The World of Strife

I continued to unleash icy rain on the invaders, flanked by my watchful friends. Aria stood right beside me, closely watching the entire process of creating and sending those icy shards towards the enemy.

Occasionally, providing some direction for where to aim next.

Her heightened elven senses, which, from what I gathered, were even keener than my own, have become a reliable source of information. Especially now that I lacked the time and energy to fine-tune my aim.

On my other side, Camilla was standing watch, her gaze fixed to the heated battle ahead, ready to intercept any unwelcome surprise heading our way.

Time went on as I continued with this monotonous cycle. Shooting shards, then creating more of them before throwing those too towards the enemy. As minutes slowly passed, I started to feel the accumulating strain on my psyche.

My hair was drenched in sweat, sticking to my equally sweaty face and neck. I sincerely hoped that this battle would end soon. My mind felt groggy from all the mana I was forced to squeeze out in the recent hours. My temples felt like my head was placed into a hydraulic press, giving off a tightening sensation.

Something that you get after a stressful day of work, from the over-accumulated mental fatigue, combined with an unhealthy amount of consumed caffeine. My vision was becoming increasingly tunnel-like as I focused solely on creating shards.

There was a commotion spreading ahead of us, drawing my cloudy attention. We turned towards it, along with several human adventurers and dwarven military personnel. They were standing at the back of the formation, some nursing serious injuries, others helping them, or being on their way to join the ongoing hostilities.

Aria stepped in front of us, pushing me and Camilla behind her back in a protective gesture. I wobbled slightly on my feet, but with considerable effort, I commanded my legs to behave.

I thought of using what remained of the last of my partially filled mana gem, but the thought of doing so filled me with icy dread. It almost made me throw up. The sensation was eerily similar to what you might feel after a night of heavy drinking. The idea of more alcohol the following morning would make you squirm; that was how I felt right now.

Have I unknowingly intoxicated myself with overdosing mana? The idea, while certainly unusual, felt more and more realistic with the passing seconds. Now that I was becoming conscious of my influenced state, I noticed that the cavern was slowly turning around me.

Focusing on this phenomenon proved to be a mistake on my part. My stomach lurched, and this time I couldn't rein in my body's natural reflexes. In a last-ditch effort to avoid vomiting on Aria's back, I turned to the side and let loose of what remained of my breakfast.

I keeled over, dropping to my knees. This was starting to become a pattern, I noted internally. Cringing from the less-than-prudent innuendo that such words could create if spoken carelessly.

Nonetheless, after releasing the contents of my stomach, I felt somewhat better, but it was not overtly so. I was still sweaty, sticky, tired, and covered in dust, but the cavern at least stopped turning around me.

Struggling to spit out the remaining taste of stomach acid on my tongue. I grew aware of a conversation happening right beside me. Aria's astonished voice sounded above my head. — "What is wrong with her this time?" — Camilla, who was kneeling next to me, drawing small circles across my back, answered hesitantly. — "I think she has overdosed on mana."

Aria cursed, hearing what she undoubtedly suspected already. – "Why didn't she say anything, as if she had no idea how magic works!" – The woman complained, half of her attention still stuck to the growing commotion ahead of us. More and more of the nearby soldiers rushed to reinforce the formation. The enemy was trying to break through it, and they were getting closer to succeeding.

I spat one last time, drying my face with the sleeve of my robe, then pushed myself to my feet again. – "Ugh… I-I am fine, don't worry…" – Camilla grabbed my left arm and hooked it over her neck while using her right one to support my weight around my hip.

Hearing my words, Aria immediately cut me off. – "You have no more power, and you can't absorb more mana from outside sources. You have already done your part, Selora. We can't expect more from you, not in your current state, and since you are not a close-quarter combat professional, I want you to go back and rest! Understand that this is not a punishment, but a reasonable decision." – Her words caused some strange fluttering in my stomach. I half expected to throw up again, but fortunately, it didn't happen.

Aria's attention turned back to Camilla. – "Take her back to the trenches, let her rest, then get her out of here. She has done her part already, stay by her side." – Her eyes narrowed slightly as she added. – "I trust you with this, girl, don't make me regret my decision." – Camilla straightened under the wood elf's appraising look, then spoke up. – "You won't regret it!" – Camilla stated in a firm voice.

Aria allowed a ghost of a smile to grace her stoic expression. It was at that time that the ongoing commotion spread into the rear section of the front lines. Several tall orcs armed to the teeth and covered in their ominous black armor broke through the lines of dwarven soldiers. In a wild frenzy, they scanned the field until their furious eyes finally found me.

I gulped under the intense gaze of the tallest orc as he wildly pointed in my direction, spit flying from his mouth following his roar. – "Kill the mage!"

In those few seconds of utter chaos, several more orcs and even some dark elves managed to push through the momentarily shattered front line. All of them are attempting to get rid of the source of those icy projectiles blasting their lines in the last twenty or so minutes.

Fortunately for me, the incoming enemies were quickly intercepted by our soldiers, not that they didn't seem to care. I watched as two humans locked swords with said orc. More dwarven infantry poured in from the flanks, doing their best to reorganize the formation. The enemy soldiers were effectively cut off, but they continued to charge ahead. It was a suicide attack. They didn't plan on getting back to their main forces after pushing this deep into enemy lines.

Their only mission was to get rid of the mage who kept showering them in ice and death. In other words, me.

As the chaos spread like wildfire, I took several hesitant steps backwards, dragging along the stunned Camilla. Aria, at least, was more aware of the situation as she shouted at the bamboozled human lass. – "Get her out of here! Move now!" – Then she rushed off to intercept the nearest orcs. I watched her in stunned awe as the woman descended upon the orcs like a whirlwind of blades and death. Camilla, hearing her command, finally jerked into action, reminded by the deadly situation.

She grabbed onto me and started dragging me away from the front lines, right back towards the closest trench entrance. I heard a frustrated shout behind us. – "Don't let her escape!" – Several of the enemy soldiers split off as they rushed after us in a mad dash.

Constantly being intercepted by our incoming reinforcements. We did our best to stay ahead of the dwindling number of pursuers. Their soldiers were dying by the dozen as they threw aside any semblance of caution.

Eventually, the sounds of combat and the trampling feet of the chasing soldiers were lost in the distance. When we reached the trenches, I almost fell down the stairs in our panicked retreat. Turning several times in the complex corridors, we eventually ran out of steam and collapsed beside each other in a pile of limbs.

I closed my eyes, my body going limp, lying motionless next to the panting Camilla. The poor girl must have drained her stamina dragging me at that speed. I did my best to help her efforts, but my body still felt queasy and numb.

I could barely walk without support, not even mentioning running.

We lay there for a few minutes, trying to stabilize our breathing, when I felt Camilla's hesitant touch on my shoulder. – "Hey? Are you alive there?" – She asked while shaking my shoulder lightly.

I slowly parted my eyes, glancing up at the human girl leaning over me.

"You didn't run away this time," – I said while offering a tired smile. – "Well, at least not alone. See, I told you that you are not a coward either, remember that!" – I told her, then closed my eyes again; it was incredibly hard to keep them open.

Camilla stiffened, hearing my words, and shook my shoulder with a lot more strength. – "Hey! HEY! Did you get hit or what!?" – Her voice panicked as she continued to shake me.

"Stop, stop it!" – I waved grudgingly. – "I am fine… just dead tired…" – I grumbled.

Hearing my words, she relaxed, throwing a few curses at me for good measure. – "You could have told me that sooner! I thought you were dying, especially with saying those things to me out of nowhere!"

"Sorry…" – I told her reflexively, but didn't understand the issue at the time. Once again, I was about to drift off to la-la-land.

She slapped me on the back of my head when she noticed me drifting off again. That woke me up for good. I sat up like a spring, looking around, feeling lost, until my eyes fell on the angry-looking girl about to unleash a rant on top of my head. – "Don't you dare fall asleep on me! You can't expect me to carry your ass back to the city!" – Camilla shouted, looking increasingly annoyed with me.

I grudgingly acknowledged the woman's reasoning. I felt drowsy, especially given the situation. – "I know…" – My words slurred. I swallowed back a yawn. Seriously, what was wrong with me? I wondered while continuing drowsily. – "I have the most obscene ass, I can't expect you to drag me back like this, definitely not alone…" – I spoke in dire resignation.

Camilla froze up, looking at me strangely. She was measuring my words and trying to decide if I was joking; eventually, she seemed to come to the conclusion that I wasn't, which caused her some level of distress. I don't know why…

She looked stunned and speechless, too. – "I… I d-didn't mean it like that!" – She said, waving her hands in protest, her face flushing slightly. – "I mean, you have a n-nice b-b-butt, b-but that is not the point! Who told you something like that in the first place?!" – I opened my mouth just about to answer, but the girl suddenly cut me off. She pressed up against me, covering my mouth and pushing us against the wall into a tiny nook.

I felt confused and embarrassed by her sudden closeness, but more importantly, my lizard brain was sending series after series of alarms tingling across my entire body. There was something in this trench section beside us, and this something was dangerous. Perhaps more than anything I faced since my arrival in this world.

I looked to Camilla, the young woman's body was pressed against me like a pair of sardines inside a can. I gulped, already disappointed in myself. Where was my mind wandering in a situation like this?

Sensing the threat in the air, my heart was beating rapidly in a wild panic. Camilla was lying over me, pushing us into the shadows, her eyes wide with fear, just as I imagined my own looked like.

I listened with rapt attention, trying to capture the smallest snippets of sound nearby, anything that could give us the vaguest edge over this unknown enemy.

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Then… a terrifying realization hit me. There were no sounds. Besides my own quickening breathing and heart palpitations, there was nothing, just a suffocating silence that pressed down on both of us like the weight of an avalanche. The constant sound of war was nowhere; not a single battle-cry or a distant clash of a sword could be heard in the absolute silence.

After hours of explosions followed by the distant screams of dying men, this sudden silence felt more terrifying than anything. The cave felt unnaturally still, as if a single fallen needle could unleash a never-before-seen catastrophe; the thought alone froze the blood in my veins and made me tremble. Where are the soldiers who were passing through these parts before? We shouldn't have strayed far from the main path since we barely entered the trenches.

On top of everything, I couldn't help but notice that the air was thick with raw mana. Something that continued to make me drowsy... The air itself was weighing down on my mind, much like a heavy blanket stifling wayward thoughts into warm nothingness. I had to struggle to keep my eyes open even in this state when a deadly threat actively loomed over our heads.

That didn't feel right. As the gears in my mind turned, I started to recognize the abnormality of my situation.

True, I was tired before. I felt sick and drained, but not so much that I couldn't keep my eyes open. Not after that intense chase… It almost felt like something was intentionally willing me to sleep.

This thought left me in a sudden state of wakefulness. I turned my head around, which maneuver demanded a lot more effort than usual, seeing how I was pressed into a nook against the wall by Camilla. The girl was starting to hyperventilate under the invisible tension that continued to weigh us down. Taking a quick look around our vicinity, I couldn't see anything that was obviously out of place, yet the threat in the air was still as real as it could get.

Fortunately, with the conscious realization, it seemed that the previous sense of sleepiness was completely gone now. Solidifying my suspicion that it wasn't natural, but that left only one possibility. It was magical at its root.

The sharp click of a tongue drew my attention away. My eyes focused on the agile figure of a human woman stepping out of the shadows at the opposite side of the moderately sized circular space we currently occupied. I narrowed my eyes to take a closer look. The woman was wearing a run-of-the-mill adventurer outfit, something that I had seen on many people from the same trade back in the city square. There was nothing suspicious about it, and that very fact, in contrast to our situation, made my stomach flip. Lying eyes on the woman alone made the back of my head prickle; I could feel my muscles tensing in preparation. There was no doubt inside me; a situation where I needed to do everything in my power to survive had arrived.

My eyes didn't leave the woman's aloof form for a second. Now that she walked closer, I could even see her face properly. Once again, the sight in front of me was average; the woman had medium-length brown hair with brown circular eyes, with slightly plump cheeks. She looked young, at most twenty. Her appearance suggested naivety, a young adult who still held onto a fraction of her innocence. Perhaps a noble girl of a small house is playing adventurer.

However, that image immediately dissolved the moment our eyes met. In those round, light brown eyes, there was nothing but disdain and an alarming sense of possessiveness.

The cold eyes of the woman took in our ragged appearance. We were still covering in a corner, lying on each other, bound by shared fear. The stranger's eyes hovered over us, taking considerably longer to scrutinize me compared to Camilla. I gulped, already feeling that this fact didn't bode well for me.

Seemingly satisfied with her find, the woman thoughtfully pressed a finger against her cheek, doing it with utmost elegance, then she sighed theatrically and spoke in a soft, disarming voice that made me doubt everything I saw or sensed before. Her voice was a warm blanket that covered me in every syllable, singing a lullaby to my flaring instincts without actually doing so. – "Hmm, stubborn little birds… I would have preferred to collect you without making a fuss." – She let her hand fall to her side; even such a simple action was done with grace. It made me feel irrelevant. I lowered my eyes from the woman's form, unable to look at her at this point. It was only when my eyes looked away that I could finally process the words she said. Making me flinch in terror. I forced myself to look away while listening to her following words.

"Sadly, my dearies, you weren't as gullible as I hoped." – Her voice echoed with such certainty that my mind hesitated to question the absoluteness of those words, as if going against her command would be the most foolish thought in all existence. All of this felt like an unnecessary exchange to her, and this radiated from her every gesture, every spoken or unspoken word.

Her voice sounded once again, filling the suffocating stillness with her melodic, sweet words. – "It would be too much to ask you two to simply come along, am I right?" – Hearing her voice, I felt the same mental intrusion as before. It was a subtle suggestion planted into the deep recesses of my mind, as if the idea were my own. It was telling me to walk along, to give in, to stop struggling, and a part of me wanted to do that.

Fortunately, this particular side of my being was quickly suppressed when I saw Camilla's eyes turning dazed, a mellow expression taking over her terrified features. She started to climb off me and stood up, much like a sleepwalker. She had almost no conscious awareness of her surroundings.

I figured that this was probably the prudent time to do something. I reached into my pocket, grabbing the last of my half-filled mana stone. I hesitated for a second to absorb it or not; my entire body screamed against doing so. In a sudden revelation, I decided that instead of absorbing the mana, I would channel the mana contained inside the gem directly into my spells. The idea was still nauseating, but it was a lot less so than the other one.

In the meantime, the strangely attractive woman stood silently, watching my actions, a bit of curiosity once again surfacing in her aloof expression. I was more than fine with her lack of reaction, after all, I planned to freeze it on her face soon enough.

Something about this woman just made the small hairs stand up on the back of my neck, and seriously, what was with my nasty streak of luck with these psychos being so attracted to me in this world?

I pointed my staff in her way, not daring to raise my eyes, focusing my gaze on her feet instead. I feared that looking at the woman one more time would put me under the effects of her charm for good. I didn't have the slightest intention of figuring out where that would land me in the long run.

Grasping the last of my mana stones in my left hand, my staff in my right hand, I didn't hold back. I sent out a chilling streak of ice; the ground, the walls, everything in the direction of my attack was covered in several meters of ice. I felt a hesitant sense of elation, seeing how my attack hit the woman head-on. Yet, there was a sinking feeling at the bottom of my stomach, recalling the bored expression of the woman facing down my spell.

At least, Camilla seemed to come to her senses, being hit by the residual icy winds. She looked around, wobbling on her feet for a second, clearly confused about what had just transpired.

"S-Selora? Wait, what is going… weren't we just?" – She struggled to catch up with the situation, and I decided to hush her, deeming this not the right time for any detailed explanation.

"We have been attacked by a human mage… if you can believe that. You were under the control of one of her spells." – I provided a short explanation.

Camilla immediately tensed up, even more so than before. She clasped her crossbow tightly, looking around the trenches. – "D-did you kill her?" – She asked while glancing at the freshly formed ice covering a good portion of the corridor.

I shook my head while continuing to search the vicinity of the cave. – "I don't think so, I can't see her body in the ice, even if I was certain that I hit her."

Suddenly, my eyes were drawn to the appearing figure of the same woman walking into our line of sight from a side tunnel, then, to my shock, another one of the same woman appeared from a different tunnel, then another until there were four mirror images of the same person surrounding us. All of them were leveling me with a disapproving gaze.

"Who the hell are you?!" – Camilla snapped, trying her best not to look at any of the illusions directly while also following their general location. It was a frustrating thing to pull off, and she struggled with it, just as I did.

The woman's smile froze for a second before dismissing Camilla altogether and turning back to me. I managed to stand up in the time it took her to reappear after my previous attack. I felt better now, with a bit of rest, but I was still far from being in a condition to run away from this enemy. Seeing no other way, I pressed my back against the wall, holding my staff defensively in front of me, with Camilla standing closely to my right.

The woman's aloof expression didn't change for a second; she was still as dismissive as before, but her curiosity was piqued, if only a little. – "That was a potent spell for such a young elf like you." – The four images flickered until the vision of a human adventurer turned into a stunningly beautiful dark elf woman wearing the same adventurer gear, which took a lot from her image. However, compared to all the dark elves I have seen so far, this woman was radiating a sophisticated presence. There was a subtle smile gracing her elven features, a pale white porcelain skin paired with deep blood-red eyes and snow white hair cascading down over her back.

I couldn't help but take a glance, which was enough to make me dizzy once again. The woman was an exotic beauty, even with the simple clothes. The most charming feature was the pair of long, thin ears reaching far behind her shoulders in a moon-like arc. They were slim and elegant, giving her an elven grace that I had yet to witness before. Her ears were easily half a meter long. All the while, she held herself with disarming elegance and style. I gulped forcefully, reminding myself that this was a dark elf, and a noble one if I ever saw one.

Said woman, noting my stare, tentatively brushed along her very long earlobe and spoke; her voice sounded a bit embarrassed. – "Ah, I see you noticed my ears… how mortifying. It's one of the things you can't change. If you grow old enough, you will understand," – She said offhandedly, then she turned serious once again.

I couldn't help but ask a question that bothered me, noting her previous words. – "If?"

The woman shook her head lightly in amusement, a cunning smile playing at her lips, then with a snap of her finger, the entire trench flickered similarly as the four mirror images before. The surrounding ground blurred and twisted; the so far empty trenches now showed a vastly different picture. As my vision cleared, icy dread coupled with terror rose inside my soul. I could hear Camilla's terrified scream next to me, and I was very close to repeating her instinctual reaction. Instead, I swallowed back my scream, my body shaking subtly as I tried to process the sight filling the corridors and all the nearby trench lines.

As my eyes took in the surroundings. The ground I stood on, the walls I leaned against, were all soaked in fresh blood. I noted that my clothes were partially covered in blood, which was something I had failed to notice before. Above all that, there were dozens of dead bodies lying on the ground or leaning against the walls, their expressions frozen, mirroring the absolute despair and terror they felt in their final moments. However, even that wasn't the worst of the sight that appeared before us. The most disturbing thing was that, based on the bodies' layouts and their injuries, it was without a doubt that these men, dwarves, and humans were killed by their own hands, or turned on each other, killing their friends in a sudden bout of madness.

My eyes slowly turned back to the woman standing in the middle of this unholy carnage. A subtle, polite, but visibly satisfied smile was playing at her lips. She enjoyed our reaction to witnessing the raw carnage she must have personally created. Her right hand lazily waved towards the hellish sight as she spoke with the grace of a woman standing in the middle of a ballroom.

"My dears… that if, of course, depends on your next decision." – She spoke calmly.

"Which is?" – I questioned in a whisper as my throat tightened under the amused stare of the elven woman.

"For a while now," – The woman began thoughtfully. – "I have been looking for an apprentice; you have piqued my interest, girl. I have been watching you since the start of this battle. You have talent and potential, but you lack the practical knowledge. I have seen your fascinating implementations of ice magic. That exploding ice ball was truly captivating. Well, besides the fact that it almost went off in your face." – She smiled politely, like a snake preparing to pounce on its prey.

"I offer you a choice, little elf. Will you serve me willingly, or will you serve me unwillingly?" – Her smile dared me to choose the second option. I glanced over the brutal carnage across the chamber and gulped dryly, my voice stuck in my throat.

However, there was one thing I honestly needed to ask her, even in the dire situation.

"… Why? I mean… why me?" – The woman leaned her head to the side, seemingly taking her time in considering her answer.

"How curious of you." – She clapped her hands. – "Aside from the obvious, which is the fact that you are a white elf, and a young one." – Her eyes passed over my body from head to toe. I stiffened under her analyzing glare. Knowing that she knew, paired with that possessive glance, made my legs wobble, but she wasn't done. – "You are supple, malleable even, you hold potential, but you are not powerful enough to cause a real threat to me." – She smiled coldly as she added. – "Then again, while it is not the main reason for me, it is still something to consider." – She smirked and added with finality. – "You are easy on the eyes, very young for an elf, barely an adult, which means you will be fertile for a long time. A womb rich in magic and life is always a highly valued possession, one that could be traded for valuable favors in times of need."

As the woman continued to explain her intentions, my expression kept darkening with every word. All of them were the same, every one of them, no matter how they looked or how elegantly they acted.

When the wild beast masquerading as a woman finished her explanation, I sneered at her. – "I see, then there is only one thing to figure out. Can you take me, or will you die trying? You won't be the first fool trying to take me today."

The dark elf woman, all four of her mirror images, took my reaction in stride. She smiled knowingly, which made my skin break into cold sweat. – "If you are referring to those weaklings, you and your friends barely managed to fight off. I have bad news for you, girl. They are not even on the same page as me, might as well spare yourself the trouble and submit right now." – I spit on the ground, showing where to put her suggestions. The woman smiled, her polite smile for the first time took a wilder shape, it was more resembling a grin now.