Phantom - Chapter 06

Soon after their morning classes had begun, an announcement had come over the school’s intercom system, calling Eric, Dead Eye, Alexis and Axisam, the leaders of the four finalists in the Team Tournament, to the Headmistresses Office.

Whenever that woman summons you, it’s rare for something good to happen, Lucifer muttered.

Yeah, you’re telling me, Eric agreed.

Sat at the desk in the chairs were Alexis and Eric, with Dead Eye standing on Eric’s right, and Axisam was leaning against the wall beside Kasmine’s birdcage. Whenever the bird flapped its wings at her and screeched, Axisam glared at it, letting out a low growl, and the bird went quiet. Behind the desk was Kasmine, her hand resting on the back of her hands and her elbows on her desk. In the left corner behind her was The Merchant, his arms crossed; standing right behind her was Harbinger, and Lares was stood, at attention, on Kasmine’s left.

“So, what’s this all about?” Dead Eye demanded.

“Is that anyway to talk to the Headmistress, Kellan?” Kasmine asked, a small smile on her lips. Dead Eye frowned, making her sigh. “Well, whatever. Firstly, allow me to apologise in advance for what I’m about to tell you, but I hope that you will understand why given the current situation. Eric Agrim, Kellan Bowen, Alexis Amory, Raena Ryo; you four and your teams have been chosen to engage in active field duty.”

Alexis inadvertently gasped.

“What?” Eric yelled.

“Oi, oi,” Raena mumbled.

Dead Eye’s eye narrowed. “What do you mean?”

Kasmine’s expression turned stern. “As I just said; your four teams will be deployed-”

“Why?” Eric demanded, standing up and slamming his hand on the table, his body shaking. “Why are you making us do this again?”

“Eric…” Alexis whispered.

“For what’s it’s worth, this wasn’t my decision nor was it the decision of any of the teachers, but rather a necessity given our current military situation,” Kasmine calmly said.

“Explain,” Dead Eye said.

“Phantom.” Everyone went silent and looked at her. “The terrorist organisation responsible for two of the largest terror attacks in the past thirty years are a force who have been able to avoid our detection for far too long and, thanks to the efforts of our agents and of the Merchant’s information network, we’ve been able to locate all of their bases and we’re ready to wipe them out.

“Normally, we would have our strongest teams from around the world work with us on this, but…unexpected circumstances have arisen.”

“Circumstances?” Axisam growled.

“Through our investigations, we’ve discovered that Phantom are closely monitoring all of our professional Guardian teams in every country and, as a result, any moves that they make will be relayed back to the main Phantom forces and they could easily disappear by the time we strike. That’s why-”

“You’re sending strong students that aren’t being tracked to help fill in the numbers, correct?” Dead Eye asked and Kasmine nodded.

“The UN Security Council decided that, given the high calibre and strong abilities of the members of your teams, you should all take part in this operation with our allies.”

“Why did we only hear about this now?” Alexis asked.

“Because we were only told a few days ago,” Kasmine said. “Just before I went to brief the members of the Guardians here which will be taking part, I received a call from our representative at the UN who informed us of the decision. I assure you, I had no part in this.”

The Merchant grunted and closed his eyes, smiling beneath his scarf. That’s not entirely true, is it, Kasmine?

“…Do we have a choice in this?” Eric whispered.

The Headmistress shook her head. “I’m sorry. However, don’t worry too much about it; it’s not like you’ll all be going after the bases alone. Each one of them will be hit with a combined force of two thousand people, including professional Guardians and Mages, Superhumans, the local military forces in the area and our other allies. I’ve even specifically requested that the Achlys Twins accompany your teams to further ensure your safety. Those two have already taken down three of Phantom’s bases alone.”

Raena spat to one side. “If people like that are taking part, what’s the point in having us tag along?” She muttered bitterly.

“Um, when will we be deployed?” Alexis inquired.

“Three days from now,” Lares said, breaking his silence. “We’ll send you the full mission briefing later tonight, but I recommend that you all start to brief your teams as soon as you can. Also, while I’m sure that this goes without saying, do not, I repeat, do not mention this operation to anyone else outside of this room, apart from one another and your teams. Clear?” The four leaders nodded in agreement. “Good. Then, you’re dismissed.”

“Eric, stay behind a bit longer,” Kasmine ordered.

The two boys stopped, exchanged glances; Eric shrugged and Dead Eye nodded back. Dead Eye went out first, holding the door behind him and Raena quickly exited, cursing under her breath. Alexis patted Eric on the arm as she passed him and left, followed close behind by Dead Eye.

“Is there something else?” Eric asked.

Kasmine stood up and said, “Follow me.”

***

Kasmine lead Eric, Lares and Harbinger to a building located right in the middle of the Ferris grounds.

It was a large steel dome that glistened brightly in the sun with two giant twenty foot tall emerald coloured mechs standing at the steel doors. They were armed with huge cannons and, when they saw Kasmine approaching, they stepped out of her way and let them pass. She walked up to the door, pressed her hand against a data pad beside it, and, after confirming her identity, the doors slowly slid open.

Inside, there was even more security.

For the most part, the interior of the dome looked like any other office building that you’d find in Imperial. Desks and cubicles pushed together in small groups and in lines around the room, private offices and conference rooms along the walls and vending machines for food and drink. However, spread amongst the normal office environment were weapons, defence turrets and mechs.

Even behind the front desk to the dome there were two turrets which were aimed right at where Eric and the others were standing.

Eric could tell that the building wasn’t just powered with electricity but also with magic as well; he could feel it flowing strong throughout the building, leading deep beneath where he was stood.

“Isn’t this a bit much for one building?” Eric thought aloud.

“It needs it,” Lares said. “Between the turrets and the mechs, there are a few hundred general affairs workers here too, all of whom have received advanced combat training and are all certified members of the Guardians.”

Kasmine lead them across the wide open hall and to a grey corridor at the far end that was guarded by even more security. Two mechs and four armed guards watched as the group passed through; the guards saluted whereas the mechs simply looked straight ahead.

“I’m afraid it’s a bit of a long walk,” Kasmine said, amused with herself.

Then, as if she had summoned it, a small car appeared before them which looked like a golf cart with a long trolley attached to its back.

“And, because it’s such a long walk,” She continued, skipping onto the cart, spinning around and offering her hand to Eric. “We have these.”

Eric took her hand and she pulled him into the seat beside him. Lares scooted alongside them and Harbinger waited outside. He was too big, far too big, to fit into the cart. He simply looked at Kasmine before beginning a slow jog down the corridor.

“Is he going to run all the way there?” Eric asked.

“Don’t worry, he’ll be fine,” Lares said. “Despite how he looks, he’s pretty agile.”

I find that very hard to believe, Lucifer thought.

My thoughts exactly, Eric agreed.

The driver took them down the long corridor at a slow pace, barely ten miles an hour, but they easily overtook Harbinger as he ran beside them. To Eric’s surprise, the corridor was not a straight line; it bent and curved around at seemingly random intervals and went on a slight downwards incline.

They had already been travelling for three minutes straight, passing security cameras, turrets and emergency doors ready to be sealed on a moment’s notice, unmanned mechs flanking them along the way.

Whatever was at the end of this corridor, they didn’t want it taken by anyone or thing.

After another minute, they arrived at their destination.

“Where are we going?” Eric asked.

“The vault,” Kasmine answered.

If it’s a vault, what the hell do they keep in it?

Hmm, I could take a few guesses, Lucifer muttered.

They turned one final corner and Eric found himself face to face with a gigantic steel coloured door which was as tall as his team’s house and twice as wide. The cart pulled up to the side of it and they all climbed out of it, just as Harbinger caught up to them, seemingly not out of breath from his long run.

“How long is that tunnel?” Eric asked.

“Hmm, about a mile in total, I think,” Kasmine casually said, unsure of it herself. “Right now, we’re underneath Ferris and quite a bit below sea level.”

Eric’s jaw dropped a little and he found himself staring at the door again, intimidated by its sheer size as it loomed over them.

I have a terrible feeling about this, Eric thought.

Agreed, Lucifer said, materialising beside him, catching Eric and Lares off-guard. Lucifer let out a loan groan and stretched. “Sorry, but it’s been a while since I last moved around and I wanted to get some fresh air.”

“You’re a spirit made of mist,” Eric reminded him.

“The feeling is all the same,” Lucifer replied, grinning.

“Right…”

“Hmm, so this is what he looks like?” Kasmine whispered, moving closer to examine him. She scanned and sniffed along his arms and chest and then smiled. “A pleasure to meet you, Lucifer, although I guess you’re already fully aware of who I am, aren’t you?”

“Indeed,” Lucifer said. “Still, my sentiments are the same. You’ve fascinated me greatly whilst I’ve been with Eric and I’ve always wanted to talk to you.”

“I’m honoured, but we’ll have to postpone it I’m afraid. Serious business comes first.”

Lucifer chuckled. “How unfortunate.”

“Why are we here?” Eric asked, his nerves shaking his voice.

“Because we’ve kept you in the dark too long about a lot of things,” Kasmine said, her distaste evident in her tone. She walked up to the vault door and started the long process of opening it.

She took out a key card, ran it along the scanner and it made a sound of approval. Kasmine then placed her eyes, her thumbs, her index fingers and a drop of her blood into the door, earning several more buzzes of approval.

“A little much, isn’t it?” Lucifer mused.

Kasmine snorted as the door slowly began to open. She turned to face them, a sombre expression on her face. “It’s not even remotely enough for what’s inside.”

As the door opened, a chilling cold breeze flew at them, causing only Eric to shiver, as if everyone else there was used to it. They walked into an expansive main room made of metal that had hundreds of vaults on either side of it; some were as small as letter boxes, whereas others were the size of bank vaults.

Lares and Kasmine moved to a rather tall vault door at the end of the corridor and they each took out a security card. They slid them down two slots at either side of the door and it buzzed in approval. The door moved an inch, providing them with just enough room for a breeze to flow. Lares grasped onto a handle beside him and, with all his might, began to open it.

It gradually opened and then the four of them went inside.

To Eric’s surprise, there was barely anything inside the vault door, only a lone, stone pillar with a black gem stone about the size of his fist resting on top of a purple velvet pillow on it.

“What is that?” Eric asked, cocking his head a little. He started to walk towards it but Lares snatched his hand, holding him in place. “Uncle Lares?”

“Even though I know you wouldn’t do anything stupid like touch it, I still don’t want you to get too close to it,” Lares said, releasing him.

“Why isn’t this stone in one of the smaller vaults given its size?”

“We don’t store things in here based on their size alone,” Kasmine began, walking towards the pillar and resting her hands either side of the pillow. “What you’re seeing right now is one of the Six Elemental Stones; The Death Stone.”

Eric felt the blood drain from his face and he stared at the stone again, seeing the magic held within crackle and explode.

“The Elemental Stones are real?” Eric asked.

“Unfortunately, yes,” Lares answered.

“Eric, what do you know about them?” Kasmine asked.

“Um, just what I’ve read in the legends about them.”

In the stories that Eric had read, the Elemental Stones were gifts from the Old Gods of the first civilisation who, before vanishing into thin air, gave humanity the Stones, granting humanity the gift of Magic. However, the Stones were lost soon after the Old Gods left and many thought that they never existed in the first place.

“So, the romanticised version, huh? Well, the reality is far more terrifying. Elemental Stones are some of the most powerful artefacts known in the mortal world. Put simply, they are the six magical schools incarnate. The stone that you see before you is the Death Stone. Anyone who wields one of these stones is automatically granted complete mastery over that school of magic.”

“If I picked up that Stone, I would have more raw power as a Necromancer than both Spike and Sapphire,” Lares elaborated. “Still, without the proper training, you wouldn’t be able to use the Stone’s full potential. With the correct training however, you’d almost be invincible.”

“If you have such a powerful artefact, why not use it against your enemies?” Lucifer asked, reaching out to touch it and his invisible hand passed through it. “Surely you could do with someone that powerful on your side, no?”

“People have waged entire wars in the past to get their hands on these and, if the wrong person got their hands on this or any of the other stones, it would be a global crisis.” Lares shot the stone a grimacing look. “Especially this one.”

“Why?”

“Out of the six schools of magic, Death Magic is the most powerful and it’s one of the more difficult ones to properly use and master,” Kasmine explained. “The four fundamental elements, Earth, Air, Water and Fire, can be mastered with proper training in a matter of years. Light Magic is tough to master, but mastery can be achieved. Death Magic, however, is nearly impossible to master.”

“Why’s that?” Eric asked.

“To become a master of a school of magic means to become one with that element,” Kasmine continued. “Thus, only one person in recorded history has ever mastered Death Magic.”

“Lich,” Lares hissed through his teeth.

“You would know him best as Spike’s master,” Kasmine added.

“Lich has become one with his element, Death, and therefore he cannot be killed by anything,” Kasmine said. “Old age, thirst, hunger, disease, wounds; none of these have killed him yet and I doubt any of them ever will.”

“How long has he been alive then?” Eric wondered aloud.

Lares grunted. “He says he’s lost count himself.”

“So, if someone were to start using the Death Stone, then they would become like Lich?”

“Hmm, not quite,” Kasmine said, wincing a little. “They wouldn’t be immortal like he is but their strength would be considerably close to his.”

“Given how powerful the Stones are, I assume that they’re all locked down here,” Lucifer said.

“Unfortunately not,” Lares whispered.

“We know the location of five of them,” Kasmine continued. “The Death Stone is right here, before your very eyes. The Earth Stone is in the hands of the Old Sage, sealed a few dozen miles beneath the Earth. The Water Stone is at the deepest part of the ocean in a sealed vault which Lich himself put down there, so we don’t have to worry about anyone getting that sometime soon.

“The Air Stone is also down here in another vault like this one. The Fire Stone used to be hidden in the larva of an active volcano. A few years ago, a Pyromancer in the China Province of the Xishuipo Kingdom claimed to have it and handed it to the Queen which she’s put in her family’s safe for protection. The public, however, don’t know that and most, like you, don’t even know the Stones exist.”

“The Light Stone is unaccounted for then?” Lucifer mused and Kasmine nodded. “Has it ever been found?”

“There aren’t any historical or legendary records of someone using the Stone but, given how the school is entirely beneficial magic, we don’t have to worry too much about it,” Lares said.

“Why not destroy the Stones then?” Eric suggested.

Kasmine smiled and laughed bitterly. “People have tried to do that for centuries, Eric, centuries. Most recently, we lent the Death Stone temporarily to the Cube research facility to see if they could find a way to destroy but, well, you know what happened to there.”

“Wait.” Eric suddenly realised why Kasmine had brought him down here today. “Is this what Phantom have been after all this time? They attacked the Kremlin and the Cube for this?”

“Not just there,” Kasmine replied. “They struck several dummy sites as well, and they even levelled a British navy base to force us to hand the Stone over. In total, just this year, Phantom have claimed around ten thousand lives just to get this Stone.”

“T-Ten thousand?” Eric shouted, glaring at the Stone again furiously. “Why?”

“Because their leader wants to kill you.”

Eric’s body immediately went numb.

“What?” He whimpered.

“Headmistress, don’t mislead my nephew like that,” Lares said, his irritation evident. “It’s not you they want dead; it’s Lucifer.”

Eric and Lucifer looked at one another, causing the mist to sigh a little. “So it really was him,” the Devil mumbled.

“The Archangel Michael,” Lares stated. “Once, he was a nice man named Michael Angelson. He is the CEO and founder of Angel Tech Industries and was the wielder of the God Armour belonging to the Archangel Michael. Well, was.”

“He…he took over his body?” Eric weakly asked.

“Soon after the Death Stone came into our custody, Michael asked me for a favour. He wanted to use the Death Stone to kill Lucifer; I said no, of course. I wasn’t going to let anyone use the Death Stone, especially to try and kill a God that we didn’t even know existed in our world. We don’t know when exactly the Archangel killed our friend Michael, but it was shortly after he graduated Ferris and took over his family’s business that Phantom first began to surface. He used its funds and its technology to make them the lethal force that they are today.

“After waiting all of this time and building his army, Michael has made it his mission to acquire the Death Stone and use it to destroy the God living in your arm. In order to achieve that, he’s killed hundreds, no, more likely thousands personally to do so. Just killing the host of the God Armour is pointless and the Armours themselves can’t be destroyed, though maybe your God Weapon has the power to do. So, in order to kill Lucifer’s soul without him taking a mortal body, Michael needs the Death Stone.”

“You knew all of this and still gave the Stone to the Cube?” Eric asked, spitting as he spoke. “You knew that all you had to do was-”

“Eric, don’t try to make it sound so simple,” Lares said, cutting him off. “If we handed Michael the Death Stone, not only would it tarnish the reputation of the Guardians, but it would also be handing a mass murderer and monster an all-powerful weapon of death. We also have no guarantee that after using it once to kill Lucifer that Michael would be able to let it go and that the power wouldn’t consume him.”

“It’s just as Lares says,” Kasmine interjected. “Even the attacks at the ADAM HQ was a dummy base, but the Russian assured the UN security council that if Phantom did attack, then they’d be able to handle it. Clearly, they couldn’t and over a thousand people died when the Kremlin was destroyed.”

“Jesus,” Eric whispered and Lucifer twitched a little.

“in order to put an end to Michael’s crusade for vengeance, we’re going to strike at and destroy all of Phantom’s bases and their forces, stopping them once and for all,” Kasmine sternly stated, a deadly gaze in her eyes. “As we don’t have a God Armour user available among the active Guardians other than you who can match his strength, we need you to personally face and defeat Michael.”

“I-I have to?”

“Even if you try to avoid it, Michael won’t give up until he finds you. That’s why I arranged for you to get as much training and experience as possible this year. I sent you to fight Bunny to see what you could do in a live combat situation, I ordered Sapphire to train you with your magic to get you to use your Armour at a greater level; once you’d unlocked your God Weapon, I ordered Takahiro to teach you how to sword fight. All of this, all of your training and extracurricular activates were conducted to prepare you to face him.

“I know that I’m asking you is outrageous and that it’s unfair to ask so much of you, but I assure you that there is no other way. Eric, you are our best hope of stopping him.”

Unable to handle the insane amount of pressure that had just been dropped onto his shoulders and the crushing sense of fear and dread that he felt in his stomach, Eric could only let out a nervous laugh, scratching the back of his head.

“No pressure, then?”