I've only ever seen the spell a single time. And the original caster was Mother Death herself. The risk of her recognizing the spell and being able to counter it, weighs heavily on my mind. I pray my assumptions are correct. Complex spells are impossible to Dispel without; immense preparation, considerable research, or unnatural talent. Seeing as to how a bastardly spell like this must have been invented by Mother Death herself, I deny the possibilities of her preparing or researching how to Dispel it. The unnatural talent is undeniable, but as I've learned from interactions with MM, Ruby, and Mother Death.
A talented wizard never looks the same.
My talents lie in my ability to comprehend the river. This bolsters my ability to Dispel, hence the unnatural talent. But it also allows me to steal other's spells, just by viewing them. Imagine a gifted musician, how many times might they need to hear a song before they can recreate it on their own instrument. Never having seen the sheet music or even another soul play the song before. All they needed was their own ears.
The river is something wizards can tap into: the source and root of all magic. It's said that the Ancient One thrust a fledgling humanity through the river, to keep us safe on this dangerous planet. But I think the river is one with humanity; our first natural state.
However, most wizards hardly even dabble with understanding, let alone, researching the river. Take for example, the most prolific earth wizard to live. Sir Seismic was knighted after he separated continent into 2, splitting it directly down the middle and sending the halves screaming across the planet, until the Middle Ocean was able to fully form forever separating humanity. He knew nothing of the river. In fact, he mostly thought that rocks spoke to him, it was the very planet that told him to separate the continent. He said this all the way to his execution, for his act ruined the very Kingdom he served. His execution taking place mere days before it's dissolution. Most of their calvary ended up falling off the continent in a very unfortunately timed invasion. At the time there was no water, so they mostly fell into lava from under the tectonic. Who can say that he wasn't gifted with earth magic? Nobody! Because otherwise that asshole would be moving continents around and not complaining about how, technically, Sir Seismic didn't even know the river existed!
All of this to say, I'm betting my existence that Mother Death won't be able to counter the spell I'm going to throw at her. Unfortunately, I still vividly remember the snap of her fingers, canceling out MM's flight spell. Luckily, I'm able to grasp to scientific reasoning. Only the latest and greatest. All modern combat wizards study heavily into Dispelling the common wizarding spells. It's only common sense. This reasoning allows me to view Mother Death's wordless dispel, as her being a rather dedicated combatant. Which is further corroborated from her doubtless joy of fighting specifically us, which she vocalized several times.
I steel myself. I can't have any doubts. I get to work. First, I'll need to find a fairly open field. Not too open, or I will become nothing but a glorified lightning rod. Not too closed, or I risk being unable to complete the intricacies this spell requires.
I really, really hope the 'artistic works' I would make with horse turds is enough. I had quite a lot of time on my hands, and nobody is gonna chew out a kid sweeping shit.
I run around desperately scanning my surroundings for a fit. There! I sprint over, grabbing a thick gnarled stick, my newfound paintbrush. I get to work.
"Oh hello, Miss MM, might you please create a distraction, you're our only hope", Jessica begs.
"Yes, of course", MM replies graciously.
"Oh excellent, it'll only take like 5 ENTIRE minutes. And it's not like Mother Death would kill you or anything", Jessica says naively and stupidly.
MM continues to replay the conversation in her head over and over, each iteration with increasing inaccuracy. She tightens her fist into a ball, knuckles white like a ghost. Lightning slams into the wings of her flame dragon, causing another abrupt altitude lose. She scans the dragon, there are large, gaping holes in each of the wings, black spots of charred scales speckle her body, blood continuously trickles into the wind.
I have maybe another minute in me, probably less. And it's only been a 2 minutes at best since Jessica left. I'm so fucked.
Her oppressor continues to soar high above her, casting down bolts of lightning like she's some fucking Goddess of the storms. Well, one thing I know, I'm not going out like a fucking chump. MM decides if she's to make it, now's her best opportunity. She digs her hands into her dragon, siphoning all the magic into a single spell.
Great Dragon Emaphanaestius Grant me this one blessing To climb from the Hells To Your scared, holy dwelling
A chain launches from the ground aimed directly at the heart of Mother Death. It's unbelievably quick snapping past lightning as if it were standing still. But it doesn't make it to Mother Death. A meaty blue wing folds itself around her, blocking the chain.
MM grins, she wasn't aiming for Mother Death, no she aimed for her throne of the sky. Now it's time to ground this haughty, conceited bit-
MM is cut off by the sight of Mother Death herself plunging through the air, her fingers brushing against the colossal blue body, her nails dragging along each and every scale. The blue dragon vanishes. Her chain having nothing to hold shatters into small green glowing lights, before dissipating entirely. MM does not cast a shield, she does not try to dispel, she does not even move. She knows that a single wrong move will cost her everything.
Mother Death is holding something in her right hand now. She's summoned a single use of the holy relic, The Spear of Lightning. It zaps and crackles in her hand, she feels the force of a thousand storms resting in the divots of her palm. The force surges greatly desiring to be unleashed with otherworldly devastation.
MM knows that her only goal is to survive. Survive. And frantically hope. Hope that she's bought Jessica enough time. She sees Mother Death bring her hand down. Everything goes black. MM awakes suddenly, finding herself floating in an amber river, there's lush grass and wild flowers deep in bloom on either bank. She finds herself overwhelmed with a deep, calming feeling. It overtakes and eases all her worries and anxieties. But MM has been here before, and she's no chump. Each movement aches and sends shooting, screaming pains into her stomach, lungs, and heart. But she did it. In her hurt, she waded, paddled, lunged. And at last, her right hand managed to grip the fertile soil of the bank, she holds strong onto the root of a blooming pink flower. One that's nameless, as it has only ever existed here and now.
Mother Death looks downward. Her spear fell true, it ripped and melted right through MM, turning her insides into a liquid which now leaks from her fallen body. Mother casts Fly stopping herself midair, where she scans the ground while beginning to cast a clairvoyance spell to show her where the escapee has hidden. Her eyes widen, her jaw falls slack. The escapee has not hidden, hidden within long limbs of elder trees, right at the edge of a clearing, the escapee has drawn a symbol she can't have seen but a single time. And from the ground, at that. Mother Death can't help but take a moment of awe at the very sight. Before the fear grinds everything else to a halt, every fiber of Mother Death's body launching itself to stop Jessica at once. As she races closer, she sees more ants. More future victims. The farm girls have returned. Her face turns white, then red. Malice drips from the sky, lightning crackles above and the entire sky lights up. But she's too late.
I smell the scent of charred flesh, like a current of wind directly led the smell of MM's body to the forefront of her nostril. Glancing around I see a symbol filled with imperfection.
"Just stop, it's fucking close enough, I'm gonna do it. NOW!" The women scatter, I remain. The sky is filled with a ghastly white light, every thundercloud claps and wails, ready to scorch the ground black. Tear freely flow from my eyes but my voice remains steady and true, as if my very vocal cords where carved from the stars for this exact moment.
I scream the accursed words I heard so many years ago,
Hear me oh great herald of the sea
I beckon you to nourish yourself on my tithings
Enjoy your feast and be famished no longer
The sky parts. The spell, the casting, the symbol, it was all horribly imperfect. The Great Herald demands so much more. But it was enough. And that's all that I could have ever hoped for. I did the impossible.
In all the annals of time, this spell, has only ever been cast by Mother Death. Only known by her, and her alone. This is not for lack of trying, for this spell is the answer. The answer to all longing, to all hope, to all despair. To everything. And everything must come to and end.
The clouds part. The creature is revealed. The tentacles, slimy, malformed, incomplete. An eye pokes out, bloodshot, crying. But still, it's fucking there. I drop to my knees, sobbing and laughing uncontrollably.
I look up to see Mother Death having been snatched from the air, her legs are kicking, magical sparks flying. But it matters not. Within moments her body is a husk. We won. We actually did it. I go to find MM but something stills me.
But the tentacles don't stop. They lurch, still hungry, still famished. My face turns a ghostly white. After all, I know better than anyone, they still have 8,191 souls to consume.