Tipping The Balance

Chapter 28

Both spells met in the middle between Renji and Balam. A beam of light and shadow, fused in perfect balance, versus a beam of raw, concentrated aether. The collision created a powerful shockwave that reverberated continuously along the whole of Castle Barathûn. The stone shuddered, the walls crumbled, and glass shattered as the foundations holding the panes gave way. Color returned to Renji’s vision slowly, but he could spare no moment of thought for the castle crumbling around them. The clash of their spells was unlike anything Renji had ever experienced before, becoming the most intense sensation of his life as he stood his ground against the impossible attack Balam brought down upon him. The surface of the stone had begun to melt where their beams met, becoming magma that got sprayed around the throne room as the two fought for dominance.

As the castle crumbled around them, neither side could afford to be thrown off balance for even a moment. Bricks shuddered and crumbled above, falling down yet being pushed away from both individuals by the force of their magic. The rare few stones found themselves unlucky enough to land within the beams, yet before the light could reach its body they'd cease to be, becoming molten magma that sprayed and littered the battlefield around them. 

A primal feeling emerged in Renji when he felt himself being pushed back that first inch. “If I lose, I will die.” The thought felt like an inescapable fact, but there was no backing down, no breaking away from this. Even if he tried, Renji felt like he was locked in place, unable to move his feet or arms. It was like he was pushing back against an unstoppable wall that was coming his way, all the while being glued in place. There was no escape, only the threat that loomed before him. Another inch was lost. Pushing forward as hard as he could, Renji managed to take a few inches of space between them, but Balam pushed back.

Outside the castle, Nemi and Oliver could taste the power in the air. Nemi turned sharply to look at the castle, where the walls crumbled. She was on the wall surrounding the keep with Oliver, having only just finished battling with the rest of the guards that were after them. Using a swift spell to enhance her vision, she watched as the throne room became bare to her. To her terror, she didn’t see Illya, but her attention was swiftly captured by the display of power happening before her eyes. She saw as Renji altered his feet into wyvern claws that dug into the stone, rooting himself in place as he pushed back against Balam’s spell with a powerful roar, but what few inches he pushed back were being reclaimed steadily.

She had to look thrice. Balam. It was Balam. The man she always thought of as the perfect knight she now realized was the one who was behind the fall of Aldelthorne, which meant he was almost certainly the direct cause of the king’s death, of her adopted father’s death. Vengeance sparked in her eyes as she ran down the stairs of the wall, leaving Oliver behind. She was no longer entranced by the power she witnessed; her fury had overtaken her sense of reasoning. She was going to get Balam back for everything he had done to them.

It was there that Balam would feel it. Renji had suddenly gained ground on him as Balam stumbled, nearly collapsing to his knees. His immortality was gone. The Dark Lord swiftly realized his mistake. Illyandaril had destroyed the heart of corruption, the source of his regeneration. He didn't know how she managed to find it, let alone defeat the heart of corruption itself, but he knew that if he had managed to send Renji away as he had intended instead of Illya, this would not have happened.

Weakened, Balam could feel Renji gaining ground on him, but now that he was vulnerable, he couldn’t afford to take any more risks. The two remaining spheres that circled his head joined the chorus of light and shadow singing in his blade, and what ground Renji had gained was swiftly being devoured by overwhelming force. There was distance to be gained against this level of power, only the hopeful, desperate push to delay what was swiftly becoming inevitable.

Nemi arrived first. There he stood, The Dark Lord, standing against one of her best friends. Flinging a fireball at Balam in pure rage, the spell seemed to bounce off of Balam’s armor. Cursing loudly, she detested that she knew the enchantment the moment her fireball bounced off of him. Most magic beyond a certain level would bounce off of anything with the “mirror” enchantment, and as much as she desired to bring the heavens down upon Balam, she knew that for every moment she spent preparing a chant, the closer Balam’s attack got to completely erasing Renji from existence. She could possibly unleash a spell that would have the power to bypass the enchantment, but she could not know for sure whether it would destroy such a powerful being, and in doing so she would lose Renji.

Forced to quell her rage for now, she looked to Renji, who was clearly struggling. She saw it, the aether that he had somehow built up was fading away. The finite reserves that he had stored through a means she did not know was dwindling. While she might not be the one to deal the blow, Nemi knew she could at least help Renji deal his own strike. Running behind Renji, she braced herself behind him, and placed her hands on either side of his bare neck. Opening herself to him, she gave him the aether he needed directly from her own mana.

Renji could feel it; Nemi’s life essence flowing through him. His spell seemed to gain more color as it revitalized, pushing Balam back only slightly, but ultimately finding themselves at a stalemate once more. Neither side was gaining an inch now, despite Nemi’s assistance. She was terrified. Despite seeing exactly what she always wanted to see, she knew that both she and Renji would be vaporized if they failed. Renji’s body definitely couldn’t handle another massive injection of aether. Black cracks were visible on his neck, a sign of just how close he was to falling apart. However, despite her fear, despite knowing that they would likely lose this, Nemi was resolved. Even if she didn’t get the vengeance she sought, as long as she was giving her all with Renji at her side, she would meet her end head-on.

Metal sabatons crashed against the stone as Illyandaril finally made it back, but the scene before her was beyond her wildest imagination. Renji was holding his own, though barely, against The Dark Lord, but any amount of joy she could feel for Renji was drowned out immediately by the sight of Balam. She was stunned for a few moments. The man that was like an older brother to her since she was little, who taught her how to fight, and always told her such kind things, was now trying to kill the man she cared for most, and her best friend. She began to breathe hard and fast, feeling her heart pounding in her head as she saw Balam, now with raven-black hair, staring down Renji with utter contempt. She had never seen Balam look like that, and she felt her whole world crumble as she realized that the man she saw as an older brother was also the same man that killed her father.

Beyond it all, she was in complete awe at the display before her. To her, it was a clash of legendary proportions, a scale she had only imagined in her wildest dreams. Light and darkness in perfect alignment pressed calmly back against raging aether, pure yet wild. That the aether was coming from Renji of all people shocked her more. She wasn’t an idiot, she knew that he was acting differently since they entered Barathûn. She suspected he was going to try and do something reckless, but she could have never imagined something like this coming from him. Despite her awe, however, the reality of Balam’s betrayal eventually dragged any sense of wonder she could have felt back into the abyss of a shattered heart.

Illya’s drowning despair popped as she heard Renji and Nemi struggle against Balam’s attack. His beam had begun to gain on them again, despite both of their efforts. She had to do something, or she would lose the two most important people she had left to her. Illya could go in and attack Balam directly, but that would put her in harm’s way of Renji’s attack. Scared, panicking, and unable to think of anything more that she could do, Illya raised her axe and threw it as hard as she could at Balam. The holy aura radiating from the blade caught Balam’s attention, however, much like Renji, he was locked in place. He couldn’t move, thus he was forced to watch as the axe’s blade claimed his left arm, missing his right arm entirely. The damage was enough to give Renji and Nemi the upper hand, and Renji’s spell pushed back against Balam completely, consuming his body in a prismatic glow as the rest of the castle seemed to crumble around them.

Falling face-first on the ground, Renji was spent. The last of his energy had been expunged on the final push. Nemi, too, collapsed back, landing on her bottom with a harsh thud. Illya walked over and retrieved her axe as she stared down Balam. He wasn’t dead, not yet. His left arm had been cauterized, and his armor crumbled off of him. Holding his sword tightly, it took a great deal of strength for him to stand up and meet Illya’s gaze. “Long time no see, Princess.” He sneered momentarily before a look of what almost seemed like regret crossed his features. Lifting his sword, he could no longer effectively wield his blade, but he had to fight anyway.

“Why?” Illya started, staring at Balam not with hatred, but an all consuming hurt. She had been betrayed by one of the only people she truly respected, someone she had hoped would be there for her forever. Taking a deep, shuddering breath, she asked again. “Why!? Did you hate us that much? You were happy, Balam, I know you were! We could have ended the cycle right then and there, but you went and…” Illya couldn’t bring herself to say it. He went and killed her father. It was something she could not forgive. There was no going back to normal after such a grievous sin.

Illya’s thoughts returned to the many nights that her most trusted knight had read her bedtime stories, told her stories of such wonder that it would spark her imagination, and praise her efforts so much it made her heart sing. Whenever she was upset or angry with her father or something else, Balam was always there for her, offering guidance, or even just a shoulder to lean on when she found herself in complete turmoil. The thought of this man, one of the greatest pillars of her life that kept her afloat even amidst her darkest days, had turned out to be her greatest enemy.

“Happy? Don’t make me laugh. What justice is there in being denied my right to life? Of licking the boots of lesser men just so I could earn what few scraps came my way??” Balam took his stance, pointing his blade to Illya, a youthful resolve evident on his face. “Things would have been so much better if you joined me, you know. Nobody else would have had to die. If only you weren’t blessed by that bastard Adelphel, I would have corrupted you the first chance I had. Same goes for that damned Otherworlder. You two aren’t the only one with blessings, though. I face you now, Illyandaril Rose, Champion of Adelphel. I, Balam Kaelthûr, Champion of Caelira, Goddess of Balance, will face you.”