Jonathan grimaced when he heard the icy voice behind him. How he wished to ignore her but the stories about her fury tested his guts. He turned slowly toward Elize.
"He went to scout the area," he replied sheepishly but hurried to explain himself. "I tried to stop him. But he wouldn’t listen. I offered troops..."
"They would be an obstacle rather than a help," she said, dismissively, attracting frowns from the unit stationed around the mud dome.
Jonathan noticed their displeasure, as he was sure she did too, chuckling dryly. If his men believed they could intimidate Lady Elize with their stare then they would be in for a surprise.
"What about these spikes and spears," Elize asked. As expected she didn’t even spare the troops a glance. In fact, now that he paid more attention to it, she barely glanced at him. Him. He was one of the top twenty most powerful people inside Wrixia and certainly in the top hundred powerhouses around the world. Oh, how he wished to treat her in a similar way but he couldn’t.
"I think it was a trap, meant to kill weaker opponents and confuse stronger opponents. Their objective should be something else. What, I can’t tell yet. Perhaps, the truth lies there," he said, pointing at the massive columns of smoke filling the skies.
Unlike Hex, the experienced Jonathan noticed the strangeness of the situation at once. Such smoke should have been visible from ways out. Yet, they only noticed when they were close to it.
The air should have smelled like ashes, and the wind should have been hot, but neither of those two things were the case.
"Once we have secured the perimeter I will go there myself." The lack of proper response from Elize annoyed him. He believed her to have some ideas and suggestions. After all, she was stronger and far more experienced than him. But she kept quiet.
"I will keep guard here." Not what he wished for her to say but with her holding the watch, he could focus on the situation at the front.
"Is everything okay?" Just as he was about to take off, a small head poked out from behind the wall and asked. Her shyness, timidness, and fear were etched on her face.
"Everything is fine. Go back inside." Jonathan heard Elize reply as she herself walked back into the dome. The girl’s shy eyes landed on him and he met her gaze. Was he mistaken? Did he really see cold indifference in the eyes of a small girl? It was gone the moment he wished to take a better look, replaced by shyness.
He remembered her. She was one of the victims. She was supposed to be possessed by the Witch but nothing of that sort happened.
"Go back inside. We will continue in a short while," he said, softer than he intended. For some reason, his intuition told him to be wary of her. He shook his head and strode off toward the smoke. He could sense a penetrating stare on his back until he crossed the point of highest elevation. Only then did he stop feeling that girl’s stare.
Hex stared at the creature in the air that absorbed all the chaotic energy from the surroundings. It hadn’t noticed Hex. Stepping into the layer didn’t require him to stop using the Veil of Death, Earth Step, or Frozen Wind.
The Veil of Death worked even better inside this layer as the smoke and ash covered even more of the light.
Hex wasn’t just idling in an open field. He hid behind burning bamboo shoots as he racked his brains to come up with a method to deal with such a thing.
The first option, which was also the easiest one, was to retreat, get back up, then and only then launch an attack on the creature, either killing or capturing it.
But he discarded it. For now. He would try on his own and if he failed, it would be an option then.
Another option, one he liked much more, was to battle the creature. With limited preparation. If it had been a Devil, he wouldn’t take the risk. But a Calamity was the perfect opponent. Not weak but also not overwhelmingly strong. On top of everything, it had an affinity with the Space element, which was incredibly rare.
’It hasn’t noticed me yet. With the element of surprise I can land the first hit. After that, it will be down to who between the two of us can utilize their abilities in their favor.’
Excited to give it a try, Hex was about to jump on ot. But then something happened.
Hex stared at the back of his hand. The mark representing the Veil of Death started to emit an eerie light. The light flickered like a small flame. The next moment, he sensed an element entering it. The element was unlike anything else.
At first he felt confused but he quickly remembered the conversation with the Goddess of Death. A place filled with Death element could help Her regain a part of Her energy, awakening Her from the limbo-like state She currently was in.
He rejoiced but his happiness was short-lived. The shift in element flow didn’t go undetected.
The Calamity flapped its wings, causing the air to split. It appeared on top of Hex before the sound of its wings reached Hex’s ears.
It opened its maws, spitting balls of molten clay that glowed fiery red and caused the air to vaporize. Its attack reached Hex. But passed through.
Standing in a different layer, Hex still felt the intense heat. His cover was blown outside of his expectation. So, instead of blinking or rushing away, he had activated another Space element.
The creature froze. But only for a second. It dealt with the shock rapidly. It opened its maws once again. Hex, with the Space circle activated, sensed the Space warp around him.
It didn’t surprise Hex to see Calamity use the Space element. The corpses of Unit Two and the layers of destruction proved as much. But something did shock Hex.
’Earth, Fire, Death, Space...how can this creature use so many elements?’