Gods Exist

A Story by Mello

Danger breaks out from the fog.

Lugh raises his arms and feels a warm surge of energy pulse through his hand. A small ball made of fire materializes out of his palm and dances around his fingers. The ball grows bigger and bigger as Lugh continues to recite the words required to cast his spell.

"Elfire!" He throws the ball of fire towards an enemy cleric who had no way of defending himself - they are at war, anyone who isn't an ally must die. Lugh watches the ball of fire sail through the cleric and upon contact, a vortex of flame spouts out of the sand, enclosing the cleric in a fiery inferno.

Smoke and dust rise from the place where the cleric once stood. As the smoke and dust dissipate, Lugh sees the cleric, on his knees holding his staff. He seems unscathed from the magic that Lugh fired yet his energy is obviously drained.

Behind the cleric, a boy wearing a dark robe whose frame is eerily similar to Lugh runs beside the cleric while reciting different incantations for his own spell. With more words summoned, more wisps of dark smoke emanate from the boy's finger until both of his hands are shrouded with dark mist.

"Flux!" The cleric turns around, his face lit up with horror as wisps of dark smoke burrow through the sand. The cleric's ground begins to shake and moments later, a horde of dark energy envelopes him, trapping him into an impenetrable sphere. The cleric screams, or at least that's what it looks like as he struggles to break free from the sphere holding him prisoner. The sphere explodes, and his lifeless body effortlessly collapses to the sand.

"Got it," the boy in dark robe says. "Clerics were always resistant with magic."

"Yeah," Lugh replies, shaking the sand off from his feet. "Normally, my Elfire spell would burn even the most powerful wyvern rider to a crisp."

"In all of wyvern rider's defense, they're quite susceptible to magic that even the weakest magic such as yours would bring them down."

"Shut up, Ray. My magic might not be as strong as yours, but it's much quicker and easier to cast."

"Perfect for your likes, I know. It's sad, Lugh. You're my twin brother, and yet you don't seem to posses my natural talent in, well basically everything."

Lugh clenches his fist as warm energy radiates from his hand. All he has to do was to say the words and he could burn his twin brother to the ground, but he knew better. Ray has always sounded rude, arrogant, and simply obnoxious but that is how he has always been. Even when they were growing up in the orphanage before Bern destroyed it, he always was isolated, reading books about dark magic and dragons. One day, he just disappeared and his only parting words were "I can't learn everything I need to know if I'm stuck in this orphanage". It's a good thing that after Bern destroyed their orphanage, he ran into the Lycian Alliance Army headed by Roy of House Pherae when they were trying to siege a castle nearby the village he and the other orphans were staying. With his journey with Roy, he was able to go to the Western Isles where he was reunited with Ray, who was blending in with the enemy after he heard rumors about a "human not human" that was holding the castle that the Lycian Alliance Army was storming.

Lugh lets the insult slip and continues walking forward. With the harsh sandstorm, it is almost impossible to see what is ahead of them. And to make their journey even more arduous, the unforgiving terrain of the Nabata Desert refuses to cooperate as each step they take, their feet sink a couple of inches. With their sights almost useless and their movements hindered, they are bound to be lost. Thankfully, Lord Roy instructed them to keep going northeast until they find an oasis. That's where the hidden village Arcadia is supposed to be. It is said that the village is a sanctuary for dragons which are believed to be long gone after The Scouring 1000 years ago.

"Do you think what Lord Roy is saying about this Arcadia is true?" Lugh says.

"I've read about Arcadia in my books, and there definitely are dragons in there. That is, if it exists at all." Ray shakes off more sand that seeps in through his soles. "Many wanderers have come to this unforgiving wasteland in search of this hidden village but all of them failed. The cause of death for these wanderers varies: some dies because of starvation, some because of dehydration, while some are ambushed by local bandits. But since Bern, whom we have seen has manaketes in their command believes that this hidden village is somewhere here, then it should exist."

"Why are you so obsessed with these ---"

"Look out!"

A sharp projectile sails through Lugh's shoulder. Luckily, he is able to move aside to dodge the incoming projectile that could have easily pierced him. He looks up and sees a red, scaled creature with wings attached to its forelimbs. On its back, is a man clad in light armor with a sharpened stick on his hand. A wyvern rider, Lugh knew.

The wyvern rider dives into Lugh with his spear aimed directly to his heart. Lugh jumps away, barely missing the point. He quickly gets up, but not fast enough as the wyvern rider returns and once again tries to impale Lugh. He jumps again away from danger as the point of the rider's spear is coming to him fast. He is able to miss the point of the spear, but not the tail of his wyvern. He gets knocked back, almost stunned from the hit. The wyvern rider does not seem to falter as he dives once again towards Lugh who still seems to be quite dazed. As the flaps of the wyvern grow louder and the wind it created grows stronger, Lugh closes his eye and hopes that he'll be able to see his mother in the next life.

"Flux!"

Lugh opens his eyes and sees the wyvern and its rider lifeless on the sand. He gets up and pats away the sand that clung to his robe.

"Dark magic might be powerful," Ray says as he offers his hand to Lugh. "But it sure is slow. Thankfully, I'm fast enough to cast the magic before that rider plunged his spear to your heart. You should be more..."

Ray is still speaking, Lugh knows for his lips are still moving. But no sound comes out. He takes Ray's hand but the volume still isn't there. He can see Ray talking but can't hear him. Despite the humid environment, Lugh feels a cold wind pass through him, enough to send his body chills. His body freezes solid as his pupils dilate. Finally, he can hear what Ray is saying.

"Hey, Lugh. Are you okay? I know almost being killed by a wyvern rider is scary but we have a job. Snap out of it."

But Lugh knows it isn't because of the wyvern rider and the near death-experience he caused him. "Behind you."

Ray turns around and finally, he understands Lugh's horror. "Oh."

Breaking through the sandstorm is a stranger whose face is hidden by a red cloak. Its garments are patterned with flames but Lugh later sees that it is not part of his garment - they are wings. A manakete, he remembered. How could he not remember? It is the same thing that was holding the castle back in Western Isles where he saw Ray. Even though at first glance, their only apparent weapon is their creepy, intimidating aura, and they seemed weak because of their small stature, they had an ability that can make even the bravest men tremble in fear.

As the manakete slowly walks toward them, with its eyes set upon the twins - even though Lugh can't see them, he could totally feel the stare pierce his soul - the wings that are attached to its back grow tremendously large that they cast a shadow that makes the day seem like night. Its legs bulk up and becomes covered with red, smoking scales. Its hands do the same until it is now standing on fours. The hood covering his face is removed, unraveling the horrors hiding beneath its shade. Under it is a grotesquely figured face with fire for its eyes. But it becomes less grotesque compared to what it morphs into as its head transformed into a nightmare that words cannot fully comprehend the terror that one would experience when looking at it - the same terror that Lugh and Ray are feeling as they watch the manakete transform into a fire-breathing dragon.

"This one is going to kill us, for sure." Ray declares.

"No," Lugh insists, almost defiantly as if staring at death's face and refusing to go with him to the afterlife even though he would be able to see his mother there.

"Only gods can save us now."

"We can kill it." Lugh begins reciting the incantation for his Aircalibur spell.

"What are you doing? Attack that beast and you will die! But if you insist on doing it, at least let me sacrifice myself and you look for another way to the Arcadia."

Lugh stops his recitation but the power of his spell is now surging through his fingers. "But you will die!"

"That's the whole point of this, right? Either one of us dies or both of us will."

"I think I can avoid his attack," Lugh continues to recite the words until he can feel the full power of Aircalibur dance around his palm.

"Are you insane? That's dragon-fire you're trying to avoid! I know more about dragons than I..."

Lugh doesn't let Ray finish his lecture about dragons. He doesn't need to be well-read to know that whatever monstrosity comes spewing out of that beast's mouth will be the death of him. But there's one thing he knows that Ray does not - or at least does not want to admit. He is a lot faster than Ray and if between the both of them, someone has even the remotest chance of dodging the dragon-fire, it was him. That's why he runs straight to the dragon and throws the concentrated wind energy gathered from Aircalibur. The energy transforms into sharp blades and slashes and dices the dragon in every part. The dragon writhes in agony and let goes of an earth-shattering scream as boiling blood oozes from its broken scales. Lugh once again recites the incantations for Aircalibur to weaken the dragon more but he knows that the time won't be enough to fire Aircalibur at full strength. But with an enraged, seething, roaring, fire-breathing dragon running towards Lugh, he doesn't really have any choice.

"If this hits," Lugh says. "the dragon should be weak enough. You can kill it with your dark magic!"

"Lugh!"

Lugh throws a smaller version of his earlier magic to the dragon. Wind blades cut through the dragon but they don't seem to have the same effect as it had earlier. The dragon opens its mouth and Lugh thought that it is going to scream again. But this time, a wave of fire blasts from its mouth and sweeps the entire area in a blazing fashion.

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As Ray watches his twin brother get burned down by the dragon-fire he was once so amazed, he quickly recites the incantations for his strongest dark magic - Nosferatu. He goes for the dragon's rear and with Nosferatu fully channeled, he let his magic fly.

"Nosferatu!"

A horde of dark ghosts creep out of his hands and rush towards the dragon. The dragon turns around and focuses its attention to Ray. It opens its fiery mouth to start another flaming sweep but slowly, the dragon vanishes as the ghosts that Ray summoned sucks out the remaining life it had after Lugh's valiant sacrifice.

The dragon leaves a fire-infested Nabata Desert in its final moments. Amidst the destruction, Ray tries to find any signs of his twin brother, living or dead. But he has read too much to know that his search would be in vain if ever the dragonfire did take his twin brother. He must have been burnt to ashes, blown by the wind, and forever lost in the sands of this unforgiving desert.

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Hidden beneath a black, scorched rock, Lugh's is lying on his back, unconscious. His head and the stone that bashed it is smeared by his blood.

Lugh wakes up in a strange place, his vision still a complete mess. Is this the afterlife? Is that mother?

"He's awake now!" A familiar voice cried.

As his vision slowly clears up, he is able to recognize the faces that surround him. The one in front of him is Clarine, their healer and the one with red hair is Lord Roy.

"Lugh!"

That voice, there is no way he cannot recognize that voice. That voice is practically his. "Ray," he feebly says. "So you killed a dragon?"

"Not without your help," he replies. "Say, how did you know that that rock will defend your from the dragon's fire?"

"I didn't." Lugh draws a small smile on his face. "I tripped and fell. Next thing I know, I'm here, safe and alive."

Ray let's go of a boisterous laugh. "So I was right when I said only gods can save us during that time?"

"Gods definitely exist." And Lugh goes back to sleep.

© 2014 Mello

Author's Note

this is from fire emblem: seals of swords. I was playing the desert chapter earlier today and this scene happened... well not exactly, a lot of things were dramatized but you get the picture. If you are familiar with fire emblem and this desert chapter (there was fog of war), my Ray and Lugh was surprised by a manakete hiding behind the fog. When I saw it, I told myself, oh fuck me. I knew that one of them had to die and I couldn't afford to lose any of them. So I would need to restart the whole game but I was almost finished and I've been spending almost five hours already restarting the chapter. So there I was, trapped in this dilemma. I chose Lugh to tank the dragon (since his avoid rate, 15$%, is much higher than Ray). The Dragon had an 85% chance of hitting me and believe me, in fire emblem, that is as good as 100%. But a miracle happened and the dragon missed. I swear, it was pandemonium in my head when that dragon missed =))))

But anyways, even if you don't know fire emblem, hope you'd still enjoy this =))) it's a terrific game, tho mostly frustrating especially if you're the type of person who easily forms emotional attachments.