Chapter 30: Chapter 29: Abyss Mana

Aleph listened intently as Rayse finished his report. The other two filled in when they could, and what had happened lined up perfectly: They had attacked two separate portals in a day, hoping that their swiftness would unbalance the enemies, but they were outmaneuvered at the second target, where the army used the portal to hide their true forces. They managed to claw their way out of the trap, but that left everyone either wounded or depleted of their mana. On top of it all, Rayse had used Berserk on Brandon out of desperation, compounding its side effects to his friends' wounds. Their injuries had been treated with the potions they had brought, but the numbness he felt hadn't subsided, which was the reason Lacey was angry. They had another row once they got to that part of the story.

"...We had that under control, Ray!"

"'Under control' my foot! You were laid out on the floor, dummy! We'd be picking you out of demon birds' teeth if I hadn't stepped in!"

"I! HAD! THEM! If Bran hadn't killed them, I would have!"

"You were laid out on the floor! How could you possibly-"

"Enough." Aleph stepped in at this moment.

"As your master, I'm glad you all survived. I had been overcome by our enemies' unexpected cunning once before, so I am happy you did not suffer the same fate. However-" He looked at each of them in turn.

"Knowing what you are all capable of, I am terribly disappointed. Lacey, did you show them Wind Wall?"

"N-no, master." came her shy reply.

"Show them now, if you please."

"Wind Wall."

The smoke from the fire pit locked into place. Brandon and Rayse just looked on, expecting something to happen. When nothing apparent came up, they just shot Lacey confused faces.

"What? That's it?"

"Dragonscale shield, return." Aleph said out loud. The shield on Rayse's back responded, eagerly returning to its master. He walked away from the fire, facing his disciples from a distance away.

"Siege Mode." 

"M-master, wait. That's-"

"Scale Burst."

Several metallic blades shot at Rayse and his friends. He moved to shield Lacey, who moved to cover for Brandon. It was a noble sight, but Aleph just sighed once again. The blades had gotten stuck in mid air, trapped by Lacey's wind wall, a barely visible barrier made of compressed air. He recalled the blades and sat across from them.

"This is Wind Wall, a function of the robes I made for Lacey. It's one of the ways I thought to augment what she was lacking from our training. Same goes for Scale Burst, which I made to cover for Rayse's lack of power without Berserk." Aleph sighed, not bothering to hide his disappointment.

"Brandon is the most balanced among you, but that did not stop him from getting complacent."

"Master? I-" Brandon tried to protest, but Aleph cut him off.

"Rayse knows what Berserk might do to your body, but used it anyway. If a single spell targetted you during that opening, your friends would be bringing me your lifeless corpse instead of this crippled one. He could have sacrificed your life to save Lacey's, yet you're here defending him? And you-"

He turned to Rayse, who at this point had been looking down in shame like the rest of them.

"I know you meant well, but never, ever, put your friends' lives in the balance like that. If you continue down this path, neither you, nor your friends will last the year."

The silence stretched awkwardly after that. Aleph tended to the fire, letting the children stew in their own thoughts for a bit. Their synergy had been a huge asset since the beginning, but their rapid development on their own had turned this blade onto them. It was clear that each one respected each other's ability, but they hardly knew their friends right now. If Aleph didn't say anything, they'll continue to trip over one another, needlessly trying to sacrifice themselves when they didn't need to.

A presence to his side disrupted his thoughts, reminding him of the time. Aleph cleared his throat, causing the trio to look back at him.

"I have decided." Aleph declared.

"You are not to join any further missions without me. Additionally, We end each day with a spar, so you all can start to understand how your friends have grown. You know each other very well, and can anticipate what the other would do better than any old team of veteran soldiers, but that intuition serves as poison when you have no clue what precisely each of you are capable of."

His disciples looked at each other, but Aleph couldn't tell how they were feeling.

"The spars will be one on one, either against me or each other. We shall tally the results, with the winner receiving another artifact by the end of the month. We will design it together. Is that understood?"

"""Yes, sir!"""

The trio said in unison, with only Brandon still on his back. Aleph walked over to him and touched his legs. He felt the malevolent mana that had clumped up in them and siphoned it out. He did the same to his arms.

Brandon sighed as he did so, his immediate relief evident as soon as Aleph started. Berserk's mana was powerful indeed, and even its traces washed away any drowsiness Aleph had. He stood and stretched, before walking to the back of his house.

"The night has gotten deep. Stay here for the night. Lacey, there should be room inside with the girls. Rayse and Brandon can stay beside the fire. Go prepare the cots while I get some more firewood out back."

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The three did as they were told. Aleph watched them until he rounded the corner, going to where he stored the firewood. His hand lingered at the door, casting his consciousness outward. Sure enough, the presence had followed him.

"What is it, Iona?" He asked out loud.

"Mister Aleph. Sorry, I came at an awkward time." She did not miss a beat, like she expected this reaction from him.

"You are as much their instructor as I, and I am sure you agree with my assessment of them, but we can discuss that later. Why have you come?"

"...It's one of my men. He was terribly wounded in the raid." Iona sighed.

"Ah. Sir Eric was it? Is it so grave that the potions weren't enough?" Aleph was surprised. From what his disciples told him, he was rendered unconscious by an emissary's spell.

"His body is fine. Your concoctions did wonders on that front, but he remains unconscious, and has been since the fight. Could I bother you to look at him? You're the only other one around that has any healing mana."

Aleph looked back at his house, where his disciples had surely gone to bed. They did a good job hiding it, but the raid and subsequent escape had taken everything out of them. Sure that he wouldn't be missed, Aleph assented.

"Lead the way."

Iona dashed back into town with Aleph in tow, not even bothering to hide this time. She lept, casting small explosions below her feet that propelled her dozens of meters at a time. Aleph followed suit, his vambraces emitting blue light as he lept. He pointed his hands behind his back, ejecting blue energy that worked similarly to Iona's spell. Iona looked at him for a moment, and the scholar in her made itself known for a split second. She kept her questions to herself though, surprising Aleph. 

She must be worried about Eric, he thought.

They traveled in silence up until they entered the inn. Iona lept right into an open window, beckoning Aleph inside before going in herself. He found Eric inside, tended to by a dozing Brig, who had jostled awake when they entered.

"Wha- dammit, Iona! Go through the door like a normal person, will ya!?" he hissed.

"No time. I brought Aleph to see if he could help."

Aleph was at Eric's side at once, checking his condition. Like Iona said, he found no visible wounds, nor any bruises. His breaths were even, but anything he did to him did not garner a response. Curious.

"Tell me what happened."

"Well, we got ambushed at the second portal. A group of emissaries teleported in as soon as we arrived, blocking our attempts to destroy the anchor." Brig explained.

"We bombarded them with our strongest spells, but their combined might was difficult to break through. They fired right back, putting us on the defensive. One must have gotten through and hit him, because he fell soon after that. Iona ordered me to get out with him first, so I picked him up and left to join with Luke and the others. We got hit with a few wind blades on the way, but my own magic saved us from the brunt of it."

"It took everything out of me just to break through and even hit the damn thing." Iona said bitterly. Aleph almost found that hard to believe. In terms of raw mana, she almost had just as much as Carrack. It just showed how dangerous emissaries were.

He touched Eric, sensing for any anomalies in his body. Surprisingly, he found traces of the same malevolent mana that he had just taken from Brandon. This spell converged on his head and heart, far more dangerous places for it to linger.

"Back away." He warned, as the two obliged. He prepared to siphon the abyss mana from the man, opting to do so much more carefully this time. He asked Iona for empty mana crystals, to which he would divert this evil magic. If taking in a miniscule amount of it had affected him so, this much would half crippled him outright.

The work lasted throughout the night, making slow progress in fears of causing irreparable damage. The traces of Berserk helped massively here, keeping Aleph alert and keeping him from making mistakes due to lack of sleep. By the time a distant rooster crowed, There were dozens of purple orbs lying on the floor.

Aleph sat back in exhaustion, wiping at the beads of sweat that had formed on his forehead. Brig had fallen asleep beside him, but Iona silently watched his progress throughout the night. Seeing him stop, she finally got the courage to speak.

"How did it go?" She asked hopefully.

"...I am not sure. I have taken out every last bit of abyss mana in his veins, so if Brandon's condition is any indication, we should see results come soon."

The pair looked on in silence, almost staring holes into the unconscious man and willing him awake. The sun had fully risen at this point, but not much has changed. Aleph thought the man looked asleep instead of unconscious now, but that may have been wishful thinking on his part. A few more minutes passed until Iona stood, thanking Aleph for his services.

"Thanks, Mister Aleph. You're a true godsend."

Aleph wryly smiled at her turn of phrase, finding strange humor in them.

"I wish I could do more, my lady."

"We have done all we can for now. Why don't you go get some rest, I'll call on you when-"

Iona froze, before practically pushing Aleph aside to look at Eric. Aleph turned to see him sitting up, looking around disoriented. He seemed normal enough.

"Eric! How do you feel?"

"Oh, hello captain. Why have you come here so early?…and who might this be?"

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