Gauge chased after the thief. A moment later, he realized he had lost track of her. Just as he was about to give up, he noticed a white trail. Feryx had left behind a path of white magma with what residue she had.
Gauge thought to himself, That must be Feryx helping me find her, no doubt about it.
The group chased after Gauge, lagging a large distance behind. They followed the flame trail Gauge created as he ran. Then Lucian suggested,"Take care of the big guy— (Zwoossh he splits into Aeropiercer and Champion.) —I'll go ahead."
Var turned to Xerxes and asked,"Looks like we are the only ones lagging behind. How do we catch up?"
Xerxes extended his arms and replied,"Hold on to me, everyone. We'll jump to the furthest distance I can see."
Gabriel refused the help,"Leave me and the Champion here. I'd be no good in battle. Focus your energy on teleporting the vampire. I'll bring Champion to the battlefield."
Var looked at Gabriel curiously and asked,"Battle? We're just tracking down one thief."
Gabriel, without delay, replied,"You guys can't tell?" (He looked at both of them, confused, then continued.) "It's obviously a trap! She could have just disappeared into a valley or somewhere else. Someone is deliberately drawing Gauge in."
Var tensed up upon hearing this. He urged Xerxes,"Hurry! We gotta get there faster!"
Zwoosh They disappeared into thin air.
Meanwhile
Gauge reached a barren street. No crowd, no stores. Just an empty alleyway. He looked around for the trail. It ended here. She must be here too.
A moment later, he noticed a woman in a shroud standing before him. Gauge spoke,"I knew it. You are the one from the tournament, aren't you? Ce...cerph...cephilin?"
The woman removed her hood. Her long blonde hair flowed free in the wind. Her skin was clear as daylight, her eyes green as leaves. She introduced herself,"Ceraphilla! Ceraphilla of Aegis, the pla—"
Gauge interrupted her,"Of Guardians, I know. But that doesn't explain why you stole my sword. What do you need it for?"
Ceraphilla smiled as she revealed Feryx. She added,"Well, we don't need your dagger. We need you, Gauge…(She threw Feryx out a distance behind her.) More precisely, we need your life!"
More Aegians appeared and surrounded Gauge. There were exactly five of them. Gauge responded as he prepared his battle stance,"And how do you plan to do that?"
Ceraphilla lifted her arms in the air. Blue light gleamed from her palms. The other five followed. She answered in a serious tone,"Crushed to death? Suffocated to death? Your choice. (Takes a deep breath.) Blue Gleam: Blue Box."
Energy radiated from all the Aegians, including Ceraphilla. A blue box sealed Gauge in. He tried to break through— thudd —the box cracked a little, then instantly healed. All six gave everything they had to maintain it.
Then they all closed their hands in. Each side of the cube shrank simultaneously, crushing Gauge. Ceraphilla remarked,"Try breaking through this with brute strength. This is the power of the strongest of Aegis."
Gauge struggled, yet smiled. Ceraphilla was shocked by his reaction. How could one smile in a situation like this? she wondered. Gauge spoke,"If this is the strongest, your planet is doomed!"
Ceraphilla grew furious. She forced the box to crush him more vigorously. Gauge resisted, charging his right arm. He concentrated every reserve in his body into it. His arm glowed brightly, blinding all of them. At that moment, Var and Xerxes reached the spot.
Gauge slammed his arm into the ground, piercing through the shield. THUDDDDDD Cracks spread across the ground and into nearby buildings. KRRRRRRKKKK The buildings grew unstable and collapsed onto the Aegians, knocking a few of them out. The ritual was now incomplete. Gauge broke through the shield, shattering it like a film of glass.
As he smashed through, he grabbed Ceraphilla and slammed her into the ground. Var observed all of this. He looked at Xerxes and remarked,"Looks like we were worried for nothing. Let's at least clean up."
As he spoke, he noticed one of the Aegians about to stab Gauge. Var tried to warn him— thud —but Aeropiercer stomped the Aegian to the ground.
Gauge looked at Ceraphilla, smiling as he calmly said,"Too bad. My reinforcements are here as well."
Ceraphilla looked around at the scene. Xerxes held two of her comrades in his hands. Var pinned two with his blood string. Aero had already taken down another. The entire team was defeated. Ceraphilla gave up,"I surrender! Please do not kill my people."
Moments later
The other five Aegians were tied to a pole. Ceraphilla was cuffed to a separate one, bound in blood shackles. Var interrogated her,"Who are you? And why do you want to kill Gauge?"
Ceraphilla looked down at the ground. Then she spoke,"I am Ceraphilla of Ae—"
"OF AEGIS, THE PLANET OF GUARDIANS!!! My god, I know... Just tell us why you need me dead." Gauge interrupted.
Ceraphilla continued,"My planet Aegis is protected by a powerful passive shield. For ages this shield was powered by an ancient primordial, Aegoroth. This shield kept our people safe from conquerors and powerful gods who sought to exploit us.
But now, for reasons unknown, his power is fading. That's when we learned about the Death Contracts."
Gauge was intrigued. He asked,"Death Contract?"
Ceraphilla closed her eyes and added,"Yes. In one of the Primordial systems, there exists a planet known as Necros. This planet is filled with demons and various species who issue contracts on dangerous beings—or beings of great interest. In exchange for the target, we are provided with Death Points."
Var's eyes widened. He remembered, If I recall, Yggdrasil offered a similar contract on Thornbane. We have a chance to learn more…
He stepped up and demanded,"What is a Death Point?"
Ceraphilla was intimidated by Var's cold voice. She replied,"Li… like I said, you are rewarded with these points in exchange for the target. These Death Points, depending on the being's level, can reverse death itself. In our case, to revive our primordial, we needed 750 Death Points."
Gauge blurted out,"What does that have to do with me?"
Ceraphilla pulled out her riftcore and revealed a contract,"That is exactly what it has to do with you!"
Var received it, looked it over, and remarked,"I knew it."
He then handed it to Gauge.
Gauge read the contract aloud:
Target: Mordan Gauge (ALIAS)Reward: 1000 Death UnitsPossible Locations: Xerith, Rafter, FloravereContract Issuer: Yggdrasil
He exclaimed,"What! What is the meaning of this??"
Next chapter – Fate of Lucia