Chapter 22
Granting Guta the aspect of mist went fairly smoothly. As Sati had told me, he'd taken fairly readily to the idea. I found some lingering traces of Sati's dream aspect in the ranger's spirit, but nothing that made me think she had done more than focus his thoughts a little. I was glad of that, as I'd already warned her off of using her sorcery too heavily on members of the company.
I had found that I could shift mana between my vas and vasra who had compatible aspects. If I tried to, say, shift mist aspected mana from Sati to Myta, that would simply fail. The mana would flow right back to its source. But I could shift fire aspected mana from Myta to any other fire sorcerer in our company with little difficulty.
Guta, of course, had only his innate personal aspect, with no strong associations beyond 'Guta'. So when I fed Sati's mist aspect to him, his spirit drank it up readily. The apsara and I watched over him as he fused it into his anima. The ranger was the final member of our company to incorporate an aspect, other than the servants, at least.
After that was taken care of I pushed the entire company hard in learning the path of Inner Harmony. I was able to accelerate the growth of their aspects by shifting mana from across the group to one person at a time. Focusing the correct aspect in one person allowed them to refine their anima much faster, they would then produce much more of that aspect of mana, resulting in faster overall gains for the group.
The rapid changes to their anima caused some issues among the company. Mood swings or bursts of temper mostly, though on one notable occasion an earth aspected soldier simply stopped moving, even to breathe. So we kept a close eye on those who had been the focus of the day's training.
We passed through Eldratu without any event of note. The border town between Bani and Seto was a quiet place, continuously shrouded in fog. While not as dramatic as imposing as the sharp cliffs of Nesratin, the fog of Eldratu heralded as great a change in the environment. The temperature dropped by at least ten degrees immediately, giving us some relief from the oppressive jungle humidity. The province of Seto more closely resembled Metic. Thick forests of tall conifers, with rich red bark and deep green needles.
The next attack came at the midpoint between Eldratu and Seto, and we had been half expecting it. We came to a point where all the branches of the low road were forced to converge. And tall hills, or small mountains, rose to either side. The pass between was an obvious point for an ambush. As such, the governors of the province had long sustained a small fort to guard the area. The fort and guard patrols kept the area safe from all but the boldest of bandits. But there would be no better spot for the abominations of the Pure to find us.
"Do you think the attack will come before or after the fort?" My question was aimed at Myta and Hati both, as we walked together in the center of the company.
"I think after," Hati replied. The large woman was a full head taller than me, and her large frame had only become more solid as she'd practiced with her earth aspect sorcery. The company officers were all leagues ahead of the regular fighters in terms of practical application. They had all had much stronger aspects to begin with.
"After gives us a chance to relax," she continued. "Like maybe nothing will happen. Which could be true for all we know. Maybe they fucked off to an actual war front somewhere rather than wasting time on us."
"Not Entreyu," I replied. "He's too petty to leave us alone, even if it were the smart thing to do."
"If you say so," she shrugged, clearly unconcerned. "But my guess is we get past the fort, and maybe an hour down the road. Then we get hit."
I glanced at Myta, but she wasn't paying attention to the conversation at all. Instead, her eyes were scanning the fort as we approached. I followed her gaze, trying to see what she was seeing. When I couldn't spot it, I focused instead on my spiritual sight. Nothing stood out to my senses.
"To arms!" Myta shouted. And it took a moment for my mind to understand. Myta had sensed what I had, and came to a conclusion faster. I felt no presences at all in the fort. A fort that should have housed a full military unit, two sorcerers, and support staff.
Hati and her unit moved to the front, just as inhuman wails echoed between the steep slopes around us. The pass was too wide for our heavies to block effectively, but they braced to take the brunt of an attack. Jito had his troops spread out to support them, while Denu dispersed her rangers to clamber up the sides of the pass, looking for vantage points.
I remained where I was as Myta moved up to join our quickly-formed line, and Sati remained with me. Cathel, the monk that Sati has enthralled, remained with us as well.
It would have been better for the abominations to wait, but whatever leash held them wasn't strong enough to restrain them with fresh meat available. Four hulking figures burst from the fort's attached stable, their veil falling away as they did so. Four figures, but I felt five presences now. Another pure monk was with them.
As predictable as the ambush had been, we were well rehearsed for it. Our heavies concentrated their presences, giving their skin the appearance and texture of stone. When the first abomination crashed into Hati, her stance was firm and unyielding, causing the enemy to rebound from her anchored form.
My practice in shifting mana within our company had heightened my sense of them. I could feel her mana drain and disperse in the face of the attack. Without too much thought I shuffled mana between our guardians, evening them out.
The others on the front line had not been idle. Every fighter had practiced infusing their attacks with mana. The first abomination, who looked like a diseased cross between a man and a giant boar, was pierced by three glaives. Each blow ignored what would normally be considered weak points. Instead they aimed for the torso, where the true human form of the shifter would be hidden. The boar wasn't killed, but it cried out in rage and pain. The sound it made was piercing, half-roar and half-squeal.
I struggled to find anything human in the sound.
Two feline shifters arrived next, flanking the boar. They were less reckless, more graceful, and as a result were likely more dangerous. But I found my attention drawn away by a cry from above. The fourth shifter, some kind of bird, had scaled the wall to go after the archers.
I hesitated for a moment, unsure. Our front line seemed stable, Hati was physically wrestling with the boar, her strength and earth aspect tying it down while Jito's fighters stabbed it with their glaves over and over. The cats were faring better, but only for the moment. Myta was sweeping at them from the side, and I could practically see their remains in ashes already.
The sorcerer hadn't been revealed yet, and the bird was an immediate threat to our rangers. Decision made, I focused my attention on the slopes.
The rangers were not in a great position. Three were threatened by the abomination, which I thought was probably based on a raven. It had six limbs, its 'hands' were birdlike talons, and two wings sprouted from its back. It didn't seem able to fly, but it easily navigated the slope, taking long leaps from one perch to another. Of course it targeted Denu, who was in the lead.
My world narrowed down as I focused on the confrontation. Denu had an arrow nocked and drawn as the raven shifter bounded in her direction. If she had infused her air aspect into her body, she probably could have outrun it leading it on a merry chase while giving the other archers time to take their own shots. Instead, she stood still and waited. I felt my own breath sill as I became caught up in the young woman's trance. Waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
When Denu let her arrow fly, she did it with a perfect certainty that it would strike true. She put all the mana she could handle into the shot, and my spirit reached out, threading through her sorcery. Turning it into something more. Her arrow shot forward like a lightning bolt, and then exploded like a thunderclap, utterly destroying the head of the raven. Not the head of the false raven body, but the head of the shifter hidden within.
Unfortunately the body wasn't destroyed. The abomination's corpse was already sailing through the air, and Denu was off balance and weakened from her attack. The body knocked her from her precarious perch, and sent her tumbling down the slope.
I tried to cry out, but Guta was already there, catching the girl before she could fall far. He got her situated on another ledge, and I turned my attention forward again. The boar was also down. I though from the look of things Hati might have ripped their head clean off. She was coated in gore at least, and holding a decaying head by its hair.
The cats were still alive and fighting. I could have shortened hose battles by slowing them with concentrated presence again, but I had other priorities. I carefully watched the flow of mana from the two dead enemies as their anima tethers dissolved, tracing it to their origins.
*There.* I sent Ket the image, but she had already seen the trail. I hadn't been sure if the abominations were bound to the sorcerer I'd sensed earlier, it would make the most sense if they were, but the bonds didn't seem to be restricted by physical distance. It seemed that they were, as the trail led straight into the main structure of the fort.
I then focused on the main battle, looking for an opportunity to enact the same maneuver as I had with Denu. I didn't equalize anyone else's mana, however. They needed to learn how to manage their own resources.
My assistance wasn't needed. Myta seemed to be using the rest of the fight as a training exercise. She'd injured one of the catlike abominations, and stood ready to assist. But mostly she was calling out guidance. I could understand that. Our drills were no substitute for real combat experience. Even if the situation was now contained, it was still potentially lethal. And the danger provided extra pressure, and even led some of our fighters to recklessness.
A clawed swipe and spray of blood was testament to the threat. But with our enemies far outnumbered, by soldiers who were perfectly able to harm them, the end of the fight was a foregone conclusion. As the last enemy fell, pierced by three different glaives, the entire company gave a cheer.
*I was not able to keep the sorcerer alive,* Ket sent to me. *They bled out of mana from the deaths of the abominations.*
*Disappointing,* I replied mentally. *But, not surprising. I doubt the Pure are eager to fall into our hands.*
Chapter 23
"How did your arm hold up?"
Kari grimaced, rotating the limb in question at the shoulder. I watched the motion carefully, looking for any sign of malformation or rejection.
