ã€ŠMother of Monstersã€‹


 Chapter 1: Trapped

    Aphrodite stood with her back against the far wall of the large chamber. A blood-red cloak, made of the finest silk, hid her face from the other occupants. Her shining eyes set upon the chained figure in the center of the room. Her friend stood erect and proud, even as the cruel eyes of her fellows looked down on her.

    "Evdokia, you have been told countless times to control your power and yet you did not seem to care for the word of the Gods, nor for their generosity. Now you have sent the human world into disorder!"

    Aphrodite''s delicate hands clenched into fists at Zeus'' words, but she could do nothing but listen.

    "My patience has run thin for you have proven to be a threat to the order of our world and for your actions, you must be punished." The King of the Gods maintained an image of reassigned authority, like a father chastising a troubled child. But she could hear the glee in his voice and knew that he relished every moment.

    This was a facade, an excuse to rid himself of the troublesome Goddess. None of the Gods truly understood her power or where she had come from. She was old though, older than most, and that scared Zeus. He knew that if she chose, she might even be able to overthrow him. Such a threat could not be tolerated.

    "For your misguided actions, you will be sent to the lightless prison for all eternity." He let the words echo in the still silence. Nobody could have predicted such a punishment. The gathered Gods began to mutter, this was too much, even for Zeus.

    Aphrodite was numb. It wasn''t fair. Surely someone would say something, surely they would not allow such a thing. But they were too scared, and she was the biggest coward of them all. A black hole appeared in the back of the hall and Evdokia let out a howl of pain as she was sucked into the dark abyss. Aphrodite watched as the swirling mist closed around her and she could no longer feel the comforting presence of her friend.

    --------------------You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

    There was no light in this prison. She was left blind and breathless. At first, she screamed, screamed in rage and terror and frustration. Screamed because of the pain and screamed because she was afraid of the silence.

    Eventually, she stopped screaming and focused on her anger and thoughts of revenge. Evdokia began to use her magic to chip away at her prison. She threw spell after spell, and when that failed, she resorted to using raw power. However, it took all her strength just to make the smallest dent in the prison¡¯s wards. Unable to continue her attack. She began to search for alternative sources of Mana.

    What she found was something unknown to her. A dark intoxicating power that was like nothing she''d ever felt before. Broken and drained, abandoned and helpless, Evdokia welcomed the mysterious source of power into her core. The black mass crashed into her like a tidal wave. It wasn''t Mana, but it was similar enough that she could construct her channel her magic through it. There was something wrong with it though.. It leaked into her mind, spilling its darkness and pushing against the walls of her sanity. Evdokia collapsed and did not wake from her battle with the toxic power until many moons later.

    ~After A Very Long Time~

    Memories flash through Evdokia''s mind as she continued her work. From the great Dragon race to the small and peaceful Zalarks, she remembered their creation and she remembered raising them into the world and teaching them how to survive. She remembered a bit about the humans and how they had both feared and honored her. She remembered drinking cherry wine with the Goddess of love. She thought of lovers past, and wars long ago won. Destruction and disease, and the ever-present faith of the humans that one day the blind would see and the mute would sing and that all the impossible things were right at your fingertips.

    She fought harder.

    So close.

    She was so close to finally being free of the wretchid place. A crack appeared and gray mist floated through it. Curling around her as if to embrace her. As she was pulled out of the cold darkness, black chains lashed out. Grabbing at her wrists and ankles, dragging her back in. The chains dug into her skin and she reached out for a semblance of magic that could save her. A sound came from above her. It was the first sound to have touched her mind in a very long time.

    Out of the corner of her eye, Evdokia saw a white dove dive straight for the black steel that held her. it severed the prison''s hold on her and she was once again wrapped in the gray mist, being pulled away. Leaving the snow-white bird to fend off the old black magic. A dove that could only be from one Goddess.

 Chapter 2: Arrangements

    The Judge reclined in their chair with a contented sigh. Their job was not an easy one, so this was a rare moment of quiet. The peace was disrupted by a voice that spoke from the shadows of the room.

    "Hello, there my little soul sorter."

    It was a taunting voice. One, they had not heard in a long time. They had never seen a God look so tired. One of the ram''s horns protruding from her head was missing. Her skin seemed so sapped of life that it appeared almost translucent. Evdokias'' black eyes were sunken and it unnerved The Judge that they could not detect any form of life behind them. Her long raven hair had been one of the Goddess''s vanities. Now, it seemed thin and disheveled.

    They didn''t waste breath asking how she had escaped her prison. She was here and had come to them , that was all that mattered.

    "What do you want from me?" They inquired.

    "Zeus doesn''t know that I''m free, and I''d like to keep it that way. If I stay here, he''s bound to find out and send me back" She paused, her eyes shifting away from them as if remembering her lightless imprisonment. After another moment, she continued,

    "The only place where he''ll have trouble finding me is Hellas"

    They considered her words carefully. They were true, and her plan would work even better than she thought. Humans had begun to explore the world and new lands had been discovered. The gods did not have as much say in human affairs anymore. Zeus, in his arrogance, had not considered the consequences of keeping Evdokia away from the world of humans. Her monsters had slowly begun to disappear, and so did the ancient heroes, and with them the mortal''s faith in the Gods. Considering all that, it would be very hard to find a wandering Goddess who, as far as anyone else was concerned, was still fulfilling her eternal punishment. Of course, that did not answer their question, "Seems a little foolish to reveal yourself to us when we can not help you"

    "I''ve come to you, because it''s your job, to sort the souls of the dead. To decide if a soul will be reincarnated, or if the soul will continue on to Hades''s realm. You are the only one I trust to deal with the official or unofficial paperwork, that is required for one such as me to visit the human plane." She says picking at one of her yellowing fingernails.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

    " What makes you think that we will concede to do such a thing?" They asked.

    "Because I know your little secret. The one thing that can give Hades a reason to finally feed you to Cerberus."

    Anxious fear filled them, it was something they had not felt in a long time. Since the beginning of time, they had judged the souls of the dead. It was rare for them to make a mistake. However, there was only one that might interest the Lady of Shadows.

    "Do you presume to blackmail the Judge of the dead?" They demanded.

    The Goddess only smirked. She''d played her cards well and now they were trapped. She was smart enough to not tell their secret to Hades herself. And, they were certain that she could find a way down to earth, with or without their help.

    She must have known she''d won because she turned to leave while saying, "I''ll be back at sunrise tomorrow. Farewell, my little soul sorter." Disappearing once again into the shadows.

    -----------------------

    Evdokia returned the following morning as promised. She had spent the night nursing her wounds and trying to regain some semblance of her former strength. She was not yet comfortable in the light and preferred to stay with the similar darkness of the prison that lurks inside her. Contaminating her magic.

    The Judge sat in their tall chair overlooking the rest of the poorly lit room. The Judge had no gender, nor a particular form or shape. The Judge knew almost everything about everyone. However, they never divulge the information to anyone. With only one exception. Something that could get them in serious trouble. The Judge''s cold eyes landed on her as she appeared before them.

    "The world has changed much in the time you have been away. They no longer call it Hellas, the humans call it Earth." Their words meant little. Of course, the humans had advanced since she''d been gone.

    "Many of your monsters have gone into hiding or adapted to their new environment. Often they are hunted for sport. There are buildings that reach for the clouds and large cities that are like none you have ever seen. The Gods have been forgotten."

    Evdokia was a little discontent, but refused to believe so much had changed. Curiosity tugged at the back of her mind. If they thought to convince her to stay away from Earth then they would fail. She raised an eyebrow. With a sigh, the Judge continued, " I have made all the arrangements, in a little bit, a path will open and you will descend to the human plane. I suggest you come up with a human form in the meantime."

    Excitement rushed through Evdokia, soon she would be rid of this place. She would see this new world and start a new life. She would finally be free of the Gods and all their machinations. Except, the price of escape had been high. And even now she could feel the terrible darkness pressing against her.

 Chapter 3: Stranger in the Woods

    Alexa Rivera shifted her position on the forest path, angling her bow toward the direction of the Ravnec. She had never seen one so big. A normal Ravnec was the size of a pig. However, their strength was that of a grown man. The fur of a Ravnec was worth a fair penny, even if the meat was too tough to eat. The monster hit its hoof on the gravelly ground and bent its hairy head down to graze on a patch of ferns. Seeing her chance Alexa, pulled back the bowstring and aimed for its neck.

    *SNAP*

    The sound of a twig snapping surprised Alexa and her arrow was set loose, hitting the Ravnec in the leg. A pained cry came from the creature as it reared on its hind legs, blood dripping from the open wound. Panicked she looked up to see a girl standing before the creature. The girl stared at the monster, a different range of emotions playing across her face. Finally, she looked up at Alexa, and as their eyes met the Ravnec stopped its screeching and retreated into the woods.

    Stunned, Alexa stared at the spot where the Ravnec had been. When a Ravnec felt threatened, it would fight until its enemy was dead. It wasn''t at all probable that an injured one would just run away, especially one of that size. Shaking her head she looked back at the stranger that had started the sequence of events.

    As she approached the girl, Alexa raised her hands, to show she meant no harm. She looked about 15, only a little younger than Alexa. She had long black hair that fell in waves down her back, and dark brown eyes. She was very pretty, in a sort of ethereal way. Alexa had never seen this girl before. Which meant she was a stranger, and strangers meant trouble.

    If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.                                                                              -----------------------

    Evdokia stared at the human girl in front of her. The one who had shot, the rabid one. She recognized the animal as an offshoot of the Austrian boar. However, something was wrong with it. When first coming into contact with it, she had been meeting with resistance, however weak it was. She''d felt angry at its disobedience and then pity as an arrow pierced its leg. With a thought, she''d sent the hurt thing away to hide and nurse its wound. It was only a child after all.

    The human was watching her. Evdokia stiffened, she was supposed to act as a mortal. How did mortals act? She remembered them groveling for mercy at her feet. Did that mean the Goddess should fall to the ground and beg for her life? That didn''t seem reasonable. She also remembered proud strong mortals, some were humble, others were arrogant and crude, and killed everything that got in their way. She felt that acting in such a manner wouldn''t be well received.

    Evdokia remembered the priests that had once paid worship to the Gods. Many, were soft-spoken and sweet. They were diligent and hardworking and always paid due respect to the Gods. She pondered this but ultimately decided that not even she was that good of an actor. Her thoughts were interrupted by the human.

    "Who are you and Why have you come here?" The mortal questioned. Evdokia dipped her head in a formal greeting but said nothing.

    --------------------

    Alexa looked over at her captive. The girl had not protested as Alexa tied her hands behind her back and lead her through the woods. She felt sort of bad. But she couldn''t allow a stranger into town without precautions and she couldn''t leave the girl to fend for herself either. She was just about to say something when a hoarse voice broke in,

    " What..iss...nome."

    Each word was pronounced with a heavy accent and sounded as though she was pulling the pronunciation from another language. Surprised once again, Alexa answered,

    "My name is Alexa, what''s yours?"

    " Im......"

 Chapter 4: A Mortal Settlement

    "..Evia." Alexa thought it sounded like a pleasant name. However the girl''s strange pronunciation and hesitant response prompted her to ask,

    " Do you understand English?" Evia''s frowned, but she nodded.

    " Well, our village is kinda remote. A train comes through here every so often. But, we don''t get a lot of outsiders. Not sure the village elders will know what to do with you."

    Evia cocked her head as if to ask a question. " They''re a bunch of old geezers that just like the sound of their own voice." Alexa laughed at her own joke, seeing her amusement Evia smiled too.

    Alexa continued to talk as they made their way back to the village. Even though Evia preferred to remain silent, she still seemed to understand most of what Alexa was saying and communicated through her facial expressions. However as they approached the village gates, the mood died.

    The gates surrounding the village were made of dark wood and had been standing for as long as Alexa could remember. Alexa couldn''t help but groan as she noticed a familiar face stationed at the front of the gate entrance. Malvic was her dickhead cousin, that couldn''t find his way out of a paper bag even if he wanted to. He smirks as I approach, he loves holding his position as guard over me. Then his eyes land on Evia and his smile grows, he asks in a taunting tone,

    "  Alexa have you finally made a friend. And such a pretty one at that." He winks at Evia and my skin crawls. I look over at her and it hits me for the first time, that she''s not just pretty, she''s beautiful. Which isn''t always a good thing.

    " Just open the gates Malvic. I have to see the elders. "

    His smile turned into a scowl as he begrudgingly pulled a lever and opened the gates. Alexa walked through and Evia follows. Alexa picked up her pace, while Evia lowered her head, even so, the people stared at them and whispered. Some shouted out for Alexa¡äs attention, but, she just ignored them. Only stopping when they made it to the town hall. It was a modest structure not so big as to be imposing but not so small, that you could miss it on your way to the market.

    As they stepped through the door, three old men looked up from the large table at the center of the room. Alexa bowed formally and said, "Greetings Elders, I found an outsider in the woods today and I wish to seek your guidance on the right course of action." She hoped that she had been able to keep the sarcasm out of her voice. The men straightened and inspected Evia, who hunched her shoulders and let her hair fall over her face, trying to look as unassuming as possible.

    If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.¡§Who are you?? one of the men barked. Evia shuffled nervously. Alexa answered for her.

    "Her name is Evia, she seems to know much English, but she also doesn''t seem to be any sort of threat.¡§

    The elders once again looked Evia over and then began to mutter to themselves. Alexa leads Evia outside to give the elders some privacy while they discussed what to do with the outsider. This all might have seemed like a lot of trouble, except Alexa''s village was very wary of outsiders. They were a closed-off community and were quite protective of their more traditional values and customs. The two girls waited nearly an hour and Alexa had a sneaking suspicion that the Elders just wanted to draw out the suspense. Finally, they were called back into the room and Elder Pollock was stood before them. The other two were sitting father away and seemingly not uninterested in what was to be said.

    "We decided that until we can find the girl''s family and original home, she may stay in our humble settlement. However, you must provide for her and feed her as she is your responsibility. We will not be held responsible for a stranger." Turning his back to them it was obvious that they were being dismissed. Grinding her teeth, Alexa grabbed Evia''s now unbound hand and pulled her outside.

    -----------

    The human girl named Alexa, lead her through the tiny human village. It seemed as though the houses were built better. And the clothing had changed quite a bit. The humans wore sculpted boxes on their feet and each person was fully clothed. What a strange and somewhat disappointing sight. The humans stared at her. Normally she would have given the mortals something to look at. She would have ridden an obsidian chariot pulled by hellhounds. In her glory, the weak-minded villagers would fall at her feet and offer sacrifices to her name. Her human guide finally stopped at a small house, that hardly seemed fit for a former goddess.

    She entered the house and kicked off the leather consuming her feet. A man was sitting in an old sofa chair. There was a strong stench of alcohol in the air, and one of the man''s eyes seemed to twitch more often than normal. His gaze hitched on us as we entered. He pointed at me and barked,

    "WHO THE HELL IS SHE!?"

    "Her name is Evia, I found her lost in the woods the village elders said she should live with us," Alexa replied calmly. Her previously expressive face has become cold as stone. The man''s energy seems to leave him and he slipped back into his chair mumbling something under his breath. Alexa quickly leads the other girl up the stairs.

    "Sorry, about him. He''s me my uncle and my legal guardian until I''m of age. And the guard you saw coming in, is my cousin Malvic. Try to try to stay away from him."

    It took Evdokia several minutes to figure out what the girl said. On the way out of the woods, she had listened to the mortal and had acquired a grasp of the language. It was easy for Gods to learn these things quickly, however, such a thing still took time.

    Evdokia shared a room, with Alexa. Who had offered to sleep on the floor, however, Evdokia knew that she would need friends in this world, and so she offered to share the bed instead. It was nearly night when Malvic came home. The brutish human gorged himself on the meal Alexa had so graciously prepared for him, without even thanking her. Much less, setting aside an offering for the gods. Evdokia was cruel and chaotic, however, that did not mean she lacked proper manners. She found these human''s mannerisms to be quite distasteful. In fact all through dinner, she was thinking about the different ways in which she might kill the man.

 Chapter 5: The end of Peace

    At first, the villagers had seemed nervous and hostile towards Evdokia. However, seeing how she had caused little trouble and rarely ever left the house. The villagers were not able to do much about her. Evdokia didn''t actually care what the silly humans thought. She was more focused on her studies than anything. There were only a handful of books in the house. But, they were enough to satisfy her. And if she had any question, she would just ask her friendly human.

    It seemed that the world had changed much since the Gods'' reign. About a thousand years ago, there had been seven continents, that were inhabited by human civilization. Surprisingly at some point, magic had disappeared. Her children had gone into hiding and the Gods severed their power from the earth. Because of this, mortals had discovered a system called technology, along with all sorts of other strange inventions.  As the mortal civilization became more advanced, the people began to turn on each other.

    Tensions were high and grand war had broken out. It was called World War lV and somehow magic had been brought back to Earth. Bringing with it new and dangerous species, that had been in hiding for years. The world was consumed by despair. For a long time, there was just fighting. Neither side truly knew what they were fighting for. Both were just confused and afraid. Eventually what was left of the world settled into an age of peace and the mortals slowly began to put their lives back together. Kingdoms were formed and knowledge of the old ways was brought back into the light. Much of the old technology was reformed and changed to suit their needs. The weapons made were put into museums. For nothing could defeat her monsters but steel blades and magic. Alexa told her that she was currently in the village of Taylor that was on the outskirts of the city of Lyon in the country of Solyria.

    Evdokia was proud that her children had survived this long without her. Unfortunately, one thing that had not been lost in the fighting, was the confusing English language. Which had become the common tongue of the people. She missed the intimacy of Greek but found the old language tainted with memories she''d rather leave forgotten.

    Evdokia sat on the bed and read. Alexa had told her that while she was out hunting, Evdokia must not leave their room. Evdokia didn''t mind though, as she let her mind wander, she thought of her children. The dragons, had been her first real creation. Even now she could sense their presence. There were very few left. The strongest presence was that of her daughter, Madeline. Soon, she would come to meet her creator. However, the one she longed to see the most, was the faintest connection. Her eldest son was in a deep slumber and she could not wake him. Though, other beasts might not recognize her scent, yet. Some that were nearest had come to see their Goddess.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

    The first was a pixie named Twyla. She was full of energy, and could not stop talking. Pixies are small but ferocious. They are decisive and cunning, but also energetic and playful. Like most other beings they valued status, and thus had come up with somewhat unfair and confusing rules. Twila had spent nearly 3 hours, informing her about, tiny details and superstition. Twyla seemed to see it as a sign that Evdokia had appeared, only a day after Twyla had been kicked out of her tribe. Apparently, she''d pulled one too many practical jokes and had inevitably bitten off more than she could chew. Finally, Evdokia had managed to shoo her away.

    Over the past few weeks, Evdokia had spent more time with Alexa. She reminded Evdokia, a bit of Athena. Rather smart, with a warrior''s heart and a narrow mind. She felt that if she was to rule this world, she would most likely appoint Alexa to be one of her handmaidens. What an honor for the mortal.  As, for the other occupants of the house; Alexa''s uncle seemed to not care about her as long as she didn''t get in his way. As for Malvic, he was a pest. While he wasn''t a threat, she somehow felt violated, when he looked at her.

    -----------

    The sun had nearly set and Alexa still hadn''t returned. Evdokia wasn''t worried, she knew the human could take care of herself. But just in case, she''d sent Twyla out to inform all the beats lurking in the darkness, to stay away from any humans wandering through the forest. Seconds turned into minutes and minutes turned into an hour. Still she had not returned. Worried, Evdokia lay on the bed and stared at the ceiling. She heard the sound of a door being slammed downstairs. Loud footsteps marched up and stopped at her room. The doorknob turned and the door swung open and Malvic stepped in. There was a hungry gleam in his eye that made Evdokia shiver. She knew that look and she knew that this day would come eventually. Malvic was probably used to getting his way. She was reminded of what Alexa had said when they first met. Something about strangers being dangerous.

 Chapter 6: Run!!

    Evia looked down at the corpse of the forsaken man. His eyes were wide and he lay sprawled across the floor at an awkward angle. Blood pooled out of the knife wound in his chest. Evia frowned, stabbing someone was always messy, certainly, she would have done it differently. Malvic had approached her, hovering over her tiny human form. Grabbing her shoulders he had pushed her down. With one hand gripping both her hands above her head and reaching with the other for the strap of her dress. The darkness had tugged at her mind, eagerly awaiting his death.

    However, before she could move the door swung open and Alexa burst inside. Her eyes flew across the room landing on Malvic, Alexa''s eyes went wide. She screamed and then launched herself at Malvic. After a brief scuffle, Alexa''s hunting knife had made the fatal hit. There was a moment of silence, and then her eyes hardened she crossed the room with quick determined steps and grabbed Evia''s hand.

    She then turned and began to pull Evia out of the room and down the stairs. She let go of her arm when they reached the kitchen. Evia expected her to go and wake up her uncle, instead, Alexa turned toward the kitchen and began to rummage through the cupboards. She grabbed whatever she could and threw it in a bag. She slipped on her boots and waved over Evia, mouthing ''Follow me''.

    Alexa led Evia out of the house and slowly made their way to the gate. A guard was patrolling the wall, he seemed bored. Evia, couldn''t tell what Alexa was planning, but she decided to make it easier and simply picked up a stone from the road and threw it to the other side of the wall. A normal person couldn''t have been able to throw that far and be sure that it would land and make a sound loud enough to distract the guard. But, Evia was not normal. The guard heard the noise stiffened and rushed over to the source of the sound.

    The two reached the gate and Alexa began to climb. She was strong and the wall had plenty of studded edges to grab onto. Evia quickly followed. They crouched down and made their way to a locked door. Or at least it had been locked. As they grow closer Alexa could see the lock had been opened. It had been opened, and Evia thought she knew by whom. As they passed through, Evia brushed a few specks of pixie dust into a dark corner.

    ----------

    What had she done!? The vision of Malvics bloody body swam in Alex''s mind, as she and Evia made their way through the forest. They followed a rough road, unsure exactly where they would end up. She''d killed him. Malvic had been cruel to her ever since their childhood and her parent''s untimely death. He would trip her, pull on her hair and tease her relentlessly. As they grew older he began to use her as a way to vent his anger. It was one of the reasons she chose to spend all day hunting. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    When she''d seen him with Evia, she hated him more than ever. She wanted him dead and now she didn''t know what she felt. Even leaving had been instinctive. But, what else could they have done? She would be have been put on trial for murder and Evia would have been left completely alone. She hoped that the path they took, would lead them to the City of Lyon.

    Alexa glanced over at Evia, who walked calmly. Not at all shaken by the whole ordeal. Why? Why had she done so much for a person who was little more than a stranger? She''d only met Evia a couple of weeks ago but because of Evia, she had had to work harder to hunt down enough food for them all. She''d lost sleep teaching the girl to read and write. She had stabbed her cousin and fled her home, all to protect an ignorant, arrogant, freak who was stupid enough to get lost in the Erivey Woods. A series of emotions grew conflicted inside Alexa and she looked away.  It wasn''t Evia''s fault, everything she''d done had been her own choice. Evia was strange, but Alexa liked her. She was the closest thing to a friend Alexa had ever had.

    Evia looked up at the sky, wrinkling her nose in confusion. Alexa followed her gaze up and looked for the cause. But, there was nothing.

    Evia stopped walking and pointed up at the sky, ¡°Where are the stars?¡°

    Alexa paused. ¡° Stars? What are those?¡°

    Evia looked at her like she was crazy. Then realization donned on her face, and her eyes filled with grief. She looked back up at the empty sky and said,

    ¡°Stars were unchanging and perfect. Many said that they were actually the suns of a thousand different planets. But they were so far away, they were little more than specks to our people...¡°

    Evia trailed off, lost in thought. Alexa dwelled on the possibility of these stars. She came to the conclusion that if magic existed than anything was possible. Even a thousand suns, seen only in the night.

    -----------

    Evia looked up at the starless sky and felt deep remorse seep into her heart. She remembered the night sky had been beautiful and inviting. How the moon had cradled her in its cool embrace.

    Remorse turned into anger and the darkness awakened. It clawed at her thoughts and filled her with an irrational desire to hurt those who had done this to her beautiful night. Raising her hand she pointed her index finger toward the direction of the village, she called for a great Drakel to attack the settlement. More than half of those pathetic humans would be dead by sunrise.

    ¡°Umm...what are you doing?¡°

    Evia blanched and stuttered, ¡° I hate that place, I just wanted it to feel just how much.¡°

 Chapter 7: Lady Allerton

    ~ The Allerton Manor, Lyon ~

    A beautiful woman in her late threats, lounged on the sofa, cradling the baby in her arms. Her son, paced in front of her. He was only 16 years of age and already had dark circles under his eyes, marking his handsome face. He had his father''s sharp features and his strange red hair. Her eyes, the color of the sky. He was her darling son, and she knew she was his mother, the moment, Grell had claimed it so. But, she didn''t understand why her husband had insisted that her darling Adriane, work beside him.

    ¡§ I just don''t understand, how something like this could have happened.¡§ He said.

    ¡§ Don''t be so worried, it isn''t so rare for a stray monster to wander out of its den and target a small village. ¡§

    She said as the baby reached and hugged one of her fingers with its tiny hands. Adriane stopped and turned to her.

    ¡§ But a Drakel! They are known for being seclusive and territorial, as long as you don''t disturb its habitat It won''t attack. It just doesn''t make any sense for one to attack a village, that is a hundred miles away from its den. ¡§

    Adriane waved around his hands, to emphasize his point. ¡§ 50 casualties, 30 injured and 20 dead. And the rest are left with little but the clothes on their back, and those pesky old geezers keep pestering use to give them a new land. ¡§ he said as he flopped down on the couch next to her.

    Her daughter cooed in her arms and she smiled as she handed Baby lily over to her big brother.

    ¡§ Don''t worry about such things, my son. You are the heir to the Allerton house and I''m sure, things will work themselves out.¡§

    Adriane nodded at her words, yawning she stood and with a quick farewell, left the room, to retire. Tracking through the long corridor, she heard muffled whispers. Curious, she followed the sounds to an isolated room. Three men spoke, in hushed voices. She leaned against the wall and listened.

    ¡§ Everything is going according to plan. Why should we change it now? ¡§ One of the men asked.

    ¡§ Because there''s always the possibility that Lady Allerton will find out the truth.¡§ Another man answered.

    ¡§ Buh, that bitch cant see past her over the powdered nose. She''s was duped 16 years ago. She won''t find out.¡§ The gruff man replied. The lady in question was dying to know what the men were talking about.

    ¡§ But, if she finds out, there''s no telling what she''ll do, best to kill her and release the truth. Instead of blackmailing the Lord we can ruin him in one go.¡§ The second voice answered, obviously they''d had this conversation before.

    A third voice entered the conversation and said, ¡§ Marry the lady was probably the smartest thing that fool ever did. ¡§If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    Lady Allerton prickled as the first man snorted in amusement. The third voice came again disapproving.

    ¡§ She''s smarter than you think Raglan. They would have been good together. But, then Grell, cheated and slept with that foolhardy maid and got her pregnant. Once the child was born, that crowd brought the child to the Lady and told her he was hers.¡§

    The man named Raglan answered, ¡§ If shes so smart then how did she overlook, the moths of pregnancy she would have gone through and the pain of giving birth to such a child?¡§

    A snort from the second man, as he then said, ¡§ He told her that she had been taking a potion, to stop the pain and that the potion, had caused her to forget the entire thing. That mixed in with an actual potion in her soup, to make her memories foggy was enough to convince her.¡§

    Lady Allerton knees become weak and she silently sunk to the ground. She had never considered, that her husband had lied to her.

    He''s not yours.

    It echoed inside her head. Had he known, what other things were the two keeping from her. How dare they, trick her and deceive her Both of them were to blame. She rushed out of the corridor unwilling to hear any more. The mother in her spoke to her. She remembered, Adrian, growing up. No matter who had given birth to him. It didn''t matter. He was her son. They would run away together far away. She found the living room and was about to enter when she saw her son had reached out with one hand toward the burning hearth. The flames reacted and they sprang from the fire, dancing around Adrinanes fingertips. Lily clamped as the fire leaped from finger to finger.

    Lady Allerton''s breath caught. Fire magic was not uncommon. However, the magic was often very hard to control and occasionally an untrained user would be burned alive. And besides fire magic was used for big explosions, she had never seen a fire that was so controlled. He had lied to her, kept his ability from her. With that realization, her heart broke and her memories of her son were washed away by a black sea of anger.

    And he had her daughter.

    Panicked she rushed back in and grabbed Lily from Adriane. The fires flew back to the hearth and Lily began to cry. Her daughters tear mixing with her own. Adriane turned toward her, shocked he opened his mouth but his words were cut out by her voice.

    ¡§ GET OUT! LEAVE I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOUR FACE AGAIN!¡§

    Adriane shook his head and stood trying to console her.

    ¡§mother...¡§ he pleaded.

    ¡§ I AM NOT YOUR MOTHER! ¡§ she screeched holding Lily to her chest.

    ¡§ Your father lied, your true mother was a dense whore and you are not my son!!!

    ¡§What?" he asked confused. His mother fell to the ground and wept. He knelt beside her and took her by the hand. She pulled away and refused to look him in the eye.

    ¡§please...I..ccant be around you, right now......please just go...leave this place.¡§ He shook his head again and asked, ¡§ Why?¡§

    Lady Allerton considered the question. Her anger had died. But she looked at the boy who she had raised as her own son, the boy she loved. But, he was so innocent. If he stayed she was afraid that he would become like his father. She didn''t want that for her son. And she didn''t think that she could be around him. She needed time as a woman and as a mother. She needed to know that he was safe and away from here. She turned and clutched at his arm.

    ¡§ Go, go to the academy and learn to use your power. I will make the arrangements. You''ll start when the new term comes. You should have enough to last the two months until then. Go, and don''t return until you are certain that you are ready.¡§

    A torrent of emotions crossed her son''s face. But seeing the determined set in his mother eyes, he nodded. Adrianne kissed his mother and sister on the cheek, hoping to convince his love for them. Then nodded to them and hurriedly left the room.

 Chapter 8: The City of Fire Demons

    Evia sat on the log in the edge of the woods and complained.

    ¡§ I don''t want to keep walking.¡§ Alexa rolled her eyes, while she moved around packing up their attempt at a camp. Which included a few blankets, buddles of food, a small pouch with there money and their makeshift fire. Alexa was also packing up the wooden stakes she set around their blankets. She had put the traps their to alert them if an animal was trying to eat them.

    ¡§ What else can we do, we have to get to Lyon.¡§ Alexa replied.

    ¡§ No we don''t, we can stay here and live with the squires. Evia raised her eyebrows and Alexa laughed. Over there the past few days of traveling, the two had fought, made up and had established something of a partnership.

    It took another hour before the could see the city. Evia became more and more shocked the closer they got. There were buildings as tall as the sky, and everything was so shiny. It looked like a crystal lake. She had seen the hight of beauty in Olympus, however, this city was so new to her, she couldn''t help but be impressed. She was in awe. And then the noise hit her. She covered her ears, as a thousand different voices filled her head. It had been too long since she''d been around so many humans. Alexa laughed at her gesture and they began to walk toward the front.

    There were, in fact, a pair of guards listing the people who entered the city. There were a wagon and a couple others already there and The two went into the back of the line. The two girls couldn''t help but be a little self-conscious. They had been traveling for days, too scared to stop for longer than a night in a secluded part of the forest. They were smelly, tried, and their clothes were worn out. Or at least Alexa was. Evia, couldn''t bring herself to be such things. So she changed her appearance just enough to look travel-worn, but not like a vagrant.

    They reached the front of the line and the guards looked them up and down.

    ¡§ Please, state your names, what business you have here and your place of origins.¡§

    Alexa pointed to herself and then pointed toward Evia and said, ¡§ My name is Emily and my friend here''s name is Abigail. Were looking for work and we''ve traveled a long distance from our village.

    The guard nodded and wrote down the information on a clipboard. Then the other guard stood aside and let them passes. They walked in and Evia curiously looked around them. From what Alexa had told her and from what she read. Evia thought she might have been prepared. But, up close the city was even more dazzling. People walked to and frow, in perfect alinement, wearing strange clothes and talking into strange devices, which she knew were called phones.

    Alexa stared at the large city. For she had never seen any place other than her village and forest. The illusion was broken when a man bumped into Evia. He looked down at her and scowled. Then he continued moving. Anger flared in Evias eyes, she was about to capture the man and punish him for his insolence. But Alexa held her arm and dragged her away.

    They wandered around the city, looking for a place to stay. Evia didn''t understand the need for a hotel. In ancient times, If she wanted to stay in the human world. She would just stay at one of her temples or visit the King and Queen. There was never a need to actually find a place to stay, or for God''s sake pay!!

    As they wandered into a smaller part of the city, It became quieter and tamer. The smell had also improved. Alexa had stopped a woman on the streets and asked if there was a hotel or inn, nearby. The woman had directed them to a small inn, a few blocks away.

    There was an old man, behind the counter when they entered. He eyed them curiously as they entered, but had politely given them a small room, for 10 copiers, per night. which had cost a fair sum of there savings. After settling down, Alexa had shown her how to use the bathroom.

    The contraptions were mindboggling, the first thing Alexa showed her was how to use the toilet. It seemed to be a strictly human thing. Because such things just didn''t happen to gods. The more useful one was the shower and bathtub. She had loved to immerse herself in the hot springs, on Olympus. This seemed much the same, only now candles or rose petals or Nyths at your back and call.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    Alexa changed into a cleaner pair of pants and a Shirt. Evia found these clothes to be mildly uncomfortable, however, she did see the usefulness in wearing the strange outfit. Alexa had planned to look for a Job, so they could earn money and then possibly travel elsewhere. But for now, they needed money.

    ¡§ The real question is how.¡§ Alexa explained.

    ¡§ Our options are limited. All we can really do is look around and see if anyone needs any short-term help. ¡§ Alexa took charge. Evia didn''t mind if fact she liked Alexas on top of things attitude. They wandered around the docks and asked around. Finally, they found a fisherman willing to negotiate.

    ¡§ Please sir, theirs got to be something.¡§ Alexa pleased

    ¡§ Well, I do need those crates unloaded and the mast and sail needs a bit of patching up. And I could always use another hand before my next voyage.¡§ The captain pondered, scratching his full beard.

    ¡§ Very well, if you girls can prove that you can work diligently. Then I''ll give you 2 silvers each, per day.¡§

    Alexa looked at Evia for confirmation. Who nodded in return and Alexa agreed.

    ¡§ Alright then, you can get to work immediately. In those crates, there are the fish I caught a day ago. Sort and ice them. When you''re done with that I''ll check your work.¡§

    The captain led them to the crates and opened one slightly, and pulled out a Cray-Fish. He took a scoop of ice and throw both into a crate labeled C.R.A.Y. There were several other iceboxes that were labeled various kinds of fish. Evia had enjoyed her sea monster stage. Though Posidan had taken full custody of her children. Claiming that as long as they lived in the Sea they were his to control. They hadn''t been on the best of terms ever since. Evia and Alexa set to work.

    ¡§ I never asked, where you came from.¡§ Alexa said as they sorted.

    ¡§ Far.¡§ Evia answered. Not looking up.

    ¡§ Fine. Don''t tell me, I already know.¡§ She said smugly. Evia looked up, how could she possibly know. Seeing her reaction Alexa laughed.

    ¡§ You come from a far-off palace in the middle of the sky. Bt one day you noticed, a floating piece of chocolate, just outside you floating kingdom. And you were very hungry. So you reached out for the delicious treat and fell down into the water!¡§ at the end Alexa took a hand full of water and splashed it at Evia. Who was so shocked she couldn''t move. Then she narrowed her eyes and threw an even bigger hand full of water onto Alexa. The two were laughing heartily and they were smiling more then they had in a long time.

    ¡§ You girls alright.¡§ The captain called over the side of the boat.

    ¡§ YES.¡§ They sang in chorus and then started to giggle again.

    Evia hadn''t realized how much she had missed having a friend. Even the Misstress of Darkness didn''t want to be lonely.

    ----------------

    ~ Four Days Later ~

    Evia and Alexa were finishing work. The captain had been pleased with their hard work and had set them to the task of mending a new sail. It was a claim and cloudless day and there were plenty of other boats, lined up next to each other. With busy crewmen fussing around the ship. It had been an uneventful cheerful morning until the fire started.

    ¡§ FIRE!!¡§ someone shouted and the two girls looked up from where they were repairing the sail. And saw that at one of the boats had caught on fire. Smoke billowed from the ship and screams could be heard from inside. The captain and a few other men rushed over to the burning ship. Evia and Alexa hurridly followed after.

    When they arrived, the fire had eclipsed the entire ship. But still, Evia could sense someone inside. This might not have bothered her if it weren''t for the power inside of the human soul. She didn''t think about what she did next. One minute she was standing next to Alexa watching the burning ship. The next she was running towards the thing and had jumped on top and down to where she could sense the human was located. Shouts followed by the shocked crowd. She walked through the flames. Unharmed. Evia found him curled up in a Conor, passed out. Sighing, she pulled his limp body onto her shoulder and exited the room.

    ---------

    Alexa watched as her friend ran for the ship. She screamed as Evia leaped down into the hull and disappeared into the flames. While only a few minutes later emerged completely fine. Expected for her burned and tattered clothes. Caring a male body in her arms. By that time, a water and earth mage had appeared at the scene and the two other trapped inside the burning ship were being rescued. Both a healer and Alexa rushed over to the pair. Alexa hugged Evia tightly, knowing that she had to be crying.

    The healer checked onto the boy and called over a couple of assistants to put him on a bed and took him to an ambulance. The healer then looked over Evia. And sent her after the boy and the assistance.

    ¡§ All those two your friends, Deary?¡§ The healer woman asked.

    Alexa took a deep breath. And just nodded not able to open her mouth.

    ¡§ Then you best go with them. Having a Friend there helps to settle the minds. And best to get a nice hot chocolate to help you calm down.¡§

    Alexa nodded and ran after her friend and the boy.

    --------------

    Reta watched as the young girl ran after her friends. A dark hair courageous girl that was covered in ash but no burns. And a boy, that had summoned the demons that had caused this mess. She was not a fool, she knew exactly what had happened and she recognized the boys firey red hair, the same as his mothers.

 Chapter 9: Stolen Gods fire

    Adriane woke to see one of the most beautiful and frightening girls he''d ever seen. She was beautiful at first sight. With long raven hair that fell past her waist. A petite figure and skin the color of snow and eyes as dark as coal. But the way she looked at him. Staring down at him, with both indifference and interest. Sent a shiver down his spine. Behind her, he could see nothing but white.

    ¡§ Am I in Hell?¡§ he questioned.

    A small smile appeared on the girls face as she said,

    ¡§ Wait.¡§

    And his world went black.

    ----------------------

    Evia watched the boy as he fell in and out of consciousness. While Alexa sipped warm brown liquid from a mug, a nurse had handed to her. Evia examined the boy''s fiery red hair. It reminded her of the god''s fire. Which had been stolen long ago. She wondered how such a thing had happened. Memories flashed through her mind. And she willing closed her eyes and re-lived the past.

    The Titan Prometheus sneaked into the throne room of Olympus. His target was the great bonfire set in the middle, surrounded by the empty thrones of the gods. A raven and dove watched curiously, as the disobedient Titian took his club and tipped the edge into the fire. He raised the newly formed torch and smiled.

    ¡§ YOU HELPED HIM. DIDNT YOU!!¡§

    Pain shot into Evdokias back. And she collapsed to the ground, in front of Zeus. Shaking from the pain in her burned legs, Evdokia stood once more and faced Zeus. The gods watched from their thrones, with grim faces as they watched the proceedings.

    ¡§ I did not help the Titan. Your majesty¡§ She responded. Holding her head high. Another lightning bolt hit her and she lost her balance and nearly fell once more. But she managed to fight the pain and continued to stare at the king of the gods. Then a cruel smile appeared on Zeus''s face and she shivered.

    ¡§ I see, this is futile. Even if we continue, it is unlikely You will not divulge the information I seek.¡§ he paused and then barked,

    ¡§ Areas! Bring the boy here.¡§ Fear and panic grabbed at Evdokias heart as she turned. To see an armored figure emerge from the darkness holding a struggling child.

    Satonos.

    ¡§ Areas! How could YOU!! Aphrodite yelled from behind her. The god of war refused to meet her gaze as he brought her child in front of Zeus. Satonos fought against the larger man. Though his efforts were in vain. He met her gaze as Areas placed him on the ground and put him in chains. Those eyes so much like her on were filled with determination and not a hint of fear. He was her son alright. But he was young, not even a full century old. His horns had only just started to grow in.

    Zeus hefted another lightning bolt and said,The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡§ Tell me the TRUTH!¡§

    But, it was the truth. She had not helped the Titan, steel the flames of the gods. But this was not a trial. Zeus didn''t care either way. All he wanted was a way to humiliate her. To hurt her. But he underestimated her strength. The second before the lightning hit Satonos he two made a silent agreement. That when the day came, when Zeus reign ended. She and her children would show him no mercy and no kindness.

    And then a light flashed and a scream of pain filled the air.

    Darkness: ..rree...vengeee....deathhh....Kil....

    ¡§..Evia are you alright?¡§ Alexa touched her tightened fist and stared at her concern written all over her face.

    ¡§Ya.¡§ Evia answered shaking her head and clearing away the memory. Alexa still looked a bit concerned and handed her a mug of the warm liquid. She''d been drinking earlier. Evia took the cup and looked over at her friend inquisitively. Seeing her questioning look Alexa explained,

    ¡§ That''s called Hot chocolate, it''s really good. But it''s also really ho¡­!!¡§

    Before Alexa could finish Evia had chugged the entire cup. It was sweet and chocolaty and HOT!! Evia dropped the cup and yelped. She hadn''t expected Alexa to have handed her a cup of liquid fire. It burned her tongue and all she could do was yell

    ¡§ HOT!!¡§

    --------------------

    Adriane winced as the sound of breaking glass and screaming ripped him from sleep. Slowly looking up, he noticed his unfamiliar surroundings. Nearly everything was covered in white and blue. Except for a red cross that hung over the front door. A Hospital?

    Adriane looked to his left and saw to girls by his bedside. He saw the beautifully hellish girl who was furiously scratching at her tongue. Next to her was a pretty brown haired girl, that looked as though she was trying to hold back laughter. He cleared his throat and both girls looked up at him.

    ¡§umm..do I know you?¡§ He asked.

    The brown haired girl promptly stood up and yelled, ¡§ He''s Awake.¡§ less than a minute later three nurses appeared and were fussing over him. While another used magic to clear up the mess on the floor.

    A healer came to check on him and she pronounced that he had recovered well and that he would be released within the hour. A nurse had turned to the two girls and asked.

    ¡§¡±How do you intend to pay for the treatment?¡§

    Both girls looked at each other and then looked down at the ground. It was obvious they didn''t have enough money. Adriane raised his hand

    ¡§ I''ll pay. Don''t worry.¡§

    He was sure he had enough money. Though it would be quite a big chunk of his savings.

    ¡§ Nonsense, considerate free of charge.¡§

    The healer woman, Reta exclaimed.

    ¡§ Now, why don''t you talk with your friends. They''ve been so worried. ¡§ And with that, the two woman left the three children alone. They all sort of stared at each other for a moment. While the raven-haired girl sipped a glass of water, one of the nurses had given her. When she was down she stared at him with those scary brown eyes.

    ¡§ Why were you in the burning ship and Why''d you set it on fire in the first place?¡§ She asked without hesitation. Her friend choked and Adriane started them. At first, he didn''t know what they were talking about. But then it hit him.

    He''d been alone, unable to return home. He''d hidden in the empty ship, and since it was on the water, had felt secure enough to test out his power. The fire had ignited and it was wondrous. And he''d get excited. But he also felt betrayed by his mother and father. And for some reason, the fire had sparked and before he knew it the wood planks on the ship had caught on fire.

    He saw no point in trying to lye to he two girls in front of him. And besides, he had a sneaking suspicion that the dark haired one already knew everything. He told them what he could remember.

    ¡§ Why couldn''t you go home?¡§ The brown haired girl questioned. He looked away, not wanting to answer. She didn''t seem to mind his silence. Suddenly the creepy girl stood and held out her hand to him.

    ¡§ My name is Evia and this is my friend Alexa. And I think we''re going to keep you.¡§

 Chapter 10: Traveling by Train

    Adriane stared at the girl he now knew was named Evia. Keep him? She looked at him with such earnest determination he was certain that she wasn''t joking. He coughed, just as her brown-haired friend, Alexa grabbed Evia''s hand and pulled her back onto her seat. Alexa smiled up at him and said through gritted teeth.

    " What my friend is trying to say is, that we would like it if you would accompany us on our travels? "

    Adriane wrinkled his nose, " Why would I do that?"

    "Because, you don''t have a home and we saved your life, so its either live on the streets and die or come with us and be assured that there would be a lower chance of dying," Evia said her pale face remaining expressionless. Adriane gapped before regaining his composure, lifting his chin and saying in his most dignified voice,

    " I''m afraid, I had intended to leave for Xioto Academy of Magic and Material Skills."

    Alexa and Evia just stared at him blankly. Alexa, growing up in an isolated village with little knowledge of the outside world was not familiar with the Academy or its reputation. And Evia had been on earth for a little more than a month and had little to no idea what an ''Academy'' even was.

    Seeing their confusion, Adriane began to lose some of his confidence. The silence drew out until Evia spoke once again. " Very, well then we shall attend this Academy of your as well." Evia hated admitting that she did not know something. And was not going to admit defeat anytime soon.

    The pair had argued for nearly an hour, before the had finally settled on an agreement. Evia and Alexa would accompany Adrian until they got to the Academy. It was safer to travel in numbers and the girls had agreed that they would cover the cost of their own travel fees. Adrine wasn''t worried about his new travel companions following him into the school. Because, when they reached the Academy, assuming they wanted to enroll as students. They would have to pass the entrance exam.

    Judging by their clothes, he doubted the two had the money to pay for the student fees and to pass the entrance exam. One would need either magical talent or some form of combat skill, and he doubted Evia and Alexa possessed such qualities.

    One thing had lead to another, and now the three of them had begun to board the train. This was rather exciting for all of them. No trains were needed in a small town like Alex¡¯s. And Adriane had always traveled by teleportation. A special trick reserved for the nobility. As for Evia, she had never heard of a train before much less saw and ride one. She was slightly embarrassed because when shed seen that large metal beast charging for them, she had panicked and screamed nearly blowing the train up in her shock. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

    This minor incident had been deemed a minor earthquake and the passengers and crew soon recovered. They were placed in the back of the train, were it might not have been lavishly decorated like those in the first class area. There cabin was cozy and as the hours passed the three companions slowly got to know each other.

    Evia was sitting in the corner and silently looking out the window when there cabin door moved aside and a human boy in a blue uniform appeared.

    " Tickets?" He asked in a bored voice.

    Adrine and Alexa showed them there tickets, while Evia watched the human intently. She decided that the human must know quite a bit about this strange thing that she was now trapped in. Standing she walked over to the boy and said,

    " Hu..uh.. I mean sir, would you be so kind as to answer some questions of mine about this train?" She asked trying to sound innocent and sweet. The human boy looked down at her, his face turning a bit red as the dark haired beauty met his eyes. He looked away and answered.

    " Um, sure I could show you around...."

    "Perfect!" Evia smiled and the two left. Leaving Adrine and Alexa. The two were only momentarily stunned, before they began to laugh. Evia was a strange one. Alexa turned toward Adrine and said a sparkle in her eyes.

    " So, you said that you have been trained by guards to use a sword?" Alexa had wanted to ask, but couldn''t find the courage.

    " Well, yes mother wasn''t happy. But I did learn a couple things." He said scratching the back of his head.

    " Is it ture that a longsword can slice a battle axe into?" Alexa asked enthusiast. Adrine brightined and exclaimed.

    " Yes, given the right velocity. A good blade can make extremely powerful strokes."

    The two continued chatting. While the Ticket checker lead Evia around the train.

    ~ Xioto ~

    Laughter erupted around her. Evia sat staring at her companions.

    "What?" she asked. Confused at their reaction. Alexa snorted and took a deep breath.

    " Marcel Sneezious..*laughter.....was a great writer. She definitely wasn¡¯t known for sneezing." She giggled and shook her head.

    Evia straightened and said in an up tight and said in a jokingly annoyed voice. " I don''t see how such a person could be known for anything else."

    The three smiled at each other. Adrine opened his mouth to make a remark. But, the train then emitted a loud sound and the voice of the conductor came in through the speaker.

    " We are now arriving at Xioto station. Please keep your hands and legs inside the train. Until it has made a complete stop."

    Evia jumped up excitedly, and headed out the door. Alexa quickly followed with Adriene slamming the cabin door shut behind them.

 Chaoter 11: Xioto City

    ~ Xioto Academy, 4th floor~

    In front of the rows of empty seats, shuffling papers into a neat stack a man stands behind his desk. The professor had jet black hair that fell to his shoulders, his features were sharp and articulate. He looked to be in his late 20s and had an almost snake-like appearance to his face. The man looks up to find a young elven girl standing in front of the open door. The elf stepped forward, her long golden hair swishing behind her.

    " What has happened?" She asked, looking at him with concern. She came closer and asked in a hushed voice.

    " Did someone see...." She trailed off, letting the question hang in the air. But Arulous shook his head.

    " Then what is it?"  The girl huffed, a bit exasperated.

    " She''s back." Arculous murmured.

    " What? Whos back?" The elf was beginning to get frustrated. She considered speeding this up. But decided against it.

    " Evokdia... Mother of all Monsters." It was barely more than a whisper but the name rang out through the silent room.

    "..How?" The girl asked, her breath catching. Arculous just shook his head. Memories flooded him.

    A woman, more beautiful than the moon itself, sat watching from the top a hill, as a massacre began at her feet. The humans were fighting, it seemed like that was all that they ever did. Her red eyes staring at nothingness, and then her small smile as she beckoned him forward. How she had held him in her arms as he cried. The screams of the dying filled his head and he cried into Evokdias arms.

    Their creator was not one to coddle her children. The first time they cried she would hold them. Console them and would even sing a lullaby for her distressed children. The second time she would merely watch, She would tell them that to survive one must be strong, stronger than what they thought they would ever be. And then she just watched, watched with neither pity nor displeasure. It had been her own way of showing that she cared. However, they would no doubt suffer for there weakness when the sun rose on the morrow.

    But, one day She hadn''t been there. Their creator had vanished and left them. At that moment Arculous had never felt more useless........

    "What do you intend to do?" His mistress asked. And just like that Arculous was back, in the classroom. A wide-eyed elven girl looking up at him.

    " Right now, it''s only a hunch. I can sense her, but it could be a trick. I''ll attempt to find out more, but for now, we can only wait." The snake-like professor said. Slightly clenching his fist. The elf nodded and then smiled widely.

    " Oh, wouldn''t it be exciting if it was her!" She exclaimed before she swiftly pulled out a sheet of paper. On the paper was a rough sketch of a middle-aged man. And, attached was a piece of cloth. A cold smile spread across the elven princesses beautiful face.

    " This rodent had the nerve to fondle me, while intoxicated. He also insulted my family and their honor. Teach him a lesson would you?"

    As the order was spoken,  a  5 pointed star encased in a circle appeared on Arcuslouses palm. It glowed for a moment before fading back into his skin. The same mark appearing on the elven girl''s neck.

    Arculous''s pupils turned into slits and green scales erupted across his skin. Fangs pointed out of his mouth and a forked tongue protruded from within it.

    " Yesss, Misstresss." The demon hissed, before disappearing into the shadows, to obey the will of his contracted master. In the now dark room, the elf girl began to cackle at the thought of her servant ripping apart the filthy human into a thousand pieces.

    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    ~ Xioto City ~

    The three companions entered the Golden Toe inn. It was a modest establishment, clean and well kept. But, the bar done stairs was supposedly very popular. So, often the loud noise downstairs would scare off anyone who wanted a peaceful sleep. So the rooms were cheaper and the staff was more than happy to help them get settled.

    They intended to stay until the entrance exam, which took place in four days. After getting settled in their respective rooms. Adrinae had offered, to show the two were to sign up for the test. As they walked he began to explain the process.

    "There are two main parts, that separate the students. The Mages and the Warriors. There are of course classes that vary between the two, but when one is enroled, If they choose mostly martial classes, then they are considered a Warrior. But, if one with magic ability decided to train their magic ability then they are considered a Mage. In the entrance exam, you will go through three trials. If you choose to be a warrior then, the trails will probobly have something to do with weapons and fighting. But if you choose to be a Magic user, the trails will have something to do with magic."

    The two girls nodded, showing that they were understanding what he was saying, so he continued.

    " There aren''t many restrictions. A warrior if they possess magic talent, can take a magic class. But he can''t major in one unless he gets permission for the headmaster. And if a Mage, were to decide that they wanted to learn combat, the same rules would apply to them." He said. But paused as he saw the Academy.

    Apparently, the palace was supposed to be one of the only standing structure built before the war. And even then it had been considered old. Long ago, a king had built Neuschwanstein castle so he could hide from the world and withdraw from the public eye. The castle looked like something out of a storybook and soon after the king''s death had acquired the nickname, '' Castle of the Fairy Tale King''.

    This information had been found in Journals found in the palace.  Apparently, high mages had gathered at the structure and took refuge inside, during World War III. There they found that large and heavy wards had been placed on Neuschwanstein. Noone knew who had created such powerful protection upon the castle, but they were the main reason it was still standing.

    The Castel of the fairy tale king was truly magnificent. The palace was high upon the hill overlooking the town, it''s many pointed towers giving it the look of an eccentric crown. The walls were a white stone that glistened in the summer sun and the roof was bright red slate. It was as big as twenty of the ordinary houses and it truly did seem like something out of a Fairy Tale.

    Evia was impressed, she had never seen this type of architecture, and she was intrigued by the difference in the Academy and the old colosseums she used to come through. Alexa and Adrinae tow were in silent awe of the place. But, they were quickly pulled out of there trance, when someone shoved into them. Putting Adriane off balance and nearly making him fall. He managed to catch himself just in time though.  A large group passed them, They looked to be nobles, wearing finely dressed suits and even a guard or two trailed behind them.

    Some laughed, and as they merged back into the crowd, one turned his head and looked back, a smile playing on his face. His bright blue eyes met Evia''s and his eyes widened a bit before he was pushed out of sight.

    Alexa shook her head and muttered something about uptight little twits. Evia seeing her friends dismay took her hand and smiled at her, assuringly. Alexa smiled back and they slowly made their way into the signing area.

 Chapter 12: Three Friends

    here were 6 booths in total, each line had 2 booths managing the people signing up for the entrance exam. It was obvious, which line was meant for the nobles and which were meant for the commoners. There weren''t many in line, so Alexa and Evia made their way to the one for commoners, while Adriane headed over to the first booth, meant for nobles.

    As they approached the man mining the booth, grumbled something and pulled a few sheets of paper out and handed them to us, without a word. Evia looked down at the paper and began to fill it out.

    Name: Evia

    Title: Lady of the Deadly Night, Reaper of pitiful hum... None.

    Age: 14

    Magic or Martial Magor: Magic

    Talents: Taming, Fire, earth, wind elements. Fighting.

    There weren''t much else to say. Apparently, you weren''t considered very important unless you actually passed the test. The talents had been a bit hard because she was good at everything! But, water and metal were not her strongest. She didn''t like water all that much, considering for disagreements with Poisidan. She had added the last one sort of on a whim. While true, she could fight with a blade she always left that sort of thing to Areas.

    The scruffy man handed her a small patch that had the crest of the school on it. It looked much like a royal crest, with two griffins facing each other, and a golden X in the middle. It was supposed to identify her as a participant for the trails.

    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    Peeking over at Alexa''s sheet, it read.

    Name: Alexa Vernandez

    Titles: none.

    Age: 17

    Magic or Martial: Material

    Talents: Hunting, Archey

    Evia raised an eyebrow and nodded, before handing her own sheet into the sleepy looking human and running over to Adrinae and grabbing his sheet, ignoring his protests. The girls read out loud.

    Name: Adriane Allerton

    Titles: Son of Lord Allerton and heir to the Allerton house.

    Age: 16

    Magic or Material: Magic

    Talents: Sword Play, and strong Fire element.

    Adrinae finally swipes the paperback and hands it to the attendant, not noticing as Evia swipes his wallet out of his pocket. Laughing she waved it in front of him, with a yelp of surprise and anger he tries to grab it back, but she dances out of the way. Then throwing it Alexa who ran a couple feet, letting Adriane chase after her before throwing it back.

    The three ran after each other until the reached a clearing on the top of a hill, where the three collapsed gasping for breath. In the dimming sunlight, a free goddess smiles happily to herself as she talks with her friends.

    But, they were too far away to hear the screams.

 Chapter 13: Trials Part 1

    Evia, Alexa, and Adriane weaved there way through the crowd. There were far more people than when they had come earlier that week. But, the event somehow stayed organized. The three flashed their identification patch and followed a line of applicants into a large arena.

    There were people already seated in the stands. Connected to the ceiling were four large screens that would show the spectators how each Trial progressed. In the middle of the arena were over three dozen, pods large enough for a human to fit through comfortably if a little squished. Evia noticed that some pods had a blue flag above them while others had purple.

    Tall stone-faced men, in suits, stand next to the entrance to the pods, and we all gather around the entrance, while the spectators pass us by to get to the stands. Evia observed the people in the crowd, some were kids a bit older than her- obviously only in appearance- that each had the schools emblem on their chest. She assumed that they were all older students. There were also scores of nobles come to inspect the next generation of fighters.

    An odd prescience reached her. Looking up she scanned the crowd, and her eyes landed on a petite blond girl with elf ears. Evia''s eyes narrowed and closed onto the girl''s wrist, which was marked by a tattoo that Evia recognized. It was a dark circle with a 5 pointed star in the middle. A memorial overtook her thoughts.

    A child sits on her lap, his large cat snake-like eyes, wet with tears looked out at the battlefield. She kissed the top of her child''s head and took his tiny wrist in her hand. He looked into her eyes and she speaking in a whisper so that only he could hear she said,

    " Child of mine, you shall not weep because of fear any longer. For you will not have anything to fear."

    The child''s eyes brightened at the words promising power.

    " But, such power is not without a price, for you will be bound by your master and will lose much if you are to forsake your weakness." She continued. The child pondered for a moment and then looked at the field of blood and carnage and then looked back at her, determination filled his eyes. He nodded and recognizing his choice she willed her power into him. He grows about a foot taller and his scales became dagger sharp, His teeth became pointed and his eyes took on a yellow glint. His once black hair turned silver and a mark appeared on his wrist shining brightly before fading away.

    The monster peered down at his wrist and looked back inquisitively at the goddess. His mother smiled,

    " Soon, a being bound to this earth will bind you and you will be their slave. In return, once they die, their soul will be yours for the picking. Once such a sentence is invoked, only when your master dies or if they choose to release you from your contract may you be free. You can not go long without feasting on a soul though, or else you will lose your power and your sanity." She warned.

    But, the monster was only partly listening. The price was great, yes, but the power he could feel coursing through his blood was even greater. He smiled viciously, showing his sharp fangs and turned to the battlefield. Bloodlust filled his eyes and he looked back at his mother, silently asking.

    Evokdia stood from her perch and smiled too. As she joined her son, her nails grow into claws and power swarmed around her. Nodding to her newly created soul eater, she and her creation raced toward the battle. What a wonderful mother I am. She thought to herself as she ripped the head off of a screaming soldier.

    And now an all to familiar mark lay on the wrist of the elven girl. Turning back to her friends, Evia had a small smile on her face as she expanded her senses. There he was, he was hiding his aura, but he couldn''t hide from her. He was in the stands. Arculous was here and he was watching her.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    " Attention all Applicants."

    Evia looks up to find that an old man''s face had appeared on the large TV screens.

    " Greetings. I am head Master Blackstone. And welcome to the Xioto Academy Entrance Exam!!"

    The old man spread his arms and the people in the stands began to clap and some of the older students whooped. After the noise had died down the headmaster continued.

    " This exam will be split into to days. The First day, we will have our applicants fight in a simulation battle with spirit beasts. Those that survive to pass this first exam will come back tomorrow will compete in a one on one battles, leaving those lucky enough to enter our academy. "

    The crowd once again clapped and chatted for a bit about these Trails. The headmaster turned his gaze to the applicants.

    "Now, in a minute many of you will enter the arena and enter a pod. If you are a warrior class will enter a pod with a blue flag above, if you are entering in a magic class then you will enter a pod with a purple flag. My assistant, there. Will call out a name and directly said applicant to a pod."

    Once the old man was down the screen switched over to a clean-cut man with glasses holding a stack of papers. The man peered down at the group and then looked back at his papers and began to call out names.

    " Piper Oconto, Warrior class please step forward."

    A girl about 12 with dirty blond hair walked up to the man and after asking the girl to show her patch he pointed her toward a pod. The girl walked forward and the suited men let her pace as she nervously ran toward the pod with a blue flag waving on top of it. This continued, until Alexa''s and Adrinaes names, were called. Alexa being the last to be called, with nearly all the pods occupied peaked over at Evia and squeezed her hand before leaving.

    There were less than 10 people left outside as the TV screen flicked back to the Headmaster Blackstone.

    " To those who will not be participating this turn, after these students are done the next round will begin with you all."

    Evia could feel the kids around her relax, knowing that they would be given a turn.

    "Will each applicant step inside there pod. Then the door will be closed and you will feel an odd sensation. Please don''t be alarmed, it is an advanced system that will teleport your mind into a specific simulation we have designed. "

    A dangerous glint appeared in the old man''s eyes.

    " But, don''t be fooled. While this may just be a simulation, you should act like your fighting for your life, because there is magic in place so that any pain you feel inside the simulation will be transmitted to your body. In a much weaker form and easily treatable, but it will not be pleasant if you get killed by accident."

    Oh? Evia didn''t care that there was a possibility of getting hurt. She knew she would be fine, but how fine was the question. She was ultimately here to gain knowledge of this new ear and to gain connection. She also wanted to help Adriane and Alexa grow. She wanted to make sure that they would know how to protect themselves and carve out a living for themselves. While technology had greatly advanced since her time, their knowledge of magic is rather disappointing.

    Because of her time, imprisoned Evia was significantly weaker than she was before. And the darkness that she had consumed in replace of Mana, was still rushing through her looking for a way to breach her mental wall. That was another reason for coming here, this school was a place to nurture the talented young and it seemed to be the perfect place to regain her strength.

    She was more powerful than most kids her "age", but she had a suspicion that with a combination of all the technology and enough power some human would probably be her equal if not her superior. Anger bit at her heart, but before it could factor the TV screen shifted and changed to a landscape of a forest.

    ---------------

    Alexa stood in a forest surrounded by 11 other girls and boys. She looked around for Adriane but, couldn''t find him. It seemed that the magic applicants were testing in a different place. She would have to fight alone. She noticed that all the other applicants around her had a blue ora around them.

    The youngest was that girl P{iper, looking about 12. Each applicant looked fairly fir in there own way. Some were small and lean, while others were large and filled with mussel.

    The bodiless voice of the headmaster floated from the air above and everyone looked up searching for the source.

    " Now, in a minute you will begin your trial. Warriors, your main objective is to kill as many spirit beasts as possible. You are prohibited from hurting another member of your team. However, another team will be working against you. The magical applicant''s mission is to keep as many spirt beast alive as possible. The members of the opposing team are allowed to try and stop you from killing the spirit beasts by any means possible. Youn Identify your teammates by the color of there overlaying ora. If you need a weapon all you have to do is picture the item in your head and it will approve. Now let the First Round of the Xioto Entrance Exam BEGIN!!!"

 Chapter 13: Trials Part 2

    Alexa sat in a tree, attempting to conceal her movements, the bow in her hand was aimed at the spirit beast, that looked like a large albino lion. It only reminded her of how she had met Evia. Except now she was hunting spirit beasts in order to pass a trial that would get her into a magic/fighting school. And not hunting for food to feed her poor excuse for a family. And of course, Evia wasn''t lost in a forest and nearly avoiding death. But, waiting safely outside.

    The spirit beast made a sudden movement and Alexa sucked in a breath and let her arrow lose. Just as the tip pierced the beasts chest a wall of flames erupted in between them. Alexa squeezed her eyes shut as the sudden light blinded her. Above the roar of the fire, she could faintly hear voices.

    " Damn it! She got the Allizar Lion, this is all your fault!"

    Said a vaguely snobbish and female voice. Another voice came this time it was one she recognized.

    " I don''t have complete control yet... let''s just move on before she gets another spirit beast"

    Adriane''s voice replied. His choice didn''t make much sense, they could capture her or paralyze her or something to make certain that she would be out of the competition. But, she realized it was his way of throwing her a bone, letting her get away and continue the test. Not waiting to hear how the other girl replied, Alexa, climbed higher and used her arms strength to swing from branch to branch and away from the clearing.

    ---------

    Evia sat on the seats in the stands. After the first round of contestants entered the test a group of staff had ushered them into a spot in the stands, far enough from the actual crowd but close enough to see the screen. Evia popped a piece of popcorn into her mouth and licked her lips. She had seen a human selling them and had teleported one of the bags into her lap. She hadn''t tasted something so good in decades. Evia spits out a kernel, maybe even the tastiest food has a bad side. She looked at her friends, Alexa running through the woods and Adriane teaming up with a stumpy girl, even if it seemed more like she had bullied him into submission. Alexa had shot down a good number of spirit beasts and her skills as a huntress were good enough for admittance. Adriane clearly had an immense amount of magical talent but his lack of control wasn''t going to go unnoticed and would work against him in the scores. But his noble blood and potential would hopefully be enough. The headmaster''s voice rang out through the stadium. And two of the four screens switched to a 10 countdown.

    " The first round will end in 10...9...8..."

    The competitors looked up, hearing the voice and then looked around unsure of what exactly to do, knowing they should be doing something to maybe boost their scores but not sure what to do in less than 10 seconds. Evia chuckled and reached into the bag of popcorn only to find it was empty. Disgusted she through the bag over her shoulder.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

    " 3...2....1!!!"

    The screens went blank and steam came out of the bottom of the pods as the door''s opened and out stepped the first round of competitors, most had looked sick and disoriented, one even pucked. They were taken out of the arena, some entered the stands were group 2 had been waiting, while others were taken to a group of healers on one side of the arena. Alexa tried to talk to her but the security pushed her back, Evia waved to her before entering the arena.

    Their group was smaller than the first. Evia didn''t pay any attention to the insignificant low lives that would possibly be her fellow students. After giving her name to an attendant, she was lead to a purple pod. She stepped in suspiciously, she didn''t trust technology because it wasn''t something she could control and was for now at least powerless against it. The door slid closed behind her, she felt panicked. It was dark, so very dark. It seemed as though the walls were closing in on her. And then she was back inside the prison. It''s suffocating power clutching at her throat. The dark magic spoke from the depths of her mind. Telling her she was going to die if she didn''t do something quick. Magic spiked from her fingertips and she had to get out, she couldn''t let the terrible darkness get to her, she had to......

    And the pod exploded.

    -----------

    Head Master Blackstone, watched as the second round of the entrance examination progressed. His eyes kept drifting to the remains of the blown up pod and then to the healers were they had taken the girl. Before the explosion, he had felt a large gathering of magic coming from inside the arena, at first, he had thought it was an attack because the amount of power could have only been gathered by at least a dozen high mages. But it wasn''t it had been one dark-haired girl.

    " Sir, I have the identification paper "

    He turned to see an attendant holding out a sheet of paper, which he took and looked over.

    " Evia..." he muttered. There was no last name or title. Her elements were interesting within themselves, Fire and earth were an unusual pare, but wind was fairly common. Taming was also interesting and possibly a hint to her past. Lord Rardmarth on his peeped down at the paper in the headmaster''s hand and made a little gasp.

    " Head Master you can''t expect that girl into the Academy!!!"

    "And why wouldn''t he?" The royal ambassador replied, from his right.

    " She didn''t even take the test! And her little display there shows clear signs of uncontrolled violent magic." The Lord said his voice rising.

    " But her power is immense, and isn''t that what this school is for? To train young minds to control their power." The ambassador questioned.

    The Lord opened his mouth to argue but found he could not and simply slouched in his seat and mutter under his breath. The headmaster signed and turned his attention back to the second round of the trail. This time it was placed in a frozen wasteland. The contestants had some promise, but it really wasn''t a very interesting bunch. Well, aside from a couple obvious exceptions.

 Chapter 14: Aftermath.

    " She''s my friend!!! Please, you have to let me in!"

    Alexa cried as she once again tried to make her way past the tall men guarding the healer''s entrance.

    " Sorry Ma''am, no one is allowed past this point unless they are injured or given permission by a staff member."

    The men spoke in unison with completely blank expressions. A hand rested on her shoulder and lightly tugged her back.

    " Alexa....."

    Taking a deep breath, she stepped away and walked back to the stands, avoiding Adriane''s eyes.

    " I''m worried too," He says trying to console her. But, he shouldn''t have. She was the oldest of their little group and felt responsible for Evia.

    " But, I wonder how the pod blew up? Maybe it malfunctioned or......"

    " Who was that girl you were with?" Alexa interrupted. Adriane grimaced and quirked a half smile.

    " That''s Lady Marissa Gloria Savona. Her father and my dad are old friends so we''ve known each other since we were little. She''s always been a bit...bossy."

    His careful words made her laugh. And as they neared she could see the girl in question, tapping her foot on the floorboard. She had frizzy black curls and a pair of wide spaced glasses. She was short and on the heavier side, but she looked young maybe a year or two older then Evia. She glared at Adriane for a long moment then seeing him sufficiently cowed, she turned to Alexa and flashed a toothy smile, showing off her shiny braces.

    " Hi, I''m Marissa. I saw you in the exam. You were pretty good, even if I would have gotten you if it wasn''t for this loser." She said, nodding her head toward Adriane and then holding out her hand. Alexa smirked and took the younger girls outstretched hand. They shook and sat down in a group of empty seats.

    " Crazy, what happened to that girl. Normally stuff like that doesn''t happen." Marissa said, jerking her head toward the pieces of the former machine.

    " How would you know? Alexa asked, curious as to why the girl seemed so confident in her knowledge.

    " My brother graduated last year and my sister''s starting her third year. And they''ve told me everything I could possibly need to know about this place."

    Alexa nodded, and her eyes wandered back to the healers'' entrance. Her eyes focused on two figures heading into the spot. One had a feminine figure, with long blond hair and the man next to her was dressed all in black and goosebumps appeared on her arms just looking at him. Marissa followed her gaze and leaned in close, and whispered as if she were to tell a secret.

    " That''s Princess Sylvia Greenwood."

    " Princess? From what kingdom?" Alexa asked looking back at the figures. Marisa looked at her weirdly.

    " Greenwood is the Elven royal family''s name." She said slowly as if it were common knowledge.

    Well, maybe in the city it was. But, coming from a small settlement where so much as speaking about the different races was considered taboo, Alexa lacked knowledge in anything concerning the elves.

    Marissa went on.

    " She''s a second year and super powerful. She''s already student council president and top of her class. Not to mention she''s polite and beautiful. You couldn''t find someone more perfect. "

    " And the man beside her?" Alexa asked.

    " That''s Professor Arculous. He teaches history and battle strategy. You definitely don''t want to get onto his bad side. He can be downright heartless. The professor clearly doesn''t like children so why he is a teacher is anyone''s guess. "

    Marissa continued chatting about various rumors she had heard from her siblings, as Alexa watched as the pair entered the healers'' ward and didn''t come out until the second round had finished.

    ----------

    Evia sat, back straight on a soft mattress, waiting for her visitors. She had been put on a bed in a corner of the healers'' center. The bedding was white, and there were two chairs opposite it and a table in between. Evia sipped the warm drink one of the nurses had given her.

    It seemed that there was a clear divide in the staff. Those that called themselves doctors or nurses and those that were called healers. She liked the doctors more, they at least seemed to know what they were doing. While the healers just seemed to be for show, because there was no point as they were not yet so advanced in there magic to do anything that the doctors couldn''t with technology.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

    At one point one of the nurses had sat her down and asked her some questions. But, they weren''t the interrogation she had expected. Instead, he asked her about her feelings while she was in the pod and she saw no reason not to tell him the truth. She didn''t mention the prison.

    But he didn''t pester her. Instead, he thanked her for her time and gave her a cup of tea. A couple of minutes later, she overheard him talking to one of the doctors.

    "Claustrophobic.......PTSD......poor kid, something terrible must have happened.........I suggest getting her a therapist and maybe put her on some meds to keep her calm......"

    She didn''t understand what all this meant, but she wondered if these useless humans might actually be able to help her.

    " She''s my friend!" Alexa''s voice drifting through the walls. She could hear her complaints and Adriane leading her away. Evia''s heart warmed, but she didn''t have much time to linger on it because a familiar energy was coming towards her.

    Two figures entered her little corner. The first was the elf girl she recognized from the stands. She wore a navy blue petty coat, matching her knee-length skirt. She was pretty, in a damsel in distress way. Long dark lashes covering wide green eyes. A pink tinge to her cheeks and waist-length blond hair the color of spun gold.

    A magical spell, so small Evia was unable to sense it from the arena was placed on the mark on her wrist. The spell hid the mark from mortal eyes and lead the mind to believe it was just a silly doodle drawn in a boring class in permanent marker. It was strong too, however small. If it hadn''t been her own magic she might have missed it entirely.

    Her eyes moved onto the man standing behind the elven girl.

    Her son Arculous.

    He seemed older, more hardened and mature. Less of the playful boy she had known. He looked at her warily as if not sure whether to believe she was real. She took another sip of tea, and said staring at him dead in the eye.

    " What? Nothing to say to your dear old Mother?"

    Her words seemed to pierce right through him and he came to her bedside and knelt to the ground. He clutched her hand and looked up at her.

    " Oh, great Mother, I am overjoyed to see you have come back to this world. I, your loyal and humble son am here to serve and should you need--"

    "Um...Sorry to interrupt this ''touching'' moment, but we don''t necessarily have a lot of time." A sour-sweet voice interrupted Arculous and he gritted his teeth as he got to his feet and sat on one of the visitors'' chairs, the one closest to Evia.

    The elven girl stepped forward. She pointedly did not bow or make any sign of submission.

    " I am Sylvia Greenwood, Princess of the Elves and third in line for the throne. I am also Arculous''s mistress and owner."

    Her sentiment was clear. She was making it clear that she wasn''t intimidated by Evia''s power and was claiming Arculous for herself. The audacity of this "princess" was enough to make her laugh. Instead of addressing Sylvia directly, she turned to Arculous,

    " How presumptuous of your master to not know her place...."

    " Please forgive her insolence, she is young and is not thinking."

    He flashed Sylvia a warning look. His mistress was used to being the one with power. She viewed Evokdia as competition and a threat, but she didn''t think of how much power his mother truly had over them. She was the creator of the seal that bound them. She had been the one to give him power and she could easily take it away. Sylvia opened her mouth to speak, but he beat her to it.

    " Mother.....what has happened? He asked. But when Evia didn''t answer he said quickly.

    "I heard you were imprisoned. After you vanished, we went into hiding and we have longed for the day you would return to us....."

    Evia put down her empty cup and began her story. She told them about the prison without light. About the human settlement where she had met Alexa and learned about this new world. How they had traveled together and met Adriane. Who she had seen magical potential in and had taken it upon herself to make sure her companions got the education they would need to survive. Lastly, she told them about how a couple panicked sparks of her magic had blown up the pod.

    By the end of her story, both were sitting in silence, until Arculous stood up forcefully and bowed his head saying,

    " What a terrible ordeal you have been through. Don''t fret. Soon the others will find you and we can take our revenge."

    Revenge. The word sounded so very sweet to her ears. She imagined Zeus begging for mercy as her children destroyed his pitifull palace and knocked that bastard down from his high pedestal. What a sweet day that would be.

    " Not yet, Arculous. My time imprisoned has weakened me greatly. I wish to learn more about this new strange era. My children have all been in hiding and must be very wary. Even now, my eldest slumbers and I am unable to wake him. Wait. And all will come into place. But we must be patient."

    Arculous nodded and sat back down.

    " What do you mean by the eldest one sleeps?" Sylvia asked. She hadn''t wanted to show any weakness toward the goddess, because she hadn''t necessarily seen her as a goddess. But there was a very old soul in those black eyes, a soul that had seen death and destruction, trust formed and ripped apart, darkness with no escape. She spoke with authority and power, and Sylvia couldn''t help but be in awe of her.

    Evokdia''s eyes met hers as she answered. And Sylvia felt a tingly sensation all throughout her body.

    " My eldest child, The black dragon Zaroth is in a deep slumber, where he hangs on the line between life and death. I don''t know how he entered into such a state but I assume it was by his choice. For he doesn''t seem to want to wake. "

    Sylvia was shocked. A dragon even in the age of magic was a rare and mysterious beast that no one would have even known existed if not for the great war, where they burned cities to the ground. During the peace negotiations, the dragons claimed that their behavior was uncharacteristic and everyone agreed on a " You don''t bother me, I don''t bother you" rule with the dragons, who were said to live in each of the four corners of the earth.

    Though it shouldn''t be a surprise, she looked once again at the girl in front of her. She looked younger but Sylvia now knew not to be deceived The woman in front of her was far older and more powerful than Sylvia could ever dream of being. Of course, she would have an intimate relationship with the dragons.

    Gonnnnnnng!

    The bell tolling the end of the second round and the entrance exam. Sylvia stood as well as Arculous.

    " We must go," Sylvia said and bowed formally to Evia. The spoiled, naive, and vicious girl disappeared as a respectful and well-bred princess took her place as she swept out of the healers'' center. Arculous also stood, but he didn''t go as quickly.

    " Come to see me later by that giant pear tree on top of the hill. Come alone, for we have much to discuss," Evia said and Arculous bowed and after one last glance at his creator swept out of the room.

 Chapter 15: Meetings.

    "Evia!!!" Alexa screamed as she flung herself at her friend. Evia smiled and patted Alexa''s head. She looked behind Alexa and saw Adriane and another girl, that she recognized as another competitor in the exam.

    " I''m so glad you are alright. You are alright, aren''t you?" Alexa said, cupping her cheeks and examining her face. Pushing Alexa''s hands away teasingly. Evia did a little spin

    " I''m fine, don''t be so worried." She said laughing.

    Alexa laughed too and then turned toward the pair behind her. Adriane came up and patted her on the head. He had found her so scary when they had first met. But, he felt more comfortable, now that he knew her and he was truly worried about his friend.

    Marissa stepped forward and held out her hand.

    " You must be Evia, Alexa''s told me a lot about you. I''m Marissa, and I hope we can become friends."

    Evia shook her hand and nodded. Even though she wasn''t sure Marissa deserved to be her friend. She still made an effort to be friendly. They began walking back to the inn together.

    " They should have the results of the entrance exam up by tomorrow."

    Marissa informed them.

    " They put a list of the names the accepted applicants and their scores, all over the city. They put it on TV. Exactly at 12:00 am, all of the channels get interrupted for the showing of the list."

    " Won''t people be bothered by that?" Alexa asked. It seemed rude to interrupt someone''s program with something like that.

    " Well, the only ones who''s complaints would ever be listened to are the nobles. But, most of them don''t care because a lot of them make bets on which applicants make the list." Marissa explained.

    Evia nodded. They reached the inn and Marissa peeked in and said in a sly voice.

    " How about a drink?"

    " Absolutely!" Evia said moving forward. A fierce hand pulled her back.

    " umm...Absolutely not. Your only 14 and you.." Alexa said turning to Marissa.

    " can be no older than 16." Marissa, looked put out as she crossed her arms in front of her chest.

    Nearly ten minutes later.

    -------

    Marissa and Evia looked down at the drinks the bartender placed in front of them.

    " Milk!?" They exclaimed in unison.

    Alexa nodded as she sipped her drink, which itself looked very much like a bottle of beer. Adriane himself had gotten a glass of water and was watching with faint amusement.

    " But...But..!!" Marissa sputtered. Alexa cut her off with a glare. Marissa gasped and looking back down at the cup she took it in both hands and chugged it. It was at this time that group of about half a dozen came into the bar.

    Evia looked up at the group, as they walked in and took up a table. There were two girls and the rest were boys, all looked about Adriane/Alexa''s age. One caught her attention. His eyes seemed familiar, blue like an endless ocean. He must have felt her stare because he moved his head and looked at her. His eyes narrowed. They stared at each other until he finally broke eye contact when one of the other boys began talking to him.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

    ------------

    Eric watched as the beautiful girl and her companies parted ways. The small girl with overly-sized glasses left, presumably to go back to her own accommodations. Then the red-haired guy and the two women said their farewells and made their way upstairs. The dark haired girl turned back for just a moment and glanced at him. He pretended not to notice. Instead, he looked back at his friends. Louis was flirting with Serina. while Claire and Jessie chatted merrily with each other. Hanna sat across from him, staring.

    " So are you gonna tell us, who exactly was that girl you were making googly eyes at the entire time? " Louis asked leaning over to him and smirking. Eric smiled too, but he wasn''t quite sure how to answer.

    He had caught a glimpse of her the earlier that day, before the entrance Exam. There was something about her that captivated him. Her black hair was much like his own. But, her eyes they seemed to transport him into another world. A world he knew all too well.

    " As If Eric would ever stoop so low as to fawn over some lowlife whore."

    Hanna said abruptly. Her tone was laced with something akin to Jealousy and they all looked over at her. Hanna was normally very quiet, and she was the last they would have expected to say such harsh words.

    " WooW, someone got up on the wrong side of the bed," Louis said, trying to lighten the mood.

    Just as normal conversation started again, Eric heard something. No, he didn''t hear. He felt it. The change was so subtle that if it wasn''t for his years of training he would have never noticed it. Slowly he waited for the presence to exit and then stood.

    " I''m afraid I''ve got something I''ve got to do. Please excuse me." Smiling he made a curt nod to his friends and then swept out of the room. As he exited the inn he immediately changed position and hid in the shadows. The presence was almost gone, but his instincts told him to go forward. And so he did.

    Eric made his way through the crowded streets of the city. Filled with people bustling home to see their families. Ducking into an alleyway, he stopped abruptly and lept back a step. Just in time. Because a second later, a dagger flew by Nearly taking off his ear.

    Looking up Eric saw his three attackers. He recognized them immediately. In front of him stood three of some of the most notorious assassins in the city.

    --------------

    Evia slipped out of the inn with the use of an invisibility spell. Moving calmly through the streets and finally reaching the Pear tree atop a hill overlooking the city. She sat down on the soft grass and waited. She could hear his footsteps, and as Arculous walked up the hill he sat down beside her.

    " Well?" He asked.

    " Let''s start with you." She said straightening and turning to him.

    " How did you pick up that elf?" Arculous made a long tired sign.

    " Two years ago she somehow summoned me and placed me under contract. She was following instructions from an accent tomb. She is of little concern. Her power is decent, but she is spoiled and a petulant child." He paused as if re-thinking his words.

    " Well, not all the time. She''s a sadist. Loves punishment and has a deep lust for power. But it wouldn''t be the first time one of my masters had that sort of pleasures."

    Evia nodded taking in the information. She turned back to the sunset.

    " The changes of this world are quite interesting." She said.

    " What do you plan to do?" Arculous asked, probing.

    "Go to school of course." She replied. Arculous shook his head.

    " But why?" Instead of answering, Evia looked up at the sky. She could just about see the moon.

    " The blood Moon approaches." She said.

    " Every time the Moon turns Red, I lose a bit of my power. My magic is already weak and I''m afraid that after two years it will all be gone."

    Arculous gapped at her. He had never heard of this.

    " No!" He shouted.

    " There must be something I can do!!" He said frantically. Evia just shook her head.

    " It''s an old curse...It''s true that every curse has a cure. But, the remedy for something like this. Creating it is something only I can do. In order for me to prepare for the trails to come. I hoped that this school would be able to provide me with what I need to survive." Evia explained.

    Arculouse''s mind was reeling, but he could focus on this new information later.

    " We will have to come up with a suitable cover story." He said. Evia nodded and began to explain her conversation with the doctor and the assumptions of Alexa about her past.

    Arculous thought for a moment.

    " I think it would be best if you said you lost your memory. But, it would be expected for you to have bits and fragments. So, how about you were born into a wealthy merchants family and suffered great abuse as a child. Then, after an accident were your parents were killed and you lost your memory. You fled into the forest and that''s where you met that Alexa girl. You can fill in the details as you like. And I''ll vouch for the story, which will also allow us to meet without suspicion. "

    Arculous nodded, pleased with his plan. Evia still didn''t respond. Arculous looked at her.

    " Mother?" He asked. Evia smiled sadly and said in a soft tone.

    " I hope...I hope that one day we can all be together again." Arculous nodded and for the first time in decades allowed himself to think of his kin.

    The two sat there, facing the sunset under the side of the pear tree. Both drifting through memories. But neither would ever admit how very much their hearts ached for the family they once had.

 Chapter 16: Assassins.

    Arculous spent the rest of there meeting telling her all that he knew about her other children. Contrary to popular belief, Evia wasn''t the creator of ALL monsters. In fact, she had only made half-dozen or so raises. But those had mated and created entirely new raises. And their children evolved with the passage of time. And every so often a hybrid or defect or an unexpected would show up and become there own kind of monster. Of course over time occasionally she''d get inspiration and create a new monster who she then set out into the world. This cycle had continued and thus her family had grown.

    Evia thought back to the bore like creature she had encountered in the forest, where she met Alexa. It''s lifeless eyes. The monster had seemed more animal than a monster. Not a trace of intelligence. When she asked, Arculous explained that many of the younger generations had such treats. Because of her imprisonment, the children of her monsters produced less and less actual monsters.

    " And the kids that do come out with a lick of the actual brain are rebellious and disrespectful. They refuse to recognize your authority and want only to feast on humans." Arculous had said scowling.

    Before she left he gave her a dark grey hoodie. It comfortable, but there was no real use for it. But as it turned, out the hoodie was layered with complex shielding magic. It was equivalent to a full plate of armor but was far more comfortable. And the hood had a concealing charm on it so it would hide her face unless she wished to reveal herself.

    " I don''t want you wasting your magic." Arculous had said.

    "It will be gone anyway. I don''t see why I can''t use it as I please..." Evia mumbled. But she had taken the clothing anyway.

    Evia thought about this as she scared through back allies to get back to the inn.

    " Not a Chance!" Evia paused and looked around the corner she was just about to turn. Four people stood in dark stretch between two empty buildings. She could see three standing in front of a lone man. Probably the one that had shouted. She looked closely at the man''s face and saw that he wasn''t a man, but more a boy. The same boy that had been staring at her, at the inn.

    The other three seemed much older. They were dressed all in black, but she could easily see that they were fit and well armed. For that matter so was the boy.

    " Shhhh," said the leader of the trio. She was a tall woman, whose long hair was tied back in a tight ponytail.

    " It''s far too risky." The boy hissed back, quieter now.

    " Even for the guilds number two assassin?" One of the woman''s companions asked. The boy straightened.

    " And I''ve kept that position by not taking on jobs that will get me killed."

    He said. The woman jumped in.

    " We are not asking you to go in single handily. We''ll be doing most of the work. All you would need to do is make sure everything runs smoothly."

    The boy huffed exasperatedly. Seeing he was still unconvinced the woman continued.

    "She may be a princess, but she is surprisingly unguarded. "

    " That''s because she''s a prodigy at Magic!! Why would someone with so much talent need protection?!?"

    " But, she is a mere child. A shy and reserved girl that has been shielded from the world by her doting parents. How hard can a brat like that be to take down."

    The boy was careful to keep his face blank but there was a slight twitch that showed that he wasn''t completely against the woman''s proposal. The woman leaned down and looked at him with pleading eyes.

    " And the reward is immense. Enough that even if we split it between the four of us. Each would have a mini fortune."

    The boy was definitely interested. After a pause he said.

    " Just what might this job entail?"

    The woman smiled and said confidently.

    " Meet us, at the guild hall at noon tomorrow. We can go over the details then. "

    Before the boy could reptile the woman and her two companions had already disappeared.

    Interesting. Evia ran over the conversation she had just hear. From what she heard, it sounded like the boy in front of her was the second-ranked assassin among the assassins guild. Evia had known there was something off about him. He was too aware to be a normal human without any skill. It was obvious that the perspective target was Sylvia.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    What treasure have I dug up? She asked herself gleefully. Not only was she aware that there was an assassination plot against the eleven princesses but she had also just found the perfect person to teach her how to fight.

    A teacher who was about to leave. Pulling her hood over her head.

    "Wait." She called out turning the corner. Intentailaly making her voice deeper and rougher in order to sound more masculine. She didn''t want to give away her gender because Evia didn''t want to give the boy any clues to her identity.

    --------

    Eric turned around and saw a scrawny hooded figure come out from behind a building. Instantly he slipped a dagger out of his sleeve. The figure held up there hands in surrender.

    " I don''t want any trouble." It said. They had the voice of a young male voice.

    " Who are you? Who do you work for? How much have you heard?"

    The boy''s mouth quirked upward.

    " So, many questions. I am a simple observer and I happened upon your conversation by mistake. And as for what I heard. I know that you are the second best assassin in the guild and that you and the other three are planning on murdering a princess."

    Eric gripped the dagger tighter. The boy new too much he would have to kill him. But the stranger surely would know that was what would come of reviling himself. So why had he done it?

    " I want you to be my teacher." said the boy seemingly reading his thoughts. Eric scoffed.

    " Teacher? What could you want me to teach you?"

    " How to fight." The boy said immediately.

    " Teach me to fight and I won''t say a word."

    Eric pondered this.

    " And why should I go through the trouble of teaching you, when I could just kill you now? Then I wouldn''t have to worry about you telling anyone." He asked the stranger.

    The boy hesitated a moment.

    " Because If you took me on as your apprentice, then I would be able to help you with your Jobs. If you killed me, then a lot of people would be mad. And isn''t it better to have one friend than a bunch of enemies?"

    The boy didn''t make the best argument for his case. But his voice seemed to wash over Eric, dulling his mind.

    What harm could come of showing the kid a couple tricks?

    Maybe, the boy could actually be of so use. He did get lonely every so often. He had his friends from school, but he didn''t really have anyone to share this side of his life with. And if things went wrong he could always kill the boy. At his own time and leisure.

    Eric nodded to himself.

    "Alright. Come to Pins Bakery on Leaf Street at sunrise. I''ll meet you there and we can see what you are worth. Chicken out and I''ll hunt you down myself and rest assured you''ll die very slowly." He gave a menacing glare at the boy before jumping onto a loose brick on the side of one of the walls. And secured to the top of the house.

    He began to jump from roof to roof. Until he found, the Manor. He slipped into his bedroom through the window. And changed into a clean white shirt and black suit pants. He was just trying to tame his unruly black hair when there was a knock at the door.

    " Enter" He called and the door slid open to revile a maid. She didn''t meet his eyes as she said.

    " Dinner is ready Sir." He nodded to her and swiftly exited the room.

    As he made his way to the dining hall. He passed Serevent which all bowed to him politely. What nonsense. He thought. Back in his own country on Li''an. The nobility did not hold themselves to a higher standard than the help. In fact his father and mother the duke and duchess. Had always made it a point to befriend the help. Always asking about there families and Thanking them when the day''s work was done. He and his sister would always bring lemonade to the works in the hot summer months.

    But here. They were treated like second-class citizens.

    Three people were already seated at the table. On one end, was Lord Naff and his wife. Lord Naff was a warm-hearted man, with a rather large mustache. His wife had a very plain face and sat very straight. But her kind smile brightened her countenance. On the other end of the table, was an empty seat, and to its right was Hanna.

    When Hanna saw him, she smiled widely and waved him over. He sat at the head of the table, as he did every night.

    " I''m glad you could join us, Eric my boy." Lord Naff said kindly

    Hanna and her mother nod in agreement, as servants begin to bring out platers of food. On the table, he noticed an assortment of dishes such as Beef bourguignon, a side of caramelized white peaches next to the foie gras and a spinach souffle.

    He watched carefully as each of his dining companions took a bite before he himself did. Though the Naffs seemed nice, he wouldn''t put it past anyone to poison the food.

    " So, Hanna told me that your kids went to see the entrance exams. Any promising applicants?" Lord Naff asked. Eric smiled politely and shook his head.

    " Aside from a couple exceptions, this year''s batch isn''t nearly as impressive as last years. "

    Lord Naff shoved a piece of beef into his mouth.

    " Well, a class like your isn''t really something you see every day. What with you and Hanna and the princess...."

    Eric perked up at the mention of the elf. He thought back to the day''s events as the others continued the conversation without him. He thought about the mysterious presence. He had almost forgotten why he had gone out in the first place. His thoughts wondered to the assassins and their plans and then went to the stubborn boy. Who he had agreed to teach despite all sense and reason.

    Eric looked out of one of the large windows overlooking the dining hall. Filled with anticipation for the next day.

    --------

    When Evia, opened the door, to the room she shared with Alexa. She felt someone shift and run towards her. She turned around expecting an attack. But instead, warm arms wrapped around her. Alexa hugged her tight.

    ¡°Where were you?¡± Alexa asked.

    ¡° Out,¡± Evia answered vaguely. Alexa shook her head against Evia¡¯s shoulder and whispered.

    ¡° You really scared me during the exam. Seeing it explode and not being able to know if you were okay or even alive¡­.¡± Alexa traded off and she gripped Evia tighter.

    ¡° Please be careful,¡± Alexa said pulling away slightly. And looked deep into Evia¡¯s eyes. Evia nodded and Alexa smiled warmly and led her back to her bed.

 Chapter 17: Pins Bakery

    When Evia woke she found that she was alone in her bed. She looked up from her pillow to see Alexa, Adriane, and Marissa all sitting in front of the TV. Marissa looked over at her and smiled widely.

    ¡° Come on Sleepy-Head! The results are going to be released!¡±

    Evia groaned and pulled her blankets over her head. As she closed her eyes a familiar scent came to her. Evia¡¯s eyes shot open and she threw off her covers. Following her nose, she saw a bowl in Marissa¡¯s hand.

    ¡°POPCORN!!!¡± Evia jumped out of her bed. She pounced on the bowl grabbing it from the startled girl''s hand. And shoved a hand full into her mouth. Buttery. Alexa stared at her then poked Marissa.

    ¡° Remind me to get some of that. Evia sleeps like the dead.¡±

    Evia ignored this comment and continued eating, and then yelped as the black screen in front of her flash a blue light before showing a person sitting at a desk, blue orbs floating in the background.

    ¡° MOTHER OF ZEUS!! WHAT THE HELL?!?!?¡±

    Adriane and Marissa looked horrible at her, while Alexa eyes widened with realization. Evia didn¡¯t know much about technology and when she had seen the long black screen in their room. She¡¯d been confused and Alexa had said it was a TV but hadn¡¯t mentioned how it worked. Alexa slowly tried to calm Evia down and explained how the TV worked.

    Evia was amazed by technology once again and after many demonstrations, she figured out how to work the remote. Marissa seeing Evia¡¯s interest said that she had a computer at her house and that Evia was free to come by and try it. Evia agreed, pretending to know what a computer was. Alexa wasn¡¯t fooled but just grabbed a piece of popcorn and popped it into her mouth. Evia watched as Marissa clicked a few buttons on a slim ¡§remote¡§. The screen flicked and three people now stood on screen. Two were half naked and were sitting on a bed, while the other woman stood in the doorway. All three were very attractive, though the woman in the doorway seemed very mad.

    ¡° How could you Mark!¡±The woman in the doorway shouted. The man, mark stood up and came toward her.

    ¡°Maria please I can explain..¡±

    But before he could finish the woman, Maria slapped him. Evia really wanted to know what was going on. But just then the screen went black and a timer went off. Evia looked around for the noise and found Alexa holding a small device.

    ¡° The results for the exam should be up now!¡± Alexa said staring at the TV. Then the screen changed to three robed figures sitting at a large table. The oldest man stood up and cleared his throat. Evia recognized him as Headmaster Blackstone.

    ¡§ Greetings, I, as you may know, am Headmaster Blackstone. I realize you all have much to do, so I''ll make this quick.¡§

    The man looked kindly at the screen, before continuing.

    ¡°We thank all of our applicants and are pleased to announce this year''s batch of first years at

    Xioto¡äs Academy of Magic and Martial Arts.¡±He paused and a list of names appeared on the screen. The head master''s voice read them one by one.

    ¡° Piper Oconto ¡§¡­..¡§ Mike Solace¡§¡­¡­.¡§ Adriane Allerton¡§

    Marissa whooped and clapped Adriane on the back. Alexa and Evia cheered.

    ¡§ Alexa Vernandez¡§.

    Evia cheered even louder and hugged Alexa. She was getting used to the idea of ¡§hugs¡§ and rather liked them. Adriane and Marissa congratulated her, and Evia through popcorn into the air as Marissa¡äs name was called. The names continued, and the group became more and more tense. Evia¡äs name had yet to be called.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

    ¡° Jake Simmon.¡§¡­...¡§ Ravic Morish.¡§¡­...And last but certainly not least Evia.¡§ There was a paused as the headmaster searched for the last name, but when he couldn''t find one he simply smiled at the camera.

    ¡°Thank you again, and I hope to see all our new students on September 1st. If you are need of school supplies please visit our website for more information.¡§

    The screen went black once again and turned back to the dramatic show. Marissa jumped up and yelled.

    ¡°We''re going to Xioto Academy!!!¡§

    The three laughed cheerily. Adriane leaned forward.

    ¡§ We had an almost definite spot at the academy because were nobles. It''s much more impressive that Alexa and Evia got in.¡§

    Alexa blushed at the praise. And Evia tossed her long black hair back and smiled arrogantly.

    -------------

    Evia pulled on her hood and looked at herself in the mirror. It was a difficult thing to hide the allure of a goddess. The Gods were notoriously beautiful. Most of there looks were by choice, but there was something about them that drew the mortals in. GOD! She looked like a scrawny adolescent boy, still wet behind the ears. Evia frowned and silently slipped out of her room. The others had gone to town, but she had opted to stay and catch up on some sleep. Alexa had protested but eventually, they had left. It was broad daylight and Evia slipped out of the door of the inn.

    She walked through the crowds. With a relaxed posture and casual gate, she made her way through the crowd. Evia had made it a point to check on there meeting spot the previous night and had not been very impressed.

    Pin¡äs Bakery was a shabby place. Pin the owner was a gapped tooth man in his mid-50s. There weren''t any customers, in fact, it looked as though there hadn''t been for a long time. Chairs and tables were crapped into the enclosed space. And rust clouded the glass. There was a bowl of hard candy on the counter.

    Before she walked through the door, an arm flew out of the shadows and tugged her into the darkness. She was expecting the act and did not resist.

    ¡§ So you actually came.¡§ The assassin said. She smiled under her hood.

    ¡§ of course.¡§ She responded.

    After looking her up and down he scowled and muttered something under his breath.

    ¡§ Alright, they should already be in there. When we meet them to try and be inconspicuous. Speak as little as possible. I''ll introduce you as my...apprentice.¡§

    He seemed defeated as he said the word. She almost smiled again, he was probably still wondering why he had agreed to let her tag along. He also probably hadn''t considered shed used magic.

    ¡§ These are Assassin and if they decide they the don''t like you. Don¡ät think I''ll stop them if they try to kill you. She nodded not really paying attention. Seeing this the boy rolled his eyes and dragged her back out. He held her hand as they entered the bakery.

    Pin smiled toothly as he saw them enter.

    ¡§ What can I do for you?¡§ He asked leaning forward on his counter. Beady eyes staring at them.

    ¡§ Nothin much Pin, I¡äd just love one of your Gobstoppers.¡§ The Assassin said adopting an accent of a common brawler. He smoothly made eye contact with Pin and the ¡§backer¡§ nodded.

    ¡§ We should have some in the back, sir. ¡§

    The backer led them behind the counter and into the kitchen. Well, a poor excuse for one. It was smaller than the former room. And was mostly taken up by a large man-sized oven. Pin¡äs smile never left his face as he walked to the oven and tapped a couple of bricks. There was a grinding sound and the mouth of the oven widened. Revealing an opening.

    The assassin gripped her hand led her toward the whole. Evia looked at it. It was big enough so that a full grown man could crawl into it. But it was still so¡­.tight...and dark. Evia hesitated as they neared it. She really didn''t want to go in there.

    ¡§ Don¡ät be scared¡§ the assassin whispered to her.

    She let his words wash over her. She wanted them to be comforting, she wanted them to make her fear stop. But before she could continue to think about her predicament. The Assassin had already tugged her to the entrance and rather forcefully thrown her in. She slid down. And it took all the self-control she had to keep her magic in check.

    She kept her eyes on the faint light at the end of the tunnel and before she could take another breath, she was lying on the floor of a dimly light room. She heard the sound of sliding wood behind her and she moved out of the way. Just as the assassin landed where she had been lying just a moment ago. Unlike her ungraceful fall, his movements were swift and fluid.

    Evia stood and scanned the room. It was a spacious room that looked like a tavern. Chairs and tables spaced neatly, with a bar in the right corner. A longboard across the room. Had a little over a dozen sheets of paper. Due to her godly sight, she could read the paper and saw that they were simply job offers. Most of them you would normally see in a mercenary guild. Simple stuff, like getting rid of bandits, monsters etc. Others were a bit more what you''d expect to see in an assassin hang out. Killing warrants and offers from rich lords. Noticing her gaze, the assassin explained,

    ¡§ We have a very open business. Unless the client specifically asks for secrecy, we¡äll put up a job notice. ¡§

    Evia nodded, though in her experience assassins were supposed to be more¡­.secretive. She shrugged and turned to her companion to see him already heading toward a table, were three figures assassins. She quickly walked after him.

 Halloween Special!!!!!!

    cryptor: reee?

    Author: reeeeeee. * confirming Nod *

    J of 22: What inspired your mc?

    Author: I''m not really sure. I was like I had been building her for years. Out f tiny scraps from books and movies etc. And when I finally started writing her character fully formed.

    Jack Madden: the dark magic that she has will that also weaken with the blood moon?Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

    Author: No because when the Curse was put on her, she didn''t have the black magic. And so it only effects her own godly powers.

    Crlittlemore: Can I have the main character as my girlfriend?

    Evia: " I''m a fictional character soooooo "

    Dragrath: Are there ways to thwart and weaken cursed magic? Say for instance preventing or avoiding lunar eclipses/"blood moons"?

    Author: There is always the whole " only the person that cast the curse can take it back" schtick. But basically, the wording of the curse is pretty specific, so only during a blood moon will her power weaken. Unfortunately, the cure is also very specific. We will get into the backstory of the curse later.

    Dragrath: interesting hmm so what technological level is this world exactly? Is that a TV as we would know or something that works on a different principle but seems similar?

    Author: It is all very random. Some things will work the way you expect them too, like the TV. Other things will be a bit more new. Imagine a futuristic world just without cellphones. Some technology survived the monster war and even evolved but other things were completely forgotten. Just try to understand, because I don''t really get it either.

 The Characters.

    (note: I''m putting the names down in the order they are mentioned in the "book".)

    (note: The things in (_) are a basic description of what they look like.  Some don''t have them if they are less important or they will have a (????) if a full description hasn''t been mentioned yet.

    Characters:

    Aphrodite: The Greek goddess of Love and Beauty and Evia¡äs longtime friend.  Aphrodite helped Evia escape from the prison in the first chapter. (????)

    Evdokia/Evia: The MC of the Story. She is the Greek Goddess of Monsters. She was imprisoned by Zeus for millennia in a the lightless prison. She eventually escaped but at the cost of letting a mysterious, powerful and dangerous power into her mind and body. Now she is on the Run from Zeus and the other Gods. ( Black hair and dark eyes, pale skin, feminine figure. )

    Zeus: King of the Gods. Not very found of Evia. And doesn''t seem to be a very nice ruler/person. ( ????)

    The Judge: A mysterious figure that judges the souls of the dead. Evia has some dirt on him

    ( you don''t yet know what ) He helped hide Evia on Earth. (????)

    Alexa Vernandez: A 17-year-old huntress who met and befriended Evia. Her parents died when she was young and she lived with her uncle and cousin for most of her life. ( Brown hair, pale skin, hazel eyes, tall )

    Elders: ( unimportant) a bunch of old guys that ran the village Alexa was from.

    Alexa¡äs Uncle: A drunk man who you didn''t see much of.

    Malvic ( Alexa¡äs Cousin ): A loud jerk who after being caught trying to rape Evia was killed by Alexa.

    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    Twyla: A pixie that found Evia after she came to Earth. The pixie was a helpful friend and might come into play later on.( A small figure with wings, color theme is purple. )

    Lady Allerton: Adrian''s Mother and a noblewoman. She recently found out that she had been mothering a child that was not her own and sent Adriane away to attend the Academy. ( dirty blond, elegant, green eyes, In her early 40s )

    Grell Allerton: We haven''t met him yet but he is Adrian''s Dad, who supposedly cheated on his wife, Lady Allerton. (????)

    Adriane: A 16-year-old boy, who was raised as a noble. He has a kind heart and a very powerful affinity toward fire magic. He, later on, befriends Alexa and Evia. He also has a baby sister. ( Bright Red Hair. Lean Build and sky blue eyes)

    Reta: A healer you might see later on. She was there when the ship went up in flames and seems to know something about Adrian''s true mother and his magic. (????)

    Satonos: One of Evia¡äs Sons. A fiery young demon, that was named after Satan. ( wink, wink )

    Arculus: Another one of Evia¡äs children. A snake demon that is contracted to an Elven Princess. Who is under disguise as a professor at Xioto Academy. ( Think snape, only very handsome. And can turn into a giant snake guy)

    Piper Oconto: A young warrior girl, that was accepted into Xioto Academy.

    Headmaster Blackstone: The headmaster of Xioto Academy. ( an old man with along bread )

    Lord Rardmarth: An important Noble. That was with the headmaster during the Entrance Exam.

    The royal ambassador: pretty self-explanatory.

    Marissa: A slightly round girl with large glasses. She is a noble and likes mischief and enjoys making trouble. She is also quite bossy.

    Princess Sylvia Greenwood: A beautiful Blonde elven princess. Who has a sadistic side. She is also the contractor with Arculous. Though she pretends to be an innocent and sweet girl. She is a 2nd year and considered very powerful/talented. ( tall, elf, regal, green eyes and long blonde hair. )

    Eric: The son of a Duke from a neighboring country. He is also the trained Assassin that is very highly ranked in the assassins guild. ( black hair and blue eyes, handsome with a muscular/lean frame.)

    Louis, Serina and Claire and Jessie: These are Eric''s friends. Louis and Serena are supposedly dating and all head over heels for each other. Claire and Jessie are kind girls that might or might not be gay¡­.

    Hanna: Hanna is the daughter of the Noble that Eric is staying with during his time in the country. She seems to be VERY possessive of Eric though they are not in a romantic relationship.

    The Three Assassins: They are also well respected throughout the guild and the group has taken on a job to kill the elven princess Sylvia. However, they want Eric to help them.

    Pin: The ¡§baker¡§¡± that owns the building for the assassin''s hideout.

 Chapter 18: Details of a Killing Plot.

    Eric glanced sideways at his companion. The boy was sitting casually back in his seat. Seemingly not noticing the glares directed at him.

    ¡° You did not tell us, we would be receiving another ¡°guest,¡± Their leader said. Eric looked at her nonchalantly, as if the accusation and threat in her tone, did not affect him in the slightest. He waved at the boy, and then realized he did not actually know his new apprentice''s name.

    He quickly said, ¡§ Introduce yourself, boy.¡§, as if he himself couldn''t be bothered.

    The boy nodded and after a slight pause said ¡° I go by Jace.¡±

    The leader studied the boy for another moment and then turned back to Eric.

    ¡° You may call me Alease and my to companions Luke and Jason.¡± She gestured toward the larger man and then to the smaller one. Luke, grunted in greeting, and Jason nodded politely.

    Eric nodded: ¡± I go by Naro.¡±

    It was the name of a dog he had owned when he was younger. When Eric became an assassin he used the name on a whim, and now it was one of the most well known and feared names in the city.

    Currently, Naro was ranked the 5th best assassin in the capital and surrounding cities and towns. He was good, hell he was better than good. Eric wasn¡¯t the modest type, but the other 4 those ranked higher than him.

    They were monsters.

    Alease pulled out a sheet of paper and handed it to Eric. He looks at it and saw a drawing of a lovely young elf girl wearing a flower crown. He knew that face, he¡¯d seen her through the halls often, even shared some classes with her. Sylvia Greenwood, his next target.

    Written under the picture was a description of the job. The client was unknown, but they wanted a  gruesome death with a single dagger to be embedded into the princesses chest. He looked up and Alease guessing his question pulled from her sleeve a small dagger. She tossed it to him and Eric caught it easily. He studied the dagger as his new apprentice, Jace picked up the discarded paper.

    It was beautifully made, gold entwined around the hilt of the shining metal. He looked closer and then his eyes widened.

    ¡° Dwarf made¡­.¡± He commented, an idea of just what was happening beginning to form. Alease nodded a glint in her eye.

    ¡° When this is found in the princesses corpse, the blame will be put onto the dwarfs. Alliances will be brought forth¡­..this could start an all-out war!¡±

    Taking the dagger back from him, Alease nodded looking intently at him as she said,

    ¡° And it''s our job to make that happen.¡±

    Eric sat back his face, thinking. While he didn¡¯t care much for this country, he had to wonder if his own family and countrymen might be pulled into it. This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

    ¡° 100 thousand gold¡­.¡± Jace mumbled. Eric wiped around and grabbed the paper out of his hands. He scanned the appear again, finding what he had missed the first time.

    ¡° Holy Shit¡­¡± he said. The reward was astounding. Enough to make the son of a Duke drool. Even split between them it was still a nice sum of money.

    Screw the risk!!!

    Well, there were 5 of them and presumably, the Alease and her team would take the majority. Alease seems to know what he was thinking.

    ¡° We were prepared to give you 30% of the payment but we hadn¡¯t expected you to bring a friend.¡± She made a pointed look towards Jace. Eric didn¡¯t bother, the boy had asked Eric to take him on as an apprentice. Eric didn¡¯t need to pay the boy, it was already an honor to work with the 5th best assassin in the guild.

    ¡° I don¡¯t need the money,¡± Jace said. Alease looked at him strangely and then shrugged.

    Eric blinked. The boy was constantly surprising him. But his mind quickly went back to his own profit.

    ¡°I want 50%¡±. He said. Starting high, so when he conceded on a slightly lower price they would be relieved and hopefully not notice his trick.

    ¡° That''s ridiculous!¡± Jason yelped. Alease gave her companion a stern look.

    ¡° 30.¡± She said, staring at me.

    ¡°45¡± I respond.

    ¡° 35 ¡± She says, giving in a little.

    ¡° 40¡± I cross my arms, unyielding.

    Alease looks away and nods.

    ¡° Well then, how about we get started?¡± She said.

    ----------

    It''s not a horrible plan, she considered. Evia might even call it ¡°good¡±. Of course, this was considerable praise, considering that she was used to playing against Athena, the Goddess of battle strategy. Evia followed her new mentor, Naro out of the bakery/assassins den. Naro. What a silly name. She almost laughed. Evia wondered what his real name was. An amusing thought struck her. What if Naro wasn¡¯t even a guy, what if like her he was hiding his true gender.

    Evia eyed Erics very male physique. She remembered his handsome face. His ice blue eyes and strong features. He really was a fine human, the kind she and Aphrodite loved to play with.

    Evia ¡¯s light mood faded as she thought about her friend. Aphrodite¡¯s appearance changed with every person. When one looked at her, they say whatever they thought was the ideal appearance. Aphrodite''s favorite shape to take was a chocolate skinned woman. Curvy but not too curvy. Tall but not too tall. With long curly black hair that fell in waves down her back. She remembered her friend dancing with a Greek prince, while the music played. She turned and spun, her laughter so beautiful it made even the trees stop and listen.

    Warmth swept through her heart at the memory.

    Naro cleared his throat.

    ¡° So you want to learn the art of killing? ¡± He asked. She shrugged, allowing a wicked grin to slide across her face.

    ¡° Why else would I become an assassin''s apprentice?¡± Naro nodded,  giving into an evil grin of his own.

    ¡° Well, then I guess we should start training right away.¡±

    She barely had time to move, before he flung a knife at her head.

    ------------------

    ¡° YOU COULD HAVE KILLED ME!¡± Jace shouted narrowly avoiding the blade. Watching his switch and fluid movements as he dodged Eric''s attacks. He muttered, ¡° I think it would take a bit more to bring you down¡±

    Eric began to move, throwing punches and kicks trying to get a feel for Jace¡¯s fighting style. At first, the boy¡¯s movements y=were fluid and aggressive. He was swift and silent. Unlike Eric¡¯s fighting style which was graceful and fast. Jace was aggressive and fierce. However, as the fight progressed Jace¡¯s movements became sloppy and he made more and more mistakes.

    It took less than 2 minutes for a knife to be at the boy''s throat. He pressed the dagger, enough to draw a drop of blood. For a moment the liquid looked golden in the sunlight. He blinked and the golden blood was gone.

    He must have imagined it¡­.

 Chapter 19: Her "Prince Charming"

    Evia watched as Naro pulled the dagger from her throat. He stood up, looking down at me. I scowl at him and stand. Even so, he is more than a head taller than me. I slouch against the wall and eye the assassin.

    ¡° Your strength is decent.¡± He says.

    ¡° You technique is interesting. I see that many of your movements are directed to cause the most pain. At first, it may appear you are just throwing punches and hoping they land, but that''s not it. Is it. ¡°

    Actually, that was exactly what she had been doing. Evia had always been able to kill with just a wave of her hand. She¡¯d never truly needed to learn any fighting techniques. Evia tried to remember what the other gods had taught her about fighting.

    ¡° Your defense is horrid and your stamina is poor at best.¡± Naro continues.

    Evia had purposefully chosen to end it quickly. Letting him feel like he had the upper hand. In fact, she could probably win just by her ability to continue fighting for days on end. As for the other thing¡­..

    Defence...defense..hmmm.

    What were Areas always blabbing about? Something about defense¡­.Oh right!!!

    Areas said and I quote.

    ¡° Defence is for whipping cowards to wet behind the ear to know a true fight if it killed them.¡±

    There that sounded right. Evia wasn¡¯t completely sure what this ¡°defense¡± is. But Areas is the GOD of war, he would know best. Naro is staring at her dumbfounded.

    ¡°What?¡± She asked.

    Quick as a whip, he smacks her across the head. Evia saw the hit coming and her immediate instinct was to throw up a wall of fire. She fought the urge and during her internal struggle the blow landed and she held her head.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    ¡° What was THAT for?!?!¡± She shouted.

    ¡° With an attitude like that you won''t survive long,¡± Naro said. He crouched and left onto a broken pole hanging from the wall Evia had been previously leaning on.

    ¡° I¡¯ll see you tonight for your first lesson!  Meet me at the hill over there-¡± He points to where she had previously met with Arculous.  When Evia looks back Naro has already disappeared.

    -------------------

    Hanna, sat quietly as her pawns, danced before her. Louis stared at Serina like a lost puppy. Serina pretends not to notice as she read her book. Claire and Jessie held each other''s hands under the table. Such childish fascination was beneath her. The four of them were settled down in the study room, in the City''s library. Students wandered around, reviewing what they had learned the previous year.

    Jessie let out a long sigh. ¡° I don¡¯t remember any of this!¡± Claire gave a consoling smile. And Serina leaned over.

    ¡° It¡¯s not that hard if you break it down. Focus your mana were you want to become invisible¡­¡±

    Jessie closed her eyes, constituting.

    ¡° And then envision its despairing. Let your mana wash over it and disappear.¡±

    After a minute Jessie''s hand turned invisible. Claire cheered and Jessie whooped when she saw her hand.

    Claire turned to Serena, ¡° Thanks Sera, you really deserve your title as best in our year. ¡°

    Serina smiled which turned into a yelp of surprise when Louis hugged her from behind. He kissed the top of her head.

    ¡°And she''s my girlfriend.¡± He said smugly. Proud of his lover. Serina blushed and mumbled, ¡° I¡¯m only the best at tests, there are tons of people stronger than me.¡±

    ¡°Oh, Hush!¡± Jessie exclaimed.

    The door slid open and Hanna¡¯s breath caught in her throat. Her heart began working overtime. As the sweet smell of pine picked her nose. She sucked in a breath. He slid into the seat next to her. She watched him carefully.

    He ran a hand through his black hair, his blues eyes looked around the room lazily. A smile tugged at the corner of his perfect lips.

    Hanna wanted him. She had wanted him since the day she had met him. She had been waiting her whole life for her prince charming. The one that would take her away from this dreadfully boring life.

    Eric Devanston.

    He was her prince. And she would stop at nothing, to have him.