Chapter 1
Awakening...
Let it be known I own no characters portrayed in this work of fiction save a few minor characters. If you are squeamish, and and entirely against graphic depictions of gore and foul language, this story is not for you.
He opened his eyes, staring upward at the sky. His mind blank while he stared upward at the clear skies. "What was I?" he asked in his mind. No answer came to him however, no matter how hard he tried to recall what he was doing only darkness sputtered forth in his mind. "Where am I?" he thought, he rose to his feet, supporting himself with his arms. He glimpsed his surroundings, a small dirt path lie before him. He took note of the grass patch he was formerly in, a single purple tome rested where he once was. "That seems out of place. Was- is that mine?" He gazed around once more before taking the tome into his arms. Not a soul was around. "I'll just hold onto this then." He thought, beginning to tro d down the beaten path. "Hold it close…" He couldn't explain it, but he felt he needed this book for something, something quite important. He glanced it over once more; he couldn't make out the inscription on the front so he instead turned his attention toward the inside. Each and every page was blank, no text, no symbols, not even a single hint ink had ever touching the pages surface was present. He closed it, tucking it safely under his arm. "Go now…" this impulse relayed to his mind. "Not much else I can do anyway." He continued his march southward. The path was worn, yet straight, he cast his gaze upward, the clear skies ever blue and seemingly never ending, only a hint of smoke caught his eyes in the distance over a couple of hills. He sprinted in that direction, unsure of the cause, what he could possibly do, but feeling he must do something. He rushed as fast as his legs would carry, uncertain of his self, knowing only that he must help in some way, whomever was in trouble. "This doesn't concern you." he heard, the voice nagging in the back of his head, urging him to cease, he ignored this feeling, charging forward, tripping over a small stone in the process, sending the book flying from under his arms. It landed, spine up, allowing its pages to be tarnished with the earthen soil. The man picked himself up once more, dusting himself off, he continued on his pace, grabbing the book in the process. He overcame the hill ahead of him to see a town ablaze, men surrounding a woman and child, weapons in hand. He ran down the hill, almost tripping again on the dirt. "Stop! Leave those people alone!" he yelled at the men, five of them, turned their gaze to him. "And whaddya gonna do about it huh?" All of the men had a gaze about them, they were doing this for wealth, but also for fun, he could tell. The man to the far left was dressed in robes, he held a red book to his side, a hat covering his head. Two slender men stood to the sides of a larger one both were dressed in tunics, emblems stitched onto the upper left of them,with matching metal headbands covering their foreheads. He took note both of them were holding swords, the grins on their faces told him they were fairly confident in their swordsmanship. The man in the middle chuckle, thwacking his hammer against his open palm."I think this ylissian needs to be learned in the ways of conversation." the man holding the book said, flipping it's pages while his gaze was transfixed on him.
"Ylissian?" he thought. He quickly sized up the man to the far right, he held an axe in hand, his face not a smile nor a frown, he worn animal hides and had a bull skull on his head.
"Agreed…" the axeman said, lifting the axe off the ground. The group surrounded the man as best as they could.
"Oi, Olivan, you could make use of that tome couldn't ya?" The man with the hammer said, eyeing the purple book he held. As if on instinct he tried to hide the book from their sights.
"That's a dark tome, It would take some time for me to use it, but maybe Jaxxs could use it. Either way let's take it." the robed man said, opening his book.
"Alright lad, we'll make it easier on ya, hand us the book so we don't gots to get no blood on it, and we'll make sure your death ain't too terribly painful." The hammerman said, his voice stern.
As if the book had a will of it's own it opened whilst in his grasp, turning to it's centermost pages.
"The damn thing's blank, the hell?" One of the swordsman asked getting into a fighting stance. he gazed upon the book, it's formerly blank pages began to emit a dark fire.
"He's a dark mage Garrick, I don't like the looks of that book now." The mage said taking a few steps back.
"It won't matter what spells he tries to cast if he ain't got any arms to hold the damned thing it won't be of any use to him!" the axeman furiously took a swing at him only to have the blade stopped by the spine of the book. The dark flames engulfed the book, spreading onto the axe, and the the axeman, holding tight to him, searing his flesh in the process. It spread over his body like wildfire, burning the pelts and turning his skin an ashen grey, the axeman screamed and hollered in pain leaving his allies only able to look on before he collapsed to the ground dead.
"Who's next?" he asked, a small grin showing on his face.
" Taric! Malus! Get em!" The man wielding the hammer yelled. On cue they swung both their swords at him, hoping to cleave him in two, only to have the same dark flames surround him before spreading to their blades and them as well.
"Bold aren't you, it's a shame, I would've hoped you'd learned from your friend there." he said calmly, looking to the corpse. They both cried out in agony as the flames proceeded to spread over them, turning their skin a ghastly grey as it burned. He merely looked at the mage.
"I didn't agree to fight a monster! Garrick! We need to go!" The mage Olivan called out, turning to flee.
"Ah ah ah…" he said, pointing the book at him. "We're not finished yet." A flame shot out of the book, grabbing onto the mage and crushing him whilst he burned, a sizzling sound of could be heard along with his agonized cries of pain.
"Alright, just who the fuck are you." The man called Garrick asked calmly, looking the no named man in his eyes. He saw a dark gleam that wasn't there moments ago, his eyes shown with a burning hatred.
"I don't know, but I do know that you will die." he laughed, pointing his book at Garrick.
"Like hell I will!" he yelled, pulling a hand axe off of his back, he hurled it at him. He didn't bother to move, he just tilted his head to the right. A small gash appeared on his left cheek where the blade had cut.
"Allow me to show you what I can do." he closed the book, holding it in his left hand. Flames appeared from the ground below Garrick, surrounding him in a veil of fire, the flames rotated in a spiral around him, increasing in intensity as he looked on. Garrick tried to run through the flames only to have them latch onto his body, steadily overtaking his form, burning all that the flame touched on him. It slowly worked it's way up and down his body, first turning his skin gray from the heat, and then black as it went over him a second time, his face was the only thing left uncharred.
"Ugh.." Garrick moaned, trying to move, but none of his muscles responded, they were reduced to f charred flesh that merely resembled the human form, dark red blood gushed from each of his limbs as he tried to move in pain. Each action he took caused him greater pain, causing him to move more, creating a cycle that went on till the Man known as Garrick's eyes went pale and ceased moving. He looked down upon Garrick, then over to his fallen men, seemingly satisfied with their painful deaths he turned to people he'd saved. They looked onward in horror at the man adorned in purple robes who stood at the center of the carnage. They looked to his book, which was firmly in his grasp, the flames gone.
"Are you alrigh-"
"Stay away from us!" the woman cried out, holding her child in her arms to shield her from the view. The corpses continued to sizzle and bubble, small pockets of blood popped from them, some splattered on the woman as Garrick's corpse toppled over into a messy puddle of darkened fluid and ash.
"Frederick, Lissa, there!" A voice yelled out behind him. Two men and a small blonde haired girl came running into the town square where the burned corpses lie. "Stop, don't harm those people." one man said, pointing his blade. He was adorned in blue armor, a white cape over his left shoulder swayed in a gentle breeze.
"I have no intent to harm these people, I saved them." he said in return, his smirk fading.
"And what reason are we to believe you? Around you and you alone there are five charred corpses, as well as that house by them has been set ablaze. You are the most likely suspect for this crime against the people of Ylisse." The other man spoke, clad in white and light blue armor that covered him from the neck down from atop a horse.
"I understand your reasoning but in truth these five burnt corpses were the men who set this place ablaze."
"Given the accused are dead, we may have to take his word for it." The blue armored man said, sheathing his sword.
"Regardless of whether or not he is the cause, he is still a danger Chrom, we can't allow such a mage to roam the halidom doing as he pleases." The horse riding man calmly said.
"So we take him with us then-"
"Don't I have a say in this?! Chrom!?"
"You know of me then? I've not seen you in Ylisse before, perhaps you'd be kind enough to give us your name, as a sign of good faith." Chrom asked him.
"I-I can't remember." he said, downtrodden.
"Ooh, ooh, I know this, you have amnesia!" the blonde haired girl said.
"We're to believe you know milord's name and not your own, highly suspect, Chrom I'd say it for the best that we bring this man with us, amnesia or not." The man on the horse readied his lance, pointing it at him. "Will you come quietly or not? I'd prefer the first option, however to ensure all of our safety…" he trailed off, leaving the man's mind to wonder what would become of him.
(Flee… Robin... They are… our enemies…) he heard in the back of his skull.
"Now Frederick, if this man truly saved the town I've no doubt that he-"
"He's getting away Chrom!"
"What?" Chrom turned to view where the man in purple had stood, however he only saw the man flee toward the forest in the distance.
"Normally I'd say we allow him to roam, but given his actions that's highly inadvisable. Gods only know what that man is capable of."
"Frederick, while I agree we can't let him be free for the time being, we should talk to him and hear what he has to say first, then determine whether or not he's at fault." Chrom said. The small child finally wriggled free of her mother's grasp. Chrom felt a tug on his cape.
"Milord, that man saved my mother from those men." she said. Chrom and Frederick looked over to her.
"Is this true?" Frederick asked.
"He did save us from those men, but only Naga knows what he was going to do with us after he finished with them, he seemed calm and hesitant at first, then he used that magic of his and burnt them to a crisp. He had a look in his eyes that wasn't right, he looked as though was reveling in their suffering." She told them. Frederick looked at Chrom.
"This is the man you'd wish to allow be free to roam? Think of the panic that could arise from such a man loose in Ylisse, I wager to say he is just as bad, if not worse than the brigands who so often invade our borders." Frederick continued.
"You've made your point Frederick, Lissa stay here." Chrom said.
"What? But I'm a Shepherd too, I can help, I'm not that delicate!" she cried. Chrom looked over at the pile of liquid.
"It's more dangerous than we're used to, stay here." he said firmly.
"Fine." she huffed, a man walked over to the woman and child, after looking them over he soon turned his attention to the bunch.
"Milord, have no fear, young Lissa will be safe with us, it's the least we can do for you." he said, a smile on his face.
"Many thanks, Lissa, we'll be back by daybreak."
"Yes, we'd best get moving, we can't search all through the forest, I'd like to make camp soon and venture from there." Frederick said, moving off in the direction of the forest.
