West of Castle Town near Melromarc's border resided Rabier Territory. Much like many of the territories it comprised of rural landscape and small towns and villages scattered about. But the scenic views were the last thing on Ash's mind.
It took him a couple hours to reach his destination, the combination of his unnatural speed and ability to glide cutting down the journey time to a fraction it would have taken on foot.
He now stood on a hill a small distance from a luxurious two story mansion that looked very out of place with the nearby village. The memories of the slaver telling him that Rabier lived there, not surprising that the man lorded is wealth and influence over the people under his rule.
"Takes a special kind of narcissist to be this much of an entitled jackass." the Evolved muttered at the man's lack of tact. "Might as well hang a big ass sign over his house that says 'Dictator Here. Come kill'."
Sending out a hunter-pulse, Ash got a read of where everyone was stationed on the property. As much as he wanted to break down the doors and tear the place apart from within, he had no idea where the demi-humans were being kept, not to mention there were more than likely innocent house keepers that didn't deserve the brand of justice he was about to dish out.
Biomass gathering in his legs, the Evolved leapt into the air and began gliding toward the mansion. Passing the perimeter where a handful of knights were standing guard before quietly dropping down behind a small structure in the corner of the property.
It was late into the night, the moon high in the sky offering a small amount of illumination over the landscape, but there were enough shadows to hide within.
Peering out from behind the small building, he saw a pair of guards making their patrol. Picking up a small stick by his feet, he held it up before breaking it in half. The snap was loud enough to get the two armored men to stop.
"You hear that?" asked one of the guards.
"Yeah, probably another animal or something. Go check it out." said the other.
"I got the last one." complained the first.
"And you still owe me a few rounds. Get to it."
The first guard scoffed before heading in the direction of the noise, disappearing behind the shed and out of sight. A couple seconds ticked by before he came back out, "Nothing. Figures."
"Hey, we're getting paid to watch this place. It could be worse."
"Yeah, you're right," The second guard gasped, looking down to see the first guard's hand plunged through his armor and into his chest. "It CAN be worse." said the first guard with a smirk before his victim was absorbed into his body in a flurry of tendrils.
Ash took in the new knowledge he'd just acquired, and with it the layout of the mansion and where he'd need to go. Remaining in disguise, he headed toward the front of the estate. Nodding to a few other guards before slipping inside without rousing any kind of suspicion.
X
Beneath the estate, a series of corridors lined with cells illuminated by torches along the walls. The flames casting an orange and red glow, making the shadows dance almost menacingly. The crack of a whip could be heard along the cold stone followed instantly by screams of pain.
Outside the dungeon, a pair of guards stood outside the door. The sounds of torture taking place behind them not affecting them in the slightest after growing used to it for so long. Remaining vigil in case someone managed to escape.
A loud clatter in the corridor had them tensing, weapons at the ready. But they couldn't see anything given the deep shadows making it hard to make anything out. One of the guards prepared to call out when the sounds of footsteps began to softly echo around them.
"Who's there! Identify yourself!"
No one answered, the footsteps getting louder making them tense even more. One of the shadows seemed to be moving, drawing closer.
"Last chance! Identify yourself!" Both guards drew their swords, ready for combat.
The footsteps stopped, as did the shadow. Several seconds passed in thick silence.
The shadow suddenly shot forward, faster than either guard was prepared for. Both raised their swords and swung.
Metal sang as it cut through the air, followed by the splashing of blood against stone. Both guards stood motionless…before their heads fell to the floor with their bodies dropping soon after. Ash standing between them with his arms in the form of short blades that shifted back to human limbs.
He'd taken out every guard on the way there, so he would have to work fast before any of the bodies were discovered.
Reaching for the door, he found it locked from the inside. Applying more biomass to his muscles, he forced the door open, breaking all the locks and even tearing a bit of stone from the doorframe.
The cracking of a whip had him moving a bit faster, the sadistic laughing of the one wielding it making him grit his teeth. Following the many jail cells, the smell of blood, excrement and suffering heavy in the air making his rage spike to new heights, his arms already in the process of shifting.
By the time he reached the open cell where the sounds were coming from, he was greeted with the sight of a portly blonde man in expensive clothes who was busy whipping the exposed back of a demi-human with dog ears on their head that looked to be no older than ten or eleven years old.
The man spun around, revealing him to be the Lord of the estate and surrounding territory, Idol Rabier.
"What the-WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU?!" Rabier demanded, raising his whip up to strike the intruder. The Evolved shot a tendril from his arm, grabbing the sadist by the throat and snapping him back where he was lifted off the ground.
"You like torturing innocent people?" Ash asked with barely contained rage bleeding through his words. "Making them scream? Making them beg?" His grip tightened on the bastard's neck, making him gag and gasp, dropping his whip and trying in vain to break the inhuman grip he was trapped in.
The former Marine pulled him in close and hissed, "Let's see how you like it." He threw Rabier against the wall and stalked after him.
"W-Wait! Whoever you are, we can work something out!" the tyrant pleaded, "Whoever is paying you, I-I'll double it! Triple it!" He caught something shine in the light and blinked in shock when he saw the holy shield on his attacker's arm. "Y-You're the Shield Hero!"
The young demi-human gasped and looked over their shoulder to see the shield as well, tears gathering in their eyes with hope. "He…He came…" they whispered.
Ash slammed his foot on Rabier's left knee, completely shattering it and causing the sadist to scream in agony. "Funny, you seem to enjoy people in pain." the Evolved said coldly before doing the same to the man's right knee. "Guess it's different when it's you suffering, huh?"
Rabier grit his teeth and glared at the former Marine. "Y-You won't…get away with this! Don't you know…who I am?! I am part of the King's inner circle! He and the Church will hunt you to the ends of the earth!"
The Evolved held up his right hand and shifted it into claws, the action causing the tyrant and his captive to gasp. "They can try," he drove the blades into Rabier's shoulder, pinning him to the wall. "And they will meet the same fate you're about to."
"Th…The church was right…" Rabier whimpered through the pain. "You are a demon!"
Ash tilted his head, not having been called that before. Given what he could do, and had done, anyone could make that assumption. "Only to those like you, Rabier." he ripped his claws from the tyrant's arm, severing it at the shoulder and spraying blood across the floor and wall.
"I know all about you. What you do to demi-humans for your own sick pleasures." the Evolved said over the sounds of the man's screaming. "You are a sadistic, evil, little bastard. And your reckoning has come." his other arm shifted into another set of claws. "You wanna treat the innocent like animals? Allow me to show you what it's like to be trapped in a room with a starving wolf."
Rabier screamed as the Evolved began slashing. Claws tearing through flesh and spraying blood in every direction, all the while consuming the remains until there was nothing left but a puddle of blood where the sadist had been laying.
"So you're going to summon the Cardinal Heroes? What about the Shield Hero, you know how the church is going to react. Not to mention your own history." Rabier said while meeting with King Aultcray.
"I'm well aware. But the ritual is meant to bring all four heroes to our world. It cannot be helped. Though it matters not, plans are already being prepared to ostracize the devil after he arrives." replied the King.
"What about the Queen? When she learns the legendary heroes are summoned in Melromarc-"
"I will handle my wife. Make her understand I did what I had to to ensure our nation remains strong in the face of the Waves and that that way of the church must be protected."
"As you say, King Aultcray."
Ash snapped out of the memories with a whole new level of rage bubbling within him. That BASTARD King had just jumped to the very top of his shit-list.
Everything that was wrong in Melromarc, the slavery, the segregation of the demi-humans, the corruption, all of it was because of the King usurping control while the Queen was away. Allowing his knights to do as they please no matter how heinous, even as far as raiding villages during the first Wave and kidnapping children to sell into slavery!
And the icing on the fucking cake? By summoning all Four Cardinal Heroes to Melromarc, he not only risked all out war with the other nations for essentially stealing their legendary heroes, but left them all vulnerable if the Waves appeared within their borders.
All of this for the sake of the damn church and their campaign against the Shield Hero of the past for siding with demi-humans during the last war. Aultcray was in league with the Pope, along with several other nobles, to make power grabs while the Queen was out of the picture. Even his own daughter was in it for her own selfish reasons, though what they were was still a mystery for the time being.
Treason doesn't even scratch the surface of what these bastards had committed. And the people of Melromarc were suffering because of it with no hope in sight.
Shaking his head, Ash pushed all the new information to the back of his mind and focused on more pressing matters. He turned to the young demi-human who was now looking at him in fear.
"It's okay." he said placatingly. Shifting his arms back to normal and holding his hands up. "I'm gonna get you out of here."
The wolf-child seemed to relax, allowing him to approach. Using his strength to shatter the chains and shackles holding them and carefully setting them on the floor. The Evolved brought up all the knowledge from every doctor he consumed in the past as he began assessing the child's condition.
"Malnourished, slight muscle atrophy, signs of prolonged torture, strong chance of psychological trauma. Should have taken more time with that fucker." he thought bitterly as he looked over the new wounds overlapping old scars. Bringing up his shield, he changed it to its Leaf Shield form and waved it over the child's back.
After unlocking the new shield, he discovered that it possessed minor healing capabilities that could be leveled up over time. And there wasn't a better time to use it than now.
A green pulse washed over the demi-human, the deep cuts closing slowly until they disappeared. Not leaving new scars.
"That's the best I can do for now. Might have to get you to a healer just to be sure." said Ash as he moved to the child's front and knelt in front of them. "My name's Ash. Can you tell me yours?"
The wolf-child looked up at him with their blue eyes. "K-Keel. My name is Keel."
"Keel." Ash said with a smile. "Is there anyone else down here?"
Keel's eyes widened, "Raphtalia! Rifana!" the child jumped up and stumbled out of the cell and into the corridor. The former Marine right behind and being led to another cell several meters away. The demi-human was pressed against the bars.
Ash came up and saw two more demi-human children, both girls from the look of it. One with raccoon ears and a tail, and the other with weasel ears. The raccoon girl was at the side of the only cot in the cell where the weasel girl lay coughing weakly.
"Keel!" The raccoon-girl exclaimed, running to the bars and embracing her friend through them. When she looked up and saw Ash with her rose-colored eyes she gasped and scrambled away in terror.
"It's okay Raphtalia! The Shield Hero came to save us!" Keel said with a beaming smile.
The girl, Raphtalia, looked up at the Evolved again. This time seeing the holy shield on his arm, "He…He really is here…" she turned to the other girl. "Rifana! He's really here!"
Rifana opened her yellow eyes weakly and looked toward her friends, "He…He is…" she coughed again, "I'm…glad…"
Ash didn't like what he was hearing and turned to the other two. "Get away from the door." Both children moved as he grabbed the door, the metal warping in his grasp as he yanked it off the hinges and tossed it away. Ignoring the looks of awe from Keel and Raphtalia as he entered the cell and kneeled at Rifana's side, quickly checking her temperature and her pulse.
"Not good. She's got a high fever and her heart rate is elevated. If she doesn't get help soon she may not make it." He thought, activating his shield's healing ability and only managing to fix some of her physical ailments.
The girl's tiny hand reached out and grasped his as strong as she could with her weakening strength. "Are you…really going to…save us…Master Shield Hero?" she asked with hope in her tired voice.
The former Marine felt a tight grip wrap around his heart, and a burning resolve scorched through him. "I am." he said with conviction before scooping her up gently in his arms and standing. "Is there anyone else down here?" he asked the other two children.
"No. The man keeping us here sold them or…" Keel didn't finish, Raphtalia shivered while wrapping her arms around her friend for comfort.
Ash nodded stiffly. "I took out some of the guards, but we'll need to sneak out of here. Stay close and be as quiet as you can." Keel nodded seriously, Raphtalia didn't look so sure and curled in on herself some.
"Hey," the Evolved said softly, kneeling down to her height and looking her in the eyes. "You kids have been through hell. I can only imagine what's going through your heads right now. But freedom is very close, and your friend needs a doctor or she won't survive her illness. So I need you to be brave. All of you are strong to have survived down here, I know you have the courage."
Raphtalia looked up at him with her eyes shimmering, blinking before nodding to him. Still unsure, but the words from the Shield Hero seemed to light a small ember in her heart.
After checking to be sure the coast was clear, Ash led the children out of the dungeon and into the mansion. Making sure they stuck to the shadows while he sent out an occasional hunter-pulse to be sure none of the remaining guards were nearby or had started looking for their missing comrades.
Rifana's occasional cough had them ducking more than once, but they managed to avoid detection as they slipped outside. "Okay, I need you two to climb on my back." the Evolved said after checking around them.
Keel and Raphtalia blinked, but decided to go along with it. Their savior knelt down and the two young demi-humans climbed onto his back, gasping when several small tendrils came out of his jacket and secured them in place.
"Now hang on tight." Gathering biomass to his legs, Ash jumped high into the air, clearing the mansion and the surrounding fence. His three passengers didn't have a chance to scream in surprise as they landed several meters outside the estate before taking off as the former Marine put some distance between them and the mansion.
X
Going to the village Rabier's estate was located at would have raised too many red flags with the people under the now dead tyrant's payroll. So Ash sprinted all the way to a smaller neighboring village, stopping at the local inn where he could set them all up with a place to rest. The kids were hesitant at first, but eventually they settled in together on the only bed and fell asleep almost instantly.
Making sure the children were deep asleep, the Evolved used his claws to make a cut on his arm, spilling his blood onto the floor. From the small pool, he created an infected flier the size of an average raven and had it watch over the young demi-humans as before jumping out the window.
First stop was an apothecary to get medicine for Rifana and a few other healing salves and potions for Keel and Raptalia. Even though he'd managed to unlock a healing ability with his shield, it was far too low in level to be really effective for their current conditions.
The next stop was to get food and water for all of them before heading back to the inn where he knew the children were still deep asleep after looking through the flier's eyes for a moment.
Turning down an alley on the way, Ash stopped. Eyes snapping left, then right before flashing red a moment. "If you want to live beyond tonight, you'll reveal yourself." he said to the air. Nothing responded to his words.
The Evolved set the bag of supplies down and stood back to his full height, fists clenching at his sides. A second passed before his left arm lashed out, whipfist extending and spearing into a nearby shadow.
A humanoid shape shrouded in darkness managed to escape the attack, but a second tentacle arm grabbed them by the neck before they could get away. Pulling them back until they were in front or Ash who was now holding them off the ground, his left hand shifting into its claw form.
"You have thirty seconds to explain why you were tailing me." he said, holding his claws up, their sharp edges glinting in the moonlight. "Clock's ticking."
The figure struggled, "I…I am not your enemy!" they said, clearly identifying themselves as a female. "I was sent to watch over you!"
"Not helping your case." Ash said with a dangerous look in his eyes, "Who sent you?"
"Queen Mirellia Melromarc. I am one of her majesty's Shadows, tasked with keeping an eye on the kingdom while she is away." answered the Shadow.
The Evolved scoffed, "That so? Does her highness realize what her husband is doing? All the people that are suffering because of him and his little power trip? The fact that he's subjecting the demi-humans to slave labor or worse?"
"She does, and she has plans to deal with him upon her return."
"Before or after the Waves tear this world apart? The other so called heroes are a damn joke and are only in it for their own greed. Her own army is treating those they are supposed to be protecting like garbage. This keeps up, she won't have much of a kingdom to come back to." Ash stated bluntly.
Setting the woman back on her feet, the Evolved turned his arms back to normal and picked up the supplies again. "Tell Queen Melromarc that if her husband continues as he is, she won't have to worry about handling his punishment. Because I'll tear him down from his imaginary pedestal, and do to him what I did to the last egomaniac who tried to bend the world to his will."
The Shadow didn't reply, instead slipping back into the darkness and disappearing. A quick hunter-pulse confirming that she was long gone, more than likely to report back to the queen.
Putting the brief meeting to the back of his mind, Ash continued his trek back to the inn. Entering the room to see the kids still asleep.
Absorbing the flier back into his body, Ash took a seat on the floor with his back against the wall and his eyes closed. Delving into the memories he'd recently acquired.
This Kingdom was a mess, and the longer their true ruler was away the worse it was getting, throw in the Waves and it was a downright disaster in the making.
The Evolved would need to start making plans for the immediate future, intending on making good on the promise he'd made in the throne room the other day. But for now…
Opening his eyes, Ash took a few calming breaths to avoid losing his temper and scare the children sleeping nearby. The three demi-humans he had rescued, small smiles on their faces as they curled up together holding one another. The sinister glow in his eyes fading back to their usual blue as he smiled at them, knowing that he had done the best thing for them. But now he needed to figure out what to do now that they were under his care.
"First I need to make sure they're fed and in good health, after that I'll play it one day at a time." The Evolved thought to himself before closing his eyes again, this time to catch a couple hours of sleep.
X
A/N: One of my shortest chapters to date, but the amount of change that has already been displayed speaks for itself. And before long Ash will be taking the Waves, the Church and the bastard King and his corrupt court to task soon enough.
The real question is if Melromarc will still be standing by the time he's done.
Update in progress...