Still with me? Awesome!
The same day, the same forest, but different events that lead to the same clearing nonetheless.
Enjoy :D
"Gotta hurry. I can barely sense him anymore. But he must be close." a female voice muttered to herself albeit the tone sounded quite strained.
Each jump and she wanted to scream in pain. Each breath and she almost fainted from the agony which shook her body from head to toe. Each second and she was a step closer to death. And the worst of all she didn't even understand why. She didn't understand why this cloaked swordsman attacked her out of nowhere. She has only been searching for some ingredients for today's supper she wanted to cook.
But what did she get in place of that? A fucking bastard assaulting her without reason in the middle of the forest, a fucking bastard who was insanely strong on top of that. Luckily she could hold her own against him, not in the sense of fighting back but dodging. She knew he was better in almost every regard compared to her in terms of battle prowess. If she had stayed she would have ended up as today's supper for some famished Zeugle.
A thought that she was not enthusiastic about. She tried to find the window allowing her to escape from this madman. The cold doesn't affect her much, never has and never will. That's what she has learned after the countless baths she has taken in the frozen rivers and lakes of Cyslodia. Not once has she shown any signs of frostbite nor has she even shivered.
Seeing as the cloaked man wore warm clothes resistant to the icy temperatures outside he didn't share this useful skill of hers. His body may be covered up but not his lungs. The more he moves, the more he needs to take in oxygen to recover the spent energy, only available in the chilly air. Breathing in too much cold air can cause catastrophic damage to the lungs and that's what she was waiting for. She doubted this monster would die but at the very least it should give her enough of an opportunity to get the hell away from here!
That was her initial plan. But before it came even close to this particular moment she picked something up, far, far away in the distance. Her friend and partner was in distress, something she can't remember that has happened before, since they arrived in this land. It cost her only a tiny amount of a second to ascertain the situation over there, the fraction of a moment that was too much of an opening for her enemy.
Cold steel drilled through the flesh of her lower abdomen and nailed her on the bark of a tree, leaving her without an escape route. Pain seized the reign inside her body, erasing every other perception. She wanted to scream but bit her tongue instead. She would not give him this satisfaction. Still, whether she would live or not depended on her opponent's morbid fantasies and the way he studied her looked not promising, not at all.
With those yellowish eyes, he gazed her up and down, making it so much worse since he said nothing until their eyes met. He mocked her, for being weak, for being the lower creature she was in his eyes. At this point, every fibre of his body basically screamed arrogance.
However, the higher you stand the deeper you fall. Due to his lordliness, he left himself wide open. It was the chance she has been waiting for earlier but now being stuck on a tree on the wrong side of a sword, escape was not an option anymore. The only plan left was to strike hard and fast and so she did and got him good, real good.
Her hand moved and whipped this creepy grin from his face. He tried to dodge but paralysed by his own arrogance he was not fast enough. Next followed the sound of blood spurting as it stained the snow at their feet with red. Further. it drenched the inside of her right hand, the one she had used in her attack. Then she squeezed, slowly, making sure this fucker could hear every last noise that was produced as she crushed the object in her palm.
He turned his face towards her and glared at her with murderous intent inside his eyes – or rather inside the one eye he had left. His other eye had turned into disgustingly feeling goo between her fingers and left behind an empty hole in his head.
She was not done with him though. Hollowing her cheeks she collected saliva and spat him right into his ugly face!
"That's what you get for attacking women in the middle of a forest, you fucking creep!" she screamed in raging fury at him. Maybe it was not the brightest idea to coax the man who could possibly turn into her murderer even further but then and there it didn't matter to her.
Suddenly a blueish emblem formed on his forehead and his remaining eye began to shine brightly. The wrath emitting from him almost scorched her yet she hold her ground. She has come this far and would go all the way to the end.
But before she could form another thought or throw a new insult at the swordsman's face, his sword and hand were covered by a thin layer of ice. The girl barely realised what happened before she had fully turned into an ice sculpture, bound to the tree for eternity in this land of chill and snow.
The swordsman pulled his weapon out of the girl's body, the blood covering the blade itself also frozen solid. With his left hand, he covered the wound afflicted to him, the injury that would never heal unaffected by the turning of time's cogwheels. He glared at the now frozen girl again. Oh, how he longed to shatter her into thousand pieces for what she had done to him but he had to continue his search. Otherwise, it might be too late and he had to start anew in another realm.
"What a waste of time," he muttered before he swung his blade and disappeared within blue sparkling light. Left behind was only his handiwork, blood continuously oozing out of the human statue.
For seconds only the storming blizzard could be heard until seconds had turned into minutes. Then new sounds joined the orchestrate as cracks formed on the surface of the icy shell. The structure began to shake and with each movement, new ravines were created and before long everything shattered.
The girl tutted to the ground releasing a stream of curses filled with pain as she clutched her side, where she has been stabbed. Each of them is more inventive than the one before.
"Fuck this" Who the hell does he think he is? At first, he uses me as his fucking sheath and if that's not enough already he turns me into a living popsicle?! Goddammit! Next time I see this one-eyed bastard I'm going to rip off his dick and shove it down his throat!"
Inspecting her injuries she muttered silent curses again. A clean pierce through, from her front to her back meaning she had two gaping holes from where she lost blood. Living in the wilderness for several years by now it was not uncommon to get yourself wounded from time to time. Yet she had to admit this was one of the worse cases.
She needed to treat this quickly and then rest for some weeks shackled to her bed without much movement. But most likely it would leave a rugged, nasty scar behind, no matter how good the treatment might be.
At least she was able to free herself relative quickly from the ice prison. The cold might not affect her much but that only applies when she is in tip-top shape. If she has been, for example, skewered by someone, and would still run around as if nothing has happened, she might as well slit her throat by herself. 'Would make things way faster.' she silently thought to herself as the pictures swayed through her mind.
For others the icy cage had most likely been their end but not for her. As vital as water may be it holds unmeasurable destructive potential as well. It can turn a small river into a raging flood destroying everything in its path, it can swallow everything in form of a devastating avalanche, let you oversee the ledge of a cliff you're walking towards because its too foggy outside or cook every living being raw in a burning stream of boiling water from the insides of the earth.
She's different from others. For her water is no means to an end nor an object to fear. Water is her ally. Has always been and will ever be. That's she certain of and that's how she broke through the sword master's Arte easily enough. No matter whether it's fluid, frozen solid or vaporised. Water will always be her helping hand.
Still, this whole ordeal has been way too close for her liking. Probably she can count herself lucky to be still alive. She couldn't make out much of the weird emblem that appeared out of nowhere on the man's forehead but the shining eye? Without a doubt, her attacker has been a Renan. What he was searching for in the middle of the wilderness was beyond her comprehension and honestly, she didn't care that much to begin with, what a Renan swords master was doing out here. At least as long as he doesn't attack, that is.
"Luckily, he pissed off in time. Otherwise, I would have been in quite some trouble." she looked down at her clothes stained in her blood and had the sudden urge to correct herself. "Or better said I would have been in even more trouble than I'm already in."
In order to slow down the flow of her blood, she took a calming breath, trying to assure her furiously beating heart that the immediate danger is gone and therefore any need for rapid movement inside her has ceased to exist. She didn't know how much of the vital fluid she has lost already but either way, she must do everything to prevent any further loss or at the very least reduce it to an extent that allows her to return to her hideout deeper inside the frozen woods.
Easier said than done though. When she tried to stand up she fell over again, suppressing the scream of pain that wanted to bubble from her mouth. Her front and back throbbed equally in a perfect synchronized duet, making it all but impossible to move anytime soon. As much as she loathed the idea she had to sit back and wait until her body had taken care of the first aid treatment it does on its own. If she forces her way through she will be dead in no time, bled out like a broken pipe and end as the next meal for the Zeugles roaming this forest.
Even though, this was everything but optional because the cold would gnaw away at her strength slowly but surely and leave her behind in a weakened state. But observing her injuries she had not much of a choice in this regard. Without a doubt, she can consider this to be one of the worst days in her entire life.
However, this day was far from over. It had just begun. Dana is not a world, where life goes the way you want. It never does. This iron rule is the one and only similarity Dahnans and Renans share with each other in their otherwise solidified hierarchy of masters and slaves.
Suddenly the girl grew restless. It struck her without warning and overwhelmed her for a short moment. At first, she couldn't identify the cause for this sudden change. Has the Renan done something else to her other than ruining her day? Putting aside the pain and throbbing and the building drowsiness capturing her body fibre for fibre there was nothing strange. At least not something that was perceptible for her senses.
Meaning there must be another reason for this. Mulling what it could be, the next impact of restlessness hit her like a bolt of energetic lightning, catching her off guard and unprepared. But with the new reminder, she realised immediately what was going on.
It was not her own distress but the one from her friend and companion, the only she had in her whole life, transmitted to her by the deep connection she shares with the frozen water beneath her frame. They met as enemies under dire circumstances but soon had developed a mutual respect for each other. In order to survive in this merciless world, they've worked together ever since, creating a bond that only they could grasp.
Her friend is a Zeugle, one of the creatures brought to Dana by the Renans during their invasion three hundred ago. He is one of a kind, an albino ice wolf, the only one existing on both planets. Stronger and smarter he surpasses his own kin by far, the difference as clear as the difference between day and night. He is a true incarnation of winter itself with his majestic white fur. Wherever he goes the temperatures drops and a blizzard is summoned but she doesn't care.
Knowing him long enough she has seen true nature. Others might not be able to comprehend this but his character is very much alike to the ones of humans. He can be caring and gentle at times and switch his persona in less than a few seconds and act as a mocking asshole. He can't speak but those red eyes of him tell more than enough. Enough that the girl has more than once screamed at him because he was making fun of her when she did something stupid.
Truly a special Zeugle, unique and irreplaceable in her life. He's so extraordinary that deep down, as much as she tries to deny this truth, she's aware that he was created – a disgusting word as she finds, life shouldn't be created – for a specific cause. And unlike the Zeugle himself, the reason he was bred is nothing special, nothing at all. In contrary. It's actually plain simple.
To kill her.
Nothing more, nothing less. That's all there is to it. The albino ice wolf, her friend, was solely created in order to kill her. She realised this back then when they first met. In the dark, cold cage where she was imprisoned and where he was released inside too. He probably knows this cruel truth as well.
But fate is such a fragile thing. Sometimes it showers you in endless misery and another time it's the complete opposite, granting you more fortune than you need, even more than you can actually expand in life. In their case, they befriended each other instead of killing each other and maybe this also builds the foundation for the close relationship they have.
And now he was for whatever reason in danger. The girl sprang up, the pain in her front and back too much to endure by the sudden movement but she didn't care. Worry and adrenalin drove her forward as she began to run, not caring for a single second about the recoil that would haunt her sooner than later, like a boomerang she has forgotten of having thrown.
The only thing that matters right now is that she finds her friend!
The snow beneath her bare feet became solid, accepting and holding her weight, supporting her to the beast of its abilities in her hurry. Each step was a living hell, the pain morphed into something eviler, more unforgiving but she didn't dare to stop. But the agony coursing through her body weakened her perception of the surroundings, so much, that she noticed the shadow coming from her left side, heading straight for her, barely in time and dodged the attack with not a moment left to spare. Much to her displeasure, she was forced to stop.
Snarls and growls came from the creature that halted her. A large muscular body enlarged in front of her while colossal arms waved around in fury, thirsty to tear her apart and make her a feast. It was a berserker.
The girl cursed. One of these guys was the last thing she needed right now. But she also knew that simply running away would be useless. The beast could easily keep up with her if it wasn't even faster than her with the wounds she has sustained and worsen the situation.
So she had to deal with the lump of meat here and now. She raised her hands, clenched them into fists and readied herself for the fight. At the same time, she tried to figure out how to end this quickly without wasting precious time. Berserkers are strong and fast but also pretty dumb. Maybe she could use that to her advantage.
Actually, the small break forced on her worked in her favour, since it calmed her down enough to think this through. Even if she deals with the berserker in front of her there will be other Zeugles blocking her path over and over again. The ground wouldn't work for her, leaving her with only one option.
With her game plan set, she dashed forward, straight ahead into the arms of the grotesque Zeugel. In response, it snarled in delight since its prey came running willing into his loving hug of teeth and claws. Swinging its arms from left to right it roared as the girl was close enough and was prepared to take her down in one fell swoop.
However, that was the exact notion the girl had hoped for. Just before the muscular arm would tear her chest open she loosened her body up. Her muscles relaxed and all tension left her body, taking the force moving her forward along. With everything gone she was as swift and light as a feather, dancing through the sky and following the wind's direction. With a small hop backwards she evaded the fatal attack, startling the rough beast in the process. Its tiny brain was unable to assess what it just witnessed. Its balance was thrown off and as a result, it fell forward.
The girl released her state of apparent weightlessness. The strength that had vanished into thin air moments ago was back as well and catapulted her forward. She jumped on the beasts back, still overstrained by such elegant technique, and used it as her foothold for a high leap into the thick branches of the trees. All the while trying to not scream in pain because her wounds had ripped open and were spurting blood all over the place, rendering her body's first aid useless.
Up here in the treetops, she had no need to worry about any Zeugels that much. The bird-like Zeugels living in Cyslodia could cause problems but this deep into the forest was normally not the place they called their home. They preferred more open terrain.
Back on the ground the berserker had recollected and snarled at her but she didn't care. Instead, she leapt from tree to tree like a monkey doing this on a daily basis. As she expected the feral Zeugle followed her to the best of its abilities but luckily mother nature offers a wide range to deal with this kind of problem – this time in form of a pack of ice wolves lead by an alpha she discovered in the distance.
Seconds after she had passed above their heads roars and the sound of tearing flesh filled the air as the hunter became prey. She felt the slightest bit of pity but this is simply how nature works. Eat or be eaten as cruel as it may be. And she has other worries at the moment.
She lost all sense of time, her body numb from pain, her whole being fully focused on finding her reliable partner. Every second without result was a second closer to losing her friend. She could feel him, the suffering he went through at the moment, so similar to her own.
And then, at last, her eyes found his frame, her heart wrenching inside her chest when she saw his pure fur soaked in blood at the underside of his belly, near one of his hind legs. Someone got him good and whoever this was is going to pay! Their eyes met and she saw how his fright left him and was replaced by hope upon seeing her even though there was a worry as well. Must have seen her wounds but they can worry about that later.
"Hang in there buddy," she mumbled silently to herself as she observed the small clearing while she continued to pass the treetops in neck-breaking tempo.
In front of him were four people and she scanned them immediately for every information she could get. The one closest to her was a boy or a young man. She couldn't say much with only his back as a reference. He wore a greenish uniform with countless bags attached to it, similar to the one worn by the members of the Bureau of Observation. But seeing the other members of the group she doubted he was still active. He used gauntlets as his weaponry. He couldn't be the one who has afflicted the wound on her friend. His most striking feature she could see from her current position were those spiky brown strands of his. Here and there they were coloured in pink.
He kinda looked like a hedgehog. If they had met under different circumstances... she most likely had laughed her ass off about this weird hairstyle.
Then there was a smaller girl, wearing robes she swore she had seen somewhere before. Her weapon was... a book... What a blasphemous action. She's not much into reading but even then she knows to treat them better than this. She couldn't have caused the injury either. Still, something was off about this girl. Astral Energy was strong within her, she could feel it.
"Better have a close eye on this one," she mumbled, making sure to engrave this into her memory. She doesn't need any more bad surprises for today.
Further, for whatever, reason a small owl was sitting inside her hood.
Then there was another girl, visibly older than the first one. Her weapon was a large rifle. Her stench is similar to the Renan who had pierced her earlier. Her shining eyes were only another token for the girl had already discovered that the guns woman was a Renan. But a gun was also unable to hurt her friend, even when powered up by Astral Artes and no matter the shell used for the shot.
Her eyes wandered to the last member of the group and she found the one responsible. There was not much to do in order to connect the dots. The burning sword attached to his back was evidence enough for her. A ridiculous amount of Astral Energy emitted from it, somehow connected to the girl with the rifle in her hands.
Why this was happening, she doesn't know and also can't find a plausible answer for. One thing she does understand. For whatever reason, something inside of her resonates in response as well to this strange phenomenon. Her chest felt tight, almost as if something was putting a large amount of pressure on it but not from outside but the inside instead. Not once has she felt like this before. It was unnerving and made her anxious.
However, she couldn't worry about this new sensation right now. There are more important matters at hand to do. With her eyes focused on the man with two blades, she continued her race across the trees, using their trunks and branches as her makeshift bungees. One more jump and she was there.
But then her eyes caught a shift in the scenery. The boy with spiky brown hair tensed slightly, her well-trained vision not missing this little yet important fact. His prey was in front of him, in his reach but he still tensed. She could only think of one possible cause for this.
He has noticed her approach from behind, taking away her chance for a surprise attack. At least that's what he probably thought but she has some tricks up her sleeve. Not without reason, she has survived all those years in the relentless wilderness.
She was about to perform her final jump but stopped mid-way. Instead, she gripped the trunk stronger and flexed her leg muscles to their utmost limit and pressed herself against the tree, all the while trying to ignore the screaming pain in her side. The wood under he feet crumbled beneath the concentrated force of her entire body as she took a final breath, releasing all of the air inside her body at once and when she inhaled she jumped – no, she catapulted herself towards the clearing, right at the man she figured to be the leader and the strongest fighter.
The strength of her leap was so large that it caused a clean breakthrough, effectively ripping the tree's anchor connecting it to the earth apart and causing it to fall down. The loud crack created would have warned them but right now she was faster than the sound. And just as she suspected the boy did indeed notice her getting closer but he failed to notify his allies in time. He was about to open his mouth but there she had already passed him, the force surrounding her sending him straight on his arse. The two girls suffered the same fate, pushed out of the way by the human rocket she most likely was at the current moment.
Only when the man with silver hair filled her vision she shifted her position. So far her arms were angled alongside her body to minimise the air resistance but now she stretched them downwards as if she wanted to perform a somersault in the air. Adding her left leg as a rudder she twisted her body, shifting her position. Doing this being at the speed she is at would be already a horrendous feat under normal circumstances. But performing this acrobatic masterpiece with two gaping holes in your body? The centrifugal forces will rip the body apart and they did.
Her pain increased tenfold. It felt like a lightning directly from heaven has struck her and she could feel how her flesh ripped open even further. Blood spurted from the renewed wounds yet she didn't stop and instead continued on her path of self-destruction.
Powering through the agonizing suffering without fainting at the spot she successfully morphed the jump into an attack. Only now she stretched her right leg, channelling all of the force inside, basically turning it into a thick steel rod. Then she kicked.
Upon contact the man's right arm gave off a sickening loud crack and bend inwards, obeying the command of her leg like a sheet of paper would obey a fist. His body did the same motion, more noises of breaking bones embracing the clearing before he was sent flying against a sturdy tree.
Then everything was covered in snow, blocking the path of all participants visions. The sound of a falling tree washed over them and when the white fury calmed down at last four pairs of startled eyes met one pair of enraged, mismatched eyes with wrath practically dripping from them.
That Night in The Blizzard the girl who fought for her friend would either meet her end or a new adventure would begin as the wheels of fate stopped and began to run into a new direction.
I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. They certainly don't meet under good circumstances but that didn't happen in the game either. After all, we had to fight half of the main cast before they ended up in the party. So I decided to follow along with this line of action. Don't worry though. They will work together sooner or later.
And speaking of that, what is your first impression of the additional character that's going to take on a main role in the future? I think it's quite hard to introduce new characters to an existing story but they simply offer so many opportunities for new content and different developments that I can't simply resist :D
That's also the reason why I love to leave hints straight off the bat. If you read between the lines and connect one or two dots with the events occurring or game mechanics you might be able to figure out a few things. That being said I hope I managed to make her interesting even without that and caught your attention :D
And don't be afraid of sharing your opinion with me. I love to hear what my readers think :D