A Story of Eighteen Years

by Centurious the Azure

A rewrite of A Story of Eighteen Years. "This is a love story. The story of a girl with a broken soul, and the boy who tried to pick up those shattered pieces and put them back together…only to fail in every single way."

1. Prologue: Battle of Minas Tor

Chapter 1: Prologue: Battle of Minas Tor

Disclaimer: Drakengard is the property of Square-Enix, Tales of Vesperia was created by Namco Tales Studio.

A Story of Eighteen Years

By Centurious the Azure and Storm Wolf77415

Prologue

The night was calm, as were the seas as a small vessel cut across the water. A tall lone figure stood at the prow of the ship. A dark green hood up above his head, masking the features of the person looking over the bow of the ship. The only sound came from the water lapping against the wooden sides of the boat as he gazed aimlessly across the unending expanse of water. There was an eerie beauty to the whole thing.

"Ezra?" A delicate voice called out. The man named Ezra glanced to see a young woman, about seventeen, standing behind him, aquamarine-colored eyes full of concern, her shoulder-length blonde hair, pointed out in such a way as to look like a dandelion, pointed ears barely poking out, indicating her elven heritage.

A short blue hooded cloak over an armored crop top showing off her navel with armor black hot pants covering her perfectly shaped rear end topped off with a detached blue sleeve on her left arm, and an armored vambrace on the other complimented by a dark brown fingerless glove on each hand, a pair of brown ankle-length boots with long knee-length stockings, in a deep black that matched her shorts.

A dark red choker around her neck complimented all the blue she wore. A blue, and white bandanna was tied to the belt around her waist to the side along with a carrying pouch fastened behind her. To her side hanging off her belt was a simple short sword in a blue leather sheath with a hand on its hilt out of habit. Part affection, and part practice, he thought.

"Hey," she said gently, coming up next to him. The deck planks noisily shifted underneath her feet. "It's almost time for dinner. Phoebe told me to come to get you."

"Thanks, Felecia," Ezra said, a wan smile twisting across his lips as he took his hood off slowly. The hood fell back revealing the features of a young man as he came to face the young woman. He had light messy brown hair that was akin to a bird's nest. Those bangs framed hard-edged malachite green eyes. The sharp look he cast over the scene was enough to cut into anyone's expectations of the boy she saw in his soft-looking, almost feminine features.

He dropped a gloved hand, letting it come from the straight sword strapped to his back. He wore a bright green hooded army jacket with grey lines running down the shoulders to the wrist, reminding Felecia quite a bit of the loud red hooded cloak of a young girl she'd met once long ago. Besides that, he had a grey tunic showing from the fully unzipped jacket. He wore matching grey pants and brown hiking boots with a visible steel toe on the front.

"I just needed some alone time. You know how I am." He turned away to look at the ocean, his haunted green eyes had a look that spoke of experience beyond his teenage years. "It's still taking some getting used to, this world is so different. I'm just trying to adjust, but I just can't stop thinking about her. Even now she haunts me." Felecia came up alongside him, putting a comforting arm around him, resting her head against his arm.

"I suppose it is hard to escape the specter of someone like her. But it's over and done with. She's dead, Ezra." Felecia struggled to hold back the hitch in her voice. "They're all dead. Nothing can change that now. This is a fresh start for all of us. I'm sure in time that pain will subside, you just have to let it flow naturally." She tugged on his arm, her hand coming to hold his. There was hesitation in his grasp as he came to hold hers. A want to be alone she could tell from his avoidant body language. "Come on now, it's time to eat. Phoebe cooked up a nice dinner for us."

Ezra relented, and the two entered the cabin, to the sounds of boisterous laughter and the smell of a finely cooked meal. They were approached by a young boy of eleven, his innocent face framed by hair white as fallen snow, offset by the gold and red feather in his hair. "Hey there, Ezra! We were starting to worry about you." He chirped, watching Ezra unstrapping the sword bandoleer on his back. "I don't want Phoebe to be sad if she thinks you don't like her cooking." The young man's expression lit up, his demeanor changing from dour to instant cheer from the glint in his eyes.

Ezra's response was to rub his hair, the boy joyfully giggled. "You should have a little more faith in me, Mikhail. I would never miss out on a meal prepared by our dear Phoebe." The boy, Mikhail, smiled, before trotting off to his place at the table.

"Dinner is served!" A melodic voice called out as a young woman with blue hair braided in an elaborate plait that formed a knot in her hair before draping down her left shoulder entered, carrying a large cast-iron pot with a strength that belied her willowy frame "I hope everyone likes stew!" With a grunt, she set the pot down on the table, before filling bowls and passing them around.

"Smells great as always Phoebe!" Ezra said, giving her a gentle kiss on the cheek taking his place at the table. He set his sword, and its thick brown leather bandoleer in its place leaning against the chair.

"I'd pale to think what would happen if we didn't have you to cook for us. I certainly don't have any culinary skills, considering what happened the last time I tried helping you in the kitchen." This earned him a knowing frown from Phoebe, while Mikhail and Felecia just snickered, which they quickly stifled as the other members of the ship's crew began entering the dining room.

"Where's Furiae and Raven?" Phoebe asked, pouring another bowl before handing it to Mikhail to pass down the line. "I don't want either of them to miss dinner."

"If I had to guess, Raven's probably taking a nap in the cargo hold again. He practically made that place his second home." Felecia said, rolling her eyes in annoyance. "As for Furiae, she was tired after all the healing she did from that recent monster attack." She looked across the table to where a girl their age sat with pink hair and blue-green eyes. "If I didn't know any better I'd say that she wanted to beat the number of people you helped, your Highness."

Felecia's voice carried a teasing air to it, as the pink-haired girl's face scrunched up in an adorable pout. It was then another of their companions, a young man with long dark hair, carrying a katana spoke up. "I never thought there could be such a huge rivalry between healers. There's always a first time for everything. It seemed rather intense if you ask me."

"I'd hardly call it intense, Yuri." Another girl chimed in, her ears, pointed like Felecia's, but even longer, almost to a comical degree, twitched in mirth, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say a fight would break out. But if I had to name a winner, then I'd have to give the victory to Estelle here." She lounged in her chair with her feet up on the table, exposing a pair of long, smooth legs. "She was faster this time, not surprising since her technique is more refined. It allows her to pump out the healing spells in a more efficient manner than Furiae."

"I'm so glad you're keeping score, Judith," Phoebe said, a slight hint of disdain in her voice. "Would you mind getting your feet off the table so we can eat?" The Krityan woman, Judith, just shrugged and settled back in her seat as a bowl of stew was put in front of her.

"Come on, where's my food? I'm starving here!" A young girl of about fifteen impatiently banged the table, causing all the of the bowls and silverware to jump slightly. before pushing the goggles up out of in her chin-length brown hair up out of forehead. "All of you do know it's a proven fact that it's wrong to deny a growing young woman dinner!"

"Will you quit whining already?" A twelve-year-old boy shot back from the far end of the table. His brown hair stuck straight up as he tugged at the red scarf tied around his neck, his brown eyes wearing a glare of annoyance. "Phoebe will get to everyone. She's not going to deny anyone here food, even the likes of you!"

"Rita, Karol, that's enough!" Estelle gently chided them. "Everyone will get their portion, so please stop arguing." Karol just sulked while Rita hunched down, blushing slightly as Phoebe gave them their stew. In the corner a low growling could be heard, coming from a large blue and white dog, who gripped a pipe in his lips.

Phoebe pulled a large chunk of meat still attached to the bone, placing it in front of him. "I would never forget you, Repede. You're such a good boy." She smiled, patting the canine on the head. Repede barked as he gleefully tore into his prize. It was then a girl with dark hair tied up in a pair of ponytails with red hair ties came up to him, kneeling down to pet him. But the dog growled at her slightly, picking up the meat and padding over to where Yuri was sitting.

The girl frowned slightly, her blue eyes heavy as she walked over to the table, sitting between Estelle and Rita. "Why won't he let me get close to him? It's been six months now, and Repede still treats me like a total stranger."

"I wouldn't worry too much about it, Lyris." Yuri passed her a plate of rolls. "Repede is just choosy that way. He doesn't hate you if that makes you feel any better." He reached down, petting his faithful companion. "Estelle knows that from experience. It took a long time for him to warm up to her, isn't that right?" He looked to the princess, who hadn't touched her stew once, and seemed worried by something. "Penny for your thoughts, Estelle?"

"I was thinking about what you said just now, Yuri. I'm still having trouble believing that it's been almost half a year since we all met." It was then Ezra reached across the table, taking hold of Estelle's dainty hand, causing her to start blushing all over as he gave a small grin of his own.

"It was even longer for us. I believe tomorrow's exactly eight months to the day when we met." This caused quite a stir among those at the dinner table. Judith snickered while Phoebe just sighed, blushing slightly.

"I wish you wouldn't do that in front of everybody. It's very embarrassing." Estelle said, although, despite her words, it was pretty evident from the gleam in her eyes that she really didn't mind all that much.

Rita shot Ezra a dirty look. "You really want to do that now? What am I saying? Of course, you'd choose to pull a stunt like that right now. You seriously don't have any shame do you, Ezra? Seriously, you're as bad as Raven, no I take that back, you're even worse. As long as it has legs or a nice ass, you're all over it! Honestly, it makes my stomach turn!"

"Hey, Raven is a cool guy. I think you're just jealous and refuse to admit it!" Ezra smirked at how Rita flinched at those words. Judith took the chance to pounce on that. "Well how about that? Our little scientist is interested in something besides just Blastia!" She started mock sniffling, wiping away an imaginary tear. "It's so beautiful! She's growing up so fast!"

"Shut up right now, Judith! I don't know what the hell you're talking about!" Rita snapped, looking down at her bowl as she began slurping it up. "The only thing I care about is my work. Don't you dare get any further ideas or I'll light your hair on fire, and you know I'll do it!"

"Hey, do you guys mind?" A gentle voice called out as everyone turned to see another woman, wearing a simple long-sleeved dress colored white standing in the door, her brown hair falling down past her waist and ever so delicately brushing against her backside. "How's a former Goddess supposed to get her beauty sleep with all this racket?" She took note of the meal and her bright blue eyes widened. "No way, it's already dinner?"

"So glad of you to join us, Furiae," Felecia said. "Go ahead and take a seat. Phoebe made stew." Furiae entered with graceful strides, taking a place at the table next to Phoebe, who promptly spooned her a bowl and handed it to her. The door banged open and a loud belch rang through the air.

A disheveled looked man in his mid-thirties stumbled in, his messy grayish-brown hair was tied up in a ponytail. His face was covered in stubble, and the bags under his eyes gave him a dangerous, unsavory look about him. "What do we have here? Not only have the prettiest gaggle of ladies in all the world are assembled, but the most beautiful, and thoughtful woman on the boat has prepared what smells like a truly delicious meal!" He wiped a fake tear. "I understand now why I've been allowed to live this long, that way I can partake in this magnificent feast!"

"Welcome to the party, old man," Ezra said, indicating the empty seat next to him. "Come on and grab some chow. Phoebe made plenty." Raven just chortled before sitting down and digging in.

Everyone chatted amongst themselves, not about anything in particular. Rita just sat idly swirling her spoon through the last bit of broth in the bottom of the bowl. She was bored out of her mind. But then she caught sight of Ezra talking with Raven and Estelle. She then thought of the perfect way to be rid of her boredom. "Hey, Ezra! Tell me a story, like say, where you and all your weird little friends came from?"

This caused all conversation to grind to a complete halt. Mikhail and Lyris looked more than a little uncomfortable, Phoebe looked like she was about to start crying. Furiae seemed ready to fade into her chair, and Felecia was about ready to strangle Rita. Ezra was the only one who looked unperturbed. He just rolled his eyes. "I have nothing to say. To be honest, it's rather boring. You'd be asleep in minutes, and then I'd had to carry you back to bed."

But Rita wouldn't be so easily deterred. "Oh, I don't think so! You should be aware that Estelle has said a few things to me. And I'm very intrigued. We've known each other for some time now, and yet you haven't shared a single damn thing. It pisses me off to no end that you don't trust all of us."

Ezra just let out an exasperated sigh. "You're a persistent one, aren't you?" He grunted, sounding like he would rather do anything else.

"Just tell the brat already, E." A girl with shoulder blade length fire engine red hair said from her place across the table, Rita jumped at her sudden appearance, screaming at an octave that made Repede whimper a little bit. "It's not like this is a short voyage, anyway."

"Ah, so nice of you to join us, Fianna," Yuri remarked in a deadpan tone. "I was wondering when you were going to pop out of hiding."

"Very sneaky, girl!" Raven leered, waggling his eyebrows. "I have to admit, you have a lot of style."

"Perhaps that's why Yeager let her into Leviathan's Claw," Judith smirked. "One minute she's there, the next minute she's gone."

"I thought I felt a chill a second ago." Karol quipped, feeling a chill at how Fianna waved at him. Her violet eyes glinting with a troll-like glee. "It only happens any time she's around."

"I'm actually starting to get used to it," Estelle said, eliciting a light chuckle from Fianna. It was then Repede came up to Fianna, who began rubbing underneath his chin. He seemed to like this very much, causing Lyris no end of dismay.

"How do you manage that?" She asked.

"It's a thing between us fellow animals," Fianna responded, sitting down at her seat. She kicked up her leather boots onto the table and leaned precariously back in her seat. Much to Phoebe's motherly consternation. Fianna simply flashed her a defiant grin. "But we're getting off track here. Just go ahead and tell them the whole story, Ezra. I know you'd simply want to just forget this all happened, but it's not easy for me. I imagine the others here feel the same way, am I right?" She looked to Felecia, Mikhail, Phoebe, Lyris, and Furiae in turn.

Felecia was the one who spoke up first, reaching out to squeeze his hand. "It's okay, Ezra. I think we can all contribute to this, but we'll let you go first." Mikhail and Furiae both just gave slight nods, while Phoebe just smiled. It was now apparent to Ezra that he had no other option to open the book of his past, back to the chapter he swore never to lay eyes on again. He stretched out, and stood up, taking a position at the head of the table.

"Okay then, if you guys really want to know the whole story, then you'll get it. As you've probably surmised by now. Mikhail, the girls, and I are not from this world. We come from another realm altogether called Midgard. A land defined by its violence and brutality. You think the monster attacks here are bad? In Midgard, we didn't have the luxury of barriers to keep our towns and villages safe. If we got some unwanted guests, it was always a gore fest!"

It was then Yuri could really see just how far Ezra's thousand-yard stare went. "My story is both complicated and simple all at once. It's complicated because it's the story of the rise and fall of a mighty empire, a story of war and survival against a hostile force that sought the total destruction of all life in our world."

Phoebe held Ezra's hand, He swallowed hard as a single tear fell down his face. "But it's also very simple because, at its core, this is a love story. The story of a girl with a broken soul, and the boy who tried to pick up those shattered pieces and put them back together…only to fail in every single way."

(Ten Years Ago, Midgard, Minas Tor Village)

I suppose the best place to start is at the beginning. I lived in a small village called Minas Tor, located between the grand forests that surrounded the Cathedral City, Midgard's capital, and arid wastelands of the Land of Deserts. We were lucky enough to be on the greener side, but the distance between us and those vast stretches of sand and rock were much closer than people realized.

As for the village itself, it really wasn't much, just a wide place in the road with a few log cabins, and a large community barn where everyone stored the crops grown in the few small fields surrounding us. Still, it was the only home I had ever known. I lived with my mother, Yesenia, who served the community as a mage, providing potions and enchantments for those needing them. My stepfather, Naaman, the head of the village guard, a vital role since we didn't have much in the ways of walls or other defensive barriers. He would be out there for days at a time, on the lookout for any threats to the village, monsters, and his son, my stepbrother, Kieran. Even though we weren't of the same blood, he and I were inseparable.

Our days were spent playing tag around the village or hide and seek in the woods, learning magic from my mother, and finally practicing archery and swordsmanship under Naaman's watchful eye. They both wanted us to be capable of defending ourselves if we went out into the wilds, given the various animals and the other nasty creatures that existed out there. In all, everything was relatively quiet and peaceful, but the little bubble my life existed in was about to burst. I was going to see the world for all its gruesome splendor, and there was no filter.

I remember the day well, I was eight years old at the time, and it was a warm summer evening. We were doing some target practice on some straw dummies Naaman had set up for us. "Watch this brother, I'm going for a threefer!" Kieran said to me, drawing the intricately carved bow that his father had made for him all the way back to his ear, the white feathers on his arrows such a stark contrast to his hair, black as the deepest night itself. The air was silent as he let them fly, one square in the torso, the other two right where the eyes were.

"All too easy." That was all he'd say as he gave a smug grin. It always amazed me how much of a natural Kieran was when you put a bow in his hands. Every shot he made was either center of mass or a full-out headshot. I couldn't help but be jealous of his prowess. Still, I wasn't about to let him show me up as I took my turn, nocking the arrow into my own bow.

"Check this out, K," I said, pulling the string back. "I've been practicing my quick draw!" He just shrugged, figuring it would be better to show it rather than talk. I had already pulled the second arrow out of my quiver and was setting up as my first shot pierced the dummy's midsection, the second arrow was out, and it plunged into the left shoulder, jutting out the back. The third and fourth arrows followed in quick succession, hitting the neck and brain respectively. "What do you think?" I asked, eager for his opinion. Even if we did banter on, it was to help us improve.

Kieran walked up to the dummy, looking it over for a few minutes. He then folded his arms and closed his eyes, which let me know he was thinking, he always did that. "I'll give you credit, little brother, you had a pretty good draw speed, and your grouping was certainly impressive. I don't think I could have done much better myself. But, in your desire for speed, don't let your accuracy suffer either. Being able to pull your arrows out fast doesn't mean anything if you don't hit your mark."

"I couldn't agree more, son." My mother called out from the doorway. She was possessed of simple beauty. I think what I remember most was her hair. Long, brown, and always tied up in a ponytail or a bun, a necessity for her work, especially if she was brewing potions down in the basement, or making dinner, which the two of us could already smell. Mom was a great cook. "However, that's enough archery practice for one day. It's almost dinner time and your father should be getting home from watch soon. Go and get washed up."

"Sure Mom!" Kieran and I both said, trooping into the house. We put our bows away in our bedroom and then went back outside to take a bath, which for us meant going out back, stripping down, and soaking each other with water from a bucket. After using Mom's homemade soap, we dried off and put on fresh clothes. Dinner was fast getting done. Naaman had hunted a deer just a couple of days before, and it was good and roasted.

"It smells great as always, Yesenia," Kieran remarked, having cracked open a book in the meantime. It wasn't much longer until the door swung open, and in walked my stepfather. He was an imposing figure at five foot eleven, his brown hair was cut short, feathering out around his ears. His eyes were a clear, compromising shade of blue that held a strong degree of kindness for others. But he was anything but weak. As head of the town guard, Naaman was the first and only line of defense the village had, and it was a job he took very seriously.

"I'm home, Yesenia!" Naaman's voice was always so calming. He had that ability to just put you at ease with just his words. He hung up his sword on the rack, removing his dirty, muddy boots. Mom would have a fit if he tracked it across her well-cleaned floors."I see you're putting that deer I bagged to good use. It smells great!" He came up, kissing Mom on the cheek before taking a seat at the table. "Hello, Boys, what have you been up to today?"

"The usual, Naaman," I said, taking a large chunk of meat onto my plate. "I was working on my quick draw during archery practice. I managed to get four arrows out in under a minute. Although Kieran said I have to remember not to let my accuracy suffer for it."

"Just telling the truth, E. Although one area you'll always be better than me at is in magic." Kieran cut into his baked potato. "No offense to you, Yesenia, I just feel more comfortable with the physical disciplines like archery and swordsmanship. Besides, I figure if Ezra and I are together, he's got the magic aspect nailed down while I get up close with my blade. It's a rather nice little arrangement we've got, huh?" He flashed a big grin at me and we fist bumped, eliciting a light giggle from Mom, and a bemused snort from Naaman.

"I'm glad you're not slacking off in your training, boys. I want you to take this to heart and engrave it in your minds. One day you're not going to be swinging swords and firing arrows at just wooden targets or dummies filled with straw and dirt. They will be targets of flesh, blood, and bone. It could be monsters or even other men. They'll have a heart beating inside that chest, just as your hearts are beating right now. If you falter, then you die. If you don't remember anything else, my sons, always remember that a sword isn't meant to be swung without purpose."

It wasn't the first time Naaman had said that to Kieran and I, but they were still profound words to live by. We gave thanks for the meal and started eating. "So, did anything exciting happen while you were on watch today?" I asked, taking a huge bite out of the deer leg I was eating. It had been cooked to perfection, nice and juicy, just how I like it. "Did you see any bandits or monsters roaming about?"

Naaman let out a hearty laugh. "I'm afraid not, Ezra. The most exciting thing that happened was a pair of Goblin scouts lurking in the wastes on the edge of town. they're like ants, you don't kill them immediately they'll tell everyone, and before you know it." He moved his thumb horizontally across his throat, both Kieran and I knew what that gesture meant all too well. "It's all over."

Dinner continued as normal, and it was about to end when suddenly, a mad ringing sound cut through the idyllic moment. It was the bell we used to indicate when there was danger. The front door of our house slammed open and one of the town guards ran in, looking frantic. "Naaman, we've got a major problem!" The shift in the room was near automatic. I watched my stepfather switch from a loving caregiver to a hardened career soldier. He got up from the table, going to the other side of the room to speak with him in private.

I could only pick up a few words, namely "Order", "Seal", and "Yesenia." Almost immediately I tensed up at that last one. Who would be after my mom? It wouldn't be until much later I understood. Naaman came up to the table, leaning down next to Mom to whisper in her ear, and her green eyes turned a few shades darker. This time Kieran tensed up with me, Mom was, for the most part, a fairly laid-back person, although she had a biting wit and could snark with the best of them. But when she got angry, few survived her wrath, even Naaman, an accomplished warrior in his own right, got a little weary.

It wasn't often we saw Mom look worried. She opened the trap door that led down to the basement where she kept her workshop. "Boys, get down there right now, and do not come out until either your father or I return and give the signal we agreed on!" We knew the signal all too well, Mom had drilled it into both our heads. A double knock would be given, and we would respond with a single knock, and then finally they would triple knockback. I remember that final hug so well, and how though she tried to hide it…Mom was crying. "I love you boys so much. Never forget that!"

"I won't." I struggled to keep from breaking down. Yet I was so afraid, but I had to have faith in Naaman and Mom. They could handle anything. In many ways, the door closing was symbolic, as it represented the door closing on the first chapter of my life. We could hear the sound of footsteps and the door opening and closing as Mom, Naaman, and the guard left the house. Now, when I say we had a basement, it was actually part of a small cavern system that ran through the area. The house was built over an opening in the ground that led down into the system, and Mom refurbished it for her use.

It was still a dank, uncomfortable place. The only light came from the various candles set up around the room. The center of the workshop was dominated by a single large table, with a bookcase set up in the corner, containing an innumerable amount of volumes on the buckling shelves. There was another large table on the other side of the room, set up as a potion lab, and the odor of all the various ingredients combined made for a truly devastating smell.

"Ugh, makes me glad I heeded Mom's warnings and never came down here!" Kieran groaned, his face even paler than normal. "The scent alone is enough to kill a person, or at least drive them mad."

"I won't argue with that," I replied, only to get a fresh blast of air right in my face. I looked up to see a small pipe in the ceiling. "Hey, it looks like Mom made sure to keep this place ventilated." We both stood under the pipe, relishing the fact we wouldn't have to endure the cocktail of death that was our mother's potion's ingredients. But then we heard something else, voices, and it sounded like our parents. We looked for another pipe, hoping to catch just what it was they were saying.

"It's so nice to see you again, Naaman." the male voice speaking dripped with barely contained, haughty disgust. I could just tell from the smug tone that he was one of those types who looked down his nose on everybody and judged himself superior. "I can't imagine what possessed you to come to a backwater like this…place. What is it called again, Owen?"

"Minas Tor, sir." Another male voice spoke, a clear note of annoyance coloring it. "Naaman, I beseech you to see reason on this. All we want is what Yesenia took from the Cathedral City. If you turn her over to us, then I will guarantee you'll have full clemency for harboring a fugitive if you just ask her to give herself up peacefully and voluntarily. I don't want this to become a bloodbath, Naaman. I certainly know you don't want it either. You know full well what we're capable of."

"I'm certainly aware of that, Owen. It was because of those bloodbaths that I left the Order in the first place!" This surprised both Kieran and I. We had never known that Naaman had been part of whatever this Order was. But our father was only getting warmed up. "As for you, Georg, I'm amazed you decided to get off your lazy ass at all! It must have been so hard to get up from behind your desk. I hope you didn't strain a muscle."

"How dare you speak to me in such a manner!" the man known as Georg's voice went up by three octaves, "No matter how you look at it. She has committed numerous atrocities against the Midgardian Empire, by disrupting a vital government project for years! The High King wants the witch known as Yesenia to answer for her crimes at once! She will return the book and the flower she stole and then depending on how merciful the magistrate is feeling, she'll maybe end up in the dungeons for the rest of her life! You will only get this immunity once, Naaman. Either turn her over now or we will take her by force. The entire village will be considered her accomplices! And you know what that means, don't you?" There was a sadistic glee that neither of us liked.

"I need to see what's going on out there!" I exclaimed. "I need to see what's going on up there!" I made for the ladder to climb up, only for Kieran to stop me. "Come on, Kieran, you can't possibly want to sit here while both of our parents, not to mention the entire town, gets annihilated!"

"Follow me," was all he said. The two of us left the lab, running into a long, winding tunnel, we traveled about ninety yards until we saw a large beam of light. We craned our small necks upward to see a large, rocky outcropping that opened to the still darkening sky. "I was out here playing one day when I found this entrance. I followed it to Mom's lab. We should get a nice full view of everything." After a quick climb up the rocks. We poked our heads out and I won't lie, my heart skipped a few beats at the sight before us. There was a full contingent of Imperial Knights present in their full plate armor, lances at the ready, standing before the wall that surrounded the village.

But what caught our attention the most was the group of knights in different colored armor standing at the head of the army. A man clad in brilliant gold armor worn under a pristine white tunic and matching cape stood in the center. "What will it be, Naaman?" The man in white and gold spoke with a hardened sneer on his sunken in face. "I'm certain you don't want anything to happen to your precious little village after all. It's not like anyone will miss the little whore."

"Is that a fact, Georg?" I held my breath when I saw Mom step out onto the ramparts of the wall, looking confident as ever. "If you really want your precious Grimoires back. I'm afraid neither of them is currently in my possession. I gave Verde over to the King of Scandinavia for safekeeping." We both let out a silent cheer at the smug grin on her face. "He is an old friend after all. As for Azure, you'll have to ask a faerie, but they would probably just tell you to take your sword and shove it up your ass. I know I would."

"So it's not enough you stole government property, you turned it over to an enemy nation? Just one more thing to add to the list!" Georg's sneer only grew wider, not to mention uglier, as he slowly drew his sword, a large, menacing saber, pointing it at our parents. "I see any further negotiating is pointless. There's only one true way to deal with rabble such as you!"

"Please, General." A man clad in a more ornate version of the standard Imperial Knight armor said. "There's no need to resort to violence here." His pleas were cut short as Georg lashed out with his arm, catching him in the face with his gauntlet-covered hand.

"Know your place, Owen!" Georg snapped. "Words are clearly wasted on the likes of them. Force is the only way to make them understand their place in the world."

"I couldn't agree more, sir!" A tiny man clad in red armor whined. "This place is the absolute ass end of the world. We should be back in the capital, there was a massive feast at the castle and we had to miss it in order to come here! You know I don't fight well on an empty stomach!"

"Now now, the High King's word is law. He did ask us quite nicely to handle this little problem of his." A tall, male elf spoke in a disarming tone. He was dressed like a dandy, and I would have thought he was a bard if not for the wicked-looking spear he had resting on his broad shoulder. "We do have our responsibilities as knights to carry out after all."

"I could really care less." A woman wearing all black drawled in a bored voice. "At the very least I'll be able to get some inspiration for my poetry. I've been going through a dry spell as of late since there have been so few assignments, but a little bloodshed always gets my creative gears turning." Both Kieran and I shivered at the way the woman licked her lips in anticipation of the imminent slaughter.

The next of the lead knights about made me want to run back to the lab, crawl up the ladder and hide in my bed. He was wearing full plate armor, black as a thousand midnights, holding a wicked-looking scythe with an equally obsidian blade, the helmet was cast in the shape of a skull. I remembered hearing the stories of the Grim Reaper, and at that young age, I wondered if he actually existed, but I was thrown off by what he said next. "I just wish it didn't always have to come down to such circumstances. It would just be easier if they turned themselves in now. I'm certain his Majesty would be merciful if they just show regret for what they had done."

"Oh, we both know that's a load of nonsense!" The woman in black rolled her eyes. "His Majesty would execute them in the most horrific way he could find, but not before torturing them heavily. If there's one thing our esteemed leader is proficient at, is finding brutal ways to dispose of those who anger him. I should know, some of my best work came from those executions."

"I have to agree with her on that one." The elf remarked. "Personally, I think it best to end it here, where it will quick and reasonably painless, rather than let those charming fellows in the dungeon have their way with her."

"I just want to go home and eat!" The man in red armor whined, hopping up and down in a comical manner. It was then the man in the skull armor let out a low growl, banging his scythe on the ground. It made me think he was scowling under that visor, and I'm not sure I wanted a full view of it.

"Will the three of you try to take this seriously? This is a matter of life and death! It's not a time to be talking about your ridiculous appetite." He indicated to the man in red armor who looked about ready to throw a full-scale tantrum, "Or your ridiculous poetry!"

"Silence, all of you!" Owen barked, wiping the blood from his mouth. His eyes narrowed slightly. "Forgive me, Naaman. But you leave me no choice." He drew his sword, an action mirrored by all of the warriors present. "Be ready, this could go hot at any moment." The entire scene was dead silent, the battle lines had been clearly marked, and all my brother and I could do was watch.

"Wow, and all this in the first ten minutes!" Raven drawled as he filled his tankard all the way to the very brim with mead. "I should ask everyone I meet their life story, makes for great entertainment!"

"I'm so glad the tragedy of my life amuses you, old man." Ezra rolled his eyes, noticing that despite his bravado, the oldest member of their crew just sipped his drink with the slightest hint of melancholy in his eyes. It was as if a silent moment of understanding passed between them. "Besides, we're just getting started. I haven't even gotten to the best part of it yet."

"This Georg guy sounds like he would have fit in perfectly with Cumore and his crew. Alexei would probably make him his right-hand man. It's because of guys like him that I left the Knighthood in the first place." Yuri's eyes took on a hard edge, finding himself connecting with Naaman just a little bit.

"I'll agree with you there," Estelle said, gently taking hold of Ezra's hand. "Although Owen sounds like a rather decent sort. He reminds me of Flynn. He would always complain about all the abuse and corruption he has to put up with."

"Yesenia sounds cool. She sounds like someone who doesn't take crap from anybody!" Rita said, taking another bowl of stew from Phoebe.

"I figured you would like her. In many ways, I see a lot of Mom in you, albeit a bit more mature." Ezra paid no mind to the angry pout Rita sent his way. "That marked the end of my childhood, but it was just the beginning of this story. It only gets crazier from here."

"Well, don't keep us waiting, Ezra. What happened from there?" Judith asked, her eyes dancing in delight. "'Cause, it sounds like a fight's about to happen, and a real doozy at that!"

"Yeah, what about Michael?" Karol asked. This caught Mikhail's attention. "Estelle told me he was a big factor in your life, Ezra. I bet he comes in to save the day, looking all badass!"

"Uh, don't worry, he'll come in eventually," Mikhail said, the hesitation coloring his voice. "Just not the way you're hoping, Karol. If he knew it was going to happen. He would have intervened a lot sooner." This earned him a gentle hug and a sisterly kiss on the cheek from Felecia. While Estelle blinked back a few tears.

"I'll admit, Naaman reminds me of Caim quite a bit, strong but gentle at the same time," Furiae said, a small smile coming onto her face.

"Every journey begins with a single step. It's just a shame that the first step for you involved a puddle of blood." Phoebe said sadly, wiping away a few tears. "I can only imagine Owen felt when he ordered the attack on your village, Ezra. It's still very brave of you to tell what happened."

"It was quite a journey, some days harder than others. But we got through it together." Lyris added.

"A lot of people wanted the High King of Midgard dead and with good reason." Fianna looked over to Phoebe, who was just looking down into her soup. Fianna gave the other girl a light pat on the back. "But even if it was all doom and gloom, it didn't mean we didn't have a little fun along the way."

"The definition of fun varies from person to person, Fi," Ezra said. "But I digress. This story of eighteen years is one that should be, needs to be told. I'm just glad that I've got the right people to hear it. Let's pull back the curtain and begin the Battle of Minas Tor."

Ezra grabbed his tankard of mead and knocked the entire thing back in one long chug. This wasn't part of his history he enjoyed recounting, but since it was asked for, he may as well go all-in on it!

It was then that all high hell broke loose. I had seen small-scale defensive battles between the town guard, and invading bands of wandering monsters. I had seen a few bodies before. Like the unlucky soul who'd had his throat torn out by wild dogs, or had their skull shattered into a thousand pieces by a well-placed rock from a nasty goblin's shoddily tied together sling. Nothing I had seen previously matched the scale of brutality my stepbrother, and I saw that day. Since then… well, you'll see how the war machine in my world makes soldiers out of men (or carcasses for the vultures to pick at) soon enough.

Georg raised his sword to the sky with an evil smile. It was then an overwhelming sound of the charge overtook everything else. The ground shook as the hoofs of hundreds of armored horses with plate metal riders tore into the grassy plains surrounding our humble town. It was all silhouetted by the setting sun. The sun's crimson light glinted off their armor, and weapons of death. It would have been a beautiful sight in some story I had been read as a child. It reminded me of the story where these knights… Oh, wait can't get too off-topic.

It was too bad the sheer doom of the knowledge we were fucked ruined any sense of nostalgia I could have had. In fact, I started having nightmares about knights marauding after this. Lucky me. The cave shook as if we were caught in the throes of an earthquake. Small bits of debris and dust fell from the ceiling above us. I held my breath waiting for the end. I saw brave Kieran doing the same as I. Tears stung at the corners of his eyes. A tear went down Kieran's face. I held his hand for comfort. He squeezed back. I could feel his grip tremble against mine. It was true that even the strongest of us could lose hope.

It was hard to believe I held a small sliver of hope. "Don't worry, K," I said, trying my best to sound like I believed it. "Your dad and my mom are an unbeatable team together. No bandit, monster, or knight could best them. Not between Naaman's sword, and mom's lightning bolts." Kieran had no response. He only held my hand tighter as the battle progressed into sheer chaos between the dozens of guards in our town, and the hundreds of knights.

It wasn't a contest. The knights had already broken into the gates. I could already see the knights cutting into our father's men with ease. Ease that told me that these bastards weren't knights. They were killers. I could say for sure there was no honor among this army of cutthroats. Nothing like the knights led by noble kings who protected the realm of the fairy tales mom used to read to us at night.

The reality was all a chaotic riot of dust, blood, and steel all coming together to form a devastating calamity named war. Quickly, we saw that the battle wasn't only limited to hardened warriors. Some of our neighbors had taken to arming themselves. They'd armored themselves with kitchen pots as makeshift helms, and decided to use simple household axes or pitchforks as weapons. They looked a mite bit foolish. Considering what I know of battle today, I know for sure that the better part of bravery is foolishness. A friend always liked to speak of the folly of humanity in their use of violence. That brave men choose not to be born rather than fight. I always disagreed with that sentiment. Braver still is the man that stands against the tide of oppression.

I watched in horror as Mr. Anders, the local herbalist, fell to the ground as his head flew from his body, courtesy of an axe to the back of his neck. I could see the fear written in his face as his disembodied head bounced on the ground and came to rest in the blooded grass. It was a stern lesson I would come to learn about bravery in the coming years. Standing against the tide did not mean you would not be swallowed whole by it.

However, some men stand against it and do not show fear. An unexpected flash of blood traveled through the air, spattering against the side of the house. The giant armored axe man looked on in horror himself as Naaman descended upon him. He made short work of the man as he severed the head from his body. It wasn't a moment before he kicked the onion-shaped helm into the crowd. It struck a knight in the side of the head. Naaman moved with a flash of speed as I saw him sever the man's arm and make the decisive killing blow. He'd cut into several men in the process, moving so fast I couldn't even follow it.

Naaman showed off more of his prowess, demonstrating the special techniques he had developed over the years. I saw his massive blade flare with power as he swung in a massive vertical slash, releasing the energy in a massive blade of power. It flew toward a hapless spear wielder, cutting him in twain. To our surprise a pair of other beams split outward, striking down his comrades on either side. His faithful blade flashed once again, and he swung it about in a wide, horizontal arc, causing a wave of energy to fly out in all directions, eviscerating row after row of enemy troops, blood splattering the ground.

I'd quickly forgotten about the demise of the kindhearted Mr. Anders. This was the face of a true warrior at work. Soaked in blood, and unafraid in the face of battle. That's how I pictured myself wanting to be. I wanted to contribute to this fight. And do battle as a man alongside Naaman. That was always my truest wish. In a way, I still wish I could stand with him today. And have him tell me he was proud. That I was a true warrior who'd stood up against all odds for right. I think of myself as a man today, but it's factual my heart still contains such childish sentiment. I suppose we never grow up when we think of being granted the approval of our parents.

As a child, I cheered not understanding the grimness of the burden. "There's your dad, Kieran!" I quietly shouted in a half-whisper. A moment later, I heard lightning crack. A man exploded into gore as the bright blue light struck his body and arced between several knights after him. It was a literal bloodbath as these men turned into curds of meat, and blood in their suits. It was disturbing to witness happen as blood leaked from the seams of their armor. They were literally flash-cooked alive in their armor. I still have my dreads about suffering a similar fate. This is partially why I don't wear full plate armor. I'm sure Rita has disposed of many a ne'er-do-well in such a manner. Pure Mages are truly worthy of our fear, and respect for their powers over the elements.

Mother sauntered into the fray, looking unperturbed by the violent deaths she'd inflicted on the enemy. My mother was missing her apron, and a simple dress of a housekeeper. She was now clothed in a black jacket with a furred collar, tight black leather pants, and black thigh boots to complete the ensemble. It was the attire of a proper mage, charms of protection adorned her outfit. I'm sure every bit of jewelry she wore was enchanted in some way. I had seen mother in finery like this before when she'd leave town on trips to seek out new ingredients in. It reminded me she wasn't some peasant woman. She'd always had the glow of nobility from my stories and now I understood why. She did not belong in the ass-end of anywhere like Minas Tor. Mother belonged in the court of a ruler, weaving spells and brewing potions for the sake of exploring the mysteries of the world. Something told me this was the very reason why she was here. It did not take an adult to figure out that my mother made the wrong liege mad. That's why we were here in the first place to hide from his kingly wrath.

Mom was truly a woman of petrifying beauty and grace as she casually strolled alongside Naaman. She disassembled people down to their base atoms with her magics as her husband recklessly chopped and stabbed at their enemies. I was right. Naaman and Mom were a force to be reckoned with. My mother a manifestation of the elements, and Naaman the peerless swordsman with no quarter for his foes. It made my being rise with the expectation of being able to ride out this storm. Knights fell like flies at their feet, blood coating the grass like a fresh coat of crimson paint. It was a truly bloody opening to the summer months.

Mom showed off more of her craft, she made an almost idle gesture with her hand, snapping her fingers, the sky suddenly darkened as clouds appeared from nowhere, rain beginning to fall. I remember the hostile smirk she gave all of them. "Hope you waterproofed those things, boys. They'll rust." Massive bolts of white and blue lightning stabbed down, causing death by the dozens, it was a gruesome sight to be sure, their bodies twitching uncontrollably, dancing like marionettes on strings.

But it didn't stop there, the lightning flashed outwards, hitting anyone unfortunate enough to be close. A chain of electric death surrounded my mother. The hapless knights turned to hideous blobs of molten steel and charred flesh. And then the rain vanished as quickly as it had come, and the sky was crystal blue once more. Lifeless bodies all fell to the ground.

"Georg calls this an attack? I have seen better offensives waged by livestock on grass." My mother said aloud with disdain, she raised a hand stopping a stray arrow in midair with what seemed like pure will alone. She plucked it out of the air, twirling it between her fingers like a deadly baton. She dodged underneath a knight's sword with the grace of a prizefighter. And laid a simple palm on the man's armor. She uttered a simple incantation, causing the man to go flying back with a blue glow about him. It was then he exploded into his companions with the force of a bomb.

Mother deployed a shield against the force of the flash with what seemed like a casual dismissal of her hand. There was a rain of gore that spattered against the magic barrier. It all vanished with a heated sizzle against the blue-tinted wall. Mother snorted, causing the arrow within her grasp to glow with a simple incantation. It cracked with electricity. With a simple flick of her wrist, the arrow went flying, piercing the bodies of several enemies. It returned into her dark leather-gloved hand covered in gore an instant later. She regarded it with vague interest before she went back to twirling it between her fingers once more.

Naaman watched this display with great admiration, and I'll say without a doubt he was just a little turned on by it. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were working out some issues, dear." He said before impaling his opponent before slicing upwards, ducking underneath another's warhammer, before back kicking him in the chest.

"Why I have no idea what you're talking about." Mom took hold of dad's blade, powering it up with a lightning spell. "Do me a favor and get rid of that one guy." She indicated to a very large soldier, wearing no armor, instead just a pair of leather pants and carrying a huge axe, not to mention half his face looked melted off. "His face sickens me, do something about it."

Naaman just shrugged, running at the big goon, lightning arcing off his sword as he drew back to the right. The blade slashed horizontally from right to left across the big lug's midsection, causing him to bellow out in pain, he swung the axe, but Naaman danced around him, the sword bouncing back left to right, and then repeating the process two more times. All the while this was happening light from the arcing electricity trailing behind it, forming a square before fading away, the axe wielder falling down in four large chunks. Naaman sheathed his blade. "Does that work for you dear?" She just smiled and clapped lightly. Mom always did have a dry sense of humor.

She turned to see a large group of nearly a dozen soldiers advancing on her, thinking that strength of numbers would win them the day. It would have worked if it was a lesser mage they were facing. Mom just looked bored, raising both her hands and flicking her fingers outward, causing them to all stop dead in their tracks. She then raised her hands up, causing them to all levitate in the air flailing their arms and legs to no avail. A playful smile traced its way across my mother's lips and she began making sweeping gestures with her arms, juggling them in mid-air.

A snap of her left arm and two soldiers vanished into the afternoon sky never to be seen again, I hope they had a soft landing. A twitch of her right wrist downward and one soldier became intimately acquainted with the ground, his body slamming into the dirt, leaving only his feet exposed. She turned three more into heavy living javelins, sending them flying into the enemy ranks, sending them all flying like bowling pins. Having had enough of her fun, Mom stopped the remaining soldiers, and just crushed their armor with the sheer force of her mind.

But the coup de grace had yet to be delivered. Mom stood in the middle of the field, Dad at her side, as they were surrounded by hundreds of soldiers now. They were really getting desperate. She just threw her hair over her shoulder. "I guess it's time for the grand finale." Mom began uttering a rapid series of incantations while her hands moved in a series of elaborate gestures, her hands aglow with magical energy, she slammed them against the earth, causing a huge shockwave to fly out in all directions, it seemed to miss the knights, but when they looked behind them, it was all too clear what her final spell had done.

The very ground itself rose in a massive wave of dirt and rocks, I'd wager that it reached almost twenty feet high. The soldiers were panicking now. They were trapped and had nowhere to go. They could only watch their demise as the wave crashed down on them, swallowing them up and entombing them under several hundred tons of earth. It all came to a stop just inches from Mom and Naaman's feet. If this had been a competition demonstrating magical prowess, she would have won first place just for that alone!

Ezra's eyes were distant as he looked around the table at his recently found friends, all of them were quite entranced by the story, and wanted to hear more. "By, and large mother seemed to be nonplussed by all the death she was inflicting, dangerously beautiful in her aloof attitude. If I could not be a fearless swordsman, I wanted to be a conduit for the lightning-like my mother. Her powers contended with the god of storms from the north I had been told stories of. Yesenia of Underberg was a goddess of magic in my eyes. In the years since, I have not seen another mage that could match her raw talent or harsh apathy to destruction."

He paused a little bit, his lip twitching for the barest fraction of a second before he continued. "Well, that isn't entirely accurate. There is someone who wreaked as much havoc. A goddess of war and destruction, clad in white and covered in blood."

"I'll say!" Rita's voice carried genuine awe and approval as she swirled her spoon around in the bowl. Clearly, she had been taken with the story of Yesenia's magical rampage. "A Goddess of Magic indeed! The chain lightning alone is impressive, but making all those soldiers into her personal circus and finishing them with the mass grave like that at the end. Your mother is a true powerhouse!"

"And quite the lethal beauty it seems. Not to mention with a penchant for tight black leather." Raven wore a grin a mile wide. "I have a very clear image of Yesenia in her mage garb, and I like it a lot! You described her a little too vividly if you ask me, Ezra." He ignored the sharp glares from the women at the table.

Rita frowned, deep in thought. "As fascinating as I find this. I do have a couple of questions for you, Ezra. Magic can't be used unless you have a Blastia of some kind unless you're like Estelle. Yet I've seen you, Phoebe, and Furiae all tossing out spells left and right and I don't recall any of you saying you had one. That magic had to come from somewhere, right?" She folded her arms across her chest. "So where did it?"

Ezra silently cursed Rita's scientific curiosity. He remembered that the laws of nature worked differently than in their native land. The only but since he saw so much of his mother in the young girl. He decided to humor her. "It's a bit involved. To put it in simplest terms, we have a special organ for that." Rita's attention was fully on Ezra now. Her analytical mind was just ready to begin breaking down the technical aspects of it. "It's called a mana lobe. It's what allows us to use magic in our world."

The light had now gone off in the fire mage's aquamarine eyes. "I have to study something like that if just to see how it works." The possibilities were already coalescing in her mind. "If people from this dimension possess this mana lobe or something similar to it, then we won't have to give up magic! Barring Judith and Felecia, we're all human, so our biology can't be that different."

"For the record, I'm only half-elf. Elves, or Krityans as you guys call them, also invented magic! It's only a matter, of course, we have them, too!" Felecia cut in helpfully. "My father was human. And if you're looking for alternatives to using Blastia. There's another device you should consider as well. They're called Mana Converters, and they do pretty much the same thing, but instead of being harvested from Entelexeia, they're made from crystallized mana." She glanced at Ezra, gesturing to him. A grin manifested on her lips. "Ezra, show them what I'm talking about."

He clenched his hand into a fist and a complex magic circle wavered into existence, emanating a golden light. Rita was on it in a second, wanting to analyze it in every minute detail. She leaned in close, almost too close. "Curious, very curious indeed. I don't see any kind of crystal or bauble on you. Where is this coming from?"

"Just from me, like any other self-respecting mage. Just because there's no physical vessel, doesn't mean the magic isn't there. Because I can feel it every day." Ezra stated, smirking haughtily. He was so proud of himself that it radiated off him as he explained. "A Mana Converter is basically an advanced magical formula, and once the user becomes powerful enough, then the formula merges with them. And this right here is one of the most powerful of all, the Seal of Solomon, also known as the Seal of Kings. Solomon was the first known mage in our world. and this was his masterpiece."

Rita's mouth watered. Getting far too close for Ezra's comfort. She grabbed at Ezra's wrist, bringing up her spectacles with the special magnifying attachment flipped into place. "First chance we get, you are going to let me study this, no questions asked!"

"Down girl," Ezra said, gently pushing her away. Rita's shoulders slumped in defeat. For now, Rita Mordio never said die when it came to her research. Ezra thoughtfully said, "It's a shame Accord herself isn't here, she was a better storyteller than I ever was."

"You meant that weird, merchant girl that just seems to pop up whenever she feels like it?" Yuri asked, remembering a young woman with glasses and long dark hair in twin ponytails, carrying an absurdly large suitcase visiting them from time to time, and how she walked in the weirdest fashion. "There was always something weird about her."

"Yeah, I felt the same way. The way she walked just looked so unnatural." Karol piped up, a shiver going down his spine.

"She was still pretty easy on the eyes though," Raven remarked, beaming once again. "Don't tell me she's another of your girlfriends, Ezra? Come on now, you can tell old Raven every little detail. And if she's not your girlfriend, then is she available?" This made the entire Midgard contingent break out into riotous laughter. "What?" Raven asked.

Ezra struggled to regain his composure, holding back the impulse to display how tickled he was. He smiled knowingly. "You sound like a friend of ours. Well, let's just say she's not like other people. All she's really interested in is recording what she's been sent to observe, and I don't think she's really in the mood for small talk. So, I'm afraid to say you two would be incompatible. Sorry, Raven." The older man just shrugged, taking a piece of bread. It wasn't like there weren't plenty of other skirts for him to chase and not bed, saying he wasn't good enough.

Although Estelle hadn't taken the comment that well if the pout on the pinkeye's face was any indication. Fianna was quick to pick up on this. "Aw, it seems someone is jealous!" She put an arm around her, Estelle flushed a shade of hot pink that matched her hair. "Of course, you might have a good reason, Estelle. I mean, let's face it, you, Phoebe, and Furiae are all princesses, and you're all hot pieces of sliz."

"What? They're princesses?" Karol asked suddenly, unsurprisingly bemused.

Phoebe bowed her head, blushing profusely, and Furiae's reaction was less than enthusiastic if the way the heavy iron mace she was wielding was any indication. "You wanna say that again, Fianna?" She spoke in a menacing voice. "I don't know what 'sliz' means, but it sounds degrading!"

Fianna blanched. Her mouth went agape at Furiae's mad brandishing of the deadly, deadly weapon. She was right to fear Furiae because she'd cracked many a skull open with it. Both monster, and man. "Where the heck did you get that? Don't tell me you're coming to dinner armed!"

"Does it bother you that much?" Furiae's smirk scared more than a few people. Ezra stood back, more amused than frightened. She raised her mace, shouldering the implement of death. Her finger tapped lightly on the handle as she spoke. "Need I remind you that Yuri always has his katana handy. Between that and Repede, he's always ready for combat. I wanted to be prepared myself. And you're one to talk since I know you're packing knives, and Felecia has those hidden blades on her wherever she goes, so I don't see the problem at all!"

Yuri was taken aback by the princess' bubbleheaded jump in logic. "Uh, I'd like to go on record and say that it's a pure force of habit for me. I always get attacked a lot, so it was just easier that way."

"Wow, you guys are all terrifying!" Karol whimpered a little.

"That's why we're always ready to go. It's what makes us all such a superb team." Ezra said, trying to steer the conversation in a positive direction.

"I'll drink to that!" Lyris said in wholehearted agreement, knocking back her tankard of juice. Her choice was just as well because she couldn't hold her liquor as well as Fianna.

"Hmph, they may be no I in team, but they're definitely a me in it!" Rita said flatly, snorting derisively. "Let's face it, you'd all be lost without me!"

Phoebe broke any potential arguments up, grabbing Furiae by the back of her dress and pulling her down into her seat. Furiae sulked as she stared into her bowl, the neglected mace sitting uselessly in her lap. "Not here at the dinner table, Furiae. I worked too hard to make this dinner. I won't have spoiled just because Fianna got under your skin. Honestly, you're the only healer I know of that has a gentle and murderous side. If I didn't know any better, I'd say anger fits are genetic in your family."

"I'm okay with it! It's fine!" Mikhail chirped, letting out a childish titter. "It makes me think of Zero when she gets all smashy. Although Furiae is a lot nicer to me. She doesn't hit me with her mace and call me a dummy." The white-haired boy looked almost wistful as he talked about it.

Felecia just shook her head, quizzically starring at Mikhail. "Only you would look on that woman's abuse and be nostalgic about it. Zero was an absolute hot mess and we all know it!"

"Who's Zero then?" Judith asked inquisitively. "Is she the Goddess in White you mentioned earlier, E? It sounds like it. If so, then she must be an absolute beast when she fights!" The Krityan woman's eyes took on a wild sparkle. If there was anything Judith loved, it was a good brawl.

Yuri just chortled. "Oh, she's worked up now. I'll admit I'm curious too. I enjoy a good fight as much as the next guy, but if you're comparing her to your mother. Then she must be an outright monster then." The black-haired katana wielder smiled, fondling his katana's hilt eagerly. Something about the prospect of fighting a "monster" drove his blood up as well.

Ezra nodded solemnly. There was a nostalgic gleam in his eyes as he spoke. "Actually Yuri, calling Zero a monster is a perfect term. In many ways, she was one of the worst kind of monsters because she looked human, and I loved her nonetheless. I loved a monster in human form, so imagine if I told you that there were five more of her?"

"Oh really?" Raven asked, curiosity rising. The lecherous leering grin returned. "Tell me, were they hot?" Rita let out an exasperated noise, half tempted to pull the older man's face into his soup. "Oh come now! It's a perfectly legitimate question! I'm fully in my rights to ask."

"Of course, you'd lead off with that question. Your brain's not in your head, it's dangling between your damn legs!" Rita snapped, slamming her hand on the table for emphasis.

Estelle giggled innocently. "Now I can see why people always say you're like an old married couple." She clapped her hands together as she said it. Rita turned pale in horror at the implication. "I have to say it's quite adorable." This made Rita scream and begin gagging in disgust at the thought.

Karol then spoke up, sounding rather annoyed. "Hello? Did no one hear me earlier? I mentioned that we have three princesses traveling with us? I mean, we seriously need answers here."

Rita ground, palming her face. "You're the only one who didn't notice? What, did you think Furiae and Phoebe were just ordinary peasant girls? This is just like with Estelle! Hell, even I saw it! You are such a dummy! How oblivious can you really be?" Mikhail let out an excited squeal of joy. "What, midget?" She asked, angrily. Gifting the pint-sized albino with an odd look.

"Can you call me Dummy just the way you did now, Rita? Zero said it to me just like that! Just like that! It's a dead ringer!" Only to receive a very light smack to the back of his head courtesy of Phoebe. "What was that for?" He whined, his eyes stinging with tears.

"Please Mikhail, the last thing we need is for you to end up like Decadus. He was an absolute gentleman to be sure, but he was not right in the head." Phoebe shivered, wrapping her arms around herself. She pulled her blue woolen shawl around herself in the process. It was as if the reminder made the cabin much colder for her.

Only for Ezra to begin speaking in a deep voice, obviously mocking the man named Decadus. "Oh, Lady Phoebe, ugh. The fact you would deprive young Mikhail to emulate me is…so cruel. Too cruel for words my lady. Hungh." This made Mikhail, and the other girls start laughing, while Yuri, Rita, Estelle, and the others wonder why they'd laugh at something so creepy.

Rita growled under her breath, shaking her head furiously. "And here I thought Raven was a perv. If I ever met this Decadus character, he'd be getting a class A Mordio bitchslap! And then some flames for good measure!"

"Go right ahead, he'd love it," Phoebe said half-jokingly, causing the engineer to flinch.

Felecia nodded, her grim expression telling all. "The man was a textbook masochist, he got off on the pain. He'd jump right into your fireball for the pleasure of it." She broke out a mocking chuckle at the last moment. "That being said, Rita, you would have been a perfect replacement to Four for Decadus."

The blue-haired mage's expression soured considerably. In all the time Yuri and his friends had known Phoebe, she had always been a gentle type, often acting as a peacekeeper of sorts, they never thought she could get so enraged. "Four, do not even get me started on her, Felecia!" Her hands curled into fists, her fingernails digging into her palms in her uncharacteristic anger. "I worked my fingers to the bone to keep her kingdom running and look at how she repaid me! No greater bitch in sheep's clothing ever existed!"

"You don't have to remind me, P." Felecia's scowl was equally dark, causing both Karol and Mikhail to whimper a little bit, she stood up, slamming her fist into her table, "Remember what that pigtailed witch did to my people just because she didn't like them. Not to mention she killed Eric!"

"Oh, that's right," Phoebe said, immediately apologetic. "I forgot we both have a history with Four. I didn't mean to bring any bad memories back up."

"It's okay. We got her in the end." Felecia's cruel sneer unnerved Rita. She snickered grimly. "I'll be totally honest, I relished every moment when we gutted her like the worthless pig she was! She even squealed like one before we chucked her over the side of the airship."

Yuri blinked, seeing a good deal of himself in this girl suddenly. She was not the type to suffer evil without resistance. "This was more than just a catfight over a boy." He observed dryly. "She is your own personal Cumore or Ragou."

"She was." Phoebe and Felecia said at once in unison. Phoebe sidled up to Felecia, taking her hand into hers. She squeezed tenderly to remind the half-elf she was here for her. Felecia's anger had been surprisingly quelled, she smiled gratefully at the blue-haired mage. And Phoebe returned it wordlessly, such small comfort was only what a friend would offer.

"Are these girls all named after numbers or something?" Judith asked sardonically, leaning forward on her steepled fingers. "I mean, we have Zero and now Four? Whoever their papa was, he must have been the uncreative or drunk sort…. If not both at once."

"That is correct, Judith," Ezra said, chuckling as he raised his fingers one at a time. "Zero, One, Two, Three, Four, and Five. They are all central players in this story, but Zero wasn't always known by that name. She was known by another. However, before we can get to her, there's still the matter of what happened to my parents. Even though they had managed to wreck all those normal soldiers, Georg, Owen, and the Seal Guardians hadn't entered the fray, and when they did…"

Mom and Naaman stood proudly amidst the field of corpses, it was quite the pile of murder they stood atop. They turned their attention to Georg and his subordinates, who had watched the massacre unfold. The leader of the Order just idly clapped. "Splendid display you two. We can add murder to the list of charges against you. But your playtime is now over!" He drew his blade, brandishing it in a menacing manner. "Guardians, deal with these heretic criminals!"

The four knights drew their respective weapons and slowly began advancing on Mom and Naaman. "I guess if I can't enjoy the banquet, I'll just take it out on you! I'm sure your blood will taste extra rich!" The red-clad knight cackled madly as he tapped his axe in gloved hands, a mad gleam in his eyes. Mom just looked at him dismissively. I'll be honest, it would be hard for anyone to take him seriously.

"I'm sorry, Zhangpo. I'm afraid my blood wouldn't be able to provide much in the way of sustenance. Too much iron, besides I enjoy my blood where it is, thank you very much." She levitated the arrow in the air. "So how about I let you play with my little friend then?" She let the projectile fly right at him. Only for it to be knocked out of the sky with a single slash of his axe. Mom frowned. "Oh well, I suppose that old trick couldn't work on just anybody."

"How about I show you my take on it!" Zhangpo cackled once more. He began twirling his axes in his hands, the leading edge beginning to take on a dim red glow. As he continued to spin, the axe heads soon ignited into flames. "Watch them fly!" He yelled, hurling them out, the weapons spinning at such great speed appearing as circles of fire. They skimmed along the ground toward Mom. I learned that day she wasn't just a powerful mage, but also a very skilled acrobat.

She remained standing as the flaming discs raced on, intent on decapitating her. Mom gracefully backflipped out of the way, grabbing at a sword on the ground. She powered it up with her lightning magic, batting aside the first spinning fire axe before twisting her body to the side and avoiding the other.

Zhangpo looked about ready to throw a tantrum as the axes returned to his hands. It was then he remembered there was still a battle raging on as Mom hurled the still sparking blade at him. Of course, it landed point in the ground. Mom conjured up a huge lightning bolt using the metal sword like a lightning rod. But unlike the normal soldiers, Zhangpo was prepared, raising his twin axes, now glowing red. He used them as a makeshift shield, deflecting her spell up into the sky.

Mom chuckled in amusement. "That's actually fairly inventive for a midget like you. Or are you just an actual dwarf? If so then stuffing your face at the buffet isn't going to make you grow any faster, Zhang." She could only watch in amusement as the red-clad man leaped up and down in childish rage. The comedic moment was broken up as a heavy mist slowly wrapped around the battleground. Mom looked around, a telekinetically assisted leap high into the air the only thing saving her from being locked in a frozen tomb, courtesy of the field of ice spikes conjured by the depressed-looking chick.

She made a very graceful landing as the ice dissipated as quickly as it vanished. The depressed chick slowly advanced on her, lance pointed at the ground. "It's a pity things had to end this way, Lady Yesenia." She spoke in that same dull tone. "Still, I'm sure I'll be quite inspired once we're done here." Bringing her weapon up. "In fact, I think I already have a title for it, how does 'Lilac and Gooseberries' grab you? Since that's what your perfume always smells like."

"Sure, that's how I want to be remembered for all time, a subject of one of your ridiculous poems, Hanch. I think that pact you made affected your brain as well as your looks!" Yesenia rolled her eyes as her hand came up, the lightning arcing off her fingers. "You know, I bet you could do with a little electroshock therapy? It could go a long way to get you out of that depression. It's quite common amongst mage to use electricity to treat depression and clear up addled minds, and I can't think of a more addled mind than yours."

Mom's words seemed to actually get under Hanch's skin. "You of all people should know that I can't express happiness." She was starting to look angry. "The only way I can express myself is through pain and suffering."

"And let's not forget that bad poetry." Zhangpo piped up.

"Silence! You're only helping the enemy!" Hanch hissed.

"Oh, trust me, I don't need any extra help." Mom's grin was so smug. The would-be Goth seemed to finally have enough of all the taunting if the way the lance came down was any indication. An icy wind formed around the tip. She let out a wordlessly cry charging at Mom. Who once again showed off her acrobatic prowess. She slipped out of the way at the last minute as the tip of the lance plunged into the ground, turning the entire area into ice. Mom then ran up to the length of the spear, kneeing Hanch in the face, a sickening crack to indicate her nose was broken.

"Oh, you bitch!" Hanch raged, struggling to keep the blood from spurting out of her mangled nose. Mom looked unperturbed, as she held a hand out, and an ethereal-looking sword coalesced into view. It was a wicked-looking thing, colored a deep metallic shade inlaid with filigree in a deep blood red color. The handle curved back slightly capped off by a blade with a serrated edge. Mom swept through the air in a graceful circle, her spectral weapon ready for a backhanded swing that would take her head clean off.

Zhangpo then intervened, his flaming axes high overhead. Mom had no choice but to parry him. The diminutive knight slashed upwards with his right-hand axe, while bringing the left-hand one to get her across the stomach. She kicked him in the head, sending him flying back. Mom was starting to get tired, she conjured up a second blade identical to the first. It was clear that despite her strength, she was starting to tire, but she wasn't going to give up that easily. Mom had never been the type to quit.

At the same time, Naaman was squaring off against Death Man and the Dandy Elf. He wore a neutral expression, but I could see just the slightest hint of sadness in his eyes. I remembered that Georg said Naaman was a part of their outfit at one point, so he must have known these guys. "Hello Yaha, Urick." He addressed the Dandy Elf and Death Man respectively. "The last time I saw you two, you were just pages on the brink of becoming squires, so I guess you passed your final trials?"

"Indeed, Captain, we're both Lieutenants now." Yaha said, giving his staff a dramatic twirl, before slamming it against the ground and causing a minor shockwave to flow outwards as a display of his power. "I'm sorry it came to this sir. You were a true inspiration to all of us younger guys."

"It's the reason we pushed on to become full Knights after all," Urick added. "It's sad to see you would turn to such villainy. If I didn't know any better, I'd think it was because Yesenia bewitched you." He pointed his scythe at his former superior. "I implore you one last time to think your actions through, Captain. If not for yourself, then at least for Kieran. I can't imagine you want him to be orphaned because of this."

"It's because of Kieran I helped Yesenia in the first place., Urick." Naaman brandished his sword in a high guard position. "Not to mention Ezra as well. What I did was for both of them, not to mention anyone with the slightest degree of sanity. You don't know what Georg really has planned, if you did, you'd turn your blade on him in a second!"

All this got was a hollow laugh from Yaha. "Oh, you adopted that demon's spawn as well? Very cute. We'll kill the boy when we find him. I guarantee it won't be quick either. But Kieran we'll spare. At least he hasn't been tainted by this madness." The elf man named Yaha had just pushed the one button guaranteed to make Naaman and Mom angry. He looked ready to shout something, only for Mom to stop him.

"Not yet, dear! Save it for later." Mom glared at Yaha. Both Kieran and I could feel the aura of power emanating from her, laced with a heavy dose of killing intent. "For that remark, every one of you is going to die, and you'll be last, Yaha. I will make sure of that. It will be slow and deliberate, and every second will feel like an eternity to you!" She snarled. "I've come up with something new, it's called waterboarding, and it will be supplemented with plenty of lightning. I hope you have a strong stomach for it!"

"Just let me handle this dear. You've got your own hands full after all." He held his sword perpendicular to the ground. "Come on and show me how much you've grown from the boys I remember you as." Yaha smirked just a little, Urick's expression was unreadable due to the mask he wore. But it was clear both men weren't weaklings from how they wielded their weapons.

Yaha started it off by slamming his staff on the ground, causing the entire ground to shake beneath him. The ground fragmented and began thrusting up and down as a result of the tremor. Naaman was struggling to keep on his feet, launching another Blade Beam at Yaha, who managed to deflect the worst of it, When the second beam headed for Urick, the sight was enough to turn both of our stomachs. He literally began melting into the ground, avoiding it entirely.

The elven dandy went in for close-quarters combat, the staff and Naaman's sword connecting several times. While it was reinforced with steel bands, I imagine it was mostly due to it being reinforced by magic that kept it from being reduced to splinters. Yaha swung low, looking to break Naaman's legs. But he was far too nimble to go out like that. He jumped over it, rolling to the side, only for a hand to suddenly erupt from the ground, holding him in place.

Yaha's staff came down for an overhead swing, it would have crushed Naaman's skull into thousands of tiny pieces. But my stepfather didn't get to where he was by being unskilled. He jerked his leg, seeming to pull Urick out of the ground, and then I understood just what his power was, he could meld with the shadows. A pretty cool trick, I'd like to admit. Urick brought up his scythe for a wide sweeping arc, clearly aimed at decapitating him. But Naaman just stepped back. The tip of the steel blade barely avoided going through the front of Naaman's shirt.

"That was quite the close shave there, Captain. Could it be that the time you spent in this backwater has made you soft?" Yaha let out an effeminate laugh. He tapped the ground again, causing another tremor, this time causing a series of rocky spires to erupt from the ground. Naaman wasn't able to avoid it all this time, one catching square in the armored breastplate he wore. It was the first time someone had actually managed to hit either of them in the battle up to this point.

I wasn't the only one who had seen it. Mom clearly had wanted to help him, but she was hemmed in by Hanch and Zhangpo. Naaman staggered to his feet. Urick then pressed the attack, using the shadows to appear behind him, ready to add Naaman's blood to the copious amounts littering the ground. Only for a lightning bolt from Mom to intersect it. She and Naaman regrouped, both of them showing signs of wearing out now.

"I must say, this has been quite the warm-up. But I think it's time for us to get serious now." Urick said. "I'm sorry it came to this Naaman, but you brought it upon yourself. Everyone, call them up now!" He called to the others. Zhangpo began cackling louder than ever before and Hanch almost looked like she could manage a smile. Glowing magic circles appeared on the ground and a selection of nightmarish beasts began crawling out of them.

A demon with a massive horn coming out of his forehead coated in flames appeared behind Zhangpo. A sinister-looking sea creature with the upper body of a horse, a serpentine lower body, and wings resembling those of a dragon soon floated behind Hanch, a small army of goblin-like creatures wearing gardening attire carrying plows as weapons stood at attention before Yaha, but it was Urick's pact beast that was the most terrifying as it loomed from the shadows behind his partner. From the skeletal face to the jagged point of his spinal column, it was the Reaper himself!

Mom and Naaman looked at the collection of sinister-looking critters surrounding them. All the while Georg laughed out loud, so hard I wondered if he'd be able to keep on his feet. "Do get it now? Do you understand just what kind of power you two are up against? Hand over the Flower and the Grimoires and I'll be sure you'll have a quick execution!"

I'd give the evil speech about a 7.6, maybe add on an extra half-point for trying to be menacing. But it seemingly fell on deaf ears. "Your knights have formed pacts. Okay, that does give them a slight edge over the average soldier." Naaman remarked before his eyes narrowed. "But certainly, you haven't forgotten…they're not the only one who forged a pact! LEGNA!" His voice reverberated over the entire battlefield, and it was followed by an unearthly roar that shook the very ground, causing the two of us to nearly be knocked from our perch back down into the tunnel.

A black shape circled overhead, swooping down low. It kicked up a huge cloud of dust, obscuring everyone's vision. when it cleared, both Kieran and I could only look on, wondering if this was all just a dream. A dragon, an honest to God, flying, fire-breathing DRAGON, now stood behind our parents. Naaman said nothing, just getting up on the dragon's back. "Let's see just what your men are capable of now, Georg!"

The dragon roared as it ascended into the clear blue sky. Mom raised her arms and the storm returned. It was now apparent the real battle was about to begin, and with it, the start of nightmares that haunt me even to this very day.

The fire demon lunged at the dragon, shooting out long streams of fire from its hands. Naaman and his partner were quick to respond firing a gout of flame. The two beasts of fire were joined by the dragonfish, spewing a massive column of water, the three attacks intersected, producing a huge cloud of steam. It was hard not to admire just how badass Naaman looked astride that majestic-looking beast.

Zhangpo and Hanch had both merged with their pact beasts, so it was a little chilling to hear Zhangpo's cackle reverberate on the wind. "Hahaha! A dragon! This will be a true feast to behold! Come Ifrit. Let's see whose flames are stronger!" The demon roared, rushing to slash at the dragon's side with flaming claws. But Naaman was faster, spurring the dragon to rear up and slam a wing down on the demon's head.

"Quickly Kelpie!" Hanch's ethereal voice uttered, the water pact-beast body slammed Naaman's dragon from behind, followed by whipping its tail around to try and knock him to the ground, only for the dragon to counter with its tail, slapping the dragon-fish across the face. It would have been almost comical if the pact-beast didn't clamp down on the dragon's neck following that, causing it to roar in pain. Naaman grimaced and struggled to keep on the dragon's back.

The demon lunged, raking its fiery talons across the ebony scales. The dragon managed to shake off its attackers, greeting the demon with a veritable firestorm directly to its face. Before clamping down on the fish creature, drawing blood. The dragon spun about, sending the fish flying, before throwing another column of fire out, only for the demon to get in front of its partner, guarding it.

As Naaman clashed with Hanch and Zhangpo in the air, Mom was dealing with Yaha and Urick on the ground. The goblin-creatures cackled in anticipation as their master spoke. "Behold my pact-beasts, the gnomes. They are but mere children, however, they so do love to inflict pain. You will find them to be quite the challenge even for a woman of your skill and power, Lady Yesenia." Yaha's rant was cut short by the crack of thunder as two of the gnomes were sent flying, bodies aflame, before landing at his feet.

"You know I remember when I was a little girl. We had a huge gnome infestation. A well-timed lightning bolt takes care of them real fast. Of course, if I was bored, I'd just send them flying with my telekinesis." Mom just smirked, blowing some smoke off her fingers, even as they sparked slightly. "So quit yapping, ya dandy. Let's just fight!"

Yaha just gave a light sigh. "If that is what you want. Who am I to deny you? Come, children! It's time to play!" The goblins lined up in formations, chittering as they marched toward Yesenia, already conjuring up her next spell. She pulled her hands apart in a dramatic stance, lightning dancing between her palms. She thrust her hands out, and a wall of electricity roared outwards, scattering the critters like bowling pins.

Once again Urick emerged from the shadows, scythe held high overhead in a perfect position to separate her head from her shoulders. Only for her to conjure up another pair of the spectral blades, trapping the scythe blade before knocking him away with a quick telekinetic burst. Only to whip around to roundhouse kick a couple of the gnomes across the bloody ground. She swept her ethereal weapons in a graceful arc. The first blade snapped the shaft of a gnome's weapon into splinters, the second cleaving his head off.

Mom was a spinning whirlwind of death, but the gnomes kept coming, and the occasional sneak attack from Urick wasn't helping much either. Both she and Naaman were starting to get worn down and it was showing, something had to give eventually. Mom had just dispatched a couple more of the irritating little monsters when Urick finally got lucky. He emerged from the shadows, the Reaper rearing up behind, and the scythe came down, raking across my mother's back, blood spraying everywhere.

She collapsed to the ground, tears running down her face as she gasped in pain. I didn't want to believe that someone like Yesenia of Underberg could be reduced to such a sorry state, but here it was right in front of me. And then…it appeared, erupting from her right eye. A flower, black as the deepest abyss. The cry that erupted from her lips tore into my very heart and soul. I know Kieran felt it as well.

"YESENIA!" Naaman roared, firing off another Blade Beam to give the dragon an opening to rake its massive claws into the demon's chest, while throwing the most powerful flames it could conjure up, leaving the fish creature badly burned. "Get down there now, Legna!" The dragon swooped down toward where Mom was. He was ready to fry Urick, Yaha, and his entire army of wannabe Orcs when the entire battlefield was suddenly enveloped in shadow, darker than anything Urick had done earlier. A giant mass slowly reared up, taking a rough approximation of the human form.

It looked so otherworldly, so terrifying. The night sky conveys a sense of wonder and majesty, mostly because of the myriad of stars permeating the black void of space. It makes it look beautiful, if in a slightly eerie manner. There was no beauty to behold here. It was just a living shadow that looked roughly human, ready to consume everything in its path. And that was before its eyes opened! I call them eyes because they were in the right place, they were the polar opposite of that inky void, a pair of stark white holes with no sense of life behind them. A thin white slit formed, and it opened to let out a shrill, piercing scream, it was just as white and blank as those abominations called eyes.

Naaman wasn't sure what to make of it, none of us were. The shadowy hand reached out, grabbing the dragon by the tail, and it began spinning man and beast around, faster and faster before it let go. The dragon slammed into the ground, skidding almost thirty feet before coming to a stop. Naaman was thrown from the beast's back, knocked unconscious from the impact. The dragon stumbled to its feet, roared once, and leaped into the sky.

It took a few minutes before Naaman regained his senses. He looked around, obviously trying to find his partner. "Legna, you no good snake with wings!" He raged. It was then he caught sight of Mom, now out of it herself, the black flower still in her eye. Naaman began limping toward her, sword dragging along the ground.

It was then the four knights appeared, forming a wall between the two of them. Naaman weakly raised his sword, prepared to fight all four of them to get to Mom. "You really want to go? Fine then! I'll take you all on!"

"That won't be necessary, Captain. The general has it under control." Yaha said. Naaman had just opened his mouth as one of the most nightmare-inducing sights began to coalesce before us. A human-sized figure began to emerge from the darkness covering the ground. The shadows roiled about the figure, it almost seemed alive. And like its larger counterpart, it had a pair of lidless, pinprick eyes and A thin slit of a toothless smile, going far beyond a human smile should have been capable of, both that same bare white. It emerged from the shadows, and the darkness was rolling off of him, like a thick, viscous sludge.

We wanted to warn him, to do anything, but all we could do was watch in silent horror as Naaman was impaled through the back, his blood joining my mother's on the ground. He wheezed a few seconds before collapsing to the ground…dead. The shadow man uttered a heartless, uncaring laugh, the shadows began melting away, rolling off his body, if I didn't know any better, I'd say it was alive, when the darkness had receded, all that remained was Georg, looking extremely smug, wearing a sinister leer.

"And that is how you take care of annoyances!" The commander of the knights declared, before turning his attention to Mom's body. "Collect the corpse. We'll need it to extract the flower. And burn everything. I don't want there to be anything left of this miserable little town!"

This made Owen look concerned. "And what of the people still living, sir? Certainly, you don't intend to put them all to the sword now?"

Georg just rolled his eyes. This was nothing new between them. "Just arrest everyone still breathing. Send to the special camps. It's what happens to the trash who dare defy our High King." It was then a sickening sound could be heard. Everyone wheeled around to where my mother's body still lay, a crimson fluid was dripping from the flower. It ballooned out to be nearly as tall as a full-grown man, and a bloody figure slowly crawled out of it The figure was decidedly feminine and naked as the day she was born.

It took us a couple of seconds until we realized just what had crawled out of there, I could only utter that single word, not quite wanting to believe it myself. "Mom?" It was something neither Kieran nor I could ever unsee…our own mother naked and caked in blood. But it wouldn't be the last time I'd see this phenomenon.

Georg and the other knights all took a cautious step back. A sinister chuckle escaped her lips. "Hey guys, what do you think? I was really hoping I wouldn't have to resort to this. But what can I say? Karma's a bitch!"

"Owen, do something about this now!" Georg quickly barked to his executive officer. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was actually a little scared. It made me feel good inside.

Owen stepped forward, sinking into a battle stance while drawing his twin swords. My first impression is they weren't made of metal, for they didn't catch the light of the sun, instead being a stark bone white. "I'm sorry it came to this Yesenia, but it has to end here." Owen tried to address her in a disarming manner, but all he got for it was a wad of spit to the face and a contemptuous sneer from our mother.

"If you were actually sorry about this then you wouldn't have let your precious commander just kill your son!" Mom raged, her face contorting in a mixture of pain and anger, made all the more menacing due to how the blood was still dripping off her body. She paused for a moment, looking at Naaman's prone form. "You don't give a shit about this world the way Naaman did. You're nothing but a witless puppet, could care less about your grandson being fatherless! You always say you follow justice, Owen. Look around you, what justice is this? What justice is this!" She screamed.

The knight said nothing, just looking on impassively. "The answer to that is simple, Yesenia. The justice is a king's justice. Our king's justice. The providence of those blessed by the divine. It is not my place to question God's will, Yesenia. But you have gone against both king and God, by letting that demon seed take root in you. The King understands far better than any of us ever could. He created the Order of the Seal for that purpose, and why he gave me these blades." Mom actually looked afraid. She clearly knew he was talking about.

"That's right, Yesenia. These blades are one of the few things that truly kill you now. The High King himself gave them to me to right the wrongs you spurned on my son. Not to mention the people of this village. You should have surrendered when you had the chance. This all falls on your head, Yesenia, you and your damned hubris. And it will end by my hand." He then lunged at her, blades at the ready, when a swirling portal appeared at her feet. Mom didn't hesitate, leaping into it, vanishing for parts unknown. Owen just missed her, slicing off a few strands of her hair as she fell into oblivion.

"NO!" Georg began ranting and carrying on like a teenaged girl. I was half wondering if he would conjure up a bed to throw himself on it to complete the image. "Damn it! It's just like Systine! We almost had them this time!"

"Order all troops to begin a search across the empire!" Owen barked. His mind raced as he began determining the next course of action, proving who was the real brains around there. "Between using all those spells, the serious wound the Reaper gave her, and calling on the power of the flower in such short order means she couldn't have gotten far."

Yaha came up. "Is there anything else we need to do around here, Captain?" He asked in that delicate voice.

Owen bit his lip for a second, before schooling his face into a neutral expression. "No, round up the survivors and burn the corpses. Don't want them coming back wrong. Nothing worse than a zombie outbreak." Yaha just bowed before walking off. Owen took one final look around the ruins of the smoking battlefield before heading to the main group.

It never occurred to me, but that moment saved our lives. Kieran and I had seen enough, retreating back into the caves to return to Mom's lab. Neither of us dared to even utter a sound since the remains of the army were still combing the area and picking up their dead. Our hearts stopped when we heard the front door open, the sound of heavy footsteps overhead. I looked to Kieran, he always knew what to do, but he looked as lost as I felt.

Thankfully luck was on our side, the footsteps grew softer and we heard the door open and close. It was another forty minutes before we felt it was safe enough. I went up the ladder and ever so carefully pushed open the trap door, only to find it covered by the rug. "At least we know why they didn't this," I remarked to Kieran, trying to make a dumb joke to ease the tension. "Talk about the pinnacle of laziness." I let out a weak laugh as we crawled up the last rungs of the ladder, spilling onto the floor.

We both panted, thankful to be alive. But the two of us realized that we were effectively alone. No one was going to come to rescue us. "So where do we go from here?" I asked Kieran. "Do we head for a neighboring village?"

Kieran just gave a grim nod. "We can't stay here, that's for sure! If I remember right, Whitemarch is about a three-day journey to the west. Between your skill in magic and my steady aim, not to mention our very sturdy sword arms. I'm pretty confident we can deal with any stray beasts between here and there. Although we're going to need food and water to last us that long."

"Maybe even a little bit more, just in case," I added. Packing our meager belongings into knapsacks. We were ready to leave. I put my hand on the doorknob, looking around at the place that had been our home. Now it was just a collection of dust and echoes. Not wanting to let the emotions overwhelm me any further, I turned the knob and we stumbled out into the cold, unforgiving world. "Okay, Kieran. We should probably get moving now. It's already evening. We'll want to put as much distance between us and here as possible before it gets dark." But Kieran wasn't listening to me. He was just facing toward the battlefield. "Kieran?" I asked.

"He's still there." Kieran intoned. "Dad's body is still out there, Ezra. I can't just leave it."

I groaned and facepalmed. "K, I know you want to give your dad his due respect. And I don't relish the idea of leaving his body out in the hot sun to become vulture chow. But let me remind you we both heard what those guys would do to us if we were found. What they would do to ME if we were found." I put a special emphasis on that last part as Kieran kept gazing out at the blood-soaked fields.

"Not to mention I'm only eight years old, Kieran. I want to do some things first, like kiss girls. I'm really curious about girls for my age, and I would like to get to explore them a little more intimately one day. That predicates us staying alive."

"Time out!" Rita said suddenly. "Did you really say that back then, Ezra? Cause it sounds ridiculous if you ask me!"

"It does sound kind of silly," Judith added.

Ezra just smirked. "Come on girls, I think I'm allowed to exaggerate just a little bit. It is my story after all." Estelle and Phoebe both giggled as he resumed.

"Go ahead and look around for any extra supplies, Ezra. I just want to say goodbye to him, and then we can leave. Meet back here in ten minutes?" Kieran said. I could only sigh. Once my brother made up his mind, there was no way to talk him out of it. So I went further into the village, hoping to find anything that could help us on our journey.

I had to give Mom and Dad credit where it was due, even though they had torn up the grounds outside the village, most of the houses were untouched. I made my way through the village square. My brother and I used to play there with the other kids, now it was as dead as everything else was. I didn't waste time looking in the abandoned food stands. I had found a couple of other knapsacks so I put the smoked meat and fruit I could find.

It was then I came upon something unexpected in my salvaging. The body of a Tracker, a monster hunter who specializes in going after the most dangerous of creatures. Known for their incredible skill in alchemy, and the twin swords they carry on their back, one steel, one silver. I don't know why he was present in our village, but it seemed he had tried to stand up to Georg's forces and paid the price for it. The silver sword was broken, leaving only the handle and the bottom third, the steel blade laying in the dirt not too far away.

I had always heard of Trackers from Naaman, they were some of the finest warriors in the world but seeing this corpse before me was just another reminder that they were still mortal and could die as easily as anyone else. Still, he wasn't going to be needing his swords. For some reason, I just felt drawn to it. I picked up the steel sword, retrieving its sheath and affixing it to my own back. The blade was nearly tall as I was, but it felt right. I looked at the broken stump of the silver sword, catching my reflection in the surface

I was so caught up in admiring myself, I didn't notice when a large, meaty hand grabbed me by the shoulder. "Hey!" I cried out as I was whirled around, coming face to face with one of the knights from earlier. Clearly, the man didn't know what a bath was, because he was pungent.

"What do we have here? A looter?" He let out a mirthless chortle, hoisting me up so I was looking right in his eyes, and also the lovely aroma of his stinking breath! "I don't believe those swords belong to you, just as whatever else you've got in those bags. It's always cute when criminals start out young. Makes it easy to deal with them. After all, kids don't leave much of a mess."

If I had been just another normal child. I would have probably frozen up and met a very gruesome fate. But…I wasn't a normal child. Naaman had taught both Kieran and me how to fight and protect ourselves. Granted I was scared out of my mind. Thinking quickly, I stomped him on the foot, leaping in between his legs. I took the broken sword, slashing at the back of his knees, areas unprotected by armor.

The would-be knight gasped out in pain as he collapsed to the ground. I pounced on him, stabbing the broken, jagged tip into his neck multiple times, he tried to call out for help, but all that came out was a haunting gargle as he choked on his own blood. His head lolled to the side, as he expired. Once the adrenaline had died down, I stared into his blank, lifeless face. And then it hit me just what I had done. I promptly unloaded my entire stomach onto the ground.

Now you'd think that would be the worst of it, but unfortunately, luck was not on my side. The soldier's buddies had heard it and had just come around the corner as I finished the job. "That little brat just killed Shingo!" one knight said, venom coming into his voice. "That vicious little shit must be the witch's child! Only the spawn of a monster bitch like her could kill like that!"

"Oh, crapbaskets!" I whined, dropping everything and taking off to the other side of the village. I was being pursued by about nine of them. I tried to make use of the layout of the village, taking shortcuts, going places where a small kid could fit with little trouble. I barely avoided one of them grabbing my foot when I slipped through a small hole in the wall and I was outside the village.

I ran about forty yards, before I tripped, the hilt of the steel sword on my back smacking me in the back of the head. "Ow." I was soon surrounded. "Help." Was all I could manage, barely a whimper. Remember what I said earlier about luck? Well, it swung around real quick.

A massive roar shook the very earth itself. The ground quaked beneath us. A huge gust of wind blew up a thick, choking cloud of dust. I bolted behind a rock. All I could hear was a lot of screaming and bones cracking. I could see flames being thrown around, and felt the heat from those flames. In all, it was a sea of death. I heard a grunt, and ever so carefully peeked out from behind the rock to see my would-be savior.

It was a dragon, but not the one Naaman was fighting on earlier. This dragon was its polar opposite. Its scales were a brilliant silver-white, with the slightest sheen of light blue. It was beautiful yet also just a little intimidating. My legs were still shaky, as I tripped over my own two feet, catching the dragon's attention, staring me right in the eye.

I wasn't going to let myself die crying like a baby. I willed myself to my feet, grabbing the sword on my back. I went down into a stance. "Let me make something clear! I don't care if you are a dragon or not. I will survive this! My mother is out there waiting for me. So if you want to throw down, then let's do this right here and now!" I thought what I said sounded pretty badass, it probably would have been more effective if my face wasn't slimy from the tears and snot dribbling all over my face.

The only response I got was a low, growling in the back of my mind. It didn't sound scary if anything it was one of amusement. "Brave words, little one. Especially since you look like you could really stand to wash your face!" The dragon flared its wings. "I am the White Dragon Michael, and it seems I came at just the right moment. I felt something pull me here, perhaps you can explain to me just what that was?"

I'm lucky my jaw is secured so well to my head because I'm pretty sure it would have dropped off my skull entirely. "You can talk? I've seen a lot of crap today, but this is by far the single coolest thing I've ever seen!" It really was the coolest thing I had ever seen. A nice change of pace from all the blood and death I endured thus far. The dragon let out a snort.

"Take a breath, hatchling. Can you tell me what happened here?" He took a scouring look around the battered landscape. "Because it seems I missed quite a party, as you humans put it."

"So, you're really not going to eat me?" I asked, still nervous about becoming this thing's lunch.

"No, I don't eat humans. I find them too stringy for my tastes." Michael responded, starting to get annoyed.

An awkward pause hung in the air. "Are you really sure about this?" I couldn't help but be skeptical. Michael roared, slamming his tail on the ground.

"No, I swear on my honor as a dragon I will not eat you. Will you please answer my questions before I lose my patience!" I could feel the heat on his breath. Despite my initial step back, I stepped forward, not breaking eye contact with him for a minute.

"Well, excuse me for being skeptical, your draconic holiness! You'll have to forgive me, but I've had a really bad day! My village was destroyed by a bunch of religious zealots, my stepfather is dead, my mother is missing, my stepbrother is in danger, and I just killed a guy!" I threw my arms out, waving them all over the place. "I'm pretty sure all my friends are dead, and all because some dumb plant burst out of my mom's face and spit her out covered in blood!"

"I'm a confused, scared, and pissed off kid who needs some fucking guidance. So thank you so much for pelting with useless questions in my hour of need you scaly, blue nugget of a fuck!" I hadn't realized I was crying as I did this. But I guess I couldn't keep the stress down forever as I ranted. The mucus was dripping from my nose like a slimy, thick waterfall.

Michael had a look of consideration in his beastly eyes. Sympathy flashed in them. The dragon just let out a low rumbling sound. "Come on, hatchling. Clean your face off, and climb on my back." That stopped the bawling real fast as he spread his majestic-looking wings out, "Be lucky I'm in a giving mood. We should get as far away from here as possible. But not before giving the ones who attacked your home a proper goodbye."

Cleaning off my face and sniffling. I ran over to him, climbing back just behind his neck. Wordlessly, he flapped his wings once, and I was actually flying! We were soaring hundreds of feet in the air, I could see the village, I could see the plains surrounding them and reaching all the way to the horizon. Michael swooped down low, I saw the order soldiers, like ants waiting to be squashed. "Wait, Michael. Do you see my brother anywhere?"

"I do not see any human hatchlings being held captive." The dragon's voice roared in my head. "May I dispose of them?"

If anyone saw the evil leer on my face, they would be afraid. "Light them up!" I said. Mentally cheering as Michael spat several balls of fire at the ground, erupting into a veritable sea of flames as the entire goon squad burned into ash.

I expected to be happy to see my hometown avenged, but the satisfaction was outweighed by a growing sense of fatigue. "So where do we go from here, Michael?" I asked, leaning down, feeling my eyes getting heavy. I had no idea how tired I was.

His deep voice rumbled in my mind as my consciousness began to fade into sleep. "Away from here, hatchling. After that, I cannot say."

The atmosphere around the dinner table was a subdued one. Ezra idly rapped his knuckles on the table. "Thus began the crazy ride that is my life. It's something when I tell you that this is only the start of all the madness. If anyone has any questions. I'm willing to field them now. I'm certain you're the most curious of all, Rita. Since you wanted to know about our origins."

"Indeed, I do." The fire mage responded. "You can start with this flower. It burst out of your mom's eye, and then it spit her out like a newborn? Did that really happen or is this just more exaggeration?"

Ezra shook his head firmly. "In this situation, there is no exaggeration or embellishment at all. It really happened." He got out of his seat, beginning to walk around the room. "The bare truth is that damned flower was the direct source of all the misery in my life. The nemesis that never let me get a proper night's sleep."

"So where did it come from?" Judith asked.

He stood at the front of the room, looking at the map on the wall. "It will make a lot more sense if I bring it a little closer to home for you guys." He turned to face their pink-haired healer. "Estelle, you and Rita will especially know exactly what I'm talking about." His gaze swept across the rest of his companions. "You guys all know the Adephagos."

Estelle gasped at this. Rita grunted. "Uh, duh! We all saw it when that nut job, Alexei broke down the barrier between worlds at Zaude. That abomination is sucking up all the Aer in the world and it won't be long before we're out of luck when it comes to magic!"

Ezra smirked. "Well, your world wasn't the only one to suffer a cataclysm. It was about a hundred and fifty years before I was even born. According to the records, a massive earthquake ripped across the land, and a huge city just appeared overnight, disgorging with it a plethora of monsters worldwide."

"Not to mention, elves, dwarves, and the other non-human races," Felecia added.

"So that's what happened to all of them," Judith spoke up. "A thousand years ago, Elves, Dwarves, and a bunch of other races just vanished from the Terca Lumiereis overnight. The only tribe that remained was ours, the Krityans." Everyone looked at Judith like she had grown a second head. "What? I'll admit I may not be a colossal nerd like some of my other people, but even I know our history. Quite the coincidence if you ask me."

"There's no such thing as coincidence in my eyes." Rita snapped. "These two events are connected, aren't they, Ezra? I'm willing to bet the Flower is as well."

"The only thing sharper than your wit is your mind, Fire Girl," Ezra stated, even if Rita could be hot-tempered at times, she was smart. And he could respect someone with a sharp mind. "The Flower is a living entity unto itself. It hails from a realm beyond either this one or Midgard. It's there entities known as the Watchers reside. If I could describe them, just picture giant living baby statues. They live only for one thing, the total destruction of all reality. It wouldn't surprise me at all if what's happening here is just the beginning of the same thing that nearly happened in my world."

"What makes you so sure of that?" Judith asked.

With that Ezra began speaking, his voice was near monotone, and unsettling. "Verily I say unto you, the era of the sword and axe is nigh, the era of the wolf's blizzard. The Time of the White Chill and the White Light is nigh, the Time of Madness and the Time of Contempt: Tedd Deireádh, the Time of End. The world will die amidst frost and be reborn with the new sun. It will be reborn of Elder Blood, of Hen Ichaer, of the seed that has been sown. A seed which will not sprout but burst into flame. Ess'tuath esse! Thus, it shall be! Watch for the signs! What signs these shall be, I say unto you: first, the earth will flow with the blood of Aen Seidhe, the Blood of Elves…"

"Well, that certainly doesn't sound foreboding at all," Yuri said, blandly. Despite his sarcastic tone, they could see the completely serious expression on his slightly feminine features.

"What you have just heard is the prophecy of Ithlinne, a great Elven oracle from Midgard," Ezra said. "It foretells the coming of Tedd Deireadh, the Time of End, in other words, the end of the world. The Knights of the Seal had a connection to these beings, worshipped them as gods."

"Then it's a really old prophecy then," Judith said, a hint of fear in her voice. "I've heard similar prophecies made. Maybe there is a connection to these Watchers and that thing sucking the Aer out of our world."

"Oh, I know there's a connection," Ezra stated. "That distortion in the sky isn't just corroding your world. The Watchers are attacking on multiple fronts, corroding all worlds. Making them vulnerable so they can overrun them, destroying every world where there is life."

"So where does the Flower begin making your life difficult, Ezra?" Estelle asked. She had only heard bits and pieces of his past. It was time to get the full story from the source itself.

Ezra took a moment, closing his eyes for a moment. Calming himself before he answered. It truly was an emotional ordeal for Ezra. "Really, it started with my Mom, but it didn't happen right away, Estelle. It was a slow burn, but when it ignited, all that remained was ash. But before we get to that part, I need to tell you of how I met my co-star, no story is complete without the beautiful love interest after all."

"You're talking about Zero," Raven said, taking a large drink, intentionally slurping to annoy Rita.

"Yes, but she wasn't known as Zero when I first met her old man. I knew her by another name. It was quite appropriate actually. Despite her beauty, she had some very nasty thorns on her." Ezra looked wistful. "My beautiful flower…my precious Rose."

"She was important to you, wasn't she?" Yuri said. "I'm guessing the Flower took her away from you?"

"You could say that." Ezra's voice darkened. "Although it wasn't so much a flower as it was an otherworldly parasite pretending to be a flower, but we're getting ahead of ourselves. It sounds ridiculous and silly, but it really was love at first sight. She was the center of my whole world, and I would have done anything to protect her. Even after she became a monster in human form."

"That sounds like Nan and me." Karol piped up. "I couldn't imagine anything happening to her." This just earned a derisive snort from Rita.

"You and Nan are still little kids." Rita frowned, "what would you possibly know about love?"

"Oh that's real funny coming from the person who loves inanimate objects, oh wait, and Estelle too!" Karol shot back. "You want to talk about a love that was quashed before it even bloomed."

Ezra cleared his throat, interrupting the two before Rita got violent. "Let's try keeping on track here. With my village, a barren wreck, and my family shattered. I had no one else to rely on but Michael. He was an unconventional guardian, to say the least, but what I learned from him kept me alive up to this point. So I suppose the next chapter starts there.