Lith didn"t like the sudden turn of events. Freeze had just been renewed so the Black Star wouldn"t be a problem for a while. An outsider, however, meant only troubles, no matter their ident.i.ty.

If it was someone from the army, Lith would have to kill them. Explaining what he was doing and how he was capable of doing it would require to share details he wasn"t willing to provide.

He had already broken a rule of his code that day, leaving a loose end would be unacceptable, even if it meant being questioned about his comrade"s disappearance.

If it wasn"t someone from the army, there was an infinite number of things that could go wrong. Lith gritted his teeth, preparing for the worse.

"Do you recognize them? Is it Vorgh?" The first person who came to his mind was the Brigadier General. He might have finished his investigation and was looking for Lith to share its results or warn him about something.

"It"s not Vorgh." Solus reported with confidence. "They have a bright cyan mana core and there is no trace of that magnificent staff."

"That"s it?" Lith almost sneered at the idea of facing a weaker opponent for once, yet he kept a straight face while checking his surroundings with Life Vision, in case the enemy was more than one. Rarely things were easy for him.

"Yes, but they have enough enchanted items on themselves that they could open a shop. I wouldn"t underestimate them if I were you."

Lith weaved as many spells as he could, preparing to ambush the stranger. He was eager to get rid of the menace and put an end to the Black Star threat. The artifact had no idea who he was, but it knew his face and more importantly, it knew Solus.

Lith was sure that if it ever got free, it would make them its first priority. They were the only ones to know how to destroy it.

***

Army Headquarters, City of Belius

Brigadier General Vorgh was on a conference call via the communication amulet with the best Wardens the Griffon Kingdom had to offer. The army, the Mage a.s.sociation, and the Crown had pooled their resources to face the unknown threat.

"I know several arrays with two different functions, yet I can count on the fingers of one hand those which have three or more. They are all state secrets. Which leads me to fear the parasite array is part of a greater scheme. An attack from a foreign nation." Vorgh said.

"It"s unlikely." King Meron shook his head. "Each country has its own lost cities and each one of them is a threat to every single human being. The reason we keep them sealed is that no one knows how to get rid of them.

"No ruler would be so foolish to unleash such horrors on Mogar. History demonstrates that once they take hold of a territory, it can"t be reclaimed. There would be no point in releasing a menace that even they may not be able to contain."

"Agreed. The Gorgon Empire has no reason to jeopardize the Kellar region"s security. The Black Star is too close to their borders, they wouldn"t risk making it their problem. As for the Blood Desert, underhanded methods aren"t Salaark style. She just takes what she wants." Queen Sylpha pointed out.

"Your majesty, with all due respect, who else could employ such a powerful tool?" Vorgh wished he could share their optimism. "My colleagues and I agree that the third layer of runes serves the purpose to replicate the signal of a Ranger"s badge.

"Even if we change the seal every time a new Ranger is a.s.signed to the region, as soon as they enter Kaduria our mysterious enemy can do the same. We have no idea since when the parasite array is there, nor what"s happening inside the lost city.

"According to the latest Ranger"s readings, the barrier is severely weakened. We should prepare for the worst." Vorgh said.

The Royals nodded. They knew that Lady Tyris wouldn"t interfere with the state affairs, but maybe she would make an exception for the ancient threat they were in no way responsible for. Especially if, as Vorgh said, the crisis was caused by a foreign power.

***

Lith hid behind one of the white marble columns surrounding the altar while keeping an eye on the newcomer with Life Vision. The plan was simple. If they were a member of the army, Lith would have let them explain the reason they were there and kill them only if necessary.

It all the other cases, he would attack on sight. No one was supposed to be able to enter Kaduria"s barrier. Lith would get rid of the threat and get a medal for it. Two birds with one stone.

From the outside, Treius too was staring at Lith with Life Vision. The light phase had yet to end, but several blocks of the city were heavily damaged. People had fallen to their knees in the middle of the street and were praying their hearts out.

Treius wasn"t able to understand Kadurian, but he had seen the shooting stars. Something was wrong with the Dark Star.

"The b.a.s.t.a.r.d is d.a.m.n strong." He thought while measuring Lith"s mana flow and life force and comparing them to his own.

"A strong fake mage is still a fake mage. They aren"t my equal!" Despite his arrogant words, Treius knew better not to underestimate a Ranger. His plan had required to interact with many of them. Those that couldn"t be bought had to be killed and none of them had been easy prey.

Treius unleashed his first spell against the main temple. Lith saw several streams of lightning bolts rush towards the building, making him doubt the newcomer"s sanity. Stone was naturally resistant to air magic and the blocks that made up the wall were at least half meter (1.6") thick.

"It"s the most original way of painting the temple black, unless…" Lith thought.

The streams altered their course, surrounding the building with a perfect circle of electricity. Treius kept pouring energy, making the ring crackle like an angry beast eager to unleash its fury.

With a wave of his hand, the circle broke in several new lightning bolts that entered from all the windows, leaving Lith no way out. Lith remained calm and conjured two stone walls. His back was already against the column, now he had no blind spots.

Or so he thought.

He had reacted too fast, so he hadn"t noticed that each lightning bolt was shaped like wingless dragons. They advanced with their maws wide open and their blue eyes fixated on their prey.

It was a tier five true magic spell, Lightning Dragon. The bolts were infused with part of the consciousness of their caster, just like Lith could do with his undead. Treius could see through their eyes and control their every move.

The dragons leaped above the stone walls and flooded the s.p.a.ce they were supposed to protect. Lith didn"t have the time to curse, only to realize he was trapped inside a prison of his own creation.

Earth magic was the strongest defensive element, but compared to lightning it was slow.