Chronicles of the Rising
Book One - Omega
Chapter One - A Lesson (part 2)
~*Galen*~
"I beg your pardon." Seethed the smaller man. The air seemed to be vibrating around him.
"Ah ha! I already have him begging. Hurry up and go tame the beast, Strom." Roared one the warriors.
"Njord, stop." Strom quietly warned the man.
"Why, is the little Omega going to cry?" Teased another, who I just noticed looked exactly like the man next to him. Twins I guessed.
"Fjord, the man is here as a representative of Hallow Bastion, show him the respect his position deserves." Strom began to sound tired, I was assuming this was a regular habit of the two, teasing the younger Alpha.
Fjord. . .and . . . Njord. I was never going to take a Jotun seriously ever again.
"Actually, I'd love to see what all the fuss is about. Everyone seems to tiptoe around the tiny man and I want to know why." The third one mused.
"Freyr, stop. I have to go with them to Hallow Bastion, you're making things worse for me." pleaded the alpha next to me.
"Then let us see what full fledged warriors of Jotunhiem have to offer in the way of a challenge." Aurum's voice drifted across the arena. All three Jotuns turned to face him now.
"I'd rather challenge your flexibility later tonight." Freyr leered back at him.
"Big words from someone who seems to be sufferings from cold shrinkage." The smaller man smirked back.
The ground began to tremble slightly. "Aurum-" His eyes snapped over to me with that cold piercing stare, warning me to choose my words carefully. I closed my mouth. Even if I didn't agree with this, I'd never openly undermine him. We'd argue privately later. . .when he'd had time to cool off and be more open to suggestions.
Satisfied with my silence Aurum turned his attention back to the three Alphas who had summed their Aegis. All three of them only contained bits and pieces of water aligned armor. The Twins had opposing armor in which one had bracers on his arms that also covered his upper arms and shoulder plates. His brother had Grieves and plates protecting his thighs. The third, Freyr had a chest plate alone with a small section extending down to cover his abdomen.
"Going to put your blessings where your mouth is?" Aurum teased.
"Oh, I plan on blessing your mouth with something soon." Freyr growled with murder in his eyes.
I continued to make my way slowly out of the arena with Strom trailing me like a worried puppy.
"He's not going to hurt them too badly, is he?" He whispered while shooting nervous glances between the men squaring off.
"That depends on how loudly they beg for forgiveness before he's done with them." I muttered back.
A loud echoing crack brought my attention back to see who was throwing the first punch
The arena split open from where Freyr had slammed his fist in to the ground and a fissure formed and began to race towards Aurum, who calmly tapped his staff against the ground and the crack immediately stopped. He flicked the staff upwards towards his three oponents and a wave of lava gushed up from the opening towards them.
Freyr let out a shout of alarm and held his arms out and a gush of water came forth to meat the molten earth. The resulting steam cloud exploded out around the giants temporarily conealing them from view.
Aurum stood watching passively waiting for their next move. The steam whipped upwards in a rush as one of the twins flew up through the air while the other two men came sprinting out opposite sides. They were going to attempt to flank Aurum. I glanced over to see he wasn't even paying attention to the two racing towards him, his attention remained on the airborn twin.
The airborn twin came to a hault and wickedly sharp looking shards of ice fused out of the air around him. with a flick of his hand his sent them hurtling towards the stationay Omega. His brother skidded to a stop off to Aurum's left and stomped on the ground and raised his arms pulling up a large chunk of rock and tossed it across the arena at his opponent.
I watched with a sense of dread as Aurum just stood there with two attacks coming his way. I took a step forward readying myself to help my partner when Aurum simple stepped back and tilted his staff at the boulder coming at him. The chunk of rock slowed and the incoming ice shards crashed in to it.
I looked on as Aurum held his staff up and the boulder lifted higher in to the sky. It began to heat up and melt. I tried to keep my face as nuetral as I could watching him use that much energy to super heat cold hard rock that quickly. I focused my attention on the choker around his neck, the cyrstal imbeded within began to glow softly. He was using too much power too quickly.
Molten rock swirled and churned in the air, even from our postion across the arena the heat could be felt. Aurum arced his staff wide above his head and the liquid rock split and flew off towards his attackers on either side of him. He lauched himself off the ground at the twin still hovering in the sky.
All three snapped out of their revere at the display of strength and skill. Freyr brought up his arms in a defensive stance and a wall of water sprang up to again stop the superheated rock from searing him a crisp, the twin across from him did similar.
Aurum raced towards his target and swiped his taff at the man just to have him slide sideways in the air to avoid being struck.
"Nyord was always an adapt flier. I don't think your counterpart will have much luck out manuevering him."
I glanced at the Alpha next to me. "You've never seen Aurum fly. Nor have you seen him truly fight." Strom looked on skeptically.
Aurum stopped, turned and with a pulling motion, ripped Nyord to him with a blast of wind. Nyord let out a cry of surprise just before Aurum punched him full force in the chest. Normally, an Earth blessing grants it's user increased strength, but said Blessed at to be on the ground to be able to utilize the attribute. In all my centuries with the Guardians, never have I met anyone able to use their Earth blessing's strength while airborn, save one.
Nyord went hurtling back down to the arena with a scream and bounced off the ground and didn't move. Fyord stared at the still form of his brother before letting out a cry of rage as he ripped up pieces of the arena and sent them flying towards Aurum.
The Omega flipped backwards away from the rocks and landed back down on the arena and Freyr made his move as a torrent of water swirled around him. Aurum raised his staff over head and the water flowed up away from him. Freyr growled in frustration as he tried to unsuccessfully force the water back down upon the smaller man. Aurum raised his free hand and made a fist causing ice to form around Freyr up to his neck and immibilizing him.
The water begain to flow towards Fyord and the Jotun quickly threw up a wall of stone to cut off the surge. The water simply flowed around the wall and trapped him similarly to Freyr before freezing in to ice.
"Stupid welps. Our honor as warriors is at stake." I looked over as more Jotuns began to step up to the fringes of the arena. "Can't let this pathetic display represent our prowess in battle." The old scarred man jumped down in to the arena and a yellow breastplate formed up on his torso. The Aegis of one aligned with Wind. More Jotun warriors began to flood the arena. All set with the intent to prove their Alpha superiority over an Omega.
I took a hesitant step towards the arena. There were over twenty men now rushing towards my partner and standing here didn't sit well with me.
"Shouldn't you go help him?" Strom leaned over nodding towards the source of all the uproar. "You can't tell me this is even remotely a fair fight."
I shrugged. "It remains to be seen in whom's favor the odds lie."
Strom just looked me up and down. "You can't possibly be suggesting that he can take on all those men. Twenty highly trained Jotun warriors."
I looked him dead in the eyes as I said my next statement so that there was no chance he wouldn't hear or misunderstand me. "There's a reason you're being sent to Hallow Bastion for training and not staying here to be instructed by, " I used air quotes. " 'trained Jotun warriors'."
I let my gaze wander back out across the arena as Aurum began to move between the warriors. He deflected, stopped or redircted attacks of water, wind, ice, rock and combinations inbetween. I just stared in amazement as the man I've known for the better part of an Eon danced in out out of danger. He slipped between opponents and sent them flying with physical blows while avoiding certain death being rained down on him from above, below or from all sides.
"I'll never question him again." Strom whispered, whether it was for me or for himself, I wasn't too sure.
I watched the Crystal around his neck start to glow brighter and brighter as the battle went on. This couldn't go on much longer.
Aurum jumped in the air and came down at a warrior clad only in a helm of deep green who held up his arms to block the blow. His Earth alignment wouldn't save him from the blow that was coming his way. Generally speaking, ones strength in their Alignment was displayed through how much of a complete Aegis they could manifest.
I quickly summoned a small airflow to my mouth and sent it to the man's ear so he could hear me over the sounds of the wounded and failed attacks. "I wouldn't, you'll fold like paper from a blow coming from that staff." The look of shock on his face was almost comical as he darted out of the way. Aurum came crashing down to the grounds seconds later shattering the earth around him for ten feet. The look he shot over his shoulder at me wasn't friendly. I'd pay for that later.
"His temper hasn't gotten any better after all these centuries, has it?" came a gravelly voice from behind me.
I gave a small start as a weathered old woman stepped up next to me. She was hunched over with a gnarled old cane helping her stand. Her faded robes matched her appearance, aged and worn.
"Madam Lagertha!" I quickly pressed my fist over my chest and bowed. "This time it's a matter of wounded pride. Alpha pride to be more specfic. However, in answer to your question, no, it hasn't. He just wasn't the one to start the fight this time." I informed her as I stood at attention.
"I see. So, it is a much needed humbling experience for my men then." Her smile was one of understanding.
Aurum spun his staff overhead kicking up a whirlwind around him and blasting everyone away to the edges of the arena. He slammed the saff down and large metal blades sprang up in a circle around him. "Let your pride be your own undoing." A pulsing hum began to fill the area.
"The scorned maiden." I uttered.
"What? What maiden, and why is she scorned?" Strom looked around trying to understand.
I chuckled. "It's not a person per se, it's a technique combining Earth, Fire and Soul Blessings. Only one with Blessings of both Earth and Fire can manipulate metal to their will. Combining that with a strong Soul Blessings you complete the move known as 'The Scorned Maiden'." I took note the crystal was beginning to blaze brightly around the Omega's neck. I would need to intervene soon, consequences be damned.
"How does a Blessing of Soul play in to that?" He was watching intently as his fellow Jotuns were slowly being pulled towards Aurum. They were desparetly trying to grab on to anything near them to keep from being dragged and impaled on the blades of metal.
"Normally the Meta-Metal of an Aegis isn't magnetic, however, when one combines their Sould blessing with the their metal manipulation abilities, they can become magnetized and drawn to your source of metal. In this case. the ring of blades around Aurum. The term "The Scorned Maiden' comes from the idea that on a sunny day the metal blades shine and almost hypnotize the victims, much like a beatufil woman draws a man to her with her charm only to be spurned for their advances." Strom just looked over at me with a look that said he didn't understand anything I just said.
Screaming began to ring out over the hum with pleas for mercy and forgiveness as the group of Alphas slid too close to the blades and were at risk of being impaled.
"Lord Aurum, if you please, I believe the lesson has been learned. My people have been thoroughly humbled by your prowess on the battlefield." Lagertha's voice rang out over the steady hum signaling her use of a Wind Blessing to increase the power of her voice.
The hum stopped and Aurum turned to face us. "As you wish, Lagertha." The blades slid back in to the ground and with a wave of his staff all the broken bits and pieces of the arena sunk back in to the Earth and the rift sealed shut. He gave a little nod to the leader of Jotunheim,
There was a sudden crack like rocks breaking and a blinding flash of light arced across the arena. I threw up my hands as the thunderbolt hit Aurum dead on.
Comments (1)
See all