《Shattered Souls》 1 - Blind and Wild Chapter 1 Fuck! My head hurt, wait, scratch that my whole body is fucked. There isn¡¯t a single square inch on me that doesn¡¯t hurt. It¡¯s a gut-wrenching feeling a burning throbbing sensation. Like I was smashed with a hammer and lit on fire. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever been in this much pain before, at least as far as I can remember. ¡­ Why can¡¯t I remember anything at all, not my family, a job, hell not even my face. Am I handsome? Tall? Weak? Damn it! My chest filling with anxiety I attempt to open my eyes only to notice that I feel my eyes opening and closing yet I remain in the dark, alone. The Anxiety begins to bubble up into a full-blown panic. My breathing hurries, my blood pumping through my veins, my hands'' tremor. Everything I feel seems to intensify in the darkness. The sensations seem to pour into me as I acclimate to the endless nothing my eyes see. The drips of water around me, the tough rigid texture of whatever I¡¯m currently resting on. Suddenly the realization of dread fills me, I know where I am now but I doubt I¡¯ll find my way, I¡¯m within some kind of cave. How the fuck am I going to leave a cave, I can¡¯t see shit! If there is something else here besides me I¡¯m dead meat. In my moment of true devastation, I feel a rush of wind across my face like a kiss from a lover. I have something to follow. Gathering myself to my feet despite the throbbing encompassing my whole body, I make my way forward. Taking shaky steps in the darkness one at a time I make my way to the source of the wind. My feet making gentle taps against the stone I follow the feeling of wind. Taking a step forward I begin to plummet as I realize there is nothing beneath me. For a moment I fall through the dark only to realize that the fall was not that far at all. Reaching back towards where I fell I run my hands across the stone. There is a natural smoothness unlike how stone normally feels not to mention that the stone seems to form a set of stairs, well maybe more of a trio as there are only 3. With the smooth stone and stairs, I¡¯m inclined to think that this is a civilization of some kind organized group of people. I stand up and adjusting my walk I make my way towards the wind, this time with big sweeping steps, I learned my lesson from that one. The quiet scrape and tap of my feet are all I hear for the duration of the walk as the wind grows stronger and the stone becomes rougher, suddenly the stone turns into a much softer group of textures of which I can only assume is grass. The wind rushing everywhere, there is nothing left to truly follow. I stand quietly waiting for the world to guide me towards my next ordeal. Almost as if complying with my will I get a particularly strong wind blows to my left. With a shrug of my shoulders, I begin another series of sweeping steps.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. The journey I had begun is full of new magnified experiences, the comforting hug of the sun and the sticky humid air, the tickle of grass on my feet. A quiet tap of feet echo in my ears, something is around me it sounds like two legs which is a relief. My head turning towards the sound the pattering of feet suddenly stops I sense a pair of eyes on me. Frozen in apprehension I¡¯m unsure if I should say something or remain silent until the other party does something. With a gentle swoosh, I hear them jump up and from the gentle creak of wood I hear them land in a branch. The noises repeat themselves as he or she moves further away, my head following the sound until out of earshot. Shaken by the encounter I¡¯m unsure if I should change direction, yet oddly enough my faith in the wind overwhelms my desire for human interaction, which I must admit is at an all-time high. With my sweeping steps, I continue on my way. With a sudden grumble of my stomach, I¡¯m reminded of my truest desire, a nice meal. The gnawing in my stomach is so strong I consider returning the way I came. Realistically however I¡¯d just get more lost than I already am, therefore I remain moving forward. After what is either an eternity of 20 minutes I am greeted by rushing water, sounds gentle less like a river and more like a stream. If it were a river I¡¯d question my trust in brother wind who pushed me in this direction, yet since it is quiet and gentle by my ears standard Ill cross it. Stepping forward I am greeted to the hurried steps of multiple people, the creaking of wood telling me there in the trees. I turn to face my new company most of them are in front yet I hear several to my left and right, yet none behind me. A quiet whisper rings out, the softness in their voice indicates a female, rather young maybe 18 to 26 is my guess, but who knows maybe old ladies sound cute wherever I am. ¡°See elder, this man has been walking around our forest. At first, I thought he was some sort of bandit with the marking on his skin¡± Markings? I hope there aren¡¯t too many, or too ugly. The girl continues to whisper ¡°But with the odd patterns they lay and the steps he took he might be a shaman or a marking assisted sorcerer¡± My heart raced at the mention of a sorcerer, Magic or at least some type of sorcery exist. And from what this girl is saying I might be skilled in it just wait until I get my memories back, fireballs here I come. While I¡¯m wrapped in my fantasies the girl continues ¡°And that was all but confirmed when he sensed me and turned towards me. That''s when I saw them, his eyes were gray and empty with no pupils, clearly, he is blind yet they seemed to pulse with a swirling green miasma¡± An older voice begins to chime in ¡°You¡¯ve done well to notice the intruder Akalia, We will deal with him accordingly, I knew assigning you to this position would be fine, you mother be damned¡± A shiver runs up my spine as he plans to deal with me. His voice piped up into a commanding shout from a whisper ¡°Trespasser! Do you know where you stand, this is the forest of the Develios tribe, our normal procedures would be a quick killing, but with your current blindness we may be willing to spare you drop to your knees and place your hands in the air, and you will remain unharmed for now.¡± At least we are getting somewhere, slowly I fall to my knees and raise my arms, suddenly they leap from their trees falling all around me surprisingly quiet for how high up they sounded. They slowly move towards me, I hear the quiet scrape of metal against metal. That''s the sound of a sword, I¡¯m no fool, my realization comes a bit late as they grab my hands and tie them behind my back. My nerves are at an all-time high as they tighten my restraints. A sudden whisper fills my ear. ¡°You do it Akalia you found him, and made your choice, take the first step. I hear the signature sound of metal against metal as she pulls out her sword clearly not ready to use it. She walks closer to me a quiet silence fills the air. A strong wind pushes against my head and my hands, with nothing but trust in the wind I move my head to the left and lift my arms with the wind. Suddenly I hear the swish of a bladed weapon and the sound of rope that held my hand being cut. The wind began pushing my head to the left I get ready to mov... Bang! Something hits my face and I fall back my head spinning and my consciousness fades as I hear ¡°I told you Akalia he wasn¡¯t some blind man, let''s find out who he really is¡± 2 - Unhealed and sealed Chapter 2 Slowly I return to my senses, well most of them, I¡¯m still very blind. I must say in all honesty way worse than I thought it would be. It is so much more difficult to know what''s going on, not to mention everything I think I can make out is based on a guess. And even though my hearing and maybe even my smell got better, I can¡¯t hear a tree branch before I slam my head into it. But I hear there is magic afoot and where there is magic there is a solution, or at least I hope. Taking in a survey of my surroundings it has become very apparent I am tied up, but wait there''s more I¡¯m not just tied up, I¡¯m tied ¡®up¡¯ as my feet can touch the ground. I don¡¯t think I¡¯m upside down, but at this point who could say. I hear a lot of people around me like a lot they seem to come and go, never really coming toward but just passing by. Occasionally I hear some smaller and lighter footsteps so I think they might be children. Knowing that really puts me at ease I must say, they can¡¯t be too crazy if they got kids here. Suddenly I¡¯m greeted by some heavier footsteps, this time they come towards me, slow and powerful, rather intimidating. They stop right in front of me, a gruff voice calmly rings out kinda dwarfy in a way. ¡° Elder wants ya, I¡¯m bout to untie ya, and funny movements and I¡¯ll have ya gutted like last nights catch¡± Silence rings out as nothing is said. Suddenly he yells at me ¡°You got that boy!¡± Slowly and firmly I nod my head yes. He begins cutting the rope and hoisting me roughly onto his shoulders. Taking heavier steps he begins taking us wherever we¡¯re going. I must admit this place is either very big or he walks super slow, either way, this guy is very strong. After what feels like either an hour or 4 minutes he drops me on the floor, a wooden floor so we are at least in a building. surprisingly I was dragged onto a nice soft pillow I think. The older voice from the forest rings out ¡°So magician, tell me how you were able to press so deeply into our forest?¡± I¡¯m quiet for a moment as I consider telling them the in¡¯s and out¡¯s of the precarious situation that I found myself in. Quickly I realize that I should just give them a much more abbreviated story. Gathering my breath I clear my throat. ¡°If I¡¯m to be honest, I¡¯m not entirely sure how I ended up where I was. I simply awoke within the forest without my sight or memories. How I managed to get so deep is your guess as good as mine.¡± My voice rings out heavy and smooth, odd for not talking for so long or making a sound, I must say a great sound. The old man sits quietly, an uncomfortable sound of shuffling fills the room. I seem to have stumped them. ¡°How can we simply believe that it is preposterous!¡± A young enraged voice rings out. ¡°There is simply no way that he isn¡¯t ly-¡± ¡°Silence Boy, you know so little yet always claim knowledge.¡± The elder voice cuts off the young manThe tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°If you were paying more attention while we were ¡®grabbing¡¯ our friend here you would have noticed the wind rushing around him. I would go as far as to say Mr. Memory loss is some kind of wind elemental type magician.¡± ¡°Your right Elder! When I was getting ready to knock him out wind rushed almost pushing his head out the way, clearly, he didn¡¯t use any magic either¡± Another young but much more reserved voice comments ¡°My friend¡± The elder continues ¡°I¡¯m rather inclined to believe you thanks to that wind that works with you, I¡¯ll see to fixing your sight if your willing to assist us using that wind.¡± ¡°Of course I am¡± I almost yelled out ¡°However the wind seems to have much more will over itself than I have influence on it, It may take me a while to understand it¡¯s gifts¡± That is if I can even control the wind at all. Who knows what I can do with it if anything at all. I only hope that it wasn¡¯t a one-time occurrence. And if it is, who knows what this group will do. ¡°Talion.¡± The elder calls out ¡° guide our friend to Keshat, if anyone can fix his eyes, our resident healer can.¡± ¡°Yes sir, right away.¡± rings out the gruff man known as Talion. Picking me up again this time much gentler, he begins to carry me towards the healer. ¡°Listen, boy, Just because the elder has decided to show mercy doesn¡¯t mean the rest of us will. While I will never break the elder''s command, the power dynamic in the village is shifting to watch your back, everyone thinks they know what''s best without living through the worst.¡± ¡°Thank you Talion, I really appreciate the heads up.¡± Much quicker than before, talion arrives at our destination. Knocking on the door, it is opened and I am surprised by the small steps I hear. ¡°Oh, Talion, great to see you I hope Tass didn¡¯t accidentally knock your teeth out this time.¡± Suddenly shaking Talion responds ¡°No not this time, Elder had me bring the trespasser to have his sight healed¡± ¡°Ohhh, yes, of course, I knew that old goofball had a use for such an oddity as our friend here. Quickly bring him to my clinic and let me have a look at him.¡± Talion turns around and walks me into some new building, by the sound of the wooden floors, suddenly I¡¯m gently lowered onto a bed. The Talion Express is getting 5 stars from me this time. The small man walks up to me suddenly hopping up next to me and grabbing my head and turning it to face him. I hear his breath as he closely exams what I assume is my eyes. Suddenly a warm feeling presses into my temples. As it works deeper and deeper some of the throbbings I had been feeling disappears, for a moment I feel myself finally begin to relax since I¡¯ve been here. ¡­ ¡°AGGGHHH¡± I scream out as my eyes begin to ache and burn like being stabbed! ¡°Uh-Oh,¡± The small man says ¡°Seems like he¡¯s not blind his vision is sealed, or more like a magic array¡± As the burning begins to fade and I stop shaking and trembling I say ¡°A Magic Array, The fuck is a magic array, and who put it in my damn eyes¡± ¡°Calm down kid, we didn¡¯t do anything, except knock you out I guess but certainly not this. Try putting some magic through it¡± ¡°How do I do that, I don¡¯t know my name, you expect me to know magic?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know magic, boy, toddlers can do magic, why can¡¯t you! Talion get over here do the magic trick on this guy¡± Talions heavy steps close in on me as he grabs my arm placing his finger on my heart and a cold feeling suddenly present, he moves his finger from my heart to my palm slowly the cold feeling never leaving my heart but extending to my palm. Then he places a palm on my back and a sudden painful pulse a green light pushes out my palm. ¡°Feel that boy, that green shit coming out your palm it''s magic, and you seem to got a thing for wind albeit kinda weak. Take that feeling, from your heart, that energy, and pump it to ya eyes!¡± Talion gruffly yells at me. Eager to follow his instructions I focus on that feeling of energy in my heart. A whimsical hard to grasp energy, I attempt to grab it but it simply moves out of my mental grip. ¡®Duh¡¯ l think to myself it''s wind, I begin to mentally fan it towards my eyes. Suddenly a breeze is felt on my face. I blink my eyes and see the world in grey. Oh my god, I can see again. The information overload hits me and my head hurts but I don¡¯t dare close my eyes. I feel like I¡¯ll never close them again in fear of the black returning when I do. ¡°Fuck I can see! Damn Talion your huge, and where the hell did those horns come from.¡± ¡°Ha Ha, Interesting, your eyes seem magic-powered, I wonder what that means¡± Keshat laughs out. Turning my head to him I see his short frame, blond hair, and a boyish face, with old eyes. His short horns stick from his hands a series of white lines. His green shirt is the only color I can see, clearly something to do with my magic. ¡°Alright boy let''s take you back to the elder¡± My vision begins to flicker and suddenly cut out and I¡¯m filled with a sudden exhaustion, my lungs can¡¯t get enough air and my muscles seem to strain. ¡°Hey¡­ Guys it''s black again, and I think I might throw up, what''s happening¡± Keshat laughs out ¡°Ha that mana exhaustion fool, god you''re a gift that keeps giving¡± The laughing of Keshat rings out as I lose consciousness again, man I gotta stop doing this. 3 - Preparation for a promenade Chapter 3 Once again waking up in the darkness, this time much more comfortable than before. Keshat said mana exhaustion and I sure don¡¯t feel tired anymore so I must have it back. I need to find a way to extend my time, maybe there is a technique to train my magic. And not to mention how I could only see green, I hope that means if I learn or develop more types I can see more colors. Green is probably not the best color to only be able to see, like whats green ¡­ ¡°My friend¡± The elder¡¯s signature fine aged wine voice wakes me from my thoughts ¡°Now that we have at least relieved your vision issues are you ready to help us¡± ¡°I guess I can give it my best efforts, just know that I¡¯m unsure of how to use this gift of mine¡± ¡°We can assist in your learning, as long as you help us with this favor as far as I¡¯m concerned you can live here with us!¡± Turning on my eyes I suddenly see the elder, and well he looks like an elder. His hair a clean white, His horns growing out and branching across his head like a crown, and skin near a leathery tan. Adorned in animal leathers and furs, on top of some black robe. I had expected most people to dress like Keshat, in his clean green shirt and leather pants, I¡¯ve had my expectations flipped. Between the elder''s odd robes and furs, and Talion wearing some stiffy looking leather armor, I have no clue what the dress code is. ¡°Wow, so did you know your eyes turn green when you activate your magic power, It seems like that links to your vision with the way you''re staring¡± The elder states his face full of smiles a clear excitement present. ¡°So Elder I agree with your proposition, In fact, I would be interested in going right away as to secure a spot in this village. I would truly appreciate the safety while I figure things out for myself, the question is what is it you¡¯d have me do?¡± ¡°Well, to tell you simply we need you as a sherpa of sorts, as you may have noticed that wind of yours seemed to guide you deeper into the forest. And that''s exactly where we need to go! The property of this forest is that it disorients those who enter as they proceed deeper, only those who are attuned to the forest can head deeper.¡± The Elder¡¯s face turns from the excited smile to a forlorn look, almost like a look into the past. ¡°So just go back to where we were and keep walking?¡± I ask. ¡°To be honest, yes. We really just need to get where we think that wind is leading you.¡± ¡°And where is it that the wind is leading me friend¡± I turn my eyes off returning to the darkness in an attempt to save mana. You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. The Elder sits quietly for a moment slowly taking a breath ¡°Well you see, we need to access the deeper recesses of the forest as a form of reclamation and protection. Those who wish to gain its strength are not only invaders like you maybe but for us, its former tenants. We as a people have lost our way and attunement to the forest. I¡¯m sure by returning we can regain our past alignment with the forest.¡± ¡°Hmmm¡± It is not that I don¡¯t believe the elder but am more concerned with his frankness, why would he tell this much to an outsider. Not to mention that he said they lost their attunement to the forest which sounds like a pretty big deal, not something you mention so casually. He acts to close to me, it''s uncomfortable. Still, I reply ¡°Alright I¡¯m convinced when shall we go¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m glad you asked we already gathered a party of 6 of us, two of which you may know. Come with me I¡¯ll greet and introduce you¡± The elder rises, and grabs my hand, with a blind stumble I follow him. Leading me outside¡± I hear the talking of a group of people. As I begin to distinguish the voices the elder cuts my thoughts short. ¡°This first one, you should know somewhat, she tried to kill you in the forest-¡± ¡°You told me to test him, elder!¡± The young girl Akalia burst out ¡°Ha, I¡¯m just messing with you¡± He turns to me and whispers ¡°she is a great young girl very bright, one of the many prodigies of the village.¡± Turning my eyes on, I see Akalia, taller than the elder and slim with some color and faded green hair. Her horns are skinny and curve back on her head elegantly. Her outfit consisting of a robe and leather covering the important ¡®do not stab¡¯ bits. On her left hip is a shortsword yet on her gauntlet is some kind of small shield ¡°Woah, his eyes glow, that¡¯s neat pretty big upgrade from being blind I bet¡± shouts out a voice from behind Akalia. Peering around her I see a short-haired girl walking towards our group of people. Shorter than Akalia but much more muscular, and much less armored looking more barbarian than anything else. Taking after Talion she wears a combination of fur and leather bracers and shin guards and chest piece. In addition, she has some sort of waist guard but I¡¯m clueless to what its called. All of this and she leaves her midriff exposed showing a nasty scar across the majority of her stomach. Oddly enough she lacks horns, but I imagine that there is a story behind it that I shouldn¡¯t ask ¡°Yea I must say being blind sucks, glowing eyes, on the other hand, is a very unique trait¡± The red-haired girl nodded her head in agreement ¡°My names Vadoah by the way if you need a brusin¡¯ call me¡± ¡°That¡¯s enough Vad, you gave him your spiel there are 4 more to introduce, I¡¯m Mald by the way¡± Mald standing to the right of Akalia is taller than her and eye level with me, His horns pop clearly out of his shiny bald head. He seems to be some kind of archer based on the three quivers he is carrying, a bit excessive if you ask me. His longbow sits firmly on his back peeking over his shoulder. As I look to the right again I see my personal favorite the ever quiet Talion who nods at me. Next to him is a lady with light-colored hair and piercing eyes, radiating a mature vampire look that throws me off a bit. I¡¯m guessing she is a magic-user of some kind as she has a wand that is chained to her hand for some reason, wonder the story behind that. ¡°Hello, My name is Leissandra, you can call me Lei if you¡¯d like, I¡¯m our resident blood magician. So if you wanna be really useful let me suck you dry!¡± Lei¡¯s voice oozes out like sweet poison My face twisting up, Lei begins laughing her lungs out. An annoying childish laugh rings out introducing Keshat to me. I turn to glare at him only for him to laugh harder. ¡°Nice to see you again my friend, as the oldest I will be leading us,¡± Keshat says throwing a wary eye to Lei, who returns a nasty glare. Clearly, she is not as young as she appears¡­ ¡°Now that introductions are finished let''s not burn daylight, you¡¯ve already been here for three days. Le-¡± ¡°Three Days!¡± I yell out in surprise ¡°How!¡± ¡°Well, you passed out for two from mana burn¡± Keshat chimed in. ¡°Not to mention you were passed out for a few hours initially to bring you here¡± Akalia tosses in. This passing out thing is becoming a problem. Hopefully, we can stay lucid for longer than a few hours this time. ¡°Alright, you fool enough talking I wanna be home before dark.¡± Keshat yells out as he climbs up on my Talion express ¡°Let''s go!¡± 4 -The Winds gift Chapter 4 The gang and I have been walking in the forest for quite a while, much shorter than my walk from the cave to the river I think. Earlier I was really underestimating the color green, leaves, grass, all of it green even Mald¡¯s armor seems to be made of some sort of green snake. I really need to figure out how to see in more colors. ¡°I must say Kels you''re getting taller every day. Keep growing like this and you¡¯ll only be able to marry Talion¡± Vedoah says slapping Akalia ¡°Shut up Vedoah the elder said I¡¯m done growing anyway,¡± Akalia says, even without the color red I can tell a blush when I see it. Vedoah continues to poke and prod at Akalia, clearly knowing what buttons to press. Walking up to the stream that I was stopped at before, a small shiver slips down my spine. For what reasons I¡¯m clueless but I am weary, something just feels wrong. The wind begins to swirl, not gently like before but excitedly. I feel it press against my back and force me to shut my eyes. Slowly I bend to the wind¡¯s will and step forward. Keshat, still on Talion¡¯s shoulders, spotting me, interrupts the squabbling of the Vedoah, Akalia, and now Meld ¡°You kids shut up, It''s time for the trespasser to get to guidin¡¯.¡± The wind seemingly so loud I step into the stream, the water sticking to my leg with each step. I feel like if I were to stop moving I¡¯d be pulled by the weak stream. From the sounds I can make out from the others there having no problem crossing the stream. Crossing as quickly as possible I exit soaked up to my waist despite it being knee height. ¡°Damn, boy, did you drown¡± I hear Keshat laugh from the Talion express, dryer than his humor. Ignoring him I continue following the roaring wind. Leading us deeper and deeper into the forest. I slowly pick up the pace as the wind seems more and more urgent, rushing me forward. Eventually, it¡¯s panic seeps into me, I begin to sprint as the wind reaches its fever pitch. Even though I¡¯m running in the dark, the wind guides me perfectly. Eventually, the grass becomes stone, and the surprised gasps of my party fill my ears. Having no time to slow down I open my eyes and see the cause of their excitement. A series of ruined stone buildings intertwined with nature and far away in the distance is some sort of gigantic church ¡®Esque¡¯ castle. With out talking, I follow the wind as it pushes me forward once more, towards the castle. Passed what used to be the ancient wall, standing tall above our group. Through the ruined steel gate and into the town plaza. Nature has reclaimed grass growing out of the stone like weeds, trees busting through buildings, and animals scampering around. The architecture of this town is leagues above the wooden fortress-like village. Moving past the town square we make our way to the castle gates swung open and destroyed. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Moving deeper into the castle we see a distorted luxury, torn and decayed paintings lining the walls, pieces of once clearly expensive pots, vases, and other ornaments, all shattered or rotted. It seems like despite the nature intertwining outside it refuses to touch this place. It''s stone walls crumbling creating blocks and new pathways inside the castle. Despite my unease, I follow the wind and the party follows me. Our pace slowing down as we walk deeper into the castle. ¡°Hey, guys keep your guard up¡± I yell back in a weak attempt to alleviate my unease. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ve had our guard up since we entered the town¡± Akalia¡¯s voice rings out to confirm ¡°Your the only one without a weapon anyway, we¡¯ve all drawn ours!¡± Vedoah nastily shouts out, clearly on edge just as much as me Walking deeper into the castle we see a grand staircase leading not only up but also deeper, clearly, the wind demands we descend. The torches that once lined the stairs have either went out or fell from the wall burning the carpet. Keshat being incredibly resourceful pulls a jar from the bag on Talion¡¯s back, the one that is twice his size. Shaking the jar causes a group of insects to light up, illuminating the path ahead, not that I needed it anyway. As we descend, the air around us turns thick and purplish color, there is an energy in the air. The purple miasma floats within eyesight twirling around us and clinging to us as we walk forward. We enter into a large hall looking at a huge theater with pews lining its side. Towards the back is an altar, the miasma oozing from it. We walk closer and closer, suddenly the wind swirls kicking up the miasma forming a wall between my companions and I. Turning back I see them banging on the wall, yet I can¡¯t hear them. The wind begins to swirl the miasma up into a frenzy as it takes the form of some woman. A ghostly body her features barely formed on her body, only forming from the waist up. She is the wind. She pushes my back with the wind while guiding me by the hand with her physical manifestation. In the corner of my eyes, I see flashing lights banging against the barrier. As I turn my head to get a better look, She pulls my head forward, to the altar upon is a busted crown, cracked and in disrepair. To it¡¯s right is a blade rough and jagged. The miasma seeps out of these two objects. Popping up behind the alter She grabs both my hands, leading them to the objects. With a huge explosion, I hear screaming behind me and hurried steps ¡°STOP BOY, DON¡¯T TOUCH THAT!¡± Keshat yells to me, I can barely make out his voice from the roaring wind. Suddenly I am pulled by the wind and grab onto the crown and blade. A deathly silence fills the theater. Then screaming, screaming so loud it drowns out everything, behind me our my companions writhing in pain on the floor. I begin to rush towards them my head clear of the wind¡¯s influence suddenly I feel the burning. Screaming I scratch at my head, something is trying to burst out. The markings across my body begin to glow and burn, and my eyes feel like they are melting inside my head. I banged my head against the ground as I struggle to handle the pain. BANG The skin on my head rips BANG My skull fractures BANG The ground cracks before my head collides with it. I raise my head and rise to my feet, inside me a powerful energy is stirring. I need to get it out. In my hysteria, I let loose a monstrous roar. The world seems to flip upside down at my scream, or maybe that¡¯s me falling. The last thing I see before I pass out is Talion and Meld slowly getting up. Who knows, maybe this is the last time I pass out, I hear third times the charm. 5 - Tough like rocks Chapter 5 I come to my senses on Talion¡¯s back, my body feeling weak and my head more heavy than usual. Whispers leaking out from all around us, I run magic into my eyes I stare into the crowd. Their murmurs become quiet shouts of surprise as they continue to stare at us, or more accurately me. Attempting to make sense of the situation I begin to listen to the whispers ¡°Is it that new boy, he got a pair now, how strange.¡± ¡°They are the cause of this without a doubt, I¡¯m not sure if I should thank them or strangle them¡± ¡°It hurt so bad, I¡¯m surprised that no one died¡± Talion continues to drag us deeper into the village towards the elders dwelling, a rather humble abode. Talion carries me in and gently places me on the floor in front of the elder, who is grinning from ear to ear. Turning around I see the rest of our group filter in, Meld, Akalia, Keshat, and Vedoah who is currently seething in rage. Catching her eyes she seems to twitch almost, her glare doubling in strength, I think I made her mad somehow. ¡°Great Job! Guys you guys really did well!¡± The elder shouts in joy ¡°I¡¯m sorry what exactly did we do,¡± Akalia ask incredibly confused Sharing her sentiment I nod my head along with her, almost falling forward from the unexpected weight, what is up with my head right now. ¡°Well, as you guys may have noticed is that boost in power, just check your mana¡± ¡°Woah your right! It must have been from that shit the trespasser did¡± Vedoah yells out surprised. Clearly, I¡¯m not in the loop of what''s going on, but I¡¯m pretty sure I got this power boost too. My eyes don¡¯t feel any strain right now. ¡°What you guys did was re-establish the connection we had between our ancestral home. By breaking the seal, our bloodline is strengthened¡± The elder says interrupting my thoughts. ¡°That is cool an all but why did I get stronger¡± I state filled with confusion ¡°Well you must be a Develios of a different tribe¡± The Elder laughs out ¡°Can¡¯t you tell from your horns and ears boy¡±If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°Horns and ears?¡± I slowly grab at my head and feel a smooth pair of horns jutting from my forehead curving up and back on my head. ¡°Why do I have horns?¡± Grabbing at my ears, a shiver runs down my spine, note very sensitive. They are sharp and elf-like just like the rest of the village. ¡°How long have I had these¡± ¡°The ears since you¡¯ve been here, I don¡¯t know how the hell you got those horns!¡± Vedoah yells clearly upset ¡°Calm down Ved, ain¡¯t no reason to be mad at the boy for his blessings.¡± Keshat sharply warns Vedoah With a quiet grumble she leaves the tent, Akalia full of concern runs after her. Turning my attention to the elder he begins to give a set of plans and actions he¡¯s prepared for us. The elder thinks that soon we should be getting ready to mobilize the village now that we found ¡®our¡¯ ancestral home and redevelop it. He knows that it would take a while but still, we should be working towards it. And the elder wants me to begin training myself to be useful. Walking out of the elder¡¯s house I begin to wander aimlessly around the fortress-like village, admiring its tall wooden walls and odd house style. Very few of the houses are actually on the ground. With the trees being so tall they have a series of houses bridged and connected to larger wooden platforms between trees, the whole thing comprising of 4 total layers. With my sight back it''s so easy to see why I need more colors or magic, this place is absolutely beautiful. Thinking on it now I¡¯m not sure where anything is, I know where Keshats house/clinic is, as well as the elder¡¯s, but everything else is a mystery. I need someone to guide me if I¡¯m going to be living in this village for an extended period. While walking around I once again luckily stumble where I need to be, the training field. It¡¯s oddly expansive, a spot with dummies for hand to hand combat, a range for those skilled in archery, a few dueling areas to test your skills against others, and finally a weapons area with dummies. Akalia is in deep focus slashing at the training dummies with her wooden sword, occasionally bashing with her shield. A series of complex movements burst out, more like a dance than a gritty fight. Her style is odd like she is trying to open them up to bash with her shield, which I doubt the effectiveness of. ¡°Why are you just standing there?¡± Akalia turns toward me interest on her face ¡°Are you gonna train, or just stand there¡± ¡°I¡¯m thinking more learn than train, to be honest,¡± I mumble out ¡°Well I¡¯d be happy to be your teacher, It¡¯s a great way of checking my own knowledge¡± Akalia walks over picking up a sword and tossing it to me. ¡°Plus a moving training dummy is rather nice.¡± ¡°That''s great news, I¡¯m excited to learn something. I don¡¯t have to call you master right?¡± I ask as I catch the sword by the handle, surprising myself. ¡°Also don¡¯t hit me too hard alright¡± ¡°Akalia works just fine, and don¡¯t be a baby.¡± She yells out while walking towards one of the dueling areas. Quickly I follow her into the small ring carved out in the dirt. Akalia takes a stance, her sword out in front and her body lined up behind it. She begins to shuffle around almost uncomfortably. ¡°Stay here I just can¡¯t seem to work out the right style for your size, not to mention I¡¯m not sure where your specialties lie.¡± She says looking incredibly flustered ¡°Just sit tight for one second I¡¯ll get Talion he¡¯s really good for this kinda stuff¡± Running off towards the second layer. I guess a good sword fighter doesn¡¯t mean a great teacher, I¡¯m just glad she is honest about it. Saves a whole lot of time that way. Not to mention that if I learn poor technique I might as well With my time I decide to begin working with my magic. I begin to search for it deep in my core, that light airy feeling. Sensing it I begin to guide it unsure of what to do I circulate it around my body, first into my legs. With it circulating into my hands, I begin to wave my hands trying to get it to leave my body. After 5 minutes of hopelessly flapping, I move more wind magic into my hands specifically my fingertips, I compress magic into the tips. Feeling my magic swirl powerfully, either my fingers explode or something cool happens. I swing my arm downward and a blade of wind flies out cutting some of the dirt training circle, barely visible from its tint of green. Feeling noticeably drained I sit down on the dirt to catch my breath. ¡°That boy ain''t using no sword¡± A familiar grumble spit out from behind me ¡°All he¡¯s got going for him is piss poor magic. I think he would be a decent spellcaster.¡± Talion mumbles out from behind me ¡°Doesn¡¯t really seem built for close-quarter ¡°I barely know magic at all, and what do you mean not built, I¡¯m tough as rocks¡± ¡°Hmm, We¡¯ll see then.¡± 6 - Talions Test Chapter 6 Talion pulls me to my feet ruining the short break I was taking and begins to teach some forms ¡°Spread your legs, not that far ya slut! Shoulder length, you need a solid base¡± Talion yells out his signature grumble non-existent. ¡°Now Punch with your everything, punch me right now!¡± he puts a palm out indicating me to strike it. Shocked by his intensity I throw out a punch using as much strength as I can muster. As my fist makes contact with his palm, Talion barely bends his elbow. Filled with shame I get ready to punch again, Talion smirks. This time I use my body instead of raw strength, rotating my shoulders pulling power from the ground. Talion instead of taking my blow grabs my hand and pulls me forward and kneeing me in my stomach. On this note, Talion may no longer be my favorite. I stumble back and stare at Talion, and he returns my stare with a shit-eating smirk. ¡°Look how weak ya are boy, go play magic with Leissandra.¡± I rush towards Talion throwing a similar strike to before, and just like before he grabs the hand and pulls me forward. I take the momentum and send my other fist directly into Talion''s stomach sending him reeling back a few steps. He recovers and grins at me, god is he happy today. He moves forward throwing a straight my way leaning to the left I throw a punch from the same side, blocking the jab Talion slams me in the stomach again, I swear I¡¯m gonna lose my lunch soon. Falling back a few steps I analyze Talion, He''s big bigger than me, in fact, he seems to be the biggest in the village. I¡¯m not really sure how to fight, all I know is punch and don¡¯t get hit. Taking a more cautionary approach, I step towards the big man eyeing him up. The moment I enter his range he throws a wide-sweeping punch. Ducking under it I see the opening of a lifetime, I rise throwing the sickest uppercut of my life¡­ Woosh¡­ It flies right past Talion as he leans back, the smile on his face beaming at me. It¡¯s the last thing I see as a punch slams me back into dreamland. ¡­ A splash of water wakes me up, as I¡¯m greeted by Talion¡¯s ugly mug. I give him my biggest scowl which he returns with a huge grin. God I wish he¡¯d stop smiling at me, makes me uncomfortable The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Boy if you could qualify as a fighter, then we could just give every infant a sword.¡± Talion laughs at me ¡°Talion, if you''re trying to test me it''s working!¡± I shout ¡°This is the first time I¡¯ve fought you got lucky.¡± ¡°There isn¡¯t any luck in that, now if you want another beating then go ahead, I don¡¯t mind whipping you into shape. As someone who looks like a Develios you have no right being weak, and if you''re not going to sling spells, then to brawl you need to be tip-top or you¡¯ll be eight feet under.¡± While I don¡¯t like having people making my choices for me I can¡¯t really complain, I have no clue what I¡¯m doing. Still, the idea that I¡¯m going to be spell casting seems like a poor choice for me, too much learning. I feel like as long as it works my two fists will work fine. Especially with these winds slashes. ¡°Honestly Talion I think I¡¯ll be better as a magic fist-fighter. I can throw these smaller spells in between punches maybe continue pressure better.¡± Voicing my opinion to Talion I only feel more assured. ¡°Well I see what you mean that is a scary combination, but considering how weak you are now it''s more likely you¡¯ll just be piss poor at both ¡°Why do you think that I''m sure I''ll improve?¡± I question Talion. ¡°Well with your frame being so tall and skinny, your punches have no weight. Not to mention your magic lacks any potency¡± ¡°I think I¡¯m starting to get what you mean now, still I wanna try things my way. I think that I¡¯ll be able to really overpower anyone once I get the hang of this magic I got¡± ¡°Alright then prove it!¡± Talion yells at me. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Fight me with it right now show me how tough your magic is!¡± Talion roars This time I crack the smile, swirling my magic around my body I focus it into my fingertips, and this time my toes as well. Since we got something to prove we¡¯re going all out. Rushing forward I step left of Talion crouching low. I lash out with a sweeping kick only to watch step back. Talion swings his tree trunk sized legs at me, almost nailing me in my chest. Turning just out of the way I swing another uppercut at Talion, once again stepping back. This time is different, opening my hand I push magic through my fingertips forming a wind blade that flies towards him. The blade cutting a small, thin but long cut from his hip to his shoulder. His eyes open in shock, I grinned at him excited to show him how much I can do. Talion takes a step back, cracks his neck and a full toothy smile burst out. He seems happier than I am, but I think I¡¯m starting to understand why. Talion runs back in throwing a series of jabs leaving me barely any room to dodge, sometimes leaving only the option to block causing a shock to run through my arms. Talion unrelenting pushes forward pressing his attack. Reading his next jab I pull a move from earlier grabbing his hand and pulling his momentum forward, sending a knee into his stomach. Converting that hit into more attacks I launch a series of punches, only to watch Talion block them with barely an issue. Clearly brute force won¡¯t work. Backing off I push magic into my fingertips once more, and send a flurry of slashes towards my opponent. Caught off guard Talion¡¯s shirt is torn into rags as I attack. Quickly recovering he rushes towards me, tanking the hits. Surprised by the speed of such a large man, I react slowly as he blocks my arm I was going to use to send a wind blade his way. With his arm already cocked back Talion sends a slugger towards me. I desperately wanted to not get hit, yet the blocked wind blade through me off balance. The wind mana inside of me still circling, I¡¯m suddenly almost blown out the way, like a leaf in the wind. Talion looks at me full of surprise as I¡¯m now standing to his left a little ways away. Hearing some excited shouts from around us, I notice we gathered quite the audience. Turning to Talion I nod to continue the fight, with this new move things are about to get crazy.