Песчаная Буря
Спасибо! Я не знаю, смогу ли я ЭТО перевести нормально... На английском это как-то лучше смотрится...
СЛАБОНЕРВНЫМ НЕ ЧИТАТЬ!!!
Он очень большой, но он стоит того.
Isaac’s Final Breath
He saw it. He was sure of it. They all did. Even if it were but a brief moment, the four adepts saw him. It was Saturos. Like a shadow, he made his way up the enormous mountain.
“So, we’re gonna chase him, right?” the redhead, Garet had asked. Even in the wind, his spiky hair stood stiff and tall, just like him.
Isaac nodded silently, his messy blonde hair running over his face. He could not let that man escape. It wasn’t just his yearning to stop Saturos’ insane plot, but also rage and revenge. Saturos was the main reason Isaac’s father had died, he was also responsible for kidnapping his childhood friend, Jenna, along with an old man, Kraden.
“Isaac, I’m not sure if we should chase,” Mia said skeptically. Even she, a Mercury adept, shivered in frigid winds, tucking her body inside her icy-blue robe. “Saturos is a dangerous man, and the climb will tire us out, while he’ll easily keep his energy.” Mia’s long sapphire hair was constantly falling over her eyes in these conditions.
The young Ivan nodded in agreement, his arms locked around his chest in a desperate attempt to keep warm. “Mia’s right, we’re no match for Saturos now. We should stick to the quest and try not to get distracted.” Like Mia, he too tried to take shelter from the cold in his green cloak.
Garet shook his head, knowing Isaac’s thoughts exactly. “Saturos is on our quest. This may be our only chance to take him on while he’s alone. If we don’t stop him now, we’ll never be able to stop him later.” The Venus adept nodded, happy to know that Garet could read him so well. “It’s hard for you two to understand because he did nothing to you, but he kidnapped our friends and hurt our families.”
Mia and Ivan choked for a moment, unable to find their answers. Wiping a small flake of snow off his blonde hair, Ivan let out a defeated sigh. “Well, I promised I would help you, Isaac. So if this is what you want to do, I’ll follow you.”
“It looks like there’s no way to convince you two otherwise,” Mia paused, looking to the side for a moment. “I won’t leave you here, I’ll help.”
Isaac gave a gentle smile in return, showing his deep gratitude to his friends. Isaac knew that they would not die; he would never willingly put his friends in danger. He believed in himself and his comrades.
Garet nodded, thanking his friends as well. “All right, let’s go!” he cried, beginning to climb up the rocky mountain.
So, the group trekked up the mountain silently. It was no easy climb, and the uneven edges only made it even more dangerous. The footing was tricky, and the four would constantly have to avoid falling rocks, or slipping on the damp footholds. Knowing that it was their idea to give chase, Isaac and Garet thought it to be right that they were the ones to climb ahead. They would check the footing of each small step forward, letting Mia and Ivan know what spot was safe.
No living creature lived on this jagged rock. The only thing alive seemed to be the mountain itself. The large gusts of winds were nothing more than simple breaths to the monster they climbed, showing the four children just how small they were in the grand scheme of nature. Even with the power of Psynergy, the power to control the elements, nature proved to be far superior to these lowly humans.
After a long and exhausting work, Garet and Isaac found a small cliff that the group could rest on. Clasping Ivan and Mia’s arms in a tight grip, the two leaders pulled them up on the flat grounds. Each member was out of breath, and welcomed the small rest they had been granted.
To their misfortune, it began to snow harshly, only aiding the cold in its frigid endeavor to freeze the teenagers to death. “Ah, sorry guys…” Garet apologized, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. His face growing almost as red as his hair, he said, “But, I think we might have to huddle together for warmth.” He laughed nervously, already feeling guilty about causing his friends so much trouble.
Isaac nodded in agreement once again, moving himself across the ledge so that his body was against Ivan’s. Still embarrassed, Garet let out a tense cough and scooted himself against Mia’s gentle body. They all felt slightly awkward, but it did manage to fight off the cold. Especially since Mia and Ivan were huddled in the middle between the warm Mars adept and the quiet Venus adept.
“Even for something so dangerous…” Mia said suddenly, her eyes drifting out over the vast mountain. “It is beautiful up here I think.”
Snow drifted down the endless mountain, falling without fear of what lies at the bottom of the gorge. A shroud of mist covered the foot of the mountain, making it seem that the four had climbed above Heaven itself.
Becoming more comfortable with his companions, Ivan shifted himself into a different position, slightly glad that he was able to lean against a girl where poor Isaac was the only one who couldn’t. “Nothing’s going to happen to us,” Ivan suddenly blurted out, acting a bit like his younger age for once. “…Right? We’ll live through it like always?”
Garet nodded half-mindedly. “We will. But, that’ll only be because we’ll give it everything we got. We’re saving the world by keeping the lighthouses unlit, justice will never fail. We can’t possibly lose.” He curled his palm into a fist, determined to do what he thought was right.
Isaac showed yet another comforting smile to his friends, truly energizing all that was around him. He wasn’t one to smile after all. Isaac, like Garet, wasn’t going to back down from this. The Wise One was counting on him, along with all of Weyard.
Ivan let out a brief smile, before putting on a look of surprise. He glanced back to the Mercury healer and asked, “Mia, you’re scared?”
Shocked by the sudden question, Mia shook her head. “No, where did you get that idea?” She paused and then frowned down upon the young boy, knowing exactly what gave him that thought. “Were you…”
Ivan apologized quickly. “I’m sorry; I accidentally read your mind for a moment.” He looked down to his lap in slight shame. “I wanted to make sure I wasn’t the only one,” he finally admitted.
Sensing trouble in the group’s motivation, Garet suddenly shot up from his sitting position. “It’s okay to be scared, but I think we spent enough time resting! We should get going before we get covered in snow!” He shook his head like a dog, throwing any patches of snow out of his crimson hair.
With a grunt, Isaac nodded, getting up into a standing position. After stretching out his arms for a long climb, he held out his hands to help Mia and Ivan up. They accepted his help, and found that they too had put on a light coat of snow. The golden-haired boy then gripped his hand into a small crevice above and heaved himself steadily higher.
The climb had only become even more dangerous with the light blizzard. Snow would relentlessly find its way into the adepts’ eyes, making it easy to put a hand or a foot in patch of loose rocks. Each member had almost fallen at least one time.
Biting down on her frozen blue lips, Mia brushed away the snow around her face. Unable to see for a split second, she placed her hand onto a deadly loose crevice. With a shriek of horror, she began scrambling to grab hold of anything that would stop her descent. Unfortunately, in her panicked state, she could find none in time.
“Mia!” Ivan cried out in pure terror, seeing the girl’s fatal mistake. Her body falling back, he knew that it could only mean death. Time seemed to slow as Ivan thrust his arm out to hers, desperate to do anything to keep her alive. His hand clasped around hers, but only for a mere moment, as it slipped out of his hold.
Moving like lightning, he grabbed hold of another crevice and threw his other arm out to her, this time successfully clasping his hand around hers. His heart beat like a madman’s and his breath could only come out in shaky huffs.
“T-that was a little scary,” Mia whimpered, her body dangling over the endless gorge. “I-I would hate to fall down this mountain…”
Ivan was never one to be religious, but he couldn’t help but let out a, “Thank God,” after that horrifying moment. Isaac and Garet sighed simultaneously, relieved.
“T-thank you so much, Ivan…” Mia had said after the Jupiter adept helped her back onto the mountain. “I thought I was going to die…”
Still shaken, Ivan gave her a weak nod. He didn’t want to say, but he had indeed thought Mia was going to die as well. “I guess it’s like Garet said,” he replied, trying his best to sound reassuring.
Despite the near-death experience, the group had no choice but to keep going on. The faster they accomplished this mission, the faster they could get out of this frozen hell. Each member was tiring quickly, and it was only becoming more and more difficult to breathe.
Their muscles ached, and the frigid winds soon felt like thousands of needles piercing into their bare skin all across their body. Even though their bodies no longer had the strength to carry on, their souls would only push harder. Saturos couldn’t have gotten far; even he would be extremely exhausted after this climb.
Through all the pain and fatigue, Garet’s face suddenly lit up. “There’s a spot to rest!” he cried out, as though he had found an oasis in a scorching desert. The group’s energy renewed, they quickly climbed up the ledge.
This spot on the mountain was different than the others. It was shaped like a perfectly flat platform, and was at least wide enough to hold a large house. Each adept merely fell upon the stone, chests heaving.
“I can’t possibly go any farther…” Mia panted, coughing slightly as she spoke.
Ivan’s eyes seemed distant as he lay on the stone platform. “I’m sorry, Isaac, but I can’t go any farther either…”
Isaac remained the only one who was not sprawled out on the cliff. Completely out of breath, he could only stand on his knees, using his sword to keep the rest of his body up. He understood his friends’ predicament. He knew that going any farther would be suicide.
Gazing up into the gray sky, Garet laid his arms out, feeling each one pulsing with pain. “That Saturos is a demon! How could he possibly go any farther?”
The four stayed in their positions for a quite some time, letting their muscles recharge. It wasn’t long before they were back on their feet, still a bit tired out however. “I guess this wall all a waste of time…” Garet sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “Sorry about this, guys.”
“Don’t apologize, I’m right here,” a voice echoed through the snowy mountains. The heroes looked up and saw the man they had been searching for. He was standing on a small ledge above, a demonic grin across his face. “And to answer your question from before, I couldn’t go any farther.”
“Saturos!” Ivan shouted, unsheathing his slim sword at his side.
With a frown, the blue haired man leaped from his position and down onto the stone platform. His cape billowed in the blizzard, and his eyes gave off an intimidating glow. He was a special Mars adept, from the Fire Clan of the north. His fiery powers deceived his looks, as he had what seemed to be, frozen blue skin. “Why did you fools follow me?”
Clenching the large sword now in his hands, Garet hissed, “Shut up! What are you doing here anyways?”
Obviously irritated, the cold Mars adept shut his eyes and curled his free hand into a fist. “Simply looking for a spot to put that brat and the old man…” He sighed. “I was really getting tired lugging them around…”
Isaac gritted his teeth together, digging his feet down onto the stone below. This was it. This was the time to get his revenge on the man, and to further his quest to protect the world.
“If you give me the Mars star, I’ll let you live,” Saturos offered, seeing Isaac’s piercing glare. “I will warn you right now, if you fight me, you will all die.”
Mia stepped forward, holding her staff close to her chest. “You’ll kill us even if we give it to you!”
“How observant,” Saturos taunted, his blade reflecting Mia’s face.
Ivan could feel the hairs on the back of his neck bristle with anger. “Four against one? Only a fool could believe they could win against those odds!”
Saturos smirked, his hair covering one of his eyes in a mysterious fashion. “But, I have justice on my side.”
Unbelievable! Garet could have sworn he heard wrong. “Are you insane? You kidnapped our friends, and you’re trying to destroy the world! There’s no justice in that!”
Saturos brought his gaze to Garet’s, his eyes suddenly serious and dark. “Believe what you want,” he hissed. “Enough talk, now die!”
Eyes wide with fear, the redhead only had time to bring up his large weapon to block Saturos’ attack. With a growl, the enemy continued to thrust his sword at Garet, who in return, was able to barely parry the attacks.
Knowing the danger he was in, Ivan dove into their battle, moving with the blizzard’s harsh winds. Even with his speed, the enemy proved to be faster. With a screeching metallic clang, Saturos blocked the sword blow. Seeing their opening, Garet and Ivan tried to attack at the same time.
“Hmph,” Saturos growled, jumping behind the two with a back flip. The two fighters soon realized their mistake of attacking at once, and stopped their blades in mid-swing, nearly killing each other. “You’ll all die up here.” The dark Mars adept still had time to show off.
“He’s a demon…” Garet whispered again, Ivan’s blade an inch away from his face.
The battle became deathly silent. Not a single combatant moved, comrade or enemy. None seemed to be aware of the icy storm that raged around this fight. A thin layer of snow appeared on the stone platform, painting the battle from a dull gray to a dangerous colorless white. Saturos’ flailing cape, the screaming winds, and the tense breathing of each warrior became the only sound in this desolate wasteland.
The enemy’s eyes darted to Isaac as a small crunch entered his ears, obviously a crunch from snow being trampled over. Destroying the soundless barriers, Isaac let out a rage filled battle cry, charging forward. Saturos stood unflinching as the golden hero swung his sword down. At the last moment, however, he dodged to the side with ease. Isaac, having predicted this, tried for another attack, only to see it miss as well.
“We can’t keep up with him,” Ivan said, seeing that Saturos was toying with Isaac. Each swing from the Venus adept would only result in a last minute dodge by the enemy.
“We can’t give up!” Mia cried, holding her staff in the air. Closing her eyes, her weapon soon began to glow with a bright sapphire. In mere moments, a dozen or so ice spikes cut through the air, aimed directly at the distracted Saturos.
Sensing the attack, Saturos dropped his attention from Isaac and brought his weapon down upon the flying objects, rendering them useless. Of course, this left him wide open.
The enemy cried out in pain as a large bloody scar appeared across his side. Isaac grinned, his sword now colored red. Clutching at his wound, Saturos jumped back. “Damn you… so we’re using Psynergy now…”
“Charge at him while he’s down!” Garet roared to his teammates. Each member of the team with a sword lunged forward, while Mia prepared for yet another attack.
The battle soon seemed to favor the heroes as each member relentlessly thrust their swords at the lone enemy. Saturos growled, feeling himself get pushed back by his attackers. Even he was only narrowly escaping their blades’ edges, leaving him without a single chance to strike back.
“Enough!” Saturos bellowed. The three boys were soon blown away by an eruption of scorching hot fireballs. As the flames danced through the air, the snow reflected the Psynergy, coloring the battle a hellish blood-red.
Ivan felt a rush of adrenaline inside his body. While flying back in the air, he planted one palm against the ground and pushed himself back to his feet, while he threw his other free hand into the air. “Feel the wrath of the heavens!” he roared, his palm glowing with a blinding white light.
Saturos craned his neck up to face the sky, his eyes wide with fear. No chance to run, an explosion of lightning rained down upon the Mars adept. Three bolds of highly charged plasma struck him, causing him to fall to his knees. He was brutally burned, but it proved only to stun him for a moment.
“You’ll die first!” he roared, up to his feet only seconds after the attack.
Mia was quick to counter, shooting another barrage of ice spikes at the enemy as he charged for Ivan. Saturos seemed to be blinded by fury, as the spikes cut past his skin, without as much as a flinch from him.
The wind howled through the mountains like a death cry.
Ivan brought up his sword to parry the furious attacker, but soon found that it was futile. Saturos struck with such strength that Ivan’s slim sword broke in two.
“Ivan!” Garet cried out, unable to find the strength to get up from the last attack.
It was too late.
The young teenager looked down at his stomach in horror. A bloody sword was jammed inside his body. Ivan could only tremble as he felt the crimson life force slowly drain out of his body. A series of grunts escaped his lips, but no words could express the pain he felt.
“The heavens will mourn the loss of this one.” Saturos mocked, smirking. In a gruesome motion, he began to thrust his blade into the boy’s chest over and over, spilling his blood across the battlefield. Feeling no more need for the boy, he tossed the body over his shoulder, near the edge of a cliff.
“Ivan! Ivan, no!” Mia screamed, rushing to his side. “It’s okay, it’s okay, I’ll heal you!” she shouted desperately, tears streaming down her cheeks. She knew it was futile, yet she placed her healing palm upon his scarred body anyway. “No, this can’t be!”
The blizzard’s ice froze deep into their souls.
“It can be,” Saturos hissed, slamming his sword into Mia’s hand.
A scream of agony echoed through the mountains, as he brought Mia’s pierced hand into the air forcefully. Knowing nothing other than her physical pain and her mental pain from losing a friend, she was completely under the enemy’s control.
With a swift kick, he brought his sword out from her hand, and pushed Mia over the edge of the cliff. Down into the endless gorge.
Garet found himself unable to breathe. Isaac as well. Tears ran down their cheeks, and they only wished for Mia’s scream to stop. Their very souls seemed to be sucked out of their bodies. And just like that…
Mia’s voice faded away. Never again to be heard.
How could all of this have happened? This couldn’t be true! How could Ivan and Mia be gone so quickly? The two gentlest friends they had ever had. Gone?
Saturos shook his sword, removing any stray blood from his blade. His wounds showing, he sheathed his blade. “Give me the Mars star, and I will harm you no more. You have my promise.”
Neither of the boys could hear. Only the lost voices of their friends echoed inside their hearts. Like a bolt of lightning, it struck them.
It was their fault.
“Damn it…” Garet cried, the crystal liquids unable to stop flowing. “Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!” he cursed continually. The redhead slammed his fist over and over into the stone ground until his knuckles became raw and bloody. He could still feel Mia’s gentle body against his… now he could never feel it again.
The young Ivan would die never knowing his true parents, never knowing his family. Isaac cursed himself, wishing that he would suffer a fate worse than the Jupiter adept’s. He was so young, he had so many things he could have done with his life…
Mia’s little sister and little brother would never see her again. The people of the village who needed her would surely die now that their healer was gone.
Saturos slammed his sword into the ground, letting out a large metallic groan that snapped the boys back to the real world. “Like I said, hand over the Mars star and you won’t die.”
Lifting the heavy weight of guilt on their shoulders, the two teenagers stood up to their feet, clutching their weapons. “We’re already dead,” Garet hissed, his eyes glaring with a fiery hatred. “We may die, but we’ll take you with us.”
Saturos, for once, took on a look of shock. “Are you two idiots? You can still survive, you can still live on. Don’t throw away your only chance!”
But, nothing could ever break through to these boys. Each one burned with hatred and sorrow. Both were indeed dead. Isaac and Garet mentally apologized to their family and Jenna. They could not return to them ever again. What they did can never be forgiven.
Lifting his sword back up, Saturos spit into the snow. “I gave you your chance.”
Before even Saturos could expect it, the ground beneath him opened up, causing him to lose his balance and jump to the side. Not even able to get his balance, a wave of fire engulfed his body, searing his once proud blue skin.
The battle began once again. Two demons fought against one in this round. Saturos was constantly thrown off balance by Isaac’s earth moving abilities, while Garet would attack while he was down. The swords formed into a tornado, clanging and burning at each swing. Saturos could see the passion in each of the fighters’ eyes, but he did not back down, not for a second.
Scarred and scorched, the battlefield lost all of its soul. Cracks ran along the mountain side, charred burn marks could be seen all around. Blood littered the field, painting the fight into a chaotic unknown color. All that could be seen was hatred, despair, and pain.
Saturos jumped back, his left arm limp and unusable. Scars, bruises, and blood covered his body from head to toe, and he could feel the oxygen around becoming harder and harder to obtain. His cape was torn to shreds, leaving only a small remnant of what it used to be attached to his shoulders.
Isaac and Garet didn’t look any better. It was obvious that even if they were to win now, they would never make it down the mountain in this condition. Still, even though their bodies should have reached their limits, they held tight their weapons.
Saturos winced, clutching to his bleeding wound to his side. Even against these odds, he wouldn’t give up. In a sudden movement, he caused the ground around Isaac to erupt with blazing magma, throwing him back against the mountain wall. Seeing the opening, Saturos charged forward with an unholy speed.
Warm blood was spilt, throwing out the fires of life forever.
Isaac had glued his eyes shut, terrified of the pain he was about to feel. To his surprise, he felt nothing. Curious, he opened his eyes and let out a gasp of horror.
Garet had his bloody hand wrapped around the sharp edge of the blade, and to stop the weapon from killing Isaac, the Mars adept had thrown his body in the way.
“What the hell are you doing?” Saturos roared, finding himself unable to draw the weapon out of the boy’s stomach.
Even through the terrible shots of agony inside his body, Garet gave a smirk, keeping a strong grip around the pointed edge of the sword. “Unlike you… I have friends…” he muttered, coughing up blood as he did so. “Friends that I’d gladly give… my own life to save…”
Isaac’s eyes went wide as he saw the final moments of his childhood friend. This was the boy who knew Isaac better than anyone else ever had. Garet, the troublemaker, who had helped Isaac through so much, was dying right before his eyes.
Another wave of blood came from Garet’s mouth as he coughed. “This is your chance, Isaac…” he grunted. “Kill him… I don’t want my death to be in vain… that’d suck… you know?” He tried to laugh, but found it to be impossible in this state.
That idiot… Why would he do that? Isaac would rather die in Garet’s place.
The golden Venus adept found himself crying yet again. Everyone around him was disappearing. He was alone now. “Ivan, Mia, and I…” Garet said suddenly, his life draining away quickly. “We’re not gone. We…” The redhead soon realized he was crying too. “We love you, no matter what happens. So please…” His grip around the sword weakened. “Just try your best… that’s all we want.”
With his last words, Saturos brought the sword out of the dying boy’s stomach. Garet fell into the snow, motionless and lifeless. “People say strange things when they’re dying,” Saturos growled, kicking the dead body angrily.
Isaac couldn’t take it anymore. He thought that he had everything stolen from him before, but he was wrong again. The only thing running in his mind was his dead friends. Everything that he could possibly remember of each of them seemed to come in a split second. Their fights, their meetings, their good times, and their final moments.
“You’ve suffered quite a lot,” Saturos laughed. “I would pity you in this situation, but you’ve caused me too much trouble now. I’ll kill you now, and put you out of your misery.” With his good arm, he held his bloody weapon to the thrashing skies, and brought it down in a powerful attack.
A large metallic clang ran through the mountains as their swords clashed together. Gritting his teeth in fury, Isaac pushed his enemy out of the way. There was no time for Saturos to recover, as a powerful kick from Isaac landed onto his stomach, throwing the blue Mars adept against the stone mountainside.
There was no stopping Isaac now. Saturos was wide open.
Saturos screamed in agony as Isaac’s sword entered his chest. His entire body heaving, Isaac grinned, fully aware of the sword inside his own chest from Saturos as well.
“I never thought it’d come to this…” Saturos grunted, his body stiff. “But, the others will make it… the lighthouses will be lit.” In the next moment, he stopped moving, and his head became limp.
It was over.
Isaac pulled the sword out of his chest and fell to his knees. Mia, Ivan, Garet. Their deaths were not in vain. Together, Saturos was stopped. It cost all their lives, but they had done it. There was still Felix and Jenna. Isaac knew he could count on them to do the right thing.
His body hit the cold snow, but Isaac didn’t seem to feel it anymore. The mountains that he and his friends died on became blurry, and he knew that it was over. Strangely enough, he was not sad as he died. While his soul was slowly being taken away by Death, he could hear his friends’ voices again. He was going to see them.
Even if he died, even if he failed, Isaac knew that there would be others. They would protect the world where he could not.
Tears rolled down his eyes, and he admitted he wished it wasn’t over. His soul taken away by the harsh winds, Isaac let out his final breath and whispered, “I’m sorry.”
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