This excerpt will explain to you a few more details about the way of life for the Winged Race, so read well before continuing on with the story.
The leader of the Winged Knights is a wise, intelligent, and benevolent ruler. There is only one Knight that has wings in all 4 places, as well as all four wing types. This Knight is known as the Archangel, and he has the longest life span of any Knight, totaling to 300 years. The types of wings on the Archangel are as follows; Hornet wings on the Upper back, Red Dragon wings on the Lower back, Dove wings on the forearms, and Bat wings on the ankles. Like every other Knight, the Archangel can hide the wings in the form of simple tattoos. The current Archangel is 299 years old, and president of the Wings Electronics, Inc.
The Winged Knights use a unique skill similar to runic magic, a type of Earth spirit energy called Marna. In its raw form, the energy is not only poisonous to inhale, but it can also rip away flesh like acid. The energy is condensed over time and crystallizes, the different types forming different shapes and colors, these crystals called Mantra Crystals. These crystals have a unique property, and can fuse with metal or flesh, giving the object control of the power. Take Hawk's Nitrogen Katana, it fused with an Ice Mantra Crystal, giving it the ability to freeze objects right where the blade cut.
The different types of Mantra Crystals have been separated into 5 different classes. The first, and most common of these Mantra Crystals are the Elemental Crystals, containing Fire, Ice, Wind, Earth, Lightning, and other elements make up these crystals. Next are the Healing Crystals, which use holy light energy to repair flesh, muscle and bone. This class of crystal is followed by the Illusion Crystals, which manipulate light to allow to user to create illusions, and there is only one type of this crystal. Next type is the Transformation Crystal, giving the user the ability to transform, usually for a time period up to five minutes. The last type, and strongest is Dark Crystals, the type that manipulates shadows and the evil within people.
Certain crystal classes work best with certain wing types. Dragon wings work best with Transformation Crystals, the magic reacting to their wing type quite well. Insect wings are better used with Elemental and Illusion Crystals, and this is supported by their appearance, similar to fairies. Bird wings work best with Healing and Holy Crystals, their wings collecting the light to use. And finally, there are Bat wings which work best with Dark Crystals, their wings rejecting the light and drawing in the darkness.
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"Sir, we have conformation, the 1st Squad has arrived at the Renegade's building…" Jeni said, once more reporting the news to Gen.
"Oh… was there any other thing that you need to report?" Gen asked, sitting in a revolving chair.
"Nothing yet Sir…" Jeni answered, looking over at her boss.
"Oh well, all in good time." Gen answered in a happy tune.
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"Twelve Knights, armored and armed have entered the fort though the South Entrance… should I light the way?" A blond man asked, turned in his chair toward a tall man sitting in what seemed to look like a throne.
"Yes… let them get to the main hall, and let's see how they act from there… be sure that our guests are fed and made comfortable." The Tall man said, swirling a crimson fluid within a wine glass. He thought, and then smiled, black hair draping over his eyes as he stood up. Large black bat wings came from his lower back, and he smiled as he lifted the glass to his lips, taking a slow sip. "Ahh… fresh and aged just right… human blood gives just the right kick to jump start a revolution…" The Devil said, tossing the wine glass to the side, shattering it on a pile of bodies. The man at the controls cringed, when he heard the laughing of his boss and leader, and he looked over, seeing the pile, each a human drained of all his or her blood.
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"Looks like they have opened the doors and now showing us the way in…" The Leading Knight said, looking forward. Hawk walked next to the Leading Knight, and looked around, and he walked forward. "Wait! It could be a trap!"
"Why would he set a trap up if he was expecting us… you told me yourself, we are the delivery boys and girls, not an attack squad." Hawk said, not looking back as he took off his helmet and then placed it onto a hook on his belt. Eleven similar helmets where soon hooked onto eleven similar belts. Looking back, Hawk took in the appearance of the group. The leading Knight was actually another Lieutenant, named John, his face the only thing visible, the rest of his head hidden by a black, skin tight hood wrapped around his head, as well with the rest of the group. Four women and seven other men, a single Lieutenant and several soldiers; this group would not be able to take on the Devil face to face. Stories of his strategies had amazed Hawk as a kid, but the stories of why the Devil was called as such used to horrify him.
"Lt. Ivan, Lt. John… shouldn't we keep moving?" One of the men asked, looking at the two.
"Yes… Lt. Ivan, since you seem so gung-ho, why don't you lead the rest of this group." John said, looking over at Hawk.
"Alright then… come on and lets get moving now squad… If I have figured this man out… we are going to be welcomed like royalty… before we are slaughtered like dogs…" Hawk said, whispering the last part, as not to inspire fear in the soldiers. The twelve Knights soon arrived in a large room with a large table in the center. Sitting at the head of the table, the Devil sat, another fresh glass of blood cradled in his hand
"Welcome Winged Knights! To my humble abode! We will be eating within the hour, so I've prepared twelve outfits of Royal Design for you to change into." The Devil said, smiling a large, toothy grin.
"How kind… I would assume that you have also prepared twelve separate rooms as well as a servant for each of us?" Hawk asked, bowing his head slightly.
"How quick of a Knight… but yes, I have prepared twelve servants and rooms, one for each of you… You there, what is your name?" The devil asked, pointing at Hawk.
"Ivan Orion… that's my name… and I have no need for you to say yours… Abel Ying." Hawk said. "If you excuse us… we need to get ready for dinner… let's go Squad." He added, turning around and walking toward twelve people, humans with chains on their necks, wrists, and ankles.
"Ivan Orion… I'll enjoy killing you…" Abel whispered, sipping the blood.
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"Damnit… when he said Royal Design… I expected something a little less constricting…" Hawk grumbled, fidgeting in the white suit that adorned his body, contrasting with the red hair of his head. He had slipped into the pants and fancy shirt, but the coat that finished off the outfit seemed to just feel wrong upon his skin.
"Umm… it was designed to allow your wings to stretch out… and that is how he wished for all guests to appear with their wings shown…" The human servant said, looking down.
"Why do you serve him? What could drive you to serve that beast?" Hawk asked, his wings popping out of his back, blood dripping from the wings. A quick shake, and his red wings where clean, and Hawk moved the katana from his discarded armor onto his back.
"If we refuse to do what he wants, he will kill us and drain us of our blood… He is truly the Devil…" The servant said. "And that poor girl in his room… I fear he uses her as a constant source of powerful blood…"
"Tell me more of this girl…" Hawk said, walking over to the servant.
"She is more of a woman, around twenty years of age… she has the wing of a dove and the wing of a raven… he says that she has raw power… and her blood is strong…" The servant said, and then he added, 'Her screams of pain can be heard in the servants' rooms… it is horrible…"
"I've heard of someone of that description… a young girl vanished when the Devil left the Knights… the Knights always thought she left with him on her own accord… but it seems like it was wrong…" Hawk said, sighing.
"Oh dear… I've kept you longer than I was supposed to… I hope he isn't mad… Come! Quickly!" The Servant said, pulling Hawk along by the white suit coat. The two arrived in the main dining room, seeing the other Knights seated around the table.
"You are late… and you allowed him to bring his weapon…" Abel said, looking at the servant.
"I'm sorry… I did not mean to take…" The servant's voice was silenced by a gunshot, a small hole in the servant's chest quickly filling up with fresh blood, the butler suit he wore slowly becoming damp. Two other servants ran forward and dragged the body out of the room, a trail of crimson showing the path of the body. Hawk didn't finch when the gun was fired, and he walked over to the seat on the opposite head of Abel.
"Quite a rude way of discipline… and horrible treatment of the human race…" Hawk said, lifting his cup of water and taking a sip. One of the Knights was shifting in his seat, his long blue wings twitching slightly, his eyes looking back and forth. Abel stood up, and held his glass in his hand.
"I'd agree… but humans treated our race as monsters, so I see no reason we can't treat them as the inferior race that they are…" Abel said, walking along the side of the table, placing his hand on the shoulder of the blue winged male. "I mean… your ancestors where killed because their power was feared… so why should we treat the humans with any kindness… I mean… I will fell a little sorry after this…" Abel said, pulling the trigger of the magnum he pulled out, blasting the top half of the Knight, the blood splattering the table and the Knights close by in the blood and skull fragments. A few cries of horror rose from the lips of the Knights, and Abel smiled another toothy grin. "You see… our kind, as strong as they are; still have weak links, like this individual…" Abel said, placing his wine glass in front of the body, tilting what was left of the Knight's head, blood pooling into the glass.
"You… You Monster… how could you?" A Female Knight asked, standing up. Abel's gun rose and he started to pull the trigger, but a blast of cold air stopped him.
"Your Lieutenant… doesn't want to see anymore dead… thank him if you survive… even if he doesn't…" Abel said, turning to see Hawk standing, his blade pointed at him. "Using your left arm… but that's your off hand…"
"I don't need to use my right arm at the moment… because you don't want to fight right now…" Hawk said, lowering his sword.
"Smart…alright then… down to business…" Abel said, returning to his seat, sipping the fresh blood as the body of the headless Knight was removed from the room in a manner similar to the servant. Abel sat down and then looked at the Knights, mostly staying eye to eye with Hawk. "I want you all to join me… my revolution will be happening as soon as all of the players are in place… and I want more of my race to be on my side…" Abel said, spreading his arms wide. Several voices of rejection and anger rose from the Knights, and Abel just smiled, and said, "I understand… I've give you one night to think about it, and ask you in the morning, at breakfast."
"We told you no!" The same female knight said, standing up and slamming her hands on the table.
"I don't take well to people yelling at me… they make me want to kill…" Abel said, his body being surrounded by what seemed like a shadow. Screams from the female knight's lips shook the others to the core as she started to sink slowly. Wisps of shadow rose up from a shadowy pool, sliding along her flesh and it started pulling her down faster. John's hand grasped her arms, and he started to pull, soon aided by two other knights, the female already waist deep. "The spell was "Digesting Shadows"… I'd put her out of her misery if I where you…" Abel said, walking out of the room. Hawk walked over, and looked at the mess in front of him, blood pooling on the ground from her wounds, the flesh and muscle ripped away from the bone from her legs down.
"Lindsey… come over here and heal her wounds! Now!" Lt. John said, looking over at a yellow winged Knight. Lindsey moved around the table, past Hawk and to John's side, and she raised her hands, pure white light falling from her hands and collecting on the torn and ripped flesh. Hawk watched as the white light was slowly replaced by new skin and muscle, and he could saw Lindsey's wings glow the same color white. "Lt. Ivan… What do we do now?"
"Don't we have anyone else with healing abilities… or at least some Mantra Crystals of the healing type?" Hawk asked as he looked around the room, noticing several quick movements around them, just in the shadows.
"I have some basic healing skills…" A blue haired youth said as he walked up, his green wings against his back.
"Then help Lindsey out with the healing, and I mean now Ulysses." John said, pointing over to the two female knights.
"Who was she?" Hawk asked, his eyes moving to the doorway that Abel left in, seeing the Devil just waiting for him.
"Her name is Selene, and she'll be fine, so don't talk about her like she is dead." John said, grabbing Hawk by front of his coat.
"Unless you do more, she's going to die from blood loss." Hawk said, gripping John's arm with his left hand. John cringed in pain, and pulled back after releasing his grip, rubbing his right wrist.
"You… Alright… I understand… You two, get her elevated, now!" John commanded as he walked over to the three, offering all the help he could. Hawk walked toward the door that was left open for him, and he closed it behind him. A soft clapping rang through the room as Hawk turned around to face the source
"I knew you'd follow me Hawk… I've been waiting to taste your blood the moment we met… Impressive, taking command of such a dire situation like you did… she might just live." Abel said, leaning forward, his dark hair once more moving into his vision.
"I failed to protect two of my Knights… you killed one and one might die because of your darkness crystal… but the next one to die will be you, even if I follow." Hawk spoke, an angry vibe obviously resonating from his words. Hawk drew the Nitrogen katana, the ice spreading from his feet along the floor as the temperature dropped. Crystal blue eyes started at the Devil, and Hawk's right arm seemed to steam.
"Y-You infused an ice crystal into your right arm! But there is so much power coming from that arm… you couldn't have put just one!" Abel said, trembling as he backed up, drawing two magnums, the barrel of the guns red hot.
"Yes… My right arm has a total of five Ice Crystals… it might be slowly freezing my arm… but to take care of an impostor like you… it won't have enough time to do permanent damage." Hawk said as he raised his arm and pointed the palm at Abel. With a look of true fear, Abel lifted his guns and fired three bullets, each one red hot. Hawk raised his left arm in defense, the bullets slamming into the flesh. Abel watched as the flesh seemed to melt off, revealing steel beneath the false skin, and Hawk just swung the arm in a small downward arc, the false skin sliding off, revealing a mechanical arm all the way up to the middle of his upper arm.
"What… the hell are you…?" The false Abel asked, taking steps back.
"I'm a True Winged Knight, driven by anger and the want for revenge, and no impostor will stop me from getting the revenge I seek." Hawk said, a ball of ice shooting from the palm of his hand as his wings glowed an ice blue color. False Abel turned around and tried to run, but the blast hit the ground by his feet, freezing him to the spot. He turned the guns down to his feet, and fired all rounds, the bullets melting the ice as well as his own feet. The Impostor turned to see where Hawk was, and at first couldn't find him, but the flapping of wings caused him to turn his glaze to the sky. "Pray for your soul and hope for divine retribution!" Hawk yelled, his left arm and the sword pulled across his face. Hawk swung the blade with all his force, the cut sliding easily through the flesh as it cleaved the man in half, the blood freezing as it sprayed out, creating a image of a frozen waterfall. The body started to separate, but both parts where kept together by the ice, and the man's face was frozen in the pain and fear. Hawk gently landed on one knee, his sword and arm on the left side, fully erect. Standing up, Hawk turned around and began to walk away, but stopped when he heard a noise.
"What happened?" John asked, pushing the doors to the room in which Hawk was.
"The real Abel escaped, and he placed an impostor to fight us while he did… how's Selene's condition?" Hawk asked as he searched the upper floor with his eyes, the temperature returning to normal, his right hand returning to normal, and his sword sliding back into the sheath.
"She is still in critical condition, but things could be a lot worse for her." John said, walking over.
"That's good to hear… Want to know something interesting… I heard a story from the servant who helped me change… about a girl with a dove and a raven wing, being held here for her blood by Abel…" Hawk said, walking toward one of the two grand staircases, his hand running along the marble.
"Do you believe that story? What if it was just a lie?" John asked, following Hawk to the staircase.
"You see… I thought that at first, but the files say, that on the same day that Abel left the Knights, a young girl vanished, one with wings of black and white… besides, why would a servant who could be killed at anytime lie?" Hawk responded, walking up the stairs.
"So… you think that what you where told is the truth… that the girl is still alive here?" John asked, walking up the stairs with caution.
"When I killed that Impostor… I swore I heard a cry for help from this floor, it was faint, and I barely heard it… so it seems like what was told was true." Hawk said, stepping onto the second floor, looking at the red carpeting.
"This carpet… the color…" John said, looking down.
"Stained with the blood when Abel first arrives, most likely… let's hurry up, we need to get Selene out of here, and if this other girl is here, we need to take her as well." Hawk said as he gently rapped his knuckles against the wood of each door he passed.
"He-Hello?" A weak cry from the last door Hawk knocked upon.
"Bingo… Get ready…" Hawk said, opening the door slightly, and then more until the door touched the wall. It took a moment for the two Lieutenants eyes' to become accustom to the lighting of the room. Against the wall, was where Hawk first saw her, the woman with the two colored wings, IVs hooked up to her wrists, as if to forcefully keep her fed. Chains on her wrists, ankles, around her waist and neck, and her wings were the Dove/Raven winged woman, scraps of clothes covering her frail body, the chains supporting her body. She had hair of a soft pink color, and her eyes where a soft red color, and her wings, the left wing was a white color, and the right wing was a black color. "Records said that she would be twenty years old yesterday… this might be the best present she gets…" Hawk said, walking over, his left hand crushing the locks on the chains, the woman falling into waiting arms.
"W-who a-are you?" The weak woman asked, barely lifting her head.
"The name is Lieutenant Ivan, and this is Lieutenant John… we are Knights from the Winged Knights… so just relax, you're safe now…" Hawk said, as he slid out of his white coat and wrapped it around the woman. "Don't worry Rose… you're safe now." Hawk said, cradling the frail form in his arms as he walked out of the room, and slowly down the stairs. Thin arms lifted up, and wrapped around his neck, and Rose moved her head into his chest, fresh tears wetting the shirt.
"Thank God…" She cried, her entire body shaking.