Aether Beasts

It was far more unpleasant than I'd expected, walking through the dark tunnel. It was pitch black which meant I couldn't see a thing and even the smallest noises seemed to echo through the passage, not to mention the fact that I had to focus on Sandra, who was in front of me, so I didn't get lost. At one point I'd looked away for a second and had gotten lost which at first seemed impossible since it was a single sight shot down the tunnel but the tunnel width wasn't anything to scoff at. I'd bumped into a wall and Sandra had been forced to come back for me.

I hadn't been able to see her face, but I was almost certain she found it funny from the light giggling I heard.

Green pulse was useless since there was no greenery or nature down here, and Zirani hadn't had time to teach me any form of dark sight or technique that might help with this situation. Perhaps if I'd been at a higher level of aether infusion I might have been able to see more, but I wasn't. I was only at the first level, which was the most and least impactful of the lot. It allowed you to form your first core but also didn't really change much physically compared to the other levels. All it did was enhance your body, and while I could see better, it wasn't by much and certainly not in pitch black dark.

The smell and air of the place didn't help either. It was very dank and smelled of old mold and gods knew what else. The entire thing reminded me of some of the horror books my aunty had. I knew that we'd been told there wasn't anything down here, but I couldn't help but be on edge. I couldn't see anything, I was sweating profusely, and my nose was filled with an awful scent.

"How much longer?" I asked as we walked down the tunnel.

"It's only been a few minutes," Sandra replied. "Are you really that uncomfortable?"

"Unlike you or Misty, I can't see well in the dark.," I answered sharply. "And I don't have a dark affinity, so this isn't an ideal place I want to be."

"I don't mind it." Sandra shrugged. "Though the smell is a bit too much and I'm starting to sweat. You know I never thought I'd say this, but I'm a bit jealous of you Misty."

"Jealous?" Misty asked in confusion. "I'm just a—"

She caught herself before she could finish the sentence, but it was far too late and I felt a burst of annoyance from Zirani.

"You look like something out of a fairy tale. Pale skin, silver hair, and that body. You also don't ever seem to get tired or sweat."

"Her body temperature always stays the same," I explained. "Zirani told me that Aether vampires have a lot of benefits that we don't get until later on, but it's not like they don't have their own problems and downsides."

"You're right," Sandra conceded. "But I'm still jealous."

"Don't you have your own bloodline?" I asked. "And a powerful one from the way Zirani talked about it."

"I do, but I can't control it and I'm never going to learn what it can truly do until I reunite with my family. They've had this bloodline for a very long time and know how best to use it and I'm not the only one with a bloodline, you have the arch vein bloodline. I don't know much about it, but you can take in an aether beast completely into your core, body, mind, and soul and you got really lucky with Zirani. You never said how powerful she used to be."

"She was at the 7th level of infusion," I said.

Sandra froze for a moment and I almost ended up bumping into her.

"Seventh level? You're serious?'

I nodded and motioned for her to start walking again. "I don't know how many cores she had or what density they were, but from what she'd told me she was very strong."

"I'll bet," Sandra muttered. "How the hell did you end with her? I can't image a seventh-level aether beast lowering themselves to bond with a new arcanist, no offense meant."

"None taken and it's quite the odd story, but to put it shortly, neither of us really had much of a choice, not that I regret it, but at the time it was bond or die for both of us."

We continued on in silence for the rest of the trip until we finally reached the exit. There was a ladder that led up to a hole closed up by a small valve. There were a few rays of light peeking out from the edges of the exit and I grinned as I felt a slight breeze on my face.

"Finally." I sighed. "Now we can get the hell out of here."

Misty quickly climbed up and after a few tugs the exit was open and sunlight shone down into the tunnel. We all exited out and found ourselves a mile outside the city walls far from any of the paths and roads leading to the city, in fact, we weren't far off from where we'd first come from.

"All right, now we've finished the mission we just need to make sure we get back in one piece," I mused. "I'm guessing they either know we managed to pass them or that we fell back, and since Markem working with the town horn, and we ran into one of them in the city, I assume they'll send a message out, but they'll still think we're in the city for another day, so we do have a bit of a head start."

"Which way are we taking?" Sandra asked.

"The long way. We could take the short, but that had the most risk. We're not covered by a storm this time and the long way will make it harder for them to find us or catch us. We're not looking for any fights, just to get back to camp, so if we run into any disciples then we won't be fighting."

I could tell Sandra looked a bit miffed at that, but she also seemed like she understood.

"We need to get back and tell everyone of Markems betrayal," She growled. "That traitor needs to pay for what he's done."

"I agree, so let's get moving. We have at least a few hours until nightfall."

We left the city walls of Orton behind as we began our journey back to the steel heart camp. I was glad that we'd managed to complete our mission and get the letter to the mayor. Hopefully, he could help and we'd have a chance of waning this war, but now that was dealt with, I had other problems to consider. First was the matter of Makem who needed to answer for his betrayal. I wasn't too worried about the elders believing us since they could also have people check if what we were telling was true and the people of the steel heart weren't like those of the twin horn. We helped one another and they would immediately know I wouldn't make up something like that or lie about it after everything I'd done for the steel heart.

Once that was out of the way, I would just have to wait. It was clear, from what Markem and the town horn disciple he'd been talking with, that a final clash was coming, and whether or not we got reinforcements would decide whether we stood a chance of victory or not. A week or two, that's what he'd said. I'd relay the information to the elders, but I assumed they were smart enough to have guessed that by now. The twin horn seems like the type to want some major clash to show their dominance.

We stopped when night fell and made camp in a clearing between a few trees. It was a tight space, but it also covered us from almost every angle and there was only one way in and out, which was both good and bad, but the chances of being found here were slim to none, but just in case, Zirani had promised to keep watch. She'd been quiet for a while and wanted to get out a bit. As long as she didn't use any techniques then she could stay out for quite a while.

As I lay down on a moss bed and looked up at the stars I couldn't help but think of how much things had changed in the span of around three weeks. From a simple academy student in a small town to a genius of the steel heart in the middle of a war that would decide the fate of his town. If I was into wearing it might have made a damn good novel.

My eyes drooped shut as my thoughts came to crawl and soon I was out like a light under a blanket of shining stars.