— What do you mean you're not sure which ability will come out?! — growled Vrigs, completely beside himself. His face was red, eyes wide, nearly popping out of their sockets. It was the kind of anger that bordered on panic.
I took a deep breath, trying to stay calm, but the truth was my throat felt as dry as sand. It was hard to explain my theory in a way that didn't sound completely insane. Even so, I had to be honest. Everyone needed to be prepared for whatever might come.
I had spent the entire night turning over possibilities in my head, exploring every song I could choose. Some had acceptable potential, maybe even decent for a normal fight… but that wouldn't be enough.
For me, there was no easy way to win this battle since everything I had created so far wouldn't be enough to defeat this creature. But then an idea began to form in my mind.
I needed something bold, something that went beyond the ordinary. I couldn't cling to what was safe anymore. I had to take a big risk — maybe too big. It was all or nothing. And in that suffocating silence of the previous night, while the rest tried to sleep, I felt my chest tighten with a cold certainty: I would have to take a chance to achieve something truly extraordinary.
— Look, I'm sure the power will be strong. I just can't guarantee exactly how it'll manifest. It could be a buff for you, a summoning… or even a direct debuff on that thing. Or more than one of those.
Vrigs ground his teeth, letting out a guttural sound. Malaca just watched me, eyes narrowed, weighing every word that came out of my mouth as if she could decipher what was going on in my head.
My theory was relatively simple, but frighteningly uncertain. I believed the powers were deeply tied to the music. The problem was understanding the logic of the choice — what determined whether it would be a blessing, a summoned creature, or a curse upon our enemy?
In my mind, I ran through the possibilities:
— Summoning.
— Buff.
— Debuff.
But there was something that deeply bothered me: was it possible to combine effects? Could I, for example, perform a song that weakened the enemy while strengthening my allies at the same time? In the few battered books I had read, I found an account of a witch who used an area ability to drain an adversary's life and transfer it to a companion.
If that was really true, it would be the equivalent of a debuff on the enemy while also being a buff for the ally. But I knew that, technically, the ability wasn't exactly one thing or the other — it existed in a strange, confusing, almost paradoxical zone.
It was an ability that seemed to have no purpose beyond simply existing, but within it were two effects coexisting, almost dancing together. And that was exactly what I wanted: an ability that carried another within itself. To me, this was an anomaly in the system, and perhaps something I could use to my advantage.
If I could figure out this dynamic, maybe it would be possible not only to activate one or two things at the same time… but three, maybe even more.
The problem — and it was a colossal problem — was that all of this still lived in the fragile realm of theory. I had no idea if it could really be pulled into the real world, or if it was nothing more than a pretty daydream to distract me from my fear of dying. The fact was that at least this time it needed to work.
It wasn't just Vrigs who was upset with my situation — everyone seemed to take my words like a bucket of cold water. It was inevitable. I needed to be honest, even if it crushed their spirits.
While I was still processing the weight of the silence that settled over us, Malaca stepped forward, positioning herself right in front of me. Her gaze swept over the group with a fire that almost burned.
— All of you have put your trust in my bard up to now, and now that he's telling the truth, you're all thinking of giving up? — Her tone was harsh, almost cutting. — You need to understand that he's giving us the best chance we have.
She took a deep breath, gripped the handle of her axe, and spoke with a conviction that seemed to wound the very air:
— You're going to have to trust. There's no other choice.
I have to admit: Malaca's support meant a lot to me. For a moment, I feared my inflated self-esteem might make me slip up somehow, but I held myself back. I turned to her and murmured a sincere thank you.
— We're going to need to get ready. My ability will activate the instant the song ends. If everything goes right, that'll be our moment to turn this fight in our favor.
My confidence began to surge again. And I wasn't the only one. It seemed Malaca's words had stirred something in everyone there, reigniting a spark that had almost died. Each person started to reconsider their place in all this. Varnak was the first to step forward.
— Folks, I think we're just going to have to trust that each of us will do our part. Let's get ready to move out.
Our formation had changed since the day Marcoriel was taken. And the time spent locked up in that cave at least helped us build some bonds — even if only superficial ones. I already knew everyone's names, which was nearly a miracle considering how we started.
Vrigs, the mage, was a specialist in elemental magic and Varnak's right hand. It wasn't much of a surprise when Malaca and I found out he was a retired Platinum-ranked adventurer.
As for Varnak… well, he wasn't Platinum. Not even a real adventurer. His strength came from his last name, from a rich and influential family. That explained how he'd managed to accumulate so much wealth in his field. A pity his family cared so little for him — as he confessed on the third night, with a sad laugh.
— I wasn't blessed with strength, but with intelligence. Which, believe it or not, attracts more enemies than friends. Even within my own family.
Isbel, out of everyone, was considered the least relevant in direct combat. Her skills were focused on hiding, moving stealthily, flanking — great for ambushes, terrible for face-to-face clashes.
It was only a few hours before the charge that Varnak's son finally revealed his name. And to my surprise — or maybe not so surprising — the bastard of a father hadn't shown a shred of creativity: the boy was also named Varnak. To avoid confusion, we ended up just calling him Son.
Unfortunately, like his father, he didn't seem to have any noteworthy power. He was training to be a mage under Vrigs' guidance, but according to Vrigs himself, he was still completely useless for the kind of battle we were about to face.
Siman was one of the elders who stuck close to Varnak and Vrigs. The only thing I knew about him was that he had the power of Appraisal, just like Zomeia. He didn't speak much, always seemed closed off, but Varnak assured us he was an excellent scout and trap specialist. In my mind, that only put him on the same level of relevance as Isbel.
The cheetah — or rather, Cris — had some sort of romance with Isbel. I admit that caught me off guard, and for quite a while I found myself thinking how, in this world, there didn't seem to be any prejudice at all toward interspecies relationships. A curiosity that took up far too much space in my mind, considering what we had ahead. In the end, what mattered was that Cris was an agile warrior, lethal with his spear.
We also had Ana with the golden braids, Fiona, a specialist in fire magic, and the silent third, Briem. They said he'd been captured by the enemy and had his tongue cut out, yet he was still an effective battle mage, using floating blades to make up for his silence.
And lastly there was Bernard, the man with the great shield, Marcoriel's partner. When I saw him fight, it was clear that aside from his immense defense, he didn't seem to have much else to offer.
Our group had eleven people. Half of what would normally be needed to face what was coming. But it was what we had. And it would have to be enough.
— All right everyone, I'm going to start playing the song.
Now it was all or nothing.
⚠️ WARNING: For the full experience of this scene, please follow the instructions.
(Please listen to the first track of the playlist "The Bard" on Spotify. If you can't find my playlist, please listen to White Rabbit by Jefferson Airplane.)
Do not continue reading until the song is over. 🎵