Chapter 18

The Earth-Splitter

Emptiness.

Nothing but white emptiness.

Still, Meredith found comfort. She had experienced this before, knew where she was and what was going on. Her soul was connected to that of the restored blade. Opening her eyes further, she looked for the one that was within the sword and settled on the broad back of a man. He did not turn and did not look at her. He was resolute and stalwart, like an embodiment of the earth beneath their feet.

“Who are you?” Meredith asked. Her body couldn’t approach, mired in some endless swamp of white. She felt like she was treading water, floundering for answers that didn’t come. Not in the way she expected.

“I’m the Earth-Splitter, Meredith,” the man said. In the nothingness surrounding them, none of the clothes on his body moved. His brown hair didn’t ruffle, and not a muscle twitched. “I’ve been waiting quite a while to speak with you like this. My power waned in the Metropolis, using the last vestiges of my conscious soul.”

“So…it was you I’ve been speaking with all this time?” Meredith may have been unable to move, but she could raise her hands, remembering the feel of the blade that day. Of her first rush of magic. “Soul Magic…I used your soul.”

“Yes.” The Earth-Splitter was blunt; a no-nonsense man that was driven towards the task ahead and little else. It didn’t answer Meredith’s most yearning question, though, and she struggled against the murkiness that held her back from the Earth-Splitter.

“Why, though? Why me?” she asked. Her voice rose in a panic, hands grasping for the man, but failing to reach him. “Why do I have Soul Magic? Why did you speak to me?”

“Because you want to be a Guardian.” The frank response made Meredith’s hand drop. Her hands quivered, confusion rattling her mind. That wasn’t an answer at all! She dropped to her knees. “You remind me so much of myself. My ideals. What it meant to be a Guardian.”

“What does that mean?”

“Protect the people first. Face your enemies. Don’t let a single person fall. Build a better future.” The Earth-Splitter sighed, his head finally craning backwards to give Meredith a glimpse of his green eyes. “All tenets I strived for within the Corps’ earliest days. You showed all of them, and by lucky chance, you could hear me.”

“Luck…Lucky chance…” In the void of white, Meredith could hear her breathing rise and fall, reality hitting her. “Is that all it is? Was my magic nothing but chance?”

The Earth-Splitter watched her with an almost fatherly concern. “I can’t answer that. I don’t know. Maybe there was some pre-ordained fate for you in getting that magic, or maybe it was random chance. What I do know, however, is that fate is what we make it. It’s our choices. Up to our own souls.”

Meredith said nothing. She had no response to give. The mountain of her dream in front of her seemed ten times larger. After searching for answers, now that she had a vague refusal of knowledge, everything was magnified. Her fingers trembled, that same fear coming to rest in her bones. She did have one question, though. “Your soul…it’s inside this weapon…How did you get there? Why?”

“Why?” The Earth-Splitter spent a moment of deliberation, but shook his head when he was done. “That is a story for another time; when you’re stronger. For now, you have a fight on your hands.”

“Fight…” Meredith’s trembling hands attempted to form a fist, her nails digging into her skin. She was shaking, no matter how much she tried to deny it. “I know I have to fight, but without answers, how can I know what I’m doing is right? How can I know I’m striving for the right future? Becoming the right Guardian? How can I, when I’m so…”

The word hovered on her tongue.

She’d tried so hard to deny it. Tried to tell herself she’d overcome it. That was what she had to do. Confronted with it now, though, a world with answers that said nothing, she had to admit how much it gnawed at her soul.

“I’m scared.”

“And that’s okay, Meredith Childs.” She lifted her head, and found the Earth-Splitter facing her, taking her hands in his. Like solid rock, he steadied her spirit, a wise smile directed at her. “There’s nothing wrong with being afraid. You just can’t let it hold you back. It doesn’t mean you’re weak, because you’re not alone.”

“Not alone…” Her hands calmed and familiar voices intruded in their space. Voices of Eddie and Ray. Of Emil, Vivian and Max. They were struggling, groaning. The fight wasn’t finished. She still wanted to be a Guardian. She still had people to protect.

“I’m here with you,” the Earth-Splitter spoke. Meredith still felt scared of what lay ahead, and the fight with Gaius on the other side. Yet he gave her comfort. “So, use me. Protect what’s dear.”

Meredith’s eyes sharpened, her hands tightening, but not into fists. They were clasping something, instead; something physical. “Right.”

With a yank, Meredith pulled her soul from that place, back into reality. Her hands were wrapped around the Earth-Splitter’s hilt, and she could feel his soul resting there, urging her on. She could sense his magic, ready to pour out on those who would desecrate life. It was the only thing she was aware of in her momentarily disoriented state, until the sea of black that was the group of cultists became clearer.

“Master Gaius! It’s so bright!”

“Devourer Gaius, the blade!”

“Quiet!” Gaius snapped. Meredith turned, noticing the man had fallen into one of the house’s still-standing walls. He had stumbled, his shadows damaged and worn from the light. Out of all the Order members, however, he was still coming to stand, his beady eyes pointed in Meredith’s direction. “There were two…? Or more?”

“Me…ra…” Eddie groaned from the ground.

Meredith felt her mind lift from the haze she had been stuck in, and she could see the results of the battle thus far. Eddie was pushing up from the ground, gripping Emil. The dirty-blond boy was wheezing, his magic expended from continued usage. Eddie propped him up, while on Meredith’s other side, Vivian planted her sword in the ground, shooting venom from her gaze towards the large form of Gaius. Max was out cold, his monocle cracked but his body unharmed.

Worse was that the Order members were mustering, or at least those that were still standing. They were still a force with a single goal, and their own group was on their last legs.

“Mera…move…” croaked the sound of Ray’s voice. He was on his own feet, battered but willing to fight. “You have it done, so run. Take the others and go.”

“Say that all you want. There is no escape from my shadows,” Gaius said. His panicked expression from moments ago had fallen, replaced with the one that Meredith recalled. He was about to enjoy this. “No wonder the Beastmaster spoke of a brat. He knew she had a Weapon. What a glorious chance! Fellow believers, we have ourselves some prey! Get the Weapons, but you can leave the girl to me.”

“Yeah!” The standing Order members began to swarm once more. Meredith gripped tighter, holding her new blade up. It was heavier than expected, but she felt it become a natural extension of her body.

“I’ll take the first blow!” Axe-man was back up, waving his gigantic weapon through the air, caring little for those in the way as he charged Meredith. Once he was in range again, he swung, and Meredith matched him.

This time, the blade was stopped cold.

“Get…up!” Meredith yelled. The others heard her, wounded as they were. “Take them out! Move forward!” She pushed against the axe, finishing her swing and sending the man off-balance. Then she rushed in, hearing the Earth-Splitter’s words.

Use me.

“You’re not alone! So, fight!” Meredith screamed. Her soul combined with the Earth-Splitter’s, and she stabbed the ground. It trembled and then began to shine with golden light. “Soul Scream: Earth Fang!”

The earth became jagged, like a mighty wolf whose jaw was opened wide. In five different directions it chewed up the ground. Axe-man was the first to fall, carried away on the rumbling earth. Gaius was less distracted, eating away the earth with his shadows, protecting himself from harm. Everyone else stared in awe, and Vivian nearly dropped her weapon. Eddie hitched the depleted Emil on his shoulders, stumbling. In his hands, he created a basic arrow of fire that he hurled at the nearest Order member.

“The power of a Legendary Weapon…” Silva grunted, himself standing. His glowing axe was held, ready to swing upon any interloper. Meredith huffed out, her limbs sagging from her magic usage.

There was no time to rest, however, as a shadow hurtled through the ground, solid and sharp. Meredith ripped the blade out, holding it defensively until a shock of lightning broke the strike, and Raymond skidded into the area, scowling at Gaius. The earth finished trembling. The jagged rocks and fangs remained. Some cultists tried standing, but most were down for the count.

“A small fraction of power from the Weapon and you could do this,” Gaius said. His voice was one of reverence, his large body drawing closer and his pudgy face distorted with glee. “Imagine what you could do with all seven. Sunder the heavens. Sunder the earth. Unlock the truth.”

“Drive the world into chaos,” Raymond said. He drew himself up, weapon reforming into a sword.

“Oh, you’ve no idea what the Weapons can do.”

“Then I’ll take you into custody and make you tell me.”

Gaius’s idea of an answer was to let his sadistic grin falter and be replaced with the stoicism of battle. He lifted a finger, and then flicked it outward. A shadow shot with it; multiple shadows, in fact. Meredith frowned as the writhing appendages reached her and her brother, but she slashed, anyway.

Both brother and sister hacked away at the shadows that were controlled by Gaius in a never-ending stream. One aimed for Meredith’s legs and she jumped, cleaving it with the Earth-Splitter before blocking another aimed at her head. Raymond also sliced through, twirling his blade with deft movements that left nary an opening for the shadows to break through. Nevertheless, they hemmed in, drawing the siblings’ backs against each other as they blocked the continual strikes.

Then Meredith saw it, the shadow stretching underneath.

“Swallow whole.”

“Not today!” Raymond roared. His blade changed to a spear that he jabbed in the ground. Electricity from the transformation shot everywhere, scorching the ground and the shadows. They recoiled, drawing back to their master, who let them swirl around himself. The shadow beneath them disappeared, but more tendrils shot from the sides.

Meredith swung…and missed. The snaky shadow wrapped around her, restricting her movements until it had reached her neck. The sharpness stung Meredith, causing a thin cut on her chin before she saw that the shadows weren’t on their own. They were connected.

“Spire!” she grunted. The Earth-Splitter’s soul cried out, and a solitary spike of stone jutted from the ground, impaling the connective shadow. The bonds around Meredith loosened, letting her slice up with the blade and run at Gaius. Raymond was already dashing to the side, but the Devourer’s attention was focused on Meredith and impeding her progress. She slashed, knocking away the assault before spinning to avoid another. From a quick glimpse, she took note of Vivian and Eddie fighting, their attacks disconnected but holding off the tide of remaining cultists. Meredith spun around again as Raymond appeared behind Gaius.

“Now!” the siblings said. Meredith thrust her blade forward as Raymond did the same. Gaius glared at Meredith and lifted his hands. A shadowy paling was erected between her and the portly man, causing Meredith to fall back.

Raymond, however, succeeded in cutting along his side before the shadow cut his leg and sent her brother stumbling back. Gaius clasped to his side, the shield dropping.

Strike him, now! The Earth-Splitter’s voice echoed in Meredith’s mind, and as she rolled along the ground, she tapped a hand to it. The spike of stone began to emerge, aiming for Gaius’s face.

His wounds hardly slowed him, another wall of shadow blocking the blow before forming a fist and punching across her face. Meredith flew back, hitting the ground and letting out an involuntary cough. More shadows emerged from beneath her, ready to swallow her whole. “He never stops attacking…”

“Then neither will we!” Raymond was back in action. His blade was becoming metallic liquid, and he snapped it at Gaius. Now a whip, it stung against the Devourer’s body. Gaius grunted and directed his shadows away from Meredith, back towards her brother. Once more, they became an endless stream of shadows that yearned to slice Raymond’s body into pieces. Her brother remained composed, whipping his weapon around and blocking each strike.

Take advantage. Don’t hesitate in battle. You have Soul Magic, so use it. A second will cost you the battle! Meredith nodded, pushing at the ground as an explosion of Vivian’s own attack sent cultists flying.

“Ray, get some air!” Meredith screamed. She didn’t hesitate or waver, and a plinth of earth rose beneath Raymond’s feet. Gaius was taken aback, pulling his shadows close, whirling around him like a deadly buzz-saw. Raymond reached a proper height and jumped, his whip becoming sharp once more, into a deadly javelin. Electricity streamed from it as he fell towards Gaius. Their larger opponent didn’t move his body and his shadows cut through the air. Some sliced along Raymond’s arms, but he didn’t stop as his electricity dissolved the rest.

“A captain is certainly a different level than a lowly candidate,” Gaius grunted out, wrapping himself in darkness. He looked ready to disappear into his own magic, but Raymond’s magic scorched through, across the same wound he had just inflicted. Gaius didn’t sink into the ground, but gasped, allowing Raymond the one opportunity to drive his javelin deep into the man’s shoulder. Meredith felt relief, but it changed when Gaius grinned. “Though, I wonder, captain…what will you do if I capture all of them and torture them until they’re nothing but quivering messes?”

Raymond kicked at Gaius, bouncing off his stomach as his javelin was yanked out. The shadows protruded, cutting into one side of Raymond as he was tossed away. The shadows quickly changed direction, aiming for Meredith. She prepared to dodge.

A heartbeat suddenly thrummed in her ear, silence in the air. Her hand shook. The onset of panic bubbled in Meredith’s breast and she knew without seeing a single thing: they were here.

Unable to move, Meredith could only watch the shadows fly across the ground, ready to swallow her whole. They captured her feet, beginning to drag her down as she was immobilized. Her head turned, and she knew she was the only one feeling this way. The Earth-Splitter was screaming at her soul, but it was so overridden with that emotion she wanted to overcome that she heard nothing.

She did, however, see the spear come hurtling through the air, tearing through the shadows before it embedded itself in the ground.

Meredith was released, collapsing to the ground as her vision went blurry, tears rising up unbidden. The spear was retrieved and Meredith felt a pair of hands under her, pulling her away. Conquering the control of her movements, Meredith looked to the face of Rico, his rage causing the earth to react around him, its soul trembling.

“The people are safe. Your plan has failed, Devourer,” Rico called. He was looking at Raymond, the two young men acknowledging each other. Gaius blinked and then adopted an annoyed expression.

“Has it?” he asked. “The way I see it, I’m still standing, and the Weapons are still there.”

“And I am here.”

Same distorted voice. Same feeling of death. Same concentration of souls.

Meredith went pale. Her skin became clammy and her breath, ragged. Rico nearly dropped her, the hand gripping his spear shaking. He wasn’t alone. Vivian fell to her knees, retching on nothing, while Eddie slipped backwards, dropping Emil. The dirty-blond had widened eyes, but was unable to move. No one could.

A lone figure emerged in the middle of the street, walking slowly. Their robe was ethereal, and their presence as unnatural as the mask upon their face.

The Reaper had arrived.

“Your Worship,” Gaius said, dropping to a bow. All eyes gravitated towards the Reaper, stalking closer. Rico’s hand tightened around Meredith’s shoulder.

“You disappoint me, Devourer,” the Reaper spoke. The settlement had gone quiet with no more citizens in the vicinity, and their voice echoed. “As my other parts are busy, I expected my arms to succeed where my legs could not. But I saw from afar that you’d yet to attain a single Weapon.”

“Complications.”

“So, it seems…” The Reaper stopped, eyes lingering on Raymond. He tried to stand, his feet slipping, but Meredith’s brother showed the greatest mettle of all there. The Reaper slowly turned away, towards Meredith and Rico, and they both froze up. The churning souls were wailing violently, calling for a release that couldn’t come. “The girl from the ruins. How fortuitous that you hold one of them.”

“Ah…” uttered Meredith, unable to stop the sounds coming from her mouth.

Fear.

Fear.

I’m afraid…no…I can’t…I have to…Hyperventilation overtook her breaths, and her hand released the Earth-Splitter, its heaviness resounding through the cavern. Mera, move. Fight. Something. Anything. Ray, help…

“Don’t touch her!” a voice spluttered across the cave, bouncing off walls. The Reaper stopped and Meredith found her head shaking, begging him to not do anything.

But Eddie had mustered his courage. He marshalled his magic and pressed to the ground. Small clots of earth were dug up, and a flaming pillar of stone blocked the Reaper’s access to her.

“Brave, child. But irrelevant.” Meredith couldn’t see them, but she knew. The Reaper placed their hand to the stone, one of their souls reacting before the magic disintegrated into nothing. “You see, there is no soul that can stop me. Is there, child?”

The Reaper continued their advance until they were just above Meredith and Rico. The latter grabbed his spear, but faltered in the attack, like he sensed the same thing within and could no longer move. Just as in the ruins, the Reaper tilted Meredith’s head up by the chin. Her jaw shuddered, but she was able to finally form words.

“You’re…the same…as me…?” she asked. The Reaper’s face was ever closer, and she wanted to look away, but could not.

“It would appear so,” they said. “Your soul is an enigma to me, but your weapon is not.”

Clang.

The sound of the blade striking the floor echoed. The Reaper let go of Meredith’s face and ignored her weapon in favor of facing her brother. Raymond’s blade became liquid, flying back to his hand as the Reaper watched. Meredith saw her brother breathe out a growl while he faced down the Reaper.

“Ah…the Guardian Corps captain,” they said. A chuckle followed while Raymond shuffled along the ground. “Protector of the people. Looking after all.”

“Damn it, Mera. I told you to go.”

“Oh, no one’s going anywhere,” Gaius said, his voice barely containing glee. “Your presence here is most welcome, Your Worship. Believers, stand! Our Reaper is here! Our Weapons are here!”

“No…” Vivian breathed. Gaius’s command was a salve to the Order, and everyone else was forced to watch in abject horror while the cultists stood. Each was supported by Gaius’s shadows, feral expressions on their faces. Rico gripped Meredith’s shoulder all the tighter, cutting off blood flow as he stood. Anger was pulsing from him and Raymond, targeted on the Reaper. “Move…why can’t I move? Max!”

Max didn’t answer. None of them did. The Reaper had them rooted in place, all but Rico and Raymond. Eddie’s moment of defiance had passed and he was rendered just as harmless to the foes before them.

“Now, devour them, shadows! Swallow them whole!” The shadows surrounding Gaius flew out in streams, aiming for the teens that had collapsed. Rico slashed his spear, blocking them as his rage reached its peak, and Raymond ran for the Reaper.

“This is your doing! Your Order! Your Beastmaster! This tragedy is on you!” Rico roared, making a heaving swipe that broke the shadows away. It didn’t deter the cultists, shuffling and gunning it for Vivian and Silva, the man barely able to stand. “I’ll see it change here!”

The lights above dimmed, their source of energy depleted. The cavern began to darken and Rico thrust his spear forward, the light becoming a beam that pierced the shadows and cut them apart. Nevertheless, the shadows persisted, driven by the light of the forge’s flames. The Reaper acted quicker, snapping their fingers in time for Gaius to be transported right next to Meredith. She tried to scream and get away, but her legs resisted as Gaius reached down. Rico’s attack exploded against a house, and his resultant twisted fury etched lines into his face, emphasized by the dark.

“Your Weapon is ours no-”

Light flashed, illuminating the cavern for a moment. Shadows flitted by in the firelight, and many of the cultists were knocked over. Raymond pulled his strike away from the Reaper, turning to the source of what had happened before a manic grin split his features.

“Our apologies for lateness, Captain, but it wasn’t until we saw the people above that we recognized something was amiss.”

“I don’t mind the lateness, Emily. It’s appreciated, so long as you, Bruce and Trent take care of these enemies. I’d presume Jay is still above.”

“Yes, I ordered him to watch over the citizens there. We can’t have the Renegades handling all our work for us, though their use has been beneficial.” It wasn’t Emily that had answered that time. Perhaps it was her proximity to the man, or that Gaius had flown back into the destroyed house and was grunting as he tried to sit up. Either way, Meredith had feeling return to her legs and hope restored as he spoke. “Now, let us end this quarrel.”

Chief Commander Marcus was here.