《A Broken Promise》


 The Hunter

    Sayhas brushed a thorny plant aside with a stick, hoping that it wouldn¡¯t scratch his new duster. Technically it wasn¡¯t new, but it was hidden at the bottom of his trunk and he had found it a few days ago, making it basically brand new, albeit with permanent creases in the fabric.


    He snapped his arm away from the reach of one thorn only to find his other sleeve snagged onto another. He muttered to himself, sending curses over to Mizukana for sending him on this fool''s errand.


    ¡°You¡¯re muttering and that probably means your saying bad things about me,¡± Mizu said from behind Sayhas.


    He was too busy counting the tears in his duster to respond to her. Five. There were five so far. Three on his legs, one on his sleeve and the last by his shoulder.


    He scaled a fallen tree and pulled Mizu up. It was weird to grab Mizu¡¯s arm; she normally wore gauntlets but she didn¡¯t today.


    Sayhas chewed his lips as he stared out into the forest. Everything looked the same. And worst of all, he had no idea what a fox crown sounded like either.


    ¡°It¡¯s polite to involve yourself in mildly stimulating conversation when alone with someone else, especial?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Can¡¯t you do the thing you did when we were searching for iron gloves?¡±


    ¡°No, I¡¯d need to have the alchemical signature of it and devise an appropriate pulse generator to send the signal and in order to do that, I¡¯d?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Please shut up.¡± Oh no Sayhas thought she¡¯s not going to stop!


    Even while turned away from Mizu, Sayhas could feel her smirk. ¡°Well, hurry up and find it, then I¡¯ll shut up. Anyways, I¡¯d need a batch of?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Are they fireproof?¡± Sayhas reached into one of his dusters many pockets.


    ¡°What? I don¡¯t¡­ No. Don¡¯t go burning down the forest please.¡±


    Sayhas groaned. Just a dash of pink, that¡¯s all he needed to find. Something caught his eyes and he smiled, ¡°Found it.¡± the black leather of his duster groaned as he crouched to caress the delicate pink petals.


    ¡°And then I¡¯d¡­ Seriously?¡± Mizu crouched next to him, idly picking a few leaves off of her fiery coloured hair. ¡°This¡­ this is a¡­ pink-petaled thistle!¡± She faced him, hazel eyes wide, ¡°It¡¯s a pink-petaled thistle!¡± She muttered to herself, Sayhas could only pick out a few words, ¡°If it¡­wait... doesn¡¯t¡­sense¡­ think... whatever¡­¡±


    Sayhas admired the flower: It had such delicate features, and yet it still survived in such a hostile environment. Only the toughest of animals dared to venture here, but this tiny pink-pedalled thistle didn¡¯t seem to care. A shame it was going to be plucked and accidentally transmogrified into a pile of green goo.


    He reached down to touch the thistle when Mizu slapped his hand. Hard. ¡°Get your grubby hands off my plant.¡±


    ¡°My hands aren¡¯t grubby.¡±


    She turned on him and raised her hand threateningly, ¡°Go bother the others, I¡¯m busy.¡± She made shooing motions before turning back to the rare flower.


    ¡°I¡¯ll go back¡ª¡±


    ¡°Yes yes,¡± she replied without looking, ¡°go play.¡± She sniffed disdainfully. ¡°You stink, you should take a shower.¡±


    ¡°I¡ª¡±


    ¡°Why are you still here? Stop bothering me,¡± she snapped, glaring at him.


    Sayhas threw his hands in the air and stood up. Finding the rest would be easy, they hadn¡¯t gone far enough that Sayhas wasn¡¯t able to hear them anymore. He made a b-line for the others, travelling slowly to avoid unwanted thorns.


    He failed miserably. By the time he got within viewing distance of the opening, he had three more tears in the duster. Fed up, Sayhas placed his hand to the side, palm facing upwards. His forearm hummed and the air above coiled into itself. The air and his forearm murmured and groaned, like floodgates bursting open. A flash of light. An old, fabled scythe fell into his hands. A purely aesthetic white aura hugged the entirety of the weapon. It was his best scythe. The Phantom Touch. The Edge of Ethereal Light. Maaier Speal of the ten god aspects¡ªthe strongest aspects ever manifested. Although plain in appearance, especially when compared to the other ten god aspects such as Claimoh Solais and Aegis Atilla, Maaier Speal made no attempt to hide its raw power. Every time Sayhas wielded it, he felt invincible. To Sayhas¡¯ trained ears, Maaier Speal rang harmoniously in his ears. He couldn¡¯t describe how lucky he was if his life depended on it.


    Seven ethereal scythes shot out of Maaier Speal, severing the branches in front of him. Once the deed was done, he dismissed Maaier Speal and walked comfortably down the makeshift path. Silently, he hoped a bear would attack Mizu for sending him on this ordeal.


    ¡°Who¡¯s idea was this?¡± Someone shouted surily. Sayhas was close enough to easily make out the voices without straining too hard. That was Taed, a lightly built spear wielder. He had long black hair that always drifted over his eyes no matter how hard he tried to keep it away.


    ¡°Dismas¡¯,¡± Kirin responded with equal volume Kirin was a young man, barely through adolescence. He shouldn¡¯t be here.


    ¡°Dismas, I¡¯ll kill you,¡± Taed said bluntly, ¡°once I get my hands¡ªGah.¡±


    Sayhas brushed away the last fern and stepped into the clearing to be greeted with Taed, flying towards him. Taed crashed into him, knocking the wind out of him. Sayhas smiled, somebody was going to die. He threw Taed off of him like a rag doll. His forearm began to hum as he summoned a scythe. He took his time, relishing Taed¡¯s widening eyes.


    ¡°Sorry Sayhas, the beast threw me,¡± Taed said, glancing at the white light coagulating above Sayhas¡¯ hand. ¡°I¡¯ll buy you a beer,¡± he promised, shaking his sweaty black hair from his eyes as he backed off.


    ¡°Chains be blessed,¡± Sayhas swore, ignoring Taed. ¡°it¡¯s only one mammoth.¡±


    The scythe fell into his hands. It was the colour of the ocean. Sayhas raised it high, like an executioner. The scythe began to thrum. He brought it down. A gentle flicker rippled outwards, rolling like a saw blade.


    ¡°Wait!¡± Taed screamed, ¡°don¡¯t kill it!¡±


    A wave of air knocked Sayhas down. He scrambled to his feet, to see Oldum, the only shield wielder capable of fighting him. Biceps the size of Sayhas¡¯ legs, Oldum had raised an ovular shield, covering all but his face. Sayhas gave Oldum a death glare. Oldum yawned, scratching his short, hair with a huge hand. ¡°I thought Kana was distracting you.¡±


    ¡°She got distracted by flowers.¡±


    Sayhas studied Oldums defence, trying to find an easy way through. He flicked his eyes towards the mammoth. Taed was already back in the fray, poking the mammoth¡¯s sides. Kirin was locked in combat with its tusks. It was a sorry sight. Sayhas wanted to go back to his tent and sleep.


    His scythe began to vibrate, humming viciously along with his arm.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t do that if I were you. Oldum¡¯s watching.¡±


    He threw a sidelong glance at the owner of the voice. ¡°Hey, boss.¡±


    Sayhas was about Clive¡¯s height but every time he stood next to Clive, he felt like a child looking up at a king. Clive seemed content to stay silent, twirling a chain around his finger while watching the fight.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    ¡°Can we speed this up?¡± Sayhas tugged on his silver bracelet.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure we can,¡± Clive said bluntly.


    Sayhas turned to face Clive, ¡°Can I speed this up?¡±


    ¡°We all know that you can provoke and harvest an animal soul.¡± Clive stopped twirling the chain, catching it with his gloved hands. ¡°If we¡¯d needed efficiency, I¡¯d have called for you.¡± His boss¡¯s rugged grey eyes bore into him. ¡°But the reason why we are here is to see whether they can do it. Believe in¡ª¡±


    ¡°Cinders!¡±


    Sayhas shifted his eyes. The mammoth had knocked one of Kirin¡¯s blades out of his hands, and the sword was now flying towards Clive. Scythe in hand, Sayhas slashed downwards, pinching the blade into the ground. ¡°You were saying?¡±


    Clive smiled. ¡°Believe in them. Just like I believed that you¡¯d protect me. ¡°


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ that¡¯s¡­¡±


    ¡°Look at Kirin. Can you honestly say you weren¡¯t like him? Can you honestly say that you were born the scythe-wielding maniac you are today? That there was no in-between and growth? He needs time. So be patient. Play nice, Sayhas.¡±


    ¡°Fine.¡±


    ¡°That being said, Kirin¡¯s swordplay is horrendous, isn''t it?¡±


    Sayhas nodded.


    ¡°Good.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll see.¡±


    Sayhas narrowed his eyes at Clive, who smirked in return. ¡°Hmm. Actually, if I needed efficiency, I¡¯d have called for Hysiedies. Oh. Speak of the devil.¡±


    He heard a light tapping of a staff. Sayhas turned around searching for the false, denounced priest. Hysiedies was an oddity, favouring a bladeless, self-made weapon¡ªa staff¡ªrather than his Blade Aspect. To this day, Sayhas still didn¡¯t know what Hysiedies¡¯ Aspect was.


    ¡°Can we put the poor beast out of its misery?¡± Hysiedies said, joining into the conversation. ¡°Look at it. Can''t you feel the anguish, the agony? Put the poor beast down.¡± He put his hands behind his back and paced, brushing the lush grass with his staff.


    ¡°You of all people should know why they''re harassing it,¡± Clive said.


    Hysiedies flushed, shrinking deeper into his red robes, ¡°You don¡¯t even know if it has a soul,¡± he protested.


    ¡°We¡¯re in a splinter of Yggdrasil. By the chains old man, it¡¯s practically a guarantee that it¡¯s developed a soul of some sort,¡± Sayhas said.


    ¡°All the more reason to not kill it. This is one in a thousa¡ª¡±


    ¡°Did you make your staff with that attitude?¡± Clive interjected.


    A cool breeze stirred, buffeting Sayhas¡¯ duster. ¡°Well, burn me to cinders, they finally did it.¡±


    The mammoth reared up, tossing Kirin aside. Red blood squirted out of its wounds dyeing the grass red. It pounded on the floor repeatedly, letting out an anguished groan. With each pound, the ground froze and cracked. It raised it¡¯s paws up to its eyes and smashed down a final time, releasing a wave of icy blue.


    Sayhas tensed his muscles, preparing to jump when a chain grabbed his legs and pulled him down. The wave passed through him, sending chills down his back. A clean layer of ice formed up to his ankles, holding him in place.


    He shot Clive a look.


    ¡°Believe,¡± Clive said, retracting the chain.


    The mammoth had frozen the area in front of him, only Clive, Hysiedies and himself were caught in the blast. No, Hysiedies had dodged.


    ¡°Under its right ear,¡± Sayhas grumbled loudly, ¡°go get it and let¡¯s go home.¡±


    ¡°Make it quick,¡± Hysiedies called from beside Sayhas.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you do it?¡± Sayhas asked, glaring at him.


    ¡°Me?¡± he said, trying not to slip on the sheet of ice, ¡°I could never bring myself to hurt such an elegant beast. Especially not one that¡¯s developed a soul.¡± He slipped on the ice, barely catching himself by punching through the ice with his staff. ¡°Fractos, why must you scorn me so.¡± Hysiedies slammed his staff again, a ring of flame erupted outwards and melted the ice.


    ¡°Oi,¡± Sayhas slashed the dry ground in front of Hysiedies, ¡°do me.¡±


    ¡°Do it yourself.¡±


    ¡°No, Clive¡¯ll be mad.¡±


    ¡°Not my problem,¡± he said turning away.


    ¡°Burn you.¡±


    ¡°Not nice to swear in front of a priest.¡± Hysiedies wagged his finger at him.


    ¡°You literally just¡ª¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t talk back to your elders.¡±


    Suddenly, the air got colder. Like a breeze you¡¯d find at the top of a snowy mountain. Snowflakes formed, causing the air to shimmer.


    The area around the mammoth was a battlefield of ice. Erratic icicles jutted out of the ground like stakes. Dismas and Taed weaved between them with surprising agility, wielding short swords to accommodate for the narrow battlefield. Together, the two distracted the mammoth. Kirin dug at its flesh while sitting atop of it. ¡°Got it!¡± Kirin called, holding up a blue, crystalline sphere the size of his fist.


    ¡°Alright.¡± Dismas threw away his sword, it vanished into light before hitting the ground. He summoned a large glaive. The glaive was beautiful. It had a golden sheen that accented it¡¯s artful grooves and embroidery. The sound it gave off was absolutely melodious. Dismas smiled, his blue eyes shining with excitement.


    He winded the glaive, pointing the blade behind him. Then, he leaned forward and flung his wiry body around, whipping the glaive in a wide arc. The air seemed to crack under his swing as a slashing shockwave cut into the air.


    The mammoth roared; a large wall of ice blocked Dismas¡¯ attack, dispersing the shockwave. Then it roared again, cracking the wall and the icicles, sending sharp flinders of ice in all directions. Before Sayhas could react, a white light bathed everything, blinding Sayhas for a moment. Oldum was facing the mammoth and had a white shield. A thin translucent barrier flickered lightly around the mammoth''s killzone. The projectiles fell harmlessly to the floor.


    Another Soul? Sayhas thought, raising his eyebrows.


    ¡°Sayhas.¡± Dismas called holding his glaive in a battle-ready stance. ¡°Where¡¯s the top of the soul?¡±


    Sayhas listened close, ¡°Two hand-spans below its left eye, maybe three.¡±


    ¡°Alright. Taed, stun it,¡± Dismas said, closing the eye with a scar below it.


    The mammoth was not inclined to wait. Ice crawled around the surface of its skin creating a layer of armour. It spat a large chunk of ice at Oldum. Oldum didn¡¯t need to deflect it. Kirin sliced it into negligible pieces. The boy rushed the mammoth, batting aside shards of ice. But Kirin was quickly overwhelmed, a blue beam froze his sword forcing him to drop it.


    The slight distraction Kirin caused was enough. Taed had already called on a spear. He thrust it forward, letting out a concussive blast. If Oldum weren¡¯t bracing Taed, he would have flown backwards. The mammoth, distracted by Kirin was unable to defend. It stumbled, nearly toppling over.


    Dismas held his glaive high. A heavy thrumming filled Sayhas¡¯ ears. He felt his eyes widen. Resonance? Dismas slashed horizontally. A wave of black? A split in the world? A dimension breaking slash; that¡¯s the only way to do Dismas justice. The mammoths top half slide right off. Along with the top half of all the trees in a line.


    The glaive disappeared, vanishing as it fell out of Dismas¡¯ hands. His legs gave way and he fell backwards. Sayhas slashed at the ice at his feet with a red scythe. It melted instantly. With his free hand he used the ethereal extension of another scythe to lurch himself forward like an arrow. As he travelled he dropped both scythes and caught Dismas. He let Dismas¡¯ head rest on his chest.


    ¡°Good job kid.¡± He said looking down. Dismas was completely unconscious.


    Sayhas smiled. Dismas probably didn¡¯t remember it but they were part of the same mercenary corp. He remembered a little Dismas, trying to fight with an oversized glaive, wailing whenever he got hit hard. Dismas had grown into a splendid man. Sayhas felt like a proud father.


    Clive was right, he had to be patient and let people grow up by themselves.


    ¡°Good catch, Sayhas,¡± Hyseidies called, motioning for Sayhas to give him the body. Hysiedies thanked Sayhas and took Dismas and rest him on the floor. The false priest put his hand on his forehead. ¡°You¡¯ll be alright.¡± Hysiedies put the tip off his staff on Dismas¡¯ chest. He looked up, ¡°Go away. You¡¯re a bad omen.¡±


    Sayhas sighed but complied. ¡°No experiments please.¡±


    ¡°No promises,¡± Hysiedies replied without looking up.


    Sayhas shook his head. He wanted to go bug Mizu but didn¡¯t want to disturb her, especially when she was busy. The last time he distracted her when she was working, she held a grudge for the rest of the moon. He shuddered, thinking about it. She¡¯ll find him eventually.


    Instead, he tilted his head towards the mammoth carcass. Kirin was almost done digging out the soul with his sword. It was at least three times bigger than the other one they found.


    ¡°Hurry up Kirin,¡± Taed bellowed, ¡°You¡¯re going to get yelled at.¡±


    Kirin slashed at the floor in front of Taed, ¡°Cinders! Do you ever shut¡ª¡±


    ¡°No swearing kid,¡± Taed interrupted.


    Taed tried to continue put Kirin spoke over him, ¡°You¡¯re the only one who¡¯s yelled at me. Just let me work.¡±


    Taed stayed quiet for all of five seconds, ¡°Is it that hard?¡±


    Kirin threw his sword at Taed who yelped and jumped away. ¡°I got it,¡± he hissed, raising it up. The soul was the size of a watermelon, a substantial increase. ¡°Happy now?¡± The soul caught the light of the sunset in a perfect angle, such that rays of blinding light tumbled out. Sayhas shielded his eyes.


    Sayhas heard someone groan, ¡°Kids.¡±


    ¡°Put it down, Kirin,¡± another pleaded.


    Suddenly, Sayhas heard something between a 12 year-old-boys squeal and a banshee¡¯s shriek. ¡°Dragon!¡±

 Hunted

    Suddenly, Sayhas heard something between a 12 year-old-boys scream and a banshee¡¯s scream. ¡°Dragon!¡±


    Sayhas pried his eyes open. Black splotches covered his vision. Vaguely, he saw the silhouette of a large, winged lizard. He squinted. Kirin was staring at the lizards gaping maw. He didn¡¯t try to swing his sword. Nor did he try to run away. He was petrified. The lizard closed its jaws.


    Sayhas threw his scythe. His aim was true, but it wouldn''t make it in time. He summoned a white scythe. Discord left his body and funnelled into the scythe. Instantly, lighting crackled at its blades. He slashed with his scythe, but Sayhas knew that the lightning bolts were falling far too slow to matter.


    He watched in slow motion as its jaw closed onto Kirin, powerless to do anything.


    A knife embedded itself into the lizard''s eye. Mizu was there. She grabbed Kirin, putting his neck on her shoulder. Sparks sizzled from her other hand, scorching the lizard''s underbelly. The lizard bit down. But snapped down onto nothing; Mizu was long gone.


    Sayhas¡¯ scythe hit it, bouncing off the lizard''s armoured skin. It¡¯s cruel eyes snapped onto him; hungry, savage. It reared back, green liquid gurgling in its mouth. But before it had a chance to fire, lightning crashed onto the basilisk. The basilisks armour melted instantly and it collapsed into a smokey pile of scorched flesh. As if that weren¡¯t enough, Oldum bashed into its skull with a shield and an ethereal chain latched onto it, binding it to the ground. And for good measure, a spear impaled it.


    They were all silent for a moment. Waiting for the very-dead hunk of meat to start moving. It never did.


    Hysiedies stepped up to the basilisk. He threw a fireball at it. Right as the flames landed he thumped his staff against the floor; the earth rippled, tossing the carcass into the air. Innumerable icicles coagulated from the water vapour, ruthlessly tearing the lizard apart.


    ¡°It¡¯s dead, priest,¡± Oldum stated.


    ¡°I know,¡± he replied dryly


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you supposed to cherish exotic life?¡± Sayhas asked.


    ¡°Dragons deserve nothing.¡±


    ¡°Technically it''s a wyvern,¡± Mizu called, still cradling Kirin.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter, they basically the same.¡±


    ¡°That''s kind of rude,¡± Mizu accused.


    Hysiedies didn¡¯t respond.


    ¡°Mizu, it¡¯s a basilisk,¡± Sayhas said, facing her


    ¡°No, it¡¯s a wyvern, look at the wing pattern.¡±


    ¡°Look at the tail, barbed.¡±


    ¡°Neck frills.¡±


    ¡°Large claws.¡±Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    ¡°Sayhas,¡± she said, face swimming with irritation, ¡°listen. The frill pattern and scales are triangular. It''s not fully armoured and it''s skinny. Arrowhead wings too.¡±


    ¡°Wyverns are pack predators.¡±


    ¡°Which explains why this one was audacious enough to attack us. It was desperate. Lost. Look at my charm, it has a wyvern signature¡±


    ¡°It was about to spit venom at me. Wyverns don¡¯t do that.¡±


    Mizu rolled her eyes, ¡°Sure it was.¡±


    ¡°Alright alright,¡± Clive called, clapping his hands together. ¡°You can argue all you want tonight. But before that, let¡¯s not overstay our welcome on this splinter.¡± He squinted at the setting sun, ¡°It¡¯s getting late.¡± Translucent, wispy chains streamed out of his hands, floating like ribbons in water. They reached deep into the forest, not touching anything. ¡°Oldum¡­ oh. Mizu take Dismas. Err, Sayhas, take Kirin. Hysiedies, stay vigilant.¡± Clive looked at Taed, ¡°Take it easy, rest."


    Taed lobbed his face in Clive''s direction and nodded. He looked like a ghost. His eyes were pale and his muscles seemed to have receded into his bones. It was amazing that Taed was standing. Sayhas combed through Taeds body with his eyes. He furrowed his eyebrows, something seemed off.


    ¡°Hysiedies, look at Taed¡¯s neck will you,¡± Sayhas said, walking towards Kirin¡¯s body. He glanced back at Taed, hoping that he was just paranoid.


    ¡°Eyes up.¡± Oldum bumped his shoulder, ¡°Poke me with a thorn, are you worried?¡± Oldum said, looking up at the sky, ¡°Should I be worried about something?¡±


    ¡°Your face,¡± Sayhas threatened.¡±


    Oldum chuckled, patting Sayhas¡¯ back as he walked. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Taed won¡¯t be seeing the King any time soon.¡± With that, he went on his way.


    Shaking his head Sayhas threw Kirin over his shoulder. He searched for Mizu.


    ¡°Hello,¡± Mizu said, sticking her face in front Sayhas. ¡°Why the long face?¡±


    Sayhas batted the air in front of her. They walked side by side on the thin path Clive was cutting with his chains.


    ¡°Wanna switch? Dismas is heavier.¡±


    Mizu¡¯s mouth twitched upward. There was a glimmer in her eyes. ¡°Are you strong enough? I¡¯m scared you¡¯ll drop him.¡±


    ¡°Oh really?¡± Sayhas questioned.


    ¡°Yep.¡± She squeezed her biceps, ¡°These are rock solid.¡± Mizu grabbed his arm and dug in with her long nails, ¡°Squishy. Are your scythes secretly made of feathers? You should work out.¡±


    Sayhas rolled his eyes.


    Mizu cocked her head to the side and chewed her nails. She peered at Sayhas, a mischievous twinkle sparkled in her eyes. ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll give you a chance.¡±


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    ¡°Catch!¡±


    She threw Dismas into the air. Sayhas dove for him. Careful not to drop Kirin, he placed his forearm on Dismas¡¯s back and supported his neck with his hand. He rested Dismas¡¯ on his free shoulder.


    ¡°Why are you giving me that wide-eyed look?¡± Mizu asked. She kept control of her face for about two heartbeats before laughing, tears welling up.


    Sayhas did his best to give her an unamused look. She wiped her eyes. ¡°I wasn¡¯t scared. I knew you¡¯d catch him.¡± Her face, full of joy and bliss, suddenly hardened and she glared at Sayhas. ¡°Don¡¯t even think about giving me Kirin.¡±


    Sayhas smiled, rolling his eyes, ¡°Yes yes.¡±


    He shifted the weight of the two limp bodies, trying to find a comfortable position. Mizu pointed forward.


    ¡°Look, it¡¯s Oldum¡¯s ash wolf. I swear he¡¯s way too proud of it.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you just jealous?¡± Sayhas goaded.


    Mizu chewed her lips. ¡°A little.¡±


    ¡°A lot,¡± Sayhas corrected.


    ¡°Err¡­ yeah, I think he should share.¡±


    ¡°Probably wants us to move faster though,¡± Sayhas said, glancing at the wolf.


    ¡°Run?¡± Mizu suggested.


    ¡°Let¡¯s.¡±


    ¡°Want me to carry one?¡±


    ¡°No, I got this.¡±


    ¡°If you say so,¡± Mizu shrugged, then broke off into a sprint. ¡°Race you,¡± she called back, giggling profusely.


    Sayhas chased after her, a slight grin on his face.

 Prey

    ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to blow it up,¡± Mizu protested, ¡°it was an accident.¡±


    ¡°Was the sentient green thing an accident too?¡± Oldum asked.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Mizu replied hesitantly.


    ¡°Are you sure about that? You made a living thing accidentally?¡±


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t living,¡± she snapped, ¡°sentient, yes. But not living.¡± Mizu flushed sheepishly, ¡°And fine, I might have had an inkling it¡¯d do that.¡±


    Sayhas whispered into Oldum¡¯s ear, purposely loud enough that Mizu would hear too, ¡°She was confident that it would make it.¡±


    ¡°Sell-out,¡± Mizu accused, pouting.


    Sayhas shrugged. ¡°How much of the flower did you harvest?¡±


    ¡°Three stalks. One for study. One for experimentation. One for my garden.¡±


    ¡°Have you forgotten what happened the last time you played with a remote flower?¡± Oldum asked, eyeing the thistles warily.


    Mizu put a finger to her lips, ¡°Shhh. You promised to not talk about that,¡± she whispered, ¡°it never happened.¡±


    Oldum rolled his eyes, showing agitation only Mizu could provoke, ¡°Why did we ever get to know her?¡± Oldum complained affably.


    ¡°Cause she wasn¡¯t always so annoying.¡±


    ¡°Nope,¡± Mizu said, looking at her nails. ¡°You guys got mature.¡± She put ¡®mature¡¯ in air quotes. ¡°But still, it was your fault.¡±


    ¡°My fault?¡± Oldum echoed incredulously


    ¡°I always tell you guys not to disturb me when I¡¯m working. But you walked in on me. You deserved the sludge,¡± Mizu ground out.


    Oldum blinked at Mizu, a stupified gesture. ¡°That happened almost two years before the toxic green thing.¡±


    Mizu shrugged, ¡°Overdue punishment. And it wasn¡¯t toxic.¡±


    Oldum sighed. He jerked his head at Sayhas, ¡°Help me.¡±


    ¡°You brought this upon yourself,¡± he deadpanned.


    ¡°Gah, blades above.¡±


    Sayhas smirked. It was nice to see someone other than him on the wrong side of Mizu¡¯s verbal harassment. However, Mizu seemed to be losing steam, it¡¯d be a matter of time until she turned her attention to him. Luckily it was then that Dismas began to stir.


    ¡°Cinders, where am I?¡± Dismas said. Finally Sayhas thought in exasperation. Kirin had already awoken with a deep red blush ages ago. He had scurried off quickly with a quick mumble of thanks; smart of him to avoid Mizu''s quick tongue.


    ¡°Wrong question,¡± Mizu said without missing a beat, ¡°how am I or why am I.¡±


    ¡°Ignore her,¡± Sayhas advised, ¡°if you value your sanity.¡± Dismas painfully chuckled at that. ¡°Alright kid?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve been better. Also been worse. But I¡¯ll be fine.¡± He shimmied his body, ¡°Could you put me down?¡±


    ¡°Can you walk?¡±


    ¡°One way to find out.¡±


    Sayhas chewed his lip, ¡°Wait a bit,¡± he said, ¡°I can see our horses.¡±


    Clive and the rest were waiting by the horses. Taed looked better; much more colour in his skin. They overlooked the plains. It was a beautiful moment. Four men, gazing at the setting sun from atop a cliff with nothing in the distance.


    ¡°Set me down. I want to use my legs.¡± Dismas said.


    Sayhas complied staying close by. Dismas wobbled off towards his mare, stumbling but never falling over. He kept a watchful eye on Dismas as Hysiedies helped saddle Dismas in.Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    ¡°Feeling good? Any problems?¡± Hysiedies asked when he finished.


    Dismas smiled, ¡°Nope. Got the blood flowing, everything is fine.¡±


    ¡°Good to hear, holler if you need anything.¡±


    ¡°Miss me Dreamis?¡± Mizu asked, coddling her white horse. She scratched behind Dreamis¡¯ ears¡ªshe loved that. ¡°I¡¯ll give you a nice scrub when we get back. Promise.¡± Mizu fed her a handful of mixed oats, ¡°Good girl.¡±


    Sayhas jumped onto his big mare, Alouette, idly scratching its neck. He was bored, Sayhas could tell by touching him. ¡°Hey girl, ready to run?¡± Sayhas whispered. Alouette gave a little hop, obviously ecstatic to finally move.


    Clive clapped his hands, ¡°Now that we¡¯re all settled,¡± Clive said, peering down the sheer drop down to the plain, ¡°anyone has any clue how we are to get off this splinter?¡±


    Mizu perked up, hair dishevelled after nuzzling Dreamis. ¡°Can¡¯t we just go¡ª¡± she frowned looking around, ¡°this flaming thing moved didn¡¯t it?¡± She sighed, swinging off of her horse whilst muttering an apology to it. She kicked a rock off the drop grumbling to himself, ¡°Flaming sack of rocks.¡± Mizu patted her hair and flourished a dagger tossing it off the drop with a backspin, She craned her neck back, ¡°Sayhas are we moving right now?¡±


    He strained his ears, scanning for the lifeless rhythm of the Yggdrasil splinter. ¡°Lucky for you, we are not.¡±


    ¡°Perfect.¡± She yanked on Hysiedies arm, ¡°get off, your first.¡±


    ¡°Why me?¡±


    ¡°Cause I said so, voiceless.¡±


    ¡°Fine,¡± he huffed. Hysiedies lethargically pulled himself out of his saddle. Mizu, however, was feeling very impatient for some reason and dragged Hysiedies off his horse without warning. And just before the priest hit the ground, they vanished.


    ¡°Not catching it,¡± Sayhas, Oldum and Clive said in unison.


    ¡°You¡¯re doing it Sayhas,¡± Clive ordered.


    ¡°What? No,¡± he protested, ¡°Dismas can do it.¡±


    ¡°Sure, but if he misses, it¡¯s your neck on the line.¡±


    Sayhas glared at Clive and stuck his tongue out. Reluctantly he dismounted, not breaking eye contact with Clive. A dagger flew into the air, Sayhas¡¯ eyes jumped to it. He reached out to snatch it, missing entirely. The dagger crested as Sayhas fumbled, unable to find purchase on the thin thing. He dove for the sliver of metal, catching it by the blade, only to find himself sliding off the cliff. Using his free hand, he cut into the ground with a scythe, pretending it was an anchor. Sayhas found his legs precariously dangling from the splinter and his hand soaking with blood. But he was alive and although that was a small victory, it was a victory.


    Mizu appeared moments after, plucking her dagger from Sayhas¡¯ bloody grasp, ¡°I trust there were no problems.¡±


    ¡°Do you really think so,¡± Sayhas deadpanned, coating his words with as much acidity as humanly possible as he crawled up the cliffside.


    ¡°You¡¯re right. You got blood on my dagger.¡±


    Sayhas curled his hands into tight fists, standing up. Mizu was sometimes such a piece of work. He let out a heavy sigh. It could be worse. He¡¯d definitely gone through worse before. Besides for every bad quirk, there were good traits too. That was just how people are. It just so happened that Mizu likes infuriating him. A small price to pay for there years of friendship. Cinders, he could be an asshole too.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Sayhas, I¡¯ll forgive you.¡±


    His eyes widened, ¡°You¡¯ll forgive me?¡±


    ¡°Of course we¡¯re friends and I¡¯m feeling generous.¡±


    ¡°How gracious.¡± Sayhas was unable to keep his tone neutral.


    She giggled punching him lightly, ¡°Quite.¡± She threw her dagger. ¡°See you.¡±


    They continued this routine several more times, ferrying someone over each time. Fortunately, Mizu was getting good at doing it efficiently. Even more so, Sayhas wasn¡¯t falling every time; a welcome bonus.


    ¡°Sayhas,¡± Oldum said quietly.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t she use her body swap,¡± Sayhas grumbled.


    ¡°Sayhas,¡± Oldum repeated, a little more urgent this time.


    He turned to face Oldum. His face was concentrated. ¡°Yeah?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s an ash wolf nearby.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± An ash wolf. Here? ¡°How do you know.¡±


    ¡°My shield is reacting to something. Like a mating call or a pack meeting.¡±


    ¡°Clive,¡± Sayhas called as he caught Mizu¡¯s dagger. ¡°There¡¯s an ash wolf.¡±


    Confusion dotted Clive¡¯s face, ¡°How.¡±


    ¡°I can sense it,¡± Oldum interjected, ¡°my shield reacts to it.¡±


    ¡°Hello boys. What''s with this serious ambiance. Did I miss something?¡± Mizu asked, throwing her dagger up and down with a level smirk.


    ¡°Ash wolf,¡± Sayhas replied.


    ¡°What?¡± she dropped the dagger. ¡°Where? How? Now?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t know, Oldum senses it.¡±


    She snapped her eyes to Oldum.


    ¡°Are you sure about this?¡± Oldum asked.


    ¡°I can¡¯t make that decision,¡± Mizu countered.


    ¡°You¡¯re the only one who can,¡± Sayhas stated, ¡°if we get the soul it¡¯ll go to you. Only you can decide if it¡¯s worth it.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t want it?¡± Mizu asked, wide-eyed.


    Sayhas gave her a laid back smile, ¡°Of course I do. But in case you¡¯ve forgotten, I own the scythe of Reaper of the Ten Sword Kings.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m selfish.¡±


    Sayhas grinned, ¡°I¡¯m aware. If that bothered me, I¡¯d have run away.¡±


    ¡°Thank you. Both of you.¡±


    ¡°Humility? From Mizu?¡± Sayhas jeered.


    Mizu smiled wildly, ¡°We¡¯ll do it.¡±


    ¡°Not so fast,¡± Oldum said, ¡°there''s still one problem.¡±


    As if controlled by a puppeteer, the three faced Clive at the exact same time.


    ¡°I don''t think I can stop you,¡± Clive began, ¡°so be safe. Promise me.¡±

 A walk in the woods

    ¡°I promise,¡± Sayhas said, bowing his head with a hand to his heart. Lightning struck in the distance like some unseen force just witnessed the event.


    ¡°Wait.¡± Mizu reached out towards Clive, ¡°Need help ferrying the rest?¡±


    Chains fell from behind Clive. They arched upwards like tentacles, menacingly overlooking the three. Gently, they snaked around the mares with deft precision, lifting them off the ground. Show off Sayhas thought, admiring Clive''s control over his chains. ¡°I¡¯ll manage,¡± Clive said, smirking. His remaining chains dug into the ground, lifting Clive up into the air.


    ¡°Boss, catch.¡± Oldum threw his load at Clive who skillfully caught it with several thick chains. He spun the hunk of meat around, appraising it.


    ¡°Why do you need a mammoth head?¡±


    ¡°Mizu wants to cook it,¡± Sayhas answered for him.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Have you ever eaten a soul-spliced mammoth?¡± Mizu asked.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Clive said bluntly.


    ¡°Have you ever eaten a spliced mammoth that I¡¯ve cooked,¡± she tried.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Really? When?¡±


    ¡°Yes, years ago,¡± Clive said blowing a strand of his long black hair. It had fallen down to his chin during Mizu¡¯s tirade. Clive rarely let his hair grow so long.


    ¡°Really?¡± Mizu said, facing Sayhas and Oldum.


    ¡°Yep,¡± Oldum said, stroking a tiny stubble on his chin, ¡°it was bad.¡±


    Sayhas thought about it. He smiled when he remembered, ¡°It was so bad. Up¡­ up in¡­ um¡­ Kharanath. Yeah, that one.¡± He shook his head, ¡°You definitely put something foul in it.¡±


    ¡°Kharanath. Kharanath. Oh.¡± Mizu flushed, red blooming on her cheeks as she remembered something unsavoury. ¡°That time.¡± She looked up, eyes darting around so fast they threatened to fall out. She zeroed in on Clive.


    ¡°Yes?¡± Clive asked, meeting her eyes.


    ¡°Eww, your hairs so long,¡± Mizu chided, changing the subject.


    Clive arched his eyebrow. Sayhas schooled his features into a neutral position; she¡¯d be a nuisance if he laughed. Luckily, he was good at controlling his face, especially when Mizu was involved.


    ¡°I know,¡± Clive said, patting his hair down, ¡°haven¡¯t been able to find a good barber with us being in the middle of nowhere and all.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re in the Yelendor Plains right?¡± Mizu asked, looking at the sky.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Sayhas said dryly, ¡°what gave it away, the Splinters which can only be found in three places, two of which are across the world. Or this vast expanse of nothing,¡± Sayhas said gesturing outwards, ¡°which is¡ª¡±


    ¡°Oh, put ash in your mouth,¡± Mizu cut off, shooting him a glare. The glare meant: I will make life a living hell for you for a little bit until I get bored. ¡°We should go to Jyn. They have nice barbers,¡± She suggested.


    ¡°Hmm, I was actually thinking of going there myself,¡± Clive mused. ¡°But we¡¯ll go to the Dungeon of the Sun first.¡± A thin chain scratched Clive''s scalp as he hummed to himself, ¡°Yeah, we could do that too¡­¡±


    ¡°Do what,¡± Sayhas asked.¡±


    ¡°Bah, he¡¯s not going to tell you,¡± Oldum said.


    Clive smirked, and leveled his gaze with Sayhas for a few wordless, eternal moments. Sayhas rolled his eyes; Clive always had an eye for theatrics. ¡°Hmm, you¡¯ll see,¡± Clive said, ¡°be safe.¡± Like a spider, Clive crawled down the Yggdrasil Spinter.


    Sayhas watched until he could no longer see him.


    ¡°How long has it been?¡± Sayhas asked, relishing the feeling of a light evening breeze. His duster billowed back and forth and he tilted his head back slightly.


    ¡°Since?¡± Mizu asked.


    ¡°Since it was just the three of us doing a mission.¡±


    ¡°We were children fumbling in a playground,¡± Oldum said with a grimace.


    Mizu smiled, showing her teeth, ¡°Directionless and ridiculously powerful children doing our best to not screw everything up as we tried to help.¡±


    Sayhas shook his head with a rueful grin, ¡°Not much has changed.¡±


    ¡°Old habits die hard,¡± Oldum said.


    She turned her face against the breeze, eyes closed. It blew her hair every which way. ¡°We always do,¡± she replied. ¡°Sorry girl, you¡¯ll have to wait a little longer.¡± Mizu jumped off Dreamis, ¡°Enough with the sappy reminiscence, let¡¯s hunt.¡±


    Sayhas patted Alouette, murmuring an apology, before joining Mizu. Unlike Mizu, Sayhas didn¡¯t bother tricking his horse. They could easily spend days following this sketchy trail. But if they found it, it¡¯d all be worth it. She understood that. They¡¯d come back; it just might take a while.


    She turned her face to the side, showing both him and Oldum her grinning profile and a gleaming hazel eye, ¡°Deadweight buys drinks.¡± She turned as if to run, but stopped abruptly and turned her head around to face Oldum. ¡°Where are we going,¡± she asked.


    Oldum shifted his eyes towards his shield¡ªan unnecessary action but probably habitually rooted. He jerked his head, ¡°That way. Probably still a ways off or Sayhas would hear them.¡±


    They ran in silence along the edge of the forest. A chilly mountain breeze pushed them along. A black blur raced towards Sayhas who barely dodged in time. It whistled a hairsbreadth above his ears, sending nauseous reverberations into his eardrums. Instinct took over, as the next salvo came.


    Sayhas found himself in a bush, heart frantically thumping in his chest. He rapidly checked his body for any wounds and bleeds, finding nothing. Convinced that he wasn¡¯t in mortal danger, Sayhas surveyed his surroundings, finding cracked pinecones littered on the ground. Laughing filled his ears¡ªMizu¡ªhe stalked out of the bush, plucking dry leaves from his duster.


    He put on a frown and glared at Mizu. ¡°What was that?¡± he snapped.


    ¡°Eliminating the competition,¡± she replied. Oldum was looking to the side but Sayhas could still see the wild grin on his face.


    ¡°Kana¡¯s scared she might lose,¡± Oldum said, still looking the other way.


    Mizu glared at Oldum, raising a pinecone


    ¡°It¡¯s not that surprising,¡± Sayhas said loudly, adopting a whimsical tone, ¡°you did do the same thing as Bella.¡±Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    Mizu froze, a blush redder than her hair bloomed on her cheeks. ¡°Wha¡ªI¡ªI did no such thing,¡± she said, only remembering to act abashed at the end.


    Sayhas chuckled¡ªso did Oldum¡ªand they broke off into another run.


    ¡°Do you guys miss those days?¡± Mizu asked after a while. No doubt she was still thinking about the old days. Sayhas was too. ¡°When we could do whatever we want. No rules. No setbacks. No foreseeable consequences that we couldn''t handle. Do you miss those days?¡±


    Sayhas answered first, ¡°Of course I do. I miss the freedom and the mindset. I miss the impulsiveness of our life. But then Clive Alvera came along.¡±


    ¡°And we were charmed,¡± Oldum said.


    ¡°Yep,¡± replied.


    Despite being free and uncontrolled. Despite being allowed to be savage one day and gracious the next. Despite being able to do whatever he wanted. He used to be lost. Until Clive came. He gave him purpose, direction. He shaped the freedom into something smaller, but so much better. Clive is an almost perfect being. He lives for others, he chases far, distant dreams and encourages others to do the same. He is a bulwark that will lead anyone who chooses to follow to greater, previously unattainable heights. Clive is his king. There is little Sayhas treasured more than Clive¡¯s ideology. The ability to cage a dog by setting it free, that was Clive.


    ¡°I miss those days. I get nostalgic. But to trade my current life for that one? I would never,¡± Sayhas said, breaking the silence.


    ¡°Never?¡± Mizu asked.


    Sayhas looked her dead in the eyes. Of course, he wouldn¡¯t. This life was better in almost every way. He tried to discern what the cheekily smiling woman was thinking. Oh. Maybe. He shook the thought out of his head. ¡°Never.¡±


    Mizu stopped abruptly. More questioning? ¡°Is anyone tracking right now?¡± Sayhas and Oldum both shook their heads. Mizu facepalmed, ¡°Burn me to cinders.¡±


    Sayhas brought his hand to the side, an outstretched arm, shoulder level. Maaier Speal fell into his hand, white aura flaring a little bit. It was weird, the entire thing was made of a nigh-indestructible metal but it weighed no more than a normal scythe.


    ¡°Like usual I assume.¡± Sayhas pointed Maaier Speal forwards.


    . . .


    The sun rose above the snow-filled mountains in the east. Although it had been hours since the morning light lit up the sky, it was only now that the sun could crest the splinters mountain range. Sayhas slashed the sharp foliage before him. He had to be careful of the thorns in the bushes. His duster was already relatively battered; he intended to preserve it as long as possible. The morning fog, however, didn¡¯t help his cause in the slightest. They had spent the entire night walking. Sayhas was lucky he got off with only a few scrapes to his duster. He wanted to stop when it got dark, but he wasn¡¯t going to tell Mizu that.


    Fortunately, late last night (or early this morning) they stumbled upon wolf tracks. To untrained ears, the tracks may have looked like a normal wolves paws. To Sayhas however, they were the tracks of an ash wolf.


    Obviously, they would seem like normal wolves, an ash wolf is still a wolf. The only way to distinguish between soul-spliced creatures and normal creatures was by listing to there DIscord. Luckily, Sayhas was phenomenal at detecting Discord; his hearing was among the best. Mizu and Oldum weren¡¯t slouches but they were a far cry from him.


    Sayhas led them through the forest. While Oldum was there primary navigator¡ªhe had a shield that could map out terrain¡ªSayhas was their tracker due to his hearing. Despite them being hours away from where they started, the forest looked the same. The same type of trees with the same type of leaves surrounded by the same dull grass and the occasional mossy stone. Eyes were deceiving. Ears, on the other hand, were honest and true. Originally the trees rang with a soothing verdant vibration. As they walked, it didn¡¯t change much. Just minute little changes to tell the world that they were different than other trees. A display of individuality.


    Perfectly normal.


    A small branch snagged his boots. Luckily it wasn¡¯t his duster. His boots were made of wyvern leather. If a thorn could damage it visibly it wouldn¡¯t be wyvern leather. Still, the paranoia in Sayhas caused him to check. No scratches.


    His Inner Discord churned as he sliced at the branch with an ethereal aspect of Maaier Speal. It was thanks to his hearing that he could use his scythe to such efficiency. The ethereal blades of Maaier Speal were invisible to the naked eye. Most trained in hearing Discord would be able to detect the blades, but only someone with Sayhas¡¯ ears would be able to tell the exact composition of it and have a visual image of the ethereal blades in there head


    Neither Mizu or Oldum would be able to use it. Well¡­ maybe Mizu but definitely not Oldum. That wasn¡¯t to say they had bad hearing. No, they do have bad hearing, at least when compared to Sayhas. But to their credit, they do have the excuse of never needing a better hearing.


    Oldum simply needed to expand his shield, he didn¡¯t need to hear anything. Mizu had to know which side the blade was in her daggers, but she isn¡¯t the type to use projectional aspects anyways. She would rather be nice and close to her targets. Sayhas needed to be able to listen well. Because if he didn¡¯t Maaier Speal would be as useful to him as a stone with a sharp edge.


    Sayhas slowed that pace, listening. ¡°Stay alert,¡± he grumbled.


    The trees here were completely different. The sound was light and flowing, as if listening too hard would cause it to fly away. Still, Sayhas was able to listen to it, and he heard something cunning and sinister. Not evil. Not kind. Not something in between. Mystery. This sound possessed a peaceful unnerving quality that Sayhas had only heard twice in his life. The wolf prints they were tracking. And the wolf prints of the first ash wolf he ever saw.


    This sound was stronger than the one all those years back. That time, it was unsettling. Like hearing a stinky sound. But now, the world reeked of something. Something not good. His instincts told him to run.


    Yet, there was a second reason why Sayhas was unnerved. It wasn¡¯t the sounds the forest gave off. It was the sounds the forest didn¡¯t give off. It was quiet, almost lifeless. Birds didn¡¯t chirp. Insects didn¡¯t click. And no matter how hard he strained, he wasn¡¯t able to hear the rhythmic footsteps of large game nor the heavy footfalls of predators. Even the wind itself seemed afraid to move. As if an enormous invisible blanket had snuffed out the forest and locked it from the outside world. The forest still looked like a forest, but, at an intrinsic level, it wasn¡¯t. It was foreign. And though Sayhas didn¡¯t want to admit it: The forest was terrifying.


    The fog cleared with a much-needed breeze, assuaging Sayhas¡¯ worries for a moment but the wind quickly fled¡ªas if scared¡ªand Sayhas'' unease settled back into the dark corners of his mind. But in those few moments, he was able to finally get a good look at the forest. Not that that actually helped. Everything looked the same; relying on your eyes only lead to failure. Except this time, aside from the malevolent noise growing, the mountains were a lot closer now. And every one of Sayhas¡¯ applicable senses screamed at the mountains. Both Oldum and Mizu could pick up on it too.


    Oldum, wisely, slowed his pace. Taking great deliberation as to whether or not they should go forward.


    Mizu, on the other hand, was fearless. No, she was probably blinded by the prospect of an ash wolf prize that her usual instincts betrayed her. Not wanting to be left behind, Sayhas chased after her. Albeit with a groan, Oldum did so too.


    The trees thinned out as they approached. Eventually, along with the grass and dirt, the trees faded entirely. Trees changed to boulders, grass to stone. The wolf prints had faded but they weren¡¯t needed anymore.


    For perched upon a dominating cliff face, was an ash wolf.


    It looked down on them, yellow eyes narrow and discerning. It was large. Black wisps rose from its fur like smoke from a fire. The wisps stretch and unravelled, travelling around the wolves body. In the span of seconds, the ash wolf was gone. wisps of thin smoke too thin to see with the naked eye.


    No matter, Sayahs could hear it. In those brief moments he had analyzed the wolves Discord, he¡¯d be able to find it no matter how far it ran. He put Maaier Speal in front of him, parallel to his body, blade barely above the ground. An ethereal scythe shot out hooking onto the cliff edge. It pulled him towards it, allowing him to crest over the cliff with ease. The ash wolf was close enough to be seen. Mizu¡¯s realm dagger flew past him. She appeared mid-air, caught the dagger and threw it again before landing on the ground. Sayhas wouldn¡¯t let her beat him, lurching himself forwards with renewed vigour.


    They were faster than the ash wolf. Chasing it into a narrow passage, they gained on the wolf. Sayhas could hear its heartbeat, it¡¯s breath. It was scared, terrified even. The passage opened up to a clearing of sorts. It was open to the sky but they were surrounded by steep cliffs, the only visible exit is the one they came from. At the edges of the clearing were numerous white rocks dotted a quarter up to the cliffs, wider than he was tall. Right in front of Sayhas was an indomitable blue rock, three times taller than Sayhas himself. The whole place looked like an arena.


    He heard them before he registered seeing them. They howled when Sayhas landed in the center of the arena. The ash wolf jumped onto the important rock and whimpered, whilst prostrating deferentially. An ash wolf showing respect? Oh no.


    ¡°You think we were to hasty?¡± Sayhas whispered into Mizu¡¯s hair while warily eyeing the wolves as they crawled out from the shadows of the rocks. None of them were too much of a threat. But together?


    Ash wolves were pack leaders. They weren¡¯t supposed to be underlings. Yet the ash wolf was clearly submissive to the alpha, a humongous white wolf. Crystals of ice protruded from its back and joints. They glistened and shivered as the wolf snarled at the pair.


    That wolf was the reason why his hearing was all muddled. Its Discord signature had enveloped the whole area, dampening Sayhas'' senses.


    ¡°I won by the way,¡± Mizu whispered back, snapping Sayhas from his thoughts. She eyed the white wolf warily


    ¡°Do you guys ever think?¡± Sayhas nearly jumped at Oldum¡¯s outrage. ¡°Bloodhounds. Shiners. Winter wolves. Horn hounds,¡± Oldum listed off as he scanned their surroundings, ¡°As if an ash wolf wasn¡¯t enough, two red runners. And turn the immortal tree upside down because we can¡¯t forget the ice wolf. They actually exist,¡± he said in utter disbelief, shaking his head.


    "Cinders," Sayhas spat, the weight of there situation finally setting in. I can''t die yet.

 Escape

    ¡°What¡¯s done is done,¡± Sayhas snapped, partly to Oldum and Mizu, partly to himself. ¡°Survival first.¡±


    Oldum muttered something under his breath. Sayhas was glad he didn¡¯t hear it. ¡°I¡¯ll be the rear guard,¡± Oldum growled.


    ¡°I¡¯ll do it, it''s my fault,¡± Sayhas said pushing Oldum out of the way and facing the ice wolf. He shifted into a combat stance.


    ¡°No, it¡¯s not,¡± Mizu hissed, frowning at Sayhas, ¡°I¡¯m last.¡±


    ¡°Shut up. Both of you,¡± Oldum roared softly, his voice like the low rumble of an earthquake. Quiet, slow, but solid too. ¡°I have a shield, I¡¯m last.¡±


    Before Sayhas had a chance to argue, he was yanked away from the wolves. Oldum strapped a shield to his back and summoned a large invisible forcefield behind him, then, he turned his back on the wolves and ushered Mizu and Sayhas into the narrow passage. The shield morphed to fit the passage.


    Sayhas expected the wolves to launch a salvo of elemental attacks. He listened closely for a hint of elemental Discord. Since he knew what he was looking for, Sayhas could tailor his hearing to the wolves. Even though the ice wolf gave off an unbelievable presence, nothing could stop Sayhas if he knew what he was looking for.


    A howl sounded at the mouth of the path. That wasn¡¯t good. Wolves piled into the entrance, blocking off there escape. Sayhas couldn¡¯t detect any magical creature amongst their ranks. He didn¡¯t know what, precisely, to listen for; a broad scan being the only available option. By the dead gods, Sayhas hoped he was right.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to kill them,¡± Sayhas muttered. He slaughtered people, did it for a living. But it was always justified. Albeit on thin ice, but justified nevertheless. However, butchering animals? Sayhas would never. ¡°Can you make the throw?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t have to,¡± Mizu said, pulling out a blood-red dagger with a golden sheen and pointing it at the pack. It radiated a noxious noise, like all the worst sounding things put into one room for someone to hear. Mizu¡¯s fear dagger. Sayhas remembered what it was like to be on the opposing side of her dagger. Chills crawled down his spine; not a pleasant memory.


    The wolves closest to them froze in place, starting a chain reaction in the ranks. After mere moments, they were all motionless, whimpering. And as if by mutual agreement, they turned tail and ran. The slow ones trampled in their mad rush.


    A deafening roar sounded at the mouth of the path. Stronger, viler, more commanding than the previous. Again, the wolves stopped. They shifted uneasily, eyeing both sides of the passage. Caught between a rock and a hard place, much like Sayhas¡¯ current predicament.


    ¡°It¡¯s a Prime,¡± Mizu said, voice dangerously close to being fearful.


    She was right. There was no mistaking that roar. Sayhas¡¯ scythe hummed as he raised it high. He couldn¡¯t let this drag on. He gently wrapped Mizu and Oldum with an ethereal scythe and sent another towards the mouth of the passage.


    From the tangle of fur, a bright blue beam impacted his hook, destroying it.


    Guess he was wrong about there being no magical beast.


    ¡°Cinders.¡± he loosened the scythes around Oldum and Mizu, preparing for his next attack. It was time to cut off the head. He lashed out with his scythe. His hearing might not be in tip-top shape with the narrow passage echoing sounds every which way. But he¡¯d have to be deaf to not pinpoint the primes location, especially since it let out a loud roar. An invisible projectile formed at the tip of the scythe.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    Three wolves jumped on him. He dropped Maaier Speal; it vanished. He stumbled into Mizu. There wasn¡¯t enough room for them to fight side by side. Ethereal daggers hung by Mizu, they streaked towards the foremost wolf. She groaned, preparing another set.


    A familiar weight fell into Sayhas¡¯ hands. His blue-green scythe that could create ripples. Excellent for slicing through crowds. He took apart the two remaining wolves with relative ease a slice down the abdomen and another across the neck was all that was needed. Two strokes, two wolves. An infinite more to go.


    A salvo of daggers rained on the next few, courtesy of Mizu. He spun his scythe, drawing blood with every rotation. The difference in numbers meant nothing to him. He made a wide slice, accidentally scratching the natural walls. Still, he managed to give himself some breathing room. Using this chance, a ripple burst from his blade. He silently hoped that his attack would somehow make its way to the shiner that was somewhere in the ranks. A vain hope, but couldn¡¯t hurt to believe.


    Ugh, he was starting to sound like Clive.


    The ripple dispersed, vanishing into nothing before it could do anything significant.


    ¡°A horn wolf,¡± Sayhas complained, ¡°lovely.¡±


    Horn wolves were annoying. They were like normal wolves except bigger and stronger. Also, it had an antler sticking out one side of its head, like a lopsided deer. Discord erupted outwards, forming a wall of blades¡ªmuch like Mizu¡¯s techniques. At this range, most wouldn¡¯t have a chance of surviving. Most also didn¡¯t know Mizu. And if they did know Mizu, they were probably dead.


    Sayhas deflected the blades, stifling to urge to yawn; it was much slower than Mizu¡¯s. He¡¯d have no problems with¡ª


    His scythe got stuck in the wall. The raucous grating stung Sayhas¡¯ ears.


    His hand slipped off the scythe as a blade tore into him, slicing deeply into his sides. Just one. He blocked all but one. Unlucky. His vision swam, growing dark.


    A light. Blinding. Someone caught him. Probably Mizu. Yes, Mizu. he could smell her hair. Sayhas blinked his eyes open. Mizu was above him, her red hair tickling his nose. Burn that wolf. A faint yellow light mended his wounds and a blue liquid washed it. Mizu had set him down and was healing him. ¡°Thanks,¡± he grunted. She peered down, wide-eyed. Curious. Was he forming coherent words?


    A wolf growling at his feet, ruining the moment. Sayhas dipped his chin to get a better look at the horn wolf. His bracelet hummed and grew hot. Mizu put her hand on his arm. ¡°I got this,¡± she whispered. Sayhas stopped casting.


    Red embers swirled in the air in front of Mizu. They swirled rapidly?¡ªdancing with each other. A pleasant heat bathed over Sayhas as the fireball grew and grew, filling up the passage. The conjured fireball began to move down the corridor. It travelled slowly taking it¡¯s time to burn everything.


    Lulling the wolves into thinking they could dodge it.


    Without warning, it sped up and exploded in a fiery conflagration.


    ¡°Up,¡± Mizu called at Sayhas.


    He grunted, propping himself up with his elbows.


    She didn¡¯t wait for him, running into the aftermath of her fireball. She slashed at the horn wolfs neck. An ice lotus formed when her dagger left its flesh. Somehow it was still alive. Well, not anymore, the lotus exploded embedding icicles deep into its chest. Mizu weaved into their ranks, weaselling her dagger into every furball she could. The walls that confined Sayhas meant nothing to her.


    They couldn¡¯t corner her. Aside from her inhuman mobility, she had a separate dagger connected to a chain. Her realm dagger. Every time she was seemingly surrounded, she¡¯d whip the chain and teleport away.


    A lightning bolt struck her ice dagger, sending it flying. Before she could conjure another, a wolf scratched her arm her forearm. A small fireball burned the offending wolf, but two bigger wolves took its place. They sniffed at her blood, at the minuscule wound. The two wolves snarled, baring their teeth. Their fur seemed to rise up Bloodhounds. Mizu teleported back, behind Sayhas.


    ¡°You''re just gonna sit there?¡± she squeezed out between heavy, laboured breaths. ¡°Go.¡± she coughed. ¡°Do your job.¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t want to ruin your fun.¡± Sayhas apologized and summoned Maaier Speal. He swung it in a wide arc, releasing a jagged spinning disk. His scythe and the disk got stuck in the wall. The disc span obnoxiously in place before fading away. Cinders. Sayhas wedged his scythe out, grumbling under his breath. He hated tight spaces.


    His bracelet began to hum as he poured Discord into in. Small crackles of electricity poured into each other and multiplied. He only had this bracelet and another gemstone. Everything else was tucked away at camp. A mistake he shouldn¡¯t have made.


    ¡°You can¡¯t cut through stone yet? Thought you were better than that,¡± called a voice from above in a sardonic tone

 Visitor from above

    ¡°You can¡¯t cut through stone yet? Thought you were better than that,¡± called a voice from above.


    Sayhas craned his neck looking up. First, he noticed Trellis, the broken moon, most thought of it as a bad omen but Sayhas liked it. Then, he noticed the person who seemed to be wearing the moon. She¡ªshe looked like a she¡ªwas wearing a red shawl that covered her face in an ominous shadow.  She seemed to be lying down on the air, completely motionless; not even the wind stirred her shawl.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Sayhas breathed, mostly to himself. But the passages high walls carried his voice and she heard.


    ¡°I¡¯m simply a casual passerby, skimming for jewels. Happen to know where I can find some. I really thought I¡¯d find some.¡±


    Sayhas blinked, confused. ¡°Get back Mizu.¡± He put Maaier Speal behind him, touching the ground with the joint between the blade and shaft. He wouldn¡¯t swing it again. Wouldn¡¯t make the same mistake a third time.


    Maaier Speal screamed joyously. It was only on rare occasions that Sayhas allowed it to let loose. Like a flood gate bursting open, Maaier Speal lent Sayhas its Discord. Pure, ancient Discord invaded his body, invigorating him All his senses exploded, every breath, footsteps and heartbeat. He heard it all.  Twilight coloured half-moons formed around him. Spinning. Festering. Multiplying.


    ¡°Oh, you''re doing that,¡± Mizu commented. She stepped back.


    The wolves barked at him. With the addition of Maaier Speal¡¯s ancient Discord, his hearing that¡ªhad reached the pinnacle already¡ªwas even further developed. He sensed a fearful undertone in barks, like cornered dogs. Curious, most of them weren¡¯t soul-spliced but they still understood that they were about to die. Which in hindsight, made sense. Even the must dull-minded could sense the dense cloud of malevolent Discord emerging from Sayhas. This wasn¡¯t even Resonance. Ridiculous, ancient aspects really are of a different breed.


    The half-moons vanished.


    The Discord ripped out of his body. His heightened senses dulled without warning. Sayhas stumbled back. He was walking through a forest blindfolded, with Georges Discord, it was day time and he could see. Without, there was nothing.


    He raised his scythe in a battle-ready stance, knowing he was throwing ash against the wind. Blessed chains, she managed to interrupt Maaier Speal¡¯s Discord. What chance did he have?


    ¡°Who are you,¡± Sayhas asked, unable to keep the shake from his voice.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    She kicked her legs under her and began to descend, like a red angel from the heavens.¡°I am simply an apologetic passerby who¡¯s found the jewels that she¡¯d been looking for all this time. Turns out they were hidden from plain sight.¡±


    The rapid thumping in his chest rang in his ears. Calm he berated himself be calm. Sayhas stood to his full height, rolling his shoulders back and adopting confident demeanour. It took everything in him to keep up the facade.


    A blast of lightning arced towards her. Midair, she shifted to the left, leaving an afterimage. She spun and cleaved the bolt in half. In that same swing, a nearly identical bolt shot out of the tip of her blade. Her bolt was even stronger than the original. Sayhas, in an instinctual act of preservation, covered his ears and looked away. The silver blade¡¯s Discord was overpowering.


    ¡°Take notes,¡± the mysterious woman called.


    Sayhas pried one eye open to look at her. She was all he could see, a black silhouette in a very very bright, oversaturated world. Something materialized in her hand. A weapon. He couldn¡¯t tell what type though; his ears were shot.


    ¡°I think they¡¯re all dead,¡± she mused, ¡°but overkills never hurt nobody.¡± She chuckled mirthlessly, ¡°Cause dead things don''t get hurt.¡±


    Sayhas shook himself, his hearing was returning. Right on time too. An even stronger sound erupted from her spear¡ªhe was able to figure that out before being deafened again. The earth shook and seemingly snapped. Stumbling, Sayhas braced himself against the shaking walls and closed off his senses. Hiding from the sounds.


    He stayed there in deaf darkness until someone tapped him on the shoulder. It was more of a punch actually. Blinking his eyes open, he tested the waters with his ears. It was safe now, no oppressive Discord crushing his soul.


    ¡°Are you ok?¡± the woman in red asked, hooded head tilted. ¡°I¡¯m not the best at controlling my wide-ranged attacks, especially the expensive ones.¡± Seeing no reaction, she snapped in front of his face, ¡°you alright, anything hurt?¡±


    Sayhas grunted. My pride he grumbled internally. Pushing off the walls and steadying himself on his two feet, he tried to get a good look at who she was. But before he could, she skipped backwards, landing lightly on her long leather boots.


    ¡°Let¡¯s make this quick,¡± she said, reaching into her hood. She took out a rose, holding it like a dart aimed at Sayhas¡¯ heart. ¡°You are so lucky Roses got so much more practical over the years.¡±


    Sayhas stepped back, raising Maaier Speal as if warding the mysterious woman away. Mizu stepped up next to him, daggers in hand.


    ¡°Oh relax,¡± the woman in red scoffed, ¡°I just want to poke you in the heart with this.¡± She twirled the rose with nonchalance.


    ¡°Is that supposed to be reassuring?¡± Mizu asked, without the slightest tremble.


    The mysterious woman gave an exasperated sigh and stepped forwards. "No, maybe. Doesn''t matter." Although her head was hidden beneath her hood, her entire face veiled in a mask of dark, Sayhas could feel her cocky, arrogant grin. "You''re not in a position to resist anyways."

 Try again?

    Run!


    Ethereal scythes wrapped around Oldum and Mizu. There weren¡¯t any more shiners in the vicinity to impede his escape. Thank the mysterious woman for taking care of them.  He sent another ethereal scythe upwards. It hooked on to the top of the passage and he, along with the other two, lurched upwards, away from the crazy woman.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t mean it that way. You won¡¯t die.¡±


    Sayhas didn¡¯t spare a glance backwards. The woman didn¡¯t seem to be giving chase. She was toying with them. Arrogant. Not that she didn¡¯t deserve to be cocky. She had every right to assume she was in complete control of the situation. Too bad she didn¡¯t do her homework.


    Sayhas broke out of passage, cresting way over the top of the walls before propelling himself forward. Breathing in the open air, Sayhas gained distance. Mizu launched her realm dagger out of sight.  Hopefully, the woman didn¡¯t notice that the dagger was sent in the opposite direction. The rocky terrain faded into a grey blur as they streaked past, gradually picking up speed. He counted the seconds, they didn''t need that many.


    A light, sonorous jingle buzzed. He stole a glance backwards. Like a meteor, a spiky red orb unnervingly homed onto them.


    It closed in, adjusting to every minute change Sayhas made to his trajectory. It was unfair how she had so many overpowered aspects. And despite them clearly already being outclassed, Sayhas had an inkling that her real abilities haven''t been shown yet. That¡¯s why they wouldn¡¯t give her the chance.


    Dissonant sounds screamed around Sayhas as Mizu activated her realm dagger. He cringed internally, not willing to show Mizu weakness for even a split second. If she should endure it in quick succession, so could Sayhas.


    He felt himself being compressed in every direction and lobbed elsewhere in the blink of an eye. Sayhas resisted the urge to hurl when the teleportation finished.


    ¡°Scattered ashes break my bones,¡± Mizu swore formally.


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Sayhas asked, still suppressing his nausea.


    Mizu jerked her face towards the passage. Sayhas followed her gaze by expanding his hearing radius. With his brain scrambled after the long-distance improper teleport, it wasn¡¯t an easy feat.


    ¡°Cinders,¡± Sayhas muttered.


    Although they had put half the forest between them and the chasm. Although Oldum had deployed a hiding aspect. Although they essentially went in a random direction. Steadily making its way, was the red orb. Sayhas latched on to the nearest tree. It didn¡¯t matter what direction, it only needed to be away.


    Bands of light filtered through the gaps in the canopy, sending a misty light into the foreboding forest. The small illumination it gave was barely enough for Sayhas to navigate between the feisty branches. They were good hand holds but a single mistake and he¡¯d be spiralling down. Sayhas hated travelling in a forest. He¡¯d much rather be above, drinking the sunlight. But that would just make him a target.


    A thin branch sliced into his duster, tearing off a piece of fabric. The forest seemed to move against him, blocking his advance. He avoided one directed at his collar only to find a gash in his forearm. Even when he was in tip top shape, travelling at high speeds through a forest was extremely hard. Having two units of baggage trailing along didn¡¯t help his case either.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.


    Sayhas navigated towards a small clearing. Sayhas strained his ears. Did they lose the orb? The distinct melody was hard to miss. It had erratic beats and stuck out like a sore thumb when compared to the rather gentle buzz of a normal forest. Surprisingly enough, the erratic melody sounded beautiful.


    He frowned looking backwards, swearing under his breath.


    The orb had caught up.


    Sayhas withdrew the ethereal connection with the other two. There would be no more running. He just wished he had figured that out earlier.


    Mizu blasted it with a loud bolt of fire. The flames seared down the middle of the orb. Any normal aspect would have faded away. This one took it in stride separating into two halves, front and back. The first morphed into a spear, accelerating towards them. The second unravelled into dozens of golden coiled ropes.


    A  three-layered, translucent honeycomb lattice sprung up in front of the spear, courtesy of Oldum. It absorbed the spear but not without a cost. Two layers were completely stripped away and the last one was on its last legs. Of the seven laced hexagons, three remained. They leaked discordant noise, barely holding together.


    He heard a mysterious light echo of a sound. His instincts took over and he jerked backwards avoiding a rope by a hair''s breadth. Memorizing the general Discord of the ropes, Sayhas formed a mental image of all of them. Gold filled his peripherals as multiple ropes tried to strike at him. Sayhas dance between the ropes, closing his eyes. The colours were a distraction. Vision itself was a liability. Each one missed, he knew where they were, he¡¯d never get hit.


    The ropes apparently learned that too. After barely ten seconds, they stopped attacking him, focusing on easier prey. Oldum was doing fine, his honeycomb shield had faded away but he had a new wreath of wispy light surrounding him. The faint glow reached out with tendrils when the ropes neared him, softly adjusting their course. The ropes around him quickly gave up.


    Leaving Mizu to face the brunt of it all.


    Yet, despite having no defensive abilities and not having her main weapons with her, she was fine. With nimble feet and light steps, she wove between the ropes, displaying more grace and awarity then even Sayhas, despite him being able to know where all the ropes where. Fed up with her persistence, the ropes charged her all at once. Miraculously, she thread a dagger between them, teleporting to it moments before being struck. Show off Sayhas thought how does your head not hurt. As if dodging the undodgeable wasn''t enough, she caught her dagger and sliced horizontally at the nearest ropes.


    That turned out to be a mistake.


    The second her steel met the robe it morphed to around the dagger and wrapped around Mizu¡¯s arm. In less then a second she was completely bound and being dragged off into the forest.


    Even worse, during that exchange, both he and Oldum were deemed easy targets again and both got tagged by multiple ropes. Ancient Discord entered his body; Maaier Speal suddenly got a lot heavier.


    Twilight half-moons and ethereal scythes alike spiralled around him. With a thought, he severed the ropes around him and Oldum. In a heartbeat, they were sliced into fine, harmless chunks. He waved his hand at Mizu freeing her from her bondage. After one final sweep, he dismissed Maaier Speal and collapsed to his knees. Inside him, a storm brewed, churning and swirling into itself. His Discord was in absolute shambles; he wouldn¡¯t use it anytime soon.


    On the bright side, he was conscious. That was a victory.


    ¡°If anything comes out of that forest¡­¡± Sayhas vowed, sweat dripping down his nose, ¡°I¡¯ll do something not nice.¡±


    Before he could stand up, insane vertigo smashed into him.


    . . .


    "You have no idea what went into that orb,¡± the mysterious woman complained. "But here we are, back again. Please don''t do that again."

 Run?

    ¡°You have no idea what went into that orb,¡± the mysterious woman complained, ¡°should be ashamed of what you¡¯ve done.¡± Her shawl shifted as if she were shaking her head. ¡°Should have just led with this.¡±


    They were back in the passage. The ocean of dead wolves made that obvious. He felt fine, the fatigue and exhaustion completely wiped away. His Discord was as usual, calm as a lake. What happened? The cuts in his duster were mended. Not stitched together, but completely fixed, as if it were never damaged. He checked his gash. Sure enough, it was gone. There was no evidence of it being cut.


    She twirled her weird sword around. It had a long rectangular blade and a ring at the hilt, like a giant keychain around her wrist.


    A scythe fell into Sayhas¡¯ hands. The cold metal was warm to the touch, invoking reminiscing memories Perhaps he was dumb for not using Maaier Speal in this desperate situation. But this was his scythe. It deserved to be there when he died.


    ¡°Hello,¡± Soulthirst said into mind. Soulthirst prodded him with a slight hum, seeking attention like the child. ¡°This is a good time to run isn¡¯t it?¡± Soulthirst asked. Wordlessly, Sayhas raised Soulthirst in a basic scythe stance. Somehow, Soulthirst huffed in Sayhas¡¯ mind, displaying as much sass as Mizu on a bad day. ¡°Fine. You won¡¯t last ten seconds though.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s try this again.¡± She rested her odd sword on her shoulder and paced. ¡°I''m not here to hurt you. You won¡¯t die. It¡¯s rather painless experience or so I¡¯m told. Trust me nothing will go wrong.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re doing a bad job at persuading us.¡±


    ¡°Look, I really just need to pok¡ª¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Mizu interrupted. She pointed two diametric daggers at the women''s face. A short arc of lightning shot out from them


    Almost casually, the woman dismantled the weird rectangular blade reforming it into her oversized silver blade, with fluidity and expertise that Sayhas didn¡¯t think possible. She sliced at the bolt. ¡°A dual aspect formed of off galvanic differences. Interesting,¡± she mused.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    ¡°Not going to consider running?¡±


    Shut up Sayhas thought.


    The woman pointed her silver sword at Oldum. Mizu¡¯s lightning bolt shot out¡ªSayhas recognized it¡¯s Discord¡ªexcept this time, it was stronger. Oldum dispersed it into six smaller beams with a honeycomb lattice. They reflected off an ethereal mirror and bounces back towards the woman.


    She reformed the blade back into her odd rectangular one and swung carelessly. The bolt¡¯s halted and travelled backwards. Then, it returned back to her silver blade. She pointed the blade at Sayhas, shooting out the exact same bolt.


    ¡°My turn?¡± Soulthirst asked.


    Sayhas channelled Discord into it.


    ¡°Yay,¡± Soulthirst said, emanating a bubble of soft sound. The bubble refracted the bolt into Soulthirst causing the scythe to light up. It spat out the light forming a blue, wispy orb behind Sayhas. ¡°Tasty, but more please.¡±


    A bright ray raced out of the orb, consuming it. ¡°What,¡± Soulthirst complained, ¡°that¡¯s it! At least do the other one. C¡¯mon, final hurrah.¡±


    The woman wagged a cylindrical dagger made out of interlaced, multi-coloured metal rods at the ray. It disappeared.


    ¡°Alright, this is going nowhere,¡± she said, ¡°change of plans.¡± Her dagger reformed into her silver blade and she materialized a bright lantern in her other hand. The lantern reeked of something unnatural¡ªsimilar to Clive''s chains.


    As if on queue, Oldum and the woman leapt into the fray at the same time. Mizu stayed back, waiting for an opening.


    A rhythmic, iridescent barrier, enveloped Oldum, pushing her silver sword back. Silent waves emitted from the lantern rolled towards the barrier, threatening to bring it down. Oldum didn¡¯t bother to counterattack, he had a simple job: distract the woman until Sayhas is ready and potentially provide Mizu with an opening. They''ve practiced tactic hundreds of times, it¡¯s always worked, even against Clive.


    The battle for their lives had begun.

 Cheater

    The battle for their lives had begun.


    Sayhas ignored the sounds of the clash, focusing on his role in this surefire stratagem. He took out a beautiful, multicoloured crystal from one of his many pockets. Mizu had made it for him years ago by fusing together dozens of elemental souls. They thought themselves unique but the unnatural lantern disproved that idea. Of course, his crystal didn¡¯t have impure sounds and for that Sayhas was glad. He couldn¡¯t stomach being in possession of such bad sounding things. Clive might be able to handle it but Sayhas couldn¡¯t.


    Gusts of wind, plumes of fire, arcs of lightning and shards of ice poured out of the crystal at his command. Soulthirst drank it all up humming to itself.


    ¡°Yes,¡± it purred, ¡°more.¡±


    Countless orbs floated behind Sayhas, revolving slowly about each other. He should be attacking. Oldum wouldn¡¯t be able to hold her for long. He wanted to help, but he didn¡¯t. Something was pulling him back, like a mental tug a war.


    ¡°Run,¡± two voices said in unison. He recognized them, yet couldn¡¯t place them. The two voices mixed together almost perfectly like the same person was saying the exact same thing at the exact same time.


    ¡°Oldum will distract her. RUN. or you¡¯ll all die.¡± the voices urged.


    Sayhas took a step back. He didn¡¯t want to die. No.


    ¡°Cinders,¡± he swore, shaking his head.


    Soulthirst, along with the spells, had tried to drink Sayhas¡¯ soul. He ripped himself free of Soulthirst¡¯s grasp, maintaining the minimum connection required to sustain Resonance. That small part nagged from a secluded corner of his mind, begging him to run.


    He wouldn¡¯t run. He would fight. And they¡¯d win.


    You¡¯ve been naughty he chastised mentally.


    ¡°No,¡± Soulthirst objected, oddly quiet, ¡°the pronoun is we.¡±You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    With a thought, Sayhas unleashed a barrage of orbs, weaving them into complex trajectories. He didn¡¯t expect them to do anything, just wanted to test the waters and distract her. The result was rather underwhelming. A significant half of the orbs disappeared before getting anywhere close and the other ones she sidestepped cleanly without issue.


    But Sayhas wasn¡¯t disheartened; he expected as much. He fired off the rest of his orb, not bothering to input complex paths. Instead, he layered the barrage and made sure to attack from every angle. His hunch was correct, she was able to erase the first few layers but the sheer amount overwhelmed her. As she tried to bat away the beginning of the deluge, she bounced away from Oldum and raised her lantern.


    Slow-moving, elemental waves poured out of it¡ªthey were similar to Sayhas¡¯ crystal. The waves proved to be troublesome, but it soon became clear that it wouldn¡¯t be enough. Sayhas¡¯ assault would prevail.


    Mizu charged her. She was so distracted, she didn¡¯t even notice Mizu until Mizu was right on top of her. Even, Sayhas, from an outsider''s perspective, didn¡¯t notice Mizu. The woman dropped her lantern


    An iridescent shimmer enveloped the mysterious woman. Sayhas recognized it as Odlums barrier. Ethereal daggers and elemental orbs smashed into it. There wasn¡¯t even a scratch on it.


    ¡°That¡¯s dumb,¡± Oldum called, ¡°not even mine is that strong.¡±


    Sayhas found himself staring at the silver sword. It gave off a nice sound.


    ¡°That sword is actually a cheat,¡± Mizu said, voicing Sayhas¡¯ thoughts.


    ¡°I¡¯m better,¡± Soulthirst said.


    The silver sword shifted into her rectangular, keychain blade and a small mace fell into her other hand. ¡°Cheating?¡± she asked, ¡°no, this is cheating,¡±


    She pointed both at Mizu. Before his eyes, Mizu¡¯s skin flaked off. A light breeze stirred from the mouth of the passage. When the breeze was gone, so was Mizu.


    ¡°Mizu?¡± Sayhas called, too stupefied to do anything else. What just happened? Where was Mizu? His knees gave out. His eyesight grew blurry like water was in his eyes. Before he knew it, he started vomiting.


    ¡°Run.¡±


    Sayhas couldn¡¯t move.


    ¡°Run.¡±


    Sayhas couldn¡¯t think.


    ¡°Run¡± Soulthirst pleaded.


    He got up, not bothering to wipe the vomit on his stubble. Enraged he charged at the woman, raising Soulthirst up high.¡°You need a whetstone? Cause that¡¯s the wrong way.¡± She parried Soulthirst easily with her bare hands and thrust a rose into his heart. ¡°Oh well¡­ It was bound to happen,¡± Soulthirst said without a tinge of remorse.

 Red Garden

    ¡°Oh well¡­ It was bound to happen,¡± Soulthirst said without a tinge of remorse.


    Flaming scythe Sayhas cursed as his mind ebbed away it could have at least pretended to be sad.


    From the rose, a sinister tremor pulsated rhythmically. The feeling of Soulthirsts warm metal faded away. Emptiness shrouded his vision, closing in until he could only see through a narrow slit. The last thing he saw was a white glimmer under the mysterious woman''s shawl.


    Blackness.


    Something crawled into his mind, burrowing deep inside, like being bucked from his Alouette. The thing pushed down on his brain, evicting him from his own body until it seemed Sayahs had fallen out of it.


    ¡°Hello,¡± Soulthirst said cheerily, ¡°who are you?¡±


    Silence.


    ¡°Wha¡ªwhat¡ªwait¡ªNo. Stop it. Sto¡ª¡± the scythe cut off, ¡°It. N¡ªop it,¡± Soulthirst commanded, with a frantic quiver in its voice. ¡°No. Please stop. Stop. I wi¡ª¡±


    Soulthirst never spoke again.


    ¡°Who awakens me?¡± a reverberating voice rang from Sayhas¡¯ mouth.


    ¡°The Red Garden must return,¡± she said.


    ¡°Have you forgotten what happened last time?¡± the voice asked, sounding genuinely confused.


    ¡°I remember, I am probably the only one who remembers. That¡¯s why I want the other one.¡±


    Something started to crush Sayhas. Not his physical body but whatever was left. It encroached from all sides like a cloth smothering a flame.


    ¡°Now you¡¯re stuck with me.¡±


    He heard the sound of crystal globe shattering.


    Pain shook every nook and cranny of Sayhas¡¯ consciousness. He felt himself shatter into millions of pieces, each one flung to the farthest corners of the world. He felt it all, the sensation of his skin being stretched until there was nothing left.


    At the same time, the millions of pieces squished together, rubbing against each other. It burned a cold burn. Sayhas screamed¡ªor tried to scream, nothing came out¡ªas he got stretched into paper-thin sheets and compressed into dense rock simultaneously.


    ¡°Pity,¡± the mysterious woman said her voice fading strangely. ¡°Wonder where I went wrong. Are you not the one?¡±


    And everything stopped.


    . . .


    ¡°And suddenly, they both just lost the trail. Oldum, the self-proclaimed master of the wilds, the man raised by elves, just lost the trail. And Sayhas, who apparently can sense the smallest amounts of Discord from over a mile, failed to find something hidden behind a rock,¡± Mizu complained over the galloping horses, retelling the story of what happened. For the¡­ fifth time? Sixth?


    Sayhas rolled his eyes, stroking Alouettes mane to distract himself from Mizu. It was a hard ride from the splinter to rejoin the group. Luckily, the splinter didn¡¯t move during the fruitless search, so they didn¡¯t have to cover that much ground. Mizu was silent the entire ride, not even sparing them a glare. Ever since they rejoined Clive, she hasn¡¯t stopped retelling the story of their failure. If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    He was still confused about how they both lost track of the wolf. He had the Discord signature memorized but somehow, it¡¯s presence slipped like water between his fingers. Although he didn¡¯t show it, Sayhas was angry with himself for losing the trail, albeit not to the extent of Mizu, who had the anger management of a child.


    On his side, Oldum rode in a terse silence, his steed looking unnaturally small compared to Odlums large frame. His ability to hide his emotions was even better than Sayhas; his outward composition betraying nothing. But Sayhas could hear the strident tones in his Discord, his heavy heartbeats and uneven breaths. Oldum was mad, even more so than Mizu.


    ¡°We should have given chase, but these?¡ª¡±


    ¡°Mizukana,¡± Clive said, ¡°please.¡±


    The barren landscape of the Yelendor Plains slowly shifted to the greener Yelendor Highlands. Cracks in the ground welded together, as trees began to sprout up. They thickened as the group travelled, growing taller and wider from the dirt ground which muffled the clatter of their galloping horses. Soon, arrived at the base of a rocky slope, dead trees hugging the edges of a narrow ledge, barely wide enough for their horses to scale.


    Mizu trotted up to Sayhas, eyes unfocused and far away. The rest were already ascending the slope. Dreamis nudged Alouette playfully with her head when she got close enough. Alouette slipped in front, scaling the narrow ledge cautiously. Dreamis trailed closely, her owner still silent and distant.


    ¡°I really wanted the ash wolf you know,¡± Mizu began when they were halfway up the slope. No anger in her voice. No acrimony or accusation either.


    Sayhas stayed silent, continuing to ascend the slope.


    ¡°It¡¯s just that¡­ just that¡­¡± she sniffled lightly, ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± she whispered, her voice on the verge of breaking.


    ¡°Mizu?¡± Sayhas asked, doing his best to convey that he cared. He turned his head to see puffed-up eyes and red cheeks.


    ¡°You have Maaier Speal and your hearing gift,¡± she said softly, wiping her eyes with a finger before continuing. ¡°Oldum is literally one with the wild and only Conclave knows what shield aspects he has. Both of you have such control over your Discord while mine is just a raging mess. I blame you two for losing track of the ash wolf, but I can¡¯t even track it. I¡¯m inattentive and selfish and crude and and¡ª¡±


    She trailed off, pausing as if in thought. Sayhas opened his mouth. ¡°Don¡¯t placate me with your patronizing altruism,¡± she said glaring with bloodshot eyes.


    ¡°You¡¯re exaggerating,¡± Sayhas cut in before Mizu could continue. ¡°Sure, you are what you say you are. But it¡¯s not bad, it¡¯s human. We all have flaws.¡±


    ¡°Maybe so.¡± Mizu clenched her fists and smacked her lips together, trying to find the right words. ¡°We started off, all those years ago, as equals.¡±


    Ah, Sayhas thought this is the heart of the problem.


    ¡°You have a god aspect, and the ability to use it well. Oldum is stupidly resourceful and he has enough shields to make that quality shine. And I¡¯m here trying to play catchup. Oldum has one Resonance. So do you. Do you know how many I have?¡± It wasn¡¯t a rhetorical question.


    Sayhas held her eyes, pondering, ¡°I don¡¯t know, you¡¯ve never told us.¡±


    ¡°Guess.¡±


    Sayhas tried to remember every time he felt a Resonant aspect from Mizu, ¡°three?¡± Sayhas guessed.


    ¡°Four,¡± Mizu replied, expression dead serious, and if I want to keep up with you guys, I¡¯ll need a fifth soon. The ash wolf¡¯s soul was supposed to give me a much-needed boost, to help me keep up with you two.¡± Her eyes became, pleading, desperate for help or some sort. ¡°I don¡¯t want to lose myself. I can handle four, probably five. But six? Seven? I don¡¯t want to lose myself.¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t seriously think yourself weak after saying that you can handle five Resonant aspects. I might be able to handle two, but three is impossible for me, I don¡¯t even need to think about it. You have four and are speaking of more. If that isn¡¯t strength, I don¡¯t know¡ª¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter how many Resonances I have,¡± Mizu cut in, her voice close to a shout. The others could have probably heard her just now. ¡°If they don¡¯t make me stronger, what''s the point?¡± She shook her head, red bangs shifting across her face, covering her shimmering eyes. ¡°I want to grow stronger. I want to be able to stay by your sides. I don''t want to be left behind. But if I lose myself while getting stronger, then why would I even try?¡±


    She shook her bangs away from her eyes, hazel eyes bleeding into Sayhas, imploring him for a solution, an answer. Words of encouragement, or even a grunt of acknowledgment. Another day she might have gotten some.


    Not today.


    Sayhas peered back, staring down a crying Mizu. When was the last time she cried? He could count on one hand the number of times she cried in public. Tears welled up in her eyes as she let out a stifled sob. Although she passed the point of hiding her tears in front of Sayhas, she no doubt still had enough self control to maintain her flippant facade lest the others hear her cry.


    Vulnerable. Sayhas never thought Mizu would look that way¡ªshe was always the strongest of the three. She was the one who¡¯d leap into the fray first, while still maintaining a conscious awareness of all who fought with her. A fearless, witty leader. Today, vulnerable. A perfect day to exact a promise from her.

 Sivi 1

    Silver-tongued Sivi, Queen of Cheolyra, awoke minutes before the morning rays grazed her windowsill. She didn¡¯t want to get out of bed. Her bed once adorned with gold and jewels, now stripped bare of its former glory, now reduced to a simple metal frame with beauty and elegance unfitting for even the most deplorable of degenerates. Cheolyra was once full of wealth, it was the peak of civilization, peasants and nobles once vied to enter Cheolyra¡¯s illustrious walls. But if she were to walk the streets now, all she would see is poverty and famine. Where did she go wrong? She reinforced her emotions and brushing her sleeve over her blurry eyes. She kicked her legs from under the covers, gasping when the freezing air licked her bare legs.


    ¡°It¡¯s that day again isn¡¯t it,¡± Sivi whispered to nobody in particular, ¡°right Kirie?¡± She turned her attention to putting on her worn-out slippers, ignoring the dam that was close to bursting, the volcano a few tremors from eruption.


    ¡°It is my Queen.¡± Kirie was always there. She was always listening. She was always strong. She needed to be strong, to be strong enough for both of them. Because the gods above, the ash-made gods that didn''t give a rats ass about her, even they knew that Sivi wasn¡¯t strong enough. Sivi felt Kirie approach, she lingered at the edges of her vision.


    ¡°Death take me.¡± She swore lightly.


    ¡°Rise, my Queen,¡± Kirie pulled Sivi to her feet, ¡°or do you want to rest?¡±


    A challenge. A provocation. A ritual. Sivi answered.


    ¡°I¡¯ll rest when I¡¯m dead.¡± Sivi held her chin high, assuming a facade of regality. She¡¯s been doing this for years. What was one more day?


    Sivi tried to ignore her en-suite. It was in that room that Sivi used to beautify herself. Hours upon hours, spent in the morning, at a time when Cheolyra was peaceful and prosperous. When the responsibilities of being a queen had yet to be laid upon her shoulders. When she was brimming with youthful life. It wasn¡¯t that long ago. But the few years have seemingly dragged on forever. Still, she caught her reflection through the dusty, unkempt mirror in the corner of her eye. The sight sent shivers to her bone, an easy feat considering the fact that the bones were all she had left.


    A sack of bones in the Queen''s clothes, that was all she was. Her once silken, jet-black hair was covered with grime and soot; it trailed along the once lustrous quartz floor. Surprisingly, despite the squalor and inane desire to defenestrate herself, her bright, red eyes still shown, full of vigour and unwavering confidence, qualities that she couldn¡¯t feel. The girl who owned those eyes was long gone. But those eyes still lingered, left in a husk of who she once was.


    If it weren¡¯t for her plethora of plain jewelry, she¡¯d probably blow away with the wind


    ¡°We¡¯ll have to cut your hair one day,¡± Kirie suggested from behind. She trailed a respectable ways away. Not to close for proprietaries sake, but close enough to be there immediately if anything were to happen. Kirie was perfect. Sivi didn¡¯t deserve her.


    ¡°If we find the time,¡± Sivi replied curtly. Kirie sighed. They both knew that free time would only come after death.


    The two neared a large circular window by an imposing, stone stairwell just as the sun peeked over the Dagrun Bluffs to the east of Cheolyra. The splendid white light spectacularly shone over the shining Azure Lakes that rested just before the base of the mountain range.


    Dazzling blue met with blinding white to create an onslaught of beauty that could only be seen once a day and only from a certain height. Sivi lingered by the windowsill, drinking in the sight. For an instant, all her troubles faded away. But only for an instant.


    ¡°Onwards Kirie,¡± Sivi said, prying her eyes from the lake.


    ¡°You can stay a little longer.¡± Kirie lamented quietly. The lake-light reflected off of Kirie¡¯s deep, green eyes, making it appear that Kirie was crying. Though Kirie would never cry, at least not before her Queen. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see it again tomorrow,¡± Sivi spoke in a soft drawl. It was a burden to get out of bed. Every morning she had to fight herself in order to wake up. And this breathtaking view, a view only she and Kirie could see, could be the difference between waking up or sleeping forever.


    ¡°Tomorrow,¡± Kirie echoed, leading the way down the stairs.


    Sivi followed her, feeling her hair drag down the all-to-large staircase. They twisted along a complex path, meandering through rooms and hallways that Sivi had long forgotten the names of. But the images of what the rooms used to be and memories they contained, those stayed with her. She tried to stop the memories, but it was a force of nature; couldn¡¯t be stopped.


    Two children, wide-eyed, chasing each other between rows on rows off sacred artifacts. Careful not to break any priceless treasure lest they get grounded. The palace had seemed so small then, she had known every tucked-away nook and cranny. Yet now it seemed so large and ominous. Devoid of what it was. Lifeless.


    An old, kind-hearted elf surfaced when they walked by the infested kitchen. A cranky blademaster with the most beautiful smile as they peered down onto training field that, despite years of unuse, still smelled of boys sweat. A stern, didactic butler appeared in her mind''s eye when they passed a bump in the floor. She smiled. She had bled so much that day that mother had nearly fainted. They were all gone now, the three of them and many more. Off to what Sivi hoped to be a better place, greener pastures. Unwillingly, a sob escaped her parched throat.


    Kirie was at her side in an instant. She gripped Sivi¡¯s shoulders and held them tight, shaking her softly. ¡°Be strong.¡± There was kindness in her green eyes.


    She shook Kirie off, ¡°I am.¡± That was the last time. Her last outbreak. For today at least.


    Using both hands, she threw open two large silverwood doors. A cold morning breeze rushed in, blowing her hair backwards. She stepped onto the terrace and tiredly leaned onto the white fence, overlooking the central courtyard. She let her overgrown hair and thin garments billow this way and that, and shivered under the biting chill of the morning.


    People were already up and busy. An elderly man looked up at her and waved.


    Kirie made a coughing noise from behind. She hugged herself and receded cautiously into the warmth of the palace, ¡°I¡¯ll be over here.¡± Sivi said nothing. Kirie cocked her head and poked her cheeks up with her index fingers, ¡°Smile Sivi, smile.¡±


    Sivi did so. It was fake, but she did it. It hurt, but she did it.


    ¡°There you go.¡± Kirie showed her teeth and ruffled Sivi¡¯s hair the way you¡¯d do to a child. ¡°Please hesitate to call me again.¡± She disappeared into the shadows of the palace.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be sure to pester you,¡± Sivi replied, feigning nonchalance and swagger. The two of them knew it was fake, but if it was for her people, Sivi would do anything.


    Still looking towards the once beautiful, monolithic palace, Sivi propped herself against the terrace fence. Absentmindedly, she began to run her fingers through her thick hair.


    ¡°Wuah! It¡¯s the Queen!¡± A high-pitched voice sounded from the courtyard.


    ¡°She¡¯s so pretty!¡± Another barely developed voice sounded.


    Sivi lazily turned her head, resting it on her wrist which was propped up by her elbow.


    It was a little boy and a littler girl, dressed in brown, leather rags and displaying disproportionally wide smiles as they played around with a dirty ball.


    The boy smacked the girl. ¡°Look! She¡¯s looking at us.¡± The boys jaw fell open when Sivi grinned at the pair. ¡°You should say hi, Sis.¡±


    The girl stared at him, stupefied. Then, she stepped forward and swallowed, ¡°Hi! I¡¯m Eva. And that¡¯s my brother Stupid.¡± Her brother smacked her lightly. ¡°Hey!¡± Eva protested.


    Sivi¡¯s grin broke into a large smile and she naughtily waved her pinky at the two. They gasped and vigorously waved back. A woman, presumably the children¡¯s mother, snatched the two off their feet and ushered them away from the courtyard, disappearing into one of the connecting streets. The women came back moments later and picked up the dirty ball, spiriting it away towards the direction of the kids.


    The sun had completely crested the Bluffs by now and the courtyard and all surrounding facilities were empty. Sivi arched her head over the fence, as much as she dared to, sighing profusely at the endless, cloudless, blue sky. ¡°Maybe she won¡¯t come today.¡± Sivi examined her broken nails. ¡°What do you think the chances are that she forgot?¡±


    Kirie stepped out of the shadows, peering northwards. A roar sounded behind Sivi. ¡°I don¡¯t think she forgot,¡± Kirie asserted bluntly.


    Wringing her hands, Sivi turned around to face the source of the noise. ¡°I don¡¯t see anyone. But just in case, sound the alarm.¡±


    ¡°As you wish.¡±


    Sivi could barely hear the large doors shut, not when the water dragon Liadrin descended.

 Again?

    ¡°Don¡¯t go to Jyn.¡±


    Her eyes widened and she cocked her head. Mastering herself, she narrowed her eyes and glared, bristling in a fit of quizzical anger. ¡°I can go wherever I want,¡± she replied, voice soft, like a calm between the storm.


    Has she recovered? Sayhas probed her Discord. It still convulsed in turmoil, lapping onto itself. He sent short pulses at her, churning her Discord to weaken her mental fortitude. Normally, she¡¯d be able to defend. Not today.


    ¡°You¡¯ll find nothing in Jyn. Don¡¯t be mistaken, the hole in your heart won¡¯t be filled. Don¡¯t want to lose yourself? Don¡¯t¡ª¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t preach to me!¡± she shouted, her words echoing.


    ¡°Revenge won¡¯t bring you joy!¡± Sayhas said, matching her volume.


    ¡°What am I supposed to do? Let them live?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    He jaw clenched as her Discord simmered. ¡°Then follow your own example. Carrying that list around and hunting names like a bounty hunter. You embrace revenge. Stop being so altruistic, I''m a killer, you¡¯re a killer and nothing will change that,¡± Mizu seethed, hands curled up.


    ¡°I don¡¯t kill for revenge. I kill to protect. The ones you seek are sitting way up there with their fancy chairs, eating fancy food, and playing fancy political games. They¡¯ve forgotten about you,¡± Sayhas tried.¡±


    ¡°Can such things really be forgotten? Don¡¯t be a fool.¡±


    ¡°Mizu. Listen to me.¡±


    ¡°How many times have you rejected my counsel?¡± Her voice grew steady, the quaver vanishing. She reformed, pushing away his subtle attempts to disrupt it ¡°Am I not allowed to do the same?¡±


    She looked up and smiled, the usual lightness on her face returned. ¡°Don¡¯t look so downcast,¡± she chided in a carefree timbre that she typically wore. ¡°Friends argue all the time. This is just one of those times. But no matter the argument, friends will always have their friends back. Right?¡±


    Sayhas nodded, returning her smile, though his smile was considerably more forced. ¡°Of course. After all you¡¯ve done for me? Without a doubt.¡±


    With that, he sped up to a canter, closing onto Taed who was at the edge of his vision. Silly me Sayhas thought bitterly I tried to get her to promise not to go. But ended up promising that would help her. He made a show of looking at the trees, instead, actually stealing a glance at Mizu in his peripherals. A gift of persuasion and leadership. That was Mizu¡¯s strength, one that Oldum and Sayhas could never match.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    In that regard, she and Eve should get along so well. But they hate each other. Sayhas shrugged, sighing to himself. That is my fault though.


    ¡°If you tell anyone about what just happened, I¡¯ll kill you. Kill you so hard that you¡¯ll die twice.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s catch up before they get mad.¡±


    . . .


    ¡°Spit, Spit. Shhh. Spit, Spit, calm down.¡± Kirn buried his face into his pony¡¯s ear as it reared up. ¡°Get you flaming horse away from Spit.¡± Kirin glared at Sayhas, ¡°that monster is scaring her.¡± He pulled his pony away from Alouette.


    ¡°Should replace¡ª¡± Sayhas began.


    ¡°Wait,¡± Kirin cut off.


    Sayhas frowned.


    ¡°Shhh,¡± Kirin said, motioning Sayhas to quiet down. ¡°There¡¯s something.¡± Kirin looked up, wide-eyed, scanning the clear afternoon sky.


    Then Sayhas felt it, a tremendous pressure unlike anything he¡¯s ever experienced. It was Discord, a Discord so powerful that Sayhas couldn''t stand straight while being subjected to its pressure. A powerful roar sounded from the skies, shaking the trees and ground alike. Followed by a dark shadow zipping above, shrouding the group in darkness.


    ¡°Dragon!¡± Kirin screamed, his Discord raging like a storm.


    Like the Conclave itself, a serpentine dragon descended from the skies. It had battered blue-green scales that had a white glow similar to Maaier Speal. Ancient eyes bored into them as the dragon weaved its large head towards the front of the group. Its wings folded neatly between the trees and a ribbon-like tail snaked towards Sayhas at the back. ¡°I am here for one thing and one thing only,¡± the dragon began, the air vibrating slightly at the dragon''s voice. ¡°Oh, what¡¯s his problem?¡± it said, sounding genuinely worried. It pointed a claw towards Sayhas.


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Sayhas thought out loud, checking himself. As it happens, Kirin had fainted and Sayhas quickly caught him, spooking Kirin¡¯s pony. Again?


    The dragon hummed, it¡¯s discord flowing gently. It¡¯s jaw slightly curled upwards as if smiling. ¡°You¡¯re all like a close-knit family. Not related by blood, ethnicity or background, yet bound like glue. Why is this? Long ago I had a family, I barely remember their names. It was before I Ascended you see. Let me think, Zildrin, my boy, my beautiful boy. Think he¡¯s dead. He had children too. Taigon. Also, probably dead. And the daughter, she had potential. What was her name? Lia¡ª¡±


    ¡°Not to be rude,¡± Clive said, ¡°but I¡¯d rather not sit through a story of your past. And I am the most patient out of all of us.¡±


    ¡°Ahh, I digress, I digress.¡± The dragon sniffed the air like a dog in a new place. ¡°I smell a soul-spliced mammoth. I am now craving a soul-spliced mammoth.¡±


    ¡°No, you can''t have it,¡± Mizu called. Her Discord lapped like ocean waves, ¡°Curiously enough, I am also craving a soul-spliced mammoth. If you want one you¡¯ll have to find one yourself.¡±


    ¡°Mizu,¡± Sayhas warned, ¡°that''s a Dragon God.¡±


    ¡°Astute,¡± it said,¡± What gave it away? The part where I said I Ascended?¡± It leaned down, bringing it¡¯s head closer to Mizu. ¡°I am Kirin, a Dragon God. I am really old and I want a soul-spliced mammoth.¡±


    ¡°No. Get one yourself,¡± Mizu answered with a passive facade.


    Sayhas jolted her with a light blast of electricity. She didn¡¯t even flinch. What is she doing? Does she have a death wish?


    Kirin (the dragon), snapped its head back and extend its neck to the fullest, towering over the trees. It stared down in pregnant silence, reptilian eyes boring down. Sahyas felt naked before it''s gaze. Kirins unfathomable Discord began to simmer and boil, growing louder and louder. The ambient pressure increased and Sayhas let out a grunt, others couldn¡¯t resist the force and were pushed down. Even the horses¡ªwho couldn¡¯t sense Discord¡ªwhined and buckled.

 Fair Trade

    Kirin (the dragon), snapped its head back and extend its neck to the fullest, towering over the trees. It stared down in pregnant silence, reptilian eyes boring down. Sahyas felt naked before it''s gaze. Kirins unfathomable Discord began to simmer and boil, growing louder and louder. The ambient pressure increased and Sayhas let out a grunt, others couldn¡¯t resist the force and were pushed down. Even the horses¡ªwho couldn¡¯t sense Discord¡ªwhined and buckled.


    Suddenly the force vanished. Kirin smiled, Discord calming. ¡°I¡¯m willing to trade. What do you want?¡±


    Hysiedies muttered to himself.


    ¡°For trade? A soul-spliced mammoth,¡± Mizu deadpanned. She hadn¡¯t shown signs of struggle during Krins display of power.


    Clive looked back at Mizu with furrowed eyebrows, eyeing her quizzically. ¡°Don¡¯t be unreasonable Mizu. Apologies Kirin, she¡¯s being sulky again.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t apologize,¡± Kirin quickly said, ¡°it¡¯s her right to reject me.¡±


    ¡°Nonsense,¡± Clive shot back, ¡°to be completely honest, I find spliced meat to be rather tough and¡ªno offence¡ªnot fit for eating.¡±


    ¡°None taken. Spliced eat isn¡¯t for human consumption anyway. Pardon me, but your teeth are a touch too weak to appreciate spliced meat. But nevertheless, who am I to forcefully take it away when the owner so clearly said no? What sort of example would I be showing my juniors? Especially in a time where the little ones are running rampant, is it not my responsibility as a Dragon God uphold at least a modicum of decorum? However, I am craving that meat so how about this for a trade?¡±


    Thick, dark clouds swirled above as Kirin levitated its long serpentine body in ethereal cadence. Tremendous, light-stealing Discord smothered them. In the darkness, Sayhas'' heart raced. Mizu summoned a fireball and lifted into the air, giving off a smidge of light. The dragon looked down, ancient eyes, glowing in the pitch black, darkness. A bright flash illuminated their surroundings and it started to rain. Heavy rain, pittering on the forest canopy.


    When the broken one sings three times over


    And the red one is burnt to cinders


    There will be¡ª


    The clouds quickly dissipated and the carpet of darkness was lifted. Kirin hastily drifted down, his ethereal glow gone. ¡°Oops, wrong one. But the fireball away please, my old eyes can''t handle the glare.¡±


    He floated up again, this time without the glow or the dark clouds. He looked kind of silly without the theatrics. ¡°The day of greatest beauty will always be followed by a day of great sadness. A storm is coming, beautiful blue feathers in the morning, and a crimson chill at night.¡± He settled back down, Discord radiating satisfaction. ¡°Trade?¡±


    Sayhas rolled his eyes, idling running his fingers along a gash in his duster.


    ¡°No!¡± Mizu said, Discord squirming into itself.


    ¡°You recited something in the first book of Seer¡¯s Sayings. Did you expect them to believe you?¡± Hysiedies deadpanned. The priest was clenching his teeth visibly shaking. His hands were clenched so tightly into fists that his nails bit into his skin, drawing blood.


    ¡°I¡¯m a Dragon God, people believe whatever I say.¡±


    Hysiedies started muttering to himself.


    ¡°If that¡¯s it, we¡¯ll be going.¡± Mizu spurred Dreamis lightly.


    ¡°Hold it.¡± A hint authority was wove into his voice. Dreamis froze and even Sayhas felt a chill in his spine.


    ¡°It seems I underestimated you again. Silly me must be age.¡± Kirin rose to his full height and looked intimidating even without the special effects. ¡°Each and every one of you. Should my path be crossed with yours ever again. Whether it is all of you or just one. Whether it is tomorrow or an eon later. I offer you all a favour. A promise that I will do whatever you ask, should it be within my powers and align with my moral compass.¡±


    ¡°Anything?¡± Oldum said slowly, his Discord lapping gently.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    ¡°No massacres, but I could run an errand,¡± Kirin noted.


    ¡°A cool glaive?¡± Dismas asked, mouth open, eyes wide.


    ¡°That should be possible.¡±


    ¡°But that all depends on whether we ever see you again,¡± Hysiedies said, voice almost accusatory. His Discord bristled and churned crashing onto itself like a ferocious civil war.


    ¡°Took the words right out of my mouth, old man,¡± Mizu said, ¡°what stops you from simply avoiding us for the rest of our lives?¡±


    ¡°My honour,¡± Kirin replied flippantly, it¡¯s Discord was tranquil.


    ¡°No, I¡¯ll need something now. Not a favour, not a prophecy.


    ¡°Mizu,¡± Sayhas began, reaching for her.


    She swat his hand away, ¡°Something real and tangible. Something for us that would be as valuable as this mammoth is to you.¡±


    Kirins pupils narrowed into slits. It shimmed its serpentine body casting waves of sunlight around. A perfectly symmetrical, blue scale fell to the floor. It was as long as Sayhas¡¯ forearm. ¡°Do we have a deal, alchemist?¡±


    Mizu dismounted and hesitantly reached for the scale. She lifted it, keeping it at arm''s length. Gently, she turned the scale over and over as if in disbelief.


    ¡°Alchemist. Do we have a deal?¡± There was a warning edge to its voice. It¡¯s Discord, that had been calm and patient the entire time, was finally beginning to stir.


    Mizu pried her yes from the scale. ¡°How do you¡ª¡±


    ¡°I can smell the filthy stone on you,¡± Kirin scoffed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t call it¡ª¡±


    ¡°Mizu!¡± Sayhas shouted.


    ¡°Kana,¡± Oldum warned at the same time as Sayhas


    Did she want to die that badly? She whipped her head towards Sayhas, eyebrows creased. There were large waves in her Discord. ¡°Shut up.¡±


    Clive handed the mammoth head to Kirin who took it with one claw. ¡°Anything else? Any other special requests.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll be fine, sorry for Mizu¡¯s behaviour again,¡± Clive responded, Discord flowing like a river.


    Kirin took off. In the air, it turned its head around, ¡°Maybe I¡¯ve been hibernating for a while, but you morsels are a lot braver than you once were.¡±


    Sayhas waited until he could no longer feel the dragon''s presence before exploding on Mizu. ¡°What were you thinking? A Dragon God. Chains be blessed.¡±


    ¡°Well, you know what? I got a dragon scale.¡±


    ¡°And in the end? Take an insult or two!¡±


    ¡°You weren¡¯t always so uptight,¡± she pouted, ¡°What happened to the Sayhas I knew? The one who would be reckless with me.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want you to die.¡±


    ¡°No, you¡¯re scared.¡±


    ¡°Kana. Grow up. Stop being a child,¡± Oldum said.


    ¡°A child?¡± Mammoth sized waves roamed in her Discord. ¡°How about you then? Grow up? Stop running away.¡±


    ¡°Kana.¡± Oldum''s eyes darkened. Discord surged around him, they¡¯d soon come to blows.


    A wave of Discord crashed onto them, ¡°That is enough,¡± Clive commanded. Sayhas flinched, whipping his head towards Clive. Black Discord pulsated from the Clive. There was a storm in his Discord. A vein by his neck was pounding. Clive made eye-contact and Sayhas could almost see the storm through Clive¡¯s eyes. When was the last time Clive had been so mad?


    ¡°You¡¯ve known each other for most of your lives,¡± Clive said with clenched fists. ¡°And a dragon is getting between that? Apologize.¡±


    ¡°Mizu could¡¯ve¡ª¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care,¡± Clive snarled, ¡°Make it up.¡±


    Sayhas turned to Mizu and took a deep breath through his nose, feeling his chest rise. He exhaled, letting it fall. Mizu looked up, biting her lip. She brought up her hand, shakily.


    ¡°Sorry¡­¡± she trailed off looking downcast. Suddenly, her Discord turned into a fast-moving river and her eyes hardened, in resolve ¡°Sorry for being an arrogant, idiot.¡± She attempted a weak, snarky smile.


    Sayhas swatted her hand away. She reeled back, Discord trembling. Before she could do anything, Sayhas gave her a grin and pulled her into a hug. ¡°Sorry for being so mad, let''s get him together next time.¡±


    Mizu hugged back, ¡°Let¡¯s.¡±


    They released each other and looked back at Clive. His Discord was still in a storm, though a little tamer now. ¡°Oldum,¡± he called, tone pithy, ¡°you too.¡±


    Oldum got off his horse and walked to Mizu. He was tall enough to go up to Mizu¡¯s shoulders despite her being on a horse. ¡°I¡ª¡±


    ¡°I am sorry,¡± Mizu said, cutting Oldum off, ¡°I didn¡¯t mean it. Really, truly, I am.¡± Her Discord seemed to retreat into itself.


    ¡°Kana. Don¡¯t grow up. You¡¯re perfect the way you are.¡±


    ¡°Aww.¡± She went in for an embrace before snapping backwards abruptly, ¡°right, no hugs.¡± She did something and Oldum smiled.


    Clive¡¯s Discord calmed down, and his deathly Discord retreated. ¡°Good, good. though I''m a little worried what you two will attempt if you ever see The Dragon God again." He clapped his hands, "At least your friends again. Dismas, Taed, carry Kirin, please. I''m afraid the older ones might drop him just to spite me.¡± He spurred into a canter.


    ¡°Oh, and Hysiedies, next time, try to hide your malevolent Discord.¡±


    The false priest dipped his head, ¡°I¡¯ll try.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± Clive said. He looked up, ¡°We¡¯re losing light, let''s pick it up.¡±

 Sivi 2

    Sivi could barely hear the large doors shut, not when the water dragon Liadrin descended.


    Her shining, razor-sharp claws dented and fractured the once embellished courtyard. The ancient trees and rotten buildings swayed when Liadrin''s sickle-shaped, blue wings folded neatly over her back. She dipped her slender, neck and narrowed her cat-like eyes at Sivi. Her blue, scale-covered body, played with the sunlight, refracting it around Liadrin, making her appear as an angel from the heavens. Behind Liadrin¡¯s webbed, serpentine frills around her neck, Sivi noticed her tail swaying innocuously with the wind, crystalline points facing upwards. Her jaws opened a fraction and Liandrin puffed out a gentle, winter breeze. Snow collected on the white fences, lingering a moment before melting away.


    ¡°This Queendom has surely seen better days.¡± Liadrin purred, lightly caressing the railing with her fore-claws, ¡°and you, you my dear Queen. You don¡¯t look so well.¡±


    ¡°What do you want Liadrin?¡± Sivi hissed.


    Liadrin reared up, extending to her full height. The dragon looked down her nose at Sivi. ¡°I just wanted to check on the wellbeing of my business partner. But fine, business it is.¡± She retracted her forearms from the railing and fell to all fours. ¡°First, my offering.¡±


    Sivi extended her hand to the side. In a clasp of sound and light, a silver, forked scimitar coagulated and fell into her frail hands. Her hands warmed to the touch of the worn-out leather. Its hilt looked like the tail feathers of a bird, pointed away from the cutting edge of the deadly blade. Where the metal feathers met, a small flat ruby lay and from there, golden engravings travelled up the blade, embellishing the middle section of the sword without tarnishing the cutting edge. The blade seemed far too heavy for Sivi¡¯s weak build, but somehow, it was perfect.


    ¡°Zulfiqar,¡± Liadrin mused. She flicked her tongue greedily, eyes latched onto the legendary blade. ¡°Are you running out of trinkets to offer me?¡± Sivi said nothing, her eyes lingered on Zulfiqar. ¡°It¡¯s a shame you have to part with such a magnificent treasure.¡±


    Sivi whirled the blade with skill she didn¡¯t have. ¡°Do you not want it?¡± The hunger in Liadrin¡¯s eyes was answer enough. Sivi threw the falchion at the blue dragon. She all but dove for the blade; it vanished into light and sound the moment it touched her scaled body.


    Sivi clenched her fists, it was as if a part of her had disappeared along with the blade.


    ¡°How goes the cattle?¡± Water souls orbited above the dragons head. It was a silent message to her: offer a displeasing message, and your city and people, will pay the price.


    Sivi looked away from the dragons stare, ¡°It¡¯ll take years to repair the damage. Though, if you wish for it, you could have a banquet in a few months.¡±


    ¡°Release a third of the cattle. It¡¯ll be fun to hunt them down.¡± She raised her wings, preparing to take flight. ¡°I¡¯ll be back in a fortnight and I¡¯m expecting great things.¡± Liadrin grinned, ¡°You know what happens when I¡¯m disappointed right?¡± Sivi nodded submittingly. ¡°Say it,¡± Liadrin whispered, voice deadly cold.


    ¡°You¡¯ll destroy my precious Queendom.¡± Somehow, Sivi kept her voice from cracking.


    ¡°Good girl.¡± Liadrin took flight. Sivi stumbled backwards from the blast of wind.


    Kirie pushed open the large doors and handed her a fur coat. Suddenly, a cacophony of raucous vibrations hit Sivi like a hammer. Her eyes clenched shut. When she opened them, she was greeted by a city covered by a blanket of white. Kirie tousled her blond hair, shaking the snow off of her locks, then she reached forward and did the same for Sivi. Sivi let her, for there wasn¡¯t anyone watching; they weren''t assuming the roles of Queen and maid but of friends.


    ¡°I hate her,¡± Kirie said with an astounding amount of emotion when she finished.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    ¡°Go tell everyone that it¡¯s safe now.¡±


    Kirie bowed respectfully and exited the terrace, closing the doors quietly on her way out.


    She donned the coat and leaned back on the fence. Her stomach rumbled as she sighed. The day had only just begun.


    A soft feminine hand, only a little thicker than Sivi¡¯s own, clamped onto her mouth, muffling her attempts to scream. ¡°Don¡¯t scream.¡± The first thing she noticed when she stopped struggling were the tattoos on her captor''s forearms. Innumerable. Intricate. Each one unique.


    The hand moved away from her mouth and instead locked onto her opposite shoulder. Sivi felt the weight of the unidentified girl rest upon her. ¡°Aren¡¯t you tired of being bullied by Liadrin?¡± Shivers went down her spine, it felt worse than Liadrin''s cold breath. ¡°You should try finding a mate for her, maybe then she¡¯d get off your back.¡±


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Sivi forced authority and regality into her voice, assuming the persona of someone who should be heeded.


    A yellow blade shimmered into existence, plunging tip first into the soft, wooden floor. Even after it completely solidified, the light that gave it birth did not recede. A faint glow lingered, hugging the edges of the blade, like an angelic aura.


    ¡°What is that?¡± Sivi said reflexively, unable to hide her astonishment.


    ¡°If you don¡¯t know what it is, I¡¯m taking it back.¡±


    Sivi knew what it was. Cla¨ªomh Solais. The Sword of Light. The Shining Sword. It goes by many names, and despite discrepancies in translation and stories, this blade is irrevocably considered¡ªby every sentient race¡ªto be among the ten greatest weapons ever created.


    Sivi reached out and stroked the pommel of the fabled blade. ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°To give you a chance. To help you beat the insurmountable threat known as Liadrin.¡±


    Before speaking any further, Sivi gripped firmly on Cla¨ªomh Solais¡¯ hilt. She closed her eyes and bonded with the blade. A black tattoo formed on her wrist, replacing the one she lost when she gave Zulfiqar away. The blade vanished, leaving an imprint of light that slowly trickled away. ¡°If you wanted to help,¡± she began when Cla¨ªomh Solais was safely stored inside of her, ¡°why didn¡¯t you beat Liadrin with Cla¨ªomh Solais? That would have been far more helpful.¡±


    ¡°Because,¡± she whispered, light as a feather, into Sivi¡¯s ear, ¡°if you want something, you should do it yourself. That blade is just one possible option.¡± Sivi felt a sharp nip on her neck. ¡°Arguably, that is more useful.¡±


    Sivi stroked where she was bitten. She knew what was there. A black tattoo.


    ¡°Ultimately, a tool is useless unless it is used. So make a choice, my dear Queen who doesn''t quite fit in the shoes you wear. Before you can''t make any at all.¡±


    ¡°Wait!¡± Sivi whirled around. But the woman was already gone.


    She continued staring off in the distance, watching her people busy themselves with mindless actions, all the while searching for any trace of the stranger she just talked to.


    A snow-white owl landed on the ledge above Sivi. It shook itself and a dried-up parchment fell onto Sivi''s sky-facing palm. On it was a barely legible, black scrawl.


    I apologize,


    I have yet to acquire any noteworthy trinkets.


    H.K Arturus


    That was it. There wasn¡¯t any hidden message, just another piece of bad news. Sivi crumpled to paper, and without a second thought, burned it to ash. Even when the ashes had all drifted away, Sivi stoked the orange flame in her hands, melting the snow on the guardrail. She clenched her hand into a fist, snuffing the flame. Then, she felt for the black mark on her neck. ¡°Should I just end the suffering?¡± she fumed contemplatively.


    ¡°No.¡± Firm hands grasped hers and pried them away from her neck. ¡°You can¡¯t do it Sivi,¡± Kirie pleaded. ¡°It isn¡¯t worth it.¡±


    Sivi forcefully ripped herself from Kirie¡¯s grasp. ¡°You overstep yourself.¡± The words tasted sour the moment the left her mouth, but for some insane reason, Sivi decided that she had to keep up her Queenly appearance. So she barreled on, spitting out words she didn''t mean. ¡°You are my maid. You have no right to dictate what I do. You are a tone-deaf mute who has no right to lick the soles of my shoes.¡± Sivi almost vomited at her own words but she kept going. ¡°Your ancestors are rolling over right now. Leave me and contemplate your actions.¡±


    Kirie jerked as if struck. Her green eyes flared brightly, indicating a surge of intense emotion. ¡°Fine,¡± Kirie seethed. Her hands were clenched by her side, shoulders tense. ¡°Get dressed. Your meetings start in the throne room when the sickle-berries bloom.¡± She stormed off the terrace, slamming the large, silverwood doors shut.


    Sivi should have gone after her. Should have apologized right away, but she didn¡¯t. She just watched, motionless, as her best and only friend walked away.

 Late

    Silence is an unsettling thing, rarely is true silence ever-present. There is always something, there should always be sounds. When there isn¡¯t, nothing is there.


    But there is always something.


    So as the sun began to set when Sayhas neared the camp and his ears couldn¡¯t catch a single sound of life, he was a little bit on edge.


    ¡°Lucia¡± Dismas called.


    ¡°We¡¯re back,¡± Kirin said.


    Then, he heard a sound. A muffled choke followed by a sob. He snapped his head towards the sound, setting a brisk pace, quickly overtaking Dismas who was in front. Sayhas circled a few crates of supplies, brushed flower pot with his finger and rounded a wagon. He heard it, a slow heartbeat, faintly throbbing in desperation.


    Weird, it¡¯s Discord wasn¡¯t faint, but it was tame, restricted even.


    ¡°Falem, what happened?¡± Sayhas asked, before turning the corner.


    As Hysiedies was thin, Falem was broad; his size only matched by Clive and Oldum. He and Hysidies were two sides of the same coin, oh the irony. Blood caked the ground around Falem, a broken necklace with a red, metal feather lay on the floor. Falem¡¯s robes were in tatters, dozens of surface cuts scored his frame. He choked blood before closing his eyes and smacking his head into the back of the wagon. Was he crying?


    ¡°Where¡¯s Lucia?¡±


    ¡°You were supposed to be back days ago; you weren¡¯t supposed to be gone that long.¡± Falem¡¯s teeth rattled as he spoke. The priest swallowed loudly. ¡°They came under the peak of the sun as if demons wreathed in the Conclaves powers.¡± He thumped the mushy dirt with a fist. ¡°My Nightmares are weaker in the day, but they¡¯d never lose to a few bandits.¡± He looked up, eyes boring into Sayhas. Falem¡¯s Discord receded and sunk deep into itself. Never has the big man ever looked so small. ¡°A red blade,¡± he whispered, ¡°it shone, a malicious glow. My Nightmares were afraid. And¡ªand¡­¡± Falem shuddered, trailing off.


    Kirin poked his head, ¡°Falem,¡± Kirin¡¯s mouth froze, mouth halfway open, an unwelcome question forming on his lips.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. They took Lucia, I¡¯m sorry.¡±


    Everyone was here now. Mizu pushed forwards, a question on her lips. Quickly, Sayhas pulled Falem close. His bracelet grew hot and white bolts of electricity gently skimmed Falem. The priest fainted. ¡°Rest a bit,¡± Sayhas said.


    He got up and summoned Maaier Speal, ¡°I¡¯ll be back.¡±


    ¡°Alone?¡± Clive asked, arching his eyebrows.¡±


    Sayhas met his gaze, ¡°Just a scouting mission, it¡¯ll be better if I¡¯m not being distracted.¡± He pointedly looked at Mizu who was inspecting Falem¡¯s slumber.


    ¡°That was risky,¡± she said, not looking away from Falem, ¡°using your bracelet.¡± She turned and met Sayhas gaze, Discord not betraying anything. ¡°I could¡¯ve done it in a much safer fashion.¡± To prove her point, she reached into the window of her wagon and pulled out a phial of lunarwing green. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t want him to be under so many gazes anymore. Since he was in such a vulnerable state of course.¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± she sneered, ¡°Hysiedies, let''s make sure this idiot didn¡¯t didn''t stop Falem¡¯s heart.¡± She stomped into her wagon.


    ¡°I¡¯m coming too.¡± Kirin forced his way towards Sayhas, ¡°let me come.¡±


    ¡°No, you¡¯re not. Dismas, watch Kirin, make sure he doesn¡¯t go anywhere.¡±


    ¡°But¡ª¡±


    Dismas dragged Kirin away and Sayhas couldn¡¯t hear the rest.


    Mizu poked her head out the window. Her red hair was tied up into a pony-tail. She glowered at him, ¡°You better come back safely.¡±


    ¡°Just a scouting mission.¡±


    ¡°You promise?¡±


    But Sayhas was already flying through the air and he pretended not to hear. After all, travelling fast tends to skew how words sound like.


    Sayhas wrapped Maaier Speal around the tallest tree in the vicinity. It had blue leaves that drape down like a pine tree and wood akin to that of a birch. A silverwood tree. Mizu would like it as a gift; it might even bring Sayhas back into her good graces. He caught the topmost trunk, dragging it along as his momentum slowed. Because silverwoods had hard thistles, Sayhas had reinforced his body by a mesh of lightning flavoured Discord.


    He perched himself close the joint of branch and tree. Sayhas closed his eyes and listened into his own Discord. His Master had called this Soul Dissonance, it involved closing up to everything except Soul Sound and using Discord to sense the differences in ambient Soul Sound. It was a type of listening that surpassed listening itself. Sayhas laid a paper-thin trail of his Discord, encasing an area beyond his eyes could see.


    Smoky trails lit up like fires to his ears. Nearby, was a great concentration of powerful flames: Clive, Hysiedies, Mizu and Oldum. Mizu was dealing with soul-spliced materials judging from the moderately shining dots in front of her. She perked up, her Soul Sound wavered. Soul Sound was less volatile than Discord and it was harder to read emotions with. Oops, she noticed me. Sayhas quickly turned his attention elsewhere. That was a drawback of Soul Dissonance, if the target was familiar with you, they could theoretically trace your Discord trails and find you.


    Around the camp, was a mess of flames. Small polka-dot-like glows littered the area. Falem¡¯s fallen Nightmares. Sayhas turned his focus away. He was looking for something specific. When Soul Sound spikes¡ªit spikes when the user uses a lot of Discord¡ªit takes a while to recede back to its normal glow. Extremely bright Soul Sound has a lingering effect on the surroundings too.


    Then he found it, a glow in a place where the polka-dots were denser. The place where the fear blade was used. He followed the trail to where he found Falem, tracing the faint path into the forest. The Bandit Lord must have spent a while in front of Falem as the trial was a lot fainter than desired. But Sayhas expected as much, he didn¡¯t think it would last all the way anyways.


    Just as Sayhas was about to jump down, an annoyance caught his attention. He Jumped towards it, uncaring of the terror he¡¯d invoke. ¡°If you don''t keep up, I¡¯ll tie you to a tree.¡± Kirin jumped back, only just processing Sayhas¡¯ arrival.


    ¡°We were just inspecting the crime¡ª¡± Taed began.


    ¡°Save it,¡± Sayhas snapped. He set a brisk pace down the glowing trail. It was an effort to maintain Soul Dissonance and keep tabs on the three trouble makers.


    ¡°You can¡¯t have expected us to actually listen. We were bound to tail you,¡± Dismas protested, ¡°or at least get lost trying,¡± he muttered as an afterthought.


    ¡°Keep talking and I¡¯ll make sure you get lost.¡±


    They shut up, though Sayhas could feel there pointed gazes prickling his back.


    He assiduously followed the trail, hoping that when it died out, there¡¯d be another clue. Should have brought Oldum with me, instead of this bunch.


    This was going to be a long walk. Sayhas hoped he found them soon, otherwise, it¡¯d be much more than he¡¯d bargained for.

 Bandit

    They arrived at the outskirts of the bandit camp in the middle of the night. Selphis, the white moon, was at its apex, emitting a misty white glow. Days like this where Selphis rose at midnight were weird. Shouldn''t midnight be the darkest part of the night? Instead, with Selphis, the night became a misty morning. So much for stealth.


    Sayhas had spent far longer tracking down the camp than he intended for the trail of Soul Sound dissipated before he could locate any material clues to the bandit camps whereabouts. Instead, he had wandered in a general direction, trusting his gut. He should have taken Oldum; he would have known how to track them. Even Mizu would have come up with something.


    Instead, he could only regret not paying attention when Oldum taught him how to track in the forest. He used Clive''s trick of sending ethereal aspects ahead to scout. But if they found the bandits, it¡¯d be a chase. Unfortunately, the three stowaways didn¡¯t have the presence of mind to stay completely quiet, earning them malevolent glares every time they grew too raucous. To Sayhas¡¯ dismay, they even tried to initiate small talk with him. Seriously? Now of all times?


    It was when Sayhas was considering the possibility of giving up that he heard something. At the limits of his enhanced Soul Dissonance, something flared, burning brightly like a beacon. That was it, the camp. It had to be. Otherwise, Sayhas would have failed. He made a b-line towards the flame, it had flickered away, but Sayahs had made a mental note of the location. He all but sprinted across the forest floor, making as much sound as a hunting owl.


    Blessedly, the three stayed quiet. It was as if they knew that the search was over.


    The hunt was on.


    He could feel the flames of the bandits now. They were dim, even worse than Kirin. In the middle of the dim flames was one slightly brighter one. It felt familiar. Lucia. She was still alive at least. He zeroed onto her Discord, he was close enough to do so. It pulsed normally, albeit at a quickened pace. But otherwise, it showed no signs of damage. She was frightened. That was it.


    ¡°Lucia,¡± Kirin whispered. His eyes were wide, his heart thumping loudly in his chest. ¡°Is she there? Is she safe?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s there,¡± Sayhas said, absentmindedly, ¡°Don¡¯t know about safe. But I guess she¡¯s as safe as we can expect her to be.¡±


    ¡°Cinders, what¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡± Kirin angrily said, getting louder and louder. Sayhas cringed, he was trying to listen around the camp but Kirin¡¯s shouting whisper was making his job a whole lot harder.


    ¡°Quiet,¡± Taed said, putting his hand on Kirin''s shoulder, ¡°relax, it¡¯ll be fine.¡±


    Kirin summoned a sword. It sounded amazing.


    It was distracting.


    ¡°Put that away,¡± someone hissed. The blade vanished in heavenly sound.


    So distracting


    Finally, Sayhas found it. It was hidden, from Sayhas¡¯ ears; he almost missed it. What could block Soul Sound like that? Sayhas could worry about that later. He had found a grouping of glows with the same lustre as Taed. Maybe a little duller. But what Sayhas was really looking for was the glow in the centre. This glow resembled Mizu¡¯s.


    Sayhas felt a grin spread across his face. Found you Bandit.


    ¡°Are we going back for them?¡± Dismas asked, ¡°Or¡­ you have a Ciyrox receiver for Mizu, don¡¯t you? You¡¯ll just use that then. But¡ªnot that I mean to doubt you of course¡ªwon¡¯t it be hard to give them direct instructions through the forest?¡±


    Covertly, Sayhas eyed Dismas as he ranted. Never change kid, you¡¯re adorable. Sayhas was once a captain in a mercenary corps and a very young Dismas part of the same corp. Unfortunately, Sayhas was not in much contact with Dismas as the difference in rank was too great. Though Dismas did serve as an eternal source of amusement. He always rambled on when he was nervous, it seems Dismas hasn¡¯t gotten rid of that quirk yet.


    Both Maaier Speal fell into Sayhas¡¯ outstretched palms and he looked up at Dismas. ¡°We¡¯ve got someone to rescue, don¡¯t we?¡±


    ¡°Wait, what?¡±


    ¡°Alright get close people, here¡¯s the plan.¡±


    . . .


    ¡°You¡¯re crazy.¡± Taed, who, refreshing, had no filter, accused. ¡°Mizukana¡¯s going to kill you for this.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s why you¡¯re not going to tell her.¡±


    ¡°Trust him Taed, he knows what he¡¯s doing,¡¯ Dismas said.


    ¡°I trust him,¡± Taed summoned a spear, ¡°still think he¡¯s crazy.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re all okay with the plan then?¡± Sayhas asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m down as long as it brings Lucia back,¡± Kirin said.


    ¡°Perfect, wait for my signal.¡±


    Ethereal scythes fanned out of Maaier Speal as he walked towards Lucia¡¯s glow. He wouldn¡¯t use it''s Attunement Sayhas needed to save his strength. He merged the blades, stacking onto Maaier Speal, making them overlap like a cake.


    Sayhas clamped Maaier Speal between his knees and awkwardly hopped forward. He summoned and unnamed blue-green scythe. Sayhas took a deep breath, cracking his neck and back. If I die, at least two people will be sad. Another two will be pretty pissed. I better not die.


    Sayhas let out a giggle. Just the prospect of getting a chance to kill Bandit made him feel all giddy inside. He slashed the newly summoned scythe, letting out an ocean-like ripple of blades. Immediately, Sayhas Dismantled it into Soulthirst.


    The Reaper was coming out tonight.


    Sayhas lurched forwards, propelling himself out of the thicket with Maaier Speal. Dozens of shocked faces greeted him as he landed. He whipped Maaier Speal around, slitting throats with ethereal blades. Surprisingly, the noobs reacted rather fast. Projectiles of anything that can be thought of raced towards Sayhas. He stabbed Maaier Speal into the floor and grabbed Soulthirst with both hands.


    ¡°Yum,¡± the scythe said as it drank the projectiles. ¡°Is that it? Do the other one then.¡±


    ¡°Not yet.¡±


    Sayhas hooked Soulthirst to a specially designed clasp on his back and pulled Maaier Speal from the ground. It had lost its blades due to being apart from Sayhas but he didn¡¯t need it anymore. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°Could you all please move out of the way? I¡¯m here to save the girl.¡±


    Most of them crowded in front of Lucia¡¯s cage, weapons pointed towards Sayhas. AS if that meant anything at all. He smirked and listened. From behind, a ripple of blades shot out.


    ¡°Scatter!¡± someone shouted.


    The group messily tumbled away, stumbling over themselves. Some managed to avoid the blades but most weren''t so lucky. On the floor, trampled by their colleagues, the unlucky ones were sliced into tiny strips. Suddenly, the ripple vanished, dissipating into smoky tendrils. A shield-bearer.


    Dressed in grey armour, a big man was holding a blue shield, He lifted the shield from the floor. Behind him, Sayhas couldn¡¯t see, he could hear to other people. They too were stronger than the rest.


    Better trained? Finally.


    Sayhas attached an ethereal scythe to the shield-bearer and pulled. Hard. The big man stumbled forwards. Sayhas threw a few more scythes on his armour, dragging the shieldbearer across the air. He reacted quickly, forming a bubble of protective Discord. Smart, using my pulling against me. Sayhas dug to ethereal scythes into the ground and blocked the shieldbearers counterattack with Maaierspeal. The connections to the ground strain but held.


    Surprised at Sayhas¡¯ resilience, the shield-bearer awkwardly danced back. Sayhas could hear the imperfections in his barrier now. He was good at that now, thanks to his sparring with Oldum.


    Sayhas ducked under a blade that would have connected with his head. And turned to face the attacker. The third reasonably competent warrior attacked, smashing what seemed to be a mace into his back. Sayhas had heard it coming and maneuvered Soulthirst¡ªwhich was clasped into his back¡ªto block it.


    Cinders, that hurt. Sayahs prodded Soulthirst with a thin thread of Discord.


    ¡°I thought you¡¯d never ask.¡±


    Elemental orbs rapidly circled Sayhas, creating the image of hula-hoops at weird angles. Colourful beams shot out, razing all three of the attackers. He slashed at the swordsman¡¯s legs, impaling his chest with three ethereal scythes. Then, he brought the blade up and slashed downwards. Simultaneously, he had summoned a white scythe. From that new scythes tip, multiple lightning bolts slithered out and crawled towards the mace-wielder.


    His downwards slash had splattered blood onto Sayahs¡¯ duster.


    Chains be blessed, this is new.


    He heard a body from behind fall to the floor. One left. Sayahs tugged on the two scythes he used earlier to stabilize himself against the shieldbearer. They broke through the weak point at the back of the protective bubble. The big man fell.


    Sayhas dismissed the white scythe and Maaier Speal.


    ¡°I held back this time. Are you proud of me?¡± Soulthirst chimed in a sing-song fashion as Sayhas walked towards the cage. ¡°Look, almost half the orbs are left.¡±


    ¡°Good job.¡± Soulthirst hummed pleasantly at that. ¡°Now use the rest.¡±


    ¡°On what?¡±


    ¡°Anything still moving.¡±


    Sayhas summoned a red scythe and sliced open the cage doors, melting through whatever it touched. Lucia stumbled up to her feet, eyes wide. Oil and grime were lathered over her typically ghostly pale skin. She collapsed onto him.


    ¡°Sayhas!¡± Lucia cried. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. I didn¡¯t mean to get captured. I¡¯m not a liability to the team, I promi¡ª¡±


    ¡°Shhh,¡± Sayhas soothed, helping her stand.


    She hugged him, ¡°Thank you,¡± she said between sobs. She pulled away, wiping tears from her eyes, ¡°where¡¯s Kirin? He didn¡¯t do anything stupid did he?¡±


    ¡°Almost. He¡¯s here, just beyond the trees.¡± Sayhas paused, listening. Soulthirst was done committing mass murder and instead, was humming to itself, satisfied. He unclasped Soulthirst. ¡°Can you fight?¡±


    ¡°Duh,¡± the scythe said.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Lucia said, her Discord quavered.


    Lying are we?


    He sent Discord into his silver bracelet, Weaving thin threads of lightning around his hand. He pushed Lucia in the chest, sending the threads into her. ¡°Sorry kid, no lunarwing green.¡± He gently set her down, placing her back in the cage as her body went limp. He reached down and checked her pulse. Please be alive, Hysiedies isn¡¯t here to save you. Thankfully she was fine.


    Sayhas got up and walked deeper into the camp, passing by empty tents; former homes of the ones he¡¯d just slaughtered. He didn¡¯t have to walk far.


    ¡°Hello, Bandit.¡±


    Bandit was a tall man, dressed in black, nobleman finery with a glass of red¡ªeither blood or wine. He had long, black hair with a slight purple varnish, similar to Lucia. All this brought focus to his pale face, the only thing readily visible under the shelter of the night. When Bandit stole something, all anyone ever saw was his face. That¡¯s what they remembered, and Bandit liked it that way.


    ¡°Hello, Reaper.¡± Bandit downed the glass and grinned at Sayhas, showing red-stained, perfect teeth. ¡°What brings you here?¡±


    ¡°I''ve come to collect my dues.¡± Sayhas listened at his Discord but could glean nothing useful. Bandit had learned a long time ago how to control his Discord. After last time, he had too.


    ¡°I don¡¯t remember owing you anything,¡± Bandit said, scratching his head.¡±


    ¡°We parted ways before I could tell you.¡±


    ¡°Hmm? Oh really. Well, please enlighten me.¡± Bandit rested his hand on a blade sheathed by his side and smirked knowingly.


    Sayhas summoned Maaier Speal, making sure to exaggerate the light and sound it emanated as it coagulated from nothing. ¡°Not much really.¡± Ethereal blades sprung out of Maaier Speal, blossoming behind Sayhas like a thornbush but more elegant. ¡°I¡¯ve come to take your life.¡±


    ¡°Oh no. that¡¯s not for sale.¡± Bandit snapped his fingers and seven others appeared. Sayhas recognized them as the reasonably strong glows he¡¯d seen earlier.


    In response and without cue from  Sayhas, the three stowaways dashed out of the trees and stood in front of Sayhas, weapons in hand. Dismas looked at Sayhas, question in his eyes, careful not to completely turn away from Bandit.


    ¡°Who are these cuties?¡± Bandit exclaimed.


    ¡°Plan  C,¡± Sayhas muttered, ¡°Plan C.¡±


    ¡°I sure hope they can fight¡­¡± Bandit mused, ¡°whatever, let¡¯s begin. Eshkel, Noham, Cayton. Deal with the children.


    But before Bandit¡¯s men could move, Sayhas¡¯ group smashed into the other four, attacking in a vicious frenzy. They disappeared into the forest.


    ¡°Nevermind,¡± Bandit said, ¡°deal with him.¡±


    The three started towards Sayhas, blades raised and poised to strike. Sayhas looked at them and held each of their eyes. They shivered and shifted backwards. Sayhas read there Discord.¡± Impressive. They''re good enough to tell that they are completely outclassed, Sayhas thought


    A red blade impaled one of the three, ¡°Oh Cayton, don¡¯t look at me like that. You knew full well what would happen if you disobeyed me.¡± Bandit twisted the blade, digging around Cayton¡¯s chest. ¡°Noham, Eshkel.¡± Bandit pointed at Sayahs with a red blade. Their eyes darted between Sayhas and Bandit.


    ¡°You need motivation?¡± Bandit¡¯s sword began to glow, sending off streams of Discord that buried itself into Eshkel and Noham. Bloodlust filled them.


    They ran at Sayhas, blades held high like they were actors in a terrible play. Although they looked silly, Sayhas knew that the strength they boasted, along with Bandits blade, was nothing to scoff at. Sayhas slit their throats simultaneously with ethereal blades and sank another deep into their hearts.


    ¡°Cinders,¡± Bandit swore lightheartedly as if he had just lost two pitches. ¡°As much as I¡¯d love to throw bodies at you for the entire night, I¡¯ve got places to be tomorrow.¡±


    Without any more preamble, Bandit threw his blade. It twisted in the air, red metal catching the Selphis¡¯ light. Sayhas Weaved a barrier of lighting around his arms, creating a mesh layer that would offer a small degree of protection. He smacked the flat of the blade with his reinforced arm and unclasped Soulthirst while blocking several more projectiles with Maaier Speal.


    ¡°How long can you keep that up?¡±


    Bandit began to throw with even more vigour. His blades blocked out the surroundings and for one serene moment, all that could be heard was the gentle clang of metal clashing. But Sayhas couldn¡¯t listen to the beautiful melody forever. He had to get back before Mizu got suspicious.


    The numerous scythes of Maaier Speal converged onto Bandit.


    Death by impaling? A far, far better death than Bandit deserved.


    Death by tiny surface cuts that slowly gorged deeper and deeper until you died from blood loss? That was more like it.

 A Deal

    Death by tiny surface cuts that slowly gorged deeper and deeper until you died from blood loss? That was more like it.


    Ethereal scythes fanned outwards, arcing towards Bandit. Instead of dodging backwards, Bandit dashed forwards, a long purple blade in hand, ringing a strident melody. Dangerous Sayhas thought. A moment before the scythes hit the spot where Bandit was, Sayhas pulled it into Bandit¡¯s backside. But Bandit must have heard what Sayhas did.


    He jumped up and a shield materialized on his back. Bandit tucked his knees in and slouched his back, catching the scythes with the shield. One of them managed to slash his arm but it couldn¡¯t draw blood. Bandit had a Discord mesh weaving too; it was of the same make as Sayhas¡¯. After all, they learned it from the same person. Bandit rode the pull of Maaier Speal, closing the distance in an instant. Cinders.


    Sayhas flung himself to the side, bringing his scythes between him and Bandit. In the brief respite, he checked himself for wounds. There was a nick by his hip where a dagger probably slipped past his defence. Then, he heard cracking in front of him, as the ambient Discord was ripped apart. Right after, a purple-black oval coagulated from the torn Discord. The edges were a sinister purple web, erratic branches growing outwards, fading as they got farther away from the origin. Its center consisted of a murky, morphing black. It blocked his hearing. Straining, Sayhas managed to hear something. A distinct sound.


    A purple blade stabbed through the portal as Sayhas raised his arm in defence. He pooled the Discord that powered his defensive lightning mesh to his arms, barely raising the Discord density to a point it could block the blade. Sayhas pushed into the flat of the blade into the dirt and stabbed the back end of Maaier Speal into Bandit. The tip of the scythe was thinned into a deadly spike that clung onto flesh like an arrowhead.


    Bandit staggered and cough out blood. He managed to create a portal to distance himself before Sayhas could attack again. Maaier Speal was still embedded into Bandit¡¯s gut. Sayhas took out Soulthirst and a white scythe. ¡°Bados¡¯ beard, that hurt.¡± Bandit laughed and raised his red blade. A haze of Discord spread out like an invisible miasma. It sank into the corpses.


    Sayhas touched Maaier Speal with his Soul Sound and remotely activated it. That was bound to surprise Bandit. As far as Sayhas knew, no one else in the world could do that; he had devised that technique himself. Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t wait to see how Bandit reacted.


    The dead men rose from their slumber. They sounded different, powerful, threatening even. A beam of lightning travelled for the white scythe, melting through the undead mass like the wrath of the sun. He¡¯s killed them all once, he could do it again. This time, he¡¯d kill them so thoroughly that there was nothing left to revive.


    As he melted one after another, a slight feeling of nausea filled his stomach, but it was manageable for now. Sayhas shook his head to throw away the sweat collecting by his nose. As he did so he noticed that a haze would rise from the soldiers he¡¯d killed. Sayhas felt a grin smear itself across his face. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°Drink?¡± Soulthirst asked, ¡°I¡¯m thirsty.¡±


    Still shooting out the beam of lightning, Sayhas fell into Partial Resonance with Soulthirst. This state required precise control of Discord and allowed Sayhas to be less fatigued when using it.


    The greedy scythe hummed and sucked in the haze, pulling it in like gravity. Red orbs flitted about. Even Sayhas wasn¡¯t free from Excalibur¡¯s influence. Stop it.


    ¡°Yum,¡± it replied dreamily.


    Sayhas rolled his eyes, the amount Soulthirst was draining was insignificant. He shot a few red orbs backwards. They were sliced apart. ¡°You took your time Bandit,¡± Sayhas mused, not turning back, still shooting the beam.


    ¡°What did you do with that flaming scythe.¡±


    Sayhas Dismantled the white scythe into Maaier Speal. ¡°This is a god aspect, it¡¯s special.¡±


    ¡°Stop using that scythe and I won¡¯t use Bloodlust.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not a good deal,¡± Sayhas retorted, putting his back to the thinned out the undead horde. A wall of scythes rose behind him acting like a wall.


    ¡°Corpses aren¡¯t the only thing I can control,¡± Bandit whispered. As he said that, the bushes and trees started to tremble. The grass latched onto his boots and even the air itself stilled.


    Cinders that''s scary. ¡°Deal,¡± Sayhas said.


    ¡°Promise.¡±


    ¡°You first.¡±


    Bandit chewed his lips, ¡°Fine. I promise to promise that I will forgo the usage of Bloodlust for the remainder of our current battle immediately after you promise that you will forgo the usage of the god aspect, said in however method you may.¡±


    Sayhas paused then started. But caught himself before making a scene. ¡°Clever,¡± he said slowly. ¡°I promise that I will not use Maaier Speal and any of its abilities until one of us is dead.¡±


    ¡°I promise that I will forgo the usage of Bloodlust for the remainder of our current battle.¡±


    ¡°Sealed.¡±


    Though not of his own volition, Maaier Speal, vanished into Soul Sound. Sayhas listened to himself and felt a void where his bond with Maaier Speal typically was. Peering deeper into his Discord, Sayhas could sense a faint connection with the scythe. He resisted the urge to touch the bond.


    ¡°Been a while since I did a restriction promise. Forgot how weird it feels.¡± Bandit said eyes closed. Bloodlust was gone too.


    Sayhas planted the tail-end of Soulthirst into the ground and waited. Idly, he fidgeted with a multicoloured Soul in his pocket and replenished the Discord powering his protective Weaving. Finally, Bandit opened his eyes.


    ¡°The old Reaper would have killed me just now.¡±


    ¡°The old Reaper would have killed you when you were making that first promise.¡±


    ¡°Oldum¡¯s a terrible influence on you.¡± Bandit drew his purple blade. ¡°You¡¯re still with him right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but it¡¯s not really him. It was Eve¡¯s fault.¡±


    ¡°Ahh, Eve. Blasted woman.¡±


    Enough small talk.


    ¡°Finally, I¡¯m hungry.¡±

 Traveller

    Sayhas slashed downwards before Bandit could say something else. He bent down following the swing and twisted Soulthirst in his hands to make the blade arc over his back. Something smashed into the blade. Sayhas¡¯ awkward angle made it impossible to fully defend against the blow, but he didn¡¯t need to.


    A dense ball of red haze shot out of Soulthirst, pushing Bandit back. The pressure on Soulthirst went away. Bandit stumbled, arms flailing by his sides. Sayhas stabbed forwards and Dismantled the scythe into a spear. Suddenly, a purple portal opened up. The spear fell into the portal with no resistance. Sayhas'' momentum pushed himself forwards, into the portal.


    He heard a change in the portals Discord and he pulled back. The portal closed, snapping his spear which was still halfway inside. A second too late and that''d be his head.


    ¡°Forgot how fast you were,¡± Bandit grunted while slouching over himself.


    ¡°Not fast enough," Sayhas replied, heaving.


    He summoned Soulthirst again. After being Dismissed, it had lost all its charges. He swung at Bandit¡¯s face. A portal snapped open, transporting the blade elsewhere. Bandit grinned. Sayhas felt the portal begin to close on Soulthirst. Eat. The edges of the portal shattered, swallowed into Soulthirst¡¯s insatiable void


    Soulthirst reformed as the portal shattered into light. The tip of its blade coagulated a mere hand away from Bandit. Bandit caught the scythe with his purple blade. He furrowed his eyebrows, his grin quickly vanishing. Sayhas pressed down with Soulthirst as a portal opened up behind. Right behind his head. Sayhas ducked and rolled left, dropping Soulthirst and summoning it back.


    He blasted Bandit with a stream of lighting from his bracelet. Bandit opened another portal behind Sayhas, delivering the stream back towards him.


    Soulthirst ate it, humming appreciatively.


    Portals opened around Sayahs. Cinders. He jumped back right as the ground was showered with blades. Soulthirst ate the portals in a big gulp. Blades above, Sayhas swore, literally. Bandit raised his free hand and shot out five whips of flame. They snapped in the air, flickering against Selphis¡¯ light.


    What¡¯s he going for? He knows that I can just eat it.


    ¡°Who cares, let me eat.¡±


    Behind the whips, Bandit threw a row of black projectiles. Tiny portals opened up underneath the blades he had shot earlier.


    He¡¯s trying to overwhelm me.


    Sayhas stabbed Soulthirst into the ground and fell into Partial Resonance. There was a huge popping as Soulthirst ate everything. The whips were gone. The portals vanished, shearing off the tips of blades; they fell harmlessly to the ground. It wasn¡¯t just the Weavings that Soulthirst affected.


    Everything fell towards Soulthirst: The trees, the air, even Sayhas, nothing was free from the greedy scythes hunger.


    Threat nullified. Wait. The projectiles were still there. They aren¡¯t Weavings. Curious, Sayhas couldn¡¯t hear them. Sayhas switched Soulthirst between his hands as summoned a large blue-tinted glass shield. The projectiles¡ªdaggers¡ªhit the shield, digging into it. Sayhas tossed the shield away, dismissing it.


    He swung Soulthirst in the air at Bandit''s general direction. The scythe spat all its charges at Bandit. The beams took arcing trajectories so Bandit couldn¡¯t just block it all at once.


    Multiple small portals appeared around Bandit, swallowing the beams. ¡°Enough.¡± A large portal appeared behind Bandit, parallel to the ground. Innumerable brown sacks fell out. Bandit held the purple blade in front of his face, close enough to kiss the flat of it. He whispered something to it. ¡°Tell your scythe to eat this, Reaper," Bandit said, Discord rising like the tide.


    A portal opened beneath Sayhas, he jumped back. Suddenly, a dome of human-sized portals surrounded Sayhas. There were small gaps, the size of fists between the portals. Through the gaps, Sayhas could barely see Bandit. The dome was so large that Sayhas could lie down¡ªhead to toe¡ªfive times and just barely touch both ends.


    Sayhas fell into Partial Resonance again, preparing to eat the portals all at once. Then, things started to shoot out of the portal. Not aspects, not arrows, not anything sharp. But rocks. Big rocks that could knock Sayhas out like a vial of lunarwing green.


    Frantically, Sayhas batted the rocks away with Soulthirst. The scythes metal wouldn¡¯t be fazed by the rocks. There was an easy fix though. Sayhas summoned the large glass shield and wrapped it around his body. The rocks bounced off harmlessly.


    Perfect. Sayhas prepared to eat the portals. A black spear shot through the shield, shattering it like a hammer through ice cubes. "Cinders." Sayhas smacked it to the side with Soulthirst. He had no shield that could block something of that magnitude and be big enough to cover his entire body.


    Suddenly, brown stuff clouded his vision. Sand? Another spear popped through the portal, Sayhas barely dodged it. It was an aspect, so Sayhas could hear it, but the portals made a lot of ambient sound. It was incredibly difficult to hear things when surrounded by the portals.


    Despite his poor vision, Sayhas was still able to block most of the rocks with Soulthirst. Until another pouch exploded on his scythe. He started coughing and more rocks began to hit him. He managed to protect his neck and head, but he wasn¡¯t sure how long he¡¯d last. Sayhas summoned his white scythe and shot out a shockwave of lighting the moment it was completely formed. Bolts streaked out of its blade on every angle. Bandit was throwing the rocks they had to be connected.


    Sayhas was wrong.


    The lightning bolts shot back towards him. Soulthirst ate it and spat it out, through a crack in the portals, in a direction that was hopefully near Bandit. Without even paying attention, Sayhas knew that it would either miss or be blocked. Bandit wasn¡¯t sloppy enough to be caught by something like that.


    Sayhas had to something. Tentatively, he felt at the faint bond between him and Maaier Speal. But he couldn¡¯t, he had a promise. And breaking it would be among the worst ideas he could have.


    Sayhas¡¯ grip tightened on the white scythe


    Time for number two I guess.


    He reached for the white scythes Discord and brought his own closer. For a moment, Sayahs felt disconnected from his body. As the two Discords drew closer, raucous melodies rang in Sayhas¡¯ ears. Finally, they reached a point where the pain disappeared. Sayhas forced more Discord into it and the melody grew stronger, gentler, and so much more beautiful.


    Then, it grew silent, and something happened. In the corner of Sayhas¡¯ mind; a distant alcove he didn¡¯t know he had. Something settled in like it was always meant to be there.


    A burst of lightning shot out of the white scythe, in every direction. Oddly enough, none of it was shot back through the portals. Each bolt had managed to filter through the small crack between them. Lucky.Stolen story; please report.


    Hello my second Resonance, Sayhas thought inwardly.


    ¡°Greetings. My name is Traveller. Where are we going today?¡±


    That was a welcome change to Soulthirst. Stories said that Resonances had very distinct personalities and were fueled by some carnal desire for chaos. That¡¯s why those with too many Resonances go crazy,


    ¡°To kill I hope,¡± Traveller said.


    Ah, there''s the chaos.


    ¡°I can hear you, you know. I¡¯m not chaotic. I¡¯m very predictable. I was made for <em style="font-size: 1.125rem; letter-spacing: 0px">Traveller hummed gleefully. ¡°Thank the King that I was made to kill.¡±


    I¡¯ve never heard an Aspect swear before.


    ¡°You haven''t had that big of a sample size. Trust me, we learn. Now shall we get on with the bloody business? I am here for a reason.¡±


    Scythes technically aren¡¯t made for killi¡ª


    ¡°So what, you¡¯re going to put me in the ground and start tilling? Please don¡¯t jest.¡±


    You didn¡¯t strike me as being so...difficult.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never stricken you and you should hope I never have to. That being said, by difficult<em style="font-size: 1.125rem; letter-spacing: 0px">¡± An urge to slaughter everything filled his head. Sayahs pushed those thoughts away.


    ¡°Hi, I¡¯m Soulthirst, do you have anything to drink?¡±


    Sayhas tuned them out. A difficult task since they were conversing inside his head. He looked around and noticed that there was a lighting barrier surrounding him. The barrier flung rocks away.


    ¡°I hate doing that, it''s stagnant.¡± Traveller chimed in.


    Sayhas tugged on the barriers with a mental prod through Traveller and it unravelled. He continued deflecting the rocks and pouches with Soulthirst. The area around Traveller trembled with Discord. With a thought, Sayahs could form sparks. But Traveller¡¯s influence didn¡¯t stop there. It continued upwards, past the portals, towards the treetops in the distance. He focused a spot high above Bandit. Sparks flared to life, rubbing against each other. They grew larger, feasting on each other.


    ¡°Clever,¡± Traveller remarked, sounding almost impressed.


    Jagged, white, bolts of lightning crashed down onto Bandit


    There was no evidence of it landing though. When the light cleared from his eyes, Sayhas could see a large portal above Bandit


    ¡°Now, think. I¡¯m called Traveller for a reason.¡±


    Sayhas recreated the lighting barrier. Traveller groaned. He tugged on the edges and broke it. The barrier fell apart into shards. Then, he pushed outwards with Traveller, squeezing out even more Discord to push the shards. The result was an expanding barrier that pushed all the rocks away. For a moment, the dome was devoid of projectiles; the expanding barrier pushed them all back. He called more lighting above Bandit and threw Soulthirst towards him at the same time.


    Soulthirst ate one of the portals¡ªjust as the rocks began to shoot through the portals again¡ªthat made the dome and continued on its path. Sayhas called on more lightning near Bandit, this time from all angles. Bandit surrounded himself with portals the length of his forearm.


    Soulthirst hit one of the portals, eating it. There was now a chink in Bandits defence. Lighting crashed onto Bandit. Sayhas released Resonance. He¡¯d prefer to be the sole inhabitant of his brain.


    Bandit flew backwards, landing hard into the dirt. Unfortunately, he was still alive. Sayhas summoned Soulthirst and since Bandit was blasted way, there was no one to shoot things through the portals. He fell into Partial Resonance and ate the portals. He ran towards Bandit and kicked him in the chin as he tried to get up.


    Bandit stabbed his blade into the floor as a crutch. A portal opened beneath the blade. Sayhas sidestepped as the blade flew past his neck from a portal the appeared behind Sayhas. He shot a bolt of lightning through the portal with Traveller¡ªlightning could only form on the tip while Sayhas was in Attunement. The bolt slammed into Bandit¡¯s chest.


    He fell to his knees


    Another portal opened up and Sayhas dodged the blade again. He shot a bolt again. Right as he did so, a portal opened up and Sayhas¡¯ own lighting pierced his right thigh. Sayhas fell to the ground. A large portal opened in front of Sayhas. He didn¡¯t take any chances and ate it with Soulthirst.


    Bandit stabbed Sayhas in the shoulder. Sayahs felt his eyes widen. He couldn¡¯t hear the blade. The portal was too loud, it distracted him. No.


    The daggers weren''t aspects. They were real. The portal was just a distraction. Another dagger stabbed forward from Bandit¡¯s other hand. This time, there was no way Bandit would miss. Sayhas caught the dagger with his hand, letting it stab through his palm. His teeth clenched from the pain. This was nothing.


    Sayhas grabbed Bandit¡¯s arm and let out waves of lighting from his bracelet. This was similar to what he did to Falem and Lucia but it had about ten times is the Discord. The current back flowed into Sayhas.


    Bandit didn¡¯t faint.


    Sayhas reached inward and fell into Resonance with Traveller.


    ¡°You could have done that a lot better.¡±


    He ignored it, calling lighting from above. At the same time, Sayhas pushed lighting through his bracelet; the metal grew unbearably hot. He hoped that his bracelet would somehow counteract and balance Traveller. Otherwise, they¡¯d both die.


    The lighting struck with blinding white. Sayhas¡¯ entire arm began to burn. He pushed harder with the bracelet until it broke, cracking horizontally and shattering. Sayhas fell backwards blasted away and landed roughly on his behind. For a moment, he was sure that he died.


    Sayhas slowly sat up, reaching for his thighs to pull himself to a more stable position. That had to be the end


    It wasn''t, Bandit was still alive. Bandit was lying facedown on the ground, blooding pooling under him. He tried to push himself up but his arms betrayed him. He fell back down, coughing out blood. ¡°You monster,¡± he groaned, twisting his head to look at Sayhas. His pale skin was dripping with blood. His purple hair dyed a crispy black. Mizu would have complained about the smell. ¡°I thought it was just your bracelet. Pretty sure I¡ª¡± Bandit fell into a coughing fit. ¡°¡ªI balanced it out. But the lightning came,¡± he coughed again. ¡°You bastard didn¡¯t think you¡¯d have the guts.¡±


    Sayhas didn¡¯t reply. Bandit twisted as if trying to wriggle his way to a sitting position. Sayhas picked up a dagger, one that and it had used. Sure enough, it was a normal one. Not a trace of Discord in it.


    "That''s the chink in your armour, remember that." Bandit tried to get up again. Sayhas prepared to strike with the dagger. ¡°Don¡¯t bother <em style="font-size: 1.125rem; letter-spacing: 0px">, my organs are melted. No thanks to you.¡± He fell back down, cursed and sighed. Sayhas saw tears in his eyes; he was probably hallucinating. The lighting had messed up his vision. Probably not permanently, but it was damn inconvenient. ¡°You think we could have been friends¡ª" he coughed out more blood. It was gooey this time. ¡°If circumstances had been different?¡± He tried to sit up again.


    ¡°Don¡¯t bother Kled. You¡¯ll shorten your life.¡± Sayhas felt at his Bandits Discord, it was barely there, i=unduklating fainty like a dead man''s heartbeat.


    ¡°Don¡¯t have much of that left anyway.¡±


    ¡°We were friends. Circumstances just drove us away.¡± Sayhas relaxed a little bit and looked up at the stars. ¡°If one of us was just a little bit less prideful. If we¡ªno, if just one of us were more mature. Then maybe, maybe we¡¯d¡­ we¡¯d have made it.¡±


    ¡°All leads down to that one disagreement.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Sayhas shook his head bitterly.


    ¡°We didn''t even care about the argument. Do you remember what it was about?¡± Kled had given up on sitting and instead angled his face to the side to talk comfortably.


    Sayhas rubbed his forehead, ¡°Wasn¡¯t about that. Wasn¡¯t even about winning.¡±


    ¡°It was about proving each other wrong.¡±


    They sat in silence. Listening to the faint rustling of the wind as Selphis drifted past the horizon. In the distance, a herd of deer were running. He wondered if Bandit could hear them, Kled always liked wildlife. The night deepened when the moon left, Sayhas could barely see in front of himself now.


    Crap, this can''t be the end.

 One Down

    Crap, this can''t be the end.


    Sayhas took deep breaths. His wounds pulsed to the rhythm of his heart but the pain lessened.


    ¡°Why did you take Lucia, Kled,¡± Sayhas asked when he felt like his life wasn''t going to flicker out abruptly.


    He didn¡¯t respond. Did he bleed out? Was he dead? That would be a shame. The great Bandit. The Untouchable and the Unseen. Dead by blood loss. Sayhas made to get up. He hoped Dismas and the others were fine.


    Suddenly, Kled started to laugh. Blood vomited from his open mouth but the vile chuckles kept on coming. ¡°We were sent to find someone. Couldn¡¯t find him though. We stumbled upon your camp and I saw Lucia. Thought she was my daughter. We had the same skin and hair after all. Even our physique.¡±


    ¡°Kled, she¡¯d nineteen.¡±


    He laughed again. No blood came out. ¡°I found that out later. Didn''t you think that the guard was a little bit ill-equipped? Of course, nothing I could do against you. What a nasty little coincidence. But you must admit, our resemblance is striking.¡±


    Sayhas tossed his head back, laughing. He began to tear up.


    ¡°Cinders!¡± Bandit screamed, ¡°you dirty, coal-face, cur!¡±


    Something pulled him away as he looked down at Kled. His arm was cut by the elbow. The detached limb held Bloodlust in a death grip. Long purple hair. Lucia?


    ¡°You drugged me,¡± she accused.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t want you to get hurt.¡±


    The three boys stepped up beside Sayhas. They were bruised and battered but otherwise fine.


    ¡°You even let Kirin fight,¡± she gestured wildly at the boy who now featured a very black eye and more than on slash wound. ¡°I could¡¯ve helped. I¡¯m not a kid.¡±


    Sayhas opened his mouth to retort, but couldn¡¯t bring himself to. Lucia had just saved his life. He awkwardly closed it and turned to Kled. He was muttering to himself, clutching his detached limb. Kled pried Bloodlust from his detached hand and held it to his chest, whispering.


    ¡°Come back to me,¡± he whimpered, ¡°Don¡¯t leave. I¡¯m sorry. Don¡¯t leave me alone.¡± Kled cut his arm with the blade. ¡°Talk to me. Let me hear you. Please.¡±


    ¡°Who sent you Kled? What are you after.¡±


    Kled looked up and smiled wide showing his bloodstained teeth. ¡°Run Sayhas, get far away from Clive Alvera. He¡¯s not who you think.¡± Kled shrugged. ¡°Or don¡¯t. Die with him. I don¡¯t care.¡± He paused, ¡°I lost everything because of you. You pushed me to become who I am. I hope you¡¯re happy. I hope you smile when you cross my name off that damned list of yours.¡±


    Then, Bandit the Unseeable, Bandit the Untouchable, died.


    A plethora of weapons materialized around Bandit, clattering to the ground. Sayhas took Bloodlust and the purple blade. He found a nice-sounding spear and grabbed a scythe just because it was a scythe. Then, he reached in a pocket tucked under his ruined duster and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. A messy scrawl filled the sheet. Most were stricken through with a thick line. The paper used to be white, writing an elegant cursive. The paper had turned brown, one edge was burnt, while the other was torn off. The writing was mostly faded.


    At first, Sayhas had crossed-out names quickly. But it soon became more difficult. It¡¯s been three years since the last one. He traced his finger through the sheet¡­ Found it:


    Kill: Kled, The Bandit. Red blade, purple hair, ghostly skin. Dangerous.


    Sayhas struck through the line. Two more left, Sayhas thought. It wouldn¡¯t be long. He could practically taste it. The day where he could finally go home.


    It was close.


    But two more first.


    Sayhas reached into a pocket, in his duster. He frowned and studied it. It was a new duster, and in just a few days it was ruined. Burnt by lighting, slashed by swords and brush, and bloodied everywhere else. It was a nice one too. Sayhas sighed, he was back to having no nice clothes. Ignoring his wardrobe crisis, he slipped on a blue ring.


    Gritting his teeth, Sayhas pulled out the dagger in his shoulder. His arm seized up and trembled. He pushed Discord into the ring. Cool, soothing Discord flooded the wound. It was only a low-grade water soul so it wouldn¡¯t heal that fast, if at all. But it¡¯d tide the pain until he reached Hysiedies or Mizu.


    With the wound band-aid fixed, Sayhas tried to get up. He stumbled. His leg wound was still there. The water soul couldn¡¯t handle that. Dismas slipped under his arm and stabilized Sayhas. Together they stood and hobbled like a three-legged man. The others followed, whispering to each other. Sayhas didn¡¯t listen in.


    After a while, Sayhas spoke up, ¡°How did things go on your end?¡±


    Taed, smiled an evil glimmer filling his eye. You see, ¡°Kirin¡­¡±


    Taed eagerly spilled the beans on how Kirin jeopardized all of them. If it wasn¡¯t for Dismas¡¯ and Taed¡¯s Resonances they¡¯d probably have failed. They both have Resonances? Sayhas thought.


    How old was Taed? Twenty?


    Lucia¡¯s already nineteen¡­ they¡¯re not children anymore.


    Taed is twenty-five. Of course he has Resonance.


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t that bad,¡± Kirin protested, ¡°you¡¯re exaggerating.¡±


    ¡°Your fault, you don¡¯t even have Attunement.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t need it.¡± Dismas rolled his eyes at the statement. Kirin didn¡¯t notice and plowed on. ¡°I¡¯ll best people with my superior swordsmanship.¡± He grinned and mimed a slashing motion.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have that either,¡± Taed squeezed out between chuckles.


    At least there¡¯s still one kid left, I¡¯m not that old yet.


    Lucia shrugged, ¡°I can beat you most of the time. And both of us combined can¡¯t even compare to Taed.¡±


    Sayhas pried himself from Dismas¡¯ arms, ¡°Thank you, I¡¯ll be fine now.¡±


    He took the lead, hiding his limp as he rushed through the foliage. He didn¡¯t care about scratching his duster anymore; it was ruined beyond repair anyway. Sayhas turned his head to the side to address the group. ¡°Morning¡¯s coming soon. I don¡¯t want a soul-spliced wolf to find us. And I doubt our chances are good.¡±


    . . .


    The had just broken over the canopy when they arrived back to camp. Along the way, Sayhas had grabbed a colourful flower to assuage Mizu¡¯s wrath.


    ¡°You¡¯re back, with Lucia I see.¡±


    ¡°Hello priest,¡± Sayhas said. Hysiedies was atop a tree, his staff pointing straight up. The false priest almost looked like a statue.


    ¡°Wasn¡¯t it just suppose to be a scouting mission?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m saving my comebacks for when it matters.¡±


    ¡°Might as well take your victories while you can.¡± Sayhas held Hysiedies¡¯ eyes saying nothing as he walked under the branch he stood on. ¡°Kids these days,¡± Hysiedies muttered, ¡°no respect.¡±


    ¡°I heard you.¡±Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.


    ¡°I know,¡± Hysiedies shot back. ¡°Kirin, today is the Light day, day of Sindras, we have much to do.¡±


    ¡°Today, but I killed people.¡± Kirin¡¯s Discord churned.


    ¡°For a good cause. The god of light is benevolent and understanding of those with good intentions.¡±


    Not in the mood for religious dogma, Sayahs quickened his pace.


    Even before he broke out into the clearing, he could hear Mizu¡¯s Discord. She was waiting for him. Cinders.


    ¡°You¡¯re hurt,¡± Mizu said.


    ¡°It¡¯s... worse than it looks.¡± All the excuses that''s been simmering in his mind went up in smoke when he saw her bloodshot eyes. Had she slept a wink? He attempted a grin. It was a weak one. So bad it almost made Mizu laugh. Almost.


    ¡°You¡¯re a terrible liar.¡±


    She rushed up to Sayhas and patted him down. Off to the side, Oldum stood eyeing the scene, eyes impassive. Though Sayhas was sure a small amused grin had crept into the big man''s face.


    ¡°How¡¯s Falem, I ho¡ª¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t even try that with me.¡± Mizu clicked her tongue. ¡°What happened.¡±


    Sayhas hesitated. Bad move.


    Mizu¡¯s face darkened to a glower, ¡°My puppet of you burned so hot that it could set wood on fire instantly. I promised not to let you die. I will not fail because of your impulses.¡± Her face softened, but her Discord raged on like a storm in the Azealish. She was good enough to prevent her Discord from leaking like so, even on a terrible day. It was probably on purpose. ¡°Either you tell me, or I get one of the others to tell me.¡± She smiled, in her assasiny sort of way.


    ¡°Aww, this is adorable? I expected to find a hardened, cast-off-the-weak sort of group. But instead, I find a close-knit family,¡± a sing-song but raspy voice said.


    The owner of the voice came from a man wrapped in black bandages. He had a top hat with a purple band and a white cane.


    A shield materialized into Oldum''s hand, he stepped in front of Sayhas and Mizu. Where was the priest at? Sayhas couldn¡¯t see them.


    Hysiedies knew what he was doing, the kids¡ªhe always called them that¡ªwould be safe. Hopefully.


    ¡°And who might you be?¡± Clive asked, chains slithering down his wrist.


    ¡°You heard him, who are you?¡± Mizu asked.


    ¡°Cinders,¡± Sayhas spat out. They followed him back. He should have been more careful. He had led them straight to his camp. Sayhas was sloppy, complacent after Kleds death. ¡°Sorry guys, my fault.¡± He struggled out of Mizu¡¯s arms, falling forwards. ¡°Let¡¯s end them.¡± Maaier Speal fell into his hands.


    The man¡¯s eyes flicked onto him, then darted away as if he was not worth the trouble. ¡°Clive Alvera,¡± he said instead. ¡°You exist. I didn¡¯t think so but you really exist. You¡¯re still alive.¡±


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Clive asked again. Discord filled Clive''s chains. He flicked them against the ground, orange sparks flew out followed by a loud crack.


    Suddenly, Sayhas fell backwards, Mizu caught him. Did she kick him? ¡°Go to sleep.¡± She poured a green liquid down his throat.


    His vision swam.


    He felt his knees hit the ground. Sayhas clawed madly in front of him but found to purchase. Someone braced him from behind.


    Mizu¡¯s face filled his vision. His eyes focused on her. She said something. Sayhas couldn¡¯t hear it.


    That was odd.


    His eyes closed. And they didn''t open for a very long time.


    . . .


    His head was on fire when he awoke. Burning pain flared across his scalp. When the panic faded, Sayhas opened his eyes. Tears welled up as he blinked in the light. His shoulder and leg were constricted by something. Mizu had drugged him.


    It was her wagon. Sayhas recognized the wood of the roof and the cute, circular window at the side. Mizu¡¯s wagon always had an exotic scent. Like perfume but it was never the same, always changing. It was never normal. Sayhas wasn¡¯t completely sure whether or not it was safe either.


    He also heard a slight clinking of glass and the rumbling of the wagon wheels as it rolled over uneven terrain. Sayhas tried to sit up but his muscles betrayed him. They were aching. With difficulty, he curled his fingers, squeezing them into fists. Slowly, he worked his way up his arms as his muscles remember how to move. His arm creaked upwards, it was like moving underwater.


    Somehow, he managed to get up. The bed creaked loudly as he shifted his weight. Sayhas threw off the covers.


    ¡°You¡¯re awake.¡± Mizu checked the clock above the door. ¡°Already?¡±


    ¡°How long has it been? How are the kids?¡± What had happened? He couldn¡¯t remember. Sayhas had gone to killed Kled and came back to camp, saving Lucia.


    ¡°Half a day. A little less. Don¡¯t worry, we took care of them, nothing bad except a gash on Kirin¡¯s arms. Probably won¡¯t get infected. But it was child''s play compared to you.¡± She rubbed her eyes and yawned.


    ¡°That long?¡± Sayhas rubbed his eyes. His arm tensed in protest.


    ¡°I gave you a large dose of green. And pain sedatives. You¡¯ve been out for a relatively short time.¡±


    He was forgetting something. What happened when he got back. Why was he drugged in the first place? Sayhas sighed, he couldn¡¯t remember.


    ¡°What happened to scouting?¡± She asked it so innocently that Sayhas was caught off guard. How much did she know?


    ¡°Things got out of hand. But we got Lucia, everything''s fine.¡±


    Something changed in Mizu¡¯s Discord but it quickly reset. Cinders. He said something wrong. Studying Mizu¡¯s face, she seemed tense. What happened?


    ¡°How does Kled fit into this?¡±


    ¡°You looked at my list,¡± Sayhas accused.


    ¡°Yes, don¡¯t change the subject.¡±


    Sayhas felt like a child being verbally slapped by parents. ¡°Yes, I dealt with him. He was the leader. Everything''s fine.¡±


    She cocked her eyebrows. ¡°You knew he was there.¡±


    Not a question, a statement of fact.


    Sayhas said nothing.


    She pulled a stool and sat down by the bed, keeping her eyes fixed in Sayhas the entire time. Then, she waited, idly fidgeting with her hair. There was no point in hiding anything from her. She¡¯d figure it out eventually.


    ¡°Falem said that a man with a red blade took over his nightmares. I knew it was Kled from then. He said something as he died. Told me that Clive is not as he seems.¡±


    Something flickered in her Discord again. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you take me with you?¡±


    Sayhas flinched. That was not what he expected.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to yell at you. I mean, this just means you have to let me go to Jyn.¡±


    ¡°I thought you wouldn¡¯t let me,¡± Sayhas explained, ¡°I¡ª¡±


    ¡°I was with you when you made that list. I know that¡¯s the only thing stopping you from finding real happiness. Why would I impede you.¡¯


    Sayhas was at a loss for words. Mizu was¡­ she was such a good person¡ªfriend. Sayhas didn¡¯t deserve her. He looked at Mizu and felt ashamed of himself and his actions the day before. ¡°Thank you, truly.¡±


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m not an asshole.¡±


    It was a jab at him, lighthearted but also not. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Sayhas said quietly.


    ¡°And the heavens turned over,¡± she muttered.


    Sayhas narrowed his eyes, ¡°It was unfair of me to berate you. I¡¯ve been hunting down my enemies for years and you¡¯ve followed me. You should be given the same luxury.¡± Sayhas squeezed Mizu¡¯s hand and smiled, ¡°we¡¯re going to Jyn. We¡¯re giving you your country.¡±


    ¡°Perfect, you¡¯re one step closer to being a good person. Now if you could just treat children better.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°That was a nice talk, we should have those more often.¡±


    ¡°Where you passive-aggressively yell at me?¡±


    She laughed, then cocked her head and waited.


    Suddenly, Sayhas remembered. ¡°What to the man?¡±


    Her eyes flickered and she frowned. Mizu got up and pulled out a notebook from a shelf above the bed. She dropped in on a table and hastily scrawled something. Muttering something about side effects.


    ¡°It was just him, he didn''t bring an army as you suspected. With Dismas and Taed injured, I was the only one who could chase him. Clive sent Oldum too,  but we both know that he can¡¯t maneuver that well. The man was good, he almost lost me a few times.¡± Mizu shuddered.


    ¡°When I caught him, he fought back like possessed by a demon. And when he was at his last breaths. He said, ¡®Princess Niya will hunt you down.¡¯ I don¡¯t know who Princess Niya is to Clive but I recognize the name too.¡± Mizu swallowed. ¡°When Jyn was captured by the imposters, they mentioned someone called the future queen. They said that they were preparing the country for her arrival.¡±


    Cinders, what''s happening, I can''t make sense of anything. Is this related to Kled? And how does Clive fit into this mess?


    "The Future Queen Niya, that''s who the look-alike said she was taking the throne for." Her Discord frothed and bubbled. "And why is Clive in the center of this madness? He''s keeping something from us."


    "We all have secrets," Sayhas said. He wasn''t going to suspect Clive. He couldn''t."


    "I hate being in the dark." Hmm, ironic.


    "Jyn. That''s where we''ll find our answers." And where Clive''s secret will be revealed.


    . . .


    Sayhas had stayed with Mizu for the rest of the day. She hadn¡¯t let him go out, claiming that he was too injured. They played board games and Sayhas helped her concoct new alchemical mixtures. Pink-petaled thistles had very interesting properties. Somehow, Sayhas managed to get Mizu to let him leave before she used him as a test dummy.


    He also gave her the flowers he picked up. She had taken them with a wry grin, she knew exactly why he¡¯d picked them up. It was either sky beads, a really rare flower, or winter gloves, something not rare at all, Unfortunately, Sayhas had crushed it in his pocket which left a stain on the duster¡ªnot that Sayhas cared anymore. Crushing it also made it alchemically useless.


    ¡°Must be your grubby hands,¡± she had said.


    Sayhas was grateful that he ended up crushing it so thoroughly that Mizu couldn¡¯t recognize it. If she couldn¡¯t use it but still recognized it as sky beads, she¡¯d be very mad. And thereby intolerable for the foreseeable future.


    That night, Sayhas pulled out his list of names from his torn-up duster. And on the bottom he wrote:


    Kill: Princess Niya, the future queen.


    He had another mission now, to repay Mizu for all she¡¯s done for him.


    And this time, he wouldn¡¯t take years to do it.


    Putting the sheet in a secret compartment above a false back. Sayhas snuggled under his covers and quickly fell asleep.


    Part One: END

 Sivi 3

    Sivi restlessly shifted upon her marble throne, one eye on the proceedings in front of her and another scanning the doors leading into the hall. She had not bothered to change nor eat, spending her time frantically searching for Kirie. But even now, Kirie was nowhere to be found.


    Ever since she was a child, she had looked upon her mother''s throne with awe and reverence. The glorified chair was carved from one solid block of marble with intricate engravings and indents that brought a beautiful depth to the otherwise flat throne. Although the thrones embellishments are no longer present, stripped and sold for a pretty penny, the beauty of the old carvings still remains. From afar, it could be mistaken for the throne of a wealthy, considerate Queendom; elegant and delicate, but made of common materials. Sivi twisted her posture again, no one had ever told Sivi just how uncomfortable the chair was.


    In front of her, a young man turning twelve was having his Blading Ceremony, a bishop of the Divine Path was dealing with the ancient rites involved. If the boy was of nobility, her Ministry might have deigned to send a cardinal, but for a low-born¡ªSivi hated that word¡ªa cardinal wasn¡¯t necessary, even if it would have been proper. Nevertheless, the cardinals were busy, easing tension in the few cities Sivi had left with their honey-laced promises and lies. And that, though Sivi didn''t like it, was the Ministry¡¯s highest priority task.


    ¡°Your Majesty. Please, give this child your blessing.¡± the bishop bowed low. He wasn''t supposed to show deference to her, the most he should''ve done was an inclination of his head. The upper echelons of the Divine Path Ministry were only allowed to bow to the Conclave. Sivi brushed a strand of hair from her eyes, hiding her moistening eyes. She was unworthy of such unyielding loyalty.


    Why couldn¡¯t her people just leave and forget about her? Why didn¡¯t they take flight and set their roots elsewhere, in greener pastures? Why did they stay? She drew her eyes around the once-magnificent throne room, studying the eyes of the onlookers. In each one of them, whether it be blue, silver or green, whether it be scarred, naked or pure, they looked up at her with devout fidelity. In their eyes, she was there Queen. And until they moved on, Sivi would be there Queen. Only when they moved on would Sivi rest. Forever.


    But for now, she was there Queen.


    Sivi magnanimously stood, smoothing her nightgown as she steadied herself. Her mouth opened. What was the boy''s name? It didn¡¯t matter, she only needed to put a show.


    She raised her hands, spreading them out to the side until she reached her full wingspan. Red-gold flames flickered alight, stretching fingertip to fingertip. The flames gently rolled over the poor boy and caressed him. His clothes singed lightly, torn, grey fabric turning to a charcoal black. The flames travelled up his body and collected in a halo above the malnourished boy. Then it grew brighter, magnificent red and white light became so blinding that Sivi had to close her eyes. Then the light, and the flames were gone.


    Sivi sat down onto her uncomfortable throne, she ignored the pain in her butt and back and schooled her face into a warm smile that, hopefully, hid the sorrow beneath.


    The ceremony continued, the bishop droned on and on, speaking ancient words and completing ancient rituals. It was hard not to yawn and fall asleep. Sivi found her eyes wandering, first to the edges of the room, to see if Kirie was to be found. She never saw her. Then, she found herself appraising the one painting she had left in her room.


    An old, oil canvas, an e-span in length. It depicted the war between the four Creator Gods and the Demon Lord. If she were to sell it, she¡¯d probably be able to survive a few weeks without worrying. But if she were to sell it, her ministry would undoubtedly leave. And if that were to happen, the precarious balance she had nurtured since ascending to queenhood, would topple in an instant. She grudgingly tore out all thoughts of selling the piece and dragged her attention back to the ceremony. A good thing, as it was about to end.


    The bishop abruptly cut off from a mantra of ancient words and snapped his tome shut. ¡°It is time for the last phase. The drinking of the blood.¡± The bishop was sweating as he turned to face Sivi. his chest rose and fell like the shifting of the tides.


    Sivi soundlessly got up. She wanted to stretch but that probably wouldn''t be the wisest choice since they were in the middle of a formal ceremony. She wanted to be a kid again.


    The boy dressed in pitiful rags was kneeling on the floor, neck arched and eyes closed. Not a sliver of him moved, not even a quiver. The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Sivi flourished her hand and a cold dagger fell into it. She placed her hands above the boy¡¯s open mouth, she managed to prevent any shaking.


    ¡°Let your unwavering faith guide him true.¡± The bishop whispered.


    Sivi sliced her wrist. Blood spilled out, dripping into his open mouth. To the boy''s credit, he didn''t flinch. Sivi counted the drops. One. Two. Three. And four. She withdrew her hand when the boy¡ªwho undoubtedly was counting too¡ªsnapped his eyes open. Sivi held her bleeding hand out and waited. Nothing happened. No handkerchief, no disinfectant, nothing.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    Sivi remembered Kirie wasn''t there. Sivi did her best to hide her grief. She needed to go find her. She stumbled backwards. Luckily, no one saw, they were all too busy staring at the boy. She fell into her terrible throne and glance at the aquamarine ring on her index finger. It faintly glowed. She felt her wound close up. She touched her hand to her face. It was cold, fresh and slightly wet, the wound was completely gone, not even a scar was left.


    ¡°You can do it, Jay.¡±


    ¡°Listen to your mother, Jason. Just like you practiced.¡±


    Jason started to glow. First his eyes, then it spread outwards until his entire body was enveloped by a wispy yellow illumination. It threatened to consume the whole room, but just as the glow began to travel past the confines of Jason¡¯s body, it faded into darkness.


    It was as though the daylight was sucked out of the room. When the typical luminosity returned, Sivi saw a rusted dagger in front of Jason.


    He started to cry, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m sorry that I¡¯m a disappointment.¡± Jason took the dagger in his hands like a child would do a teddy bear. Sivi cringed, one sliced palm was enough for today. ¡°I¡ªI promise. I¡ª''ll go out with my blade and bring back something worthy of you.: Jason, prostrated himself, his salty tears pooled under him.


    Sivi looked to Jason¡¯s parents. They don''t make eye contact with her no Jason. They looked at each other, motionless, stupefied. How would her mother, the late Queen, how would she have handled the situation?


    Sivi stepped to the child and knelt in front of him. She took him from his shoulders and lifted him to make him face her. She knew of only one way to deal with a crying child. It was how her mother had dealt with her. It started with a smile; she made the smile ooze as much warmth and kindness as humanly possible. Then an affectionate forehead tap. Followed by the cock of your head. Jason stopped crying. To finish it off, a big, warm, bear hug.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright,¡± Sivi whispered. ¡°No one is mad, no one is disappointed,¡± she continued in soothing tones. Sivi started to stroke Jason''s back. She wanted to say more, but couldn''t find the words. But that was fine. Because slowly, Jason began to unravel and loosen up.


    Sivi didn''t know how long she stayed there. She didn¡¯t know how the onlookers felt about her sudden act of presumptuous affection.  All she knew was that she would¡¯ve stayed there a lot longer if it weren''t for the interruption.


    ¡°How cute,¡± a narcissistic voice sounded from the entrance. Sivi jerked her head up, her cold gaze settled on a man ragged, ugly face, place atop of unholy black and silver livery. Oily,  black hair fell to his grime-covered nose as he took off his steel helmet. A Hawk of the Empire, rather low ranking and weak, but despite his personal shortcomings, his affiliation with the Empire makes him a variable that should be treated with care. At best, a Hawk was an annoying, brainwashed fool. At worst, a Hawk was a self-conceited, little prick who relies on the name they hold. This was, obviously, a case of the latter.


    ¡°Can that blade cut butter?¡± The Hawk cocked his head. ¡°Wasn¡¯t this a beautiful palace. That''s what I¡¯ve been told. What the word. Dump. Yes, that''s the one. Your palace looks like a dump.¡± The Hawk, mockingly bowed, a surprisingly good bow, ¡°Your Majesty.¡±


    ¡°Can I help you?¡±


    Sivi surveyed the room. At her unwavering subjects, at the mortar and brick, her forefathers had placed down. She was a Queen. But what type of Queen was she to be? Her question had just tumbled out of her mouth, the mouth of a Queen, trained since childhood to maintain a modicum of propriety and decorum, especially towards foreign countries. But looking at her people, Sivi wondered. Was she being the Queen that they wanted? Did they want her to bow and scrape to survive? No. They wanted what Sivi wanted. To bring Cheolyra back to its former glory. That''s why against all of Sivi pleads, they stayed. They didn¡¯t need a Queen who would lower her head to any threat. Even if doing so is the surest path to survival, did her people want just survival? Her people didn''t want Cheolyra to only get by appeasing the empire. They wanted Cheolyra to thrive and grow stronger. I weak-willed queen wouldn''t accomplish that. No, they needed a Queen they could rely on, lean on. A compassionate Queen that could be ruthless if need be. No beating around the bush, no honey-laced words. Only sheer cold efficiency. And in this case, efficiency equalled brutality.


    Sivi cleared her throat, ¡°What do you want, Hawk?¡± The Hawks eyes widened a fraction as if bewildered that she would take such a pithy tone. In her mind, Sivi made observations on the hawk and ascertained his personality. She looked at his clothes, the way he stood, walked, and talked, the way he reacted to her actions and her people''s actions. After factoring these variables and many more, a burning rage began to kindle in her heart. She¡¯d tear this Hawk apart.


    To his credit, the Hawk recovered from her caustic tone with surprising servility that was almost befitting for a Queen. Almost. ¡°I am a mere messenger for what''s to come. The great Emperor of the Empire¡ªmay none ever breathe his name¡ªhas deigned to send a Firebird to¡­¡± He fumbled and licked his lips, finding the right words to say. ¡°...to remodel this Kingdom.¡± The onlookers growled unkindly but the Hawk didn¡¯t seem to hear. And if he did, he didn''t care.


    ¡°Where¡¯s the Firebird?¡±


    The Hawk flinched backwards and glowered. Sivi suppressed a laugh. ¡°His brilliancy decide that he would likely destroy this Kingdom if he didn''t get what he wanted in under ten seconds.¡± The Hawk spat in rage. He still didn''t hear the intensifying growls. ¡°I am here to facilitate that exchange. I¡¯ll give it plain to you morons. Submit to me, or face the consequences.¡± Several weapons appeared in the surrounding crowd''s hands.


    The Hawk laughed, ¡°What will you do? Attack me? Need I remind you, I currently represent the Empire. An attack against me would be an attack against the Empire.¡±


    Sivi clenched her fists behind her back and ground her teeth. She didn''t need another problem