Unity VII / Seven as One

We each stood stunned for five, maybe ten seconds, before the shaking of the collapsing wall snapped us back to our senses.

“We need to get down!” I shouted, turning to see my comrades stationed in the rearguard approaching those of us up front. Fleur’s chin was lightly bloodied, her body’s reaction to the massive illusion she’d created, but the group looked otherwise unscathed.

“Do we have to run back down the stairs?” Akio frantically pitched the first idea that came to mind.

“No,” Kerne said, running up to join us as well. “It will go for Vandan if we give it the opportunity.”

“If we want to take the quickest route, I could try to break our fall with a spell,” I suggested, “but I’ve only done that with three people before. Six might be pushing it. Maybe if both Shina and I—”

“Amest nultereo omes pelyosti saffa!” Ignoring my idea, Shina cast a spell down the side of the wall. As we all rushed to peer over the edge, we saw the long, steep ramp she’d crafted with her magic. “It’s gonna be a rough trip, but it should be fast and safe… ish.”

I don’t like that lack of confidence… but I guess it’s better than my plan.

“Alright!” I said, knowing we had little time before Ames Nori would start moving again. “Everyone, grab someone else’s hand! It’ll be safest if we go together. I’ll lead so I can slow us down if necessary.”

Unconjuring my blade, I took Shina’s hand, and the others followed suit to form a chain. I sucked in a sharp breath as I braced myself for the ride.

Just think of it like a water slide! It’ll be fine! Surely! Definitely!

“Now!” I shouted in spite of my doubts, jumping off the side of the wall and sledding down the frosted ramp with my shoes. As our velocity increased, I could hear chunks of stone fracturing off from behind us, reaffirming my decision to act quickly.

As gravity pulled us onward at a blinding pace, I prepared my braking mechanism for the moment we hit the sharpest curve, situated just before the ground.

“Anfuniosor!”

The six of us toppled forward, collapsing into a pile as we slid across the grass. Although I’d been unable to dampen our speed entirely, I’d at least prevented us from continuing all the way off the cliff.

Moans of discomfort mixed with a barrage of complaints as we rose to our feet. All of our utterances, however, were silenced when a massive appendage slammed into the dirt, just a few yards away.

I reconjured my sword, standing as brave as I could in the face of the imposing form looking down at us. Its right wing looked maimed from the fall, but its condition was otherwise serviceable.

I doubted any of us had much left in the tank, yet we had no other choice but to stand; this was our fight, and backing down wasn’t an option.

“If you can buy me a few minutes, then I can give you a ten second window to tear it apart.”

“Come on, guys,” I said, trying to keep morale as high as possible in spite of the circumstances. “We just need to hold on until Vandan is rea—”

“I’ve been waiting for you idiots to get it in a good spot, dammit!” A voice boomed from quite a distance behind us. I didn’t know if he could somehow hear my words or if his response just happened to line up, but that didn’t matter.

Ames Nori lurched forward, rage in its eyes. It didn’t understand human tongue, so to it, nothing about the situation had changed. As it pulled its arm back to crush six bodies in one fell swoop, it failed to foresee the portent of its end.

“Die.”

Vandan did not shout the word, yet, impossibly, it resounded across the cliffside, heralding the conclusion of our great battle.

Though perhaps the true messenger was the strike itself.

A loud crack like thunder erupted from behind us, disabling the functions of my eardrums in an instant. My vision fared no better, a blinding flash transforming the world into a monochrome mess, all but the vaguest of silhouettes being washed away into nothingness. Even my sense of touch felt numbed as the makeup of the atmosphere warped around the impossible object barreling forward.

My perception of time collapsed inward, each individual moment expanding toward infinity. Reality ceased to feel real, and I had to question whether or not I was still even alive. It felt like I would be trapped inside this prison until the end of time, stuck within this never-ending snapshot until the universe succumbed to its own entropy at the end of all existence.

Once, many years ago, I had been shown a recording of a nuclear test in school. I recalled feeling a sense of awe and wonder at the magnificent carnage unleashed by the blast, mixed, of course, with intense fear and dread at the knowledge that such a calamitous weapon existed in the first place.

And that was the only memory my brain could conjure up that even remotely compared to the scene unfolding before me.

“An Inheritor at the end of their journey is practically a god amongst men.”

So this… is what we’re really capable of?

…

And then, all at once, reality came rushing back. Every one of my senses snapped to normal, and the world reverted to its original state.

Everything, that is, except for Ames Nori. Though my mind had been incapable of comprehending it, Vandan’s attack was not simply for show.

Its enormous body was blasted over a hundred feet backward, ripping up layers of the earth as it slid. The gigantic ballista bolt was lodged into its torso, and dark purple blood spurted from the opening. But most importantly…

Holy shit.

… its disgusting, naked flesh was fully exposed, like a bird defeathered in preparation for a feast. As he had promised, not a single scale remained unobliterated in the wake of his assailment.

And so…

“Go!” I didn’t know if it was me that shouted that command or someone else, but we were all of the same mind.

“Those ten seconds before it recovers its armor will determine the victor of this fight; either you kill it in time, or we die. Got it?”

Vandan would almost certainly be out of commission after that assault. He had done his part, and it was up to us to ensure his generosity would not be wasted. Fleur and Kerne, too, had played their support roles to perfection, so that left four of us to make good on our vows.

“Just! Die! Already!” Mara screamed as she unleashed her own reality-warping shot, which she’d likely begun powering up before Vandan released his.

The arrow struck true in an instant, exploding the right shoulder of the Anomaly Beast. Its disconnected arm was flung to the side, ripping the wing with it.

Ames Nori roared in anguish, but its heart remained beating. Understanding the situation, it backed up, clearly eager to flee.

“No you don’t!” Taking a page out of Vandan’s book, Akio suddenly threw his halberd like a spear from a full sprint.

Despite being far too heavy of an armament for something like this, Akio had thrust it forward with incredible power. Traveling in a perfectly straight line, it ripped through the beast’s jaw, pulling it free from the rest of the skull.

And…

“Aske nultereo annantis lyosti omes worato!” Shina screamed, manifesting her masterpiece.

Though she’d made it significantly weaker than before to accommodate her drained mana reserves, the sublime pillar of ice erupting from the earth was no less breathtaking as it burst forward. At the end of its path, the tip sharpened into a spike before impaling Ames Nori’s torso and neck, cleanly annihilating half of what remained of its body.

Amazing, Shina! That should do—

Right before I came to my conclusion, I noticed numerous rows of scales rupturing out from the remnants of the beast’s flesh. With each that appeared, the rate of regeneration increased; in a few seconds, the armor would wrap its entire body once more.

So it must still be alive!

Continuing my sprint, I hopped onto Shina’s mostly horizontal ice pillar, realizing it was the perfect track toward my destination.

I had no idea if Anomaly Beasts could die from blood loss or organ failure, or if they were monstrosities beyond the bounds of biology. But it was for that very reason I couldn’t just pray this was over.

Shnk!

Shnk! Shnk! Shnk!

Hundreds of scales grew in sequence to cover the creature’s skin and guts, dislodging Shina’s ice from its innards. Suddenly free, it stumbled backward once more, still intent on retreating at all costs.

As if I’d let you do that!

The impenetrable plates had extended to just beneath the neck. In half a second, they would continue upward and fully protect every last inch of the monster.

But, as always…

“Loablis anfuniosor!”

… I was faster. Swinging in the air, my sword cleaved through the small cluster of muscle still connecting its head to its body, finishing what Shina had started.

As my legs smashed into the ground and I skidded to a painful stop, I heard two loud slams behind me, one for each piece of the now separated corpse.

“Is it…?” I turned to face the carnage, desperate to confirm what I knew had to be true.

And with one look at its severed head, I breathed a sigh of relief.

Ames Nori was dead, and seven Inheritors would live to tell the tale.