Amidst the tree cover, a wizard jumped atop a branch and began commanding vines to attack Ella and Marcus. With sabres in hand, three more rushed at the duo from the right and three from the left. And they were all glowing maroon now.
Ella and Marcus charged their Ki to a max. "Brace yourself, Marc," the Mystic said, via the Faris mind-link. "That maroon demonic aura is what's giving them strength. I will lead on this one…"
Mystics were experts in defence against black magic. So, Ella had to lead. This broke their usual formation, the one they were most used to.
Ella used her Mysticism to break the black magic of the wizards. Whispering, "GALA-ZATA-SHIRO-LIN…" she channelled as much Ki into her hands as possible. It was an anti-demonic spell. Every time the wizards came in contact with her fists, their demonic shields kept getting damaged, and eventually began to break.
The strategy proved effective. It gave Marcus plenty of opportunities to land strong, clean hits. The Mystic's spell kept breaking the wizards' formation, while the Sokidu's staff kept doing most of the damage.
However, the continuous intrusion from the vines rushing at the duo and grabbing at their limbs was a cause for worry.
Marcus pushed Ella in the air and smashed his staff on the ground producing a sudden shockwave. It forced the wizards back momentarily but gave enough time for the duo to change places.
"What're you doing?" Ella asked.
"You're a Mystic, girl!" Marcus replied. "You should be able to undo that bastard's control over the trees and shit. Do it. I'll hold them off till then."
The plan was a solid one. As a Mystic, she should have been able to undo the wizard's magic easily. But to leave Marcus to fend off six of them alone was risky. She hesitated.
Then Marcus's eyes began burning red and subtle flames rose from his skin. "Move!" he screamed out loud.
The Sokidu was now showing the full extent of his power. His tremendously strong Ki became clearly visible burning like flames around his body, and he countered the wizards ferociously.
His strength was overwhelming. Every strike felt like a sledgehammer striking the wizards. Even with their defensive charms and spells protecting them from direct damage, each blow was hurling them back many paces. The brutal counterattack was working.
But it was taking its toll on the Sokidu's Ki reserve. Ella had to move quickly. She skipped back and then used a teleportation spell to move past the ruckus and closer to the wizard controlling the vines.
With vines rushing at her, she crossed her arms before her chest, charged with Ki, and then snapped them open. Twin wind blades slashed outward in an X, hissing like steel drawn across stone. They cut right through all the vines like a knife through butter. The wizard quickly moved out of the way. The branch he was sitting on got shattered and fell down. He safely landed on the ground.
Before the miscreant could attack her again, Ella stretched her left arm ahead and chanted, "UNZAMA-DOHAFEN-ZEEFA-JANSIN!"
Her spell was stronger, much stronger than the wizard's. It broke his control immediately. It appeared as though the trees and vines were shaking themselves free from the effects of the wizard.
However, Ella felt a sting in her arm. Within seconds, the stinging feeling grew to an unbearable level. She screamed in pain, clutching her arm.
"Ella!" Marcus called.
In the corner of his vision, he saw her on the ground. The cunning wizard had left a failsafe in his spell. As soon as Ella cut his control off and established a link with the part of the forest he was in command of, a poisonous surge of demonic energy snapped back into her body. She was a Mystic. She could defend against black magic. But by the time she realized what was going on, the demonic Ki had already latched onto the arm forging her connection with the forest.
The young Mystic grunted and grabbed her left arm with her right. She had mitigated the damage. The poison was not spreading any further. But she was unable to establish control over the Ki in her left arm anymore.
The wizard slowly began moving towards her – an ear-to-ear grin smeared on his face. He grabbed Ella by her hair and picked her up. A few strong jabs at her belly and he let her go. She fell on the ground. Eyes closed tightly, she curled onto her side and let out a strangled cry.
Marcus had had enough. With his arms stretched wide, the fire-breather screamed at the top of his lungs as he let his gigantic Ki reserves loose. It looked as if he had exploded into flames. And the shockwave hurled the wizards away. The power that intimidated Zaatsus had been unleashed on the wizards.
"Keep your filthy hands off her!"
He charged. A witch uprooted a rock to block his path, but he tore through it like it was made of feathers. Two more tried stepping in his way, but he threw them away with his staff.
The wizard standing next to Ella and one other chanted in unison, "PRISARO-MANATE!"
Two large blocks of iron, at least ten feet in height, length, and breadth, appeared on either side of Marcus and pushed in. Two of the other wizards used their Demonic Ki to enhance the strength of the blocks even more.
It was a powerful spell. But to challenge Marcus Bernthal on brute strength was a foolish move. It did force him to halt the charge, but only for a mere second. He let go of the staff and stretched his arms wide unleashing a heavy explosion of flames.
Before the staff could fall to the ground, the blocks had already shattered like glass and the shards went flying away.
He caught his weapon and charged on.
Wide-eyed, leaning back, and shivering in fear, the wizard moved away from Ella and tried to block the Sokidu's attack by putting up every magical barrier he could think of. But, with his entire Ki focused on the staff, Marcus's strike was so brutally strong that it shattered all of the wizard's defences and struck him in his right bicep.
Marcus's staff landed and the world shook. The wizard's chest had already caved before he was flung across the clearing, body spinning, bones shattered, blood trailing in the air. He tore through the first tree, then hit another with a sickening crack. By the time he slid to the ground, he was nothing more than a corpse Marcus had already forgotten.
The rest of the wizards froze. Numbers had given them courage. Charms had given them confidence. But they had begun to forget why Zeta Squad was feared in the rogue circuits. Together, they were efficient. Alone, each of them was still a monster.
And Marcus Bernthal was the kind of monster who made brute strength look like a divine punishment.
The Sokidu moved and stood between the wizards and Ella. He turned with burning eyes, hunting for the next target.
As his stance widened, a shockwave of Ki left his body and pushed the wizards further back. The entire forest felt his strength.
Flared nostrils, narrowed gaze, lines on his forehead, most of his clothes burned away by the flames, raging like a bull – the Sokidu gripped the staff tightly with both hands.
"Alright," he said. Flames began moving in the direction of the wizards. "Who's next?"