Eight Intertwined

5 - Guardian

Ophilia's first step against the Guardian of the First Flame was to hit it with her staff with as much strength as she could muster. She could tell that it didn't do all that much to help her cause though, and the Guardian barely seemed to notice that she had done anything at all. A few tiny pebbles came off from the spot where she made contact, but that was the only cue that she had done anything of note. This was going to be much more difficult than fighting the wolves and bats throughout the rest of the cave, but Ophilia was up for the challenge. She knew that she was going to have to find a way to succeed if she was to take up the Ember and save Lianna from her own responsibility. 

The Guardian responded by slashing its long arm, the one that didn't appear as a shield, towards Ophilia. She threw up her arms to block as much of the attack as she could, but the strike still smarted more than she would have liked. She hissed in pain but recognized that she was going to be able to press on for a little while longer before she needed to take a chance to heal with a grape. She followed up with another strike with her staff, smiling to herself when she saw another flurry of pebbles fly free of the Guardian's body. As far as she could tell, she would defeat the Guardian of the First Flame after its body had completely crumbled under the result of her actions. It was a being made of rocks, and Ophilia was confident that forcing the remaining stones away from its core would end the battle and mark her as worthy to take up the Ember and continue her journey. 

Ophilia was ready for another physical attack, but she was surprised when the Guardian didn't lash out with its arm. Instead, it pointed towards her, and the air around Ophilia began to buzz with something that almost felt alive. She didn't realize that the Guardian was summoning magic until it was too late, and she felt the full force of an attack of Fire magic. The attack didn't hurt as much as she was anticipating though, and Ophilia recognized that her affinity for magic had likely defended her from the impending attack. She was silently thankful that she had decided to take up the arcane arts rather than physical combat since it appeared to have saved her skin. 

Ophilia was quick when she struck the Guardian's body next, and with a few quick blows from her staff, she was able to leave her foe dizzy and stumbling. Ophilia gasped to herself and smiled silently. This was her chance to attack with everything she had, and she wasn't about to allow it to pass her by. Ophilia pressed her hands together and called upon the magic that stirred just beneath the surface before focusing on the light thriving inside of her body. A few moments later, a pillar of light erupted in front of her, and Ophilia smiled at the sight of the Guardian's pebbles once again beginning to disperse. She had done more than she thought, it seemed, not that she was complaining. Ophilia allowed herself a moment of pride, though it didn't last long.

The Guardian came back to its senses while she was celebrating her brief triumph, and it hit her roughly with its blade-like arm. Ophilia could see blood starting to flow down the side of her face, and she realized that this was the time for her to focus on recovery. She dug a healing grape out of her bag and shoved it into her mouth before chewing and swallowing as quickly as possible. The Guardian took this brief distraction as a chance to attack, slicing its blade towards her. Ophilia jumped backwards just in time to keep from being hit before rushing forward. 

Ophilia desperately slammed her staff into the Guardian with as much force as she could muster, repeating her earlier motions. If she could leave the Guardian, which appeared to be susceptible to her staff attacks, dizzy, then she would be able to follow up with her more powerful light magic strikes. Ophilia decided that this plan was as good as any, and she focused on hitting the Guardian with her staff before it realized what was happening. 

As soon as the Guardian's defenses were down, Ophilia took a grounding breath before forcing the buzz of magic out through her fingertips. She was getting better at it as far as she could tell, and the power seemed to flow naturally to her in a way that she could have never anticipated. She watched as a significant chunk of rock fell off the Guardian at its shoulder, leaving the blue veins of its shield exposed to the cold air of the Cave of Origin. It was a weakness that Ophilia would be able to exploit, and she fully intended to take advantage of it.