CHAPTER ONE – The Goliant Attacks
All three of them, the best of friends: Rinoa, Mina, and Zell. Zell's grandfather knew Mina's mother and father, when they were both alive. Her father was found murdered, by an unknown assassin. His body left in the wilderness, torn and burnt, as if he were attacked by animals, which is impossible considering, he was one of the best martial artists in the entire world; evil, yes, but still one of the best, with or without the presence of the master of his darkest side. Her mother, Mikayla, pure of heart, seen by most as an angel sent from above, had ordered her older brothers to take her and leave to find their grandfather, Shikyo Hiroku, the night she disappeared. Mina was but a baby when it happened that night, but her eldest brother, Lan, recapped her a bit when she first learned to speak and walk.
~~~
That dark, cloudy night, there was a giant monster at their door; a monster born to prey on the souls of strong fighters in order to survive and make himself stronger, the God of Fighting, the Goliant.
Standing at over 7 feet tall, the human-like Goliant was covered with leathery green skin from head to toe. Its eyes, a violent shade of blood red; eyes that stared right into you, bore down into your skull. Eyes you could lose yourself in for an eternity; the deep pool of never-ending swirling flow of the fires of hell. Just a few precious moments lost in eye contact, and the God of Fighting would have already captured your mind. You would become hypnotized and your body would forever remain in his possession, your spirit left to the unending torment of pain and suffering, along with other lost souls. Upon his head, he wore an Aztec-style helm; a flat, gold, tower-like wall that curved in midway just slightly with intricate designs and patterns that branch off into two long, separate, flat mini-towers. Attached along the sides, were two horn shaped gold plates that curved much like a question mark, again decorated with intricate designs and patterns. The back of his head was covered in a simple gold plate shaped to his size, with a large, round hole allowing his long, brush-like violet-colored hair to come out as a ponytail. Extending downward along his cheeks, are two golden strips of metal, curved outward by his chin, framing his expressionless face that seemed to be carved out of stone, never showing any hint of emotion, whether it be the cold or heat, or pain or joy. Attached to his left wrist was a small golden shield, large enough to cover his arm from the wrist to his elbow from flesh wounds. A thick golden band wrapped around his right, muscular, upper arm and left thigh. Long, golden bands wound around his ankles as a sort of protective armor. Wound around his waist, was a golden waistband, smooth all 'round and meeting at the front in the middle as two great rounded disks adorned with symbols that represented the tongue of ancient gods and goddesses worshipped by the Aztecs, and attached to his golden waistband was a skirt-length leather piece, ripped and ragged from centuries buried beneath the soil.
Snow came down heavily as Lan went out when he suspected someone was outside and there he found the Goliant, standing tall and staring at him with a bored look. The coldness of winter bit into Lan's (who was only wearing his pajamas: track pants and a sleeveless) bones, but the almost hail-like snow fell around the Goliant who seemed totally unaffected.
""Who are you, what are you doing here at my family's home?" Lan demanded forcefully, but the Goliant merely took small steps towards Lan. Having been trained in the Syano-style of martial arts, Lan prepared himself for a fight and stepped into his attack stance, both hands balled into fists, one extended slightly ahead, ready to attack and the other, just a touch behind, ready to fend off any blows from his opponent. The Goliant kept up his slow advance, and Lan was about to strike but Mikayla burst out of the house before he could.
"Lan where are you--", seeing what was happening before her, her eyes went wide with fear. "Lan! Get away from him! Get inside!" Before the young Syano could answer, the large figure's head snapped up to gaze upon her, raised a massive arm and pointed.
"You are the warrior who defeated one of Hell's guardians, the being called Devil. Goliant has come to add another soul to his growing own," his voice seemed to echo across the mountain, shaking the tons of rock from their foundations.
Lan stood defiantly in the giant's path, "No! You do not threaten my mother, leave this place!" He bellowed at him. The Goliant didn't flinch at Lan's words, just continually pointed at his mother. Lan knew full well that this was the force that was hunting them...his mother and he wasn't going to let that happen, to them, or his brothers and baby sister. If he were to be killed this night he would somehow force his spirit not to venture to heaven, to come back to earth and still protect his mother and siblings. "Heed me, wanderer! I WILL BE HEARD!!" Lan screamed at the top of his lungs, twirled himself and slammed a kick into the side of the being's stomach. For the first time, it looked down at Lan with some expression, an amused but angry one.
"My ears are not the part that dissuades me, for I have been hearing you fine little one.... I just wasn't listening," the being said in the voice that boomed like the thunder of a dry, summer night. But Lan just starred coldly at him, as cold as the snow coming down, and coldly he did while clenching his fists, ready for anything. "If a pup such as yourself has the courage necessary to challenge the Goliant, let the battle commence."
Mikayla was screaming, "NO! Lan, run away! RUN AWAY! Get everyone away from here and leave! Bring everyone to your grandfather. GO!"
Her son didn't give her cries any attention; her cries sounded like a bee buzzing around his ears. He had to do this for his honor and family. When Mikayla realized he wasn't going to back down, she began to run at him and would tear him away from this confrontation. But as she ran, she felt her entire body come to a halt as the massive begin held a palm towards her, she felt suspended by some unknown force of gravity. She looked on in horror as her son was going to fight a being that seemed to have powers not of this earth, and there wasn't anything she could do. Lan rushed the green- skinned behemoth and attacked, a rapid succession of punches there, and few quick kicks here. It was hard to control his footing as the snow kept coming down. Occasionally, Lan would slip just slightly, resulting in his fists missing its target. He fought faster and harder then even he had thought was not possible, but desperately tried to cause some damage, any kind of damage, before his bare feet finally turned numb. Sadly, the Goliant simply batted away each strike, causing a sharp pain to Lan's limbs whenever he did so, until he had caught a finishing uppercut. In comparison, he had Lan's entire fist swallowed into his massive green hand, and slowly started to squeeze it, Lan heard a snap and screamed in pain. The godly warrior then hoisted his heavy arm high into the air and backhanded Lan clean across his face sending him spinning where he crashed into a tree and fell to the ground, splashed into a mound of fluffy, cold snow. A small crack was heard as he hit the tree, and a faint trail of blood trickled down the tree where Lan had collided.
"NO! You sadistic bastard! If you've hurt him, I swear I'll..."
"You'll what woman?" He released Mikayla from the psychic hold, turned towards her and stepped closer, and closer, and closer.
~~~
Lan slowly dragged himself off the floor, spitting out the blood collecting in his mouth, and then winced in pain. 'Damnit. I swear, a huge ass bruise is gonna be on my cheek when I wake up tomorrow. That asshole. I have to get Mina and Havik out of the house.' Struggling to his feet was even harder than he thought. His body felt like liquid, he was tired from his fight with the Goliant, and his body ached and bruised all over. His breathing came in short gasps, 'Why is it so hard to breathe suddenly?'
~~~
While Lan struggled to get up and force his way into the house and rescue his two siblings, Mikayla tried her best to fight off the powerful Goliant. Block, parry, dodge. Block, parry, dodge. Block, parry, dodge. That was all she could do.
She finally decided, 'It's time to go on the offense.'
She dodged his last punch and swooped down low from a hard kick to his shin before she would give him a backhand slap across his face. Unfortunately, she underestimated his heightened senses and agility. As she was about to knock him down, he followed through from his evaded punch with a roundhouse kick and sent her flying backwards and hitting the floor hard. She heard a loud snap when she hit the floor, and sharp pain shot down her left arm. She got to her feet as fast as she could, cradling her broken left arm close to her chest. Her first glimpse of the Goliant showed a fiery red flame coming out of his mouth, engulfing her home in flames...
'MINA! LAN! HAVIK!' "NOOO!!!!!" That was all she could do; scream out her children's names in fear and stare at the monster who just killed her children while he laughed like there was no tomorrow. But maybe there was no tomorrow for him, or her, but she just had to play her cards right. She had to. For her children's sake; for what humanity could awake and find at their door...
~~~
Lan glared at the Goliant for all he was worth, but knew that he could do nothing to help his mother. If his mother was barely able to defend herself, what good was he? He was sure he would only get in her way, and she would hurt herself protecting him in the end. As soon as he got Havik and Mina out of the house, he was pretty sure they could all (excluding Mina) take on the Goliant together. He would be outnumbered; how could he possibly win then? Him and his twin brother Havik were fairly strong fighters, not as skilled and experienced in the martial arts as their mother, but they could still tilt the scales in their favor if they could distract him long enough for their mother to decide how to get rid of this intruder.
Reaching into his mind, he sought his brother. 'HAVIK! Havik! Can you hear me!?'
'Loud n clear bro. Jeez...you don't have to yell. What's happenin' outside? Mina's bawlin' her eyes out! She won't fucking shut up!'
'I'll explain everything later. I'm barely able to move right now. It's hard enough just leaning on the side of this tree. Just get Mina and yourself out of the house right now!'
'WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENIN'!!?? I swear Lan. If you don't tell me right now I'll –'
'You'll what Havik? Listen...I don't have time for this right now. We don't have time. Mom's in trouble. Just get your ass out her right now with Mina. And don't forget to wrap her up warmly. I'm not sure how long we'll be out her in this blizzard.'
'Tch...fine...have it your way. I'm only doing this 'cause you said Ma needs our help. You may be my brother, but I won't hesitate to beat you to a pulp. A guy needs his sleep around here, and being woken up in the middle of the night and having to go outside in this fucking cold weather ain't helping my bad mood either.'
'You can sleep for an entire week without me waking you up if we get this over with. Just hurry!'
'Alright alright Mr. I'm-in-charge. I'm almost at the door.'
'Good.'
Finally looking up from his awkward position against the tree, Lan just saw his mother being knocked to the floor by a roundhouse kick and heard the sickening crack of her bone against the hard, packed snow.
"Shit...MOTHER!!"
~~~
Quickly grabbing a bundle of clothes and jackets, Havik wrapped them all around his baby sister and ran out the door. On reaching the door, flames burst through the windows on his right and he jumped away in time, but his exit was blocked by fire licking the wood of the cabin house and burning everything in its path.
'What the fuck is going on??" Havik was about to turn around and head through the garden exit but the fire that traveled towards the kitchen finally set off an explosion on impact with the electronics, and he was thrown against the wall, still clutching Mina tightly in his arms...
~~~
She bit back a sob as she watched while her house burn down, with her children in it.
"H-havik...M-mina..L-lan.."
In the end, she could no longer hold back her tears, and she let them flow down her face freely. Crystal clear droplets of water rolled down her pale cheeks, and splashed onto her white dress. Blood trickled down her broken left arm and stained her pure white dress, but she didn't care. All her thoughts centered on her children. She pictured them happy in her head. Just yesterday, they were all happy when they went on their picnic in the woods, and how Mina finally said her first word; Mummie...
"Mummie..." she whispered softly to herself and a small breath of air escaped her as short sobs came out. Her light-framed body swayed slightly in the cold blizzard air, her body deadened from almost all pain, her skin, numb to the touch. Shifting her gaze back towards the Goliant, her eyes turned to ice and she shot daggers at him for what he had done. Mikayla resumed her fighting stance, and prepared for the fight of her life, knowing the outcome if she lost this confrontation. She swore he would go down, even if she had to as well. She prepared for a burst of energy to attack the enemy with a head-on attack, as foolish as the attempt seemed, she would surprise him. Yes she would.
Before she had even taken a few steps in that short sprint, the Goliant merely lifted his palm and raised it to point in her direction. Immediately, she was blown back by a sudden gust of wind, and she crashed against a tree, the wind knocked out of her and a crack in her skull, causing her left vision to be blurred. The Goliant stepped up to her, grabbed the scruff of her neck and lifted her up with one arm. Static blue energy surrounded the monster as he slowly drained Mikayla's energy away from her and taking it as his own. Hot tears fell down her pale face and slowly blurred her vision. Her body finally fell limp and the Goliant opened his mouth, eating the soul leaving Mikayla's body, completing the final process of his soul-stealing technique...
~~~
The explosion flung Havik backwards and his right shoulder collided with the sharp edge of a wooden cupboard. Pain shot down his right arm, but he clung onto Mina and protected her with his body as fire rained down on him from above. The wood slowly burned away to ashes; large chunks of wood came down and knocked Havik unconscious while the fire still licked at the wood covering Havik and Mina...
~~~
Black leathery wings shot out from the Goliant's back as he looked upon his surroundings. 'Only the boy is left standing. I will not waste my time on him. I have more souls to collect, and he does not have one strong enough for me. But his mother, ahhh...she was a good catch; enough to feed me for weeks! Plenty of time to find my next victim.' Glancing over at the boy, he watched Lan as he slowly pulled himself up.
Lan glared back at the Goliant. 'Mother! How could he? That evil bastard!' "You will pay for that you monster!" He brought himself to his fighting stance, taught by himself by reading books and from his mother, but as soon as prepared himself to run towards the Goliant, a dizzy spell caught him and his hand caught a nearby tree branch for support. Once again, he found it hard to breathe and realized he was coughing out crimson-red blood.
'That crack I heard earlier...did I...could I have...?'
Bringing his hand up to his chest, he felt around his ribs and found one that appeared to be indented. Pressing it gently, he gasped in pain, and finally realized, 'That fucking bitch broke my rib! No wonder it hurts so much to breathe.'
The Goliant gave Lan one last smirk before beating his body-length black wings, creating small whirlpools of air and snow. Kicking off the ground, he flew off into the night, leaving behind a nothing but footprints and wing prints in the white, bloodied snow he had stood upon just moments ago.
Lan could do nothing, but just watch as his mother's murderer escape from his grasp. Even in the tired and helpless state he was in, he felt like he could have done something, something to help his mother...
All three of them, the best of friends: Rinoa, Mina, and Zell. Zell's grandfather knew Mina's mother and father, when they were both alive. Her father was found murdered, by an unknown assassin. His body left in the wilderness, torn and burnt, as if he were attacked by animals, which is impossible considering, he was one of the best martial artists in the entire world; evil, yes, but still one of the best, with or without the presence of the master of his darkest side. Her mother, Mikayla, pure of heart, seen by most as an angel sent from above, had ordered her older brothers to take her and leave to find their grandfather, Shikyo Hiroku, the night she disappeared. Mina was but a baby when it happened that night, but her eldest brother, Lan, recapped her a bit when she first learned to speak and walk.
~~~
That dark, cloudy night, there was a giant monster at their door; a monster born to prey on the souls of strong fighters in order to survive and make himself stronger, the God of Fighting, the Goliant.
Standing at over 7 feet tall, the human-like Goliant was covered with leathery green skin from head to toe. Its eyes, a violent shade of blood red; eyes that stared right into you, bore down into your skull. Eyes you could lose yourself in for an eternity; the deep pool of never-ending swirling flow of the fires of hell. Just a few precious moments lost in eye contact, and the God of Fighting would have already captured your mind. You would become hypnotized and your body would forever remain in his possession, your spirit left to the unending torment of pain and suffering, along with other lost souls. Upon his head, he wore an Aztec-style helm; a flat, gold, tower-like wall that curved in midway just slightly with intricate designs and patterns that branch off into two long, separate, flat mini-towers. Attached along the sides, were two horn shaped gold plates that curved much like a question mark, again decorated with intricate designs and patterns. The back of his head was covered in a simple gold plate shaped to his size, with a large, round hole allowing his long, brush-like violet-colored hair to come out as a ponytail. Extending downward along his cheeks, are two golden strips of metal, curved outward by his chin, framing his expressionless face that seemed to be carved out of stone, never showing any hint of emotion, whether it be the cold or heat, or pain or joy. Attached to his left wrist was a small golden shield, large enough to cover his arm from the wrist to his elbow from flesh wounds. A thick golden band wrapped around his right, muscular, upper arm and left thigh. Long, golden bands wound around his ankles as a sort of protective armor. Wound around his waist, was a golden waistband, smooth all 'round and meeting at the front in the middle as two great rounded disks adorned with symbols that represented the tongue of ancient gods and goddesses worshipped by the Aztecs, and attached to his golden waistband was a skirt-length leather piece, ripped and ragged from centuries buried beneath the soil.
Snow came down heavily as Lan went out when he suspected someone was outside and there he found the Goliant, standing tall and staring at him with a bored look. The coldness of winter bit into Lan's (who was only wearing his pajamas: track pants and a sleeveless) bones, but the almost hail-like snow fell around the Goliant who seemed totally unaffected.
""Who are you, what are you doing here at my family's home?" Lan demanded forcefully, but the Goliant merely took small steps towards Lan. Having been trained in the Syano-style of martial arts, Lan prepared himself for a fight and stepped into his attack stance, both hands balled into fists, one extended slightly ahead, ready to attack and the other, just a touch behind, ready to fend off any blows from his opponent. The Goliant kept up his slow advance, and Lan was about to strike but Mikayla burst out of the house before he could.
"Lan where are you--", seeing what was happening before her, her eyes went wide with fear. "Lan! Get away from him! Get inside!" Before the young Syano could answer, the large figure's head snapped up to gaze upon her, raised a massive arm and pointed.
"You are the warrior who defeated one of Hell's guardians, the being called Devil. Goliant has come to add another soul to his growing own," his voice seemed to echo across the mountain, shaking the tons of rock from their foundations.
Lan stood defiantly in the giant's path, "No! You do not threaten my mother, leave this place!" He bellowed at him. The Goliant didn't flinch at Lan's words, just continually pointed at his mother. Lan knew full well that this was the force that was hunting them...his mother and he wasn't going to let that happen, to them, or his brothers and baby sister. If he were to be killed this night he would somehow force his spirit not to venture to heaven, to come back to earth and still protect his mother and siblings. "Heed me, wanderer! I WILL BE HEARD!!" Lan screamed at the top of his lungs, twirled himself and slammed a kick into the side of the being's stomach. For the first time, it looked down at Lan with some expression, an amused but angry one.
"My ears are not the part that dissuades me, for I have been hearing you fine little one.... I just wasn't listening," the being said in the voice that boomed like the thunder of a dry, summer night. But Lan just starred coldly at him, as cold as the snow coming down, and coldly he did while clenching his fists, ready for anything. "If a pup such as yourself has the courage necessary to challenge the Goliant, let the battle commence."
Mikayla was screaming, "NO! Lan, run away! RUN AWAY! Get everyone away from here and leave! Bring everyone to your grandfather. GO!"
Her son didn't give her cries any attention; her cries sounded like a bee buzzing around his ears. He had to do this for his honor and family. When Mikayla realized he wasn't going to back down, she began to run at him and would tear him away from this confrontation. But as she ran, she felt her entire body come to a halt as the massive begin held a palm towards her, she felt suspended by some unknown force of gravity. She looked on in horror as her son was going to fight a being that seemed to have powers not of this earth, and there wasn't anything she could do. Lan rushed the green- skinned behemoth and attacked, a rapid succession of punches there, and few quick kicks here. It was hard to control his footing as the snow kept coming down. Occasionally, Lan would slip just slightly, resulting in his fists missing its target. He fought faster and harder then even he had thought was not possible, but desperately tried to cause some damage, any kind of damage, before his bare feet finally turned numb. Sadly, the Goliant simply batted away each strike, causing a sharp pain to Lan's limbs whenever he did so, until he had caught a finishing uppercut. In comparison, he had Lan's entire fist swallowed into his massive green hand, and slowly started to squeeze it, Lan heard a snap and screamed in pain. The godly warrior then hoisted his heavy arm high into the air and backhanded Lan clean across his face sending him spinning where he crashed into a tree and fell to the ground, splashed into a mound of fluffy, cold snow. A small crack was heard as he hit the tree, and a faint trail of blood trickled down the tree where Lan had collided.
"NO! You sadistic bastard! If you've hurt him, I swear I'll..."
"You'll what woman?" He released Mikayla from the psychic hold, turned towards her and stepped closer, and closer, and closer.
~~~
Lan slowly dragged himself off the floor, spitting out the blood collecting in his mouth, and then winced in pain. 'Damnit. I swear, a huge ass bruise is gonna be on my cheek when I wake up tomorrow. That asshole. I have to get Mina and Havik out of the house.' Struggling to his feet was even harder than he thought. His body felt like liquid, he was tired from his fight with the Goliant, and his body ached and bruised all over. His breathing came in short gasps, 'Why is it so hard to breathe suddenly?'
~~~
While Lan struggled to get up and force his way into the house and rescue his two siblings, Mikayla tried her best to fight off the powerful Goliant. Block, parry, dodge. Block, parry, dodge. Block, parry, dodge. That was all she could do.
She finally decided, 'It's time to go on the offense.'
She dodged his last punch and swooped down low from a hard kick to his shin before she would give him a backhand slap across his face. Unfortunately, she underestimated his heightened senses and agility. As she was about to knock him down, he followed through from his evaded punch with a roundhouse kick and sent her flying backwards and hitting the floor hard. She heard a loud snap when she hit the floor, and sharp pain shot down her left arm. She got to her feet as fast as she could, cradling her broken left arm close to her chest. Her first glimpse of the Goliant showed a fiery red flame coming out of his mouth, engulfing her home in flames...
'MINA! LAN! HAVIK!' "NOOO!!!!!" That was all she could do; scream out her children's names in fear and stare at the monster who just killed her children while he laughed like there was no tomorrow. But maybe there was no tomorrow for him, or her, but she just had to play her cards right. She had to. For her children's sake; for what humanity could awake and find at their door...
~~~
Lan glared at the Goliant for all he was worth, but knew that he could do nothing to help his mother. If his mother was barely able to defend herself, what good was he? He was sure he would only get in her way, and she would hurt herself protecting him in the end. As soon as he got Havik and Mina out of the house, he was pretty sure they could all (excluding Mina) take on the Goliant together. He would be outnumbered; how could he possibly win then? Him and his twin brother Havik were fairly strong fighters, not as skilled and experienced in the martial arts as their mother, but they could still tilt the scales in their favor if they could distract him long enough for their mother to decide how to get rid of this intruder.
Reaching into his mind, he sought his brother. 'HAVIK! Havik! Can you hear me!?'
'Loud n clear bro. Jeez...you don't have to yell. What's happenin' outside? Mina's bawlin' her eyes out! She won't fucking shut up!'
'I'll explain everything later. I'm barely able to move right now. It's hard enough just leaning on the side of this tree. Just get Mina and yourself out of the house right now!'
'WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENIN'!!?? I swear Lan. If you don't tell me right now I'll –'
'You'll what Havik? Listen...I don't have time for this right now. We don't have time. Mom's in trouble. Just get your ass out her right now with Mina. And don't forget to wrap her up warmly. I'm not sure how long we'll be out her in this blizzard.'
'Tch...fine...have it your way. I'm only doing this 'cause you said Ma needs our help. You may be my brother, but I won't hesitate to beat you to a pulp. A guy needs his sleep around here, and being woken up in the middle of the night and having to go outside in this fucking cold weather ain't helping my bad mood either.'
'You can sleep for an entire week without me waking you up if we get this over with. Just hurry!'
'Alright alright Mr. I'm-in-charge. I'm almost at the door.'
'Good.'
Finally looking up from his awkward position against the tree, Lan just saw his mother being knocked to the floor by a roundhouse kick and heard the sickening crack of her bone against the hard, packed snow.
"Shit...MOTHER!!"
~~~
Quickly grabbing a bundle of clothes and jackets, Havik wrapped them all around his baby sister and ran out the door. On reaching the door, flames burst through the windows on his right and he jumped away in time, but his exit was blocked by fire licking the wood of the cabin house and burning everything in its path.
'What the fuck is going on??" Havik was about to turn around and head through the garden exit but the fire that traveled towards the kitchen finally set off an explosion on impact with the electronics, and he was thrown against the wall, still clutching Mina tightly in his arms...
~~~
She bit back a sob as she watched while her house burn down, with her children in it.
"H-havik...M-mina..L-lan.."
In the end, she could no longer hold back her tears, and she let them flow down her face freely. Crystal clear droplets of water rolled down her pale cheeks, and splashed onto her white dress. Blood trickled down her broken left arm and stained her pure white dress, but she didn't care. All her thoughts centered on her children. She pictured them happy in her head. Just yesterday, they were all happy when they went on their picnic in the woods, and how Mina finally said her first word; Mummie...
"Mummie..." she whispered softly to herself and a small breath of air escaped her as short sobs came out. Her light-framed body swayed slightly in the cold blizzard air, her body deadened from almost all pain, her skin, numb to the touch. Shifting her gaze back towards the Goliant, her eyes turned to ice and she shot daggers at him for what he had done. Mikayla resumed her fighting stance, and prepared for the fight of her life, knowing the outcome if she lost this confrontation. She swore he would go down, even if she had to as well. She prepared for a burst of energy to attack the enemy with a head-on attack, as foolish as the attempt seemed, she would surprise him. Yes she would.
Before she had even taken a few steps in that short sprint, the Goliant merely lifted his palm and raised it to point in her direction. Immediately, she was blown back by a sudden gust of wind, and she crashed against a tree, the wind knocked out of her and a crack in her skull, causing her left vision to be blurred. The Goliant stepped up to her, grabbed the scruff of her neck and lifted her up with one arm. Static blue energy surrounded the monster as he slowly drained Mikayla's energy away from her and taking it as his own. Hot tears fell down her pale face and slowly blurred her vision. Her body finally fell limp and the Goliant opened his mouth, eating the soul leaving Mikayla's body, completing the final process of his soul-stealing technique...
~~~
The explosion flung Havik backwards and his right shoulder collided with the sharp edge of a wooden cupboard. Pain shot down his right arm, but he clung onto Mina and protected her with his body as fire rained down on him from above. The wood slowly burned away to ashes; large chunks of wood came down and knocked Havik unconscious while the fire still licked at the wood covering Havik and Mina...
~~~
Black leathery wings shot out from the Goliant's back as he looked upon his surroundings. 'Only the boy is left standing. I will not waste my time on him. I have more souls to collect, and he does not have one strong enough for me. But his mother, ahhh...she was a good catch; enough to feed me for weeks! Plenty of time to find my next victim.' Glancing over at the boy, he watched Lan as he slowly pulled himself up.
Lan glared back at the Goliant. 'Mother! How could he? That evil bastard!' "You will pay for that you monster!" He brought himself to his fighting stance, taught by himself by reading books and from his mother, but as soon as prepared himself to run towards the Goliant, a dizzy spell caught him and his hand caught a nearby tree branch for support. Once again, he found it hard to breathe and realized he was coughing out crimson-red blood.
'That crack I heard earlier...did I...could I have...?'
Bringing his hand up to his chest, he felt around his ribs and found one that appeared to be indented. Pressing it gently, he gasped in pain, and finally realized, 'That fucking bitch broke my rib! No wonder it hurts so much to breathe.'
The Goliant gave Lan one last smirk before beating his body-length black wings, creating small whirlpools of air and snow. Kicking off the ground, he flew off into the night, leaving behind a nothing but footprints and wing prints in the white, bloodied snow he had stood upon just moments ago.
Lan could do nothing, but just watch as his mother's murderer escape from his grasp. Even in the tired and helpless state he was in, he felt like he could have done something, something to help his mother...