Machinist of Mana Chapter 109 Arthur's End

Arthur Shadestone

As my boy carried the daughter I'd never known nearly well enough away I watched, pushing back the tears. What was done was done, and it was time for me to go, to finish this. Steeling my resolve I began to cast like never before.

The magic was so easy right now, coming to me in waves of power, moving to my will like instruments in a concert. With a wave I sent forth hundreds of missiles, slaughtering every one of the goblins nearest me. They didn't get one or two, but several each, enough to make sure there was no getting away.

As I did I heard a roar from a ruined building and saw, almost like feeling it through the magic itself, several lights from around the city speed my way. Excellent, call all your best, I wanted them here, here to deal with me and not oppose my children, not threaten anyone else. Yes, that was the play, now I just needed to wait until they arrived.

My potions were gone, the best I'd been able to make consumed for just this battle. Each was capable of boosting a mage by a small amount, but at a cost. One potion when drunk would make you stronger for a time, but the backlash would likely affect your health for a few months, two would shorten your lifespan by years, three decades, and four, well if you drank four and were tended to by a priest immediately you'd perhaps live a year. I'd had eight, and even if the heads of every Order were here right now to tend to me I'd still be dead by sundown.

That was fine though, I was a poor wizard at the best of times, easily eclipsed by my wife and son. However I was smart enough to realize what was needed to kill the beast that had been attacking him, and to clear the way for his escape, and it would've been the death of me either way. Really, it was better to die quickly than suffer anyhow, so there was no need for regrets, it was already done after all.

A series of attacks against my shield stirred me from my thoughts. The monster wasn't fleeing, but rather hiding, launching bricks, bits of pie, or whatever else it could from the shadows before retreating. That would be effective normally, after all I wasn't fast enough to keep up with it.

It wasn't a battle of one versus a static opponent though, he'd forgotten that. The enemy always had a say, and if his say was that he wanted to play that game, I'd play one of my own. With a stretching of my hands I began to weave a net around us, around this whole block. From the outside it would be invisible or as near as, but inside of it you'd be able to see the blockages. This wasn't designed just to catch, no, it was made to let things in, but not out, all of them closer to me, closer to their death.

More bricks and metal bobs hit my shield wall, pinging loudly.

“Going to keep doing that all day or come out?” I asked quietly, a few cracks formed as I drew the shield in.

“Going to kill you, then the boy, or maybe the girl first, let him watch. That would be fun wouldn't it?” he teased from one side, hoping to get a rise out of me.

“Don't think you'll manage that,” I replied, shooting out a barrage that leveled the building he'd been in, more noise, more of a call to the others he was calling.

“Your powerful to be sure, but you can't keep it up forever, there are already weaknesses showing.”

I smiled as I drew the shield in again, spiderwebs crawled across the surface. As they did though I saw more goblins pouring into the area, the fastest had already arrived. Good, just a bit longer to catch the casters who were slower to join the fight.

Moments pulled away as I pushed more into the shield, letting it absorb more and more attacks. It seemed the one I was fighting was a sort of leader, and with yelled orders got the others to join in his barrage. I let my eyes unfocus, seeing the strands of my aura, burning, consuming themselves faster and faster as the elixirs I'd consumed ripped their way through my body and magic, igniting it like a pyre.

Beside me sat my son's newest weapon, some magnificent contraption that spat bullets like raindrops falling. That brought a smile to my face. What else could a father ask for than to be eclipsed by his offspring? No there was nothing better than seeing my boy succeed in ways I'd only ever dreamed. How proud he made me, a shame I couldn't tell him in detail.

Finally the casters arrived, seven or so coming into my net and launching attack after attack at me. Most of it was fire or pure force, simple spells that tended to just work. There was one using water though, rather clever of him to use an element so commonly good against us.

As they did the cracks continued to spread, turning my shield into something that more resembled bits of broken glass, held together at the edges which were slowly heating up. The fire burning through my magic leapt into them, causing even the spell to ignite, but that was perfect for me.

The leader, the one who I'd come here to engage charged, a lamppost in hand and began to pound on my shield.

“Not so tough now are you? Not so strong, soon this will break and I'll crush you like a bug!”

I laughed, a flaming tentacle of magic reaching out to wrap around him.

“What!?” he bellowed.

“Can't have you getting away, no, none of you can get away.”

“You'll die here!” he spat, mouth foaming.

“That was always the plan.”

I pushed the ignition of my magic to its peak, needing the boost of power. It would only last seconds before doing me in, but seconds was all I needed. The web tightened, and as I reached out my hands to pull it heaved. Buildings freed from their foundations and sucked inwards to me as I kept pouring power into the shield.

As everything around me pulled in I set my protection to explode, the bits of it that had been shattering each hardening into a tiny sliver of blasting power, all shooting outwards, all blowing apart as my own mana did the same within me.

A smile found my face as I saw the last thing I ever would, the goblin's eyes go wide in panic and fear.