“Then what do we do now?” Vir asked, glancing at Maiya in worry. “If they’re tracking us, then no place is safe.”
“Aye. I’d wished to train you here, lad. To prepare you for the Ash. But even if I defeat those who come after us, we’ll have no peace. ’Tis no environment for you to prepare.”
Then…
“The Demon Realm needs you, my liege,” Cirayus said, meeting Vir’s eyes. “Garga needs you. And time is running out.”
There it is again. He’s assumed I’m going to fulfill this destiny of his.
“We must enter the Ash. We must journey to the only place they cannot follow.”
Maiya had turned rigid. She clutched her arms, staring holes into the floor. Her terror was palpable.
“No,” Vir said. “I need more time. I can’t—”
“You should go, Vir,” Maiya said stiffly. It was obvious just how much she didn’t want him to go.
“Maiya?” Vir asked. He’d never expected those words from her.
“Cirayus is right,” she said. “You came with me to avoid unnecessary deaths, didn’t you? Do you really want Cirayus to kill dozens of mercenaries? And what about the Order? You can bet they’ll come flying to your side the moment they learn you’re staying here. And even if the mercenaries eventually give up, Mina certainly won’t.”
Vir had no response. She was right. Staying would be exceedingly difficult now. But how could he just leave Maiya behind, with how happy she’d been only moments earlier, knowing they’d still have some time together.
Maiya exhaled deeply and took a moment to collect herself. “Look. Don’t ask me if I’m okay, because I’m not. I’m barely holding myself together here. But you know what I won’t do? I won’t jeopardize your future just to force you to stay with me,” she said. “Cirayus, will he survive the Ash if he goes now?”
“I would never suggest it if I didn’t believe he would,” the demon replied.
“You’re really alright with this?” Vir asked.
“Obviously not!” Maiya said, biting her lip. “But some things have to happen. Whether we like them or not. Yeah? C’mon, Vir. Don’t push me. I might break.”
Vir squeezed her hand.
“Perhaps this is for the best,” Cirayus said. “We’ve precious little time left as it is. The longer we wait, the worse the situation in the Demon Realm grows. The Chitrans have had sixteen years to consolidate their power, and soon, we may have no hope of reversing the wrongs they’ve wrought.”
“You really think I’m that strong?” Vir asked, fully understanding the hypocrisy of his words. Just yesterday, he’d been planning on braving the Ash alone.
Cirayus stroked his beard. “Not strong, no. You’ve done well with the limited means you’ve had, but you are still weak. The failure is mine, for not being able to train you. I take full responsibility for your deficient growth.”
Vir’s face grew hot. Deficient? Sure, he’d been stunted most of his life, but he’d come far on his own, without a mentor. Cirayus held up a palm before he could retort.
“I do not mean to demean you, lad. As I said, your accomplishments are impressive. Evaluated alone, I might even say more than impressive. However, compared to the average demon, you are weaker. This is a fact.”
Vir averted his eyes. Still weak, huh?
Yes, when compared to Cirayus, most would seem that way. But even an average demon?
“Your weakness is my fault, and my responsibility alone,” he said. Then he did something completely unexpected. He kneeled before Vir. “Please forgive me, my liege. Had I evaded the humans successfully, I could’ve raised you myself, in secret. I was lacking.”
“No! Please, don’t feel that way. You risked everything just coming here, to a place you knew nothing about. That’s hardly fair,” Vir said, flustered, urging the giant to rise. The thought of someone so old and powerful kneeling before him agitated him greatly. It felt so wrong.
“I’m afraid I must,” Cirayus said. “With the proper guidance, you ought to have been as strong as I by this time, if not stronger.”
“As strong as you?” Vir found his words difficult to believe.
“Lad, I don’t believe you understand your own potential. I am strong amongst demons, yes. But should you develop your powers to the extent of some of your predecessors, even I will be no match. And… rumors abound.”
“Rumors?”
“Aye. Rumors that none of your predecessors unlocked their full potential. Apparently, these words were spoken by Reaper Ekanai himself. Apparently, the power his prior incarnations wielded was but a small fraction of its full ability. The Reaper might not have wielded as much power as some of your other predecessors, but he was strong in his own right. For him to say such a thing… I shudder to imagine what such power might resemble.”
“But that’s all what-ifs,” Vir said. “Right now, I’m weak.”
“Aye, though as I said, I believe you are strong enough to survive the Ash. Do not mistake survival for being able to cross the Ash safely. There are many monsters in that godsforsaken realm I wouldn’t dare dream of fighting. But with adequate caution, I believe it will be the best approach.”
Vir glanced at Maiya, who smiled and nodded back.
“Then I suppose we shouldn’t delay,” Vir said, feeling his resolution growing. “Let’s do this.”
63INTO THE ASH
“There she is!” Maiya shouted, pointing at the ground far below.
After searching for a moment, Vir spotted the black, winged beast that was roaming around on the ground, looking lost and insecure.
“Hold on!” Cirayus said as he reached the apex of his jump and began to fall.
The warning was hardly necessary. The giant’s mastery of Balancer of Scales was so great that their descent was idyllic, and their landing soft.
Once again, Vir wondered at the ability’s wealth of uses. Not only would it drastically amplify his strikes, but it’d give him something he sorely lacked right now—range. While his katar attacks had grown deadlier thanks to Prana Blade, he’d never been able to do the same for his chakrams. Based on his current understanding, the feat might very well be impossible.
Which meant that going forward, his discs would be less and less useful. Even in the human realm, against both the Narapazu and the Matron’s Hunters, they did little other than to serve as a distraction. Against Ash Beasts? He wondered if they’d even be worth the added weight to carry them.
Gaining a power like Balancer would even those odds. Multiplying the weight of anyone nearby, especially if applied tactically when the enemy didn’t expect it, would be devastating. It was then that something odd struck him about the ability.
Cirayus said Balancer affected anything he touched… but how can he affect people dozens of paces away?
The answer came to him moments later. Ground prana. He’s got a way of remotely manipulating ground prana!
Not only that, but the ability worked while he was in the air, which made it far more useful than Vir’s Talents.
He made a mental note to study it in detail sometime. Lacking the tattoo, Vir doubted he could reverse engineer it like he had Dance of the Shadow Demon, but perhaps there was some new insight to be gained by analyzing it.
“Frumpy!” Maiya jumped off Cirayus’ shoulder the moment they touched the ground and ran up to her frightened Acira. “I’m so sorry. The scary demon attacked us out of nowhere, didn’t he? You must’ve been terrified!”