"You bastard!" Cormac picked himself up, but the Heirloom he held was now a dull red in his hand. All the mana in their surroundings was going to only one area: the main palace.

"Your Majesty," Liming said to the Bloodscion while keeping an eye on Cormac.

"The guardians. Something is happening over there," she turned. "What have you done?"

Cormac flinched. The arena was almost empty now, with the audience and everyone else running away. He squared his shoulders, and small globes of water surrounded him. "You think I would be foolish enough to attack you in your palace with your guardians a mere breath away from you? But now, you can’t summon them. They have been disabled!"

"Should I kill him, Your Majesty? Before he gets that Heirloom up again."

The Bloodscion shook her head; she lowered her voice. It was tight with worry. "He doesn’t have any more mana to power that thing. Keeping him alive will serve me," she raised her voice now. "But that’s not what is currently happening. One of the guardians is waking up."

The only problem was that she wasn’t the one who woke it, and it’s not under her command. Even from here, she could feel its anger and bloodlust. Something terrible had been done to it.

"What are you talking about? It’s only supposed to disable the guardians!"

She ignored him. "All remaining Elders, answer my call!"

The two surviving Elders floated down on clouds of green and brown, conjured by Erestor, the Judgment Elder. The clouds disappeared immediately after they got level with the ground, and the two Elders went to their knees.

"No time for formalities. Hear me now," her voice was sharp like an iron whip. "Be my witnesses. I strip Cormac of his title of Elder and authority. Let it be known that he is now an enemy of the Hydraeus!"

Cormac flinched despite himself.

"Your words are command." The two Elders said. Their voices were grim. To be stripped of authority meant you must have committed the highest of crimes. And Cormac did.

The Bloodscion continued. "Now, obey my commands, Elders. The palace is now put in maximum lockdown and defense. Prepare for an internal attack and the evacuation of all non-combat Rashaka."

The two remaining Elders shared looks between themselves. What could make the palace go into such a state? But they bowed their heads and did as their lord commanded.

With that taken care of, she turned to Cormac. "Tell me, why did you do it?" 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Cormac sneered. "Even now, you still don’t realize it. The Hydraeus Clan is weak and sinking. It’s pulling everything down with it. It’ll pull down the Dominion, and that is why your Overlords keep to themselves. It’s time for another to take your place."

"How dare you...." Liming began, but a sharp look from the Bloodscion stopped him.

"And that is why you decided to work with the Emperor?"

"What Emperor! This is my own plan. I want to save this Great Clan. You should be grateful to me. Unlike you and your coward son!" Cormac was breathing hard now.

The Bloodscion took a deep breath. Why was all this happening on the day she got her son back? "Tell me, how did you tamper with the guardians?"

"I employed an Thaedric."

The Bloodscion nearly laughed. The Thaedric? That meant the Emperor had a hand in it. She shook her head. So he’s come to finish what he started.

Cormac was getting a bit nervous. Things weren’t going the way he planned. Liming should be dead by now. The Heirloom he was holding should be working, and he should have dominated the Bloodscion. And worst of all, the guardians should have been dormant, not waking up!

"You are a fool, Cormac. How do you think you can employ an Thaedric? You are being manipulated. Now, one of the guardians is waking up, and it’s not under my command. You’ve destroyed this Clan with your own hand." The Bloodscion’s glare was like a beam of light, and if her powers weren’t locked, then Cormac would have shriveled up.

As it was, he flinched and raised the Heirloom as if to protect himself from her words. "I..."

The Bloodscion shook her head. She was angry now. And very tired. "Enough. Liming Reginald, if Cormac refuses to surrender himself, then destroy him as needed."

Cormac realized now that he had been played. The Heirloom didn’t have the power it was promised. And now he had no way to fight Liming, who was one tier above him at Tier Five. But he was right when he said he had been preparing for this day, since Liming would be his biggest obstacle.

He stood taller. Maybe he could still correct the situation. Maybe after he finished Liming here, he could stop the guardian somehow. But first, he had to stop Liming. "Bring it on!"

"Bloodline Technique, the Walking Deep!" Cormac shouted. Then he used almost all his mana to power it. His eyes glowed a deep blue, and water exploded around him. Huge waves slammed into him and lifted him up before the water started compressing around him.

A giant water-armored version of Cormac stood in front of them, twenty feet tall and made of gray rolling waters. Cormac opened his mouth, and a scream tore out; it was the sound of waves crashing together.

"You bastard," the Bloodscion muttered. "You dare use the technique of the Stormgod." She had never been able to perform this kind of technique because her Bloodline Technique didn’t manifest water. Even then, she couldn’t help but marvel at it.

Even so, she gestured at Liming. "Be careful not to hit the Heirloom."

Then she saw the Blue Shields, who had run into the arena and faced Cormac. They must have been sent by the Elders, but it was useless.

Cormac was a Tier Four with experience using his technique. His Bloodline was also very strong. "Get back!" she ordered, but it was already too late.