《The Heart of Gaia》


 1 The Escape

    "THERE THEY GO! AFTER THEM!" shouted several men.


    *Pant.. Pant*


    "Come on son! Through that alley!" Shouted my father.


    Every step I took and every face I saw that took sight of us was filled with disgust or fear. I''ve never seen horrible expressions in my entire life, my thoughts jumbled inside my head as I thought "What have I done?". I only wanted to experience the festival outside our home; to be normal. The screams of the terrified people still resounded in my head ringing over and over as we ran.


    "Son... Son?!"


    My father''s desperate call brought me back to my senses as he was checking my head for injuries. as I stared blankly onto his rugged face, We had stop in an alley with the shadows keeping us out of their sights. I saw him stand up and turn to peak into the corner.


    "We''re safe for now, They''ve lost sight of us."


    "Why are the guards chasing us father? I thought they we''re suppose to be protecting people?"


    "We''re not people in their eyes anymore..."


    "What do you mean?"


    "I''ll explain everything, but for the moment we need to escape."


    "Why were the people looking at us as if we are dem--"


    He covered my mouth and had push me as I backed into a wall, I took a glance beyond him as I saw guards and armed people passing through with wanted poster signs in their hands. I tried to calm down to assess the situation maybe they mistook the person in the poster as my father? as they passed, my father pulled his hand back.


    "Knoxx... Whatever happens always remember this ''In nomine dei libertas'' repeat after me"


    "In nomi..."


    "In nomine dei libertas." he repeated.


    "In nomine dei libertas."


    "Good... if you ever lost your way and I''m nowhere to be found, look for the monks of Gaia."


    I looked at him dazed and confused as what he was saying did not make any sense, him? gone? monks of Gaia? everything was a mystery.


    "Come we need to go."


    He moved out of the alley and I followed, we sneaked pass each guard and person that could turn hostile towards us. We passed by a Clothing merchant and I saw my father stole for the first time. He always told me to live honest and kind, so it boggled my mind--he cloaked himself with the drapes that he took and tossed the other one to me.


    "Cover yourself." he whispered.


    "Why the disguise? can''t we just explain them that it was a misunderstanding?"


    "And what? add more wood to the fire? they wont believe us anymore not after what they saw."


    "What do you mean? I could just say sorry or maybe pay a fine? it was only a crystal?!" ignorantly I replied.


    "I''m not talking about the crystal son, they saw what they weren''t suppose to see."


    "B-but wasn''t that a magic crystal? aren''t all magic crystals like that? I''ve read about them in books and they all glow?"


    "Enough!" he said with a sternly.


    "Now is not the time... Stay here and keep hidden, I''ll be back."


    I bit my lip out of frustration and saw him move carefully towards the stables. In this alleyway that smelt of rancid water and dead rats, I took the wooden crates that lay useless on the ground and sat on them as I waited for my father. I contemplated the situation, are we going to run away from home? I don''t want to leave, my best friend would be lonely and no one would help the Leyland family with their business anymore... I heard the noisy town from the alleyway as voices of random people echoed through. Especially with the Festival on--people went on their businesses as if nothing had happen until I heard two men talking.


    "Remember that mountainous guy that helped the blacksmith a long while ago?"


    When I heard the word mountainous, All I could remember was my father because the description fitted him perfectly. My father was a humongous person he barely fits through the door that he had to lower his head to get from one room to another. So I was curious on what they had to say so I inched a bit closer and listened.


    "Oh you mean Mr. Abbot?" said the other person.


    "Yeh! I heard that he''s the wanted traitor that the king was lookin'' for"


    "No! that can''t be him he looks different from the poster"


    "No! mate! it is him! rumors say that he sold his soul to the void and took both cursed children of Gaia wit ''im! the day he betrayed the kingdom!


    "He looked like a pretty decent man!"


    "and people have been talkin'' that earlier today the cursed child was ''ere blindin'' people wit'' his curse!--No one fits the description other than ''im!"


    "But his face looks different than the poster it can''t be him! maybe they both had the same height!"


    "That''s why guards are crawling all over the place lookin'' for ''im! because he took the cursed child wit ''im! after the devil went blindin'' everywon!"


    They continued to argue as I couldn''t believe what I had heard, my father? the traitor? he can''t be! although he meets him physically, he looks too different! and has a different name! too dissimilar! This had to be a misunderstanding...


    "SON! WE HAVE TO GO!"


    I looked pass the two men arguing and there I saw him gesturing me to come. there he was mounted on a horse that''s galloping at full speed, I ran towards his direction to meet him half way.


    "IT''S THE DEMON! OVER THERE!"


    "THAT BASTARD TRAITOR IS WIT ''IM TOO!"


    I overheard someone shouting as I was running then I saw father pluck a pole from the ground and placed it on top the saddle bag.


    "KEEP RUNNING!" he screamed at me.


    I ran as fast as I could! my legs felt like giving out anytime soon. I heard masses of people behind me all mixed in the disarray of voices, I turned to look and saw at least a dozen soldiers running towards me--I took off the drapery on me causing it to cover my pursuers, stalling them for a little bit of time. I couldn''t run anymore I was scared that anytime soon I''d fall face flat on the ground, so I closed my eyes hoping I''ve neared the gap between me and my father. Suddenly I felt my collar was pulled out of nowhere and my whole body flew upwards. I glanced upwards only to see my father dragging me with one hand.


    "GRAB HOLD ON THE HORSE KNOXX! I CAN''T PULL UP YOU LIKE THIS!" he shouted.


    With little strength I had left I grabbed hold of the saddle while pathetically pulling myself till I could sit on the horse. As I sat down I held tight especially with how fast the horse was running, falling off the horse would definitely be easy. I looked forward and saw the town gate...


    "THEY''RE NEARING THE GATES!"


    "CLOSE THEM! THEY MUST NOT ESCAPE!"


    "Father! the gates! they''re closing!"


    "I know!"


    I looked at the gates with anxiety as I saw it closing relatively fast. Not until my father took the pole he had on the horse, I saw him take aim as if he had a target somewhere...


    "GAH!" he huffed out.


    There it goes! the pole flying into God knows where. We were speeding towards the gates with it having no signs of stopping; I panicked--The closer we got the lower the gates have gotten then exactly right at the gate I heard a loud crashing of chains followed by disgruntled voices of men.


    "DUCK!"


    I ducked just in time as we sped through the Iron gates, oddly enough the gates stopped halfway that''s why we could pass through. Was it luck? or was it fate? my father didn''t look like he''d make that throw but whatever the reason was; I was thankful. I turned around and took a look at


    Yorkburgen one last time as I felt a little emotional, I grew up there and it was the only place It ever felt like home. Around the people I cared about and they were the same people that shunned us when we needed help, how could they just turn away from us like that after countless kindness we gave them... No words only disappointment and sadness filled my heart.


    "Don''t turn around, it''s not home anymore."


    My father said it as absolute but I know that somewhere in his heart he felt the same way I did, I hope we could clear this misunderstanding...


    Miles away from home we finally slowed down, too many thoughts filled my mind and too many questions left unanswered. I was too tired to ask my father about what I heard. I always looked up to him as he had taught me a lot of things in life but I trust him--


    "Where are we going?" I asked.


    "We''re going to look for an old comrade of mine."


    "And where is that?"


    "I don''t know..."


    He looked troubled, I was about to ask but then I saw a river from afar.


    "There is a river over there!" I exclaimed.


    I saw the clear and glistening flowing water with awe, I took off from the horse and sped through the bushes and plunged my hands deep into water as I cupped them to take a sip. I turned to my father and saw him there tying the horse onto a nearby tree so it wouldn''t run away.


    "Drink slowly Knoxx, the water won''t go anywhere."


    "But I''m so thirsty, that was the first for me; running like that."


    "You must be exhausted? alright then we''ll camp here for the night.


    Go look for some firewood later so I can start a fire."


    I nodded as I gulped the sweet nectar of the Gods flowing into my empty stomach. Feeling rejuvenated and felt a little energized, I set off to look for firewood in the forest but not too far away. When I came back both arms filled with wood and I had dropped them into a clearing, I saw my father stepping out into the same clearing with a wild boar rested on his shoulders. When I saw the beast I felt my stomach rumbling with hunger, he placed the boar near the stack of wood and told me to line them properly or we won''t have any dinner. So I did while he was skinning and butchering the animal ready for cooking. In a while we had pork roasting. I sat close to the fire and stared at the fire crackling under the sizzling pork leg, he was on the opposite side and was tending to the flames making sure that it would last the night. I looked at him and saw his eyes was blank as if his mind was voided of any emotion from what had happen. he looked back at me as I pulled my curious gaze.


    "You know staring would get you in trouble."


    "I know that! you told me one time already, it''s impolite..."


    It fell quiet after a while then he handed me the pork leg on a stick, I gorged on it like a beast chomping on its prey.


    "Slow down, you might choke yourself."


    "I can''t help it, I drained myself from running."


    I had my fill and went to the river for water--The lovely moonlight showered the river with unimaginable beauty, glistening in the dead of night. The crickets were playing their nightly tune as I stared into the water and drank. The peacefulness lulled my restless mind and finally I collected myself.


    "I''ll ask him when I get back." I whispered to myself.


    Right before I left, fireflies started glowing above the waters. The scene left me at a loss for words so I decided to stay a little watching the night grow darker and the scene brighter than ever. Surprised, I saw the fireflies gathering together and had formed a figure of a person! I could not believe my eyes and rubbed them, after a split second that I did the apparition was gone; I''m imagining things. I must be tired and headed back towards the camp only to see my father sound asleep, I rested next to the fire and warmed myself, I thought why all of this had happen? was it all because I selfishly wanted to experience the festival like the others? now that I''ve thought of it this is my first time away from town, I was stuck in thought as the crackling of the camp fire soothed me to sleep.

 2 The Awakening

    "Rise and Shine my Boy!" my father shouted.


    I grunted and wanted to sleep some more but then I realized that if I did, he''d just come up here to bother me some more. So I forced myself to the side of the bed and sat down as I rubbed my eyes, slid my feet into my boots and tied them shut. I stood and went towards the window for some fresh air--I opened the window and took a deep breath...


    "Oh I love the smell of fresh baked bread in the morning!" I muttered excitedly to myself.


    I followed the smell of fresh pastry from my window and saw the baker kneading bread a couple of houses away. The smell got my stomach growling in hunger. Before I headed downstairs, I cleaned myself proper: combed my shoulder length, curly and sunset colored hair--I proceeded downstairs and there I met my father


    cooking breakfast.


    "Took you long enough my boy! there is corn bread and some boiled eggs! I''m about to head to work so I''ll be leavin'' you in charge of our home!"


    "We don''t have any meat?" I remarked.


    "Be greatful with what you have, meat is expensive nowadays. Oh and remember! no going outside the ho--"


    "The house without you father, I know, I know!"


    "Good."


    After that he slammed the front door shut as he hurriedly went away for work. He keeps telling me that as if I would sneak outside! anyway even if I did I can go without him, I''m already sixteen; I''m not a child. I ate breakfast and did all the morning chores around the house--since it was just me and my father we had to do the chores ourselves. I went sweeping around the rooms in a daze thinking about random topics but usually I thought what would the world be like? I''ve never really traveled apart from Yorkburgen a couple of times. I want to explore and see different things in life! like a castle! or maybe even the ocean! I''ve only ever read about them from books and pictured them inside my head; they all seemed wonderful.


    I spent the next few hours cleaning around the house, from top to bottom, dusting and wiping away all dirt that had been there. My quiet morning session was interrupted with joyous laughter that came from in front of the house. I went to peak from the window and saw children playing outside, their care-free laughter and abundant smiles while frolicking about were wonderful although there was something odd about one of the children... The child had no face as they played about, but as I stared ever closer I realized that it was probably the dirty windows so I ignored it and grabbed a rag then started wiping the windows clean; might as well do every window.


    In the afternoon, I cleaned the used pots and pans by the kitchen. I checked if we still had water--


    "Empty" I thought.


    I grabbed one of the two water containers and went to the well. There I lowered the bucket, waited for it to get filled as I admired the view of the forest and felt the warm light of the sun in this wonderful afternoon. In the midst of getting water from the well while pouring some into the jar, something caught my peripheral vision as if some sort of blurred object was aching for attention. Filled and ready to go, I glanced to my right where the forest was--In order to see this attention-seeking enigma that caught my curiosity. When I did, I only saw a figure of a man and like the child from before this man had no face as well... I stared intently with my skin crawling and screaming out of fear, but I felt something grasped my shoulder from behind that pulled me.


    "Hey! I''ve been calling you, what are you looking at?"


    As I turned I saw Jackson Leyland, he was the only son of Nolan and Leila Leyland; the employers of my father. Their business focused on masonry and construction within Yorkburgen, they couldn''t exactly say no when they saw my father especially when a person like him could do two times the work of an average person. Jack was taller compared to me but only a few inches, had dirty-blonde colored straight hair and would have been a great person if only he wasn''t so full of himself. Can''t blame him though, since his family had better coin than us due to their business; he always worn better clothing than I did.


    I turned around again and looked at the forest only to find disappointment.


    "Nothing, I thought I saw something... What brings you here?"


    "Haha!" he remarked.


    "I only wanted to visit my old pal! because I know for sure he''d be bored to death!"


    I led him through the back door and we went to the kitchen, he took a seat as I placed the water onto the shelve. I sat opposite of him at the table.


    "So..."


    "So what?"


    "The Festival of Yorkburgen is happening tonight"


    "Yeah I know. What of it?"


    "It''s going to be fun! merchants everywhere! people merry-making as they drank from one tavern to another!"


    "I know what you have in mind already... I can''t."


    "Oh come on! I''m sure that he''ll let you go and I''ll be sure to bring you back just before midnight! I want my right-hand man beside me as we go through the streets looking out for voluptuous women!" he smirked.


    "Even if I ask and he miraculously accepts, the chances are he''ll be coming along! that won''t be fun at all!"


    "But you can''t let your old man decide everything for you! you''re already sixteen, you''re a man now! when will you ever do something for yourself?"


    "He says that it''s too dangerous to be out there!"


    "Dangerous?! what a load of rubbish? even if it was I won''t be alive talking to you right now? right? right?"


    I stopped for a moment and contemplated on what he said, I''ve never been out by myself my whole life and It''s not like I''m going to be with my father for along time; I''m grown up. I can be on my own and I can protect myself especially if I''m with Jack, I doubt that something bad could happen. I''m tired of my father treating me like a child, I can hold my own and be responsible.


    "Alright Jack I''ll come along with you after dinner... just wait by the well behind the house and I''ll meet you there."


    "There we go! I swear you won''t regret it! oh! we are going to have so much fun!" he exclaimed.


    I spent the afternoon chatting with Jack and he told me all this incredulous stories that his father told him. His father having worked with a lot of people, It was hard to believe that some of these stories were true. Until this one story that caught my attention...


    "Have you heard? the King of Cyneweard had been murdered in his sleep."


    "Who would do such a thing?"


    "Talk had been running around that it was his own son! the greedy bastard probably wanted the throne for himself and couldn''t wait!"


    "But he was the only son? I don''t think that he''d do the deed?"


    "Well they found the murder weapon with his son... poor lot. If you wanna do a crime! do it properly!" he said laughing ignorantly.


    "Now who''ll inherit the throne if his son will be placed to the dungeons?"


    "They say that their distant relative will take the throne in their stead."


    The kingdom of Cyneweard was the ruling body over the country of Ystallia ever since their assault on the Cursed children of Laxxo and their massive army they took down the demonic tribe and from there they started claiming lands, one after another. Well at least that was what the books say about their history. I''ve always wanted to meet the Great King Carlisle Cyneweard but looks like I won''t get a chance. Soon enough Jack went home and told me that he needed time to "Prepare" himself for the Festival, He was foolishly going on and on about women... I wonder what made them so different and it''s not like I''ve not met any women in my life.


    I looked through the window and saw that the sun was setting so I immediately attended to the stove in the kitchen. I placed firewood in it, some kindling right below the stacked logs so I could start the fire--Right when the fire started my father barged into the door. As usual he lowered his head to pass through and placed a sack on top of the kitchen table.


    "What''s that?"


    "Open it."


    I slowly took off the covers and out came beef.


    "WHOHOOO! we are going to have meat! I joyously exclaimed.


    I took a look at him and when his thick mustache lifted; I saw a big and hearty smile.


    "Now, son! time to chop some vegetables along with it! we can''t have a beef stew without any vegetables in there!"


    He placed on the table another sack filled with vegetables. As I took the materials needed for it. Soon enough we were eating a hearty meal, I remember him telling this morning that meat had gone expensive. So then I had to ask.


    "I thought you said that meat had gone expensive?"


    "I''ve gotten some extra money from Mr. Leyland since it was the Festival this evening, I worked extra. I can''t have my son getting all skinny, you''re already skinny enough! you need some meat in you my boy!" he said as he begun to chuckle.


    "Hey! I''m not all skin and bones! I''ve got some meat on me!" as I tried to flex my arm as hard as I could.


    "You call those muscles son?!" as he laughed hysterically.


    After that everything calmed down and we were cleaning up the mess we had made. I remember my promise with jack and didn''t wan''t to go against my father about the topic so I thought maybe if I asked nicely he might let me go without him.


    "So... you''ve heard about the on going Festival in town?"


    "Yes I''ve heard, What of it?"


    I paused for a moment and tried to calm myself down.


    "I heard that a lot of merchants from different places are going to be there"


    "Hmm... if you plan on going without me, I won''t allow you."


    "oh come on father! I''m going to go with Jack and I wont be any later than midnight!"


    "We have talked about this and you already know the answer."


    "But I''m not a child anymore father! I''ve grown, I can move and decide on my own!"


    I saw his face disgruntled at what I''ve said.


    "It''s not like I''m going to be with you forever! I just want to be able to decide! and do ordinary things people can do! I want to see the world! I want to know what it is like to be out there! I want to know what knights are like? and what kind of plants are there! I want to see magic!"


    "ENOUGH! YOU ARE NOT GOING!" as he stood and slammed his hand on the table.


    I was pissed at him, I felt the creases of my face out of anger and clenched my fists. everything was silent right after that and I headed to my room.


    "If he doesn''t want permission from me, I could still go no matter what he says..." I muttered to myself as I slammed my bedroom door shut.


    I fixed myself up and wore the best attire that I could, I slowly went out the window. One foot after another until I was on the roof top of the house, I walked around back and saw Jack waiting by the well.


    "Jack!!" I whispered loudly.


    He turned around and was shocked.


    "What are you doing!?" he said back.


    "I''m sneaking out! come on help me! get the ladder it''s behind the house!"


    "You could have just maybe sneaked out the back door?"


    "My father is downstairs! so would you quit whining and hand me that ladder!"


    I saw him speeding towards the back of the house and then he came back with the ladder and placed it.


    "Hurry up and come down! your father is still in the kitchen! I peaked through the window."


    I moved downwards slowly to not make a sound and made it safely. we immediately went to town which took a while because I had lived in the outskirts while he lived inside the town. As we were walking the streets I saw a whole lot of people and they all wore different clothing. All were better than mine: I had on a tie, slacks, suspenders and work boots but to me it didn''t matter as I felt exhilarated from the idea of seeing the Festival! soon enough we were near the town gates and I saw the tall stone walls that protected Yorkburgen! Soon I heard Merry-making noises from afar.


    At the gate I saw knights of the Cyneweard kingdom all armed up but instead of guarding they were drinking at the gates and letting people in, from there I saw the bright town of Yorkburgen! the place was swarming with people, merchants of every trade were here! we went around looking and trying everything that we could. I saw wonderful acts of entertainment as there was a play happening in the middle of town and merchants offered candy for one copper as I was about to, Jack nudged me with his elbow.


    "What?"


    "Look over there" he pointed.


    I looked at where he pointed and saw a beautiful lady. A slender body with a wonderfully bright smile with long silky black hair, I could tell that


    Jack very much liked this person.


    "What about her?" I asked.


    "Isn''t she fine?" with a fond tone he said.


    "Just go talk to her man!" I said as I pushed him towards her.


    "Alright! I''m going for it! wish me luck!"


    I smiled as he marched towards her, I followed him but not to close; only to watch from afar. As I was watching him my eyes drifted away along the people passing by my vision and in the crowd... there! I saw the same enigma in the forest earlier today, with my curiosity I followed it among the crowd--I tried closing the gap and squeezing myself in between the people in front of me. Finally I had reached it, so I reached out my left hand and pulled him around.


    "What''s the matter with you? do I know you?!" angrily he said.


    "I-I''am sorry sir" I answered.


    I must''ve lost track of it somewhere, so I took a look around and realized that I led myself in the middle of the market. Where merchants have come to sell their wares from far and wide. I might as well look around since I''m here already and I don''t think I''d ever find that creature again. Upon walking around I saw a glowing crystal in the midst of the swarming people, I felt it calling to me somehow? The strong luster of it felt alluring as it''s bright green color grasped my attention--I moved on my own under the trance of this weird object, it felt like I was staring into a person? from my vision it looked like it was pulsating? I heard my own beating heart matching the rhythm of this beautiful object. as I came close the luster got brighter, I reached for it


    until...


    "Five copper coins to measure your magical capabilities."


    I nodded and patted myself down in a daze until I realized that I had forgotten to bring money, The merchant noticed.


    "No coins? no deal..."


    I stared at him with blank eyes and eventually, I couldn''t resist my urge any longer and held the crystal with both my hands.


    "Hey!" he shouted.


    I felt power surging inside me, throughout my veins! muscles! everything! I stared intently at the crystal as it responded to my growing power, I felt my body lifting itself into the sky while I stared around my surroundings. The merchant who owned the crystal was in a state of shock and awe as he tried desperately to balance himself from the bursting force I was emitting, most of the people had fallen to the ground because of the overwhelming shock wave--everyone had the same expression filled with mixed emotions, my eyes felt like it was burning and then everything turned dark that I couldn''t see anything. I tried desperately to see until I saw glowing orbs inside the silhouette figures of people, I then stared downwards and underneath the earth... I saw a gigantic orb so large that I couldn''t comprehend it''s size! it had veins that connected everyone into itself and for the first time I''ve never felt so enlightened. I blinked my eyes and everything was back to normal, the surging energy inside me was subsiding as I slowly lowered onto the ground. Once I had landed I stared at everyone around me, all of them had disgusted looks in their faces and in the crowd I saw my best friend with a sad but frightened look in his eyes. I moved my eyes to my far right and there I saw the faceless enigma except it had a smile on its blank face that sent chills down my spine.


    "SON! GET OUT THERE!" someone shouted.


    I followed the voice and there I saw my father in the crowd with a worried look on his face pointing towards a direction.


    *AHHH!*


    Random voices of people screaming at the exact same time...


    The infernal screams immediately raised myself scared from the ground.


    "What''s wrong son?"


    I woke breathing heavily and saw the forest before me with the view of the river.


    "A dream." I said.


    "A nightmare?"


    "Ye-yeah, it felt so real? everything that happened yesterday played out in my dream exactly... except..."


    "except for what son?" concerningly he asked.


    "An enigma..."

 3 Truth from the Titan

    "An enigma?" my father asked.


    "Yes, but it didn''t have the same form... it was constantly changing throughout the dream."


    "It''s just a nightmare son, don''t think too much about it."


    Although it was a dream, it felt so real, like it was really happening but the oddest part about it was when I felt power surging inside me. That extraordinary feeling: I felt invincible, powerful, enlightened. It was something I''ve never felt before, as if I transcended the physical world. It was some form of spiritual realm and everyone was tied to it, the orb had veins or roots that bonded everything into it as if guiding or empowering them.


    "Argh! my head hurts." I muttered to myself.


    I should stop thinking about it, it was something other worldly, something that can''t be comprehended even by scholars. I glanced around and saw my father feeding the horse, the leftovers of the boar was tied with a rope behind the horse.


    "Here you go!" as he tossed something.


    I caught it with both hands; it was an apple. I felt my hunger as I saw the enticing, bright red color of the apple then bit into it.


    "where are we headed now? we can''t go back home."


    "I told you already, we''re going to look for a comrade of mine."


    "but you don''t know where to find him? how are we suppose to find him then?"


    "Let''s go to the nearest town and we''ll start from there."


    He said honestly but underneath his words I knew there wasn''t any certainty that we''d find this person, we we''re grasping at straws, trying out our luck.


    "Who is this person? why do we need to find him? and you still haven''t told me why we were chased from Yorkburgen."


    "I-I''ll tell you soon enough but now is not the right time."


    "You''ve been saying that ever sin--"


    *Rustle... rustle...*


    "Shhh!"


    The nearby rustling of the bushes interrupted my sentence, I glanced at my father and he told me to wait here while he went to check. I waited that felt like ages until finally he came out of the forest with another person behind him. It was an old man with a straw hat. My father explained that this person was a merchant and that he was headed to Hennely down south which happened to be the closest town. They negotiated that my father would give him a horse in exchange that we''d safely travel with him. Soon we rode to Hennely aboard the roofed wagon of a kind merchant, we didn''t introduce ourselves and the old man didn''t mind. He maybe realized that we wanted to keep it that way; safer for himself too.


    In the middle of the road, on the way to Hennely my father told me that we''d be on the road for a couple of days. Their negotiation included food and water provided for us. The occasional shake of the carriage was caused by the rocky road, so I took a look outside and saw that we had pass through a crossroads. I saw the sign from afar and there it was standing. The enigma was facing at our direction but for some reason it was shaking it''s head as if it was displeased and then later it pointed to the other path. I saw this and was unnerved by it. It felt like it telling me something but I wasn''t so sure so I turned to ask my father.


    "Father?"


    "Hm?"


    "Are we headed the right way?"


    "I asked the old merchant, he said this was a shortcut..."


    Then he leaned in towards my ear and whispered.


    "I don''t think we''re heading the right way but whatever happens just follow what I say."


    I nodded.


    I don''t know what my father had in mind but I trust him, I didn''t dare ask him about our situation even if it bugged me. The Merchant would hear so it was better to be quiet about the whole situation. Soon it was already dark and the stars littered about the sky while the moonlight brightened everything. The nightly cold breeze was blowing that chilled my bones, it was wonderful but for some reason I felt uncomfortable... Later the wagon had been put to a halt in the middle of the road. As my father went to check the merchant up front, he turned to me and said.


    "No one''s here..."


    "We have you surrounded! hurry up and come out! Don''t try anything stupid we''re armed!" someone shouted.


    "What are we going to do?"


    "Stay here! I''ll deal with them and when they come... run."


    "B-but what are you going to do? you heard them! they''re armed!"


    "Don''t worry, I''ll be right back."


    He then smiled and proceeded outside. I went to peek from the front of the wagon. I listened as I watched the whole scenario play out. My father walked out with both hands above his head walking towards them.


    "What do you people want?!" He shouted.


    From out of the shadows there was at least fifteen men and they were all armed with various weapons. They all wearily approached the hulking man standing before them. I was afraid of what''s going to happen so I tried rummaging inside for a weapon or anything sharp that I could use. I opened each barrel and they only contained food or water. Then I realized that it was futile...


    "Doesn''t matter! and kneel to the ground!


    "You caught a big one old man!" as they started laughing.


    "I knew it" I thought, we were being played from the start but I didn''t want to leave my father all alone. He might be strong but that doesn''t mean that he can''t die especially now that he''s out numbered. I looked outside again and there he was kneeling, completely surrendering to them. Then I felt something creaking on my foot , I checked, it was the floor board and felt that I could lift it up. There I saw a beautiful gem, glowing bright in the night. It looked like the same crystal that I held before in Yorkburgen so I picked it up.


    "HONOR YOUR PROMISE! THE CHILD HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS!" he shouted.


    It was followed by loud laughter as they had mocked my father.


    "You think we''d let ''im go? for both of your heads we could claim a lot at the Black market!"


    I held the gem as tightly as I could, hoping that it would give me the same power I felt before. Desperate I needed the strength to help him, but nothing happened.


    "Come out boy! I won''t hurt ya!"


    I can''t help him like this, I was scared but I had no choice so I jumped from the backside of the wagon and started bolting away.


    "Hey! come back here!" the man exclaimed.


    I looked at my father and what I saw was horrific, he was free from the ropes that had bounded him. He looked like a beast and the men surrounding him were completely decimated in mere seconds. Everything was running slow as if time had slowed down for me to see this incredulous sight, I glanced behind me, the man wasn''t chasing me anymore and went to help his comrades. I went to the bushes to sneak closer to see what''s happening. I heard screams of men in despair and watched the incredible fight, His size wasn''t a burden to him and had moved like a tempest. It had looked like he was completely predicting his enemies movements as he ran around fighting them with his bare fists...


    "I know who you are! monster!" a man shouted.


    "You''re the Titan of Cyneweard! That size I''d recognize anywhere!"


    Unfazed, He grasped the man by his head and lifted the person as if he didn''t weigh more that an average person. Then he flung him towards the bandits behind him which sent them flying. As he turned around I saw the old merchant coming out with a knife aiming for his back. I stretched out my left hand and opened it wide. I tried remembering the same feeling as before! focusing on the energy stirring inside me as I pleaded to Gaia while gripping the gem with my right hand. I focused my gaze into the old man and there I felt my eyes burning along with my right hand. Energy swirled and flowed into my left arm that bursted out in quick succession. A bolt of energy flew fast towards the old man and had exploded! right before his knife reached my father. The power subsided, as I was running towards my father, I was afraid that the explosion had taken him as well since I couldn''t see pass the dust cloud that it left in it''s wake.


    "Father! are you alright!" I shouted.


    The dust cloud had dissipated. I saw him standing with his back turned against me, his top had been torn apart due to the fight. He had scratches and small cuts but there wasn''t fatal wounds. Underneath his torn clothing was his muscular body adorned with countless scars. I moved towards him and I saw the ground was riddled with the lifeless bodies of the defeated, most of them had broken limbs. The old man was burnt to a crisp as I gagged at the ghastly smell of burning flesh. Gagged so much till I couldn''t hold out and vomited on the ground. The idea that I had killed someone made me vomit even more. I''ve never felt so guilty in my entire life.


    *Bleeugh!*


    "Are you alright my son?"


    "I am..."


    I glanced at his emotionless eyes, as if he had done this before.


    "I told you to run! why didn''t you?!"


    "I did! but I couldn''t! you were almost stabbed by that old merchant!"


    I saw him turn to look at the old man that was toasted.


    "Hm... did you do that?" he asked.


    "I did... If I didn''t, you would have died."


    "Thank you son..."


    We had set up camp near the road and had moved the wagon by the roadside, my father carried all the bodies and stacked them onto each other far from us. He told me that by daylight tomorrow we''ll bury them. I asked why? they''re evil people I told him, he replied "Even the most vilest of men deserved to be buried. That''s what makes us different from them." We sat by the fire and he had worn one of the shirts inside the wagon. I looked at him with curiosity I grew up with him but only knew him as a loving and caring father, a humble and honest man. Right now I saw him as a stranger but I knew that he only did all of that for our sake. We were roasting some sweet potatoes by the fire. The night was calm, crickets were chirping, the leaves and bushes rustled by the gentle wind.


    "You might want to start asking... or else I''ll fall asleep."


    My thoughts jumbled around, looking for a question that I could say.


    "What are you?" I mindlessly said.


    "hahahaha! I''m human my boy!" he laughed carelessly.


    "I meant how could you do all that? no normal person could do that? you took down fifteen people on your own!"


    "Well I could do more than that when I was in my prime! my old bones are wearing me down, I can''t move like I used too."


    "So you killed more than that?! before?!"


    "Well you see, I was a soldier before you were born"


    "So the people I heard were right? you are a traitor?"


    "Yes, but because I had to leave my duties for you. Your mother left you at my doorstep... The kingdom wanted me to keep fighting but I refused."


    "Oh mother?"


    "Yes, it was a long time ago. She was a wonderful person but eventually we had to part ways. In the letter that came with you, she said that she couldn''t take care of you."


    "and like you... she was gifted with magic, we fought along side each other for a long time." he followed.


    "Magic? you mean that indescribable energy?" I said in awe.


    He nodded.


    "Then why did that man call you the Titan? how are you fine after being exposed to my magic?"


    "You see..."


    he paused.


    "That was the title I was famous for, you can already imagine why... they called me Hector Abbot the Titan of Cyneweard..." he said lowly.


    "and as for the magic part, unlike you, I wasn''t gifted in magic."


    "What do you mean? don''t everyone has affinity for magic?"


    "Well yes... normally everyone has connection to magic except for me. I have zero affinity for magic and can''t be affected by it. That''s why I came out unscathed from that explosion."


    "How come you never told me any of this before? except for mother."


    "You never asked... I didn''t want you to think of me any differently. Knowing that I''d kill without question."


    My emotions stirred along with mixed feelings but I was grateful, that he had been honest. I felt relieved and peaceful as the night went on. The next morning we buried the remains, along their possessions. It was considered a bad omen to steal from the deceased. After we made peace, we positioned our stolen horse among the horses that pulled the wagon and soon we went our way to Hennely.

 4 Unexpected colleague

    "Where am I?"


    I found myself laying in a pool of light, I felt the warm water touching my whole body. I didn''t sink nor drown. I lifted myself and took a glance at my surroundings everything was devoid of shadow but then from afar I saw a figure. I stood and as if in a trance I wandered towards it, my mind was blank; lightheaded. Closer, I moved and I had realized that this figure was not in a constant shape, it looked like it had shifted forms each step I took. It morphed into a different animals, one after another until finally it stopped into a human figure. We were two feet apart, this creature was beyond explanation and somehow I felt calm while facing it. Soon it turned around, it was faceless, an enigma...


    "What are you?" I asked.


    it smiled and said.


    "I''m nobody."


    "Where are we?"


    It only continued to smile as it pointed downwards. I faced the water beneath my feet and there I saw a familiar green orb, its size was still the same.


    "Enormous" I thought as I was fascinated by it.


    "Do you hear it?"


    "hear what?"


    "Listen" said the enigma.


    I closed my eyes and concentrated...


    *Bump... Bump...*


    I heard a faint pulse, I followed the sound and it came directly below. It had sounded like a beating heart as I went on my knees and pulled my ear into the water. The beating was calm, peaceful. I stared at it in amazement as roots from it came out and attached itself to the soles of my feet. The line itself was very thin but when compared to the enigma, it was lacking. I felt constant energy flowing inside me as it pulsed. This rejuvenating feeling was unfathomable...


    *Rumble*


    The whole place was shaking along the strong rumbling of the untainted sky. Then I heard a familiar voice. my eyes fell towards the enigma.


    "What is happening?"


    "Wake up!"


    "What?!"


    "Wake up! Knoxx!"


    Everything turned dark as I heard a friendly voice calling my name. I rose from the bed and felt confused with a slightly irritated look on my face. I turned to look at my father.


    "Must you do this every time?"


    "Must you always wake up late?"


    This dream had been recurring often lately, I''m used to it by now. Ever since the fight with those bandits two nights ago. It was the same scenery every time: The orb, The enigma, the bright area where we always meet. I''ve always feared the figure in my dreams but each time we met, I slowly felt more comfortable around it.


    We arrived at Hennely yesterday before dark , we sold the wagon along it''s contents and kept a horse for each of us. The money we received from that is what my father used to funds our nightly stay. So far our search had been in vain, we''ve only ever asked random people here. Sooner or later we''re going to run out of money.


    "Come on get ready, we''ll be havin'' breakfast downstairs and search the town right after"


    "Alright alright."


    *Yawn*


    We made our way downstairs. We were greeted by the morning bustling scenery, tables and chairs were filled with people, a beautiful waitress running around while receiving orders from partially drunken rude men. We took a seat near the entrance so that we could leave as quickly as possible. The longer we stayed the more attention we attracted from people. Especially for my father, with his enormous size, it was quite easy to be the target of curious men. I''m surprised that no one tried to approach us yet. I told my father that we should''ve at least bought some cloaks or maybe just for him. "No" he said that it''ll attract more people since a cloaked large man would definitely be suspicious. So we tried to act as casual as we could.


    "What can I get you two?"


    "I''ll have bread with meat and for the boy..."


    My dad glanced at me waiting for what I wanted.


    "I''ll have soup please." I said then smiled.


    She left quickly after what I said with her cheeks blushed red.


    "Did i say something?"


    "haha! that young maiden is interested in you" he said in a teasing tone.


    "No! she isn''t... is she?"


    "Look at you! red like a tomato!" he started laughing.


    We chatted while waiting for our food. My father later had bobbed his head towards the right as if


    he were signalling me something. I took a glance and saw a bunch of young men on a round table, from the way they were staring; It smelt like trouble. I ignored them--My father was looking for his comrade using the same phrase he told me back at Yorkburgen, apparently it was a code that only a select few know. He had been very cautious in choosing the people he used the code on. I told him that it''ll be faster if we split up, it was too dangerous he said so sticking together was the best option.


    Soon we had finished breakfast and moved out into the town, the town was busy and large, we''d be taking our time looking. We spent the whole morning and afternoon in the market. He asked several people but usually this people didn''t know anything. I was near a vegetable stall while I watched him talking to random people. I wasn''t just idling around, I looked for potential people that could provide information. My eyes rolled around trying to look for something that might seem interesting and by the bridge I saw a lady sitting by the river side. Her bright and curly orange hair was shining underneath the sun, she also had worn a beautiful green dress. She bobbed her head with utmost tranquility then she saw a budding flower and with a quick motion of her hand, it bloomed. After that she stood as a crowd passed by my vision; she was gone.


    In a while my father came back just before sunset, so far he found out that there was an informant in town. The person hold him that she had a distinctly bright orange hair. I told him that I saw a person like that not too long ago. "Tomorrow" he said that we''ll find her for sure but as of now, we headed back to the Inn. We moved through the main road and was met by a crowd of people blocking the streets.


    "What''s going on?" I asked one of the people in the crowd.


    "Don''t ya know? One of the Cyneweard Bailiffs is here!" the man exclaimed.


    We moved deeper into the crowd to get a better view, all I saw was a carriage that was slowly moving towards the town hall. My father nudged me and told that we have to leave soon. It was bad that one of the high ranking officers were here, rumors must had spread around. It couldn''t be coincidental that this person came here. We left as soon as we could, slipping through the crowd. We finally arrived at the Inn.


    "So are we going to leave soon?"


    "We leave later at midnight, It''s too risky to keep searching here."


    The moment we stepped inside the Inn, I immediately recognized that bright orange hair from afar. She was talking with the waitress that served us this morning. I told him that she was the person I saw this afternoon so we made our way to talk to both of them. The lady left right before she saw us nearing and thus only had to talk to the waitress.


    "Excuse me miss." I asked.


    "Yes? how can I help both of you?"


    "May I ask who was that lady you were talking with?"


    "Oh you mean Madame Lockewood? The owner?"


    My father looked surprised.


    " Could we plea--"


    "Can you please pass her this message?" he said hurriedly.


    The girl was starled as he leaned into her ear.


    "In nomine dei libertas." he whispered as he pulled himself back.


    "I can''t believe it..." he muttered to himself.


    I looked at him, as I''ve realized that this was the first time I saw him like this. He was completely dumbfounded. The waitress had left already and was headed towards the basement. We waited quietly in hall while noises of merry-making were echoing throughout the area. After several minutes she came back.


    "She''ll speak to both of you now."


    We headed down the basement, I could tell that it was just used for storage. The stuffy air made it a little hard to breathe but soon enough we came to a halt in front of a door. She told us that Madame Lockewood will talk to Hector first and then she''ll say when I could come in. So I had to wait outside and that she''ll keep me company. I saw my father head inside as I was left with the waitress. Everything was awkward because she was just staring at me intently.


    "Could you please stop staring?"


    "Why? does it bother you?"


    "Well... it is a little rude."


    Even after what I said, she was staring rather diligently with her sparkling hazel eyes. Now that I see her up close, she looks near my age. I tried averting my eyes and ignoring her deep gaze but she inched forward causing me to step back.


    "Uh... is something wrong?" I said quite nervously.


    She moved closer and closer until I was backed up against the wall. We were face to face, I could feel myself sweating with nervousness and cheeks blushing red. I didn''t know what to do--Soon she licked my cheek but oddly enough she started sniffing. From my neck she moved slowly all the way down with both of her hands on my chest. As soon as she was nearing my lower stomach I bolted away towards the door while covering the bulge with my left hand; eyes closed.


    "When are you going to tell hi--" female voice.


    "PARDON ME!!" I shouted as I rudely entered.


    "I''m sorry Madame but PLEASE! control your employee!" I nervously exclaimed with cheeks flushed as I bowed in front of her.


    "What are you doing Knoxx!" my father sounded displeased.


    "Haha! it''s quite alright! It''s my fault for leaving you two alone, what did you do now Higime?"


    "I didn''t do anything! hmp!"


    she pouted, arms crossed.


    As she came into the room, she had white bunny ears drooping down the side of her face. I was mesmerized and shocked at the exact same time.


    "It''s your first time seeing one huh?" said Madame Lockewood.


    "what is she?" I said.


    "A Faustian... her kind is not of this country. Allow me to introduce her, she is Higime Lockewood. she''s like a daughter to me."


    I saw her bow like a princess towards us.


    "I taught her manners but sometimes she acts rudely"


    "I couldn''t help it, he smells funny!"


    "I know he''s a little different." said Madame Lockewood.


    As she placed her hand on my shoulder, our eyes met. Her eyes were like burning bright emeralds as if she was staring directly into my soul. Her voice had a tone of that a noble, the way she walked back towards her chair behind the large table hinted elegance. Her fine and slender physique could make any man fall for her.


    "Please take a seat everyone, Allow me to introduce myself to Knoxx. I am Cordelia Lockewood, a former colleague of your father and the South regional leader of the Liberators." as she held out her hand.

 5 The Fallen

    I shook her hand. As they both explained to me that her and my father was in the same squadron back in the day. The reason why father was surprised of her existence, was because she was pronounced dead. She was one among the casualties during the war against the Children of Laxxo, after that she awoke from an unknown location that had conducted inhuman acts of experimentation. She was a victim, losing her eyes as a result but gained another form of vision that lets her see magical traces. Luckily had escaped the hellish place and sought to free the people that lay victims. Years later, by accumulating a group of people that aim for the same agenda she was recruited by the Commander of the Liberators which was a former colleague Rhysel Godfrey.


    "If so? how can you see father?" I rudely asked.


    "Not only the eyes can see..."


    "but in you child, I see greatness."


    "Greatness?"


    "Yes... do you wish to learn about magic?"


    I nodded and wanted to learn more about this, she told me that we''ll start tomorrow. I looked at father with great excitement, as he stared back with a smile on his face. After that she explained about the Liberators, It was a secretive organization that plotted against the current tyranny that is the Cyneweard empire. They aimed to rid the country of their misdeeds to its citizens. She was responsible for the control of the south branch of the Liberators.


    "You''ll be under my protection Knoxx, don''t worry." She said reassuringly.


    When I heard that I felt safe for the first time since we left Yorkburgen. I heard my father sighing out of relief, we could finally be at peace after all that hardship.


    "Tonight rest easy, we''ll be moving to a safer location by tomorrow my boy."


    "We''ll be contacting Commander Rhys in the mean time." said Cordelia.


    "I haven''t seen Rhys in a while Cordelia, I wasn''t sure I''d be able to find him... He came to me years ago saying that if I ever needed help go look for him using the code ''In nomine dei Libertas'' but I''m glad, now that I found you this makes our situation lighter."


    "Actually rumors had already spread around that the traitor had finally shown up along with the Chi--"


    He stared sternly at Cordelia and It''s as if she realized something.


    "So its like that..."


    *Ehem*


    "As I was saying, with rumors spreading like wildfire. Rhys immediately sent people looking for you two. So we''d still find both of you eventually."


    She cleared her throat and had continued talking. While my father and her was busy conversing on important matters, Higime directed me to another room in the basement. Where I rested expecting to see the bright sunshine of tomorrow. I dusted the bed, laid on it and finally stared onto the bland ceiling. The whole room hasn''t been used in a while Higime said so, that would explain the growing number of the cobwebs. Lost in thought, I hoped that maybe by tomorrow everything would be fine. Back to the same old town of Yorkburgen, where my old friend was waiting. Oh how I miss the smell of freshly baked bread...


    I found myself in a familiar pool. The same heavenly touched sky, I stood and walked aimlessly again. From far ahead I saw the master of this place, the same figure that visits this often daily dream...


    "How come we always meet here?"


    "Where is here?" it asked.


    "Um... I don''t know."


    "Then how can you call it ''here'' if you don''t know?"


    The enigma wasn''t clearly making sense, but I deeply thought of an answer.


    "In my head!" I exclaimed.


    "It is what you believe it is..."


    "Well, we''re in my dream so therefore we are in my head."


    "Then if it is, is that what your head contains?" he pointed below.


    I stared downwards and saw the familiar ball of light, shining so immensely as it had before. It''s beauty could not be described with words.


    *Rumble... Rumble...*


    "It''s happening again." I muttered.


    The enigma nodded and then he was uttering words that I couldn''t register. Gibberish came from it''s mouth until I couldn''t bare the volume of it''s voice.


    *Gasp.*


    I woke up gasping for air as cold sweat soaked my body.


    "You have to tell the boy!"


    I heard Madame Cordelia shouting from the wall, It was probably thinner that I expected. It had sounded as if she were arguing with someone. I leaned in closer to hear what they have to say. Curiosity bit me as I was the only "boy" that they could possibly be talking about.


    "He must not know! you know this already!"


    "If you prolong this any longer, it''ll stray the child away!"


    As I was listening, I asked myself "what was it that I must know?" as delved deeper into mind and thought that everything I wanted to know was concluded already. Even though it was definitely my father shouting. I shrugged it off as I slowly dozed off. The next day we left early in the morning, catching the first light of the sun. Hours had passed already since we left Hennely in a carriage, there was four of us inside: my father, myself, Madame Cordelia and Higime. They sat next to each other while my father and I were on the opposite side. There was the coachman driving and another who came as a guard. I felt the wonderful shine of the sunlight on my skin as I lazily rested my elbow on the windowsill. Outside was a clear field, the sky was spotless and the trees swayed along the strong gust of wind. I felt a strong presence from my left, I turned to look and only found Higime staring again. Then her mother scolded her on how it was inappropriate. Until my vision passed her, and out the window was a shadowy figure...


    "Who''s that?" as I pointed.


    Madame Cordelia stood as soon as she saw the odd figure and opened the window.


    "Coachman! make haste! we are being followed!"


    "Yes ma''am!" he shouted.


    Soon the carriage accelerated with great speed, it rocked against the rough gravel road, while we held tightly as we could.


    "Who''s that?!" my father asked.


    "It''s them..."


    "Who''s them?"


    "One of the Cyneweard Bailiff..." as she frowned.


    "How can you tell that it''s one of them"


    "That magic aura radiating isn''t humane."


    As she said that her eyes glistened, her face exuded disgust and fear but overall she looked pained as if staring at a pitiful child.


    "Madame Cordelia! it''s getting closer!" shouted the coachman.


    "My arrows are not doing anything agai--" said the other man.


    He was cut short, his voice was followed by screams of agony until the carriage crashed. When I came to, my vision was blurry and I felt a sharp pain on my forehead. Warm liquid ran down my face as I crawled towards three shadowy figures down the road. I heard crashing, explosions and shouting. Having been disoriented from the crash I couldn''t make sense of it all. I worked up strength to stand up. I grunted out of pain as I felt my ankle twinging as I fell on all fours.


    "Come on Knoxx."


    I turned towards this person helping me, It was Higime.


    "What''s happening?"


    "Madame and Mr. Hector are fighting over there! we need to move some where safe."


    She pointed towards the three figures, slowly my eyes concentrated. There I saw both of them injured. They were fighting against this man, he had a sly look on his face, He smiled each time he was struck. His body was steaming with smoke as my eyes couldn''t keep up with their speed. Father was striking back and could hold him off while Madame was not to far behind him casting spells. Higime raised me under my shoulder.


    "We need to go!" she said.


    "We can''t! I''m not going anywhere, not like this!"


    "We have to at least move!"


    We limped away slowly from the fight.


    "WATCH OUT!" someone shouted.


    As a fast projectile was hurdled beside us, followed by a loud crash, causing us to fall flat on the ground in an instant. Dust clouds formed blinding our vision but slowly they began to dissipate and what I saw in the crater alarmed me. There I saw my father in pain in the middle of the crater, as soon as everything cleared up. I saw a man at the edge of the crater. He grinned that instilled terror in me, his disfigured face had a third-degree burn scar on the upper right regions of his head. The man had a messy hair on the remaining parts where the scar had not reached. He was wearing a loose shirt that was tattered along with brown trousers and leather shoes.


    "Aha! so that''s the kid!" he exclaimed.


    "Stay... away from my boy!"


    "Shut up old man! you''re already beat!"


    "Hello there young fellow!"


    As he neared his body was steaming, I saw his body had no injuries despite their battle.


    "My name is Hudson! Hudson Kuzmann!" as he neared, holding out his hand.


    "Stop right there fiend!"


    Cordelia shouted as huge vines grew around the man wrapping him in quick succession.


    "Hurry up and stand children! get away as far as you can!"


    "haha! nice spell! but can it hold?!" said Kuzmann.


    The large intertwined vines were smoking until everything slowly burned apart, as he was about to step out my father jumped right in blasting him away with a sucker punch.


    "We''re proceeding with ''that'' plan Cordelia"


    She stared at my father with great frustration. I saw the conviction in his face, his fist clenched and chest out. Finally Cordelia let out a deep breath and ran towards us. She pulled me towards her along with Higime and went to her knees. I felt a deep sense of epiphany...


    "What are you doing?!" I shouted.


    She closed her eyes and grasped both of our hands as tightly as she could. She started murmuring gibberish as a bright light glowed around us. I could feel every inch of my body screaming out of fear as I crawled to her.


    "Don''t! Please!" I begged.


    I stared at my father, I felt my eyes swelling up. I held out my hand towards him... He smiled back with tears in his eyes.


    "THAT WAS A GOOD PUNCH! I FELT THAT!" shouted Kuzmann from afar.


    "Father please! don''t do this! we can all leave!"


    "You know it''s not possible..."


    I started tearing up and crawled out of desperation towards Madame Cordelia.


    "Please! I''m begging you! Don''t do it!"


    I saw her pained expression as a tear rolled down her cheek. She bit her lip out of frustration but continued her nonsensical muttering. I saw my father dash to meet the demon and it turned into a long slug fest between them.


    "AHAHA! LET''S SEE HOW LONG YOU CAN LAST!"


    I heard my father shout out his lungs as he continued to fight. The surging emotions pulled at my heart as every memory of him continued to flash before my mind. I pleaded towards Cordelia with every ounce of my voice pouring out.


    "STOP! PLEASE STOP! WE CAN FIGHT!"


    I tried moving towards Higime shaking her to wake up.


    "PLEASE STOP HER! I DON''T HAVE ANYONE ELSE!"


    She was out cold then I saw a trail of blood leaking behind her head. Right before Cordelia finished, I turned to look at my father one last time. He had already fallen to the ground, losing against the Bailiff. He struggled to move under his feet eventually he finally faced towards me uttering his last words.


    "Don''t, come, for, me..."


    "NOOOOOO!" I screamed.


    As my voice started reverberating during the transportation.


    "Teleportation successful..." said Cordelia in a low tone.


    I laid face front on the cold stone bricks that made up the floor motionlessly, devoid of any motion or reaction. Cordelia had stood up calling for help until we were surrounded with unfamiliar faces, they carried us away. My thoughts were filled with regret and my heart was deep in sorrow. I couldn''t help not even a slightest but instead had cowered in fear and was a burden to both of them. I cursed my ankle, hoping maybe that if it weren''t broken, just maybe, I could have done something. They placed me on a bed and had attended to my wounds, my consciousness was far beyond them and was stuck within the confines of my mind. I couldn''t bare the exhaustion until finally I fell unconscious.

 6 A Reason

    An echoed voice reverberated throughout my ears. It called upon me, I felt my whole body submerged under the water. I tried moving but my body wasn''t responding to my thoughts. Forcefully I tried opening my eyes, slowly they opened. The horrific sight made my skin crawl out of fear, my body trembled before it, The shadows wasn''t at all covering the frightful thing in front of me. The used to be heavenly location in my dreams was now in ruins, the void ate the untainted skies, the pool was now red and thick like blood that bathed my body waist down. The warmth had vanished was replaced with skin chilling coldness. But all of that lacked in comparison compared to what laid in front of me. I saw my father in his last moments on the pool of blood, he just sprawled there lifeless with eyes that screamed out the epitome of Laxxo; eternal void. I couldn''t face away as my body was frozen in an upright position. I felt tears rolling down my face as the agonizing sight etched into my mind. The unbearable feeling of immobility was gnawing at me as my father laid there. Soon enough I heard a voice echoing throughout my hellish prison.


    "S-son..."


    I heard my father, calling towards me. Immediately I took notice of the mangled body, it''s mouth was mumbling as if it was still alive. I felt a little hope but then.


    "Why did you leave me..."


    "Why... why?"


    "I never thought my son would be like this."


    "You left me..."


    "You spineless coward, useless."


    The endless degrading words that came from him, tore away at my heart. I sobbed while stuck in self-pity. I blamed myself for everything.


    "I-If only I was strong enough!"


    I screamed out every bit of emotion I had along with it was my voice.


    *Gasp!*


    I gasped for air, I woke up feeling like a thousand bricks had fallen on my head. My bare body was dripping with cold sweat as I tried to move but the pain from my ankle stopped me in doing so. I slowly curled up hugging my legs feeling like I just wanted to end my life right there. Depressed I just sat there on the bed. Finally I heard a door creak open, I remained in my position not even trying to glance at their direction.


    "How are you doing child?"


    I heard a soft but well spoken out voice, I knew it was Madame Cordelia.


    "I know that it''s hard right now bu--"


    "What do you know?! you left my father!"


    "We had no choice..."


    "We had a choice! we could''ve fought or maybe thought of another way!" I shouted.


    "It was your father that decided, I never wanted to leave him."


    As she tried to place her hand on my shoulder to sympathize along with me. I smacked her hand away, I glared at her with teary eyes and a foul expression. My face softened a bit when I saw her bright emerald colored eyes drenched with tears. I realized that she had been through as much as I did and yet my emotions caused myself to become cruel. I turned away and covered myself with the bed sheets.


    "You''re not alone in this Knoxx... My only daughter still hasn''t woken up."


    "If you''re ready, let me know..." she said softly.


    She left without anything else to say as the door slowly closed so did myself--Days passed, I''ve only ever walked around my room, it had enough lodging for one person only. One large window that let the sunshine seep through warming my cold mornings, a table and a chair beside it. A big wardrobe with everyday clothing in it. I had meals everyday as they sent food in front of my door, I only ate bits of them and drank water. I lost my appetite, I spent the past few days lost in thought. I would occasionally look through the window and saw people training on the grounds. I saw Higime there along side the many people, she must''ve woken up a few days ago. She looked well...


    Throughout the past days I''ve been alone, Madame Cordelia never visited me again after that. I wanted fresh air, so I went outside. The place was a huge fortress, I went towards the left path as I saw a large entrance. I followed the fresh breeze and there I met a large grassy field that was surrounded by a parapet wall. I continued to walk towards the embrasures as a strong gust of wind blew against my hair. From my view I clearly saw the people training with their weapons. People practicing archery and magic.


    "You''ve finally came out."


    I didn''t have to turn in order to realize that it was Madame Cordelia. She stood beside me looking at the same view.


    "Look at them, do you know what I see?" she asked.


    "No..."


    "People fighting..."


    "They''re just training."


    "Oh it is, they''re training to join the Liberators... Each of them had fought in their own battlegrounds, each one varies. All of them had a choice but they chose to fight."


    "Each and everyone of us is given a choice. Some of us just decided that it''s better to make a difference whether in others or in ourselves. No matter the reason, humanity will fight; It''s in our nature. Such is the life of man, struggle only to find ourselves in the battle of life." she remarked.


    I looked at her and thought why do people call her "Madame" is it because of her age? Her skin looked fair and spotless, a wrinkle was nowhere to be found on her beautiful face. I found no ring on both her hands, she wasn''t married; I concluded. She looked like in her late twenties. Maybe they gave her ''Madame'' as a title because of her precocious demeanor as respect, not because it was the appropriate way to address her.


    "It''s either you fight or you don''t, it''s up to you... You''re father is still alive, they won''t let him off easily. Especially without you."


    "I''ll fight... for his sake!"


    I felt hopeful and excited, I wanted to rescue him badly; I wanted to see him.


    "But what do they want from me?"


    "They want you because of what you possess."


    "What do I possess?"


    "You hold great power within you child, in this world nothing is more precious than what you hold."


    I contemplated about what she had said, it felt like she was holding herself back. As if hiding something. My thoughts took me back towards that sleepless night at her Inn.


    "That night at the Inn..."


    "What of it?"


    "You were arguing against my father in the night..."


    "Ah... It is not my position to tell you such a thing."


    I bit my lip in frustration but I had to accept the fact that my father might still be hiding something from me, so what ever it was I must know. I trust my father but there was a lot of things he hid from me, I should expect the same right now. Even without him here, I still knew close to nothing.


    "I''m prepared to know."


    I gulped as she stared at me. She was hesitant but finally gave out.


    "You''re the only remaining survivor of the Cursed Children of Laxxo... I''ll only reveal that, the rest is up to you whether you believe it or not."


    Then the reason my father had betrayed the kingdom was because he loved a woman from the Children of Laxxo? did my mother die because she was killed in the war? So much questions popped through my head, Why had he kept so much? didn''t he trust me? was it because I was dangerous that he had kept me inside our home all along?


    "H-how could that be? weren''t they eradicated in the Great cleansing of Gaia?"


    "Indeed they were but here you are... All you have to know is that you have unparalleled ability of the magical arts."


    I realized that I needed to confront my father about all of this, How come he kept this hidden. I needed to strive, become stronger so I could save him. So the next day I prepared myself in the morning, as Madame Cordelia told me that before the first light of dawn I must be present at the Training field as to formally join the Liberators. I couldn''t just shy away after all that has happened, nothing good will come from doing sulking; I had to fight. A housekeeper of the fortress came last night and gave me proper clothing to use during training, Madame Cordelia had sent her. I went off as my room was apart of the keep, I passed through the bailey and saw recruits coming out of the small barracks on the far western wall. Soon enough I reached the drawbridge and saw the moat beneath. Most of the recruits started pouring out towards the open field by the eastern side of the fortress. I arrived and there I saw at least fifty people gathering, In the crowd I saw Higime. I went towards her direction and greeted her good morning.


    "how are you feeling?" I asked.


    "Better, how about you?"


    "Much better." I muttered lying to myself.


    As the sun rose, a man of average height with blonde hair and blue eyes stood in the middle of the crowd.


    "GOOD MORNING RECRUITS! I am Nolan Bardel! each and everyone of you will refer to me as Instructor Bardel!"


    "Each and everyone of you will have to prove their worth! Form a line!"


    Everybody lined up, from afar I could see one person that didn''t follow and had sat by a tree. Instructor Bardel came towards this person.


    "I see that you''re the Rebellious type!"


    "I don''t see the point to all of this" The guy replied.


    Bardel pulled the guy towards him and pushed him in front of the line.


    "Since you wanted to see the point in all of this, I''ll show it to you! show me what you got!"


    As he raised his hand challenging the newcomer, The man ran towards him, he was immediately blown to the ground.


    "Now you see? we might be a Rebellion but we still need to work as a whole, serving as Knights of the Liberators!"


    Soon groups of men came carrying weapons and their respective weapon racks, they placed them finely in a line near us.


    "Pick and choose a weapon of your choice, come at me!" As his eyes burned with passion.


    Recruits fell down one by one. completely overpowered by sheer skill and strength until finally, a goofy looking character with a loud mouth was next in line.


    "Oh no! I don''t want to fight! I don''t like it when I bruise myself!" He squealed.


    "You''re next! come here! grab any weapon!" Instructor Bardel said.


    "I don''t want any weapon... They''re too heavy for me."


    Now that I was looking at him, he was too clean and He moved too feminine for a man.


    "Well?! are you engaging or not?"


    "I don''t really want to fight..." He said in a low voice.


    "I see..."


    Instructor Bardel dashed towards him as he struck, my eyes couldn''t keep up but then surprisingly the person had blocked his attack. He had wings that had sprouted wide open from his back.


    "Most Impressive and an Elgan too! your name recruit!" he praised him.


    "DeWitts, Ambrose sir!"


    After him everybody resulted the same and was completely dominated by Instructor Bardel. Except for a few people that gained praise from him, along them was Higime as a Faustian she was naturally stronger than that of a human. She chose a weapon twice her size, a Battle hammer and lasted the longest against him but she always hesitated. Soon followed a female Deimos with her swift and precise movements with the dagger, then lastly was another male near my age that wielded the bow as if it were an extension of himself. After the whole physical training, he transitioned to Magical ability. He had one of his men pull out crystal from the Keep and out came with them was Madame Cordelia.


    "Do each and every single one of you know about this?"


    He held out his hand with the glowing crystal on his palm. One of the recruits answered.


    "It''s a Vistone sir!"


    "That''s right! otherwise known as Viscorr!"


    "This crystals have been growing under the world since before the time of living beings!" said Bardel.


    "It is said that this was Gaia''s gift to all the living beings of the world, Blessing us with her power. The very origination of magic."


    "Each stone has unstable and powerful magic, capable of mowing down Thousands of men. But cannot be harnessed. It is only here to provide us beings of magic." said Madame Cordelia.


    "A medium! if you will, that connects us to the power of Gaia. Thus allowing us to perform various magical spells but will depend on your Corr capacity." she continued.


    "Now! every single one of you will have to hold the crystal, the brighter it is the higher your Corr capacity will be and Madame Cordelia here will appoint your specialty judging from the color that the crystal shows."


    As I saw the crystal and it reminded me of a bad time, I was afraid. I might cause a commotion like before. I was drawn to the crystal like before but this time it was different. After a while it was my turn--I hesitated to touch it and then I realized that before I held it with both hands. I wonder what would happen if I just poke it.


    "Come on kid! we haven''t got all day." said Bardel.


    As I poked it, it glowed dimly...


    "Well looks like you haven''t much tal--"


    It''s dim light grew brighter and stronger by the second, soon it had covered everything forcing everyone to cover their eyes while averting away their gaze. I felt my eyes burning again in a split second and saw nothing except glowing orbs inside silhouette figures of people. When the light calmed down so did my eyes, every single person was awestruck. Then the crystal showed every single color before it turned to clear and translucent. Madame Cordelia was confused, she knew that I was different but not to this extent. She couldn''t figure out what specialty I would be placed in, as people tend to lean onto one kind of magic type in their life and at most was three. Madame told me that we''ll figure out the situation at a later date. Finally the day had ended, I laid in bed exhausted and stomach full of a hearty meal.

 7 The Risk

    "Argh!" I grunted.


    "Come on! stand up! you won''t be able to win in hand to hand combat if you gave out now."


    "You''re too strong Higime..."


    The sun is burning bright and the cover of the trees shaded us from it, The breeze chilled my body as it passed through. We''ve been training since this morning, from basic weaponry to the earliest form of spells. I''m facing against Higime which was rough, it was like pushing against an immovable boulder. The difference between us was too great. From afar I heard Instructor Bardel passionately shouting at few of the recruits, exclaiming that they needed more willpower to keep going. He made us choose a partner and fight against them, in this case I''m partnered to Higime. I wasn''t really friendly with everyone as rumors began to spread around that I was of Laxxo''s Blood. Basically after the whole blinding light yesterday, most of them thought ill of me. They distanced themselves from us. As I sat on the grassy field trying to gain energy, I saw them currently whispering among themselves.


    "Don''t mind them." She said.


    "I plan to."


    Soon one of the knights of the keep came to the Instructor, the man spoke to him. I sensed an urgency in his movements. Finally he had dismissed everyone and told that that a meeting was about to be held. Soon everyone began returning to the fortress, except for a few people that stayed to train. Higime held out her hand to help me stand, we walked together on the way back.


    "How come you have a hard time using your magic Knoxx?"


    "I don''t know, but your mother might has been helping me."


    "You''ll get scolded by Bardel tomorrow if you don''t learn, not like I care or anything..." she muttered lowly.


    "What?"


    "I said, that''s good although she still might be in the council meeting."


    I bumped into one of the recruits by accident as my attention was directly on the conversation, I turned towards the person to apologize. Then I saw the same person that withstood Instructor Bardel yesterday, He was taller than me. As for my height I wasn''t exactly physical astounding and only have been an inch taller than Higime.


    "Oh! I''m deeply sorry!" he said.


    "No, I''m sorry I wasn''t paying much attention."


    Oddly enough he was staring, as I stared back. He was handsome and had very feminine like features on his gentle face. I wonder if people would often mistake him as a female. He had a long gray and silky hair tied up like a bun, with black eyes. His physique at first glance looked skinny but he was really lean I could tell from his thin shirt. The awkwardness of him just staring was unbearable so I wanted to break it off.


    "Uhm... We''ll be off then."


    "Oh no! Don''t go, please... I was admiring your lovely curly hair! and your exquisite green eyes. Pardon my rudeness, Because I love beautiful men."


    *Wink. Wink.*


    "haha..." I laughed awkwardly.


    "My name is Ambrose DeWitts, the most elegant of Elgans."


    "Sorry, Knoxx is not interested." she said coldly.


    As she interrupted and pulled me towards her, the shocked look on his face explained that he probably had thought I was into the same sexual preference. But it didn''t matter as he laughed it off. Soon we exchanged formalities as we headed towards the drawbridge. he began to constantly yap about various things, I tried to actually listen to him but with his constant change of the topic I couldn''t follow through. I glanced at Higime with an perplexed expression. Then I saw that she was actually listening to the chatterbox and had thrown some replies here and there. As they began to connect as though they had been long lost friends. As tough as he might seem, he was friendly. Soon we passed by a group of fellow recruits.


    "Pardon me." I said as I accidentally bumped his shoulder.


    He just stared at me with a smug look on his face. I ignored it and passed by.


    "Filthy Laxxo blooded ingrate" he muttered under his voice.


    "Hey there lovely! don''t hang out with that faggot freak of nature." one of them haughtily said.


    As another one of them laughed, I grabbed Higime as soon as I saw her fist clench. I whispered to her that It''s not worth it. Then Ambrose was pretty calm about it but this wasn''t the case until he said something.


    "You know!" He pointed towards them.


    "I don''t like you people at all, you''re not beautiful!" He smiled menacingly as his whole body began to erupt with muscles tightening his shirt.


    Three of them hastily tried to leave but one of them was persistent, explaining how can they be afraid of such monstrosity. Ambrose came closer to this seemingly brave yet ignorant individual. And with a strong punch right to his gut he fell. His fellow colleagues took him away scurrying away like scared mice. Ambrose smiled with a sense of pride as soon as they left. Ironically as it may seem that the Liberators were meant to be a group against injustice but here there were people like them. Though I was never a judging character, they must have their own reasons. It would be amazing enough to still be like that after Bardel is finished with them. Soon we went our separate ways as I went off to meet Madame Cordelia as she had just finished the meeting. Because of the unusuality of my Corr she was helping me investigate it further. She was well versed in the knowledge of the magical arts, as far as I knew she was the best in her field in the whole entirety of the Liberators. Soon we met in her study, within hours she had been teaching me how to control my inner Corr, by visualizing. In a trance-like state but in between being conscious and unconscious. My mind fluctuated in between. She didn''t start with basic spells as controlling the flow of my Corr would be decisive in activating it; I sat on the floor meditating.


    "Remember to visualize growing power within you."


    I heard her voice as I saw fire within the dark confines of my mind, growing every second.


    "Now try moving the said power and hold out your hand."


    I held out my hand as I visualized on moving the power.


    "Yes... you are doing well."


    Until finally the fire died out, as I huffed out in exhaustion.


    "Hmm... How peculiar..."


    "It''s not working, no matter what I visualize."


    She stood and went to her notes, as if looking for something that could help. My mind went blank as I stared into my palm, "Great power" I thought sarcastically. I turned and saw the crystal on her table that reminded me of the first time I had killed someone, the haunting memory flashed before my thoughts. The horrid picture of the burned corpse of that old bandit made me feel groggy. I remembered holding a Viscorr at the time. I called onto her and explained what had happened, she told me that the crystal might have probably aided in flushing out the Corr inside me. The reason why I had a hard time was because of the fact I was exposed to my father, his power had been a natural deterrent and had been blocking the constant flow of my overwhelming Corr thus resulting in a bad fluctuation of energy within me. I had demonstrated her first and saw that it was quite effective. With her eyes she saw the small growing difference each time I used my power while holding the crystal. In the meantime she took to her drawer and pulled out a small necklace, she said that it was from my father and that I was wearing it ever since he saw me. Apparently he took it away because it lit up a particular mark on me but it had the same characteristics as a Viscorr. I took it. he must have thought that it was for the best.


    "Now make it a daily routine to channel your Corr, In time your fluctuation will be back to normal. Try it now."


    I closed my eyes as I began focusing all my energy into my palm. I felt my eyes burning again and as I opened it.


    "Extraordinary! Energy so immense that your whole body begins to emit it, your veins are glowing bright like the sun, as your eyes look like the stars at night. A-and that mark! I''ve seen that before! I''ll have to research it again!" she said passionately.


    Every inch of my body felt was aching, It was the same feeling in my dreams when that large orb had attached itself to me. The only difference was this is too exhausting.


    "Explain what you''re feeling, describe how it feels..." she said intently.


    "My body feels extremely burdened, it feels like being on fire. I can''t see, but at the same time I do."


    "What do you see? do you see me?"


    "I only see a silhouette figure of you wi-with an orb glowing intensely inside it."


    "Fascinating, it seems you have the same sight as I do!"


    She seemed surprise but at the exact same time was enjoying herself. I close my eyes out of weariness as it became harder and difficult to maintain the Corr flowing throughout my body. In the darkness I saw the same exact figure that haunted my dreams, it was a long time since I''ve seen it. The enigma was staring at me. Briefly I saw the small thread that connected me to the orb, It had grown twice the size.


    "Don''t hold it too long!" It shouted.


    Surprised, I let go of my control and sent the ball of intense power flying towards the empty stone wall.


    *BANG!*


    I opened my eyes and felt extremely tired, hurriedly I looked for Madame, fortunately she was already sitting on the desk writing. As if she didn''t hear such a large explosion.


    *Pant... Pant...*


    "I''m sorry..."


    "Oh! don''t be! I''ve learned a lot from you! I can have that wall fixed in no time."


    After she finished her notes, she told me about the meeting that they held earlier. Commander Rhys finally decided to make a move on the City "Everglow", she explained that they''ll be freeing the slaves in the underground black market beneath the city but the main purpose was to find the original successor of the throne.


    "There are a lot of hidden pathways underground and we''ve tried mapping every detail... We''ve also found a lead to the whereabouts of your father"


    I felt my heart raising out of joy, the thought of having him back felt like a dream come true.


    "Our intel claims that your father had been kept underground and not in the kingdom, the reason is still unknown."


    She hesitated but eventually continued.


    "But unfortunately Knoxx you can''t come."


    "What?! why not?"


    "The commander can''t risk of losing you in this operation, and your father is not the goal."


    "No! I need to go! my father is waiting for me!"


    "Even if you go child, you can''t even protect yourself! Don''t be foolish! do you want to be a burden again? I''m telling you this since I''m going to be apart of the operation, Although he might not be the goal, if the situation proves not to be risky. I might be able to save him." she said sternly.


    I ignored what she said as the anger swelled in me as I felt the injustice and the feeling of oppression. Soon people that heard the explosion came as Madame had to explain the situation so she dismissed me. Before I left I heard one of the high ranking officers that a meeting well be held later tonight. A thought crossed my mind as I heard it, The constant feeling of longing for someone is something they can never understand. I''d do anything just to see my father again, to be safe, alive and well. He''d do the same; So will I. I waited near the council room until each member finally attended. When they had finally started I eavesdropped on their conversation, listening by the door. I heard them talk about all kinds of matters pertaining to the welfare of the organization. Until finally they talked about the operation on Everglow, after a lengthy conversing between each of them. They mentioned the only way of getting there was to Teleport inside at night as the city only had a few entrances towards the Black Market and was mostly heavily guarded. This was the only way for them to sneak in large amounts of people without getting caught, they mentioned a specific location for the Teleportation Circle inside the Fortress.


    "In two days time, we''ll be commencing the operation."


    When I heard that I knew it was my chance...

 8 Into The Shadows

    "What are you doing here!?"


    "How did you get here!?"


    I heard the surprised voices of men as I sat on the concrete floor of what seems to be a large unfinished warehouse, the place seemed dark as the surrounding area was shrouded In shadows but it was illuminated by what seemed to be lanterns that burned bright except it had a greenish hue. The Knights all stared at me suspiciously, they all wore different kinds of armor that varied: light, heavy, and leather armor. One of the knights stomped towards me, as I saw his angry expression. He lifted me up by my collar and stared at me angrily.


    "Who are you? and What are you doing here!?" he said angrily.


    I was stuck on what I wanted to say so I just stared at him inconsiderately.


    "You better say something or else I''m going to skin you alive!"


    "I''m Knoxx Abbot! I''m a recruit under Instructor Bardel!" I said anxiously.


    "Oh you mean Sir Bardel?"


    "Y-yes!"


    "Then why didn''t you say so from the very beginning!"


    He suddenly smiled and let go of his tight grip. He pulled me to stand as I saw at least thirty of them. He motioned his hand in the air as one of the men behind him came to the front, this person had a cloak on thus covering his identity.


    "Can you inform Madame Cordelia and Nolan Bardel that we have a recruit here, named of Knoxx Abbot."


    "So Knoxx care to tell me how did you get here? and how did you know?"


    As he popped his knuckles in front of me with an intimidating smile. I couldn''t tell him that I eavesdropped on the council meeting as it would get me into a messy trouble.


    "Uh... I was exploring the Fortress and then suddenly I got here!"


    I lied as I tried to put up the best acting I could do. He nodded but I knew that he saw through my horrible acting, soon the cloaked man came. As they talked I saw his eyes slowly widened with shock.


    "A change of plans! all of you will be proceeding to the designated location. Dale, John and Cain! come with me!"


    The rest of the men hurriedly marched away as the five of us were left here. He pulled me to the left and told to follow him.


    "Where are we going?! and who are you?!"


    "We''re going to Sir Bardel as he''s the closest one here. I''m Harrison Trawly, Captain of 158th Squadron of the South Regional Liberators and right-hand man of Seneschal Nolan Bardel."


    "Please! Mr. Trawly sir! Please I don''t want to get sent back!"


    For the past two whole days I''ve been keeping to myself, preparing to get here. I brought a sword and wore my necklace, wore the finest armor that I could find from the Fortress armory. But too bad it didn''t work out as I tried moving with the armor when we teleported but I failed pathetically as the full plated armor was too loose and heavy that it broke off from the binding I used to hold it together. Now that I thought of it I couldn''t tell the time it was constant darkness here and the pathways we''re illuminated by the green lanterns. When we left the Fortress It was early in the morning, this place had no hint of sunshine and any greenery. The stuffy air made it hard to breathe.


    "I''m not going to send you back, If it we''re possible I would have already. Teleportation portals only work once they''re used. So I''m just sending you under the protection of a higher official, I don''t know what makes you special but I won''t question Sir Bardel and his orders."


    "I can''t, I need to find someone!"


    "You can''t go anywhere! I won''t let you! and It''s not like you can survive this place..."


    "Where are we anyway?"


    As I said my eyes were blinded by a strong light from the horizon, I opened them and saw the same light from the lanterns except this burned bright like the sun. But I could stare at the beauty of it''s rays without straining or hurting my eyes. It had the same greenish hue, from afar I could see stone building and structures of all sizes. The place was riddled with piping which was weird, their sizes varied from small to large. The place seemed bustling with all kinds of trade, people busily scurried from place to place.


    "Welcome to the Underground Black Market of Everglow, where all the oppressed and failures of their governance live." said Harrison.


    I stared at my surroundings as everything mesmerized my eyes, the look of dreariness in people we passed by, the gloomy alleyways screamed desolation and decay. The individuals that lurked here either had scarred eyes devoid of morality or eyes that trauma widened. Soon we walked through the dreary streets of Everglow, people stared at me with contempt. The streets were dirty, littered with muck in between the stones that make up the pathway. I saw a large warehouse with people chained together along the entrance guarded by several men.


    "What''s happening there?"


    As Cain an older looking man in our group leaned in and said...


    "That''s a slavery, you don''t want to mess with them."


    They all looked so pitiful, malnourished and treated like animals.


    "What you see here Knoxx is why the Liberators exist... Each and everyone one of them going through hell everyday." Harrison blurted out.


    I stared at him and saw the sad look in his eyes, he felt for this people, they''re complete strangers but somehow he stared at them with familiarity. Soon we arrived at a huge wall guarded by armed soldiers. The wall had towers with relatively long distances between them, there was a huge gated entrance and behind that was the largest Viscorr I had ever seen. It was the source of most lighting here, acting as the sun that radiated hope for everyone. From afar I could see the front entrance were crowded with people.


    "Freedom to the true people of Everglow!"


    "Equality for all!"


    "We are the oppressed! we claim our rights!"


    "Food, shelter, clothing for the poor!"


    "We work the mines all day! while you lot at the top sit with luxury up your ass*s!"


    "Keep quiet you filthy hooligans! stay back or we''ll be forced to open fire."


    "Try us!"


    "Yeah! you don''t scare us!"


    The guards were carrying weird tubular weapons slung around them as most of them struggled with controlling the gathered rallying men, Harrison dragged me towards the crowd as we slipped through each men. We stopped directly at the middle of the chaos and there I saw a familiar face.


    "I didn''t think you''d be stupid enough to come here recruit, Knoxx Abbot!" he whispered sternly.


    I saw Bardel hooded with a disappointed look on his face, he motioned Harrison to follow him as he pushed me towards his direction.


    "Hey you don''t have to push!" I complained.


    "Move too slow I''ll beat you." he threatened.


    Soon we arrived in a dark alleyway as Bardel removed his hood.


    "What are you doing here?! the operation is delayed because of you!"


    "I c-came to look for my father!"


    "You could jeopardize the whole operation by doing this selfish act! You have to go back at Bardel Fortress!"


    "But I''m ready! I''m prepared even if it takes me my life to find my father!"


    "Your father might be dead already! our lead towards his location is not even concluded yet!"


    "YOU DON''T KNOW THAT! HE''S STILL ALIVE! I KNOW IT!"


    "How can you be so sure?! huh?!"


    "I-I JUST KNOW SO!"


    "ENOUGH OF THIS NONSENSE!" He shouted.


    "Hackman! escort this child towards one of the escape routes by the near end of the wall, take your men with you. I wan''t him back as soon as possible and have him tied I don''t want him ruining our plans... I don''t have time for this."


    "Sir! yes sir!" said Harrison.


    They dragged me away as they tied me up with a rope, I felt my anger filling to the brim, my body felt burning hot as I clenched my fists; a tear fell down my cheek.


    "I''m sorry son." as I heard the rugged voice of Dale.


    "Don''t patronize him, orders are orders!" followed by Cain.


    "But he''s just a boy." said John.


    "Boy or not! he wronged the organization by being here, good thing they only let him off by sending him back." remarked Hackman.


    As they dragged me away, I thought of a plan to get away from them. I didn''t see anyone as they must have passed through a very secluded area. I tried to struggle against the bindings but they were on too tight.


    "Don''t try moving, it''ll only hurt." said Dale.


    "Argh! please let me go! I can''t leave yet!"


    "If you do anymore, I''ll be forced to use my hand!" shouted Cain.


    Soon we paved way through the main streets, I saw a group of thuggish vagrants by a metal fence we passed, they stared at me with disdain in their eyes. An idea popped in my head as I already have their attention.


    "Rats like you deserve to live in a dreadful place like this!"


    "I said quiet!"


    *Smack!*


    As Cain smacked my head and thought I was referring to them, I grinned wickedly to the best of my abilities to further anger the Thugs. It worked as I saw them following us foolishly. After a short while I couldn''t see the thuggish vagrants anymore and thought that they must''ve let it go. We arrive at yet another discontinued warehouse we some men from the Liberators guarding it.


    "You there! activate the circle towards Bardel Fortress."


    "Yes sir!"


    They place me in the middle of the circle as I struggled to move away.


    "Stay put!" shouted Hackman.


    As I saw five men surrounding the circle to prepare it, I struggled to move away and there from the entrance the vagrants came dashing in. They stirred a commotion by beating the men near the entrance as more of them came with random weapons.


    "Who are you?!" screamed Hackman


    As he went away into the fray to help his men from the attackers, I quickly focused my Corr on my hands to burn them off. The constant clashing of men resounded in the warehouse. Finally free from my bondage, I immediately took off by blasting the wall to my right with magic and made a hasty retreat. I ran through the dark and musty alleyway beside the building.


    "COME BACK HERE KNOXX!" shouted Hackman.


    I heard Hackman shouting at me from behind as I retreated away from him, I ran as much as I could and surprisingly the training at Bardel Fortress helped a bit. I didn''t want to do this but they left me no choice, I just wanted to look for my father. I ran and ran through the crowded people of a trading market nearby as I passed through the countless stalls.


    *Crash!*


    "HEY WATCH IT!"


    "I''M SORRY!"


    I turned, dashing towards a dark alleyway.


    "Someone stop that child!"


    "Don''t let him get away!"


    "Stop following me!"


    I held my hand behind me as started blasting blindly as I passed through an alleyway, The walls beside me started crumbling down. I stopped at the end trying to catch my breath. I turned around and saw piles of debris stacked on top of each other while under a cloud of dust. "I must''ve lost them." I thought. Now where would I go, I guess I''ll have to look at every nook and cranny this place has. A few blocks away I saw a beggar on the street, I went to approach him as I wanted to ask him at least the location of where I was.


    "Excuse me sir, where are we?" I politely asked.


    "The end is near..." he whispered.


    "Sorry, but could you please repeat that?"


    "The end is near..."


    I still couldn''t hear him... Suddenly, the darkness dimmed my vision of the old man. The only light source that was keeping him visible was right beside me. I turned to take a look and saw a huge man staring directly at me with a horrid look on his face. He had a scar that followed the left side of his mouth and was wearing a coat with a top hat on.


    "Sorry, please excuse me." I said anxiously


    He grinned wickedly while lifting his top hat as my senses told me to run but my vision blurred as I turned around. Slowly I tried to get away as my knees felt weak and I lost balance. I fell on all fours, trying to keep myself steady. I felt so weak that I fell laying on the ground, I could feel my consciousness fading away.


    "Well aren''t you strong willed?"


    I tried to turn but eventually my body couldn''t move leaving me in an awkward position, he hoisted me up to his shoulders and carried me away.

 9 The Monstrosity

    "Hey Doc!"


    "What do you want?"


    "I found a good one! by the east side of the Black market!"


    "Did you get what I asked for?"


    "He was talkin'' to some beggar by the street! but before that he blasted buildin''s! like they were nothin''!"


    "Oh really now?" said the man sarcastically.


    "Yeh! I''m not lyin''! he brought down houses like they was nothin'' I saw his eyes glow too! like t-the uhmm..."


    "The what?!"


    "The Vistones! his eyes glowed like that! they burned bright!"


    "Whatever you say number one! lock that kid along the others! I''m busy!"


    "Alrighty Doc!"


    "And did you get what I asked for?"


    "It''s right here doc!"


    Few hours earlier, I got abducted by an unknown man and right now I don''t know where I am. He carried me all the way here, we passed through an alleyway then somehow, we''re in another place. I couldn''t tell but it seemed like a narrow hallway riddled with a lot of pipes, then soon we met a man that my carrier referred to as "Doc". I couldn''t see his face due to my state but it seemed like he had worn goggles and a white laboratory coat. Later we passed along an iron gate and then from there I heard voices of despair, the endless screaming, the constant wailing of distress that echoed throughout the moment we entered. The voices came from cages, they were filled with creeping shadows.


    "Help me!"


    "KILL ME PLEASE!"


    "hehe! hehe! hehe!"


    "OH GOD! OH GOD!"


    "We the people... we the people..."


    "He said that he''d help us!"


    Soon we finally stopped.


    "Here we are little boy! welcome to the family!"


    *Creak*


    *Thud*


    *Slam*


    I heard the cage open as he threw me in as he slammed the entrance shut.


    "Please do get acquainted with your sister!" as he giggled right after.


    I struggled and struggled on the stone cold floor, the effects were starting to wear off, slowly my body loosened that I could move my finger tips. I heard someone weeping from behind me, eventually I could turn. I heard that man mentioning "sister" before he left so I must''ve someone else inside the cage beside myself. Finally I could sit up right, as I stretched my body while I stood; I need to escape. I inspected the place, it had no bedding, no windows either but had a lamp in the back wall which lit up the area with its dim light. The foul smell of fecal matter and urine lingered on one side of the cage. There on the corner was a girl sitting on the floor while hugging her legs; head down. Her disheveled caramel colored hair was everywhere, she wore an ragged looking dress that was torn at its base. I nudged her.


    "Are you okay? we need to get out of here." I said.


    "Who are you?" She said lowly as she sniffled.


    "My name is Knoxx Abbot, and we need to get out of here."


    She still had her head low, probably still has her guard up. I don''t know what happened to her but I have to at least help. Silence answered my question.


    "How did you get here? I can help you get out..."


    "M-my family was framed..."


    She paused.


    "I got captured, we can''t get out, I''ve tried already."


    "My father was captured too, I went here to look for him but only ended the same way."


    She turned to me as I reveled in her beautiful maroon colored eyes shimmering under the dim light of the lamp with a mole under her right eye that accentuated it.


    "Beautiful..." I muttered.


    "What?"


    "Nothing..."


    "So how long have you been here?"


    "A couple of days, they only give out food every now and then."


    I stood to inspect the metal bars, they were pretty solid and didn''t even budge. The cell door was locked, I thought of maybe using my powers but I remembered that I can''t control it well and might cause a disturbance, further sealing our fate here. Since we didn''t have any choice I tried manifesting my Corr to the center of my hands, slowly it glowed but for some reason I could only hold it for just a second. It was probably because I was tired, I concluded. I sat down the side near the cell door to get some rest.


    "If you don''t mind me asking, you look like from a rich family. Judging from your dress."


    She looked towards her dress.


    "My parents were of noble descent... we were very happy together."


    "Ah so that''s why, me too. With my father, I mean we were very happy."


    "They framed my parents of murder, I know they''re innocent. my father can''t be a murderer! especially if that bloody oaf found the evidence! curse him and his burned head!


    along with his smug, demonic looking face!"


    "Did you just say burned head?"


    "Oh pardon my foul mouth, I just can''t stand that person!"


    "Who? who is that person? does he have a menacing smile? with a smug looking face and cocky demeanor? b-but most importantly did he have burn scars on the upper right region of his head?"


    I came close as I bombarded her with constant questions.


    "U-uhm... you just described him perfectly!"


    Out of coincidence, I didn''t think I could find him here. But since it was too good to be true I still needed to ask more.


    "I-is his name Kuzmann?"


    "Why yes! that''s him! did he capture your father?"


    I felt rage running through my veins as I clenched my fists, as I smiled out of happiness that I could avenge my father and save him at the exact same time. She stared at me weirdly, her eyes questioning me that she couldn''t put into words.


    "Yes, he abducted my father."


    "I''m sorry about all the questions, My name is Knoxx Abbot. I was looking for that man." I followed.


    "It''s fine, My name is Lyrissa Seraphina Celeste Cy--"


    *Clang! Clang! Clang!*


    "You both are causin'' too much ruckus! better shut yer trap!" after he hit our cell.


    "Good... Time to get Doc another one..." He proud said.


    The man that abducted me was in front of our cell, now that I''m looking at him directly. He was tall but shorter when compared to my father, oddly enough he had blue-ish skin. His head had a short, white and crudely fashioned hair. After that he went away that exposed the left shaven part of his head that had a tattoo of number one. He talked in an unrefined manner which was hard to discern. When he went away I saw that he was carrying keys that dangled on his side. I thought of an idea.


    "Mind if I call you Sera? I don''t mean to be rude, it''s just that your name is too long."


    "Oh I don''t mind, I''ll call you Knoxx then."


    "Who was that Sera?"


    "Oh that was One, I don''t know why he''s named like that but that''s what the Doctor calls him."


    She mentioned Doctor, she must be talking to that man I saw earlier.


    "What did he meant by another one?"


    "He takes a person out of here... they rarely comeback and when they do, they''re never themselves.


    It''s like they saw something they shouldn''t."


    She trembled at the moment she said that, we need to get out of here. As soon as possible, I don''t want to find out what the hell they''re doing here.


    "About that devil..." I asked.


    "Hm? you mean Kuzmann? what about him?"


    "Did he bring you here? did he had someone with him?"


    "I don''t recall, he brought someone with him."


    "Well did you hear anything?!" I pleaded desperately.


    "I do remember the Kuzmann getting angry about something... something about a Titan?"


    My eyes widened open as she said Titan, that was definitely my father. I may be delusional but I''m sure of it. My senses are telling me that he''s here. I needed to escape, but the only way out of this is with her help. I spoke to her more and gradually gaining her trust as time passed, I told her that we might be able to get out. Once we get out I mentioned to her the existence of the Liberators. Her eyes beamed with hope as she learnt about these selfless heroes, she wanted to get acquainted. Ultimately she agreed to my plans and added a one minor detail. Apparently One has an interest when it comes to the Doctor and that he''ll go on ages talking about the person. We waited hours before One came back. I signaled Sera as she proceeded with the plan.


    "Hey!" I shouted at him.


    "Wha'' do ya'' want?"


    I immediately thought of the quickest thing I could think of to distract him.


    "Who is doc?" as I smiled awkwardly.


    He stood there for a couple of minutes and then frowned. He must''ve caught on.


    "You don''t know the Doc?!" he exclaimed.


    "U-uh yeah."


    As he went on blabbering about "Doc" Sera was already sneaking in behind me in order to reach the keys dangling from him. The idea was while I distracted him she used me as a cover to steal the keys. Soon she recovered the keys without any hassle but I had to endure One and his fanatical attitude towards Doc. It went on for ages, she already took the keys with her and I''m still here listening.


    "He finally left... I''m surprised, he doesn''t seem like a bad person."


    "Well he takes his time to chat with the people here mostly... I don''t think he is."


    One seemed too friendly, straight forward but mostly a simpleton. What ever his situation may be, I can''t pity him. He still chose to be here. We waited for a while until he got farther in the prison. When the coast was clear, I unlocked the cell and motioned Sera to lead the way as we sneaked carefully.


    "Do you know the way out?" she asked.


    "I don''t actually..." I giggled nervously.


    "I don''t blame you, they did the same thing to me. I vaguely remember how I got here."


    "We just need to keep roaming around, we''ll find it eventually."


    We passed by each prison cell and most of them barely had sanity in their eyes, it looked like they were consumed by Laxxo; forever tainting their minds. Sera was distraught at the sight of this mentally and physically distorted people. Like One they all had numbers but were in different sections of their body, their skin had unusual spot of colors: Blue, purple, green, red, black.


    *Screech!*


    One of the imprisoned leaped towards our direction as it screeched in a high pitched tone. The metal bars stopped it in its tracks as we both got startled by it. It started screaming out of desperation reaching towards us, its voice echoed throughout the prison overlapping the sounds of despair. I nudged her to hurry up...


    "What''s wrong brother?!" One shouted from behind.


    "He''s coming, we''ve got to hurry."


    We ran as fast as we could through the long corridor of the prison, from afar I saw One walking towards our direction.


    "HEY YOU! GIT BACK IN YER ROOM!"


    He bolted towards us.


    "Sera! ready the keys! we need to shut the gate."


    "Okay!"


    *Huff! Huff!*


    Soon we had reached the gate, it was twice the size the bars on our cells. It was heavy as we pushed the gates close, One was closing the gap every second. He wore an angry expression on his face as he clenched his teeth, like an animal bearing its teeth towards prey. Finally we closed the gate now we only needed to lock it.


    "Lock it Sera!"


    Sera stood in fear,as she saw the hulking mass running towards us, his body grew in mass bit by bit, as his Blue-ish hue faded and turned slightly purple. I grabbed the keys from her and started trying each one, I struggled as my hands trembled.


    "Come on! come on! come on!" I said anxiously.


    "Leave the gate Knoxx we need to hide!" as she tried to pull me away.

 10 Truthful Encounter

    Finally the lock clicked as soon as One crashed on the gates, the impact dented the gates inwards as he slumped on floor. My heart pumped so fast that I could feel it pounding through my head. Sera fell to the ground after sighing in relief. I told her we need to get out of here as soon as possible so I helped her from the floor. We roamed the musty hallways of the unknown, the maze-like interior made it hard to navigate. The eerie presence of the dimly lit passageways sent an undescribable feeling down my spine. The odd silence and the bone-chilling air as we tread through intensified the dreadful feeling of this place, naturally my instincts lay unsettled within the confines of my mind that signalled my whole body; get out.


    "Where are we Knoxx?" Sera whispered.


    "I don''t know, this doesn''t feel like The Black Market anymore."


    "What do you mean?"


    "One abducted me from the Black Market, from there I don''t know how we got here."


    "Then how are we suppose to get out?"


    "We''ll have to keep moving."


    We stumbled upon a double door with a sign plastered on top after the long hours of walking around.


    [Archives]


    "What are you doing?!" she asked.


    "Taking a look..."


    "What if someone is in there?"


    I peeked in through the dusty glass panels of the door and saw nothing.


    "There''s nothing in here."


    "Well, I don''t wa--"


    "WHERE THE F*CK ARE YOU!?"


    We felt our bodies tremble with fear as his voice echoed throughout the hall.


    "DOC IS GOIN'' BE MAD IF HE FOUND THAT I SLIPPED AGAIN!"


    "YOU KIDS BETT''R COME BACK!"


    His constant growling in the open made me feel anxious, soon his heavy footsteps followed. The fear made it felt like he was right on track, so I cranked open the knob and went inside while pulling Sera in with me. Inside we stumbled upon countless drawers and lockers all in a row, papers were lying everywhere and box of documents laid untouched. Some of the metal lockers were empty, they were only filled with dust and cobwebs.


    "What is all this?" I questioned.


    I saw Sera grab one of the papers. She was thoroughly reading it, until her expression suddenly turned sour, slowly regretting she ever read it.


    "What is it?"


    "Read it for yourself." she held out.


    (Entry experiment no. 162 by Doctor Archibald Oppoldt


    A child of at least eight years old bought from the Black Market slavery, her overall condition was at unacceptable state for the experiment. So I nurtured the soul to meet the requirements of a whole body stabilization. I fed her daily like any parent would and treated the child with paternal affection or "Love" as people name it nowadays. The child deemed to be in the right state after a whole year, it would always refer myself as "Father". Well to many of my experiments they would always assume I am their father, a savior, a beloved, a paternal figure. But the right term I would bestow myself would be a Prophet, a Messiah. Gaia has given me the wisdom of the world to improve upon the genetic structure of humans. We are no longer to be inferior, to those that are entitled and selfish, once I reach the pinnacle of my achievements. But in the end the child only had disappointed its Father, the first trial went down to ashes as the physical being of humans couldn''t handle the very unstable power of Viscorr. The child immediately bled internally, every orifice of its body oozed with blood. Surprisingly it still had the strength to talk, it begged for mercy as I went on with the experiment. As I continued its unbearable screams were a nuisance but I solely focused on the bonding. Five percent into the bonding process and the body already deteriorated, disfigured. The charred meat of what once a living...)


    I felt my stomach twisting out of disgust, acid rose from my stomach as I gagged. The inhumane acts of this Doctor Archibald Oppoldt laid victim to an innocent and helpless child, maybe this was the same person that took Madame Cordelia''s eyesight. I needed to inform them of this location but without the knowledge of exit; I could only hope. I stared at Sera as I saw the sadness in her eyes while she read another. I took the document from her and threw it away after crumpling it.


    "You don''t need to read more." I said abruptly.


    "Those people in the cages..."


    "I know, the only way for us to save them is to get out of here."


    Soon we heard the heavy Footsteps from the outside gradually gaining volume.


    "We need to hide." She exclaimed.


    She ran towards the piles of paper laying on the ground and hid beneath it while I slipped inside a dusty locker, as I placed the document in my pocket. I didn''t entirely close the locker as I might get stuck inside.


    *SLAM*


    I saw the door swing open from the small holes of the locker, There I saw One with his humongous and horridly grotesque looking body. This time his whole body took a distinct purple color, he had grew mass and his head was covered by the intense pulsating muscles that his body barely contained. The door was crushed the moment he placed his hand on it, barely closing his fist.


    "WHERE ARE YOU!" HE SHOUTED.


    The floor beneath him gave out as he stepped one foot at a time. Finally he was in front of me with only a metal wall keeping me safe from him. He turned towards my direction with burning eyes. His forehead was gleaming with a bright light that scattered like veins throughout his head from a single point. I held my breath out of terror, my heart was pumping so hard that I could barely hear myself thinking. The cold sweat riddled my spine as my legs stood stiff. He reached out towards me.


    *BANG! BOOM! CRASH! BANG!*


    From afar I could hear constant explosions, the crashing of debris and the cries of men. One stopped midway and turned back.


    "Doc! I''m comin'' don''t replace me for that Titan!" he cried.


    When I heard titan, I was alarmed. After a few moments of making sure he left I came out and saw Sera was already out the pile. Out of curiosity we headed outside and followed the persistent voices of men. Through the debris filled hallway, we saw a junction and towards the right our eyes met a bright light as we saw dozens of men fighting inhumane figures by the end.


    "People! there''s people Knoxx!"


    "I know..."


    "What''s wrong? you seem gloomy, we can get out now."


    "I..." I paused.


    "You can go Sera, I still have to find my father."


    "But I can''t leave you... especially you helped me through this."


    "It''s up to you, I won''t force you."


    I saw large footprints towards the left that faded through the darkness, she stared at me with hesitation and so I went off to leave her. After constant twists and turns following the prints on the ground, I heard my father''s voice. I immediately ran towards its direction following it by ear. Excitement filled my heart as I knew I was close, I could feel a tear running down my cheek out of happiness. I found myself in front of a large dungeon and there, I saw my father kneeling under the dim light in the middle of a platform bound by chains that extended towards the dark corners of the area. From the darkness emerged a figure, soon the light exposed his identity. He wore a white laboratory coat with goggles that dug under his wrinkled skin, he was bald with some hair growing unevenly atop his head. He stood with utter confidence as his hands were shoved deep the pockets of his plaid trousers.


    "Father!"


    He slowly raised his head.


    "S-son?" he answered lowly.


    I ran closer to him and saw his badly beaten face, his body was riddled with bruises, wounds, scratches.


    "I''d stop right there if I were you."


    I stopped in my tracks.


    "You''re the Doctor aren''t you?!"


    "Hm, so what if I am?"


    "I''m going to punish you for all the pain you''ve caused! those people didn''t deserve any of that! Free my father or else!"


    I raised my palm towards him.


    "It seems you have raised a rude child, haven''t you Leo?"


    "Don''t hurt h-him!" He shouted.


    "Why did you come! I told you don''t come for me..."


    "I came to save you!"


    As I inched forward.


    "You''re not listening are you?"


    "Set him free or else!"


    "Or else what child? what can you possible do?"


    "Don''t do it son!"


    As I was filled with hate and contempt for this evil presence. I charged up everything I could right into my palm, my eyes burned and finally my vision changed. The traces of Corr inside the vile man was as horrifying as he is, truly depicting his inhumane ways; a monster. I blasted every bit of Corr I had inside me towards him.


    *BOOM*


    Amidst the dust I heard him maniacally laughing.


    "HAHAHA! so this is it?! the power of the Vihztecians?! extraordinary! I can feel the raw energy!"


    "Just run away Knoxx!"


    "I''m not done yet!"


    I blasted out everything I could, sending waves of concentrated Corr towards him. I shouted at the top of my lungs bringing out every bit of emotion I had with each burst. Until I finally gave out of exhaustion and thought "He couldn''t have possibly survived that". I stared at him with awe and shock as he came out unscathed from the explosion that once turned a person into a corpse.


    "H-how?!"


    He smiled menacingly towards me. As I questioned my strength, was that all I could do? both of my palms were red and bruised as I saw them.


    "You really are extraordinary."


    He stared at me with curious eyes, as if he was dissecting a corpse. The lack of compassion in his eyes explained that his humanity had gone for good.


    "You don''t get to talk to me like that!"


    "I can''t but your father can? Hm? right Leo?"


    I saw him pat my father on the back while calling him that name, it agitated me more.


    "Why''re you calling him that?"


    "Oh indeed, why am I? care to answer your ''SON'' Leonovich Sokolov!?" he shouted


    "Shut up Archibald!" exclaimed my father.


    "What is he saying father? you''re Hector Abbot right? right?!"


    "What''s the matter Leonovich?! Can''t you tell the truth?!" He demanded.


    My father didn''t answer.


    "Well... If you don''t want to... HE WAS NEVER YOUR FATHER! HAHA!"


    "Wha-what?" I answered stammering.


    "You were forced to live a lie ever since you were born! Leo had to play ''Father'' because you were the only hope! It''s because of your blood!"


    "YOU''RE LYING!"


    "If I am! better ask your father over here."


    I stared at him as I saw his guilt ridden expression telling me that everything this monster said was the truth. I felt every emotion rushing in my head, the raging anger I could barely contain. I refused to believe it was the truth.


    "Tell me he''s lying father! TELL ME!"


    He couldn''t bare to look as he knelt there lifelessly. I clenched my right hand with burning emotion, my eyes felt like hell as tears poured down like magma on my cheeks. My hand was trembling with power that I could barely control my arm...


    "Finally! Display everything! I want to see!" Exclaimed Oppoldt.


    "THERE YOU ARE BROTHER!"


    I turned around and immediately saw One running towards me, as I felt the earth trembling from his sheer mass. I held my ground as he lunged forward catching me with his hand. He grabbed tightly as I was at the mercy of his hand, he raised me upwards only to meet him eye-to-eye.


    "I finally caught you! where your sister at?!" he said angrily.


    "What are you doing you big oaf! you''ve disrupted my experiment!" shouted the Doc.


    "NO! KNOXX! LET HIM GO!"


    I could feel his grip gradually tightening as I felt woozy from the blood rising to my head and the fading voice of my father as his chains clinked around. The burning energy I felt died out as the life out of me was being squeezed by a giant, soon my vision faded and I couldn''t hear anything except for a loud constant ringing. In the darkness of my unconscious mind was the only settler of my head, the enigma presented itself. This time his figure was formed in the sunlight, a bright beacon in shape of a man that illuminated my final moments.


    "Am I dead?" I asked.


    "Not yet..."


    "I couldn''t do anything, I''m useless."


    I felt hatred and self pity.


    "There was nothing you could''ve done."


    "If only... If only I was strong enough!"


    Soon the enigma neared me as it held out its hand.


    "I could lend you a hand."


    "How?!"


    "Are you willing to accept the consequences?"


    "If it means I could save my father then I will!"


    I grasped firmly into its non-existent hands as a bright light shone blinding me.

 11 The Operation

    "Today''s meeting will be a reconfirmation of the plan from two days ago. With our lovely leader, Madame Cordelia Lockewood to supervise." He pointed towards me.


    As Bardel lively started the meeting of the conference, Ranked members of the Liberators gathered at the round table with each taking a seat of their own. I was the acting Commander of the South regional section of The Liberators and overseeing the whole plan was my task. So I gathered members whose abilities would prove to be useful in the impending operation. I gazed upon the figures surrounding me and saw different types of Corr correspending to each character. To my left was Harrison Trawly also known as Hackman had contained a very energetic type of Corr within him that matched his aggressive personality. He trained under Bardel and had glorified him ever since thus becoming his right-hand man. On my right side was Yela Scholenne, a promising young talent that had gained the title of Marshal within her two years of joining the Liberators. Several sergeants was in position among the table to keep the plan in order.


    "Ever since the late King, Carlisle Cyneweard had died. The whole kingdom was in shambles, His son Arthurio Trembly Cyneweard a member of the Liberators, was the successor of the crown and had promised a very bright future for all of Ystallia. Unfortunately He had been trialed for murder and treason against his own father ultimately meeting his demise, along with his family. The Liberators could not save his family with the exception of his only daughter, due to lack of connections within the court she was taken by the crown. Our goal is to look for his daughter and our intel shows that the child was locked away, hidden within the dark confines of the Black Market slavery. With the preservation of the original inheritor, we can put an end to the tyranny of Milliard Cyneweard. Ever since he sat on the throne, he has been expressing his power through the display of brutality and injustice..."


    Arthurio Trembly was a great man, he joined the Liberators a couple of years ago. He has introduced many men that had been loyal to our cause, many of them had aided the organization in more ways that I could remember. It was because of him that The noble family of the Bardels have joined. He longed for a prosperous country of equity, where there would be no cruelty among men and discrimination. A truly admirable man that sought to correct the wrongdoings of his father. With him gone and his brother to take his place, Ystallia will forever be in ruin.


    "Bardel Sir! My group is to be positioned by the northern area of the Black Market?"


    "Yes! Yela! near the walled center of the city. You''ll be causing a distraction by starting an uprising."


    With the operation happening tonight we made sure that every man attending was following the plan accordingly.


    "Apart from the distraction your team will be observing the guardsmen and the authorities of Everglow; the last thing we want is a Bailiff."


    "In case of a Bailiff showing up, they won''t be sending ten of them into a single location. There would be at least two of them at Everglow to dispose of threats. So we, the high ranking officers will be facing them. We''ll be moving fast and efficient, as long as our cover lasts, we keep moving to further our objective while under the cover of the ongoing chaos. To prevent such an event happening."


    "While the rest of the members will be led by the remaining officers which are Myself, Cordelia and Hackman..."


    He motioned towards me as I stood up to explain the details.


    "The three of us will be leading a search party in each section of the Black Market, since the slaveries are separated. The main goal is to find the princess, secondary of which is destroying active organizations in handling slave trade to free the oppressed. Lastly is to find the culprit behind the grisly acts of inhumane experimentations."


    I paused, as my memory of the disfigured victims resurfaced.


    "The monstrosities born from these experimentation laboratories had gradually increased through the years, people from around the country have been spotting sights of said horrendous creatures.


    With only our people lending a helping hand in disposing them. We''ve recently found a lead after a long time of collecting information through the help of our men in the area. Apparently large amount of people have gone missing within the Black Market for the past few years. Today is the day we confirm its location and put an end to this macabre."


    "Now for a more detailed explanation from our very brightest member."


    I motioned towards Pip thalwar a recently recruited member that studies these victims, apparently they still can''t determine how the process works but somehow they use high concentrations of Corr and manage to force them within the victims. Due to the unstable amount their bodies try to cope ultimately leading to deformation of physique, the chances of survivability is low as human bodies can only contain a specific amount of Corr within them and more of it could lead to death. Those that survive are not human anymore, they''re the monstrosities we find and capture. They retain very little of their humanity, acting as wild beasts, attacking what ever and who ever is in sight. However they don''t last long, as they slowly disintegrate enough that it destroys vital organs or limbs, eventually succumbing to the wounds. However Pip Thalwar speculated that the reason behind the experimentations might be simple. He theorized that it was for enchancement, as the creatures had possessed incredible physical capabilties and if they had retained some form of intelligence, judging from the Corr contained in their bodies. The power of the spells they could use would be catastrophic to others as well to themselves.


    After the assembly the day slowly passed by as I had done my daily duties, attending to most substantial matters within Bardel Fortress. Finally at sundown, members of the Liberators met at the designated locations only known to the participating groups. In the middle of the Large teleportation circle was myself among the many cloaked knights, I wore my best battle gear to prepare for the impending fight. Soon the mages chanted towards the circle as the area grew bright with light; I hope we find Leo.


    We arrived at the Black market unhindered, I signalled my team as we moved towards separate locations of slaveries.


    "Madame... We have a problem."


    As one of my men that handled communications with other squadrons came to my side.


    "What is it?"


    "Apparently, there is a problem with the 158th squadron. It seems that one of the recruits from Bardel Fortress managed to join the transportation."


    "Well, it''s either we let this recruit join the operation or waste a teleportation circle to bring him back."


    "You see... It''s your recruit ma''am, Knoxx Abbot."


    That stubborn child, I told him that I''ll do something about it. Why did he have to come...


    "See to it that Hackman delivers the recruit to Bardel, he''ll know what to do. We''ll still proceed with the operation."


    "Yes, Madame."


    I would personally bring myself towards Knoxx but I can''t compromise our goal by wasting time traveling over to their position. Bardel would send that child back; I guarantee it. As long as there are


    no Bailiffs around and no one knows his location, he''ll be safe. Bardel was the closest within proximity of Hackman that''s why I sent him there. We moved towards the first slavery and positioned ourselves while we waited for the signal from Yela at the center of the city. Moments later voices of men could be heard from a far as groups of the people passed by the alleyway we were in. They all carried some form of weapon, almost all of them were miners that worked for Everglow due to the pickaxes they were carrying; I could tell. The citizens here were comprised of merchants, slave traders, miners and ordinary people that grew here. The slums of everglow also known as the Black Market was known for it''s high deviant activity, here you''ll find almost all forms of corruption. Guardsmen don''t really enforce the law down here as most of them are usually around the center of the city by the walls. The center of the city was protected because it was the only known way to the higher levels of Everglow. Passing through the gates of the walls were a criminal offense and could lead to death.


    With most of the citizens gathered at the middle of the city, I made some of my men create a distraction up front while the rest I led through the back. We captured the slavers and freed all of the slaves. The operation ensued as everything went through smoothly, countless of people were freed. They were instructed to wait at specific locations to get transferred by the Teleportation circle but oddly enough most of them didn''t want to leave, to them this was home and it took some time to convince them. So far we''ve only freed five areas with very minimal casualties, somehow the situation was too desirable; I''ve got a heavy feeling. After that I''ve received information that Knoxx escaped from Hackman, he was nowhere to be found. I''ve instructed that he''s to be found immediately, "He''s definitely as stubborn as Leo" I thought to myself. This is getting out of hand, if he gets captured by enemies then our future plans will be doomed. Hackman was on his trail and currently looking for his whereabouts, without him the plan is already delayed. At this point


    the search for the princess will already be in vain.


    My squadron continued with the plan and had captured another slavery. Our intel shows that this area was the last time the princess was seen.


    "Do you know anything about the Princess of Cyneweard?"


    "Oh do you mean that bloody traitor? she dead ain''t she? along with her family!"


    "Where is she?!"


    "How would I know? even if I knew do ya think I''d tell you fools?"


    The interrogator stared at me, I checked the Corr of the slaver. I could discern people were feeling some form of way just by staring at their Corr, it would waver or change depending on their mood. So if they lied I knew almost immediately but apparently this person wasn''t lying. With my expression, he knocked the person unconcious.


    "So far Madame we''ve only got nothing from these men."


    "We''re going to keep looking, even if we can''t find her. The least we could do is help these people."


    I gazed upon the abused, chained close to one another like animals. We freed each of them, one by one, removing them from their bounds. Their Corr seemed lifeless as if all vitality had been used, these poor souls lost everything. There were at least a hundred slaves here but something caught my attention as we freed them. Most of the slaves emitted the same energy, the Corr of each indivdual was identical as if they were all copies of the same person. From afar I felt an ominous presence, its piercing gaze went through me. I turned and from the darkest corners of the warehouse was the same Corr, it was surging strongly from the void. It felt murderous and inhumane, an abomination of a former human. The ghastly figure slowly came out of the shadows as it voiced out.


    "Hmm... I didn''t expect you to look somwhat attractive."


    "You''re not human are you?"


    "That''s pretty rude. I expect a woman like you to have some form of decency."


    "I''m sorry, pardon my rudeness... But who are you? if you don''t mind."


    "I''ll have you know, I''m still completely human..."


    Her voice hinted a flirtatious tone as she caressed her voluptuous shape.


    Who am I? it doesn''t matter... more importantly who are you? what are you doing? those slaves are property owned by the crown."


    "These people are alive, beings like you and me. They don''t deserve to be treated like objects." I exclaimed.


    "Once you put on those shackles, you''re property and right now... you''re stealing property." she said menacingly.


    "We''re just giving back what these people truly deserve."


    I motioned towards my squadron to formation. The identical figures slowly swarmed us with their overwhelming numbers. Those that strayed too far from the group were killed almost instantly, among them was some of the captive.


    "Madame, we''re surrounded..."


    "Brace yourselves..."


    They slowly closed in towards us as I raised my hand in preparation for the slightest movement of aggression.

 12 Multiplied Disaster

    *Argh!*


    As the voices of my men perishing under the unbelievable strength of our enemy.


    "Madame! It''s all just an illusion! M-magic to play with our minds."


    As one of my men shouted through the struggle.


    "No! it''s not!" I answered.


    After his remark, he died instantly with dozens of knives piercing through him; right before my eyes. Our current situation has been dire and so far we''ve sustained continous casualties from a single enemy. I casted my spells as it blasted multiple enemies away but no matter how many times I dispose of them, they only come back with double the numbers.


    Right now our enemy has multiple clones of herself, from my perspective it can''t be illusions. Illusionary copies can''t emit the same amount of Corr their owner has, other than that they can also fight physically against my squadron which is impossible. We''re not losing from lack of experience, we actually overpower them with diversity of our team. We''re losing because of exhaustion,


    I''ve already disposed more than a hundred copies of herself already. "How long can she do this?" I thought to myself. What makes this fight more infuriating is the fact we can''t locate her original body, even with my eyes this proves to be challenging. I saw her once but there is minimal difference between her Corr and the copies but I''m still not sure. Her strategy makes her completely invincible under these circumstances.


    The only way to win is to cripple her ability or be able to locate her within the crowd.


    "What''s the matter? having trouble already?"


    I ignored her silly words of mockery.


    Right now she''s smart enough to not use any spells in her arsenal, if she did I could expose her location by seeing the change in Corr activity within her body. If she had the ability to wipe us out she would have done it already. I''m already straining my whole being by barking orders here while casting spells one after the other at this rate we won''t even make it out alive.


    "When are you going to show yourself! Coward!"


    "Haha! cowardly as it may seem but it works, I don''t need to sully my hands with your filthy blood."


    "What do you want from us?! how did you know we were here!"


    "I''m only here under orders. to be honest I couldn''t care less about your cause..."


    She paused.


    "H-how did you?"


    "Birds tweet fairly honest... Especially those that couldn''t resist." she said with a cold and menacing tone.


    With her words I couldn''t possibly discern the idea of a traitor residing within the Liberators but I have to accept the possibility that we may have been infiltrated. This operation could be a lost cause. Many lives were at stake.


    I casted a guarding spell on most of my men leaving them protected from most physical harm, mostly sharp impending doom was our fate. As she made use of daggers as lethal weapons, but fortunately it''s not strong enough to slice through heavy armor.


    I would have instructed our scout to inform other members of the operation of our situation but he got caught and had his throat slit wide open. Telepathic communication was an innate talent that was rare among humans and training them took years. So as a result we''ve slowly backed towards the center of the city while fending off against her attacks, hopefully once there we could have her defeated and retreat as soon as possible.


    I saw on the field the exhausted movements of my men, we''ve suffered a huge lost in this fight. Their feet heavily dug onto the ground as they forcefully moved. If only I could prevent more casualties... we''re already half way through the city.


    "Enough! no more lives need to be lost! spare them and face me yourself!"


    "Hm, a tempting offer but then again..."


    As she continued to mow down more men like trees chopped down for their lumber, one by one they fell. Soon only a few of us remained. She could''ve done that earlier but why didn''t she, did she purposely do that to bathe in my despair? To see me struggle, hoping to see that they could survive...


    "WATCH OUT!"


    I turned around as soon as I heard. I missed what happened but gazed at the aftermath and saw my savior struggling, squirming on the ground. I knelt beside the man as he tried to converse in such a terrible state. Blood trickled down from a deep cut on his throat as I tried to cover it with my hands, I chanted to cast a healing spell.


    "Have I... b-been... h-helpful?" he said breathing heavily.


    Our eyes met. As his voice slowly drowned in blood, gurgling. Nearing death his eyes were filled fulfillment as though had served his purpose.


    "You''ve served the Liberators wonderfully..."


    "Y-you... h-have to... save..."


    "Don''t speak, save your energy."


    "D-daisy... In... nomine... D-die..."


    With his final breath he rested, my spell couldn''t tend to his wounds in time. Even at the brink of death they still find solace in aiding our cause, these loyal men deserved better and were struggling against the oppression.


    Was it worth it? I thought hopelessly, these men had been born with dreams that were utterly crushed by the unfairness and injustice of the world. To this person that dream was in a form of another that took his heart, maybe he had hoped that one day fighting our cause would bring peace and tranquility to the future of his wife. What was the reason for these people to die... what was my reason for facing the bitterness of the world. I continued to delve deeper into my mind with emotions stirred and conviction wavering.


    Here lies another life lost, over there a few meters away is the same being laying lifelessly on the cold ground and the same would happen to those standing right now. I stood quickly and ordered my men to head towards the center of the city where reinforcements waited.


    "b-but... what about you Madame?!" My second in command questioned.


    "Save our people..."


    I stared at him as my eyes pleaded with utmost certainty. He stood and couldn''t bare to leave his squadron captain but eventually caved in. The people were the reason, without them the Liberators wouldn''t be born and with people like them alive the will to enact equity for all will live on.


    I had operated many missions but the hardest part was seeing the life of people I knew being taken away right in front of me. They were sacrifices made in order to achieve a certain goal. These people made us who we are and to each of their lives had a bright future waiting for them.


    I vow right now that they will not die in vain, to whom had taken their lives is responsible and equally to those that they served. We are all involved in one another, directly or indirectly, lives should have the freedom to choose their own...


    "Trying to escape are we?!"


    Copies of herself overflowed trying to close the gap between them and my men. I casted the largest spell I could muster with the rest of my strength and built a wall of roots that hindered their path.


    After I ran towards the nearest building in order to hide my prescence with the wall as my cover, I needed to regroup with the others. "Not yet!" I thought to myself as death could be right at my doorstep... I have to survive, I have to.


    "You really are infuriating!" she cried.


    There! the moment she raised her voice I knew that her emotion would affect the state of her Corr. Through the walls I could see the slightly raised energy level that differentiated the original from the many clones that surrounded her, not too far from where I was hidden. Now I just needed to formulate a plan on how to dispose of this troublesome foe.


    First I have to regain my strength as I''ve already depleted most of my Corr from that last spell. Hopefully she retreats after finishing her goal but from what I had observed earlier it looks like I was a part of her agenda.


    "Come out! come out where ever you are!"


    The countless number of Corr separated and flew into different groups away from the original, she must''ve ordered them to search for me. Certainly in her perspective my death is some form of gain, but I won''t let myself get caught. I sneaked towards the back of the ruined house I''m current in to avoid their line of sight.


    I desperately grabbed at straws, what was the best way to get out of the situation. Meanwhile I found myself inside the kitchen and there I saw a silhoutte of a woman in the arms of a child. I could tell his age by looking at his Corr, he was atleast five years old.


    I slowly approached the child and knelt to face him. I knelt on a crumbling piece of stone, I grabbed some of it only to realize from it''s texture that it was bread. It had a really musty smell, most likely it was expired. I threw it away as I brushed my hands clean on my chest.


    "Hello..."


    He didn''t answer, as if he was unfazed. I turned him towards myself as I felt his thin arms and bony hands, it felt as though he was neglected by his parents. The lifeless woman on the floor had been dead for hours already but she still had some of her Corr lingering around her body. I touched her and was shocked by how extremely skinny she was... That bread was probably the last food they had, I could only assume they had some connection because they had similar Corr characteristics.


    "Is she your mother?"


    He nodded as suddenly started hyperventilating, the thought of his mother dead probably sank through his head. I tried calming him down but he shook me off.


    *SCREECH!*


    His high pitched voice had probably alerted them, I turned and focused gazing through the walls as I saw few of them headed towards my direction. The child ran away by opening the door that led outside, I followed him in an attempt of saving him from them and escaping my pursuers. We passed through several alleyways as I tried to catch him.


    "There you are!"


    I heard her voice as one of the clones had spotted me. I hurried until finally he tripped as I caught him and carried him onto a tight space in between the walls. I covered his mouth as I held him tightly to prevent him from moving... I waited silently.


    "I could have sworn I saw her earlier..."


    I heard the heavy footsteps trudging through the muddy ground slowly paving our way. I turned towards the other direction hoping that I could escape that way, I could see the coped up path was open and slowly slid that way.


    This proved quite taxing while holding a child desperately trying to loosen my grip, as I motioned my hand for a quick spell, he bit my hand as he finally fell unconscious. I finally came out on the otherside and was met by the same enemy I was trying to shake off, I momentarily lost focus when the child bit me so I clearly wasn''t paying attention ahead.


    As soon as our eyes met she rushed towards me. I fired off several spells that disposed the group of clones as I ran away from them, soon enough I found myself surrounded. They surrounded me with sheer numbers increasing by dozens every second but oddly enough they just stood there until one of them came out of their group.


    "Finally, I''ve found you and you have a friend with you too..." She said with a grin on her face.


    "Who are you?" I hastily asked.


    I thought of ways to get out of this scenario until an idea struck me. She charged towards me, thanks to my eyesight I could barely see her moving as I jumped to the side for safety. She stopped directly where I was, meanwhile I prepared a large spell while she strutted slowly towards me.


    I gazed upon her as I tried to memorize details of her Corr, it was finely disguised that it was hard to discern her differently from the clones. I hid my hand behind the child as I held large amounts of Corr on a single palm, preparing for a surprise attack.


    "You just don''t know when to give up. Do you?" She said confidently.


    "I''m not one to lose hope easily."


    "Too bad, you''re about to die anyway."


    She finally closed the gap between us and held a dagger towards my neck. I only needed one moment to finish her off but how? right now I have no chance.


    "Since you gave me such a hard time, I''ll tell you my name. Abellinda Lupus, the person who killed Cordelia Lockewood."


    I felt shivers down my spine as she said my name, I''ve not heard of her name before. Her voice was filled with contempt and hostility towards me. I kept trying to remember if I had seen her or known her in the past but my mind eluded the thought. I closed my eyes as I felt the tip of her knife slowly piercing my chest until a familiar voice echoed in the distance.


    "Madame!"


    The knife retreated as I felt a strong gust of wind above me. As soon as I heard Yela I saw my chance to cast the spell, I held out my hand from behind the child and blasted out everything I could.

 13 The Genius

    After having exhausted every ounce of Corr I had left from that last attack, I laid tired on the cold ground. I held the child closer as the large Corr generated roots above us slowly disintegrated into the thin air. The particles of left-over Corr sprinkled down like the early sign of winter snow. Each of it fell peacefully on my face with great subtlety, I closed my eyes and felt the gracious light touching my nose. For an instant that momentary peace made me forget the horrendous situation I was in...


    *Boom* *Crash*


    But the constant tremors that followed shook the ground as it woke my senses, I was forced to reopen my eyes out of panic. The enemy was still here, this is no time to be resting peacefully on the ground. I stared at this pitiful child wrapped around my arms, his skin and bones would be reduced to ashes the moment he gets caught in the mishap.


    I slowly regained the strength to stand as I carried the child with both arms. From afar I could discern voices flying around the chaos, slowly the voices became clear, It was familiar. I took a turn to see who called upon me and there I saw that signature golden hair, along with that friendly face, running towards me.


    "Madame! I came as soon as I could!"


    I could sense urgency in her voice. I slowly moved towards her direction.


    "YOU''RE NOT GOING ANYWHERE!"


    I glanced behind me, I felt the roaring Corr of Abellinda as I saw her. It felt like I was drowning beneath the pressure of her energy, I felt nauseous because her''s was not of ordinary means. It was sickening, like the smell of a dead corpse. It was corrupted, like an animal except was under control by a parasite. I could still see signs of her humanly Corr but it was all for naught. I tried moving away as much as possible, a spell could definitely help but from that previous struggle my body had trouble harnessing Corr. No matter how much we can cast there is only so much our fullest capabilities can take...


    "Corr-exhaustion... Damn! why now?!" Annoyed, I exclaimed to myself.


    Corr-exhaustion was the state of a physical being at the limit of using Corr. Basically I can use little to no Corr at all, at this point I''m basically useless... Running was my only option but with my current state, I''m at the brink of falling unconscious.


    The numbers grew once more, this time I could differentiate the original from the clones. They all charged towards me, like an army. No, army is an over statement because of their unorganized attack, they seemed much more like a stampede of raging bulls. I faced forward and saw Yela bright as the star that lit the gloomy confines of the Black Market.


    "TAAAKKKEE COOVVEEERR!!" Yela shouted.


    I fell to my knees and with the added weight of the nameless child my knees trembled as it crashed to the ground.


    "Ack."


    I bit my lip as the impact bruised my knees and I fell on all fours with my right arm barely carrying the child. The fast blinding light took shape of a bird that flew straight above me went zooming at incredible speeds. With the last bit of my strength I trudged onward, each step felt like boulders that made the flat ground seemed like an obstacle. From behind me was screaming of pained clones as their voices slowly dissipated into the air, lost to the eternal nothingness of the short lived lifespan they have. I stared at the sky the constant firing of magical projectiles split and rained upon the enemies behind me.


    "Keep going! I''m only buying enough time!"


    Finally I''ve reached her. Her face wore a really calm but tensed expression as she fired a barrage of magical arrows.


    "H-how did you know where I was?"


    She looked at me with worried eyes.


    "There''s only one person I know that could launch a full scale elemental spell like that!"


    I remembered the large spell that I used, the roots from that spell was long gone, like all physical elemental spells they only last a few moments until they turn into Corr and disappear from our world.


    I smiled at her fondly, I felt safe but as soon as I saw the innocent face I caressed and carried with care; I knew I''m still not finished. His innocence reminded me of my vow and a face from the past that ignited my current vigilance towards a certain goal...


    Clear as the day it replayed in my mind, the pain of losing a love one can forever change a lifetime; not even time can heal wounds.


    "Keep going Madame! I''ll distract her! Reinforcements are waiting for my command!"


    "What abou-- Argh!"


    I stumbled slightly as I slowly passed Yela, a sharp pain in my chest made me stop in my tracks. I felt a warm hand on my shoulder, she came face to face as she asked worriedly about my welfare.


    "Are you alright?"


    "I''m f-fine..."


    Her eyes flew towards the small boy I carried.


    "Who''s this?"


    "Just a boy..."


    Our eyes locked onto each other as I felt she understood why I saved the boy. She turned around and signalled into the silhouettes of the structures beyond the ruined area. Soon groups of knights came out rushing to our aid. I slowly placed the boy on the ground and covered him with my cloak in order to warm him a little bit. I turned to Yela and saw that she had a troubled expression on her face.


    "What''s wrong?" I asked.


    "I lost sight of the enemy..."


    I turned around and saw the aftermath of the fight, everything has been turned to ashes. The whole area was cleared off as if been wiped out intentionally. I gazed deeply into the area and saw no signs of Abellinda.


    "She must''ve hidden herself..."


    "Or she could be dead... The spells I''ve been using lock onto enemies, even with her mirage as cover."


    "That wasn''t a mirage."


    "T-then?!" Yela answered hesitantly.


    "Yes, they''re clones."


    "B-BUT HOW?! To make and maintain that many? She would have exhausted herself already?!" She replied shockingly.


    "I don''t know how... But it seems they have the capacity to do so, her Corr isn''t that of a human."


    "They?!"


    I paused for a moment as I saw her widened eyes.


    "Bailiffs..." I muttered.


    "So she''s one of them..."


    "Be careful, it''s better we retreat and regroup than face her right now. We have other problems to deal with."


    "But shouldn''t we take her on right now? We could at least lessen future problems, especially now that she''s injured."


    I contemplated on what she said, it seems right to dispose of her right now. I know how her abilities work, if the timing is right we could defeat her. I''m sure that spell I made did some damage at point blank range, it would take some form of ability or miracle for her to escape that.


    "No, we retreat... Lives are at stake here especially those that can''t defend themselves."


    She nodded, although I could tell that it was tugging at her.


    "We have to notify the others of the situation."


    "Already taken care of! Because of your squadron they fully informed us of the situation. The others have taken necessary procedures--"


    "MADAME!!"


    That familiar voice resided in my head, it was my second in command. I turned towards him as he waved joyously at the sight of my safety. There were at least ten men running towards us, it seems most of them were comprised of Yela''s team and that he was the only one from my squadron that came.


    I''ve never doubted his loyalty and his unwavering passion to strive for our cause. His name was John Frederick, He''s been with me on a many operations for over the years. We''ve built a bond that was built over the years, he was a good and honest working man, his years of experience led to his current rank. Each time I told him that he should stop joining the fray, since a family was waiting for him. A son, a daughter and a loving wife. Every time I said so, he would always answer...


    "If men like me don''t fight...Then who will? If it''s a chance to give my family a future they deserve. Then I''ll make sure they see it."


    That line of his always stuck to my head, it reminded me that no matter what happens, people will always have a reason to fight. But no one expected him to do it, not even myself nor his comrades. If he chose his family over the Liberators, they''d gladly let him leave and erase his memories as protocol demands it. Then how is it that I feel a deep sense of melancholy even though I knew that he was fully prepared to loose his life.


    *CRASH!*


    Dumbfounded, I saw the entire reinforcements get wiped out before they reached us as Abellinda came out from the shadows of the structures behind them. The moment I saw her it was too late, she blasted most of them with magic. Shocked, all I could do was stare idly by while having to bare with my uselessness. Everything around myself became inaudible because of the explosion, Yela was enraged as she pulled on her bow preparing to attack. I looked at my hands as I tried to charge up Corr... I forced myself and felt my arms burn up from the pain, the veins in my hands were visible as my arms had been trembling from the struggle.


    "DON''T WORRY!"


    John''s voice reminded me that I could hear properly again as I gazed towards his direction. I could feel Corr building up on my palms as the pain grew intensely, every part of my body was trembling and screaming. Instinctively my body knew it was wrong.


    "IN NOMINE DEI LIBERTAS!" John shouted.


    After he shouted I saw him uttering his final words as I read his lips.


    "Take care of my fami--"


    As his head got sliced off and went rolling away on the ground. Three of them still managed to save themselves but were horribly injured. Abellinda was a wreck, completely different from her calm and collected demeanor from before. She wore a crazy look on her face as she grinned inhumanely while towering above the dead bodies. She stared fiercely at us as I noticed her injured shoulder. It was probably from Yela''s ability or from mine.


    "YOU M*THER F*CKERS WILL PAY! NO ONE! NO ONE LAYS A FINGER ON ME AND GETS TO LIVE!"


    I turned to Yela, her face was calm but her eyes were empty. As if devoid of all emotion until she came to me.


    "Mr. Frederick would hate to see you lose yourself, get some rest and I''ll handle this..."


    The conviction of her words made it clear, she won''t back down easily. Her eyes weren''t devoid of emotion, it was filled with anger and sheer will. I could feel her determination the moment she pulled on her bow. I had to say no, It would be a disgrace to the dead if I held back. I''ll fight with all that I can, just like John... If I can''t do the same like them then I don''t deserve my rank and title.


    She pulled on her bow and I focused every Corr I could possible gather, It was a standoff between us and her. Abellinda knew this and with her smirk she gladly accepted our challenge. Her aura flared up as she started chanting a spell of her own. While Yela blasted out her strongest spells with each pull on her bow she prevented Abellinda from foolishly charging in. I did only what I could as I mustered up Corr from the deepest confines of my strength and will power to support her.


    Each of her arrows flew in a shape of an eagle desperately trying to hit their mark while Abellinda dodged each with her inhumane agility. I had an Idea, right now I know for sure that she doesn''t care for me anymore. She is currently focused on Yela, knowing her, she''ll make sure she hits her mark especially when agitated like this. I''m pretty sure that she''ll have a plan of her own, even angry or emotion-filled. She had always been level-headed despite her cheery character. I activated a spell that covered us from the enemy attacks thus letting her freely fire at will without any setbacks; this was the last thing I could do.


    The endless stream of attacks raged on with both sides. The enemy was still as lively as ever but Yela wasn''t doing any better, I couldn''t hold the barrier any longer this had to end soon. I felt my body aching with excruciating pain from having exceeded my limits.


    "I''ll pull the barrier back! I can''t hold it anymore! We need to think of something and quickly!"


    "Bring the barrier down, I have a plan!"


    "What is it?"


    "Just trust me!"


    I looked at her carefully and felt that I had no choice. Ultimately I brought it down, Yela stopped firing, Then Abellinda closed in the distance in a manner of a few seconds.


    "FINALLY! TIRED ARE WE!?"


    As she lunged towards us with daggers in both hands. In that moment something was off, that large crater left on her shoulder was now smaller in size. It wasn''t bleeding anymore...


    "Don''t get too cocky..."


    Yela smirked, the moment Abellinda hit the ground in front of us as we dodged. She couldn''t move anymore. As if she were paralyzed. The ground below us glowed with light, I saw that underneath our feet was a Runic Circle.


    "W-when did you?!"


    "Ever since I''ve been raining arrows on you, even before you killed my... men."


    "Oh you mean those useless bags of meat?!"


    "Meat!? D-don''t you feel a slightest hint of guilt for what you did?"


    She smiled proudly and didn''t say a word.


    That brief pause by Yela explained everything, it was suppose to be a trap as I realized. She must''ve been regretting it, If only she called them sooner they would''ve survived. Her teary eyes that held back its pain in front of the enemy. Having exhausted my entirety I fell sitting on the floor. I wanted to say something but I doubt that my words could ever calm her down, I know what it feels like to be responsible for a life.


    Abellinda struggled as she might but her body wouldn''t budge.


    "Don''t even try to move, it''s practically impossible. That''s a Tier 7 magic spell trap only made possible by the men you just killed."


    "I''ll just use this then!" Abellinda exclaimed.


    Her Corr level rose then slowly died down.


    "W-what?!" She said quite annoyed.


    "It won''t work, I already prepared everything for this trap. Corr is suspended those caught in it except for those in the center. I made this with my squadron just in case we fought off against a Bailiff, looks like it''s working properly..."


    "H-HOW DARE YOU! YOU THINK YOU CAN DO THIS TO ME?!"


    "Talk all you want..."


    She held her bow and started chanting.


    "I''LL F*CKING KILL YOU! I''LL HUNT YOU DOWN! IN THIS LIFE AND THE NEXT!" Abellinda Threatened.


    Her bow grew bright with yellow glowing light. She pointed this towards her constrained face.

 14 Disturbance

    *KA-BOOM!*


    I heard a massive explosion from the distance, we both turned at the exact same time towards the direction of the sound. What we saw rivaled the sun in terms of brightness that made us cover our eyes at the sight, the blinding light lasted a few moments.


    Shortly after, in the far distance we saw a floating radiant object. Certainly, I could not describe it''s luminance except that it dazzled those that laid eyes upon it. Especially mine, but not for obvious reasons. When it lit up the murky, gloom ridden recesses of the Black Market, somehow it felt like I was on the surface. Almost as if I''m nonchalantly paving the streets of my childhood on a fine Sunday afternoon. It''s radiance felt warm as if my skin were touched by the first light of dawn.


    "What is that?" I said in awe.


    "Damn!" Yela exclaimed.


    I immediately turned to the sight of our missing adversary.


    "What happened? Where''d she go?"


    "She was there a moment ago..."


    I searched around our area, Abellinda was nowhere to be found. Escape was the first thing that came to mind.


    "We need to go! she might come back anytime soon."


    "I don''t think she will Madame..."


    "How come?"


    "I can''t use any spells, I''ve been trying to cast or charge up any Corr I have left but it doesn''t work! If I can''t then... she can''t too."


    She didn''t make any sense as I can''t make use of my magic right now because of Corr-exhaustion. I simply concluded that starlight in the sky was the cause of this. For reasons unbeknownst to me, I''ve noticed since it presented itself that my gift has been dulled. My gift of another worldly sight felt lacking, as if there was something disturbing my ability.


    "Must be an unknown phenomenon because of that explosion..." I said hypothetically.


    "Wait! Madame! That explosion! Isn''t that where Bardel and Hackmann are?"


    We stared at each other and started making our way towards the explosion, she aided in carrying the child as we went our way. Through the deserted streets and alleyways of the Black Market we dashed.


    The stiffness of my fatigued body lingered, Yela of course could observe this from the way I limped and breathed heavily. I felt my hand twinge in pain as my hand trembled from the shock, Immediately I lost my grip. Alert as Yela should be, she caught the child midway.


    "Are you alright?" She worried.


    *Pant!* *Pant!*


    "I-I''m fine..."


    "I could take you to the closest squadron and--"


    "No! leave me, here with the child, I''ll make my way there... Eventually."


    "How can I? You''re in a horrible situation."


    "They nee--"


    *Ack!*


    I paused as the pain became unbearable. My hands trembled, like they had minds of their own, the side effects of abusing my limit were showing. My veins palpitated as they grew visible and had a purple-ish hue. The Corr within my hands became too unstable and disorganized as I saw them, I needed time to recover and only then I''ll be able to help. To my surprise she took my hands, the unpleasant look on her face as she gazed at the state of my hands.


    "We need to hurry! Your hands!"


    "I said no! They need your help! Leave me and the child, I''ll handle myself."


    At last, her final struggle to convince me otherwise slowly turned to acceptance. She stared at my eyes looking for some sort of assurance.


    "I went through the trouble of saving you! So don''t you die Madame!"


    "I plan to!" I said with determination.


    She beamed with relief then nodded in agreement, she bolted away after slowly laying the boy on the ground. Half way through the streets she stopped and turned around.


    "A few streets from here to the left is the nearest squadron! They handled that area of the city!" She hurriedly exclaimed.


    I couldn''t inch a reply as my body ached. She knew of this as her figure hastily faded from the dimly lit streets. Finally I checked the source of my suffering, it was the wound on my chest. It was a nasty mark left by that unholy fiend. The wound was infected, the area surrounding had a distinct charred like appearance.


    "Poison..."


    There was only one poison that could have done this. Kyzanthapime, this deadly floral plant is known for it''s distinct effect of turning affected areas to a char-like appearance. As deadly as it was, it also had another effect, it could disrupt the Corr-flow within the person rendering them unable to use magic. Keeping in mind that the effects of the poison could worsen if I moved, but remaining still would do me no good. The only chance I had was seeking out medical attention from the nearest squadron.


    The Last of my remaining strength I poured out from my severely aching body. Each step was a burden, my balance grew unstable, the arms that served as a cradle for the child now grew weary. I couldn''t discern the appropriate direction as my senses turned useless.


    My futile efforts of tracing the nearest Corr from a living being was discouraging. My gifted eyes were no more than eyes of the blind, as everything in sight was covered by light. Treading onward to the nearest squadron, I could only hope.


    The familiar musty alleyways my legs plowed through reminded my mind of past dread. It was through this very cursed city that I had lost my sight. The memory of his image reminded me his horrible misdeeds. He was the epitome of inhumane acts, morality deprived experiments, the physical representation of Insanity. His victims loathed him to their very core. It was the sacrifices of many that allowed another future for my life, I could never forget their faces. Each of them flashed before my mind, was this a taste of death? the sign of slowly succumbing to my corroded state?


    "Let go of me!"


    A coarse but timidly toned voice brought me back to my senses, the struggling child resting at my arms broke free. I hurriedly reached towards his shadowy facial features, it reminded me of a familiar face that belonged to another. One who delved deep into my mind, one that left a deep scar that instigated my burning passion to save lives. With a sudden rush of tears I thought he was once the person I knew; I held him tight.


    "I''m sorry..." I sobbed.


    I felt comfort and a sort of bliss while wrapping my arms around him. He just stood there as I knelt to his height, as if he had accepted the feelings I forwarded. Soon my shoulder grew damp as I held him tight, feelings of regret started to resurface as my life grew destitute of time. The numbness overcame my body as the consciousness I had struggled to retained slowly faded away. There was still a lot left for me to do, this wasn''t my time. I refused to accept my fate.


    "N-not, today... I-I won''t, lose, they''re, counting... O-on m-me..."


    The loss of strength as weakness overcame me, allowed myself to slowly lay on the ground. The coldness was somewhat comforting, the life I had was full of regret. I yearned to repay those that had given, those that had stayed and the ones that lost.


    "This world is unforgiving" I thought.


    The life I had was slowly passing. As the soul I had saved left, maybe he already lost himself, was he not thankful? I didn''t bother to ask, my selfish thoughts of saving another always out-did me.


    Maybe the rightful thing to do was let others decide...


    At this darkest moment of mine, my sight has already blurred. The dim lamp post above that radiated gloom gave false feelings of warmth. Indiscernible voices I could hear from the far off distance slowly neared me. Shortly after, In that brief glimpse I saw a reaching hand followed by a voice as my mind darkened into the void.


    "Not today Madame..."

 15 Determined Fanatic

    *Pant! Pant!*


    "Where did that idiot go!" I shouted.


    The smoke from the rubble made it hard to see. I stomped on the ground with anger, from behind me I could hear the three men under my command. I turned only to see from the right to left respectively John, Dale and Cain.


    "Did you catch him?" Dale said.


    *Smack!*


    "Ouch! what did you do that for?"


    "You buffoon! you can clearly see that child is nowhere to be found!"


    "Now, now! let''s all be friendly here."


    These three quirky men that followed are not just any subordinate under me, they were my friends. We''ve been together on many fields and always relied on each other. The grumpy old man was Cain, the light-headed person was Dale and the ever unifying character was John. Despite our differences in age, rank and personality. We respected each other.


    "Shut up!" Sourly I uttered.


    "Sourpuss..." Dale whispered.


    *Sigh*


    "Well, He might''ve not gotten far Hackmann!" As john said while nudging Dale.


    I couldn''t hope to disappoint Sir Bardel! He gave me this task and I plan on finishing it properly. I''d be too ashamed to face him now if I went back. As Squad leader and his right Hand man, I wouldn''t dare to tarnish his name, better it be mine than his.


    "John! Dale! Cain! We''ll split up to search for that twit! Let''s meet here after our search!"


    "Alright!" They exclaimed harmoniously.


    In agreement we each separated in opposite directions. I, of course went through the rubble that child made. Traversing through the jagged ground with it''s entirety comprised of housing debris had been challenging.


    "What made that child go through all of this..." I questioned myself.


    I don''t think that he fully grasps the situation he is in, Insubordination of higher authority could be his price to pay. But what troubled my mind even so was the fact that they let him off easily. If it was an ordinary member of the Liberators they would get punished direly for it. Disruption of operation was a heavy violation within the group, penalties would be issued, such as hazing or Isolation for days.


    All these thoughts locked up inside but I wouldn''t dare question the higher ranking officers especially Sir Bardel. Out of all these, one heavily outweighed the others and it was the fact. The fact that a recruit such as himself could muster Corr levels that rivaled mine...


    Soon I found myself wandering the streets of the ever miserable Black market. The sight of slavery was ordinary, different races could be seen. Faustians, Deimosians and Elgans but they were rarely found.


    Humans comprised most numbers of every slavery. You could discern every possible suspicious character you can find, this was the type of City Black Market was. Carefully I tread through the streets trying not to catch attention to myself.


    Surprisingly, most people that came through my path would avoid me. Ever since childhood I''ve been known to have a rather fierce looking facial features, so maybe I fit in this dog eats dog world. Which was quite kind of offending to me that I started grumbling to myself. It''s not my fault that my mother gave birth to this angry face of mine. Because of this particular reason it made my search for that meddling child quite straining. From a far I spotted a humble merchant, maybe I could get something useful from him.


    "Pardon me..."


    "Could you wait a sec!"


    He said as he answered with his back turned. It looks like he was attending to his wares at the back of his stall. I waited patiently.


    "Now! how can I help you?" said the man.


    I tried to smile as cheerful as I could. The man faced me with an alarmed look.


    "I-I''m sorry! I don''t have money!"


    "W-wait! I''m just trying to--"


    He slammed shut his stall in front of my completely perplexed expression.


    *Sigh!*


    With a deep sigh, I tried to shrug off my aggravation.


    *Thud*


    "OI! WATCH YOURSELF!"


    As a random stranger shouted at me, I took a look at his face and saw that his expression somehow exuded dominance. I ignored his undoubtful confidence as I passed by him. Even though it irrirated me so, I couldn''t afford getting sidetracked. It would be a shame to the Liberators name and Sir Bardel as well.


    In the following scenarios that same thing happened, my questions were thrown into the air as


    they were answered with coldness by the people that received it or otherwise were completely frightful of my seemingly aggressive demeanor even though I approached them kindly.


    At a loss, I had hoped that Yela was here. She was proficient in terms of tracking down and searching...


    Oddly enough throughout my journey I saw a presence that seemed to tail me. I had to make sure, This may be a potential enemy from the opposing side and could have identified me. Swerved, curved and moving in all sorts of directions I moved trying to shake off my pursuer. The character was persistent as I could still notice their hidden identity, which was lacking thereof.


    Ultimately I passed through the more crowded areas of the area. I squeezed through the dozens of men clumped up together in what seems to be a business related part of the city. Men of all sorts occupied the area, from really shady characters to the more sinister looking individuals. All of them minded their own while myself got mixed into the said characters, I couldn''t see my pursuer anymore. His presence drowned in the sea of people as mine got shrouded within. I turned into a dark alleyway.


    "Finally lost them. Now back into the task at hand." I said to myself.


    "Pard''n me!"


    A deep toned voice echoed behind me. I turned around in shock, this man was humungous with blue-ish colored skin, more importantly his face had worn this odd facial expression but what made it frightful is that he wore a smile. The smile felt menacing as the scar that continued from the left side of his lips emphasized it. The man was well dress as my eyes wandered about, atop his head rested a top hat that matched his coat.


    To my bewilderment, I saw the very same person that I searched for. He was swung unconscious on his shoulder. His eyes followed mine as he saw my expression, he slowly turned his head towards me as his mouth curved forming a huge grin. My spine tingled with fear.


    "Sorry..."


    I moved towards the side and let him pass. I readied myself mentally, as well as physically for a fight. My round shield steadily hung behind my back underneath the cloak I had worn. It was ready for use anytime that the need called for it. Slowly but surely he passed by that came with a sign of relief for me. I could''ve sworn that he noticed my interest in the child that he carried, was he taunting me? or could it be that he didn''t knew. I waited patiently for him to leave the narrow alleyway so I could follow him...


    I tailed him through the city while remaining steadfast. It could be that he was weary of my presence already or it was his plan to lure me into the trap. Therefore I prepared myself, for any dangers that I may face, in the ready I activated spells on my shield if ever the situation escalated. I left markings on every path I went in order to prevent getting lost as the man had been passing through the most isolated paths in the city. I rarely encountered individuals, it''s as if this area was prohibited.


    What was it with this new recruit of ours, he attracted all sorts of trouble. Firstly, he attempted to disrupt the operation by infiltrating. Secondly, he escapes only to be caught by slave traders. Stressfully I scratched the shaven side of my head with utmost irritation. If only Sir Bardel isn''t the one who enforced this mission upon me, I couldn''t careless if it was someone else.


    I patiently followed and waited for a chance to nab Knoxx. The sheer mass of this person that carried him belittled my strength against him. His size wasn''t the only thing that made me cautious, earlier I felt the tremendous amount of Corr that lay dormant inside him. I don''t know if it was


    intentional but he displayed it carelessly.


    Soon he stopped underneath the brightness of the street lamp, in front of the natural cavern walls of the City. I stood carefully scouting from afar behind a partition, with a blink of an eye he was gone. I rubbed my eyes in disbelief as that large man disappeared into thin air. "How could it be so?" I thought to myself. But one thing was for certain, this was no ordinary slave trader.


    "I need back up..." I whispered.


    Soon as I turned around my eyes met the same arrogant man that had bumped into me a while ago. He was at the far end of the alley.


    "OI!"


    "What do you want?!" I shouted in reply.


    "Nice shield you have there!"


    To my surprise he must''ve seen it earlier. His voice suggested some form of interest in it.


    "It''s worthless, you won''t get anything from it!"


    "Oh, I definitely disagree... HAND OVER THE SHIELD!"


    "MAKE ME!"


    I staggered forward from the recoil, the trap I placed on my shield activated that blasted anyone foolish enough to surprise me from behind. The voices of several men cried out in pain, I turned and saw at least two men down on the ground while two remained standing.


    "Fools..." I thought.


    "W-what was that?!" the other questioned.


    "No matter! let''s take him down, it only proves that shield is worth a lot!"


    I took arms, as they charged at me with knives. I blocked their advance as I quickly disarmed them and bashed them unconscious with my trusty shield. Ranged attacks were never my expertise, so I honed my melee combat to the outmost level I could. My shield had always been my choice as I fitted my style and way of magically means into this unique fighting style. They never stood a chance.


    "RAAHH!"


    The voice of the man behind me reminded myself of his useless existence. Casually, I crouched on the ground and waved my hand to cast a trap in front of me. I went over it as I turned to face my enemy.


    "Was that all you got?!" I mocked.


    Stupidly enough he came bolting towards me, screaming like a mad man. The moment he stepped on the trap, a struck of electricity paralyzed him causing him to fall to the ground.


    "W-when did y-you?"


    I shrugged off his question as I knocked him to the ground.


    "Why were you tailing me?"


    He didn''t respond. I pressured his neck with the shield as I punched his ugly face. I asked the same thing again but he still wouldn''t talk. After a few hits he gave out.


    "We o-only wafted the shielf! There''sh no one elsh! Shpare me..."


    Seems like he was telling the truth, I knocked him out cold. I wasted time because of this hopeless thugs, hurriedly I went back to the our promised meeting place.


    In time I returned to the same area we agreed to earlier. There I met them as they casually waited for me, I told them of the good news but what followed after that was the bad news that came with it. Eventually I decided that we''ll inform the higher ranked officers by regrouping with the Bardel and his squadron. It wasn''t my position to decide but I know that they''ll make a logical move. We hastily left without wasting a shred of time we could spare. I prepared myself for a loud sermon from Bardel.


    My discovery felt unordinary, it felt of some importance although I wasn''t sure. Instinctively I could tell, this might be the same fabled facility that Madame Cordelia was always concerned around.


    A storm was brewing in this depressed city of Black Market, I could feel it, my body felt tense; it''s nearing...

 16 Down the rabbit hole

    "So you''ve lost the boy?!"


    I could sense a bit of disappointment in his tone, I prepared myself for a long sermon.


    "How can you lose a child?!"


    *Blah!* *Blah!*


    What continued was an onslaught of words, I couldn''t keep up as I felt that my ears would bleed. Right now we''ve met with Sir Bardel and his squadron.


    "E-excuse us Sir!" said Dale.


    "WHAT?!"


    "I''ve got good news as well..." Timidly I said.


    "Nice save Dale..." Whispered John.


    "Hmp." Cain followed


    "Go on!" as Bardel waved his hand at my direction.


    "Well, my men and I tried tracking him down and so far I''ve found something interesting."


    I explained him the details of my discovery. From the large man that took our recruit, to that very dead end where he disappeared. I felt that he took notice of the situation and felt the severity of my suspicions of it.


    "We''ll have to investigate further and save that brat..."


    "But this doesn''t change the fact that you failed to return the boy." He continued.


    I put on a very timid smile as his frustration got to me. Even so, what made the child so important.


    "I-If I may Sir..."


    He stared at me and must''ve realized my intention. Without a doubt people could notice the dismay in his face. I''m sure I wasn''t the only one who longed for an answer.


    "As my right hand, you''ve earned the right to know. But, as of now I''m under orders..."


    He face exuded loyalty, for him to be able a secret like this... He wasn''t the type to keep to himself and had always invested time with others. It must be a direct order from the Commander Rhys himself. Despite my curiosity, I won''t pry any more than I should.


    "Right! get me a scout! we need to contact Cordelia!"


    Soon a scout came and was instructed to inform Cordelia of the current situation. Hours had passed.


    "Sir! there''s still no response from Madame and her squad."


    "What about Yela?!"


    "No response from either of them..."


    "Sh*t! We''ll have to operate ourselves! Have the remaining men posted far from here to search for them! as for the rest! follow me."


    I''ve got the strangest feeling about them, hopefully they''re alright.


    "Where are we going Sir?!" I questioned.


    "Where do you think?! Lead the way!"


    "B-but Sir! Shouldn''t we search for the princess first?!"


    "Right now we don''t have any leads where to find the Princess, we''ve searched every possible area..."


    "T-then?! Don''t tell me?!"


    "Yes! They must be in there!"


    "What makes you say that?!"


    "Gut! feeling!"


    I hastily retraced my steps as our combined squads followed us through the maze-like alleyways of the Black Market. As stupid as it may seem, his instincts had always been on point and we''ve been saved by it multiples times before.


    I didn''t dare to question it, not while we''re going to stumble into something dangerous. He wouldn''t lead us into something that could potentially lead to our doom.


    Bardel marched forward alongside me without any hesitation amid our journey.


    "If what you suspected proves to be true, then we''ll be able to solve all our problems." He said.


    "I can only hope..."


    *Gulp*


    The feeling of hesitation surged within me as the idea of failing to meet his expectations became a burden. But even though I was sure, that thing I saw carrying the recruit adds as proof. His Corr levels was abnormal and it had the same sinister aura that most monsters we''ve encountered so far had. If I''m wrong then I''ve risked our safety, the mission and Sir Bardel. Everything was riding on this speculation of mine.


    Our large group had trouble passing through the streets, as it had attracted a lot of unwanted attention. Thugs and ruffians made fools of themselves while trying to make a scene as they were disposed of fairly quickly. Those that met us from afar would scatter, their faint whispers and fearful eyes made it clear.


    They knew how to stay away from trouble, mostly men in large groups, this place was large enough for most organizations to take control. Getting involved with their business could mean certain death... The path was long and the still light of the Central Crystalline monument made our travel seem still and lifeless.


    Soon we arrived at our destination, the familiar Lamp post and the dead end rugged wall.


    "Is this the place?" Bardel questioned.


    "Yeah..."


    "So where did that man disappear?"


    "Over here."


    I pointed towards a specific location in the area where I had last seen the man.


    "Alright men! those proficient in magic detection should start investigating!"


    As our men surrounded the area, searching for Gaia knows what. All types of detection magic were activated, a chant here and some over there. With our sheer numbers we would easily find a way to break into whatever our minds thought was.


    Hours flew by as we all slowly got frustrated...


    "What are we even looking for?!" Cain asked as his face threw a frustrated remark.


    "Uh... Something?!" Dale blurted out.


    Maybe we were thinking of this the wrong way, I tried retracing his steps. It should bring light to our situation. I stood directly beneath the lamp post with it''s green luminosity showering me, I stared straight at the blank cavern walls.


    "Was this all for nothing?" I questioned myself.


    My mind went blank as I my eyes further explored the very walls in front of me.


    "Hey Hackmann!"


    I turned around.


    "What do you want John?"


    He motioned towards the cavern walls and I nodded in agreement. Maybe there was something on the rocky walls, it wasn''t that far off from our location that''ll take him at least five minutes to get there. This was getting hopeless...


    Frustrated and infuriated at my own uselessness I kicked onto the ground.


    *Thud*


    My eyes widened as I realized that maybe we thought of this too deeply.


    "What is it?"


    I turned to look at Sir Bardel as I knelt to inspect the hollow sound.


    "This spot..."


    I knocked onto the ground with the back of knuckle, apparently it''s made out of metal. The smooth surface felt cold to the touch, completely opposite of it''s current texture. I called upon one of the men investigating from afar.


    "Can you check this area?"


    "Sure."


    With a wave of his hand followed by a chant, the ground started to vibrate. The vibrations soon shook off the cloaking ability that concealed it''s original appearance.


    "Move."


    I moved on to the side as he started to pry open the hatch.


    "It won''t budge..." He said lightly.


    "HACKMANN!! I FOUND SOMETHING ON THE WALL!"


    John abruptly shouted while hurriedly running towards me, with a sense of urgency I went to him.


    "I saw some sort of crystalline figure embedded the wall, It was dark that blended well into the wall."


    "Hm... Do you think it has a purpose?"


    "Well, it''s directly facing the lamp post but anything other than that... None!"


    Maybe we''re overthinking this.


    *CLANG!*


    The clamoring of steel made me cover my ears. I turned to look at Bardel whose fist lay dormant at the base of the hatch.


    "This thing... It''s Terranite! We can''t force our way in!"


    This made things worse as Terranite is the only known metal to negate magic, due to certain phenomena which current technology can''t comprehend. It''s one of the rarest metals around, hard to find and definitely hard to mine. This would mean that whoever was under here had multiple connections. Hopefully it''s mastermind is the sole enemy of our group, I don''t want to make this difficult more than it should.


    "Sir! I have an Idea!"


    I ran towards Bardel and revealed my shield. He stared at me with curiosity.


    "One of my men found out something, let me see if this works..."


    I stood in the middle of the hatch.


    "If my speculations are right..." I said to myself cautiously.


    I rubbed my sleeves against the flawless part of the shield that I could find. After it gleamed clean, I raised it against the radiant green light of the Street lamp. As The light bounced off against the shield, It flew towards the cavern walls.


    "I knew it!" I exclaimed.


    Now that I noticed the width of the light that shone from the lamp was too narrow unlike the others. I told john to go back the wall and indicate where the crystal was. Soon enough he arrived and was pointing towards it.


    I steadily adjusted the shield, slowly the beam of light rose upwards. It passed through his body, above his head then...


    *Swoosh!*


    "AHHH!"


    "Hackmann!" Bardel shouted.


    Midway, I stopped. My shield was stuck in between the hatch, it seems that the hatch closes almost immediately after activation. As I ended up dangling while hanging from the handle of the shield, inside the wide chute was a cold atmosphere.


    "Are you alright?!"


    I heard Bardel shouting. I couldn''t see him as the shield blocked the view.


    "I''m fine! Find another thing to block the hatch with!"


    I stared at the pitch black abyss below me, a strong wind gusted outwards, escaping through the entrance I went in. As I gaze upon the darkness I heard faint voices, it chilled me to the bone. I listened...


    *Groan*


    "Ugh..."


    "hehehehehehehehehe!"


    "Help! help! help!"


    "Gaia has forsaken us!"


    The eerie voices of the unknown became clear, it was desperate voices of what seemed to be people.


    "SIR! I''LL HEAD DOWN FIRST!"


    "WHAT?! WHY?!" He questioned.


    "There''s people down here... I think they need help!"


    "Well it''s up to you, we''ll follow right after we find a way to force this Hatch open."


    "Alright!"


    My instincts were stopping myself from heading down, it''s as if my body knew something was down there. But if there is something down there, especially if it''s that hulking monster then there''s more reason for me to head down.


    The faint light that shone into the hole revealed the metal ladders embedded right into the walls that surrounded me. I fought against my trembling body by taking in a deep breath.


    *Exhale*


    I slowly proceeded downwards as each step of the ladder turned colder and colder. The voices of the damned grew louder, their horrible sounds made my skin crawl in fear. Finally I had reached the last steps of the louder.


    I felt disturbed as I heard the endless voices that echoed throughout the seemingly bottomless pit below me. Once more I hesitated...


    "I can do this..." I whispered to myself.


    Slowly I loosened my grip and dropped down.


    *Smack!*


    The sound of my boots meeting the ground below echoed throughout the emptiness. My eyes explored the vastness that surrounded me as I searched for the owner of the voices. Afar I saw a silhouette whose presence was masked by the gloomy green light that came from the hallway before it.


    "Hey!" I shouted.


    The figure remained unfazed, while I paved my way towards it. The freezing coldness of this place instilled dread into me, this horrid area smelt of rotten flesh, as if dead corpses were left unburied...


    Soon I had reached the silhouette, oddly enough he wasn''t freezing under the coldness as his bare back was exposed to me. With the minimal lighting I could barely tell but maybe he was suffering under some sort of illness.


    His skin had a green-ish hue and his back carried small types of jagged looking materials. But what bothered me the most, is the fact that the smell of death was pungent around him.


    "HEY! I''M TALKING TO YOU!" I shouted once more.


    *Whisper* *Whisper*


    I could hear him weirdly muttering something. Out of frustration and impatience I reached towards his back and pulled him towards my direction. What appeared before me was horrible.


    His face was completely devoid of life, his eyes were sunken deep into it''s sockets. The eyes looked lifeless as it couldn''t focus into a single direction, he was mostly skin and bones with crystals that grew everywhere on his body. The flesh on his body were trembling.

 17 A Knights Resolve

    Out of shock, I kicked him away from me. He fell grunting onto the floor, the light from the hallway illuminated the monster and it''s appearance. This certainly wasn''t human anymore, as I felt sick to my stomach.


    "What are you?!"


    In retaliation it started flailing around the ground, hurriedly it stood up as the crystals on it''s body started glowing.


    "Viscorrs?!"


    "Grahh!"


    As it tried to lunge onto me while baring it''s jagged disproportioned teeth towards me. I redirected it by pushing it away mid air.


    "I really hope they''d come down here. Soon!"


    It snarled at me with animal-like movements, the drool fell from it''s mouth as if hungry for my flesh. What kind of person would do such a thing, I could tell that it''s body had gone through medical treatment as there was some dressing stuck to it''s neck. It''s as if inhumane experimentation had been involved--It''s definitely stronger than a ordinary human being.


    *SCREEECH!*


    It''s ear piercing voice was unbearable. It ran towards me as I braced myself with fists in the ready. Soon I locked into a fist fight with the creature and with it''s simple movements I finished it.


    "Enough!"


    It''s was still moving despite of how unbelievably fragile it''s body were. I''ve broken several bones that were crucial for its movement but it still kept struggling to gnaw at me. It crawled towards me


    with it''s one arm, while it left traces of thick and dried blood in it''s wake.


    *Stomp!*


    I snapped its remaining arm. It couldn''t move anymore and was just flailing on the ground.


    "He-help m-me..."


    With a low voice it begged. It''s voice somehow retained a bit of humanity in it, it pulled at my heart as there was one thing that could only save it.


    *Crack!* *Splat!*


    It''s skull broke under the force of my foot as it''s brain matter scattered everywhere. I gagged at the sight and smell of the atrocity. Finally I saved it''s poor soul, I couldn''t comprehend but somehow


    I could tell that it was aware; Instinctively.


    Soon men kept coming down steadily as we grew in numbers. I saw Sir Bardel and my trusted men along with him as I joined them. We swarmed the area while our mages lit up the darkness with their spells. As the place came to light, we saw several paths that surrounded us. The place was dome-like shaped area made up of mossy stone bricks, each direction had a hallway erecting onward to the unknown.


    Disturbingly the hollowed voices I heard felt like it came from all directions, as it echoed further we couldn''t establish where the voices came from.


    "Hackmann!"


    I turned to Sir Bardel as he threw my prized possession towards me.


    "Thank you!"


    He saluted in reply.


    Soon He rounded his men up as he cut them into several teams, with our situation he must''ve realized that exploring separately would hasten our chances at finding the princess.


    "Alright! those with higher ranks should spearhead a team! Our goal is simple! look for the princess!"


    "AAHHHH!"


    At the back of the group, we heard one of ours. Quickly his teammates disposed of his attacker as we hurried to their location. What we saw was the same creature I faced, except this one was charred like coal.


    The sight of this creature caused mass hysteria as random voices reached out.


    "What the f*ck is that?!"


    "Is it human?"


    "Don''t be stupid! that doesn''t look like a human being!"


    "Get me out of here!"


    "I don''t want to die!"


    Bardel clenched his fists as he stared into this monstrosity.


    "SILENCE!" He screamed.


    "THIS IS THE REASON WHY WE FIGHT! LOOK AT THIS POOR SOUL!


    Silence met the whole dungeon.


    "IF YOUR SPIRIT WAIVERS! WHAT THEN! THIS CREATURE WAS ONCE A PERSON! IMAGINE THE NEXT PERSON TO YOU TURNED INTO THE SAME THING! INTO A MINDLESS MOVING CORPSE!"


    Most of them had shameful look upon their faces.


    "IF WE DON''T STOP THEM! THEN WHO WILL?! NEXT THING WE KNOW OUR FAMILIES LIVES ARE AT STAKE!"


    "IF YOU VALUE YOUR LIFE BETTER THAN THEIR OWN THEN I WONT STOP YOU!"


    The stillness concluded the morale of the whole squadron. No one left as their fear loosened the grip on them. All of them had their reasons but kept to themselves. Bardel had a natural knack for leadership which was one of the reasons why men such as myself look up to him.


    "OVER THERE!" A random voice shouted.


    I stared at the direction from which one of the soldiers pin-pointed.


    "What the heck is that?!" said dale.


    "Gaia have mercy..." Timidly John followed.


    I squinted as the faint light that illuminated this dark dungeon made it challenging for my eyes to focus. Then I realized what I stared at was the dim glowing of different colors that came pouring out by the dozen.


    *SCREECH!*


    I felt my whole body shudder in realization as I ascertained that those creepy moving figures was a horde of obscurities. The dim glow added more to my anxiety, as they came with voices that gradually grew in volume.


    "Holy F*ck!" I shouted.


    "Well! I guess my time has come!" said Cain sarcastically.


    "IT''S TIME TO PROVE YOURSELVES! READY! TO POSITIONS!" Bardel screamed.


    What continued was the dance of life and death between our army versus the endless cadavers of Laxxo.


    *Clang* *Clash* *Screech*


    "These creatures are nothing against us! they''re mindless!" said dale.


    "IF YOU HAVE TIME TO OPEN YOUR MOUTH! THEN YOU HAVE TIME TO SWING YOUR SWORD!" Peeved Cain answered.


    "Well, aren''t you two certainly lively!" John followed.


    "No, Dale you''re wrong" I thought to myself as my body was preoccupied with the constant bashing and beating of the damned corpses. Experience wise, there is no denying that they''ll lose but this is not a test of skill.


    It was of endurance, we''re outnumbered ten to one and they still kept on coming...


    "HEHEHEHEHE!"


    "GAIA! THE MESSIAH!"


    The voices of the dead kept ringing that interrupted my thoughts until eventually they meet their second death. It was disturbing, the constant pleading, completely opposite of what they portrayed. It''s as if their consciousness held on to whatever hope they wished upon and there it lingered.


    "NOT MY SON!"


    A monster screamed as it tried to claw at my face, with my shield that served as a bulwark to my life, I bashed it''s face as it flew away from the impact. That''s what I thought...


    To my surprise the monster was guarded with a spell, it''s body was coated with glowing orange Corr that shielded him from any physical attack.


    "N-not my s-soooon..." it''s voice crackled.


    "This is going to be trouble."


    With a normal disruption spell I destroyed it''s defenses, as I proceeded to bash it''s face in. Good thing the spell it utilized seemed to be a low tier spell. Thank Gaia the spell I knew was one tier higher.


    *Boom!*


    I could hear explosions from afar, this is going to be trickier than I thought.


    "What if they could use different spells?!" I whispered to myself.


    "DALE! CAIN! JOHN!" I shouted.


    The ensuing chaos separated us within the crowd of men, my voice was overlapped by the constant shouting and struggling. Overtime our numbers were dwindling as the numbers of spell using creatures increased. From afar I saw two men fending off against a hulking creature that rendered their skill and experience useless.


    Dashingly I went behind the monster.


    "Chew on this..."


    The spell I buffed my shield with tore away its right leg as it fell stumbling onto the floor like a tree. They ended it''s pathetic life as it said it''s last words.


    "Too... w-weak..."


    I told them the dangers that these monsters brought as I ordered them to spread the info around. They nodded in agreement. This exact scenario happened over and over, aiding those that needed it while trying to instill some sense into their fear ridden minds. Hopefully this would prevent our numbers from decreasing over time.


    Finally different kinds of magic spells could be seen anywhere on the battle field, This was getting out of hand, our task was further away from completion. What if this was a distraction, as our enemies ought to slide away from our grasp.


    Soon I saw that familiar blonde hair that covered his sky colored eyes, he was disposing of anything that opposed his direction. The hordes were useless against his lance as he enchanted it with numerous spells. The brutal results of his attack left the battlefield painted with the marred bodies of the defeated, as limbs were scattered everywhere.


    I ran towards his direction as his destructive blasts left a clear path.


    "Hackmann!"


    "Sir?! These monsters! they know how to use simple spells!"


    "I know... I defeated one earlier."


    "I made sure the rest of the squadron knew of this."


    "Good!"


    As he pierced one of the coming attackers in the head.


    "What about the mission Sir?!"


    I could tell he pondered for a moment.


    "You''ll have to do it..."


    "WHAT?!"


    "In this current situatio--"


    He was cut off as the path he cleared soon filled with these forsaken monsters.


    *BANG!*


    Once more he disposed of them.


    "Situation! it''ll be easier for you to slip away due to the chaos!" He continued.


    Lost in thought, I answered.


    "Yes Sir!"


    "That''s the spirit! I''ll clear a path for you and take that chance to move through!"


    Although I had doubted my own credibility due to the mishap yesterday, I still wanted to prove myself to him. Plus the sooner we found the princess, the better.


    *CRASH!*


    After his unbelievable counter-attack against the damned, like grass they fell in one swoop. I saw his display of power and skill that inspired me to reach his level, maybe even surpass him; I hoped.


    Soon, I separated from his presence that eventually led me in the midst of the clearing. Without a hint of hesitation they came in waves, I prepared myself whilst holding my shield forward. The seemingly endless stream of monsters came to a halt.


    "Wha?!"


    It looks like there was an end to this havoc. Their endless numbers that could be seen pouring out the entrances had finally ended. In front of me was an empty hallway that was filled in by a human figure.


    "More coming?" I thought.


    There was something odd about this figure, I moved towards the path to further inspect the silhouette. I saw the back of what seemed to be a young girl, her brown long hair was barely exposed to the lamp at the entrance.


    It had looked like she wore clothing completely opposite of the regular rags that adorned the bodies of the lesser class. As I was about to chase after her--To my left I heard a familliar voice.


    "Die! haha! these creatures are too stupid!"


    I saw Dale fighting against three enemies by himself, he wore a cocky expression that failed horribly to mask the predicament he was in. I could tell that eventually he''ll get overpowered by the numbers he''s facing.


    It seemed like he wandered to far from his fellow soldiers--My mind was torn between the two: it was either him or the mysterious figure.


    "STAY BACK YOU WRETCHED--"


    I saw him getting backed into a corner as he screamed at them with contempt, as my eyes gazed back to the pathway where the child had gone. She was nowhere to be seen...


    My gaze jumped back and forth as I stood frozen in the middle of the open battlefield, it''s as if these monsters had forgotten I was here. My thoughts locked betwixt loyalty and companionship. I felt the pressure of having to choose which.


    With burning determination I couldn''t afford to disappoint Sir Bardel again. In the end, I owed Bardel too much to lose his trust. Shamelessly, I left Dale to fend off the creatures alone. The back of my mind slowly ate away at my consciousness,


    We have been through a lot together.


    I bit my lip in frustration...


    "I''m sorry"


    Silently, I apologized to him. As my eyes grew wet from the exasperated feeling while slowly distancing myself far from him.


    "AHHHH! AHHH! STAY AWAY!"


    His screams of anguish resounded well into my mind, scarring both heart and mind. I dreaded this feeling of lament...

 18 Starry Nigh

    I moved through the dimly lit hall in search of the mysterious figure.


    "Hello?!" I shouted.


    "Is anybody there!?"


    It had been a few minutes since I''ve left the group so far I''ve still yet to find the Princess. The eerie darkness that loomed over the halls seemed disturbing, the olden mossy stone-bricks that depicted years of history behind the dungeon I''m currently crawling in.


    "How long was this under here?!" I asked myself.


    Metallic piping that decorated the walls and ceiling was of a completely different time, it had retained some of it''s glossy appearance but was sullied by the elements.


    "What the heck is this place?!"


    "HELLO?!"


    My voice echoed throughout, I waited for a response but only silence met me. After a few minutes of wandering this place, the voices of battle had faded--it was replaced with the same dreadful noises of despair, their voices that indicated each individual horror that I couldn''t begin fathom.


    *Splash!*


    "Ugh..."


    Carelessly my foot fell into a puddle, I stared into it''s odd shape. I knelt to further inspect its weird structure. Curiously, it had resembled a human shape but what made it stupefying was it''s tremendous size.


    "Twice the size of mine..." I mumbled.


    I took a glance at the continuous footprints that stretched out into the hall. It''s size further implied the sheer mass it carried. Was it human? I didn''t know. As my mind tried to make up conclusions to finally silence the bombardment of questions inside my head. Anxiously I followed it deeper into the dungeon, there was only one way to know...


    Occasionally, I took the chance to call into the unknown, hoping to find whomever it was that lurked in here. Foe or ally, it was better to know that I wasn''t alone in this hell.


    After staring into the footprints I''ve come to realize that it was two sets that opposed each other in direction; One forward and the other backwards. It seemed like it''s owner changed their mind and took a turn back to where they came from. Did it knew of our intrusion?


    Hopefully not, if they did... They must''ve gone already.


    Troublesome as it may seem I hurried once more whilst trying to avoid the pits filled with muddy water that proved to be some inconvenience.


    "Good grief... Which way?"


    Stuck at a fork in the hall, I had struggled to choose between the two. The intervening path to the left bellowed with the haunted voices of the damned. I took a look at the prints and saw that it came from here, as the foot shaped markings on the floor pointed towards my direction. While to my right is the path that continued straight with the exception of the footprints facing away from me.


    "No time to be hesitating!"


    I continued towards same direction.


    *Pant* *Pant*


    Hurriedly, I ran thoughtless. The trail I followed swerved further to the right as it was covered by


    the facade provided by the wall before it.


    *Bump*


    From the blind-spot that the turn provided, I felt something bump into me--To my surprise it was the same figure I saw earlier!


    *Sob* *Sob*


    Immediately I recognized that familiar caramel colored hair.


    "W-who ar--"


    She clung to me with hands that tugged at my cloak; it loosened.


    "P-please..."


    "Wha-what''s wrong?"


    "Please help us!"


    Her beautiful maroon colored eyes filled with desperation and earnestness, saddened tears that covered it rendered my sense of urgency into a halt.


    "Calm down! tell me what''s wrong?!"


    She feel to her knees as she began to weep helplessly on the floor. I took to her aid but she wouldn''t stop crying.


    "I won''t be able to help you if you don''t tell me!"


    "M-my fr-friend!"


    She continued but struggled to do so.


    "Why? what''s wrong with your friend?!"


    She pointed towards the direction she came from--My head turned to follow, there in the dimly lit corridor that made my eyes unfocused. I saw a fairly large figure, although there was quite a distance so I could faintly hear their voices.


    "THERE YOU ARE BROTHER!"


    "Brother?" I questioned.


    I stood and sneakily proceeded towards the seemingly conversing individuals.


    "Wait for me here!"


    I shouted at the girl who was currently despondent and occupied with herself.


    The voice that shouted sounded familiar but I couldn''t be sure... Carefully I continued.


    "NO! KNOXX! LET HIM GO!"


    Half-way through, I heard a familiar name and that''s when I started bolting towards them. When I finally caught glimpse of the people a bright light shone. The luminosity was so intense that I had stopped in my tracks while overtly covering my eyes. In a few minutes the light faded away...


    "What the heck was that?!" I thought to myself.


    I continued running, but what followed right after was the constant tremors that made me stumble and loose my footing.


    "P-purple?!"


    To my surprise there was a monolithic figure covering the entire shape of the entrance--After another shock the entrance began to crumble down as I almost made it.


    Soon it''s entirety was completely covered by debris. There was no point in pursuing anymore, my safety and the report of this information would be of utmost importance. With that in mind I turned back...


    I met the girl at the turn, patiently waiting on the corner, forcibly I dragged her with me as she could potentially be a witness.


    "You''re coming with me!" I shouted.


    She stood silently with her eyes staring into the nothingness. Lifelessly she let herself get dragged through the hall.


    Soon we had passed through the junction, I staggered at most times as the floors were riddled with holes. The constant shaking and tremors added to the predicament we were in.


    "This is bad..."


    What I saw in front of me was the debris filled area where I went through. I hurriedly thought of another way out of here, but there was only one thing that came to mind.


    *Pant* *Pant*


    The constant running made it hard to breathe as I exhausted every leg power that I could muster. We met the junction and turned left. After what seemed to be another mile was a junction.


    I couldn''t tell which way to go as the footprints had gone a long way back.


    "DAMN! THIS PLACE IS A MAZE!"


    I didn''t knew which way to go.


    "Oi! girl! you''ve been here before! right?!"


    She didn''t answer as her face was crestfallen.


    "COME ON! WHERE DO WE GO?


    Her face wore a blank expression as if she had given up on all hope for her life.


    "LOOK! I DON''T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU! BUT IF YOU KEEP BEING LIKE THIS WE BOTH ARE GOING TO DIE!"


    Those lifeless eyes finally rolled towards my direction. The area was starting to crumble as tiny pieces of the ceiling started falling, out of desperation I had to do something.


    *SMACK!*


    "SNAP OUT OF IT!"


    I saw a hint of glimmer in her eyes as the pain shook her some sense.


    "I-I''m sorry..."


    "SAVE IT FOR LATER! WE NEED TO HURRY!"


    She nodded and bolted away, as soon she sensed the urgency of the situation. I followed right after her. Soon we ran through a holding cell, that were empty...


    "W-what is this place?!"


    "This is where we''re held."


    "We?!"


    "All kinds of people!"


    I was silent, after realizing that they held multiple innocent people against their will.


    "What did they do to you?!"


    "They didn''t do anything to me, but to the others--"


    She paused, I couldn''t imagine what it was like to hear constant suffering and agonizing shrieks of terror.


    Crazy bastards didn''t had a slightest hint of consciousness, demons that came from the depths of eternal void. I clenched my fists in anger, anger didn''t even begin to cover it. The wood that fueled my wrath was the fact, I let them slip away...


    I felt my skin crawl, the feeling of being watched was something I''m familiar with. Countless missions had made me sensitive to the eyes of shrouded men. I tried glancing towards the endless iron bars that separated my position and the abysmal cages--


    *Tremble*


    "Maybe it was nothing..." I thought to myself.


    "We need to hurry!" I hastily said.


    "I know!"


    "Are we even close?!"


    "Uh..."


    "What do you mean?!"


    She sounded a little skeptical.


    "Do you even know where we''re going?!"


    "I-I do--don''t, I don''t actually..."


    "But I''ve been following you ever since!"


    At this point we we''re running towards our impending doom.


    "Sorry..."


    "D*MN IT!"


    I glared at her with utmost disappointment as she shamefully lowered her head in regret. There was no time for me to reprimand her in this situation. The belief of safety made me ignorant of our current whereabouts. I didn''t keep track--"I''m too careless"


    We stood here as the tremors didn''t show signs of stopping anytime soon.


    "COME ON! DON''T JUST STAND THERE!"


    "Eek!"


    "THINK! IF WE DON''T THINK OF ANYTHING SOON, WE''LL BE CRUSHED!"


    "Yes! Sir!"


    As I racked my brain to it''s full capacity so that we could escape; alive.


    "You fellas lost?"


    A voice blurted out from nowhere. I searched for it''s owner--There in the corridor behind me was a misshapen figure, the distinct odd shape reminded me of the monstrosities I''ve faced before. But it shouldn''t be, all those flesh thirsty cadavers didn''t had a hint of intelligence.


    "Who are you?!" I shouted quite warily.


    "I don''t know!"


    What did he meant by he doesn''t know.


    "But what I do know is that this place is about to collapse! I can help you!"


    "How can I tru--"


    "Is that?!"


    I turned to her and saw her surprised expression, as she interrupted me.


    "You know it?!"


    "It? well, I haven''t seen him face to face but I do recognize his voice--IS THAT YOU MR. BACH!?"


    "SERA?!"


    Sera? her name was oddly familiar as if I''ve heard of it before...


    "What a touching reunion but we need to get out of here!"


    We both ran towards his direction, as we got closer the dim lighting revealed his monstrous appearance. Shockingly I was right, his grotesque looking body decorated with crystals made me weary and hostile towards him.


    Hurriedly before the girl took her chance to embrace this familiar character, I disabled him onto the ground.


    "WHAT ARE YOU PLAYING AT?!" I screamed at it.


    "W-what is the meaning of this Mr. Bach?!" she said.


    "I know! I know! I look hideous! but I''m harmless! I''m different!"


    "I''m sorry Sera! I''m actually relieved to see you in person! But I didn''t had the nerve to reveal myself."


    He continued.


    "You didn''t know he looked like this?!" I questioned her.


    "Well, we''re separated, we''ve only talked through the walls. It''s been a long time since I''ve last talked to him..."


    "Do you trust him?"


    "I..."


    She took a long look at his pitiful face.


    "I do!"


    I turned back to the pinned victim.


    "You know the way out right?"


    "W-what?"


    "I SAID DO YOU KNOW THE F*CKIN'' WAY OUT?!" I threatened.


    "Yes! I do! Please don''t hurt me!"


    I slowly backed off.


    "Come on! lead the way!"


    "T-thank you!"


    "Lead now! talk later! or I''ll beat your ugly ass!"


    He stood as soon as he could. We followed him deeper into the dungeon.


    "If you ever do anything stupid, I''ll put you out of your misery!"


    He nodded anxiously.


    "Where are we headed?!" Sera asked.


    "To the laboratory!"


    "I KNEW IT! YOU F*CKER!"


    "NO! Calm down! there''s a way to escape there!"


    "How do you know?!" I asked.


    He ignored what I said, he kept to himself as if he had some sort of secrecy that shouldn''t be revealed. I don''t trust him, not even a bit since he was our only way out. I had no other choice but to follow him. If he ever tries something funny I''ll put him down like the rest of his kind.


    "Alright guys through here!"


    "What in the world?" Sera exclaimed.


    I was at a loss for words. What I saw before us was multiple operating tables, they had what seemed to be human bodies covered with white silky covering. The whole place was covered with


    apparatuses, each of them had a distinct figure that such us myself couldn''t comprehend their use.


    The place looked like it had been sacked: Papers flung everywhere, Variety of Viscorr littered the floor, broken glass and unknown fluids scattered throughout.


    "This must be it..." I said.


    As I lifted the silk white sheet that revealed a skinless face, rotten muscle with bare eyeballs. I felt sick to my stomach at this horrendous sight.


    "Gaia, save this soul." I prayed.


    "What''s under here?"


    I turned towards Sera that curiously eyed the sheet in front of her.


    "Don''t!"


    She paused.


    "Oh-Okay..."


    "Better for you to not see what''s underneath."


    "Over here guys!"


    We moved towards Mr. Bach that pointed the wall that served as a shelf for apparatuses.


    *TREMBLE* *CRASH!*


    "Sh*t!"


    As everybody saw the entrance we went through had collapsed.


    "How are we gonna get out now?" Nervously said Sera.


    "We just need to get through here!"


    He kept pointing at the wall. Everything was shaking as signs of the whole place caving in was evident. There was no point in arguing...


    "STAND BACK!"


    I chanted a spell on my shield, the strongest one that I could use.


    "Everybody stay behind me!"


    Without any hesitation I ran towards the wall, gathered all the strength that I could muster.


    *BLAST!*


    Soon everyone followed through while I ran into the dust clouds that formed from the event. He was right as we found ourselves deep into a tunnel that eventually led us outside.


    *BANG* *BANG* *CRASH*


    I forced myself through the sealed trap door.


    "Finally, we''re out. Thank you Mr. Bach!" Said Sera.


    Sneakily he tried running away, before he could I struck him unconscious rendering him lifeless on the floor.


    "Well, he''s going to be out for a while"


    "Why did you do that?"


    I could see how concerned she was.


    "Don''t worry I''m not going to do anything bad to him.


    *TREMBLE!* *CRASH!*


    The sounds of crumbling rocks and stone made it clear that the path underneath had collapsed. I turned to see the aftermath, the ground had caved in as the structures atop it fell with it.


    I hoisted Mr. Bach unto my shoulders--As Sera forcibly grabbed my cloak.


    "What do you want?" I asked.


    "What are you going to do with Mr. Bach?"


    "It''s none of your concern!"


    "If you d-don''t tell me then I''ll..."


    "You''ll what?"


    She paused.


    "Fine If I tell you, would you calm down?"


    She nodded.


    "I''ll take him for questioning since we need what he knows."


    "What he knows?"


    "That place underneath, as you could tell it was a place where people got abused. The organization I''m working for helps people in need."


    "THE LIBERATORS?!"


    I paused and stared at her with surprise, I don''t know how she knew of our existence but I think she''s involved somehow. But she was completely ecstatic upon saying it.


    "You''ll be coming wi--"


    *BANG!* *CRASH!* *TREMBLE!*


    The sounds of destruction made me search for it''s origination, what I saw was the same familiar light that blinded me previously with the exception of it having a physical human-like appearance.


    "I-Is that a star?" I said in awe.

 19 Black Market Dilemma

    *CRASH!* *BOOM!*


    The beautiful starlight that hovered over the city. It''s deceiving light filled with hope and warmth couldn''t justify it''s action as it demolished everything in vicinity.


    "WHAT THE HELL IS THAT THING!"


    My mind couldn''t comprehend it.


    "ALL CITIZENS OVER HERE! COME HERE!


    "HURRY! TO SAFETY!"


    "Come on Sera, follow me." I motioned towards Sera.


    Afar I saw two fellow soldiers, I went towards them with Mr. Bach on my shoulders and Sera not too far behind me. Once near, I raised my right hand to salute in respect to also inform them of my allegiance.


    They saluted in reply.


    "Captain Trawly sir! How can we assist you?"


    "Mind telling me... WHAT THE F*CK IS GOING ON?!"


    "Y-yes sir!"


    "We''ve received news from Madame Cordelia to evacuate all citizens."


    "The Operation has been compromised sir!"


    "How?! By whom?!" I said anxiously.


    "Apparently, we''ve just received the information from scouts under Marshal Yela and so things aren''t clear yet."


    So was this a trap? but it felt too sudden. Everything is in chaos ever since that entity shown itself.


    "What of the other high ranking officers? any news?!"


    "Madame Cordelia couldn''t be contacted but Marshal Yela is currently aiding her right now although it''s not confirmed."


    Everything is in the dark, hopefully both of them are alright.


    "What of Sir Bardel?!"


    "The Seneschal is currently facing an enemy." Said the other Knight.


    He pointed towards the direction of the floating enigma.


    "Have all members evacuated?" I asked.


    "Almost all of the Knights have been sent to evacuate the citizens, but most of the ranking officers stayed with The Seneschal."


    "Alright! I want you both to take this person captive, keep him safe and have a ranked person handle him."


    "He is to be kept alive! and kept in custody! make sure he doesn''t get anywhere! you can tie him up if you have too!" I added.


    Then I remembered the girl that stood behind me, oddly enough she had been silent. So I turned towards her. She wore a troubled and worried expression.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "You''re with the Liberators right?!"


    I pondered for a while but then I realized that we''re going to keep her too.


    "Yes."


    "T-then please help my friend!" She pleaded.


    "Who''s your friend?" I asked.


    It was one of the only ways for me to be of service to this child and what she''d been through, a peace of mind if you will.


    "Knoxx! Please help him!"


    My eyes widened with surprise.


    "HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT NAME?!" I exclaimed.


    Out of shock I grabbed her on her arms.


    "Uh-uh, I met him inside the dungeon holding cells! he helped me escape!" She said hurriedly.


    "WHERE IS HE?!"


    "He''s over there! Now please let go of me, it hurts."


    She pointed towards the floating entity in the sky that wrecked havoc through the city. I slowly let go of my grip...


    "ARE YOU SURE?!"


    "Y-yes! I saw him! Before I bumped into you, I was watching him from afar he was glowing like that! only this time it''s much brighter."


    "That would explain that bright light I saw down there..."


    Looks like she knew more than I bargained for. I faced towards the soldiers that waited for me.


    "Take this girl with you! Make sure she arrives at the Fort with that other captive!"


    "Yes Sir!"


    "Please! Save him! He saved my life!"


    I hesitated at the thought especially when I saw her teary eyed.


    "Take them away..." I ordered.


    I left without saying a word as her voice reverberated that begged for assurance. Soon, I paved the way through the many alleyways only using the only light in the sky as my guide.


    It rivaled the Large Viscorr at the heart of the city that served as a substitute for the sun, like the force of nature itself.


    *Pant* *Pant*


    What in the world is Knoxx? The current figure that I saw reminded me of legends old folks use to tell, but it was too absurd and unreal.


    "It can''t be..." I said in disbelief.


    Long ago... Gaia the Supreme Goddess created the world, along her was the Old Gods: Allina of Fortune, Faustrian of Emotion, Deimon of Spirit, Elga of Matter and Laxxo of the Consciousness.


    Along the creation, Gaia left a piece of herself that blessed the living in the process, the ability to do miraculous deeds and the unimaginable--While the corrupted did the opposite. Bringing chaos and ruin upon the world. Soon enough the misdeeds outweighed the good as Laxxo enticed the greedy hearts of men.


    With death and destruction spreading throughout the world, Gaia in retaliation chose a man worthy of her pure, unmatched power, to enact equity and peace upon the world.


    The man served as the protector of life and the proprietor of Corr, bringing men that misused the blessing of Gaia to justice. It''s said that his powers was unrivaled and that his true form was as bright as the sun that brought warmth to those that stumble upon it... Or at least that''s how I remember it.


    I didn''t believe it until I saw this entity soaring above. Tales of old was more fiction than factual in my book, they were merely folk tales that served as a inspiring words to children.


    As a child I''ve never paid attention and was never the religious type to ever set foot inside the Temple of Gaia. But somehow this situation made me remember that legend.


    "What in the world is happening." I thought to myself.


    The constant twinging of my legs reminded me the fatigue that slowly consumed me, I can''t afford to rest now that people are in danger. As I came to peek beyond a blockade, a powerful explosion caught me off guard.


    Scanning through the area I saw a familiar figure in the distance. That signature lance belonged only to one person I knew so I bolted towards his direction.


    "SIR!" I shouted.


    He was breathing heavily, tired as he blocked a number of magical projectiles. Upon closing the distance between us I saw that same hulking purple mass, each of his throbbing monstrous muscles were intimidating.


    "HA. HA. HA!" He chuckled.


    "You no match for me!" He followed.


    As he lunged forward for another devastating attack, I dove right in with shield in hand that absorbed the impact. The force was undeniable powerful that my arms were barely holding it back.


    *CLANG!*


    The sound of stricken iron resounded through the battlefield. My arms were trembling from the aftermath. Another hit from that monster and I''m dead.


    "Are you okay sir?!" I asked worriedly.


    We took a few paces back.


    "Of course!" He said proudly.


    But I could see that he was barely managing to say those words. His body exposed the exhaustion he was currently facing. He didn''t had any life threatening wounds.


    "What''s the situation Sir!"


    "Enemies, Two of them!"


    The would explain a lot, I understood the muscle-bound enemy being strong but he lacked skill. Could easily be disposed of by Bardel. He only showed premise of unbelievable brute force but apart from that he was useless.


    "Watch out for the magic caster!"


    He pointed behind the enemy, beyond the battlefield was an old man wearing a laboratory coat. It was two against one. Upon further inspection of the area, I saw corpses, I''m guessing they were the officers that stayed support Sir Bardel against these fiends. There was only one way to honor the dead, it was continuing their will and purpose.


    "Let us go you imbecile! I don''t need to waste anymore time on you fools!" The coated man shouted from afar.


    I didn''t like his condescending tone.


    "Not a chance! You both are coming with me!"


    From his voice, I could catch a hint of suspicion towards them. I could see where he was coming from since that hulking tank definitely screams familiarity towards the monsters from below. It had the same lifeless eyes, discolored body and crystal growing from it''s body. Except there was only one gem, it stuck out on it''s forehead.


    "Fine then! Looks like we''ll have to force our way out!"


    What ensued was the endless blows between the monster and Sir Bardel while I maintained in assisting him by blocking extra projectiles. Cunning with my rebound magic spell, I targeted the old man but it wouldn''t connect as that muscle-headed goon of his always blocked everything; Unfazed.


    Combat-wise Bardel was winning due to sheer skill and ability, although no matter what attacks he threw, that thing would keep fighting back completely unhinged of pain and emotion. It wore that same smug expression as if it knew, what''s most troubling about it was the fact that if we couldn''t do any damage against it then we''d lose.


    *Pant* *Pant*


    "At this point we''re not getting anywhere! that monster is taking every hit like it''s nothing!" I shouted in confusion.


    "Looks like we''re gonna have to keep fighting!"


    *Shriek!* *Yelp!*


    The sounds of pained horror could be heard from nearby, it sounded like citizens and other bystanders. What happened to our squadrons? they were suppose to take charge in evacuating. We both could clearly see the entity hovering over the city slowly, it rained bolts of destruction that destroyed hundreds of buildings within mere seconds.


    "Hackmann! You go help them!"


    "B-but sir? you can''t possibly take both of them on?"


    Especially with their tactical advantage, The old man served as a long-ranged tactician while the monster was a unyielding brute that forced it''s way into anything. It was hard to break through their defense.


    "Don''t worry! This time for sure I''ll make it an even fight!"


    He pulled his lance backwards as he charged up a considerable amount of Corr that took shape of his weapon. It spun with outstanding momentum that kept growing faster and stronger.


    "One! Charge into him!" Hurriedly the old man said.


    "GRAAH!"


    They took the chance, a barrage of magical projectiles flew towards us while the giant galloped at us with full speed that caused tremors in his wake.


    "F*ck it!" I said.


    I quickly woven a rebound spell on my shield and jumped towards Bardel. I braced myself as the Corr oriented attacks were reflected towards their direction. With a hasty scan, I saw the monster run through the blast like it was nothing.


    The property of my rebound spell was redirecting attacks into the same direction it came from but with twice the force. Seeing that this beast took it without any hesitation, it reminded me of my inferiority in strength and skill; completely destroyed my confidence.


    "ARGGH!*"


    *CRASH*


    *Cough!* *Cough!*


    "Ugh... Blood."


    Did that monster had magic nullifying capabilities? I thought to myself.


    My eyesight was hazy, my body felt numb, the blood on my hand was mine... I slowly moved my head and saw that my right arm was broken from the impact. My shield was nowhere to be found.


    "J-just how far did I fly away?" I thought to myself.


    I tried looking for Sir Bardel but try as I might my eyes were too foggy. I couldn''t afford to just lay here, he needs my help, anything I could offer will do.


    "STAND DOWN HACKMANN!"


    *Clang!* *Clang!*


    I forcibly limped towards the sound of his voice, I didn''t care that I could lose my life, if it were a chance to repay him; I''ll do it.


    "THIS IS A DIRECT ORDER FROM ME!"


    To hell with that!, If I live and he dies then I won''t be able to return his kindness. Memories of the past resurfaced, my mind swam through the reminiscence, that same extending hand in my darkest days is what kept me going. He saved mine and now was the time for me to do the same.


    "Stand down Trawly..."


    I heard a familiar voice from behind me, what followed was the warmth of a light and gentle touch.


    "Don''t risk your life over this."

 20 Damage Control

    "F*ck Yela... I don''t plan on dying today." I complained.


    *Cough!* *Cough!*


    Blood spilt into my cupped hands as I covered my mouth.


    "Ha! You look like a mauled chicken!"


    "You don''t look too good yourself..."


    "Yeah right! Says the guy with a broken arm." She grinned cockily.


    I hate it when she''s being a smart ass.


    "If Sir gets as much as a scratch, I''ll kill you!"


    "Yeah, yeah." She waved away.


    My mind flew into a daze, as I thought of questions that remained unanswered.


    "Where have you been?! Everything is in knee-deep sh*t!"


    "I aided Madame with some trouble."


    That explained her roughed up appearance, I guess one mystery solved.


    "So it''s true then?"


    I stared at her with concern.


    "Madame got attacked by a Bailiff, chances are they already knew of our plan."


    "T-Then?"


    "Rats running around the Liberators." She said sternly.


    Then all of this would be for naught, a lot of lives would be lost--All this thinking made my already troubled mind fall deeper into disarray.


    "Ack!"


    I grunted in pain as the numbing rush provided by adrenaline simmered down.


    "Get yourself healed! There''s a squadron a few blocks down from here, I passed by them." She added.


    "W-wait! Where''s Madame!?" I shouted.


    *Woosh!*


    She flung an arrow that forced the giant stammering away from our senior.


    "I''ll explain things later!"


    She fled towards the Battlefield.


    It took a few moments before my mind settled, the once foggy view had finally cleared. I saw her slender but petite figure turned against me, the bright golden hair that shined with confidence. We''ve both been quarreling since our recruitment days but I trust her.


    Her skills are worthy of ascending into a better position in the Liberators. I knew that she was better than me in every possible way, although I don''t acknowledge it yet; I admired her.


    *BANG!* *CRASH!* *BOOM!*


    The heated situation escalated, flying arrows and magical projectiles could be seen everywhere. The shock-waves that came from clashing of two opponents could be felt from this distance. I watched in awe as the synergy between Yela and Bardel was absolutely stunning.


    I guess the difference in roles had done wonders to their unbelievable teamwork. Yela served as cover-fire that gave way to Bardel and his undaunted attacks. I''d only be a burden if I join them with my current status; Wish I could fight along side them...


    *SHRIEK!* *BANG*


    "I need to get going, how do I stop that thing..."


    I stared at the ever bright being floating in the sky. The helpless voices of the people forced me to limp towards the nearest squadron Yela mentioned.


    "I''ll find a way..." I whispered to myself.


    If I could get enough strength I''ll be able to help the people, while saving Yela and Bardel from those monsters.


    Soon I found myself in front of the vanguard that took in wounded refugees. Luckily, I somehow found my way through the ensuing chaos. I wasn''t in the right mind as I felt a little light-headed.


    After the brief introduction they took to aid my broken arm and other wounds. They placed a splint on my arm to help stabilize it while the Medic chanted a healing spell.


    My arm slowly reconnected the separated bones, every inch and fiber within it felt like hell. I bit into the already saliva-dampened cloth as the burning pain seared into my arm. The crackle of bones was unbearable, muscles pushed aside in the process, scraping the delicate insides of my arm.


    "It''s done, May I suggest from further straining your arm." The Medic said.


    "It might''ve strained my mind instead." I thought to myself.


    As the person left to tend the remaining wounded, I called upon the highest ranking officer in vicinity. We collaborated a plan that would hasten the evacuation process further, ever since the Seneschals got busy, everything turned for the worst.


    Unruly knights are left to handle the unprecendented situation, while some are reduced to a confused state. With the help of a Telepathy-specialist scout, I made sure that every single personnel was informed of the scenario.


    Now that was over and done for--I took my trusty shield, I''m surprised that this was still intact after that monster blasted me away.


    "Dented..."


    *Sigh*


    After I inspected it, almost the whole entirety of the round shield was caved in and cracked at the edge. The Liberators emblem had been partially erased, it served as symbol of freedom, peace and equity among men.


    I wore this proudly on every mission, as a weapon, a decoration but most importantly a reminder. Saddened at the sight of my favorite shield, I still hanged it behind my back with pride. It eased my mind as I remembered our talented Blacksmith back at the fortress.


    Quickly, I snatched a nearby shield as a replacement although it''s shape was rectangular and larger than that of my buckler.


    "OI! THAT''S MINE!"


    "I''LL BRING IT BACK!" I answered with reassurance.


    "COME BACK!"


    As I made way from the encampment, the entity left a destructive trail of breadcrumbs. The path of demolished stone and wooden beams made it particularly easy finding my way towards it. Not to mention it''s bright physical being that lit every nook and cranny that it passed through. It was flying at least fifty meters above ground, the direction it headed for was the center of the city.


    "THE CITY GUARDS!" I exclaimed.


    They might be able to help with our situation. Their numbers would prove useful in maintaining peace within the Black Market.


    *Gleam* *Gleam*


    "What?!"


    I rubbed my eyes in disbelief, the entity and the Large corr that spanned thousands of meters in middle of the city; gleamed. Pulsating light, with rhythmic pauses at the exact same time. Was it connected to it? No, it felt as though it was communicating...


    "LET US IN!"


    "CONTACT THE AUTHORITIES PLEASE!"


    "THERE ARE MONSTERS IN THE INDUSTRIAL AREA!"


    "HELP US!"


    "MY CHILD! SAVE HER AT LEAST!"


    "GAIA HAS SENT IT''S MESSENGER!"


    *BANG!*


    "STAY AWAY FROM THE WALL YOU SAVAGES!"


    The constant cries of the panicked people met my ears, at the main gate of the walls was a crowd of helpless men, women, children. All of them begged access upwards to The Middling, wishing for safety against the reigning catastrophe. The City guards still had the audacity to shoot some of the fear ridden people who only asked for help despite of the current situation.


    "IT''S HERE! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!"


    The mass hysteria dissipated the mass of people as I neared.


    "WHAT THE F*CK IS THAT?!"


    "SHOOT! SHOOT!"


    "KEEP SHOOTING!"


    *BANG!* *BANG!*


    The constant firing of their weapons didn''t faze the entity, bursts of Corr blasted from the barrels of what they carried which covered the sky. Those must be the rumored peculiar weapons made by practice of Vitallurgy.


    They packed serious fire-power but it was nothing against their foe. They all fired in vain.


    "EVERYONE! OVER HERE!"


    I saw the rest of the remaining knights guiding the frightful people, herding them like sheep towards a safer evacuation.


    "DON''T PANIC! RUN TOWARDS THE BUILDINGS!"


    I drove the wave of people to the nearest members of the Liberators. We''re out numbered and most of them had already been consumed by their confusion.


    "HEY! PEOPLE NEED HELP DOWN HERE!"


    No response, as they were preoccupied at shooting Knoxx down.


    I forgot that these men were not in any condition to support people of the Black Market, all they had to do was stay put and prevent people from getting through. The selfish system of The Everglow were clear especially to those who were natives of this area.


    "Tsk! Who needs them." I sneered.


    *BANG!*


    Bolts of pure Corr rained down the stone-bricked roads of the City center, corpses lay wasted on the cold unforgiving world they once thrived in. As the calamity rained down upon us, I raised my shield to deflect some of the raining death.


    I struggled underneath the constant pressure, even with the rebound spell; it proved challenging. I poured all the strength I had into maintaining the spell, as each drop of it disintegrated miles of dirt and stone beneath it.


    "I gotta move!"


    I ran through the hard downpour with the intention of trying to survive the cataclysmic event. Was this Gaia''s way of punishing us? Never mind that, I have to find a way to put an end to this.


    "Hopefully this will work..." I murmured.


    I strategically deflected the loose projectiles back to its owner. Hoping it might do something but to no avail, it was useless. The entity had some sort of protective shield surrounding it.


    I made it close the City walls, it had a magical barrier against magical attack, They even prepared themselves? Were they expecting some sort of mutiny against the people of Black Market? The Barrier was slowly cracking from the constant pressure provided by endless rain of terror.


    There were minimal casualties, mostly are of inanimate objects.


    "HEY! YOU THERE!" I shouted.


    *BANG!*


    "STAY WHERE YOU ARE PEASANT! IF YOU MOVE ANY CLOSER! I''LL BE FORCE TO FIRE A SECOND SHOT! THIS TIME I WON''T MISS!"


    "THE WHOLE CITY IS IN CHAOS! PEOPLE ARE DYING! WE NEE--"


    "IT''S NOT OUR PROBLEM!"


    "IT''S GOING TO BE! IF THAT THING DESTROYS THE BARRIER!"


    They ignored me once more, eyes filled with disdain, to them I was merely a nuisance. Of course I wouldn''t expect anything more from dogs that barked at their owners for bones.


    "KNOXX! STOP!"


    To my surprise, that deep-husky voice I recognized so I scanned the street for it''s owner. There I saw a humungous character, bald atop with strong facial features.


    But there was one thing iconic about his look, a handlebar mustache that curled upwards at the end--His clothes had been tattered, roughed-up, a hint of blood beneath his neck by the collar and everything else was covered in dust. From the looks of it, he emerged from the Industrial area; north of the city center.


    "You! get out of the way! do you want to die!?" I pointed towards him.


    It was dangerous, the endless rain hadn''t stopped, one hit from it could literally disintegrate his whole being. As curious I was of his Identity, he''d be useless dead.


    "WHAT ARE YOU DOING! MOVE AWAY!"


    He slowly sauntered into the fray, I don''t know if it was confidence or mere stupidity. Instinctively I ran.


    "I''m not going to make it..." I grumbled.


    The bolt descended towards him with great speed.


    "F*CK!"


    I was only a few meters away from him as the blast forced me further away while defending myself, the whole area was shrouded in dust clouds.


    "Stupi--"


    My jaw dropped in sheer astonishment, as the clouds dissipated he came out unscathed. Completely calm, devoid of harm and worry as though he knew this would be the outcome. He wore that same stern expression as he reached his hand towards me.


    "H-how?!"


    He didn''t answer. As he pulled me upright I was utterly confused: A unexplainable entity and now? an immortal man of sorts? what was the world coming to. Now that I was seeing him up close, I realized how unbelievable his height was.


    In an estimate he stood almost six, no, almost seven feet tall. He looked down on me, as I cowered from the sheer aura of dominance he radiated. My senses tingled of danger, like prey in the midst of it''s predator.


    "Are you ok--" He asked.


    Out of instinct my body moved on it''s own, hurriedly I activated a spell to dispose of this dangerous character.


    "That was rude of you."


    He dusted himself, again, completely unharmed.


    "W-who are you?"


    "I can''t believe that Cordelia would go through all of this just to save me." He sighed after.


    "Help you? just who are you?! How come you know Madame?!"


    He talked as if he was familiar with the Madame.


    "Watch out!" he exclaimed as I saw another bolt dropping towards me.


    Immediately he jumped with both hands against the force, it met his hand then in a blink of an eye, it was gone. He fell on the ground and then turned towards me.


    "I''m here to help."

 21 Lift-off

    His voice somewhat sounded reassuring, but with his ability I figured we might be able to do something against that God-like being.


    If he wanted to kill me, he''d done so already. I should focus on the situation at hand.


    "Mind explaining me who in you are?!"


    "No time! I''ll explain on the way, That thing is still wreaking havoc!"


    He pointed towards Knoxx.


    "How are we going to close that gap? He''s at least fifty meters high!" I asked.


    "From the looks of it, we could use the scaffolding on the crystal to reach it''s height."


    I took a look at the Large crystal protruding in the middle of the city, the rest of it had been covered by rocky ceiling above. Only Gaia knows how big that thing is. The western area was surrounded with scaffolding, It''s used for construction but I could tell that they''re probably fixing something.


    "I don''t know why but it''s attracted to the Jewel of the City for some reason."


    He stood silent, wearing a face that contemplated what I theorized.


    "In the mean time, We need to get through that stronghold first!"


    His overwhelming aura was still filling in the air, it was hard to get ahold of this feeling, like under the weight of a thousand mountains. It was hard to move near him.


    We found ourselves under the cover of the barrier and the city walls.


    "We can force ourselves in." He said.


    "No, in a few moments that barrier will break and we''ll use that as cover to get inside."


    "Good thinking..."


    "You''re part of the liberators right?" He added.


    How did he knew of the Liberators.


    "Y-yes." I hesitated.


    "No need to be so stiff, I know the Liberators from way back."


    I was still weary of him.


    *SMASH!*


    The Barrier broke down into tiny pieces, the particles slowly drifted away in the air like pollen on the first week of spring.


    "There goes our cue..."


    As I wove my hand to prepare a spell, he destroyed the stone-bricked wall with a single thrust of his fist.


    "Let''s go."


    Momentarily I was utterly speechless of his strength--I think he could match that purple monster in terms of raw physical power, maybe even over power him; is he even human...


    Inside were tons of city soldiers from the Everglow, currently panicking. All of them ran the place, like scurrying rats of a common household.


    "They don''t have a Commanding officer?" I questioned.


    "From the looks of it, I think there is none."


    Was the authorities that lenient into handling the lower levels of Everglow? or they just didn''t give a damn?


    "HALT! STATE YOUR BUSINESS!"


    I wonder... How would he fare against Sir Bardel? a scenario that fascinatingly played in my head.


    "Let''s get going! before any of them notice."


    "R-Right..."


    I heard the enraged voices of men rambled about.


    "WE CAN''T STOP THAT THING!"


    "SOMEONE CONTACT THE BAILIFF!"


    "ONLY SHE CAN STOP THIS!"


    A Bailiff here? this would cause more trouble than I anticipated.


    "We need to move, fast!" I warned.


    I followed him as we ran through the courtyard of the stronghold, we stopped midway as we met the lift crowded with soldiers. We sneaked behind some idle supply crates under many wooden beams that supported the construction.


    "Hey! did you even hear what I said?!"


    "Shhh!"


    He pointed at the many soldiers that scurried along a make-shift bridge past the wooden beams above us.


    "Too many..." He whispered.


    "Yeah."


    "That must be the Bailiff over there." I added.


    He nodded in agreement.


    I pointed amongst the crowd. Behind the number of soldiers came out a voluptuous, dark haired female figure. She seemed to be in a horrid mood.


    "Madame Bailiff what should we do?"


    "Most of the main perimeter walls had been demolished!"


    "A-and that thing! it keeps trudging through, not only that! it''s raining destructive magic!"


    "The Tier 5 barrier didn''t stand a chance!"


    The concerned voices of her men resounded with panic.


    "DO I LOOK LIKE I CARE?" She shouted.


    "Evacuate or something, I don''t give a sh*t. Now stop bothering me..."


    She wearily made her way onto the platform as it took her away to the top with great speed.


    "Scum..." I whispered.


    Even to their own people, all of them have no morals and sense of value. The lives under them are merely pests except for their own.


    "They''ve left..." I said.


    "So where are we headed?" I continued.


    "Up."


    He pointed upwards.


    "Can I ask something?"


    "What is it?"


    "Why are you helping?"


    He pondered for a moment.


    "That thing up there is my son..."


    "As hard that may seem to believe but it''s true." He followed.


    "Why did he turn into that? and who are you anyways? how come you know about the liberators?"


    "Whoa there fella, easy with the questions. Lets start with my name first."


    "My name is Hector Abbot, call me Hector, and he turned like that because of me..."


    I could sense a slight emotional feeling on that last part. So this was that recruit''s father.


    "You can ask Cordelia or Rhysel about the rest, they''ll fill you in." he continued.


    He talked with confidentiality, concise and straight forward manner. I wouldn''t doubt that he worked as an informant or a former member of The liberators, probably higher ranking than I am.


    His skills already made sure of that.


    "Harrison Trawly, Squadron captain and Right-hand man of Sir Bardel. Call me Hackmann."


    I saluted in respect.


    "So that Bardel finally has an underling?"


    He was lost in thought as in reminiscing a wondrous past.


    "Y-yes sir!" I answered awkwardly.


    Again, he talked as if they had some sort of history together, I wonder what kind of person was he. How come he knew so much members of the Liberators.


    "Let''s move."


    "Shouldn''t we head for the bridge above? then climb our way upwards?"


    "No, it''s gonna take a lot of time. So let''s use the lift... I don''t want to find out what happens once Knoxx reaches the Jewel of the City."


    It had been a long time since I''ve heard of that. "Jewel of the Capital City", the Renowned Capital City of Carlisle or Everglow was famous for it''s largest Viscorr in the world hence being called the Jewel.


    But most importantly was the fact, that it was the centralized supplier of Corr for neighboring countries. Underneath that Monolithic Viscorr was a natural preserve for collecting Viscorr. Under control of The Cyneweard Empire.


    I observed the lift, roughly at fifty meters along the way, was the scaffolding built beside it. Jumping was the only way to reach it.


    "Y-you don''t mean?" I anxiously answered.


    "Yes, I''ll jump."


    "You don''t have to go with me, I know what to do against him." He added.


    "Then I''ll stay down below making sure people don''t disturb you."


    "It''s a plan then."


    "but we''re gonna have to deal with a lot of trouble once we get there."


    "I know."


    "Wait just a sec, Do you know how to operate that thing?" I questioned.


    "It shouldn''t be too hard."


    "I don''t see a lever or a pulley system anywhere."


    "Well, there''s only one way to find out."


    He observed the passing men above us.


    "What are you doing?"


    "Getting ourselves a noisy rat." He sarcastically said.


    He latched himself hanging underneath the bridge and waited for prey, while I scouted the nearby areas for incoming enemy. Soon he grabbed a lone person from his ankles and dragged him down.


    "W-Wha? Who are you people?!"


    "Better leave the questioning to us."


    He fell facing the dusty ground, to prevent him from identifying us. Hector had locked both of his arms behind him.


    "How do you operate the lift?"


    "HELP! HELP! INTRUDERS!"


    "Can you do me a favor and cover his mouth?"


    I did willingly so.


    *Sigh*


    "I didn''t want to do this... Hold his mouth, tight." He ordered.


    His easy-going demeanor had left, it was replaced with a blank and stern expression--completely different from the norm that he usually worn.


    "Last chance mate, tell me how?"


    I pulled my saliva-ridden hand from his mouth.


    "No! Let me go! argh! HEL--"


    I sealed his mouth again.


    With his arm pulled back and a clenched fist, I asked him.


    "What are you doing?!"


    "Making him talk."


    *Pop*


    The man that laid with arms locked behind him started squirming with pain, as Hector drove his fully erected thumb deep into the side of his trunk.


    "Mmmm! Mmmm!"


    We pinned him down as his muffled moans and pained struggling made it hard to watch him.


    "Just stop struggling..." I said with pity.


    "You ready to talk?" He asked him.


    He shook his head in disagreement.


    "Fine..."


    Hector drilled his thumb deeper into the cavity, as the man rolled his eyes out of shock and pain. This time his tenacious struggling had changed into a unrelenting spasmic shaking.


    As his body couldn''t take anymore of the unimaginable displeasure.


    Soon he let out a trembling nod. I took my hand in reply.


    *Pant* *Pant*


    "The o-operator... find him. Viscorr, shaped, key."


    He fell unconscious. Good thing he had already served his purpose.


    "Well, where do we look for that? Any ideas?"


    "Too much time, I''ll lure all of them." Hector said.


    "You''ll WHAT?!"


    *Shake* *Tremble*


    We took a look at the brightened sky, The entity had reached it''s final destination. The ground shook strong, firing of the authorities against it could be seen from afar. Again, it was pulsating in unison with the Jewel of the City.


    "It''ll be fast! back me up as best as you can! We don''t have much time."


    "I don''t want to find out what happens next..." He whispered.


    "I''ll search the enemies from behind the scenes, we''ll be much faster that way. I''ll cover you."


    This man was utterly insane, but we''re pressed for time.


    "Wait! before you go!"


    "What is it?"


    "Think of it as protective measures."


    With a wave of my hand I placed a rebound trap spell. But it got dispelled as soon as it finished.


    "What?!"


    "Ha! I knew it wouldn''t work. I''ll tell you, any type of magic doesn''t work on me."


    He left those words as he bolted towards the open field. I took to the shadows, he screamed at the top of his lungs. Soon swarm of soldiers surrounded him, out numbered one to a hundred.


    It didn''t seem to bother him, there wasn''t a hint of weakness in this man; nor fear. He smiled at the face of danger, the army that surrounded him slowly collapsed, their numbers fell to half within those few moments.


    The strong but fluid movements was erratic, an unknown fighting technique unfolded right before my eyes. I observed him carefully, trying to analyze his movements, clearly he knew where the enemies would attack; anticipating their every move.


    Like a force of nature, every hit was destructive that knocked out men. The heavily armored ones had their protective gear dented and dismantled, lighter worn soldiers was easily disposed of.


    Attacks that rained upon him by those new fangled weaponry rendered useless against him, it disappeared immediately into thin air as soon it closed his vicinity.


    I shook my head in amazement, this was Knoxx''s father? the one that needed saving? I think it''s the other way around.


    There wasn''t anytime for me to bask in awe so I moved away, looking for possible candidates that held the key.


    "There!"


    There was one Empirian soldier aiming from afar, he wore the glowing key around his neck. It dangled loose from his neck, it''s sheen attracted my attention. He stood in front of another gate, a few paces apart from my position.


    I rushed towards him occasionally disposing of obstacles that blocked my path. Finally he took notice of my presence as he started shooting towards me.


    "Sh*t."


    Each projectile left a dent on the shield before ricocheting away.


    "Those things hit hard." I sneered.


    Since those bolts that went straight towards me were magical in form, I knew my ability would work. The rebounded bullets proved useless against me.


    Within moments, we we''re locked in hand-to-hand combat. The man proved to be quite the brawler, although it seemed that Empirian soldiers lacked magical knowledge as he didn''t use any spells during our fight.


    It caused his downfall as he fell sprawling to the floor, leaving me the victor of our fight.


    The key in hand, I went towards Hector. The unbelievable scene was astounding, a lone victor atop piles of defeated foes. A few Empirian soldiers were left standing against him.


    "I GOT IT!" I shouted at him.


    He flipped a thumb up to confirm our agreement.


    "RUN AWAY!"


    "SPARE US PLEASE!"


    "IT''S THE TITAN! THE TITAN!"


    The leftover enemies ran in fear. They uttered ''Titan'' and somehow that title lingered in my mind, I know I''ve heard of that name before; seems familiar.


    "Tsk, cowards." I said.


    Although I don''t blame them, there had been a hundred of them and they had been reduced to no better than rubble. He stood proud and tall staring at the floating entity on the sky.


    "I got the key."


    I threw it towards him.


    "Thank you."


    "Guess I''ll be heading towards Bardel and the others."


    I''ve made them wait too long, I''m sure most of the citizens in the city had already left.


    "Wait!" He shouted.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "Can you do me a favor?"


    After a few moments we headed towards the lift, this man was undeniably crazy, his plan was dangerous and irresponsible. As he turned the key, the lift hoisted both of us with great speed.


    "Are you sure about this?" I anxiously questioned him.


    "No point in turning back now."


    The lift was closing in the last level of the scaffolding.


    "We jump at three."


    I nodded.


    At the count of three we jumped towards the platform on top of the scaffolding. The distance was at least five feet apart, right when we landed the platform collapsed beneath me. I held out my hands in desperation as he caught me mid air.


    "T-thank you."


    He pulled me upwards then we proceeded towards the end of the wooden platform.


    "Do it."


    He said as we made our stop at the end.


    "Are you sure?"


    He stared at me with a serious demeanor that exuded his urgency about the idea he discuss.


    *Sigh*


    I turned my back against the shining light that gleamed ever so brightly above us. Crouching at the end while I held my shield slightly slanted towards his direction.


    "Ready?"


    As I saw him already running at full speed towards me, forcing me to chant the spell immediately. He jumped against my shield as I activated it that forced him flying towards the entity.

 22 Consequences

    *Gasp*


    I awoke from my slumber, what I saw before me was a simple abode. Like homes built by lawless men of the forests, devoid of society and law of a ruling authority. It was made from clay with drapes of animal skin that hanged about throughout the interior.


    The native construct of this humble home somewhat was familiar, although this wasn''t the home I''m used to.


    "So you''re awake?"


    I heard a familiar voice.


    "Who are you?"


    I turned towards it and saw the entity that made home to my mind.


    "Oh it''s just you..." I sneered.


    That blackness in the shape of a human being stood at the end of my olden bed. It just stood there with an ever looming presence that unsettled my nerves.


    "What do you want?"


    It stood in silence. Completely ignoring my remark. It''s shadowed presence flickered like flames affected by the slight pace of wind, while under a green-ish light.


    The faint light that illuminated the room, was from a small Viscorr that lain on a table top behind it. It''s careful but very distinctive luminosity reminded me of something, but could not come to mind.


    "Where are we?" I questioned.


    But only silence met me, as I felt it''s gaze deeper into me with piercing inorganic eyes.


    I felt unnerved by it''s focused unyielding appearance so as I result I tried moving away; no use. My body was stuck in the same position--oddly enough it started moving on it''s own.


    It was frustrating to have a body that defied it''s own mind, both hands brushed my face--I didn''t feel any warmth.


    Cold, it was icy cold.


    Soon enough it stood, I tried to speak but it was futile. After a short morning routine, this body came to view of an open window.


    The bright light shone upon my face as I saw a lively scene. Children roam free, frolicking amongst the grassy plain.


    Adults tending to their own businesses, shepherding sheep, joyous laughter of dabbling men, farmers tending to crops, and the like.


    It was a marvelously perfect example of a utopia, as the fresh air with a hint of sweetness came blowing through from a nearby floral field.


    Although clearly lacking the modernization of my time, it was oddly satisfying as if I belonged here.


    The beautiful scenery was interrupted by a shadowy figure at the edge of the village, that turned every head towards the lost stranger.


    "Salve!"


    A voice blurted out as my body reacted as if to retort with the same lively manner.


    My eyes slowly blurred from there as the scene around me began to change... What language was that? although it was new to me, somehow I knew what it meant but couldn''t get the words out of my mouth.


    An abyss appeared from nowhere that swallowed my entire being.


    Was this me? but the movements were the same as before, I felt stuck, chained to another person''s body. We turned towards the left and from afar I saw a monolithic mountain, large enough that it''s top had been covered by the fluffy clouds above.


    Though through the veil of soft pillows from the sky was a light seeping through the empty spaces in between. The light was bright, as though another sun had been placed there. It was a warmth that I was familiar with...


    "Argh..."


    My head ached at the thought of a blurry memory, it was barely a thought at all. I tried reminiscing through my mind, I was left with a bad taste in my mouth and a sore temple trying to resurface the past.


    Down the dirt trodden lane surrounded by a forest, was the entity again.


    "Are you mocking me?" I thought.


    It wore a smile that ran towards me.


    "Salve!"


    There it is again, that word that constantly played about in my head.


    As it neared me, my body slowly fell deeper into it''s abysmal figure that consumed my very being. I was in the dark yet again, wandering in the cold void.


    This time I awoke, what awoke me was a soft finger against my cheek. Slowly, I opened my eyes and saw a feminine figure.


    "Salve..."


    She spoke in a very endearingly soft voice although I couldn''t understand her language. It was that word again ''Salve'' I wonder what it meant.


    She cradled me in her arms as I saw the rest of my unresponsive body.


    "A baby?!" I exclaimed to myself.


    The mother figure that carried me with utmost cautiousness was maybe the birth giver of this child-like body of mine. Her facial features were a blur as I struggled to make out that face placed on her head.


    The warmth of her body felt ever so lovingly against mine, how come I could feel this time...


    Like a snug little bundle of joy I giggled at the motion of her hand against my face. A while ago I felt detached from the bodies I took but now; it''s natural.


    I felt a little disturbed when to top of my head felt wet as she embraced my tiny body tighter than before.


    She continued to lay me where I once rested and there I saw the entity once more but in the shape of an infant like me.


    Darkness, again never failed to disrupt my mind. As the child-like void enveloped my being for the third time.


    "What is happening!" I shouted.


    All this constant scenarios happening consecutively didn''t make sense but somehow they meant something.


    Like Deja vu from a recent dream it''s as if this had happened before, the feeling of reminiscing a certain past but I was certain these aren''t mine or are they someone else''s.


    I felt inoperable and useless as my body spun around the swirling pool of emptiness that was strong enough to bend me to it''s powerful currents.


    Slowly I drifted with the forceful tide that carried me towards the unknown. The vast uncharted waters was disrupted by whispers.


    Soon it turned into cries of men that filled my ears as my eyes adjusted to the view of a bloody battlefield.


    I hastily turned to look around as a person pierced through my body, it bolted towards the other side armed with a sword and shield.


    Shocking, as my whole being was some sort of ethereal character--Floating amidst the horror that surrounded me.


    The loud explosions of Corr reverberated throughout the area. While I remained the ever so observant spirit in the middle of the ongoing war.


    "I''ve never seen so many knights..."


    Though I was constantly anxious by the scenario that played around me, I couldn''t help but feel a sense of pride watching the courageous knights.


    I saw one of their enemy, a man dressed with barbaric clothing that held no piece of protective garment above it. As stupid as it may seem, he charged towards the overwhelming number of knights.


    *BANG!*


    "Ignorant."


    I told myself, as the man slaughtered hundreds of men with a single spell and kept raising the numbers as time went on.


    The magic was immense, the sheer pressure was suffocating, it could render the feeble-minded individuals unconscious.


    Another one of it''s colleagues seem to be not too far behind him, floating mid air as it rained down destructive bolts of pure Corr on their enemies.


    Although outnumbered, they were winning against the odds with only at least five men from my perspective that fought the endless tides of steel charging towards them.


    "NAM MIHI IN POPULUM!"


    A nearby fearsome warrior shouted a foreign language that completely caught my attention.


    He flew above my head, glowing with unmatched luminosity that brightened this large cavern where the battle took place.


    What followed was a constant chanting of men.


    "TITAN!"


    "TITAN! TITAN!"


    The endless voices of men continued to shout the word "Titan." It was familiar to me.


    My head throbbed harder than before, as the pain felt like my brain was splitting open. The noise helped worsen my state.


    I couldn''t stay in place as I fell squirming on the ground with my non-existent physical being.


    As my eyes rolled towards the horizon, I saw a silhouette of a character charging towards me.


    Nearer and nearer as he went, slowly his image grew clearer in my eyes.


    He wore no helmet had a clean haircut sitting on top of his head, his armor didn''t shine as it was filled with scratches and dents that clearly reminded his foes of his experience in battle.


    No weapon nor shield in both hands, but bore a strong grin on his rough facial features that he carried proudly like a weapon.


    There was one thing that was iconic to his fearsome look and that was the handle-bar mustache that laid below his nose.


    "F-Father?!"


    As the glowing entity above me clashed with my father. The result was a blinding shock-wave.


    I closed my eyes as I braced for the impact... My recent memories came along with the shock.


    As I reopened them I saw the lone inhabitant of my mind.


    "What was all of that?" I asked it.


    Silence met my question.


    "What happened to me? Where is my father?!"


    "There is consequences to every action, and truth once you peek through the Heart of Gaia."


    "What?!"


    It''s very existence dissipated into dust as it let out it''s final words...


    *GASP!*


    *Cough!* *Cough!*


    I coughed as I felt the dryness of my throat, my body was shivering with pain and fatigue.


    Was this really it?


    Am I not dreaming anymore? I wondered.


    Hesitantly, I opened my eyelids. Brightness seeped into my eyes as I saw the Large Viscorr up close and personal.


    I tried moving but to my surprise, every inch of my body was aching with unbearable pain...


    "Y-you''re, finally... awake."


    I turned towards the familiar voice with precaution.


    What I saw was horrifying... With every bit of strength I could muster, I forced my body beyond its limit.


    Tears went rolling down from my face as I fell crawling towards him, the searing pain embedded in my body couldn''t compare to this feeling of dismay.


    He was finally in my grasp, a few meters away, if only I had the strength to save him.


    "Only a few more paces!" My mind exclaimed.


    I wanted to scream but I was so weak and pained that my jaws were shut closed.


    Finally I stopped beside him...


    His once lively eyes were now slowly draining of life.


    He had large wounds on his chest and stomach that I could clearly see it''s contents, the insides were burnt to a crisp that brought out a disgusting aroma.


    He slowly faced towards me.


    "Knoxx, s-son..."


    I was too weak to answer.


    "N-no words?"


    His voiced trembled and crackled with exhaustion, I felt his disappointment in my silence. If only I could answer I would!


    "I-I''m sorry..."


    Don''t say you''re sorry please.


    "I-I was, n-never, your father--"


    I didn''t care, I wasn''t mad, I was just upset that you never told me.


    "B-but you, were, always... my son."


    Please don''t! I''m begging you! Gaia! You''re my only hope! If you''re out there! Save my father!


    He''s the only one I have!


    I''ve got so much more to give him! Please!


    "L-Live."


    with his dying breath he wore the biggest smile that I''ve ever seen on him.


    Along with it was a deep scar within my heart that caused pain than any other physical wound could ever bring.

 23 The Aftermath

    ==


    It had been weeks after the operation at Everglow. I lay on my bed with bandages that wrapped around my hands.


    *Creak...*


    I rose from my bunk as I heard the sound of the door creaking open.


    "So how are you doing?"


    I turned towards that husky voice, it''s lively but strong Corr residing within it''s silhouette was from a long time companion.


    "Doing fine Bardel." I answered.


    "That''s good."


    I''ve been in bed rest since the day I woke up.


    "How are your arms?" he added.


    "Still healing..."


    This was the result of my stupidity... I looked at it with remorse but without regret, as the actions I''d made I''ve deemed to be righteous.


    "It''s going to get better." I continued.


    "I know it will..." He said encouragingly.


    "The Alchemist says that it''ll come with a few side effects. Thankfully I''m still alive."


    Pip Thalwar, a medical specialist within our rankings had been apart of the previous operation. If not for him, I''d be dead. I''m grateful towards him.


    "But that''s not the reason why you''re here now, is it?"


    "Still sharp as ever." He chuckled.


    He was a very practical man but a kind one, At the end of my sentence his very Corr had wavered that slightly hinted troublesome news.


    With a quick motion of his hand, two more people came into the room. Bardel had sat down beside my bed while the two stood beside him.


    "Madame!"


    The two said in sync while saluting towards me.


    "What are you two doing here?"


    "A brief report..." Bardel intervened.


    "Ah."


    I nodded.


    "Continue, please." I added politely.


    "Well, Where do we start?" Yela said nervously.


    "Our losses." Bardel said sternly.


    "Alright..."


    "At least sixty percent of our troops had been lost in the operation, some weren''t retrievable due to disintegration." Yela reported.


    Our losses were at an alarming size, the thought of courageous men lost due to an unprecedented situation was my mistake.


    I bit my lip in frustration, if only we prepared much better then this wouldn''t had happen. I need to fulfill a certain individual''s promise.


    I''ll see to it that his family knows what happened.


    "The remaining are either wounded or injured from the operation, they''re now properly resting." She continued.


    "We''ve regained some of the numbers back due to volunteers from the recently freed slaves." Added Bardel.


    Losing some of our numbers were quite troublesome as recruiting more was unlikely, usually we accepted volunteers from the masses that increased our man-power. Never have we forced people to join since they lacked the mental strength and emotional motivation that volunteers had.


    Each of them had experiences that kept them going and that''s what we take advantage of.


    "From the hundreds that came out of the Black Market, I could say maybe around seventy men had joined."


    "Not that much but it''s still well appreciated." Followed Hackmann.


    "So what of the secondary objective? Has she been found?" I asked them.


    "No-"


    "Yes!"


    Yela had been blocked off by Hackmann.


    "What do you mean?!" Yela exclaimed.


    "Exactly what I said."


    "I found her by accident, while exploring the deep confines of that place."


    "That place?" I answered with curiosity.


    "The laboratory Cordelia, we found it." Bardel answered.


    That dreadful place, hopefully they found answers within it.


    "It''s deep underground the City, Although we didn''t had the luxury to excavate it more for answers." He continued.


    "Who knew there were ruins below the City itself." Hackmann added.


    There was some sort of third-party involved in the keeping of the princess, I wonder who they are. They even went to such lengths of hiding her in such a area.


    "The whole place was crawling with unimaginable creatures."


    "It was dangerous but thanks to a certain recruit we found her."


    Only one recruit came into mind.


    "Knoxx? I thought he had been returned to the Fortress?"


    "Care to explain Hackmann?" Bardel motioned towards him.


    *Sigh*


    "He slipped our grasp during the process but thanks to his foolishness we found the Laboratory."


    That hard-headed boy needs a lesson, he did idiotic decisions that could have costed his life.


    "Is he safe at least?"


    "Uhh..."


    "Locked up Cordelia."


    Bardel answered quite sternly.


    "That new recruit of yours had committed insubordination and disruption of operation, not to mention destroyed almost all of the city!"


    I could sense the disappointment and anger in his voice as he lashed out because of the scenario. As I tried to process on how Knoxx could do such a thing.


    "I see..."


    "Regarding to that situation you''ll be talking to Commander Rhys."


    "I''ll be taking full responsibility."


    "Care to explain who and what that child is?" He added.


    "Yeah! he wrecked havoc throughout the city! Apparently from what Hackmann said, the recruit was that bright entity in the sky!" Yela exclaimed.


    "You''ll all know soon enough."


    They mustn''t know yet, it''ll be a closely guarded secret between the authority from the organization. That would also explain the disintegration part from what she said earlier.


    His powers must''ve manifested in some way, I''ll find out more from Knoxx himself later. His powers is something of ancient history the moment I saw that light; It was overwhelming.


    "Alright." Bardel remarked.


    "Madame! I''ll be taking my leave, someone has to handle the paperwork. I''m glad you''re safe."


    "Thank you Yela, you''re excused."


    As she left the room, we continued to discuss.


    "Madame! with all due respect, thanks to your recruit Sir had lost an eye!"


    "Don''t blame the child and Cordelia, we work out in the field knowing fully well of the consequences that come with it."


    "B-But sir?!"


    "I''ll hear none of it!" He ordered.


    I could still hear his lightly murmurs of discontent.


    "Ahem..."


    "So, who would be strong enough to make you lose an eye Bardel?"


    "A monster--"


    "Thankfully we had captured it, thanks to Yela but we managed to let the Doctor behind the experiments escape."


    Too bad they''ve let that damned man escape, we could''ve ended his reign of terror.


    "If only I was there!" Exclaimed Hackmann.


    An involved third-party was right but what is their motive? Could it be that the Cyneweard empire was directly involved?


    "Have we sent scouts back to the Laboratory?"


    "No, the chances of risking more men were high."


    It''s true, who knows what or who is lurking within that place. A dark place like the Black Market only brought more danger since that place was crawling with illegal operations. Who knows what could happen.


    Hackmann was still present, his constant murmurs had long gone but I could sense that something was still bothering him.


    "What''s wrong Hackmann?" I questioned.


    "There seems to be something in your mind, ever since we came back from the operation." Bardel followed.


    "It''s just there was someone odd while I was confronting Knoxx."


    "Odd? How so?" I asked.


    "There was this unbelievably strong man."


    "Strong?!" Bardel was certainly stupefied.


    "Stronger than you Sir, No disrespect but I think he was the strongest within the city."


    Stronger than Bardel was hard to imagine, as he may be the most experienced man in terms of raw physicality. Although another person came to mind...


    "He claimed to be known by many men inside our ranks, but mostly he said the Madame and you Sir! along with the Commander."


    "Who was he?" We both questioned.


    "Hector Abbot..."


    "Who is he?" Bardel was completely dumbfounded.


    "So, he was alive after all..."


    Bardel stared at me with a face that screamed help.


    "Leonovich Sokolov."


    "WHAT!?"


    His dumb expression had changed into a mixture of shock, awe and realization.


    "An alias? When did he? where has he been all this years?! A-and how?! how did you know?!"


    He continued to chatter on to himself as he couldn''t believe that The Leonovich Sokolov himself was still alive.


    "Can''t believe the legend himself is still alive..."


    "That might be an overstatement sir." Hackmann answered anxiously.


    "Why? did something happened?"


    "H-He died..."


    The Titan himself had died? how? I couldn''t imagine him dying, especially in a battle. Well, maybe his age had finally caught up to him, in his prime he would had defeated that Bailliff before single-handed at that with no sweat at all.


    "How did it happen?" Bardel hastily asked.


    "I helped him towards Knoxx, whom he claimed his son and right at the last moment..."


    He developed an attachment towards that troublesome child, probably too much that Knoxx became intoxicatedly dependent. That would explain his unyielding inclination towards his father.


    "And?!"


    "I couldn''t clearly see but a large beam of light pierced through him as Knoxx slowly lowered to the ground along with his father--"


    "The Jewel of the City absorbed that dangerous beam like it was nothing, T-then it radiated brightly; after that I found them laying on the ground."


    "Then his body should still be there?"


    "No, When we retrieved knoxx his body wasn''t there anymore."


    That shouldn''t be possible, no manner what form of magic was it. Maybe it was something else, unexplainable. Anyways we should inform Rhys about what happened. There could still be a possibility of him being alive but with wounds like that he''s most probably dead.


    I stared at Bardel, He nodded in response. It looks like we''re in agreement.


    "Mind telling your right-hand all about it?"


    "Alright..."


    "He was the champion of King Cyneweard at the time,."


    "Known as the Titan of Cyneweard, also the strongest Knight in the region and was my Mentor." He continued.


    "What?! T-then what about you Madame?" He said quite shocked.


    "I was rising the ranks at the time, but I admired him, he was a fearless leader."


    "S-So? Commander Rhys was from the Kingdom of Cyneweard too?!"


    We we''re silent, it''s too early for him to know...


    Bardel took a glance at me, he had this serious look on his face.


    I shook my head, since it wasn''t the time for them to know yet.


    *Sigh*


    He nodded in agreement but with a bit of restraint.


    "I''ll tell you all about it when the time comes Hackmann."


    "Yes Sir!"


    "Anymore questions?" Bardel questioned.


    "No more Sir, I''ll be taking my leave then."


    As he excused himself out of my room we continued our conversation.


    "Now, Back to the task at hand."


    "Yes, where were we?"


    "I was about to tell you about what had happened to me and my squadron."


    "Continue." Bardel said.


    "My squad was ambushed by one of the Bailliff''s from the Kingdom."


    "But why? and what did it look like?"


    "I don''t know why but it looks like she knew of our plan, She''s a slender and beautiful woman with dark hair in black."


    "A woman eh?"


    "Yes, why? have you seen this woman before?"


    "No, but Hackmann spoke of a similar woman from his report."


    Intriguing, the bailiff could be involved with the Doctor or maybe even deeper. Whatever the reason was, we still needed to find a way to find that rat running around the Liberators.


    With it on the lose, we couldn''t exactly enact any plans at the moment. We''ll only risk another failure that would end a lot of lives.


    "I need to get more details from him later..."


    "You''re free to do so."


    "Anyways, The South regional Liberators is turning into shambles because of what happened."


    "That''s why Rhys is coming, he wants to sort the situation happening here."


    "I speculate that he''ll be staying here then?"


    "Most likely..."


    *Sigh*


    "Why what''s wrong?"


    "He''s gonna be a real pain in the ass once he gets here."


    "I know..."


    Commander Rhys was the type to be mischievous and playful, it was really hard to read him.


    "Anyways, We''ll be speaking with the other members at a later date. We''ll hold another meeting."


    "Best it to be sooner, since we have to conclude our plans as fast as possible."


    "B-But shouldn''t it be held further? You''re under strict orders to rest."


    "I''m not that feeble Bardel, Don''t worry too much."


    As our conversation ended, he bid farewell as I was left to my own thoughts.

 24 Driven to Madness

    ==


    *GASP!*


    I awoke to the dark confines of my cell, a single Viscorr lamp hang above my head that dimly lit my prison.


    *Hic!*


    Tears streamed down my face as memories of my dying father eternally scarred my mind. His last words were as clear as the broad daylight. It replayed over and over in my feeble mind.


    "L-Live."


    His voice seemingly ghastly in my thoughts.


    "Why?!" I said trembling.


    How was I suppose to live without him? Why did I have to lose him? He can''t be dead. He''s the strongest person I know!


    "He can''t..." I told myself.


    "He can''t be dead yet! GAH!"


    With a deep breath I screamed towards the rocky ceiling I faced. Why was he always so selfish, he left me in this world to rot, I just wanted him to be by my side.


    Come to think of it, the first thing that I came to was this very confinement. Apparently from what Hackmann told me, I botched the operation and that costed a lot of lives.


    "I didn''t do anything!" I told myself.


    They accuse me of all these things that I didn''t even do.


    Me? killing thousands of lives? I admit I killed once but it was to save my father!


    "LET ME OUT!!"


    I lashed at the cold metal bars pleading for my freedom.


    It had been weeks since the last time I saw the sun, the darkness was driving me insane as images of my late father came with it was vivid.


    His lifeless body laying on the unforgiving ground, that graying life deprived eyes which resembled a dead fish was traumatizing. His exhausted body was laid with deep and unrecoverable wounds.


    Hard to fathom where he got those from.


    *Tsk!*


    "Get out of my head!" I pleaded with frustration.


    "Son..."


    His ghostly voice called out to me. How come I felt so guilty when I remembered his rugged face. Not even a slightest memory reminded me of what had happened before I saw his death.


    Father, where are you? please help me...


    I know you''re still out there, I don''t want to be here anymore.


    Let''s go home, back to Yorkburgen--I miss the smell of freshly baked goods from the nearby bakery, Those silly times with Jack and you, under the same roof I grew up in.


    I squirmed like a worm on the floor holding my hands against my face that dripped with snot, sweat and tears. My eyes had already dried out, puffed up that couldn''t release a single drop of liquid.


    My clothes were ragged as there were no areas to relieve myself of sanitary needs--A spot inside the cell was drenched with piss and shit, it''s stench roamed about that was absolutely dreadful to my nose.


    "LET ME OUT!" I shouted.


    Damn this place! how come this had to happen to me?! I just wanted to be free and be normal, to explore parts of the world like people my age.


    All of this would have never happened If I didn''t left home that day...


    "IT''S ALL MY FAULT!" I shouted.


    "You''re right, it is your fault."


    A familiar voice dragged me back to reality.


    I stared at the shadow that crossed beneath the metal bars of my cage, I traced it back to it''s owner and there I saw him.


    I couldn''t forget his aggressive look. He wore a down-right condescending gaze towards me that symbolized his apathy and disgust.


    With a cold shoulder I turned my back against him continuing to wallow in my own sadness. What right did he have to judge me with those eyes.


    "Look I don''t care if you ignore me or not, I just want you to know that could you please shut the hell up?!" Hackmann said.


    "You''re not the only one locked up in here! and You''re bothering everyone else!" He added.


    I couldn''t care less as the voices other than the one in my head constantly drowned it out.


    "Do you understand?!"


    "Hey! I''m talking to you!" He continued.


    "I-It''s not my fault..." I whispered.


    "What?! did you say something?"


    "I SAID IT''S NOT MY FAULT! I DIDN''T DO SH*T!"


    I jumped against the bars with our faces meeting upfront.


    "You''re pathetic..." He sneered.


    "WHAT DO YOU KNOW?! YOU DON''T KNOW WHAT I FEEL!"


    "DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT''S LIKE TO LOSE SOMEONE DEAR TO YOU?!" I added.


    His already aggravated face deepened further into displeasure at my sentence.


    "Yes! I do! I lost a lot of friends and comrades because of you..."


    "I don''t know what you''re talking about." I replied hesitantly.


    "YOU DON''T KNOW?!" He shouted.


    "YOU ALMOST DESTROYED AN ENTIRE CITY! INNOCENT LIVES WERE LOST! SIR HAD TO LOSE AN EYE BECAUSE OF YOU''RE INABILITY TO FOLLOW SIMPLE INSTRUCTIONS!"


    "W-what?!"


    "Don''t play dumb with me! You even killed your own father in the process!"


    "N-no, I DIDN''T!"


    "YES YOU DID! I SAW IT WITH BOTH MY EYES! I WAS THERE!"


    "How can you forget all of that?! You f*ckin'' psychopath!" He followed.


    *Ack!*


    My eye-sight starts to fade away, blurring the image of the man that stood in front of me--Visions started rising from my mind, each of it was vividly passing through my consciousness.


    Floating in the sky, destruction everywhere, the voices of despair reverberating about, The large Viscorr and finally....


    "S-son! snap out of it! I know you''re in there!"


    Huh? Where am I? this place seemed familiar.


    "F-father?!"


    He faced directly towards me while clinging to both my arms that were glowing intensely. Somehow I couldn''t answer, my body wasn''t currently responding as it moved on it''s own.


    The large Viscorr behind him was resonating, it''s light grew brighter and weaker in that order. I felt it calling towards me, enticing me with it''s vibrance.


    "SON! COME ON!" He pleaded.


    Try as I might, I could vaguely hear him as if my whole being was submerged in water. Ocean water that basked under the warm sunlight of midday.


    It''s as if I was in another realm, a plane of existence where the physics of my physicality couldn''t manifest. I couldn''t move my body as it was bound by tendrils of energy I saw around me. It''s soothing effect made me feel drowsy.


    *SHING!*


    Abruptly a beam of light flashed before me. It woke my senses.


    "Bleugh!"


    What I saw was my father coughing blood from the wound he had just received. The flash of light that came from my chest, pierced through his unexpectedly.


    With all my might I tugged at the ethereal chains that held me captive, but the unsightly horror that unfolded in my mind brought me back to reality.


    "NO! NO! N-NO!" I exclaimed.


    I curled up from where I stood, "What was that?" I thought.


    "YES! YES! you want to know how he died?!" He said in spite.


    "NO! I DON''T WANT TO KNOW! SHUT UP!"


    "You killed him! with magic! it pierced through him like a sword!"


    "NO! I DIDN''T DO IT! NO!"


    Then those visions earlier? were all true?


    I sobbed and wept again at the thought that I killed my very own father, the mixture of emotions was unsettling as my nerves couldn''t calm down.


    As a result I regurgitated from the guilt and disgust of my very own actions.


    "I didn''t want to deal with you but I was assigned to guard duty..."


    I could barely hear his voice as my own mind was too preoccupied by my own despair. Tired was I of life, this unimaginable pain and suffering had affected my being wholly.


    The guilt stuck to my throat making it dry and coarse, with a simple gulp I could choke to death from my very own saliva. The grief lingered within my eye sockets that uncontrollably leaked out liquid sorrow; if there was any left.


    The disgusting ways of my actions stirred my stomach, causing my impulsive vomiting--Emotions of all kinds bound themselves within the confines of my mind.


    "I-I can''t stand this..." I muttered.


    "What?"


    Only my endless groaning and moaning answered him.


    *Sigh*


    "You know what? I really do pity you..."


    "I didn''t do it, I didn''t, no, I didn''t..." I kept uttering.


    "Anyways, I have news for you whether you like it or not."


    "Madame Cordelia will visit you at a later date, she''s bringing the final verdict against you." He continued.


    "You best prepare yourself..."


    The fleeting sounds of his footsteps indicated that he left already. As he left I saw a small knife behind his back that seemed enticing to my current predicament; a solution.


    "What do you think you''re doing?" It said with worry.


    A voice resounded in my head as I closed my weary eyes. In the darkness that came before me was a familiar entity.


    "Why do you care?"


    It remained silent. For a brief moment earlier I remembered everything, it added to my already decaying mental state. Then I realized...


    "IT WAS YOU! IT''S YOUR FAULT! IF ONLY I DIDN''T ACCEPT YOUR STUPID POWER! MY FATHER WOULDN''T HAVE DIED!"


    "All actions come with consequences."


    "You said that you''ll help me save my father! why did you lie to me?"


    "I only gave you power to save your father and you accepted it, I did not lie."


    "I NEVER WANTED THIS POWER! I JU-JUST WANTED TO SAVE HIM!"


    "I cannot give something that you don''t have."


    "SHUT UP!"


    "I DON''T WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN! DON''T EVER F*CKING SHOW UP!" I Threatened.


    I carelessly swung my arms towards this non-existent being hoping, hoping that it''ll know what pain feels like...


    "As you wish..."


    At the end of it''s sentence, it vanished without a trace. With it was the large glowing orb of energy that we stood upon. What resulted was the endless void that epitomized the vast unbridled emotions that clung to my very existence.


    I was finally alone, in mind and in body.


    what ensued for the next week was me, swallowed by the monstrous being called depression.


    It had consumed me from the tips of my toes, all the way to the top of my head.


    *CLANG!*


    "Your food!"


    Another tray wasted for the likes of me.


    Everyday trays of nourishment made it''s way in between the bars below, it remained untouched as each time the thought of food made me feel uncomfortable and queazy.


    Each of it had been stacked on one another, filled with spoiled and rotten food that radiated within the cell; it didn''t bother me.


    I was hungry, body and soul--but even the slightest smell of fresh food made me gag with disgust.


    I didn''t even touch the food, as my pesky companions already knew that it was theirs to keep. So instead I reached for the water.


    It was the only thing I could stomach, each time it ran down my throat; I felt relieved. As if it took away the sins I carried with each gulp.


    "Ugh..." I groaned.


    As my weary arm was trembling towards the metal cup, I saw my body that had been reduced to skin and bones. My skin was pale as my father''s lifeless corpse, my nails were dreadful which was riddled with dirt.


    The cup felt cold within my feeble grasp.


    *CLINK* *SPLASH!*


    The water spilled in front of me as I tried to take a sip.


    I saw my reflection in the water, my eyes shouted lifeless, as dark circles surrounded it. My bright ginger hair had been reduced into a sorry state, from bright orange that slowly decayed into brown.


    My face was comparable to that of a skull, the paleness of my skin was white as snow...


    *CLANG* *CLANG*


    "HEY! YOU DIDN''T EAT AGAIN?!"


    It was Hackmann, I knew. He came every now and then, making sure I ate but no matter what he did I always ended up barfing it up.


    "DON''T MAKE ME COME IN THERE AGAIN!" He said completely annoyed.


    I remained staring at the puddle. Completely ignoring his demands.


    *Sigh*


    I heard the metal door creak wide open as his footsteps tread along ever closer towards me.


    "That''s enough Hackmann, let him be."


    "B-but Madame? he''s going to die at this point."


    I crawled towards him as fast as I could, I reached for the blade that remained sheathed behind him.


    "HEY WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"


    I took the entirety of the knife, unsheathed it and with a swift motion I aimed it towards my neck.


    "STOP!"

 25 The Revelation

    "STOP!"


    I heard her familiar voice...


    "IS THIS WHAT YOU WANT?!"


    Vines emerged from nowhere that clung onto my body, forcing me to a halt midway. With my eyes wide open, I stared at the silhouette of a woman from beyond the bars.


    The bright light beyond made it hard to recognize who this character was, slowly my eyes adjusted and I saw Cordelia.


    I knew that she had despised me, maybe even planned to kill me herself.


    "YOU SELFISH BRAT!"


    I saw her unexplainable face, she trembled with anger but at the same time her expression was softened by tears...


    "Why is she crying?" I thought.


    "YOU ONLY EVER THOUGHT OF YOURSELF!"


    "IS THAT HOW BADLY YOU WANT TO DIE?!"


    The vines forced my hand that held the knife closer to my neck.


    *Sob* *Sob*


    She cried as she talked. Making it hard to understand what she said.


    "Your father gave his life to save yours!"


    "Your pathetic life that you''d want to throw away in an instant! You want him to die in vain? He wasn''t just a father to you! but was a dear friend to us as well!" She added.


    "I saw him after all these years! Some of us didn''t even get to have the chance to meet him again!"


    "He left you to us! This was how we could finally repay him! We owed him a lot! And you''d dare die?!"


    "You''ve still have a lot to take responsibility for! Those lives you took are yours to repay! You can''t and will not die! not under my watch!"


    "Your life is not your own!"


    "You have to Live! Live you ungrateful scoundrel!"


    I saw her desperation, as she unloaded all of her pent up emotion in one succession. It was unfitting of her usual calm and collected manner, but there was one thing that she said that clung to mind...


    "Live."


    That word itself, I could remember my father uttering before his last breath. One word, I purposely avoided it deep down--I didn''t want to live a life in constant denial.


    I''ve let go of the knife as it clattered onto the floor. The sound reverberated then what followed was silence.


    I took a look at Hackmann, he was shocked beyond all reason. It''s as if this was the first time he saw Cordelia throwing an emotional fit.


    "M-Madame?! Are you alright?!" He said concerningly.


    "I-I''m quite alright, pardon my uncouth behavior..."


    She took a deep breath, trying to regain her collected personality back.


    "It''s fine Madame, But how can you say that?!"


    I saw his face turn from concern to aggrievance immediately, I could tell he couldn''t tolerate the facts that he had recently heard.


    "Hush yourself Hackmann. The verdict has yet to be verified, especially with the arrival of the Commander."


    "But Madame! I thought it was decided already?! Did the Commander change his mind?!"


    "How can this happen?! He can''t go free, roaming around! In fact! he needs to die!" He shouted.


    "Enough! We''re not letting him free! As much as I want to hurt that child like you, we still need to uphold our current status. This is for the benefit of our group."


    I could tell, Cordelia is barely holding herself together.


    "B-But I looked up to you Madame! Did those men that died under you didn''t matter at all!?"


    "Fine!" She interrupted.


    She wove her hand to her forehead, clearly distressed about the circumstance.


    "The commander gave us permission to explain that child''s past to only specific people. I know that Bardel himself hasn''t said anything to you yet."


    "I want to know Madame! I want to know why the Commander would willingly let go of such a freakish murderer! I want to know why is he involved!"


    "He is the Last of The Cursed children of Laxxo..."


    "WHAT!? THEN! WE SHOULD KILL HIM! IF HE''S A DIRECT DESCENDANT OF LAXXO!"


    "It''s true, I should just die, I''m worthless... I''m a living disaster." I uttered.


    "No, Knoxx. This is something you should know, with your father gone, only a few people know of this and I''m one of them."


    "You too Hackmann! Listen well!" She added.


    "Let me rephrase what I said earlier--He''s the last direct descendant of the Vihztecian Tribe."


    "Vihztecian?!" Hackmann mused.


    I''ve heard that name before but couldn''t quite recall from where, it sounded familiar. I wonder who and what are they.


    "That''s right Liah!"


    I heard an unfamiliar voice echoing from the farthest end of the prison. Soon it''s owner revealed itself.


    "Commander Rhys!?"


    They both said in unison, so this character was the esteemed Commander of the Liberators. He sauntered towards Cordelia and placed his arm around her.


    "No need to be so formal Liah! and..."


    He wore an extremely stupified face while looking at Hackmann.


    "Who are you again? ? Jack-chan? Axe-man?!"


    "It''s Hackmann Sir!"


    "Ah! that boy Bardel saved, glad to see you''re doing well!"


    "Yes Sir!" Hackmann saluted.


    "Can you please keep to yourself?" Cordelia threatened.


    "Oh! My bad! My arm felt a little tired liah!"


    Immediately he pulled his arm away.


    It was hard to believe that this man was the esteemed Commander of the Liberators, he was too care-free and relaxed in person. I imagined him to be more serious.


    He has a charismatic look despite that large scar underneath his right eye, he had his long, silky and brown hair tied. Was not too taller than Cordelia herself. The brown overcoat he wore accentuated the entirety of his clothing, from his pants to his leather boots. It was clear he had some sort of fashion sense.


    "So you''re old Leo''s son?!"


    I didn''t answer as I stared at him in a reserved manner.


    "Quiet aren''t cha''?, Don''t worry I don''t bite."


    He smiled.


    "If you don''t mind Rhys! we''re in the middle of something important!"


    she was clearly annoyed by his presence. While Hackmann stood at the side like a well-mannered dog.


    "I know, allow me to continue."


    She nodded in agreement.


    "The Cursed Children of Laxxo, wasn''t actually what you thought they were."


    "What do you mean?" Hackmann questioned.


    "They''re actually a peaceful but powerful tribe, from what we gathered." Cordelia added.


    "Yes, to be honest They were known as the Vihztecians. An ancient civilization before the war." Rhys continued.


    "And you have their blood."


    Rhy''s dramatically pointed towards me with burning passionate eyes.


    "Why?! what''s so important about having their blood? what are they?" I answered.


    I questioned as all of this new information that seemed unreliable, I didn''t want to trust them.


    "We couldn''t gather much since most of what''s known about them had been destroyed, but from what we know; they''re the most prestigious wielders of Corr at the time"


    "So much that when your father came back from the war, he had injuries from magical means."


    My mouth fell wide open with bewilderment.


    "Which was impossible. I know, Leo was a special case with his unique ability. Nobody knew how he got his powers but it''s main properties was he couldn''t be harmed with magic."


    That would explain how I could kill him, even though it was generally unbelievable. I hated myself even more.


    "Then they want my power?" I uttered.


    "Precisely Knoxx, that''s why your father sacrificed himself before so that we could escape." said Cordelia.


    "No one knows how strong they are, but from what I can see, you hold vast amounts of Corr within you Knoxx. It''s as if another being is within you."


    A being huh? her remark reminded me of a certain individual.


    "And if the Empire gets a hold of that, eventually they''ll figure out how to use your power."


    All of this because of some stupid power I have. I don''t think that they''d be able to control this, even I can''t.


    "Tsk." reacted Hackmann.


    I could only assume that he wasn''t liking the situation, his frustrated look made it clear that he wanted justice for what I did. Especially after his remark.


    "Then why don''t you just kill me?!" I questioned.


    If I died then all of their problems would be solved, Empire won''t get their hands on this seemingly almighty power. Liberators won''t have to go through the trouble of protecting me.


    "We can''t."


    "Why?"


    "Other than personal reasons, your power can help our cause. And that''s why I''m here."


    "I thought the process would be further delayed?" Cordelia mentioned towards Rhys.


    "No, there would be no reason to. I only delayed it because I didn''t want any unnecessary action."


    At the end of his sentence he gazed at Hackmann. He couldn only drop his head low in response, not daring to look at the Commanders eyes.


    "Knoxx, your punishment--You can''t and will not die, until you''ve truly served the Liberators and it''s cause. You''ll only die of natural causes and until then, you serve under my orders."


    I stared at him, this didn''t feel right. But I could understand why he would do so. Although I didn''t want to carry this weight and burden.


    "Commander, Madame. I''ll excuse myself..." Hackmann intruded.


    "You may be excused." Cordelia ordered.


    With a salute he left. The over-bearing emotions must''ve taken it''s toll on him, he left with such a disgruntled face. But there were a lot of things in mind that I wanted to ask.


    "Then How did I survive? Are you sure that I''m the only one left?"


    "It all happened sixteen years ago after the war, the day when your father betrayed the Kingdom of Cyneweard which is now the Empire we all know."


    "That day, he took something important with him. Something that we didn''t really knew until I found Leo himself a few years back."


    "It was you Knoxx." Cordelia followed.


    "The kingdom wanted to exploit your lineage and it''s power that''s why your father betrayed the kingdom. He was swallowed with guilt and hate for the kingdom."


    "We aren''t sure if there are any others of your tribe left. Since he was the only Ranking officer in the field at the time, but even with an army of thousands behind him; he returned alone."


    "We could only assume that''s how devastating their power was."


    So my father was the only one left from the War? there would have to be at least some people left? I know my father well, he''d help people even if he had to risk his.


    "But it shouldn''t be impossible for any survivors right?" I followed.


    "The chances are slim but there could be, hiding in the shadows. Even the Empire can''t cover everything." Rhys replied.


    My mind raced at the possible thought of knowing what happened in the past.


    "Don''t even think about it knoxx."


    I saw cordelia with a passive-aggressive look on her face, as if she saw through my thoughts. In reply, I wore an awkward smile while deliberately scratching my head.


    I''ll find out soon enough...but there was one thing that constantly bugged my mind.


    "Why did the Empire go through so much trouble of massacring an innocent tribe?"


    They both pondered for a second.


    Until Rhys took something from his pocket, it was a small Viscorr that glowed prematurely like-wise it''s size.


    "It''s because of this, from what we deduced."


    "V-viscorr? But aren''t they common?"


    "Here it''s common Knoxx, but for the rest of the world it''s a hard resource to come by. It''s pretty rare." Cordelia theorized.


    "The Empire sells it for a very expensive price, sometimes other countries would be willing to trade rare artifacts for it." She followed.


    So the king was blinded by the endless riches that it could bring. Conspiracy, murder and cover-ups--The Empire had stooped so low since then, now crimes rampant around the country of Ystallia.


    "Anyways Knoxx, my decision if final. But I''ll need a lot of convincing to do, I''m going to need your help Cordelia; After all this is your sector."


    She nodded towards him.


    "Until then, you''ll be staying here. So take care of yourself."


    He pinched his nose and fanned with his right hand.


    "The place smells and looks like a pigsty." He remarked.


    As soon as he waved his hand goodbye, Cordelia followed right after. In mere moments they had gone.


    I was left to my own company again, couldn''t complain as my mind was filled with uncertain amount of sentiment...


    So much so that I couldn''t discern my own feelings as the unending questions bombarded my head.


    "Never ending questions..." I muttered.

 26 Stragglers Son

    Dark, Blank, Empty, Void...


    I sauntered deeper into it each time.


    Lost in thought as I wandered the vast deserted plains that was once my mind, the sole being that holed within it had left.


    With it something that I can''t properly describe, the once eerie looming presence had now been a companion to me ever since I laid my curious eyes upon it.


    Like a man with no shadow, the moon with no sun, day without night; unnatural.


    "Odd."


    I muttered to myself as I sat in the middle of the darkness, in which was lonely. No! Lonely doesn''t comprehend what I felt, it was more of an unnerved feeling.


    Like the feeling of coming home to the sight of a missing familiar object that never left it''s place, but is now gone.


    "Is it really gone? Not because you don''t see it, doesn''t mean it''s not there anymore son."


    The reminiscence of his words echoed throughout my mind, at that time I took care of an injured bird.


    To be honest when it died as it succumbed to it''s mortal wounds, he told me that very sentence. Whose meaning I couldn''t fathom with my innocent and under-developed mind at the time.


    I wonder what he said meant?


    I could feel it''s very essence still observing me from within as I gazed into the depths of the shroud. It was still here, I knew. Although I couldn''t see it presently, I sense it''s entity somewhere inside the confines of my own mind.


    "No."


    I rose from the stone cold floor as I rubbed my morning face coupled with horrid disheveled hair.


    Within a few moments I realized that my desperation for stimulation and interaction was causing me to find solace from the entity.


    My dreams ever since it left had always been senseless, with me just floating the sempiternal abyss called my consciousness.


    Each time it left me feeling empty, lost, confused...


    It had been a month ever since Commander Rhys left me here. My cage was surrounded by imprisoned, unhinged and sinful men.


    "Oi! Warden! where are ya?!"


    "Let me out! Let me out!"


    My mind was restless, never than before, my own thoughts weren''t quiet, same as the criminals that stood in the same situation as me and were claiming themselves innocent.


    "Hey!"


    I shouted as I pressed my face towards the metal bars.


    "What?!" A man replied.


    Then I realized, what right did I have to silence those that had sinned.


    "I''m no better than any of you..." I muttered to myself.


    "WHAT?! ANSWER ME!" He said.


    I ignored it.


    What followed was the resurfacing deaths of thousands came bursting through my mind, each voice, face, life. They''re all dead because of me, what I couldn''t comprehend was how could I remember every single one of them.


    *Bang*


    I just want to be free, feel the warmth of the sunshine against my weary skin. The reassurance that I''m still alive. The numbness of my own senses was too prevalent that the stone-cold floor felt like nothing against my pale skin.


    Commander Rhys left me here.


    "You''ll be staying here for a while."


    "What? why?!" I questioned.


    "The people won''t calm down, even with my status I can''t expect them to forgive you."


    That''s what he said, judging from those words I didn''t expect I''d be free soon. I needed to get out...


    "Hello, prophet."


    A voice disturbed my thoughts.


    It came from the far right which enticed my curiosity, "Prophet?" It had resounded a few paces from afar; deeper within the dimly lit halls.


    "How are you?"


    "I''m doing fine prophet."


    "That''s good. How is your urges?"


    "Better than before, I''ve felt much calmer this past few days."


    "The daily prayers shall heal you, Gaia will uphold those that are loyal to her."


    "Now raise your hand as I pray for you."


    What followed was gibberish, a sort of language if you will and I couldn''t understand a single word from it.


    Patiently, I stood my position while I heard the lowly footsteps that echoed through the prison chambers.


    What came to sight was a small man in white robes, his exposed gray and olden hair made it clear that his age is older than it seemed. Protruding out on both his temples were filed horns that complemented his maroon colored skin which hinted at his impish-like features.


    As he strolled onwards while I stared at him with awe, "what was he?"


    "Dead." he abruptly said.


    He returned my rude gaze with squinted piercing eyes.


    I remained silent.


    "Those eyes of yours, quite similar to that of a corpse."


    "Eyes shrouded in deep abyss, I''ve seen those kind before. Usually those who owned them have done horrible sins and thought that exchanging their life would be the answer." He continued.


    Who was this man, he stared at me intently and blabbered on as if he knew of my very existence.


    "I despised them, they''re cowards." As his eyes lingered against mine.


    I didn''t like his eyes. I shrugged away from him as I sat idly in the middle of my cell, back turned against him.


    "You''re quite young aren''t you?"


    He questioned, although I had no intentions of returning it. It felt as though he was criticizing my very being as he looked upon me.


    I was already critical of my self, I didn''t need anymore from an old man.


    "It was nice talking to you young man, I''ll be off then."


    As he left, I kept to myself again. Spending the day wasting and rotting away in this cage. I felt more of an animal with each growing day.


    I scratched my messy head, soon dandruff fell like snow. Lice infested my head as I saw them piled underneath my nail, all lifeless from the constant scratching I had done.


    *Clang*


    The sound, It was a constant reminder of a daily routine I had.


    "Food is here." The knight said.


    It slid underneath the metal bars. I stared at it for a couple of moments, the enticing buttery gloss that the bread had was mesmerizing.


    To it''s right was a simple yet utterly bitter-sweet dish.


    *Growl*


    I heard my stomach grumble in hunger as I still wasn''t able to eat properly the past few days, with a few exclusion of simple nibbles from it here and there.


    Each time I ate it only felt like hell, I kept regurgitating the amounts of food I always tried to ingest.


    But maybe this time I might be able to eat.


    "Maybe..."


    After I grabbed the metal spoon, I extended it towards the gorgeous dish they paired the bread with.


    My hand was trembling, I couldn''t force myself to do it.


    "Father..."


    My eyes were starting to well up with emotions as I constantly stared at it.


    "Beef stew..."


    It was his favorite, the mixture of vegetables and thick brown broth that we always shared back at Yorkburgen.


    My hand felt weak as I dropped the silverware onto the floor. Soon my pesky companions were also enticed by it''s savory aroma.


    "No!"


    As I swung my hand to those that neared the sacred dish. Out of desperation I took and cradled it with my arm.


    "You goin'' crazy now?"


    I heard the Commander''s voice. He stood in front of my cell.


    As I remained silent while completely overwhelmed by emotion.


    "Beef stew huh?"


    My eyes quickly rolled over to him as he caught my attention.


    "It was his favorite, no doubt he''d still cook that."


    "We-we always had this, whenever we had the chance." I relied meekly.


    "Back then..."


    *Sigh*


    He took a deep breath as he paused in the middle of his sentence.


    "He made that for everyone after training." He continued.


    "We got sick and tired of it because that''s the only thing he knew how to make."


    As he bursted into a forced laughter. I could tell he only did so to cover up his emotional state.


    I stared at him as I saw him feeling a bit sentimental about the distant past... I wonder what was he like back then.


    It seemed like he had touched a lot of lives.


    "Can I ask?"


    "What is it?"


    "What was he like?"


    "A stubborn old man that forced his life principles onto others."


    Well, that seems to be like him.


    "So stubborn that he saved mine..."


    "My father, saved him?" I thought.


    I watched him, as he lost himself in his own thoughts.


    "A story for another time, anyways..."


    "I came to say that you''ll be free soon, but don''t expect anything to be better. If you prove yourself they''ll slowly trust you."


    I nodded, I didn''t know what to feel. Was I suppose to be happy? at the thought of my freedom? but wouldn''t it better for me to stay here.


    What was the point of making them trust me, I don''t have the courage to make that selfish decision. I was beginning to feel the burden of this option.


    As I saw him slowly treading away, there was something that tugged at my heart that I wanted to know.


    "Wait!"


    He took a pause and turned towards me.


    "What is it now?" He questioned.


    "Did he really care for me?"


    With all the truth that I''ve learned, I only came to the conclusion that maybe he only pretended to be like what he was. That maybe he just was doing it out of guilt and hate. Maybe that he hoped that one day his son Knoxx abbot will bring justice against the Empire or maybe even it was just him trying to run away from his past.


    There was so much possibilities that I didn''t know what to do, I only felt like disappearing from the world. My name was born from a great pretender, Knoxx abbot, was only Knoxx or apparently nothing. Who am I?


    Was I from a long bloodline of powerful mages? A soon to be titled rebel? Survivor of a war? A runaway fugitive? Son of a lowborn man? or was I nothing? What was I?


    I stared at him with hopeful eyes that maybe what he would answer could help me come to a conclusion.


    "Remember when I told you that I met him a few years back?"


    "Right when we headed back to his shoddy looking home, he presented me a child."


    "He held you with so much care that it was hard to believe... Hard to believe that he was once the same stern and stubborn old man I once knew."


    "It was the first time I''ve seen him smile like that."


    At the end of his sentence, it struck me hard. So hard that I couldn''t stop the tears from flowing as I wore an astonished face.


    "If I were you, At least take care of yourself maybe just for his sake."


    As his fleeting footsteps went away, I felt a sort of resolve. I knew that if he saw me like this he would be worried and disappointed.


    Then everything that we went through was something that I could hold onto, a sense of belonging, that it wasn''t a ruse or a complete joke. Maybe this was what he really meant.


    "Not because he''s not here, doesn''t mean he''s actually gone."


    For his memory and sake, I''ll try living much more than I can. I''ll prove to himself that I can do it. Even without him here, I wouldn''t dare disgrace him ever again.


    "I''ll do it for you..." I muttered to myself.


    As I closed my wet eyes and grasped my chest, contemplating this newfound courage.


    The warm bowl of beef stew felt comforting as it heated my arms. Without any further delay I took the fallen silverware and dug a spoonful from it.


    For a moment, I hesitated. "What if I just waste it?" I questioned myself.


    There was only one way to find out...


    Soon I found myself at a momentary state of pleasure, as I chewed into the soft texture of the beef and the chunky pieces of vegetable that melted into my mouth. The thick but flavorful broth brought forth a whole new level of ecstasy.


    Tears kept rolling as I felt the guilt I carried was slowly being absolved with each gulp and swallow. It felt as though a divine intervention had came and reminded me of fortunate memories with my father.


    "It tastes just like yesterday." I swooned with joy.

 27 The Prophe

    Another gloomy day in this isolated cage of mine.


    I just wasted the whole day away with nothing to do, except for the regularly scheduled meals and relieving myself.


    I stared at the gathered pests by the end corner of my cell. They gnawed at the bones from the meal last night.


    Curious, the lives of these pests were so meager that made me think--What was it that drove them to live? did they have thoughts of their own?


    They even fought against each other, over something that had lost its value already. Why couldn''t they just share it?


    I sat in the middle of the dirt ridden floor, staring at the mangy rodents.


    Soon the largest rat had killed another, displaying complete dominance towards its peers. The audience had settled down at the sight of their fallen comrade while showing utter obedience.


    Even in their world, the strong reigned against the weak...


    I furrowed my eyebrows in shock as the dominated group had started to cannibalize the rat tyrant.


    I turned away from the vicious sight as guts spew all over the corner while the remaining rats ate it alive as it squealed from the pain.


    *Squeak!* *Squeak!*


    "Ugh..."


    Having emptied my pocket, it''s contents fell with a short metallic clink that echoed inside.


    I picked it up from the floor as I stood to point it towards the left wall. It felt cold at the touch of my palm.


    "How many days has it been?"


    With no source of entertainment, I occasionally did physical training every day ever since the last time Commander Rhys visited me.


    It had been a week already, with a new motivation in check and set. I felt invigorated than ever before.


    it didn''t matter who or what he did, he was still my father and I still had to acknowledge that. I still carried the regrets and each time I reminded myself, it would waver my new-found resolve.


    But I still wanted to live anyway, no matter what, as it was the final wish my father gave me. I didn''t want to imagine disgracing him even more and fulfilling it was the only way.


    As a result, I''ve let go of my depressive state, If I died I knew that it would hurt him even more. So I started grooming myself properly...


    "Thirty-seven days already..."


    Which was now thirty-eight as I carved another line on the wall with the rusty spoon.


    "YOU''RE HERE!" Said a random prisoner.


    Every day I heard that same man over the past month. He became a signal for me to figure out that the Prophet had arrived. He came here daily but I never took to his presence.


    "Hello, so how are we doing today?" Replied the Prophet.


    There goes his signature opening line. After a lengthy sermon and preach I figured that he''d saunter again towards the other criminals within. Spreading the greatness of Gaia.


    In hopes of maybe, they''d change for the better...


    "Darkness and light, Endless void, and the stars, The first beings of the Heavenly body came to life." Said the Prophet.


    His engaging tone had enticed my curiosity, although I was skeptical of supernatural beings, a part of myself wanted to know.


    After my daily carving, I made my way to the farthest corner of my cell, near the direction of this preacher.


    I turned my back against the cold steel bars as I slowly slid down to a sitting position, listening to his words of wonder.


    "The being of eternal Void, Laxxo, a Celestial of pure Chaos and Atrocity. Master of the Unknown and Consciousness." He continued.


    "Oh dear Laxxo! His name is enough to make any man tremble in fear!"


    What followed was the exaggerated voice of his listener that made me realize his sarcasm.


    "At least be decent enough to actually be respectful to the Prophet." I scoffed.


    "Heh! Laxxo or what''s his name!"


    "Yeah! Yeah! If he can get me out of here I''d gladly follow his cult or something!"


    "God or what! I don'' believe in that sh*t!"


    "Gaia can go suck my d*ck for all I care!"


    The constant sneer, mockery, and disdain echoed the entire chamber. It was painful to be in his position.


    "Then there came the blinding luminosity, it seeped throughout the endless Void, covering its entirety with it came into being! Gaia!"


    The groaning of disheartened men that only had contempt and disbelief against the higher beings could be heard.


    This was the first I''ve heard of him telling the tale of creation, at times he mostly did lessons.


    "No more of this crap!"


    "We''ve had enough!"


    "No! There is no God!"


    I guess their patience had grown thin. With a thunderous voice, the Prophet continued.


    "FOR COUNTLESS MILLENIA THE TWO BEINGS CLASHED! AND WITH IT THE CELESTIAL BODIES WERE BORN! THUS THE CREATION OF OUR REALM!"


    "BOO! NO MORE OF THIS BULLSH*T!"


    "OY! SOMEONE KILL THE CULTIST!"


    "SEEING THAT GAIA MADE OUR EARTHLY REALM! SHE SHIELDED IT! WHILE LAXXO THOUGHT THE OPPOSITE! SOUGHT TO DESTROY EVERYTHING!"


    "HER POWER IS OUR SOLE DEFENSE AGAINST LAXXO AND HIS DESTRUCTIVE WAYS!"


    *Clang!*


    I heard a gate threw open as it crashed loudly.


    "What''s the fockin'' ruckus about!"


    As an abrupt rugged voice came bursting through the prison.


    "Ah, warden. So nice of you to visit." Said the Prophet Nonchalantly.


    "Aye told yer'' to keep yer'' fockin'' Preachin'' ass out of me Prison!"


    "I''d gladly oblige, but these men need salvation. If I can''t save these men then no one will!"


    "Argh! if only yer'' religious cunt wasn''t allowed by the Commander himself!"


    "Glad you''re seeing this in my perspective." He said smugly.


    "OY! YOU NOISY LOT! YA''LL BETT''R LISTEN OR NONE OF YOU''S BE FILLIN'' YER STOMACH LATER!"


    After his brief announcement the rallying voices of men died down, guess the Warden himself was a man of his word. I only saw him once, but judging from his appearance and tone, he was a strict person.


    None dared to go against him as nourishment was a necessity, I remember an inmate who went against him. The whole prison was much more hellish with his constant yelling and screaming at the time. Guess they deprived him, I wonder what happened to him.


    Soon the Prophet continued his insistent teaching about legends of yore.


    "With Laxxo under her power, She created the next Celestial beings that came into existence."


    His voice lowered, calmed as if directed to one person.


    "Gaia the Supreme being created the first Celestial: Elga the Goddess of Life, whose grasp reign over every living."


    "Her holiness descended to our realm, the very feathers of her wings sprouted more life onto the earth which was the Elgans the winged race. The beauty she had was unimaginable, truly fitting her image."


    "They turned the ravaged lands a home, for their kind."


    "Along with her arrival, an entity formed from the shadow of Gaia, a smokey being that guided lost souls of once was breathing."


    "Deimos the God of Death, held to his goals, stuck to the side of his equal. Mighty horns, a Dark complexion, paired with a long tail, and finally two pairs of wings. His terrifying aura would make even the celestial bodies tremble."


    "With his power, he spawned the proud race of Deimosians in his image."


    "Together they brought forth perfect balance to our world! Reigning over the life they''ve made."


    His engaging tone, prideful but modest at the same time, as if he himself believed in this tale of creation was enthralling to those that heard him.


    None of the prisoners voiced out in disagreement...


    No one could, like a bard that sung tales of charming Legends. All ended up in his entrancing sermon and from their silence; it was evident.


    "The first two celestials realized that the worlds they reigned over weren''t suitable for the lives they''ve nourished."


    "They came to Gaia, seeking her wisdom and insight."


    "Having foresight that the earthly bodies weren''t fashioned to hold the trivial lives, she created another. It was Faustrian the God of all elements."


    "The newly born Celestial had taken on a beastly form, whose destructive powers directly affected its appearance."


    "Despite his chaotic power, he brought forth the necessities of every living being."


    "He gathered the scattered heavenly bodies and threw it into our world, thus the very mountains were formed."


    "Tired, his sweat dropped that made the vast oceans. With a huff of his breath, the air had breezed through the world."


    "The heat of his body melted the very mountains that erupted the volatile volcanoes! and finally with a drop of his blood the Bestial race: Faustians came into being."


    "There the world came into view When Gaia saw the greatness that had been made. She finally prompted the last race into it."


    "Humans, our minuscule life compared to the vastness of the great beings are lacking."


    "We need to repay their graciousness by pledging our lives towards Gaia! and her teachings!"


    "And you! the likes of you in here have a second chance at a better life!"


    "Like how a single man! redeemed the cruelties of humanity! a human being loved by the Almighty Gaia herself!"


    This was suddenly too boorish for my taste, As a result, I dusted my already dirty trousers and slowly moved towards my favorite spot in the cell.


    Until something caught my ears.


    "Bright! Brightest is he who salvaged the remaining followers of Gaia!"


    "Bright huh?" I thought to myself. It was something that reminded me of the horrible past I had. The surging memories were still as clear as the day.


    I tried brushing it off but out of curiosity, I went back to my seat.


    "The sole man who was chosen by Gaia, whose purpose was to defeat cruelest entities that roamed the realm!"


    "With power coming from the Almighty Gaia herself, he proved himself to be worthy of her choice despite his shortcomings."


    "He was a sinner turned to redeemer and Hero of all the living!"


    "At the height of his power, it is said that he illuminated even the darkest parts of the heavens itself!"


    "Power with no equal, Light that uncovers even the deepest parts of the world. That is the Legend of the Brightest star!"


    "I-Is there more to the story!" I quickly exclaimed.


    From my peripheral vision I could tell, he was looking at me.


    He sauntered towards my direction, with a satisfied look on his face. Why was that? Although I''m pretty sure that his listeners had brushed this all off his teachings like it was nothing.


    Why did it look like he had done something completely fulfilling even though it was quite futile?


    I had my face pressed upon the cold bars of my self, looking at him with an unsettling expression.


    That Legend had something more into it, I wanted to know more. A man that grew bright, a former sinner, redemption...


    All too familiar for me, maybe I just wanted to find more reasons for my being.


    "Ho? I see..." Said the Prophet


    "W-what?" I replied.


    "You remind me of someone from the Monastery. Such unique features indeed." He muttered.


    "Uh?"


    I was stupefied at his remark. I slowly pulled my face away.


    "No matter, Why the sudden interest?" He asked.


    "I-I just wanted to know... So please?" I pleaded.


    He scanned me carefully as if judging if I had the right to know.


    "A while back you had eyes of a Dead fish, now you seem much more..."


    He paused.


    I couldn''t tell what was it he meant, although my state was definitely better than before.


    "Alive?" I said.


    "No, more like Humane and cleaner too."


    Well, that was a little insulting, did I seem much more of a beast before? I pondered.


    "You don''t belong here, do you?" He continued.


    "W-why is that?" I replied.


    I knew that I belonged here, My sins weren''t something I could wash away and I wholeheartedly accept my imprisonment here. I wasn''t expecting Commander Rhys to come back and free me from my confinement.


    "No matter... So you wish to learn the ways of Gaia?" He proudly said.


    His eyes brightened passionately that it was hard to deny the man. His stature was the complete opposite of the overwhelming confidence he carried and shown through the lessons he''d brought upon his students.


    *Sigh*

 28 The Deimosian and Illudus Sanctum

    *Sigh*


    "I-I just wanted to know about the Legend of the Brightest Star..." I said timidly.


    "OH! a Good choice! What is it that you wanted to know?"


    After his excited response, I couldn''t help but notice his odd clothing. He had worn ashen robes without any distinctive color but it appeared weary at the lower regions.


    His face was covered by it''s hood as he stood towering in front of me, but there was one defining mark on what he wore; a symbol on his chest. It reminded me of the sun, a circle surrounded by wavy spikes.


    It was shimmering, ever so slightly against the dim light from my cell.


    "First time seeing the Symbol?" He said.


    "Uh-uhm I''m sorry, it''s just that it''s the first time I''ve met a Monk of Gaia." As I lowered my head in embarrassment.


    "It''s quite alright." He answered kindly.


    As he slowly took down his robe revealing his olden features.


    "Finally I get to take this off, it''s too hot wearing this."


    It was actually the first time I''ve seen his face. I couldn''t help but jump from shock and awe as he slowly shrank down to a height of a ten year old toddler.


    His skin-faded gray hair that shyly shown filed horns protruding behind his temples was paired with his pale blood colored skin.


    But what scared me all the way to the back of my cell was the three piercing animalistic eyes he had, two on the left and one on the right.


    "MONSTER!?" I hurriedly exclaimed.


    My thoughts couldn''t think of a better way to define his being. He just smirked at my offensive remark.


    "I know, the wrinkles got to me. I used to look way more handsome when I was your age! Trust me you''ll look like this when you hit around five hundred!" He followed.


    "The only thing I''ll hit when I get to that age is six-feet under!" I thought to myself.


    "Don''t worry sonny, I''m not feral." He reassured.


    As he gestured his hand towards himself, motioning me to near him. I composed myself as I slowly walked towards him as I raised my guard.


    "Is this your first time seeing a Deimosian?" He questioned.


    I nodded.


    "Do all Deimosians look like you?" I rudely asked.


    "We''re all different, it varies from having horns to having scales or tails." He casually opened.


    I never thought that Deimosians would look like that. Always thought that they''d seem more human.


    "Aren''t you mad?"


    "Why would I be?" As he wore a clueless expression.


    As he said that, I felt a whole lot calmer especially with his height that made him less menacing than he looks.


    "I said something offensive." I awkwardly said.


    "Can''t blame you sonny, It''s the first time you''ve seen one."


    He took to the floor and sat idly in front of me.


    "Now where do we begin?" As he clapped his hands together while rubbing them.


    "Why was he powerful? Where did he came from? What kind of power did he wield?" as I gestured my hand on my chin.


    Without any hesitation I fired every question that I could possibly think of.


    He paused for a moment as he gathered his thoughts.


    "You see in the ancient scriptures from the Monastery of Gaia, It''s said that he was a human orphan."


    "At the time he was conceived, Laxxo was utterly consumed by jealousy that he brought great evil to the world. Evil that defiled the greatest gift Gaia gave the world."


    "What gift?" I asked.


    "It was Corr my child, you see when she created the First three Celestials that brought balance to our world. She adorned our plane it with her own blood."


    "Thus magic was born, Corr was the very manifestation of her power... While men basked in her gift, Laxxo saw this as an opportunity as a result he corrupted the minds of men."


    "Those men grew strong, spreading chaos, destruction and famine around the world."


    "T-then what happened?" I questioned.


    "Well, Gaia realized that the Celestials she made couldn''t interfere with the living realm; she chose a champion in their stead."


    "That doesn''t make any sense?!"


    Of course it didn''t, all powerful beings would have ended the problem faster if they just came and solved it themselves. I was baffled at how incredulous the idea was.


    "If they were Gods, almighty and powerful? why couldn''t they just ended it themselves?"


    I stared at him waiting for his response, until he closed his eyes before answering my blatant accusation.


    "Them coming down to our realm would destroy the Balance they created or so they say..."


    There was a hint of disbelief and discouragement that I could discern from his voice.


    "But what do you believe?"


    He stared at me with those yellow feline-like eyes.


    "As meager beings, we can''t really comprehend those at the pinnacle of existence. I''m only here to pass these stories and what learnings they may contain."


    That''s true, we may never really know why didn''t they interfere in the first place. There are some questions that can never be answered.


    *Ehem!*


    "As I was saying--"


    "He was worthy of her power, bringing peace and balance in the earthly realm. Thus the Legend of the Brightest star was born."


    "He was the known strongest wielder of Corr at the time." He continued.


    "Magically incomparable to anyone that he shone throughout the regions, therefore he was entitled the Brightest star."


    Was I a champion of Gaia? it was all too similar, to be a coincidence. I couldn''t help but contemplate the story in my mind, although skeptical I wanted to ask more.


    "Was this all true?"


    I stared at him, wondering that maybe this would help me know more about the Vihztecians.


    "..."


    He just returned with a gaze, maybe pondering what was it that I wanted from all of this. As his mouth finally opened for an answer.


    "You see legends are stories that just happened to be passed down through generations..."


    With his pause I could tell, it was just a bunch of foolery that he believed to have saved the lives of many. A lie that begets more lies in order to reform those that had sinned with blind faith.


    "I see..." I replied quite dejectedly.


    "But!"


    "The reason why they''re still here is because our predecessors deemed it to be true."


    My dejection had lost, lost in a pool of whirling curiosity.


    "Then again, why would it still get passed down through generations if it weren''t true?" I thought to myself.


    But then another wild thought ran inside my head, why is it that the Monks of Gaia knew of such tales? I''ve got to ask him.


    I stared at him with a raised eyebrow of curiosity.


    He returned my gaze with the same curiosity.


    "What is it?" He questioned.


    "How come you know all of this?"


    He revealed a leather book strap he carried from inside his robe, it hanged beside his waist.


    With a click, he unlatched the lock that held the black book.


    "The Illudus Sanctum, it''s a holy manuscript created centuries ago by the First Generation. It contains every Legend, the Gods, The creation of the world and many more."


    "T-then does it have information on ancient tribes or clans?"


    "Well it does but..."


    "Can I?!"


    *Clang*


    "Hey! Prophet! You''re done for today! don''t make me come in there and drag you out!"


    His eyes rolled towards the man calling him out, he had a soft expression as he let out a deep breath.


    "Well I guess that''s it for today young man."


    "Am I going to see you again? I still have a lot of questions!" I remarked.


    "Maybe... We don''t know."


    Carefully, he stood while strapping the Illudus Sanctum back into it''s resting place. The moment he hid his face with the hood, he grew several meters that returned him to his normal size.


    There was something awfully odd about his last line, it''s as if he was bidding farewell. This was my only chance for an answer, I won''t let this slip away.


    "WAIT! Can I ask your name?"


    "Hyden, Call me Prophet Hyden."


    He said as he waved goodbye. His image was slowly fading away from my view.


    "Well there he goes..."


    *Sigh*


    Steadily I held with my hand was the Illudus Sanctum, as he turned to stand I took it from the strap since he was hurrying, he forgot to lock it in.


    "Why did I take this?" I thought. This was a mistake, he might come back for this. I could just pretend that he dropped it by accident.


    No, this wasn''t a mistake. I took it out of desperation, an answer was right there in front of me and I couldn''t just let it slip away.


    Maybe If I can find out about the Vihztecians that would explain the reason behind this horrible power. I could find out why I was this way...


    All of that talk about the Legend was intriguing, but I admit it was impossible to believe. There was no way that my power was bestowed by Gaia.


    With both hands I held the book, I took a deep breath as I prepared myself for the underlying truth.


    "Empty?"


    I went through the book, page by page thinking that maybe I missed something within. But no matter how much I sift through each paper, there was nothing.


    Maybe that man was a sham? well he certainly did a great job, can''t believe I absorbed all that crap.


    *Thud*


    I threw the book all the way to the back of my cell, thinking that it was useless.


    I raised my hand face-front, staring at the palm of it.


    "If only I didn''t have you, then maybe he''d still be alive..." I muttered to myself.


    "Maybe things would have been different." I thought.


    "Should I?"


    No, I didn''t want to, no matter what.


    The onslaught of horrible memories resurfaced, I just couldn''t get the strength to use my power after all that''s happened. It''s better this way.


    I crawled towards the center of my prison, There I laid myself to rest for another day.


    As I rested on my withered blanket, I heard heavy footsteps not a few moments later. Footsteps of an armored man since I heard the clattering of steel while it moved.


    The echoing grew closer, while I sat upright expecting to see the visitor.


    Why was there a visitor at this time of hour?


    As he slowly appeared from the corner of my cell, my conclusion was proven right.


    It was a knight, in full-scale armor whose sheen was slightly glinting against the dim Corr lamps.


    I wonder what scum this time had trouble with the guards. The man passed through my cell an went towards the other side.


    Soon more knights followed him that I estimated to be around twenty in numbers. Must be a high class criminal for it to be responded this way.


    As soon as they all left, I went right back to laying on the would-be comfortable floor.


    Since this was a daily routine for me, it took me no more than a minute to finally fall asleep...


    Later, the night was restless, as I tried to keep sleeping from all the ruckus that had been going on.


    Sudden tremors would erupt constantly, at times voices of men could be heard.


    "Ugh! when will this end?!" I muttered to myself.


    Finally after a few more hours, it had stopped. There I rested happily as my night became quiet.


    *Clang!*


    "You! Wake up!"


    My awakened and disoriented state was caused by a brazen knight that voiced out from outside my cell. His armor had added more to my confusion as it''s bright sheen blinded me.


    Slowly I gathered myself as I sat, directly facing towards him.


    "You''re free to go, grab your belongings."


    My eyes widened with surprise as the man said the word "Free."


    A word that I didn''t think I''d hear for at least a couple of years living in this rotten hell-hole along with the other demons of society.

 29 Freedom

    The first time I got brought into the prison, I passed through these very same stairs that lead towards down below.


    I was traversing these rugged stairs upwards this time, it reminded me of the first time I came here.


    "You''ll be spending your whole life here... You''re lucky enough to be even alive."


    That''s what Hackmann said when he brought me down to my cell, his eyes had glared at me with contempt as we slowly descended these steps down to my despair.


    Imagine waking up after seeing the only person you looked up to, bloodied, ragged, and pale. The only person you ever knew in your whole life, the only person who took care of you, the sole being why you''re here right now; dead.


    I can only remember those great times we had, the meals we shared, and the arguments that had happened. Now, it''s hard to even reminisce every detail of his face, as each time I tried to; It hurts but I still had my memories of him that made it seem less painful.


    Then the next thing you know they''re dragging you towards isolation as we went down the stone steps. I was scared at that moment but now...


    *giggle*


    "What''s so funny?" Said the Knight.


    This Knight was escorting me outside, he saw my sudden chuckle as a result he tugged at my bounded hands with annoyance.


    We passed through the entrance and had leisurely walked within the dim hallway that marked the way outside.


    If prisoners tried to escape, they would have to pass through here. The jail was cleverly made as the cells are set underground and there was only one way through.


    It was this path that led through a guarded hallway that served as home quarters to the jailers. I saw them minding their own business through the slightly opened steel door.


    "Nothing..." I replied.


    The man just scoffed at me as I felt the huff of his breath through his helmet. He was wearing a full-body armor that seemed heavy with each step.


    "What was so funny?" I thought to myself.


    Maybe, it was the irony of the very same halls that brought my imprisonment was now leading me to my freedom.


    "Hey! hurry up!" He ordered.


    As he pushed me towards the light that seeped in-between the metal gate. I hesitated.


    I saw the shimmering light that showered the stony, damp floor. The floor glimmered underneath its influence, which made it seem like there was an entirely different world waiting for me outside.


    He held his hand towards the lever on the wall, pulling it downwards. The creaking of the mechanical process that could be heard faintly from within the walls indicated the lifting of the gate.


    Slowly, it raised as my anxiety rose with it; It was nerve-wracking.


    "Move!" Shouted the Knight.


    He shoved me towards the blinding light. My eyes remained close as I felt the warmth of sunshine.


    "When was the last time I felt the sun?" I muttered to myself.


    I opened my eyes as I caught the vision of the green, clear, and peaceful bailey. What met my eyes a few paces from our location was the blacksmith that hammered against the molten steel beside the barracks.


    The Barracks was a home that kept the new recruits while the stable beside it was filled with horses, chewing away at the haybales which laid in front of them.


    I began to wonder, "What happened to Higime and Ambrose? Will they still talk to me? How are they doing?"


    The Knight moved as he pulled me towards him.


    "Come on! get a move on! we''re going to be late!" He said with a rugged voice.


    I didn''t mind his rude actions as the view from the courtyard of the Fortress made everything seem very peaceful and scenic. Can''t ruin this lovely moment.


    Afar, The battlements were manned with every soldier as the barbican to my right had guards standing below the gate, ready for any intrusion.


    Beyond them was the drawbridge which was lowered covering the moat. As the guard tugged at me again, my eyes shifted towards the left that caught sight of the keep.


    We headed towards it as I saw some of the personnel staring at me with estranged eyes. I felt uncomfortable being the subject of their gaze, I tried ignoring it.


    "Halt! state your business!" Said a guard.


    "Official business, take a look." Replied my escort.


    He passed a document that had been sealed with a red ribbon. The color probably hinted it''s importance but I didn''t know-how.


    "Alright, you''re permitted."


    The guard then immediately said followed by a nod of agreement.


    The grand doors opened slowly that revealed the Great Hall, adorned by war banner, a light-brown banner outlined by a skillfully hand-woven image of a proud bear.


    There was something oddly different about it, it''s ferocious eye had an added detail, it was a crossed outline that indicated it as a scar.


    "Do you like banners?" Said someone familiar.


    I turned to look at the owner of this voice, it was Bardel standing in the middle of the large hall.


    "It''s definitely something..." I replied.


    "Glad you think so."


    I''ve realized that this is the first time I got into the main hall, because before I would use the most discreet way towards my room.


    The banners had been placed on the stone railings of the overhanging path that took a view of the whole area.


    The sun shined through the stained glass-panes, flowing beyond the columns that carried Viscorr lamps facing the hall.


    I stood in awe of the place while my escort attended Bardel.


    "Good job Knight, I''ll take it from here." Said Bardel.


    The knight saluted then passed by as he left me to deal with the Seneschal. I stared at him.


    "How do you like the place so far? First time seeing it?" He questioned.


    The place did not have the kind of grandeur I had hoped for. It had a more functional and minimalist visual, although it was still amazing since it was my first time in an actual castle.


    "The place looks great." I gleefully said.


    "Glad you like it, this Fortress had been around since the First generation of the Bardel family."


    I looked at him quite surprised, so he owned the place?


    "This place had been preserved for a long time, carrying the will of the first Bardel."


    He wore an earnest expression as he went on rambling about the history of his Fortress.


    "Do you see that bear?" He asked.


    I nodded as a reply, I didn''t know how should I interact with this kind of situation. I couldn''t possibly predict was he was thinking.


    "That bear represents peace, courage, and authority--The family banner, carrying our principles and that is what I aim to preserve."


    He stared at me right after his sentence.


    "B-but what does that have to do with me?"


    "I want to see that goal fulfilled and Commander Rhys is convinced that you''ll see to it. It''s one of the reasons why you''ll be free from your cage."


    He closed the gap between us, his voice gradually became authoritative as if commanding me to do so.


    "Just see to it that I won''t regret my decision." He said sternly.


    He stood towering above me while wearing a calm but serious expression that hinted at the graveness of this matter.


    "Y-yes, sir..." I replied meekly.


    "I can''t hear you!" He shouted.


    His thundering voice echoed throughout the Great Hall.


    "YES SIR!" I shouted back.


    "Good! now, let''s go meet the Commander."


    He led me towards the staircase that led the way towards the second floor. We made our way through the hallway, it was decorated with armored statues that held lances pointing at the ceiling.


    Soon we stopped in front of a double-door, this place was the primary room where they held regular meetings. It was clear in my mind since I was here not too long ago, I stared at the corner where I hid and eavesdropped on their conversation from their previous gathering.


    "Hey!" Bardel said.


    As I got surprised by his sudden remark.


    "What are you staring at?" He questioned.


    I began to sweat profusely out of fear, he might probably press me further if I act too weird.


    "N-nothing..." I said anxiously.


    He examined me further, giving me more anxiety than before. I refused to stare at him back as I might give out.


    "Alright! look, just because the old man raised you this doesn''t mean I won''t go hard on you."


    I was quite perplexed by what he meant and which old man was he talking about? Did he mean my father?


    "Get inside!" He ordered.


    He took the bindings off my hands as we came in at the same time. What we met inside were people of high authority within the Liberators.


    They all sat around the round table. The farthest was Commander Rhys, standing beside him was a beautiful woman, her slender and graceful figure was enchanting.


    Her eyes sparkled a bright ruby-red while her braided silky hair laid elegantly on her right shoulder. Definitely the type of woman that could make any man kneel for her.


    "Would please stop fooling around and start getting serious!" Said the woman begrudgingly.


    As she started hitting the Commander with the stacks of paper she was carrying.


    "Alright! Ow! stop hitting me already! I''ll do the paperwork later! I need to talk to Curio!"


    "Promise me you''ll do it later!" She demanded.


    "Fine! I promise!" Replied Rhys.


    I can''t believe there was one person that could tame the wild-spirited commander, I wonder who was she.


    "Can you guys do your lover''s quarrel somewhere else? So Curio can finish reporting his findings?" Said Cordelia.


    She sat to the left of Rhys, quite impatient of what''s happening.


    "So who was this Curio person anyway?" I wondered.


    I started scanning the room for another person who could be Curio, and I finally saw another man sitting idly at the farthest right of the Commander.


    I didn''t notice he was sitting there, as this man had little presence. He had a short and messy hair. He had dark circles underneath his eyes that made him seem lifeless.


    His face had a sullen expression, a thin body that lacked any impressive outlook while he arched forward. It was depressing to look at him.


    He slowly turned towards me, as I caught sight of his full face. It was horrifying as he smirked ever so slightly as he stared at me then tilted his head.


    I turned away out of fear.


    "Ehem!" Bardel tried to catch their attention.


    "You''re here!" Exclaimed Commander Rhys.


    As he said that the others finally turned to us taking notice of our presence.


    "Finally, we''ll make this brief since we have other matters to attend to." He continued.


    "What about Curio and his findings?" Asked Cordelia.


    I turned towards him to see what his reaction would be, he just sat there murmuring without voicing anything.


    "He said that it''s fine, he''ll just continue the issue next time." Said the woman beside Commander Rhys.


    How the heck did she understand that?! It was astonishing as this man didn''t really utter a single word yet she could determine what he said.


    "Alright then Curio, as you wish." Said Commander Rhys.


    Soon this eerie looking man stood and slowly walked out of the room. As Bardel took to one of the seats and sat down while I remained standing before them.


    "Who was that?" I asked.


    "Oh, that was just the head of the Alchemical Company." Said the voluptuous woman.


    "What''s that?" I continued.


    Her eyes widened with bewilderment as she continued.


    "It''s one of the specialized factions within the Liberators?! How come you don''t know?!"


    "I-I..."


    "Pardon her rude behavior, her name is Zia Fluderil the most beautiful woman I''ve ever set eyes upon." Abruptly said by Rhys.


    He then followed his sentence with a wink flying towards the woman. Which then she completely rejects by hitting him on the head while locking him in an armbar.


    "I''m also his Advisor! and this Commander of ours is a well-known womanizer as much as a slacker!" She said quite annoyed.


    "L-let go, please! I''m o-only kidding!" He said while gasping for air.


    They look quite the pair, one was too free-spirited while the other was a stickler for strictness. I guess I couldn''t blame the Commander for choosing her as his advisor.


    As Rhys was freed from the shackles of her robust arm, he breathed out in response and then steadily caught his breath.


    *Cough* *Cough*


    "Okay, it''s now time for business." Continued the Commander.

 30 To Start Anew

    "Start with the formalities Zia!" The Commander ordered.


    "By rule and decree, Liberators code of law shall punish the violator, recruit, Knoxx Abbot of Yorburgen with Eternal Isolation--" Said Zia.


    My eyes widened with fear as I heard "Isolation", she held the formal document with utmost poise and grace. While maintaining a respectable position standing behind the Commander.


    I didn''t want to go back to that hell-hole, any punishment would do as I long I didn''t get stuck there. I can''t spend another day stuck within the confines of that wretched place.


    I don''t want to spend another day stuck in my own mind, as I slowly delved deeper into its void that swallowed me; alone...


    I couldn''t do anything as I desperately rolled my eyes looking at Cordelia. She didn''t even turn to look at my direction as she remained calm and composed.


    "Help me." I kept pleading in my mind as I helplessly stared at her.


    She didn''t budge like she couldn''t care less of what happens to me. I turned to the other officials and they all did the same as they sat idly, listening to the spokesperson.


    I was slowly getting depressed by the situation until the Commander caught my eye. He was mouthing out words that I couldn''t quite catch, but after a short while, I finally understood.


    "It''s just formality." I thought he said.


    Then he gestured two-thumbs-up with both hands until he got smacked on the head again.


    "Ow! Come on..." He said before pausing.


    Zia stared at him with deadly eyes that the Commander had to settle down like a puppy that had been scolded by its mother.


    She then continued to say a load of more formal addresses that made it seem like an eternity. I calmed down a bit after the Commander''s reassurance.


    Even in a serious situation like this, he still acted like a fool.


    "Because of the unprecedented scenarios. The alleged guilty, recruit, Knoxx abbot shall henceforth receive an alternate form of penalty. To prevent such events from happening again."


    *Whew*


    As I let out a deep breath, finally my time for atonement has come.


    "Knoxx Abbot, a servitude of lifetime shall be enacted upon you until deemed so otherwise by the higher authorities from the liberators."


    Well, it''s better than being stuck in a cell for eternity.


    "The alleged guilty shall remain on the Fortress unless foretold otherwise, will receive training and placed within a specialized faction."


    I felt better than before, realizing that I was free from my Isolation. A few moments later, I felt a slight nudge from beside me as I took a look and saw Bardel.


    "Don''t get too comfy, you''re only starting." He said sternly.


    I didn''t get what he meant. So I closed my eyes in reply, trying to ponder what he meant, but I couldn''t.


    As she continued to the final remarks and ended it there.


    "Unraveling secrets?" I thought.


    I pondered well until I felt unnerved, disturbing my thoughts, like a horrifying gaze had laid its eyes upon me; I shivered.


    The chills surged around my body as I slowly turned to the right, there I saw this terrifying-looking man.


    Curio had worn an eerie smirk, his dead, sunken, and slightly blood-shot eyes peeking through the forest that is his hair. His life deprived face seemed even more dreadful when he slowly mouthed the words.


    "See... you... later" as his eyes smiled along with his mouth.


    I was certain of what he said, I wanted to make sure that I avoided him at all costs.


    *Gulp*


    I lowered my head out of fear as the meeting finally adjourned. I couldn''t help but sweat from the thought of what he could do. Since he was the head of the Alchemical company, I imagined a bloody operating room filled with apparatuses that I couldn''t comprehend.


    "Knoxx?"


    That''s right, all I needed to do was stay away from him. Maybe I was better off stuck inside that cell after all--All I need to do was something stupid then I''d be safe again.


    "KNOXX?!"


    I turned to see Cordelia looking at me as I sat scared on the chair. Her hand was on my shoulder, trying to comfort me. She had worn a beautiful burgundy dress, it had long-sleeves, embroidered laces, and loosely cuffed wrists.


    "Are you alright?" She asked quite concerned.


    "I-I''m fine..."


    She rose an eyebrow, it seemed that she didn''t believe what I said.


    "Alright, you''ll be starting your training first thing in the morning and you''ll be staying in the same room again."


    At least I got to stay somewhere comfortable again.


    "I''ll be escorting you there, from now on you can''t really go anywhere without any supervision, but then again everybody has their eyes on you." She said.


    I nodded.


    Before I stood, I took a better look at the whole meeting room. It was filled with all kinds of sheets, papers, and documents. Probably analyzed and collected data.


    The area was slightly messy as some of the chairs had been flooded with papers. On the left side near the entrance was a huge map, marked with red pins and lined with strings.


    Lastly, the right side of the wall was the windows that let through the sunshine, making the specks of dust floating in the air slightly visible; Floating like fairies.


    "Hey, Knoxx!" hollered the Commander.


    As I stood, I heard his voice that resulted in me looking towards him.


    "Cordelia is right. Stay strong kid, people don''t forget easy..." He warned.


    His face wore a concerned expression. As he gestured for us to go while he tended to the many papers that filed in front of him.


    Some people were still probably angry, after all some lost precious people in their lives because of me. There was still that matter and I didn''t know how to change that.


    "You''ll do fine, just be yourself" Comforted Cordelia.


    Curio and Bardel had already left, I felt a little soothed that the scary-looking man had finally left. We soon paved through the gothic Fortress hall, it was large that every few paces were chandeliers that utilized Viscorr for lighting. There were some personnel passing through with disdainful eyes, making their way through the Fortress; I ignored them.


    "What did they mean by unraveling the secrets of my power?" I asked Cordelia.


    She still had that poised and gracious movement of royalty.


    "We''re going to be studying your power Knoxx. There were too many things we don''t know about it, and because of that, it led to the disaster that passed."


    "We? Don''t you mean just you?"


    She raised her hand that slightly trembled when she did. Underneath her cuffs revealed bandages that I think she purposedly tried to hide.


    "Are you ok?"


    "I''m fine..." She replied as she quickly adjusted her cuffs to cover the revealing part of the bandage.


    She was in pain, deliberately hiding her injuries just to fulfill her role. I reached toward it but she pulled her hand quickly.


    "I''m only going to be supervising the study but the man conducting the experiments will be Curio."


    I shivered at the thought of that man. I saw Cordelia staring at me intently.


    "You don''t like him?" She asked.


    "He seems scary..." Honestly, I answered.


    She smiled, followed by a small chuckle while she covered her mouth.


    "Don''t worry Knoxx, he''s a nice man. I doubt he''d hurt you." She reassured.


    "B-But his face?! A-And the way he looked at me..." I shivered at the thought of it.


    "He even said that he would see me later! while looking at me creepily."


    "Well, you''ll see when he calls for you."


    She winked at me, perhaps I''ll find out later, I don''t think she''ll lie to me.


    The corridor was long, from afar, I could see the entrance to that lovely field from awhile ago. The place that overlooked the training field and the forest beyond the Fortress.


    "Knoxx..." Her face had a troubled expression.


    "What is it, Madame?"


    "I..."


    She paused while I waited. I could tell it weighed heavily on her.


    "Y-your father..."


    "I know." I said to her with a straight face.


    "Are you okay? How did you know?" She asked.


    "I''m fine, Hackmann told me before I left the prison." As I forced an awkwardly forced smile on my face.


    She seemed to notice since I didn''t really believe myself either while my hands trembled.


    "You can always talk to me..."


    "Oh no, I''m fine!"


    I shook my head as I tried to immediately brush it off. I knew lying would be useless against her, she could see right through me with her eyes. She didn''t pry any more than she should.


    "D-did you guys at least laid him to rest properly?" I asked as my voice wavered.


    She shook her head in disagreement.


    "We couldn''t find his body when we came back to get you."


    Then could he still be alive? as my mind played around, thinking of the possibilities.


    "Don''t get too happy, Hackmann saw him died..." She said lowly.


    "H-how?" I asked.


    "He was pierced by magic."


    "B-but T-that?!"


    "I know, impossible, that''s why we wanted to know more about your power." She said while staring at me.


    I should know better, I was the one who did the deed. I didn''t want to accept it, even now, I still wished that it was all a dream; painfully, I remembered.


    She patted my back for comfort, assuming I think she knew already that I did it. It only felt worse when she did.


    "It''s a burden to carry, but who knows what could''ve happened if he didn''t stop you."


    "For what it''s worth, one of the reasons why they didn''t confine you was because you found the Princess."


    "Princess?" I thought to myself, I couldn''t think of any possible candidate that could be the Princess until I remembered her. Caramel-colored hair and a beauty mark under her eye.


    I couldn''t forget her.


    Even though I did, it wasn''t enough to make me feel better. I didn''t want to talk about it anymore as a result I thought of ways to avoid the topic.


    "How is she? Is she alright?" I said trying to change the topic.


    "Well, she''s doing better than you. She excelled in most areas of the training."


    She bit the bait...


    Good thing she''s doing great, when I first found her, she was in a terrible state.


    "That''s good, where is she?" I asked.


    She went outside the Fortress to the balcony, with a motion of her hand she invited me outside as she got enveloped by the afternoon sunlight. I followed her as I covered my eyes from the intense brightness that noon brought.


    This was the second time I got here, it was still as mesmerizing as the first time. The moist, grassy field still retained some of its morning dew that shined under the strong sunshine. The cold gust of fall reminded me that winter was coming near while the lone tree growing at the farthest part of the balcony had decaying brown leaves, twirling slowly to the ground.


    I saw Cordelia with her hand laying on the wall by the parapet, looking down the noisy recruits. I closed the gap and took to her side once more.


    "She''s there, look."


    She pointed towards the grouped recruits fighting with various weapons. I followed the direction and saw her there, training with weapon intact.


    "What is she using?" I said quite curious.


    "Ah, that''s her weapon of choice. It''s a ring blade." She said with a hint of fascination.


    "A ring blade?"


    I carefully examined her, but because of the distance, I had to squint really hard just to focus my vision. It was circular in shape just as the name implies, she was moving in erratic roundabout movements.


    "Why is she moving like that?"


    "Well, its a weapon of complexity and distinct style, if not used properly, it can cut the user. She actually found a way to avoid that."


    "Then why would anyone make a weapon like that? isn''t that too hard?"


    "I''m not too sure of its history, but it has varied styles that could prove deadly. She actually chose the hardest one to use, which is called the chakram."


    "What reason made it hard to use?"


    "The outer side of the ring blade is sharp, the only way to hold it, is grasping the inner part."


    "It proved to be one of the difficult weapons we have here, but she found a way to utilize it with her own style." She continued.


    I thought she was a dolled-up princess but it turns out she was the opposite. Even getting high praise from Cordelia herself although she isn''t direct about it. I could tell from her voice that she is.


    It was better to teach her how to protect herself, I guess a defenseless Princess in trouble could prove to be a burden; which reminds me of myself. I''m pathetic...


    "When will I start training again?" I asked as I kept watching the recruits.


    "Tomorrow, a Knight will fetch you from your room."


    I stared at her, hoping that I''ll see her tomorrow.


    "Don''t worry we will see each other, but less often than before."


    It was like she knew what I was thinking, she was incredibly sharp, it was almost terrifying.


    "I won''t be handling the Corr training anymore since I''ll be attending to different matters."


    I nodded slightly despondent, she once one of the people here I could rely on. Guess I''m on my own until I remembered something.


    "Higime..." I muttered.


    "What?"


    "Oh, uh, will I be seeing your daughter? Higime?"


    "She''s a Class two recruit in training already since you left for almost two months, but you''ll see her around, and I''m sure both of you will get to talk."


    "She''s not mad, is she?"


    I looked at her face, she just stared back at me as a reply then she rose both hands dumbfoundedly that indicated she didn''t know.


    "Try asking her yourself, I don''t think I''m in the position to talk about it."


    She was right, but I didn''t have the courage to face her especially after what had happened. I scratched my head out of helplessness.


    "Well, we better get going, I have matters to attend to."


    I nodded in agreement as we went back inside then turned to the left of the corridor where my room was. Within a few moments later, she let me inside the room.


    "This is where we part ways."


    "Yeah, thank you."


    "Your welcome," She smiled.


    "No, seriously, thank you for everything..." As I lowered my head.


    "Don''t thank me, I just owed your father a great deal and if you want to be sorry; don''t. Prove yourself."


    "Oh, I almost forgot," she continued.


    She was patting her pockets then pulled something out from it. It was opaque that dimly glowed in the middle, I remembered its misshapen figure that looked like its other half had been carefully torn off as it didn''t have any rough edges.


    "Don''t lose it this time, I took time to research about it--"


    "The stone on it is rare, I couldn''t categorize it. Keep it since its probably one of a kind and the only remembrance of your heritage," She followed.


    I remember last wearing it when I was in that underground place, someone must have found it. I took it from her hand and gazed at its beautiful light.


    "Who found this?"


    "Harrison Trawly, if you''re thinking of thanking him, maybe think twice."


    As she bid farewell, I close the door to my room and pocketed the necklace. She meant to warn me because I know that man would get hostile especially towards me.


    I scanned the area as everything was the same from the wardrobe, to the bed and the table with a chair beside it. Except for the mirror on the wardrobe door and a stack of books on the tabletop. I took my chair and placed it near the window sill, I wanted to feel the warm sunlight as I watched the people outside, tiring themselves with training.


    "I wonder..." I muttered to myself.


    I remember Cordelia saying that I had a peculiar mark somewhere on my neck. I took the necklace to my neck while I scanned for anything that seemed like a marking. Finally, I noticed underneath my left ear was a slight glowing mark. Its shape was something tribal or native, was it a symbol? a letter? did it have any sort of meaning? Someday, I''ll find out since I couldn''t discern the meaning of its shape, and with that, I wore it then headed to bed.

 31 The Fortress

    "Argh, I have to get up early," I grunted.


    Slowly, I sat upright and rubbed my eyes. I stood to walk towards the window, I opened it, the breeze of fall came in enveloping my upper body with a sudden chill. I gazed at the view for a few moments since it felt familiar then I remembered my own window back at Yorkburgen, I was a little homesick, but I had no home to return to. Bardel Fortress was the closest thing to home I had.


    I shrugged off these trivial feelings and went to open the wardrobe, there I saw a number of garments but below the hanging clothes was a box. I pulled it out and saw my clothes from home, the one I wore the day we escaped. It looked like it had been washed since the faint smell of lemons was emanating from it.


    I took the boots with my right hand and took a change of clothes with my left then proceeded to dress properly. I tightened my boots, buttoned my shirt, and dusted my pants. I went to face the mirror while trying to fix my ginger curly hair which was hard because the hair was tangled.


    The necklace was resting steadily on my chest as I stared at it. I pulled my hair back just to see the marking on my neck but to my expectation, it wasn''t there.


    "Hmm..."


    Does it only show when exposed to Viscorr? plus how in the world did a person put this on my neck? I took my necklace near my ear since it was there I last remember its location.


    *Knock* *Knock*


    "Chowhall Recruit! on the double!"


    Shouted by the person beyond my door, It was probably one of the daily employed knights to supervise over me. I tapped the tip of my boots on the floor, trying to make sure they fit before I step outside.


    I opened the door only to leave me surprised, stupefied, and shocked.


    "What?!" He threatened.


    My eyes laid examining this person in front of me, he stood slightly taller than me, and I wasn''t any higher than five feet, five inches tall. That shaven side of his head that faded away to the bottom, folded right sleeve to expose his tattooed arm and those fierce-looking brown eyes. It was Harrison Trawly, otherwise known as Hackmann.


    "N-Nothing," I said in reply.


    "Come on," He said followed by a gesture.


    He turned around and went walking without leaving me a chance to catch up. From the moment I caught sight of him, I knew that he wasn''t liking the situation. I hurriedly tried to catch up to his pace but he was deliberately speeding away from me.


    "W-wait," I pleaded.


    He stopped midway and then turned stomping towards me. I could tell from his expression he was not happy, by happy, I mean really irritated. Our faces met as the awkwardness stirred within me that I couldn''t help but avert my eyes.


    "Don''t get too comfy kid, I don''t like this as much as you do so shut the fuck up, and follow me."


    I nodded out of fear as his intimidating face made me really queasy, he turned around as we descended down the steps to the Great Hall of the Fortress. There was a buckler hanging behind his back, it was shiny, indicating it was still new.


    We turned to the right, there was a large hall that continued, it was filled with Knights and personnel of every kind. Most of them were humans, but every now and then were other races.


    "Welcome to the Chow hall, here everyone can get a hearty meal despite rank. They serve breakfast, luncheon, and supper."


    Although he wasn''t enjoying himself, he still did a great job of introducing this place to me. I think Sir Bardel put him up to this, what were they thinking. I can hardly think of us getting along.


    The Chow Hall was just a bigger version of a tavern, it was meant to house a lot of people at once. Tables, and chairs lined from our side all the way to the other end while Viscorr chandeliers numbered the ceiling.


    Bardel banners hanging on the walls in between the windows, it was separated by the bar in the middle, where people lined up to grab food. A top of the bar was a stained glass that shone bright colors inside the central area.


    We soon moved deeper into the bustling tavern towards the bar. Afar, I could see a big man serving the meals for each individual that passed by to get a meal.


    "Over there, is a way into the Barracks," He pointed.


    As my eyes rolled towards the direction he pointed at, I bumped into someone passing through, He was probably one of the recruits.


    "I''m sorry," I said.


    He just stared at me while nodding, then proceeded to move away.


    "Well, that was rude," I thought to myself.


    He had a peculiar look, short, and dark-purple hair that had bangs covering one side of his forehead. Glasses that hid his steel-gray eyes underneath that matched intricately with his pale skin. As he moved farther away I could tell he was almost the same height as Hackmann.


    "Hey! Recruit! Eyes over here!"


    Hackmann pulled towards his direction.


    "Pay attention, you insolent little brat!"


    "R-right, I''m sorry"


    "As I was saying, over there is the Barracks."


    He pointed towards the end of the Chow Hall, there were double doors that had a sign above saying Barracks. After he made sure I knew where it was, we made our way towards the bar that was manned by a few people.


    It was busy as they kept moving, serving the hungry men and women that lined in front. It was a wide bar that could hold twenty people that wished to eat there, behind the counter had a lot of kitchenware and the person cooking inside the counter was a big man with long braided hair.


    Beyond him was a small window peaking into the main kitchen, there was one way to the back, and it was the pathway on both ends of the bar. I guess bigger orders were made inside the main kitchen while the small cooking area the large man was using was probably for single orders.


    "This is the bar, you get your food here. They''re only open for three meals a day exactly."


    "Anyway ask that big guy for your meal," He said.


    He went zooming away as he said that, Didn''t even give me a chance to speak as I hesitantly approach the bar to line up. After a long while, I could finally ask for a meal. I didn''t know how to approach this man.


    "U-Uhm, excuse me..." I meekly said.


    The man didn''t really pay much attention as he was conversing with the other chefs through the small window. The clashing of his spatula and the pan didn''t really help my situation.


    "Hello?"


    No answer. His gaze was fixated on the frying of ingredients. He was large, in a sense of mass, or should I say big as his braided hair fell on his broad back.


    "EXCUSE ME! SIR!" I shouted.


    I became impatient and accidentally shouted instead of gradually raising my voice. Surprise at the height of my voice, he ceased his actions. The working men wore a shocked expression as they deliberately stared at me, I looked beside me and saw the same facial expressions from the people that surrounded me.


    The hungry people eating on the bar stopped midway too, mouths full and slowly gulped their food. The man behind me leaned towards my ear.


    "Y-You shouldn''t have said that," He trembled while saying so.


    My face was completely flabbergasted. I didn''t know what I did.


    "Why? did I do something wrong?" I asked.


    "Check for yourself, good luck." He whispered.


    He pointed behind me as his eyes shifted. I turned around saw this big man.


    "Did you just call me Sir?!" He asked.


    "I-I..."


    "I SAID! DID YOU JUST CALL ME SIR?!"


    I stared at him trying to process at what he meant until I realized that those huge pecs weren''t pecs. His muscular look had soft hints of female features on them.


    How could a woman look so much like a man? her face was rugged that had few facial hairs? Her body was muscular that it was scary, her chest resembled refined bricks and those coarse hands.


    "N-No, I meant--"


    "HOW COULD YOU CALL A FAIR MAIDEN! SIR?!"


    I slowly backed away as she leaned onto my face wearing a disfigured look out of aggression.


    "I-I''m sorry, I didn''t know," I amended.


    Soon she fell on the floor then started bawling. I couldn''t do anything as I tried making things right with her, despite her tough look, she was really sensitive. While I was busy trying to make her feel better, I heard the bitter voices from the crowd.


    "That kid is new."


    "Poor Bertha..."


    "I can''t blame the recruit, it''s his first time."


    I lifted myself from leaning onto the counter and gazed towards the other men besides me.


    "Can you help me?" I asked desperately.


    He shook his head in disagreement then started bolting away with his tray. I took a look around and saw that the people had distanced themselves from me. They were already a few meters away but I didn''t know the reason why.


    "Hey, Kid!" Shouted a nearby man.


    My eyes shifted to my caller, there a man stood with his arms crossed on his chest. He wore an apron that said, "Kiss the cook." He was standing before the crying woman.


    "You better run kid."


    "W-what?!" I said quite perplexed.


    "If you want to live, run." He warned.


    The ground trembled slightly, gradually increasing in force, I had trouble regaining my balance. The now eerily quiet bertha was standing behind me, I felt shivers down my spine as I continued to bolt away.


    I didn''t take any chances to turn around, I knew what was coming for me and she could easily crush my small body.


    "COME BACK HERE!" Bertha shouted.


    The constant tremors followed me, I ran towards the Barracks entrance since it was the closest escape I could make. Right before I slipped through the doors, I bumped into one of the recruits.


    "Sorry!" I shouted in a hurry.


    I didn''t take my time apologizing since there was a loose behemoth behind my back. But, I caught glimpse of her, she had curly blonde hair that was pigtailed and had a tanned skin color.


    When I arrived inside, I paid no mind to the girl as I slammed the doors shut and barred it from the barracks side.


    *THUD!* *BANG!*


    The double-doors shook from the force outside, I stood wearily looking at the door that might break down.


    "OPEN THE DOOR!" She shrieked with a deep voice.


    I waited for her to stop before I let out a sigh of relief.


    "Maybe, I''ll apologize to her when she calms down," I muttered to myself.


    As I turned around, I saw the large crowd of recruits staring at me. Most of them were dripping with sweat while some are taking a rest on the floor.


    The large area had training dummies aligned on the right, weapon racks were on the opposite side and finally, there was a spiral staircase on the farthest right corner.


    Above was the four levels of lodging as sunlight shone through the glass roof, brightening the training arena in the middle of the barracks where most of them stood.


    "Do you guys mind telling me where the exit is?" I asked awkwardly.


    There was one guy pointing towards the farthest left, I heeded his instruction and went towards that direction. Finally, I was outside, the fresh breeze helped my breathing.


    Inside the barracks was drowning, the pungent smell of sweat was overwhelming that I held my breath almost immediately. Thank Gaia, I was lucky enough to have my own room.


    As I felt the fresh air seeping through my nostrils, there was something that I thought I had forgotten, but I didn''t know what. My face molded into disfiguration as I kept trying to remember what was it that I forgot.


    Until someone tapped on my shoulder, I turned around to see who it was, but as I saw his face I didn''t know who he was. Somehow he was familiar but I couldn''t put my mind into it.


    "Are you lost?" He asked.


    "Well, not really."


    "You''re a recruit too right? Aren''t you coming to training today?"


    That''s when it hit me, I completely have forgotten, I was supposed to have a meal then head to the training grounds.


    "I am! I completely forgot about the training!" I worried.


    "Are you a Class 3 recruit?"


    "Yeah, I am."


    "Alright, Why don''t you head to the training grounds with us?"


    He smiled lightly, as the people behind him were obliging me to come with them. I stared at them and thought was it really this easy? to make friends?


    "I..." I hesitated.


    "What''s wrong?" He asked.


    "N-Nothing. Alright, let''s go." I happily replied.


    Soon we made out merry-way towards the training grounds. They were friendly that made me feel comfortable around them as they kept striking topics for conversation. This indicated a new start for me, I wanted to make things right.

 32 The Fortress: Part Two

    The field we were waiting in was surrounded by a sea of trees, from beyond it was the refreshing breeze, cooling our bodies with its soft touch. There were weapon racks in place and arrow targets arranged.


    "I''m (blank) by the way."


    This character held out his hand, along with it was a bright smile and warm eyes that seemed very kind. As I was about to do the same, the noise came stirring from the crowd of recruits who took our attention.


    As I turned to look at the ongoing situation, there, I saw a stern-looking man. I guess Bardel doesn''t train the recruits anymore, but judging from Cordelia''s situation, He would be in the same boat as she is.


    "All recruits! Fall in line!" He shouted.


    The trainees went running to align themselves.


    "Let''s go."


    The kind guy beside me went away and his group of friends followed him, I did the same, following him to the formation.


    "As you all know some of you are recently recruited from the Black Market incident--" He paused.


    As he paused, memories of the past came through my mind that brought horrible experiences. My eyes wandered to my fellow recruits, some had eyes filled with disdain while others remained neutral on the matter.


    The remaining were despondent, hopeful, and random. I couldn''t express how guilty I was of what happened, their faces exuded the feelings that they went through. I wanted to say something, but I couldn''t make the words that would make this right. Plus, I don''t think they would want to hear it from the one who murdered most of their families; especially their homes.


    *Cough!*


    He coughed so that he''d willingly take their attentions, but it worked.


    "While some of you are previous recruitees that failed, this will be another chance for you all to prove yourselves."


    "Welcome Class 3 recruits! I usually start the training with a simple introduction!"


    There were at least fifty recruits lined laterally, facing him, standing stiff in respect. The instructor started to pace from left to right while keeping his arms crossed behind him. It revealed his large stomach that protruded through his shirt.


    His face seemed flushed with heavy eyes, brazenly looking at us. It looks like he was drunk. I could only discern this truth as he slightly wobbled when he walked. He was a well-rounded man especially with weight, but he wasn''t that tall; Average per se.


    "You all have a reason to be here, whether it be revenge, love, power, or improvement."


    He started his pep-talk which was the opposite of Bardel who went for action straight away. I could hear faint murmurs a few paces away.


    "Is that man goin'' to teach us?"


    They started chuckling, making fun of the plump man, couldn''t really blame them but others started mocking him. His greasy looking appearance didn''t really help make him look respectable.


    "NONE OF THAT MATTERS!" He shouted.


    Soon, he sauntered his way towards the laughing recruits, facing them with a serious look in his eye. It slightly glinted.


    "What''s so funny?" He said.


    "Nothin'' Sir!"


    He had a rugged look, a hairstyle that was eccentric. It was shaved on both sides, leaving him a long braided mohawk flowing towards his back that matched his long graying beard, which was divided into four equal parts that laid all the way to his chest; It was intimidating.


    "Is that right?" He asked.


    "Yes! Sir!" The recruits replied that followed a salute.


    "Hmm..."


    Then he started laughing in front of the recruits which was paused every now and then. It was because he belched in between. The recruits were slightly backing away while holding their noses.


    "I like kids like you! So, you think I''m funny huh?! Is my belly too podgy for you?"


    His laughing was hysterical, the recruits couldn''t help but laugh along with him and soon the remaining recruits did the same.


    "Go grab a weapon," He said sternly.


    His mustache nudged slightly the moment he said that I couldn''t look away either and I wasn''t the only one.


    "W-What?" They said in unison.


    "GO! GRAB! A! WEAPON!" He shouted.


    "ENJOYING THE VIEW!? GET BACK TO POSITION YOU PESTS!" He pointed towards us.


    We hurriedly went back to position, I thought he was going to be really easy-going but it looks like I''ll be in a world of pain.


    "WHAT ARE YOU TWO WAITING FOR!? GO GRAB A WEAPON?!"


    The recruits hurried towards the weapon racks and each of them took hold of a weapon. They held standard dull training swords.


    "Now! To position you, insufferable ingrates! Take stance! Face each other!"


    They took arms, facing one another. The Instructor had picked up a branch from the ground that gave him a hard time since his large stomach was blocking the way. He neared the two recruits then deliberately smacked them into position.


    "Your form is too weak! Straighten your back! Hold the sword on chest level!"


    He asked for their names then made them fight. As the were sparring, He was barking orders from afar while drinking from a small container that he kept safe hanging on his side.


    "You fools think that you can fight properly! Each and every one of you slobs is too ignorant!" He said with displeasure.


    "Laugh if you think you have the talent or strength to back it up!"


    "Form is sloppy! Is this the trash that the Liberators could muster up! Pathetic!"


    "Better give up now than waste your life dying!"


    I could tell that one of the sparring recruits had enough of this laughable lardy man. Right after, he took a large swing, he continued to do so that he spun to deliberately hit the loud Instructor.


    To our surprise, even while drinking, he took the impact of a full three-sixty swing of a sword with just his left finger. Then he let loose a loud belch that followed after.


    "What do you think you are doing? Scum?" He threatened.


    His brows furrowed that clearly offended him, on the other hand, the recruit was awe-struck and dumbfounded by his strength. This recruit was prideful, in a sense that he stood taller and bulkier than his target which was probably why he looked down on him.


    "Big mistake recruit."


    He took the sword by its dull blade and shoved it towards the cocky recruit, the hilt dove deep in his stomach that made his drop on all fours.


    "I am Weylham Oughtlawe! Now! Whoever is stupid enough to do the same as this poor lad will meet the same fate!"


    "Sir, Yes Sir!" Everyone shouted in unison.


    "Well, what are you all waiting for?! Go grab a weapon!"


    As everyone moved towards the weapon racks, there was a figure that came late from behind him. To my surprise, it was the same quiet recruit from the Chow Hall.


    "So you''ve decided to show yourself?" Said Instructor Weylham.


    The recruit didn''t answer.


    As I took to the weapon racks, I heard faint murmurs of other recruits.


    "I know that fat man..."


    "Well? Who''s the chubby bloke? He acts as if he owns the place."


    "That''s the former owner of the Fortress, He''s known for being strict when training recruits. Word is, he retired from being a mercenary."


    "But I thought Sir Bardel owned the place? Is he a Bardel too? Wonder why he''s back?"


    So this fat man might be related to Bardel? I could see some resemblance, but it feels highly unlikely. That opinion seems forced or forged. The Bardel I knew was admirable, respected, and honorable, but this man being a Bardel seemed preposterous because he stood opposite of what a Bardel is supposed to be.


    He may have been strict, but in the other aspects, he failed to show any promise that he came from the respectable Bardel family.


    "WELL RECRUIT?! YOU''VE NOTHING TO SAY?!"


    His thunderous voice took my attention away from the gossiping recruits, I turned to the sight of him scolding the late newcomer. The recruit had a blank expression, his glasses reflected the sunlight that shadowed his face with his hair blowing in the wind.


    "I see..." Said Instructor Oughtlawe.


    It was an odd sight, he stood motionless, like a tree, but somehow his eyes never diverted away. As if all of his focus was directed at what he''s staring.


    "Even so! You came late! anyone who comes in late will receive a punishment! I''ll make an example out of you," He pointed at the recruit.


    "Choose a weapon!"


    The recruit nodded then proceeded to march towards the weapon racks. Emotionless, straight-forward, and calm. He felt more like a machine than a human being. As he got to the weapon racks he took a bow and quiver filled with arrows.


    Sir Oughtlawe, despite his aggressive demeanor and laidback expression; He was keenly observing the recruit, as the glint in his eyes hinted at something. Something that only he could discern from the recruit.


    "Do you know how to shoot?" He asked.


    The recruit nodded.


    "Then show me."


    The man pointed towards the farthest target within the shooting range, it was adjacent to the weapon racks, so he moved towards it to get in position. The bright, red, circular target was at least fifty meters away, and it was windy. It seemed like an impossible feat.


    The recruit began to take a deep breath, as he sighed, he nocked an arrow and placed it on top of the bow as he stretched his hands into position. Everyone was quiet, we, the viewers watched his sheer intensity and focus. He never blinked, his face retained the same expressionless fashion.


    The calm surrounding was unnerving as everybody waited for him to fire the shot. As the wind blew in a breeze that carried leaves from the trees; The arrow went firing straight away without any intrusion.


    "YOU THERE!"


    I turned towards Sir Oughtlawe with a surprised expression. I lifted my finger towards myself, carrying a slight hint of doubt.


    "M-Me?" I asked.


    "Yes, you! go check on the arrow!"


    "Yes! Sir!" I replied.


    Without a moment of hesitation, I frantically ran towards the farthest haybale that had a red circular mark on it. After a few moments, I was nearing the target, but to my expectations, there was no arrow.


    "Well, I didn''t really expect a long shot from a recruit," I said to myself.


    I turned around and waved my hands around to signal that it was a miss. Then the instructor motioned towards me to go farther.


    "What was he talking about?" As I scratched my head.


    I went farther, looking for the whereabouts of the arrow. Beyond it was the forest, it was peaceful with a hint of singing birds in the early morning. A few minutes as I entered the sea of trees, something caught my eye, a bright red object hanging from the tree.


    "A-An apple?"


    As I came closer to inspect, It was an apple tree with several apples hanging about ready for picking.


    "H-How?!"


    Awestruck, I saw the arrow in the middle of its trunk. On the arrow shaft was a bright red apple, its juicy contents were coating it. The apple was pierced in the middle. The tree was at least ten meters away from the target itself. How in the world did he spot that?


    I took the arrow and swiped another apple along with it. It''s enticing brightness took over me since I didn''t eat anything for breakfast, I felt my stomach growl a little bit. I strolled out and hurriedly ate the apple, I wouldn''t dare eat in front of that old geezer.


    After some time, I finally made my way back with the quiet recruit doing push-ups.


    "Sir! Look! you were right!" I gleefully remarked.


    His eyes widened, which was followed by a confident smirk. How could he have possibly seen that happened? it was covered by the vast number of trees that it was barely visible.


    "I guess you have talent! But! Don''t think for a second that I''ll be treating you differently! Keep working!"


    The recruit didn''t even reply and kept to his task. Meanwhile, he took two students, made them choose their own respective weapons then made them spar against each other. The same process continued until it was finally my turn.


    I worried because I was useless with any kind of weapon, each time I sparred with Higime; I lost, horribly. I admit that with my fairly less than average physique, I couldn''t really face against a Faustian; The pinnacle of physical brawn. It was like a mouse facing a tiger.


    As I slowly panicked, but at the same time bracing myself for the strict old man and his punishment. I felt a slight tap on my shoulders that made me turn. It was the same nice guy that I befriended earlier, he threw a small gesture as he smiled.


    "Nervous? Don''t be..."


    "T-thank you," I said slightly soothed by his words.


    Well, I better expect the worst. We faced each other in position, I stared at the field behind us where the finished recruits kept their sparring going while the rest still waited at the line from where we came from.


    "Choose a weapon! Anythin'' will do!" Sir Oughtlawe barked.


    I immediately went to the weapon rack and kept rummaging around for anything good to swing with that wasn''t too heavy for me. As I took my time searching for a perfect weapon, my eyes wandered to my opponent to which he held a slim but dull-edged rapier that laid comfortably on his right hand.


    "What are you waiting for!?" He barked again.


    This time I knew his patience was wearing thin so I just grabbed a standard sword. I sauntered towards my position as I faced my opponent directly opposite of me. He was (physical description) that carried the elegant sword with poise.


    Instructor Oughtlawe took to his position which was in between us.


    "The winner will announce his name first then proceed training with the others while the loser will do the same but will do fifty push-ups."


    *Sigh*


    I already knew I was going to lose so I might as well get this over with.


    "To your positions!"


    I took the standard short sword stance that I barely remembered from the classes of Sir Bardel. On the other hand, my opponent looked confident as I slightly stumbled into position.


    "BEGIN!"


    As he chopped his hand into the air to signal the start then moved away. My opponent immediately charged towards me with the dull-pointed end.


    *Clang!*


    The clash of steel made me stumble away as I barely parried his attack. The flurry of thrusts he threw against me was insanely difficult to dodge and block. I stared at him with desperation as I saw his confident expression.


    I bet he could''ve ended this faster if he wanted it, but I wonder why he didn''t? Was he testing me? It was frustrating.


    Finally, he ended the fight, leaving me on the ground tasting the dry dirt and grass in defeat. As I turned to look as he wore a satisfied face, standing atop me with pride. He held his hand out then I grabbed it as he pulled me to stand.


    "Name?!" Said the old man.


    "My name is (blank)."


    "You?!" He pointed towards me.


    "Knoxx Abbot, sir!"


    "Nice to meet you!" I continued.


    I held my hand towards him, but he didn''t do the same as his eyes widened, staring at me like some sort of monster.


    As I tried to formally meet him, I felt a dreadful atmosphere all around me. I finally understood the situation as I saw the fellow recruits surrounding me. They all wore a distasteful expression, full of contempt and disdain.


    "Hmm, another trouble maker! Now drop and give me fifty!"


    I threw myself on the ground as I tried to ignore all that horrible energy against me. It was unnerving to feel all of those feelings pitted towards me. All that anger I could feel piercing through me with each passing moment that I could hear their voices in my head.


    Even that guy who was nice to me had a hint of unnerved aura while gazing at me. Although, he still wore that same smile he had earlier despite knowing who I was; it felt forced.


    Until the sunset, the Instructor finally dismissed us from our training. Our group and other classes made its way towards the drawbridge, I could already feel the piercing gazes of fellow recruits around me. No one came near me that I had a radius of space as I walked.


    (Blank) never spoke to me ever since we introduced each other, come to think of it I never saw him even in training. The feeling of loneliness was eating me, it was unnerving because it was something familiar.


    Familiar in a sense that I''ve felt it before, inside the prison cells below the Fortress. This was still a bit bearable and I could handle it, but I couldn''t help but feel a bit envious when I saw other people together.


    When I finally reached the drawbridge, there was a commotion going on. The students grouped themselves directly below the gates, the sea of men and women from different classes got stuck there.


    I tried squeezing myself inside but there were too many people. I figured that since not all of them stared at me with the intent of killing me yet, I guess the word hasn''t spread out.


    I looked at the person beside me and tried to ask him.


    "What? you don''t know? Apparently, there''s a fight going on."


    "Do you know who?" I asked.


    "I think it''s that quiet guy and another recruit."


    There was only one quiet guy that I could discern, I knew for certain that it was that person. Maybe I''ll just try to find another way inside. Right before I turned around, I heard a familiar voice; It was (blank).


    I could only hear his voice shouting amongst the crowd, it felt distressed. I hope that maybe it wasn''t him in that fight. I shoved, squeezed, and forced myself through the mass number of people.


    When I got there I finally saw him, he was partially beaten up while the quiet guy was in good shape.


    "Hey! (Blank) are you alright?"


    He turned to look towards me since I caught his attention.


    "Stay away! that guy is dangerous!" He motioned his hand for me to stay away.


    The opponent stayed expressionless of the matter. I couldn''t leave my friend in such a perilous situation that I had to interfere.


    "Stay away! This fight is over!" I screamed.


    "You emotionless bastard! You tried attacking my friends!" (Blank) shouted.


    After that, the crowd started booing the opposite in agreement, but there he still stood with a blank expression then went away inside. As I tried to take the victim''s side his friends held a horrible expression towards me.


    "Are you al--"


    "Stay away," Said one of his friends.


    They continued to surround him then tended to his needs. I couldn''t impose and force myself into their group, but I''ve already done my job so I left. What followed was a couple of knights that passed by to assess the situation, but they were already too late.


    As I passed through the gatehouse, I turned right and waited there. I wanted to make sure that they''d bring my friend towards the infirmary, after a few moments they came assisting their friend.


    "Get better soon..." I whispered.


    I pondered why did our fellow recruit would do that? He never struck me as an aggressive type. Nevertheless, it was still horrible maybe I''ll confront him when I see him.


    Soon, I passed through the bailey and went to the right side of the great hall.


    *Clang* *Clang*


    The insistent clanging of metals was resounding inside my head as I passed by the blacksmith. His muscles were aching and I could see the vein trembling on his biceps with each strike. The process in which he was going through was fascinating.


    He didn''t even bother to look at me as he continued to hone the metal into shape. I always saw him every day making weapons, it was probably because he had a lot of orders from the Liberators.


    After a short while of admiring his craft, I left. There was a wooden stair in between the Blacksmith area and the way to the Great Hall. It leads directly into the second floor of the hall and was the shortest route to take towards my room.


    This was the same path that I kept taking even the month before, it was just so peaceful passing through here as people rarely went this way. Slowly, I stepped onto the stairs and made my way towards my room. The orange sunset was seeping into the hallway windows.


    I didn''t think of grabbing a meal since I was very tired, I just wanted to rest on my bed. Besides, I don''t think I''ll ever get a meal until I apologize to that woman. Thinking about her made me shudder a little bit. Tomorrow is going to be much harder, I knew, it made me feel anxious since I didn''t know how to handle it.


    "I''ll just deal with it tomorrow," I muttered to myself.


    There were guards everywhere inside the Fortress that I think they didn''t felt the need to assign one to me. Basically, I didn''t feel any sense of privacy with the exception when I''m inside my room.


    *Creak!*


    The creaking of my bedroom door broke the silence within the halls, finally, I was safe. I hurriedly untied my shoes and threw the boots to the side; I hopped onto the bed and laid myself there. Today was crazy, but tomorrow will be even worse.


    As my eyes slowly fell to a close, I felt something was amiss. I couldn''t fall asleep, that thing kept bugging my mind, as a result, I sat upright. After a few minutes, my head felt a little heavy that it slowly tilted down.


    "What?!"


    My neck felt light and that was probably the reason, I kept looking for the necklace everywhere, but to no avail; I couldn''t find it.