Underlined - Spells
Italic - Skills
Pairings- Chase/Marshall
Main Characters- Chase, Marshall, Joey
Stained Black with Memories
Chapter 1 - The Hunter and the Dragon
Chase POV
Having something fall on your head is not a good way to wake up. It being a very full crate of bricks makes it a worse way to wake up. Knowing that someone knocked the crate over on purpose makes you rethink your plans of not killing people anymore. Though I don't blame the guy, my guild mark kinda makes me a target. Though if the stranger somehow tripped and face planted in some girl's chest and was subsequently beaten the crap out of by said girl and her entourage? Karma. No one would see the smile I was suppressing, though, what with the cloth covering the lower half of my face.
Getting up and brushing the dust and splinters off my jacket, I briskly started down the road. In the opposite direction of the crowd of furious women.
Had the group gotten bigger?
Ah, who cares.
After a few minutes, I was up on a bridge overlooking the town of Hargeon. It was a port city, mainly dealing with alchemical ingredients, foreign goods, and foods. Oddly enough, however, there was only one magic shop in the entire city. Hadn't found it yet, but I will eventually. A quick look about showed no one nearby to freak out over what was going to happen next. A tight grip on the railing and a cartwheel got me up and over the railing, and a quick release sent me out into the air, falling towards the roof tops below me. Right before crashing into the roof of a building, a dense black mist shot out from my sleeves and latched onto several sections of wall and rooftops, slowing my descent to a feather fall pace.
Once shoe tread met rooftop, the tendrils faded from existence. Three steps forward and a hop landed me in an alleyway, currently shaded from the sun. Walking out into the bustling crowd, head down with shoulders hunched and collar turned up, I Blend into the crowd and vanished into the scenery.
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Marshall POV
"Plleeeaaassseee, please make the train stop!" A larger than average green cat with a yellow belly sighed, staring sympathetically and somewhat annoyed at the teenage boy lying in the seat across from him. He had midnight black hair that was currently wet from sweat and snowy white skin that was tinged green. The teen had a black tank top and a red sleeveless vest with gold trim. A feather patterned scarf acted as his pillow. The shorts he wore went past his knees and were black as well, with red and gold flames along the bottom rim.
The cat reached into a bag on the floor between them and pulled out a rag and bottled water. Pouring a little of the water onto the cloth, he hoped across the space between the seats and draped the cloth on the boys head. The kid moaned blissfully, not noticing the cat crawl his way over him to get to his feet. The cat made it to the feet and tugged at the red sandals until they finally popped off. Someone walked by at that exact moment, made a muffled choking sound, then pitched forward in a dead feint.
Slipping off the stretched out boy, he went back to the bag and pulled out a fan. Flicking it open, he turned back to his traveling companion. "Don't worry, we're almost at Hargeon, Marshall." The teen smiled weakly at the cat, "Thanks, Joey, you're a good friend." Joey smiled and fanned a tad harder, glad to be useful to his friend.
~~And Then!~~
Sitting on a bench in the train station with a cool water bottle pressed to your forehead is a good way to get rid of any lingering nausea. At least that's what I do. "Are you feeling any better, Marshall?" Turning towards Joey, I smiled weakly, "Not really, but I'm getting there." Joey nodded, reached into the bag at our feet and produced a packet of crackers. No confession of a girly squeal coming from me will ever be obtained. After finishing off the crackers and drinking the bottle of water, Joey and I got up and stretched to get the kinks out from sitting on a train for so long.
After that was done, I threw the empty packet of crackers away as well as the empty bottle, while Joey reached into the bag again and pulled out a large handkerchief. Tying it around his neck, it ended up covering his entire back, sort of like a cape. I found him straightening up his 'clothes' and cooed at how adorable he looked. I got a jacket thrown in my face for my troubles. Once it was on and my hair was fixed, I picked up Joey by the scruff of his neck and put him on my shoulder.
"Alright! Let's go hunt down Embrice!" Joey giggled, getting caught up in his friend's excitement, "Aye, sir!"
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Chase POV
Good news, found the magic shop. Annoying news, nothing of interest so far. Nice news, the store owner is near blind so doesn't see the dark guild mark on my face. "So you're the owner of the only magic shop in this entire port city, and you literally have nothing decent?" Ok, that was rude, but I was really hoping for something interesting. "Now don't say that," the old man pouted, "I have plenty of interesting merchandise for non-magic users, as well as magic users." I'm not your average magic user, I thought to myself.
Thankfully, the old man can't read minds like other store owners can (though they deny it profusely) and can't read my expression due to his impaired eye sight. He smiled brightly and reached under the counter, "Take this for example! A shipment of this new device came in just this morning!" He straightened up and showed me… a bra?
What. Just, what the fu-! "Now this little beauty changes shape and fits any size!" Don'tkillhim, don'tkillhim, don'tkillhim, don—"It fits to the biggest watermelons," he expressed by making a cupping motion, as if he were holding unusually large breasts up, "to the, ummm, smallest of nectarines." DON'TKILLHIM! DON'TKILLHIM! DON'TKILLHIM! Who the hell is this guy? This idiot must be deaf! Mistaking me for small chested woman! I'm gonna-!
That's when I saw it. "Is that a Pantheon Talisman case?" The old man had been in the middle of a very descriptive explanation of the different shapes the bra could change to, PERVE!, but paused when I asked about the case. He looked over in the direction I was looking and squinted, like that'll help you any, then gave a quick nod. "Why yes, yes it is. But I should tell you, it's not very strong."
My hands were already on the case and opening it. Inside was a silver coin with a depiction of an owl with gears beneath the wings. No one will ever get me to confess to making a sound resembling that of a school girl. Never. "How much for the Talisman?" The shop keeper smiled, glad that he could sell something, most likely. "Not much, just 20,000 jewels."
… He is so dead. "TWENTY THOU-!" Then I remembered he was obviously blind, deaf, and dumb. Also, he thought I was a girl… Hoping up on the counter, I stuck out my non-existent chest and made my voice a little higher, "Come on, what's it worth, really?"
"…"
~~And Then!~~
The magic shop was intact, the old man was still alive (unless he keeled over, the prick), and I have the Talisman. However, I am now 19,000 jewels poorer for it. "That perverted old man! He had a 'girl' sitting on his counter, charming 'her' butt off, and he only lowers it by 1,000?" My entire being was shrouded in financial fury, so the gaggle of girls going gaga literally came out of nowhere. After I finally stopped spinning, I nursed my nauseated stomach and my bruised ego.
Looking around, I jumped back as another gaggle of girls appeared and ran the same direction as the first group, some of them shouting, "He's here! The Firebird came to Hargeon!" My body froze at that announcement. The Firebird? According to the rumors I've heard, he's an incredibly strong fighter and magic user. Also, he uses a magic that you can't buy in any magic shop or replicate. Then again, neither can mine. Still, it would be interesting to see what this Firebird looked like.
Following the fan-girls at a distance was easy. Their girly giggles and screams gave me an easy trail to follow. Didn't have to go far before the quality, and quantity, of the noise increased immensely. Turning the corner, my eyes almost fell out at the size of the crowd of girls. Tons of girls were screeching and screaming, in joy, as flames danced in the sky. There were landscapes, fantasy creatures of all sorts, but mostly fireworks.
It would have been very impressive, if they weren't illusions.
They were impressively complicated, but you could tell they were illusions because the edges of the 'fire' were a kaleidoscope of colors. Though it wasn't an average illusionist either. These illusions were putting off light and heat, traits that take years to develop. It was interesting, but there was no way this was the infamous Firebird. I was about to turn away to leave when a thought struck me.
Why was the female population of Hargeon flocking to him like a retirement home discovering the fountain of youth?
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Marshall POV
Joey was sitting on top of my head, peering around with a determined expression on his face. I was leaning forward, sniffing the air for any trace of Embrice, but so far, no such luck. "Hey, Marshall, do you think the Firebird is really here?" I sighed wearily, "Dunno, Joey. The rumors say he's in Hargeon, but I don't smell anything."
Just then, laughter and giggling spiked and drew our attention to an open square where a bunch of girls were gathered around…something throwing up fireworks. I was about to leave, fake fire makes me nauseous, when some of the girls cheered, "You're so awesome, Firebird!" Joey and I locked eyes and a smile split across our faces, "Embrice!" Joey hoped off my head as I launched myself forward towards the crowd.
It's him, I found him! "Excuse me, pardon me." I found Firebird, after all these years! "Sorry, coming through, whoops!" I can't believe it, Da-! "What…who the hell are you?" I'd made it to the center of the crowd to find some old guy wearing baggy jeans, a white button up shirt, and a cape with a hood on it. There were designs on the cape, two circles with curved arrows going through them, a similar tattoo design above his right eyebrow. Currently, before mentioned eyebrow is now twitching sporadically.
He coughed than ran his hand over his hair, flashing a 'charming' smile, "Haven't you heard of me? I'm the incredible Firebird! Wizard extraordinaire and hero to the people!" In the middle of his spiel, I shrugged my backpack back into place and walked out of the crowd, "You're not Firebird, just some perve." Why that caused the hoard of girls to attack like mice at a cheese convention, I'm not sure.
Some used their fists, some their purses, others used - where'd she get a riding crop from?! "Now, now, ladies. Let's not be too harsh to him, the poor boys probably just confused." The girls leapt back to whoever-he-was to fawn all over him. He wiped out a piece of paper and a marker before writing something on the paper and then handing it to me. "Here you go, now you can tell all your friends you got an autograph from the great Firebird!" Whoever this guy is, he's starting to annoy me, "I don't want your autograph, weirdo." Again the women attack me with fists, purses, and - brass knuckles?!
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Chase POV
I felt oddly guilty while watching the kid get attacked by the legion of women twice, but past experiences has taught me to never interrupt a cat fight. Ever. I was inexplicably thankful when the fraud drew the women's attention back to himself by announcing that he was throwing a party on his private yacht and that all the women were invited. He flicked a wrist forward and a generic pinkish red glyph appeared in front of him, "Fire Chariot!" Actual fire surrounded his feet then billowed into a cloud bellow him, lifting him up and towards the docks.
The women dispersed then, most of them talking about the beautiful dresses they were planning on wearing while the rest crooned about how 'handsome' Firebird was. It's sad, really. How easy it was for this faker to snare these women so easily. Ah, well, that's a train of thought for another time. I should probably check up on the kid. Turning back towards where the women dumped the boy (pile of trash, harsh) I saw that someone was already taking care of him.
There was a green cat standing on its hind legs, sweeping various pieces of trash off of him, "That wasn't the Firebird we were looking for, huh?" That could also apparently talk, go figure. The lad lurched out of the trash pile, bending and twisting as he did so. "Nope, definitely not our Firebird." I walked towards them, unconsciously quieting my footsteps and Vanished into the background of the city hustle and bustle. So, their reactions really shouldn't have surprised me.
"Are you alright?" The two leapt into the air, the cat's hair fluffing up in fright, and the two screamed like little girls (heh). Once they were on solid ground, the cat flattened its fur back down and straightened the bandanna around its neck while the boy had both hands over his heart and his eyes were still bugged out. I chuckled at their expressions, "Sorry, didn't mean to frighten you. Again, are you alright? Those girls didn't look like they were holding back." He scowled a little and blushed at the statement. "Yeah, I'm ok. I've taken harder hits."
I nodded, oddly glad that he hadn't been seriously hurt. "Sorry that I didn't help, but you know, trying to stop a cat fight is suicide." He looked like he was going to disagree, paused a moment, then nodded his head enthusiastically. Odd reaction, but whatever. "How about this? As an apology for not stepping in to help earlier, I buy you lunch. Sound good?" There was a tugging at my pants leg and my nose started itching. Looking down, I found myself staring into the Kitten Eyes of the cat, "Do I get lunch, too?"
My eyes softened and it felt like my heart got a little mushy at that look and question, "Of course, it would be rude not to extend the same invitation to a friend of, uh…" The boy smiled and extended his hand towards me, "The names Marshall, and this is my friend, Joey!" Grasping his hand, and the cute fuzzy paw of his companion, I shook their hands. Releasing them, I turned away and walked in the direction of a restaurant that I'd passed earlier in the day named 'Restaurant'! How creative. Over my shoulder I called out, "The names Chase."
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Marshall POV
So, bad news. The Firebird from the rumors was a) not the one I was looking for and b) a fake. Also, got beaten up by a bunch of girls. Good news, free lunch from a stranger. Usually I wouldn't trust strangers, especially ones with dark guild marks, but this one smelled really nice. Also, free meal. "So, you said something about looking for a Firebird. That wasn't him?" Looking up from the plate of grilled cheeses, hamburgers, ham slices, and everything else that was ordered from the menu, I swallowed the food I had in my mouth and smiled, "Yep, we're looking for Firebird, and no, that most definitely wasn't him.
Joey had been gnawing contently on one of the fish he'd ordered, but nodded at my statement, "Yeah, Firebird was Marshall's dad, but he disappeared a long time ago. We heard rumors that a Firebird was gonna be here, but it was just that weirdo." I huffed into my drink, "Guy didn't even look like a phoenix."
That got a reaction from Chase, "Wait, a phoenix? Your dad's a phoenix?!" I nodded, used to the look of disbelief and skepticism. Looking across the table at Chase, I felt the question I wanted to ask when we first met bubbling up, so decided to just ask and get it over with, "Why are you dressed like that?" Chase looked down at himself.
He was wearing a dark blue, nearly black, t-shirt that had a red diagonal line across the chest. Over it he wore a black leather hooded jacket that shaded his eyes and hid his hair from view, a black mask covering his mouth and nose. His pants were baggy and black as well, with thin silver lines going down the sides and black hiking boots. Sitting next to him was dark grey backpack, that when it was set down made clinking sounds, like glass or coins bumping against each other.
On his hands were gloves that left his fingers exposed, but covered his thumbs, except the tips. He also had a silver and gold bradded chain holding some coin looking things that were gold and silver. Basically, his entire body was hidden, except for his eyes, which were shaded, and his guild mark.
The mask portion shifted, as if he was smiling, "What you really mean is, 'Why are you hiding everything except your dark guild mark?'" Thinking about it for a second, I decided that was basically what I was asking. He leaned back against his seat and sighed, "First thing you should know is yes, I was a member of Treacherous Heart." At that statement, he trailed his finger down the guild mark over his right eye, a stylized heart with an arrow piercing it from the top.
"I'm not proud of it, but I do hope to start anew someday, so I hide my appearance as much as possible so once this," pointing harshly at the guild mark, "is gone, I don't have to worry about anyone bringing up my past." It made sense, especially the bit about hiding what he looked like, but still… "Why leave your mark exposed?" He nodded, seemingly pleased with the question, "I've done horrible things, things that I've been forgiven for by the Magic Council, but not by myself. I leave it exposed so that anyone who actually knows what this mark means can take out their ire, if that is what they want."
Joey and I's faces wrinkled into frowns at the same time, "That's not right," Joey said, putting his fish down and crossing his arms, "You've been forgiven, you shouldn't punish yourself for something that's done and over with." Chase looked towards Joey and his mask shifted again, a smile. "It may be forgiven, but not forgotten. Not by me, and not by those who felt the aftermath of my sins."
Suddenly, the mask twisted about, as if he was frowning, and his eyes looked away from us. "Speaking of sins, I might have had a secondary reason as to why I didn't help you with that mob." This caught both Joey and I's attention, what did he mean by that? Chase sort of hunched into himself and folded his hands onto the table, leaning forward in conspiratory manner, "Didn't you find it odd how all those women were flocking to him when 1)his magic wasn't all that great, 2)he wasn't that attractive, and 3)some of them were married?"
We both sat back and thought about it. Nothing really came to my mind, to occupied thinking that I would be reunited with Embrice. Joey had apparently paid more attention than I had, "Now that I think about it, it did seem really weird. How they were practically crawling all over the guy over some fake fireworks." Chase straightened up some, intrigued, "You could tell the fireworks were fake? How? Was it the band of kaleidoscopic light around the images?"
"Naw, it just didn't smell right."
Chase just kinda sat there for a minute, looking really weird, "It… smelled wrong?" Joey nodded in agreement, "Yup, didn't smell right." He shoved the last bit of fish in his mouth and swallowed before standing up, getting into lecture mode, "As you probably know, normal flames themselves don't have a scent, as it's actually the object being burned that gives off a smell." A chalkboard and pointer appeared from somewhere and Joey was now wearing a suit, "However, magic flames do have a smell to them, though the smell tends to change depending on the magic the flame is made from. On a side note, non-magic flames, like say, an illusion, have a smell that have a very 'not fire' smell to them that many would not recognize."
The ex-dark guild member looked dazed, which usually happened during one of Joey's impromptu magic lessons. He shook his head then leaned forward again, "Anyway, I figure he's using a charm spell. Most likely, one of the love charm rings that were made illegal years ago. They possess the kick to be able to affect the large number that was present, but also has a side effect of making the people under its influence aggressive. Specifically, towards those who 'threaten' the one in control."
"So you let them at me to see whether or not they would show the aggression of someone under the influence of the charm you just mentioned, right?" He nodded towards me, apparently pleased that I'd made the connection. "Again, sorry for leaving you for the girls to beat to a pulp." I found myself smiling, even though I was a little peeved, "It's ok, I understand."
Chase's shoulders relaxed minutely at that, "By the way, can I have the autographed paper?" Wha…? Pulling the paper from my pack, no idea how it had gotten in there, the paper was taken from my hand. Where his hand touched mine got really warm. Pleasantly warm, actually. Kind of tingly, if I really thought about it. After spreading the autographed paper on the table, he hovered his hand over the writing and mumbled something under his breathe.
Nothing happened for a second, but then the paper and writing stretched and curled in on itself, the paper turning black like it was burning. In the span of three seconds, it changed from white paper to a black, crumpled mess.
Joey picked up a fish bone and pocket at it, the paper crumbling into ash, "Um, what was that, Chaaa-Yikes!" Looking up at him, I chocked on my breath at Chase's expression. His eyes were practically glowing with malevolence. That one look made it easy to imagine him as a Dark Guild member. As quickly as his murderous expression appeared it vanished, masked over by a calm expression.
"Thank you for eating with me. This has been a very pleasant experience, and I hope to repeat it again someday." He put a thousand jewels on the table and got up to leave, grabbing his bag as he did so.
"Wait!"
I found myself lunging forward and grabbing his hand, that warm feeling from before returning with a vengeance, but did my best to ignore it, "A few more questions!" He had frozen when I grabbed his hand, but now his head turned slightly and looked at me with a cold expression in his eyes, "What is it?"
That question and the way he asked it made me gulp. In fear, terror, or… something else, I'm not sure. "How do you plan on making up for your mistakes, and why haven't you gotten rid of your guild mark yourself?" His eyes thawed a little at the questions. "I hope to join a legal guild, but so far no guild will accept me," his hand relaxed and he twined his fingers with mine, "Honestly, there's only one guild left that I think will accept me, but I'm losing hope."
His masked curled like he was smiling again, "As to why I haven't gotten rid of the guild mark, it's because the mark has a curse on it. It's impossible for anyone but a guild master to take it off." His hand slipped from mine as he walked out of the booth. As he was walking past me and towards the door, he paused long enough to ask, "You know, if your dad is a phoenix, why would he be in the middle of a town or city?" He continued on and didn't look back once, not even to acknowledge the hostess at the front of the restaurant wishing him a pleasant day.
For a little while, Joey and I just sat there contemplating what he said before leaving. After a minute or so, Joey turned to look at me, "Marshall?"
"Yeah, Joey?"
"We're kind of stupid, huh?"
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Chase POV
Don't think about it. Don't think about the papers reaction. Don't go charging off to kill the faker. Don't think about holding Marshall's hand… darn it, now I'm thinking about it.
I've never felt anything like it before. When our hands brushed against each other's, my hand felt so warm! It took every ounce of my will to focus on the intention spell and not on how to get that feeling again. Then the paper curled up and died at the malice coming from the writing. Then it took every ounce of my will not to charge out of the dinner and kill the guy who wrote it. The guy probably would have ended up dead anyway if Marshall hadn't grabbed my hand.
I've never felt as good as I did right then. The closest thing I could compare it to is how after a long exercise session I would sink into a tub of hot water and soak as the chamomile and peppermint scented candles filled the air. The feeling of holding Marshall's hand felt a thousand times better. Leaving was really hard to do right then, but there were plans to be made, and the feelings Marshall was making me feel would most definitely be too distracting for any plan making.
Swiping a magazine from a stall and planting money on the vendor as a way of payment, I looked for a place to sit and read. Plotting while angry usually leads to the death of the plotted against, at least in my case. There were benches surrounding trees near the docks that will suit my purpose perfectly. The magazine was Sorcerers Weekly (yes!), the most popular producer of articles focused on guilds and wizards.
The guild I wanted to join was the most prominent focus of the journalists, PAW Patrol. Not two paragraphs in and I'm already laughing, my anger from before fading away before disappearing completely. It's not forgotten, like hell with the reaction I got from the paper, but it was on a back burner now instead of fogging up my thoughts and vision. This is why I knew I was being watched. "Another town saved, but several homes and stores damaged in the process? Geez, these guys don't know how to hold back. At least they're nice enough to help repair the damage."
Turning the page, the center fold instantly caught my attention, "Oh! Katie's the center fold again." She was wearing a bikini, but it was made modest by the skirt on the bottom piece and the thin jacket spilling off her shoulders, and with one hand on her cheek and the other holding the jacket closed over her, ahem, chest gives her a shy-like demeanor. A sigh escaped me, and what could be seen of my face showed remorse, "Wish I could join PAW Patrol, but that'll be near impossible with this mark on my face." My right hand came up to my eye, as if the mark pained me.
"I thought I recognized you, Chase the Hunter."
Jolting out of the seat and shoving the magazine into my bag, I turned towards where the voice came from… the bushes? The speaker, the fake Embrice, strolled out of the bushes as if hiding in foliage and listening in on conversations was commonplace. Once he was clear of the bushes, he eyed me up and down, noting my clothes and exposed guild mark. "When I heard that Treacherous Heart's star pupil was turning over a new leaf, I didn't believe it. But seeing you like this," his eyes roamed over me again, this time with disdain and smugness, "Turns out it's the truth after all."
My eyes narrowed and my body shifted to get ready for any attacks he might send. He put his hands up in mock surrender, "No need to feel threatened, Mighty Hunter, I mean you no harm." His lazy smile turned oily and wicked, "In fact, I might be of assistance." A scoff escaped at the absurdity of his statement, "Please, what could a simple illusionist like yourself offer me, little man?"
His smile stayed in place, but his eyes showed malice, "Exactly, I can create illusions near perfect. Very few people have been able to see through them in one glance, and that's among dark mages. It's unlikely any light mages will be able to see through them." The pitch in his voice changed, and now he was sounding like a salesman. "It's simple, really. All you have to do is come to my yacht during the party tonight, and I'll enchant an item you can wear.
"It'll cast an illusion over you while it's being worn, and you can then join any guild your little heart desires. You can even join your beloved," for a second he looked violently ill, but he quickly covered it up, "PAW Patrol. All you have to do is come to the party tonight."
My stance was now relaxed, but still a little edgy, "What's the price? Don't give me that look, we're dark mages, nothing is done out of the goodness of our hearts." He smirked now, sort of like how a dog owner looks when their dog does something cute, but stupid. "Just come to the party, I'll tell you the price then." He snapped his fingers and his Flaming Chariot appeared again, lifting him up and towards the docks.
Standing still was the hardest thing imaginable right then, but I managed it long enough for the faker to get out of hearing and sight range, "BWAHAHAHAHAHA! *inhale!* That guys a moron!" My laughter and soon lack of air caused me to curl in on myself and fall on my side. Eventually I calmed down and just stayed there on the ground, watching the sky, "He may be a moron, but I still need to keep my guard up. Dark mages like him always have tricks up their sleeves, especially illusionists. Oh well."
The mask was still over my mouth, so no one could see the blood-thirsty grin splitting my face. "Have to keep myself from breaking him too quickly, he still has to make that enchantment for me."
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Marshall POV
It was night time now, but still a little early for bed, so Joey and I were walking around a bit. We found a magic shop, but left pretty quickly. The image of an old man wearing a bra with watermelons in them and frilly panties would scar our minds for a long time.
Someone needs to invent brain bleach, immediately.
We found ourselves at a cliff overlooking the docks and ocean. Looking down at the boats turned me green in seconds, so looking away seemed the best idea at the moment. "So, we heading back home tomorrow, Marshall?" Turning to my green, feline friend, I nodded a yes and was about to push myself off the railing to find an inn or something, when some girls passed by gossiping.
"Oh my gosh, the Firebird is throwing a huge party!"
"Wish we could've gone! His yacht looks so amazing!"
"I heard he's helping a dark mage get into PAW Patrol! There's no way it's true."
"Yeah, like, dark mages are so gross."
They kept walking, prattling on about the party, but my focus was on the only ship in the bay with its lights on. It was a three story metal yacht, mainly white with gold trim and decorations all over it. There was a fire racing through my veins, a deep and all-consuming anger. "PAW Patrol?" I was so angry, I didn't even feel sick looking at the boat… for the first few seconds anyways. "Aw, Marshall, you're not even on that boat and you're getting sick."
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Chase POV
Coming up with a plan was fairly simple. Collecting items for that plan was simplicity. Figuring out how to go about setting it up, too easy. Will anything with this guy be a challenge? Walking up to the yacht, I leapt nimbly from the dock to the first floor. There were tons of girls dressed to the nines, dancing with each other, drinking from the punch bowl and horderves being offered. Silly people.
Almost as soon as I'd made these observations, two heavily muscled men in suits came up to me, "Mr. Chase, we've been ordered to lead you to the Firebird." Both of them were sweating, just the tiniest bit.
Smart men. Though they couldn't see it, I gave them a charming smile and waved my hand forward in a 'lead on' fashion. They both nodded and started walking briskly to the stairs hidden in the shadows.
This was going to be fun. Boringly easy, but fun none-the-less.
Climbing up the multiple flights of stairs, trailing my hand on the railing, the guards continued to sweat and, every once in a while, look over their shoulders. It was funny really, and told me a lot about the mentality of the muscle this guy had hired, and also that at least these two don't have a lot of faith in theirs masters strength. After the third climb, the two slowed down and stopped in front of a fancy looking door.
They both stopped on either side of the door and faced towards the ocean. Apparently, their job was to direct me here then make sure no one interrupted us.
So cute.
Patting them on the shoulder, and thoroughly enjoying the way they were flinching just from me touching them. Deciding to leave them be for the time being, I knocked on the door three times and was slightly surprised them the door just swung open.
"I can't believe you actually came! Why, I'm honored by your presence! Your experience and strength! Your complete and utter…! Stupidity." I had just walked in when he started his blathering, and when he said 'stupidity' the door I had just walked through slammed shut and locked. My eyes narrowed at him, reclining in a chair like he owned the place, which he did (but that's beside the point), two guys even bigger than the ones outside and another beefy guy reclining in a chair, sipping wine. "Enough, I'm here for the enchantment you promised me. Where is it?"
The room was silent for a second, and then all four of them burst into laughter. The illusionist's was oily and greasy, the two brutes sounding like gears chocking, and the other one soft and fluttery. That last one was interesting.
Fake Firebird wiped his eyes of imaginary tears then straightened himself up, "Sorry to disappoint, boy, but even if I had made such an enchantment, you wouldn't have been able to use it. Since you'll be working for me from now on." My face was blank for a second before it twisted into a blood-thirsty grin, with eyes to match, "Oh, is that so?"
I wonder if having the lower portion of my face will mess up my expression.
Looks like it's still working, judging from the pale and sweaty expression he had at the moment. "Th-that's right! You're mine now! You, and your power belong to me!" He waved his hand and a glyph appeared under my feet. It was an intricately designed dark purple glyph with a woven net in the center, "Activate: Slavers Net!" Tendrils the same color of the glyph shot from the edges and latched onto my ankles, wrists, and neck, while several wove themselves around my torso. Once the tendrils were secure, they slowly morphed into chains and shackles.
Throughout the process, the illusionist had a pensive expression on his face. Once the chains were taught and the spell complete, however, he looked me in the eye in triumph. "Ha! The great and powerful Chase the Hunter, captured by weak little me? How this must make you seeth inside. You must be at your wits end, trying to figure out how you could have fallen to -"
"You call this captured?"
He froze, finally noticing my lack of concern. Looking me over, his eyes slowly got bigger how casual my posture was, not stretched out and incapable of movement like someone trapped in this spell should be. Just to freak him out, I reached up and scratched the tip of my nose. The chains on that arm subsequently snapped from the strain. Two little kicks, an arm flex, and one step forward broke the rest of the chains and shattered the glyph on the floor.
Isn't it amazing how fast blood can drain from someone's face when they're absolutely terrified? Hope he doesn't have any heart problems, he needs to be alive to cast the enchantment. A thin smoke like veil surrounded me as I stepped towards the poor excuse of a mage. Muscle Head 1 and Muscle Head 2 charged towards me with their fists ready to strike. Catching 1's fist and leading the man forward to intercept number 2's blow proved to be effective.
One down.
2 seemed shocked that he'd punched his friend, giving me a picturesque chance to leap forward and knee him in the face.
Two down.
Right as 2 dropped, my veil reacted to a strike aimed at my head. Ducking down, twisting to face behind me, and a strike directly upwards gave excellent results.
Three down… hope the guy didn't want any kids later on.
Number three's invisibility faded away to reveal an exact copy of the man who'd been sitting at the desk this entire time. The false image of him at the desk fizzled out, while the 'master' illusionist tried to not pee himself. My veil dissipated from around me as I walked towards the idiot. "Now then, about that enchantment…"
Right as I finished speaking, several things happened at once. More muscle heads poured into the room, viewing screens on one of the walls showed all the beautifully dressed women from before having their knocked out selves shoved into containers, most likely to be sold into slavery (over my dead body), and the roof caved in. Everyone in the room leapt out of the way of the falling debris, but we were blinded for a second by all the dust. Huh, lot of dust for a fancy yacht.
Before the dust could settle, a voice called out, "Joey! Grab Chase and get out of here!" Shit! What's he doing-? A familiar green tail wrapped itself around my waist and lifted me up and out of the hole in the ceiling before I could fully process what was happening. Being jobless for so long was making me soft and slow.
"How ya doing down there, Chase?" Itchy, itchy nose. "Joey! What are you two doing h-? Wait, you can fly?!" The fuzzy companion of Marshall was currently flying us high into the air, two white wings protruding from under the neckerchief keeping us aloft. "Yep! And before you ask, no I don't know how or why, and since I was born . . . well, hatched anyway." Hatched? What does he mean by-? "Look out!" Several very big, very real fireballs were headed our way.
Joey dipped, swerved, dived, and barrel rolled out of the way of fireballs like he did this every day. Maybe he did? I never did ask what he and Marshall did for a living. Wonder how Marshall's doing?
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Marshall POV
Motion. Sickness. Suuuuucks! Dropping in to help Chase sounded like a really good idea, at least, before I was on the boat and getting stomped on by goons while some perve takes pot shots at Joey and Chase. Hopefully, Joey can get the two of them away before-
An internal alarm went off in my head. Oh dear.
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Chase POV
Joey was doing an excellent job of dodging the incoming fire blasts and would have gotten us out of range with ease, except for one thing. I'd asked him not too.
"Chase, I like you. You seem like a really nice guy. But I really, really need to know why we're not getting out of here." I forced myself to speak over the nausea from all the spinning and twisting, "The fake Firebird has all the girls from his party imprisoned on his boat, but in order to free them, we need to get past their defenses. I'm hoping he'll exhaust himself soon, so we can dive down into the fight."
A few seconds passed, then the flying cat gave a nervous chuckle, "Good plan, Chase. It's really well thought out, no flaws that I can think of!" Why do I feel like something bad is about to happen? "Your plans great! Except for one teensy little problem."
A sound similar to chimes rang through the air, then we were staying stationary in the air, "I've run out of magic." Then we were plummeting. Joy.
It's ok, I can work with this. Breath. Breath. No killing the cat, it's not his fault. There was just a lack of communication between the two of us. Grabbing the cat and point my head towards the sea and straightening my body helped increase our velocity, making it hard for the moron to hit us. "Uh, Chase? That water's getting really close. Too close, too close, too close! Eeeeeeeeeeeeehhhhh!"
Interesting, kitty cat knows the science behind water and heights. That if you go past a certain height, the water might as well be concrete and could kill you. While I'm not sure we had gone that high up, there's no reason to take any chances. When we were about a foot or so away from the water, I twist my body until we were right side up again. My right leg drew back, my foot was incasing itself in my dark mist. Right before making contact, my foot shot forward and carved through the water, negating the effects of being up so high.
Obviously, we survived. Although we did still wound up wet. Ugh.
Instead of heading towards the surface, which most sane people would do, I dove deeper, towards the sea floor. Thankfully, this water was fairly clear, but it was night time, and even with a full moon, so seeing anything down here would be difficult. Though it was made easier by the fact that what I was looking for was made out of reflective material and wasn't too far away!
I love math…
Grabbing the duffle bag that I'd tied to a rock earlier in the day, I propelled myself up to the surface. Breaking the surface, I was not expecting to have my face smothered by wet fur, "Chase! You're alive, and not drowning to death! I was sooooo worried about you! What happened to you?"
Truth be told I felt guilty worry him, but also touched. And I would have told him that, and explained what I was doing, except for the fact he was currently suffocating me with his wet fur. My nose was also getting really, really, really itchy. Pulling him off my face, why did that sound like velcro just now?, he went back into the water as my hands went to the zipper of the reflective duffle bag floating beside me. Opening it revealed my backpack and a length of chain with my Talismans on them. I grabbed the gold talisman with the lightning bolt and javelin design on it, brushing my thumb over it.
Smiling wickedly behind my mask, I held the talisman up towards the sky and called out, "Open, path of the storm bringer! Zeus!" Immediately, the air picked up and storm clouds appeared from nowhere. Lightning bolts illustrated a stylized glyph with the center piece being a replica of the design on the talisman. A bolt of lightning shot down from the center of the glyph and came towards the two of us. Joey started screaming, the silly kitty.
The bolt of lightning made contact with the water and a sound like bells ringing filled the air. In place of the lightning bolt was a man floating above the water, electricity and wind dancing around him. His hair was onyx black and combed back, and a very stylish moustache on his face. He wore black dress shoes and a three piece suit that was storm grey with his emblem embroidered on his breast pocket and a sky blue dress shirt underneath with a cloud white tie. In his hands was a javelin, glowing white hot with magical energy. This, is Zeus.
Floating next to me in the water, Joey stared up in awe, "Wow… I didn't know you were a summoner!" He looked over at me quizzically, "They let you use magic as loud and obvious as this in a Dark Guild?"
"No, you flea bitten rat, they did not."
Joey nearly leapt out of the water, and his fur, at the snarl from Zeus. "His master never let him call on us, saying that Pantheon magic was weak," he practically spat that last bit before glaring at me, as if it was my fault that my old master was a prick about all brands of summoning magic, especially Pantheon magic. "It's good to see you again, Zeus. Now, I need you to create gale force winds and push that yacht over there onto shore!"
Zeus eyes widened and his teeth were bared, a growl crawling from his throat. "Three years since the last time you've called on me, and this is what you ask of me?!" Oh no, I know that look… His eyes turned yellow with sparks flashing around them, "Fine then! Take THIS!" He wiped his javelin around him, a monstrous wave of air flying past him. Not a single hair on his head was ruffled by the wind, but Joey and I, including the yacht, were plucked out of the water and dropped onto the before mentioned beach.
When the kicked up sand finally settled down, I was able to see the yacht on its side, the bottom portion shattered, releasing the now awake and terrified women into the city. Also, the yacht looked completely different. It was a two story pile of junk of mismatched parts. More rust and warped wood then an actual sailing vessel. A tired groan from my back told me where Joey was, causing me to smile a bit. "Hmmm, you survived that blast of wind? I must be losing my edge."
My eyes flashed with annoyance as I looked over at Zeus. The smug bastard was floating over the wreckage, surveying the carnage his one swipe had caused. He dusted imaginary lint off his sleeves as he glanced around the messed up beach, "Don't go calling on me for the rest of the week, I was in the middle of dinner with my wife and I don't appreciate being pulled away on such short notice. You should understand this, seeing as you're in a relationship yourself!" Then the summoned spirit leered over at me, "Oh, wait, you're not." He faded away in ripples of light blue.
…Jackass.
The ruined mass of wood and rust shifted around as the illusionist and his men pulled themselves out of the wreckage. Settling Joey on a bare stretch of sand, and shifting his neckerchief so that it acted as a blanket, I strode over to them, a smirk behind my mask. Once I was a few feet away from the dead beat, I couldn't help but chuckle. "You know, a lot of this could've been avoided if you'd just given me the enchantment. Ah, well, such is life." The black mist surrounded me, giving me a murderous aura.
"Now, about those women you were kidnapping." Just then, an even bigger shift in the wreckage caught everyone's attention. It was Marshall crawling out from under a pile of lumber. At first, relief swept through me, but then concern over took it as the goons prepared their magic, then wariness swept through and settled firmly over me like a cloak. I shouldn't be warry of him, it's Marshall! Even though I've only known him less than a day and only spoke with him for an hour or so, it was easy to figure out he was a sweet goofball. However, my instincts were telling me that he was dangerous at this moment, and my instincts are never wrong.
The mist around me gathered around my feet and propelled me back towards Joey, leaving my mind to wonder what the hell was going on.
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Marshall POV
Red hot anger coursed through me. It boiled in my stomach, forcing bile up my throat. My body was tense, a split second away from releasing this anger on the idiots below. Why was I so angry? Simple, the guy claimed he was from PAW Patrol. "You're from PAW Patrol?" My legs bent under me, preparing to send me flying forward. "You're lying, want know why?" Someone down below stuttering down below about my scarf and how he recognized it, but it was too late. Grasping my jacket, I flung to the side and the air caught it, carrying it to the edge of the beach.
I turned just enough to bare my right shoulder at them, the red paw shaped emblem with the two stylized P's inside catching everyone's attention. "Because I'm Marshall, of PAW Patrol, and I've never heard of you!" The head dirt bag stumbled back, his eyes wide in terror, but then he tries covering it up with bravado, "So what, your just one wizard. A lone light wizard against all of us?" Here he swept his arms out, bringing to attention all the other dirt bags he has with him.
Feeling safe in numbers, they all started leering, different colored glyphs lighting up the area. The sleazy pervert smile became smug, "As a matter of fact," a dark red glyph appeared in front of him, fire leaking from the edges and forming into a huge ball of flames. "Eat this, light mage. Inferno!" The flames raced towards me, and all I could do was smile.
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Chase POV
The moment the flames engulfed Marshall, my body went to war with itself. My mind was screaming at my body to move, to save him, he could still be alive! But my instinct was telling me that somehow everything was fine, to calm down, to sit back and enjoy the show. I compromised.
A black tendril shot out and smashed through the glyphs that the thugs had out, drawing their attention away from the flames. Standing in front of the still knocked out Joey, the tendril drew itself back to me and up my sleeve. I spread my feet to brace myself and held out my left hand, the palm facing towards them. "Activate: Dark Continent – Master!" A dark violet glyph appeared under my feet, a similarly colored gust of air shooting up and around me, and in the center of the glyph was a castle like structure with a figure standing in front. From my palm, a similarly colored sphere welled up.
It shifted, stretched, and then elongated till it became whip of impressive length. The glyph under me crumbled and gathered around me, and then gathered around my hand and sank into the whip. Incredibly, the entire process only took a split second. So I went from unharmed and dangerous to armed and even more dangerous in the time it took any of the dumbasses to face me. All of us stood there, waiting for something to happen.
Before whatever it was that we were waiting for snapped, a voice called out that grabbed my attention. "Jeez, is this really fire? It tastes as bad as those fake flames smelled! Ah well, beggars can't be choosers. Bottoms up!" Then a sucking sound filled the air, and as everyone, including me, turned to look, we all froze in shock as the flames gathered into stands and started funneling into the epicenter.
When all the fire was gone, there stood Marshall, no worse for wear. He twisted and turned this way and that, his back and neck cracking in a really gross way. When he finished, he peered around and caught sight of me. "Oh! Hey, Chase, you alright? They didn't hurt you, did they?" I couldn't help it, words just started spilling out of me in nonsensical order.
"How… but you! That is… he should be… you should be!" A small weight settled on my shoulder, quickly followed by a small paw patting my head in comfort, "It's ok, Chase, Marshall was never in any real danger from that fire. It probably only took so long because he had to fight through his gag reflex to be able to eat it. We never did tell you we were wizards, huh?" Joey was now sitting on my shoulder, noming a fish he'd pulled out of nowhere. My brain was still having trouble processing, but it latched on to something the cat said, "Wait, what do you mean eating it?"
Three thugs leapt forward, one sending green chains, another throwing several blades, and the third shooting flames that spiraled around each other towards Marshall. He just smiled though and took a huge gulp of air before putting his fists in front of his face, like he was about to blow a horn. "Phoenix Fire – Roar!" A fiery glyph appeared with a bird shaped emblem in the middle, a huge swath of flames shooting out and consuming the attacks from the three mages, and when it hit the trio, slammed them into the ground.
My brain was working overtime trying to make sense of what the hell was happening. "He can eat and breathe fire?! How?!" Joey leapt down from my shoulder and took a few steps forward. Turning to face me, and being backlit by the fire, he had a really creepy expression. "Skin as hard and durable as phoenix feathers. Flaming talons and fiery breath of the phoenix itself. With a stomach that can consume any flame and make it its own. That the power of the Phoenix Slayer."
…
…
… my brain just died.
"No way… It's him! The real deal!" Someone was throwing up, but it's just background noise at the moment, "It's the Firebird of PAW Patrol!" One of the thugs, the one that threw the chains earlier, ran up and grabbed the illusionist, who has seemed to have frozen when Marshall ate his fire, "We need to get out of here! You can't beat this one, Bosco!" A wash of dark red flames slammed into his face. The illusionist, Bosco apparently, now looked furiously down at the henchman trying to put his face out, "I told you fools not to call me that! I'm a wanted man, dammit!"
Joey had somehow ended up on my shoulder again without me realizing it, "Bosco? I know that name! He used to be part of a guild, but it was discovered that he was buying and selling goods on the black market! They were about to nab him, but someone tipped him off and he got away." The fake Firebird growled, then shot up into the air on his Flaming Chariot to try and escape.
"Where do you think you're going?" Marshall leapt into the fleeing wizard's path, both hands encased in flames. "Phoenix Flame – Iron Fist!" One punch canceled out the chariot and sent the illusionist back to earth. From there, it became a spectacle as the two clashed. I wasn't worried about Marshall though, his fire easily outmatched Bosco's magic flames. What was worrisome was that the thugs were rushing to get back to their boss. "Sorry, gentlemen, but that's not going to happen," I told them with a lazy flick of my wrist. Before they could react, my whip lashed out and stabbed through an arm, leg, or somewhere painful, leaving them all a pile of pain and agony.
Joey, who was now on top of my head, peered under my hood with worry filled eyes, "Did you have to do that?" I nodded once, being careful not to knock him off my head, "With the situation as it is, simply trapping them wouldn't have been effective. One or more could have a magic that could help them escape." Waving my hand towards the crying and wailing mass of agony, I continued explaining. "Stabbing them in the areas that I've done so will cause to much pain for them to be able either move or cast a spell that'll tip the odds in their boss's favor."
The green cat still looked unsure, but he reluctantly nodded and leaned back up on my head to watch the fight between Marshall and Bosco. They were now standing a dozen feet or so away from each other, Bosco panting and singed all over, while Marshall looked fresh as a daisy and raring to go. "Surrender, Bosco, you're beaten. You can't run, and you can't hide. Just give up already." Wow, this Marshall's different from the one before. It's kinda cool to see.
The illusionist looked around, trying to find a way out of this situation. A Phoenix Slayer ahead, a legendary Dark wizard with an axe to grind to the right, blocked off by wreckage to the left and back. He was desperate, and desperate wizards are dangerous. With a crazy look to his eyes, he punched the sand.
A dark red glyph, so dark it was almost black, appeared below him. In the center of the glyph was a demon shaped skull, wreathed in flames. My eyes widened in terror, "Shit! Marshall, get out of there! That's the glyph for -–" An immense aura started flowing from the glyph, blowing sand and debris around and drowning out the rest of my sentence.
The crazy look in Bosco's eyes got worse the stronger the wind got, "Activate: HELLFIRE!" He stretched out his hand towards Marshall and an unholy flame shot forward. It slithered across the ground, consuming everything its path, two fiery eyes and a gapping maw expressing its joy in the mayhem. Not two feet away from Marshall, the wizard drew his arms back, each arm becoming wreathed in flames. Then, he took a step forward and cried, "Phoenix Flame – Wing Attack!"
Wave upon wave of flames intercepted then consumed the Hellfire. Cleaving straight through, and then devouring the flames straight to their point of origin. For a split second, right when the flames crashed into Bosco, I could've sworn a phoenix took it place. It's wings wide and majestic, delivering righteous fury upon the small man. When the dust that was stirred up by the attack settled, Marshall was standing over Bosco, who now looked even worse for wear then before.
His right arm was now a charred crisp all the way up to his elbow, bits and pieces of it had broken off when he fell over. Marshall was just standing there, an indescribable look in his eyes. Then two tears slid down his cheeks and dropped onto the charred arm. My first thought was, 'Why is he crying? This guy had it coming,' but it was quickly followed by, 'What the hell?!' The arm that shouldn't have been more than a pile of ashes glowed a vibrant gold, and when the light faded, it was good as new. The only sign that it'd been anything but fine was that the sleeve was still charred on the edges.
Just what the hell is Marshall, anyway?
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Marshall POV
Over did it, big time. The Wing Attack should have just cancelled out the Hellfire and have just enough kick to knock the guy out. Apparently I put too much power into the attack, though, since the ex-guild wizard was missing half his right arm. The guilt, anger, and remorse churned inside me until two tears spilled over and fell onto the guys arm, restoring it to its former glory. Once the ringing in my ears from using that part of my magic faded away, I could hear the footsteps from the local army men fast approaching.
An arm wrapped itself around my middle and I suddenly found myself zipping through the air away from the beach and into the city. "That battle went on for a good twenty minutes and they show up now? Jeez, the armies leaving a lot to be desired." Twisting around to see who was carrying me, I couldn't help but smile. "Chase! Good to see you're not hurt, but uhhh, what are you doing?" The ex-dark wizard had his arm wrapped around me and was using a dark purple whip to take us further and further into the city.
Changing direction mid-air, he sent the three of us, Joey's here!, into an alleyway. Once we landed, he made sure I could stand on my own then let go, ahhh, before explaining. "Sorry, I'm just used to running and hiding when the army shows up." It was really hard to tell because it was dark, but it looked like he was blushing, "As to why I grabbed you, I didn't want you getting in trouble, and your cat was also insistent." At that, Joey leapt off Chase's head, "Marshallllllll!" He hugged me around my neck, snuggling under my chin crying, not noticing his neckerchief coming undone and falling off.
Chase bent down and picked it up, his eyes never leaving Joey's back. His eyes were closed off, not showing any emotion. It was kinda freaky. "You two are from PAW Patrol, right?" I gave him a confused look but nodded my head all the same. He nodded, as if finalizing something, "As I said before, it was wonderful meeting you, and I hope our paths cross again."
The way he said that really confused me, it was like he was good-bye in a really roundabout way. It was when he turned away to leave that I figured out what was going on. A laughed escaped me at how silly he was. "What do you think you're doing?" He looked over his shoulder, his eyes showing confusion, "I'm… heading out?" Another laugh tried to get out, but I managed to hold this one in, "But Chase, you're going the wrong way!"
Looping my arm around his, I started dragging him the other way, "The train stations this way! You're heading to Adventure Bay, right? You can come with us!" Chase's head whipped around so fast, I'm surprised it didn't snap like his whip - wait, where'd it go? "You're… you're bringing me with you?" Why does he sound so surprised? Flashing a smile that was all teeth, I nodded to him, "Of course! You wanted to join PAW Patrol, right?"
Chase was apparently too surprised to hide his emotions, because I was stunned at the shock, hope, and immense joy that shined from his eyes.
Wow, for a guy with most of his face covered, he sure can express himself! His eyes closed and his mask shifted as he smiled, tears of joy, hopefully, leaking out of each corner of his eyes, "Alright, let's go!"