Discordant Note | TBATE

Chapter 71: The Vicar of Plague

Toren Daen

"A monster," Lady Dawn said with restrained anger.

Mardeth, I thought, gritting my teeth as my neck creaked under the force of his killing intent. The vicar didn't look different from when I last saw him.

Yellow-green blithe stains spotted his gray skin. One eye was a milky white, yet it seemed to stare through me despite its supposed blindness. His lips curled at the edges, malicious enjoyment seeping from seeing me kneel. His horns came to sharpened points that could gore a man.

He hovered in the air, his shredded vicar's robe shifting casually.

I started to push myself to my feet, gripping Oath and Promise tighter. The blades shimmered as I funneled mana into them.

The pressure redoubled, slamming me down into the ground hard enough to crack it. My telekinetic shroud–which I'd finally raised–creaked from the sheer attention of the mage before me. My panic heightened as I was forced onto my face, the most powerful mage I'd ever met hovering not ten feet away. My arms burned from straining against the pressure, the air freezing in my lungs.

I couldn't breathe.

"You already pushed past my intent once before, little mage. Show me you've changed."

My teeth creaked from how hard I clenched them.

"Get away from this lessuran," Lady Dawn said, her anger tempered somewhat by apprehension. "You are no match for him."

I felt the Will drifting closer to my mind. It lashed its tendrils out, bringing my own thoughts into its embrace. The Phoenix within denied the power of the Vritra-blooded mage bearing down on me.

I fell into my first phase, the glowing red chains superimposing themselves over my clothing. The familiar warmth pushed back against the pressure around me, allowing me to slowly draw myself to my feet.

Mardeth watched me with a crinkled eye, smirking slightly as I righted myself under his constant pressure. The air returned to my lungs as my own power rose in a swell.

"I think you'll find I've changed plenty," I said breathily. I felt a warmth under my eyes where I knew runes glowed like hot coals. Mardeth's red lifeforce flared solemnly, yet there was a strange flickering blackness at its core that seemed to drink in the light.

Mardeth cocked his head. "Is that all, little mage? I was expecting more." He held his arms behind his back. "Do you know why I left you alive last time we met?"

I shifted, my eyes darting to Oath and Promise.

"No, it wasn't because of those toothpicks you hold. The Doctrination preaches a Truth, one that even a lesser such as yourself must understand."

I couldn't run. Naereni and Karsien were still in the warehouse somewhere. If I left, they'd be easy pickings for this monster. I felt Lady Dawn's reservations and her advice that I leave, but I pushed it aside.

"What are you doing with those blithe routes?" I hissed, shifting my stance to be more aggressive. "And what did you do with all the people you took from the streets?"

"You want to know?" the Vritra-blooded vicar asked, splaying his gangly arms wide. "Fight me, little mage. Take the answers from my broken body."

His voice made me shudder internally, but I didn't let it show. I couldn't be bullied like before.

I pointed the hand holding Promise at the vicar, raising a single finger from the hilt. "I'll kill you, Mardeth."

The vicar laughed. "Oh, do try. I want to see what you can do."