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The Exalt - Act 3: Empire's Stand - Chapter 465: An Unwelcome?
🕑 Added 2023-07-20 23:56:16 +0000 UTCWhen he first arrived on the Asteria Continent through the portal and separated from Avril, Oscar rushed into action and planned a course further north to safely and stealthily enter his home. From the information he gathered, the Brilliant Drake Empire was attacked on all sides, losing the outer regions to the sudden all-out assault by the three empires. It didn't bode well for his chances to enter the defensive lines when enemies encircled his home.
The Black Tortoise Empire and Earth Core Academy overran the western regions, toppling over fortresses and cities in a slow yet crushing offense. The Emerald Hydra Empire and Thousand Storm Palace swept across from the southwest, leaving no place unturned. The Scarlet Griffon Empire and Undying Flame Sect blazed through the lands, widespread and devastating.
The northern Erith Ocean was not an option due to the sudden ambush that destroyed Portland Island, teeming with occupant forces. That left only one option, the eastern Drakken Seas, its shores sandwiched between the enemies in the north and south. It was an important supply route to trade goods with the outside world, perilous but important nonetheless.
It took a month of flying and resting before he finally reached the Drakken Seas on the other end. The Farsky continent beckoned him, calling him to return from beyond the horizon. Oscar flew like he had never done before, the burst of winds from his flight rumbling like drums and thunder.
Soon, the smell of blood wafted over, and Oscar frowned from the rush of chaotic undulations of Ein thickening the closer he ventured. Hearing the shouts and cries, he gripped his shield tightly and faced forward with a steely resolve, hoping he would make it in time. Oscar stopped above the rampant battle in the air and heard the cocky declarations of early victory. In a cold rage, he raised his voice and swelled his Ein to affect the entire battlefield, silencing everyone and forcing their attention on him.
Shockingly, Susan, the young girl he briefly interacted with during Ashen Grove, was there. Around twenty years had passed, and she had grown up from a young discouraged teenager to a fierce mature warrior, bloodied and burned but shining with a deep resolve. He stared coldly at the swordsman from the Undying Flame Sect and moved with the invisible Reis movements.
In a flash, he appeared before the swordsman, a grade six Exalt, and didn't spare him a single word more. Raising his fist, Oscar stabbed forward with a golden drill, weaving his anger into every mote of Eirin. The swordsman managed to counter with his sword, clashing against his drill, and poured out a flood of lightning from the blade's edge. The lightning stung like a bee's sting, ineffective and weak. Oscar parted the lightning and broke through the swordsman's guard, plunging his drill into the man's chest.
The swordsman couldn't make any face or reaction before Oscar's Shattering Wave forced itself into his body and tore him apart from the inside, becoming a bloody mess of shredded flesh. A lack of preparation and defense was his downfall. He could have lasted longer if he had focused on defense rather than concentrating everything on his lightning slash. Swiping his golden drill through the air, Oscar tossed aside the bloody remains of the swordsman and locked onto his next target.
Erden dove in, red flames spreading from his antler wings and igniting above his head, and stabbed his hooves, which he transformed into blades, into several others. His roar reverbed and quelled everyone else down, the pressure of a Mythical Exalt Beast leaving many quaking in primordial fear. Oscar and Erden struck fast and mercilessly crushed their enemies.
One tried to use her illusions to trick Oscar, but his Eliren Breaker easily broke through her illusions, unraveling the complex layers she tried to trap him in. He froze her momentarily with his Basilisk Eyes and killed her like the rest. His rampage continued onto the next.
His enemies burned to a crisp from Erden's flames. He held back from using the flames himself to keep his trump card hidden, but his metal and Eirin with the Pseudo-Guise were enough. Switching back and forth with Demon, Oscar zipped from one enemy to another, scattering their torn bodies and limbs for the sharks to eat. None mustered a quick enough response, and others failed to comprehend his power, sealing their fate. At the end of it, Oscar stood above a splotch of red on the glittering blue ocean and let out a helpless sigh, glancing once at the mix of charred and torn corpses.
He raised his head and gazed over the remaining Blue Ocean Pavilion and Brilliant Drake Empire soldiers. All of them suffered heavily from their injuries. Oscar floated with Erden toward Susan and the burned Uren. A flash of pity flickered across his face, and Oscar took out several elixirs, gifts from his beloved wife, and threw them toward the survivors. He gave Uren a special, cold elixir that helped well with burns and boils, something Avril concocted when she heard about the main powers of the Undying Flame Sect.
"Drink up. These elixirs are precious and shouldn't be wasted. You all had a tough time, but worry no more." Oscar said, meditating to recover his Ein.
"Wait! Who are you?" Someone shouted from the side, a person garbed in the Pavilion's uniform.
"It's alright, Terry!" Susan popped the cork of her elixir and downed the entire vial. She smiled and showed them her healed wounds, still needing medical attention, but she supplemented them with her healing waters. With a smile, she bowed deeply. "Thank you for saving us. We would have been dead if not for your help."
"You barely grew since the last time I saw you. Well, it's fine. I'm glad to see two familiar faces here. You've become amazing in your own way." Oscar smiled and unconsciously patted her head, feeling like an estranged older brother. Realizing his uncouth action, he pulled his hand back and focused on Uren. His wounds were still prevalent, but he was no longer in critical danger thanks to Avril's elixirs.
Several Exalts flew up and surrounded him, giving him wary looks. It was understandable due to the tension of war. Still, Oscar felt slightly irked at being treated with hostility on his return.
"Susan. Who is he? Why are you so familiar with him?" The man she called Terry asked from the sidelines. "I'm going to tell my brother about this."
"Your brother knows him too. We owed him our lives in Ashen Grove." Susan scowled and swung her mage staff onto Terry.
"Ashen Grove? Wasn't that twenty years ago? Is he some deserter? Who the hell are you?" Terry dodged Susan's strike and took a defensive stance against Oscar, beads of sweat dripping down his chin. He had good intentions from what Oscar could tell, just heavily uninformed.
"Excuse me. I am Lieutenant Greyn." One of the armored Exalts floated toward him, his expression unable to be seen behind the helmet. "First, allow me to express my utmost gratitude for saving our lives." Lieutenant Greyn bowed. "Second, as Terry here said, I must confirm your identity. May I see any proof?"
Oscar understood and rummaged around in his space pocket, grumbling about where he had put it. He pulled out his old identity token of the Blue Ocean Pavilion, worn and cracked, and tossed it to Lieutenant Greyn. The soldier studied the token through his visor and exclaimed in shock, darting his head from Oscar to the token and to Oscar again.
"Is this a trick or some insidious ploy?" Lieutenant Greyn's tone changed to grim and full of malice, and he raised his spear. His soldiers all roused the little amount of Ein they had and surrounded him with piercing hostility.
"What are you doing?" Susan stepped in between, extending her arms out like a shield. "He's Oscar Terr. How can you treat our hero like this?"
"Oscar Terr?" Terry and the others reacted wildly, even the soldiers who followed Lieutenant Greyn. They all stared at Oscar and then at Lieutenant Greyn in confusion. The soldiers hesitated, their guards lowering slightly.
"Nonsense!" Lieutenant Greyn shouted. "I know of the heroics of Oscar Terr. He is as much my hero as yours. But according to the records, he never made it out of Ashen Grove, which only opens once every few hundred years. How could he have made it out? Not only that, so many look up to him because he had a Grade Four Exolsia and yet achieved so much. This man has a Grade Six. How can he suddenly evolve an exolsia? That's impossible!"
Understanding his words, everyone tensed up and guarded themselves, flowing their Eins to prepare to attack immediately. Susan's arms lowered slightly, and her head lowered, weighed down by the truth of Lieutenant Greyn's words. Oscar had to hand it to him; the logic was sound and fair to normal standards. If he had heard the same, he would have been on Lieutenant Greyn's side. His miraculous journey to return here would be unbelievable to many. He fell silent and pondered, racking his mind for a way out of this.
"No!" Susan perked up, regaining her confidence. She turned to Oscar behind her and faced forward again. "Everything you say is true. It all sounds impossible, but I still believe in him."
"As do I." Uren stepped forward and went to Susan's side. He nodded to Oscar and said, "I can't thank you enough for saving me twice now. His words are correct, but I trust my gut more."
"Oi!" Terry shouted.
Oscar had had enough of this and sighed. "Listen here. If I really wanted to, everyone here would be dead. I am Oscar Terr, that token is real, and I want to go home." Everyone paled from his threat, and he continued. "However, I understand it's hard to believe, and I don't blame you. You are performing your duty well and making sure nothing suspicious escapes your watch. Just handcuff me and take me to your base. I'm sure we can sort all of this out later."
"You don't need to do that! They never met you, so they don't know, but anyone who knows you would recognize you." Susan frowned and was about to unleash her Ein to block them from coming.
"It's alright. I'm grateful for your words, truly. It's good to see someone welcoming me back." Oscar patted her head and walked forward. He reached Lieutenant Greyn and lifted his arms out. "Arrest me."
Comments
Brayden
I agree wit all of you
I have been looking forward to this arc for quite sometime I can't wait to see Dravens reaction of Oscar's return
