The air was heavy, the tension was wrought, and Vera could only slide his katana back in its sheathe. His breath was controlled as he noticed the three dark mages surrounding him and did what he thought was the best option.
"Who are you people?"
He talked.
"What do you want?" Vera asked to buy time, forcing himself to relax as he left a hand on the hilt of his sword and saw Erigor raise an eyebrow appraisingly. The seconds ticked by without a move as the two lackeys looked towards their leader, who tilted his head and said calmly, "We're from Eisenwhalde. We're here to kill your quarry."
Vera didn't know which put him off more.
"Oh, and you as well, of course."
The disregard he carried himself with or acted differently than Vera expected him to.
"So, kid..."
All Vera remembered from the story was a deranged man spitting off about rights and freedom to kill.
"Your weapon done charging yet?"
Erigor wasn't as hell-bent on vengeance in his youth.
"It's about a quarter done," Vera admitted with a grin that hid his true thoughts. His eyes scanned over Erigor, realizing he was more of a threat than anything else, not because of his ability or magic or even the fact that he was possibly Vera's worst matchup in terms of compatibility.
"Any chance you'll let me get the other three?"
It was Erigor's experience as a professional assassin.
"Ha, you're a funny kid."
That experience would let him make calculated decisions geared towards cutting off Vera's head. Case in point: He floated back to the edge of the woods, furthest out of range even though he was by far the strongest of the trio, and commented with a confident smirk.
"Of course not."
It was like Vera was playing chess with an opponent that had an extra piece.
I need to get rid of one of them.
Vera didn't have another course of action. Even with Sho in consideration, it was still only a three-vs.-two. Once Vera removed one of his enemies from the equation, it would become a two-vs.-two. Then, he could blitz the weaker of the remaining two.
It can't be Erigor...
Erigor was too experienced, so he stuck to range instead of attacking head-on. He would provide cover fire for the other two as they whittled Vera down little by little, and then he'd probably come in for the finishing blow.
Ok, Sho...
Erigor would have to be the last one Vera deals with.
We're aiming for that one first.
Vera settled on a course of action as he lowered his stance. His hand in his sheathed katana, Sho formed over his shoulder with a nod and a flex of daggered claws. Meanwhile, Erigor smirked and tilted his head back with a vicious smile.
"Kageyama. Rayule."
Vera tensed, his muscles ready as he waited for the words to fall before he dashed into the woods.
"Kill him."
With three hunters hot on his tail.
Mira sprinted through the woods, holding her little siblings in her arms. The sound of battle faded in the background as she ran for minutes. Vaulting over a fallen log, she reached a small, overgrown tree with a large gaping hole at its bottom—a makeshift shelter that had formed naturally from its large roots.
This should be good...
Mira huffed as she got to the tree, checking inside to ensure it was empty before moving her little siblings inside. Her breath was heavy from the run as she met their scared eyes and tried to stay calm.
"I need you guys to wait here for a bit. I'll be back in a bit. Okay?"
Her heart was pounding, her breath was shaky, and her eyes trembled with a terror she couldn't show.
"Can you do that for me?"
Mira had to stay strong, so she smiled and asked her little siblings if they were alright. Her eyes lingered on Elfman as she saw him buy her act with a trembling nod and a quiet voice, "Okay..."
There, Elfman was scared, but he would listen. One look at Lisanna, though, showed Mira that she would not be as easy an opponent to defeat.
"Mira, what's going on?" Lisanna asked with a worried tremble and a determined expression. Her eyes were shaking but still clear as she looked back at the trail they had run from, "Who were those people? Why were they fighting Vera? Why-"
"They're annoyed because he scammed them out of a bet," Mira lied instantly, trying to keep the cut of her voice from getting to her as she plastered on a smile and patted Lisanna's head, "I just need to go back and teach them a lesson. Then I'll come back-"
"It's the villagers, right?" Lisanna cut her off with a trembling voice, cutting through Mira's half-baked lie with a slight whimper and a series of quick and sharp breaths mixed with panicked tears. "They still hate us, right? They're trying to kill us again, right?"
Lisanna was scared.
"The- they hate us! It has to be them! Why!? We left!"
She was scared and angry, and her anger was boiling over into an episode of hyperventilation. Her breath was so quick and short that it made her dizzy. She stopped only when Mira grabbed her hand and brought her back to the scary world she was hiding from.
"Hey, Lisanna! Breathe! Breathe with me, okay? One, two in. Three four, out. Could you do it with me?"
Lissana listened, her sister's words ringing as she slowly calmed her breathing. Elfman's hand was on her back, and she felt him rub circles with his thumb to calm her panic attack. The entire ordeal only took a minute or so, yet it felt like an eternity. It drained her enough that the only thing she could say afterward was littered with her lingering fear.
"I d- don't want y-you or V-Vera or Sh-Sho to die."
Lisanna had thought they were safe from the villagers. She was wrong, and the old nightmares it brought her sent her into a sniveling mess. Her eyes were teary, and her hands shook as she gripped Mira's cloak like a lifeline and met her older sister's shocked gaze with a pleading one.
"Pl- Please don't die."
Lisanna couldn't handle it if one of them died.
"Please," Lisanna begged, her voice cracking as Mira nodded quickly and used her cloak to wipe the snot from her nose. Mira held Lisanna's terrified gaze with a gentle yet determined one of her own, which carried weight—a weight and a promise.
"I won't."
Mira wouldn't let anything hurt her siblings.
"I won't let Sho or that asshole die either."
She could always promise that.
"So, can you stay here while I do that?" Mira asked as she watched a hint of fear flash through Lisanna's eyes before she gulped and nodded. Her eyes trembled as she squeezed them shut and was wrapped in Elfman's trembling arms.
"I'll watch Lisanna, sis. We'll be fine."
Mira was lucky to have such wonderful siblings.
"Go help Vera and the scary thing."
She could always trust them to watch out for each other when she wasn't around.
"Thanks, Elfman. I will," Mira said with a smile as she hugged them one more time before darting off, following her footsteps as she raced down the path she came up. Her eyes were so focused on the path ahead and the growing sounds of combat that she didn't notice the slightest movement from the right side of the trail about halfway into her journey back to where they were ambushed.
"I'm sorry..."
What she did notice was the sudden voice whispering apologetically, freezing her to her core as she stuttered in her run and saw the large, round man from before suddenly appear to her right, as if he had jumped out of the ground. His stature was large and towering, and his apologetic look didn't match the mighty arm he'd reared back.
"Erigor will get mad if I let you get away."
Then, an open palm crashed into her head and shot her into the woods with the force of a cannon.
A skirmish between the two sides took place in the woods under the cover of lush green trees. The shots of razor-sharp ribbons and stretching knuckles tore at the forest as Vera danced between the attacks.
"Shadow Magic"
Well, most of the attacks.
"Shadow Orochi"
Some he had to firm, like the shadow snakes that shot forward with haste. Turning blunt attacks, he could usually ignore sharp blows that he had to dodge or parry. Either way, he was left with a few cuts, the scratches along his back reminding him of the necessity of moving.
So damn annoying.
Vera clicked his tongue as he fucked under black ribbons that punctured through the tree at his back. His eyes flicked to the left as he heard a gust of wind and put his sheathed katana between himself and the blow. The force of the wind blade launched Vera off of his feet as he tumbled to his feet and blocked a shadowed fist that curved towards his head.
That spell probably can't be used often.
Vera took the small gifts and narrowed his eyes to Kageyama and Rayule, sending attacks from opposite sides. Meanwhile, Erigor floated further away with his scythe at the ready.
Sho...
Vera had half a charge stored up in his katana.
Let's start now.
He had to use it wisely.
'Tug'
Vera let out a controlled breath as his shadow nodded. He moved to his feet as both sides swarmed him, his muscles moving on memory as he sprinted through the barrage of shadow punches. He charged towards Kageyama's position, using his sword to deflect what he could.
"Shadow Magic"
Kageyama was prepared, unfortunately.
"Shadow Gaurd"
Vera clicked his tongue as a dome of shadows curled around Kageyama, and his sword slammed against it. The crack of a bat signaled the shield's strength as Vera ditched his attack and planted his feet in the dome, using it as a springboard as shadows pulled beneath his feet and he rocketed into the trees.
"Wind Magic"
Right into the waiting arms of Erigor.
"Wind Bullets"
Vera growled as he landed on a branch and immediately shot off it. His eyes narrowed as he watched a flurry of bullets of compressed wind rip it to shreds and turned to see Erigor flying a few meters above him. His index finger pointed like a gun as he shot storms of bullets into the cover of the treetops that Vera bounced across.
"I'm not gonna let you run, kid!"
Erigor grinned as he shot fish in a barrel, shooting into the cover as Vera was forced to keep moving to safety. His eyes were torn between the sky and the ground as he ran into a wall of ribbons, muttering a curse as one cut through his shoulder and another ribbon wrapped around his leg and dragged him down to the ground. Slamming him into the dirt as Sho reached out and cut it, just in time for another shadowed fist to catch him in the side
I think he cracked a rib...
Vera gritted his teeth as he was launched across the forest floor like a skipped stone.
I'll fix it later.
Vera vaulted to his feet, dodging another slash of wind from above as he took count. Erigor was somewhere above, Rayule was to his left, and Kageyama was to his right. They were sending attacks in waves, and the next one was up.
"Shadow Orochi" / "Urumi"
This was his best chance, so he fought back his instincts to dodge and waited.
Remember Sho, he'll probably aim for my head...
Vera planted his feet instead of running like they expected him to, watching as the attacks continued closing on his position.
If you fuck up, we're dead.
The razor-sharp ribbons and lethal fangs of shadowed snakes shot toward him like bullets as he heard a bristling from above. Vera's neck prickled as he stood his ground, feeling Sho pop out of his back to shield him from the storm of wind bullets that rained down from the trees above.
'Tug'
Vera calmed his nerves as the force of the stray bullets implanted themselves into the surrounding dirt and kicked up dust. Time seemed to slow as he watched the black ribbons and shadow snakes carve through the air barely a few inches away. He gripped his sword and tilted his head downward before releasing a blade of razor-sharp wind.
'Click'
Right at the dirt beneath his feet.
A loud bang sounded through the woods as a cloud of dust rose in the distance. Mira could not focus on it, so she stood up with a ringing head and a wince.
I think he popped my eardrum...
Mira gritted her teeth as she pulled herself out of the tree she was stuck in. Her eyes were bloodshot as she glared at the large man who had chased her down. His build was like a giant sumo wrestler, and his face was reminiscent of a huge bullfrog.
He's strong...
Physically, the man lumbering towards her was pretty intense. With his build, it made sense.
But I'm stronger.
Mira let out a loose chuckle as she got to her feet and viciously grinned. She crouched down, her legs tense as she met the man's sorrowful stare and charged. The ground crunched beneath her feet as she shot forward like a bullet and slammed her fist through the man's face. The snap of her demonic arm was like a bullet, resounding with a gust of wind that whipped at her hair and revealed her wide-eyed stare.
"Would you stop fighting..."
Since her fist had phased through the man's face.
"It'll just make it worse." The man said solemnly, stunning Mira as she felt one of his giant palms slam into her stomach. Her breath left her as she tried to throw a hook in retaliation just for it to phase through once again. The intricacies of the man's magic dawned on her as he grabbed her leg and slammed her into the ground, rattling her brain before heaving her upwards and throwing her like a tomahawk through a line of unsuspecting trees.
I can't hit him.
Mira thought back to her earlier sessions as she barreled through a line of trees. Her eyes were already burning with rage as she looked for a way to beat a person she couldn't hit. Her mind was already returning to one of her initial lessons for a clue.
So this is what Vera was talking about...
Strength isn't the only thing that matters in a battle between mages. Cunning and strategy meant a lot, but in lay terms, a more fundamental skill level was involved when determining a fight. Especially when it came to Mira's power set at the moment, which involved hitting things really fucking hard in places that really fucking hurt.
Magic compatibility.
A mage's compatibility with their opponent greatly affected fights at basic combat levels. A giant game of rock-paper-scissors came to mind, where her magic was a rock that could demolish anything, and this man, her hunter, had paper—paper she couldn't break with brute force alone.
This fucking guy...
In Mira's first actual battle against an enemy mage.
Is a bad matchup for me...
She was put against her natural enemy in terms of magic compatibility.
What a fucking joke!
Like that would stop her.
"Hey, bullfrog!" Mira snarled as her lips curled back in a vicious grin. Her flight through the trees ended as she planted her feet into the ground and her back buried into a mighty tree trunk. Her eyes were wild with adrenaline, fury, excitement, and everything in between as she reached back with her demonic arm and dug her fingers into the thick trunk.
"Why the hell would I stop fighting!"
There was a mighty groan, and Mira's teeth gnashed as she ripped the tree from its place in the ground. The series of snapping roots followed by the heavy wood creaking with strain as she saw the man look at her with wide eyes. His mouth slightly opened as she walked forward with her makeshift weapon and reared it back for a good throw.
"YOU ATTACKED ME!"
Mira roared as she launched a tree like a spear. Its path narrowed as branches were torn off its side until it crashed into where the man once stood. The resounding thunder of its impact echoed through the woods as Mira heaved a colossal breath and clenched her fists. Settling down into a sturdy stance she had been taught, she saw the man pop out of the ground in front of her with a slight frown.
"My name is Karacka..."
His power was so damn useful, after all, that he only had a scratch under his eye and across his forehead. It had to have a flaw, though. Otherwise, he'd be unbeatable. His magic was like a puzzle she had to solve to win and move on to the others.
"You can curse me all you want after I kill you."
That was fine.
"I didn't ask bullfrog."
Mira would figure it out while she beat the fuck out of him.
Erigor idly heard loud crashes in the distance as he played over the kid's last move. He didn't see the specifics of what the kid had done.
That kid is clever...
He saw the aftermath through a dirt cloud that burst beneath the treetop he was hovering above and acted as a smokescreen. Erigor was piecing together the kid's objective as he pointed an index finger toward a stunned Kageyama, and a green magic circle flashed over its end. A compressed ball of wind was at its end and ready to burst at a moment's notice.
That's one.
Meanwhile, he leveled his scythe and prepared to send a wind blade toward Rayule if the kid-targeted that direction. It would be slower because he would have to switch spells, but as long as he was quick, he could react quickly. Rayule might lose a finger or two to the ferocious brat, but he would live.
That's two.
The smokescreen was a neat trick, but it wouldn't work out. The boy was covering his actions to target one side without getting attacked right out of the gate. If Erigor had to guess, he would aim for Rayule because he was the weakest and could get him out of the battle before the smokescreen's confusion wore off.
Nice try, kid...
Too bad Erigor was standing watch.
That little trick isn't going to-
Erigor's thoughts froze as the winds shifted, and he saw something rocket out of the smokescreen and into the air. His eyes widened as he watched the brat crash through the treetops and bolt towards his position, his green sword in a single hand and his sheathe nowhere to be seen.
This little brat...
Erigor snarled as a vein popped on his forehead, watching the boy shoot through the treetops and branches. His red eyes locked onto his position like hawks that had chosen their prey.
Chooses me as the first target!?
Erigor wasn't one to get emotionally invested in jobs, but that was insulting.
"You think I'm the weakest!" Erigor roared as he lifted his free hand, the magic bullet at the end of his finger roaring as he watched the brat jump forward like a leaping lion. Erigor wore a ferocious grin as the wind bullet flew from the edge of his index finger and barreled toward the brat's forehead.
"You're sorely mistaken."
There was a connection, and Erigor's grin widened as he saw the boy's head snap back. The victory was fleeting as the boy, the dead boy, changed his grip on the sword and threw it like a javelin. Erigor's eyes were wide as he tilted his head and watched the blade cut past his cheek and turned to see the boy grab his scythe.
"How the fuck are you alive!?" Erigor growled as he tried to rip his scythe from the boy, the extra weight pulling him off course, away from his two lackeys and under the treetops somewhere deeper in the forest. During this, he saw the boy tilt his head back in preparation for a headbutt that would give Erigor the headache of a lifetime. Erigor cursed at the incoming attack. He couldn't dodge, not without dropping his weapon.
Is that...
It didn't help that, at that exact moment, he noticed how the kid had survived the headshot. There was a small pool of a shadow on his forehead, like a portal on the boy's skin that had sucked up the attack and refused to spit it out.
That freaky shadow the boy had?
Erigor nearly laughed at the thought, watching the shadow shield of sorts crawl away from the boy's head and back to its original position. Unable to hold his cackling laughter, he quickly twisted their position in the air so he was on top and let go of the scythe, avoiding a headbutt from hell as he kicked the boy to the ground with the force of a cannon.
"You're insane, kid!"
Whatever that boy did was fucking nuts.
"Hey, why don't you join Eisenwhalde!"
If he were off by an inch, that bullet would have torn through his skull.
"We could use more people like you!" Erigor laughed as he watched the boy stagger up from the small crater. Erigor smiled as he watched the boy hold his scythe in one hand and speak lazily.
"No, thanks. I don't feel like it."
Then, the boy did something that instantly made Erigor's smile dissolve.
"Instead, why don't I make a deal with you?"
He handed the scythe, Eriogor's scythe, to the shadow, and it took it into whatever shadow world it had spawned from. This left Erigor no feasible way to get his favorite scythe back unless he killed the kid and hoped that little shadow closet didn't disappear with him or convinced the kid to give it back to him.
"Five minutes."
That second choice was the option the boy was hoping for as well.
"Stay here for five minutes, and I'll give you back your scythe," Vera said with a confident smile, his mind whirling for ways to make it more convincing as he watched Erigor raise an eyebrow before he started slowly descending to the ground, "No offense kid, but in five minutes you could probably butcher my lackeys. A wooden scythe isn't worth it."
"Then I'll make it a caveat so that in those five minutes, I won't be allowed to kill anyone," Vera said calmly as Sho slithered over to where his sword had been thrown and brought it back. Vera put it in its sheathe as he added, "I'll even make it so that I can't unsheathe my sword for those five minutes. Good deal, right?"
It was a shitty deal, a terrible deal, and Vera knew it.
"So what do you say, Erigor?"
He wasn't trying to make it, though; he just wanted to buy time—enough time for his sword to charge up a bit more so he could take out one of the two lackeys when they arrived. Without his scythe, Erigor was restricted in his arsenal.
"Do we have a deal?"
He wouldn't be able to save them from a full-powered air slash from Kaze Kokyu-
"Sure, kid, I'll take your little deal," Erigor replied nonchalantly, stalling Vera's thoughts as he blinked in surprise. His eyes widened, and he spoke with a bit of a laugh, "Uh... what?"
Vera must have misheard it.
"You deaf? I'll take your deal," Erigor said as he walked over to a nearby tree and relaxed against it, his eyes closed as he lazily spoke, "Leave me my scythe, and I'll wait here till time's up."
Erigor then whistled leisurely as Vera stared with growing confusion that was quickly replaced by a dawning suspicion. "I'll give it to you afterward."
"Ok, feel free, kid," Erigor said with a shrug, peeking an eye open with a smirk as he watched Vera blink in surprise. Erigor enjoyed the small game of chess the boy was playing in his head before the kid gave up on trying to piece it together and asked, "Why the fuck are you taking this shitty deal?"
Erigor hadn't had this much fun on a mission in a while.
"No, why are you even trusting that I'll keep up my end of it?" Vera asked honestly, watching Erigor laugh, and tilted his head with a confident snark, "Eh? I'm not trusting you for shit."
This kid was interesting, more so than any of his other targets that died without putting up a fight, so he figured he'd throw the kid a bone.
"If you don't keep up your side of it, I'll just kill you."
Besides...
"If you do, I'll still kill you; it'll just take longer."
Since the ban on assassination requests, Erigor had been on a dwindling list of job requests. This was his first request in over a month, and he wanted to take the time to shake the rust off. This mission in the deep woods, where his targets had no nearby towns or cities to run to, was perfect. It was as close to a no-risk mission as Erigor could possibly get.
"So do whatever you want, kid."
He could afford to be a little lax.
"The result will still be the same," Erigor said with a shrug, humming leisurely as he watched the boy waste a few precious seconds thinking over his offer before the shadow took out a scythe and handed it to the boy, who held it in a tight grip, "How am I supposed to know you'll keep your word."
Vera didn't get it; this wasn't what he expected from Erigor; it was unnerving.
"You're not, but if it makes you feel any better in dark guilds, my 'word' is worth more than anything I can offer in collateral."
Vera felt like he was missing something.
"Why?" Vera asked as he tossed Erigor his scythe, watching with narrowed eyes as the assassin caught it and just... stayed there. Lying down on the ground with a yawn and closed eyelids as if he were getting ready to nap, he said, "Think, kid. What else are we supposed to offer our buyers? They pay upfront, and we don't have any laws keeping us in check."
Vera didn't get it. There was something off with the Erigor he saw before his eyes.
"As a dark guild, the second we break our word, our reputation will be dragged through the mud."
Something was off... but he couldn't figure out what.
"So a dark mage's word is the only thing they're bound by or something like that?" Vera asked as he watched Erigor's face fall to a frown, the seconds ticking by as Erigor peeked open an eye and spoke with a scathing tone, "Don't get it twisted, brat. I'm not bound by anything. I choose to abide by my word because the alternative is annoying."
Vera felt something stir in the air as if responding to Erigor's voice, and for a second, the image of Aria, not as big or as deadly as the real thing but similar, flashed through Vera's mind. Only to fade an instant later as Erigor rolled over and leaned his head in his hand like he was about to nap.
"So you should hurry up while I still feel like being the honorable assassin I am."
Vera couldn't figure out why this version of Erigor, six years younger than the one in the story, put all his senses on overdrive.
"You're already down four minutes."
He wouldn't have the time to either.
"What are you talking about?" Vera murmured before his eyes widened in realization, and he cursed. Dashing away from the lazy assassin, Erigor called out with a mocking laugh, "Good luck, kid!"
Vera gritted his teeth as Sho boosted his movements from the bottom of his soles, the two charging away to make good on the window of opportunity. The window that had opened the second Erigor had initially agreed to his offer a few minutes ago. That prick was buying time.
"Clock's ticking!"
Time that Vera didn't have much of.