Magica Index: The Dark Rising (Completed)

Chapter 14: Fate of Ciandra

Ereldra eyed each one before her. She stopped on Lelli, her grin growing from the thoughts of the situation. Lelli felt a dark aura creep over and moved closer to Lina. The tiefling chuckled and took a couple of steps forward, flipping her hair.

    "I see you have a fairy with you. You know of the dangerous power they present right? Even a single hit from them can rival that of an archmage." she pointed out.
    "That's the exact reason she's with us, to get rid of forces like you standing against." Lina answered back. Ereldra laughed at her response.
    "Oh honey, I don't stand against my adversaries. I break them down and toss them in the wind." she swung her scythe forward, standing ready. "Now, come and show me what a mage can do."

Elizar and Colton went forward first, followed shortly behind by Lina and Lelli. Several casting circles spawned all around Ereldra. All of them lit up with a charging whirl before out came blades of different sorts. In a swift motion, she ducked down and canceled out each one with her own magick. Twirling back up just in time to see Elizar attack with a curved longsword. One half was a bright purple while the other half was a burgundy red, showing the weapon was infused with two different types of magick. Turning the flat part against her scythe, Elizar charged a static shock that forced Ereldra to release her weapon and leap back, opening her up for Colton to attack. Colton put together a series of runic motions with his hands, calling forth a large boulder to be launched right at her. The tiefling grinned and cast a violent gust of wind that shredded the boulder into small pebbles. Using the boulder as a distraction, Colton went to strike at her with a charged-up blast surrounded by runes of power. Ereldra went under his attack, causing him to miss and suffer a damaging blow to his ribs. Her fist tightened and was amplified by the late burst she dealt afterward. The force tossed Colton back past Elizar and Lina who were running together.

    "Nice ploy, but you'll have to work better than that." she taunted, calling back the scythe to her hand. "Now try this."

The curved blade of her scythe presented an astral projection of itself. When she swung it, the see-through blade grew in size and went out farther, easily reaching the two mages.

    "Watch out!" Elizar warned both of the girls as they all tucked and rolled from it. The wind from the attack caused them to lose slight control. Ereldra geared back and swung her weapon down into the dirt. The projection came down with an ear-piercing howl through the air. "Move!"

Lina looked up just in time to see the means to her death seconds away. She rolled out of the way before it slammed right where she was standing. A loud crash and dust was flung everywhere. When it all settled, a massive and deep hole was all that remained. Lina has never seen anything like it, unlike Lelli and the others. She slowly stood before centering back on Ereldra.

    "Damn, looks like I missed. Must be getting old." she joked with a shrug of her shoulders.
    "Lina, are you alright?!" the fairy flew over to her friend, along with Elizar and Colton.
    "Yes, I'm fine. She's strong...stronger than I thought." the half-elf looked back to the hole made in the ground, shaken that someone could even do such a thing.
    "Don't worry about that. We need to come up with a strategy. Lelli and I can provide attacks from a range while you and Colton can get in close." Elizar explained.
    "But Lelli needs Magica, and I already used the only one I have for my weapon." Lina announced, looking down at her scimitar. Colton grinned and tapped her shoulder, holding an orange one of medium size.
    "I got that covered. Here you go, little one."  Colton held it up for her. Lelli flew over and took the magica into her body, absorbing the fiery power within it. Orange and red markings began to cover her body as her wings, hair, and eyes took on the same color. The transformation caught the three mages off guard. "Woah, wasn't expecting that."

Everyone then turned to face Ereldra who was patiently waiting for their next fight to begin. Lina and Colton got ready with their weapons. The two ran forward together with Lina's blade glowing brightly. Colton reached behind his back, planting his fist into a pair of gauntlets, and pounded them together, activating their magick reserves for added effects. Ereldra smiled and spun her weapon.

    "Two against one? Now it seems like a fair match." she went to swing her scythe again, the spectral image returning before it quickly dissipated. The tip of her scythe was struck by a small crystal that shattered on impact. Ereldra looked to see the floating specks evaporate before getting struck with Colton's gauntlet.
    "Time to shut you up." he followed up with a second hit that knocked her upwards before Lina tagged in and knocked her back down with a strong wave attack. The both of them watched as rocks and debris kicked from where she landed. Silence fell on the field before two sigils with circles around them appeared beneath their feet. "Move!"

Together, they leaped away from the attacks only to see that they quickly went away. Colton saw this and gasped, turning over to Lina who saw this as well.

    "Be on guard, it's a tr-ahhhhhh!" he yelled mid-sentence as a chained hook caught his left shoulder and pulled him down into the dirt. 

Lina gazed at Colton and followed the chain to the point in the cloud where Ereldra was knocked down. She grinned and fired multiple waves of magick attacks into it, hearing each one connect with something. Afterward, another chained blade rushed out and went to grab a hold of Lina, but was soon deflected and melted in the air by an intense fireball shot by Lelli. The cloud soon cleared, showing the tiefling still holding the chain to the blade that was lodged in Colton's shoulder.

    "Not going to lie, you lot are proving more trouble than you're all worth. Quick thinkers you are, but powerful you are not. Allow me to show you what that really means." she yanked the chain with an otherworldly force, pulling Colton right to her. Lina reacted and cast a spell, a short burst in between the chain that would blow it apart. Mid spell, it was simply cast away by a much stronger one and then manipulated by Ereldra. Lina then felt a force take away her spell and drain some of her energy before a wall of spikes constructed just before Colton slammed right into them, each spike going through his abdomen and out his back. They all watched as Colton was impaled.
    "Colton!" Elizar shouted, running over with the fairy following slowly behind.
    "She...took control of my spell." Lina breathed out, sounding and feeling defeated at that moment. Ereldra looked over to them and cast another spell that sunk the ground in a large radius to keep them from coming any closer. Her eyes changed to a slit-like cat's eye.
    "You mages, always think you can save everyone. Think this world is yours to protect with your so-called Council watching over you. You all forgot who the prime rulers were, and what this place used to be before everything changed. The Lotharian Order will rise again!" she claimed with deep hatred, the ground around her cracking and breaking. Paired with a violent wind, Colton was blown off of the wall of spikes and thrown into the dirt. She then turned to them and teleported her way over.

Lina, Lelli, and Elizar all put their backs against each other only to see their fight reappear a few feet away from them. Her scythe was back in her hand and a determined murderous intent clouding her vision. Elizar looked towards Colton and then back to Lina.

    "We have to move Colton. In his condition, he would most likely perish before this fight finishes. The Council chose you for a reason young mage," Elizar smiled at her and Lelli, almost like he knew something they didn't. "Don't let Tessele down."  

He teleported himself away and over to his partner, nodding to her and taking off. Ereldra saw this and held her hand out, forming a red ball of destructive energy and white filling in the middle. Lina appeared before her and grabbed a hold of her arm. Ereldra looked back to the half-elf, her face paint radiating along with her eyes and sword.

    "Unhand me, mortal." she hissed, the attack still preparing to unleash it.
    "Not until you leave Ciandra alone." Lina answered back confidently, staring her right in the eyes. The two stared each other down, preparing for one final battle. The battle that will end in the fate of Ciandra.