Chapter Twenty-Three - Time to Rise

The lion and lion tamer would not back down.

I attempted to run into the fray, but each action of mine was met with a strike against the leaves of the fox or a block against a barrage of leaves put together like a tentacle. The weight of the attacks made it apparent that I am disconnected from my tail as I do not have any control anymore. But there is a faint connection which tells me that this is still ultimately my magic. I’m just the battery and Olive is the controller.

The battlefield had changed as well. As the fox mitigated all our attacks, it also pushed us back into the forest where Olive had more options available to attack.

“[Indigo Leaf Magic - Phantom]. [Yellow Leaf Magic - Flash].” The barrage of attacks did not stop and all Seiko and I could do was dodge and block. Between the multiple impairments and deep stabs, I could not see us winning this at all. I had expended all my mental power and my fortitudes were collapsing.

“Olive, the Guardian of the Forest chose this.” I don’t know why I said that, but this was what I felt was appropriate to say. It was blunt, it was the truth, and if she had a problem with it, she had to talk with the damn fox.

And you know what, I felt every cell of my body thank me for that. Like a key unlocking a door, the revelation made sense.

The giant leaf fox pounced between all combatants. Seiko lowered her gun sights and Olive did the same with her katana. Although both weapons were not sheathed, there was no fight waiting to happen, at best it was a precaution.

“Your fight is not amongst yourselves, but with the Tower of Stars. The Tower of Stars must fall, and a sacrifice must be performed.” A voice inside my head said.

Suddenly I remember the room where I first chased the fox into. A room with chairs and tables. Something so sophisticated yet eerie. As if that place shouldn’t exist there and was pulled from somewhere else.

Seiko nodded, not taking her eyes away from the guardian fox. She appears to be having a longer conversation with it. As for Olive, she kneels samurai-style. A minute passes before she stands up again and sweeps her feet on some leaves. She later kicks some leaves out of the way like if she were splashing up water.

“Okay Ocean Slugs, it’s time to ascend the Tower of Stars!” Olive pumped herself up.

Seiko walks towards me, her assault rifle now strapped to her back.

Olive performed another intricate dance. The giant fox watched with its perceptive eyes. It kneeled and unraveled creating ten stair steps out of its body to the sky. The height only reached the top of a tree. It would take a hundred of these steps to reach the Tower of Stars. Seiko and I stepped closer with our fighting stances lowered. Olive seemed to reach an understanding with the fox spirit as it followed the flow of her movements as if a conductor was leading its band. A giant pile of leaves swept Seiko and I off our feet and carried us up the stairs picking up Olive along the way. Olive had stepped into the oncoming improvised vehicle gracefully, not losing balance unlike Seiko and I. The pile flew off the makeshift stairs and into the Tower as we were launched off a ramp. I screamed as soon as we were airborne not knowing how well my super soldier body reacts to fall damage and gravity in general. The leaf stairs fell apart and followed the pile we were on, catching up and transforming again into a giant fox. The giant leaf fox ran in the air upward, seemingly obeying Olive. As if she was conducting a symphony and the fox as the music followed along. Its paws bouncing off the air and gaining speed towards its destination. I wanted to scream, but I instead enjoyed the ride as if it were a roller coaster.

We were still launching towards our destination leaving leaves behind like smoke propulsion. I look at the virtual timer tied to my uncanny ability.

[0:05]

It is definitely possible to reach the Tower of Stars from this distance. After all, all we have to do is touch it and we phase through it like going through paper.

[0:04]

Seiko said so herself. Most towers behave the same in the event where there is no visible door. We should just go right through it.

[0:03]

Wait, but this is a hostile tower. Wouldn’t the tower just deflect us and we crash into solid stone? Or even worse enter the void of space and freeze and asphyxiate?

[0:02]

Is this even possible anymore? It doesn’t even look like we’ll reach it in time before my leaves that are synergizing with Olive’s magic disappear. I hope we don’t make it and try again or find some other method to climb.

[0:01]

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! I’m so scared, but at least we didn’t make it as we’ve been losing momentum.

[0:00]

My tail glows and transforms back into its default lizard form. The leaves that served as our aircraft disappeared instantaneously and I started feeling the natural effect of gravity return us to the ground. The air hugged our backs as we descended.

[Red Leaf Magic - Fire]

Olive was not done with her dance. A river of red leaves serpented and flowed where we rode our entire flight. The first explosion wasn’t too loud, but the string of explosions followed from the lowest leaf to the top. Like a firecracker chain, every explosion was subsequent to the next and the boom was louder with each explosion creating hot air which now replaced the cold air from my back. The last red leaf exploded and its shock sent all three of us flying at high speed into the Tower of Stars.