As the group got off the transport, guards instantly approached.
"Halt! By the Vessel Hunt Decree, we are here to conduct an inquisition into the presence of an imperial vessel. Please remain still. Any sign of resistance will be met with force." A guard in a golden military suit said
They were surrounded by 30 odd guards and one of them went around to each member and staff.
Helen was first. He extended his palm toward her.
"Really— you think an Aquabourne is an imperial vessel?" Helen said with a scoff
"You never know." He said lowering his arm, he sensed nothing
The test itself was quite simple. An elite or above sensed the very being of a person. If the elemental particles are repulsed by the person, then that person is an imperial vessel. Their very nature defies nature and nature clashes against them. Markus could make this more difficult as the wind was still drawn to him, but the other elemental particles still ran away from him like the plague.
He went from person to person, but sensed the elemental particles were entirely drawn or unaffected by them.
Then another person did the same. Then another and another. It required four elites or above to perfectly conduct the test.
Elites were needed because they were attuned to the world. An expert and below simply do not have enough insight into the finer workings of essence to be able to tell.
Once everyone passed.
"Apologies for withholding you. Proceed." The head guard said
The group went in as planned.
"Welcome, council of Tuatri. Unfortunately, the council of the royal capital academy is busy with an internal matter. Not wishing to delay you however, they have chosen three champions to represent them across the next three days. Today's champion is Vivien Aquabourne as we expect your vice-president to take up the mantle." A student said
"Who are you?" Helen asked
"I am the representative. I handle the communication between the student council and the student body. And I will be your attendant during your time here. Please direct any questions to me, Serrie Stonebourne." The young lady said with a bow.
She wore a white-yellow uniform. Her shirt was white whilst her skirt was striped yellow-white along with her socks. Her shoes were white. Meanwhile her hair was tan and eyes brown. She had a tanned skin tone and was about 160 cm tall.
"Allow us to get changed and we will begin today's main event." Helen said
It was late morning and almost noon, about 11am.
Serrie nodded and led them to a guest chamber area. It was nicer than their own chambers back in Tuatri.
The floors were marble, the walls were lavishly decorated and the changing area somehow shined indoors.
"That's nobility for you—" Meer said
Amy and Helen too were taken aback. This was extremely lavish.
By noon, everyone was ready.
As he stood in front of the cave, he wondered
"Should I even go inside?" He wondered
A heavy rumble caused the ground to shake. This rumble only grew louder and more ferocious as moments passed.
"Monster horde!?" He exclaimed
A legion of monsters was running toward him.
Markus saw the trees fall one by one toward him and decided one thing
"The cave isn't so bad after all—" he said before running into the darkness
He heard the rumble intensity and then pass.
"Huh— maybe they weren't after me. I should go get a a look outside—" he thought as he moved his feet through the mud floor of the cave.
As he stepped out, he tripped over a vine.
"Damn vine— were did it even come from? I didn't trip on the way in!" He exclaimed aloud as he got up.
Then he felt something tighten around his legs.
"Uhoh—" he exclaimed
Instantly he was dragged through the mud
Without another moment of hesitation, he unleashed whirlwind slashes against the vines dragging him deeper and deeper yet into the cave
As he cut at them, more and more grew back!
"Dammit all!!" He exclaimed as he unleashed more and more slashes but it was futile
He was not alone however, as the wolves too were dragged deeper in the forest with him. Then they stopped. And before his essence could even tell him what was going on in the lightless place, he felt two walls close around him, trying to squish him.
'Is this— a giant Venus fly trap!?' He shouted inwardly as he pushed back against the walls
'Still think the cave was better—' Anax quipped
Markus groaned from Anax's remark and the force of resisting the walls.
If it was not bad enough—
A strange liquid flowed from somewhere.
The wolves instantly began to whine in pain. They were being dissolved and eaten alive!
Markus' own essence shell began to dissolve!
'Oh come on—' he thought as he sent more essence to replace it.
Minutes passed. Then hours—
The whines and barks had died down…. The wolves were dead. And Markus was running out of essence to send against the acid.
'Just great— death to vegetation! Why the hell are the plants deadly!' He screamed inwardly
Meanwhile back at noon, Helen and the rest of the council went to the battle hall. Calling it a hall was actually not fair. It was a colosseum that was permanently maintained underground.
A few students of the royal academy were in attendance. It was a big campus but the overall population of students was only about 200.
So overall there were only 50 students watching the fight but it also meant this fight would reach the ears of 50 noble families or extremely wealthy individuals.
Helen walked in the middle of the area where she saw her half sister. A direct descendant of the Aquabourne dynasty.
"I heard you were going to be here. Look at you, Helen! An expert. I was unaware my uncle was capable of producing such an offspring. By your hair colour you may even awaken your blood art." Vivien said
Vivien had a blue combat suit on which matched her deep blue hair. Her eyes, however, were as black as the abyssal depths of the ocean. Her skin was pearly white as if the sun had never touched it. And she was 172 cm.
Helen had grown too. Her blue hair and eyes were even deeper. Her black combat suit fit her body tightly and showed off her figure and stature of 175cm.
"Let's just start." Helen said, not engaging with her half sister
"Fine. Be like that— bastard." Vivien said as she took a stance
Helen responded in kind.
An administrator saw both ladies were ready and raised up a barrier of stone essence. Then he merely said:
Begin!
The ground was instantly flooded and several constructs arose from the sea of essence which was released by the two acquabournes.
Ice shards formed above them both and shot forth at their opponents, creating a sparkly spectacle of ice.
Vivien and Helen then tested each other by attacking and diving simultaneously, using water whips to strike and move upon them.
They matched well.
"Say now, bastard, how long can you hold your breath." Vivien said as she released essence like a broken dam upon Helen, turning that essence into pure water and then froze it.
'I'm sure Markus won't mind if I copy his trick' she thought as she created a swirling spear of ice.
This spear shot forth and shattered with the massive construct of ice
Both ladies fell to the ground and gasped for air.
They were just getting started.
For the next few hours, water and ice — swords, whips, spears, platforms and projectiles were exchanged
With their essence running low however, they had switched to close combat.
Helen had a longsword of jagged ice whilst Vivien used two clean short swords.
The jagged parts were there specifically to catch into the swords and block both blades and drag them away whilst using the water whips to attack.
Vivien was by no means unprepared as she had a legion of ice bullets at the ready to shoot into the whips and make them freeze and crumble.
"How about we call it a draw?" Vivien asked
"Nobody offers a draw unless they think they are losing." Helen replied as her blade exploded in hundreds of shards and striking into Vivien's flesh
Ice fragments entered her body and began to freeze her joints. Vivien meanwhile, without anything blocking her, cut right into Helen's side.
Ice particles invaded Helen's body.
Vivien looked at Helen
'It's now a race of who can neutralise the ice first. Since I was infected first, I will finish first! Then this bitch will be grovelling at my feet as I humiliate her in front of the whole schoo—' she thought but Helen was swinging
Helen swung her left arm back and punched with all her might, laying Vivien out cold with a punch to the temple.
The administrator stood up immediately and shouted:
That's enough! The winner of the first round is Helen Acquabourne!
Vivien miscalculated one thing… Helen had been infected later yes… but it also meant she was not yet immobilised. So the girl saw her open chance and an almost frozen opponent and took it.
With a clean swing against a shell-less opponent, Helen secured her victory in a very… unconventional method…
Meanwhile Markus' essence was running on empty.
So he gave up.
He quit resisting and let go.
The trap's mouth finally closed shut and the acid was in full swing.
Once he was sealed away from the world outside his heart sank. But this needed to be done.
A moment earlier, Anax said something interesting
"If you let yourself be sealed, what happens?" Anax asked
'I die!' Markus thought
"Think for a second. What is on your right now?" Anax asked
'Wha— nothing, just my shell, clothes and— ohhhh. It's gonna hurt isn't it?' Markus thought
So he let go
When his shell was eroded, the acid tore into his clothes and on his chest, right before it even hit his skin— Charlotte's construct was there!
Back in Tuatri.
"He's tampering with it… I'm sorry Markus—" she said before snapping her fingers
The cave a massive wind explosion tore into the plants and just about everything.
Markus' own skin and flesh was torn and destroyed. He screamed in agony.
Although he should have died, because he was covered in sapping acid, the acid and plant took a lot of the force of the wind blast.
Markus survived— even if just barely.
But barely was all he needed.
"Let me take over." Anax said
'Wha—' Markus said
"I'll guide celestial essence to heal you! Now do it!" Anax shouted
'Dammit all—' Markus thought as his own consciousness faded and took a back seat
Anax grunted as he felt the agonising pain. Then following the familiar feeling of celestial essence, albeit of a polar opposite feeling, he healed the body, rather than destroy.
The celestial essence emerged from within, shining blue in the dark cave, illuminating the torn up plants.
As the celestial essence was completely consumed, Anax walked out of the cave.
"Free." He said
In this death zone, Markus Windwave was presumed to be dead from the blast. And with Anax in control, nothing was stopping this imperial vessel from making a run for it.
"Except the legion of watchers from outside the forest… maybe completing the trip… and becoming an expert— is the only way out of this. Also the Queen will kill him if he's ever found so— I suppose I'll play along." Anax said aloud as he went dormant and let Markus take over
"Ugh— that was so unpleasant." Markus said with a groan
"See— all healed. Now get a move on." Anax said
Markus looked back at the cave…
'I lost all the wolves dammit— and they were growing on me.' He thought
Worse yet— he was mostly naked! And night was falling. AND HE HAD NO ESSENCE!
Markus crawled up a tree and slept like a log. When he woke up, he noticed something.
"Am I crazy or did your use of all the celestial essence let me reconnect more to the wind?" Markus thought as he could feel significantly more connected to whirlwind
"Huh— somehow hitting rock bottom lets you reconnect to the wind. Maybe you should deplete your energy more— see if it restores you." Anax thought aloud
"Wait— isn't celestial energy and nature meant to clash? How the hell am I even able to use wind?" Markus asked
"I don't know— I was elementless." Anax said. If he could shrug he would
Markus felt that most of his essence had recovered.
'If there was one benefit of a death zone it's that the entire area is very rich in high quality essence.' He thought. This let him recover his essence a lot faster than normal.
As Markus got down from the tree, he looked at the cave.
"Rest in peace wolves. You were good pets." He said before moving past
There was still so much ground to cover…