1
A Storm Rises
Doctor Lenard Nelson walked through the pouring rain. He lost his hat to the wind as the storm above raged. His glasses were fogging, and his briefcase was soaked just as much as he was. His thin, black hair continued to fall in front of his eyes, wet with rain. Thunder cracked above him and lightning stuck the tree next to him. He was startled by the sudden blast and fell into the muddy road. The tree cracked and broke in half at the strike zone.
Lenard pushed his rectangular spectacles back up in front of his hazel eyes as he started to stand up. Through his lenses he saw the massive tree slowly descending on him, and horror set in.
I'm not fast enough to avoid it! Lenard thought as he tried running out of the way. More lightning cracked in the sky and thunder boomed. His white lab coat flapped wildly as he tried to avoid the falling tree. It came closer, and closer. His doom was upon him.
Jenna… Nicole… Lenard thought as he watched his doom approach. Lighting flashed again, but this time it was yellow and directly in front of him.
"Lightning Dragon's Roar!" a young boy's voice cried as he appeared in front of Lenard, sparking with wild, yellow lightning. He unleashed a powerful beam of lightning from his mouth that blasted through the massive tree that descended on them. The spell ripped through the fallen tree and obliterated its top, leaving a huge circle around them as it landed.
Lenard stood, dumbfounded as he scanned the destroyed treetop around him. It smoldered from the blast of lightning that ripped through it. He then turned to the small, bronze haired boy in front of him.
"Who are you?" Lenard asked, kneeling down in front of the boy.
"I don't know." The boy answered. Lenard blinked, staring in shock into the boy's azure eyes.
"You don't have a name?" Lenard wondered. The boy nodded.
"Do you have parents?" Lenard asked. The boy shook his head.
"Relatives? Friends?" Lenard was given the same headshake.
"Any sort of guardian or acquaintances?" the boy shook his head once more and Lenard sighed. He adjusted his spectacles again, noting the electricity that sparked around the boy.
"That was magic. Who taught you it?" Lenard asked. The boy shrugged, scratching his bare chest. He only wore a pair of shorts and sandals.
"I just know it. No one taught me." The boy answered flatly. Lenard nodded and took his coat off, putting it around the boy's shoulders.
"Well, um… How about you come with me? I'd like to thank you for saving me… My home is just ahead in the town there." Lenard said, offering his hand to the boy. The child shrugged and took his hand.
Well, I suppose Jenna wouldn't mind having a boy. Lenard thought as he tried to continue forward, but he remembered he couldn't. The tree was still around them and the charred circle they stood in was the result of the boy's power.
"Uh, well that's not good. Seems your plan didn't quite work in our favor." Lenard sighed, gesturing to the charred wood that blocked the road. The boy shook his head.
"Easy fix." The boy said, letting go of Lenard's hand. He walked forward and summoned lightning in his hand. He punched the side of the circle he made and shattered the wood with the lightning in his hand. Lenard gasped as the explosion rocked the earth and he stumbled.
"Let's go, mister! I'm hungry." The boy said, waving Lenard forward. He nodded and jogged up to the boy's side, taking his hand once more. They continued forward through the new hole the boy had created.
"I hope you like pork. Jenna said she was making it tonight…" Lenard commented as they walked. The boy nodded.
"I eat a lot of things. I like pork. Who's Jenna?" the boy asked. Lenard chuckled, remembering he hadn't shared his name with the boy.
"She's my wife. I'm Lenard Nelson, my wife is Jenna Nelson and my daughter is Nicole Nelson." Lenard explained to the boy. He nodded and kept staring ahead. Lenard took note of how the storm was lessening.
"Nelson. Can I be Nelson? I like the name." the boy said, looking at Lenard briefly. He stopped, looking down at the boy with surprise.
"Well, I suppose... I'll have to discuss it with Jenna… What about your first name? The one everyone calls you by?" Lenard asked, continuing to walk with the boy. He saw the boy think, but he didn't say anything.
"Well, what about John? John Nelson. I like the sound of that. I think it was one of my old ancestor's names." Lenard said, smiling down at the boy. He was given a smile in response.
"I like it. I'm John Nelson, nice to meet you." John said, smiling broadly at Lenard. Lenard laughed and picked the boy up, holding him up on his shoulder.
"Nice to meet you too. Don't worry, I just know Jenna will love you…" Lenard said as the sun cut through the clouds in front of them. It illuminated a small town ahead of them, the one they were headed for.
"John."
Eight Years Later…
"John! John!" a voice yelled. John Nelson stood up from his perch on a rock outcropping looking over a huge valley. He was now fourteen, tan, taller, leaner, stronger, but still very stoic. He wore tan cargo shorts, sneakers, and a black t-shirt. He turned towards the source of the voice and found his adoptive father, Lenard walking through the forest behind him. John turned towards the setting sun once more before walking into the woods to meet his father.
"Dad. I was just watching the sunset." John said quietly as he appeared next to Lenard. The doctor jumped in place, startled by John's sudden appearance. He held a hand over his heart, indicating the scare his son gave him.
"There you are, John. Nicole's been looking for you. She says you're due for something… I'm not aware of what. Probably something with biology… that girl. Oh, and dinner will be ready soon." Lenard said, smiling at John. John grinned at the mention of food and his step-sister.
"Cool. Be there in a literal flash." John said as Lenard turned to walk out of the forest. He turned around to see what his son meant by his statement, but John was gone.
"Dammit, John…"
Ah, Dad needs to listen a bit more closely. I'm getting good at the whole sneaking thing. John thought with a grin as he appeared outside of a tall, oak brown house with a similarly colored roof. Behind him was the town square constructed of beautiful cobblestone with a fountain and market stalls at the center. He rounded the side of the house and jumped, latching onto the wrought iron vine holders on the side. He scaled them and tapped on the window nearest to the iron bars.
"J-John! Stop coming in through the window!" a young girl exclaimed as she opened the window, staring with wonder and annoyance at John with her hazel eyes. She was John's sister, Nicole Nelson. A pretty young girl with brown hair that lightened near the ends. She was relatively thin and not fully developed yet, since she was only a year younger than John, and of course, half his size.
"It's faster, though." John said with a grin as he climbed up and slipped into the window with little effort. He crouched on the floor as his sister shut the window and pouted at him.
"Can't you just jump up those stairs with little effort?" Nicole asked as she turned and sat down on her pink quilted bed. John nodded as he stood up and stretched his arms.
"Yeah, but that's no fun. You also get unreasonably angry whenever I climb through your window. So I get a kick out of it." John said with a laugh. Nicole pouted at him again and he merely smiled. She shook her head at him and got up, walking over to her closet amid the pink and bright colored stuffed animals in her room. She pulled a microscope from the one shelf in her closet and a small case. She set the microscope on her relatively normal desk and opened the case, putting it on a table that slid out of the desk. The case was filled with needles, scalpels, tweezers, and other assorted tools for medical use. John eyed the case with slight fear.
"Sit. I'm checking your cells again and comparing them to some samples I collected today." Nicole said, pulling gloves from her desk and slipping them on. She gestured to the stool next to her and John sighed.
"Please don't poke me with a needle again. Last time you injected me with a poison." John said as he took his seat. Nicole giggled and patted his arm, making him flinch slightly.
"Oh, that was an experiment, silly. I wanted to know how your system would react, and it did exactly as I predicted. Your cells engaged and destroyed the poison before it got very far. That, Johnny, is inhuman. So is eating lightning." Nicole said, pulling a suitcase out from under her desk. She opened it and pulled several vials and tubes of liquids and pieces of flesh in containers from the case. When she was satisfied with her selection, she closed the case and slid it under her desk.
"Maybe it's cause I'm a Dragon Slayer. You know, legendary wizards with Dragon powers? That might be an answer." John suggested, rubbing his arms and eyeing the tools with suspicion. Nicole thought for a moment.
"Yes, but how are you a Dragon Slayer? No one has known such a magic for thousands of years. Dragons do not even exist. And, do Dragon Slayers resist poison and disease like you do? Also, why are you abnormally strong for a fourteen year old? You do not even exercise, yet you're absolutely in-shape and can lift a boulder with little effort." Nicole explained as she set up her microscope and assembled some of the tools from her case in front of her. John contemplated these words while still rubbing his arms anxiously.
All of that is true… Maybe I'm blessed by a god or something? Honestly… as much as I hate being her lab rat, I want to know. I need answers just as much as she wants them. John thought. He stopped rubbing his arms as he resolved himself and hardened his will. He would endure pain, face fear, and stop at nothing for answers.
"Alright, give me your arm. I need a good drop of blood." Nicole said, holding up a syringe. John cringed immediately, but settled down when Nicole smiled and rubbed his arm.
"Don't worry, this is the only one. Promise." Nicole said, patting John's arm to reveal his vein. He nodded, leaning his head on her shoulder and burying his face in the crook of her neck. He didn't want to watch the needle enter him. It simply freaked him out, and Nicole was happy to console him as she poked his skin and drew some of his blood. When she had little more than an ounce, she pulled the needle out and set it on a metal tray.
"There, done. See? You didn't even flex with pain when I did it. You're getting better at it." Nicole mumbled sweetly, rubbing John's back. He chuckled and hugged her.
"Thanks, Nikki. What's next?" John asked, sitting up and rubbing his arm. The injection site didn't even bleed and his skin was slowly starting to heal already. It wasn't very fast, but he was healing.
"Well, we're going to take a look at this blood sample and compare it to a few reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Let me set it up and we'll get started at looking for similarities in the blood. I feel they're going to be very similar, but there are some key differences that we need to look for. I have a normal sample here from a magic-less individual, one from a wizard, and then the animal samples. The human samples are the control, as well as the animal ones, yours is the one that will vary." Nicole explained. Throughout her explanation she had set up a small, glass slide for John's blood and placed it on the slide. John watched as she did this and leaned in when she put it under her microscope. She then sighed when she flicked the switch on it.
"Crap. The magic battery is dead… Great, now I can't-" Nicole was cut off when John touched the microscope and injected yellow lightning into it. The light came on and he gestured to it.
"Problem solved." John stated bluntly. Nicole sighed, wiping her brow with her arm.
"I… I forgot you could do that. Whoops… Alright, let's continue." Nicole said, sliding her chair closer. She adjusted the device, looking into the small tube atop it. John watched with interest as she used the device. Every time she used it he was slightly amazed, she was like a wizard with a spell, or a fighter with their fist, Nicole zoomed through several samples and hummed as she compared them. She pouted at one point, but continued soon after in silence. John sat quietly, watching his sister work. He was slowly leaning closer, and at one point Nicole moved her hand and bumped into his face with it.
"Oh, sorry. Here, look." Nicole said, moving back from the microscope. John stood up and leaned over her, looking through the tube of the scope with one eye. Nicole blushed as his shoulder hovered next to her head and his arm was around her.
"John… You're a little close…" Nicole muttered.
"Don't care. What am I looking at?" John responded. Nicole sighed as though she knew he would say something similar to what he just uttered. John chuckled.
"That's your blood, okay? Now this is frog blood." Nicole said as she swapped the slides. John blinked at the red blob in his vision.
"Looks the same." John mumbled. Nicole sighed and pushed her brother away for the moment. He crossed his arms, staring down at her.
"No, it doesn't. You blood is… Ah, you wouldn't get it even if I explained it." Nicole said with a sigh. John grumbled and sat down.
"Yeah… I wouldn't. Science isn't my thing. But they're different. What about the other ones? I must look like the human ones, right?" John asked. Nicole nodded, but she also shook her head.
"You do. But you also look like the reptile and amphibian blood. You also have the magic particles in yours like the wizard does. But the particles… they're highly condensed, which means your magic is very volatile." Nicole said. She tapped her chin with a pen as she looked over her work area.
"Yeah, I accidentally blast things when I usually want to use a spark. It is very hard to control. Very hard. If I concentrate on using it, I can control it pretty well, but if I'm just casually making a spark, I could blow up a house." John said as he purposefully made a casual spark on his hands. Nicole glared at him briefly and he stopped, but not without grinning stupidly at her. She sighed and turned the microscope off.
"I'm just trying to figure out why your blood is like this. You're clearly human, but also superhuman with power of unknown origin." Nicole said, half pondering while she spoke. John shrugged, leaning back on the desk.
"Fus Ro Dah, am I right?" John said with a grin. His catchphrase was also of unknown origin, and it bothered Nicole to no end. Nicole glared at him, reaching for a scalpel.
"Whoa! Sorry! Don't cut me!" John exclaimed, holding his hands up in surrender. Nicole put the scalpel down and sighed at him.
"John, one of these days I'm going to hurt you. Then I'm going to cry when I do because I just hurt my brother. You don't want that, do you?" Nicole asked, narrowing her eyes at John. He shook his head furiously.
"No… I don't like seeing you cry. Makes me angry. Lightning gets pretty wild when I'm angry, so that's not a good thing unless I'm obliterating whatever made you cry. Remember when you got cut by a thorn bush and I obliterated the forest around us?" John wondered, smiling at Nicole. She nodded, pinching the bridge of her nose and sighing.
"Yes, I really wonder what'll happen if I get a boyfriend and he dumps me…" Nicole muttered. John growled, sparking with lightning.
"I'll bust his jaw." John growled. Nicole sighed, patting her brother on the shoulder.
"Dad will have to save the kid's life after you electrocute him." Nicole said with a slight giggle. John chuckled, his lightning vanishing.
"Yeah… That'd be a day." John said with a grin. The two fell silent as John played with his lightning a bit. Nicole watched him, and now she was the one who was amazed. He made a ball of lightning and bounced it off the floor like a rubber ball. He tossed it to her and she caught it, feeling the warm electricity tingle on her skin.
"KIDS! DINNER!" a woman's voice called from below. John stood up right away and his lightning vanished from Nicole's hands.
"Yeah! Food!" John exclaimed, flinging the door open and running out of Nicole's room. She sighed, following her brother at a much slower pace. She laughed, though, when she heard him hit the floor after leaping down the stairs.
"JOHN!" the very Nicole-esque Jenna Nelson shouted as John landed at the base of the steps. John grinned sheepishly as she stalked over and pinched his cheek.
"What did I tell you about stairs!? Use them!" she chided. John rubbed his cheek and frowned.
"Sorry Mom…" John muttered. She sighed and hugged the boy. He grinned, hugging her tightly.
"That's my boy. Now, let's eat." Jenna said, letting go of her son and pulling him into the kitchen. With a huge grin, he pulled a seat out at the table as Nicole entered the kitchen from the stairwell.
"Thank you, John." Nicole said, sitting on the chair John pulled out. He pushed it in, all while Jenna watched and smiled at him.
"Now there's the boy I taught to be a gentleman, just like his father. Speaking of whom…" Jenna trailed off, tapping her foot as Lenard walked into the house at the back door. He smiled at her.
"Sorry I'm late, hon. John's path into the woods is… confusing." Lenard sighed as he kissed Jenna on the cheek and went into the living room. He came back a moment later without his white coat and brown fedora on. John hopped into his seat, awaiting dinner to be served.
"Alright, John, save some for the rest of us." Jenna joked as she set about retrieving their meal. Nicole and Lenard laughed as John pouted.
"Fine… not my fault it's delicious…"
Four Years Later…
"Alright, Mom, I'm going for my usual walk." John said as he walked through the small kitchen in his home. He was taller now. Much taller. He was also a lot larger than he had been four years prior. His physique was chiseled, sculpted muscles and a facial structure few had ever seen, let alone have. He now wore dark blue jeans, brown boots, a black t-shirt and a black and yellow flannel over top with his sleeves rolled above his elbows. His hair was longer, slid back across his head and still a bronze color. He also wore eight rings, one on each hand. They were silvery with a blue gem at the center.
"Alright, John. Dinner's at six, like usual. Nicole will be back from the market after she meets with the alchemists and your father is caring for the neighbor and should be back when you are. Remember, six at the latest, young man." Jenna, John's adoptive mother, said as she entered the kitchen. She was a beautiful woman with brown hair and brown eyes. She wasn't very thin, but she was athletic in physique. She wore an apron over her green dress.
"Of course. I'm going to practice with these Shock Rings Dad bought me. Says they'll help me practice controlling my lightning. I wear all eight, then take one off as I earn better control until I don't need them, or want to wear them to focus a spell or something. I don't know, really, but I'll find out." John explained, looking over the rings on his hands. Jenna smiled, patting her son on the shoulder.
"Good. You need the practice. Can't have you frying everyone who asks to see your lightning." Jenna joked. John shook his head and grabbed an apple off the table. He waved and walked out the back door, biting into his apple.
"Huh… I wonder…" John muttered as he walked through the woods. His footsteps were muffled on the pine needles he walked on, though they weren't very loud in the first place. He examined the rings on his right hand, making lightning spark over them.
Do I channel lightning into the rings or…? I think so. John thought. He pushed his magic through the rings, noticing how the output was controlled rather well when the rings prevented his lightning from going wild.
Oh, so that's it. I need to make my lightning calm down like it is now. I should practice until the magic I'm putting out matches how the rings make it feel. I think I should start by using some spells. John thought as he finished his apple, core and all. He wiped his hand off before turning to a boulder and condensing the lightning to one hand.
"Lightning Dragon's Bolt Fist!" John shouted, punching the boulder. It cracked, but his attack was controlled and only did damage where he intended it to.
"Huh, works pretty well. My lightning didn't actually destroy the boulder. Huh." John muttered, watching the yellow bolts jump across his body. He stopped conducting it and the lightning vanished.
"I wonder how taking a ring off would effect it?" John wondered aloud. He removed a ring, placing it in his pocket. He summoned his lightning and felt it go slightly out of his control.
No. Nope. It's still bad. Okay… John sighed in thought. He reached into his pocket and grabbed the ring. But his ears picked up on something.
Someone screamed.
Nikki!? John thought in alarm when he heard the scream. Another scream confirmed his suspicions. He growled, lightning built on his body. He went to vanish in a bolt of lightning.
And took the rings off.
John appeared in front of his home, or what he could identify as his home. It was riddled with holes and all of the windows were broken. Smoke filled the air, but John couldn't smell anything burning. He looked around, noticing the many men in different suits surrounding the building. A very particular man exited the front door, dressed in a tieless grey suit with big brown hair pushed back and styled up. He holstered a silvery object behind his waist and lit a cigar. The smoke vanished from the building into this man.
"WHAT HAPPENED HERE!?" John bellowed, sparking wildly with lightning. The grey suited man looked up at him with a sick grin. The other men turned to regard the lightning infused man.
"Oh, you must be their adopted kid. Don't worry, Doctor Lenard Nelson only owed us eighty thousand Jewel, that isn't enough for me to kill his kids. Just him, and his hot wife." The grey suited man explained, puffing on his cigar. He waved to the other men and they vanished from sight, much to John's annoyance. He rolled the man's words in his head. Then he heard a scream again.
"JOHN! HE KILLED THEM!" Nicole screamed as she came around the side of the house. She crashed into John who held her close. She cried into his chest, and he felt his rage boil over.
"Nicole… what happened…?" John asked, growling deeply. His grip tightened around her as he glared bloody murder at the man standing on their porch.
"He… He killed them…" Nicole cried. John sat her down against the neighbor's porch where an elderly woman held her. The townsfolk had gathered around at the scene, but gave John a wide berth.
No… it can't be…
"WHO ARE YOU!?" John bellowed, his lightning now flying erratically around him. The man on his porch smiled.
"I'm so glad you asked. I'm The Devil Himself. Vincent Lucifer, Ghost Clan assassin, at your service. Now, who are you?" Vincent asked, bowing slightly and stuffing the half burnt cigar into his mouth and eating it. He smiled, as if there wasn't a raging wizard before him.
"I'm John Nelson, and I'M GOING TO FUCKING OBLITERATE YOU!" John roared, his lightning exploding outward. His magic flailed wildly, kicking up a wind with it and forcing the townsfolk back. Vincent smiled, stepping off the porch and reaching for his hip.
"What makes you think you'll hit me before I shoot you?" Vincent asked as he drew a silvery gun from a hidden holster. His smile faded and his eyes widened when John vanished and appeared in front of him.
"LIGHTNING DRAGON'S BOLT FIST!" John screamed as he slugged Vincent in the face with a powerful punch. Vincent was electrocuted and when soaring through John's house behind him, blasting a huge portion of the building away and collapsing the middle. John followed him through the collapsed parts, leaping high into the air.
"Fuck! Damn kid… Guess I need magic…" Vincent muttered as John descended on him. He readied himself and smoke leaked from him.
"Smoke Dragon's Flame Fist!" Vincent shouted, throwing a punch at John as he landed. John, unsurprised by facing another Dragon Slayer, easily ducked the smoking fist and swept Vincent's legs out with a kick. Vincent fell, but recovered quickly and was on his feet once more. John stood, throwing an expert punch at Vincent whom deflected it to the side with his arm and countered with a low hook. John slid to the side, avoiding the blow and front kicked Vincent through a pine tree. The plant didn't hit the ground before John leapt over Vincent and brought his heel down onto the man's stomach.
"Lightning Dragon's Talon!" John yelled, smashing his heel into Vincent and injecting him with a lot of lightning. Vincent coughed up blood, but vanished in a puff of smoke underneath John's boot.
"Smoke Dragon's Ethereal Form… Find me now, boy!" Vincent's voice called all around. John growled, sniffing the air. He only picked up smoke. Frustrated, John summoned more lightning.
"Thunder unfurled, rising and falling through the clouds, come and rain your power on the ones below... And tear them asunder, Lightning Dragon's Punishing Bolt!" John chanted, summoning a massive bolt of lightning in his hand. He stabbed the bolt into the ground, and it exploded with enough force to decimate a huge area of the forest. Lightning infused itself into the very air, and electrocuted a thin cloud of smoke. Vincent screamed and was shocked out of his ethereal form. He fell to the ground, slightly charred and still jumping with lightning. He sat up, only to see John standing in front of him with a large amount of lightning in his hands.
"Lightning Dragon's Secret Art…" John started, summoning more and more lightning. The yellow bolts shot out in various directions as he formed a huge double-headed hammer with his lightning. He lifted it high above his head.
"Oh shit…" Vincent muttered. John glared heatedly at him, rage present in his eyes. Voracious rage.
The Wrath of Lightning.
"Wrath of the Thunder God." John said, slamming the lightning hammer onto Vincent. The man's screams were drowned out by the thunder that cracked from John's attack and the explosive power it released. Another part of the forest was ripped apart by lightning, and it even lit the ground ablaze. The very earth shook, cracking the stone under John's feet. His attack settled out as his lightning died down. He stood over the smoking crater in front of him, glaring into it and continuously sparking with lightning. John's rage slowly died down as the dust settled and he could see Vincent lying dead in the dirt. He neither breathed, nor moved from the crater.
"JOHN!" Nicole yelled, running up behind him. John turned and caught his sister in his arms before she reached the crater that was now behind him.
"Don't look, Nikki. I killed him." John whispered, tucking his sister's head into his shoulder. She gasped, grasping his shoulder and looking up at him in shock.
"J-John…? You killed him?" Nicole asked. John nodded, turning her and leading her away from the crater. He sighed, staring at the collapsed house before them.
"Where did he kill them?" John asked, letting go of Nicole and heading towards the house.
"The living room. He just walked in and fired… no words, just…" Nicole trailed off with a sob. John continued forward, stepping over the broken pieces of wood and drywall. He stepped into what used to be the kitchen and laundry room, now destroyed by his unfurled power. He noticed tears falling from his eyes before he knew he was crying.
All this destruction by my hands… this was my home… How could I send that bastard through it and destroy it? Why? And… why… who would ever want to kill Mom and Dad…? Over money? John thought as he continued forward. He went to round the broken wall into the living room, but stopped when he saw blood splattered across the floor. He shivered with trepidation and rounded the corner. His fears were valid, and his tears were great. Before him were Lenard and Jenna's bodies, each with a bullet hole in their forehead, blood pooled beneath them and they lied next to each other. Their hands were still intertwined.
"N-No… M-Mom… D-Dad… dammit… I… I never should've left the house. I could've stopped him… I… I never told them how much I loved them…" John mumbled, falling to his knees and sobbing. His lightning activated and sparked across his body. He screamed to the heavens and slammed his fists on the floor, cracking the hardwood and releasing lightning.
DAMMIT! DAMMIT ALL! I OUGHT TO BURN THAT BASTARD'S CORPSE! John thought. Staring at the blood through his tears. Blood. So much blood. Though he was never their child by blood, John was their son, and he knew it. He had been since he saved Lenard that faithful day outside of town. John stared at Lenard in particular, vividly remembering the man's smiling face and genuine kindness. Lenard didn't deserve to be assassinated. Neither did Jenna, and this enraged John once more.
"By this blood, brought forth by an assassin… I vow to destroy this Ghost Clan, whom are responsible for this… They will perish by my hands…" John growled.
"John… Please… No." Nicole's voice whispered behind him. John sat up and Nicole kneeled down next to him. She put her arms around his neck, holding him close.
"No more death… please… Let's just… We'll escape them. They'll never hurt us after what you've done." Nicole said, sobbing into her brother's shoulder. John hugged his sister, and heard a ping on the floor. He looked down and saw one of the rings his father gave him.
Nikki's right… I need control. What am I if I cannot control my rage? John wondered in thought, picking the ring up and rubbing his sister's back. She calmed down slightly, but didn't move her head from her position on John's shoulder.
"You're right. Instead, this I vow: To fight, to live, and to thrive in the memory of our parents. To honor the life they've given us, by never taking others. To protect and save, just as Dad did, just as Mom did." John vowed, gripping the ring in his hand. It had fallen into the blood next to him and the gem turned a deep red color. Nicole raised her head and kissed John's cheek.
"Thank you, John…" Nicole whispered. John held her close and stood up. She wrapped her legs around his waist with her arms still around his neck. John turned towards the front door where a knock sounded from. In the doorway stood a middle aged man with a sword on his hip and wore old mail armor with leather covering and wrapping. Armor of the town guard.
"Officer Jenkins…" John mumbled upon seeing the man. The grey haired man sighed at what he saw before him.
"The guy who did this is lying dead in a ditch out back." John said, sliding the ruby gem ring onto his right hand. He put on the rest of the rings as Jenkins entered the house.
"John… I'm sorry…" Jenkins mumbled. John shook his head, holding onto his sister.
"It's alright. This wasn't your fault. This was mine, and I can show you why…" John said, nodding towards the intact staircase behind him. Jenkins nodded and followed John upstairs into the mostly intact master bedroom. Nicole looked at John curiously as he set her down on the bed and pulled a crate out from under it. Jenkins kneeled down with him as John cracked it open and pulled out an unsealed letter.
"I found this a few years ago. I didn't say anything because I figured Dad had it under control… But I was wrong." John said as he handed Jenkins the letter. The man opened it and his eyes widened.
"Lenard… you numbskull… you never were good with money…" Jenkins growled, gripping the letter tightly as a tear rolled from his eye.
"John, what is that?" Nicole asked, holding back tears. John glanced at her and pulled a stack of Jewels from the crate.
"Dad borrowed money from a guy a few months after I arrived to help pay for bills. This is half of what he borrowed that he was going to pay back. The letter is from the lender, asking for the money back after the time period was up. I never thought they'd send an assassin though… How could I be so foolish…? I should've been here. I should've beat more time out of them… Those bastards…" John growled. Nicole stared in shock, whimpering slightly.
"B-But… Dad always said… money wasn't a problem…" Nicole sniffled, tears staining her white skirt. John shook his head.
"He was protecting us, Nicole. But I should've been the one protecting. I'm the wizard, I have power. I have the power to protect… but…" John choked up, clenching his fists.
"It's not your fault, kid. Lenard was trying to support his family, that isn't your fault. He was preparing to have a second child, but Jenna had a miscarriage so he stopped. Suddenly a lightning kid saves his life and he's got a son." Jenkins explained. The guard, who had been a long friend of the Nelson's, knew a lot about them. He was the one who taught John how to fight.
"John… don't ever blame yourself for someone else's action. Now… here's the will. I'll take care of this, kids. You two pack your things. I doubt you can stay in this place much longer." Jenkins said, patting John on the shoulder. John nodded and stood up, he put his arms around Nicole and lifted her up.
"John… I can walk." Nicole mumbled, wiggling in his grasp. John didn't let go, though.
"But I want to hold you." John whispered, tucking his nose into the crook of her neck. She wrapped herself around John once more, holding her brother's head close.
"I'll protect you, Nikki. I always will."
"I love you, John."
"I love you too, sis."
.
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How's that? Unfortunately I'm not uploading as much as I used to. I may never go back to that schedule. But, here's a little something I rewrote to lighten the blow.
Thanks guys.
Hybridization Commence.