Matthew the last silver blood

 

The history of Alana

 

In another world creatures of legend live and thrive alongside men.

 

Men, Elves, Dwarves, Naga, Orcs, Giants and Demons. These races have established themselves as rulers of the known world.

 

At the center of this great land is the Country of Alana. This country has a circular shape and shares its borders with the Mountains of Calamity, The Freelands, The Mages City and The Deadlands.

 

It was once a great Kingdom but the last King resigned his power and split the country into six clans so that a civil war would not erupt between his people.

 

These Clans were the Silver-Bloods, The Sun's Chosen, The Beast-Bloods, The Black Hand, The Mist Walkers and The Blacksmiths.

 

Each of these had a trait that made them uniquely powerful and deadly.

 

The Silver-Bloods had no desire to fight but were the greatest warriors in the land. They could form their blood into any shape and use it as a weapon. The blood was as strong as steel and light as a feather and acted as a poison if its master wished.

 

The Sun's Chosen were masters of fire. They used this ability to worship the sun as a god but were known to use it to defend their village from attackers.

 

The Beast-Bloods could speak with the Beasts of the wild and a few of the Chosen could become the beasts.

 

The Black Hand were the most hated they caused disease by touching anything and killed everything they touched. Many of those born with this power spent their life trying to cure themselves.

 

The Mist Walkers could control the Mist and Fog and become one with it this made them the ultimate assassins of the world.

 

The Blacksmiths could forge the greatest weapons in the world and were gifted with Super human strength. It is said that they could best a Giant in a contest of strength.

 

The eastern countries ,known as the Freelands,  have allied themselves against a race of creatures known only as the Black Riders.

 

These riders arrived from the Deadlands to the west and conquered the clans of Alana in a single night. This invasion followed the extermination of the Silver-Blood Clan by an unknown force.

 

They then attacked the countries to the North East and South.

 

The south is held by a great city of Wizards who used their magic to build a wall that repelled the Riders.

 

The North is held by the Giants who guard the Mountains of Calamity, their Ancestral home, from the riders.

 

The Freelands assembled their armies at the border of Alana to keep the Riders from taking their home.

 

Our story begins with the Sole survivor of the Silver-Bloods Matthew who has been adopted by the Sun's Chosen and raised to manhood by them........

 

Matthew

 

The Nightmare played before me like a twisted joke. I watched again as the scene of my Clans slaughter played through my mind unable to change it.

 

I never saw the attackers but houses were cut in half and burned. My parents had enough time to get out of our house before it was reached and we ran for the forest.

 

I reached the bushes before I was seen but when I turned back my parents were sliced to pieces. I broke down and cried. I don't know how long I was there but the next thing I remember was being found by my parents friends from the Sun clan.

 

I woke up sweating and breathing hard. It had been ten years since that horrible night and I still remembered it like it was yesterday. My eighteenth Birthday was tomorrow along with my best friend Rachel.

 

She and I had grown up together. We always had each others backs and she was my exact opposite. Where I thought things through and preferred a quiet approach she liked to charge in and make a big scene.

 

She was an expert at swordplay and I was a master marksman. She and I could defeat anyone else in the village in combat.

 

But tomorrow she was going to receive the Sun's Blessing. It would test wether she would receive the power of Fire or not.

 

I got up all chance of falling back asleep lost. I dressed quickly and took my bow from its post next to the door.

 

My adopted parents knew that nothing could hurt me in this forest so they had no worry's about me leaving at night.

 

I walked through the woods looking for any game for the feast later in the day.

 

I wanted to bring something big in because we didn't have enough meat for the whole village. I was so lost in thought I walked into one of the six roads leading to the abandoned Castle of Alana.

 

Down the road I thought I saw something moving but after a few moments of not seeing anything I kept walking through the woods.

 

I caught a few birds and a small deer but nothing to brag about so I headed back to the village when the light of dawn reached the trees.

 

When I got home the village was just waking up so I dropped my kills off at the butcher's shop. Then I went and read one of the books that were from the old kingdoms before Alana.

 

Back then there were demons and creatures known as Orcs who served them. Eventually the Orcs turned on the Demons and led the other races against them. They won and the demons were imprisoned in their homeland of the underworld.

 

I was just about to read what happened to the Orcs when someone out their hands over my eyes.

 

"Guess who."

 

"Hmm Rachel come on I was just getting to the good part."

 

"Fine nerd." She said removing her hands and sitting down next me.

 

"Are you ready for the blessing?" I asked.

 

"Yeah. They're setting it up now." She said.

 

"It'll be fine we both know your strong enough." I said putting the book in my knapsack.

 

"Yeah but what about you? How are you going to celebrate?"  She asked.

 

"I don't know. I thought I would think of something but I guess I'll just hang out at the feast." I said.

 

"Oh. I wish we could think of something for you." She said.

 

She got up and I was surprised by how fragile she looked. Her flaming red hair was down and she was wearing a dress instead of her usual combat clothing. Her bright green eyes shone with happiness and a bit of nervousness.

 

"I'll see you at the ceremony." She said.

 

"Yeah see ya."

 

I wondered around the village until the ceremony at noon when the sun was at its brightest.

 

The ceremony took place in the center of the village on a drawing in the ground that never faded or disappeared in the shape of the sun.

 

Rachel stood in the center praying to the sun while we all watched.

 

I was near the back of the crowd sitting on the roof of a house when I saw them. At least twenty Black Riders entering the village.

 

"People of the Sun Clan we know that you are hiding a child of the Silver-Bloods among you! Hand him over or we shall destroy your village!" One of them yelled impossibly loud.

 

As he had been saying that a beam of sunlight had come down and enveloped Rachel and the Sun marking. She was lifted off the ground and fire enveloped her body.

 

I ran to stop the riders along with a few of the other fighters of the village.

 

The Rider who had spoken leaped off his horse and brushed us aside like leaves. He marched right toward Rachel and stepped into the light.

 

"NO! The ritual cannot be interrupted!" The elder yelled from the crowd.

 

The Rider grabbed Rachel and Flames leaped onto his armor enveloping him as well. The light disappeared from the circle but Rachel pointed her hand at the Remaining Riders and burned them to a crisp.

 

She landed back on the ground and I saw the golden crown on her head and the rings encircling her lower arms.

 

She had been chosen as a princess of the Sun. Which meant she didn't control fire she mastered fire. Her formerly Green eyes were now bright Red and seemed to burn with fire.

 

"My daughter you have been chosen as a princess of the sun and saved us from a grave threat but I fear you have doomed us all." The Elder said.

 

"What do you mean?" She asked.

 

"By killing those Riders you have made yourself an enemy of them all. You must leave the village or they will come again and I fear you will not be able to stop them." He said tears rolling down his face.

 

"Take Matthew and go to the North and find the Giants. Tell them you are a friend of Zachariah Fire-Fist. They will help you." He said.

 

"Yes Elder." She said.

 

She came over to me and we walked to her house. She ran in and grabbed her armor and sword while I went and got some food from the shopkeepers. We set out barley an hour later on foot.

 

We followed the road to Castle Alana and made camp when the castle came into sight.

 

"Are you okay?" I asked.

 

"Yeah I'm just shocked about all this. I mean me a princess of the Sun. Never would have guessed that would you?" She asked smiling.

 

"Nope your to much of a tomboy." I said.

 

She grabbed a pinecone and threw it at me.

 

"Well what do you think we should do once we get to the Mountains?" I asked.

 

"I don't know. The giants have a war going on I doubt that they can afford to take us in." She said polishing her sword.

 

"Maybe they could use us as soldiers." I offered.

 

"I'd fry those riders if it means going home." She said.

 

Her crown and eyes had dulled a little as the sunlight disappeared. Now they were a dull maroon and almost rust colored. I didn't say anything but she noticed me watching.

 

"What?" She asked.

 

"Well people are gonna ask about your crown. Is there anyway you can hide it while we're traveling?" I asked.

 

"Um let's see." She lifted it up off her head and put it into her knapsack.

 

"See now I blend as easily as you." She said smiling.

 

"Yeah." I said.

 

We stayed up talking for a few hours then she put out the fire and we went to sleep.

Maybe this birthday wasn't so bad after all.

2: Meet Kriko

Matthew

 

After Rachel and I left our campsite that morning we continued toward Castle Alana. It loomed in the sky and I realized just how big it was.

 

It dwarfed the size of our village and had walls that stood at least 40 feet tall.

 

"We should make camp there tonight." Rachel said.

 

"Why? it's huge and dark. Something could be living in there." I said.

 

"Yes but it's also a very good hiding spot." She said.

 

"Well yeah but.... Okay fine." I said.

 

The castle scared me and I didn't want to go near it. The walls once stood for safety and protection but now loomed as a testament to a forgotten age.

 

We walked up to the main gate and I was surprised to see that it was open.

 

"I thought it was locked shut when the last king left." I said.

 

Rachel nodded but drew her sword and cautiously walked forward scanning the area. I followed doing the same and we both jumped in surprise when a howling yell echoed out of the castle.

 

"Help me please."

 

I looked at Rachel and she ran into the castle using her hand as a torch. She ran through the corridors and I had to run to keep up.

 

The cry came again and we followed the sound until we came to a large room with soaring ceilings and carved pillars.

 

In the center of the room a group ofRiders stood around a boy who was chained to two wooden stakes and being whipped.

 

"Where is the Beast Kings Crown boy?!" The rider who was whipping him yelled.

 

"I don't know, I don't know!" The boy screamed.

 

Rachel and I rushed forward blind fury controlling us. The Riders had always been aggressive but this was a new low even for them.

 

I shot two in the darkness of their helmet and they fell to the ground silently. The six others looked around carefully and they noticed us as we reached them.

 

Rachel had lit her sword on fire and was burning each of them while I worked to free the boy from his chains. As I was undoing the locks I saw his back.

 

It was scarred and bleeding profusely. They had to have been whipping him for a few days to do this much damage.

 

He looked at me helplessly and I worked even faster on the chains. Rachel was now fighting the Rider with the whip and she grabbed his arms and melted them.

 

He screamed as she placed her hand within his helmet and melted him from the inside. I got the boys chains off and carried him outside where I could see better.

 

He had passed out when we had lifted him off the ground so he wasn't much trouble while I stitched up his wounds.

 

We set up Camp near the main gate and waited for him to wake up.

 

"You think we can risk a fire?" Rachel asked.

 

"Yeah the light will be blocked by the walls and the smoke will blend in with the night sky." I said unpacking some of our food.

 

We sat around a small fire cooking some venison when the boy got up.

 

He was Dark-skinned and had black hair longer than Rachel. Even though he was young his muscles bulged and he looked insanely strong. He wasn't wearing a shirt but he was wearing baggy black pants.

 

"Mmmmmmmeeeeeeeeaaaaaaattttttt......" He said drooling.

 

I gave him a chunk of the meat and he tore into it like an animal. As he was eating I got a look at his teeth. All of them were pointed and his canines stuck out a little making him seem to have a wolfish smile.

 

"So who are you?" Rachel asked.

 

"My name is Kriko Bear-Claw I'm from the Beast-Blood clan." He said happily chewing on his meat.

 

"Are you okay? Your wounds were pretty serious." I said.

 

"Yeah. I'll be fine." He said reaching back to feel the scars.

 

"So are you going to go back to your home?" I asked and as soon as I mentioned it he stopped eating.

 

"Those Bastards gave me away to save their own skins! They gave away their son just to get out of giving away some food!" He said tears rolling down his face.

 

Rachel shuffled over and put her arms around him until he stopped crying.

 

"Kriko how old are you?" Rachel asked.

 

"Ten. Why?" He asked drying his eyes.

 

"That's not right! if he was older I might see their logic but he's just a boy!" Rachel said her hair throwing off sparks.

 

"Who are you guys?" Kriko asked.

 

"I'm Rachel of the Sun Clan."

 

"And I'm Matthew of the Silver-Bloods." I said.

 

"Silver-Blood? But weren't they wiped out?" Kriko asked.

 

"I'm the only one left." I said remembering my nightmare.

 

"So Kriko when we arrived the Riders were yelling at you about some crown. What were they talking about?" Rachel asked.

 

"The Beast King's crown. It's a magic relic given to my clan by the beasts of the wild." He said.

 

"But why did they want it?" I asked.

 

"The Crown lets you control the beasts of the ground sky and sea. I think that's why." He said.

 

"And why did they think you knew where it was?" Rachel asked.

 

"Because I'm wearing it." He said.

 

"What? Where?" I asked looking at his head.

 

"Not there. Here." He said pointing at his necklace.

 

"The tooth of a wolf, The claw of a bear, Feather of an eagle and fang of a snake."

 

"It appears around the neck of whoever it decides will become the next Beast King." He said.

 

"So your the next king?" I asked.

 

"Yeah but I don't want to be." He said playing with the necklace.

 

"Why?" Rachel and I asked at the same time.

 

"The king loses control of their beast form unless they have silver on them at all times. I don't want to hurt anyone accidentally." He said sadly.

 

"Maybe I can help." I said.

 

I placed my hands on his wrists and formed two silver bands around them.

 

"What the.... Thank you." He said crying.

 

We talked more about his people and the legends of his Clan until he started to fall asleep then Rachel and I took turns watching for trouble.

 

"So what do you think? Is he coming with us or is he going his own way?" I asked.

 

"I think he'll come with us. After all his clan abandoned him. Our own little band of misfits. A sun Princess, a boy from a dead clan and a Beast King." She said as she lay down around our small campfire.

 

I spent my watch time creating things using my blood. I did rapid fire changes and large objects. So when Rachel switched with me I was almost exhausted.

 

I collapsed onto my bed roll and fell asleep.

 

"Matt! Wake up!" Kriko said shaking my shoulder.

 

"What is it?" I asked half asleep.

 

"Riders! A dozen of them!" He said.

 

I shot up like I'd been hit with cold water.

 

"Where?" I asked.

 

He held a finger to his lips and pointed to the main gate.

 

The riders sat upon there horses and looked around the courtyard. We were behind a low wall meant to be a stable so they hadn't seen us yet.

 

"Search the castle. The beast boy should be around here." The rider at the front said.

 

I drew my boy and relaxed. Rachel was peeking over the wall with her sword drawn.

 

Kriko quietly drew the two swords slung across his back. They were huge each large enough to be considered a Great sword and he carried them like they weighed nothing.

 

The riders split into groups and most went into the interior of the castle. Two however stayed behind and started walked over to where we were hiding.

 

"Get ready." I said to the others.

 

They nodded and I leaped to my feet and shot two arrows into each ones helm.

 

One fell to the ground silently but the other fell to his knees and screamed. The sound was not of this world it chilled my soul and made me want to run in fear.

 

I shot him again and he fell to the ground.

 

"The others will have heard that. We need to get out of here!" Rachel yelled already saddling her horse.

 

"Take the horses outside. In going to try something." I said.

 

"No. I'm not leaving you!" She said.

 

"I'm going to stop them!" I yelled.

 

I ran over to the door leading into the castle and focused. I felt my blood leaving my arms and forming into a razor thin wire with a lethal edge .

 

I sent the wire over the doorway and wrapped it back and forth half a dozen times.

 

Standing to the side I waited for the others to come running out to help their comrades.

 

A minute later they did and all of them ran into the wire which sliced them to pieces.

 

I retracted the wire and walked over to Rachel who stared at me like I was a different person.

 

"When did you learn to do that?" She asked.

 

"Last night." I said mounting my horse.

 

"Kriko you'll have to switch horses every little while until we can get you a horse." Rachel said.

 

"I can run and keep up with you guys." He said.

 

"Kriko. Your wounds are still fresh at least wait until they're healed." I said.

 

"Fine." He said hopping onto my horse.

"So to the north we go." Rachel said as we started out.

3: And through the swamp we go...

Silver Blood 3

 

Matthew

 

We had been traveling down the northern road for three days when the mountains came into view.

 

The Mountains of Calamity were the largest in the world and I realized just how gigantic they were when we saw them. The tops were above the clouds and they were huge even then.

 

"Those are way to big." Rachel said.

 

Kriko and I nodded from the back of my horse.

 

"So anyone know how we're going to find the giants among that?" I asked.

 

"They fight the Riders right?" Kriko asked.

 

"Yeah." I said.

 

"Them wouldn't they be near the base to keep the Riders out of their lands?" He asked.

 

"That does make sense." I admitted.

 

"Lets talk on the way. We still have a long way to go." Rachel said spurring her horse on.

 

We followed and caught up with her.

 

"We need to get there in the next few days. Our food supplies are running low." I said.

 

"I can always go hunting." Kriko said.

 

"Kriko do you what kind of animals hunt in these woods?" I asked.

 

"No." He said puzzled.

 

"Well what if you run into something you can't bring down?" I asked.

 

He sighed as he realized my point.

 

"It's okay we have enough for four days. I don't think it will take that long to reach those mountains." I said patting him on the head.

 

He cheered up a little and we kept riding.

 

That night we set up camp a little ways off the road and had a small fire.  While we were eating Kriko sat up quickly and made a low growling noise.

 

"What is it?" I asked reaching for my bow.

 

"I don't know but it smells like something died and was left to rot in the sun. But it's moving." He said covering his nose.

 

"Moving how?" I asked lowering my voice.

 

"Like its coming down the road toward us." He said rolling on the ground with his nose covered.

 

I slowly crawled over to the edge of our campsite where I could see the road.

 

I looked down the road but I couldn't see anything. Then I heard the scraping. It was a quiet whispering noise like a sword being sharpened in the distance.

 

I searched the road again and I saw it. It stood at least ten feet tall and was half as wide. It had glowing red eyes that shone through matted fur all over its body. It's claws were long and scraped along on the rocks dotted along the road.

 

My heart just about stopped. A troll. A living breathing Troll! These things had supposedly been banished to the Underworld with the demons. They caused a blight on the land wherever they went and they were intelligent.

 

It stopped and sniffed the air then looked directly at me. It shuffled over and squatted down to look at me. I didn't move and it opened its mouth.

 

The smell was like rotting Sewage. I resisted the urge to gag and it stared at me blankly.

 

I was about to be sick when a large shape shot over me. It barreled into the troll and knocked it back.

 

I got up and backed away. The new creature was an equal in height with the troll but its limbs were corded muscle and it glanced back at me with yellow green eyes.

 

It had a wolfish head and black hair covered its neck and back. The legs were covered by black pants and under the hair on its back I could see two large swords.

 

"Kriko?" I asked.

 

He turned back to the troll as it rose back to its feet.

 

"So a beast king finally emerges? I will kill you and take your crown!" The troll yelled, its voice reminded me of a boar roaring as it was about to charge.

 

Loud angry and filled with killing intent.

 

I watched as the two fought. The troll used its claws to try and scratch up Kriko. Kriko countered by using the silver arm bands, which had expanded to encompass his arm, to block the strikes.

 

"Kriko move!" Rachel yelled.

 

Kriko jumped out of the way and a fireball smashed into the Trolls fur. The fire expanded all over the troll once it started.

 

"Beware. The Masters are sending worse than me to fight in this world." The troll growled out then laughed as it burned into a pile of ash.

 

Kriko shrunk back down to normal size and I noticed he was holding his arm.

 

"Kriko are you okay?" I asked.

 

"Yeah he just got a lucky scratch." He said letting go quickly.

 

I wrapped up the spot and we each took turns on watch.

 

"Hey Matt?" Kriko asked when we switched places.

 

"Yeah?" I asked laying down.

 

"With your ability you could be the greatest warrior in the world. So why do you use the bow?" He asked.

 

I sat up and faced him.

 

"When I was adopted by the Sun clan a group of Freeland soldiers came through the village. They all wore camouflage cloaks and carried bows. They were the Human Rangers. The only corps to never suffer a defeat and the unofficial battlefield healers. I wanted to join them so much." I said.

 

"So you decided to perfect your archery skills than your heritage?" He asked.

 

"Yeah." I said.

 

"Now I see why your clan was the greatest of the six." He said.

 

"Why?" I asked.

 

"Yours didn't rely on their abilities. They perfected their own skills." He said.

 

"Ok but my clan, some of them did rely heavily on their blood abilities." I said.

 

"Still you can change. That takes a very strong willpower." He said taking out a knife and throwing it at a tree.

 

Seeing that he didn't want to talk anymore I laid down and fell asleep.

 

My dreams that night scared me. I was in the air floating above the Sun Village. It was at night and I watched as the lights in each window went out one by one.

 

The guards at the roads leading into the village stood on watch. Nothing in the village moved. I looked around but nothing but darkness surrounded me.

 

Then a shape rose up out of the darkness even darker than the night sky.

 

It was gargantuan I saw its hand which was a large as the village and thought it was the body. It had muscles that rippled and bulged and long dark hair that reminded me a bit of Kriko.

 

The guards below hadn't seen it yet even though it towered over them. It rose up to its full height and I gaped. It's shoulder were above the clouds.

 

Suddenly one of the Elders lessons came back to me. "In the Ancient times great Demons known as Colossus roamed the world. These demons were sealed in the Underworld when the other Lesser demons were and they hunger for revenge to this day."

 

I tried to yell to the village below but it was if they couldn't hear me. The colossus raised its giant hand and curled it into a fist. The hand came down and buried the village.

 

I snapped awake drenched in sweat. The sun was just rising in the east.

 

"Matt are you okay?" Rachel asked stretching.  

 

"Yeah just a nightmare." I said.

 

I shook myself a little and tried to forget the vision. It couldn't have been real. That couldn't have happened. But there was still a shred of doubt in the back of my mind.

 

We mounted our horses but Kriko refused today.

 

"I will run today! I need the exceed use!" He said when I tried to convince him.

 

"Fine but whenever we stop let me check your arm." I said.

 

"It's fine." He said scratching it.

 

We started out at a steady trot and Kriko had no problem keeping up. Later we stopped to eat a small lunch from our ever decreasing rations.

 

I unwrapped Krikos arm and gagged. The smell coming off the cut was almost as bad as Troll's breath. The cut itself was turning a sickly green.

 

"Kriko. I think this is bugging you more than your saying." I said looking him in the eye.

 

"Ok it might itch a little." He said not meeting my gaze.

 

"Kriko we are not your clan we do not go by survival of the fittest. We will take care of you!" I said sternly.

 

"Ok it stings. It's like holding a fire close to your skin for a long time." He said.

 

"Alright. For this kind of poison I believe black weed would be a good cure." I said grabbing my bow.

 

"Black Weed? That stuff is deadly!" He said.

 

"Wrong. It is only deadly if you use the leaves. The roots are a very good antidote." I said.

 

"Well we're are we going to find any it only grows in swamps." He said.

 

I unrolled the only map we had.

 

"There are swamps to the west of here. The map says that there is a road that breaks off in that direction a little ways ahead." I said.

 

"But that will take longer to reach the mountains." Rachel said looking up from her cooking fire.

 

"We can spare the time. Besides the road loops around to a pass." I said.

 

"Ok we'll head out after you two eat." She said.

 

I took a piece of the venison she had been preparing and ate it in silence.

 

Once we finished we set out again with Kriko running beside us. The road did diverge ahead but the new road was overgrown and blocked by a sign with a skull.

 

"That's encouraging." I said.

 

"Lets go." Rachel said going around the sign.

 

We continued down the road and found a spot to make camp that wasn't completely overgrown.

 

"I don't think anyone uses this road." I said.

 

"Yeah. This is barely a road more of a treeless path." Rachel said.

 

Kriko was sniffing the air again so I had to ask what he was doing.

 

"What is it Kriko? Trolls again?" I asked.

 

"No I smell...... Bloodshed like a battle happened nearby." He said crouching down and following the scent like a hunting dog.

 

We ran after him struggling to make our way through the undergrowth. Kriko stopped and looked around.

 

"Do you hear that?" He asked.

 

"Hear what?" Rachel asked.

 

"It's faint but I hear someone calling for help." He said then he took off again.

 

"Kriko wait up!" I yelled.

 

He wove his way through the forest and we struggled to keep him in sight. He stopped again and went very quiet.

 

"Hhhhhheeeeeellllllllppppp......" I heard faintly.

 

"I told you." He said.

 

"Where are they?" I asked unable to see anyone.

 

He sniffed the air again and slowly made his way through the trees. He stopped occasionally to check the scent but otherwise kept moving.

 

"Here." He said stopping in a small clearing.

 

"Kriko there is no one here." I said.

 

"Really then how do you explain that?" He said pointing to a pool of blood coming out of a tree.

 

"Bleeding tree?" I guessed.

 

He walked over and poked right above the spot the blood was coming from.

 

"Who are you?" A voice asked.

 

"A friend." Kriko said.

 

"Thank you." It said.

 

A person appeared on the trunk and started to fall to the ground. Kriko caught them and set them on the ground.

 

"Matt she needs help!" He said.

 

Yes she did. The person was a Naga judging from the fact that he skin was green, her hair was a green blonde color and her legs were just one slim snake tail.

 

She was wounded in many places. The most prominent wound was a hole in her side that was pouring blood. She was covered in many other scrapes and bruises.

 

"Kriko! Go find me some red nightshade. I saw some as we came here. Rachel rip up some cloth and get it wet then heat it with fire. Go!" I yelled.

 

Kriko tore off into the trees and I could see him leap onto all fours. Rachel grabbed the ends of her sleeves and cut off a few strips then ran to find water. I put pressure on the Naga girls wound trying to stop the bleeding.

 

"Matt I found some!" Kriko yelled in the distance.

 

He came running back to me holding a few handfuls of red berries.

 

"Good now grind them into a powder. Take the bowl from my bag quick!" I yelled at him.

 

He grabbed the bowl and started smashing the dry berries into a powder.Rachel came back as he was finishing.

 

"Okay now give me the cloth and powder." I said holding out my hands.

 

They quickly gave me the items and I poured the powder onto the cloth forming a thick red-white paste.

 

I laid the sticky cloth over the girls wound and wrapped the other cloth strips over it holding them in place.

 

"Okay that will stop the bleeding and speed up the healing process but we need to move her back to camp." I said.

 

The three of us carried her back through the forest and by the time we reached our camp the sun had set and our small fire was just embers.

 

We set the girl down on my bedroll and sat down around the fire as Rachel relit it.

 

"That was eventful." I said.

 

Rachel rolled her eyes and began digging through our remaining Rations.

 

"We have enough food for 4 people for four days." She said.

 

I took out the map and traced our route.

 

"It takes roughly two days to get to the nearest pass. Then who knows how long to get to the giants." I said.

 

"And don't forget we need some black weed for Kriko so that's going to take some time." Rachel said.

 

"Yeah." I said thinking.

 

"Kriko we may have to go hunting." I said.

 

He grinned at me with a wolfish smile. He jumped into the air as the Naga girl started coughing.

 

We all got up and ran over to her. She was awake at least. She gave us a terrified look.

 

"Guys back up give her some space." I said realizing she was scared of us.

 

"Please don't hurt me!" She said weakly.

 

I noticed she was shaking and she was hiding her face witch was covered in bruises.

 

"We are not going to hurt you. What's your name?" I asked trying to calm her down.

 

"Sy-Sylvia Sirensong." She said.

 

"It's okay Sylvia we won't hurt you. Do you have a home?" Rachel asked.

 

"No. They ran me out." She said crying.

 

"Is that how you got hurt?" I asked slowly.

 

"Y-yes." She said.

 

I could Kriko growling deep in his throat like a feral wolf. I turned to make him stop but when I saw him I realized that wasn't going to happen.

 

His hair was standing on end and his teeth were showing.

 

"It's okay he's harmless." I said trying to keep her calm.

 

"Would you like some food?" Rachel asked.

 

Sylvia nodded and Rachel brought over the bag filled with our rations.

 

She offered Sylvia some meat but she wouldn't accept then she offered some apples and Sylvia grabbed them looking guilty.

 

I heard Kriko gagging and I looked at him. He was covering his nose and pointing down the road.

 

"Not again." I said.

 

"Rachel keep her safe. Kriko come on." I said grabbing my bow and a flaming branch from the fire.

 

Kriko ran next to me down the road and I spotted the Trolls within a minute. This time there were at least six.

 

"Kriko wait until I attack to charge." I said looking at him.

 

He nodded and I drew three arrows. I lit the shafts on fire and fired each one within a second of each other.

 

Three of the trolls lit up like Rachel when she was mad. The other three backed away scared and Kriko took off next to me changing as he went. His arms extended to twice their length and the muscles bulged. He let loose a roaring howl and leaped at the leading troll.

 

He ripped its head off its shoulders before it had a chance to block. The remaining two both converged on him but I lanced wires from my finger and wrapped one but I was unable to cut him.

 

Kriko pushed the other back away from the road and into the trees. I kept walking forward and I heard him make a growling cough then the troll was grabbed by a group of massive claws and pulled into the thick trees.

 

I heard him screaming as he was ripped apart by the beasts.

 

The troll that I had trapped looked at me as I approached.

 

"So your the silver brat? I have a message for you from our master." He said his glowing eyes boring into me.

 

"Your dreams are made reality. The Sun Clan has been destroyed." It said laughing.

 

Unexpected strength shot through me. I yanked my hands apart and the troll fell to the ground in dozens of pieces.

 

"Did he say the Sun clan was destroyed?" Kriko asked.

 

"Yeah. I the nightmares had last night showed the village being destroyed but I didn't want to believe it was true." I said.

 

We walked back to our camp in solemn silence.

 

"Hey guys are you okay?" Rachel called when we stepped within the fire light.

 

"Yeah... Rachel I've got something to tell you...." I said quietly.

 

"Whatever it is it will have to wait. That girl needs to tell someone what happened to her. Something happened to her that she was so shocked by that its taking her will to live." She said.

 

"Alright." I said.

 

Kriko gave me a dirty look.

 

"You have to tell her. She needs to know." He said grabbing my arm.

 

"I know but she won't listen to me until we help this girl." I said.

 

"You make her listen!" He said coldly tightening his grip as I tried to walk away.

 

"You tell her if you think she needs to know so badly." I said jerking my arm away.

 

"Guys get over here!" Rachel said from where she was sitting by Sylvia.

 

"Coming!" We both yelled.

 

We sat down spread out so we didn't scare her.

"So this is the story of my life. But the trouble started when I was five...." She started.

4: Sylvia's Past

 

Sylvia, age 5

 

I was five when my family was killed. My brother and I were outside running around outside. Naga can change their lower body into either a pair of legs or a single snakelike tail.

 

We came back to our house, a large hollowed out tree, and I opened the door. My parents were laying on the floor in pools of blood with a hulking man holding a knife standing over them.

 

The man saw me and started toward me knife raised. I ran backwards but tripped and fell. My brother saw the man coming out of the house and tried to help me up but the man ran over to us and grabbed him by the neck.

 

He squeezed until my brother stopped struggling then cast him aside like a piece of trash. Then he turned to me.

 

Something inside me snapped and I screamed at him. The Song of the Naga is supposed to hypnotize and soothe but my scream hit him and ripped his body to shreds. The skin on his arms and face sheared off and he flew backwards.

 

I went into shock and sat there paralyzed by what I had done. It was there that the other villagers found me later drawn by the sound of my scream.

 

They looked at me like I was a monster but fed me and took care of me until the second incident.

 

Sylvia age 15

 

The village elders regarded my violent scream as a one time event and allowed me to stay in the village. I became an apprentice to the village healer and stayed at her house until I was able to look after myself.

 

I was outside the village in the swamp looking for medicinal herbs when I was attacked by a band of outlaws. I had learned nature calling from a few of my parents friends and used it to make the trees aid my escape.

 

The roots shot out of the ground and blocked the bandits. I swam through the swamp as fast as I could trying to lose the group.

 

One managed to find me and attacked me with his sword. I raised my arms to defend myself and he cut into them. I let out a scream of pain and he blew apart along with a few dozen trees behind him.

 

The villagers learned of my scream later and no one would let me stay with them. I was content to stay outside as long as I could stay within the village borders.

 

I learned to support myself through hunting and I became better than many of the others in the village. All of the other hunters were men who were bigger and made more noise when they moved.

 

My smaller shape made me more agile than most of the men so I could swim through the swamps much faster than the men.

 

When I was out hunting by myself one of the men mistook me for a fish and hit me with his spear. I held in the urge to scream until he lifted me out of the water by my neck.

 

He squeezed my neck and yelled something about scaring away his prey. He threw me into a nearby tree and I slumped into the water blood running down my neck.

 

I lost control and the scream slipped out glancing off of the man and shredding his arm to pieces. He fell to his knees clutching the stump and glaring at me.

 

He picked up his spear and threw it at me. It hit my side and I passed out from the pain.

 

I woke up later that night dried blood leaking down from my just above my waist. I slowly twisted the spear out and put some of the medicinal herbs from my bag.

 

I made my way to the edge of the village. The hunter who had attacked me was in the center of the village surrounded by the other villagers who were all armed.

 

"She's a monster! Could a normal person do this with their song!?" He yelled holding up the stump of his arm.

 

"I'm sure she's alive! We need to hunt her down and end this curse once and for all!" He yelled and the villagers raised their weapons and yelled their agreement.

 

I tried to get away but in my haste I ran into one of the guards at the edge of the village.

 

I slipped past him as he yelled for the other villagers. I heard them yelling for my death behind me. I swam as fast as I could but in the darkness I couldn't see as well and I kept running into fallen branches, which slowed me down.

 

Eventually they caught me and the lead hunter pinned me to a tree jamming his spear into my previous wound.

 

"How does it feel to be close to death Monster?" He asked.

 

I couldn't think clearly with all the blood I had lost but I slowly began humming the song of the trees and I melted into the tree.

 

"Damn! We can't touch her now!" A man said from the edge of the group.

 

"Don't worry she's dead anyway. Leave her to die alone." The leader said.

 

They left and I drifted in and out of consciousness. Until you three arrived and saved me.

 

I turned to the three humans sitting around me.

 

"That's my story." I said timidly.

 

"I'm sorry about your family." The girl said.

 

"Do you need anything?" The older boy asked.

 

"No thank you." I said curling up my legs into my chest.

 

"I'll kill them!" The wild boy growled out of his teeth.

 

"Kriko calm down. I'm sure she doesn't want that." The girl said.

 

"Actually I wouldn't mind getting back at that hunter." I said.

 

"I'll be back." The kid, Kriko, growled.

 

"Kriko wait I'm going with you!" The older boy said.

 

"Rachel I have something to tell you." He said taking the girl to one side.

 

A minute later the girl came back and I saw tears running down her face.

 

"Are you okay?" I asked concerned.

 

"My village. My whole family was destroyed by Demons. I'm the only one left." She said sobbing.

 

I wrapped my arms around her and tried to soothe her. She couldn't stop crying so I sang softly the Siren song of my family until she fell asleep.

 

5: Wrath of the Beast

Wrath of the Beast

Matthew

 

I followed Kriko as he used his twin swords to cut through everything. Trees, weeds, animals, rocks everything split before him.

 

"Do you even know where the village is?" I asked.

 

"Tracking their scent. About halfway there." He said.

 

He was growling continuously and his eyes burned with bloodlust. For the life of me I couldn't figure out why Sylvia's story had made him so angry.

 

"Kriko, why did her story upset you so much?" I asked.

 

"My clan gave me to the enemy with a chance of survival. But this! This is her village, her own people! Running her out and trying to kill her!" He growled.

 

I kept walking in silence behind him.

 

"You're not going to kill everyone, right?" I asked.

 

"Only those who joined the chase." He said stopping.

 

I looked around and saw a light glittering through the tree's.

 

"There." He said.

 

He sheathed his swords and we walked into the village. A group of men were in the middle of the village drinking ale and singing.

 

Kriko curled down that let loose a roar that made me back away in fear.

 

The men turned and looked at us.

 

"Who are you?" The largest said reaching for a spear.

 

"That's not important all I want is for you to tell me where the hunter who hunted down Sylvia is." Kriko said.

 

"Why? It would be easier to just kill you." He said.

 

"As if you could." Kriko said.

 

The man threw his spear at Kriko who grabbed it in mid air and snapped it like a twig.

 

"Tell me!" Kriko roared.

 

"I'm here." A man said behind us.

 

He was big about eight feet tall from the ground. The stump of his right arm dangled limply at his side.

 

Kriko took one look at him and his eyes betrayed his intentions. I looped my arm around his neck as he tried to leap at the mans throat.

 

"Who are you little brats?" He asked arrogantly confident.

 

"Someone who knows what you did. I challenge you to single combat." Kriko said growling.

 

"As if a whelp like you could even hurt me. Here fight this man he is the a capable fighter." He said sliding a boy in front of Kriko.

 

Kriko walked up to the boy and grabbed his arm. He threw the boy against a nearby tree but not hard enough to kill him.

 

"No Games! Fight me! Ten to one if you have to!" Kriko roared.

 

He unbuckled his swords and tossed them to me. I struggled to hold them up they were so heavy.

 

"Very well. Men attack I will aid you in a moment." He said.

 

A dozen Naga hunters sped toward Kriko. He leaped onto the first and smashed his fists down on the mans back.

 

The man smashed into the ground. I heard ribs and skull cracking against the cold earth. Suddenly the others weren't so eager to fight Kriko.

 

By now most of the village was assembled in a ring watching us. I looked around and saw most of them were women and children.

 

"If you don't want to be hurt then don't interfere." I yelled to the crowd.

 

The eleven remaining hunters were slowly circling Kriko and I saw that a few had spears.

 

"Kriko look out!" I yelled as one of them shot forward with a spear.

 

Kriko looked at the man and grabbed him by the neck then threw him into four of his fellows. All five crashed into a Naga house then fell to the ground.

 

The final six men backed away into the crowd realizing they had no chance of winning.

 

The leader was back now dressed in armor and wielding a heavy battle axe.

 

"You shall die now whelp!" He yelled.

 

Even with the armor he was fast. He shot forward quickly then swung his axe at Kriko. Now remember that Kriko is very small compared to the eight foot tall snake man so he hopped up into the side of the axe blade and sat there.

 

"Where did you go?!" The man demanded searching the area.

 

Kriko didn't respond instead he grabbed the axe head and ripped it off.

 

The man looked at the now useless metal pole.

 

"You are strong why would you defend that monster?" He asked.

 

Kriko didn't respond he started shaking and I couldn't see what he was doing but something was happening.

 

"Monster? She is a Naga just like you! Shouldn't you be kind to all of your brethren?!" Kriko said.

 

His hair stood on end and I saw his hands changing. They grew fur and deadly razor claws.

 

"You don't deserve to live in this world!" Kriko yelled shooting forward faster than I could see.

 

I only saw the Naga man flying off into the swamps a bloody hole in his stomach where his armor used to be.

 

Kriko lowered his hand and I could see blood dripping off the claws.

 

"Does anyone else want to call Sylvia a monster?" Kriko asked facing the crowd of villagers.

 

No one answered. They all stared at Kriko speechless. Then Kriko fell to one knee and gripped the bandages on his shoulder.

 

"Kriko!" I yelled running forward.

 

I unwrapped the bandages and threw up. The smell was overpowering and the small scratch from before had become a green line with black around it.

 

"Does anyone have any black leaf?" I yelled.

 

No one answered but an elderly woman came forward.

 

"Is that troll poison?" She asked inspecting Kriko's arm.

 

"Yes they have been coming after us for a few days now." I said.

 

"Black leaf won't do any good for this wound. You need something far more powerful." She said.

 

"Like what?" I asked as Kriko began breathing hard.

 

"Naga's blood is a powerful antidote. It can cure almost any type of poison." She said.

 

She drew very close to my ear and whispered.

 

"If you really did save Sylvia then go ask her. I can't help you without being exiled now go!"

 

"Thank you." I said quietly.

 

I picked up Kriko and his swords. I began jogging as fast as I could on the path Kriko had cut through the swamp.

 

I reached the camp an hour later just as the sun was rising. Rachel was asleep on her bedroll with Sylvia watching the camp.

 

"Is he okay?" She asked trying to get up.

 

"He was poisoned during a fight with a troll. Your master said that you can use your blood as a potent antidote?" I asked quickly setting Kriko down.

 

"Yes. Where is the wound?" She asked drawing a small knife.

 

I unwrapped his arm and we both gagged. Kriko's description of trolls smell as 'something rotting in the sun for a month' sounded pleasant compared to this.

 

Sylvia took her knife and cut the wound open again so that blood started coming out. Then she cut the tip of her finger and let a few drops of her own fall into the cut.

 

The effect was immediate. Kriko's breathing quieted and his face relaxed.

 

"He'll be fine in a few hours. Just wrap it back up and let him rest until then." She said.

 

I nodded already tying new bandages in place. She sat down next to Kriko and wrapped her finger with a small cloth.

 

"Kriko finished off that hunter. He won't come back for you." I said after a few minutes of silence.

 

"Thank you. You don't realize how much that means to me." She said.

 

"Don't thank me. Thank him when he wakes up. He did everything I just watched." I said.

 

She smiled and I saw her fangs flash.

 

"So what are going to do?" I asked.

 

"I don't know. I have nowhere to go and I can't imagine anywhere that would take me in." She said sadly.

 

"Then come with us. That's the story with the three of us. The Silver-Blood. The Sun-Princess. The Beast King. I think we can accept a Naga girl." I said.

 

"Even with my problem?" She asked.

 

"What problem? You just need to learn to control your scream. If you can do that then you can pass for a normal person." I said.

 

"But how would I learn control?" She asked.

 

"Come here." I said getting to my feet.

 

I created a thin wall using my blood and stood off to the side.

 

"Now scream at the wall." I said.

 

"Are you sure?" She asked scared.

 

"Yes. Now just try." I said.

 

She took a deep breath then released a scream that made Krikos roar look like a barking puppy. It was filled with pain and misery. I could feel sadness creeping into me.I watched as my silver wall fell apart then rebuilt itself against the scream.

 

She stopped and looked shaky.

 

"Are you okay?" We both asked each other.

 

"Yeah just give me a minute." I said.

 

"A Naga's song can relay emotions into their voice. My scream do the same." She said.

 

"Yeah. No wonder it destroys things, I can't imagine standing up to that much suffering and pain." I said.

 

"Sorry." She said.

 

"It's okay let's get some food. I need to eat something." I said walking over to the ashes of our campfire.

 

Rachel was crying in her sleep and shaking. I sat next to her and whispered one of her mother's lullaby's into her ear. She stopped shaking but her crying continued.

 

"I know how she feels. When my village was destroyed it took me a week to calm down." I said.

 

"Don't feel any sorrow? You grew up in that village." Sylvia asked.

 

"I don't let my pain show. That is my law. I have to be strong for my friends. Because if they don't have any support they'll crumble." I said grabbing a piece of bread.

 

"So who supports you?" Sylvia asked.

 

"The memories of my friends and family." I said remembering all of the Silver-Bloods that I had known.

 

"You need more than memories to support yourself." She said.

 

"True. That's why I have my friends. To remind me why I have to be strong." I said.

 

We sat in silence watching the sun rise higher and higher into the sky.

It was the dawn of a new day and a new chance for us to live.

6: The Price of Power

Rachel

 

I knew I was asleep but I couldn't wake up. Matt had told me about his dream where my clan had been destroyed and the Troll's message. Know I was watching the destruction for myself.

 

Matt had said that he had awoken after the colossus had smashed the village but I was being forced to see the aftermath.

 

Villagers laid in the streets smashed beyond recognition. Houses were crushed and blood leaked out through the ruins.

 

My house was lying in ruins. I watched but I couldn't see this as my house anymore. Then something moved.

 

My father pushed up a fallen board and climbed out of the rubble. He had beams sticking out of chest and arms.

 

"I know your seeing this Rachel. Watch closely to avenge our people." He said.

 

He curled up and his body glowed with light then he stood up straight. He held out one arm and a column of fire lanced out at the colossus.

 

The demon was barley fazed by the blast but looked down and saw my father.

 

"Rachel use the dawn and avenge us please." He said as he was buried beneath a giant hand.

 

I snapped awake breathing rapidly.

 

"Rachel are you okay?!" Matt yelled.

 

He came over and I buried my head in his shoulder. I cried as I told him what I had seen. He wrapped me in a hug and patted me on the back.

 

I don't know how long I sat there but I couldn't force myself to move.

 

"Rachel. We will avenge your clan. I promise you that. No matter the co-" he stopped as I smacked him.

 

"If you say no matter the cost I will whale on you so hard you won't be able to walk!" I yelled.

 

He gave me a puzzled look.

 

"If I lose you I don't know what I'll do." I said crying.

 

The tears rolled down my cheek turning to steam as they went.

 

"Alright. It's okay." He said.

 

I stood up and walked to my horse.

 

"What are you doing?" He asked.

 

"We have to keep moving. You think the Riders are going to wait for us to be ready to move?" I said.

 

"No but Kriko needs to wake up first. We can't carry four people on just two horses." He said.

 

"Just shake him awake." I said.

 

"He's recovering from the poison. He needs to wake up on his own." Matt said.

 

"Well then what are we going to do?!" I asked sounding like a little kid.

 

"Sylvia needs to make a bow and some arrows so she can fight. And we need more food. So I'm going hunting." He said walking over.

 

"I'm going to scout down the road to see if there are any Riders following us." He whispered as he went by.

 

He disappeared into the trees and I sat down impatient to get moving.

 

King Lucifer, Underworld

 

"My lord. The children are proving to be a greater threat than expected." One of the lesser demons told me.

 

"Yes I can see that. I guess we have need of his services." I said sighing.

 

"Haze!" I called.

 

An orb showing a mortals face appeared before me.

 

"Yes my lord?" He asked.

 

"I have four people I would like to eliminate." I told him listing their names and location.

 

"Very well but this will cost you four times the usual rate." He said.

 

"Very well."

 

"I will contact you when I finish the job." He said terminating the communication.

 

"Those four are dead. Haze has never failed an assignment even when I had him kill that battalion of giants." I said content.

"This is the price of their power. They have all lost their families, homes, possessions. Everything." I laughed to myself.

7: Haze

 

Matthew

 

This sucked worse than my first hunting trip. I looked down at my meager amount of food. A scrawny rabbit and a few fish tied to a small branch and I still wasn't sure if those were edible.

 

I was walking back to camp when I saw him. A guy about my age and height dressed in white clothes leaning against a tree.

 

"Hey you! Who are you?" I called.

 

He jumped when he heard my voice and looked around quickly.

 

"Who are you?" He called back.

 

"I asked you first." I yelled.

 

He looked at me for a second then pulled a small stack of papers out of his pocket.

 

"You wouldn't happen to be Matthew Silver-Blood, would you?" He asked.

 

"Depends who's asking." I said dropping the animals I had caught and drawing my bow.

 

"Well if you are then I've been sent to eliminate you!" He said a thin trail of white mist leaking out of the corner of his mouth.

 

"By who?" I asked confused.

 

"The king of the Underworld, Lucifer!" He said running forward.

 

I shot a few arrows at him but missed all of them. He ran up and I dropped my bow forming to long swords in by hands.

 

"I don't understand why a Mist walker would work for someone who's obviously going to turn on them." I yelled pressing my face towards his.

 

"He wouldn't betray me! He needs me!" He yelled.

 

"Will he once his demons are awakened?" I demanded.

 

"No one can kill like me!" He yelled.

 

"No mortal can. What about a demon specifically designed for it?" I yelled.

 

"Why do you care about me? I'm trying to kill you!" He said half sobbing.

 

"Because you don't seem like a bad person. You just seem scared." I said.

 

I took advantage of his confusion and I slid my swords down his knives so that they fell out of his hands.

 

"I won't kill you this time but if you try to come after me or my friends again I won't hesitate." I said holding a sword point to his throat.

 

He got up and ran away into the trees. The threat was empty and he knew it.

 

I knelt down and picked up his knives. I noticed an inscription on the side.

 

"Haze Death-Mist." I said reading the side.

 

I put the knives in my belt and picked up my bow and the fish and rabbit.

 

I walked back to camp in silence thinking about Haze. When I reached camp Kriko grabbed a fish from the branch.

 

"Kriko no!" Sylvia yelled.

 

But it was to late he already swallowed the fish then covered his mouth.

 

"That type of fish has to be cooked before you eat it or it causes a gag reflex." Sylvia said looking annoyed.

 

"We have to get moving. They sent an assassin after us." I said.

 

Kriko crawled over to the bushes and made some disturbing noises then stood up.

 

"Lets go." He said.

 

Haze Death-Mist, Blacksmith village

 

I sat thinking while I waited for my friend. Maybe the Silver-Blood was right. Maybe Lucifer was going to betray me.

 

I was still deep in thought when Engra shook my shoulder.

 

"Get up Fog Breath!" She yelled.

 

"Oh hi Engra." I said.

 

"So what do you need this time?" She said sitting down next to me.

 

I looked at her. She was the same age as me and just as thin but she was stronger than most of the men in the village. She created the finest weapons and armor so I had sought her out on my first visit here.

 

"This is a special request. I need two daggers and a sword capable of cutting through Silver-Blood metal." I said.

 

"That's gonna run a high price. Can you afford it?" She asked.

 

"My client is willing to pay whatever I need to kill this person." I said.

 

"Very well. I'll need a few days to gather the materials. Come on ill show you my special project." She said dragging me to her house.

 

She dragged me inside her small two room hut and left me in the first room.

 

She came out of her room a few minutes later wearing her own special armor.

 

Mythril. Not chain mail but a thin chest plate and arms and legs.

 

"What about the helmet?" I asked curious.

 

"That's the only piece I'm missing. With the amount I get from your job I should be able to create it." She said excited.

 

The Mythril shimmered in the light from the doorway. It was a shiny silver color and it shone brightly like a small sun.

 

"Shut the door!" She hissed.

 

I quickly got to my feet and shut the door just as some Riders rode by.

 

"The riders banned all Mythril forging so if they saw me in this I would be executed." She said.

 

She quickly took the armor off and walked outside strapping her heavy war hammer into place.

 

"So how long until you can finish my order?" I asked.

 

"About three days. One to gather materials and two more to create the weapons." She said.

 

I sighed. I had hoped that she would be able to finish quickly.

 

"Alright, I'll find somewhere to stay." I said walking towards the inn's.

 

"Wait! If you need somewhere to stay your welcome to stay at my house." She said fidgeting.

 

I thought about it for a second then I felt my face going red. I turned away and put a hand on my head.

 

"Sure I guess that would be okay." I said awkwardly.

 

She smiled and looped her arm through mine. I shrugged uncomfortably not used to being this close too living people.

 

I thought back to the final day I had spent in my village and how this whole thing had started.

 

Haze age 10

 

I had just finished a contract and received a reward greater than anyone in the village could remember.

 

10,000 gold coins for the murder of ten giants.

 

I hadn't received a single injury during the assignment. Earlier in my life my parents had succumbed to disease so I lived alone usually in a tree carrying everything I owned on me at all times.

 

The other villagers started shunning me when I tried to enter any conversations. I wasn't allowed to join group assignments so I accepted higher paying solo contracts.

 

Eventually I got the message that I wasn't welcome in the village any longer so I simply packed up and left.

 

I forgot to steal some food so by the time I reached the Blacksmith village I was so hungry I simply collapsed at the gate.

 

It was a few hours later when Engra found me laying there. She gave me a bit of her food and carried me back to her house.

 

Her parents had also died of disease so we could understand how that felt but where as I had been shunned for my gifts she was praised as a master smith.

 

I stayed with her for a few months covering both of our expenses with my leftover reward money. Then Lucifer appeared before me in a dream.

 

"I understand that you are a Master assassin. I would like to hire your services." He said.

 

"Who are you?" I asked.

 

"I am King Lucifer. Lord of the Underworld and Demons." He said.

 

"Am I supposed to be impressed?" I asked.

 

"Listen. I would like you to kill four people. They are the descendants of the last King of Alana." He said.

 

"For that job I require a minimum reward of 20,000 gold." I said without hesitation.

 

"Very well the reward will be waiting at the house you are currently in once you finish the job." Lucifer said.

 

"Very well, Sir." I said bowing.

 

I snapped awake breathing hard. I looked around the room that I was staying in. In my hand was a rolled up piece of paper.

 

I unrolled it and gasped. Inside were the names and locations of the four descendants of the royal house.

 

I sat around until Engra came out yawning and stretching.

 

"What are you doing up already?" She asked.

 

I handed her the paper. She looked it over and handed it back to me.

 

"I think you should do it." She said.

 

"Really?" I asked.

 

"Yes, this is your speciality and the house of Alana needs to be destroyed before they can try to take over the kingdom. If they try that then a civil war will ensue." Engra said.

 

"I'm gonna need some new equipment." I said.

 

"I'll get right on that. You owe me a quarter of that reward." She said going in to her room.

 

So I did what I do best. Get info on my targets.

 

The strongest of the four was a big brute of a man who had earned the name demon blade.

 

Then they're was the second. She was a Mage who used water magic.

 

The third was a member of the Freeland ranger corps.

 

And finally the fourth was a hunter in the wilds.

 

Engra fashioned me my signature two daggers that I had lost to the silver blood and a few throwing knives.

 

"These are the strongest steel I could make and they're still lighter than iron." She said handing me the knives.

 

I set out and managed to locate the first three and eliminated them without incident.

 

The fourth however was a hard person to find. I ended up in a bar that he frequented when he wasn't out in the wilds.

 

"Kid are you old enough to be here?" The bartender asked.

 

"Yes and if you try to kick me out you'll regret it." I said leaning against the bar.

 

I wasn't drinking anything so I was watching the other people in the bar.

 

I noticed a man staring at me who I swear seemed familiar but I couldn't place. There was a group of men who were creating quite a loud disturbance and an elf woman who was decked out in weapons.

 

"So what's your story?" She asked.

 

"Who wants to know?" I asked.

 

"The weapons master." She said smiling.

 

"I'm an assassin from the Mist-Walker clan. Miss.....?" I said not sure what to call her.

 

"Alea. Alea the Weapons Mistress." She said smiling.

 

The man who had seemed familiar got up and another three men stepped into the bar.

 

Now I recognized him. Hofnir the Merciless. The most skilled assassin in the mist clan.

 

He had completed contracts that seemed impossible.

 

"Miss Alea. Bartender. Duck." I said quickly as I inhaled a huge amount of air.

 

Alea grabbed the bartender and they hid behind the bar.

 

"Poison mist!" I yelled as I blew out a purple haze.

 

"Black cloud!" Hofnir yelled.

 

The two clouds collided and made a thick smoke. I grabbed Alea and the bartender and quickly ran them outside before they could breathe in my poison.

 

"Get out of here! You can't hope to fight these guys." I yelled at them.

 

The bartender nodded and ran but Alea simply stood up and laughed.

 

"I've been looking for someone who can best me in a fight for over thirty years  now! This is what I want." She said.

 

"How old are you?" I asked confused.

 

"75." She said.

 

Hofnir and his men stepped out of the cloud of haze and glared at me.

 

"You deserve to die boy!" He yelled.

 

"Why!? What did I do!?!" I yelled back.

 

"You inherited that cursed poison from your Bastard Father!" He yelled.

 

I clenched my hands and fought back against the rage building inside me. Rage clouds judgement and makes you careless. That was what my parents had taught me.

 

My father had been born with poison breath that was true. But my mother had also been special.

 

"Mist walk." I said calmly.

 

A cloud of fog settled into the area and I walked forward directly towards Hofnir.

 

All members of my clan could see through mist and fog but this was a different fog than they had ever seen before.

 

My hand materialized out of the mist and I slit Hofnir's throat. This mist was made of my body and I could appear at will.

 

I dispelled the mist and was surprised to see Alea sitting on the other three men, who she had stacked in a pile.

 

"Well kid that was something else. I'm impressed." She said laughing.

 

"You could do the same thing with Magic couldn't you?" I asked.

 

"Nope. I have no Magic ability whatsoever. That's why I mastered weapons." She said.

 

"I should get going before the city guards show up." I said.

 

"Yeah. I'll cover you. I can just say they attacked me." She said.

 

"Thank you."

 

"If you ever need someone to help you. You can come find me." She said as I turned to leave the city.

 

I managed to get out of the city without being seen and I slumped against the walls.

 

"Now how am I going to find that hunter guy?" I asked myself.

 

I spent the next two months tracking down the final man on my contract then I returned to Engra's house.

 

"It's about time you got back!" She said when I got back.

 

"Sorry that took longer than I thought." I said.

 

She gave me a bone crushing hug. I Let out a bit of a yelp as she squeezed even tighter.

 

"So are you going to be leaving again soon?" She said setting me down.

 

"I don't know. Did you get the gold?" I asked.

 

"Yep it's all there." She said.

 

"That's good. I think I'll stay at one of the inn's so I don't draw attention to you." I said.

 

"Alright. Feel free to stop by my forge anytime." She said walking off as a bell rang throughout the town.

 

Haze, present

 

"Ok I completed your order. Here you go." Engra said handing me a roll of cloth.

 

We were sitting in her house at noon. I unwrapped the cloth and grinned.

 

The two daggers were about a foot in length each and had a curved blade. The tip quickly curved back on itself and formed a hook that was useful for disarming opponents.

 

But the sword was the most impressive. It had a carved handle molded for my hand and wrapped in a white cloth. The blade itself was jet black and sharp enough to cut through the thickest armor. It was thinner than a regular long sword but it looked even more deadly.

 

"I made the sword using a technique that I learned from a smith from the Freelands. I hope you like it." She said.

 

"It's perfect. Thanks Engra." I said.

 

"Ok but you have to go soon. The Riders have been asking questions about you. I think they're wondering why your coming to me and not the other smiths." She said.

 

"Okay. If they give you any trouble then tell me. I'll take care of them." I said looping the sword and daggers through my belt.

 

"You better make it back! If you don't I won't forgive you." She said.

 

"Yeah. You can count on it." I said leaving the house.

 

I started down the road to the north towards Matthew Silver-Blood.

 

8: Betrayal

Sanya Death-Cloak, Mage city

 

"I already told you I didn't do it!" I yelled.

 

"We have ten witnesses who say the murderer was a young girl with Black hair and a scythe. You are the only person in the city with that description." Master Rayden said.

 

"But I was asleep in my room at that time!" I said crying.

 

"At noon? You were asleep? Why?" He asked.

 

"I can't sleep at night very well so I wander around during the night and sleep during the day. It also makes me less likely to run into people." I said quietly.

 

"Sanya. I know you didn't do it. But I have to act like I do. The other head wizards don't know you like I do." Rayden whispered in my ear.

 

I nodded tears still flowing out of my eyes.

 

"So as punishment you will have to take extra night lessons from me!" He said loud enough so that everyone listening in the hallway could hear.

 

I hung my head in mock shame and walked back to my room.Once I was back I silently raised my hands in victory.

 

"I can't believe it. I get free lessons from master Rayden!" I laughed quietly.

 

I was a special case in the city. Each wizard was born with a type of Magic that they could perform.

 

Elemental, illusion, summoning, healing. Then there was me. The first necromancer born in decades.

 

I was hated because of my power. Necromancers were the most powerful type of Mages because of our closeness with death and destruction.

 

My predecessors didn't help much either. Four of the most powerful Mages in history were a group of four Necromancers.

 

War. Death. Famine. Pestilence. The four horsemen as they were known.

 

War could raise legions of Dead to fight for him. Famine could wither crops and trees with a touch. Pestilence caused the worst disease in history.

 

Death was the strongest though. He could kill anyone by simply looking at them. He killed the other three and then himself after a particularly horrible battle.

 

Another reason people didn't like me was the fact that I carried Death's scythe around with me.

 

I had been given the Scythe by his spirit when I had accidentally awakened my powers.

 

So now I walked around at night trying to avoid people as much as possible because everyone thought I was going to kill them.

 

I sat staring out of my window at the sunset. I really wished I was.....

 

Matthew, border of Giants kingdom

 

....Anywhere else right now.

 

A group of trolls had found us and now the four of us were surrounded by more than twenty with our backs to a big boulder. In the middle of the night with a full moon shining down on us.

 

"So why can't you rip them apart with your wires?" Kriko asked.

 

"That was a freak accident I got mad and got a lucky shot." I said.

 

"Well then why can't Rachel throw a fireball or something?" Sylvia asked.

 

I looked over my shoulder at Rachel. She had already exhausted her previous sun energy and her hair and eyes were now a dull gray color. She was shivering from the cold.

 

"Because its night time and she already got rid of a few of them." I said.

 

"Kriko can't you rip these things to shreds." I asked as one got closer.

 

"No by the time I killed one the others would have shredded me to pieces. Sylvia can you scream at them?" He asked.

 

"Not without hurting you guys to. If I missed one you wouldn't be able to recover fast enough to kill it before it got you." She said.

 

Kriko lowered his head and I saw his teeth clench. He snapped his head up and roared. The lead troll backed away uncertainly.

 

"What are you small human?" The troll asked.

 

"Small?" Kriko roared again.

 

He leaped forward and ran one of his swords through the lead troll then leaped back before the others could grab him.

 

"You guys are pathetic." A voice laughed out from the darkness.

 

"I've heard that voice before..... But where?" I said trying to remember.

 

"You forgot already?" The voice said.

 

I noticed a bit of fog slowly forming under the Trolls feet.

 

Then they were enveloped by it and I heard screams of pain echoing out of the fog.

 

When the fog dissipated only one troll was left with a white clothes standing before him.

 

"But the master said you would help us." The troll said dumbly.

 

"I work alone." Haze said drawing a black sword.

 

"Ha. If you plan to kill my underling then listen well boy. Your friend Engra is currently being brought to my realm. If you attempt to break the contract I will order my men to kill her on the spot." A deep booming voice said echoing out of the trolls mouth.

 

"You wouldn't dare lay a finger on her!" Haze said purple mist flying out of his mouth.

 

"Wouldn't I?" The voice asked.

 

He laughed again then the troll fell to the ground unmoving.

 

Haze took his sword and smashed it against the troll until it was in pieces. I walked up and put my hand on his blade.

 

"Let go." He said in calm fury.

 

"It's done. Now tell us who that was and what's going on." I said.

 

"King Lucifer. They kidnapped my friend." He said through gritted teeth.

 

"Do you think that if you left right now that you could save her?" I asked.

 

"Yeah. But I couldn't stop all of the demons that will be guarding her." He said.

 

"Then I'll go with you." I said firmly letting go of his sword.

 

"You think I'm going to let you go with him by yourself!?" Rachel said her voice shaking.

 

"You can't go you need to recover." I said walking forward and hitting the back of her neck.

 

I caught her as she fell forward unconscious.

 

"Matt what are you doing?" Kriko said grabbing Rachel.

 

"You and Sylvia keep heading north through the pass. Wait for me to come back at the first village you come to. And don't let Rachel come after me." I said mounting my horse.

 

"Are you serious?! This could be a trap!" He said.

 

"Tell me Kriko, If one of us was captured and you had a chance to get us back would you?" I asked.

  

"Of course." He said taken aback.

"Then let me help him get his friend back." I said.

 

Kriko looked at me then to Haze then looked at the two of us.

 

"If you let him die I will hunt you down." Kriko said turning away.

 

"Thanks Kriko." I said mounting my horse.

 

"And if you don't make it back then Rachel is going to kill me." He said slinging her over his shoulder.

 

"I guess I'll see you later." I said.

 

We turned and walked our separate ways.

 

About twenty miles out I asked Haze about where it was we were going.

 

"I'm betting Lucifer knows that I turned my back on him. And his threat to kill Engra was empty. i know why he captured her. So were going to recruit some help." Haze said from within a small cloud of Fog next to me.

 

"Where?" I asked.

 

"Oruk Kando, the only standing orcish city in the world. I have an old friend there who can help us." He said.

 

"Okay so that will take us a full day of riding. Then where are we headed?" I asked.

 

"The closest portal to the Underworld is in the mountains that make up the border between the Mage country and the Deadlands. So it will take them five days to drag her there. More if she resists. And I know they aren't human but they still need food. So they'll have to stop for supplies somewhere. All in all at least a week." He said.

 

"Ok. So if we ride hard but don't push my horse to much then we might be able to catch them before they enter the mountains." I said.

 

"Yeah......" He said and I could tell something was bugging him.

 

"What's on your mind?" I asked.

 

"Nothing." He said.

 

"Come on. If your distracted then you could end up dead. And that wouldn't help anyone." I said.

 

"Well I know why Lucifer would kidnap Engra and why he would want me to go after her. So I'm wondering if this is a trap." He said.

 

"Ok what do you mean 'you know why he wants her'?" I asked.

 

"Lucifer is so powerful because he can absorb the powers of others. Think about this. If he managed to capture you Rachel and Kriko he would be nigh unstoppable. Now add me Engra and a member of the Black Hand clan and no one would be able to defeat him." Haze said.

 

"So you think he's going to try and capture us as well?" I asked.

 

"Yeah, he only wanted you dead because your one of the few who can currently equal his power." He said.

 

"Ok..... Up ahead a patrol of riders." I said.

 

"Ha child's play!" Haze said.

 

I whipped ten long wires from my finger tips. Haze appeared out of his cloud and took a deep breath.

 

"Silver trap!" I yelled.

 

"Poison mist!" He yelled blowing a purple cloud into the group.

 

He cleared a path for me and we both sped through among the dead and dying demons.

 

"I think the two of us together could take on Lucifer." I said laughing.

 

"No. I asked him why he wanted you dead so bad and he told me 'Because the Silver Brat could be a big problem if he awakens his true power.' Any idea what he meant?" Haze asked.

 

I lowered my eyes and glared at the ground.

 

"He meant this." I said holding out my arm.

 

"What?" Haze asked not seeing anything.

 

"The silver mist. My blood separates until it can't be seen then enters someone else's body and clumps together in their heart. Instant death." I said.

 

A nearby tree exploded as I recalled my blood.

 

"That's amazing. Why would you not use that all the time?" He asked.

 

"Because its not right. Just because I have the power to kill doesn't mean I should use it." I said.

 

Haze grew silent for a long time and I was beginning to wonder if he had fallen asleep when he spoke again.

 

"That is the exact opposite of what my clan taught. I don't get it." He said.

 

"Never mind." I said as we rode to the east toward Oruk Kando.

 

9: Death and Disease

Sanya

 

I was sitting in Master Raydens office listening to him lecture on and on about the Necromancers of the past.

 

"The way they awakened their full power was through consuming the blood of another living being. Death for example would slice open an enemy then let blood drip from the scythe into his mouth." Master Rayden said.

 

"But did they have to use the blood? Couldn't they have found another way?" I asked revolted.

 

"It is not known if they ever discovered another way but the effects of one drop were able to last for one day." He said.

 

He stopped as a soft knocking echoed through the room.

 

"Come in." Rayden called.

 

My only friend other than Rayden stepped into the room. A gloomy girl with a web like tattoo around her right eye stepped through.

 

"Master Carcinax would like to see you, sir." Karla said.

 

Karla was a adept shadow Mage and she was disliked by quite a few people in the city but not as much as me. She  had long silver hair and a pale complexion so sometimes she looked like a stone statue.

 

"Excuse me girls." Rayden said as he exited the room.

 

The door shut and Karla instantly become cheerful and hyper.

 

"Sanya are you having fun with your 'punishment'?" She asked.

 

"He's just teaching me all the stuff that I can't be taught during normal classes." I said.

 

"Really that's cool! Are you learning a lot?" She asked.

 

"Yeah. He knows a lot more than the history books teach me. I wonder how he knows so much?" I asked.

 

"I don't know. So are you still up for the exploration team with me and Rayden?" She asked.

 

"Yeah. I can't wait! I finally get to leave this stupid city." I said excitedly.

 

"Ok we're leaving in two days at dawn." She said as the door opened again.

 

She went back to being a gloomy depressed girl. Rayden stepped in a worried look on his face.

 

"Sanya we will have to discontinue our lesson for today. Something has come up." He said grabbing his staff.

 

"What's going on master?" I asked concerned.

 

"A new type of demon has appeared at the wall. They want all the masters to go down and defend against it." He said.

 

"Then let me come along! A master is the best in their type of Magic! Therefore I am the master necromancer!" I said.

 

He looked at me then out of the small window in his study.

 

"Very well. But you must do as I say. Understood?" He said.

 

"Yes, sir." I said.

 

I followed him down the stairs from the school to the wall. The wall was a magical construct created when the demons reappeared. It was a solid black metal coated by a faint golden wall of light.

 

The wall ran the entire length of the border with Alana. It was the single greatest feat of any wizard in history.

 

As we got close I drew my scythe which was also my staff. The handle was a long black rod that ended with a purple crystal at the end. The blade was attached to the crystal and rod and was decorated with scenes of death.

 

Sadly the images made me happy when I looked at them.

 

"Master Rayden? What is this new Demon like?" I asked.

 

"It is a changeling. As far as we know it prefers a specific form but will change to meet attacks." He said.

 

"What's the form it prefers?" I asked.

 

He stopped and looked at me.

 

"It prefers the form of the Necromancer Death." He said.

 

Matthew, Oruk Kando

 

"This place is huge!" I said.

 

"Yeah it's a bit bigger than the clan villages." Haze said next to me.

 

He led me through the crowded streets to a big bar that seemed to be a center of attention.

 

"She's still going! Forty straight wins and she doesn't even seem to be tired! Can anyone defeat the Weapons Mistress?" A loud man called over the roar of the crowd.

 

"Yep she's still here. Your turn go fight her ill watch from the crowd." Haze said.

 

"I'm not going up against someone who can defeat forty people and still not be tired." I said.

 

"Fine ill do it." He said pushing his way into the crowd.

 

The crowd had formed a semicircle around the bar where an elven woman was drinking.

 

"I'll challenge you." He said loud enough for everyone to hear.

 

"What's this? A new challenger? Place your bets!" The announcer man yelled.

 

The elf woman turned and gave a little start when she saw haze. She winked and he nodded.

 

"I give up there is no way I could possibly defeat this boy." She said.

 

A loud roar came from the crowd. They parted to reveal a big man with wild eyes.

 

"You give up!? You can't I bet everything on you winning!" He roared.

 

"Give it a rest Grak Bear-Claw." The elf said grabbing another mug.

 

"Bear-Claw?" I asked.

 

"Yes I am of the Beast-blood clan of Alana. Who are you?" He growled walking over to me.

 

"Us your sons name Kriko?" I asked clenching my fists.

 

"Yeah. worthless kid." He said.

 

I snapped. I put my hands on his arms and put spikes into them from my palms. Then I used the poison within my blood.

 

The poison of the Silver-Blood was one of the most lethal in the world. Second only to Dragons blood but since dragons died out long ago it was now the most deadly.

 

I released my grip and he fell to his knees. His arms were already withering down to bone and the rest of his body followed turning him into a mummified bag of bones.

 

"You bastard. You let the black riders take your own son! They tortured him for two days! You deserve worse than this!" I screamed at him as he died.

 

He looked at me with all the hate in the world.

 

"He didn't deserve to be the king. It was supposed to be me!" He said as the poison entered his heart.

 

The crowd of spectators watched as Gark shriveled to bones. Then they ran away screaming,

 

"I'm sorry about that sir." I said bowing to the bartender.

 

"It's fine. I made enough money off of that crowd to buy half of the city if I wanted." He said wiping down the bar.

 

"Still I'm sorry about making you watch that." I said.

 

"Eh he had it coming. Your friend there probably would have got a contract to kill him soon." He said staring at Haze.

 

"So Haze I take it you need some help?" The elf woman asked.

 

"Yes. I need your help attacking a group of demons who kidnapped my friends." He said.

 

"Hey old man. Can I get some food for the road?" I asked the bartender.

 

"I'm afraid I don't have much. There are a few shops on the way out of town try them." He said.

 

"Okay thanks." I said walking over to Haze and the elf woman.

 

"Jenko! Don't forget you owe me half of the money you made from that crowd." The elf called as we left the bar.

 

"Whatever." The old man yelled as we left.

 

"So who are you?" She asked me.

 

"Matthew Silver-Blood. And you are.....?" I asked.

 

"Alea Blade-Song. So I assume you know where we're going, Haze?" She asked.

 

"The southwest mountains. I hope you don't mind." Haze said.

 

"Not at all. As long as these demons are strong." She said.

 

"You don't seem to care that were fighting Demons. You just seem like you want to kill them." I observed.

 

"I've been looking for a fight that I can't win. So fighting Demons seems like a good way to do that." She said.

 

"Oh. So you said weapons Mistress. You can use any weapon?" I asked.

 

"Yes but I favor the sword." She said gesturing to the three swords strapped to her waist.

 

"Okay. Do you have a horse?" I asked.

 

"Yep. Nirndrin." She said.

 

"Enough chatting lets go!" Haze said impatiently.

 

"Alright." I said as he ran towards the main gates.

 

Alea and I mounted horses and took off after Haze who was already flying down the road leading south.

 

Kriko

 

"Rachel calm down." I said as she threw a fireball past my head.

 

"YOU LET HIM LEAVE?! ARGHHHH!" She yelled.

 

She was understandably angry. I looked led to Sylvia for support but she shrugged. Rachel was standing between us wreathed in flames like some kind of human bonfire.

 

"But he would have left me unconcious to if I had tried to stop him." I said defensively.

 

She just threw another fireball at me.

 

"Come on! You couldn't have helped in your condition. Your already tired from throwing a few fireballs at me!" I said as she started breathing hard.

 

"I don't care! He shouldn't have left us!" She said weaker than before.

 

"He had to! What about Haze's friend? He couldn't have rescued her without Matt!" I yelled.

 

"But he shouldn't have left me. He's all I have left......." She said her flames going out completely.

 

Sylvia slithered forward and put a hand on Rachel's shoulder.

 

"It's okay. That little mist kid couldn't hurt Matt if he tried. He'll be fine." She whispered in Rachel's ear.

 

Then she started singing and I felt a wave of calm wash over me. Rachel sat down on the ground and curled her legs up.

 

"Rachel lets get moving. Matt said he would meet us at the first village along this route so lets go." I said.

 

"Yeah." She said nodding.

I led her horse over and she climbed into the saddle. Sylvia and I followed as she slowly led the way up the pass.