Chapter 173: The Last Stop

"And he just left! He escaped, without any of us noticing!" 

Such were the words of Harvard as he came back to the group after such a scuffle, with the Wendigo in tow, watching over everyone due to her height. Retreating themselves in the Pastor's chapel and with a drink in tow to relax themselves, The Card Magician kept explaining. "Not to mention the fact that the Nucke-whatshe-"

"Nuckelavee" Solomon would correct.

"Yeah, that thing. The Nuckelavee probably took him somewhere else, somewhere that it can get stronger. We HAVE to find the guy, or else we're dead meat!" His pleas came with strong emotion, with Fiona and Manipura being deep in thought, already recognizing the threat posthaste.

"And not only that....supposedly Pria's life now hangs with the same vain as the beast before us, is that right?" Manipura would ask, to which Harvard would nod.

"BUT! She's a Good Monster! She's with us, so we don't have to worry about her!"

"I wasn't planning to." Manipura gave a small smile at the boy's worry of Pria being abandoned, reinforcing her stay with the Pastor patting the Wendigo on her skull-like head. He maintains his focus towards Harvard's request, returning back to his stern self. "However, I don't think it would be wise to do it now. Considering you're effectively our strongest force, and this King is capable of incapacitating you almost instantly, we may need to take some time in order to train ourselves. There's no doubt he's going to do the same, so the least we can do is prepare before they get an even bigger advantage over us." Despite Harvard having an expression to retort on Manipura's logic, he cannot help but agree with his thought process, recollecting that he was near dead when such an attack landed him directly.

"One small problem, where exactly could we go? The Forest, and by extension, the Library is burned down. The Castle's basically impossible, and considering Publiq's still alive, we can't really go back to that farmhouse we visited yesterday. We're kinda stuck here, if you think about it." Fiona would rebuke, trying to figure out the solution to said predicament. Everyone would be silent, trying to think of a plausible choice. Zazel, realizing the final spot, would snap his fingers.

"WAIT! The Cave! We haven't been there yet! Maybe there's something we can use in there!" The Demon would cry, being met with the children having the same realization and agreeing with that decision, while the adults exchanged glances and grew concerned. Only the Wendigo was confused about the situation, to which Zazel explained. "When we first dropped by, there was a lot of spots to visit. One of the spots was a nearby cave, but NONE of us visited there yet! We could see what's in there! Maybe it can be our answer to Malak!"

Manipura, however, would begin his argument. "You realize that's the Cave of Creation, yes? From what I recalled, it is nothing but a tomb for soldiers, generals, and assassins. What exactly would we get out of exploring what's effectively a graveyard?" The Pastor would state, his words cluing the children in on what the Cave was, thinking to themselves once more. 

"Well, that's the neat part! We have magic, yeah? Just because its just one big monument, it's useless. We can check out their records, their ranks, THEIR magic, even! We could even copy their styles of magic and use it alongside our own! I mean, Harvard and Solomon are both using objects for their spells-"

"Artifacts." Solomon corrected again, to which Zazel would affirm.

"Yeah, That. Artifacts! They're like a secondary weapon for people that don't have their own style. You see where I'm getting at?" Zazel's explanation would grant Fiona a realization, already making her way around the Chapel to find a map of the place. Manipura would be deep in thought as the proposition was made, understanding the possibilities before him.

"So what you're telling me, is despite the fact they are utilizing magic to a high extent, they are merely artifacts? Items used by essentially anyone?"

"Yep! Pretty much! Why, is that a bad thing?"

"It is an impressive feat, actually." Manipura would utilize his Chakra Magic to grab ahold of his glass, inserting his energy across it, letting the energy sift through at the middle, acting as a demonstration. "To cast magic would be to find the equilibrium between the body and the mind. The mind to know what spell is needed, and the body to cast that energy out as a physical force. To utilize an artifact means that they are only using the mind to do their direction. In most cases, it acts more like a crux to themselves, mainly because that crux applies to the thinking process and lapses one's judgement. In layman's terms, using an Artifact would count as burdening yourself, making you think you only need the artifact to cast your magic, not the other way around. You following with me?" Manipura explained, bewildering the kids, with even Solomon trying to understand his words. "I'll dumb it down for you. Because you're using an Artifact, you're automatically thinking you can handle the opponent because it is a style of magic you're used to. It's not your TRUE spells, however. It is merely a guide to that style."

"That means you can get away with mastering your own style, getting two types of Magic at once.."

Harvard would have his jaw nearly drop as he heard those words, excitement being breathed on his body. "REALLY!? YOU REALLY MEAN THAT?? I CAN GET AWAY WITH THAT!?" He'd ask, climbing up the table to get his answer, before Solomon would provide it for him.

"Yeah, You can. Same goes for me too. We just gotta be smart in picking the style. Go after something that can work best with your first style. If you get something like that, learning that second type of magic would go faster than picking one at random." Solomon would state, being smart in his option as he'd see Fiona come by with the Map, showcasing the areas that they can go, as well as which path to take. "Me, Personally, I'm getting my second style to work with Shady. I'd rather he helps out on the battlefield than just be a scout all the time." Solomon would add, before his shadow would act up once more.

"EH!? SCOUT!? HELL YOU TALKING ABOUT, LAME-MON? I CAN FEND FOR MYSELF!! I CAN FIGHT BACK! LIKE THIS..!!" The Shadow demanded, before trying to get into a stance, fighting on bare air, swinging left and right, even doing a sweep, causing the Biblical Sorcerer to be dragged around. "Like this...And this! And a little bit of THIS!!" The Shadow would state further, despite the annoyance and complaining rising from Solomon, trying to drag his shadow back. The enthusiasm would have the group laugh a bit to themselves, enjoying the small change in attitude in such atmosphere of dread.

"Well, What are we waiting for? C'mon!!" Harvard would state, grabbing the map and heading out. Everyone would follow suit, ready to embark for the cave.