'No damn way.' Eric thought in shock as he and Warcry walked into the room, managing to hide his shock at the sight of a large, imposing man whose body consisted of geometrical forms with sharp angles & long, wavy orange hair that reached down to his shoulders.
Dressed in a white cloak that hid his body from view with the hood down and a welcoming smile on his face, the man looked to be the perfect saint, but Eric knew different because as far as he knew, Richard Buchanan AKA Hoteye of the Heavenly Eyes and former member of Oración Seis was supposed to be locked up in jail along with the other members.
'So, why is he here?' Eric thought with a slight frown that he quickly hid as he looked at the smiling Hoteye before glancing at the two other people in the room, who also had their bodies covered with white cloaks with the addition of having their hoods on.
"Good afternoon. Are we late?" Warcry asked as he stopped in the middle of the small room while Eric decided to stay near the door, Hoteye shaking his head as one of the hooded people sighed before they lowered their hood, revealing a middle-aged man with a low ponytail and a jagged scar running up the left side of his head from the cheek to his forehead.
"No, you're just on time, but I thought we were just going to have one person escorting us." The man said with a frown as he glanced between Warcry & Eric and the young mage answered before Warcry could.
"That would be me, but our master decided that since the client is so high up in the food chain, failure was not an option so we decided to ask one of our S-Class mages to help me."
"Ah, now I remember. You're Teary-Eyed Warcry, known for your unique & signature Tear Magic."
"Oh? That must mean either you're a fan, which I don't think you are, or you're a former mage, but I don't recognize you from any of the light mages. A Dark Mage, then? You're with the Prisoner to Scoiety Rehabilitation Plan, aren't you?" Eric blinked in confusion at Warcry's words while Hoteye chuckled as he nodded.
"Wait, what's that?"
"It's something the Council approved last year where Dark mages with sentences of thirty years or less are allowed to undertake jobs to shorten their prison sentences as long as they have been good for the first five years of their sentence."
'Oh, so it's like community service, huh?'
"Oh, that's cool. Nice to hear you're joining the good side & helping others." Eric nodded with a smile and Hoteye smiled before the other man spoke up.
"Alright, now that everyone is friends and all, can we proceed with the job's briefing before it gets dark?"
"Sure, I'd also like to know the details considering all I was told was that I should go to Era and escort a group of merchants."
"That was a lie. It is an escort mission, but not to protect a group of merchants." Both Eric & Warcry frowned as they glanced at each other as the man turned to the other person sitting quietly in the room.
"Your Royal Highness, if you will." The eyes of the two Quatro Mages widened as the man spoke, the other person reaching up and taking off the hood to reveal a beautiful young girl with vibrant emerald green hair & dark red eyes, a jewel-like object in the middle of her forehead & wearing dark gold earrings in the form of small snakes.
"I present to you her royal majesty Princess Veronica VIII Fiore of the ruling Fiore branch family of the country Veronica."
'…Yeah, maybe this missions is too high level for me.'
"So, let me get this right so that there's no confusion. She's the daughter of the former ruler of the country Veronica?"
"Correct."
"However, her father was betrayed by a young prince called Cream, who was actually a descendant of the former ruling family of Veronica before the Fiore family branched out & overthrew them, correct?"
"Correct."
"Now, that same prince is now the King of Veronica and he's hired mages from the Carbuncle Guild in Veronica while also placing a bounty of four hundred million on her head because she has an artifact that he wants."
"Correct."
"That's why you hired mages, because you want us to protect her while you escort her to the capital city, where she will be placed under the care of the King of Fiore and thus out of the reach of this prince, forcing him to either stop his chase or face being invaded & overthrown by the Fiore family once more. Did I get it all?"
"Yes, that is the short summary of it." The scarred man said with a nod and Eric hummed as he nodded before turning to Warcry, who along with Hoteye looked amused at the young mage's stress showing in his eyes as Eric smiled at them before he spoke.
"This is way too high-level for me."
"What? Are you not the mage that killed a wyvern within less than three months of being a mage? An escort job such as this should be easy for a man of your calibre to accomplish." The man asked with a frown and Eric sighed before he answered.
"Well, firstly, the wyvern was already injured from a leadership dispute with most likely an older one so I had it easy in that battle. Secondly, it's not the mission that's too high-level for me, but who this prince is going to send to get her back to him." He answered and the man looked a bit confused before Warcry clarified.
"He means that if you both are trying to run away, then the prince wants you very badly, your Majesty. That means that he's not going to waste any expense in hiring the strongest mages that he can as long as they can fulfill their mission & bring you back."
"Yeah, that." Eric agreed with a nod and the man frowned as he looked to be in thought before Eric groaned as he sighed.
"However, I'd also feel like a piece of shit if I left a young lady to be captured and kidnapped by foul men, so you can count me in."
"Well, that's all I needed. Count me in too." Warcry said with a smirk, Eric rolling his eyes as the man looked between them before smirking as he shook his head.
"Then, I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Dante III Fiore, leader of the Royal Knight Regiment and younger brother of the former King of Veronica. Pleased to meet you both." Eric blinked as the man finished introducing himself before he sighed.
"Twists and turns at every angle. I swear, it's like the world likes playing with me." Eric grumbled, confusing Dante as Warcry & Hoteye gave each other amused smirks before the young mage blinked as the girl spoke up.
"Why are you agreeing to this then if you're going to complain about everything?" Veronica asked with a frown and Eric blinked before he snorted.
"Oh, that's just me. I like to complain about doing something but then later, I'd do it anyway because I'd get pissed if it wasn't done by then. Also, I meant it earlier when I said that my consciousness would bother me if I just left you to die."
"So, you wish to impress me, then?" She asked in confusion and Eric frowned slightly before he shrugged.
"Not really, no, but if a kiss from a beautiful girl is what awaits me at the end of this job if I complete it, then I'd do it with a smile on my face."
"You do realize that you are flirting with my niece in front of me, right?" Dante asked with a frown and Eric gave a sheepish chuckle before everyone's head snapped to the door as someone knocked on it, Hoteye standing up from where he was seated as Dante walked over to Veronica while gripping the hilt of the blade sheathed at his side.
"Yes! Who is it?" Eric asked as he walked closer, frowning as there was no answer before his eyes widened as he felt ethernano surging behind the door.
Within a split second, Eric snapped his fingers and a light violet dome of energy covered all five of them, the done pulling them out of the room and onto the roof of the building opposite of the inn just before a large explosion ripped through the empty room & caused everyone below it to panic.
"Does anyone know that you're here?" Eric asked as he glanced at both Dante & Veronica, Veronica frozen still in shock while Dante frowned.
"Two others, but one is a close friend to Veronica and the other is far too loyal to the former to betray us. They would not betray us, not even in a million lifetimes."
"We don't have time to worry about that. Eric, Dante, take her out of here and find somewhere in the city where you three can hide until we come back. Mr. Hoteye, how many do you see?" Warcry asked as he turned to Hoteye, whose eyes were glowing a dark orange as he stared into the dust before speaking.
"Five people. One female, four males. Each feel like a mage."
"I'll take three, you take two?" Eric heard Warcry ask the former Dark Mage, remembering his orders as he turned to Dante & Veronica.
"Come on! I got a job to do and I'm making sure I'm doing it." Eric exclaimed only to frown as Dante was struggling to get Veronica to move, the girl still in shock as she stared wide-eyed at the lingering dust cloud.
"Well, forgive me for the improper touching, your Majesty, but I need to get you out of here." Eric apologized and Veronica's eyes widened as she was swooped into a bridal carry before Eric leapt away, Dante wailing through the air as Eric's Gravity Magic pulled him through the air with them.
"W-What?" Veronica stuttered out and Eric smirked as he landed on the ground near a restaurant a few blocks away from the inn, Dante stumbling as he barely landed right next to them.
"And there we are! One Eric Express way out of danger! Please give me a high review."
"…Is everything a joke to you?" Veronica asked with a sigh as Dante smirked while Eric hummed before he shrugged.
"Some times, yes. Other times, I'm as serious as serious can be." Eric said and she just shook her head before her eyes widened as Eric lunged towards her, a squeal escaping her lips as she was launched into the air.
She was shocked to see the mage tightly gripping the wrists of someone dressed in a dark grey hooded cloak with their face hidden behind a white mask with black eye holes & red lines above the eyes.
A pair of knives were grasped in the hooded being's hands as they tried to stab into Eric, but the young mage grinned and strained his arms as he slowly pushed the knives back.
However, Eric's eyes widened as the being turned into a form cloaked in shadows, falling through them as the person walked through him before leaping up at Veronica.
'Attract.' Eric chanted and a light blue glow surrounded Veronica's airborne form before he pulled her out of the way of the assassin's knives and into his arms, smirking as Dante appeared besides their enemy in a flash with his sword drawn.
"Accel." Eric heard Dante chant and his eyes widened as the man's speed increased twofold, their assailant turning back into their shadow-like form before a stifled scream echoed in the air as Dante's sword clipped deeply into the assassin's right shoulder.
"All Royal Knights know how to use Dispel Magic. Now, tell me who sent you assassin." Dante ordered and the assassin looked at them before glancing back at Eric, who smirked at him.
Before either mage could move, they frowned as the being turned into shadows before swiftly leaping into the shadows of the building right next to them, their presence vanishing entirely as the two fighters waited for a few moments to wait until they were sure their enemy was gone before they both sighed.
"Ahem! Are you going to put me down?" Veronica asked with a frown as she looked up at Eric, who blinked before he realized with a grin that he was still carrying her.
"I don't know. Having you in my arms is quite the boost for my ego, but if you insist." Eric answered with a shrug as he placed her back down, the girl in question huffing as Dante glared at Eric.
"I have to admit that not flirting with her is far harder than I actually thought, so that one was on me."
"Uncle, quit acting like an overprotective parent. I'm an adult now and not the little girl you liked to dote on." Veronica spoke with a glare and Dante frowned as he looked at his niece.
"You are the next Queen of Veronica if your Uncle helps us. You can't let your heart be swayed by those that aren't worthy of you."
"You know, I would be more insulted by that comment if I didn't feel like that was a hidden backhanded compliment."
"I-I-I will not let my heart be swayed by the words of every simpleton I meet."
"Hey, you're not a breath of sunshine to protect, either." Eric said with a shrug before raising his hands in surrender as both Fiore family members glared at him.
"I'll be quiet." He spoke and both of them sighed as Eric chuckled.
"Come on. Let's go see if the others are done with their battles." Veronica stomped off and Eric just blinked before turning to the exasperated Dante.
"She tends to not think when she's upset, so let's just go with her and protect her that way."
"…See, this is why I don't like protection missions."
"Damn, what the hell happened here?" Eric wondered in shock as he stared at the destroyed inn as well as the rubble from the buildings that formerly surrounded in, Veronica and Dante just as surprised to see the destruction before Eric quickly zoned in on the forms of Hoteye and Warcry walking towards him, but his eyes widened as he saw their current states.
Hoteye had lost his cloak, revealing his rather large, robust & muscular physique hidden under a white vest shirt and a pair of baggy grey pants with his feet covered by black boots.
A pair of dark gold bracelets with inscriptions written along the outer edges adorned his wrists and Eric couldn't help his subtle smirk as he saw the man's signature book attached to a book holder on the right side of his waist. Warcry had also lost his dog-like cloak and his right pant leg was torn off at the knee, revealing a shallow gash on the inside of his calf.
"What the hell happened to you two?!" Eric exclaimed and Hoteye chuckled as Warcry shook his head.
"It appears that the guild mages this Prince hired is a bit more skilled than we expected. The female is a user of the Knight Requip, Dispel Magic and knows her way around a sword. There was a big guy that used Guns Magic with his large arsenal of ranged weapons, a shady looking guy that could flatten his body to be paper thin and one guy that either used Gravity Magic or some form of Telekinesis magic. The battle against them was pretty wild, but before we could catch them, someone appeared from the shadows and the group left while leaving flash bangs to stun us. Hoteye checked with his Heaven's Eye, but they're long gone." Eric frowned as he looked at the frowning Dante.
"Did the one who appeared from the shadow have a cut on their right shoulder?" Dante asked and Warcry frowned before he nodded.
"I'm guessing you fought him, then?"
"Yes, he used some form of Shadow Magic that turns him into a shadow-like form at will, but Eric here managed to keep her Majesty safe while I took care of the assailant."
"Didn't you say you hated protection jobs?" Warcry asked with a smirk as he looked at Eric, who shrugged.
"Still do, but there's a lot on the line here and I know that if I fail this mission, the master's gonna have Bacchus put me through intense life-threatening training until I can barely see."
"Hahaha! True! The master is very wild!" Warcry cackled whilst nodding, Eric rolling his eyes as the others chuckled before Veronica cleared her throat, catching their attention.
"Ahem! While I love the good mood and all, we have no idea when those people are coming, so can we please get a move on and start heading to Crocus?"
"Well, I wanted to go get supplies before we leave-!" Dante began before he was cut off by Eric's chuckles, turning to see the young man patting his backpack as Warcry snorted.
"See, Warcry? I was five steps ahead of the enemy as I've already procured enough food to last the five of us two weeks if we ration it a little bit. Now, like you said, your Majesty, your family awaits! Onwards into the sunset and towards the beautiful city that is Crocus!" Eric exclaimed as he slung his backpack onto his back once more, making Veronica sigh as she and a snickering Dante followed after him while Hoteye & Warcry shared an amused smirk as they followed at the back.
"Before we head to Crocus, we need to stop at one of the villages on the way." Dante said, making the other three mages look at him as Veronica nodded in agreement with his words.
"So, where are we heading?" Eric asked and Veronica sighed before she answered.
"Remember the friends I spoke of earlier? They're waiting for us in the village."
"Damnit!" A voice along with a thud echoed in the alleyway as a man with long, unkempt turquoise hair glared at the wall he just punched, cracks spreading out from under his fist as he was dressed in a black cloak & mantle with silver highlights, white boots and matching white gloves.
"Don't worry, boss. They were just ready for us, but next time we'll get them." Another man with purple hair styled into a spike on top of his head said with a grin, wearing a blue-green bandana around his neck, a pair of red trousers with a brown belt around his waist, dark brown boots and light brown gloves with the name 'Geese' and the letter 'G' tattooed in purple on his back.
"Do not patronize me, Geese. We had a plan and you decided to ruin it by using explosives to blow the door off!"
"That wasn't even me! That was Cannon!" Geese exclaimed as he gestured to the tall, muscular man with slightly tanned skin, brown hair styled into a flattop with sideburns & a beard.
The man was dressed in a dark green sleeveless shirt that showed off his muscles, brown trousers with a black belt, a dark fingerless glove on his left hand & dark red armour on his left arm that went from his wrist up to his shoulder. The man in question looked up from where he was watching the other two occupants of the alley before glaring at Geese.
"You were the one who stuck your head in & said that they were heading for the door. I just followed my part of the plan." Cannon growled and Geese glared back before a throat clearing was heard in the alley.
"Now, now, boys. You're both at fault here, but can I have a bit of quiet?" A beautiful woman with long wavy blonde hair spoke with a frown as she tied bandages around the shoulder & arm of the masked person that had tried to assassinate Veronica, the woman dressed in a light blue band with an embem around her upper chest, large grey faulds around her waist that went down just past knee level & were held up up by a black belt and thigh-high leg armour. The masked person had their cloak removed to reveal their bare chest covered in dim scars wearing nothing but grey trousers & matching coloured boots.
"Chase, did you manage to get a close look of who injured you?" The boss asked the masked person and a sigh came from under the mask before Chase nodded.
"Yes, it was the former captain of the Royal Knights Dante III Fiore and the mage from Quatro Cerberus everyone's been talking about."
"Oh, that Eric kid? Yeah, there are a lot of rumours about him. From the ones of him having killed a wyvern on his first official job as a mage and the ones of him using the Lost Magic Gravity Magic." The man with the purple hair spoke and the boss frowned as he turned to him.
"Oh? So, he uses the precursor to my Telekinesis, Greed?" The boss asked and Greed nodded with a shrug.
"Like I said, there's only been rumours so I'm not sure myself."
"All rumours have some bit of truth to them."
"Dyst, what do we do?" Cannon asked and the boss, Dyst, frowned as he looked at the alleyway before speaking.
"We continue with the job. Four hundred million is not something we can just deny and the guild's name will be dragged through the mud if we return with a failed job."
'And I'm not going back there until I can get that Phoenix Stone from those girls and finally achieve true immortality.'
A/N: And there we are!
My own little twist on the Phoenix Priestess movie! I wanted to use something related to the series while also using something that wouldn't have overpowered characters and the only choices I have were either this, Dragon's Cry or the filler arcs, so I decided that Phoenix Priestess was the best
. Next chapter, a continuation of the battles and a twist.
As always, read, enjoy, review and until the next one…
Ba-Bye~!