The Last Summoner: Chapter 4

Gloria rushed towards the werewolf that stood before her. She swung her staff in an upward attack but the wolf blocked it with ease with just his arm. Wasting no time Gloria started making a flurry of swings coming from different directions each time. Each of them was blocked easily.

“If this is all you’ve got then this will be a short fight.” Zakarn said as he continued to block Gloria’s attacks.

“Headmaster.” Mr. Floran said. “What is it we’re seeing here?”

“The inhuman strength and speed of a werewolf.” Aslan said. “Gloria is hitting fast but because of that her attacks lack strength. The werewolf however can match her speed without the lack of strength.

“If this keeps up she'll tire herself out faster than the wolf.” Rose said.

“If she is to win this, she’ll have to think of another means of attack.” Mr. Floran said.

Gloria stops attacking and jumps back before Zakarn could counter-attack. She takes a moment to catch her breath while she studies her opponent.

”He’s strong. As expected from an Ospar.” Gloria thought. “He blocked my attacks blow for blow, however, something isn’t right. He had several chances to strike back and yet he didn’t. Is he just toying with me?”

“I guess it’s my turn now.” Zakarn said before charging at Gloria brandishing his claws.

Gloria stood her ground and watched Zakarn carefully as he jumped in the air and tried to claw at her. She got pushed back when she raised her staff to block the attack.

“Such power in just one attack.” Gloria thought. “My staff won’t be enough to deal with this.”

“I’m not done yet!” Zakarn said as he unleashed his own flurry of attacks with his claws.

Before Gloria could do anything else Zakarn’s claws were upon her. She had no choice but to block each one with her staff which she found quite difficult. The other students watched excitingly. It seemed they all realized that Gloria was really a Summoner and seeing one fight was something anyone would watch.

“It seems the werewolf has the upper hand here.” Mr. Floran said. “He’s doing the exact same attacks but it seems our Summoner can’t keep up with them.”

"You finally believe she's the real thing now?" Aslan asked.

"After seeing this, how could I not believe?" Mr. Floran said.

“Should I go help her?” Rose asked.

“No, leave this one to Gloria.” Aslan said shaking his head.

“But we’re a team. You said so yourself.” Rose said. “I can’t let her fight a strong enemy and just sit here and watch.”

“Unfortunately, you have to for this battle.” Aslan said. “This is something only Gloria can do. She has to win this battle on her own, and she knows it. Her reputation as a Summoner is on the line in this battle.”

After his flurry attack, Zakarn pulls his claws back readying a more powerful strike. Gloria knew this would be her only time to act.

“SHIELD!” she called out and her staff began to glow.

The staff turned into a beam of light which then began to bend and mold itself into the shape of a knight’s shield. Zakarn attacked not wanting her staff to complete its transformation but once his claw collided with the beam of light it turned into a full metal shield that was just as big as Gloria.

“Is that what I think it is?” Mr. Floran asked looking at the shield.

“Ah, so you noticed the insignia as well?” Aslan asked.

Rose looked over at Gloria's shield. Plastered on the front of it was a ring with wings attached to it. Rose had seen it somewhere before but she couldn't remember where.

"That is the Summoners insignia." Aslan said. "That's the shield that the guards at the Summoners Sanctuary would carry around...though her shield seems bigger than what I remember."

"It covers her whole body." Rose said. "It protects her well but..."

“You think your little shield will help you?” Zakarn asked attacking with a flurry of slashes. “How can you win if you stay on the defensive like this?”

Gloria’s shield blocks all of Zakarn’s attacks without trouble. She held it with both hands making sure it stayed put. From behind the shield Gloria grins.

“Simple.” Gloria said quickly jumping backwards with her shield. “LIKE THIS!”

Gloria grabbed the side of her shield and threw it at Zakarn making it spin. The shields sharp round edge starts closing in on Zakarn’s neck just as he quickly deflects it in the air with his claws.

“Stupid move on your part.” He said looking up at the shield. “Now how are you supposed to…huh where did you go?”

When he looked back down Gloria was nowhere to be seen. Zakarn looked left and right trying to track her down. It wasn’t until he saw a shadow on the floor when he looked up to see Gloria’s shield shining from the light of the torches and Gloria herself right under it.

“Overdrive activated!” Gloria said grabbing the edge of her shield focusing her magical energy into it. “FALLING STAR!”

She threw the shield down towards Zakarn as the sharp edge of the shield began to glow with magical energy making it look like a big buzz saw. It flew towards Zakarn who reached out and caught it by the middle, the edge just inches away from his face. The shield kept spinning and Zakarn was having a hard time holding on to it. Gloria dropped to the floor and gave him a swift kick to the back of his legs causing him to fall backwards and causing the shield to hit its mark and produce a dust cloud.

“She got him.” Rose said happily.

“She produced such a powerful attack with just a shield?” Mr. Floran said in amazement. “Headmaster, you don’t seem surprised by this.”

“Of course not.” Aslan said. “It’s as expected from the daughter of Summoner Calden.”

“When you put it that way your right.” Mr. Floran said. "Head Summoner Calden was known as an expert at combat and using anything he could find as a weapon."

A beam of light shot out of the dust cloud which, when Gloria caught it, turned back into her staff. She looked over at everyone watching her. The rest of the students cheered and clapped for her. Rose smiled and gave Gloria a thumbs up which she returned. Then Gloria felt a sharp pain in her left shoulder and she saw some of her blood fly into the air and fall to the floor. She staggered backwards a bit then fell onto her knees. She looked up to see Zakarn flick her blood off the claws of his right hand. She looked at her shoulder to see three deep cuts staining her robe with blood.

“Summoner Calden’s daughter you said earlier?” Zakarn said taking a step closer to Gloria. “I knew it was a bad idea to go easy on you at first."

Gloria looked at Zakarn as she winced in pain. He had a bad cut on the side of his face which must of been caused when her shield hit him. His blood poured slightly down his face staining his fur.

“Got to heal. Fast.” Gloria thought putting a hand on her wounds. "I'll have to use that spell."

“Not so fast!” Zakarn said rushing over with blinding speed, grabbing Gloria’s right hand and dragging her to the other end of the room to pin her against the wall. “Being Calden’s daughter also means you’re Sanala’s daughter too. Being the daughter of the Healing Angel means you would have some of her healing skills.”

Gloria grunted in pain when she was forced against the wall. Some of her blood from the wound splattered on the wall. Her shoulder itself felt like it was burning. She looked down allowing her hair to block Zakarn's view of her face.

“You’re right.” she said. “I’m the Healing Angel’s child…”

Zakarn pulls his right hand back getting his claws ready to skewer Gloria. However she didn't seem to notice and continued talking.

“...and I am pretty skilled at healing, but there was one little skill that was also passed on to me. One that wasn't given to me by my parents.” Gloria said as the staff in her left hand began to glow again.

“And what would that be?” Zakarn asked eagerly.

Gloria looked up. Zakarn could see a look of determination in her eyes. For a brief moment he thought he was looking into Summoner Calden's eyes for he had seen the same amount of determination years ago when Calden sealed him in this room. Zakarn snapped out of it when something pressed up against his right side.

“Gunblade.” Gloria said.

A loud bang echoed through the room as Zakarn was blown into the air and crashed into one of the pillars. Gloria stood up straight and charged at him swinging the blade now in her left hand. Zakarn manage to block her attack with some difficulty. He looked at the blade and then to her arm.

“Im-impossible!” Zakarn said keeping Gloria's blade away from him “You shouldn’t be able to move that arm around like that with the wound I gave your…!!!”

Zakarn looked at Gloria’s shoulder and saw that the wound was gone. It was completely healed. Somehow she found time to heal the deep cut he had placed in her shoulder.

“Whoa…I didn’t know she actually created a better version of that spell!” Rose said excitingly.

“Rose, you seem to know a bit more about what just happened then we do.” Aslan said. “Care to fill us in?”

“When I first met Gloria, she had shown my Healing class how ineffective the Quick Heal spell actually was." Rose said. "She had mentioned that it was her mother' the Healing Angel herself, that found out about the spells major flaw."

“And that major flaw was?" Mr. Floran asked.

“It could heal the wound but the slightest touch would reopen it." Rose said. "What we just saw was the perfected version of the Quick Heal spell. Summoner Sanala must have perfected it and passed it on to Gloria before anyone else."

"And she disappeared before anyone else could learn it." Aslan said. "She really does take after her parents."

“How is it possible that your wound are completely healed!?” Zakarn asked. “I never gave you the chance to heal!”

“Those few seconds I had my hand on my shoulder was all the time I needed to heal that kind of wound.” Gloria said.

“I underestimated you.” Zakarn said. “I never imagined you would be so well trained in both combat and healing.”

“With a healing spell like that, the Summoner is practically invincible.” Mr. Floran said.

“I don’t think so.” Rose said. “A Quick Heal of that magnitude would probably eat up a lot of magical energy. That and it was probably designed to only heal small wounds. She probably can't use it more than two or three times."

“In other words, she has to win this before she gets another wound like the one she healed.” Mr. Floran said. “What do you think Headmaster?”

“So it really has returned.” Aslan said.

“Headmaster? Is something wrong?” Rose asked.

“That blade.” Aslan said. “The one Gloria has. Is that the one she used against Duran?”

Rose looked over at Gloria’s hand. Sure enough the sword with the hole at its tip and the trigger on its hilt is what Gloria had. Rose recognized it even from afar since she had a close up view of it back at the Eastern Tower.

“That’s the one.” Rose said. “Pretty weird looking huh?”

“When you and Duran described it, even when Gloria said outright that she had it, I had my doubts but it really has returned.” Aslan said.

“Headmaster? Do you recognize it from somewhere?” Mr. Floran asked.

“Yeah, I’ve read about it when I was reading up on the events of the EverWar.” Aslan said. “That sword took a big part in the war but was thought to be lost when the war ended.”

“Gloria mentioned something like that." Rose said. "How can you be sure that this sword is the same one?”

“Because there isn’t another one like it. It’s the only known sword of its kind. According to its legend, only a handful of people can actually pick up the blade let alone us it to its full potential. Those people are known as Gunblade Specialists."

“Gunblade Specialist?” Mr. Floran repeated. “There hasn’t been one of those since the end of the EverWar. If what the history books say is true, the first Head Summoner was a Gunblade Specialist.”

“Correct.” Aslan said. “That means, we’re looking at the exact weapon that ended the EverWar.”

Gloria was already slashing away at Zakarn who used his claws to deflect any attacks made towards him, however Gloria managed to get a few slashes through and Zakarn had cuts here and there all over him. They both backed off to get ready for another assault.

“So this is her true strength.” Zakarn thought. “She seems to know when and where to strike with that blade of hers. Plus she’s also gotten more agile. That means she’s treating that blade like it’s an extension to her own arm. She’s more comfortable with that blade then with her staff.”

“Looks like I have you on the defensive now.” Gloria said. “Ready to give up yet?”

“Not a chance.” Zakarn said. “I haven’t even shown you my true skills yet.”

Zakarn began waving his hands in the air slowly. Gloria watched carefully not knowing what to expect. When she saw a spark of flame appear around Zakarn’s hands she jumped out of the way just as a fireball zoomed passed her. She began running as more fireballs started coming at her. She ran up close to him and jumped into the air swinging her Gunblade down on him. Zakarn blocked the attack with his claws.

“You’re a Wizard!?” Gloria said in surprise as she lands on the floor.

“I wasn’t always the beast you see before you.” Zakarn said. “When I was human I studied to be a Wizard, and I must say I was a damn good one.”

As soon as he finished his sentence lighting appeared around his hands. It traveled through Gloria’s gunblade to zap her, pushing her back into a pillar. Zakarn then began shooting fireballs at her again which hit her and caused the pillar to crack and crumble a bit and dust to pick up. When the dust cleared everyone saw Gloria leaning against the pillar. Her robe was burned here and there and her hair was a mess. The hairband on her head was somewhat undamaged but was barely staying on.

“If I stay too far he shoots fireballs, if I get too close he zaps me with lighting.” Gloria thought as she got off the pillar. “How can I turn this around?”

“Are things getting too hot for you?” Zakarn asked. “Well it still feels a little cold to me so let me turn up the heat.”

Zakarn pointing at his mouth and took a deep breath. He then exhaled a breath of fire towards Gloria who quickly jumped behind a pillar to escape the raging fire. Her robe caught fire which she immediately stamped out. Zakarn continued to breathe burst of fire at the pillar trying to force Gloria out with the intense heat.

“Great now I’m pinned down.” Gloria thought. "How can I get out of this one?”

She tries to look around the pillar but Zakarn’s fire prevents her from getting a good look. As she pulls her head back to avoid getting her hair burnt, her hairband falls from her head and land on the floor next to her. Gloria picks it up and stares at it thinking back to when she got it.

"Aleen..." she thought. “If there was ever a time for you to help me. It would be now."

That's when Gloria remembered Aleen's last words. Words that had confused her even to this day.

"When your life is in danger, use this weapon and I will be there for you."

"What did she mean by that?" Gloria thought. "I'm still not sure but the weapon she gave me was...wait...that's it!"

Zakarn took another deep breath ready to blast more fire out at Gloria however she quickly jumped from behind the pillar and started shooting energy bullets at him which he had to deflect with his claws. Gloria continued to fire the energy bullets moving in closer to Zakarn. Once close enough she stopped firing and ran towards the werewolf.

“Here goes nothing.” Gloria said. “Twinblade!”

Gloria’s gunblade started to glow and it began to reshape itself. It changed into a sword with two blades sticking out of the hilt. Gloria began slicing the sword at Zakarn quickly who was blocking the attacks with difficulty.

“That's a nice blade but I would rather admire it from a distance.” Zakarn said as lighting started to appear around his hands again.

“Not this time!” Gloria said jumping up and giving the werewolf a powerful kick to the chest pushing him back against the wall.

She then jumped up in the air held the sword with both hands. The sword started to glow once more and it split into two identical blades. Gloria did a frontwards flip where she used the momentum of her flip to throw the two swords towards Zakarn which pinned his hands to the wall.

“What’s this!?” Zakarn said after he howled in pain.

“Time to finish this.” Gloria said. “Gunblade.”

A card of light came out of Gloria’s hand which turned into her gunblade. She held the blade in front of her face vertically.

“Overdrive ability activate.” Gloria said as her gunblade glows once more.

This time the gunblade seem to have split apart at the tip making its barrel twice the size. Gloria points the gunblade at the trapped Zakarn and she placed he free hand on top of her arm keeping it steady.

“This is it.” Aslan said. “This is the true power of a Gunblade Specialist."

“Such power…” Rose said. “I can feel a lot of magical energy being stored into the sword. Is that Gloria’s power I’m sensing?”

“Most likely.” Aslan said. “The gunblade is only as powerful as the one who wields it. Let’s hope this is enough to finish it. Gloria has already used a lot of magical energy in this fight. This attack might drain the rest of it from her.”

Zakarn seemed to have sensed the power as well as he was trying to pull his hands free from the wall. Gloria's gunblade began to glow with a mass of magical energy.

“It’s over!” Gloria said. “CHARGE CANON!”

Gloria pulled the trigger on her Gunblade firing a huge burst of energy at Zakarn.

“This is not good!” Zakarn said before the beam hit him.

After a huge explosion a dust cloud appeared. Gloria started spinning her gunblade in the air as it turned back to its original shape. A card of light came flying out of the dust cloud and went back inside Gloria’s hand. Everyone stood in silence as they waited for the dust cloud to clear. The only sound that was heard was Gloria’s heavy breathing. As the dust cloud started to clear Gloria could make out the shape of the werewolf still standing. Gloria raised her gunblade getting ready for another fight however Zakarn simply took a few steps forward then collapsed on the floor.

“That’s enough.” Zakarn said. “I don’t think my body can take any more. You win, Summoner Gloria.”

Gloria lowered her blade and breathed a sigh of relief. She turned around when she heard the sound of clapping and cheering. The whole class was applauding, cheering and congratulating Gloria. Rose smiled and ran over to Gloria followed by Aslan and Mr. Floran.

“You did it. You won.” Rose said happily.

“It wasn’t easy. If I didn’t have Twinblade I’m not sure what I would have done.” Gloria said.

“Congratulations Gloria.” Aslan said. “That was a good show of your skills.”

“On that note, I would like to apologize.” Mr. Floran said. “I’m sorry for not believing you were a Summoner.”

“It’s OK. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy proving I’m the real thing.” Gloria said smiling.

“Summoner Gloria.” Zakarn said getting back up.

“Yes?” Gloria said taking a few steps closer to the wounded werewolf.

“Summoner Gloria.” Zakarn repeated. “Daughter of Head Summoner Calden and Summoner Sanala, the Healing Angel. You have accepted and won my challenge. I now offer to give you my power as your reward. Do you accept?”

“I do.” Gloria said nodding.

“By accepting my offer you understand that you cannot obtain the power of any other Ospar you may encounter in the future. Do you still accept?”

“I do.” Gloria said again.

“Very well.” Zakarn said. “From this day forth you now have the power to summon me any time you need my assistance. Call me just like you would with any of your other weapons.”

With that Zakarn began to glow. He turned into a beam of light which shaped itself into a card and floated on down into Gloria’s hands. It then went inside her hand and disappeared.

“I’ve finally obtained an Ospar.” Gloria said looking at her hand. “I’m one step closer to being just as strong as my parents.”

Gloria turned back towards the class and took a few steps forward before she started collapsing to the floor.

"GLORIA!" Rose called out running over to catch her.

“Aleen. Thank you.” Gloria said before she passed out.

“Is she alright?" Mr. Floran asked.

"Looks like she just fainted." Rose said. We need to get her back to the academy so she can rest and so I can heal these burns."

Aslan had walked away from the rest of the group and looked behind the pillar Gloria was pinned behind. There he saw Gloria's hairband which he picked up off the floor. The band itself was a bit burnt but the flower was unscratched.

"If you could only see her now." He said smiling. "You would be proud of your daughter. She's grown into a fine young lady. I wonder if it was because of the Head Bishop's guidance or maybe someone closer to her."
***
That night in a small town known as Wiltmar, three travelers arrived at the entrance. All three of them were wearing cloaks that covered their bodies and had the hoods up so that it wasn't easy to see their faces.

“This looks like a nice little town.” One of them said. “Looks like it has plenty of money and food. My favorite kind of town.”

“Yes indeed.” Another one said. “Maybe we should stay here for a day or two.”

“A day or two?” the first one said. “We could easily stay here for a week. After all, we’re Summoners.”

"Remember, we're here for one thing." Said the third one with them. "Let's just eat our fill take what we can and then focus on our mission. We can't afford to screw things up this time."

"Don't worry. If we can't prove to them that we're Summoners, we'll just force them to do our bidding." The first one said. "After all the only ones who could possibly stop us is another Summoner. And they all went and disappeared."

"Let's just be quick about our business here." The third one said. "That academy is not far from this town. We don't want to attract their attention."

"Who cares if we did?" The second one said. "We'll just take care of them like we always did the others that got in our way. Besides we have a weapon that nobody else has."

"You may be right." The third one said. "Now come. We must find what we came for before sunrise."

The three travelers went further into town unaware that they were being watched from a nearby house.