Long ago, there was an ancient race that lived in Ardonia called the Avians. They had chromatic hair and wings and could soar the skies. They were master archers, and some believed them to control the wind.
The Avian race is rare; they disappeared from Ardonia soon before the beginning of the Great War. After the Second Great War, many Avians returned to Ardonia. But most were still out there, in the outer islands.
The Unyielding Legion had also made their main bases of operations in the outer islands. This naturally led to conflict over territory, as the humans were trespassing on the Avians' land.
So, Lahaki, the king of the Avians, formed a pact with Hadvar, the new leader of the Unyielding Legion. More and more Avians joined the Legion, and soon more than two thirds of them had joined.
The two factions formed a powerful force that was to be feared by all. The Unyielding Legion even has contacts and allies in the Nether, which shows just how powerful and far-reaching the Legion is.
The Unyielding Legion has been growing more and more powerful as of late, even capturing some members of the Knights of Ardonia in their most secure prison. And caught in the middle of all of this is one young Avian.
Kahili flew onto the roof of the bridge. A Netharan would soon arrive to sell some Netherite to a human, and Kahili had been hired to intercept the trade for a high pay. Kahili heard the heavy footsteps of a Netharan pound against the stone and wood bridge.
"What in the blazes took you so long?!" a scraggly voice asked. Kahili knew this was the human buyer. It was time to take action.
"I apologize deeply, I was held up by the Hyperia guard. Now, you have the gold? Let's get this over with quickly."
Kahili nocked an arrow. He peeked his head over the side of the bridge roof. The human reached into his pockets and pulled out a lot of gold. It had to have been 30 something ingots. Kahili drew his bow back, getting into position to fly down and fire.
The Netharan took the gold and, just as he was about to hand the human the Netherite, Kahili flew down from the roof of the bridge and fired at the Netharan's head. He swooped down and kicked the human in the face, incapacitating him.
"Score."
Kahili picked up the Netherite and gold, then flew off. He had succeeded in yet another good hunt. Now it was time to return to the guildhall and get another job. However, the Phantoms had other ideas.
One Phantom swooped down and bit Kahili's arm. Blood seeped from the wound. Crap. Kahili drew an arrow and looked for a set of glowing green eyes in the night sky. He spotted the pale underbelly of a Phantom. Another swooped down, which he dodged.
Kahili drew his sword and flew to one of the Phantoms, stabbing it. He collected a membrane from it and let its corpse fall to the earth. He shot at the other Phantom, the arrow completely shooting through its wing.
The Phantom began losing control and veered toward Kahili, who stabbed it. Kahili put away his sword and bow, then continued his flight.
Later that night, Kahili arrived in the nearby city of Hyperia, which was the capital of Hydraphel. He walked through the streets of Hyperia, looking for any suspicious activity. There was none, which was odd, considering the Unyielding Legion was highly active in this area of Ardonia.
Kahili came upon the guildhall, then looked for the office/bedroom belonging to his friend and manager Kyoko. Soon enough, he found her. She was a tan skinned Felina with indigo hair. Kyoko wore clothing fit for a thief or rogue, usually black and dark brown long-sleeved hooded tops and shorts, with some fingerless gloves.
"I assume since you're here you completed the job?" the Felina asked excitedly. Kahili nodded. "Great! I'll make sure the Netherite gets to our client, and then we're set."
Kahili was about to turn to leave, but then decided against it. He sat down on the couch next to Kyoko, figuring if he was here they might as well kill some time. "How's your brother?" Kahili asked. Kyoko shrugged. "Not sure. He hasn't sent a messenger bird here since… almost a month ago." Kahili noticed her change in attitude and refrained from pressing about the matter.
Kyoko once again adopted her cheery personality. "Did you hear about the upcoming festival in Oakendale? It's to celebrate the union between the Overworld and the Nether! Will you be going?" she asked Kahili.
"I'm not sure. I may be on a job when it happens, considering it's in 4 days." Kyoko was a bit saddened. "I understand. But I promise I'll tell you all about it!" she told him.
"So, I was looking through some jobs, and saw that someone named… Sam, I think, wanted help with the Unyielding Legion." Kahili's interest was peaked. The Unyielding Legion? He would get to fight them?
"Tell me more." Kyoko nodded, happy to see her friend so enthusiastic about something. She shuffled through some papers, looking for the job description she wanted. "Ah! Here it is!" She leaned into Kahili slightly and allowed him to read it. "Senn… he's the leader of one of the Ardoni clans, correct?" Kyoko nodded.
"This would be a huge opportunity! We could get out of the endless loop of completing small jobs to make a living, we could live comfortable lives, Kahili!" That was enough to guarantee Kahili's answer. "I'll do it." Kyoko's smile grew. "I'll send a bird to notify Senn!"
Kahili examined the job description. "Sail to Meridian, and find Aren the fletcher. He can make Netherite arrows, which will be useful for this job," Kahili read. Netherite arrows? Netherite had only been recently discovered. Those would be extremely expensive. But definitely worth it.
Kyoko re-entered the room. "I've sent the message, hopefully Senn will get back to us in a couple days," she informed Kahili as she sat down next to him. Kahili was growing a bit tired. Sleeping would be wise since he had flown nearly the whole night.
Kyoko took notice of her friend's exhaustion. "You know I can tell you're tired. Did you do another hour-long flight?" she asked. Kahili, all too tired, simply nodded. Kyoko sighed. "How many?" she asked. Kahili mustered up the energy to speak. "3 hours."
This amount of time spent flying was surprisingly not uncommon for Kahili. Of course, Kyoko disapproved of this, as it drained him and would affect his ability to fight in case of attack.
"Kahili, you know you can't do those hour-long flights anymore. I get that you need to get around quickly, but it drains you and will affect your performance in the long run." Kahili sighed. "I know… I know…"
Kahili was getting more tired quickly. "You know you can stay here anytime. I advise you rest before taking on the Legion," Kioko told him. Kahili nodded slowly as he fell asleep, leaning against his friend.
Kahili woke up on Kyoko's couch, quickly looking around and seeing her filing some sort of paper at her desk. Kyoko looked over. "Oh, hey, finally awake." She smiled warmly. Kahili sat up and stretched. He looked out the window and saw that it was close to noon. Darn…
Kyoko was surprisingly wearing the same clothing as she was yesterday, and her movements suggested she had been up all night working. Hypocrite…
"You sleep well?" Kyoko asked. Kahili nodded. "Good to hear." Kahili thought about asking her if she slept all night, but his thoughts were interrupted by her once again reading his mind.
"I know what you're thinking. No, I didn't stay up all night. It was late and you'd already found a new bounty so there wasn't any work to be done. So because you were already so peacefully asleep I just went to sleep as well."
Kahili realized what she meant and blushed slightly. Kyoko didn't want to disturb him in his sleep so she fell asleep right there, with him on the couch. "Senn sent the bird back. He says that he's glad to have you doing this instead of someone dishonorable."
So Senn Voltaris knew who Kahili was? He didn't really know what to think of that. Alas, he pushed the thought out of his head. "So… I guess I should be going…" It dawned on Kahili that this would be his biggest and longest job yet, and he could possibly die.
Kyoko made this realization as well. She wrapped her arms around Kahili tightly. "Promise to send me a messenger bird every day," she told him. Kahili returned the hug. "I will."
The two friends eventually let go of each other. "Good luck, Kahili." Kahili knew Kyoko was close to tears. "Stay safe," she told him. Kahili smiled reassuringly. "I will."
Kahili stepped out of the guildhall with a new mission: destroy the Unyielding Legion.
Kahili soared through the skies of Ardonia, he needed to find a stopping point. Kyoko was right; flying for an hour was a terrible idea. Kahili noticed a tavern and decided to land there.
Upon landing Kahili realized there were some rocks nearby and some harder ground. He was definitely near K'arthen. Kahili entered, hoping to have a quick meal and go on his way. Taverns could be rough and he didn't want any extra trouble.
Kahili walked over to the counter. "Hello, sir, what would you like?" the bartender asked. "Just some stew and bread," Kahili answered. The bartender nodded. "Will you be having anything to drink?" he asked. Kahili shook his head. "Getting drunk on a job like this would be… unwise."
This puzzling statement confused the bartender. "Uh… all right, sir… well, you can have a seat while we prepare your food." Kahili sat down and leaned back in his chair, his feet up on the table. He had forgotten how much of a convenience taverns were. Almost as though they were created by David R.B. himself.
"Uh, Avian sir, your food is ready!" Finally. Whenever taverns took a while to prepare food, it was usually a good sign. Kahili noticed the taverners' faces when they heard the word "Avian." His species' association with the Unyielding Legion gave them a bad reputation.
Kahili went and got his food, and began eating. It tasted average, but better that what you could get in a place like Hogtown. After he finished, a man walked up to him. "You're an Avian, are you?" Kahili turned around. "Yeah." He stood up. "You got a problem with that?" he asked semi-threateningly.
"As a matter of fact…" The man removed his hood. "I don't." The man was Maxwell, someone who worked to defeat Malakai. "If you're an Avian, then your help will be needed. Follow me." Maxwell exited the tavern, and Kahili followed him.
"Sorry, but I'm currently on a job getting to Aren the fletcher in Meridian," Kahili informed Maxwell. "You really want to fly all the way to Meridian?" Maxwell asked. Kahili went silent. "Good point." Maxwell smirked. "I suggest you take the beacon then. But you don't look like you'd be able to pay for that kind of transportation."
Kahili sighed. "What's your offer?" Maxwell pulled out 80 gold. "This is yours if you can take out a target of mine." Kahili looked down at the gold, then back up at Maxwell. "And who is that?" he asked. "That is a conversation best held in private."
Maxwell led Kahili to his home, away from any spying ears. "I need you to hunt down a Magnorite named Obsydian. He's a former supporter of Malakai who has been causing a lot of trouble lately," Maxwell told the Avian. Kahili nodded. "Any leads?"
Maxwell showed Kahili his wall of Obsydian's whereabouts. "I'm sure you'll find something here. I haven't been able to make sense of much of it." Kahili observed the information before him. Most recent crimes have been in southeastern Tartarus… moving toward central!
"He's moving toward central Tartarus. I'll do a stakeout there tonight and confront him," Kahili told Maxwell. Maxwell nodded. "Good. And considering your possession of Diamond arrows I'm sure you'll be able to get the job done." Kahili nodded. "Good luck, Kahili. I have a feeling you're going to need it."
Promise to send a messenger bird every day, so I know you're safe. Now was as good a time as ever. "Excuse me sir, but could I send a message to my friend?" Kahili asked. Maxwell nodded. "Of course." Kahili removed a feather from his wing and dipped it in ink.
Hey, Kyoko. By the time you receive this message, I'm likely already in Meridian. Just wanted to assure you that I'm alive and well. Kahili. Kahili's thoughts were interrupted by Maxwell. "Your Felina girlfriend?" the human asked mischievously. Kahili glowered. "No! We're just friends." Maxwell chuckled. "Just kidding around." P.S. Send the bird to Meridian instead of back to Tartarus.
Kahili sent off the bird and exited Maxwell's residence, then made his way to central Tartarus. People were giving him dirty looks everywhere he went, but he was used to it. Being an Avian aroused lots of suspicion due to their involvement with the Unyielding Legion.
The sun was setting and Kahili was waiting. Soon, Obsydian would arrive. Kahili had done lots of stakeout missions before and considered himself to be pretty good at it. Almost as good as he was at archery, and that was his best skill. Less than five minutes after nightfall, Kahili heard the heavy, hard footsteps of a Magnorite. Obsydian.
Kahili drew his bow. Its blue enchantment aura may give him away, but if it did he wouldn't have much to worry about. Obsydian stepped into a nearby store. The heck was he doing here? Kahili stealthily pursued the Magnorite.
Kahili watched quietly as Obsydian went through the materials in the store. Something told him he should shoot the Magnorite down right then and there, but he wanted to know what he was doing.
"No… where is that darned obsidian?" What would a Magnorite want with obsidian? Was it like beef jerky like the stories said? Or did Obsydian have a deeper purpose for being here? Kahili coughed, muffling it as much as possible. You idiot!
Obsydian looked around wearily. "Who goes there?!" He definitely would not give up his search. Kahili knew it was time to complete the mission. He leaped out of his hiding place and fired off a Power IV arrow. Obsydian's head blew into rocky pieces, some of which pelting the Avian who shot him.
Kahili picked up the obsidian from his inventory. He also noticed there was some gold, iron, and flint. What would he need flint for? Then it hit Kahili. Obsydian needed to craft something here, a flint and steel. And flint and steel could set things on fire. Whatever Obsydian planned to burn, it didn't matter now.
Kahili flew off into the night, his destination being Maxwell's house. A Phantom swooped down to attack him. However, Kahili wasn't having any of it. He shot at the Phantom, then stabbed it with an arrow. How many had he killed? It didn't matter. There were too many to count anyway.
Kahili continued his midnight flight, the moonlight illuminating his grey and blue wings. There were only two things on his mind: Kyoko and a good night's rest.
A/N: I created Kyoko's character with the purpose of being extremely wholesome and sweet. Like Uraraka from My Hero Academia but a Minecraft cat girl. And Maxwell is going to be back in the next chapter, of course. So more fun and mischief.