The Horns

As we were heading out the next morning, I stopped by an oddity that I had hoped to see at least once. Approaching, a shrill whistle blew, and I marvelled at the Shimmer Train that began to pull out of the station.

Designed to resemble early locomotives, they had one primary difference. Instead of steam, they ran using a special type of ley stone known as shimmer crystals. These magical gems powered the locomotion, levitated the cars, and gave the trains their shimmering under glow as they propelled forward across the unforgiving landscape.

This was once again something I was marvelling over while my fellow triop remained disinterested. What they had found more intriguing were the posters announcing a Winter Solstice Concert in Anak’Hati. The headliner was DJ Demilich with Lich House’s very own rising stars: Power Word Thrill. What they couldn’t have known was that the second band was being managed by Giovanni Galilei and assisted by Maren and Lemon.

This concert would be used to establish the Anak’hati portal to Dwindlefyre and, unknown to everyone involved, consequently trigger huge geopolitical issues. A single night would begin the tumbling of dominoes that eventually led to the next great war.

“Oooh, can we go if we finish the dungeon quickly?” Aesandoral entreated her triop. “Both Squalls Crossing and Anak’hati are ends of the line, so we could get a direct train and be there in two days!”

“No!” I snapped before anyone could add more.

My sudden firmness on the subject drew their attention. I felt the piercing stares of three women who would have loved to attend a concert. Clearing my throat and taking a breath, I tried to calm myself down

“Just—sorry, trust me. We don’t want to be there.”

“But whyyy?” Aesandoral plead.

I looked around, seeing the various Anak guards strolling with their magical weapons meant to enhance spells. They eyed the area suspiciously as they patrolled the train station, which functionally acted as foreign soil ruled by Anak’hati in the heart of Ter’aquit territory.

“Let’s start our walk,” I nodded away from the station. “And I can explain.”

After making enough distance to feel confident we weren’t being tailed, I tapped my temple and whispered into the minds of my companions.

“I’m sorry, the concert is going to be an absolute rager, but it’s also going to trigger a riot. Shatter is going to use the opportunity to make their move, bombing several of the policing stations across the fascist capital. There’re going to be a lot of arrests.”

“We should do something to stop it.” Rionriv whispered back.

“We can’t. I may not be a true oracle, but I do know every significant upcoming event. We can’t alter the foretold outcomes. If we do, we jeopardize the peaceful future that comes next.”

“And you know this because—Kalish things?”

“Essentially. Sorry, but we must keep our distance from Power Word Thrill and DJ Demilich for the time being.”

“And DJ Demilich!” Aesandoral cried out, her voice echoing through the early morning streets, drawing the attention of a few passersby.

“Shhh!” Everyone quieted her.

“Sorry,” She whispered. “Why not DJ? Is she a terrorist, too?”

“The Shatter group aren’t terrorists.” I insisted quietly into their minds. “Don’t believe the false narratives. They’re a freedom-fighting regiment left over from the Two-Generation War. They’re looking to free the mages of Moal’aw from the mandatory conscription and governmental tracking of Al’Magi graduates.”

After this, we had a long conversation about Shatter, which lagged on well after leaving Squalls Crossing and venturing along the foothills leading to Talir’sahn.

I took the opportunity to clear up some of the Anak disinformation that had been successfully spread for the last two decades concerning the group. It was easy to tell that I was introducing new lore to the triop and they appeared to be eating it up.

Since none of the three were originally from Moal’aw and were only present for school, their knowledge of the subject was limited to what they had heard around campus. Claims like how Shatter ‘targeted helpless mundanes’ or ‘sacrificed underaged mages to fuel dangerous magic’ were completely unfounded. I explained that their faction had arisen as a direct result of both an ancient prophecy and Anak’hati’s aggressive nationalist agenda. Eventually, once the next great war began, the group would go on to form their own nation, becoming a major player for freedom and justice across Esseria.

Midway through one particularly heated discussion over whether a freedom fighter organization could be considered lawful when using underhanded tactics, Aesandoral stopped the group with one of our combat hand signals.

Immediately crouching down, we began to search the area. The brush around us had become thick and tough to see through. This made it the perfect place for an ambush by predators and bandits alike.

“I thought I saw something,” Aes whispered. “It’s fast.”

“Okay, heads on a swivel, everyone.” I replied.

“You’re so weird.” Rionriv whispered back.

While lowering her stance, she stepped a few feet away from the group as she prepared a spell. In an instant, something began to charge through the brush.

“Ri!” I shouted.

Rushing to her side, I shoved her out of the way. As I did, a hulking figure burst through the brambles beside us.

With half a second to react, I pivoted, narrowly dodging the beast's thick head and protruding horns. Unfortunately, what I didn’t escape was the force of being body-checked by two thousand pounds of mutated bull.

The hooves of the beast trampled over my body, fracturing my leg, breaking several ribs, and most certainly causing internal bleeding.

“Iz—Ri!” Everyone collectively yelped as arrows began to impact the thick, black and purple hide.

From my crumpled position on the ground, I weakly placed a hand on my chest and released a burst of healing energy. The bones began shifting around within my body as they fit back into place like a horrific jigsaw puzzle. Feeling everything as it snapped back into sockets and fractures, I cried out in pain.

But I didn’t have time to suffer. After all, I was raised to take a hit and keep going. I was Captain Meat Shield.

Coughing up blood, I stumbled to my feet and centred myself with a deep breath. I gripped the quarter staff in my hands and charged. Rushing towards the bull and readying a swing, an arrow covered in green energy sailed close enough to nick my ear. As it struck, the bramble thicket nearest the beast came to life, binding the bull into place as I charged.

“Thanks, Aes!” I yelled out as I leapt forward with a heavy swing of my staff.

One. Two. Three heavy blows landed across the creature’s skull as it staggered from the impact.

“Now die!”

The beast attempted to pull from the vines, but the thick thorns tightened their grip. More arrows arrived, courtesy of Sharzin and Aesandoral, before my own heavy swings ended the conflict. With a putrid squelch, the beast collapsed under its corrupted flesh.

“Great job, everyone,” I said, observing as the horrid body began to liquify. “Aes, Zin, outstanding. Ri you—”

Turning, my heart began to race.

Bah-dump! Bah-dump! Bah-dump!

Rionriv was lying unconscious on the ground in a pool of blood. I thought I had saved her, but judging by the splatter, the creature’s horn had caught her in the gut and thrown her an additional thirty feet.

“Ri!” I cried out, racing over to her and looking at the wound. “Don’t die, don’t die, don’t die!”

Placing a hand atop the hole in her gut, I could feel her weak pulse at the tip of my fingers and see a black and purple blight beginning to spread out from the site. Without time to grab a potion, I concentrated.

She didn’t need a little healing—she needed a lot.

“Zin! Potion her!” I yelled as I felt my magic pooling in my palm. It grew brighter as radiant light emanated from the wound, and I felt the warming sensation of the magic reaching its maximum potential.

But what I was giving her was more than just healing. It was an overcharged detoxifier—yet another thing I had learnt from the book she lent me.

As Sharzin slid into position beside me, she uncorked a potion and began to pour it into Rionriv’s mouth. At the same moment, I released the wave of healing magic and watched as the grievous wound began to heal over. The contamination flared, retreating from her body and spilling out as a thick ichor across the ground.

“That’s a good sign!” I exclaimed as Rionriv gasped and sat up, ready to fire off her own magic. “Whoa, hey! Breathe, you’re okay now.”

She panicked for a moment, grabbing her side before looking at me.

“You healed me?”

“Well, yeah?” Nodding to Sharzin and the empty potion bottle. “I mean, she helped too.”

Rionriv smiled, looking to Sharzin and then me for a moment before glancing down at her wound once more.

“Thanks.” She said before delivering a hard punch to my chest. “But next time, maybe prevent me from almost dying, ‘kay?”