Forum novel

[Zabobula]

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Anubis and his brothers stood next to Noir and Z. Sonidow, Drahcir and Mailliw, Phil and Cen stood standing in front of them; all were covered in rain. Z was getting a weird feeling in his stomach… a strange burning sensation. Phil noticed the change in his behavior but didn’t think anything of it assuming that he wasn’t used to seeing battles like this.
“So where do we go from here?” Cen asked. “The wraith and those demons have retreated for now. But it wont be long before they decide to attack us again.”
“We should stick together,” Drahcir suggested.
“No, that’s not a good idea,” Sonidow protested. “There are too many of us in one group. After realizing who they are dealing with now, I’m sure that if they are planning anything, it would involve something big. We should split up.”
“What are you talking about?” Noir entered. “We should stick together. We are all going in the same direction anyway. Most, if not all, of you have been sent to protect me.”
“What about him?” Phil asked, pointing at Z.
Z paid them no attention as he was looking away from there debate.
“Hey!” Sonidow shouted at him, catching his attention. “Who are you?”
As soon as he met eyes with Sonidow, he immediately turned away getting that same sensation in his stomach again. He began talking to his conscience in his mind.
“What the Hell is going on with me?”
His conscience did not respond.
“Stickman answer me!”
They all became puzzled as they watched Z crouch down to his knees holding with his hands holding his stomach.
“What is wrong with him?” Cen asked.
“Leave him,” Anubis said.
“What do you mean leave him?” Phil responded. “Isn’t he the one who found you [Noir]?”
“Yes,” Noir answered. “But he isn’t a fighter and he doesn’t seem to have the stomach for this adventure we are about to partake in. We should leave him here.”
“Here for the demons to kill him?” Phil said.
“Listen!” Noir became agitated. “We cannot afford to add any burdens to our group. If he should cause problems for one of us…all of us will be at stake. We can’t afford any problems now.”
“Are we still splitting up?” Mailliw asked.
“Yes we are,” Noir answered. “Anubis, you and your brothers will come with me along with Drahcir. Sonidow, you Phil, Cen, and Mailliw be the second group. We will be split but not far from each other.”
“Why are we being separated?” Mailliw asked. “I never go anywhere without my brother.”
“You two are brothers?” Cen asked.
Noir looked at them both for a second. “For the sake of balance. I can tell by the way you two fought that you are almost on par with each other. It wouldn’t be right to have one team stronger than the other.”
“But we still, what about that man?!” Phil shouted.
The sound of Z’s feet hitting the ground as he rose back up got their attention. Everyone noticed a change in his eyes which made them uneasy. They were red turning back to purple.
“I’ll be fine.” He said sweating and panting exhaustingly with his left hand holding on to a large building fragment. “Go on ahead. None of you are who I am looking for.”
They all looked at each other and Phil was about to ask a question when they noticed that he was gone.
Sonidow suddenly felt a strange disturbance in the air. He knew there was something about that man. But as they began making their way into the forest…he began to think less of it.

[no one]

Simoneon removed the staff from Long chest, and yet, Long can still feel the weight that could most likely crush his bones if he try to move.

Simoneon (the old filthy sorcerer as Long call him in his thought), move toward the fireplace where he had just thrown his ring in.

The old man took up the tongs and with it, removed the ring out of the fire.

As for Long astonishment and relief, the ring showed no sign of wear or damage.

But then, lines fire started running along the ring, outside and inside: lines of fire that seemed to form the letters of a flowing script. They shone piercingly bright, and yet remote, as if out of a great depth.

The curious have overcame the fear. With all his strength, Long spoke out:

“What is that?”

Simoneon put the ring into an envelope and seal it. Then, he sat down, took out a pipe from his pocket and start puffing it, losing himself in streams of thoughts. His eyes seem closed but Simoneon still watching Long intently under the lids.

After a long inhale, Simoneon exhaled some circles of smoke and start muttering:

“I’ve never thought…… such power……. How can it still exist? ...… and that young lad……… and yet why didn’t he………”

Now, Long started to feel the pressure.

“Hey, hey, hey, old man! I hate to disrupt your thought but would you mind lifting this invisible weight…… thing…… whatever you call it off my chest? I can literally feel my rib touching my heart here.”

Simoneon look at Long and said:

“Can’t you put up to it?”

“No, I can’t.”

“Hmm……. You’re one strange warlord.”

Long almost burst out with anger but he managed to restrain himself.

“I don’t know what does that word means, and I don’t understand why you keep call me that but I just want to know one thing: can you put off the weigh on my chest or not?”

“Alright, I’ll do it. But to prevent you from teleporting like before, I’ll have to put some spell on you before removed the containment spell. Brace yourself; it’s going to be hurt a bit.”

Simoneon got up and moved close to Long. He held his staff up high and started muttering word than Long can’t hear or understand. Suddenly, he thrust his staff down hard on the floor, and Long felt like he’s being pierce by a hot metal blade.

“Arghhhhh……”

When the pain had left, Long feel really comfortable on his chest but now he feel something is moving across his belly.

He raised up and look at his stomach. There formed a hexagon star.

[Reaper]

OOC: Well, this has to go on. I left out the decission where the other group goes, Anubis or Drahcir might want to decide on their own. Btw: We have four writers in the one group and 2 in the other. But I guess Noir, Anubis and Drahcir will soon meet Alec and Harold.

With the first sunbeams Cen woke up. Still a little dizzy he looked around. Where was the town? Where were all the houses?
He closed his eyes again and the memory and images came back. Demons falling from the sky, Philus, the prince, them going into the forest to find a place to rest. So here they were.
Now he stood up. An appetizing smell came from behind. All the others were sitting around a little fire. Sonidow made a gesture telling him to join them.
As soon as he reached the fire, Noir began to speak.
“Listen, I thought a lot about the whole situation we are in this night and finally reached a conclusion. I said the two groups wouldn't go far away from each other, but as things are we will have to.”
Mailliw was about to protest, but Noir gave him a very angry look.
“I know you two don't want to split...” he looked at Mailliw and Drahcir.
“.. but this is a too important decision to make it conditional on your relation. One of our groups has to go to the far north.”
Philus was interrupting him. “Why?”
The other one hesitated. “You need to find a special person.”
Noir became an absent look and didn't seem to be willed to get into details. In his mind he seemed to be far away.
“Why should we do what you want anyway? No one has made you to our leader. I'm not going to leave my brother.” Drahcir had stood up to show his anger.
“Because although the city has been destroyed, I am still your prince. You owe me obedience. And because I know secrets from old times which might be the only way to stop the demons.”
“So if they are so mighty, tell them to us. We don't have time for secretiveness.”
Noir looked at him with a calm expression, then he leaned back and began to speak.
“The House of my family has always been a house of chroniclers. Every king collects memories from ancient times which the normal people have already forgotten and hands them over to his son. So did my father. He taught me the history of long forgotten kingdoms and wars. But the most important thing he told my about were the warlords.”
He made a deep pause. Drahcir being still angry asked: “And what is special about those warlords?”
“The warlords were the mightiest warriors ever existing, gaining their power from magical rings. They decided about defeature or victory for whole kingdoms. But one after each other died and most of their rings got lost.”
Some of the group furrowed their brows. Where was this getting to?
“So all of them are dead now. How can they help us then?”
“Some people believe that a few of the rings were found. My grandfather once met an old man who was searching for them. He could know about their destination. I want you to find him.”
“But he was an old man back then.” Sonidow opposed” He must have died now. And if someone had found one of the rings, wouldn't someone else notice it?”
“The old man somehow had got an endless life. He had lived in the time of the warlords!”
Noir was looking into the sky.
“To the other question: You can't use the full power of these rings if you don't know what they are. And even then it might not work.”
Drahcir still wasn't convinced. “Why should we search for him in the north? He could be everywhere. Maybe he sits behind a tree and smiles about us.”
“The man told my father that he wanted to search in the area around the mountain Arytow. That is where the biggest war took place.”
He looked into the eyes of everybody around him, one after each other.
“Will you go?”
First Philus nodded, then Sonidow, Cen and finally, after some thoughtful moments, Drahcir.
“Then it is decided. You have to leave as soon as possible, we have no time to waste."
“What will you five do?” Cen asked.
“You don't have to know. Concentrate on your own mission and don't care about us. We will take care of ourselves.”
Heavy-hearted they took their baggage and went away. Every time they looked back they saw the shapes behind them getting smaller and smaller until they disappeared. Would they meet each other again?

[Zabobula]

Z, the wandering redhead, kept to the shadows and away from the open areas for fear of encountering more demons. Even though the city had been abandoned thereafter, there was still the chance of stragglers. The pain in his stomach had gone away and he proceeded trying to wake his conscience with a fleet of questions.
“Stickman, what am I to do now? Where should I go? Why didn’t we go with those groups of soldiers?”
“The outcome wouldn’t have been pleasant if we went along with them,” his conscience spoke out, “that’s all you need to know. But it seems to me that I was wrong. We are going to have to follow them after all. My senses were confused. There was too many energy signatures blocking my sense and it made it hard for me to pinpoint the man who we are looking for.”
Z grew tired of all the secrecy, “And just who are we looking for anyway?”
“An old man who lives in the forest area,” his conscience spoke out to him.
“An old man?” Z was a bit unhappy about that answer. “What the Hell is an old man going to do for us?”
“That ‘old man’ has something of great power. That ‘old man’ has the power to release us from our fused bonds! Do me a favor and not doubt my judgment.”
Z was silent for the moment. He was still uneasy about the whole situation. Suddenly he heard rocks fall over and immediately looked in that direction. Four demons stood smirking at him from above.
“Oh this isn’t good, they found us!” Z spoke to himself.
“Run now!” Z’s conscience shouted.
Z began running in the opposite direction as fast as he could out into the open area.
The skies began turning grey overlaying the bright sun. All of the area around the city became shaded with darkness. One small drop of rain fell and then another until a small downpour began.
Several more demons joined the pursuit of the fleeing redheaded man. Some were flying and some chased him on foot, laughing hysterically.
“You cannot escape, human!” One of them yelled out closing in on Z.
It swooped down and grabbed Z by his neck collar lunging him into the air.
“Aaaahhh!” Z cried out as he was thrown into the air and fell down hard into a pile of debris in a large crash.
The small group of demons surrounded him and pulled him out of the debris. They noticed a small change in his eyes but didn’t think anything of it and started pounding away at him. As Z was constantly struck, the pain of each hit was slowly going away and his anger began rising overpowering the agony. One of them clawed at his face creating 4 slash marks on his right cheek. Another one kicked him so hard he slammed into a wall several yards from their location. Bruised and beaten, Z slowly began rising up spitting blood from his mouth. The demons were amazed at his resiliency and walked towards him preparing to strike again.
“This one is a tough shell to crack,” One of the demons said smiling at another.
“Well its time to end this and be on our way,” Another demon said. “Our master is waiting for us.”
The demon pulled back his dark fist and prepared to deliver the final blow. However, he was stopped by the look in Z’s eyes. The colors of his once-purple eyes had turned completely crimson red. It was something the demon had never seen in a human before.
“What the Hell are you?” The demon had been completely paralyzed looking into Z’s blood red eyes. The others were confused.
Z’s tone of voice had changed dramatically, as if he was controlled by someone other than himself, “I am the Crimson One!”
After he said that, his entire body began glowing a fiery purple. Z began looking at his body confusingly. He felt completely changed and held his forehead with his hands feeling the burning sensation all over. He began yelling in anger and in agony unleashing a powerful wind. The demons took several steps back from him and some attempted to flee...but it was too late.

Sonidow felt a strange wind pass him. He looked back in the direction where the city was, far away. He couldn’t see anything but he knew something had happened. The others had noticed something was wrong but Sonidow looked forward and urged them on and not to worry.

[no one]

“Hurry up, we don’t have much time.” Said Simoneon. “Gather your things, quick. This place is no longer safe.”

Long stood up, still felt confusing.

Simoneon rushed him:

“What are you waiting for?”

“Why?” asked Long “I’m not going anywhere unt…..”

A black arrow came through the window and struck the table, half a feet from where Long was putting his hand on.

“Great lor” Long said. Many more arrows started to fly in.

“Keep your head down! Is there any other way to get out of here?” asked Simoneon as he used his staff to fend off the arrows.

“This way.” Long said and started to move. Just then he started to notice the envelope on the table.

“What about the ring?”

“Take it and keep it hidden with you. Don’t use it or let anyone know you have it.”

Long quickly grabbed the envelope and put it in his pocket. He lead Simoneon out of the house to the back door.

When he stopped to check if the old witch’s still there, he felt the old many staff hit his shoulder.

“Run, you fool! Run. And don’t look back”

Long started to run as fast as he could to the forest. As he ran, Long asked Simoneon:

“Where are we going?”

“To the West.” Simoneon replied.

Long and Simoneon kept running toward the West.

The sound of the bowstring started to become clearer.

One arrow struck Long leg.

“Arggg…..”

“Come on, kid. Get up! I can’t carry you” Simoneon asked as he tried to drag Long with him.

Now they can hear footsteps getting closer.

Long leg began to numb. His head’s spinning.

FLASH!

He saw a man carry a baby running through the forest. The baby’s sleeping.

That man kept swinging his head as if he was being chase.

Long tried to get closer to see the man face.

FLASH!

He was in the forest again, being dragged by an old man with numerous of black creature that he can’t see clearly hot on their tail.

As the last piece of conscious left him, Long hear a small pop sound in his ear.

The wind suddenly ceased to exist; the snow under him became solid and kind of warm; the hand that dragged him suddenly released his shoulder.

And then he felt nothing.

[The Lost Global Mod]

Philus bared his teeth as he felt a strange wind coming from behind. He felt a familiar power right behind them, near the city. Philus looked at Sonidow and so did he. Sonidow's eyes revealed that he was thinking the same. "But how can it.. " Philus started but Sonidow silently interrupted him and pointed at Cen's and Mailliw's back. "Don't let them worry too much" he then said. Philus simply nodded, continuing his walk.

Cen looked at Mailliw but it seemed that the warrior with the beam sword didn't notice the conversation about them. "Worry about what?" Cen asked himself and then looked at Philus. Philus quickly hid his worried expression and said "What's wrong? You look like as if you have just seen some undead". He laughed at his own joke and even Sonidow next to him showed a little grin. Cen also started to laugh and thought to himself, "Why do I even worry? I have strong friends with me. Nothing can destroy that bond." He didn't know how wrong he was.

OOC: sorry i am not creative at the moment.. so its not that much

[Lord Anu]

Big and dark clouds were covering the sky. You couldn't see the sunshine anymore in the land. Anubis, Sharky, Tiny, Noir and Drahcir finally reached the forest. They were walking very quietly and carefully for demons or beasts could jump out from any bush. Trees were loud with strong wind in their leafage.
''No sun...'' Sharky said while they were walking.
''What did you expect? In dark times like this, the only thing you can see are the dark clouds, rain, and fog.'' Drahcir answered brutally.
''So, where are we going?'' Tiny asked the others.
''To the city Cikuro. We need more soldiers to fight on our side and some men who will try to repair the city Quarzt.'' Noir answered.
''Prince Noir...That story about the Warlords... Are you sure that every Warlord will be on our side?'' Anubis started with questions again and the others were listening.
''I don't know Anubis. King Nostro is the first Warlord who won't be on our side.''
''Does that mean...that we might lose the war if we don't get any Warlord on our side?'' Drahcir suddenly put himself in conversation.
''I doubt that we can't kill them, even if we are usual fighters.'' Anubis said.
''It's not impossible to kill a Warlord, but you have to be very skillful and strong. And you can also defeat the Warlord if you had somebody or something to help you.'' Noir was explaining and then they heard some noise in one bush.
Tiny pulled his bow immediately and stood.
''What is it Tin?" Drahcir asked.
''Shhh... there isn't any wind in those bushes.'' Tiny said quietly and started to range in on the bushes with sharp 5 arrows.
Tiny's hand was shaking while he was ranging. Others pulled out their weapons slow and started to move to the bushes, but Sharky disappeared. He was looking like a wind of sand while disappearing. Anubis and Drahcir got so close that they could touch the bushes with their blades. Prince Noir was behind them. Suddenly from the bushes glasses started to fly on the three heroes and prince. Tiny shot his 5 arrows and stop all the glasses that were going towards him, Anubis and Drahcir. Prince Noir defended himself with the sword. Anubis and Drahcir used that chance and carefully jumped in the bushes. Anubis disarmed one young boy and Drahcir knocked him down to the ground.
Another guy tried to protect the young boy, but soon he felt the touch of cold steel on his neck. Sharky appeared right behind him and stopped him.
''What are your names?'' Noir asked the two of them. ''Speak quickly!''
''My name is Alec and this is my good friend Harold.'' Alec answered.
''They are just a children... Let's take them with us to Cikuro. There is no need to bind them.'' Anubis told to the others.
''What!? Are you normal?! They could pierce us with those sharp glasses and their swords! Even if they are children, they are too dangerous!'' Drahcir yelled.
''I'm sure they are on our side. We just surprised them.'' Anubis said again.
''They could be a demon's spies.'' Tiny said seriously.
''For the name of God, they are just a chil..'' Anubis started.
''That's right! Just children! Perfect and powerful spies that demons could get!'' Tiny answered again.
''We will release them and let them go with us... I think that they are on our side and that I invited them to fight for us in Quarzt.'' Prince Noir said then cut their tie rods.
Alec smiled at prince Noir, but Noir was really serious. Now there were seven of them. They all were traveling to the city Cikuro. Soon the night came and they were forced to sleep by the hard paths through the forest who was easily turning into the jungle. They made a small camp without a fire and slept in the deep blue night agleam with the moon shining agleam below.

[Reaper]

OOC: Somehow I am never really satisfied with my posts in here. But the story must go on

Snow, everywhere snow. Cen shook his head. They had walked the whole day only resting to eat and everything they saw was an entire white. Just a few trees were breaking through the monotony. Now it was already evening.
Cen looked up. They were trying to get on the top of the hill in front of them. Mailliw in front of him, Philus and Sonidow a bit behind. Both had acted somehow strange that day. Often they fell behind and talked to each other, but as soon as he called them, both began to run and walked at the top. However they soon became slower again.
He was tempted to think that they were hiding something. From the look in their eyes he could tell something was wrong, but would Philus hide something important? He couldn't believe that. He didn't want to, but he wasn't sure.
A call from Mailliw jolted him out of his thoughts. He looked around. Now he had been the one who had fallen behind. Maybe Philus and Sonidow just worried like him...
Soon he reached his three fellows. They stood on the peak, with their heads northbound. Cen tried to follow their look and saw a giant mountain sitting enthroned on the white, flat land. Arytow.
Sonidow pointed to a little forest at the bottom of the hill.
“We will strike our camp there. All of us need a rest.”
Silently they walked down the hill, all of them joyful awaiting a pause from the exertions and time to think about what had happened the past two days.

After about an hour, all four where sitting around a campfire, telling each other their stories. Cen had already known Philus' one and his own hasn't been that interesting, but now he was intently listening to Mailliw.
“So what is it like on your planet? Is it different from our one?”
“Well, I don't know as much about it as Drahcir as I was born on earth, but it is much higher developed than this one. They have particle beam weapons there, and much more.”
“But what about the people there, their lives and problems. Is it the same as here?”
“I don't think that there are much differences. We are very similar to you, look at me or Drahcir.”
“I'm wondering whether its different anywhere...”
Cen started to think about something so Mailliw went on until Philus wanted to ask something.
“How did you and you brother came here? And why?”
Mailliw was smiling, but Cen couldn't tell what he wanted to express with that.
“I would really like to tell you, but it already got pretty late. And I want to here Sonidow's story, too.”
All heads were turning to Sonidow who had been very quiet up to that point.
“I'm not going to tell you right now. And you don't need to know it anyway.”
With this words he turned around and got to his place to sleep. So did the others.
And as the last sunbeams disappeared, all of them were fallen asleep.

[no one]

Dark.

Nothing but a pitch black dark.

One horse man was riding in the dark, carrying something wrap up in a blanket. The other hand was trying to control the horse.

It was hard when you have three arrows on your back.

Then, from the front, three black demons jumped out.

The horse reared. The rider tried to turn his around but he realized that four more demons have sneaked up behind them. One of them screamed:

“You traitor! Give me the child.”

The horse man said nothing. His held on the blanket became tighter.

Suddenly, he raised one of his arm up. The trees started to become alive. Their vines extended and grabbed the demon. The more wriggled the demons; the vines grab became tighter. The trees lifted the demons high up and strangled them to death.

The rider fell off his horse. The attack has exhausted him. He had no strength left. Yet he still tried to crawl away.

Everything started to fade away. The sky became brighter; the tree disappeared, replaced by the scene of a small house as Long opened his eyes.

He was lying on a bed next to the window in somebody house. Long tried to get up but he feel his leg in horrible pain each time he try; so in the end, he gave up and lied back to the bed.

After half an hour or so, the door opened and Simoneon entered the room.

“I see that you have awakened there, Long” The old man said, smiling.

“Where am I?” Asked Long.

“You’re in a village called Hiryo under your mountain. And this is the house of a young lad around your age name Edward who claimed to know you.” Simoneon said and started to take out his pipe.

“Edward? Edward Richardson? Yes, I know him. I usually talk to him when I go pick up the goods in here.”

“Is that so?” Simoneon said. Then they both fell into silence.

After a while, Long asked again:

“So what is the deal with the warlord thing you told me back on the mountain?”

Simoneon didn’t reply. He kept smoking in silence.

“I guess it’s time for you to know.” He said in the end.

“Long ago, when I myself was younger than you, there was a sorcerer. A good man. He has a wife who he loved more than anything in the world. When his wife was infested with a deathly disease, he tried all he could to save her but he has failed.

After his wife funeral, he traveled pass mountains and rivers, to a place far away where no human has ever set foot in, the land which know as: Hyumfort.

There, he made a deal with the reapers to bring back his wife. They accepted and give him a ring which can summon the soul of all things back to its body.

By using the ring, he brought back his wife. But he became more and more upset about the ring. It corrupted him, make him became lusting for power.

He secretly rose up an army. The army of the death. Soon, he rebelled again the king, killed everyone, including his wife.

He was Julian, the evilest devil who has ever set foot upon the earth.

The he made some ring on his own, giving them to those who willing to sell their souls for him. They became the warlord, leader of Julian’s army. Each of them held a different power that can surpass even wizard and sorcerer if they know how to embrace that gift. A warlord can’t be killed. They can be wounded but only a warlord can kill a warlord.

But what Julian didn’t think of has occurred.

A warlord has become as power lusting as his master. One by one, he killed other warlords and took their power to become stronger. But he couldn’t kill Julian since he’s still bound by the power of the ring.

Take advance of the situation, wizards, elfs, human and all other resistant forces has alliance themselves to take down Julian.

The first thing they did was captured the warlords and separated them from the ring. Without it, they began to gain more control over themselves and can join force to defeat Julian.

The biggest battle took place at this very place, this village. Julian himself and the power thirsty warlord lead the army of black demon and other dark creature into battle. The resistant has suffered great damage and could be defeated if the warlord on Julian side hasn’t gone berserk. His ring got separated from him and with all the other power he has, that warlord wasted no time to attack his own master.

Julian killed him but he wasted most of his energy. That’s when the last warlord on the resistant side (and also the last one on earth), warlord of lightning, created a thunder storm that fried up even himself to finished Julian.

Without a leader, all of Julian army went crazy and destroy anything they touch, including their own side. Even though that made thing a bit easier to do but it still took more than two years to destroy all those demons.”

Simoneon stopped to inhaled some smoke from his pipe then continue.

“The demons haven’t been seen up until now so when they showed up I decided to go investigate this mountain, where I felt the present of a strong power, which turns out to be you.”

Simoneon stopped and the house fell in silence again. This time, the silence that last.

[Zabobula]

This is so epic it needs music...
*Credits to Sonidow for bring music to story originally :P

Music for this section (This should last all the way):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsOPR9659Ww

The darkness of the night continued to loom over the landscape enveloping every square inch of ground and sky. Silence had fallen hard over the village of Hiryo. It was so quiet; peace wouldn’t have been the appropriate word to describe it. Something was about to happen, and all the villagers of the town knew it; they just didn’t know how to describe the feeling that they all had.
A dark figure stood atop of a hill looking down at the village of Hiryo. His eyes turned from purple to red and he began snickering.

Cen woke up from his sleep and noticed something strange. Someone was missing from their group. It was…Sonidow. He didn’t want to wake the others until Sonidow was truly unable to be unaccounted for. So he got up and went looking for him.
Phil woke up shortly after he was long gone into the forest. He noticed that Cen and Sonidow were missing. A bad feeling flared up in his gut and he immediately woke Mailliw.
“Huh? What’s going on?” Mailliwr replied rubbing his eyes.
“Cen and Sonidow are GONE!!”
Mailliw’s eyes widened once those words passed Phil’s lips. They gathered their belongings and took off into the forest.

Running could’ve been an understatement on how fast they were moving through the forest. It was as if someone was chasing them. Several villagers, mostly young adults and some kids were going in the opposite direction of Hiryo. One of them looked back to see a large orange and red light in the sky that came from the village, along with several pillars of smoke fogging up the sky. One of them stumbled causing a chain reaction which made them all fall head over heels.
The man who fell first saw a two black boots plant in front off him and he looked up. He saw a black-coated man with spiky hair looming over him.
“Who are you? Are you with the demons? Please don’t hurt us!” He replied shaking violently.
“Calm yourself and tell me what’s going on?”
One of the women from behind yelled. “Our village is being attacked!”
“By whom? Demons?” The black-coated man replied.
“We don’t know,” the villager answered. “We heard people screaming at the top of their lungs that someone was attacking the village. I gathered up my family and we fled the village”
The black-coated man drew a sword from his back sheath and the villager looked at him with a sort of confidence. “Are you going back there to stop whoever is doing this?”
“No, I’m here to find someone.”
The villager looked down at his reply.
“But, if I run into the one who is causing this, then I will kill him.”
All of the villagers gasped in awe at his response. Some of them doubted but most of them had hope.
The black-coated man took off into the distance towards the burning village.

“Long where are you???”
Simoneon rushed through the crowd of villagers trying to find Long who seemingly disappeared. His eyes were running all over desperately trying to find his missing comrade. He caught a small glimpse of him running away from an approaching shadow in a narrow passage. So he ran after him with his staff at the ready.

Cen noticed the flames in the distance and his running speed increased. But he heard his name called from behind him and stopped. Phil and Drahcir emerged from the shadows of the forest.
“What the Hell is going on? Where is Sonidow?” Phil asked.
“That’s who I’m looking for.”
Phil and Mailliw noticed the flaming sky in the distance. “You think he went in that direction?”
“I’m not sure but I’m going there to see. You coming or what?”
“Let’s go now, no time for yes or no questions.” Drahcir said taking off ahead of them with his beamsword drawn. Phil and Cen followed closely behind him.

“Long!”
Simoneon had finally caught up to his partner. But Long was scared stiff looking at the person opposite of them. The dark figure became illuminated and his smirking face was shown.
“So, you’re the one who has been looking for me?”
Long was surprised at Simoneon’s question to the man. “You know that man?”
“No, I have felt his presence for a long time now. I knew that someone was coming after us. It just was a matter of when this day would arrive. What do you want demon?”
“I’m no demon, but I’m not human either.” The redheaded man spoke. “And I want the ring you possess!”
Long gulped and Simoneon stood firmly in front of him. The man noticed something strange about his reaction.
“So, the kid behind you has it?”
Simoneon glared at him. “If you want the ring then you’re going to have to TAKE IT FROM ME!”
Some of the flames in the area died down and the redheaded man’s face darkened with his red eyes glowing heavily as he began slowly walking towards them.
“Very well then…”

Sonidow had a hunch that whoever he was looking for was near. He leapt atop a building and noticed three men in a narrow area not too far from his position. He dashed off in their direction.

Phil, Cen, and Mailliw saw him leap off the building and took off in that area.
“We need to hurry, something big is about to happen I just know it!”

The three rushed off to the area of an imminent clash…