Warning: This Chapter contains scenes of blood and gore, as well as violence and property damage.
Terrador sat in his office, his quill pen making a quiet scratching sound as he penned down the details of a completely different matter. The setting sun shined in through a window, bathing the front of the room with a golden light. Soon it would be dark, but the golden hour was currently painting a beautiful view of Warfang and it's architecture.
The door to Terrador's office swung open and the Earth Guardian looked up from his paper. In the doorway walked the famed Human that he'd been told about, looking almost exactly how Volteer and Cyril had described. Tall enough to stand level with a Dragon, wearing a crimson and black colored coat and donning a strange mask. A sword rested on the Human's back, which completed the ensemble.
Terrador quickly finished the line he was writing as the Human turned and closed the door behind him, the wooden door clicking as the lock slipped into place. The Human then turned around as Terrador slid the paper he was writing on to the right side of his desk.
"You requested to see me?"
The Human asked, his voice carrying a sense of regality that struck Terrador as ancient, even more ancient than he was. He was nearly a thousand years old at this point, but the Earth Guardian couldn't help but feel that the Human was far older than he, and had forgotten far more than he had ever known. Literally.
"I did. Please, feel free to take a seat."
The Human looked around the room, taking it in. Terrador understood why; the architecture of his office was strange indeed. The room itself had a set of four bookshelves next to the door, forming a sort of path to Terrador's desk. A red rug covered the stone floor and a candle was the only thing lighting the room besides the window above the door. The ceiling was a strange shape, being curved into a semi-circle and subverting the usual architecture of the Dragon Temple's rooms, which were for the most part, cube shaped.
"Thank you for the offer, but I shall stand for now."
Terrador nodded and moved on to his next words, quickly reaching over and opening a drawer of his desk. He pulled out a stack of papers which he then set on the face of his desk. On the face of the stack were the words 'Confidential' stamped on with red ink.
"I've called you here to discuss some things with you, if you'd be willing to listen."
The city of Warfang itself seemed to whisper in hushed gossip and rumors as the stars in the night sky twinkled far above the Planet. The moon shined eerily down on the lone figure that loomed on top of one of the many statues of the Dragon City, it's gaze encompassing nearly everything in the city, the shadows themselves bending to it's otherworldly will and revealing the things that hid in the dark.
Iglis stood almost deathly still on the top of one of the many spires of Warfang, Fulgur Fremea in his left hand and Mortifer in his back. His coat billowed in the wind, occasionally sending a cold breeze into his legs. He didn't flinch at the cool wind that attempted to break his concentration, instead focusing all of himself on his task.
He scanned the city, occasionally shifting his head to look elsewhere. The Elements of Earth and Shadow coursed through his body as he did his best to sense exactly where his goal was. He was horribly out of practice, as he had to alternate between using Earth to sense the vibrations in the stone and Shadow to make out things he couldn't sense with Earth. But both Elements bent to his will like weak plastic, allowing him free reign to get used to using then both at the same time again.
His stillness broke when he sensed an anomaly on the streets. He crouched onto the corner of the building he was perched on, holding Fulgur Framea tightly in his hand. There was a light source glowing dimly in an empty street, the location having long since been abandoned by more favorable people in an effort to get into the safety of their homes or whatever Inn was nearby. Now, it seemed the place had become a quick choice for shady dealings and undesirable acts, unseen by any good natured folk.
Iglis took a deep breath, drawing in more oxygen than usual. He then focused, doing his utmost to sense absolutely everything about the area that was abuzz with activity. The Earth responded and a pulse of energy sent itself up his legs, echoing through his very bones before the information reached his mind. There were four creatures residing in the alleyway in question, one of them being quadrupedal and the rest being bipedal. A dragon, two Cheetahs and a mole. It seemed that they were handling boxes of something, their weight becoming much greater for a few moments before lessening again.
Even from so far away, Iglis could tell that the two Cheetahs were armed. He could sense metal on them, but he couldn't tell what kind of metal weapon they were carrying. He then felt as the Mole and Dragon broke off from the Cheetahs, moving down a different alleyway with some of whatever they were carrying in tow.
Iglis released the breath in his lungs, allowing the now cool air to fog the environment around him. He shifted forward a little on the roof, quickly inspecting the street below him for footholds and obstacles.
Then, he let his body fall from the roof.
"Be careful with the goods, idiot!"
"Don't yell, stupid! Someone will hear us."
The two Cheetahs hissed at each other as they lifted one of the large boxes they'd been left to deal with. They strained a little as they moved the box into a small cart, preparing to move the box to their designated destination.
"I still can't believe they have us move this stuff. Hell, I can't believe they still sell it. Shit's toxic."
One of the two said as he moved back to the second to last box he sighed as he looked at the container, his nose wrinkling as he caught a whiff of the substance inside. His partner rolled his eyes and moved to pick up one side of the box, replying as he did.
"Because you get a great high, obviously. Now shut up and help me with this."
The other Cheetah levelled a glare at his partner and prepared to say something scathing and lined with profanities, but a strange wind caught his ear and a shiver went down his spine. He quickly turned around and looked down the alley, searching for anything that could've followed them. His partner simply sighed and stood from what he was doing, a look of annoyance on his face.
"What the hell are you doing? We're on a time frame, here."
He said, motioning for the first Cheetah to hurry up. Said feline raised a finger for his partner to be quiet, his eyes still searching the area for anything out of the ordinary.
"Shush! Did you hear that?"
A moment of silence passed as his partner leaned his head back and listened. The only thing that reached his ears was the quiet whistle of a weak wind, further dampened by the thick, tall brick walls around them. When he decided he was finished, he looked back at his partner.
"No-"
As the words started to emerge from his mouth, a flash of yellow light descended from the sky and struck the last two boxes the two were handling, sending sparks, wooden shards and the two Cheetahs flying. The Cheetahs gasped as the first was thrown into the wall and the second further down the street, with both of them failing to register what had just happened. They stumbled as they had trouble pulling air back into their lungs, trails of Electricity dancing across the floor as what looked like the specter of Death itself formed from the smoke.
A hooded creature rose from the remains of the boxes, the substance within crushed underneath it's dark colored boots. The brick underneath it cracked as it pulled it's weapon from the broken bits of wood and stone, Electricity still streaking across the length of the thing. The tip of the spear gleamed with a strange light as it was ripped out of the remnants of the substance, the liquid burning away as the Electricity coursing through it seared the opaque white substance. A set of nearly glowing blue eyes shined from underneath the creature's hood, a look of murder in it's orbs.
The second Cheetah felt his limbs turn to stone as he looked onward at the creature, a feeling of dread settling in his stomach along with nausea. This thing had just destroyed whatever was left of their cargo, and had done it with without either of them noticing it was near them.
The creature barely reacted as the first Cheetah rose from the ground, drawing his sword as he stood. With a furious yell the Cheetahs charged forward, the blade in his hand glinting as it soared through the air.
It happened in a flash, as if nothing had happened at all.
In one swift motion, the hooded creature turned and swung it's spear, slamming the pole of the weapon violently into the throat of the offending Cheetah. The impact sent the feline tumbling into the wall, smacking his head into the brick and easily forcing him to drop his sword, which clattered to the ground less than a moment later. The Cheetah then slipped into unconsciousness, his head wound having knocked him clean out.
The second Cheetah felt his fear skyrocket, his limbs now shaking uncontrollably in terror. He tasted iron as his stomach threatened to send up it's contents. The creature seemed to pay no mind to him as it shifted it's weapon back into a normal position, letting the now unconscious body slide to the ground and leave a red residue on the wall. The creature's hood shifted and the liquid residue of the cargo caught fire, quickly igniting into a blaze that consumed what was left. Another shift and the remaining untouched boxes caught fire as well, along with the cart that was used to transport them.
The Cheetah could do naught but stare in disbelief and horror as the creature finally turned, the spear in it's hand gleaming in the light of the newly sparked fire and it's piercing blue eyes staring down to his soul. It then walked towards him, it's boots failing to burn as it moved through the fire and up to him. He barely resisted as the creature reached down and grabbed him firmly by the collar of his clothes, lifting him effortlessly off the ground.
A strange, echoing voice reverberated through the air, shaking the Cheetah down to his very bones.
"Tell me exactly where you were delivering these drugs."
The Cheetah failed to answer, his throat quickly closing up as he attempted to swallow his fear. The creature simply looked on emotionlessly and it's grip tightened on his shirt.
Suddenly, the world began to distort and darken. The Cheetah heard his heartbeat fill his ears as the form of the hooded creature began to take on an even more Eldritch shape, it's hood transforming into a mass of writing black tendrils and it's coat shifting into thousands of tentacles that dragged behind it. Hundreds of eyes opened on the creature's body, staring at him with crimson irises that reflected the color of blood.
The voice reverberated again, but this time in a thousand different, unintelligible and unfathomable languages that threatened to drive the Cheetah insane.
"Tell me where these drugs are going, and I shall spare your life."
This time the answer leapt out of his throat, scrambling to get free and save it's speaker from certain death.
"An old warehouse on the side of the Mole Quarter! It's where they store all of the goods!"
The creature seemed satisfied as the Cheetah tried his hardest not to soil his pants, but failed anyway. The world began to darken further as the writing tentacles of the creature began to overcome the Cheetah's sight. Before he could comprehend what was happening, the world went pitch black.
The streets of Warfang were largely silent as the Dragon named Mephist and the Mole named Belial walked quickly down one if it's many alleyways. On the back of the Dragon was tied two boxes of a drug called Moon-silver. It was a heavily hallucinogenic substance that caused a great increase of Dopamine in the brain as well as altering the chemicals within the brain to such a degree that it caused vivid nightmares and visions, even after the effects of the initial drug had worn off.
They were headed towards a small warehouse on the eastern side of Warfang, intending to sell the Moon-silver to a bigger distributor for a hefty profit. They'd had a fairly smooth move so far, having left the rest of the Moon-silver with their two accomplices. They knew that the two would most likely get caught by the Warfang Guard or the Guardians themselves, but it was a necessary sacrifice. And if the two Cheetahs made it to their destination, it simply meant more money for them.
They walked with a purpose down the abandoned street, with Belial watching for anything that might slow them down or attempt to stop them. Soon, the mole stopped and looked around, sniffing the air. Mephist stopped as well, looking as his smaller partner.
"What is it?"
He asked, his piercing blue eyes glaring at Belial. The mole simply raised a hand and gestured for the Dragon to wait, his horribly bent and damaged claw wagging in the face of the Dragon.
"Something is burning."
As the words left the Mole's mouth, the sound of boots on stone hit their ears. Their gazes snapped to a street in front of them, and they managed to watch as a newcomer arrived. A hooded figure, carrying a gleaming weapon in it's left hand stepped out of a side alley, a pair of pale blue eyes staring at them from underneath it's hood. It walked out from the dark alleyways, still hidden mostly by the shadows and away from the moonlight that the Dragon and Mole were using as their guide.
Both Mephist and Belial felt as their spines tingled, a sense of primal fear inching it's way into their heads. The Dragon lowered his position into a fighting stance, while the Mole simply drew a dagger for self defence. The thing didn't look anything like a Cheetah, nor any other kind of creature. It could've been a Satyr or Faun from first glance, but it was too dark to tell.
Both of them froze as the hooded figure began to advance, it's movements calm, calculated and efficient. It was like watching a machine, or better yet the shadow of someone else, moving unnaturally smoothly compared to the movements of the person themselves. The spear in it's hand glittered in the moonlight, and as the creature stepped into the full glow of the moon they realized what they were facing.
A Human, having returned from whatever graveyard that they'd been laid to rest in.
Mephist didn't hesitate, quickly opening his mouth and launching deadly shards of Ice towards the hooded creature. And strangely, it didn't move as the huge chunks flew towards it. A sickening sound filled the air as they pierced the body of the hooded Human, sending it stumbling backwards while doing it's best to maintain it's footing.
The Dragon and the Mole watched as the Human made a choked sound, it's free hand reaching up to touch the huge shards of Ice that had impaled it's chest, stomach and left thigh. Blood quickly rushed from the wounds, standing the Ice a dark crimson and dripping down onto the stone of Warfang.
The first Human blood spilt in millennia.
The Human groaned as it grabbed the shard piercing it's stomach and pulled, ripping the huge chunk of Ice straight out of it's body. Blood poured from the wound, sending even more crimson liquid splattering onto the ground. The Ice shard soon joined it, shattering as it was tossed to the ground.
Mephist and Belial could only watch in horror as the Human effortlessly and without hesitation extracted the massive sharpened pieces of ice from it's body, seemingly paying no mind to them now that it needed to perform emergency surgery on itself. The second two shards were soon removed as well, taking but a minute of the Human's time to remove them.
The Human straightened as it tossed the final shard over it's shoulder, seemingly not even hindered by the gaping wounds still left from the attack. Then, in a flash of Electricity, it darted forward faster than the Dragon and Mole could react, appearing in front of them accompanied by a flash of yellow light. Mephist could only turn as the Human booted his Mole partner in the stomach, sending the small creature into the wall of the alleyway and knocking Belial unconscious.
The Human then turned, barely giving the Dragon time to react as it grabbed the pole of it's spear with both hands and swung, slicing the rope carrier off the Dragon's back with trained precision and sending the boxes of Moon-silver tumbling off his back. The Human then jabbed outward, hooking the guard of it's spear on the Dragon's horns and twisting. Mephist could do nothing as his entire body was flipped forward in a full somersault, landing painfully on his back and knocking the wind out of his lungs.
The Human straightened again as the Dragon gasped and writhed on the ground, encapsulated by pain and the inability to breath. Wordlessly, the Human turned and gestured towards the boxes with it's free hand. Fire leapt from it's fingers, a stream of the Element quickly burning the Drugs to ash
Mephist continued to try and regain his breath as the Human turned and stared down at him, it's pale eyes radiating only pity and disgust at him. The Human then lifted it's boot, and all went black.
Iglis groaned as he perched on another rooftop, using Framea to hold his weight while his leg healed. The ice spikes had certainly done some damage, along with his foolish thought that his presence alone would deter the Dragon from attacking. That had certainly been a lesson in expecting the unexpected.
He leaned over the edge of the rooftop, looking down at his next target; the warehouse. Well, more of an abandoned building that had been large enough to be converted into a secret warehouse by unsavory characters. It looked fairly normal, just a deserted building that barely had any activity around it. But that was from a bird's eye view. Iglis wagered that on the streets the place was a hot-spot for criminal activity, including the Drug Trafficking ring he was hunting down.
Another sharp pain sent itself through his torso and he let out a hissing wheeze. He looked down, beholding as his healing thigh worked to repair the damage. The muscles were visible in the moonlight, spasming as the newly regenerated tissue got used to receiving signals from his brain. The skin hadn't grown back yet, mostly due to the immediate frostbite the Ice shard had caused on impact. He assumed his bones were still setting themselves and generating more bone tissue to replace the broken and missing bits.
Iglis groaned as he backed away from the edge, finding a nice spot to sit and recover. He was aware of his enhanced healing abilities. He wouldn't have survived his imprisonment without them, of course. Any stop to rest there would've killed him outright, and unfortunately the monsters were endless. He was forced to fight with wounds that would've immediately sent lesser men and creatures to the grave. But now, he had the luxury of stopping to rest when he needed it. He wasn't about to pass a chance like that up.
He didn't remember where he'd received, or perhaps when he'd mutated said regeneration, but all he knew is that he'd had it for a long time. Long enough to where he could remember having hints of it from the almost completely obscured memory of being first locked in the Ice Prison.
Iglis sighed. He supposed a break was alright.
"Dammit, where is that shipment?"
A Cheetah growled, his deep voice stimulating the proper tiger-like growls that some of his species could produce. His name was Thorne, the pseudo leader of the Moon-silver drug ring. He'd been waiting in the warehouse for the rest of the Moon-silver to arrive so they could start shipping it out of Warfang and distributing the stuff left over.
He balanced a dagger on his claw as he waited, his growing anger causing him to lose more and more balance with the pointed weapon. The warehouse was mostly deserted now, since morning was approaching. This who did stay were just his security detail. One of those security detail paced behind him; a massive Fire Guardian who'd been undercover in the Dragon Temple for nearly a year. The Dragon's name was Ifrit, and he was just as agitated as Thorne.
"Perhaps they were caught by the Guardians?"
Ifrit questioned. Thorne growled and his chair toppled as the Cheetah angrily stood from it, now brandishing the weapon and quickly pressing it against the red Dragon's neck. Ifrit froze as the tip of the blade pressed into his scales. Not enough to pierce them, but just enough to be uncomfortable.
"If that's what happened, then you're failing at your job! And you know what I do to traitors."
Thorne growled angrily, pressing the dagger a little harder into Ifrit's neck. The Dragon did his best not to swallow in discomfort. Thorne was known for torturing those he didn't like, usually with even more harmful combinations of Moon-silver and other drugs. Said torture usually resulted in an extremely painful death.
"He is a traitor? That's amusing, considering he is playing both sides."
Thorne and Ifrit both jumped as a deep, regal sounding voice echoed through the warehouse. Thorne quickly wrapped a hand around Ifrit's throat, pulling the Dragon into a choke hold and keeping the knife just under Ifrit's chin. Thorne's yellow eyes quickly looked around the warehouse, searching the place for the source of the voice.
"Who are you?! Where are you?!"
The sound of footsteps echoed as a figure stepped out of the darkness, the shadows literally melting off it's clothing as it walked. A pair of pale blue eyes shined in the dark, accentuated by the vibrant crimson and hooded coat it wore. A shining spear was clutched tightly in it's left hand and a sword with a gleaming pommel and guard rested on it's back.
"I am no-one. I am simply a shadow of my former self. But that does not matter now."
The hooded figure said, lifting the spear and pointing it at the Cheetah and Dragon.
"Tonight, I shall be the end of your little group."
Terrador watched from one of the many balconies of the Dragon Temple as a massive pillar of black smoke rose from the streets of Warfang, orange flames licking the skylines as fire consumed a warehouse in some of the less populated areas of the city. Two more wisps of black smoke rose from the streets as well, two other locations where Terrador knew the drug called Moon-silver was being transported.
Cyril and Volteer stood on each side of the Earth Guardian, both of their gazes carrying a look of unease.
"Terrador, are you sure this was a wise decision?"
Volteer asked, watching as many Dragons circled the blazes, pouring water on the building and streets in an attempt to put out the blaze. But unfortunately their efforts weren't making any headway for reasons unknown. More accurately, reasons only known to the three Elder Guardians.
"It was the only way we could catch them, Volteer. Legislation for the full ban on Moon-silver was still months away. We couldn't let that shipment get outside of Warfang."
Terrador said, a hint of regret in his voice. They all knew what they had sent after that trafficking ring, and evidently their methods paid off. Volteer gave a nod at Terrador's words. He was right; the bill against the storage of Moon-silver was still being sent through the Council, therefore they couldn't convict the ones doing it. Laws against the creation and distribution of Moon-silver were in effect, but that could only do so much when there was already a large store of it in the city that they couldn't get rid of.
Not by legal means, anyway.
"But, are you sure it was wise to send Iglis to handle it? No doubt the criminals will tell the story of him capturing them to the Guard."
Volteer asked, looking over at Terrador with worry in his eyes. Terrador's gaze hardened like stone and Volteer noticed that his posture changed ever so slightly, tightening as if to try and keep anything from getting in.
"The Guard will write the stories off as the ramblings of drug-addled minds."
Volteer let out a quiet, sad sigh through his nostrils. He knew it was true. So many had been hurt by the secret distribution of Moon-silver, including entire families. Sometimes even children. The Guard would not be kind to those transporting and storing the drug, let alone listen to their stories about a masked Human being the one to dismantle their trafficking ring.
A soft thud echoed behind them, making Volteer jump and turn. Terrador and Cyril failed to react, simply swiveling around to face what had just landed. Iglis now resided behind them, lifting himself from what looked to be a superhero landing. The Human stood with a quiet sigh, resting the guard of his spear on his shoulder as he stood.
"Good grief, friend. You gave us quite the startle. Do try to be less alarming next time."
Volteer said with his usual cheer. Though Cyril could see the cracks in the mask. He didn't know if Iglis could though. The Human sighed and reached upward, pulling his own mask off his face.
"My apologies. It was required that I travel through more clandestine methods."
Volteer smiled a little at the Human's statement, still feeling a little giddy to be around such an ancient creature. Terrador took a step forward, staring down the Human with a steely glare.
"Did you take care of all of it?"
Iglis' eyes reflected Terrador's own stare, lacking any emotion as he responded.
"Indeed. I made certain to burn the stockpile. I incinerated the hidden cache as well."
Iglis said, still meeting Terrador's glare.
"Did anyone die?"
Terrador asked, a hint of fury in his voice. Iglis waited a second to respond, generating an edge of tension that both Cyril and Volteer could feel in the air.
"No. I only incapacitated them. Halting the transports while doing so was a more problematic task."
Iglis said. All three Guardian's watched as the Element of Shadow literally seeped off the Human, revealing the large holes in his clothing as well as the newly healed pink skin underneath.
"By the Ancients! Are you alright?"
Volteer said, quickly padding up to the Human and inspecting the freshly healed wounds. Iglis lifted a hand to reassure the Electric Guardian, levelling a tired sigh as he did.
"Quite. The most damage I received was injury to my clothing."
Iglis said. Volteer nodded with a smile. The fact that the Human was speaking with a slightly more modern dialect wasn't lost on the Electric Guardian; Iglis himself had requested a book on modern linguistics, and found a compromise with an older dialect that retained his formal level of speech. It was still not what many spoke today, but it was better than Shakespearian playwriting.
Terrador soon approached Iglis, the two staring each other down. Volteer took a step back as Iglis returned Terrador's steel glare, the exchange emanating an aura of conflict.
Until Terrador's glare softened.
"Thank you, truly. You've done Warfang a great favor. You have my blessing to live here, as I said when we discussed this. I will work to introduce you to the public, so you need not hide in the shadows. For now, all I ask is that you refrain from making any... Outstanding demonstrations."
Terrador said, a softness to his voice that Volteer and Cyril only heard when the Earth Guardian was speaking with close friends. To see him open up to a relative stranger was different, that was for sure.
Iglis stood quietly for a moment before nodding.
"My thanks, Terrador. It is an honor to be offered your hospitality. You have my word that I shall not cause any incidents. Hopefully things with become smoother with time."
Terrador smiled at Iglis' response, giving the Human a thankful nod. The Earth Guardian then sent Volteer a look that the Electric Guardian understood right away. Volteer then moved to head back into the temple, a smile on his face as well.
"Come on, let's see if we can find you some replacement clothes for now."
He said. Iglis looked over at Volteer and gave a nod before lifting his mask and placing it back on his face. Shadows once more began to cling to his form, perfectly imitating the damaged parts of his clothes. Volteer then walked back into the Temple, with Iglis following closely behind.
Terrador let out a sigh as he turned and looked back over the edge of the balcony, watching as the sun began to crest over the horizon. The massive smoke pillar had begin to thin out, as Iglis' had let go of his influence on the fire.
A new day dawned on Warfang. A day full of hope for the future, and it was heralded by a Human and the Element of Fire.
Hello everyone! Author here. I do believe this is the first instance of me addressing you all, so first things first. Thank you all for following and favoriting (if you are among those who have) this story! I hope you'll stick with me through this fic.
I tried going for a feel of Horror to some bits of this chapter, but I don't know how well they worked out. Make sure to let me know!
Speaking of which, I'd like to put a little disclaimer here. Some themes and things that happen in this story might be a little dark, including gore, death and other nasty things. I'll be making sure to put disclaimers at the start of every chapter that has these themes.
I'd also like to say that from now on, chapters will be named after musical pieces from games, TV and even classical musics. They all fit the chapter they're being used for, of course.
To address a recent review, I'd like to specify that yes, my specific style of spacing dialogue out between paragraphs is indeed a stylistic choice. I mostly do it to be different, but sometimes when I read too fast I accidentally skip dialogue, so I want to prevent other people from falling into the same hole.
I probably won't be doing many of these announcements, but I'll make sure to make one when I feel it's appropriate.
Once again, thank you for reading and I'll see you in the next chapter!
