After exhaling softly, Asher wrapped his fingers around the longsword’s hilt. The moment his hand made contact, the blood-red chains binding it loosened and the giant hovering above the sword vanished into nothingness.
Everything happened in a split second. Asher’s right arm—now wielding the sword—turned crimson. His fingernails extended into hardened claws, and half of his hair took on the same blood-red hue.
He took a step back as if hit by an unseen force, and a wild, unrestrained power erupted from within him, sending the surrounding water into a furious churn.
“Ah…” He sighed, his voice several folds deeper as he looked at his reflection in the water—a mix of fascination and horror fixated on his mismatched eyes: one a vibrant crimson and the other a dull golden.
“After all these centuries… I, Ithamar am finally free!” A maniacal laugh escaped his lips. Suddenly, his crimson eye gleamed and without any warning, he swung the sword downward. A massive, scarlet crescent of sword light exploded from the blade, tearing through the sea.
The water split for 500 yards, leaving a deep, dark trench that scarred both the sea and land alike!
Meanwhile, at the sea surface, the knights aboard the ship, having just returned from their failed attempt to search for Asher, froze as they gazed at the crimson streak lighting up in the sky with solemn expressions. But then, the water suddenly churned and burst outward as if parting before collapsing back into place in a few moments with a deafening roar.
“We need to leave—now!” Jed bellowed, rushing toward the steering wheel. “Jesiah and Mahil set the sails! David, lift the anchor!” empire
While the situation on the ship was intense, Asher stood still on the seabed. His hair, now a striking blend of part crimson and part snow-white, swayed in the wind. He glanced at the massive boulder that he had cleaved into two parts, the raw destructive power at his call leaving him momentarily silent.
Just as he was about to turn and leave, he sensed a sharp projectile. Reacting instinctively, Asher swung his sword, cleaving the incoming water arrow into two. But before he could lower the blade, a sheath etched with glowing runes materialized and slid over the sword’s blade, smothering its power.
In that instant, Atticus appeared!
Less than a second after the sheath was worn over the sword, Asher’s right arm reverted to normal; the claws vanished, and his hair and eyes returned to their natural state.
“First, you wield a sword that wants to rip you to shreds. Now, you laid hands on another that wants to possess you! The fact that this sword could contaminate your spirit means it won’t just possess you but take over your spirit. That’s a fate worse than death! This isn’t just a weapon—it’s a curse.”
Taking a few steps forward, he ordered solemnly. “As your elder, I order you to return that sword to its seal.”
He stared down at Asher who was on his knee and staring at the sword in his hand.
“Ithamar, the conqueror of stars…”
Asher muttered, his voice barely above a whisper, but carrying the weight of something ancient.
“What did you say?” Atticus demanded, his stern expression hardening further.
Asher lifted his head, his golden eyes meeting Atticus’s steely gaze.
“Ithamar is the name of this sword. It has already destroyed its prison. The only thing holding it back is this sheath.”
Atticus’s frown deepened, unease settling over him like a shadow.
“Asher… the power I sense from that weapon could annihilate Imperials without effort and you might want to use it to exact vengeance or slay great foes, but the moment you draw that sword again…”
Atticus refrained from saying the last two words but Asher knew them all too well.
He’ll die.
Thinking about it made him recall the first time he had unsheathed Euodias. If not for Atticus, Ariel and his battle skill that granted him quick regeneration, his life would have met the end that very day.
Even until now, Euodias posed a threat to him. Should he try to use it to its full potential, it would summon the most powerful version of the wolf spirit and Asher was sure he wouldn’t be able to survive its attack as a mere sacred-ranked swordsman.
However, Ithamar was in a different league altogether. Its history ran deeper than Euodias, its spirit was one of the first giants of the First Age!
Unsheathing Ithamar didn’t just release its power, it granted him Asher’s body.
Even from a brief possession, Asher felt a strain.
Ithamar felt like a divine weapon but since it was forged, according to the memories he gained after Atticus sealed the sword, he knew that it couldn’t be a divine weapon. True divine weapons were created or blessed by I Am, himself.
“Since Ithamar’s prison has been destroyed, I might as well be his next prison,” Asher muttered.
“Asher!”
Atticus’s eyes blazed with anger.
Asher sighed. “I’m going to face battles in the future, Lord Atticus and my enemies have forged powerful alliances and decades of preparation, while I just discovered about this eventual battle a few months ago. A war is coming—one greater than the war that brought the end of the First Age and unleashed the horrors of the Dark Age. It doesn’t matter if I want to participate or not. I’m already a target.”
Atticus’s glare softened. “I see…”
_____
As Jed steered the ship back the way they had come from, an object flew out of the water and landed on the boat, rolling before it stopped.
When the knights turned to look, their breath hitched. It was the horns of the Kraken!
In that very second, the sea began to part. Steps made of water rose from the depths and waking up from below was Asher, completely unaffected by the fact that he was walking on water and headed toward them with a calm face. No one knew about the presence of Atticus who was at the depth of the sea.
Atticus was the man behind this given his synergy with the water element.
Even as Asher stepped onto the deck, the knights still couldn’t believe the man they thought was long dead stood before them unharmed.
Some noticed the sheathed sword in his right hand but Alex did not. “Your Lordship. I’m glad you’re alive.”
Asher revealed a small smile before he turned his attention to Eder.
“You have your beast,” he said.
Eder glanced at the massive horns that would go for a lot in the town and then looked back at the intimidating cloaked man, whose predatory eyes sent chills down his spine. “I see that,” Eder replied weakly.
“Then… take me to Goliathsgrave.” Asher’s voice carried an unyielding weight.
His words fell heavily in their ears, causing Jed’s expression to sour.