AN: I've edited the first chapter a bit, so check it out if you don't know.
He was dreaming, then he woke up.
He couldn't remember much of anything. What little he could remember was so vague that he couldn't discern anything, not even his name. However, the very first second he opened his unnatural eyes, he knew right then and there that he didn't belong here, wherever here was. To make matters worse, he was hearing voices in his head. He didn't know why, but the voices kept telling him that he should be dead. If so, then was he insane? Or was he in heaven?
No
He could tell that he didn't belong there either. It was a nagging feeling in his chest and the unknown voices told him that he should be in hell. But why? What atrocities would warrant banishment from heaven?
Is it because he murdered his own master?
Is it because he tried to kill his own kin?
Or is it for playing god?
Why?
Why did he follow the masked man?
Because he felt pain and despair, and he wanted others to feel the same. Feel his pain.
So, he hunted. He killed. He gave despair. He gave pain. Lots and lots of pain to someone with blond hair and blue eyes.
Yet, the blond took all the pain, and smiled. He said that he'd change the system in his own way. That he'd endure all the pain and do the impossible. And he'd never stop till his words become reality. Because it was his ninja way.
Somehow the words reassured him, but it didn't clarify anything. How did he end up here? The strange language, the strange customs. It was like nothing he's ever seen before. Where was he? Why was there two moons? Did he create the second moon? Why in the world did he just have that thought? Who is the woman to whom he feels a connection to? Why does her words hold command over him? Was she someone who knew who he was? Who was he?
He shook his head. He shouldn't be thinking about this now. Right now, he had a mission. Even faded memories, broken realities and absurd heavenly creations fell short compared to his mission. Something he absolutely had to do. He didn't know why the mission was so important but he just knew that he'd have to do it no matter what.
So he affirmed the information of his past to be inconsequential compared to his mission, which will never be missed by him. But in truth he missed them, a lot. He missed his past, his individuality, his identity. But strangely so, the one thing he missed the most was pain.
He felt nothing.
Tiffania woke up to the sight of a high ceiling, the scent of a very potent ointment and a very distinct sound of scolding. She got up to see that she was in a very cozy room with a fireplace and some chairs, which were occupied by two other occupants. A middle-aged non-descriptive woman was scolding a very handsome boy on how he was so reckless and how he got injured all the time, while steadily covering his torso in bandages. He in turn, was not paying attention to anything she was saying and ferociously turning the pages of a book as if searching something. It looked like a very homely sight.
Tiffania's hands shot up to her ear. They were uncovered, yet the other inhabitants of the room were not paying any heed to them. Her sudden inspection alerted the only male in the room and when their eyes met, she knew at that moment that 'a' boy was actually 'the' boy. There was an awkward silence which was only broken by the woman's wordy scolding, who at this point looked as if the end of the world wouldn't warrant her attention.
Abruptly, the boy pointed at his bare chest and spoke one word in her own language, "Release"
She thought what he meant by release and quickly understood that he was unwillingly made her familiar and he wanted out. Thus, she promptly started to apologize profusely. The boy only looked annoyed by the look of it. He got up and eyed the woman, who locked gazes with him and mechanically left the room. When the door shut close, he disappeared and reappeared behind her in a blink of an eye.
Tiffania didn't have time to utter a single word before the boy twisted her arm behind her back, again, and pinned her on the floor.
"Release", he commanded this time, pushing every bit annoyance out his emotionless face.
Tiffania felt his warm breath at the nape of her neck. It made her giggle involuntary and she blushed in embarrassment. The boy was even more annoyed. It was as if he's done the same thing several times and each one garnered a very, very different reaction to what she gave. Their one-sided scuffle promptly ended when it suddenly started to rain, which for some strange reason annoyed the boy even more. Before she knew it, he had disappeared and reappeared by a wardrobe. She could have sworn she heard an "Hn". Thoughtlessly, he fished out a bundle of clothes and threw them at her.
"Wear", he commanded, and started to put on a white, long sleeved shirt.
She was hesitant at first, but quickly obeyed before she could meet his penetrating eyes. He didn't even have the decency to turn away, nor did he show any interest in the least.
Tiffania strangely felt disappointed. The clothes she got consisted of plain baggy pants which were quite conveniently cut right before her shins and a white shirt similar to the boy's. When she was finished, she started to fold her priest robes, which was so nonchalantly thrown into the fireplace by the boy that she actually felt pity for them. He threw a hooded black cloak on her and himself before dragging her by the hand.
She thought on how she got into this situation, and mentally kicked herself for trying to summon a familiar. She clearly wasn't ready. Well, as she often told the children at her orphanage, 'there's no use crying over spilt milk', she could at least try to get along with him.
"Quite", he ordered and she audibly squeaked at his intense mismatched gaze.
Things weren't going well for her.
Things weren't going well at all. Aside from explaining the origins of the butchered courtyard, the ragtag group of survivors had to explain where one of the priestess had suddenly disappeared to. Suffice to say no one was having a good day. The Pope however, did not fret about his demolished lawn. He instead opted to help the group and even appeased all the bitching Bishops. Everyone could see how he became the Pope so young.
Saito on the other hand, dismayed by the kidnaping of Tiffania, voiced out his irritation, "Why are we wasting time here when Tiffania is out there?"
"Silence", the Pope commanded, which was a far cry from his usual soothing tone. "We need to assess the situation and come to speed with what we know about this mysterious boy"
He calmed down and continued in his usual tone, "There's a war brewing in the horizon. Rest assured, I've sent all the Dragon Knights I could spare to look for her. If what you said is true, then this boy warranted the ire of multiple line to square mages, an elite Musketeer guard, a void mage and the Gandálfr, yet he managed to escape. Charging in reckless abandon isn't going to help anyone"
"This boy", he questioned, "What do we know about him thus far?"
Everyone shivered at the reminder of the whole shebang that happened past hour. With everyone in a state of disarray, Agnès took control of the situation. "He is inhumanly agile, very strong for his build, extremely skilled in close quarters, is able to wield either sword or knife with great dexterity and is an excellent marksman".
"You don't suppose we have ourselves another Gandálfr, do we?" one of the bishops questioned.
"No", Agnès supplied, "Half of the time he was unarmed"
"The runes appeared on his chest, so that makes him Lífþrasir, the heart of god. The Lífþrasir is said to be able to supply its master with extra magical power in return of his/her life force. The runes aren't giving him any support", The Pope added. "Anything else anyone has to add?"
"Juggernaut", Tabitha said in monotone.
As if remembering a long forgotten dream, Colbert exclaimed, "He also has an extremely high pain tolerance. One of Tabitha's ice lances actually hit his arm, though now that I think about it, it looked as if he simply misjudge the length of his stump. The arm looked freshly severed as well…"
"Wait", one of the bishops shouted out in bewilderment, "You're telling that this boy almost killed all of you with a single working arm?"
Everyone paled.
"He was actually severely injured even before the battle", Colbert added, much to everyone's abject horror. He continued as if the room wasn't filled with dread already, "He used my flame snake to actually cauterize his wound"
Agnès, who wasn't privy to this info blanched, "Impossible, he should have passed out from the pain".
"In case you didn't notice, he shrugged off a stab wound like it was nothing", Kirche pointed out in annoyance. "Not to mention Louise's explosion"
"You don't think he's an elf, do you?", one of the Bishops questioned. "Or even the fabled creature of the night"
"That is irrelevant now", Queen Henrietta declared, "We need to know what his goals are". She turned to Saito, "Saito, he spoke your language, right? What did he say?"
A Dragon Knight abruptly entered the room.
"Captain, what have you found?", the Pope questioned.
The Knight bowed automatically, "His Holiness, we've heard reports of two suspicious individuals heading east bound on foot. They were heavily cloaked, but resident locals have identified one to be a… well…"
"Speak Captain", the Pope pushed, "Time is of the essence"
"Apologies, His Holiness", the Knight hastily apologized. "The resident locals have identified one of the individuals to be a raven haired, devilishly handsome youth with moon eyes"
"That's him", Guiche shouted out, "He had the moon eyes"
"Did you apprehend them?", Agnès questioned.
"We've sent a Platoon of soldiers to halt them…", the Knight stumbled in his words.
"…They have yet to return"
Silence enveloped the room, silence which was ultimately broken by the Queen.
"Saito", she inquired, "What did he say?"
All eyes landed on the Gandálfr. He gave a firm nod and quoted, "Release the seal"
"And what is this seal?" the bishops exclaimed in confusion.
"I believe he meant to get rid of the familiar runes on his chest", Saito cleared, and then his eyes widened in unadulterated horror, along with everyone else's.
Even the ever calm Pope lost his tranquility. He quickly composed himself and, before chaos can ensue, shouted in a commanding voice to get everyone's attention.
"Everyone calm down. The fact that he's keeping Miss Tiffania alive is testament to the extent of his knowledge on the familiar contract ritual. Furthermore, he does not have knowledge of our language".
"Yes, but for how long?", Kirche asked to herself but everyone got the message.
"Captain!", the Pope called. The Knight stood on attention. "How many Dragon Knights can you spare?"
"Three, his Holiness. Three is all we can spare with Gallia getting ever bolder at the borders"
The Pope furrowed his brows in displeasure, "We'll have to make do with three".
He gestured the Knight to lead the way. Everyone minus the bishops, the Pope and the Queen made to leave.
"Agnès, go and help retrieve Tiffania", Queen Henrietta ordered. Agnès rejected, but Henrietta raised her hand to stop her, "I'll be fine in His Holiness's company. Go and retrieve Miss Tiffania"
"I assure you, the Queen will be safe", the Pope reassured. Reluctantly, Agnès followed.
"Julio", the Pope called, "I need a moment"
The Vindálfr followed his master to a secluded room. When they were sure that no one would be eavesdropping, the Pope relaxed his shoulders.
"This isn't what I expected"
"Are you regretting letting them escape?", Julio questioned.
"Perhaps I've miscalculated. No matter, go and help retrieve the priestess. However, make it sure that her familiar does not die. His skills will be greatly needed in the upcoming war"
"As you command, Master", Julio replied with no hesitation, though he really doubted the mysterious boy needed any help after all he's seen. "What of the Gandálfr?"
"The Queen is in my care. If I can somehow pin the blame on Joseph, I can no doubt gull her into taking part in this war. The Gandálfr and his master will no doubt follow", the Pope said with certainty, but his face showed a look of a man who was doing this out of necessity.
"As you wish. I shall take my leave now", Julio bowed and left the room.
Immediately, the Pope started to prepare his next plan of action. He would have to think extra on the unpredictable piece that had landed itself on his board.
Tiffania didn't know why but the boy was giving a face palm. A face palm that epically failed to show exasperation, rather it showed anger, rage and frustration. The boy seemed to have failed in whatever he was trying to do, but she seriously doubted anything would come of shouting "kai" or biting his thumb and slamming his hand on the ground. The boy cooled his expression and proceeded to drag her by the hand through the bustling streets. The key word being drag, she felt literally dragged as she couldn't keep up with his pace and he looked like he had absolutely no thoughts of slowing down.
She was impressed with his speed, his stealth and his pace of integration. In such a small amount of time, he'd gone from one word commands to full sentences. She didn't know why he was hiding from the guards but she didn't question about it. Nor did she minded as a hood was all that stood between her life and death. She could wipe the memories of a few people, but there was no way she could wipe the memories of an entire city. She could hope that the people could be complacent to reason, but she didn't want to take the risk. After all, prevention is better than cure.
Abruptly, the boy gripped her arm and readied himself for something. A slight twitch of his brows on his emotionless face was all the evidence Tiffania needed to conclude that he was irritated.
"What's wrong?", she asked, unable to fathom why he was all worked up.
Her answer came in a form of an unforeseen vertigo that almost made her empty the contents of her stomach. She took large gulps of air to stop the pressure in her chest. The boy was considerate enough to let her take a breather. When she finally recovered from her episode of drowning in air, she realized that somehow the surrounding environment wasn't the same place she remembered standing a few seconds ago. It was as if she disappeared and reappeared in a different street.
"Was it magic", she thought. Whatever it was, it was amazing, minus the vertigo. She could see why the boy liked disappearing and reappearing in some place totally new. Though he didn't look perturbed in the slightest.
Of course, the boy didn't even break a sweat, it was his magic after all. He wasn't giving her a death grip either, so she assumed that whatever threat the boy sensed was gone.
Yet, the roars of several dragons graced the lively streets. The people however, were going about their business as if it was a daily occurrence. Unaware of the ensuing chaos and destruction. Unprepared for the inevitable revelation.
Agnès's hunch was right. The dragon's nose was getting way too confused with the boy's scent being everywhere. So she narrowed down all the directions and chose the one the dragons were most reluctant to follow. The direction where a very potent scent of ointment was. The direction where the boy was.
She figured that he'd tried to mask his scent, or just tried to ease his wounds. Whatever it may be, she couldn't fathom how a scent would suddenly disappear and reappeared in a different direction all together. Nor can she find it to make any sense but using normal sense against the boy had proved to be a huge mistake and she wasn't someone who'd make the same mistake twice.
Among the two cloaked figures, the Moon-eyed boy raised his hood and faced them. Faced five dragons, three Dragon Knights, one Dragon Knight/Priest, four line to square class Mages, one void mage and her familiar, and a Musketeer guard. Yet, he had the audacity to look slightly annoyed.
Agnès frowned, and she was certain that the thought crossed everyone's mind. Of course he would. He had the advantage here. The streets was full of unsuspecting commoners. It was as if the whole area was full of hostages. Hostages he can no doubt use as a meat shield. Hostages who will no doubt get injured in the crossfire. Even if they do warn them to flee, she knew how these kind of crowds worked. Their curiosity would definitely kill them.
While Agnès was furiously thinking on how to minimize the casualties, the boy did something no one ever expected from him.
He removed the second cloaked figure's hood, which was no doubt Tiffania, and shouted.
"ELF"
As if realizing the reason behind five dragons hovering above the street, the people ran away as fast as they could. They weren't gonna let curiosity lead them to the stuff of their nightmares. Even the Dragon Knights shivered at the sight of the elongated ears, but they were professionals. They knew that the presumed elf was actually a priestess and the object of their wrath was the one beside her. The Moon Eyes.
That being said, the streets were cleared in an instant. Agnès could see that Tiffania, who look scared out of her mind, was the only one present.
Did the boy escape in the confusion? If so, then why leave Tiffania?
She gestured to land, and everyone minus the Dragon Knights, the Priest, Tabitha and Louise got off. The Priest positioned his dragon in front of the others, whereas Louise joined Tabitha in Sylphid as they hovered above them. Her void magic and Tabitha's wind magic was better cast from afar. The boy was nowhere in sight.
Was it a trap?
The Dragons circled Tiffania from above, waiting for anything to happen. Their riders preparing to spring at a moment's notice.
Why did he clear the streets?
A thought that he was trying to avoid unnecessary casualties crossed Agnès's mind, but she ruthlessly squashed it down. She had no time for nonsense.
Abruptly, a giant fireball went flying towards one of the Knights. The Knight in turn, dodged the giant flaming projectile with ease but he didn't have time to search for his attacker as a distinct sound of birds chirping filled the sky. An intense blue blur went honing on the Knight from one of the rooftops. It hit the dragon's midsection which made the dragon roar in pain.
The blue light died down and revealed itself to be the boy, in all his glorious show of how he can now wield lightning and conjure gigantic fireballs. Yet another reason for Agnès to hate him and the others to fear him.
"He's using wand-less magic", Kirche stated out in disbelief while everyone else contemplated on how they could stop the miracle boy.
Colbert on the other hand was godsmacked yet again. The boy had used a triangle class fire magic, which was unbelievable itself without a wand but to wield lightning. He'd seen old and experienced square class wind mages have trouble with conjuring lightning, but the boy was brandishing it as if it was second nature to him.
"Intercept Tiffania", Agnès shouted out while running towards the said confused girl, Saito and Kirche right behind her.
The boy however didn't look agitated in the least. He stepped on the barely hovering dragon's head and used the momentum to leap towards another Knight. The Knight maneuvered his dragon to escape the grasp of the boy but fell short as a single line of glowing blue lightning clipped off his dragon's wing. He looked behind him to find the line of lightning emerging from the boy's lone elongated arm. He looked past the arm to find the boy emotionless, as if death didn't elicit anything from him.
The Knight however, was lucky enough to have mages to stop his descent to demise. A simple levitation spell and he was magically floating towards the ground. He could see that his friend and his unfortunate dragon also had the mages courtesy, the boy fortunately didn't. Though it was doubtful that he needed any, what with his expression of indifference.
The Knight was proved right as the rapidly descending boy fisted his hand, revealing a thin wire which ended at the levitated dragon's tail. Using the momentum of his descent, he sling shot towards the last Dragon Knight remaining.
Agnès had seen many battles, faced many enemies wielding various weapons. From a wand sword to a simple longsword, she'd seen people use them enough to know how much build was required to wield the respective blades. She herself wielded a rapier due to her average stature and had seen people twice her size having difficulties handling those unnecessarily gigantic swords known as the great sword.
So it was to her absolute disbelief that she had to find the boy pulling out a claymore of all things, out of his sleeves and using the huge two handed weapon to decapitate the head of the last circling dragon. But he didn't stop there. Landing nimbly on the ground, he threw the sword, which was almost twice his size at the Priest's dragon.
A powerful wind spell by Tabitha altered the trajectory of the pseudo projectile and saved Azzurro from being skewered. Fortunately, the main objective was accomplished. Tiffania was on Sylphid, well out of the range of the boy. Unfortunately, the price was two incapacitated dragons and a very headless one. It seemed as though he was only targeting the dragons. No one knew why, but Sylphid and Azzurro were staying as far as they could be from the dubious Dragonslayer.
*Boom*
An explosion, which everyone knew the origin of, erupted from where the boy stood. The boy in turn wasn't there, but somewhere else. He was brandishing a rapier and making a mad dash towards Sylphid.
Saito intercepted him while the others helped the Dragon Knights, two of which seemed to have been electrocuted. Drawing Derfflinger, he attempted to stop the boy but all his efforts were mercilessly stopped. A thrust at Derfflinger's mouth piece, a kick to the elbow and a flick of a sword later, Saito was yet again disarmed. It was then that he felt despair. Even with the powers of the Gandálfr, he couldn't do a thing and he could never hope to win without it. The boy looked emotionless, which was all the proof Saito needed to know that he didn't even take the fight seriously. He closed his eyes, waiting for the pain to come when he was suddenly jolted by a very pissed off voice.
"Saito, use this", Agnès shouted out and threw something towards his feet.
Saito snatched the thing without question and was instantaneously immersed in a fever of intense power. This surge of strength was no doubt his Gandálfr powers but the information he got about the weapon felt strange for some reason. It was as if he could do a thousand more things with the weapon than he ever could with Derfflinger. Thousands of fighting styles, thousands of ways to kill, maim or incapacitate, but he didn't know why his runes chose the one where he had to anticipate the boy's movements while staring at his legs. None the less, he held the weapon in a reverse grip and put name to blade.
A Kunai.