Smoke rose towards the sky. The tides were turning towards the town. It seems that the regular humans weren't hopeless after all. Bonaks and Daks were indeed hit by the arrows, but they could still use magic on other parts of their body, not just the area where they were hit.
The Antimaether was sort of like a poison that neutralizes mana. Once it is injected into the body, it spreads and blocks the mana pathways in that area.
While the iron-enriched magical steel would be counter-intuitive to use along with it due to their contradictory nature, the great human craftsmen of Mindrifth, after a long time since the secret project had started, had found a way to balance the two to coexist. Another material compound was used to bring harmony, a blue crystal gem that had neutral properties. It acts as a barrier between the two during the forging process. The magic-enriched iron that had been turned to steel was called Black Aether Iron in its raw form, and when it was processed it became Black Aether Steel.
So how would the process work? Let's say you want a sword for a knight to be crafted with such material. First was the tempering of the magical steel by a blacksmith. Then they would apply a crushed compound of the blue crystal gem called Bluestar, as it twinkles when it shatters and when light hits it. This crushed compound would be applied on the steel's outer layer, preserving its mana-absorbing capabilities. Then a skilled magical artificer would inscribe magical runes that act as a catalyst for the type of elemental magic you wanted to apply into it.
Now you would think that the Antimaether would instead cancel out the steel's mana-absorbing effects, but with the help of Bluestar that acts as a barrier between the steel and the Antimaether.
The Antimaether is only kept on the edge of the blade as a material saving process and so that it couldn't fully cancel out the steel's own properties. The blade could continuously absorb mana on parts of it that have none of the Antimaether, powering the ancient runic texts that activate the elements contained in it.
While in arrows, they could just dip arrow heads in a viscous concoction of Antimaether, like an arrow dipped in poison but with Antimaether as the poison substitute instead. What this meant was it could be used in normal arrows as long as you dip it in the substance, and you wouldn't have to use the expensive Black Aether Steel to craft an arrow.
Anyways, that concept also applies to armors and shields. They lather the top with the substance and the steel beneath it would still work. Though it was fairly very expensive, and only rich households could afford such. It was said that the king's guards are fully equipped with such. But if you are a knight like Adam, it was only spared for your shield and a few important parts of your armor.
The invaders screamed profanities as they realized that the arrows and bolts that their enemies were using were laced with some sort of poisonous substance that greatly affects them. They weren't wrong. The Antimaether acted in such a way that it may be akin to being poisoned if you are a magic user. It doesn't only block the mana pathways. No, it was more complicated than that. The Antimaether would absorb their mana and corrupt their vessels around them, turning mana into nothingness. And for a magic user that relies on such prowess, that was deadly.
"What is this?!" Kanton shouted, clutching his arm where an arrow had grazed him. The wound burned, not like fire but like ice and acid combined. He could feel his magic stuttering, failing around the injury. "Some kind of anti-magic weapon!"
"I can barely cast!" He yelled, panic was apparent in his voice. He'd taken an arrow to the leg and was limping badly, his earth magic sputtering uselessly.
Bonaks gritted his teeth. His shoulder also throbbed where the arrow had struck, and he could feel the poison spreading, blocking his fire magic in his entire left arm. But his right side still worked. He could still fight.
But the battle was indeed far from over. Now the pirates were desperate. They used the villagers to shield themselves, grabbing rebels and pulling them in front as the knights advanced. They began dislodging the arrowheads that had hit them, screaming in pain as the jagged barbs tore flesh.
"Get it out! Get it out!" Daks shrieked, digging at the arrow in his leg with a knife. Blood flowed freely, but he didn't care. He had to get the poison out of his system.
The pain didn't subside immediately, and some residue of the viscous substance remained inside their bodies. Other than the pain, they were now bleeding profusely due to the arrowheads being jagged. They were only saved by cauterizing their wounds with magic. In Bonaks's case, he burned his wound with his fire, the smell of searing flesh filling the air.
The agony almost made him pass out. His vision swam, and he swayed on his feet. But he forced himself to stay conscious. If he fell here, then his death was assured.
Once they had recovered somewhat, they began to drink their potions. Yes, another advantage for a magic user: health potions and mana potions that could heal them and their depleted mana. You would need a mage to be able to concoct these, or a skilled magical herbalist. Normal humans could still be affected by the health potion, while the mana potion would just taste like an herbal drink. It wouldn't do them anything other than give them the displeasure of the disgusting taste, as it was made with rare herbs.
The other people saw the potions begin to slightly glow after they consumed them. The effects of healing weren't instantaneous as these were low-quality potions. But you could see it healing them even if it was slow. Thankfully, the Antimaether was also being flushed away from their system as the body found it as a parasite that needed to be expelled.
Bonaks felt his strength returning bit by bit. The wound on his shoulder was still there, but it had stopped bleeding. His magic was coming back, slowly, as the poison was pushed out by the potion's healing effects.
"Regroup!" he shouted to his pirates. "Use the rebels as shields! We can still win this!"
But even as he said it, he wasn't sure he believed it.
This bloody affair would now start its second round.
Bonaks was angry now, his face red and contorted in rage. "You bastards! I will make sure to burn all of you alive!" he screamed.
He threw one barrage after another towards the approaching knights, walls of fire erupting from his hands. While the others fired arrows and bolts towards him, he skillfully dodged or used the villagers who were around him as shields. Whatever these people were using to injure him that much was dangerous, and he needed to be careful.
The fire he sent, along with Kanton's own earth magic spikes combined, were launched towards the knights who hid behind their shields and the walls of the houses nearby.
Knight Captain Adam crouched behind his shield as a wave of fire washed over them. The heat was intense, even through his armor. Beside him, one of his knights wasn't as lucky. The man's shield cracked under the assault, and flames caught his surcoat. He screamed and fell back, others rushing to put out the fire.
"Hold positions!" Adam commanded. "Wait for an opening!"
The rebels caught in the middle were panicking. Some tried to run and were cut down by the pirates for their cowardice. Others were too terrified to move, frozen between two armies.
Brina watched from her position with the town guard, horror and fascination warring within her. She'd never seen magic used like this, as a weapon of war. The fire, the earth spikes, the sheer destructive power. And yet, the knights were holding. They were fighting back.
Of course, the shields aren't indestructible, and even the Antimaether coating isn't going to last. Every magical attack destroys its layers slowly, and the magical steel could only do so much.
But the knights were patient. Their approach was slow and methodical. They advanced in formation, shields locked, covering each other. When one fell back to rest or replace damaged equipment, another took their place. This wasn't wild charging. This was professional warfare.
Adam saw his moment. Bonaks was focused on maintaining his fire barrage, standing in one spot, using a rebel as a human shield. But human shields only work if the enemy cares about hitting them.
Adam was a soldier. He'd learned long ago to make hard choices.
He drew an Antimaether laced arrow, aimed carefully, and loosed.
The arrow flew past the rebel's shoulder, close enough to graze cloth, and struck Bonaks in the side.
Bonaks howled, his fire sputtering out as the poison hit his system again. He stumbled, clutching the arrow shaft, his eyes wide with pain and fury.
Kanton saw his leader fall and made a decision. "Retreat!" he shouted. "Fall back to the secondary position!"
The pirates began to withdraw, dragging Bonaks with them, using the chaos and smoke as cover. The rebels, abandoned by their supposed allies, were left to face the knights alone.
And for the first time, even the town's guard and the recruits saw something miraculous. Their people could stand toe to toe with otherwise very dangerous enemies. And it seems it has something to do with their equipment, at least that was what they could surmise by watching.
"Did you see that?" Elena breathed beside Brina. "The captain hit that fire mage twice. Twice! And he's still alive, but he can barely fight now."
"The arrows," Brina said, understanding dawning. "It's the arrows. They're special somehow. They're stopping the magic."
Around them, other guards and recruits were coming to the same realization. Their town had a weapon against magic. They weren't helpless.
Morale, which had been low, suddenly surged. If the knights could do it, maybe they could too. Maybe they could win this.
Though they too were continuing in arresting these traitors who sided with these magicians.
Sergeant Vorik led their unit forward as the knights pushed past, chasing the retreating pirates. "Surround the rebels! Those who surrender will be taken into custody! Those who resist will be subdued!"
Many of the rebels, seeing their magical allies fleeing and the knights advancing, threw down their weapons. They were farmers and laborers, not soldiers. They'd been promised help, promised victory. Now they were abandoned and facing professional troops.
But some, like Dodong, refused to surrender. He stood in the center of what remained of his barricade, a farming sickle in one hand, a torch in the other, his eyes wild.
"You'll have to kill me!" he screamed. "I won't go quietly! I won't be executed like a common criminal!"
Brina's unit approached carefully. Vorik raised his hand, signaling them to stop.
"Herman Toregosa!" Vorik called out. "You've been used! Those magicians you trusted, they're bandits and pirates! They lied to you! They wanted to conquer Helwind, and they used you to do it!"
"Lies!" Dodong spat. "More lies from the lord's dogs!"
"Look around you!" Vorik gestured. "Where are they now? Your powerful allies? They fled! They left you here to die!"
Dodong looked around and saw it was true. The magicians were gone. Only he and a handful of loyal rebels remained, surrounded by guards and knights.
The realization broke something in him. His shoulders slumped, and the sickle fell from his hand.
"I just wanted... I just wanted a better irrigation system," he said quietly. "For my people. For our crops."
Then he collapsed, whether from exhaustion or despair, Brina couldn't tell.
Two sides battled it out, but one of them obviously was getting pushed. Who could come out on top in the end? Only time would tell, and that climax was almost upon them.
The battle for Outerwinds was won. But in Lowwinds and Marketsbreth, fighting still raged. The pirates had split their forces, and Helwind's troops had to do the same.
Knight Captain Adam rallied his forces. "Half of you, with me to Lowwinds! The rest, secure this area and pursue any fleeing enemies! And someone get a healer for that man!"
He pointed to Dodong, who collapsed on the ground. Even now, even after everything, he wouldn't let a man die unnecessarily.
As the knights thundered off toward the next battle, Brina and her unit began the grim work of securing prisoners and tending to wounded on both sides.
She saw rebels she recognized. People she'd sold vegetables to at the market. People who'd been kind to her and Ren. Now they sat with their hands bound, faces filled with shame and fear.
She saw guards she'd trained with, wounded or dead. Damian wasn't the only one. There were others. Too many others.
And somewhere out there, the pirates who'd orchestrated all of this were still fighting, still trying to take her town.
But for the first time since this nightmare began, Brina felt something like hope.
They could win this. They would win this.
And then those bastards who'd torn Helwind apart would face justice.
One way or another.