Chapter 83 - Suppression

Albry stood before the altar, illuminated by essence. It rose off his body in streams of blue and silver, filling the sanctuary with light and cloaking him in power.

Something was wrong. He was too strong to be a first circle Chosen. The pressure radiating from him was too much. Not enough to make him a real threat, but the strangeness of it put Hump on edge. Even as Vivienne bombarded him with her aura, his power leaked out, pushing her back. Shielding him from what should have been an overwhelming attack.

And it seemed to be growing stronger.

And it seemed to be growing stronger.

Vivienne’s aura rose to meet it. Her soul manifestation filled the space around her with essence, drawing from the world as well as her core to create an area of control that she could command at will.

“Enough of this,” Randall shouted from the church doors. He drew his wand, the rest of his party readying their weapons alongside him. “Wizard Vivienne, I order you to stand down this instant. Retract your aura and lay down your weapons.”

Hump looked at the lord nervously. The five of them were blocking the only exit that Hump and his party had. On top of that, they were positioned at their rear. Skander still hadn’t appeared, but he was likely skulking around somewhere nearby, ready to poke at their vulnerabilities if a fight did break out.

If… Hump thought. A fight was the last thing they needed.

Bud hurried over to stand between Randall’s party and Vivienne, extending his left hand. “Wait! Randall, I know you have your doubts, but Wizard Vivienne knows what she’s doing. Please just give her a chance to figure out what’s going on. Chosen are her area of specialty.”

“She has no right to do any of this,” Randall spat. “None of you do. You should know better, Robert. Albry is a High Priest of the Pantheon, not some random peasant. None here hold the authority to forcibly subject him to any tests or examinations, he has caused nobody harm, and has been nothing but help to us. There is no word for this but ‘assault.’”

“It’s not assault,” Hump snapped, stepping up next to Bud, his anger flaring. “Assault is attacking people with blessings when their back is turned. All Vivienne is doing is examining Albry’s aura. It won’t cause him any harm, but it may reveal if there’s anything unusual going on. It’s for his sake as much as for the rest of us. He may need help.”

Rage flashed in Randall’s face. “Look at him! He is a Chosen of Hestia—”

“This is no blessing of Hestia,” Vivienne said through gritted teeth. Hump glanced over his shoulder to see her straining to keep Albry’s power held within her own, yet still the priest’s essence was growing thicker. It rippled beneath his skin in pulses of blue and silver, poured from his nose and mouthed, gathered close to his body where it was trapped inside by Vivienne.

“Albry, do not let this power control you,” Vivienne said. “You need to stop this before it burns you up. It’s not too late, I can still help you.”

Albry laughed manically, a wild smile on his face as he studied them. One of his eyes shone silver, the other blue. The look of him alone was enough to know that the power had consumed him. He had let his emotions run wild, and now his own essence fought for control.

“Help me? I have never felt better. You entered Hestia’s house and doubted her Chosen. Now tell me, witch, do you still doubt me? Do you need more proof than this!?”

He raised his arms, his essence moving with them and pressing Vivienne’s aura back from his body, creating space around him. In an instant the blue and silver streams coagulated, forming individual droplets in the air around him where they floated.

“You need to stop this,” Vivienne said, genuine concern in her voice. “You are losing control of this power. If you keep going, it could cause irreparable soul damage. Something else is at work here, Albry. Look at the power you’ve manifested. Feel it. You must sense something is wrong. Hestia’s essence is not like this.”

“Even in the face of truth you lie,” Albry said. “I should have expected as much I suppose. Now that your dark magics have failed you, what is there that remains but trickery. But I will not be swayed. I am Hestia’s Chosen, this is her temple, and you will understand your place.”

Vivienne reached into her robe and drew her wand, taking a step toward Albry.

“No,” Randall yelled, stepping out from behind Madeleine’s shield and brandishing his wand. “I have ordered you to stand down and you will obey me. You have no right to do this, whether High Priest Albry is Chosen or not, there are official channels to challenge such a claim. Stand aside now or I will be forced to make you.”

“If Albry continues down this path, he may become a warlock,” Vivienne said. “I need to stop him before it’s too late.”

“Meaningless conjecture,” Randall said. “Your actions triggered this. He will be fine if you just leave him be. You may be powerful, witch, but that does not mean you can ignore the authority of the Pantheon.”

“Buy me some time,” Vivienne said, walked down the central aisle of the church and straight at Albry. As she walked, she whispered to her wand, making it shine brighter. Her aura stirred with it, sweeping through the air like smoke and surging to meet Albry. It enveloped him, crushing his essence back into his body, knocking aside the droplets of power and dispersing them back to mist. Albry cried out in pain, staggering back.

Randall’s face twisted with anger. His want shone with frostfire in an instant, a blazing flame that Hump was all too familiar with. He drew back the wand then whipped it in Vivienne’s direction. Frostfire shot from it, coiling upon itself to form an orb of icy fire.

This time, Hump was ready for it. He gathered his essence and uttered, “Shield.”

The air shimmered before him, expanding as he shaped it around them, forming a half sphere. Randall’s attack struck it and shattered, crystalising over the invisible barrier so that Hump could only see them as blurred figures on the other side.

He shattered his Shield with an effort of will, then drew back his staff and stabbed it at Randall. The dissipating essence of his shield shot in Randall’s direction, a wave of invisible force with only enough force to stagger him, but still enough to make a point. Behind Randall and his party, the church doors flung open, bangs echoing through the sanctuary.

Hump planted his staff into the ground at his feet, gripping it in both hands. Its runes still smouldered with residual essence, and with a quick application of will, Hump made them shine brighter.

“I can’t let you through.” He focused essence to his throat, just enough to make it resonate a little.

“Get the hell out of my way!” Randall screamed. “Don’t make me ask again.”

“Just calm down,” Bud pleaded. “No harm will come of this. What if we’re right and something other than Hestia is influencing Priest Albry?”

“A couple of minutes,” Hump said. “That’s all she needs, then we’ll be out of here.”

Randall huffed, shaking his head. Then he let out a chuckle, seemingly in disbelief. “This is good. Really good. A wizard telling me what I can and can’t do. I was getting bored of waiting for our duel anyway. It’s better to get it out of the way now.”

Randall began to chant a prayer under his breath that sounded a lot like Bud’s. Frostfire streamed to his command, a raging spiral stemming from his wand. He lashed out, the frostfire trailing like a whip, rippling unpredictably through the air and straight at Hump.

Hump hadn’t fought against ice magic in the past, but it was a well-known fact that wizards and cold did not mix well. He’d prepared a little for his duel with Randall and knew that he had two key advantages. First, Randall likely lacked a defensive blessing, meaning that if Hump managed to find an opportunity to retaliate, it would likely land hard. And secondly, ice melted.

He channelled fire to his staff and launched it straight back at Randall with a word. It exploded from the focus in a brief wave of flame, sweeping through Randall’s attack and blowing up over his face. He’d been careful not to put too much into the attack, but his concern had been unwarranted. Coated in frostfire essence, Randall swept the flame aside with the swing of his wand.

It seemed Randall possessed a similar essence manipulation ability to Bud, but how far did it go? Could he only manipulate frostfire or could he form solid ice too?

“I don’t want to fight you but I will,” Hump said. “You must be able to see something is wrong with Albry.” He turned to Madeleine. “You do see it, don’t you?”

Madeleine’s eyes flicked in the direction of Vivienne and Albry, but she remained impassive.

“This was something you caused!” Randall snarled. “Albry was fine before your wizard decided to meddle. You forget your place. You who are not even Chosen yet think you can judge a High Priest.”

“Hump may not be Chosen, but I am,” Dylan said. “If Master Vivienne believes this to be necessary, then I stand by her judgement.”

“As do I,” Bud said. “She is someone we can trust.”

Randall just scowled. He was beyond listening, which left Hump only one choice. Skander had told him that Randall only respected power, perhaps force was the only way to make him see sense.

The sorcerer started with another blast of Frostfire, but Hump easily blocked it with Shield. His spells came to him naturally, responding to his will as quickly as he could speak.

Randall didn’t pause a moment, drawing a dozen small circles in the air with his wand, each one forming a solid ball of ice, shining bright with essence. They floated, suspended in place, as Randall drew his wand back. Essence flooded to him in a howling gale. Clearly he thought he could breach Hump’s shield, but Hump wouldn’t give him a chance.

He levelled his staff at Randall’s chest, focusing his power into a narrow beam. Just as Randall was about to strike, he dropped his shield.

“Blast,” A beam of essence as wide as a person shot through the still parting shield and pierced straight at Randall.

In a blur, Madeleine dashed to stand before him, shield raised. She braced herself for the impact, but its strength must have surprised her, as she cried out stumbled back a step.

“I’ve got this,” Randall snapped, shoving past her. He launched a flood of frostfire with even more power than before, sending the still suspended ice balls flying.

Hump’s eyes widened as he frantically tried to reform his shield. He threw essence into his staff, but in his hurry, his control waned. The shield shimmered in the air, essence dissipating from it before it had fully formed.

Dylan stepped out in front of him, Aspect of the Bear radiating power. He swept out with his staff, knocking aside a couple of the balls, but four more struck him. He grunted in a way that sounded more like a snarl, not even stepping back as his clothes became coated in frost. The air suddenly turned cold, but Dylan straightened up uninjured.

In his peripheral, he saw Celaine with a silver arrow on her bowstring.

“Look at him!” she said. “Look at what is happening to your priest. Does that look like a Chosen to you?”

Hump took the moment to glance over his shoulder. Vivienne was only a few paces from Albry now, her aura completely encompassing him. His head twitched and twinged in unnatural motions as he fought to break free. The essence in his eyes flickered black, specked with other colours. Around him, the blue light began to darken with it. He cried out again as she pressed him back into the altar with her aura. Flecks of colour flared throughout his essence, and it dawned on Hump.

“It’s the same essence that I saw in the cave.”

“What?” Bud said. “Are you sure?”

Hump nodded. “Certain. But how…”

“Let it go, Albry” Vivienne said so softly Hump barely heard. “This isn’t Hestia’s power, and it isn’t yours. Let it go now, before it takes you for good.”

“Lies!” his voice was filled with power. Albry gritted his teeth in a snarl as he pushed himself up off the altar, holding himself up.

Vivienne jabbed at him with her wand again, pressing him back. The priest screamed. “This will only get more painful. Let it go.”

Albry squirmed, his face contorted in pain. “You will not make me. I am Hestia’s Chosen. You are nothing.”

Vivienne took another step closer, her essence growing stronger. Albry screamed, falling flat onto the altar and writhing in agony.

“You said she wouldn’t harm him,” Madeleine snarled.

“Just trust her,” Hump said, half for himself. “She knows what she’s doing.” At least I hope she does.

Albry’s screams suddenly went silent. His essence retracted, flooding back into his body. For a few seconds, he lay there unmoving. Vivienne watched with a frown, slowly withdrawing her own aura.

Albry’s body made a sudden jerk, rising to his feet. He stood there, gazing at Vivienne, his eyes consumed by darkness. Flecks of other essence ran through them like stars. He looked over each of them, taking in their faces impassively. When he met Hump’s eyes, Hump shuddered, a chill running through him.

“Albry, are you alright?” Vivienne asked cautiously.

His head whipped around to face her but he said nothing, only stared.

Silently, Skander dropped from the rafters above and landed behind Albry. He stood up nonchalantly and dusted himself off, before strolling over to the priest. He coated his hand in dark essence, then as easily as swatting a fly, landed a quick chop to the back of Albry’s neck. He collapsed in a heap.

“Right, there we go,” Skander said, clapping his hands together. “That’s solved that, hasn’t it?” They all gawked at him, stunned silence filling the room. After a few seconds, he glanced at them, feigning surprise. “What? The man was obviously possessed.” He frowned down at Albry’s unconscious body. “Someone should probably tie him up or something.”