Double Edge pierced through the water layer and into the flesh of the Throndar who groaned in pain. The creature dived down, knowing that his only hope of salvation was the Dragons’ natural weakness to water.
Yet no matter how much he struggled or how hard he whipped with his tail, the Emperor Beast kept moving up.
“Let me guess, you’ve never heard about Gravity Magic.” Lith said while channeling the spell inside the blade and through his limbs with which he was grabbing at the Throndar’s massive body.
The weight of the Divine and the Emperor Beast was reduced to the point that the Tiamat’s wings were strong enough to lift them both, bringing them high into the sky where even the mightiest of whales was nothing but a clumsy lump of flesh.
“I-” The unnamed Throndar was cut short and into countless pieces as he was hit by Lith’s Blade Tier spell, Ruin.
While conjuring Demons non-stop and under the cover of his powerful and (allegedly) reliable allies, Lith had safely conjured the Blade spell. He hated loose ends and he didn’t have the time to check that the beast didn’t have a second brain, heart, or anything that would ensure his survival.
After all, an Awakened needed but one breath to heal from any injury.
The strength generated by the combination of Lith’s bright violet core and the various power cores of his equipment killed the Throndar in one hit. Ruin also split the sea open for hundreds of meters, exposing the seabed to sunlight for the first time in eons, and cutting the clouds asunder.
“It was a rhetorical question.” Away from the Wayfinder, Lith used his pocket dimension to collect as many pieces of his fallen enemy as he could. “I wonder if a Throndar works better as an ingredient in the Forge or the kitchen.”
The Library didn’t say much about that species of Emperor Beasts. Only that its bones were highly sought after by artisans to craft sturdy but flexible pieces.
“Only one way to find out.” Lith was about to try and orient himself based on the map stored inside Soluspedia and the course that the Wayfinder was supposed to follow when a snarl arose from his guts.
Elysia was now far away enough to trigger his homing instinct and became aware of the baby’s position better than his own. A flight spell, fusion magic, and furious flaps of his wings brought him past the speed of sound and the Train within the range of his eyes.
“Where’s Lith?” Kamila asked when she noticed that he was the only one missing after the others returned inside the wagon and closed the hatch on the roof.
“Don’t worry, Kami. He’s alright.” Solus said, trying to reassure her.
“What if he’s alright in the middle of the ocean?” She replied before adding with a mind link. ‘Does Lith have the stone ring or is it in your possession?’
‘He has it. Sorry.’ Without the ring, Solus couldn’t check on Lith unless he was within the range of their telepathic bond. ‘But don’t worry. His homing instinct-‘
A knocking on the ceiling aroused Kamila’s hope and once Orion reopened the hatch, it confirmed Solus’ words.
“I’m sorry for making you worry, baby.” Lith said as he climbed down. “I got lost for a moment, but I’m here now and I’m alright.”
“Thank the gods! I was afraid-” Kamila went for a hug but he dodged her, running to embrace Elysia.
“Daddy is here baby girl.” Lith peppered her with kisses while the baby cooed in joy. “I’m never going to leave your side.”
“Of course he wasn’t talking to me.” Kamila said with a snarl.
Yet the genuine affection between father and daughter melted her heart, making her rage disappear. Then, a feeling of irritation and envy replaced that as well.
“Do you think he’ll ever love me like that?” She asked all those present.
“He already does.” Solus replied.
“Obviously.” Quylla said.
“No, but you’ll come a close second.” Orion’s words garnered him a firing squad of reproachful gazes. “Why are you looking at me like that? Was I supposed to lie?”
“You’re such an oaf, Dad.” Friya sighed.
“What? I’d give my life in an instant for your mother!” The female audience awwwed. “But I’d also throw her in a Dragon’s maw with no hesitation if it meant saving my girls. That’s my duty as a parent.”
“Thanks, Dad.” Quylla and Friya stiffened for a second before hugging him, moved by his sincerity and affection.
Solus and Kamila, instead, remained stiff.
“So, am I expendable?” Kamila asked with a shocked expression on her face.
“You and me both, sister.” Solus replied.
Only after reassuring Elysia of his well-being and making sure that she and Valeron weren’t scared anymore did Lith check on Kamila and Solus.
“Thank the gods you two are alright. I was worried sick.” He said.
“That’s hard to believe.” Kamila grumbled.
“Yeah, it took you so long to even look at us that I was starting to believe you had forgotten about our existence.” Solus nodded.
“That’s unfair! I-” Lith tried to defend himself, only to be drowned by a hail of rightful complaints.
“You can roast him later.” Orion stepped to the rescue. “Now I need Lith to check on the status of the power core. The fight should have consumed quite a bit of energy and has put the enchantments of the Wayfinder under serious stress.
“If there’s a flaw in the design of the power core, it’s going to turn up any moment now.”
Orion sent away Kelia, Kamila, and Quylla, allowing solely those who had contributed to the Forgemastering blueprints of the train to stay.
“But Friya is staying!” Quylla objected.
“I’m sorry, sis. Masters of Space only.” Friya waved her hand until her father closed the door and magically sealed the wagon.
The power core of the Wayfinder was located in a secret compartment under the babies’ crib in Lith’s bedroom. Accessing the power core required a password to open the compartment and a series of spells that only Orion was privy to.
Once he was done, a small cylindrical pedestal came out of the floor and the inner walls, floor, and ceiling of the wagon turned out to be covered by runes. The now visible words of power each projected a beam of light at the pedestal, generating a copy of themselves.
The mass of runes swirled in a chaotic bunch for a moment as they rearranged themselves. Then, they formed a perfect sphere of pure energy that had a few dull patches.
“Fuck me sideways. Are you telling me that-”
“Correct.” Orion nodded. “The entire wagon is actually the power core. This is just the control panel. It projects a scaled-down interface of the power core to perform maintenance more easily.”
It was one of the reasons Kelia’s breathing technique had failed to crack the mystery of the Wayfinder. She and Dusk had searched for a dense energy mass whereas the power core was evenly distributed throughout the wagon.
Even if they realized their mistake, it would have been pointless since at Kelia’s level it was impossible to cover such a wide area with her breathing technique.
