Chapter 3: Their Reliance on Fate

A cold breeze blew by, shaking the wind chimes hanging by the window of a small wooden house tucked away under the shadow of a small, sloping hill covered in snow. It was completely silent. Suddenly a hooded man wrapped up in a dark blue cloak steps onto the porch of the house, looking down into a valley below him, covered in mist.

Suddenly he shakes slightly and bares his teeth. The hood he was wearing fell, revealing his stern face, wrinkled with hard lines over the years. His white hair pierced his balding head, and a pointed white beard grew on his small chin.

“Something’s happened, I can feel it in the air…” the old man whispers to himself. He clutches his heart with his right hand, while he holds a set of Tobis by in his other hand.

~

Meanwhile in Ellinia, Grendel the Really Old stood upon a balcony in his magical library high above town. Around him, birds dashed about rapidly, singing and chirping cheerfully in the bright sunlight peeping in through the boughs of the trees among them.

He stood with his hands together behind his back, staring out into space absentmindedly. Suddenly he turned to face a young girl wrapped in a Dark Anakarune. A matching Dark Seraphis sat lopsided on her head, while in her hands she carried a glowing white Thorns.

“Lilyin…you said your name was? The four masters of this island Victoria are sending their best pupils out to Ossyria to stop the possibility of this deadly threat, this boy from the Dekira clan prophesized to destroy us all. Dances With Balrog has already sent forth a Crusader, a Hermit, and a Ranger. I have many, many young mages seeking the honor of me sending them out to Ossyria. What makes you think I’d choose you, almost a novice compared to some of the other mages I’ve seen and met?”

The girl named Lilyin straightened the Seraphis she wore over her dark long, straight hair. She clasped the Thorns tightly in her hand and pounded the bottom tip of it on the wooden floor beneath her. “Because I am not savage like the others. I do not intend to kill this person we seek.”

Grendel turned and stared at her keenly and unblinkingly. “You do not want to kill him? How can that be…when he wants to kill us? He will be the end of us if we do not do something.”

“I’m a Cleric, Grendel, not a ruthless Ice or Fire Mage. I have compassion even for the worst people. I believe that I can turn him to work for us. Lately the Crimson Balrogs have been raiding ships to Ossyria and back more and more, and I think I can persuade him to help us, not destroy us,” Lilyin replies.

Grendel considers her for a moment. “That is an option we the Masters have never even considered. But it is certainly possible. If we can turn this foe to friend, then we might just have gained a powerful new weapon. And surely with that, Victoria Island will enter years and years of prosperity once again.”

~

Surixin wearily clambered onto the crest of yet another hill, breathing heavily. His breath came out almost tangibly in the cold frost as he neared El Nath. The Jr. Grupin, his pet, barked furiously as a Leatty approached, staring at Surixin fixedly.

Surixin ruthlessly nailed the Leatty with two stars, one for each eye. The blinded Leatty fell to the ground, shuddered, and then remained motionless. Surixin stared down at the dead creature, with a fiery rage blazing in his eyes. “I will have my revenge upon those people who killed my mother…I vow to do so. But first I have to find out…what exactly is going on.”

~

Radus and Ashn walked side by side, their faces pale after witnessing the murder of their friend. “How could such a little kid do so much damage, enough as to kill Iiam?” Radus muttered.

“I still can’t believe Iiam is dead, gone forever…we should’ve done something. We should’ve followed that kid and beaten him to a pulp,” Ashn replied angrily. He snarled as he drew out a Steely and threw it up and down.

“The kid’s obviously a prodigy. He doesn’t know it yet, but he’s a lot more powerful than we would’ve thought. I wonder…might he be…?” Radus retorted.

Ashn quickly glanced over at Radus. “No…he couldn’t…a little kid like that?”

“We really should’ve followed him then,” Radus announced. “Now we don’t know where he is. He could be headed to Victoria as we speak.”

“If that’s the case, then we’ve gotta get back quick, and warn them. We should bring back reinforcements, help us track the kid down. I must say, he’s pretty strong…” Ashn gritted his teeth angrily as he spoke.

As both Radus and Ashn entered town, they found nearly the entire population in an uproar. There was a large crowd gathered by the station, and the two of them quickly sprang toward the scene.

“What the hell’s going on? A monster raid?” Ashn snarled angrily. “Get out of the way, people! You’re pissing me off!”

“You’re always such the smooth talker,” Radus replied, rolling his eyes. He stares forward on his tiptoes, peering over the crowd. “Ugh…I can’t see a thing either.”

Suddenly Ashn reached forward and stabbed several people in front of them with his claw, knocking them onto the floor. He stepped over them without hesitating and made his way to the front of the crowd.

“Sometimes Ashn worries me,” Radus murmured to himself. He followed Ashn and blinked furiously as he read the sign posted over the ticketing booth.

“All ships to and from Victoria Island are cancelled until further notice?!” Radus shouted. “But…we need to get back to Victoria!”

~

Back in Ellinia, the girl named Lilyin peered out from the rear of a large crowd gathered on Ellinia station. Many of them of whispering loudly.

“Hm…so I guess it seems like flights to and from Orbis are cancelled. I assume it must be the Balrogs again. They are beginning to become such a nuisance. But how am I gonna get to Orbis? Grendel’s counting on me…” Lilyin muttered to herself.

Suddenly she struck herself on the top of her head with her left hand. “Duh! I’m a Magician!” Lilyin drew forth her staff, and with a slight wave of it, the staff suddenly sprouted wings. She leapt onto the staff and it took off immediately, flying through the air effortlessly as if it were really a bird.

“Orbis, here I come!” Lilyin shouted into the sky. “Whoever this kid is that I’m looking for, he definitely doesn’t seem like a piece of cake. It’s gonna take a lot of convincing to bring him on our side…hopefully I can get to him before the others get to him first. Who knows…who knows what might happen after that?”

~

Surixin sat down on top of a short peak. In front of him lay a long valley, littered with snow covered rocks. Far ahead past the valley lay the town of El Nath. As Surixin stared at the town so far ahead, little columns of smoke seemed to rise into the air from chimneys in town.

“I have to go see Arec…my mother said he would have the answers I seek…” Surixin thought to himself. Suddenly he turned as he heard distinct footsteps behind him, the snowshoes crunching in the snow.

“Hello Surixin; I’ve been expecting you. Come, please follow me to my home. I may have answers to questions you need answers to.”

Next—Chapter 4: The Perfect Hero