Unbound

Chapter Seven Hundred And Twenty Four - 724

Chapter Seven Hundred And Twenty Four - 724

Vess stared out of familiar windows over a familiar city. Home, she thought. How strange it is to be back.

Plumes of smoke rose from the streets below and several structures were clearly destroyed in the night’s aftermath, but it was largely peaceful. The sun rose above the horizon, painting the sky in pale hues at the edge of blue and slanting through thin clouds to warm her face. She had gotten little sleep since defeating the captain in a duel, and subsequently rallying the remaining Dragoons to assault the lowest levels of Scalebreaker Citadel. Hours of fighting later, she and the rest of the rebel army had killed the very last Paladin in its halls.

The Citadel was free.

Their first order of business was reestablishing her father’s control over the Territory. With the Hierei dead, there was nothing stopping him from reclaiming his Authority. Once done, he had ordered the entire city to be swept clean of the Hierocratic dogs.

It had been a long night.Rêạd new chapters at novelhall.com

Behind her, the first meeting of the Duke’s Council took place. Her father and the surviving members of his council sat and were debriefed by her Auntie Verona and Uncle Patrim. Vess let the words wash over her; she didn’t need to live them twice.

Instead, she brought up her new Skill.

Galebound Glory (Transcendent), Level 95!

Metal and storm answer your call as glory rises to meet your Will. Summons twenty Spears to serve you, imbued with their own Will and capable of generating a phantom copy for each Spear. Each copy does full damage to an opponent. Mana required to manipulate each Spear is greatly reduced, and the Will of Glory aids in control and finesse.

Spear of Tribulation had been her last Dragoon-taught Skill, the only remaining one unchanged by the influence of her experiences. Now it was gone, and a part of her felt bereft, as if she’d lost a friend. Vess worried that something was lost with it...but she squashed that sentiment. It was a fanciful notion, and not one she could indulge anymore.

Smart girl, Yin sent.

She smiled to herself. Vess knew the power of her bond with Yintarion, and the might that she had taken on from Felix back in Ahkestria. It had taken her time, but she no longer regretted her change.

Far from a downgrade, Galebound Glory was at a power level she hadn’t ever experienced. A Transcendent Skill... She still couldn’t believe it.

A veteran Dragoon could create phantom copies of their Spear to aid in their attack, so already she had bested a great many of her order. What’s more, their copies would do half damage at best, while her phantoms were just as effective as the real thing. Combined with their effectiveness at piercing magical defenses, the Skill promised to be a terror in battle.

And will soon reach Master Tier, little Dragoon.

Good. We’ll need it.

“...once the Oaths were sundered, taking out the Hierocratic forces in the Citadel was a relatively simple process. Our army swept the middle floors, and the Drakengard and now-free Dragoons—led by the Lady Vessilia Dayne—did the rest,” her aunt Verona finished up.

Vess perked up at mention of her name, and endured the impressed stares of the councilors. There were ten of them, down from the twenty she remembered, and all of them were varying degrees of shocked, scared, and excited.

“How, precisely, were the Oaths sundered?” one councilor asked. Baron Welvig, Vess recalled. His white mustache shook almost as much as his jowls as he spoke.

“We were greatly assisted in the retaking of Pax’Vrell by the Territory of Nagast, and its Autarch,” Verona said smoothly.

“That doesn’t answer the question.”

“It was this Fiend person, yes?” another asked. Countess Vilora. “I have heard much of him in the past few months. Concerning things.”

“Nevarre is an ally,” Patrim announced firmly. “And not someone we want as an enemy. He personally killed the Hierei.”

“He—! The Hierei was a Grandmaster!”

“Powerful indeed,” said Welvig. “Where is he?”

Verona looked to Vess, who straightened in her seat. “He has other duties to attend while here and has to leave back to Nagast soon.”

“Hm. Convenient. Not going to help clean up this mess?”

“What do you expect him to do? Defeat our enemies for us?” Her father barked a laugh. “As far as I’m concerned, Lord Nevarre has gone above and beyond what could be expected of a foreign ruler. To expect more would be selfish and...impertinent.”

“Oh? And what did this Fiend ask for in compensation?”

“Nothing of consequence,” Verona replied. “And nothing we couldn’t afford.”

“To take on a Grandmaster and not strip our lands of all we have...” Baron Welvig shook his head, jowls quivering. “I simply do not understand that. He must have greater motivations than mere altruism.”

For the first time, she felt the Pathless grow angry. Do Not Question Me, Chosen. You Will Do Your Duty. You Will Find The Strength.

For All Things Are Possible Under The Light.

Light surged again, filling her, and the Need within burned all the brighter. A fog faded from her thoughts, and in the clarity she fixated upon her goal. Her only Need.

Navarre’s end.

Felix hustled through the halls of the Scalebreaker Citadel, alone and on a mission. Dragoons and Drakengard stepped out of his way, clearly unfamiliar with him but just as clearly unwilling to stop him.

Are you growling at people again? Pit asked.

No. He wasn’t, was he? Felix realized he couldn’t be sure. Why?

I can feel you, remember? Even down in the armory. He could tell Pit was pacing. Are you sure you don’t need me with you?

I’m sure. Felix turned a corner and made an effort at relaxing his face. Armed guards still scurried from his path like frightened children. Did Harn have any trouble gaining access to a forge?

Nope. He’s working now, and so is a team of...I wanna say hundreds, but that feels like too many. Lots.

Felix grunted. Much as Harn had produced weapons and armor fine enough to keep their rebel army alive, he was back in the mix to get the rest of the Dragoons into fighting shape. He’d worried that they would balk at Harn’s involvement, but it seemed war changed everyone’s tune.

An army was coming to their gates.

They couldn’t run, not without access to the Shadowgate...and not if Imara was coming for them. Once Vess had told him what the Duke had detected, he had immediately felt for his sister. She was shrouded, same as the other Unbound, but there was no doubt in his Mind that she would be at the head of the invasion. Once she arrived, she would destroy the city and its people. Felix refused to let that happen to anyone, let alone to Vess' home.

He stepped into the study to find things exactly as Pit and the Eidolons had described it. Toppled shelving and scattered books were everywhere, interrupted only by smears of charred blood. The bodies of the Priests were gone, carried away to be burned.

I’m here.

He walked up to the once-secret entrance and peered within. The Shrine was beyond, devastated with cruel intent. Taking a deep breath, he put out his arm—and it stopped halfway, as if he’d run into a solid wall.

System Alert: Access Denied

Bearer Of The Thief of Fate Title Is Barred From All Divine Locations

Primordials Are Barred From All Divine Locations

Felix pulled his arm back. You said you tried to enter right? And the Eidolons?

Yeah. Even tried a few Dragoons. No one could enter. They don’t even have the Thief of Fate Title or Primordial Race. It’s just locked against everyone.

Let’s test that.

Felix put both hands against the invisible barrier, and flared his Strength. The patterned stone beneath his feet cracked. He tried again, putting his shoulder against it until pain shot up his back and the floor cratered, exploding into chips of rock that jumped up several feet.

The barrier was unmarred.

Stick with Harn, Pit. Help him anyway you can for now.

Pit trilled nervously. Are you really going to try it?

I don’t have many options, man.

Felix needed to be stronger. To handle the army, Imara, and then to take on the Pathless himself. To do that he needed to undo whatever the Priests had done to the Shrine, so that the Pathless wasn’t siphoning Siva’s power anymore—and he needed to reach Master Tier. Both of those items were going to take time; time in which his friends and Pax’Vrell itself needed to fend for themselves.

First though, he had to deal with this barrier.

He sat on the ground just outside of it, and pulled up the details on his newest Skill: Sonata of Dominance.

His Tenth Pillar awaited.