Anti-Magic

 I honestly believed that the next moment I opened my eyes I was standing in front of the pearly gates of Heaven. Possibly there waiting for me would be gorgeous and handsome-looking angels who would comfort me with their otherworldly songs. Or if I would be religious accurate I would probably end up in Hell instead since my faith in God has been waning for years. Perhaps the Devil and all his goons would be waiting for me with evil grins holding up their torture tool, and they would use it on me for eternity.

But my expectations were quickly shut down as I awoke in the same dark room with the blue flame lamps. My body rested on a fancy couch with the most comfortable cushions I have ever felt. You would honestly think you were sleeping on a bed of sheep because the softness was just ridiculous.

“You have finally awakened, Baxter.”

I turned to my left to see Aeron standing there with his usual stoic expression. Right behind him was Ojorr and Gnavu who were sitting in chairs trapped in their own little world. Gnavu was biting her nails nervously while Ojorr was stamping his foot onto the floor repeatedly while having a look that resembled an impatient child.

The moment Aeron spoke the two gargoyles looked up and noticed that I had awoken. They smiled and immediately flew towards me getting up close to my face.

“Baxter!”

“Thank goofiness you are awake my friend!”

The veins in my head were ready to pop. Just seeing those two in front of me after the extreme lift and death battle we had before triggered me but what made me more upset was the fact that they just came towards me as if the fight never happened.

“Get the fuck away from me!” I screamed as I swatted the two gargoyles away like flies. “The reason I was at death’s door was because of two assholes!”

Gnavu held her head down and started crying.

“W-we’re so sorry! We were just following the orders of Master Aeron!”

“I’m not sorry,” Ojorr said nonchalantly. “That battle was amazing and I was hoping we could continue! Get up my friend Baxter! Let the great battle commence!”

“Ojorr, shut the fuck up! And Gnavu you think I’m gonna forgive just because you didn’t want to fight me!? You must be out of your damn mind!!”

The female gargoyle started to cry harder and hid behind Aeron. Just as I was about to get up and give her a piece of my mind Ojorr got in front of me with his stupid smile.

“Are we fighting? Are we fighting?”

“Ojorr…we’ll fight another time. I am so tired and just want to sleep.”

“Aw~! Come on friend! Just because you aged a few does not mean our fun should end!”

“Huh? What the hell are you…”

I looked at my hands and realized that they still looked shriveled up. I then lifted my head and my eyes landed on a mirror that was hung up by the dark purple walls. The glass revealed to me that I was still in the form of an old man.

As I shrieked in terror I nearly fell on my back but Ojorr was able to catch me.

“WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!? HOW IS THIS HAPPENING TO ME!?!”

“This is the result of your body being stuck within the Otherside for too long.”

Aeron said in a calm voice as he walked up to me.

“This is the truth of zen. The capability to enter the domain of life and cut the threads of mana.”

“S-so this is zen? It’s the same as magic…?”

Aeron shook his head.

“No Baxter, this is not magic.”

“What do you mean!? This has to be magic! What else could this be!?”

“Baxter, what do you think mana is?”

“Huh? W-well from what I have been taught mana is the very energy of the planet—the source of all life on Ocaleveth.”

“And with that definition what is magic?”

“M-Magic is the ability to manipulate mana to whatever you desire. Isn’t that what I just did?”

“No Baxter. What you just did was the opposite. The white fish that you have sliced was the physical form of the very mana that floats in the atmosphere. By cutting them, you actually destroyed the fibers of mana which is impossible to do with normal spells.”

“I-impossible? What are you talking about?”

“Water spells can counter fire spells, wind spells can counter fire spells, and light and darkness can counter each other. But despite that the spells could never fully destroy each other. Mana would also reform and become something new for Ocaleveth. But what you have done was cut the mana straight from its source and rendered it useless. That power is not magic—it is the opposite of magic.”

Aeron then walked over to the other side of the room and pulled down the curtain that hung near the room. On the wall was a remarkably creepy painting of a gorgeous woman with light blue eyes in a white dress. Instantly I recognized the woman.

“That’s Azriel! The woman in the library!”

Aeron hummed.

“So you have met this woman? And you have entered Purgatory.”

“Yes I—wait, Purgatory? That’s what that place was?”

“The dimension between life and death. That was the only way you could understand the Foundations of Zen. You needed to physically meet death and return from the brink.”

“Death…wait…Azriel is death?!”

“Yes, she is the personification of death. In society’s terms, she is referred to as the Grim Reaper.”

“What the fuck!? I was speaking to the freakin’ grim reaper!? W-wait so hold on, what is zen if it’s not magic!?”

“Zen is the state of mind to enter the inner world. The inner world is also known as the spirit world where you can physically interact with the mana. By utilizing the world you can shut down spells and counter magic users despite not having magic of your own. This power was dubbed as ‘karma’ the scythe that judges the mana of the world.”

The blindfolded priest then approached me and put his finger on my chest.

“And you Baxter have a knack for this power for you are a Forsaken. Only Nulls have the true ability to access this power and utilize it. The power of Anti-Magic…”

“Anti-Magic…”

“But understand this Baxter…”

Aeron’s voice became more serious.

“To walk the path of one who wields karma means putting a massive target on your back to the ones who cherish magic. That means the people like the Council of Chronos may become your enemy. This is the very reason that ostracizes Forsakens from society for they have the power to annihilate everything they hold dear.”

“And this power…anti-magic…the Tortoise was able to use it themselves?”

“Yes. With anti-magic, they could defeat the Holy Knights. But as you know the power wasn’t invincible and there are forms of magic that are very difficult to cut…”

“B-but why did the karma turn me into…this!?”

I pointed at myself as my voice got louder with rage.

“Why did I turn into this bag of bones?!”

“My destroying and creating death your body had begun to decay. The Tortoise was able to avoid this fate by practicing non-stop the foundations of the spiritual world and being able to adjust their powers to its workings. Perhaps with more training, you will be able to do so too…but to fully master that training would have to—“

Aeron had stopped speaking and looked away with a grim expression.

“I would have to what?” I ushered him. “To what!?”

“…to abandon your humanity…”

“H-huh? What the hell does that mean?”

“…perhaps it is too soon to have that conversation. For now, let us get you some food.”

Just as the priest was about to walk off, I grabbed him by his arm and dragged him back.

“Hold on asshole! I’m still an old man! How am I going to turn back!?”

“You will be fine Baxter. All you need is food and water.”

“Food and water?! My body is aging faster my dude! How the hell is liquid and your crappy church food going to fix that!”

“Baxter…trust me.”

I sighed in defeat and released Aeron.

“Thank you…and my our food is not crappy! Gnavu’s cooking is the best!”

“T-thank you, Master Aeron!”

Gnavu bowed to the blindfolded priest before pivoting to me and bowing as well.

“I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me. Because in the scriptures the Lord says—“

“Fuck you,” I quickly stated. “Get the hell out of my face.”

Gnavu pouted as she followed Aeron to the door that led to another room. Ojorr walked with me jumping up with excitement.

“Anti-magic?! How exciting! Are you going to use it again?! I want to see! You want to go another round!? Just you and me!?”

“Fuck you too Ojorr.”