Even with the full Menadion Set, even with a compliant host, Solus had run out of fuel. Conjuring two Silverwing’s spells at the same time had nearly depleted the tower’s energy reserves.
She had learned many things from her bond with Nes’hiah but the wooden golems’ existence wasn’t among them. They had screwed her calculations and foiled her plans. Yet just like the Tree, she too was learning from her escape attempts.
“Next time I will be more careful.” She panted. “I’ve come farther than the last time and the next I’ll go even farther.”
Two key factors limited her current strength.
The first factor was that Menadion had built the Set according to Elphyn’s abilities, back when Solus was a bright violet-cored Awakened with perfect body refinement.
For a bright blue core like her, fighting while wearing the set put a huge strain on her body. She moved faster and hit harder than she could, draining her stamina and covering her in bruises even after dodging every blow.
The second factor was her host.
Even with Dawn’s technique to ensure Solus’ absolute dominance, the repeated mind fusions drained her focus and mental abilities. She couldn’t take her time to break her host’s will like Dawn would.
Solus had to go from servant to master before the Tree could split her from her current partner and make sure to keep them on a tight leash even during the fight. Working with Vamir, even after enslaving him, was nothing like her bond with Lith.
For all those years, she had never ordered him to do anything and he had done the same for her. Their communion was effortless and flawless because they shared a single mind.
She didn’t have to worry Lith would have her back because she knew he did. They trusted each other to the point they could improvise any plan and implement it as if they had trained for it their whole lives.
‘There won’t be a next time.’ The Tree trembled at the humiliation they had suffered in front of the assembled elven tribes. ‘This is the last time you see sunlight until we complete my tower, Elphyn Menadion.
‘I’m done playing nice with you. I’m done trying to do this the easy and painless way. If you want to fight, I’ll make you fight.’
Solus had thwarted the Tree’s plans and undermined their authority in the eyes of the elven tribes every step of the way.
First after her arrival, by tainting the Fringe’s world energy with the Predator protocol. Then, by killing Nes’hiah. Her disappearance had raised many questions that the Tree had left unanswered, shaking the trust of the Librarians in their master.
Now, the entire elven populace was about to find out the truth and it would be much worse than any mystery. Last but not least, during her third escape attempt, Solus had demonstrated how dangerous she was.
How not even the Yggdrasill could contain the Engine nor could their golems stop it.
Too many Chroniclers had died in a short span of time. The loyalty of the elves bonded with the Tree was unshakable, but the same couldn’t be said about everyone else.
Many aspirant Chroniclers were rethinking their choice and many youths were starting to wonder if the madness of the late World Tree had somehow been passed on to the new one.
There was no other possible explanation for the Yggdrasill’s stubbornness in pursuing a plan that had cost the lives of many elves already.
“My name is Solus, bitch.” She fused with the Engine, having two Furies appear in its hands. “I was willing to surrender peacefully, but if you want me to bury a few more elves, come and get me.”
Many people had gathered to witness the unthinkable: a fight under the shade of the all-seeing Yggdrasill. The Tree’s will was supposed to be absolute and so was their power, yet that small human woman dared talk back.
Her words carried no respect, only spite. On top of that, the mention of the dead Chroniclers hit the elves hard considering the long time it would take an elf woman to conceive a single child.
‘If you want to surrender peacefully, I’ll allow it. If you show me proof of your goodwill, that is.’
“Like what?” Solus watched at the internal energy counter of the Engine rising.
‘Your name is Elphyn Menadion. Say it.’
“My name is S-” A right hook to the Engine’s head cut her short and downed the tower.
The golem had struck with all its strength after charging up several tier five spells that had been released on impact.
‘Your name is Elphyn Menadion.’ The Tree repeated. ‘Say it.’
“My name is S-” Two wood golems attacked her and both received an Annihilation from point-blank range.
The problem was that neither hit a Chronicler and two more golems attacked at the same time from the Engine’s front and back. The Engine’s face caved and so did its right leg, crippling its mobility.
The other two golems recovered quickly and joined the beatdown, crushing all the Engine’s limbs to bits but the head. That was trapped under one heavy wooden foot, ready to be crushed like a nut.
‘What’s your name?’ The Yggdrasill asked.
Solus’ arms and legs were gone as well, the heavy damage the tower had suffered was immediately reflected on her human body. Vamir’s life force was being sacrificed to protect her, but it didn’t make the process any less painful.
Just like for the Librarian a few minutes ago, the damage inflicted on the tower caused her an agony that couldn’t be countered with darkness fusion.
“Sol-” The golems crushed the Engine’s head and Solus’ suffered the same fate.
She would have died there and then if not for the safety protocols killing Vamir and restoring her body. The tower couldn’t take any more damage and the Engine collapsed back into the small form of the stone ring.
Solus now lied down on the ground, her arms and legs splayed at unnatural angles.
The golems kept the encirclement and more Chroniclers approached the wounded woman, each wielding a blunt Yggdrasill weapon.
‘What’s your name?’
“So-” The beating resumed on a smaller scale but with equal cruelty until Solus was forced to let go of her human body and retreat inside the stone ring, defeated.
‘Your name is Elphyn Menadion.’ The World Tree said. ‘You are who I want you to be. You do what I want you to do. The sooner you accept it, the sooner your pain will end.’
A powerful gravity array squeezed the stone ring until small cracks appeared on its surface. Only when the cracks spread to the whole ring, threatening its integrity, did the World Tree transport the ring back to the cell by floating.
They wanted Solus to realize that the Yggdrasill was in no rush.
That she could stall for time, but she couldn’t win.
The stone ring was thrown back in the darkness, but this time the walls collapsed until there was only enough space for Solus’s human form to come out of the ring in a crawling position.
‘I’m curious to see how long the energy you have stolen will last.’
