It vanished as soon as it made contact with the Master of Issho-Ni, who stepped forward with a concentrated scowl, and cut down two enemies before they could recover from the beast’s attack. Beside him was an older man wielding a spear. It was Shiora, his father.

Then Megan made out the blue-robed form of Samuel, barely more than a blur as he danced from side to side. The crystalline blade in his right hand was invisible with the speed of his strikes, and countless bolts of mana arced off his body to slam into the enemies around him. They varied randomly between air, fire, and lightning, a devastating elemental barrage. On his own, he had the power of a battalion, and it was clear that none of his opponents could come close enough to wound him.

Eric dropped off the roof he was on, landing cat-like among the body of enemy troops, mere yards from their goal. Megan didn’t dare drop down after him and knew she could do much more good in the air. She switched from flying to a levitate spell and created a link between the two of them, hovering several feet above, ready to support him.

He didn’t know whether it was the special weapon that Isip had given him or the unexplained recent growth of Hunter, but he was stronger and faster than before. It wasn’t a drastic change, but definitely noticeable. The stamina he used in his attacks seemed to regenerate slowly as he moved, and his reflexes were just a bit sharper. He could see the fighting around him as if it were a little slower, and even his field of vision seemed a bit wider. Maybe it was just his combat instincts taking over, he thought.

He kept Hunter striking in front of him, as Ehran had taught him, clearing a path for him to advance. Occasionally the wolf would dart in a small circle around his body to strike in his blind spots, the red streaks in his fur blurring with his speed. He gained a lot of ground in the first few seconds, striking down the surprised and relaxed warriors in his way. Even when his initial rush of momentum faded, Megan continued to support his attacks and replenish his fading stamina, giving him the strength needed to continue moving.

As grim as the situation facing them was, Eric and Megan began to have hope that they would reach Samuel in time. They would pull off the plan as intended, and their purpose in this world would finally be fulfilled. Eric could actually see Samuel now, less than six feet away. It would soon be over, and he could be with Emma again. Then, before his very eyes, someone appeared from behind Samuel and ran a sword through his torso.

Samuel’s form flickered, then disappeared. He reappeared five or six feet to the side, staring at the space he’d just occupied in some shock. Then he focused on the man who had attacked him, and Eric heard him swear loudly. It was a tall, burly man with close-trimmed black hair and an unmistakable aura of power and leadership. Eric recognized him, and the emblem on his shield, at once. Attos, minor God of War, had descended from the Divine Isles.