Chapter 1031 Phloria’s Choice Part 1 The tower amplified both Lith’s and Solus’s abilities, so they had created the Nova series of spells that exploited the tremendous might that tapping into a mana geyser bestowed upon them. Raging Nova was the evolved version of the tier five spell, Raging Sun. Raging Sun was a combination of fire and earth magic which generated a powerful explosion along with flames so hot that they could melt stone. Its effects were akin to a volcanic eruption. Raging Nova, added a third element, air, to both expand the area of effect of the explosion and raise the temperature of the spell. White flames engulfed an area of over one hundred meters (330 feet) around Lith, destroying the focus point of the arrays along with everything else in their path. The undead were resistant, not immune to the elements, and Raging Nova was more than they could take. Creatures like Vampires or Ghouls died on the spot with their bodies torn apart and burned so fast that they were unable to regenerate. The ability to move their weak point at will was useless against an attack that engulfed them from head to toe. Even Mage Slayers couldn’t resist Lith’s spell. The orange mist that comprised their bodies could feed upon the three elements, but their weapons couldn’t do the same. The intense heat melted the enchanted relics that made the other half of a Mage Slayer’s physical body, damaging them beyond repair and dooming their masters. Lith remained unscathed only because he cast the spell on himself and released it from his own skin. That way, he was at the epicenter of Raging Nova and the shockwaves generated by the explosion couldn’t affect him. With the arrays gone, Nalrond and Tista could evacuate the camp quickly by using their respective Sentry to open Warp Gates leading far away from the battlefield. "Quick, everything is going to blow!" Tista said while exploiting the terror spreading among the enemy ranks to restore her strength with Invigoration. ’Good gods, little brother, how could you kill so many without a second thought? There might have been survivors or prisoners.’ She had already expressed her worries to Solus who had promptly dismissed them. Tista knew that the moment Lith would cast his next spell, she would be forced to abandon anyone left. To protect his secret, Lith couldn’t risk leaving witnesses alive. Meanwhile, Protector had finally reached Baba Yaga’s hut. The place was surrounded by so many defensive arrays that he didn’t dare come close to it and called the Ernas from a distance. "Friya! Phloria! Quylla! It’s me, Protector. Are you in there?" He said. "Thank the gods you’re here. You’re an Awakened, correct?" Friya ran out of the house to not be forced to yell. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖 "Then if I tell you that Phloria is about to Awaken and that it might kill her, do my words make sense to you?" Her questions received just a nod for an answer. "Quylla and I are fine, but the moment Phloria leaves the mines she dies." "Care to elaborate?" Protector asked while tapping on the Sentry to make sure that Solus listened as well. Friya explained to them everything Baba Yaga had said about Phloria’s condition and the reason why the Awakening process had yet to trigger. "This wasn’t in the plan! Is it good or bad news?" Protector said to the glass sphere, making Friya wonder if that day could get any crazier. "Great news, actually." The glass sphere replied, giving Friya her answer. "Remain on stand by while I make a few modifications to the Heart." "Copy that." Protector said. "Hey, that wasn’t Kamila’s voice. Who was that?" Friya felt like she was going insane as Mogar made less sense by the second. Lith was a hybrid and an Awakened with crazy ass powers she had never seen before. Her sister was about to join the club and that annoying prick Eari, of whom Quylla had complained about for months wasn’t human, but something in disguise. To make matters even more confusing, among Lith’s allies there had to be Manohar the second and an unknown girl. "You’re about to find out. Go call your sisters, we need to be ready to move at a second’s notice. I don’t know who that hut belongs to, but I’m sure I don’t want to stay here a moment longer than necessary." Protector said. "That makes the two of us." Friya said before returning inside. "Don’t worry, sis. The bad news is that jerk of Lith knew about your condition, the good news is that he prepared for it. His assistant..." "Partner!" Solus corrected Friya. "What she said, says that they can help you." Friya said. "Help how? He’s outside fighting and we can’t Warp. Even with the arrays gone, the crystals will blow if we attempt to open a dimensional tunnel leading to the surface." Phloria wanted to believe those words, but reason begged to differ. "I’ve already taken that into account." Solus’s voice was magically amplified, allowing the Ernas to hear her from a distance. "I’ll open a Steps at the closest safe point. You Blink to Protector and he’ll carry you to destination in a matter of seconds." "She’s right. I can vouch for Protector, he’s the fastest man I’ve ever seen." Friya answered Phloria’s silent question. "I know what I would do, but the choice is not up to me. The life is yours and whatever you decide to do, I’ll be by your side." Phloria looked at Baba Yaga and her still-extended hand before saying: "Thanks for your offer, Lady Yaga, but future of Mogar or not, being forced to feed upon humans and becoming as good as sterile is something I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy." Quylla and Friya left the hut, following Protector’s directions to reach the location of the Warp Steps on their own. Morok tried to follow them, but Ryman stopped him in his tracks. "Whoever you are, you’re not on the list." Protector said. "That’s rude, man! Lith and I fought together in Kulah, we shared our secrets and whatnot. Heck, I saved his girlfriend, my own, and maybe even yours." Morok pointed at Phloria, Quylla, and Friya in this order. "I’m not his girlfriend!" The three Ernas said in unison. "And I’m a married man with three children. Say that in front of my wife and I swear that I’ll kill you before she can kill me." Protector snarled. Selia wasn’t the jealous type, but hearing allegations about him spending too much time with a young woman as pretty as Friya might compromise their bond of trust and in turn Morok’s life expectancy. "But..." "Not on the list. Everything is ready on my side." Solus cut Morok short and Phloria Blinked in Protector’s arms who disappeared as if he had never been there. "Seriously? How many women does Lith need to be happy? Can’t he leave some to the rest of us? I mean, there’s you, the army chick, the other army chick, the hot mercenary chick..." Morok’s attempt to bargain with the Sentry failed when it popped out of existence. Solus couldn’t move the Sentry as fast as Protector, but rather than listening to the Tyrant’s rambling she dispelled the construct. "Man, I really hope that Archon Ernas keeps her word and sets me up for a date with Quylla, otherwise I just wasted months of my life!"