Author's Preface
A full year had passed since the alliance was forged.
In the red citadel, the final council meeting was underway.
The Wanderer stood at the head of the table dressed in full battle armor, a long red cloak draped over his broad shoulders.
"Altharion is aware of our movements by now," the Wanderer said. "It matters little. If he had the strength to crush us here, he would have sent his vanguard months ago."
"Only because someone was supposed to prevent information from reaching Valoria," Seth growled, glaring at Hidan.
Hidan leaned back, lacing his fingers together. "Not a single soul has crossed the perimeter since the lockdown. Unless, of course, it was one of your trusted Red Crowns leaving to gather 'supplies.'"
Seth slammed his fist onto the stone. "The Red Crowns do not harbor traitors!"
The Wanderer raised his hand. "Enough. We agreed to leave our grievances behind. Spitting accusations at one another serves no one."
He leaned forward toward the war map spread across the wood.
"Valoria relies entirely on the Nullstones for its defense and power," he said, drawing a dark circle around the city walls. "They expect us to throw ourselves against those fortifications. Their strategy will be to sit behind those ramparts, let us approach, and cut us down with the Mortal cannons."
Seth gritted his teeth. "Then we strike first, and we strike hard."
"No," the Wanderer replied flatly. "This is not a civil war. I will disable the Nullstones before our troops advance. We play a defensive posture, no unnecessary aggression, no wild assaults."
Hidan shifted forward. "Sacrifices are the price of victory."
The Wanderer smirked. "I see where Timothy got his ideals. And we all saw where those ideals led him."
He stood up. "Now, we march."
Hidan narrowed his eyes. "You still haven't explained how you intend to disable the Nullstones from this distance."
The Wanderer paused, looking back over his shoulder. "Consider it a surprise."
He turned and strode out toward the grand balcony, throwing the double doors wide to the cold air.
Below in the massive courtyard, hundreds of mages stood in ranks.
The Wanderer gathered his mana, amplifying his voice. "Today, we march on Valoria!"
The army roared back as one, the sound shaking the stone: "For the unity of Valoria!"
The Wanderer raised his hand. "We shed no blood unless forced to. Remember those are our people, our families and friends. No matter how deeply they have been deceived by Altharion's reign."
He gripped the balcony railing, his lone eye sweeping over the sea of faces.
"I am a man forged in war," he called out. "Some of you may resent me as an outsider. Some may look to me as a mentor, or even a savior. But I am merely the spark of this revolution. What happens after today belongs to you."
His voice rose. "Keep your heads high and your mana flared! Preserve every life you can! If a tree blocks your path, walk around it and do not cut it down!"
He raised his single fist into the air.
"Only one man must pay for this legacy today!" he roared. "Death to Altharion!"
The mages roared back
"DEATH TO ALTHARION!"
The army of mages marched side by side with non-mages from every corner of the kingdom. Ordinary people who believed in the cause, carrying the spell-forged weapons engineered by the Owls' technology.
Hidan rode near the front, settling his horse alongside the Wanderer. "I still find it hard to believe we rallied this many souls."
The Wanderer kept his hand steady on the reins, his eye fixed on the road ahead. "People have suffered under Altharion’s heel for far too long. All they needed was a spark."
Seth laughed saying. "You're more of a wildfire, my friend."
By the following morning, the gray horizon gave way to the towering ramparts of Valoria.
The alliance army fanned out across the open plains, encircling the city. Atop the battlements, Valorian soldiers scrambled into position.
The Wanderer reined in his mount, surveying the defensive line from a distance. "Stay sharp," he warned. "They might try a flank."
"Focus on your part," Hidan replied, resting a hand on his hilt. "Bring those stones down, and victory is ours."
The Wanderer nodded as he nudged his horse forward, stepping out into the open terrain between the two forces.
"Take another step, and my archers will burn you where you stand!" a voice boomed from the high wall. It was General Wulfric, standing tall beside the battlements.
The Wanderer smiled looking up. "Long time no see, General."
Wulfric raised a hand, ordering the line of archers behind him to draw back their Nullstone bows. "You’ve seen the bite of these arrows before. Don't push your luck."
The Wanderer raised his right hand and twisted it, depleting the bows of its mana.
The Nullstone bows flickered and died, the magical mechanisms within them grinding to a halt.
Wulfric’s eyes widened. Slowly, he lowered his raised hand.
"They didn't work the first time either, General," the Wanderer called up. He began pacing his horse along the front line. "We are here today to break Altharion's grip on Valoria! To return this land to its people, so they may choose who leads them and how!"
A laugh echoed across the stone parapets.
Altharion stepped up to the edge of the wall, his silk blindfold tied tight across his glowing stone sockets.
"The people will choose their ruler?" Altharion spat, his teeth bared. "Who gave them such a right? I am Altharion Dragonborn! This entire kingdom is my birthright, along with every soul within it!"
The Wanderer stopped his horse, staring up at the blind king. "A true king treats his people as equals. Not as livestock."
"They are mine," Altharion snarled, "and I will use them however I see fit!"
"Then I am here," the Wanderer replied, flaring the Spiral in his left eye, "to put an end to your reign."
The Spiral tore through the eye patch covering his left socket, the swirling energy within churning as if it meant to consume the sky itself.
The Wanderer cast his gaze downward to the glowing arteries of mana deep beneath the earth. He reached down with his right hand, straining to seize hold of the primary leyline.
His left eye spun faster as he grunted, his body trembling under the pressure.
He forced the subterranean mana lines to bend, redirecting their torrent straight into the Nullstones lining the walls.
The Nullstones shook violently until fractures began to appear across their surfaces.
Then, under the crushing feedback of the entire globe's mana network, they began to detonate. One by one, the grand stones shattered.
A year ago, after his encounter with 604, the Wanderer had realized that the Beyonder must have tampered with the stone's design. The Nullstones bled their excess mana into the mana lines linking beneath the whole world.
To overload them, he had to complete the circuit within the system itself. And his Spiral eye made him the only soul capable of seeing the threads.
Atop the battlements, Valorian soldiers threw their arms over their faces, shielding themselves from the hail of flying crystal shards.
Altharion recoiled, reaching up to cover his own face in fear.
The Wanderer ceased his spell. Blood trickled down his cheek from his left eye, and he forced the lid shut against the searing pain.
"Don't worry," the Wanderer rasped. "I let you keep your sight... as a thank you for sparing my life."
Altharion slowly lowered his hands, regaining his posture. "I let my mercy get the better of me once, boy. But you are a fool to believe I came unprepared."
A sudden figure stepped up to the ramparts beside the King, a cold grin plastered across his face. It was Baylen.
"You thought you were clever enough to play us all and walk away?" Baylen said.
Altharion waved his hand.
From behind the battlements, guards dragged forward dozens of bound civilians in chains, forcing them to stand along the edge of the high wall as a human shield. Below, the massive iron gates of Valoria creaked open, and another wave of chained prisoners was herded out, shoved forward by spears to form a living wall before the battlements.
The Wanderer stared at the terrified faces of the hostages.
"You fucking monster!" he roared. "What have you done?!"
Altharion chuckled, resting a hand on Baylen’s shoulder. "My young nephew here filled me in on every detail of your little crusade." He stepped closer to the edge. "Order your army to retreat and surrender yourself to face trial for high treason. For every minute you hesitate outside my walls, one of these traitorous mages will have their throat cut."
The King gave Baylen’s back a light pat. "Starting with the first traitor."
Altharion smiled at the clueless Baylen, and shoved him over the edge of the wall.
Baylen fell from the high walls, his desperate screams echoing off the stone until he crashed into the dirt near the Wanderer's horse.
He coughed up a spatter of blood, weakly clawing at the earth as he tried to crawl toward the Wanderer. "Please help-" he choked out, his fingers trembling.
His body went limp, his wide eyes freezing as they stared up at the Wanderer.
A wave of panic rippled through the chained hostages lining the battlements and the gates, their terrified shrieks filling the air.
From atop the ramparts, Altharion called. "Let's see how many more must die before you admit your guilt."
The Wanderer stared up at the blind king in shock, frozen amidst the innocent people weeping and begging him to surrender.