Silence ensued as both men looked at each other, over the horizon dusk was settling but Maxwell was at an impass.
" After 6 or 7 years of training I was ready. I joined the assassin group Blackwing. I had the power, I needed information. Blackwing was a new organization under baron Marcius. The barony of Marcius had been recently appointed by the king of Belford due to its military achievements in war. " Ivar stopped, Maxwell was surprised that the Marcius family that ruled over Belford as dukes had come from lowly barons. Ivar shook his head, unlike Maxwell he had seen far too many times the rise of suns and fall of stars.
" That is to say it was indaquate for what I had in mind but would do." Ivar said.
" What are the limits of Anti-magic ?"
"Does it only negate mana?"
" How do I acquire it?"
Ivar was bombarded by Maxwell's questions halting his tale.
" I will tell you just be patient." Although Ivar's reply calmed him somewhat it also created a storm of thoughts within Maxwell.
" Anti-magic rebuilds the body such that it consists of anti-mana elemental particles. In my case where I had little mana, the pain of searing my flesh off would only be one hundredth of yours. Unlike absorbing mana, your heart begins to generate anti-mana, thus it rapidly becomes a core. Your cells, tissues and organs will reject mana but the trade off is greater physicality than a warrior or knight.
You will have stronger bones, enhanced sight, hearing and taste. Basically a killing machine. Survival becomes hard, this world is plagued by mana, potions have mana, artifacts require mana. Potions will have one thousandth of their effects unless they are a higher tier. The body becomes a weapon entirely as more anti-mana is generated by the heart.
Scaling does not apply to you and by definition you become an anomaly. But it does not stop there, your heart keeps pumping anti-mana till you cannot contain it, those around you fall sick as it invades eating at them whilst doing the same to you. Your body becomes stronger than anyone but excess anti-mana particles begin to feed off of you. The power a parasite to its owner. "
" How do you stop it? " Maxwell asked taken aback, anti-magic seemed troublesome.
" You master it, you learn how control it but first you master your own body. How to keep you breath constant over 12 hours, how to mask your life force. Then you learn how to separate your breathing heartbeat from the heartbeat generating anti-mana particles. Only then will it be truly your power otherwise your just a vessel crumbling and withering slowly like stone to its own power.
In Blackwing I underwent training, I was one of the few older rejects of society. After training I started assassinations, it bothered me at first but it was for the greater good. That self delusion soon turned into belief as reaped lives under the shimmering moons.
After two years of assassinations, I was ready. It had taken almost 2 decades but I was ready." Ivar turned to Maxwell. "What is the greatest asset of a magician? " Ivar asked Maxwell, his smug grin plastered all over.
Maxwell sat in silence for a few moments furrowing his brows then he leaned forward stoking the fire, breathing calmly he pointed at his head tapping it, "The mind." Maxwell said.
Ivar's eyes gleamed, " Indeed, the mind. Paralyze their minds and all that left is a husk of uncontrolled power. Magicians pride themselves on their intellect, so thought impairing potions were a must. As I dug my dagger further into a head, Calvin's head I spat over his corpse. Calvin was an aspiring mage but much like Miles dreams can only take you so far. After our grueling session I set off to my next target. I had no information guilds but I had the best source of information, the magicians themselves. They had intellect but feared pain and I sought to inflict that pain in the worst ways possible.
Everyday I spent, I spent hunting. How to be better, sharpening my blade. A lot could be inferred from magic, it paved the way in for me further grasping my power. It was not just about pain but breaking their psyche. Collapsing their will and their only escape my mercy. Infiltrating into their hearts. Fear born out of the necessity of fear.
I cleaned out the drags of magicians plaguing society and collected bounties. I had to master the art of poisons, why have the best ingredient and not use it. My anti-magic could hamper their magic but it was not omnipotent.
Those with greater mastery over magic kept me at bay but I was not in a hurry the hunt had just began and I would have my will realized.
After a year and a half I came to called Millennium twilight, I lit up the skies in the darkness. My fangs were ready, my blades
and most of all the scars I carried had taught me about my prey.
I set off to cut their future, what is magic's future? " Ivar asked grinning once more but this time his grin felt like the devil. Maxwell gulped visibly and replied," I don't know. "
" Think about it more. " Ivar insisted. Maxwell wrecked his brains thinking and shuddered at his conclusion," Ohh no, you didn't?! " Maxwell was gasping for breath.
" I did, the young aspiring magicians. That's the future of magic. I sought to snuff those flames. " Ivar said his grin turning somber and more serious.
" At first they didn't notice or maybe they did but turned a blind eye or they thought it was a rival magic towers instead. Back then there were 8 magic towers; fire and lava, water and ice, wind, earth and metal, lighting, plant, darkness and light magic towers. Naturally some towers were antagonistic to each other like fire and water similarly light and darkness magic towers. At the base of their power magicians what are they?"
" Humans. " Ivar answered.
" Desolation, all humans dislike desolation but the path of magic is nothing but desolation. So the pups sought to free themselves, see the wider world and all I had to do was snap their fragile necks a bit. Overtime the official mages sought me out, I was single-handedly sinking the ship that was magic. They sought to stop me but they were too late. In their negligence I had grown and anti-magic was fully under my control. It had taken a while but I had fully mastered it. I could stop or hasten anti-mana production with a thought.
At that time the hunt began in earnest, I had simply hunted the drags and the pups. I sought the head of the pack. Their growth would be delayed somewhat but to stop it entirely I had to cut off the head of the snake." As he spoke murderous aura gushed around into the forest killing by fear alone.
Maxwell as the story went along came to understand bit by bit the demon before him, 'what will happen to me?' he thought. It was clear Ivar was dangerous and he believed more dangerous than Linnaeus.
" I would say I was at the master stage of anti-magic. I was an anti-magic combatant. Anti-magic missiles swerved hunting the enemy at my behest. Like magicians at the master stage I had developed my anti-magic domain though it was partially completed. Speed, what was terrifying about master magicians? It was their speed in spell casting. Rank three spells were instantaneous but I was a hunter and my palate was varied. I took loses at first escaping with my life barely alive."
"Who was he? " Ivar mumbled, "mmnh ahh!" "It was Daniel, he was an elite master earth mage. A true battle mage, he had been sent after me. The bastard was truly a hard kill, his earth magic made him a fortress. 12 days of fighting, I went to great lengths to butcher him. I had to rest my injuries for half year the bastard!" Ivar grit his teeth, "yeah that's how it went, eventually ambushes appeared as I sought out my targets. The raging eyes of kids as I snuffed out their fathers, then their mothers and then...them hahaha. " Ivar chuckled, "Half a dozen millennia I spent killing the bastards. The bodies of comrades who joined my cause lined up as the monster that was me festered. I killed and killed, where they criminals I didn't care I simply killed them, they were magicians so my killing them was mercy." Ivar stared at Maxwell," So tell me Maxwell are you a mage? " ' Fuck...'
Maxwell's head was buzzing, ' I NEED TO GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!' Sadly this realization was late, he had mistaken the deed done as Ivar saving him.
" So are you a mage? " Ivar brows knuckled up in rage, the ground trembled as he extended his hand towards Maxwell.
Maxwell cursed inwardly now he came to understand the fear Lobos displayed before dying, obviously he recognized this monster but still he failed to escape. ' Half a dozen millennia, that's 6 000 fucking years!' It was bad, his thoughts raced.
" I'm joking." Ivar said halting his had, and laughed, he laughed as tears fell from his wrinkled faces, the tears moisturizing the canyon's of wrinkled flesh.
" Come here!" A force burst out, drawing Maxwell to Ivar's hand. Too fast, Maxwell barely ran a thought and he was caught.
Ivar's hand, held firmly Maxwell's neck as he choked him, his legs shaking. The grip was too strong he barely let out a whisper. ' SHIT! SHIT! SHIT!'
' I'm gonna die!' Maxwell let out saliva, as his eyes were receding, showing whiteness.
" Do you know after fighting for so long it was not the magicians that pleaded for mercy, it was the commoners. The magicians had brought their wrath upon them and they turned their pleas unto me to stop hunting the magicians! But there lay the conundrum, 6000 years of fighting was it a waste? Do I stop? What happens if I stop? What do I do?
I had no choice but to stop, a thought had won out, that I was there. I was the deterrence. So long as I existed the magicians would treat the commoners not as livestock or dummies for their spells but humans. Like they were before they stepped on the path that was magic, so what you think Maxwell was my fight worth it? Would Amy be proud?
Maxwell I shall leave the power of anti-magic with you, should you choose to wield it be careful. They know of my existence but they will discover you so farewell. " Ivar smiled as he stared up as the sky, the fight was over. He had lived a long time and seen more that his fare share, finally it was time. There was one thing he did not tell Maxwell, anti-magic enhanced longevity so long as he had anti-mana particles within him. It had been a century since Ivar's heart produced a smidgen of anti-magic. His body was now a husk as the power of anti-magic coursed in his arm entering into the unconscious Maxwell.
He stared at the stars as he withered turning into dust, Maxwell falling on the ground. In his eye sight Linnaeus and Ryan stood in the skies of mergard. Ivar the transcendent died. As anti-magic cursed into Maxwell in the city of Liberia Alex touched his chest, his heart for some reason was beating rapidly he felt an omen like something was set in stone.