Chapter Nine

Noah traveled East in a weeklong trip moving as fast as he could to get close to the edge of the continent. When he got to the point where he could see the edge, where the land connected to the ocean, Primordious told him he was there. Noah got a short rest until three large storm wyverns approached from the distance.

Noah flew up into the air moving around charging energy. He tried circling around them but they were too smart and kept up with his movements. They attacked first but not in unison, each of them tried using a different spell to hit Noah and all three collided halfway to him and exploded in a powerful gust. After that the storm wyverns began fighting each other.

Taking the opportunity while it was present, Noah blasted one of them down with a powerful bolt of lightning. After that the other two took notice of Noah again and they dueled it out in the air. The storm wyverns had incredible maneuverability and reflexes, but fortunately for Noah they weren’t working like a team. Noah would send out a bolt of lightning at one and it would either dodge or repel it only to have the other wyvern get in the way of the attack.

Despite the wyverns hindering each other it wasn’t easy for Noah, fighting two of them at once Noah’s skills were tested like never before. He had to dance around their attacks or counter them with equally powerful wind magic to deflect them. Gradually though, he made progress against them as time to time they would forget about him and he would use that small opportunity to get in a decent attack on them.

Finally it got to the point the last two wyverns were not strong enough to fight and Noah took that opportunity to seal them away. When he got them and landed on the ground he sealed the other one which he was fortunate enough to be able to take out in one shot. He didn’t think he would be able to fight all three, not without summoning other elementals to help.

Out of breath and covered with sweat Noah plopped down on the ground starring up at the sky trying to get his breath back. When he felt rested enough he said, “Wow, how did you know that those storm wyverns would be here?”

“I summoned them,” Primordious said.

“You can do that?!”

“Not lightly. But with your lack of skills or talents we are going to need those wyverns. Rest up for the day then head straight back to the city tomorrow. We have wasted enough time getting here it should have only been three days here and back.”

Noah was too tired to argue with Primordious and after eating some food he went into a deep sleep. When he woke up it was dark outside and too many clouds covered the moon. “I cannot fly by night without the moon, it is too dark.” Noah said.

“You are a pathetic magician Noah.”

He ignored him and went to go back to sleep when Primordious summoned himself and said, “Follow me!” and took off with great speed.

Noah sighed but followed after him and almost lost sight when Primordious realized he was going too fast for Noah and slowed down. The morning sun came and Primordious returned to his card. Noah took some time to rest when Primordious said, “I have an idea, summon one of the wyverns after you eat.”

“It’s too weak to fight it still needs some time to rest.”

“It will not be fighting, it will be flying, it may be weak but it’s faster than you and strong enough to carry you on its back.”

After he ate Noah summoned one of the wyverns and climbed on its back, he had to get close to its neck to wrap his arms around it and as soon as he was ready it took off. He urged for it to slow down a little but could sense a second force controlling it; Primordious. Noah switched between the three wyverns to ride so the others may rest and he got close enough to the city where he could fly on his own.

He returned to Rozak with one day to spare before the coliseum opened up for the weekend. He took that day to rest up ignoring whatever Primordious was trying to tell him. He did not care. And on the day the coliseum opened Noah signed up for four fights that first day and three more the next.

His fights were evenly spaced apart by one hour. His first fight was thirty minutes away so he didn’t have much time to prepare. The waiting room in the coliseum was larger and a little nicer than the one in the arena. He was a little nervous since he never seen the coliseum before, but that all wore off when the referee came to get him for the first match.

Outside the coliseum was the same environment as the arena, but larger and now filled with people in the stands. His opponent was a man twice his age but fierce looking. When the match began it was the same as any before. His opponent’s pillar started glowing a lime green color and he swiftly summoned a dire wolf and Savage bear.

Noah Soon enough summoned the twin electric serpents and continued gathering energy as he considered his tactics. Since he was no longer using the pillar to aid him his opponent was able to summon elementals faster than him. And within several minutes his opponent built up a battalion of Nature Elementals. They were all moderate beasts but there were a lot of them and when Noah finally realized his opponents plan the elementals charged straight at him all of them at once.

He could have summoned his wyverns and send out the serpents with them to meet the forces, he knows he would win, but it might cost him half his elementals by doing that. He needed something strong, and massive, fast. Then it dawned on him, the thunder colossus.

Pulling out the card with the thunder colossus sealed in it Noah used all of the energy he had gathered into summoning it. It came out from a deep blue light emitted from the card, and raced to meet the opponent’s elementals. When it was close enough it put his hands together above its head, fell to one knee and with an explosive sound slammed its fists down onto the charging Elementals.

Most of them were destroyed in that first blow and the rest violently thrown aside from the force of impact. A small crater was left inside the coliseum from the attack too.

The colossus got up and then raced to the other pillar and with one crushing blow from its fist it destroyed it. Everyone in the coliseum, even Noah, was in awe from that fight. The referee came and declared Noah the winner and as he returned the colossus to its card wondered how he ever managed to topple such a powerful Elemental.

Between battle’s Noah and Primordious talked a little. “I should start with him from now on,” Noah said.

“The colossus is powerful but takes time to summon and is very destructive. If you are going to use it make sure your elementals are out of the way first or else they will get hurt or even killed.”

“Maybe, but even if they do I can capture new ones. Especially with your ability to call upon them, hell I should probably return to the thunder plains capture me a second colossus and use two of them from now on.”

“We are not tools to make your lives better, or slaves for your fighting entertainment!” Primordious shouted inside Noah’s head. He was very angry. “We are living intelligent beings like you, but we are compassionate and don’t go around enslaving your kind, we don’t even attack first!”

Noah wanted to shout something back at him in anger but realized he has absolutely nothing to be angry about.

In his next fight Noah used two storm wyverns to keep his opponent back until he summoned the colossus and it was then an easy win. His next fight was just as easy as the one before, but Noah was feeling drained.

In Noah’s final fight for the day he was facing a man with an unusual red outfit that had some sort of symbol on it; he was in a guild. This was the first time Noah had fought someone in a guild, but he knew nothing about this man or his guild.

When the referee came and the fight started; the man in red shot out fast moving streak of fire at Noah. It caught Noah off guard and he had to dive out of the way to doge it as it covered the distance between them with great speed.

He came out of the dive landing on his side, starring as a ball of fire was coming straight for him. Noah quickly got to his feet and swiped the fire ball aside with wind magic and saw three more speed after him; coming from his sides and front. Using a swift wind spell he caused the balls of fire to fly upwards and explode into the others.

Too late did Noah realize this was all a clever diversion as the man’s pillar was glowing a brilliant red light and Noah hadn’t gathered any energy to summon an elemental. He could have used the magic inside him but he would exhaust himself far too much at this point to fight for long like that. Then his opponent summoned three phoenix’s that charged right for Noah.

The phoenixes were fast and Noah had no choice but to call upon the energy inside him and quickly summon a tornado to stall them. The spell worked and caught them up in the tornado spinning them around and pushing them back, but it only bought Noah a minute and he was far too exhausted from the day’s previous fights. He saw no other option than to forfeit so he started backing away from his pillar to allow his enemy to destroy it.

But instead of going for his pillar the phoenix came straight after Noah again. The three phoenixes got to Noah and flew around him in a fast circle creating a tornado of fire around him. The only thing keeping him from being burned alive was his wind barrier but he was already sweating and felt his energy going fast as the flames came closer and closer.

He fell to his knees and still struggled with keeping the wind barrier up. He couldn’t let it end like this but he saw no way out either. The flames lashed closer and closer until a brilliant blue light erupted from his belt, followed by chains of lightning that interrupted the phoenix’s circling tornado of fire.

Primordious stood over Noah guarding him and sending out lightning bolt after lightning bolt that nailed each phoenix. He moved so fast that the phoenix didn’t have time to recover and as soon as Noah’s opponent made a move a bolt of lightning struck him too.

After the phoenixes were destroyed Primordious sent out a surge of lightning which shattered the opponents pillar and won Noah the match. The referee came out and declared Noah the winner and then Primordious returned to his card. Slowly Noah walked out of the coliseum as the crowd cheered for him. “Why did you save me?” He asked. “I thought you hated me after what I said earlier.”

“I do not hate you Noah. I suppose I cannot blame your or many of the other humans for your ignorance, but the time is come where things must and will change. Anyways for now return to the inn and hold the ever life stone for a few minutes.”

Back at the inn Noah grabbed the ever life stone and noticed it’s glow was significantly less than it once was before, despite how little he used it. He figured it must not last very long, perhaps only a few more months. After a couple minutes of holding the stone Noah felt much better and put it back into the bag to preserve its energy more in case he needed it later.

Then he lay in his bed thinking about how close he came to dying and how much he owed Primordious. He tried to think of a way to thank him, but before he knew it he was asleep. He woke up sometime later as it was night outside but the city was still lively.

Noah couldn’t seem to get the fight out of his head so he took a walk around the town. At one point during his walk he saw a tavern; it was lively and filled with noise and laughter. Noah never before tasted or tried alcohol but figured now would be a good time to try.

He took the first empty stool at the bar and when the bartender asked what he wanted he said, “Surprise me.” Then he added, “Never drank before.”

“Then might I suggest something light.” A girl said as she took a seat next to Noah.

He looked at her; she was a pretty girl with long blond hair braided into a tail that rest over her left shoulder. She extended her hand with a smile saying, “My name is Astrid.”

Noah took it and said, “Mine is Noah, nice to meet you.”

The bartender poured Noah his drink but he was too distracted with Astrid to notice. “I saw you fight in the coliseum today.” She said. “It was really impressive. And I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind helping me tomorrow. You see I have a two versus two match tomorrow, but my partner is too injured to fight and I need someone talented.”

Noah nodded a little then looked away from Astrid in a moment of thought. Then he drank his shot of alcohol and practically spit it right back out; hating it and said, “I will think about it.”

“Well it’s a good way to earn more points than single matches and it’s just the one. If you decide you want to than it is nine in the morning tomorrow for the deadline to sign you up, I will be waiting at the coliseum.”

Noah turned and walked out of the tavern calling back, “Good night Astrid.”

When he got back to his room at the inn Noah saw Primordious holding the ever life stone. “You used more energy than you expected huh?” Noah said.

When Primordious finished with the stone its glow was almost completely gone and he said, “I will have to retrieve a new stone. I underestimated how much I would need from it and how much it had all together.”

“I thought you said the stone was here to save me from almost certain death at times?”

“That is true yes, but that is not the main reason I broke this small piece off of the larger one.”

“I do not understand what you mean.”

After a long moment of silence Primordious said, “I am dying Noah. I am dying and the only thing keeping me alive is the ever life stone. The truth is I have been alive and on this planet for almost two millennia.”

Noah sat down on his bed trying to fully comprehend what Primordious was saying. “But how is that even possible?”

“The stone of ever life, I discovered as long as I am touching it for at least an hour every week or so I will not die, my life will be replenished but I must return to the stone every time. I had thought about just dying, letting myself move on like everything else that lives until after the war I had a vision, one of meeting you in the thunder plains. And the other of a god I thought gone for good returning to finish what he started.

“So from then on I stayed near the stone of ever life never traveling too far from it unless needed, waiting for the day where we would meet. I did not think it would ever come, and as time passed I began to fear it would be too late until finally you showed up.”

“Now I am even more confused, war, a god? There has not been any recorded history of war ever and I’m sure people would know if there was a god around.”

“In time I will tell you, but not just yet. For now remain focused on the tournament.” Then Primordious disappeared back into his card and left Noah alone for the rest of the night.