The Exalt [Cultivation Fantasy]

"Oscar…." Avril said, worry laden in her voice as she traced her fingers over his furrowed brow.

"Just give me a moment," Oscar blinked, regathering his thoughts, and glanced away. The light emanating from the false depiction of the two suns on the far ceiling, two floors away, dimmed near the bottom where he and the others rested, lazy and soft rays of light passing by. Oscar could see the faint splotches of green blood that weirdly glowed like certain plants in a forest at night. Despite having confirmed it with the corpse prior, he still could scarcely believe they had won that battle.

However, a foul taste tainted the victory. The sudden interference of Saul near the end made it all seem…futile. There was no knowing what horrific powers the New Dawn might attain by experimenting on Lelith's corpse, the shard of Metures. Oscar glanced down at the lovable wife in his arms and kissed her on the crown of her head. At least her past and troubles had been settled, but not his. With that, his mind was settled. His legs tensed, and his lungs drew in a deep breath, bringing life to his tired muscles, still barely functioning. His Reistand activated, pushing the Reis in a succession of bursts on his toes, knees, and then to the hip, forcing his body to stand.

Step by step, he flowed the Reis and controlled his feet, diverting some to keep his arms up as they cradled Avril. There was a brief silence as he looked at Avila and Serit, eyeing the various wounds they had suffered. Oscar rested Avril down by Avila's side and leaned backward, stretching the torn muscles, something his master always warned him to do. "There's still someone waiting for me below. He may have been waiting for me for far longer than I can imagine. Can I entrust my wife to you two? I may be gone for a long time."

"Is that even a question to be asked? As her husband, shouldn't you be more mindful?" Avila crossed her arms and scoffed, stern and rough on him as usual, a good sign. Chuckling, she smiled and nodded, "None of us can move anyway. Go, my brother-in-law. But don't take too long, or else I'll run, taking my dear sister along. I'll graciously use the headstart you'll give us."

"Don't worry about her. I can keep watch. It's always my job to hold her back." Serit sighed a light chuckle, glancing upward, gratitude spilling forth out of the red pupils, a few unshed tears wetting the eyes, "Thank you…for avenging my family. For many years, I believed it to be impossible for me to appease their deaths. But you have. I'm sure their souls can now rest in peace, as is mine." He grabbed several times, catching his short sword and raising it toward Oscar. "Thank you, my brother. My sword is now yours."

"You're not a sword or a tool or a weapon to be discarded. Those were the mistakes of the past long ago—no more. You are a good friend and a brother. I don't require a sword." Oscar said, pushing Serit's sword away and patting his good brother-in-law on the shoulder. "That is more than enough."

"Well…that doesn't sound too bad. Not bad at all." Serit rested his arm, landing it with a thud on the ground, his short sword escaping his grip and clinking on rubble. For the first time, Oscar could see Serit was at peace, the hardened veteran of countless battles and many espionages entailing betrayals now resting with a smile of peace and comfort like floating without a care on a bed of water.

Lastly, he turned back to Avril and grasped her hands, using a few bits of Reis to move his fingers, massaging her cold palms for blood to circulate. Avril smiled brightly and watched his hands moving in silence as if she wanted to enjoy the moment. After struggling for a few seconds, Oscar picked himself back up and dragged his tired self across the path of rubble and dust, heading for the stairs that led down. The entrance was nearly collapsed, but a wide gap in the stone existed. Erden trotted over, waiting for him by the stairs.

"Oscar!" Avril called out, and he turned, confused. She stuck her thumb up and gave a wide grin, "She wants him to be safe."

Oscar laughed and returned her gesture, lifting his thumb. "And I'll make sure of it. Wait for me up there. Don't overdo it." He ducked under and passed through the gap, staring at the intact stairway to the deeper levels below. Before taking a step, he gazed up at the ceiling and passed through the faces of Hector, Helen, Auren, Restel, Kragg, Marcus, Eve, Astrid Renn, Gloria, even Maia, the Azure Sea Company captains, and all other twelve hundred men and beasts. Here, he could do nothing for them but only pray and hope for their success.

His purpose led him elsewhere, and he followed, starting his descent to the bottom floors of the dark tower. The battles above would have to wait for his return if he returned at all. The ground underneath trembled as if excited by his arrival.

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…….

"Renn! Gloria! Avril!" Maia shouted, dodging the trees in her path. For several hours now, she had soared past several rooms and floors, finding no one, absolutely nothing in her search. It helped that her body, reborn from phoenix ashes, lacked the feeling of fatigue as the flames laden in every fiber of her being never burned out. Her mental stress had already reached its peak at finding none of the people she swore to protect. If physical exhaustion was added in…she didn't want to fall into such a state.

"Huh?" She halted, flapping her red, blazing wings, the embers fizzling out before they could reach and touch a leaf. Her instincts, heightened by a phoenix's perception, sensed a danger lurking in the deep forest surrounding her. Her eyes darted in all directions, and she clicked her tongue. Whoever it was had hidden themselves quite well, someone either experienced in stealth or possessing an inherent advantage here. Either way, it didn't pressure her.

"Who is it?" Wasting no time, Maia shouted the mighty cry of a phoenix. Rings of bright flames, like the weaved threads of sunlight, expanded and washed over the forest in a fiery tide. The forest was unharmed, not even a single leaf suffering even a slight burn. Stunned, Maia flew up and plucked a leaf off its stem, feeling the strange surface of the leaf enduring the molten heat of her wings. It should have been burnt to ashes but kept its shape and was cool to the touch.

"Amazing specimens. Don't you agree?" An old woman emerged from the darkness between trees, cackling like an old witch. She clutched the head of her staff of gnarled branch and smirked, revealing half of her teeth missing. Her long green robes swayed past her feet, a modest look ruined by the nasty smile. "A forest that doesn't burn. A problem for great flames like you and others. The people who rested here knew the true beauty of the great woods."

"I have no time for the musings of an old witch." Maia didn't act and held up her guard, surging her life's fire as a protective layer. Something strange was happening. She was certain the old woman had been watching her since the start, and yet the witch found the courage to come out and ramble strange words. In her experience, only an insane person or one confident of victory would be so frontal, much like that one accursed man, Oscar. Though, in his case, he was both. As a test, Maia scattered burning feathers and sent them flying like a flurry of arrows toward the old woman.

"It's too late." The old woman cackled again. Several figures emerged from under robes and sped to a blur, spreading to block every single one of Maia's burning feathers.

Maia stared, her eyes round, at her lingering flames unable to spread and catch on these strange creatures, which were far too shocking and familiar to behold. 'Grovekeepers?' She thought as she studied the thick, bark-like skin, the glowing green eyes, and the faces of wood. These creatures bore a striking resemblance to the Grovekeepers of Ashen Grove long ago. Was it a coincidence? Bullish…it was too similar to be a coincidence.

"I've had ample time to research these plants and add their tenacity to my dear creations. Do you like them?" The old woman caressed the moss-ridden head of one of the creatures. "At first, I called them Treemen, but the name was too bland and unfit for the beauty of their existence. They are the Elder Leaves, the Elves."

"Creations…." Maia recalled a faint memory, a conversation spent with one of the wardens of the Rurin Gaols during the war, Faust. The man had bragged endlessly about his creation, the Sweeper, and used the blood of Draven to empower it. That man belonged to New Dawn, and now, this old woman appeared out of nowhere, carrying the same mentality. She narrowed her gaze and spoke, "New Dawn?"

"Ah, the daughter of the Claude and friend of the Terr would know of us. Hello, I am Isha. And I have a proposal for you, young one." Isha tapped her staff. Receiving Maia's silence as a sign of approval, she carried on, "No one in history has ever received the rebirth of the phoenix, certainly not a human. You are a fascinating girl, remade in fire and beast, a triune being of element, beast, and human. I ask for a part of your essence, an ember of your fire. In exchange–"

Maia had heard enough and swiped her hand, slicing the arm off one of her so-called Elves. The inside of the arm was made entirely of vines that resembled veins, leaking yellow liquid. She had entertained the old woman's proposal and listened but could never give up a part of her flame, sworn to protect it by the Mother Phoenix, Solara. In an icy tone contrasting her fiery form, Maia rejected Isha, "Your Elves may be resistant to burns, but flames are much more. Now get out of my way; I have to get going."

"A pity that negotiations have broken down. Young Claude, it would have served you and your loved ones better to accept. Now, I must kill you and strike fear in the hearts of the two younglings." Isha cackled, breaking her staff in a strong grip.

"She doesn't stand alone!" A voice rumbled, and a gale howled. Ashes rode the winds and gathered in a place, forming the rough shape of a human form as the rest swirled in a duststorm. "I've been searching for you, Isha of New Dawn."

"And you are?" Maia and Isha spoke at the same time. Maia raised a brow and recalled a faint memory of Avril mentioning a person made of ash.

"I am Quinn, and I am here at the behest of my grandmother, Yule, to kill you!" The monster of ash enlarged and swatted a large palm on one of the Elves. "Isha, meet your end!"

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