Chapter 686: A Remanant’s Confidence
The gate to Haven swirled open like a summer cyclone, streaming stars instead of rain. All of my mana vanished into its depths, forcing it taller, wider, as large as the gate that called the Ally of Fate. Large enough to fit a dragon.
I fell out of Fate with a jerk, blinded and deafened by the intensity of three Ninth-level auras. My vision swam, filling with black dots. Feeling sick, I curled up on Fable, coughing weakly. Blood trickled past my lips, but I was too tired to wipe it away.
My staff burned hot in my hands, funneling the last remnants of my mana. The gate was massive, overshadowing the spire and still growing. The dragon snapped and diverted all its mana into stopping its charge, but its momentum carried it into the depths of the gate. Golden tendrils of mana snapped out of the vortex, ensnaring it like a fly in a web.
I closed my eyes, struggling to breathe past the auras weighing on my chest. Gold burned on the back of my eyelids, and I shivered as the gate consumed us. The shift was cold and jarring, leaving my body feeling...different. Like my body had been taken apart and incorrectly put back together.
Haven’s stars appeared overhead, their light blurred and far away. The peaceful skies shattered with a dragon’s roar, and a burning, sinewy line crawled across the sky. I blinked tears away and rubbed the exhaustion from my eyes, finally making out the dragon flying high above. It regarded the floating islands with a curious, hungry gaze.
"A friend of yours?"
I clapped a hand over my mouth, barely suppressing a scream, as Haven appeared beside us. He stood with his arms folded, regarding the dragon with a raised eyebrow.
"N-no," I stammered, hugging my knees to my chest, staring at the ground. "It’s... I’m so sorry. It’s all my fault."
"What’s this? A new playmate?"
My head sank lower as the remnant Jasrin appeared, the ranger looking remnant with the bow slung across his back.
A hand landed on my shoulder, huge and gauntleted. I looked up, teary-eyed, meeting Gathrin’s concerned gaze.