A Tale of Iron

In the years of the first Red king, a dragon came from another continent. It was the first and last documented time that a dragon was seen in Jovah until now. Using a powerful arcane magic, it was transformed by the king himself to give it a human form. This dragon was a woman who had no ill intent towards humans. It was then that the Red king formulated his plan.

The woman mated with the king and bore a son and a daughter. They both possessed latent powers of a dragon, but they did not possess the enormous amount of mana to manifest them. So it was that the king’s plan had been temporarily foiled. However, he kept good faith with the dragon family. They were treated as royalty, and had them inbreed to keep the half-dragon, half-human blood going. They were always fortunate enough to bear at least one male and one female per generation. But none of them had the power to summon the dragon inside of them.

…until now!

*Music* The five have regrouped in front of this dragon.

Aerona: Now everything makes sense.
Vito: What do you mean?
Aerona: There were always trails of your destruction, but never any sign of your actual appearance. Your dragon form was too large to fit in the cave, yet you killed two trolls in them. You couldn’t have flown over the cave; otherwise those griffins would be dead.
Dragon: So you noticed.
Mars: I thought maybe your power was a summoning technique. But it appears that is not the case.
Dragon: I am the real deal. My dragon name is *speaks in a different accent*, however, my human name is Dravos. What you fought was merely a manifestation of my true power. But my true power lies in this form.
Erosion: What is your goal out here?
Dravos: You all come from the Iron Kingdom, yes? I am going to ravage your lands. I was simply hiding out here until then. It seems you got wind of my existence somehow. So you sent a small strike force just in case we decided to attack your kingdom while you tried to kill me. Based on your performance, you are all indispensable fighters to your kingdom. Killing you here will be beneficial.
Vito: So then, you completely side with the Red Kingdom.
Dravos: Of course. My family is royalty here. We have been so for over a century.
Aerona: In other words, there’s no way to avoid fighting. Of course, even if there was, we’d just assassinate you. *Music Stops*
Dravos: No. Besides, you came here for my head. You have no intention of leaving without killing me.
Aerona: In that case…

With his dark armor still activated, Aerona charges in and swings with his halberd. Dravos moves behind him in an instant, surprising him.

Aerona: He can outpace me even in this state?! *Music*
Dravos: I don’t think you understand the position you’re in. I can’t be beaten in this form.

Vito is the next to attack by dark buffing his speed. Dravos dodges his first slash and then the next. Erosion is the next to attack. With no dark magic behind his attack, he slashes at his armor. It bounces off, but Erosion manages to touch Dravos’ face with his hand.

Dravos: Is this poison? It doesn’t appear to be affecting me in any way. But if it does, I’ll just burn it off.
Erosion: So poison is not an option.

Aerona charges again and slashes. As Dravos dodges backwards, Vito is behind him and lunges with his katana. He dodges to the side where Erosion and Solomon are waiting for him. They attack in tandem, but Dravos appears behind them. Just then, a chasm is created where he is standing and he falls inside. He does not seem worried in the least bit as he lands. He jumps up and wings appear on him. He starts flapping them and floats just above them.

Dravos: Is that all?

He swoops over to Erosion and lunges with his spear. Erosion is able to avoid, but gets cut on his chest a little. A dark blade beam comes his way from Vito, but he brushes it aside with his armored arm. Dravos lands on the ground and fire starts to appear in his hands.

Mars: Don’t tell me…

Dravos unleashes a firestorm out of his hands, similar to his fire breath previously. Mars creates a large wall to block it, but it busts through. Aerona dispels his dark armor by using all of it as a shield for the five of them. The fire also busts through it, but is weakened enough by the two of their defenses that they each only suffer minor burns. Dravos is now in front of Solomon before he can react. He makes a claw position with his right hand and his hand partially transforms into a dragon claw. He swipes at Solomon and breaks through his armor and cuts and burns him severely on his torso. Erosion shoots a debuff beam at Dravos, but he dodges and is now behind him. He stabs Erosion through his left leg with his spear. As he takes it out, Erosion drops to his knees. Before Dravos goes for a killing blow, a wave of rock is sent straight at him. He spikes his aura and shoots fire out of one hand, busting the rock completely. This creates a lot of dust. Aerona and Vito appear on both sides of him for a pincer attack. He puts both arms out and blasts both of them with fire, blowing them away and leaving severe burns on both of them. He then appears in front of Mars and dragon claws through his armor, sending him to the ground.

Vito: Shit. He’s too strong.
Dravos: No matter how many times you come at me, the result will be the same.
Aerona: That armor of yours. It’s created from your magic right?
Dravos: What a stupid question.
Aerona: That’s a yes. If that’s the case, then it’s similar to my dark armor. Which means… That form has a weakness.

They all think back to when Aerona explained his armor’s weakness.

Solomon: That technique really worked well. Does it have any weaknesses?
Aerona: Besides using a lot of mana, it doesn’t enhance my defense much. It’s definitely meant for if I want to end a fight quickly.
Mars: Then, the weakness of that form is his defense.
Vito: Come to think of it, he’s only dodged our strongest attacks so far.
Erosion: But how do we even hit him with our strongest attacks if he keeps dodging? Wait!
Aerona: There’s just one chance to hit him. One opening he leaves.
Solomon: Come to think of it, I think there might be one time where we can hit him.
Vito: No, he CAN be hit somewhere.
Mars: I might have figured out when to hit him.

They all look at each other, realizing that they all figured it out. Dravos looks confused. Vito rushes in first and starts slashing. Dravos dodges each slash and attacks with a dragon claw. Vito is able to dodge out of the way. Erosion and Aerona then go on the attack in tandem. Dravos dodges both of their attacks and then the two of them jump back to regroup with Mars and Solomon. They take a defensive stance.

Mars: Wait for it…

Dravos starts to charge up fire in his hands and then releases a blast of fire at them. At that very moment, Vito speeds from behind and slashes. *Music Switches* Dravos is late to react because of his concentration and gets slashed through his armor, taking a wound to the back of the neck. The fire goes out and an earth wall blocks the remaining fire that was shot forth.

Vito: Not deep enough! He was able to move himself just enough to dodge a lethal strike.
Dravos: So, that was your plan. Too bad you can’t use that plan again.

Dravos turns to Vito and attacks with his spear. Vito blocks and they push against each other. At that moment, another stink bomb goes off in the vicinity of Dravos.

Dravos: Not that again! You had more than one?
Erosion: Of course.
Dravos: It doesn’t matter this time. I’m now aware of what you’re doing.

At that moment, Solomon, Erosion and Vito start yelling at the top of their lungs at Dravos. He becomes slightly disoriented when he is slashed hard from behind. Aerona had snuck up behind him while his senses were overloaded. His halberd has left a deep cut in his back. Solomon attacks with dark wind covering his scimitar. He lands a cut across his chest. Suddenly, he unleashes a wave of energy that blows them all back and knocks them to the ground. *Music Stops*

Dravos: You have made me very angry. Now, feel the power of a true dragon!

He appears in front of Aerona and makes a claw again. He drills straight down into Aerona’s armor and into his stomach. He coughs up blood. He quickly disappears and then appears in front of Vito as he’s getting up. He lands a claw slash to Vito’s torso, leaving cuts so deep you can see part of his ribcage. As Vito falls, Dravos is now behind Solomon. He stabs with his claw through his back and then quickly pulls out while kicking him to the ground. Erosion is behind him now and attacks with his wakizashi. Dravos turns around quickly and crushes the blade in his hand. With the shrapnel of the blade, he forces it into Erosion’s neck. At this second, Mars has five fingers on his forehead.

Mars: It’s now or never! Unseal!

His aura immediately spikes, stopping Dravos’ rampage out of interest. Mars slams his weapon on the ground, shattering it completely from the force. The earthquake that follows completely eviscerates the ground below all of them and then makes giant spikes the size of a school bus straight in his direction. Dravos starts breaking the spikes as they come but then a spike from below springs up and grazes him. Dravos disappears and then appears behind Mars. He claws through Mars’ armor and lands a lethal strike to his neck. Mars loses consciousness immediately and the rampage stops.

Dravos: There. They’re all dead. That was more difficult than I expected it to be.

Just then, he notices light out of the corner of his eye. He sees that Aerona is sitting next to the other three besides Mars, healing them.

Dravos: I didn’t notice? Is it because my senses are still dulled from that last attack? But how did you survive? And what are you doing?
Aerona: If I hadn’t anticipated your attack, I would have been. Just before you attacked, I grabbed your arm with dark magic encasing it, changing the trajectory to miss anything vital.
Dravos: I had a one in five chance of going to you first. How did you know for sure?
Aerona: Because I have shit luck. It’s always me. I guess that worked in my favor this time.

Dravos notices that the wounds besides Aerona’s have healed.

Dravos: It’s no matter. I will kill you for sure this time to make sure you can’t heal.

Aerona activates his dark armor and readies himself. Dravos speeds over to him and attacks. Aerona dashes with all his power just to avoid the attack narrowly. He is hunched over, still in massive pain.

Aerona: C’mon, healing. Kick in quickly.
Dravos: Looks like you won’t be able to avoid another attack from me.

Just then, he is surprised and dodges out of the way when Vito slashes from behind. He then dodges a slash from Erosion and then receives a gust of wind blowing him back.

Solomon: Go heal Mars. We’ll hold him off long enough.
Aerona: Right. Thanks.

The three of them ready themselves with dark magic activated. They go on the attack. Meanwhile, Aerona heals Mars’ injury and he wakes up subsequently. After rapid attacks, the three back up and rejoin Aerona and Mars.

Aerona: I won’t be able to do a mass healing like that again.
Dravos: You pests! I’ll end you in one attack!

Dravos begins charging up a massive amount of mana in his hands and his aura spikes.*Music*

Vito: Then I guess it’s time for that attack. Ready?
All: Ready!

They stand side by side and perform their respective hand positions. Suddenly, Aerona dispels his dark armor and focuses that energy in front of him. The other three are now surrounded with their own dark aura as well. Mars unseals with one finger. The white energy that encases them starts to turn black.

Dravos: NOW BURN ALONG WITH YOUR COUNTRY!
Aerona: DARK
Erosion: TEH
Mars: PEN
Aerona: HYAK
Vito: OOH
Solomon: GO
All: FIREEEE!!!!!!

The Dark Tepenhyakugo bursts forth just as Dravos is about to release his fire. He does, but it immediately clashes a few feet in front of him. After a few seconds, the surrounding area starts shaking and the massive amount of magical energy present explodes into a sphere that covers the entire area.


What conclusion has this shocking battle come to?!

As the blast subsides, there is an enormous amount of smoke still present in the area. The smoke starts to dissipate from the epicenter of the blast and we see a figure start to appear. It is Dravos. His armor has shattered, as we see small bits of it barely clinging on to his body. He is bleeding heavily all over and panting.

Dravos: Who knew they had an attack like that on reserve this whole time? If I was any later in unleashing my fire, I might have really died. In any case, that was the last of their energy. I will report to the king about this. It’s time to go to war.

He has enough power to create wings for himself. The smoke surrounding him starts to move as he starts flapping. As the smoke starts to push away, all of the sudden our heroes are seen dashing at Dravos from all sides. *Music*

Dravos: What?!

Dravos cannot move fast enough and all five of them stab him through the torso with their weapons (even if broken). When we get a look at all five of them, they are all suffering from second-degree burns everywhere on their bodies. They’re all panting very hard as well.

Dravos: You…you shouldn’t have been able to move, let alone attack!
Solomon: While it’s true that all our mana is depleted and our stamina has run out, you forgot something important that every human possesses.
Aerona: Adrenaline.
Dravos: What is this adrenaline?
Mars: It allows us to surpass our normal capabilities as humans, even if only for an instant.
Erosion: Each one of us was resolved to kill you while you were vulnerable.
Vito: You underestimated humans, and now you will die for it.
Dravos: This whole battle went according to plan, didn’t it?
Solomon: Almost. We knew that in order to use the Tepenhyakugo we would have to get you so agitated that you would charge up a finishing attack.
Aerona: If we had used it from the start, you would have suspected its power and wouldn’t have let us use it.
Vito: We didn’t plan almost getting killed, but most of it was.
Dravos: Impressive. Despite being overwhelmingly outmatched, you still found a way to win. That’s not something just anyone can do. And that attack of yours. If you had released it any later, my fire would have killed you. But alas, you released your attack before I could release mine. Very well. May I have your names?

They each give their names.

Dravos: Good. Vito, Solomon, Mars, Erosion, Aerona…you all have my praise. You win this battle. *Music Stops*

They withdraw their weapons and Dravos falls to the ground on his knees.

Dravos: Sorry, Sentus. I couldn’t keep our promise.

He falls on his face and dies. Subsequently, the five dragon slayers now collapse on the ground. They are all still conscious, but can barely even see straight. When we look at Aerona’s wound, it has been seared shut by the burn.

Vito: It’s no good. I can’t move.
Aerona: There are no doubt enemies coming to our position. Hamas proved that. If my healing was only faster…

Just then, we see some creatures exiting the remains of the edge of the forest. Out of the group, there is one centaur that rides ahead.

Solomon: Not now.

The centaur stops just short of Solomon.

All: What?
Centaur: Creatures of light. Thank you.
Erosion: There are creatures of darkness that can speak our language?
Centaur: Yes, though they are few and far between. You defeated the dragon that has been terrorizing our people and our forest for many moons.
Aerona: So the presences I felt earlier were you all watching the fight?
Centaur: That is correct. Now, you must hurry. There are more humans coming this way. They will likely kill you here if they find you.
Solomon: We’d like to, but we can’t move.
Centaur: I see. Then we will aid you. We may be creatures of darkness, but we do have some sense of dignity. The dark skinned humans have been driving us out of our homes, especially the dragon. We know that you are at war with them. We will favor you this time.
Mars: Thank you.

Five griffins come down and pick up each of them. They start flying away, when we see Sentus enter the area. Hunter and the other black robed people follow just behind.

Sentus: What the-!
Hunter: Leave it to me.

Hunter shoots what appears to be a thin line of water straight at one of the griffins. Another griffin gets in the way and dispels it with its talons. Countless griffins now get in the way and the various creatures of darkness on the ground surround them.

Hunter: That’s quite a lot of them.
Sentus: You can clean up the rest after me. Until then, you four might want to duck.

They all do as Sentus says and his magic aura starts to spike. He puts his arms close to his body and then flails them outward. All of the sudden, giant wind blades start to appear and slash everything it comes in contact with. Wind slashes are cutting down all of the creatures, including the griffins. When the attack subsides, most of them have been eliminated.

Sentus: Now destroy the rest of them.
Hunter: Your orders?
Sentus: Again?! Kill the rest yourselves. You’re all more than capable of soloing this many enemies anyway.

Sentus walks over to Dravos’ body. He turns him over to his back.

Sentus: Damn it. How did you, of all people, get killed?

The others have disposed of the rest of the creatures in the area.

Hunter: You two look similar. Were you two related by any chance?
Sentus: Yes. Cousins.
Hunter: So then, you are a part of that family.
Sentus: I was the closest to being able to manifest my dragon powers. But my mana pool wasn’t as big as Dravos’.
Hunter: So what now?
Sentus: The people who did this will suffer for this. We will have Akari talk once he wakes up.

Meanwhile, the griffins have taken them to the river where Daniel was defeated. A giant snakefish appears out of the river and the griffins drops the five of them on it. The centaur makes it there after a few minutes.

Centaur: You came here by ship, did you not?
Aerona: Yes. It’s on the southwest side of the land.
Centaur: Very well.

The centaur talks to the snakefish in a different language of groans and hissing.

Centaur: This one will take you there.
Vito: Thank you. You’re not bad.

The snake starts moving along the river. After hours of riding on the snake, they can finally start moving a little.

Aerona: My mana has regenerated enough that I can heal the most serious burns on you guys.

He encases them in light and heals as much as he can before collapsing from exhaustion. Finally by nightfall, they have found their ship. The snake stops and Solomon is able to use his wind to transport them all to the ship. When they land, they hear a bark. Blaze comes running and wags its tail at them.

Vito: Blaze. I almost forgot about you.
Solomon: Looks like we gave him enough food to survive till we got back.
Mars: In any case, let’s get the heck out of here.

They are able to get their ship going again and start sailing off. Aerona eventually wakes up and finds himself on the boat. He can’t move right now, however.

Aerona: I guess this is my body going into full rest mode. I can’t even move. This will mean I’ll heal quicker though.
Vito: Sucks for you that you can’t heal yourself.
Aerona: Of course, this also means I can’t heal you guys the rest of the way just yet.
Vito: Fuck. Hurry up and get better then.

Aerona starts to chuckle.

Solomon: What’s so funny?
Aerona: I was in so much pain before, but now it’s finally hitting me. We did it.
Erosion: Yeah. We actually won.
Vito: To be honest, I didn’t think we could win.
Aerona: It took nothing short of all of our power and intelligence to figure out a way to kill that guy.
Mars: I’ll say.

The next day, Aerona wakes up and is healed enough to move around. His mana reserves have also been restored.

Aerona: C’mere, guys. Let me heal you.

He does, and they are now fully healed. They are still all very sore however.

Aerona: My wound hasn’t completely disappeared, but it’s getting better at least.
Mars: We should be back on Iron soil in a day anyway with these winds. You can have other healers finish the job.
Vito: And while you’re at it, you can get rid of that scar.
Aerona: Yeah.
Solomon: We all accomplished something while on the Red Kingdom.  And I think we’ve all grown as well.
Mars: And while we were at it, I think we thoroughly pissed off the entire Red Kingdom.
Erosion: There’s that too.
Solomon: Let’s recap, shall we? We killed Seijuro, Hamas, Daniel and Akari who were all high ranked mages. We killed the traitor red spies. Ya know, Erosion and I took out Chef Marlene and Vito took out Nagema. Jahten was killed by Mars. Then, Mars killed a bunch of soldiers with his technique. Hell, we killed a lot of soldiers in this whole trip. Then, we killed their dragon. Well, he was a dragon but also human and…
Vito: I think we get the point.
Aerona: Don’t forget that you guys also threatened some officials at the coliseum while I fought that one guy.
Mars: Maybe thoroughly was an understatement.
Erosion: This might cause war between us again.
Aerona: We were prepared for that, but at the same time, if they attack now, they’ll be very vulnerable. We sabotaged the fuck out of their army and we’ll also have a big advantage without all that dark magic enhancing them.
Mars: Maybe that was part of the queen’s plan all along.
Vito: That’s smart as shit.
Solomon: But for now, let’s not think about that stuff. Let’s celebrate.

They break out some remaining food that was stored on the ship. Solomon and Erosion prepare the food and they have mugs with various liquids inside (depending on each person’s preference). They put their mugs together for a toast.

Mars: To victory.
Aerona: To being the first dragon slayers in Iron history.
All: Hell yeah!

They lightly touch the mugs together and start the meal. Blaze barks and Vito tosses him a small piece of meat.

Solomon: You can join in on the celebration too, Blaze.

They stay up all night in celebration. Early in the morning, they all stand out, watching the sun rise slowly above the horizon. Coincidentally at this time, they can see the dock in the distance. *Music*

Mars: There it is.
Vito: Finally home.

On the shore, someone spots the ship when it gets close enough.

Man: Hey! It’s an Iron ship! It must be them!

When they dock, as soon as they get off the ship, they are swarmed by a bunch of people. They start cheering for the five of them.

Erosion: What’s going on?
Solomon: Could they know what’s going on?

Allow me to explain. When they were spotted the first time, rumors began to fester that they were on an important mission. These rumors turned into daily discussions and hopes that they would return alive. Of course, they did not understand the magnitude of their mission, but they knew that since it was the five of them that it was important.

Vito: We’re back, bitch!
Man 1: What mission did you guys go on?!
Man 2: Tell us about your adventures!
Man 3: We’re so glad you’re all back alive!
Aerona: It’s a long story, people. And it’s also top secret. Sorry.
Solomon: It’s okay if they know since we already killed the dragon.
Man 1: A DRAGON?!
Man 2: YOU GUYS KILLED A DRAGON?!
Mars: Well, we didn’t get our equipment broken like this by fighting bunnies, I’ll tell you that much.

The crowd becomes more boisterous as the information has slipped. Finally, the five of them give up trying to fight the crowd. They all pump their fists up in the air in victory and the crowd starts cheering even louder.


And so it was that our heroes became known as the dragon slayers. They have made it home safely and are now celebrating their victory with the townspeople. The conclusion is next on A Tale of Iron!

The five are now at Aegis in the throne room, knelt down. They are all wearing white royal clothing. *Music* There are knights lined up on both sides of the room. The queen stands up from her throne and approaches them.

Queen: There are not many words that can describe the service you all have done for the Iron Kingdom. You served in the war three years ago, saved my life from Red assailants and led legions of our men to victory. And now, you traveled into the Red Kingdom, sabotaged its army, killed fleeing traitors and slayed its dragon. Rise.

As they stand up, the queen gets on her knees and plants her face on the floor, causing everyone in the room to gasp in surprise.

Queen: There is nothing I can say that can measure how indebted we all are to you.

She stands up shortly after and then approaches even closer to them.

Queen: If you so desire, you will never have to fight again. You will be blessed with riches beyond what you will ever need. Now, to commemorate our heroes, we will have a feast in your honor.

They all smile at this. *Music Switches* As time passes, they are eating voraciously as different people keep coming up to them to congratulate them and give respect.

Aerona: Well, that was good.
Vito: The fuck?! We just started eating.
Aerona: Yep.
Solomon: These royal cooks are good, Erosion. But we can’t lose to them.
Erosion: Maybe one of these days we’ll challenge them to a cook off.
Aerona: Oh shit.
Mars: What is it?
Aerona: He’s coming up to us.
Mars: Who do you…oh…

General Strago approaches them.

Aerona: General! It’s good to see you again.
Strago: You sure ate that fast. Let’s hope there wasn’t poison in that food.
Erosion: It’s okay. I checked it this time.
Aerona: At least there wasn’t cheese on it.
Strago: I heard you got rid of Marlene and her companions.
Solomon: Yes, sir.
Strago: Very good. You all did well.
Vito: Thank you, General.
Strago: It also looks like you possess more strength than before. There is dark energy still emanating from you, Royal Knight.
Aerona: Well…
Strago: I get it. It was a means to an end. Don’t worry; I won’t say a word.
Aerona: Thank you, sir. But how could you tell?

He smiles and walks away.

Aerona: …So that’s what that feels like.
Solomon: Yes, now you know how we feel when you get all mysterious.
Vito: So will you stop now that you know?

He smiles and walks away.

The Other Four: Seriously?! *Music Stops*

They get back to eating. Afterwards, we see the queen and the general speaking in private outside. It is nighttime.

Strago: As I’m sure you are aware, we have a chance of going to war as a result of this.
Queen: I knew the risks before I allowed this quest.
Strago: Their popularity has skyrocketed as a result. After this, they will be regarded on the same level as the legendary heroes. If they participate in the anticipated war, maybe even higher.
Queen: Do I detect some jealousy?
Strago: No, not at all. You knew that I couldn’t be sent. The fear of attacking the kingdom without me to defend it was too much of a risk. That much is enough for me.
Queen: The way the five of them described the dragon’s power…do you think you would have beat him?
Strago: It depends.
Queen: Depends on what?
Strago: Depends on if he was stronger than the Red Kingdom’s General Shiomi.
Queen: Ah, the strongest woman alive…and the only person to have ever walked away from a serious fight with you without injury.
Strago: People know about that, now? I thought I had that gag order under wraps.
Queen: You sure you didn’t go easy on her because she’s a woman?
Strago: Trust me, your grace, if I went easy on her, I wouldn’t have been able to walk away uninjured like she did.
Aerona: Speaking of power…

The two of them flinch in surprise.

Strago: What are you doing, soldier?!
Aerona: I’ve been standing here this whole time. I wanted to know if you wanted to have a quick spar, General.
Strago: Now?
Aerona: Well, sir, I’m going to be taking some time away from fighting. I thought I’d get one last one in. I want to see how I stack up in weaponry against you.
Strago: Very well, I accept your challenge.

Meanwhile, Solomon, Erosion and Vito have many women escorting them into the city.

Erosion: You think maybe we should move to Aegis?
Vito: I’m considering it.
Solomon: You can’t. You’re warden of Drogos, remember?
Vito: Yeah yeah.

Mars is lagging behind them.

Mars: Some things never change.

He heads back the other direction to see a small crowd huddled in a circle. He peers over the crowd to see Aerona on the ground with the general standing over him with a wood pole pointed at him.

Aerona: It’s my loss.
Mars: That figures.

The general helps him up and they clash staves and shakes hands. The crowd claps.

Strago: Good, but it’ll take a lot more than that to beat me in a fight.
Aerona: Yes, I know.
Mars: I bet we could take you with all five of us.
Strago: Maybe so. We’ll have to put that to the test one day. For now, I will return to my chambers and call it a night.
Aerona: Nah, that’s not how it’s gonna work tonight.
Strago: What?
Aerona: The night is young. While the others are doing their thing, we’re going to have fun in other ways.
Strago: Sounds like fun.
Queen: Can I join?
Mars: Well, it’s not like we can stop you. You are the queen after all.
Queen: Good point.

The four of them walk off into the distance. We can only hear their voices at this point.

Mars: We’re probably just going to talk about nerdy stuff, right?
Aerona: Most likely.
Queen and Strago: Say what?!

The next day, the five of them have met up again. It is the middle of the day, since they all slept through the morning hours. They’re now all wearing white knight robes.

Solomon: So what now? We can spend some time here in Aegis and just hang out for a few days.
Mars: There is a theater performance today. Why don’t we go have a look?

They head over to a theater where they have balcony seats so that they can see everything. Those performing are re-enacting what appears to be a romantic tragedy. The leading lady seems to have died in the play.

Voice: DID SHE DIE?!!!!

In the crowd, there is a black man who has stood up.

Man: DO YOU…I…DID SHE DIE JUST NOW AND…
Voice: Shut the fuck up!
Vito: What the fuck is wrong with that guy?
Mars: I think he can give Solomon a run for his money with how loud he is.

The man continues to yell at the top of his lungs random gibberish that can never lead into a full sentence. Eventually, guards escort him out.

Man: ARE YOU…KICKING ME OUT BECAUSE…I HAVE….YOU

The doors close and we can hear his muffled voice continue talking.

Aerona: That was awkward.

After the performance, they meet the actors back stage. They are speaking to the leading male role, who has long brown hair.

Aerona: Good performance.
Leading male: Thank you. You guys are my heroes. Thank you for coming along.
Vito: No problem. Do you think you’ll continue playing him?
Man: I would like to, yes.

Later that day, they are in a food district in Aegis.

Erosion: Where to eat now?

They look all around, and all the places around are sandwich restaurants. They sigh.

Vito: Really? That’s all we have here?

The black man from before approaches them.

Man: ARE YOU GUYS THE HEROES?!
Aerona: Someone get this man a cup of hot tea.
Man: I LIKE….DO YOU THINK….

The five of them look at each other and look back at him.

Erosion: Let’s talk over there.

He follows them into an alleyway and then we can hear some screams of horror for a few seconds and then all goes silent. After a few more seconds, they walk out of the alleyway with a smile on their faces.

Mars: Anyway, there are better restaurants not far from here. Let’s just go there.
Solomon: Alright. Let’s go.

As they walk away, time passes to the tune of a few days. It is nighttime.

Mars: Last night before you guys go home to Drogos. What to do?
Vito: Wanna go to WaYa?
Aerona: Yeah.

They do, and oddly enough, they get sandwiches with different drinks. They are split between having hot and cold drinks. They are sitting on a rooftop, looking out over Aegis’ landscape while eating. *Music*

Vito: This is a sight I’ll miss.
Erosion: Same.
Solomon: Same here. It’s great here.
Aerona: You guys CAN move here. You can always give up your positions. You heard what the queen said, right?
Vito: I love my position as Warden. I won’t abandon it just yet.
Solomon: Maybe someday down the road, we’ll all live here in Aegis.
Mars: Yeah, that would be nice.

The next day, the five of them are at the edge of Aegis. Vito, Solomon and Erosion have horses waiting next to them.

Solomon: I guess this is it.
Mars: Yeah.

They huddle together one last time.

Aerona: We couldn’t have done this without each other. Never forget that.
Erosion: Dragon slayers on 3?

They count to three and yell “dragon slayers” together. They then start to give their individual goodbyes.

Mars: We’ll see you guys soon hopefully.
Solomon: Yeah. Maybe if we can make the trip here again, or maybe you make the trip to us next time.
Erosion: I think they made the trip to Drogos technically.
Solomon: Shut up, Erosion.
Vito: Will see you later, Aerona.
Aerona: Yeah, see ya.

All of the sudden, four of them (except Aerona) fall through four cracks in the ground that just appear. *Music Stops*

Aerona: Ha! Now you know how I feel.

Then, all of the sudden a small tornado appears and sucks Aerona straight in. The other four are saved because they are now lower in elevation to the tornado.

Aerona: Where the fuck did this come froooooooooooom!

He’s violently launched back to the ground.

Mars: You hurt?
Aerona: Just my pride…and my ribs.
Vito: Hahahaha!
Solomon: Hahahaha!
Erosion: Hahaha!
Mars: Hah…Hah…Hah!
Aerona: Haha oww!

With that, they separate. Vito, Solomon and Erosion leave on horses. Aerona eventually stands up he and Mars walk back to Aegis. We see the zoomed out picture of the field as we see the two groups going into opposite directions, which fades to black slowly.


With an unbreakable bond, they ride forth into tomorrow. Though the prospect of war looms over their heads, for now our heroes can rest easy. For they have done great in the eyes of men. But what they do not realize is that their actions have set off a chain of events that even they could not have forseen!


Part 1 End

There once was a dragon named Dravos. He was a secret weapon that the Red King had in store for the Iron Kingdom. Unfortunately for him, they caught wind of this and sent five brave heroes to slay him. Erosion the Precarious, Solomon Lord of Speechcraft, Vito of the Blade, Earthshaker Mars and Royal Knight Aerona (AKA Harbinger of Misfortune) were their names. They succeeded in their quest, as well as decimated a sizable portion of the Red Kingdom’s forces. Tales of their adventure spread like wildfire across both kingdoms. One month has passed since Dravos’ demise.

We go to a large throne room. There are soldiers with this garb lined up on both sides of the wall with Sentus knelt down before the throne. Behind him are three black robed members. We recognize two of them as Akari and Hunter. The third is a woman who appears to be in her early thirties. She has short brown hair and hazel eyes. Sitting on the throne is a man dressed like this. He has medium length black hair with brown eyes. He has a full beard and mustache that connects.  *Music*

Sentus: My liege, that is everything I know.
King: I see. So, then what you’re saying is that there are likely Iron spies and soldiers on our land waiting to attack us.
Sentus: Yes, Majesty.
King: They are making the move this time it seems. What are your thoughts on the solution to this problem, Sentus?
Sentus: My belief is that those Iron bastards are trying to provoke us into launching an all out attack on them so that their main forces can attack us while we’re vulnerable. They know it would be disadvantageous for us to attack their kingdom now.
King: All because of those damned dragon slayers.
Sentus: Every time I hear that moniker, I want to tear them apart limb from limb.
King: I understand, Sentus. But you did not answer my question.
Sentus: My apologies, my king.
Hunter: If I may speak, Your Majesty, I have an idea.
Sentus: Hunter, hold your tongue.
King: No, you may speak.
Hunter: You have my gratitude.
King: I want your solution, not your gratitude.
Hunter: The Iron Kingdom sent only five people to our lands as a means of going after Dravos. I suggest we do the same thing, but slightly different.
King: You suggest we send a small group to take care of this problem?
Hunter: Actually, I suggest three small groups. One group would be very dangerous. The circumstances with which the Iron group was able to succeed were nothing short of a miracle. Akari here came very close to ending them himself. We need two backup teams. We have many new upcoming fighters that need experience as well as some non-active units that can be of use to us.
Akari: And you’ll lead one group?
Hunter: Yes. Would you help me, Akari?
Akari: Yes. I need to redeem myself after my colossal failure.
Hunter: *Turns to the woman* How about you, Helen?
Helen: I will as well.
King: I see. So you thought this through, Hunter?
Hunter: Yes, Your Majesty.
King: Sentus, your thoughts?
Sentus: You don’t want to send anyone stronger, Hunter?
Akari: With all due respect, Captain Sentus, you and the other captains need to be by our king’s side in case this is a trap. We Sheikh are strong, but there are enough of us, even without Seijuro and Hamas.
Helen: I agree with Akari. We can’t risk our king being attacked without you here, Captain.
Sentus: Hmm, yes, I see your point. Very well then, I approve.
King: Your answer, Sentus?
Hunter: (Whispering) Psst, Captain, did you forget to verbalize again?
Sentus: Again?! Yes yes, I approve of this plan.
King: Good. Sheikh Hunter, I like your thinking. You are proving to be my most valuable Sheikh in the kingdom with Seijuro and Hamas gone.
Hunter: You are most kind, My King.
King: And you, Sheikh Akari, do not fail me again.
Akari: You have my word.
King: Sheikh Helen, you are still relatively new to this position. If you succeed here, then you will rise quickly.
Helen: Understood!
King: Very well. Dismissed. And Sentus, keep me updated.
Sentus: At your command. *Music Stops*

The second Sentus utters those words, he senses something. The other three also sense something. Above the king, a figure is descending from the ceiling with a sword in hand. Just as the figure is a few inches away from the king, he is suddenly grabbed. Standing next to the Red King is Sentus. The king only notices that he moved after he is already standing next to him.

King: What the!
Sentus: This man…

The assailant is light skinned like those from the Iron Kingdom and was wielding a short sword. He is already knocked out.

Sentus: This sword was made by an Iron smith. There’s no mistake.
King: Then your intel was true.
Sentus: You guys can back off now. It’s okay.

Akari, Hunter and Helen have surrounded the throne in a triangular formation.

King: You saved my life, Captain Sentus. You other three were also quick to react and protect me from any other potential threat. This is why I trust you with my life.

Sentus and the three Sheikh (this is referring to the black robed rank if you haven’t figured it out by now) leave the throne room and speak in private just outside the castle. We get a view of the city surrounding the castle, which is mostly built out of sandstone. A thin layer of sand covers the entire ground.

Sentus: You three, I’m counting on you. One more thing. If any of those five happen to be there, I want them alive. I want to execute them myself.
Hunter: I doubt they’re here, but I will.
Sentus: That’ll be all. Good luck, you three.
All Three: Sir!

They part ways and the three of them grab kebabs. They eat together while walking.

Helen: It’s been a while since we all ate together like this.
Akari: Sorry. I only just woke up last week. I was in interrogation as well as taking the necessary food to get me in good health.
Hunter: You scared the hell out of us.
Akari: That wasn’t my intent, I promise.
Helen: What was it like fighting them? Were they as strong as the stories say?
Akari: They were definitely strong. If I had fought them on their turf, I would have lost a one on one fight. But more than strong, they were smart. They managed to fool me multiple times while making full use of unfamiliar terrain. They even knew when to surrender or run when they knew it was unwise to stay and fight.
Hunter: With that kind of praise, I can see how it could be possible to defeat even a dragon.
Helen: I still don’t buy it. If you nearly beat them, Akari, how could they defeat Dravos?
Akari: That’s what puzzles me. They didn’t have that kind of power before.
Hunter: You two should study up more on the Iron Kingdom. They have a powerful spell called the Tepenhyakugo. It requires exactly five people to perform it. It’s extremely complex and the Red Kingdom hasn’t been able to figure out the secret behind it yet.
Helen: Tepenwhatwhat?
Hunter: *Sigh* Forget it.
Akari: Enough about them. It seems like that’s all anyone wants to talk about since I woke up. Let’s talk about these recruits, Hunter.
Helen: Your students are finally ready?
Hunter: Yes. I believe they are. I’ll send each of you about 15 candidates. They’ll demonstrate their abilities in front of you, and you decide how many you want to bring with you. I’ll try to split it up well.
Akari: That sounds simple enough. But is it really okay to be risking their lives like that? Especially now that we know that this threat is real.
Hunter: They’re strong, I promise you. They’ve all had basic magic and combat lessons from yours truly.
Akari: Okay, I believe you.
Helen: Just don’t take all the good ones, Hunter!
Hunter: I won’t, I won’t. Relax.
Akari: Alright, well I’d better get back. I need to train a little to get myself back to full strength.
Helen: How about fighting one of us?
Akari: I’m not ready for that quite yet. Sorry. I know you’re eager to pummel me into the ground, but I’m still too physically weak.
Helen: I understand.
Hunter: One more thing, Akari. No matter who I send tomorrow, promise that you won’t just pass them up right away. Believe in me.
Akari: Huh? Okay, I promise.

The next morning, we see Akari tossing and turning in a bed. In his mind, he is re-living the instant of his defeat. As soon as he gets stabbed in his dream, he wakes up in a cold sweat. He puts his hands on his face and wipes them. He lightly punches his bed in frustration.

Akari: Damn it all.

After he gets dressed, he leaves and goes out into town. He goes just to the outskirts of town where there is nothing but sand. There he sees 15 people standing there, waiting for him. *Music*

Akari: Hello, everyone. My name is Akari and I’ll be testing your abilities today. First one, you.

He points to a man standing around 6’2, who is wearing this kind of armor. He has long, straight black hair. He has a mace at his side, hanging from a belt.

Akari: Your name?
Man: Shahar, sir.
Akari: Have you any experience in battle?
Shahar: Yes, sir. I fought one battle at the tail end of the last war.
Akari: Is there anyone else here who has fought in battle? By show of hands.

No one else raises his or her hand.

Akari: Then that makes you our most experienced person here. What’s your greatest asset?
Shahar: Defense.
Akari: Your greatest weakness?
Shahar: Speed, sir.
Akari: I see. There was no hesitation in your voice. You understand your strengths and weaknesses well, do you?
Shahar: Yes, sir. I have been studying strategy ever since the war ended.
Akari: Excellent. Show me what you got.

After a few minutes of demonstration…

Akari: Shahar, I want you on my team. Stand behind me. Next.

A young man who is topless and has long pants steps up. His upper body is ripped.

Akari: Name?
Man: Yunbuck and you betta remembah it, son.
Akari: What is your greatest strength?
Yunbuck: My muscles of course.
Akari: What is your greatest hindrance?
Yunbuck: I ain’t got a weakness, dude.
Akari: You fail. I don’t want someone like you slowing my team down.
Yunbuck: I’ll show you, bitch!

Yunbuck charges at Akari and draws a large sword. He swings it at Akari, who easily dodges it.

Akari: You may be strong, but if you think that means you can lug a big sword around and not suffer a weakness, you have another thing coming to you.
Yunbuck: Then I’ll show you mah magic!

He charges up his mana, but Akari appears behind him and lands a karate chop to the back of his neck, knocking him out.

Akari: Your mana was in disarray the entire time. I have no need for a guy like you.

The others laugh at him. The next candidate steps up. This one is a young woman that has long black hair that is in a loose ponytail. She has violet purple eyes. She is wearing a white shirt with this coat over it and long khaki pants. She wears brown combat boots. She stands about 5’8 with an average build.

Woman: No one liked Yunbuck anyway.
Akari: I didn’t call for you yet.
Woman: Sorry, I just didn’t want to waste any more of your time with this foolishness.
Akari: That is considerate of you. Name?
Woman: My name is Liron (Pronounced Lee-Rin).
Akari: What is your greatest strength?
Liron: I believe the speed and power of my magic in conjunction with my abilities.
Akari: I see. Weakness?

Liron takes out metal tonfa. These tonfa have a sharp edge on the outside, making it able to cut.

Liron: My weapon choice leaves me with short range as well as my defensive abilities being limited. My magic is primarily offensive except to cancel out the same element from my opponent.
Akari: You have a good understanding of your abilities. You seem confident. Let’s see what you have.

After a few minutes.

Akari: I’m very impressed. You pass. Stand next to Shahar, Liron.

A few more candidates fail before the next comes up. He is wearing a white robe and has long brown hair covering his eyes. He has a staff with a blue orb at the end of it. He is about 5’7.

Akari: Name?
Man: Yusuk (You-sook)
Akari: Are you a healer, Yusuk?
Yusuk: Yes, sir.
Akari: Can you fight with that staff?
Yusuk: Yes.
Akari: A demonstration, then. But first…

Akari takes his flail and cuts his arm on one of the spikes.

Akari: Heal my arm, please.
Yusuk: Right away.

He does so and efficiently.

Akari: You’re a lock for now. Let’s see those physical abilities.

Yusuk passes and the next candidate comes up. This man has an appearance similar to this (only with the darker skin tone). He carries a 8 foot red staff. He is 6’0 tall.

Akari: Name?
Man: I am Amitay (Ah-Mih-Tay).
Akari: Strength and weakness?
Amitay: My staff has long reach and my fire magic is powerful offensively. Unfortunately, it also makes my usefulness in a team a little circumstantial.
Akari: I like the way you think. The team comes first. A demonstration then.

After the demonstration, he passes and is standing next to the other passing candidates. There are only three candidates left after more are weaned down. There haven’t been any passers in a while. The next one is a woman standing around 5’4. She has long blond hair that is noticeably well kept. She is wearing a red dress and heels. Akari’s mouth is hanging open from the sheer surprise of seeing someone dressed like that.

Akari: Are you serious, ma’am?
Woman: I wanted to look good for my interview.
Akari: For fuck’s sake. Name?
Woman: Drora, house Hetzelberg.
Akari: Oh, that makes some sense. You come from a very prestigious family of respected fighters. I promise not to judge you based on that standard.
Drora: It’s okay.
Akari: So, what do you have for me, Drora?

She pulls out a longbow from her back. She also pulls a knife.

Akari: I was hoping we would have at least one archer. And your illusions are impressive.
Drora: You figured it out, Mr. Akari?
Akari: Indeed.

The environment around Akari shatters like glass and we see Drora’s true appearance. Her face and hair have not changed, but she is wearing a skintight black jumpsuit.

Liron: Your senses are quite sharp, Sheikh Akari.
Akari: That outfit is a bit much, Ms. Drora.
Drora: It’s okay. I’m used to guys eyeballing me. *wink*
Akari: Fine.

Akari picks up a stone from the ground.

Akari: I’m going to throw this stone out here somewhere. I want you to hit it.
Drora: Okay!

Akari throws the stone up in the air above the passing candidates heads and Drora shoots an arrow without hesitation. The tip of the arrow hits the stone and the arrow safely sails over their heads.

Akari: I’ve seen enough. You pass.
Drora: Yay!

She joins the others. The next person is a man who has shoulder length black hair and green eyes. He is topless except he wears a white vest. He has tattered khaki shorts that go only a bit past his knees. He is about 5’8 and wields dual kama.

Akari: You know the drill by now.
Man: My name is water and my magic is Hayim (Hie-Im)…wait, that’s not right. Uh, let me start over.
Akari: *Facepalm* Okay.
Hayim: Uh, my name is Hayim and I’m a water mage. My strength is…uh…what?
Akari: It’ll be easier if you just show me. Spar with me.

After they spar…

Akari: You might not be the brightest, but you are skilled. I like you. You pass…for now. Lastly, you.

The last person is a man who looks to be in his late teens to early adulthood. He has messy black hair and wears a white karate gi. He has iron knuckles on his hands. He stands around 5’6.

Akari: A martial artist huh? Give me your info.
Man: I am Katzir, sir. My strength is my martial arts training. My weakness…I cannot use magic.
Akari: What?!

The others are also shocked at this.

Akari: What do you mean you can’t use magic?
Katzir: It’s true.

Akari remembers Hunter’s words about believing in him.

Akari: He must have been referring to Katzir. Can you feel your mana at all?
Katzir: Yes, sir, I can feel it. I can even feel the energy of the ground. But I cannot seem to draw it out.
Akari: Why would Hunter…wait a second. What did you just say?!
Katzir: Something wrong, sir?
Akari: Did you just say you can feel the energy of the ground?
Katzir: Yes, sir.
Akari: You…what family do you come from?
Katzir: My house is not noble or anything, but you might have known a relative of mine. He died about a month ago.
Akari: Speak his name then.
Katzir: My cousin, Seijuro, was the only one of note.
Akari: Seijuro?! There’s no mistaking it.  
Katzir: Is there something wrong with me?
Akari: No, quite the opposite. Let me ask you something, were you ever taught how to use dark magic?
Katzir: No, sir. I thought it would be too complicated since I can’t draw out my own element.
Akari: It’s the opposite, Katzir. You might just be a natural born dark user.
Shahar: Are you serious? There are only a few out of a hundred mages whose natural affinity is dark.
Liron: Looks like we have another potential strong one.
Yusuk: I don’t buy it.
Katzir: Then, I’m not just a failure of a mage?
Akari: It remains to be seen. For now, let me see your martial arts.

After they spar…

Akari: Did your cousin teach you how to fight, Katzir?
Katzir: No, but I learned some of his moves by watching him. I had training elsewhere, I’m afraid. Did you know him?
Akari: He was better than anyone else in the Sheikh rank. Now I realize why Hunter sent Katzir to me. He wants me to teach him dark magic. Stand with the other passed candidates, Katzir. For now, you are with us.
Katzir: Thank you, sir! I won’t let you down! *Music Stops*

Akari looks at the seven who passed.

Akari: Shahar, Liron, Yusuk, Amitay, Drora, Hayim, Katzir. You seven have passed my first test. This does not mean you will definitely be in my team. I will observe you all more carefully. But for today, rest and mentally prepare for tomorrow. Meet me back here at the same time tomorrow.


With Hunter’s plan taking effect, Akari’s preliminary team has assembled. Just what is this threat that looms over the Red Kingdom? As one adventure ends, another begins anew. Get ready, because a whole new experience awaits the continent of Jovah on Part 2 of A Tale of Iron!

A day has passed and the seven candidates who passed are sitting on the ground, waiting for Akari to show up.

Drora: We all were early.
Katzir: I thought maybe that would be another test; to see who would show up at a good time.
Shahar: In the military, if you’re late, you get punished badly, so I also thought so.
Hayim: Uh…I’m early? You sure?
Yusuk: Yes, you dimwit.
Katzir: Hey, leave him alone.
Yusuk: Don’t speak to me, no magic boy.
Amitay: He’s here.

The rest turn around to see Akari walking towards them. They stand up and line up.

Akari: You all came in good time. To be honest, it wasn’t part of the test, but you’ve all improved my opinion of you. Good job.
All: Sir!
Akari: Before we begin the intensive stuff, I’ll be back in one hour. In that time, you should get to know each other. I’ll bring lunch back with me. Is anyone opposed to spicy curry?

No one dissents.

Akari: Good.
Shahar: Where are you getting it?
Akari: A good friend of mine runs Dehli’s.
Shahar: Ah, best curry in the city.
Drora: Sounds awesome!
Akari: I’ll be back.

Akari leaves them again just as quickly as he approached them.

Hayim: So, who wants to start?
Drora: How about you, staff guy?

Quickly taking over as the conversation starter, Drora points to Amitay.

Amitay: Me? Amitay is my name. There’s not much to me, really.
Shahar: Well, why have you taken up fighting? We can all at least answer this question.
Amitay: I fight for the Red Kingdom. I started using quarterstaffs because I enjoyed watching the art and decided it was for me. I was taught patriotism at a young age, and I guess it stuck.
Drora: Boooring.
Amitay: Okay then, what’s your reason for fighting?
Drora: It sucks, but I’d rather not fight. My family forced me into it as the only child and heir to the Hetzelberg house. I figure once I have enough achievements I can do what I really want to do.
Shahar: Which is?
Drora: Fashion, of course!

Yusuk starts snickering.

Drora: What’s so funny?!
Yusuk: So that’s why you pretended to have that ridiculous outfit on.
Liron: If you say one more word about Drora, you’ll regret it.
Yusuk: Oh, so you do speak. Do I sense some history between you two? Are you lovers?
Liron: You’re pushing it.
Yusuk: What are you going to do? I’m your healer, bitch.
Liron: You’re right. I’m sorry.

She extends her hand to shake with Yusuk. He claps hands with her, but all of the sudden, his body starts to pulsate as electric waves run through his body. He releases the grip and Liron kicks him to the ground.

Liron: As if I give a shit about that.
Drora: *Chuckle* I think you might have been a bit hard on him.
Katzir: Ms. Liron, you’re pretty cool.
Liron: Ms? I’m only 24.
Katzir: Ah, you acted so much more mature and strong yesterday.
Drora: How about you, martial arts dude? Even though you haven’t been able to use magic, you still fight.
Katzir: It’s Katzir. I fight to show all those who ridiculed me that even I can become great.
Shahar: If you really are a natural dark user like Akari believes, then that shouldn’t be too difficult for you. You showed great physical status yesterday. How old are you?
Katzir: 20, Mr. Shahar. How about you?
Shahar: 28. We confirmed Liron is 24. Anyone else willing to reveal their age?
Hayim: I’m 24 as well.
Amitay: 25 here.
Yusuk: (in pain) 23.
Drora: 21. So Katzir is the youngest and Shahar the oldest. But we’re all in our 20s at least.
Liron: Shahar, can I ask you a question?
Shahar: What is it?
Liron: You said yesterday that you fought in one battle. Can you tell us about that? It should benefit the team to have a glimpse of what the battlefield is like.
Amitay: Yes, indeed. I would like to hear this as well.
Shahar: Very well. The first and only time I fought was at the tail end of the last war. At the time, we had no idea who the commander of that legion was, but he had apparently been rising in rank quickly over the course of the war. We now know him as Royal Knight Aerona, one of the dragon slayers.
Katzir: He was one of the people who killed Cousin Seijuro then.
Shahar: It was odd. While addressing his men, the ground below him cracked and he fell into a hole. We didn’t set any traps like that. But then, as he recovered, he unleashed a huge light wave on us that blinded our army. We were outmatched by that legion, that’s for sure.
Amitay: So you lost the fight.
Shahar: Handily. I was one of those fortunate to survive. The Royal Knight allowed us to escape, since defense was their primary objective. But just before, I met eyes with him. As I was, I could not bring myself to cross weapons with him. That’s why I took up fighting and strategy. In order to become stronger and never have to lose that many comrades again. And when the time comes to fight someone like him, I won’t back down.
Katzir: If I see any of them, I definitely won’t back down. They’re so vile.
Liron: They’re really not.
Katzir: What did you say?
Liron: Put it in perspective. If you learned that the Iron Kingdom possessed a secret weapon, would you not seek to destroy it?
Katzir: Well, yeah…but they killed so many of our people. They made a mockery of our coliseum and they pissed off our king.
Liron: They were all war casualties.
Drora: We’re not at war, Liron. I agree with Katzir.
Shahar: You are naïve then, if you think that we’re in a time of peace. An armistice is a silent war in of itself.
Liron: Exactly. The truth is that we’ve never stopped being at war for the past 100 years.
Amitay: Both of you have a point. Neither of you are particularly wrong in my opinion.
Drora: Then let’s move on. Uh, you, water guy. How about you go next.
Hayim: Okay. My name is Hayim. I’m not very smart at all. In fact, I’m not good at a lot of things. I can’t cook, can’t clean, can’t fix things, can’t build things. But fighting is the one thing I’m good at. That’s why I do it.
Liron: When you fought Sheikh Akari yesterday, you seemed different.
Katzir: Maybe you have a strong instinct for battle.
Hayim: I hope so. Because if I start failing at fighting, I won’t know what to do with myself.
Liron: Hey, healer brat. Are you still awake?
Yusuk: Yes.
Liron: You go next.

Yusuk sits up. His pain seems to have subsided.

Yusuk: Well, I come from a wealthy family. They don’t give a damn about me though, since I’m the youngest son. Do you know what my father told me? He told me to surpass my brothers in order to gain a true spot within the family. Are you fucking kidding me?! How could they treat their own like that?!
Amitay: So then why have you taken up fighting? Are your brothers fighters?
Yusuk: No, they’re doctors with healing magic. I decided that the best way to help someone was on the battlefield. My family has no intention of putting their lineage in danger by doing that. Bunch of pussies if you ask me. I’ll surpass them my own way.
Katzir: You know, Yusuk, you’re a pretty good person despite what we might have initially thought.
Yusuk: Can it.
Liron: I guess I’m last.
Drora: Liron…
Liron: It’s okay. When I was younger, my older brother was a powerful fighter. He did something awful and landed himself in prison. When he finally got out, he decided to teach me how to fight. I had a natural penchant for it, so it stuck with me until I too did something awful. Because I am a woman, I got away with it. It taught me a valuable lesson about how not to fight. Why do I still fight? It’s a responsibility that I choose to bear. If you have power, you need to accept that you can do the worst of evils or best of good deeds. If you’re not ready to do either, then you shouldn’t strive for power. The second you gain it, people start to rely on you more and more and…ah, I’m rambling. I’m sorry.
Shahar: No, it’s okay. That was good.
Amitay: I’m assuming you don’t want to share that awful thing yet with us.
Liron: Sorry, I can’t.
Amitay: Understandable. Everyone has dark secrets locked up in their heart somewhere.

After the hour is up, Akari is on time with a giant pot of curry in his hands. He forms the ground below him into a cylindrical shape large enough to hold the pot. He then makes seats out of the ground.

Akari: Uh…which one was it…Amitay. You are the fire user, right?
Amitay: Yes, sir.
Akari: Can you keep a weak flame under this pot to keep it hot?
Amitay: Sure.

Amitay puts a small flame under the pot. It is maintaining itself.

Amitay: It’ll go out in about 20 minutes. That should be enough time.
Akari: Thanks. Isn’t magic handy? Oh, you probably shouldn’t tell Captain Sentus I said that.
Drora: Let’s eat then!

They all start eating the curry in large bowls.

Liron: Sheikh Akari, your earth control is unbelievable. You didn’t show much yesterday, but I could tell just how much you were holding back.
Akari: Thank you.
Drora: Can we ask you two questions, Mr. Akari? We did as you said and we ended up asking two main questions while talking.
Akari: Sure, go ahead.
Shahar: The first was age. The second was why you decided to fight.
Akari: I see. Well, I’m 30 years old. I’m one of the youngest Sheikh, so I guess that makes me special hahaha.
Shahar: Then I’m closer to your age than the rest of my team.
Akari: Hmm, as to why I fight, it’s a bit complicated. There are many people in my life that I care deeply about. They all enlisted in the army and navy. I always had good earth control, so I decided to enlist as well to follow them. I guess you can say I never had many ambitions of my own. But now things are different.
Katzir: What’s so different, sir?
Akari: I don’t know how much you all know about me, but I just woke up from a coma about a week ago.
Shahar: I heard about that. So that was you. You fought the dragon slayers.
Akari: Yes. It’s regrettable, but I lost in the end. In my own territory too.
Liron: What do you think about their morality? We also argued about that. You actually met them.
Akari: They were soldiers like you and me. They fought for what they believed in. That’s all I can say about them.

After they eat, they stand up.

Akari: I am pleased that you all followed my orders. Now, we’re going to test your abilities a bit further. The one I was the most impressed with yesterday was Liron. Amitay, you were next on the list. I want you two to spar. Hayim, you will fight Shahar. Katzir, you fight Yusuk. Drora, you stand by. Let’s hop to it.

Liron faces off against Amitay. They have their weapons ready. They stand about 15 feet away.

Akari: To start, you can’t use any magic. When I say, you will then be able to use it. If you disregard this, you will automatically lose the fight. You may begin when ready.
Amitay: Let’s have a good fight.
Liron: Yeah. *Music*

Liron starts by charging in with good speed. Amitay makes a long sweep with his pole, which she ducks under. This slows her progress enough that he steps back to gain distance and lunges at her. She sidesteps and then hooks the staff with her right tonfa. She runs at him while her tonfa is sliding along the staff. Amitay is able to free the staff with enough power and then dodges an incoming attack from her other tonfa. As she goes on the offensive, Amitay spins his staff at high speeds to change the trajectory of her weapons when they clash. He then kicks at her. She is able to bring her arms back to her center to block the kick and then high kicks at him. He is narrowly able to avoid it and then they both take a step back for distance.

Liron: Not bad.
Amitay: You have a lot more strength than I thought. Are you hiding a six-pack under that jacket?
Liron: Maybe.
Akari: You may use magic now.
Amitay: Cool.

He spins his staff and then rams one of the ends into the ground, which creates a circular wave of fire to come from him. Liron jumps high over it and then Amitay notices that she has lightning surrounding her legs.

Shahar: She stimulated her body with a slight jolt to temporarily give her extra strength.
Akari: Looks like we have our front-runner in the party.

She charges at Amitay and then surrounds her tonfa with lightning and clashes with his staff. Since the staff is dead wood, the electricity does not conduct through the staff.

Liron: So it is wood. I had to make sure, of course.
Amitay: It’s not over yet, Liron.

Liron jumps back as the staff starts to light on fire. Amitay sends forth a cylindrical fire blast from a staff lunge, which she dodges. He then continues this assault of fire blasts, which is keeping Liron on the defensive. Suddenly, she disappears and appears behind Amitay with her entire body having lightning running through her. By the time he tries to turn around, she lands a decisive hit to the back of his neck, which gives him a strong hit and a jolt at the same time. He falls to the ground. *Music stops temporarily*

Akari: This fight is over. You both did well.

Liron dispels the lightning around her and helps Amitay up. They shake hands.

Liron: To not burn your staff, you have very good control of your magic.
Amitay: Thanks. Your hits do some serious damage.
Akari: Next.

Hayim and Shahar face off in similar fashion.

Hayim: Uh, Katzir, good luck.
Shahar: It’s Shahar. You too.
Hayim: Right, sorry.
Akari: You guys know the drill. Begin. *Music Resumes*

Shahar stays motionless, but holds his mace up in a defensive stance. Hayim charges at him with his dual kama and then begins his attack. His first kama hooks the mace by the handle as Hayim readies his attack with the other kama. With superior strength, Shahar overpowers Hayim’s hook and is still able to block the second attack. He then slides his foot into Hayim’s, which puts him off balance. He then punches. Hayim ducks under it and then shoulder tackles. Hitting a piece of armor, Shahar stands strong and Hayim recoils in pain.

Hayim: Why did I do that?
Shahar: You fight well. But do try to think a little.
Akari: You may use your magic.

Hayim continues attacking with his kama, but all of the sudden, an emerald green barrier appears in front of Shahar to block it. Hayim jumps back and shoots an orb of water out of his hand. The barrier blocks it as well.

Hayim: That barrier is pretty strong.
Shahar: You’re going to need more than a little water to get through this thing.

Hayim shoots two blasts of water out of his hands and they start to make an arc around Shahar.

Shahar: I see. Not bad.

Shahar puts up both hands and puts up two smaller barriers on both sides. The one in front disappears. Both blasts are blocked, but then Shahar sees Hayim charging right at him. He attacks with his Kama just as the blasts land. Shahar is able to move his body just enough to only get grazed, which his armor blocks the blade from cutting him. The barriers dispel and Shahar swings his mace down at Hayim. He blocks with both his kama, but gets pushed back severely. Shahar gives Hayim another hard swing, which sends both weapons out of his hands. Shahar readies a punch with his free hand. Hayim backs up, but is surprised as a barrier is now stopping his backwards progress. He gets punched in the face and falls to the ground.  *Music stops temporarily*

Akari: Nice. That’s enough.
Hayim: You controlled the fight the entire time. It’s your victory.
Shahar: Don’t sell yourself short. You had a good strategy. You tried to hook my mace in the beginning and you even tried to find a weakness in my barrier magic. I dare say you even found it. You’re not so bad.
Hayim: Thanks.

They shake hands and the next two step up.

Yusuk: This isn’t my strong suit, but I’ll still pummel you into the ground.
Katzir: I’ll show you.
Akari: You may start.

They both stand idly by, waiting for the other to make a move.

Liron: Perhaps this match up wasn’t a great idea. We might have to stop them at some point.
Akari: What, did something happen during that hour?
Drora: Doesn’t seem like many people get along with Yusuk. Though those two seem to be the worst.
Amitay: You sure? After Liron…
Akari: What? What did you do to him?
Liron: I electrocuted him. It felt good.
Akari: Oh. Well, I didn’t exactly say you couldn’t fight.

*Music Resumes* Katzir finally makes the first move and attacks. His body movement is fast, but Yusuk counters by swinging his staff early. Katzir anticipates this and blocks with his iron knuckles on one hand. Katzir goes for a punch with his other hand, but Yusuk is able to dodge. He swings his staff again, but Katzir elegantly dodges. With no movement wasted, he belts Yusuk in the face, making him stumble back.

Katzir: You talked so big, and this is all you have? If you are a healer, you should still be able to protect yourself so you can protect the team.
Yusuk: I’ll end you!

Katzir charges again, but Yusuk kicks up some sand by golf swinging the ground upwards at Katzir’s face. Sand gets in his eyes and he closes them. Yusuk then whacks Katzir with his staff three times, making him stumble back. We then see Katzir concentrate and stop moving around. He hears a step from Yusuk and then punches him in the face, sending him to the ground. Katzir stands up quickly.

Yusuk: What the hell.
Katzir: Your movements are clumsy compared to mine. I can find you anywhere.
Akari: You may use your magic.
Yusuk: I see.

He heals himself as the orb on his staff glows.

Katzir: Heal as many times as you want. It’ll give me more time to beat the hell out of you.
Yusuk: We’ll see.

He charges at Katzir and swings his staff. He manages to hit him in the side, but Katzir grabs it after being hit. He pulls Yusuk towards him and head-butts him. He opens one eye briefly and then smacks Yusuk with his own weapon, sending him to the ground. *Music Stops*

Akari: That’s enough.

Katzir tosses Yusuk’s staff back in his general direction and then attends to his eyes.

Akari: That’ll be good for today. You all showed good potential. You all also have room to grow. Even Liron and Amitay. Drora, I will definitely give you a chance to fight as well, but tomorrow we will begin some magic training. Does anyone know dark magic?

No one speaks up.

Akari: That’s okay. I was planning on doing this with Katzir anyway, so I might as well teach you all the principles of dark magic. Dismissed!


To be continued…

Later that day, Akari is sitting at a table with Hunter inside a restaurant.

Akari: Is Helen coming?
Hunter: I invited her, but told her to come about 15 minutes from now. I wanted the chance to talk to you individually first.
Akari: That was smart. I’m guessing you’re going to ask me about my group.
Hunter: Of course. How many passed?
Akari: I’ve set my tests up in stages, but so far 7.
Hunter: Which ones?
Akari: Amitay, Shahar, Liron, Yusuk, Hayim, Katzir and Drora.
Hunter: Hah, I figured as much. So you found out about Katzir, did you?
Akari: Yes. Why has he not been taught dark magic?
Hunter: Sorry. I have so many students that I couldn’t focus on dark magic quite yet.
Akari: I understand. And you thought that it would be easier to accelerate their training if they were split up among teachers. In other words, you’re cleverly putting some of your work on Helen and myself.
Hunter: There’s no fooling you. I hope you’re not too mad.
Akari: It’s okay, I don’t mind.
Hunter: So then, tell me what you think of those seven?
Akari: I’ll tell you once you answer me why you gave me Katzir.
Hunter: Of the three of us, you are the most proficient in dark magic. I believe you can properly instruct him. Oh, and I’m sure he’ll do something else for you.
Akari: What’s that?
Hunter: You’ll see.
Akari: Cryptic as always. Anyway, I like them. I can’t believe you gave me Liron.
Hunter: See? I told you I would be fair.
Akari: That girl is a godsend.
Hunter: She’s been through a lot. I’m sure as you travel with her, you’ll learn more about the trauma that befell her.
Akari: I see. Yusuk…he’s quite the troublemaker apparently
Hunter: I sent you Yusuk as a package deal with Liron. He’s a great healer, but he needs someone like her personality to keep his ass in line.
Akari: Hmm, you really thought this through.
Hunter: I had to give Helen the more agreeable healer. I’m sure you understand.
Akari: Amitay and Shahar are both very solid. I have zero complaints with either of them.
Hunter: As you shouldn’t. Hayim is also very skilled, even if his brain is missing a few screws.
Akari: Yeah, I think he has good potential just from what I saw today. He has solid water control. I’m guessing he observed you in order to help him.
Hunter: Sort of. I guess water users do sometimes get an unfair advantage in my classes. Ah, speaking of, I made sure not to give you any earth mages. With you there, it would have been a wasted slot. How do you like the magic synergy I gave you?
Akari: It’s great. A good mix of offense and defense, a few combination potentials, etc.
Hunter: I bet Amitay told you that his fire is not always best suited to team combat.
Akari: He did. But in combination with Shahar’s barriers or my earth magic, that could actually be quite the opposite.
Hunter: I was just about to say that. But you’ve already done some thinking yourself, have you?
Akari: Plenty. Of course, Liron and Hayim could combine attacks, and Drora…there are many potential team scenarios that open up just because she is there.
Hunter: I’m glad you like your team. I figured those seven would pass, if you found out about Katzir.

Helen arrives soon after their conversation ends. They eat dinner together.

Helen: So, Akari, how are you feeling?
Akari: Great. I think by tomorrow I’ll be at full strength.
Helen: Hehehe, that’s good.
Hunter: Just what is that evil brain of yours planning?
Helen: Why don’t we have a contest then in two days?
Akari: Two days? That’s when our teams converge…ah, I see.
Helen: We’ll have a three way….battle in front of our teams. That way the stakes are raised.
Hunter: Did you really have to have a pause there?
Akari: I accept. I need a serious fight to put me in top condition for this mission.
Hunter: I will also accept. It’ll be fun.
Helen: Awesome.

After they eat, Akari stands up.

Akari: Helen, you’ll want to stay for a bit and speak to Hunter.
Helen: Okay.
Akari: I’ll see you all in two days.

The next day, Akari and his team have assembled in the same location. They’re all sitting on the seats he made the day before.

Akari: All right, everyone. Today we’re going to be doing some dark magic training.

Mana resides in every living being. Whether or not it surfaces is up to its user. The Iron Kingdom and Red Kingdom do many things differently, but the way they awaken young magic users is the same. In the years of the second Red King, a magic was invented that when used on someone, would help to awaken their mana. When the mana surfaces, it will show the affinity of the user’s mana (i.e Solomon’s affinity is wind, Vito’s is enhancement, etc.).

If the mana does not surface, it could mean a few things. First, the user has not trained hard enough and is not ready to use magic. Second, the user simply has no talent for magic and will never learn in their lifetime. The third possibility is the most rare of them. It is that the user’s affinity is dark. The magic used to awaken mana does not work on natural dark users, because it is a magic that is available to any strong magic user. But it is especially strong in natural born dark users.

Some natural dark magic users will naturally awaken their affinity according to their power. For example, Seijuro was strong enough that his magic circuits opened on their own and granted him dark magic without help. Daniel of the Red Sun, however, was not very skilled with magic, and needed to be awakened by another dark user, despite being a natural dark user.

Akari stands up.

Akari: In order for you all to be able to learn this, I need to inject dark magic directly into you. It works better the more forceful I am. I have done this before, so there is no need to worry. Katzir, I will start with you.

Katzir stands up and walks in front of Akari.

Katzir: Mr. Akari, my cousin learned to use dark magic without this process. Is it possible that I too can do that?
Akari: Katzir, if you’re anything like Seijuro, then you would be his type as well. However, Seijuro unlocked his dark magic at a far younger age than you, while his magic circuits were still fresh. It’s possible that you were that type, but your circuits have been “dead” for too long. I’m going to shock you into awakening your dark affinity if my theory is correct.
Katzir: Okay, I believe you.
Akari: Believe in yourself, Katzir. Dark magic is difficult to control. But you can do it.
Katzir: Yes, sir.
Akari: Here I go.

Akari’s right hand is encased with dark aura and then all conjoins on his fingertips. He puts all five fingers forcefully on his stomach. The dark magic injects itself into Katzir and then Katzir is sent flying from the attack. He crashes into the ground.

Akari: Let’s see how much this worked. Stand up, Katzir.

Katzir gets up while holding his stomach in pain.

Katzir: Hang on, it doesn’t hurt anymore.
Akari: I knew it. Draw it out, Katzir. Your body knows.
Katzir: Okay. *Music*

Katzir closes his eyes and concentrates. Instinctively, he puts his arms out at his side, palms up. Dark aura begins to collect itself at Katzir’s palms and starts to run up his arms. We see a surprised reaction from the other team members. Even Akari seems a bit surprised. Once the dark aura reaches his shoulders, it quickly surrounds his entire body. He opens his eyes and they’re glowing dark purple.

Liron: What is happening?
Akari: That’s a lot of power gathering in him. I have to stop it.

He quickly rushes over to Katzir and puts his hand on his shoulder. He is able to disrupt the flow of dark energy and the aura leaves him and his eyes go back to normal.

Katzir: This…is power.
Akari: Don’t let yourself become obsessed as a result.
Katzir: Yes, sir. But, I couldn’t control it past a certain point.
Akari: Yes, I know. If you summon too much power, it won’t be able to stop itself from coming. There are only three ways to counter that. The first is the way I just did, but only very experienced dark magic users can perform it. The second is if you have a light mage powerful enough to counteract the dark energy. The third is to incapacitate you, which can either be to knock you unconscious or kill you.
Katzir: I see.
Akari: In your case, because you are a natural, the power comes even faster. So you must take great caution before you master this power.
Katzir: I’ll be careful, sir. *Music Stops*
Akari: Good. I’m proud of you, and I know Hunter will be as well when he finds out.

Akari pats Katzir on the head and then heads back to the others. They’re all thoroughly surprised.

Akari: Who wants to go next?

He performs the same routine with everyone. They line up with Katzir standing next to Akari.

Akari: Now that you all have been directly injected, your bodies recognize this energy and can now use it. You just need to be able to draw it out. Feel the power that runs through the land. I will be monitoring your progress while I teach Katzir some basic mana controlling since he has never been able to use magic before.
Hayim: So we can’t do what Shahar did?
Shahar: I’m Shahar. That was Katzir.
Hayim: Oh, my bad. So we can’t do that?
Akari: You all have an affinity for something else. For example, Hayim, yours is water.
Hayim: Oh.
Akari: So you have to work at it in order to draw out dark magic. If you cannot show any progress by tomorrow, you lessen your chance of being on the final team. Though right now, you all have good chances. Have fun. Katzir, let’s go.
Yusuk: Why does Katzir get to have special treatment from you? He was weaker than some of those people you failed initially.
Akari: This isn’t about playing favorites, Yusuk. Those people I failed showed no strong potential for quick growth by the time we leave in a week. Katzir has all the tools to succeed in this mission, except the one that we just unblocked. Now, with just some basic training, by the time we leave, he will be far stronger than any of those half-baked hacks I failed. And on top of that, he has the discipline to back it up. Something you lack, Yusuk. You’d better also think about improving in that area.
Yusuk: Yes, sir.
Drora: You just got TOLD!
Yusuk: Shut it, bitch.
Shahar: Less talking, people. Let’s try to concentrate.

Many hours pass with no progress. Akari and Katzir have brought lunch to them, which is matzah ball soup.

Akari: Let’s take a break.
Shahar: Wait, I think…
Akari: Oh?

Shahar has his hands inward, spread out by about six inches. A faint dark orb starts to form between them and then disappears.

Shahar: I got it.
Akari: So you’re the first to show any real progress, Shahar. Your experience seems to win out this time. You can get your food first.
Shahar: Thank you, sir.
Liron: I’m close; I can feel it.
Amitay: Same. I lost to you last time, but I won’t lose here, Liron.
Liron: You’re on.

They continue training while Shahar gets some soup for himself.

Akari: Seriously…those two.
Drora: Matzah ball is my favorite. I’m gonna take a break.
Hayim: Uh, me three.

While everyone eats, Amitay and Liron continue. Finally, Amitay gets a small orb going after a few intense minutes.

Amitay: Hah!
Liron: Shit.
Akari: Good job, Amitay. Now put a fire under this pot.
Amitay: Got it.

He pats Liron on the shoulder while she continues concentrating.

Amitay: Do your best.
Liron: Go eat already.

Five minutes later, Liron is able to do the same. She wipes some sweat from her forehead and gets some food for herself.

Akari: That only leaves Drora, Yusuk and Hayim. Keep at it, you three.
Drora: I feel close too.
Hayim: Yeah.
Yusuk: Same here.
Akari: Ah, while you’re all here now, I should probably tell you. This group is going to meet with the other two tomorrow. And at that meeting, I’m going to engage in a battle with Hunter and Helen.
Hayim: You’re going to fight both at once? Wow, teacher, you’re strong.
Akari: No no, it’ll be a three-way battle.
Liron: Sheikh Hunter is very strong and I’ve heard great things about Sheikh Helen as well.
Akari: We’ve fought many times. We don’t exactly keep score, but we’re all around the same level. This time, it’ll be a public display.
Katzir: How come we don’t fight as well? Our teams in a battle royale.
Shahar: That would be problematic. If Helen and Hunter picked the same number of people, there would be 24 people in the fight if we include the three team leaders.
Katzir: I see what you mean. That would be too hectic.
Akari: But what we can do is show off a little.
Amitay: You mean by us learning dark magic by tomorrow.
Akari: You catch on quick. Do the best you can, but if all seven of you can produce even the faintest bit of dark energy, it is sure to stick it to them if they haven’t done the same.
Liron: Are you the competitive type?
Akari: Not normally, no. But when it comes to those two, I don’t want to lose. We’ll show Hunter that him sending you all to me was a mistake. He should have kept you for himself.
Yusuk: Now that I’m down for.
Hayim: Well, I don’t want to go against Mr. Hunter, but I will help at least.
Katzir: Do you have a special relationship with Hunter, Hayim?
Hayim: I owe him my life.

He stands up and walks aside to start training again. Yusuk and Drora join him.

Akari: He owes Hunter, huh? I’ll have to ask about that tomorrow. Let’s try a different approach.

Akari stands up and faces the three of them.

Akari: You told me you all told each other the reason why you fight. You each have a motivation for being here. Use that motivation to concentrate. Draw out this power. I have faith in you.

In just a short half-hour, the three of them are able to manifest a small dark orb.

Akari: Good work you three.
Drora: Thanks!
Yusuk: I actually did it. I didn’t think it was possible until today.
Hayim: Aww, it didn’t work.
Drora: No, Hayim. You did it too!
Hayim: I did? Hooray!
Akari: *Facepalm* Seriously...anyway, all of you have a seat.

Everyone sits down and Akari stands in the middle.

Akari: Listen to everything I’m about to say carefully. Once you can manifest a small orb and maintain it for at least a minute, you will be ready for the next step.

Akari casually brings out a small dark orb.

Akari: In order to draw out it’s true power, there usually needs to be a trigger of emotions. Katzir, this doesn’t apply to you, since you have already drawn out its power to the point of it being usable. That’s the advantage of being a natural born dark user.
Katzir: I see.
Akari: I want you to stay and listen, however.

Akari makes a hard step and crushes the orb in his hand. The aura immediately flares up and covers his entire body.

Akari: Right now, I am constantly regulating the flow of dark magic energy. If you get to this state and can’t do that, it will keep growing and eventually overwhelm you. At that point, you’ll go berserk. You won’t be able to control your body, but you will be conscious for all of it. For that reason, we require new mages who learn dark magic to never use it without someone present that can reverse the effects with one of the three methods I mentioned earlier. That is also why it is forbidden in the Iron Kingdom. That and for other reasons.
Liron: Incredible. Your mana flow is stable, despite all the power flowing into you.

Akari dispels his dark aura completely.

Akari: You may all practice your dark magic, except you, Katzir. Do not attempt to trigger the large amount of dark magic if you can maintain an orb by tomorrow. I mean it, you all.
Katzir: But, Mr. Akari…
Akari: I know it’s frustrating. You’ve just received all this power and now you can’t use it. This is a test of character, Katzir. Endure it, and you are sure to become a dark master with the proper discipline and training.
Katzir: Yes, sir.
Akari: The rest of you are dismissed.

They all leave.

Akari: Alright, Katzir. We’re going to continue your basic control training. Are you ready?
Katzir: Yes!


The fight is tomorrow!

The next day comes quickly for Akari. He gets ready and goes to a different location. He meets his team out in a street and then they follow him to their destination. It is in the middle of the afternoon.

Katzir: Mr. Akari, where exactly are we going?
Akari: A training area that we use during wartime preparation. Shahar, you’ve probably been there once.
Shahar: Yes, sir, I have. I’d imagine it’s pretty empty right now.
Liron: It shouldn’t be. It should be teeming with people.
Drora: We’re not talking about that again, are we?
Yusuk: I agree with the scary lady.
Akari: We’re keeping this mission under a gag order. As far as the public knows, we’re simply doing some joint training for some new recruits.
Hayim: I’m confused. What are we talking about now?
Amitay: We’re talking about whether or not we should be prepping for war.
Hayim: Oh. I thought we are going on a mission, not war.
Yusuk: No, you dumb ass. We’re talking about the Red Kingdom as a whole.
Hayim: Oohhhhh.
Katzir: We should be trying to make peace with them right now, as much as I hate what they did.
Liron: No one wants to go to war, but it seems inevitable right now. There will be chaos in the palace if our king doesn’t take action. If this mission gets out to the public, it’ll be even worse.
Akari: We won’t be able to keep everything from them forever. Our politics are in a very delicate position right now. Anything can happen at this point. This mission could save us from war…for now.
Shahar: This world, it’s so messed up. Why do we always have to be at war?
Akari: We’re here.

They enter what looks like a mini-coliseum. Helen and her team are there already. She has eight people behind her. Helen and Akari meet in the middle while both teams stay on opposite ends.

Akari: So you were the first to arrive.
Helen: Yeah. Making a lady wait isn’t very nice, you know. *Sticks out her tongue*
Akari: Sorry. I thought we were early though. Now where’s our mastermind?
Helen: Haven’t seen him. While we wait, do you want our teams to co-mingle?
Akari: Why not? I see no reason to hold them back from each other.

They both signal for their teams to come to the middle.

Akari: If you see someone you recognize, you can go ahead and talk. We’re going to wait for Hunter and his team.

The situation seems awkward at first, but Liron approaches another woman. She has a white shirt and white baggy pants. She has shoulder length black hair.

Liron: Ferra. It’s been a while.
Ferra: Liron, I didn’t expect to see your face here. Had I known, I wouldn’t have come here.
Liron: Ferra, please. We had our differences, but can’t we at least end on a good note?
Ferra: Don’t count on it.

Ferra turns her back on Liron. Dejected, Liron turns around and walks away with her shoulders slightly slumped. While some of the other teammates have gone into talking, Hayim and Katzir have hung back. She stands next to them.

Hayim: Are you okay?
Liron: I’ll be fine.
Katzir: Ms. Liron, who is she?
Liron: She was a friend.
Hayim: You mean she doesn’t want to be your friend anymore?
Liron: No, Hayim. No she doesn’t.
Hayim: Then she doesn’t know what she’s missing. Isn’t that right, Shahar?
Katzir: It’s Katzir. And yes, I agree with Mr. Hayim. We haven’t known you long, but we think you’re a pretty good person.
Liron: Heh. Thanks you two.
Helen: Where is that blasted Hunter? I don’t think I could bear to listen to another sad reunion.
Akari: I hear you.

Finally, after a few more minutes, Hunter arrives with his team. He has six people with him. All the teams return to the sides as Hunter joins Akari and Helen in the middle.

Hunter: Sorry, I was preoccupied with something.
Helen: It’s okay. Akari and I had plenty of time to, you know. *Wink*
Akari: Wait, what? What are you trying to insinuate we did?
Hunter: This is why I didn’t give her Drora, Akari. The two of them together would have been too much to handle for the rest of the team.

Akari imagines Drora and Helen shamelessly flirting with all the boys on her team and lets out a chuckle.

Helen: Hey! What are you imagining now?
Akari: I dunno, but it seemed pretty hot.

Meanwhile…

Shahar: Amitay, wanna bet on what they’re talking about?
Amitay: Okay. Five silver coins it’s something intense.
Shahar: You’re on.

They see the three of them laugh together. Amitay snaps his fingers in disappointment and forks over the five silver casually to Shahar.

Helen: Are we ready to start this fight?

The other two nod “yes”. They stand by their teams and start stretching.

Akari: Shahar, be on guard. You may have to put up some fast barriers. All of you be vigilant. This could get ugly quickly.

They all take a battle ready stance when…

Female Voice: What is the meaning of this?

This voice shocks all three of them. At the entrance to the training area stands a woman who is clothed in white royal robes. She is wearing a turban with a ponytail hanging out from it. She stands around 5’9. Akari, Helen and Hunter group together and stand at attention.

Hunter: General Shiomi! We weren’t expecting you here, ma’am.

With Hunter’s words, all three teams become instantly shocked and instinctively stand straighter and neater.

Shiomi: I heard about what you’re doing from Sentus. I decided to pay you a visit while you were gathered like this.

Shiomi approaches the three Sheikh. Her emerald green eyes pierce through their nerves and sweat is seen running down each of their faces.

Shiomi: At ease. So, what were you three about to do?
Helen: Ma’am, we were about to fight, since Akari is feeling better now.
Shiomi: I see. That will do your team no good to see that. They need a demonstration of teamwork.
Hunter: So then, you suggest we have our teams fight each other?
Shiomi: No, I want you three to fight me.
All Three: WHAT?!
Shiomi: That’s an order.
Akari: I’d better go alert the hospital that I’ll probably be sleeping there another month.
Helen: Make sure there’s room for all three of us!
Hunter: Heheheheheh. Sounds like fun.
Akari and Helen: Don’t make it worse!

After a minute passes, all the teams have moved to seats, completely off the ground. Akari, Helen and Hunter are standing together with Shiomi about 30 feet away. Akari is in the middle with Helen on the left, Hunter on the right.

Helen: Just like our training years ago. We’ll use that same strategy.
Hunter: Right. Except we’re much stronger now.
Akari: Let’s just get this over with.
Shiomi: Have you finished discussing a battle plan yet?
Hunter: We’re ready.
Shiomi: Come at me whenever. You can make the first move.

*Music* Akari starts off the battle by pulling his hands towards his chest and then forcing them outward. The ground morphs into a giant wave, which rages towards General Shiomi. She puts her hand out in front of her and a small blue light emits from it. All of the sudden, the entire wave shatters, creating a dusty mist around her. Suddenly, a blast of water is sent her direction. She senses it and dodges, only to have six more like that coming from all directions. Shiomi opts to jump up into the air, where Helen is in the air waiting for her. She is encased by a wind barrier. She sends wind blades straight down at her. All of the sudden, Shiomi disappears and reappears above Helen. She is floating.

Helen: What?! You can do that?! Just kidding.

The water blasts have now made it up into the air and assault her. Shiomi simply disperses the water with a blast of energy, which also knocks Helen out of the sky. She catches herself and then lands on the ground safely. The three Sheikh regroup.

Akari: She’s not even trying. Fuck.
Shiomi: Your strategy wasn’t bad. Let’s continue.

Shiomi lands on the ground.

Hunter: In order to float or even fly with concussive magic, the amount of control has to be extremely precise.
Shiomi: The Iron general can do as much as well.
Akari: It’s time to get truly serious, guys.
Hunter: You’re doing that already? Helen!
Helen: Right.

Akari activates a shroud of dark magic energy as Helen lifts Hunter up above the ground with a wind barrier. At this time, Akari yells out and slams his hand down on the ground and the entire training grounds erupt into an earthquake of massive proportions. The teams in the seats can feel the rumbling of the entire structure.

Shiomi: I can’t predict how this earth will move since it’s random.

Shiomi lifts herself above the ground and starts flying upwards. She is then suddenly impeded by a huge gust of wind that presses down on her from Helen. She is also surrounded by a dark shroud. Being slowed down considerably, her limbs get grabbed by black water that starts to pull her down. Seconds later, a large amount of rock, sand and dirt surround her and close in on her.

Shiomi: Well done.

General Shiomi unleashes an explosive wave of energy that destroys the water, breaks through the wind and shatters the earth surrounding her. She lands on the ground.

Shiomi: Your power is well acknowledged, as is your teamwork.

Just then, she is behind Akari. He doesn’t even realize it until a few seconds later. *Music Stops* The pressure of her magical energy starts to weigh down on him until he is kneeling on the ground, sweating and having trouble breathing. The other two get close, but stop in front of Akari.

Shiomi: Without Sheikh Akari’s raw power as a distraction, you cannot hope to challenge me. Yield.

They both look at each other and then put their palms up in defeat.

Shiomi: Good.

She helps up Akari, who is still catching his breath.

Helen: General, I can’t believe how strong you are. You didn’t even break a sweat fighting us.
Shiomi: I am impressed, however. I wasn’t expecting you to destroy the entire fighting arena and then force me to actually use some strong magic. All three of you have good dark magic prowess.
All Three: Thank you, ma’am!
Shiomi: Now, I’ll go meet your teams.

She starts with Helen’s group then goes to Hunter’s. Finally, she goes to Akari’s team. They stand at attention as she looks at them closely.

Drora: Ms. Shiomi, it is good to see you again.
Shiomi: Ah, Hetzelberg, right?
Drora: Yes.
Shiomi: You’ve grown since I last saw you. Good to see you here fighting for the Red Kingdom. We need noble family in on this project.

She then notices Yusuk.

Shiomi: Speaking of noble families…I recognize you as well. I did not expect to see someone from your family here.
Yusuk: I wanted to be the first, ma’am.
Shiomi: Good lad. (Looking at Katzir) And you, boy.
Katzir: Me?
Shiomi: Yes. You are a natural dark mage.
Katzir: You can tell, General Shiomi?
Shiomi: I can. Have you recently awakened your power?
Katzir: Yes.
Shiomi: Work hard. You guys don’t have it easy, but it pays off well in the end.
Katzir: I will!

She then looks at Liron.

Shiomi: Hmm…you look like you’ve done well for yourself.  You’ll surely surpass your brother if you stay under Akari’s tutelage.
Liron: I hope so, General Shiomi.
Shiomi: You’ve definitely changed. For the better, I hope.
Liron: Yes.

She then looks at Shahar, Amitay and Hayim.

Shiomi: You three I don’t recognize, but I can tell that you three have strong potential.

Akari then steps in.

Akari: Guys, how about you show the general your progress? Now is about as good a time as ever.

All of them bring out an orb of dark magic energy with minor difficulty. Hunter and Helen take note of this.

Shiomi: Very good. How about this one, Akari? *Points to Katzir*
Akari: His situation is delicate to say the least. I’m teaching him how to master his magic control.
Shiomi: Well, keep at it. His mana is in complete disarray as it stands. If he doesn’t master it to a certain degree soon, he will become a liability to your mission.
Akari: I understand. I have faith in all of my team members. Katzir is no exception.
Katzir: Mr. Akari…
Shiomi: If you say so. I’ll be off now. I will report to the king that I give my approval for the teams that have been chosen. Good luck, Akari.
Akari: Thank you, General Shiomi. Thank you for gracing us with your time.
Shiomi: Oh, one more thing.
Akari: What is it?

The picture zooms out to show the destroyed grounds.

Shiomi: Fix this place before you leave.
Akari: *Scratches head* Yeah, no problem.

The general leaves and Akari immediately relaxes, as do the rest of the team.

Hayim: I thought I was gonna die! She’s scary!
Yusuk: No kidding. I bet she has a chastity belt made out of dark magic. I’d hit it though.
Shahar: She was beautiful; I’ll give you that, Yusuk.

Katzir seems to be spacing out to the rest of them. Shiomi’s words about him becoming a liability loom inside his head. Amitay approaches him and puts his hand on Katzir’s shoulder.

Amitay: Hey, don’t worry about it, man.
Katzir: Mr. Amitay…
Amitay: You’re good. Our captain told the general right to her face that he has faith in you.
Akari: That’s right. No one here has it easy. We’ve all dealt with rough patches in our lives. But we’re here now to work through them as a team.

Akari then realizes that Hunter is standing behind him.

Hunter: You’ve become close quickly, have you?
Akari: Thanks to you.
Hayim: Master Hunter! Did you see me?
Hunter: I saw, Hayim. You used dark magic. I’m very proud of you. I’m proud of all of you. You’re all doing well under Akari, I see. I was right to send you to him.

Hunter turns and starts walking away when Hayim follows. Hunter turns around and looks at him.

Hunter: I’m counting on you.
Hayim: Yes, master! I won’t fail you!
Hunter: Well then, Akari, I’m heading out. I think this meeting served its purpose.
Akari: Yes. You go on ahead.

Both Hunter and Helen’s teams leave the training grounds.

Akari: You can all go home if you want. I’m going to clean this mess up. It shouldn’t take long.

All seven of them stand in a line on the seating area. They don’t budge an inch.

Akari: You guys…it’s okay, really.

Shahar nods to Akari and then leaves. The rest follow, except for Liron, who sits down while observing the area.

Liron: Captain, that was quite an attack. I’ve never seen destruction on this level before by one person.
Akari: It drained most of my mana, that’s for sure. I can’t do that too often. Fighting General Shiomi, I knew that if I held back that I could get killed. But that was just her intimidation. She never even intended to harm us.
Liron: From the looks of it, she didn’t even need to.
Akari: And is that all you took away from that battle?
Liron: I took plenty from that fight, captain.
Akari: Captain?
Liron: Ah, we just started calling you that. Not like the blue robe captain, but team captain.
Akari: I see. That is fine.

Akari focuses with dark magic surrounding him. He brings up a large portion of the ground in chunks and levitates them. Liron seems mesmerized by the work he is doing. Akari grinds up the rock and ground into sand and smoothens out the rest of the ground.

Akari: That should do it.
Liron: Seeing you three and the general, it really makes me feel weak.
Akari: You are plenty strong as you are and you still have a lot of room for improvement. The original battle plan wasn’t meant to dishearten you. It was to give you a goal to shoot for. Of course, once the general stepped in, things were a bit different.
Liron: Yeah. You showed us teamwork then.
Akari: Teamwork will be a giant factor in our success. I can’t teach that to you all, however. It has to come organically. Helen, Hunter and I…we trained together when we were at your skill level before Hunter and I were promoted to Sheikh rank. Helen fell behind us for a short period of time, but managed to catch up to us with hard work and determination.
Liron: I see.
Akari: Let’s get going. It’s getting dark.

They start to walk out together, when Akari stops Liron.

Akari: Liron, I heard what General Shiomi said to you, and it hit me. Your brother is Hassar, isn’t he?

Liron looks away from Akari in shame. Akari takes a deep breath and closes his eyes for a second.

Akari: I see. I’m so sorry.

He walks out through the gate to see Helen standing there alone, waiting for him.


Behind Liron’s exterior lies a dark past with her brother. Just what happened to her that changed her into the person she is today? And why was Helen waiting for Akari? Next time on A Tale of Iron!

Akari: Helen, what…
Helen: I was hoping we could speak a little more.

Helen notices Liron lagging slightly behind. She seems distressed.

Helen: Is this a bad time?
Liron: I’m okay, Sheikh Helen.
Akari: Do you want us to walk you home?
Liron: No, I don’t want to trouble you. Good luck, Sheikh Akari.
Akari: Good luck? With what?

She leaves without saying another word.

Helen: What happened?
Akari: General Shiomi and I dredged up some bad memories, I think.
Helen: I see.
Akari: So, where do you want to go?
Helen: Just walk me home, that’s all.
Akari: Okay.

They begin walking side by side as the sun sets. It eventually becomes dark.

Helen: So, how is your team?
Akari: I really like them. I believe we can succeed.
Helen: I’m glad. My team is good too. Hunter kept his promise.
Akari: He’s always been a fair one; I can give him that.

They pass by some street vendors closing up shop. Some of them salute the two of them out of respect. They politely wave back.

Helen: Do you remember how we used to come here every day after training?
Akari: Yeah. We were always so hungry and the slop they fed us at camp wasn’t nearly enough.
Helen: We used to take turns paying for each other’s lunch, since we had allowances at different days.
Akari: Man, that does bring back memories.
Helen: Don’t you ever want to go back to those days? Life was simpler back then.
Akari: Nah. I like where I’m at now. It was hell back then, even if we did make good memories.
Helen: Good point. I guess we so often glorify the past that we forget how bad it actually was.
Akari: And who said hindsight is 20/20? Haha.
Helen: Hah.

They make it to a small house that is in the middle of a street of identical houses.

Helen: Do…you want to come in?
Akari: What…

When Helen turns to him, Akari sees the look on her face. Her countenance is very troubled. This catches Akari off guard.

Akari: I suppose I can. Something’s very wrong with her. What is it?

They enter her house where Helen lights a candle nearby, which allows her to light multiple candles around the house. Akari takes a seat on a piece of furniture that can be barely made out from the minimal light. She begins heating up tea at a fireplace.

Helen: Just how you like it.
Akari: A good Chai tea, huh?
Helen: Yes. I’ve been drinking it more often lately.
Akari: I’m starting to rub off on you…that sounded wrong. Maybe it’s you who rubbed off on me haha.
Helen: Good one.

She pours the tea into two cups. They both drink it in silence. Afterwards, Akari takes a deep breath.

Akari: Helen, I can see the pain in your face. What is wrong?
Helen: I thought I could just bury my emotions, but the more I try, the more they haunt me at night.
Akari: It’s okay. Tell me what’s troubling you.
Helen: It’s about what happened to you.
Akari: You mean my coma?
Helen: Yes. I thought that you coming back would be enough, but it’s not. Every night I lie awake, thinking about what could have been or what may happen in the future. I know…you and Hunter would say the same thing. “Try not to think about those things. They’re not logical, not sound” things like that. I know all these things and yet, it doesn’t help how I feel.
Akari: I understand. I’m sorry that I scared you so badly.

Helen has now gripped Akari’s robe tightly. Her head is down, but we can see her teeth grit. Akari tips her head up by her chin to see her in tears. He can do nothing but sit there in shock.

Helen: I thought I was going to lose you, Akari! I couldn’t stand it these last three weeks!
Akari: This mission has you worried for me then.
Helen: Yes. I know we’re strong, but anything can happen out there. I learned that when you came back to us asleep.

Akari wipes her tears with his index finger.

Akari: You care this much for me then. I see your heart, Helen. Now, see mine.

He leans in slowly and Helen reciprocates until their lips meet. They embrace at the same time as Helen slowly brings Akari down till we can no longer see them in the dim light. A few days pass and we see the team assembled in the same spot as they had been meeting. Akari is the only one not present.

Drora: Today’s the day we leave! Are we all excited today?!

The rest of them are less chipper.

Drora: What’s the matter with you all?! This shit is exciting!
Katzir: I’m happy, if it helps you, Ms. Drora.
Drora: You know I’m only one year older than you. You don’t have to address me as miss…
Katzir: Sorry. It’s a bad habit of mine.
Hayim: I’m nervous. I don’t want to let Master Hunter down.
Amitay: It’s cool, Hayim. Everyone here is a bit nervous. Try to relax a bit.
Shahar: Is it me, or is Amitay like the most chill guy on the planet?
Liron: It’s not you. Everything’s cool. Something you don’t normally expect from a fire mage.
Amitay: I heard that, you two.
Shahar: It’s a compliment, really.
Amitay: Oh, it’s cool then.

Shahar and Liron start chuckling. Not long after, Akari shows up.

Liron: Were you successful with Sheikh Helen?
Akari: I don’t know what you mean.
Liron: Sure you don’t. I saw the look on her face that night.
Akari: Oh, so that’s what you meant by “good luck”.
Drora: Don’t tell me…
Yusuk: Good going, captain.
Akari: Enough about this.
Shahar: (Imitating Amitay) It’s cool, captain. Don’t worry about it.
Amitay: I’ve gotta stop saying that…
Akari: Anyway, we’re moving out, but I have a few things to attend to in town before we leave. You are to go to the entrance of the mountain pass directly north of here.

Being in the very center of the Red Kingdom, this city is encircled by a mountain range. This makes besieging the capital extremely difficult. The mountain passes are narrow, so it forms a perfect defense against invaders.

Shahar: Understood. I know where to go.
Akari: Good. Wait for me there. I promise I won’t be long. I need to speak to Captain Sentus one last time.

Akari leaves to go back into town. The rest have prepped their stuff. They have bags that look similar to the ones the Iron group had.

Shahar: Are we all ready to go?

They all nod.

Shahar: Then follow me.

The group follows Shahar north. The city eventually fades from sight.

Shahar: I was just thinking…what a brilliant design to build the capital here.
Hayim: Why is that?
Amitay: The mountains give us some of the best defense possible.
Katzir: By the same token, can’t the mountains also give invaders some cover?
Liron: It doesn’t really matter. It’s a long trek. By the time they get anywhere near the city, they’re in worse shape than we are.
Shahar: That’s right. We’ve also historically been able to ward off attackers by destroying a mountain pass. You’re very vulnerable while crossing on such a narrow strip of land.
Amitay: A powerful earth user like our captain could likely wipe out an entire army by himself under those conditions. And then he could simply rebuild the thing himself.
Katzir: This is true.
Yusuk: The mountains do give us one weakness.
Shahar: Indeed. It stops many people from getting in, but it can also stop people from getting out. However, like Katzir mentioned, they could give us cover if we needed to escape ever.
Drora: Hmm, you guys and your strategy talks.
Liron: Hey.
Drora: Sorry.
Yusuk: You sure you’re actually a woman? You certainly look like one, but you don’t act like one.
Liron: Are you prepared to start something with me again?
Yusuk: Hey, if I can confirm that you’re a woman, I’ll stop.
Liron: You’re a sorry punk. You wouldn’t know a real woman if she rubbed up against you.
Yusuk: C’mon, sweet tits, just one feel.
Katzir: Yusuk! That’s enough!
Yusuk: Fine fine. She just can’t complain if no man ever goes for her for being too tight.
Hayim: I don’t think what you’re saying is true.
Yusuk: If you think that, then that must mean I’m right.
Amitay: Let’s stop this, guys.
Shahar: Besides, we’re here.

The view zooms out to see a giant mountain in front of them. There is a long, winding, narrow path that leads between two mountains. They drop their stuff and a few of them sit down. We can see how visibly angry Katzir is when Amitay approaches him and puts both hands on his shoulders.

Amitay: Hey, man, it’s okay. It’s…*looks at Shahar*…It’s going to be all right. Don’t let him get you too worked up.
Yusuk: Yeah, don’t let me get you too worked up. You’ll just become even more of a liability.

When Yusuk says the word “liability”, Katzir’s eyes widen and he starts zoning out. General Shiomi’s words come back to him and his face begins to change.

Yusuk: The way you are now, you need to leave. You’ll end up going berserk and maybe you’ll kill us all. Then what? You’re a liability; admit it.
Liron: Stop this, now.
Yusuk: I won’t stop. You know I’m right! And you, we can’t trust you either. You told us you did something awful, yet you can’t tell us what. How do we know you won’t turn on us too? If you won’t tell us, then you’re also a burden on our team.
Liron: You-
Katzir: (Darkened voice) Don’t talk about her like that!

At that moment, the other six look at Katzir with surprise. They all felt something in that exact same moment that didn’t sit well with them at all. They had just enough time to process what was happening by the time Katzir had pushed Amitay aside, sending him to the ground. Katzir is teeming with dark magic energy and his eyes have gone purple again. *Music* His appearance begins to change a little as well. His hair starts to show purple highlights and his skin starts to become rougher and his nails grow ever so slightly. Finally, he lets out a darkened yell that barely sounds human.

Shahar: What the hell…
Liron: Not good.

Just as she says that, Katzir has leaped forward at an incredible speed towards Yusuk. Liron is able to step in the way and blocks an incoming arm flail with her tonfa. The pressure is pushing Liron back at an alarming rate.

Liron: This power…

Katzir quickly kicks Liron on the side, which sends her flying and crashing into the ground. He then charges for Yusuk again and flails his arm at him. Yusuk takes a hard cut from Katzir’s nails across his chest. He steps back and heals while Shahar puts up a barrier between the two. Katzir punches the barrier and it shatters almost immediately.

Shahar: You’ve got to be kidding me.

Katzir charges once again for Yusuk, who cannot move fast enough to avoid him. He grabs Yusuk by the face and begins to crush it. He leaps forward towards the nearest mountain and slams his head straight into the mountainside. Yusuk’s head breaks through a solid sheet of rock and ground and then Katzir pulls it out. He then slams Yusuk down on the ground hard, which cracks the ground around his head. A dead silence fills the air for a few seconds after this. The look on everyone’s face is the same. They all understood two things. The first was that Yusuk was dead. The second was that they had to stop Katzir now. As Katzir unclutches Yusuk’s face with his palm, Liron appears behind him. She is running electricity all around her body now. Katzir senses her from behind and dodges an incoming attack from her tonfa.

Liron: We have to knock him out quickly! I’ll keep him at bay! Back me up!

Liron and Katzir now engage in close quarters combat, dodging each other’s strikes. Liron quickly gets put on the defensive.

Liron: His body instinctively remembers his martial arts training. With this amount of dark magic energy running through him, I’m outclassed here.

Suddenly a barrier comes between the two of them. Katzir breaks through that one as well, but it gives Liron an opening to strikes with her tonfa. Katzir gets shocked as well, but fights through the pain and attacks. Liron is able to dodge, but his nails scratch her face. Just then, Amitay jumps in and attacks with his pole. Katzir grabs it, but then gets hit by a water ball from behind. He ignores the pain and then pulls Amitay towards him and impales him with his fist. Just then, his eyes widen as Amitay fades away and then he gets shocked from behind. The shock is strong enough to incapacitate him. *Music Stops* We see that Amitay is actually standing just next to Liron.

Drora: Looks like my illusion affected him in time.
Amitay: Yeah.

Shahar walks up to Yusuk’s body and checks his pulse.

Shahar: He’s gone.
Amitay: I don’t think many people could have survived that.
Hayim: Are you okay, Liron?
Liron: Yeah, I’ll manage. Thanks.
Amitay: He landed a strong hit on your side. Are any of your ribs broken?
Liron: No, I don’t think so. I’m not the one we need to worry about right now.
Drora: Katzir…what do we do with him?
Shahar: The better question is “what does he want to do with himself?”.
Liron: We’ll wait for the captain before we make any decision.
Shahar: Yes, that we will.

In time, Akari arrives and is shocked by the scene. Yusuk’s face and part of his body are covered by his robe lying over top of him. Katzir is unconscious lying next to Amitay. The rest of them are sitting. Each of them has a similar troubled face.

Akari: What the hell happened here?
Liron: …A lot.

They explain the situation to Akari.

Akari: This is not good at all. I should have spent more time with Katzir and Yusuk. I didn’t think he would emotionally trigger such a huge amount of dark magic. Yusuk must have really gone overboard to make him do that.

A few minutes later, Katzir awakens. No one dares speak a word to him. He looks around to see everyone’s face. His own face looks even worse than the rest of them.

Katzir: He was right. Yusuk was right. General Shiomi was right. I am a liability.
Akari: The fault lies with me, Katzir. If I had understood the situation a little better, I could have done something.
Katzir: No, captain. I am an adult. I am responsible for my own actions. I let my emotions get out of control, even after hearing what you said about dark magic spiking as a result of that. There is only one person to blame, and that is me. It’s just…the things he said to Ms. Liron and myself…I just don’t get why he had to be so hurtful to everyone.

Amitay puts his hand on Katzir’s shoulder.

Amitay: Listen, Katzir. The things Yusuk said might have been right, but the way he said them was wrong. It’s true that you might become a liability, but that doesn’t mean you are one.
Akari: Amitay is right. Yusuk didn’t know how to be constructive with his words. It’s just unfortunate that he didn’t get a chance to learn. Katzir, I promise that I will teach you control of your magic to the best of my ability.
Katzir: Yeah, but I killed Yusuk, and I hurt Ms. Liron. I don’t want that to happen again.

Liron approaches him, but he won’t look at her.

Liron: I’m glad that you stood up for me. I could handle Yusuk’s harassments, but it was nice to know someone cared enough to say something. Beside, it’ll take a lot more than that to get rid of me, kid. Stand up and fight. You’ll never make things better if you don’t.

She extends her hand to Katzir. He reluctantly looks at her and takes her hand as she helps him stand up.

Shahar: To be perfectly honest, Katzir, I’m not totally sold on you yet. But I won’t simply count you out yet.
Hayim: I don’t know much, but I do know that you aren’t a bad person.
Drora: That was scary as hell, but I guess I can forgive you.
Katzir: All of you…you’re right. Yusuk was right about me, but I can’t let it end that way. If I don’t learn to control my power, this could happen again. My only choice is to stick with you, captain.
Akari: Right.

Katzir tries to step, but he trips and falls over.

Katzir: I can’t walk? What’s going on?
Liron: I had to shock you pretty badly in order to knock you out. Your nervous system is probably confused. I’m surprised you could even stand.
Katzir: So that’s what that pain was.
Liron: It should wear off soon.
Akari: I’m glad everything’s okay now, but we do have a few problems.

Akari approaches Yusuk’s body and then stomps on the ground, which lowers the ground below Yusuk.

Akari: We have to bury Yusuk here, but we have to also break the news to his family, which was noble. We have to tell them that he was killed in battle with an enemy.
Katzir: I have to tell them the truth.
Akari: I don’t care what your moral compass looks like. That is not an option. You have no idea what it would do to the political situation if the truth were ever revealed.
Shahar: I agree. We could be in hot water with the nobles about dark magic, Katzir would be executed and we have no idea what kind of trouble could brew as a result beyond that.
Akari: Yusuk died honorably in the line of duty. That is the story we will tell. Our second problem is that we no longer have a healer.
Amitay: We can’t just go back to capital and ask for another one.
Akari: We most certainly can’t. It is time for us to leave too. We only have one option. We must continue without a healer.
Liron: It sucks, but we don’t have any other choice.

After a minute or so, Katzir is able to stand on his own and walk again. They all pay their last respects to Yusuk and then Akari uses his magic to bury him.

Akari: We don’t have any more time to delay, unfortunately. Let’s go.

As Akari leads the way to the mountain pass, the rest follow. Amitay is currently aiding Katzir walk at a decent speed for now. But as they go on, we can see that their faces have still not changed. None of them are okay right now…especially Katzir.


Yusuk is dead. Akari’s team presses on without a healer. Emotions are running high among the group as they just try and move forward from this tragedy.

The group is walking along the mountain pass. They are walking in single file, but there is enough room for two people to stand side by side.  Akari leads the way.

Akari: Katzir, come up next to me.
Katzir: Yes, captain.

Akari steps to the outside to allow Katzir on the inside, against the mountain.

Akari: One of the important things when you control your mana is to visualize where it goes. Do you know what I mean by this?
Katzir: In other words, have a picture in my head of where I’m concentrating my mana as if it’s visible.
Akari: Yes, good.
Katzir: I did pay attention to most of Mr. Hunter’s lessons; I just couldn’t do anything with it till now.
Akari: Eventually, your body will remember how to do that process on its own. That’s what we call muscle memory.
Katzir: I know that much as well, since that was important for my martial arts training.
Akari: Right. They told me that your muscles remembered all that when you went berserk.
Katzir: There was something else that bothered me, captain.
Akari: What’s that?
Katzir: I had zero control over my body at a certain point, and yet my target was consistent. It was feral, but it still specifically targeted Yusuk.
Akari: Ah, I see what you mean.
Shahar: (Just behind them) I found that odd as well.
Akari: Going berserk from dark magic is actually a little different than most people initially think. If you are encased with dark magic, your reactions become better. Do you know why that is?
Shahar: Could it have something to do with instinct?
Akari: Yes, precisely. Dark magic enhances everything about your body, including your body’s instincts. Your brain, your heart and the rest of your body are connected. Your body understood the source of your anger and sought to eliminate it. It’s almost like the form you take has a mind of its own, and yet it’s not really sentient.
Katzir: How do you know so much about this, captain?
Akari: I too have gone berserk.
Shahar: You’re kidding.
Akari: Afraid not. I hurt many people I cared for, including Hunter and Helen. The reason I know so much about dark magic is because I’ve gone through and experienced all of its effects. Do you know why I am telling you this, Katzir?
Katzir: Because I can become like you too.
Akari: No, you can become even better in the field of dark magic. It’s a heavy responsibility, but it also freeing to know that you can use such power to protect the ones close to you.
Katzir: It’s just like Ms. Liron said…
Liron: If you have power, you need to accept that you can do the worst of evils or best of good deeds. If you’re not ready to do either, then you shouldn’t strive for power. The second you gain it, people start to rely on you more…

Katzir glances back at Liron, who is more towards the back, walking just in front of Hayim and behind Amitay. She glances back with a casual nod. She didn’t know what they were saying, but she figured it wasn’t anything too damaging for her to agree.

Katzir: I want to be ready to do either the worst or the best. I’m not quite there yet.
Akari: That’s understandable. You’re still young, and you’ve only just gained power. Learn how to control it first, and then worry about that.
Katzir: You’re right.

Akari stops them by putting up his hand.

Amitay and Liron: Something’s here.

They look out away from the mountain where all of the sudden a distortion is seen in the air and four spears appear. They are sent flying at the group. Shahar makes a barrier that encompasses himself, Katzir and Akari to block two of them. The other two are sent towards the other four, where Hayim blocks them with a short blast of water.

Drora: Nice reaction, Hayim!
Hayim: Thanks.

Drora draws her bow and readies it.

Amitay: What the hell was that?
Liron: Don’t let your guard down just yet.

Just then, the air begins distorting all across the sky and what seems like a hundred spears rain down on them.

Akari: My turn.

Akari stomps his foot on the ground and we see a ripple go into the mountainside, loosening it. Simultaneously, he uses his hands to manipulate the broken mountainous ground to form a giant wall in front of all of them, blocking all of the spears.

Drora: That’s our captain for you!

Akari drops the earth below him. Shahar goes up to the other four.

Shahar: Liron, Amitay, Drora, I need you three to fire an attack where you see distortion next time.
Amitay: I see what you’re thinking.
Liron: Got it.
Drora: Sure thing!

Drora holds her bow drawn with an arrow ready. Liron has lightning held on two fingers and Amitay has fire at the tip of his staff. There is a small distortion visible now and they fire off towards it. The distortion absorbs it and then it closes up a few seconds later after throwing just one spear. Shahar easily blocks it with a small barrier. They get ready for another attack, but nothing comes.

Shahar: I knew it.
Amitay: You think that distortion was actually a teleportation portal?
Shahar: Yes. If someone could send things through the portal on one end, chances are we could also send something through it from the other end.
Akari: Well played, Shahar. That’s the type of ingenuity I want on this team. You all did well, but we need to keep moving. “The enemy”, whomever they may be, knows we are here.

They keep moving on, at more of a brisk walk instead of the casual walk that they had been doing.

Shahar: I’m worried about what just happened. Captain, could you sense anyone nearby?
Akari: No. But just like a few of you, I could sense that portal.
Shahar: That means that the enemy was out of our range. I don’t think it’s possible that someone has an ability like that AND can sense that far.
Liron: So, you’re suggesting that this person is working with someone that has perception magic. That makes the most sense right now.
Amitay: I have to concur. For those portals to be so precise, they had to be able to locate our presences. But then how about all those spears at once?
Akari: It’s best not to make assumptions about that part. That could have been any number of things. For all we know, it could have been linked to the portals perhaps holding a dimension of space for weapons.
Drora: We’re dealing with some unique magic affinities then.
Hayim: I never saw anyone with that magic before.
Akari: It’s rare, indeed.
Katzir: By the way, since the portal closed after those attacks went through, do you think we injured them?
Shahar: I’d say that’s probable. But we definitely shouldn’t assume that killed them.
Liron: I also think it’s important that they decided to attack us while we we’re here on the mountain pass. It was as deliberate as deliberate gets.
Akari: I don’t think there was any doubt it was deliberate.
Liron: Fair point. But that also means they were waiting for us.
Shahar: Wait, that is important. Could the enemy have caught wind of our plan already? How is that possible?
Akari: Anything’s certainly possible. You guys didn’t know this, but there was an assassination attempt on the king when Hunter proposed the plan. There’s a chance that someone was listening that we didn’t want listening.
Drora: Seriously?!
Akari: Ah, but Captain Sentus stopped the assassin without any problems. So there wasn’t any reason to worry or say anything.
Shahar: Just what is the Iron Kingdom doing? I can’t figure it out.
Akari: The Iron queen acts like she is innocent, but she is a scheming devil. She knew exactly what she was doing when she sent that damn group to our lands. Her gambit worked, and now we are in a bad spot. The Iron Kingdom is likely to invade us soon.
Amitay: But why not now? What are they waiting for?
Akari: That, I don’t know. I’m hoping that we will uncover the truth as a result of this journey.

They make it to the end of the mountain pass, which leads to a town in the horizon after more sandy terrain.

Akari: We’ll rest up in that town and replenish the rest of our mana. While we’re walking, Katzir, I want you to try what I just told you back there in practice. I want you to focus your magic to your head, right hand, left hand, right foot, left foot and stomach in that order. Hold it for two seconds in one position and then move it to the next. Do I need to repeat the order?
Katzir: Head, right hand, left hand, right foot, left foot, stomach, right?
Akari: Yes. If you start to lose control, say so and I will immediately help. But act like I’m not here. You may not always be able to rely on me, as you already know.
Katzir: I understand.
Akari: You all could stand to work on dark magic while we walk, since we will be replenishing in town.
Amitay: Do you think we’re out of danger for now?
Akari: I believe so. I firmly think we injured whoever attacked us and they are currently recovering. If we didn’t, I can’t imagine why they didn’t take the opportunity to attack for the rest of the mountain pass.
Shahar: Yes, I agree. Though that could also be a trap to lure us into a false sense of security.
Akari: That’s why I’ll be focusing, while you all work on this. It’s very important that you all learn this in order to get stronger. For the rest of you, whoever can maintain a dark orb the longest wins. You tie if more than one makes it to the town. It should be this size.

Akari makes an orb about half the size of his hands. He dispels it and the others minus Katzir perform that. They maintain it while walking. Meanwhile, Katzir is doing as Akari said. We see a small amount of darkness emanating from the corresponding areas when he switches to them. They all eventually make it to town without anyone losing their dark orb.

Akari: You guys are coming along faster than I thought. You’re all very talented individuals.
Hayim: Even me, captain?
Akari: Yes, Hayim. Even you. Now, let’s go eat something.

They start to walk through the town, which is structurally built around sandstone like the capital. They find a male vendor with meat cooking on a grill behind him.

Akari: How much?
Vendor: 15 silver each piece.
Akari: Let’s talk about 4 each.
Vendor: Ah, no, you’ll have to deal with 14.
Drora: Captain, let me handle this.
Akari: Drora? You think you can do better?
Drora: Just watch.

Drora approaches the vendor and starts casually massaging one of his shoulders with one hand.

Drora: So, how about 2 silver each?
Vendor: For you, I’ll do 12.
Drora: Oh, you’re such a bad man.

She winks at him.

Drora: Let’s say 4.
Vendor: 11.

When we look from the other’s perspectives, he is simply talking to himself while Drora is silent, standing next to them.

Liron: You’re something else, Drora.
Drora: I know, right?
Vendor: Oooh, that’ll get you 4 silver a piece.
Hayim: Why is he talking to himself?
Drora: He’s under my illusion right now.

The vendor sells them each a large piece of meat for 4 silver coins each. They each have paper wrappers so that they can eat on the go. Suddenly, the illusion breaks and the man is thoroughly confused at what just happened.

Akari: I’ll admit, you have some good manipulation skill there.
Liron: Never underestimate pussy power.
Drora: Liron! I can’t believe you actually said that in front of all the guys!
Liron: Not like it actually helps defend against it.  

They casually high five without looking at each other. Shahar facepalms and shakes his head at the same time.

Amitay: Not to change the subject, but are we staying the night here?
Akari: We might as well. We’re technically the third wave.
Hayim: Third wave? Does that mean you guys can use water too?
Akari: *Sigh* No, Hayim. It means we’re the last group that started. Hunter had us stagger the time in which our groups started. Hunter’s group went first, followed by Helen’s, then ours.
Shahar: If that’s the case, then Sheikh Hunter believes that we are either the strongest group or second strongest with Helen’s being the weakest. That’s basic strategy for a three-point line up, though it could change based on what he really has planned.
Akari: In any case, we don’t have to worry too much. I have a good idea of what kind of pace we need to be moving at, and we’re okay.

They find an inn and Akari goes up to the innkeeper.

Inkeeper: Oh! You are a Sheikh. Welcome, sir. Do you require lodging for the night?
Akari: Yes. My group and I would like to rest here. How many rooms do you have?
Inkeeper: Four. 100 silver per night each room.
Akari: That’s a bit steep.

They all immediately turn to Drora. About a minute later, Drora is seen paying a quarter of that price for three rooms.

Katzir: Wow, Ms. Drora, you’re on a roll today.
Drora: Heehee!
Akari: As for dividing up the rooms…
Drora: Ahem! Captain, since I was the one who got us that deal, I think I should decide.
Akari: Fine then…
Drora: Okay, so first, the captain and Shahar so that the two old guys can be in the same room. Then we’ll have Katzir, Liron and Hayim. And finally, me and Amitay will share a room!
Amitay: Wait, what?
Liron: So this was your plan all along.
Katzir and Hayim: I like this plan.
Akari: Uh, how about this: Drora and Liron in one room, Hayim, Shahar and Amitay in the next and then lastly Katzir and myself?
Drora: Aww, but my plan was much better.
Akari: Alright, we’ll leave it up to a vote, I suppose. All in favor of Drora’s plan.

Katzir, Drora and Hayim immediately raise their hands. Amitay slowly and sheepishly raises his hand.

Shahar: You traitor!
Amitay: Sorry, but at least with this plan I only have to room with one person.
Shahar: Excuses! You just want to-
Akari: Enough, Shahar. We’ve decided.
Shahar: *Sigh* Yes, captain.

They go up to their rooms, which happen to be next to each other. They are small rooms with two small beds each. The beds are up against opposite walls with a window in the very middle. In the three-person room, Liron sets her bag down just under the window and sits against that wall.

Katzir: Ms. Liron, you don’t need to do that. You can take one of the beds.
Hayim: Yes, one of us will sleep on the floor.
Liron: Nah, it’s all right.
Katzir: I couldn’t possibly let a lady sleep on the floor.
Hayim: Me too!
Liron: That’s sweet of you two, but my gender has nothing to do with the situation. I’ve done this before, so it’s okay.
Katzir: I’m more worried about your injury.
Liron: I told you it was okay, but if you need proof…

She stands up and starts taking her shirt off. The two of them start staring intently, but she stops halfway, just exposing the bottom half of her torso.

Liron: Go ahead and feel my side if you want. I won’t think anything of it.
Katzir: No, that’s okay. I believe you.
Hayim: Just to be sure…

She drops her shirt to normal position and sits down again.

Katzir: Can I ask you something? Are you really comfortable being in this room with two guys?
Liron: If it was someone like Yusuk, the answer would have been no. I would have knocked his ass out first. I can tell you two are just innocent…for now. And at least one of you has felt a strong shock from me.
Katzir: Yeah, that shit hurts.
Hayim: I would never do anything like that anyway.
Liron: Yep, I believe you both that you wouldn’t. Neither of them has the guts.

Meanwhile, in Amitay and Drora’s room…

Drora: Please?
Amitay: (Eyes closed) Nope.
Drora: Preeeettty please?
Amitay: No.
Drora: Can you at least look at me when you’re talking to me?
Amitay: And risk falling under an illusion? Nah, I’m good.
Drora: What’s the problem?
Amitay: If we start engaging in acts like that, it could compromise the team.
Drora: Damn. Here I thought you would say, “Yeah, no problem. It’s cool, man”.
Amitay: You guys are never going to let that go, are you?

In the last room…

Shahar: So, what now? Discuss the finer points of strategy?
Akari: I’m good, dude.
Shahar: (Dejected) Okay…


They have already been attacked by some unknown enemy. Are they ever truly safe from ambush? The adventure continues next time!

As they are in their rooms, they can each see steam rising from outside the window.

Katzir: What’s that?
Liron: Hmm?

Liron stands up and looks out the window.

Liron: Oh, it’s a hot spring.
Katzir and Hayim: H-h-h-h-hot spring?!
Liron: What are you two imagining?

Drora: Good news, Amitay. There’s a hot spring down there. We can take a bath together.
Amitay: Oh.
Drora: That’s all you have to say? Oh?
Amitay: I don’t like getting wet. Fire mage, remember?
Drora: I like getting wet hehehehehe. Oh, but seriously, do you not take any baths?
Amitay: Nope.
Drora: Disgusting!
Amitay: That was a joke.
Drora: Oh! You scared me.

Shahar: Well, would you look at that? There’s a hot spring here.
Akari: I’m sure a few of the others are jumping for joy.

They all make their way down to the hot spring, where they are separated into two changing rooms. After they’ve finished changing, they come out with towels wrapping around them. It is then that they notice each other coming out of the changing rooms. It is a mixed bath.

Hayim: If there is a god, he is being very kind to me.
Akari: Oh, so it’s a mixed bath. Okay then.

He casually walks over to the bath and we switch to seeing Liron and Drora’s face as Akari drops his towel. They both widen their eyes with surprise.

Drora: Captain, your body is like your magic. Rock solid.

Akari is in the bath already and lowers his head into the water up to his nose in embarrassment. They all eyeball each other to see who is next.

Liron: Enough of this foolishness. I’m getting in.

She simply drops her towel and gets in quickly.

Drora: My girl!
Liron: Why don’t you just get in? We only have a little time.
Drora: Okay then! No peeking, boys! *wink*

She struts over to the spring.

Shahar: So, does she want us to look or not? I’m confused.
Akari: Typical.

Suddenly, she is in the spring already.

Akari: Another illusion.
Drora: If you want to see the full version, you’ll have to pay a little extra, Amitay!
Amitay: Who’s going next?

Katzir is next and then Shahar.

Hayim: I’m nervous, Amitay. What do I do?
Amitay: It’s c…It’s okay. How about this…

He whispers something to Hayim.

Hayim: That’s so smart!

Hayim manipulates some of the water from the hot spring to cover his private parts as he drops his towel.

Drora: Oh, you’re no fun.
Shahar: I guess you’re last, Amitay. It’s cool, maaaan. Get in.
Amitay: That joke’s getting old, but I guess it is my turn.

After a few seconds, Amitay is in.

Drora: (Lower volume) Did you see how big it was, Liron?
Liron: (Lower volume) Yeah. Pretty big.

Amitay has also lowered his face in embarrassment right next to Akari. Akari lifts his head up a little so that he can speak.

Akari: So, now that everyone is in, we can finally all relax. I was initially against being the third wave, but I guess it had its benefits already. I also have to ask a personal question to you all. I know that Yusuk was causing trouble with the group. And I know that we’re not particularly happy he’s gone. But with that fact aside, how do you feel you get along as a group without him?
Amitay: Personally, I believe we have good chemistry as a team. Yusuk did create some unnecessary friction that I don’t believe we have now.
Liron: I feel that we work better as a team now, but the tradeoff is that we’re missing a healer.
Katzir: I don’t think things are better.
Shahar: Of all the people here, I’d thought you’d be the last one to say that.
Katzir: We all act like that incident is behind us, but I can see it’s not. You all look at me differently now, and I get why. I think if anything, I created unnecessary conflict for the group.
Shahar: You’re not wrong about that. That’s just something you’ll have to live with.
Hayim: Shahar…
Shahar: I know you want to be kind to Katzir, but it doesn’t always work like that. The truth is that he did something inexcusable. If he were in the military, he would have been killed for treason. I hope you all realize that.
Liron: Shahar, that’s enough.
Katzir: No, Ms. Liron…he’s right.
Shahar: But don’t get me wrong, Katzir. I told you before that I’m not sold on you yet. But that doesn’t mean I don’t believe in your potential. There is a chance that you can become one of our greatest asset, if not the greatest here besides the captain. But as you are right now, that’s not the case. Your progress could end up helping us greatly or hurting us even further.
Katzir: I accept that. I’m going to strive for power, so that I can accept that either can happen to me.
Liron: Katzir, those words…
Akari: Then it looks like you’ve already matured a little in the short time we’ve been together. If you want us to look at you differently than we do now, you’re going to have to make us.
Katzir: Yeah. I will.
Drora: Besides, Katzir, your body isn’t so bad either. That martial arts training has done you good.
Katzir: (Blushing) Ms. Drora, when you say it like that…

After the bath, they all get ready for bed. We focus on Drora and Amitay first.

Drora: Are you suuuuure you don’t wanna?
Amitay: It’s tempting, but I’ll pass. You are a nice girl, Drora, but we don’t want to add any more problems to the group. We have enough as it is.

In Shahar and Akari’s room…

Shahar: Do you mind me asking why you coddle Katzir so much? Is it because he is related to Seijuro?
Akari: Shahar, you have to understand my role. My role is to believe in each of you. When Hunter handed you all off to me, I knew he wanted me to finish each of your training. You and I, we’re military raised fighters. We learned by tough love, and that’s okay. Katzir’s needs are slightly different from ours. He’s like a plant that needs watering at specific times and sunlight at specific times. In other words, he needs support most times, but sometimes he does need tough reprimand.
Shahar: Was I out of line then?
Akari: No, I think Katzir needed to hear what you said. He was thinking the same and needed validation. You gave that to him.
Shahar: Okay good.
Akari: Would you like me to be tougher on you?
Shahar: No, I think I’ve been through enough of that, as I’m sure you know.
Akari: Oh yes. The training is quite hellish.
Shahar: It’s just weird for me to see a caring spirit like that. My parents never seemed to care about me, as long as I did well in everything. They sent me off to the military to bring honor to the family to rise in rank. They thought maybe I could make them noble.
Akari: I see. But now you choose to fight for your own causes after what you’ve seen in war.
Shahar: Yes.
Akari: Looks like your motivations have come full circle then.
Shahar: Perhaps.

In the third room…

Hayim: We should probably get some rest for tomorrow.
Katzir: Yeah.
Liron: I just have one thing to say before we do.
Katzir: What’s that?
Liron: Yusuk wasn’t entirely wrong about me either. What I’ve done is also unforgivable, and not telling you what it is could be seen as a liability.
Hayim: So are you ready to tell us?
Liron: No, not yet. I know it’s contradictory, but I’m just not ready.
Katzir: I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that, but that’s just me.
Hayim: It’s okay to have secrets, right? Don’t stress too much about it.
Liron: The two of you are very kind. I like that. No matter what Yusuk or Shahar said, you both have good hearts. Don’t forget that.

As Liron undoes her ponytail, Katzir tosses her his pillow and Hayim tosses her one of his sheets.

Liron: You guys…
Katzir: You said you liked that we are kind, so accept it.
Liron: Thanks. I’ll take it.

They all go to sleep in time and then the next day comes. We can see Shahar peeking through the keyhole of a door.

Shahar: Huh, so they really didn’t do anything after all. I thought for sure since he voted to room with Drora…
Akari: Were you that curious?
Shahar: Honestly, yes.
Akari: Maybe you’ll get your chance with her too.
Shahar: That’s not…

Akari walks away, leaving Shahar stammering to himself. Later that morning, everyone has woken up.

Hayim: Are you ready to go?
Liron: Ah, let me just fix my hair. It’ll only take me two minutes.

They look at her weird.

Liron: Hey, what’s that look for?
Amitay: You actually do that kind of stuff?
Liron: I’m a woman, remember? You were all gawking at me last night.
Shahar: Huh, never thought about it like that.
Liron: You guys are weird.
Akari: What about you, Drora?
Drora: I used to get yelled at for being late for things because I always took too long to get ready.
Katzir: So you stopped taking so long?
Drora: No, I just started waking up earlier. A girl’s gotta look her best for everything, you hear?!
Liron: By the way, on a scale of 1-10, how far above 6 did Drora sexually harass you, Amitay?
Drora: Hey!
Amitay: Ah, I didn’t mind it.
Akari: In any case, we do need to keep moving. You have five minutes to get ready.
Liron: Thanks.

Five minutes later, everyone is ready and they move on. They make it to the edge of town and look out at the terrain before them. The sandy terrain starts to show signs of plant life in the far distance.

Shahar: Once we leave here, we won’t find another town for quite a ways.
Akari: Yeah, unfortunately. This is where our route takes us though.
Amitay: I guess we have to accept the bad with the good.
Akari: Let’s get going then.

Akari leads the way as the rest follow him. They eventually are out of sight from any civilization.

Akari: After last night, I feel that I have a good grasp on our situation as a group. We may need to start building trust, but I think we’re okay right now.
Liron: Yeah.

Just as she agrees with Akari, they all feel something wrong.

Amitay: Liron, behind you!

She turns to see a distortion behind her. She quickly gets out of the way where a spear comes flying past her and sticks into the ground. They all get out their weapons. Another distortion appears behind Amitay.

Liron: Amitay!

Amitay moves out of the way when this time a human comes through and misses with a scimitar slash. Just then, six more people appear all around the group through distortions. *Music* The one with the scimitar attacks Amitay. It’s a young woman whose face is covered with a white niqab and the rest of her body is covered with white silk cloth. Amitay defends with his staff and then backs up to gain some distance.

Shahar: So they were portals after all.

Another attacks Shahar. It’s a man who has a turban and black robes on. He is wielding a tulwar. Shahar is able to block with the handle of his mace and push this man back. The next person to attack has Iron born skin tone and is wearing chain mail with a coat of plate over it. He has a rapier in hand and lunges at Liron. Liron is able to block it with one of her tonfa.

Liron: You’re from the Iron Kingdom. I always wanted to see how I stack up against one of you.

Another one of them has attacked at this time. It is a man who is also Iron born and has full plate armor. He has a military saber and clashes weapons with Hayim. Two people go after Akari. Both are Red born females who are wearing baggy silk clothing with nothing covering their faces. They have an identical face to each other. They both charge at him simultaneously. When they get close enough, Akari stomps on the ground and the ground below them suddenly flares up and sends them flying back. The last of them is a giant male who stands about 7’0 and is wearing long pants but no shirt. He is Red born. Katzir and Drora go up against him.

Katzir: Drora, let’s take him together.
Drora: Yeah.

This man charges at them and they get out of the way quickly. Drora draws an arrow and fires it. The man dodges it and Katzir follows up by going for a punch to his torso. The man grabs Katzir’s hand with his own gigantic hand and starts to crush it after he lifts Katzir up into the air. Drora holds another arrow at the ready, but the man holds Katzir in front as a shield. Katzir’s eyes are closed.

Katzir: Focus, visualize the dark magic going to my fists. Control it.

From the hand that is being crushed, dark magic starts emanating from it. It stings the man’s hand and he drops Katzir. Once he lands on the ground, he focuses twice the dark magic energy on his other fist and then gives the man a hard punch. He is sent crashing into the ground and Katzir quickly dispels his dark magic.

Drora: You did it!
Katzir: It was only a short burst, but I did.

The man gets up in pain.

Man: Oh, man. That stung. You’re pretty strong for a little guy.
Katzir: Drora.
Drora: Yeah.

She looses her arrow, but it bounces off his body with only minor damage. We can see that the place where the arrow hit has turned silver.

Drora: Hardening magic. Shit.

Meanwhile, Liron is being put on the defensive by rapid lunges from her opponent’s rapier.

Liron: He’s keeping his distance so that I can’t get in. He’s not giving me an opening.

She tries to get close, but is forced to back up when he keeps up the lunging to the point where she cannot be anywhere near him.

Liron: The Iron Kingdom certainly produces strong fighters.

She finally runs lightning through one of her tonfa and blocks a strike. The lightning runs through the rapier and shocks him. This opening allows her to get in close and attack with her tonfa. Just before she hits him, he is able to move in what seems like blurry movement. He easily dodges the attack and then lunges at her from behind. She tries to block with her tonfa, but all of the sudden the rapier’s speed changes at the last second and stabs her in the side. She grabs the rapier and runs lightning through it again, but he lets go of the weapon and simply punches her in the face. As she falls to the ground, he grabs the rapier and pulls it out quickly.

Liron: Not good.

He is about to stab her while she’s on the ground, when she backwards somersaults in time to dodge it. She stands, but is holding her side.

Liron: What kind of technique was that? He was able to change the speed of his movement and attack instantly. I have to figure it out if I’m going to stand a chance at beating this guy.

While this is happening, the two identical women are panting while fighting Akari, who hasn’t even moved from his spot and shows no signs of struggle.

Akari: The team’s not doing well. We may have to make a swift retreat.

Amitay is keeping the woman he is fighting at bay with his superior reach at this time. Suddenly, as she backs up, he shoots a fireball at her. She puts her hands in front of her and the fire is absorbed. Suddenly, it comes crashing into Amitay from behind. The distortions are now more defined and look purple.

Amitay: So you were the portal person.

She rushes forward and then immediately appears behind him. She swings her scimitar at the back of Amitay’s neck, but he is able to bring his staff to that part to block. He then gains some distance, but she just goes through the portal to attack him from behind again. This time Amitay shoves his staff through the portal on one end and it hits the woman on the back of the head when it comes out the other end.

Amitay: Hah.

We pan over to Shahar and Hayim, who are fighting back to back. They are both injured as well.

Shahar: This doesn’t look good at all.
Hayim: They’re really strong.
Akari: I guess I have no choice.

We see all of the team members get encased by rock and get forcibly moved to his location. They all get released and are lying on the ground, all injured.

Katzir: Captain.
Akari: I was hoping I wouldn’t have to do this, but I guess I’ll have to put some muscle into it. *Music Stops*

He activates dark magic and stomps on the ground, which sends a ripple all around him. With the ground loosened, he now manipulates it to move in a circular motion around him and then sends the ground in a giant omnidirectional wave, which blows back all of the assailants. The portal woman teleports them away and they retreat.

Akari: Good, they retreated. For now, we’ll have to go back into town and hide out for a few hours.


With the thorough beating given to them, Akari had to come to their rescue. What is the next step for them? Next time on A Tale of Iron, Part 2!

The team has made it back to the town. They are all resting up and attending to their injuries. Akari is the only one without any.

Akari: While we’re doing this, we need to discuss what we’ve learned about them. Did we find out who was the portal user?
Amitay: It was the woman I fought. She was skilled with that scimitar, but nothing I couldn’t handle. But the way she used those portals really made it difficult to fight.
Akari: How about the sensor?
Shahar: It was likely the man I fought with the tulwar.
Akari: Do you have anything concrete that told you that?
Shahar: The only reason I think so is because before I made any kind of barrier, there were subtle reactions as if he knew everything I was going to do before I did it.
Akari: I see. That is good enough, in my opinion.
Drora: How skilled was he with weaponry?
Shahar: Very good.
Drora: I see. Leave that one to me.
Liron: That’s probably a good idea.
Akari: How about the rest of you? What did you find out about their abilities?
Liron: I’m not sure what my opponent had, but it was dangerous. My first guess is enhancement, but that seems wrong. He was well trained in Iron fencing. I’ve never seen anything like that.
Hayim: The man I fought was extremely skilled with his saber. He didn’t even reveal his magic to me, to my shame.
Katzir: The one that Drora and I fought used hardening magic. He was very physically strong. It took dark magic in order to make him use it.
Akari: I felt a short burst of dark magic energy back there. So you were able to use it successfully?
Katzir: Yes.
Akari: That’s good news. If nothing else, you got some field experience using it.
Shahar: How about the two you fought, captain?
Akari: Those two were odd indeed. I was trying to agitate them enough to reveal their full power, but they wouldn’t have it. They just kept charging at me haphazardly and I kept sending them back. I get the feeling that if they had touched me or something like that, that it would have been bad news for me.
Shahar: We need to figure out how to deal with them. They could attack again at any moment.
Akari: We have two pressing matters. This attack puts us behind schedule. I think they knew that when they attacked us specifically.
Amitay: So you think this group of people is specifically targeting us to break our formation?
Akari: Yes and that worries me. The implication that fact has is not easy to swallow.
Hayim: But captain, you tore them apart by yourself. Can’t you just take them all on?
Akari: I doubt it. Now they have a good understanding of my magic and its power, because I was forced to reveal it. You all need to be able to hold your weight in this next fight.
Shahar: Based on what we know, we are going to need to separate the fights differently. I think I should be the one to go up against the portal user. I have a plan to counteract that power, but it will require some cooperation.
Amitay: I was able to attack her by using her portal against her, but I doubt that would have worked a second time.
Shahar: No worries. I believe I have a more solid plan. As for the big guy, I think Amitay is the most suited to fighting that one. Liron, you’re going to need to figure out that rapier user’s magic. Do you think you can handle him again?
Liron: No problem.
Shahar: Katzir, that means I’m putting you with the saber user. The one who has the most experience and skill in that type of combat is you. If you can at least force him to reveal his magic, we can get a better idea of what to do with him if we can’t win this fight either. Drora, that means that you can take on the tulwar user, the one I fought.
Drora: Good.
Akari: So, you want me to fight those twins again.
Shahar: If it’s as you say, then we need the most defensively sound person against them. I have a bad feeling about them.
Hayim: What about me, Katzir?
Shahar: It’s Shahar, and I need you to float.
Hayim: Sorry, I can only use water. I can’t do that.
Shahar: Ah, I mean you need to be open to help whoever is having trouble.
Hayim: Oh! That I can do.
Drora: Actually, I think he should help me. I probably can’t beat that guy in a straight up fight, but I have an idea of how I can win.
Shahar: Very well. I’ll speak with you individually about your matchup.
Akari: I think your strategy is sound for now, but if they start working as a team, you will have to abandon it and also work as a team.
Shahar: That is fine.
Akari: You all really need to understand this: I may not be able to save you this time. You’re going to have to use the data from this loss and turn it into a win next time. Is that understood?

They all nod at him.

Akari: Good. Now, treat your injuries to the best of your ability. We leave in a few hours.
Drora: By the way, Katzir, you called me by my name without the honorific earlier.
Katzir: I did? I didn’t even notice.
Drora: It was in battle.
Katzir: Huh. Weird.

As they break away from a group, they begin to form small discussions amongst themselves. Liron is slumped up against a building, holding her side, which hasn’t been patched up completely yet. Hayim takes a seat next to her, with his arms being cut up.

Hayim: How’s your side?
Liron: Not good.
Hayim: I think I can help a little.

He creates a small bit of water and puts it over the stab wound. We see a slight face twitch from her in pain, but then it eases up.

Liron: Not bad.
Hayim: I’m certainly no healer, but I think water can’t hurt.
Liron: Yeah. Thanks. That’s twice I’ve taken a hit there. I have to start guarding that area more carefully.

Meanwhile, Shahar is speaking to Amitay.

Shahar: I have a question about the one you faced, since I’ll now be going up against her.
Amitay: Assuming the fight pans out in our favor, but go ahead.
Shahar: Yes, of course. You said you were able to use her portal against her. Could you be a little more specific?
Amitay: Sure.

At the same time, Akari is with Drora and Katzir.

Akari: So how did it feel to attack with dark magic the right way?
Katzir: It felt great. That man was huge, but I was able to send him to the ground no sweat. I had to shut off my power immediately though. It’s incredibly inefficient right now.
Akari: That’s okay. I want you to try and do that again with the saber user. But it’ll be a lot harder to hit him, so be patient and wait for the right moment if you can get it. If not, don’t panic. As long as you can force a stalemate, he’ll be forced to reveal his magic one way or another.
Katzir: So, even if we don’t win, we can still always gather more data for the next fight.
Akari: Yes. That is how we are taught to fight at higher ranks. Before I became a Sheikh, I had to understand this concept. Now, Drora. I would be interested in learning why you think you are a good counter to the sensor.
Drora: Well, there’s no point in hiding it.

After a few hours, they move out. They go back to the same place they had fought.

Amitay: No sign of them.
Akari: That works just fine for us. Let’s keep moving.

They eventually make it to where there is some grass. As they walk further, the ratio of grass to sand starts growing to have more grass. Just then, they stop.

Akari: They’re here again. Get ready.

Just like last time, they all appear out of the portals, surrounding them.

Akari: Now!

At Akari’s words, they all split up and go after the person they were assigned to.

(From this point on, they’ll be referred to by their weapon of choice except the 7’0 guy who will be referred to as muscles and the twins as well)

Rapier: They have a plan! Let’s separate them!
Scimitar: Right.

Scimitar opens up portals and teleports them all into different locations. We follow Amitay and Muscles first. They have been teleported only a few feet away from their original location.

Amitay: What was the point to that?
Muscles: I don’t know.
Amitay: Anyway, shall we get this over with?

Amitay spins his pole around fancily and then aims it at Muscles.

Muscles: Didn’t they tell you about my magic?
Amitay: They did, and that’s exactly why I’m the most suited to fighting you, except maybe Liron. This first part is data like the captain instructed.

Amitay lunges with his pole, but it bounces off as he hardens the part of his torso that it connects with. Muscles then moves in closer and punches at Amitay. Amitay is able to avoid it and then gets behind Muscles. He holds his staff on both ends and then strikes with one end. It does no damage, but he immediately follows up with striking with the other end. That part also hardens. Amitay backs off.

Amitay: So you can harden more than just one place at once.
Muscles: I can do more than just that.

Muscles hardens his entire body.

Muscles: What do you think of me now?
Amitay: You’ve got quite the magic there. Where did you all come from? You all have such unique magic affinities.
Muscles: Do you honestly expect a truthful answer?
Amitay: I guess not. But maybe you can answer this question. Knowing that you had that magic, why do you think I specifically wanted to fight you?
Muscles: You think you break my magic.
Amitay: The answer is that I don’t have to.

Amitay flips his staff high up into the air. With his hands, he starts circling them around each other, which starts to bring an intense amount of fire around his torso. Muscles starts to look surprised. Amitay fires off a large fire wave that encompasses him. When the fire subsides, Muscles is severely burned all over his body. His eyes are white and smoke is coming from his mouth. He collapses on the ground just as Amitay casually catches his staff from the air.

Amitay: Did you think that hardening yourself would save you from heat?

The next fight that we follow is Katzir and Saber. They have been teleported closer to town, where it is all sand.

Katzir: Why are you doing this? What is your purpose here?
Saber: I have nothing to say to you about my mission.
Katzir: Fine.

Katzir takes a stance and readies himself. Saber walks towards Katzir slowly with one hand behind his back. His dominant hand has the saber faced towards Katzir and he approaches sideways.

Katzir: This “fencing” is an interesting style to say the least.

Saber begins hacking and slashing at Katzir. We see Katzir dodge each slash and occasionally block with one of his knuckles. Katzir then ducks under a horizontal slash and then kicks at Saber. He is able to back up to avoid it completely.

Katzir: Your sword work is impressive. I was sure I had an opening there.
Saber: I’m surprised you even managed to attack. You’re not like the others.
Katzir: No, I’m not.

Katzir readies himself again. Meanwhile, Liron and Rapier have been teleported just outside of a forest. It is a fully grassy area. The two of them waste no time and clash weapons. There is lightning surrounding Liron’s two tonfa, but Rapier is not being shocked. She then notices that he is wearing rubber gloves. She jumps back and they subside attacking for the moment.

Liron: So you were worried about fighting me again.
Rapier: Naturally. That magic of yours is quite dangerous, Fraulein.
Liron: Fraulein? Is that supposed to be an insult?
Rapier: No, my dear.
Liron: Okay then. Tell me something. Are you working with the dragon slayers?
Rapier: I cannot say, sweet girl.
Liron: Is it okay if I beat it out of you then? Then you’ll see just how sweet I am.
Rapier: Ah! So cruel! Fate has smiled down on her body and alas! She is so cold!
Liron: The fuck?
Rapier: Tis such a shame! The white flower, it opens and closes on its own. But it endures the winter because it is strong.
Liron: I don’t see how that makes any sense. And you’ve made a complete 180 from earlier. Oh, and where did you get rubber gloves so fast?
Rapier: Alas! I must destroy this flower before my own winter comes.

Rapier charges at Liron and starts to lunge his weapon at her repeatedly like last time.

Liron: This strategy worked for him last time and will continue to work…except I have a new strategy for him.

She continues dodging his rapier. Suddenly, she gets an attack in and swings with her tonfa. This time, she actually lands a hit to his face and he crashes into the ground.

Liron: It worked. If I just do it one more time, I’ll have confirmed my theory.

Liron charges at him as he gets up. He starts moving, but Liron suddenly speeds up at nearly the last second and slams him against with her tonfa.

Liron: I knew it. Your magic has nothing to do with enhancement. Earlier, you showed better speed than myself, but it wasn’t traditional speed. You blurred for just a second. I’m used to seeing that level of speed from my brother and he never blurred. So what was it my eye was seeing and how is it that your reflexes are worse than mine if you were faster?
Rapier: From two encounters…don’t tell me.
Liron: You’re not getting faster, I’m getting slower. But that’s not quite right either. You’re slowing down time, aren’t you?
Rapier: (High pitched) Ahhhhhhhhh! H-how did you-
Liron: I thought about it religiously the last few hours. Most likely, the way that the spears were able to be so numerous the first time you attacked us was because of you, unless the guy Katzir is fighting or the twins have a magic that would simulate what we saw. But that seems less likely. You slowed down time to aid putting the amount of spears in those portals.
Rapier: (High pitched whining) AHAAAAHAAAAAHAAaAaAaAaAHhhhh!
Liron: Seriously, dude. Get a grip.
Rapier: B-but, how did you know it wasn’t you being slowed down?
Liron: My reflexes were attuned to everything else going on just fine during that fight. I caught a glimpse of the other’s fighting at that time. Everything seemed normal.
Rapier: I see. Even knowing what you do, it won’t win you the fight.
Liron: That alone, no. But I won’t lose to you again. I promise you that.
Rapier: Ah! Splendid! I only wish I could stab you with something else instead of my blade! But my orders are my orders! What a cruel fate!
Liron: You sick fuck. I’ll cut off that manhood of yours and feed it to livestock.

We now pan to Hayim and Tulwar. They are in the forest completely. They too waste no time to get to fighting. Hayim flips his kama once and then attacks. Tulwar blocks the left Kama, but Hayim hooks the sword and then attacks with the second one. Tulwar dodges barely and then is able to free his sword. He then rapidly slashes all around at Hayim. Hayim is quick to block each strike and then jumps back. He temporarily hooks his kama to his side and then shoots two small blasts of water from his hands. Tulwar dodges them, but then Hayim controls the water remotely with his hands. They start to attack Tulwar from different sides.

Tulwar: I see. Or should I say…I sense.

Tulwar closes his eyes and begins to precisely dodge each time one of the water blasts comes in to attack. Hayim stays on the attack and keeps whirling the water around and attacking. Finally, Tulwar slices both water blasts apart, turning them into water droplets. Suddenly the droplets stop in mid air all around him. Hayim motions with his hands by ramming them together and all the water droplets converge on Tulwar at high speeds. He jumps in the air at just the right time that all the water bullets miss him and collide. When he lands on the ground, he quickly charges at Hayim and attacks. Hayim is able to draw one of his kama in time to block it. He draws the second one and attacks again. Tulwar jumps back for space.

Tulwar: You’re actually putting up a better fight than that mace guy. That magic of yours is quite good.
Hayim: Thanks. You were able to sense all that and dodge. I can’t imagine how that’s even possible.

Meanwhile, Shahar and Scimitar have also teleported to the forest, though a different part entirely.

Shahar: You’ve teleported us quite far. Why have you separated us?
Scimitar: You obviously had some sort of plan.
Shahar: Yes, and you acted just as I wanted.
Scimitar: What?
Shahar: You thought we faired worse in one on one fights against you. You were wrong. The first time we fought, you chose your match ups well. I assume it was that sensing mage’s plan. This time, we made sure that we were the ones picking the match ups.
Scimitar: For a man, you sure talk a lot. I’m guessing that you wanted to face me then.
Shahar: That’s right. I won’t talk anymore then. I’ll show everything to you!


The second encounter heats up!

We now go to Akari and the twins, who are just outside the forest. Liron and Rapier’s figures can be seen in the far distance, though the exact figures and what is happening are not visible from there.

Akari: So, are you going to come at me the same this time?
Twin 1: You have
Twin 2: No idea what we can
Twin 1: Do, do you?
Akari: Did you rehearse that?
Twin 1: Your magic won’t
Twin 2: Work as well here.
Twin 1: Don’t expect that
Twin 2: To work the same again.
Akari: Okay. The question is…do I take one for the team?

The twins charge at Akari while holding their hands out. Akari puts out his arm and allows them both to touch him. A black mark appears on Akari’s wrist, where they both touched. It shows itself like a black wristband.

Akari: So, you sealed my magic? That’s about what I expected.
Twin 1: You’re not
Twin 2: Worried?!
Akari: Slightly. But I chose the role as bait. I would have put Katzir up against you two, but I wasn’t certain what exactly your magic was. I didn’t let you touch me the first time because I could feel the pace of the fight was going against us last time. I needed to be there. But this time, I can leave it up to them.

Akari pulls out his flail and forces them to back away by swinging it at them.

Akari: I believe in Shahar’s plan and my team’s strength.
Twin 1: You’re very confident.
Twin 2: But you’re outnumbered here.
Akari: One swing of my weapon could even that number. And I could always bide my time to wait for this seal to wear off. I can already feel that it is starting to repeal itself slowly.

The twins are sweating right now.

Akari: What’s the matter? You did exactly what you wanted. Aren’t you going to defeat me now?
Twins: Don’t screw with us!

They both pull out short swords and attack. We switch over to Katzir vs Saber. Katzir is still on the defensive from Saber’s attacks. Katzir is starting to sweat.

Katzir: Things aren’t changing at all. That saber feels light when I block it, so I bet it’s no problem for him to be swinging that thing around. But me dodging constantly is taking a larger toll. Should I just activate? No one else is around. I can go crazy on him and end this fight.

He then hears Akari’s words in his head.

Katzir: Right. I can’t panic. If I lose control here, It’ll prove that I’ve learned nothing since I killed Yusuk. That’s right. I’ve been given a responsibility. I can’t afford to let them down again.
Saber: Talking to yourself?
Katzir: You should try it.
Saber: I’ll pass.

Saber charges in again. Just before he reaches attack range, Katzir focuses and activates dark magic in his feet, allowing him to leap forward at a faster speed than usual. This catches Saber off guard and Katzir lands a hard to his face. Katzir punches him three times and then goes for a fourth when Saber is able to swing his sword to get Katzir to back off.

Katzir: That’s the way. I can consistently use dark magic in very small bursts. I really am making progress, Yusuk.
Saber: You brat.

Saber spits out some blood and then raises his sword into the air. His sword glows and his face wounds heal. This surprises Katzir.

Katzir: Your magic is healing. Now I see why you were so reluctant to show it.
Saber: Of course. Going after the healer is a basic tactic. But, at the same time, I have the greatest skill of the group…well, except for him.
Katzir: Who?
Saber: The one with the rapier. That guy is on another level in combat. Your lady friend doesn’t stand a chance.
Katzir: Funny you say that. We’d all say the same about her.
Saber: A woman is the most powerful of you?
Katzir: Besides the captain, yeah. She won’t lose a second time.
Saber: Enough about them. We should worry about who is in front of us now.
Katzir: I’ve already accomplished my objective. I’ve found out your magic affinity.
Saber: Surely that can’t be enough.
Katzir: I guess you’re right. While I’m here, I might as well win!

They charge at each other and we switch viewpoints again to Liron vs Rapier. Liron is dodging and guarding each lunge from Rapier, but it starts to become increasingly more difficult. From Rapier’s perspective, we see him slow down time every time he goes for a lunge, just for that instant. From Liron’s perspective, she is keeping a close eye on Rapier’s movements and moves twice as fast to compensate for the time slowing down. It is difficult for her to keep up, even with the early movement. She then realizes that she won’t make the next lunge and is able to direct the blade ever so slightly with her tonfa to avoid getting stabbed in the same spot she was stabbed last time.

Liron: Tch! Bastard.

Liron encases herself in lightning and moves behind Rapier to attack. He dodges and ends up behind Liron. She moves before he even counterattacks and dodges.

Liron: This really is a losing fight right now. But I’m certain that things will turn around very soon. Just a little more.

Rapier charges again and attacks. Liron dodges and then unleashes a wave of electricity in front of her. Rapier can’t dodge the area of effect and gets shocked. Liron goes for an attack, but Rapier is able to fight through the pain and starts to shoo her away with the rapier.

Rapier: You can even do that too, huh? You’ve been hiding some of that power from me.
Liron: So that wasn’t enough to beat you. You are resilient; I’ll give you that.
Rapier: Ah, trying to sweet talk me now that you know you can’t win? How unlike you.

Rapier moves behind Liron and attacks. She is able to turn around and block it in time. Just then, he stumbles back and starts to hold his head in pain. In that instant, Liron strikes him with the part of her tonfa with an edge to send him to the ground with a cut on his face. *Music*

Rapier: What did you do to me?!
Liron: Nothing. I suspect you’ve never used your time magic more at once than you have against me. In order to slow time, it must consume a great amount of mana. Not to mention, rapidly switching time speeds should be messing with your body’s internal system.
Rapier: I never thought my magic would have drawbacks like that.
Liron: You’re obviously relatively new to magic, which is understandable, since you’re an Iron trained soldier. But this is a battle of magic. In that respect, you can’t compare in skill to trained Red mages.
Rapier: (High pitched) AHHAAAAHAAAAH! YOU-

She interrupts him by whacking him hard with her tonfa.

Liron: Stop that high pitched whining.
Rapier: PLEASE BE MY QUEEN!
Liron: You’re no king, but the answer’s no regardless. Now, spread your legs. I’m going to make good on that promise to castrate you.
Rapier: AHAAAHHHH STOP! *Music Stop*

The battle quickly switches back to Katzir and Saber. They are both breathing heavy.

Saber: You just won’t give up.
Katzir: Of course not. I was given a specific mission, and I also intend to survive long enough to complete it.

Just then, Saber sees a figure walking their way. As it becomes clearer, it’s shown to be Amitay.

Saber: Shit, no.
Katzir: Amitay.
Amitay: Good job, Katzir. Did you figure out his magic?
Katzir: I did. He’s a healer.
Amitay: Oh? I see. We’d better take care of him then.
Saber: Not good. Not good at all.

We switch over to Hayim vs Tulwar. They are currently exchanging weapon blows and blocking each other’s. Hayim is put on the defensive slowly, however.

Hayim: This guy…

Hayim pushes off and gains some distance.

Hayim: I’d better listen to the plan by Katzir…or was it Shahar? I forget. Oh well. Here goes…

He creates a large amount of water from his hands. Tulwar starts to focus in on the water.

Tulwar: Does he think he can overload my senses with just that amount of water? Listen here you-

At that moment, he is cut off when he receives an arrow to his neck.

Tulwar: No, that’s not possible!

Just then, we see Drora behind him. She grabs him from behind with one arm, bends him backwards a bit and shoves a dagger through his back.

Tulwar: So she did come through the portal with us after all. I thought maybe she hadn’t. But this one…she can conceal her presence well enough to evade even my senses.
Drora: Great job, Hayim. I had to make sure he wouldn’t be able to detect me, and you did a good job distracting him.
Hayim: Aw jeez. Thanks.

He drops the water and Drora unhands Tulwar, who drops to his knees. We then switch to Shahar and Scimitar. They are both clashing weapons. Shahar is forcing Scimitar back with brute strength when they collide weapons. Scimitar moves nimbly and swiftly and tries to get around Shahar’s defenses with flips, twists and turns, but it is in vain. Shahar successfully blocks each attack and forces her back again.

Shahar: I’ve seen many flashy types like you in the military. You don’t surprise me. Besides, your tulwar friend fought better with curved blades than you.
Scimitar: Stop mocking me, you. And I thought you were done talking.
Shahar: True. I’ll stop then.
Scimitar: So easily! Alright then, mister military. Here I come.

She charges at Shahar, but then creates a portal between them. She runs into it and then appears behind him. Before she lands an attack, a barrier blocks her sword. Shahar turns his head to her and she instantly backs up back into the portal. Another portal appears to his side and Scimitar appears. The previous barrier disappears and then appears to block another sword attack.

Scimitar: Your defenses are impressive. But they won’t be enough to stop me.

Shahar doesn’t utter a word in return. He merely stands there and awaits her next move.

Scimitar: I guess you really were serious about not talking. But now I’ve figured out that you can only make one barrier at a time. So…

She throws her scimitar through the portal behind her and it appears behind him. The barrier blocks it and then she draws a dagger and attacks Shahar. Shahar uses a second barrier to block that as well.

Scimitar: What?!

The barrier dispels and Shahar attacks with the mace. She jumps back to avoid it.

Scimitar: Very well. I shall show you my full power.

She creates eight portals that surround him.

Scimitar: Well? You have a one in eight chance of finding me. Which one will I appear in?

She goes into the nearest portal to her. Shahar looks to his left and puts his hand out. A circular barrier appears, covering the hole. We hear a thump and then we see her stumble out of the hole directly opposite of that one. He dispels the barrier.

Scimitar: You…!

Scimitar goes back in. Shahar puts a barrier over the same hole he did last time and another thump is heard. This time, he moves to the opposite hole as she stumbles out. Before she even realizes it, Shahar is swinging his mace directly at her. She tries to evade it, but gets pummeled in the ribs and gets sent flying through her own portal and falls out of another one. Her portals then disappear.

Shahar: If you hadn’t moved when you did, your entire ribcage would have been shattered.
Scimitar: (Barely able to speak) You…figured…
Shahar: Yes, it was quite obvious what your plan was.

He nods to the scimitar lying on the ground near the portal he covered twice.

Shahar: You made a grave error in judgment. Just because I only used one barrier at a time doesn’t mean I couldn’t do better. It consumes less mana to repurpose a barrier by dispelling it and instantly placing it somewhere else before the mana is lost entirely. I was content letting you wear yourself out, but it seems I didn’t have to.

At that moment, Scimitar creates a portal below her and disappears from the area.

Shahar: As I thought. But unless they have a healer, that woman will die from internal injuries. I must have broken a large portion of her ribcage.

Meanwhile, Akari is avoiding attacks from the twins. All of the sudden, in the middle of the battle, the twins are taken in by portals as well.

Akari: I guess that means the fight is over one way or another.

We can see all the others get teleported away as well. In particular, we focus on Liron and Rapier. She is simply standing there as he is knocked out. He has foam coming from his mouth.

Liron: I guess I couldn’t just cut it off. Even for my standards, that would be a bit much. The satisfaction of scaring the hell out of him will do. I suppose I should just kill him now.

It is at this point that he teleports away.

Liron: Shit. So Shahar failed to kill that woman.

Eventually, Akari comes her way, since they could barely make out each other’s figures before.

Akari: Looks like you won your fight. But you’re injured again.
Liron: Yes, captain. That guy had the ability to slow down time, so it became increasingly difficult to beat him.
Akari: Seriously? That is a powerful ability indeed.
Liron: Captain, why has your mana flow stopped?
Akari: Ah, I’ve been sealed. That was the twins’ magic, but I’m okay. I’ve had my fair share of anti-magic field scraps hah.
Liron: Do you know how long that will last?
Akari: Not much longer. See this mark on my arm?

The mark has faded to only show a few blotches.

Akari: It was a full mark when they performed the magic. It has slowly faded since then.
Liron: In other words, they were amateurs.
Akari: Yeah. Anyway, let’s find the others.

In the forest, Shahar has found Drora and Hayim.

Shahar: How did things go?
Drora: The sensing mage is dead. I made sure of it.
Shahar: Nice work. I might have killed the teleporter, but it’ll be a bit delayed. I gave her some bad injuries with my mace.
Hayim: Where are the others, Katzir?
Shahar: It’s Shahar, and I’m not sure. I’m willing to bet they didn’t get teleported as far as we did.
Drora: Then let’s go. I don’t wanna get attacked by bugs in here!
Shahar: That’s what you’re worried about?

Akari and Liron have remained in the same position for the time being. Liron is patching her new wound up.

Akari: So, you knew about Drora’s ability to conceal her presence?
Liron: Yes. She’s really good. I wonder if you noticed something about the way she gets ready.
Akari: What do you mean?
Liron: Most girls like her use perfume.
Akari: Ah, I see. She doesn’t, huh?
Liron: You have no idea how much she loves wearing it, but it gives away her position if she has to hide.
Akari: So, she really takes fighting seriously after all.
Liron: To her, fighting is a means to an end.
Akari: How long have you known her?
Liron: Six years now.

Just then, Drora, Shahar and Hayim exit the forest and see them.

Drora: Liron! You’re all right!
Liron: Hey.

They quickly embrace and then Liron flinches in pain.

Drora: Oh! I’m sorry. You’re hurt again.
Liron: I’m okay. You should have seen the guy I fought. When I beat him, he started whining like a little bitch.
Drora: Haha, really?
Liron: You bet. And when I threated to cut it off, he started foaming.
Shahar: You did what?
Akari: Never do that to a man, ever. Even if it is an enemy.
Liron: I thought maybe I could get some information out of him, but it backfired. Sorry.
Akari: Anyway, Shahar, why is that woman still alive? You look completely unharmed.
Shahar: She escaped before I could land a final blow, but she is likely dead by now. She took a hard hit from my mace, even though she managed to avoid just enough of the damage to instantly be killed.
Akari: And the sensor?
Hayim: Drora killed him.
Akari: I was right to trust you guys. Now we just need to find Katzir and Amitay.

They start to backtrack towards the town and meet up with Katzir and Amitay halfway as the two of them were heading in the opposite direction.

Amitay: Hey, looks like we all survived okay.
Katzir: Ms. Liron, I was so worried. The man I fought kept hyping up the man with the rapier.
Liron: He was strong, but I managed to win.
Shahar: More importantly, how did both of your fights go?
Amitay: I was able to win my fight as you said, Shahar. Solid plan. Katzir was able to force a stalemate with the saber warrior until I provided backup.
Katzir: Unfortunately, he got away before we could kill him.
Akari: What’s his magic type, Katzir?
Katzir: He’s a healer.
Shahar: FUCK!
Akari: So the only confirmed dead fighter is the sensor. You’re absolutely sure he died, Drora?
Drora: Yes. I cut his throat just to make sure.
Akari: That puts me at ease that at least one of them died. It at least lessens our chance of being found so easily and attacked at random. We really need to move. Is anyone too injured to continue on?

No one speaks up.

Akari: Good. We’ve lost a lot of time as is. I fear for the other teams.

They travel back to the forest.

Akari: We need to go through here.
Drora: Ick! Not again!

A few stomachs begin to growl at that moment.

Akari: We can’t stop for-

Akari’s stomach also growls.

Akari: Alright alright. We’ll stop to eat, but then we’ll have to go continuously for a long time without food to really make up time.
All: Yes, captain.


With victory being on their side this time, they press on to the forest!

They have assembled a small station with a pot with fire under it. Liron is directing Hayim to make water and put it inside the pot until a certain point.

Liron: That’s good.
Hayim: Okay.
Shahar: So, you can cook?
Liron: Yeah. I was initially brought up to be a housewife when I was younger, so I learned all those things.
Akari: I guess that’s before you learned that you’d rather beat the hell out of people rather than serve them.
Liron: Exactly. See? (Looking at Drora) The captain gets it.
Drora: Yeah yeah. Whatever.
Katzir: I can also cook, Ms. Liron. So if you want to take a rest, I can watch it.
Liron: Right. I do need to rest a little. Fighting that guy took a lot out of me.

She lies down as Katzir starts watching the pot.

Hayim: But Liron, do you like cooking?
Liron: I guess it’s not so bad. It’s not that I don’t like doing “girl things” Not that cooking is a girl thing…, but I like fighting better.
Drora: You’d be a perfect housewife if you settled down.
Liron: Nah. Maybe eventually.
Shahar: What about you, Drora? Can you cook and clean?
Drora: Ehhh not really. Hehe. My servants usually took care of that stuff and they never taught me. I’m afraid I’d be useless as a wife.
Amitay: I don’t think that’s true. I’m sure there are other things you can do.
Drora: Like what?
Amitay: Hmmm…like stabbing someone if they bother your significant other?
Shahar: Hey, guys, did you hear? Drora stabbed another loan shark. In the middle of the street too! (Changing his voice) That’s the fifth one this week!
Drora: Maybe I’ll stab you in your sleep. You’ll never hear me coming.
Liron: It’s true, Shahar. She can conceal her presence and move silently.
Katzir: Women are scary sometimes.
Amitay: I didn’t mean to start something. But I think you could find ways to support someone. If not physically, then emotionally. Liron is less emotional support, but can back anyone with her different talents. You have more of a warm personality that a man could rely on to ease his worries.
Shahar: Maybe you two are perfect for each other, since you’d support each other in opposite ways.
Drora: I’ll bet that’s what you want to see!
Amitay: And he twists what I say again…
Liron: Believe it or not, I like guys.
Drora: Me too.
Katzir: Ms. Liron and Ms. Drora together…

Inside Katzir’s head…

Liron: Is it really okay? What will your family say?
Drora: I don’t care! Take me, Liron!

As they get closer and closer, the fantasy breaks as Katzir starts to bleed from his nose.

Drora: Just what are you imagining?!
Hayim: Are you okay, Shahar? Your nose.
Katzir: It’s Katzir. And yes, I’m okay now.
Shahar: Why is it that you only mix up our names? And they’re nothing alike?
Hayim: I dunno.
Akari: Ah, Katzir. I forgot to ask you more about your battle. Can you tell me a little bit about how you did?
Katzir: Yes, captain. I was able to get a stalemate like you wanted. He was really good in fencing, and when I was able to injure him, he healed immediately.
Akari: Did you use dark magic at all?
Katzir: Once, when I saw an opening to surprise him. It seems I can use small bursts without losing it.
Akari: That’s better than nothing. Good work. You fought one of the harder battles. Keep at it and you’ll be able to use dark magic a lot more.
Katzir: Thank you, captain.
Shahar: So, then, the rapier fighter could slow down time? That’s very dangerous.
Liron: It’s a good thing he wasn’t very adept at using his magic; otherwise I would be dead. If we fight again, I’ll need to be even stronger.
Amitay: You won, but you act like you didn’t.
Liron: I won because he ran out of stamina. Not because I was stronger.
Shahar: That’s his fault. Stamina conservation is a part of being a skilled fighter.
Liron: This is true. And yet, it feels sour.
Shahar: I was content to let my opponent do the same to herself. There’s no shame in winning by wearing them down.
Akari: In hindsight, that may have been better, but I think you made the right decision to try and kill her quickly.
Hayim: I don’t understand.
Akari: A decision is not good or bad based on the consequences. It’s based on the limited understanding you have of the future. If you luck out on an unfavorable decision, does that make it a wise one? Of course not. Shahar saw his opportunity to end the fight, so he took it. What if backup came and helped her out? That possibility was always looming there.
Shahar: Right. I knew I wouldn’t be able to take her by trying to end the fight as quick as possible, but if I had an opening, I would take it. That was the only option for me.
Katzir: Still, I am impressed by your strategy, Mr. Shahar. Because of it, we came out without a single casualty.
Shahar: I appreciate that. Some of the match ups were given, like Amitay and that muscular guy.
Amitay: Yeah, that was a quick fight luckily.
Shahar: But Drora, without that ability of yours, that sensor would have been a lot more difficult to take out. Though I think the two of you would have been able to manage. Although, I would have likely switched your match with the captain’s.
Akari: That would have worked fine, since the twins could only use sealing magic if they both worked together. But physically, Drora and Hayim would have taken them out. And I’m sure I could have taken the sensor out myself. But I specifically wanted to be the bait to find out their magic.
Liron: Speaking of, your mark is gone and your mana flow is back to normal.
Akari: Yeah.
Katzir: This is ready.

After they eat, they pack up and go into the forest. Drora is looking around, somewhat worried.

Akari: Everything okay, Drora?
Drora: I hate bugs! I don’t want any crawling on me. Liron, protect me!
Liron: Get your own protection. I don’t like them either. They’re gross.
Shahar and Amitay: We found her weak point!
Liron: Why do you guys look like you have some kind of vendetta for me?

She starts to practice her dark magic at that point. When Shahar and Amitay see her do this, they also quickly do the same thing.

Shahar and Amitay: We can’t lose to her!
Liron: Men…everything’s a competition.
Akari: This is a good opportunity for all of you to be practicing. None of those assailants seemed to be able to use it, so we can have another major advantage over them if you all learn how to use it practically in battle. Wait.
Liron: Is someone here?
Akari: No, wait. I recognize this presence.

Akari moves forward a bit.

Akari: Helen! It’s me!

Helen appears from hiding behind a thick tree. She’s a fair distance away. This surprises all of them except Akari.

Helen: Akari?
Akari: Thank the heavens.

Her team also comes out of hiding, but they are much farther away than Helen.

Shahar: Judging by the look on everyone’s faces, none of us except the captain noticed Sheikh Helen hiding.
Akari: It was only brief, but I noticed it just before she completely concealed it.
Drora: She’s even better than me in that field.

Akari and Helen meet halfway.

Helen: I’m surprised you noticed me.
Akari: I almost didn’t. You’ve really improved, haven’t you?
Helen: Yeah.
Akari: You look relatively unharmed, but what are you guys still doing here?
Helen: Since you are just now catching up with us, I’m assuming you too had trouble.
Akari: I don’t like this. Not at all. They’re trying to pick us off with assigned teams.
Helen: Anyway, let’s get our teams over here. We need to exchange information about the enemy.
Akari: Agreed.

The teams meet up.

Akari: You didn’t run into Hunter by chance, did you?
Helen: No. My guess is that he made better progress than both of us.
Akari: No doubt there will be enemies after him as well.

Shahar goes up to a woman from Helen’s team with armor similar to his. She has medium length black hair.

Shahar: Still wearing that armor, I see. You haven’t changed, Hannah.
Hannah: Well, it’s functional. Of course I would still wear it.
Katzir: (Whispering) Mr. Hayim, do you think they’re…
Hayim: (Whispering) I didn’t know Katzir had a girlfriend.
Katzir: I’m Katzir.
Hayim: Oh, sorry.

Meanwhile, Liron approaches Ferra again. Drora lags slightly behind.

Ferra: What do you want?
Liron: I’m glad you’re still alive.
Ferra: Yeah, okay. I see you’re still hanging out with the prissy one.
Liron: Drora saved your life; don’t forget that.
Ferra: Do you think maybe I didn’t want to be saved?
Liron: Listen, Ferra.
Ferra: No, I will not.
Liron: (Sternly) No, you will hear me one way or another. You can hate me forever. I don’t mind that. I deserve that. But I still consider you my friend and so I will tell you that you need to move on for your own sake.
Drora: Liron…that’s enough.
Liron: Yeah. It is. Now that I’ve said my piece, I can accept whatever she decides to do.

Liron and Drora walk away from the speechless Ferra. We go back to Shahar and Hannah.

Hannah: What were the different magic abilities that you guys faced?
Shahar: Time slowing, healing, teleportation, sensing, hardening, sealing.
Hannah: What the hell. And you guys are still standing?
Shahar: It was tricky, but we managed to come up with a good strategy to counteract their magic with our own.
Hannah: I see. You’ve honed your strategic thinking, have you?
Shahar: Of course. Just like I said I would.
Hannah: I too have done so.
Shahar: So you kept the path you were on. I thought maybe after what happened-
Hannah: Don’t be ridiculous. Like this armor you gave me, strategy is a practical thing to have in battle. You know how I value pragmatism over all.
Shahar: Yeah, true. I’m glad you got a few things out of our relationship then.
Hannah: Indeed. If we had the time, I would have liked to have another game of chess to measure our progress.
Shahar: Ditto. But it seems like that’s not an option, especially for your group.
Akari: What do you plan to do, Helen?
Helen: We need to make up for lost time even more than you guys do, so we’ll go on ahead.
Akari: We could join groups and just travel together.
Helen: Tempting, but it’s not for the best. You know as well as I do that it’s exactly what the enemy wants.
Akari: Yeah, I guess you’re right. It’ll halt our progress as well as lessen our chance for success if something goes wrong.
Helen: I think they purposely sent a stronger group after me to slow us down to the point where it might try to force our hand at such a plan.
Akari: It’s a possibility. When was the last time you were attacked?
Helen: A few hours ago. They suddenly left in the middle of the fight.
Akari: I think they knew that we were coming. That coincides to right about the end of our last fight. If that’s the case, then these two groups were definitely coordinating and/or communicating.
Helen: Interesting. This seems like much more than just a spy job. It worries me.
Akari: Just focus on the mission ahead. We’ll worry about that later.
Helen: You’re right. We shouldn’t waste anymore time. We need to move.
Akari: Right.
Helen: Team! We move in one minute. Say your goodbyes.
Hannah: Well, that’s my queue. See you, Shahar.
Shahar: Yeah, we’ll be right behind you.

Ferra actually approaches Liron this time.

Ferra: Liron, we will meet again. When we do, we’ll settle everything. Be prepared to fight.
Liron: If that’s your answer, then I’ll accept that. I won’t go easy on you.
Ferra: I won’t lose. Don’t forget that you’re not the only person Hassar taught how to fight.
Liron: I haven’t forgotten.

Ferra walks away and the rest of Helen’s team gathers up. Without saying another word, Helen and Akari exchange a look. This look lasts for what seems like forever, but only lasted about five seconds in actuality. Helen then turns away from him and they begin traveling along the small path made in the forest.

Katzir: Mr. Shahar, was that an ex?
Shahar: Yeah. We broke up about a year ago. We both knew that it wasn’t meant to be between us and we separated without ill feelings towards each other.
Hayim: That sounds rare for a relationship.
Shahar: Hannah is very practical and rational. She knows that letting past relationships cloud her mind is irrational. I tend to agree with that line of thinking, so I followed that example. Besides, she walked away with two things. That armor I had made for her and the fact that I piqued her interest in strategy.
Drora: Are you okay, Liron?
Liron: I’m actually happy about this. Ferra still holds a grudge against me, and if fighting me will alleviate that, I will gladly throw the fight.
Drora: So you were lying then about not going easy on her?
Liron: Ferra isn’t weak, but she isn’t nearly as good as she thinks she is.
Drora: I’ve never known you to ever do that. Your friendship with her must have been special.
Liron: It was. She was my best friend. But as you know, all of that ended at the same time we met.
Drora: Right.
Amitay: Captain, what are we going to do?
Akari: We’ll give Helen a 30-minute head start. It can’t be helped.

Meanwhile, over in the Iron Kingdom, we see Mars and Aerona walking through the palace together.

Mars: Why are we being shown like this all of the sudden?
Aerona: By now, the masses are probably bitching about us being absent.
Mars: Makes sense. It has been a while since we last put on our armor.

They exit the palace where a bunch of people is waiting for them. They cheer for them.

Mars: I wonder how the others are doing.

Meanwhile, Vito, Erosion and Solomon are inaudibly arguing at a pub. We cannot hear what they are arguing about, but they are also playing a board game as well. They all sneeze in tandem.

Back to the Red Kingdom, 30 minutes have just about passed for Akari’s team.

Amitay: I see. So that’s the basic story between you two.
Liron: Yeah.
Amitay: I think throwing the fight isn’t a bad idea. But it could also make her angrier if you damage her pride as a fighter.
Liron: Agreed, that’s why I want to make it look as realistic as possible. It has been six years since she saw me fight. That can be used to my advantage.
Amitay: Ah, that’s good then.
Liron: You’re a pretty good listener, Amitay.
Drora: Hey! Don’t try to worm your way into his pants before me.
Liron: I’m not that desperate.
Drora: Yeah, but you were just as impressed as I was at his…

They both look at Amitay at the same time, who has turned around, red in the face.

Amitay: B-but Liron, is it not wrong to assume that Ferra hasn’t gotten more powerful than you expect?
Liron: True. Were any of you in the same group as Ferra?

No one speaks up.

Liron: I see.

Allow me to explain. When Hunter trained his students, it was in small groups of 5 or 6. Hunter had upward of 100 students, so there was roughly a 1 in 20 chance of being in the same class as a friend. Likewise, only Liron and Drora ended up in the same class coincidentally. None of the other group members ended up in the same place, hence not knowing each other.

Liron: I suppose she could have surpassed me, but she never was that adept.
Amitay: At the very least, Helen saw her useful enough to make her team.
Liron: Her magic is pretty useful. She is an enhancer.
Akari: That makes sense why Helen would choose her then. Enhancement is a wonderful team oriented magic type. I heard that one of the dragon slayers had that magic as well. Another one of them had debuff powers, so they could enhance their team at the same time as sabotage the enemy team. That one…he was very annoying to fight.
Shahar: I see. They had good magic synergy?
Akari: Very good magic synergy. They had an earth mage like me and then a wind mage to cover both the ground and sky. Buff and debuff. And then they had a light mage to cover both healing and light attacks.
Shahar: I heard that pretty much everyone they came across died. Which means that the one that currently knows the most about them…
Akari: Is me. Hunter seems to know a fair bit about them as well. Anyway, 30 minutes is about up. Let’s get going.

They continue to practice their dark magic as they walk. Katzir is doing his routine from before at a faster pace. Akari occasionally turns his head to look at their progress.

Akari: Shahar, Amitay and Liron. You three seem to be about ready for the next step. Hayim and Drora, you are both close. Katzir, not bad. You seem to be progressing well.
Amitay: You said that to get that surge of dark energy, we need to have a trigger of emotion, right?
Akari: Yes. It may be difficult for someone like you who is so calm and chill all the time.
Amitay: I understand.
Akari: Unfortunately, it’s not the best idea to do while walking.
Shahar: Then may we stop for just a second? I think I’m ready.
Akari: Hmm…it will be more beneficial for the team if you are stronger, so you have one minute to try and trigger it.

Everyone stops and focuses on Shahar. He closes his eyes.

Shahar: For me, it’s not difficult to find an event. It was never a question as to which one.

We are taken inside Shahar’s mind. He is standing on the battlefield with countless soldiers dying in waves from Iron soldiers. Shahar is on one knee, injured and tired. The signal for retreat has been sounded. We see him look up and into the eyes of Aerona.

Aerona: Do you still want to fight?

Shahar stands and readies his mace, but then slowly backs away. He turns and runs while tears fly out from his eyes.

Shahar: I’m sorry! I failed you all, my comrades!

In the present time, we see a tear leak from Shahar’s left eye and then he opens them with his teeth grit. He triggers the surge of dark magic energy. After letting it flow through his body for a few seconds, Akari dispels it.

Shahar: I wasn’t strong enough to stop my brethren from dying. I backed down from that man like a coward. I don’t ever want to see that happen again.
Akari: Well done, Shahar. You’ve fought long and hard for this moment. Revel in it, but take heed that this power still requires much training to master.
Shahar: Yes, captain.
Akari: Amitay, Liron, do either of you feel ready to try?
Amitay: I don’t think so.
Liron: Not yet.
Akari: Very well. We will continue on then.


Shahar joins Akari and Katzir among the list of mages who can utilize dark magic. The rest of them are close to achieving this power. As they continue their journey, more awaits them next time on A Tale of Iron!

The team is traveling once again. Shahar is standing next to Katzir, doing the same practice with dark magic. His is at a much slower pace, however.

Katzir: You really did it, Mr. Shahar.
Shahar: Yeah. I think I get it now, Katzir.
Katzir: Get what?
Shahar: I judged you for losing control, but here I needed the captain to release me as well. Now that I experience it, I understand it. I am sorry that I was so hard on you before. It’s a lot harder to control than it looks.
Katzir: I understand why you were hard on me. I too understand where you were coming from.
Shahar: Very well. One thing is clear from our interactions, Katzir.
Katzir: What’s that?
Shahar: You were a kid when we left the capital. By the time this journey is over, you will be a man.
Katzir: I hope so.
Liron: Hey, Amitay. Can I ask you something?
Amitay: Sure.
Liron: Why did you say you weren’t ready?
Amitay: Right now I don’t know how to trigger that emotion. I’m not sure what to do. I haven’t had a hard life; I won’t lie. None of my family members are dead; none of my friends are dead. I’ve lived comfortably all my life. Not too rich, but not too poor. My parents were good to me and raised me well. I’m grateful for everything I have. What could possibly trigger my dark energy?
Liron: That makes sense. The warmth coming from this man. It’s unbelievable. I’ve never seen anyone more at peace with the world.
Amitay: How about you? I told you my reason. Surely there is something you can tell me.
Liron: I’m the opposite of you with why I don’t feel I’m ready. It’s not that I don’t know what to use. It’s that I can’t bring myself to revisit those memories so vividly. Even if it’s for power, I can’t do it. Not yet at least.
Akari: If one wants to use dark magic, he or she has to be willing to face his or her past, present or future. I cannot help them any further. It’s all up to them whether or not they pass this barrier.
Hayim: I’m sure both of you can do it. You’re stronger than anyone.
Akari: Ahem.
Hayim: Ah, captain. I forgot you were here.
Akari: How could you forget about your own captain?
Hayim: Sorry. Oh, though Master Hunter is stronger too. And then there’s Helen. Oh, what about General Shio….Shio…
Drora: General Shiomi!
Hayim: Right, him.
Drora: Her!
Hayim: Sorry. And how about those blue robed mages? They’re stronger too.
Liron: (visibly annoyed) You can stop now. We get the picture.
Amitay: Relax. I’m sure he didn’t mean anything by it.
Shahar: Hayim, what’s 1 plus 1?
Hayim: 2, of course! What, do you think I’m some kind of idiot? Ah, maybe I am a little. But I can add, I’ll tell you that much.
Shahar: Thank the heavens for that.
Hayim: Now multiplying and dividing…that’s a little much for me.
Shahar: Seriously?!

Just then, the company comes to a halt.

Liron: More enemies already?
Akari: I know this feeling. Creatures are hiding out, waiting for us. Usually a trait among goblins in forests. Some of them can use bows. Keep on your guard.

Just as he says that, an arrow zips right by Akari and sticks in a tree.

Akari: Shahar, Hayim, with me. Drora, give us some cover fire. Katzir, protect her. Liron and Amitay, stay back and let us deal with it.
Liron: But captain…
Akari: You’re still injured. We need it to heal properly instead of you keep agitating it with more fighting. And Amitay…well…
Amitay: I know…

Akari, Shahar and Hayim take the front and walk side by side. A few arrows come their way and Shahar puts up a barrier, but the arrows miss entirely.

Akari: Yeah, I should mention that goblins have shit aim.
Shahar: That’s convenient.

Some more arrows come by and this time, some are on target to hit. Shahar promptly blocks them with a barrier.

Akari: Hayim, can you pick off some of them with controlled water blasts?
Hayim: Yes.
Akari: I’ll do the same. Shahar, just focus on keeping our defenses up.
Shahar: Yes, captain.

Hayim creates a small water orb and then sends it flying into more of a thin line. It zips by a tree and then changes trajectory to loop around and snipe a hiding goblin. It cut through its head, killing it. Some goblin archers unveil themselves from cover and one of them takes an arrow to the head. The other is crushed by a flying rock. More arrows come their way and Shahar blocks any that threaten the three of them. Meanwhile, some goblins with rusty daggers come at the others from both sides.

Amitay: Liron, stay where you are.

Amitay starts spinning his staff.

Amitay: I might not be able to use my fire here, but I can still fight.

Some of the goblins go after Drora, when Katzir steps in front of her.

Katzir: Just focus on following the captain’s orders. I’ll protect you.
Drora: Right, thanks.

One goblin charges blindly at Katzir and lunges with its dagger. Katzir easily sidesteps the thrust and then uppercuts it hard to the jaw with his iron knuckles on. The goblin is sent flying back, knocked out. Katzir takes a distinct martial arts stance and starts to channel dark magic through his body. He’s sweating from the intense concentration.

Katzir: I am your master. You will move as I move.

With dark magic surrounding his entire body, he suddenly moves to the goblins and goes on the offensive. He punches one in the gut and breaks the goblin’s skin completely where he punches, nearly putting his hand through. The next one attacks, but Katzir uses his left arm to misdirect the goblin’s arm thrust away from his head. Katzir then contorts his body to the left and uses his right hand to give a solid karate chop to the goblin’s neck. His chop pierces just enough that blood spews out of the goblin’s neck, killing it. The other goblins look at Katzir in fear and retreat. He then starts to lose control and immediately stops his dark magic flow.

Katzir: That was close.
Drora: That was badass, Katzir!
Katzir: I’m becoming more efficient with each fight, Drora.
Drora: There he goes again, not using the miss with my name. This has only happened in battle so far.

At this time, Amitay is fending off goblins with his staff. He is keeping them all at bay with his far superior reach. He whacks one in the head, knocking it out. As another one tries to draw closer, he quickly trips it up by sweeping low. He then thrusts his pole into the goblin’s head.

Liron: You have quite the long stick…that you do.
Amitay: When you say it like that…

Amitay finishes off the remaining goblins in the vicinity. We can see that the other three have cleaned up on their end as well. Just then, another figure comes dashing for Amitay. It is a vampire moving at great speed. He is able to block an incoming attack and the vampire has the staff gripped. They are pushing against each other. Just then, the vampire receives a strong bolt of lightning to the side of the head, frying its brain. Amitay lights his staff on fire to burn the vampire’s hands off and it ultimately dies from both attacks. Amitay looks at Liron.

Liron: What? I stayed right where I was. Using magic won’t irritate my injuries.
Amitay: It’s cool.
Liron: That thing we just fought sure isn’t.

The team regroups and begins walking again.

Shahar: That was my first creature fight.
Amitay: Mine too. What was that creature that attacked me just now?
Akari: That was a vampire. Those things are dangerous. They have a lot of speed and strength. But their weakness is sunlight. Of course, a strong shot to the head will do the trick too.
Katzir: Have you ever fought one before, Ms. Liron?
Liron: No, but aiming for the head was just common sense to me.
Katzir: Good point.
Akari: I didn’t notice before, Hayim, but your water control is seriously good.
Hayim: Thank you, captain.
Akari: You were able to pinpoint and execute a hiding goblin like it was second nature. I’m guessing Hunter taught you all that.
Hayim: That’s right. Master Hunter taught me everything I know about magic.
Akari: It makes sense that you are as skilled as you are.
Drora: Hold on a second, Hayim. You’re saying that you didn’t know anything at all about magic before meeting Sheikh Hunter?
Hayim: I was an orphan on the streets before his family took me in. The reason I’m not so smart is because I never went through education. I was in my teens by the time I was taken off the streets. My new family taught me how to speak proper…properly. Master Hunter learned everything to me…eh, taught everything. I owe him my life…my very existence.
Drora: That’s so sweet. I’m going to cry.

Hayim stops and the rest also stop to look at him. He has tears flowing from his eyes and all of the sudden, the dark aura begins to surround him. This surprises everyone.

Shahar: You’ve got to be kidding me.
Akari: His trigger was…his deep-seated respect and admiration for Hunter. Perhaps even love for his savior.

Like Shahar, Akari lets Hayim feel the power flow through him for a few moments before dispelling it for him.

Akari: You did well, Hayim. Your master would be proud.
Hayim: I can’t wait to show him.
Amitay: Hayim.

He puts his hand on Hayim’s shoulder.

Amitay: Thanks to you, I now know what I must do.
Hayim: You mean it?
Amitay: Yeah. I’m grateful to you.
Hayim: Thanks, Amitay.
Shahar: He gets Amitay’s name correct…
Akari: Do you want to attempt it now as well, Amitay?
Amitay: Not yet. I need some time to get mentally prepared.
Akari: Okay. Anyone else before we move again?

No one comes forward.

Akari: Let’s continue then. We should be almost through the first part of the forest.
Shahar: What do you mean, captain?
Akari: There is a bit of respite, with a castle.
Liron: A castle in the middle of the woods?
Akari: There are many castles in the middle of woodland across the kingdom. They were built in order to drive the creatures of darkness out and keep them out.
Shahar: Some good that did.
Akari: Actually, they’ve been good checkpoints as of recent. They might be old, but they serve their purpose. Also, if we had stayed on track, we would have met up with Hunter and Helen at the tail end of their stay.
Shahar: Helen will likely pass over the castle to save time. Hunter will have already moved on in that case.
Amitay: We don’t really have much time to rest, do we?
Akari: It’ll be good to do some general maintenance on our equipment. For example, Amitay’s staff is badly chipped thanks to that vampire’s attack.
Amitay: I’m actually going to ditch the staff if we’re going to do maintenance. I need a metal staff. The damage on this isn’t cutting it.
Akari: Do you know what you’re doing?
Amitay: Yeah. I can smith weapons. My magic comes in great handy for forging. I’m assuming there’s an armory there.
Akari: Yes.
Amitay: Good.

They get through the forest and make it to the castle. This castle has the same design as the castle the Iron group visited when they fought Hamas. As they get to the front door, there is a posted note.

Akari: It’s from Hunter.

Since neither of you showed up during our brief stay, I can assume you both fell behind. Our group is on schedule right now, but don’t worry too much about it. Just try to pick up the pace. Helen, if you read this, please sign for Akari to know that you also made it to this checkpoint.

Akari immediately looks at the bottom for Helen’s signature and it is there.

Akari: As expected.

So far, we haven’t encountered any enemies besides a few goblins. If you both got attacked, I fear that I may be heading into a trap that will only work if both of you are stalled long enough. So yeah, no pressure guys.

Akari: Even on paper, he’s a sarcastic shit.

Anyway, be safe. I hope to see you all soon.

~Hunter

Shahar: What happened with Hunter’s group?
Akari: Apparently they got here clean, with no enemy attacks.
Liron: That sounds like a trap.
Akari: He said the same thing. Hunter’s no idiot, but this may be over even his head.
Amitay: If that’s the case, is it really okay that we stop here?
Akari: This is quite perplexing. What do you guys think?
Liron: Maintenance can wait. We need to move.
Shahar: I agree. If Hunter is willingly walking into a trap, we can’t abandon him. Helen’s group may not be enough.
Hayim: I want to help Master Hunter.
Katzir: I think we should stay. Ms. Liron is still injured and this is a good time to get her some proper treatment.
Liron: I’m fine, Katzir.
Drora: I have to agree with Katzir. Liron, we need you at your best.
Amitay: Maintenance is extremely important as well. Our weapons could break if not attended to. That could be the difference between winning and losing.
Shahar: Are there any castles ahead?
Akari: No. From here, we trudge through a lot of forest before we reach another town. From there, there will be no more civilization before we reach our destination.

Akari closes his eyes and contemplates.

Akari: We stay for one hour. Liron, you will treat your injury as best as you possibly can in that time. We will perform maintenance on our equipment.
Liron: Yes, captain.

They enter the castle and go into a blacksmith workshop. There are many weapons already made there. Amitay takes two spears and melts them down. He then forges an iron staff with the same length as his old one.

Amitay: It’s considerably heavier than the wood one, but I can get used to this. Do you guys think you can handle the rest of this without me? I need to prepare myself.
Akari: Yeah. Go see how Katzir and Liron are doing.

As Amitay leaves, they continue.

Shahar: Captain, may I ask what ultimately moved to decide to stay?
Akari: You all had good points. But I had to remember what my role is in this mission. What is my first priority? Is it backing up Helen and/or Hunter, or is it leading you all? It’s the latter. Therefore, I decided that my team must be in better straights before continuing. It’s not just Liron’s injuries. You are all learning dark magic at a fast rate, and the more we stop, the more you all seem to be progressing to the next level.
Shahar: I see. When you put it that way, I can’t disagree.
Akari: This doesn’t mean I don’t trust your judgment. You’ve done a great job so far as a guiding hand in strategy.
Shahar: I understand.

In a separate room, Liron is sitting on a bench against a wall. Katzir is sitting next to her, helping her change out her bandages.

Liron: That’s good.
Katzir: Good. You really needed that. You shouldn’t try to be so tough all the time, Ms. Liron.
Liron: Sorry. I’ve lived my life having to just deal with everything. I’ve never been able to rely on people.
Katzir: You don’t have to be that way anymore.
Liron: I know, and yet…

Amitay enters the room.

Amitay: Looks like you’re healing up okay.
Liron: Yeah. Looks like your new stick is still as big as ever.
Amitay: You’re saying it like that on purpose…
Katzir: Mr. Amitay, do you mind telling us what you meant by what you said to Hayim?
Amitay: Hayim…he had nothing and then gained everything. For me, it’s the opposite. I have everything, but I can just as easily have nothing.

Time passes and they are standing outside. Amitay is out in front. He has his eyes closed. We can see him imagining a house burning down to the ground and his team all dying.

Akari: Shahar found his answer in the past, Hayim focused on the present. Amitay’s answer lies in the possible future if this mission fails.

We can see Amitay become angry and fearful in the same facial expression. He starts to sweat and breathes heavy. The dark aura is slow, but eventually surrounds him as well. Amitay opens his eyes, visibly distressed.

Amitay: I can’t afford to lose. To protect everything I hold dear, I will succeed on this mission.

As always, Akari waits and then dispels the dark aura.

Akari: That only leaves the girls. Liron, you can do it right now if you want.
Liron: I…can’t.
Akari: The past is exactly that. You can’t be fearful of what has already happened.
Liron: I’m sorry. This problem runs deeper than you know.

This surprises Akari.

Akari: You’re telling me there’s more?
Liron: You think you know all about my brother, but the truth is that you know very little.
Akari: Hassar, you bastard. Just what did you do? Fine, I’ll drop the issue for now. But you can’t stay in this state forever. You will have to evolve with the others.
Liron: I understand.
Akari: Drora, keep at it.
Drora: Got it.


To be continued…

The team is continuing on back into the forest. They press further north.

Amitay: Captain, does Hunter know where we’re ultimately supposed to end up?
Akari: He has a general idea based on his spy information. I’m surprised no one asked before.
Amitay: I only just now thought about it. We’ve been following your direction, but then it occurred to me that you yourself might not know where the destination is.
Akari: Hunter laid out everything on a map for me and I memorized the location. I think for the most part, we can stay on course, but there is always a chance we could get sidetracked and have to take another way.

Meanwhile, Liron and Drora are having their own separate conversation.

Liron: What about the white dress that I wore last time?
Drora: Ah, yeah that one was good. White works on you. Brown, not so much.
Liron: Hey, what about this jacket?
Drora: Oh, that’s fine. But in dresses it doesn’t work.
Liron: *Sigh* I just don’t get it.
Drora: Different kind of clothing, different material, different rules.
Liron: Oh, well that much I get…I guess.
Drora: You should show off more, girl. The pants are nice, but you’re pretty much covering all your goodies up top.
Liron: And why should I care about that while I’m out on missions?
Drora: It’s a tactic you can use against your male, and some female, opponents.
Liron: How shallow. Relying on sex appeal to win a fight is a waste of time and effort.
Drora: Don’t pretend like you haven’t done it.
Liron: Once or twice. Heh.
Shahar: Women are evil.
Drora: Shahar, don’t give us the “Women are evil” look. Fighting honorably can get you killed on the battlefield.
Shahar: That much I don’t disagree with. But sex appeal rarely works in the heat of battle in actual fact. Most men who attempt to murder their wives won’t simply stop because she looks good. Once their blood is boiling, they’re too far-gone. That same kind of adrenaline is pumping during battle.
Drora: How would you know? Did you ever try to murder that Hannah girl?
Shahar: …No!
Drora: Then how would you know this “fact”?
Shahar: I walked right into that one. Yep, definitely evil.
Katzir: Ms. Drora, I think that’s enough. I think what Mr. Shahar is trying to say is that if you rely on your looks to win every fight, you could get hurt.
Liron: That rapier user I fought was practically drooling over me, but was still willing to kill me.
Drora: Fine fine. So anyway, I think your best color for a dress is either red or white.
Liron: I see. I’ll try red next time. What about you?
Drora: I’ve settled on light blue being my number 1 if I really need to impress someone.
Liron: Light blue? I can see that.
Shahar: So…Amitay, Katzir, Hayim, captain…do any of you play sports?
Katzir: Besides my martial arts, I played a little bit of everything I could get my hands…or feet on.
Hayim: I played a little football (AUTHOR NOTE: Soccer, not American Football).
Amitay: Same.
Akari: I wasn’t much for sports other than what was forced of us in the military.
Shahar: I was pretty good at rugby. And I played volleyball.
Liron: I played volleyball as well. Being taller than most of the girls, it was an obvious choice for me.
Drora: I see what you did there, Shahar. Trying to direct the conversation away from our girl stuff. You knew you could get Liron’s attention away from dresses.
Shahar: Hmm…what was it you said? Ah, yes. “Fighting honorably can get you-“
Drora: This isn’t a battlefield, you twat!
Amitay: Now now, you two. Let’s not fight like this. Drora, I’m sure you did at least one sport.
Drora: Archery, of course. I was a champion in school.
Amitay: Shoulda seen that one coming. Anything else?
Drora: Is eating fast a sport?
Akari: Afraid not.
Drora: Well it should be.
Liron: Shahar, what school did you play for?
Shahar: The Qu’burn main.
Liron: Ah, we beat the shit out of the girls team my freshmen year. I played for the capital.
Shahar: Come to think of it, I remember that. So you were on that team, huh? Your team challenged our men’s team. That would have been such a beat down.
Liron: Yeah, we would have crushed you.
Shahar: Hah. If you were the tallest on your team, then you had nothing on us. I was still this height my senior year. A few guys were the same as me.
Liron: That doesn’t mean anything. We beat a girls team full of giant lesbians.
Drora: I keep telling you, they were just really big. That was my school, damn it.
Liron: They sucked each other off after the game. I’m sure of it.
Hayim: I don’t even understand what’s going on anymore.
Katzir: You don’t have to…
Akari: I hate to interrupt a conversation like this, but we have company.
Shahar: Yeah. It seems like we went right into their lair.

Just then, something jumps down next to them and breaks the ground below it. When the slight dust has cleared, we can see that it is a Minotaur. It is holding a large double-headed battle-axe.

Akari: You’ve got to be kidding me. What is something like that doing here?
Shahar: Leave this one to me.

This Minotaur charges and swings its axe and Shahar blocks with his mace. He is getting pressured.

Shahar: The strength on this thing…

More of them jump down. When they look to the left and right of them, they are in the middle of a ravine where there is higher ground on both sides. There are more Minotaur waiting patiently. It is then that they notice that there is exactly the same number of them next to them as their group.

Amitay: They like to fight one at a time, huh? Fine for us.
Liron: Drora, will you be okay?
Drora: I’ll manage.

They each face off one on one. We follow Akari first. He has his flail out. The Minotaur attacks with its axe, but Akari starts sliding around him with the ground moving below him. He makes a quick circle and then it falls below when the ground below it lowers. With its head clearly exposed, Akari brings his flail down hard on its head. It damages it badly and so Akari follows up with many more strikes until it dies. The second he finishes it off, another one jumps down to fight him.

Akari: Bring it.

We then switch to Liron, who defends against an axe attack from above. She is being pressured downwards with both of her tonfa above her head. She uses some lightning to run through her weapon and shock the Minotaur. It does negligible damage, but makes it flinch a bit. She takes the opportunity to get in close and start pummeling it with her tonfa over and over. She bruises its body badly, but it is able to recover and jump away.

Liron: They’re resistant to magic, huh? That shock did barely anything.

The Minotaur goes in to attack again, but is clearly angrier than before. It gives a full swing, which is blocked again. This time, however, the tonfa start to break. With the excess pressure against them, they eventually break. She dodges back just in time to avoid being sliced.

Liron: Fuck. I forgot to get my weapons maintenance. Shit shit shit.

She throws them at the Minotaur, which also does negligible damage. She has lightning around her entire body now and then rushes in. It swings its axe, but she easily maneuvers around it and makes it in range again. She starts rapidly punching, which cause lightning damage as well as damage from her own fists. The Minotaur is being pushed back from all the punches when she then high kicks straight into the air to land it straight to its jaw, sending it to the ground and dropping its weapon. She grabs the weapon, which is difficult for her to wield for its weight. Nevertheless, she is able to swing it overhead and land a decisive blow with the axe to end the fight. Just like with Akari, another one replaces the previous.

We now see Shahar, who is now clashing weapons over and over with his opponent. Shahar is being slowly pushed back.

Shahar: Without this extra weight from my armor, this would have been really difficult to compete like this. Still…

On the next axe swing, Shahar creates a small barrier and then spins around it after it blocks the weapon. He then lands a strong hit with his mace, which breaks one of its horns. With it being stunned, Shahar winds back his arm and concentrates some dark magic to it. The volume is not much, but enough to coat his wrist and hand. He then forcefully brings down the mace on its head, which sends it straight into the ground.

Shahar: That extra power it gave me was marginal. But hell, this is hard to control in battle. Is this how it was like for Katzir? No…it must have been even harder for him to control because of all the power flowing through him.

Amitay and Drora have decided to team up, meanwhile. They are facing opposite ways and the two Minotaur facing them have them in a pincer.

Amitay: Drora, can you hit one of them with an illusion?
Drora: I can try.

Suddenly, Drora’s opponent rushes in and swings its axe horizontally.

Drora: Duck!

Both Drora and Amitay duck under the swing.

Amitay: Thanks.

Amitay’s opponent also attacks, but he blocks with his staff. He starts getting pushed back, but Drora supports him with her own weight. Amitay then lights his staff on fire for a second, which makes it away from him.

Amitay: So you’re scared of fire, are you? Too bad I can’t use all my power in this forest.
Drora: He’s attacking again!
Amitay: Switch with me!

They switch positions and Amitay blocks the axe swing. Drora does the same support again while also waving her hands around. A fine mist emanates from her body and surrounds the Minotaur in front of her.

Drora: I did it.
Amitay: Good. Go get him.

Amitay touches Drora’s dagger with his staff and lights it on fire temporarily. With the Minotaur dazed, Drora charges it and then jumps into the air and stabs it in the head with the fire-enhanced dagger. She wraps her legs around its body and repeatedly stabs it in the head till it goes down. Meanwhile, Amitay keeps his distance from the Minotaur. With the superior reach, he manages to keep lunging his staff successfully at it, damaging it each time. Every time the Minotaur tries to close the distance, Amitay backs away at an even speed to maintain the exact same distance. Finally, Drora appears from behind and stabs it in the back repeatedly. Amitay lights the tip of his staff on fire and then activates dark magic. The fire turns dark purple and he lunges it straight at the Minotaur’s face, damaging it badly. It falls to the ground and two more jump down to fight them.

Amitay: There’s no end.

We now look at Katzir and Hayim, who are fighting separate, but close to each other. When a Minotaur goes to swing its axe at Hayim, he quickly moves in close and hooks the shaft of the axe with his left kama. With his right, he cuts it deep across the chest. It retaliates with a strong head-butt, however. Hayim stumbles back, dazed and disoriented. There is blood running down his forehead. Just as it goes for the killing strike on Hayim, he quickly restrains its arm by creating a large amount of water to grapple it. He suddenly gets angry and activates dark magic. With the water gaining a purple hue to it, it suddenly becomes stronger and Hayim is able to create a much larger volume of water. He shoots a blast of water that spirals straight into its chest and digs through it completely, leaving a giant hole in its stomach. It dies shortly thereafter.

Hayim: I did it. My head…Katzir, are you doing okay?
Katzir: Just fine. And hey! Did you just get my name right?
Hayim: I suppose I did.

When we focus on Katzir, he is dodging each axe swing, seeing if the Minotaur slows down at all.

Katzir: No sign of stamina loss. This thing is quite strong.

Katzir activates dark magic all around his body. He is seen concentrating hard.

Katzir: Move as I command and heed my instruction.

The Minotaur does an overhead swing with its axe, but Katzir moves a step closer and grabs the axe with his hand. Katzir is not being pushed back at all by the power of the swing or its pressure. He smiles at the Minotaur and then punches it in the gut. It hunches over in pain. Katzir takes the axe and swings it with mild difficulty to kill it. We then switch over to Akari again, who is fighting multiple Minotaur now.

Akari: It seems you’ve abandoned your honor to kill me. But unfortunately, we’re going to have to make a swift retreat. There are simply too many for them to handle at this point. Everyone! Retreat! Follow me!

They both attack Akari at once, but he creates two walls and then brings them together to sandwich the two. The others run past him and then he brings out a small amount of dark magic and then creates a large earth wall to separate them from the Minotaur. Katzir still has dark aura around him and is still holding the axe. As soon as it dispels, he can no longer hold the axe and it sinks to the ground and sticks in.

Katzir: Hehe.
Hayim: Curious. It appears as though you can inexorably sustain your dark aura.

They all look at Hayim funny.

Liron: Did you hit your head or…oh it looks like you did actually hit your head. You alright?
Hayim: Yes, I appear to be, as one would say, “okay”. I suspect my cranium has received some fracturing. It is a miracle that I am alive.
Shahar: I don’t believe it. Hitting him in the head actually made him smarter.

Liron smacks Drora in the back of the head.

Drora: Oww! What the hell was that for?
Liron: Do you feel smarter?
Drora: No.
Liron: Damn.
Drora: What are you trying to say?! Huh?!
Liron: Hahaha. I’m only kidding.
Amitay: You’re plenty smart, Drora. You were excellent support for me back there.
Drora: Aww, thanks.
Akari: But anyway, Katzir, I’m impressed that you were able to maintain that form and then get rid of it on your own.
Katzir: Thank you, captain.
Hayim: Liron, your tonfa.
Liron: Yeah, they broke. I forgot to do maintenance on them back at the castle.
Akari: Will you be okay without them?
Liron: I’ll be fine. I have a backup set of weapons in my bag that I’m not ready to use yet. Until then, I could try using that axe, but perhaps it’s a bit too heavy to be practical.
Katzir: You can actually lift this thing? I can’t at all unless I use dark magic.
Liron: Yeah. I’ll deal with this handicap for a little while. It’ll be all right.
Hayim: Judging by the grass density, I’d say we still have a ways to go before civilization.
Akari: How the…you’re right, Hayim.
Hayim: Naturally. Simple calculations really. You just have to take-

He is interrupted as Drora jump kicks him in the head. This makes Hayim crash into the ground.

Akari: Drora!
Drora: Sorry, I like the stupid Hayim better.
Hayim: My head…
Shahar: WHAT…is the air speed velocity of an un-laden swallow?
Hayim: Uh…potato salad?
Shahar: All right, he’s back. Let’s go.

They keep walking.

Akari: By the way, what do you mean? An Iron or Red swallow?
Shahar: Touché.

Night falls quickly for them and the forest gets darker and darker. Amitay is keeping them dimly lit with a static flame coming from his palm.

Amitay: Captain, do you think it’s safe to rest here?
Akari: I’m not sure. We will secure this area first.

Just then, Akari steps on something.

Akari: Amitay, come over here.

He does as directed and we see a dead Minotaur.

Liron: Well that makes sense since Sheikh Helen came this way first.
Akari: It still bothers me about them. Usually they’re farther up north. Something or someone must have driven them off their land and all the way down here.
Shahar: If that’s the case, then they must have an army big enough.
Hayim: Master Hunter…
Akari: I know, Hayim. We stop in this vicinity. It’s no use walking around at night like this. It’s difficult as is.

They find a spot just a ways from the dead Minotaur (plural) that they find.

Shahar: Stay close to one another. If there’s an attack, we need to be able to quickly identify friend from foe.

We can’t see everything they do perfectly, but we can see them lie down next to each other, spaced out by about two feet in width. The order from left to right is: Shahar, Liron, Amitay, Katzir, Drora, Hayim and Akari.

Katzir: She’s between Mr. Shahar and Mr. Amitay. This is bad.
Hayim: Those two…I don’t trust them.
Drora: Great. I’m stuck between the two that have the hots for Liron and not me.
Liron: I bet Katzir, Hayim and Drora aren’t happy by this set up.
Akari: This is a strategic set up, for the record.
Drora: We didn’t say anything.
Akari: I know you guys…
Liron: Wrecked.


To be continued...

Though it is pitch black, we are able to see what is happening with the group. They are currently sleeping. Above them are some tree branches with some figures on them. One of them silently lands next to the group. At that moment, Akari opens one eye and feels the ground with one hand. From his perspective, every step shows a small disturbance with the ground that he can feel. Then, two more disturbances are felt by the other end of the group.

Akari: These are the guys who tailed us. Let’s see how many of them realize that someone is here.

Akari then feels another movement within the group. It’s slight.

Akari: That’s Drora. It seems she has the most finely attuned senses of them.

One of them takes one step closer to the group, which triggers Akari and Drora and one other to spring up from their sleeping position. It is Liron. Drora stabs her assailant, Akari bashes his with his flail and Liron grabs her’s and shocks him. The rest of them wake up. Immediately, Amitay lights the area to see three men in black garb dead. They all had the lighter skin tone.

Akari: So you noticed as well, Liron? I’m surprised you didn’t move after waking up.
Liron: I never fell asleep. Otherwise I don’t know if I would have noticed.
Shahar: (Groggy) Captain, do you think anyone else is here?
Akari: No. There were only three people tailing us.
Amitay: We were being followed?
Akari: None of you noticed? That’s a shame. Let’s get back to sleep.

They go back to sleep (or in Liron’s case, just to sleep). They wake up the next morning and eat berries for breakfast with a stand set up for making coffee.

Liron: Captain, how did you get your senses so sharp?
Akari: Well, my affinity helps me. I can actively feel some of the ground around me within a small radius. Besides that, it’s a lot of battle experience and just being taught. Helen favors stealth like you, Drora. So when we trained together, both Hunter and I had to get used to someone of her level.
Drora: Yeah, Sheikh Helen is really good.
Akari: If you want to become a Sheikh ever, that’s a big skill to pick up.
Shahar: That kind of sensing is different from the magical affinity, right?
Akari: Right. It actually can be more useful against someone like Drora, who was able to conceal herself from the sensing mage. The sensing magic is good for picking out numbers and exact locations. It’s an active magic that is more detailed. But the senses I have are passive. I don’t necessarily need to be on guard to detect something wrong.
Shahar: Wow. So, Drora, have you considered becoming a full time assassin for the country?
Drora: No. I’ve been forced to before though by my family. My brothers grew up to be strong, but had no stealth at all. They were forced into the army instead. They never came back from the last war.
Shahar: I’m sorry to hear. What were their names?
Drora: Hezekiah and Herman.
Shahar: You’ve got to be kidding me. They were in my unit.
Drora: You’re serious?
Shahar: Yes. Though they perished before I had a chance to fight alongside them. They were a part of the first wave whereas I was in the second wave with all the blunt weapons.

Drora stands up and stretches.

Drora: My answer has been clear from the start.
Akari: Drora? What’s wrong?

The dark aura begins to surround her.

Drora: If there’s one thing I hate, it’s my fucking parents. They force us into war, knowing that we could be killed at any moment. Those pieces of shit don’t care about my well being at all. They didn’t care about my brothers either. They only care about this family honor crap. How the fuck are we supposed to continue the family line if we all get killed?! Honor just gets you killed! Fuck it all!

Akari dispels the dark aura from her. Liron then approaches her.

Liron: Feel better?
Drora: A little.

Drora embraces her and buries her head into Liron’s chest. Both Hayim and Katzir look jealous.

Liron: I’m the only one left then.

Liron and Akari exchange looks. Akari understands the situation and says nothing. After they finish eating, they continue walking.

Shahar: Drora, I’m sorry if what I said upset you at all.
Drora: No, it’s fine. I needed it.
Katzir: That family honor thing, I can’t even imagine. After Cousin Seijuro became who he was, we would have been screwed.
Akari: How close of cousins were you related?
Katzir: My mother’s sister was Seijuro’s mother. So first cousins.
Akari: And did either of them use magic?
Katzir: No, they never tried.
Akari: I’ll bet that they both probably have latent potential like you and Seijuro. Which one of the sisters is older?
Katzir: My aunt.
Akari: That makes sense. If she inherited stronger power, that’s why Seijuro could have been born with such ridiculous potential. If he had lived, he would have been a captain in a short amount of time.
Katzir: Yeah, I’m sure. He was always so strong compared to the rest of us. I’m just glad I got to say goodbye to him.
Akari: What? How is that possible?
Katzir: Sheikh Hamas. At his funeral, Hamas summoned him to allow a proper parting in exchange for being able to use him to kill the dragon slayers. There wasn’t any hesitation in making the choice to allow it.
Akari: I see. You don’t get that kind of parting very often. Unfortunately, Hamas also got done in by those bastards.

Just then, they stop as they see a figure standing there, seemingly waiting for them. This figure has the shape of a tall 6’6 man, but his body is made of solid rock. It isn’t wearing a shirt, but is wearing tattered long pants. It has a large maul. They keep their distance.

Akari: Do you speak our common tongue?
???: (Deep male voice) I do.
Akari: What do want of us?
???: Do you know what it is I am?
Akari: Are you an earth mage?
???: I am not. Perhaps the Mohadmaht (Moh-Hod-Mot) will sound familiar.

They all instantly react to that name.

Shahar: You can’t be serious.
Mohadmaht: I am, human.
Shahar: The Mohadmaht. It’s an urban legend that everyone in the kingdom is told about. It is said to have led the creatures of darkness and still haunts travelers in different locations of uncivilized territory.
Akari: It’s hard to confirm that. After all, there are no true descriptions of the Mohadmaht. They all die, but the bodies were all found in the same manner. Thus a name was given to the myth.
Mohadmaht: I can tell you, I am no myth. You speak of myth and yet you associated yourselves with a dragon.
Akari: How did you learn the human tongue?
Mohadmaht: I’ve been living for a very long time. I know every language that exists in this kingdom. I can even communicate with dragons. So you asked what I want? I will kill and eat you, of course.
Akari: Guys…stand back. This guy…I have a bad feeling.
Liron: Captain, we should all gang up on him.
Akari: I don’t think that’s a good idea. Observe him first. If I fall, you will know exactly what you’re up against. If we all charge in without figuring out his power, we might lose more than we need to.
Shahar: He’s right. Let the captain deal with this. Besides, if it’s you, you’ll win.

Akari steps up and the Mohadmaht doesn’t move an inch.

Akari: You’ll go against me first then.

He finally raises his maul and readies himself. Akari also takes a ready stance without pulling his flail. Suddenly, Mohadmaht makes a move. *Music* He bursts forth with incredible speed, to the point where afterimages are trailing behind him. This speed shocks Akari and he is barely able to move out of the way before Mohadmaht effortlessly swings the large hammer his way.

Akari: What the hell was that speed just now?! If I hadn’t come up here alone, we could have just now lost half our team!
Mohadmaht: You move well. Not many I fight have the ability to even see my movements let alone dodge them.
Akari: I’m in trouble unless I can seal those movements!

Akari instantly creates a dome around Mohadmaht with the ground below him. One swing of the maul busts through the structure completely. Akari then immediately follows up by putting his hand on the ground and causing a small earthquake below Mohadmaht. Before it can take any effect, Mohadmaht disappears and appears behind Akari. He puts up a thick wall between them, but the hammer destroys the wall and hits Akari in the back, sending him flying. This surprises the group.

Katzir: No way.
Liron: In all our battles up till now…he’s never taken so much as a scratch.

Akari is slow to get up, but is able to do so.

Mohadmaht: That wall saved you. It slowed me down just enough that the attack wasn’t life threatening. The next attack in that area will kill you though.
Akari: Yeah.

Akari activates dark magic all around his body.

Akari: Let’s go.

Mohadmaht charges, but this time Akari dodges with more ease. This surprises Mohadmaht. Akari puts his hand on Mohadmaht’s back, but nothing happens.

Akari: I can’t manipulate his body despite it being rock? No wait, this isn’t rock? I have no idea what substance this body is made of.

Mohadmaht swings his hammer horizontally, which Akari ducks under. He punches with more dark energy concentrated to his right fist. It pushes back the rocky giant, but does little damage. Mohadmaht then punches Akari in the face, which sends him sliding away. He then charges straight at Akari, who narrowly dodges another attack. This time, he pulls out his flail and concentrates all his dark magic energy to it. He swings the weapon, but Mohadmaht easily dodges and gets behind Akari again. Akari slides his foot backwards, which causes a quick shift in the ground below Mohadmaht. He gets off balance and Akari does a 180-degree turn to attack with his flail again. Suddenly, Mohadmaht puts his hand out and a large shard of ice shoots from his hand and blocks the weapon.

Akari: He can use magic too?!
Mohadmaht: This is it for you.

Mohadmaht shoots multiple shards of ice that stick straight into Akari’s torso, sending him to the ground. *Music Stops*

Amitay: Captain!
Mohadmaht: To think he forced me to use magic.
Liron: Let’s go!
Shahar: Stick to the plan!

Hayim immediately creates a sizable amount of water and whips it at Mohadmaht. It hits him and covers him with water, turning his attention to them. At that very moment, a lightning bolt strikes him and shocks him all over his body.

Shahar: So his body really isn’t rock. That wouldn’t have conducted otherwise. Again!

Hayim does the same thing, but this time Mohadmaht freezes the blast of water. Following that, Amitay shoots a small concentrated fireball at the ice, which melts it to water again. Liron shoots another lightning bolt to strike him and shock him again.

Shahar: Katzir, Drora, get ready!

Katzir activates dark magic around him and gets in front of the team. Just as Mohadmaht charges at him, two barriers appear between them and he charges straight through, but not without losing some speed. Katzir now can follow his movement enough to grab a hold of the shaft of the maul. Drora now emits the mist that goes towards Mohadmaht. It doesn’t seem to be affecting him at all.

Drora: Shit.

Mohadmaht is pushing Katzir back and away from his weapon, but a purple barrier supports him from behind, giving him a foothold to exert some force against it. He is still losing the battle of strength, however. Hayim once again douses Mohadmaht with some more water and Liron appears in front of him. At that moment, Katzir backs away as Liron unloads a huge portion of her mana into a concentrated lightning storm. When it’s all done, he has still only taken minor damage.

Liron: You’ve got to be kidding me.

They stare down each other and Mohadmaht decides to back off and retreat. After a few seconds, everyone takes a deep breath.

Amitay: What resilience.
Shahar: No kidding.
Liron: That plan of yours seemed to work, Shahar, but we were outclassed from the start.
Shahar: Yeah, that we were.

Meanwhile, Katzir and Drora are checking on Akari. He is still conscious.

Katzir: Don’t move, captain.
Akari: That bastard. He could even use magic. Normally it’s impossible for a creature of darkness to do that.
Drora: I guess the Mohadmaht isn’t a creature of darkness then. He said he could communicate with dragons, which means he spent time away from Jovah.
Akari: Yeah. Get Amitay over here.

They do as he instructs.

Akari: Can you melt these ice shards without damaging me?
Amitay: Yeah. I’m on it.

He is able to melt the ice without hurting Akari any further. They then wrap his torso with bandages.

Amitay: It looks like the shards didn’t pierce that far into your skin. I guess it’s because you had dark magic shrouding you.
Akari: Yeah.
Katzir: It also seems like your wounds could have been worse.
Akari: My skin contracted around the ice, so it kept my blood loss to a minimum.

Akari sits up against a tree.

Akari: Damn it. I messed up big time.
Katzir: How are we supposed to beat that thing if he shows up again?
Akari: I let my guard down the first time. I won’t let that happen again. For now, we need to keep moving.

Akari gets up slowly, but manages to get on his feet. He puts his black robe back on and they continue walking.

Shahar: Did you see any concrete weakness while fighting him, captain?
Akari: Just one. His body structure was extremely durable, but that also limited his movements. In other words, he wasn’t flexible and could only move very linearly. It left a big opening for a counterattack. But enough of that. I want you all to concentrate on dark magic training. Liron, you’ll stay alert for any enemies with me. Is that understood?
Liron: Yes.

They all follow Akari’s orders.

Akari: (Low volume) Are you ready to talk about Hassar yet?
Liron: (Low) Not yet. But when I do, it’ll be with all of you at once.
Akari: Okay.
Liron: I’m guessing the most you know is about what the other Sheikh talked about.
Akari: That’s about it, yeah. When something happens to or with a Sheikh, word spreads around fast within the rank.
Liron: Just how many Sheikh are there?
Akari: Really about 10 now.
Liron: Who would you say is the strongest right now?
Akari: Tough to say. I am the one with the most raw destructive power, but as you know, there’s more to a fight than just that.
Liron: I see. So then no one else besides a captain or stronger can destroy that whole arena like you did.
Akari: There are better tacticians in the ranks than myself, like Hunter. Ah, but don’t let him know I admitted that. But really, in a 1 on 1 fight, I have the best track record of the three of us at least.
Liron: Then there are the three captains. Sentus, Jerome and Helvast. How much stronger are the captains?
Akari: I haven’t fought under Jerome or Helvast yet, unfortunately. But Captain Sentus is ridiculously powerful. Have you heard about his lineage?
Liron: Of course. It got out shortly after the dragon was killed.
Akari: Sentus was the closest in that family to being able to manifest his dragon powers. The only thing he lacks is the absurd mana pool required to use it. If Sentus had the same mana pool as Dravos, he would have been a stronger dragon.
Liron: Are you serious?
Akari: Oh yeah. It was said that he forced General Shiomi to start getting serious in order to beat him in a fight. You saw how little effort she destroyed us with.
Liron: So then, who was stronger, Dravos or General Shiomi?
Akari: I wouldn’t know, sorry.
Liron: Our higher ranks seem so powerful. How come we don’t outright destroy the Iron Kingdom with that?
Akari: Well, you see, the Iron Kingdom’s hierarchy of power works a little different. The royal knights of Aegis are extremely powerful. Individually, they’re weaker than Sheikh, but there are thousands of them that overwhelm our forces. When they’re on our territory, we can beat them back with magic. However if we’re on their territory, our magic is weakened and so it becomes a losing battle.
Liron: That makes sense.
Akari: And then at the top, they have the dragon slayers, who are Sheikh rank on their territory. Arguably, they may have all jumped to Sheikh rank on ours as well. Then there’s the general, who has matched ours every time they fought.
Liron: So our major advantage is the captains. Theirs is the sheer number of skilled warriors.
Akari: Correct.

Akari looks back to see their progress.

Akari: That’s enough, you guys. You’ll also want to practice combining dark with your affinity, but that’s a bit dangerous and impractical while we’re traveling.
Liron: So, about how long have they been following us?
Akari: When did you notice?
Liron: About when we first started our conversation.
Akari: Not bad.
Drora: An enemy? Ah, now that I’m not training…
Akari: Just don’t react like you found them out.

They keep moving along the forest for a few minutes. After that, they all stop.

Akari: They’re making their move. Get ready.


To be continued…

Akari: They’re making their move. Get ready.

Just then, a rhino appears out of thin air next to them and charges. They are able to get out of the way in time.

Shahar: They have a summoner!

At that time, they all (except Liron) try to bring out their dark magic, but can’t.

Akari: Anti-magic?!

After Akari speaks, they are surrounded by enemies. They are all wearing red cloaks that cover their appearances. The numbers amount to about 20. The Rhino disappears.

Liron: Captain, can you tell which one of them is the anti-magic user?
Akari: The one directly in front of Shahar. Can you handle it, Shahar?
Shahar: I’m on it.
Akari: Focus all your efforts on helping Shahar take out that one.

Two of them remove the hoods from their cloaks to reveal two lighter skinned males with blonde hair.

Man 1: Look at what we got, brother.
Man 2: I see. We got ourselves a beauty.
Liron: Seriously?
Man 1: How about you just surrender and come with us, baby?
Liron: Fuck off.
Man 1: Such a shame. Fine. We’ll just capture you alive. We’ll take turns holding you down while we have our fun with you.
Shahar: You have no idea what you just signed up for. Right, Liron?
Katzir: Ms. Liron?

She’s currently sweating and takes a step back.

Man 2: You spooked her, brother. Maybe now she’ll come with us.
Liron: You stay away!
Amitay: Keep it together. We’re going in.

All of the cloaked men draw long swords. The group suddenly breaks to follow Shahar and attacks that part of the circle. Liron slowly backs up from the two men, who get closer. Katzir and Hayim step between them.

Hayim: Leave this to us.
Liron: I’ll fight too.

She puts her fists up and stands next to them.

Liron: I won’t let them have me.

Katzir nods and then takes a martial arts stance. Hayim flips his kama.

Katzir: This feeling of not being able to use magic. It’s quite nostalgic.
Liron: Fuck it. I’m using them now. There’s no choice.

She reaches into her bag, but the men attack at that second, so she is forced to retract her hands and get ready. The first brother thrusts with his sword at Katzir and Liron, but they dodge and then Katzir gets close. The man then swings the sword horizontally, but Katzir ducks under it and then gives him a hard uppercut. Meanwhile, Hayim is guarding against rapid slashes from the second brother. He hooks the long sword and then slashes with his other kama, which grazes his cheek. At this time, another cloaked man has come to help and attacks Katzir, forcing his attention on that one. The first brother then recovers and goes straight for Liron. She has her teeth grit and her hands are trembling.

Liron: Fuck this feeling to hell!

The man lunges with his sword to try and graze her, but she dodges to the side and then lands a solid punch to the man’s face, she yells and digs her fist deeper, until she knocks him off his feet entirely, sending him crashing into the ground.

Liron: I did it. I-

She consequently faints. Katzir and Hayim notice this and their attention is diverted for a brief moment. Luckily, they are able to dodge the attacks coming their way. Meanwhile, the rest of the group is fighting off most of them. The anti-magic person is standing behind the rest.

Shahar: I’m about to take him out! Watch out!

Shahar creates two barriers like steps and then uses them to get a higher elevation and then jumps over the rest of the red-cloaked people. He lands in front of the anti-magic user and quickly bashes him with his mace in the head.

Akari: My magic is back!

Akari spikes his magic aura and blows all the enemies away with a thin wave of ground.

Akari: This ground is very thin. Which means…

He slams his hand down and breaks the ground around the whole group and they all fall through. The red-cloaked people look confused. The hole that has been created seals up with rubble. Below the ground, it is pitch black, but Amitay creates a flame to illuminate them all.

Akari: Is everyone alright?
Katzir: Ms. Liron is unconscious.
Akari: What happened?
Hayim: She punched one of them and then went to sleep.
Shahar: She must have been under a lot of mental stress.
Akari: Hassar, you bastard. What the fuck.
Shahar: Captain, what can you tell us? I think we need to know.

Just then, Liron starts coming to.

Liron: Why’s it so dark? Is it nighttime already?
Akari: We’re in a tunnel just below ground. We managed to escape for now.
Liron: …Guys. I’m ready to talk.
Shahar: I think we can already guess what happened. You were assaulted, weren’t you?
Liron: Yes.
Akari: Was it your brother?
Liron: No, but he was involved in that incident. There’s a lot I have to talk about, so let me just get settled.

She stretches from having just woken up. She takes a deep breath and then curls up against the nearest wall.

Liron: The story starts even before that. My brother, Hassar, he was a Sheikh for a short time. This happened as a result of a war that ended roughly 11 years ago.
Akari: I remember. I looked up to your brother. He was regarded as a war hero.
Liron: Yes. He was only 18, but was awarded the rank for the amount of Iron soldiers he killed in that war. Of course, he was also as strong as a base level Sheikh. But that was one side of him. My brother was a good person. But that war changed him. It slowly turned him mad. And the incident that made him snap…was when I was sexually assaulted.

We go back 11 years in time. We can see a younger Liron and a younger Ferra walk side by side along the capital streets. They are wearing matching prissy and frilly blouses. It is mid-day.

Narrator Liron: I was only 13 at the time. I was a lot more girly back then, believe it or not.
Ferra: Like ohmigosh, did you see that kitty back there?
Liron: Giiirl, that thing was precious.
Ferra: So what are you doing tonight? You gonna hang with the hottie?
Liron: Stop calling my brother a hottie in front of me, Ferra.
Ferra: Sorry sorry. I can’t help it. Can you hook me up with him? Pleeeasse?
Liron: He’s way too old for you. Stop playing. And by the way, I’m just going to do some shopping tonight. Some new shoes on sale.
Ferra: Sooo jealous. I can’t go.
Liron: Laaaame.
Ferra: I know. But you can take me tomorrow.
Liron: Deal.
Ferra: I gotta go.
Liron: Later, bestie.

They hug and Ferra runs off. We now cut to nighttime at an alleyway. There Liron lay, slumped up against a wall. Her shirt is torn on one side, barely covering her chest by the way she is leaning. Her eyes seem completely dead. She’s there for hours, with occasional tears. Finally, a figure finds her. This figure picks her up.

Liron: (Faint) Brother.

Her voice had grown faint and weak. All the agonizing screaming had taken its toll on her voice box. We then get a good look at Hassar’s face. He’s a young man with the same skin tone as Liron and has long black hair. He stands at 5’10. He has emerald green eyes. He has the black robe on. He looks at his sister in sheer horror as tears also begin running from his eyes.

Hassar: What happened here? No, never mind. Let’s just get you home.

The next morning, Liron is sitting upright in a small bed with Hassar sitting next to her on a stool. He is very distraught while Liron’s eyes are still dead. Bags under her eyes indicate zero sleep with the marks under her eyes that also indicate many tears.

Hassar: I see. Those two, huh?

Liron had just explained what happened with great detail. Hassar’s hands are trembling. No, rather they are shaking with anger.

Narrator Liron: Was it a mistake to identify the ones who did it? The choice wasn’t clear back then, and it still isn’t now from hindsight.
Hassar: I’ll be back.

Later that day, Hassar has Liron out into the middle of town.

Hassar: I have a present for you.
Liron: You do?
Hassar: Yes. Just wait.

They reach a point where there is a crowd gathered. Hassar points upwards at an angle to Liron where she sees two men hanging from a building. They have been impaled with metal spikes in every conceivable area from their body.

Liron: Brother, you did this?
Hassar: Of course! Hahahaha. They screamed until they couldn’t anymore. I made them feel that same kind of pain and worse. Their bodies gave out a bit quickly though.

Just then, we see someone approach the two of them. This man is wearing a blue mage robe. He has long blond hair and seems to be in his mid-30s.

Hassar: Captain Helvast.
Helvast: What the fuck are you doing, Hassar?!

As Helvast raises his voice, the civilians back away. We see a maniacal smile on Hassar.

Hassar: I gave them justice. They raped my sister, you see! I can’t let that go unpunished!
Helvast: I can’t let what YOU did go unpunished! You’re coming with me!

Hassar puts his hands out horizontally.

Helvast: Don’t even try it. You know you can’t beat me, even with that magnetic magic of yours.

Hassar seems to be contemplating for a few seconds and then surrenders himself to Helvast. Liron tugs on Helvast’s robe.

Liron: Why are you taking him?! He did nothing wrong! Those men deserved to die!
Helvast: Yes, they did.

Helvast takes Liron by the hand and leads her out to turn left where a building was obstructing her view before. It is there that she sees 20 more bodies in the same condition. This surprises Liron and she falls to her knees.

Helvast: If it were just those two, you wouldn’t be seeing me right now. He killed their entire families. Innocents who had nothing to do with it. I’m sorry for what happened to you, little miss, but I’m afraid I can’t help but do this.

As Helvast takes Hassar away, we can see a proud look on his face, looking at his own handiwork. He looks to Liron for approval, but gets none out of her face. She looks distraught and disgusted at this deed. Hassar sees this and looks away in shame. That second, she understood something.

Narrator Liron: It was then that I knew without a doubt that Hassar had gone crazy. But I still didn’t understand completely why until later.
Akari: Hassar was immediately stripped of his Sheikh status and was incarcerated for 4 years if I recall correctly.
Narrator Liron: Yes. Normally, something like that would have gotten the death penalty. But because he was a war hero, there was some leverage to be had. The story picks up when he was released. For those years, I lived on my own for the most part. Our parents both died in the war that my brother lived through. My aunt and uncle helped me for 3 of those years.

We skip over four years where Liron and Ferra now look closer to their current appearances with just less aging. They are sitting together in Liron’s room, which looks more or less the same.

Ferra: Hassar finally gets out tomorrow. I can’t wait!
Liron: Yeah.
Narrator Liron: Ferra visited him often, to the point where she steadily fell in love with him. He didn’t seem to return that love, however.
Ferra: I have all the preparations for his party ready.
Liron: That’s good.

The next day, we see Helvast escort Hassar out of a building and into the streets of the capital. We can see that his appearance has become gruffer, with a poorly shaven face and longer hair. Liron and Ferra are waiting for him.

Helvast: Listen to me, Hassar. Don’t do anything stupid. These two fine young ladies are waiting for you.
Hassar: It’s okay. I’m better now. I see that what I did was wrong.
Helvast: Good.

Helvast nudges Hassar forward and then walks away. Hassar approaches Liron and Ferra, who take turns giving him a hug.

Hassar: I’m starving. Please tell me you have food ready at home.
Liron: Plenty of it.

Back at their house, they are eating. Ferra puts down her plate of food and then starts randomly dancing on the nearest table.

Liron: Really?
Ferra: Look at me, Hassar.
Hassar: I see.

They let Ferra continue and Hassar starts to lower his volume to talk to Liron.

Hassar: Liron, now that I’m home, are you ready to begin training?
Liron: Yeah. I’m sick of this housewife crap. I want to fight.
Hassar: Good. And how is your magic coming along?
Liron: I’m doing okay with it. It’s difficult not having an actual teacher like most people.
Hassar: Don’t worry. I was a Sheikh. I can give you proper lessons now other than just telling you what to do from behind bars. Should we bring her along?
Liron: She is dying to learn too. I know she’s a handful, but you know she has a thing for you.
Hassar: (Sarcastically) I hadn’t noticed.
Ferra: Hey! What’s all that secret talk about?
Liron: Mind your own business and keep dancing for your imaginary friends.
Ferra: Not cool, girl.
Narrator Liron: By the time I was 17, I became cold and indifferent to everyone around me except my brother. Ferra did her best to break that wall, but it failed and I just pushed her away every time.
Katzir: But Ms. Liron, you’re not that cold anymore.
Narrator Liron: Call it a phase; a long ass phase.

Later that night, Liron is giving Hassar a shave with a knife.

Hassar: You’re quite good at this.
Liron: Let’s just say I’m good at cutting things.
Hassar: A natural like me then. I never noticed before, but standing right next to you, you’re nearly my height now. If I had known you’d be this big, I might have had longer blades made.
Liron: What do you mean?
Hassar: So, you really didn’t go through all my things like I asked.
Liron: You’re telling me you had swords made for me back then?
Hassar: For when you came of age. Would you like to see?
Liron: When we’re done here, sure.

After the shave is complete, she gives him a haircut to make his appearance the same as before, but with more aging. Hassar brings her two curved blades and unsheathes them.

Hassar: This is the first time they’ve ever been unsheathed since the blacksmith gave them to me. We’ll have to do some sharpening, but they should be in good condition otherwise.
Liron: They’re beautiful.

She takes them and starts to feel the weight and balance of them.

Liron: I can definitely handle this.
Hassar: So, you know as much as weight and balance of blades, do you?
Liron: I’ve done a little homework on my own. I think I might prefer lighter blades anyway.
Hassar: I have something for Ferra as well. I kept a couple extra weapons aside here in case you couldn’t use these.
Liron: That’s good. She’ll appreciate anything you give her.

She puts her swords aside and they move to her room. She is getting ready for bed.

Hassar: This is so nostalgic.
Liron: Yeah. You practically look the same now.
Hassar: Liron, I’m so sorry. I never really apologized before. I put you through more than you needed.
Liron: Can you finally answer why you killed all those people?
Hassar: I lost control. My time at war made me bloodthirsty. I killed so many Iron soldiers with my magic that it became like a hobby to me. After killing those two men, I couldn’t stop. I had to keep going, so I took everything out on their families. Not a day goes by that I don’t regret what I did.
Liron: Thank you for apologizing. What matters now is that you’re home and we’re still alive.

Hassar hastily gives her a hug. He holds her tight.

Hassar: You’ve become so strong. I’m so proud of you.

The next day, they are out in an area similar to the area where Akari’s group first met. Ferra is there with them. Hassar has a smallsword and dagger in his hands. He hands them over to Ferra.

Ferra: A rapier and dagger?
Hassar: Ah, not quite. A smallsword is a lot lighter than a rapier, but its reach is shorter.
Ferra: Isn’t this how an Iron soldier would fight?
Hassar: You’re a dancer, right? That weapon is perfect for you. I’ve seen many of our soldiers fall to the elegant and refined style of a rapier. The dagger is a good pair with it. It’ll help you fight close quarters if an enemy gets past your reach.
Ferra: I get it! You’re so thoughtful, Hassar. Thank you so much.

She gives him a peck on the cheek and then walks backwards towards Liron. Hassar puts up his hand and his palm glows purple with some sparks and Ferra’s weapons leave her hands and pull towards him where he catches them.

Ferra: What?
Narrator Liron: Hassar’s magic is extremely unique. A rare magnetic magic that allowed him to attract most metals within a certain radius. The reason he was able to kill so many Iron soldiers is because his magic is a natural enemy to their iron and steel.
Hassar: I will give these back, but first before I teach you how to fight with weapons, I will teach you how to fight without them. That’s why I had Liron leave hers at home. You will first learn how to use your magic properly and how to fight unarmed. First, I’m going to gauge both of your physical abilities. Ferra, you first. From where you’re standing, run past me.
Ferra: Okay.

She runs the 10 meters at relatively fast speed.

Hassar: Not bad. Your dancing has given you a nice edge, it seems. Now, give me a hard punch and kick.

Hassar has a large pad that he holds up with his hands. Ferra’s punch barely budges the pad, and her kick does a little more.

Hassar: Okay. So you’re a quick and nimble type. You have relatively strong legs, but not enough to really put someone down in a fight.
Ferra: (Blushing) Oh, stop.
Hassar: You next, Liron.
Ferra: She’s clunky, Hassar. She won’t be able to-

Liron takes off at even greater speed than Ferra and quickly runs past Hassar. This surprises even him.

Ferra: What the hell was that? You’ve been holding out on me?
Liron: Sorry.
Hassar: Let’s see that strength of yours then.

She punches the pad, which pushes him back.

Hassar: Are you kidding me?

She kicks the pad hard, which makes Hassar stumble back a few steps before regaining his footing.

Hassar: You’re an absolute natural. You’re just like me.
Liron: So I’m good then. That’s good to hear.


The story continues next time!

Half a year passes and Ferra and Liron are sparring with each other in hand-to-hand combat. Ferra enhances her strength and speed and then they start to struggle against each other.

Liron: Cheating again, I see.
Ferra: Who cares, as long as I win?
Liron: You won’t win.

They break away from each other and Ferra goes for a punch. She overshoots Liron as she side steps and then Liron grapples her from behind and brings her to the ground.

Hassar: That’s enough. I think you’re both ready to use your weapons. But first, Liron. I want you to shoot your best lightning bolt at me.
Liron: Are you sure, brother?
Hassar: Yes.

Liron charges up and brings all of her magic into two fingers and then fires a lightning bolt the size of her hand. Hassar puts out his hand and a purple lightning bolt emits from his hand and cancels out Liron’s.

Liron: What? You can use my magic too?
Hassar: I couldn’t at first. But it seems that as I progressed with my magic, I became able to use it.
Narrator Liron: I should also mention that his magic was ridiculously strong besides just being able to attract weapons and armor. Using his magic, he could make himself stronger and faster in an instant by using his magnetic magic on himself. I’m not sure I understand the science of it, but I think it’s similar to how I enhance my own speed with lightning.
Hassar: It’s time to start training with your weapons.
Narrator Liron: So, for another half-year, we learned everything about sword fighting and weapon combat in general. Just like with everything else combat related, Ferra was weaker than me with her weapons.
Amitay: So, that’s why you assumed she’s not as strong as you now.
Narrator Liron: Precisely. Like I said, she’s not weak, but she never had the penchant for fighting that my brother and I have.

Another half-year passes.

Hassar: You both have done great. You’re ready to really defend yourselves.
Liron: Thank you, brother.
Ferra: Yes. Thank you so much.
Hassar: Of course. Now, don’t let anything like what happened to Liron ever happen again. I will see you both tonight. We’ll have a special dinner.
Narrator Liron: He never showed up that night.

The two girls are just sitting down together, waiting for Hassar. It is very late.

Ferra: We need to go look for him.
Liron: Yeah.
Narrator Liron: The truth was that we would have left a lot sooner. But we were both scared to leave, because we didn’t want to confirm our worries. But eventually, we had to.

They go into town where there is a crowd of people. Two people are in the middle, dead. There are metal weapons piercing them.

Liron: No. It couldn’t have been.
Ferra: Oh, please no.
Narrator Liron: We both wanted to believe so bad that he had truly changed. But deep down, we knew. We knew that he would never be the same Hassar from before the war.
Akari: Very few people come back from war the same. But in Hassar’s case, it was very extreme.
Narrator Liron: That’s not all.

That night, Liron looks inside Hassar’s room to find opium.

Narrator Liron: My brother had been taking opium. It’s something that I later found out was an addiction he picked up from war.
Akari: That’s not uncommon for soldiers who have been on it during wartime.
Liron: It messed with him even further. And after 1 year without an incident, he finally met his wit’s end and started killing again.

Just then, someone knocks on the door. Liron answers it and it is Helvast.

Liron: Captain Helvast. I’m guessing this is about my brother.
Helvast: Yes, unfortunately.
Liron: Do you know where he is?
Helvast: I was hoping you would know.
Liron: I’m afraid not. I went looking for him earlier since he never came home, but I found nothing but two dead bodies.
Helvast: May I come in? I need to tell you something.
Liron: Yes, sir.

Under the dim moonlight, the two of them sit down on the floor.

Helvast: Over the past year, Hassar has been begging me to let him back into the military. I kept rejecting him because I thought it would just perpetuate this lust for killing. I see now that it may have been a mistake.
Liron: What are you going to do?
Helvast: I’m not going to lie to you. Hassar was under my unit and I took part of the blame when he didn’t immediately hang for what he did five years ago. I was the one who got him down to 4 years. I pleaded with the general and the judiciary system and because he was a war hero, they agreed to my request. But it’s not going to work a second time. The second the general hears about this, she is going to immediately warrant a dead or alive bounty on him. I want to kill him before that happens.
Liron: I see.
Narrator Liron: Captain Helvast was looking out for me with his plan. He knew that I would be in immediate danger if the public knew of my brother’s terrible crimes. He also wanted to save face with his own standing, but that is understandable.
Helvast: I’m sorry that it has come to this. I too wanted to believe in him.
Liron: I understand.
Helvast: I’m going to look for him now. I will keep you updated.
Liron: Thank you, Captain Helvast.

With that, he leaves.

Narrator Liron: For days, my brother was nowhere to be found. But bodies kept piling up by the day. By the fifth day, he had killed over 30 people. It had become increasingly difficult to keep this under control. Captain Helvast was able to keep General Shiomi’s wrath at bay and stopped her from issuing a public warrant.
Shahar: That was for the best, I assume. There would have been mass panic otherwise.
Akari: By that time, I had become a Sheikh, so I knew what was going on. To cover up 30 deaths in five days, our forces had to move quickly.
Narrator Liron: Yes. I heard the whole story from the captain himself long after. But after the second day, Ferra also disappeared suddenly. At first I thought she had just been looking for him. But what I slowly came to the realization of was that she had actually found him. My fears were confirmed on the sixth night after he disappeared.

Liron is sitting on a chair when her door opens. As she turns, she sees Hassar walk through and quietly shut the door.

Liron: Brother!

Hassar says nothing but simply walks up to her. He falls to his knees, sobbing.

Hassar: Liron, I don’t know what to do anymore.
Liron: Hassar, is Ferra with you?

He nods.

Liron: Where is she?
Hassar: She’s safe. I don’t want to kill anymore, but I can’t help it. I thought I could just stop. I tried. I fought the urge for a full year. But I couldn’t do it anymore.
Liron: Captain Helvast told me the story of how you tried to get back into the military. So why now?
Hassar: I fought it as hard as I could until you were done training. When I saw how strong you became, I feared that I would come after you too one day. I couldn’t take that feeling and so I ran. But I couldn’t fight the feeling of wanting to kill anymore.
Liron: Oh, brother.

She takes Hassar’s crimson-stained hands and then starts crying over him as he is still on his knees.

Hassar: I’m so sorry. I wanted so much more for you.
Liron: I know.

After hours of time pass, Hassar finally leaves. Morning comes and he is hiding behind a building. There is a family of noble garb walking by on the street. He quickly jumps out and draws a shamshir. Ferra jumps out behind him, holding her weapons. The family quickly becomes frightened and backs up against the nearest wall. Among them is a 15-year-old girl that we recognize.

Narrator Drora: Yes, I remember that day well. He jumped out and scared us all half to death. We all knew our lives were in danger at that moment.

A man about Hassar’s age stands in front with dual dao drawn.

Drora: Brother, help us!

Hassar uses his magic and steals the swords, while levitating them around his body. He then sends them flying straight back at Drora’s older brother, who is able to avoid critical damage, but falls after being cut by both of them. He and Ferra start to walk towards the family, when a figure comes from behind.

Liron: STOP!

Narrator Liron: When Hassar left the night before, I tailed him. His senses and ability to hide had grown dull as his mind went. This also meant that Captain Helvast and General Shiomi were hot on his trail. They would arrive any minute to kill him.
Ferra: Liron. What are you doing here?
Liron: I can’t let you go through with this, Ferra. Have you killed anyone yet?
Ferra: No, but…
Liron: Good. Then you get over here right now. Step away from Hassar.
Ferra: I will not! I love him, Liron! I will follow him anywhere! I don’t care anymore!
Liron: Stop speaking nonsense! He doesn’t love you back! He’ll just continue to use you until you outlive your usefulness!
Hassar: Liron, I can’t stop. This is who I am now.
Liron: That’s wrong! You can stop this now! Get out of here! Leave this place and live! I tailed you here. Do you know what that means? That means that you’re not as sharp as you used to be. The general herself will be here in moments to kill you if you don’t leave now!
Hassar: I’m sorry.

Hassar turns from her and raises her blade towards Drora and starts walking towards her.

Narrator Liron: I was praying that Helvast would make it in time.
Akari: And he did.
Narrator Liron: It happened so fast. Faster than Ferra could react to try and protect him.

A blade pierces from Hassar’s back and comes out of his chest. When Hassar looks backs, his assailant is none other than Liron herself. *Music*

Narrator Liron: The one who ended my brother’s life…was me.
Ferra: No!
Hassar: You…so you are the one that would finally kill me.
Liron: (Sobbing) I’m sorry, brother.
Hassar: (Also crying) No, I’m sorry. I’ve done nothing but cause you misery. I’m sorry that it had to be you. But all along, it had to be you to stop me. Better than anyone else, you knew what I was. But you’ve become strong. I’m so proud of you.

Liron removes one of the blades that were given to her and he drops to his knees. It is at that moment that both Helvast and Shiomi arrive.

Helvast: My god. I can’t believe it came to this.

Hassar has one more look at Liron and then falls on his face, dead.

Ferra: Liron, why would you…you killed your own brother!
Shiomi: This girl is Hassar’s…
Narrator Liron: Ferra’s words stung harder than any hit I’ve ever taken.

Liron can’t even answer her. Ferra points her blade at her, but Shiomi appears behind her and restrains her.

Shiomi: You’re coming with us.

It is then that Ferra begins crying, once it set in that her love had died, killed by her best friend. Shiomi then glances at Liron’s eyes, which look as dead as they did 5 years ago.

Shiomi: This kid…to have the courage to do that.
Helvast: If only we were moments quicker…damn it.

The flashback breaks. Liron has her head down between her knees. There is a heavy silence for about ten seconds. *Music Stops*

Akari: WHAT?!
Shahar: I thought you knew about this, captain.
Akari: They lied. They told us that Captain Helvast arrived at just the right moment to kill him. I had no idea, Liron.
Drora: I can tell the story from here. After Liron saved my life, my family treated her as a hero, but the official story was another cover up. Captain Helvast worked with my father to craft a story that would work out for everyone. The story that was released to the public was that those 30+ people were killed as a result of a prison break that was caused by an Iron spy. They had an Iron spy in prison already and decided to use him as a scapegoat, publicly executing him.
Amitay: But what about Ferra? She’s on Helen’s team, so she obviously came out okay.
Drora: Liron pleaded for her to be spared. So my family, who has a heavy influence on the court system, granted her leniency. She was forced to speak in court about how she was coerced to follow Hassar, even though she didn’t kill anyone. That last part was at least true.
Liron: But that couldn’t repair the damage that was done between us.
Drora: Liron…
Liron: It’s okay. I can finish.

We go back six years ago where Ferra is walking away from a large building. Liron chases after her and stops her.

Liron: Ferra, please!
Ferra: I don’t want to see your face again.
Liron: Ferra, I just wanted to save you.
Ferra: I didn’t want to be saved.
Liron: Then why did you lie in court? You could have just as easily said that you murdered all those people, which is also a lie.
Ferra: I…don’t know. I was scared. It seems I can’t just willingly take my own life.
Liron: Please don’t walk away from me now. I need you.
Ferra: You brought this on yourself. Goodbye.
Narrator Liron: And just like that, it was over between us. But that day, a new friendship was forged.

Drora approaches Liron.

Drora: Liron, thank you. You saved my life. I am Drora, house Hetzelberg.
Liron: Liron. My family name means nothing anymore, I’m afraid.
Drora: Oh, I don’t care about any of that. Let’s be friends.
Liron: Friends? You want…to be friends…with me?
Drora: Hellz yeah, girl. What do you say?
Liron: Okay. Why not?

We are now back into the present time.

Liron: Drora, though I saved your life, you also saved mine. What I needed more than anything was a friend. Sure, you were a bit young back then and a little immature. But you were my kind of young and immature.
Drora: You’re gonna make me cry…
Akari: So that’s everything.
Liron: That’s everything.
Katzir: (choked up) That’s…my goodness.
Shahar: Are you crying, Katzir?
Katzir: Maybe…how are the rest of you not crying?
Amitay: So all those times, Liron. Yusuk harassing you, sleeping in the same room as two guys, the hot spring, the rapier user. You fought through all those without saying a word.
Liron: All those moments brought up memories, yes. But none of them were quite as bad as what just happened above. I knew those men wanted to rape me if they could, and it triggered that horrific event and everything tied to it, including my brother. I’m certain that if the anti-magic user were not present, I would have triggered the dark magic surge there and then.
Akari: Unlucky for you.
Liron: I’ll find another way. I promise.
Akari: Okay. I’m sorry for judging you before. You were right when you said that I knew very little.
Liron: It’s okay. Now, I think I’m ready to use them.

Liron reaches into her bag and pulls out her two curved blades.

Akari: Those were the blades you mentioned?
Liron: Yes. This right one here is the very one that I killed my own brother with. I tried to use different weapons, but my real training is right here. I’ve kept these weapons and my life for one reason. Of everything my brother said to me, there was one thing he kept repeating to me. “You’ve become strong”. I choose to believe in those words. I am strong. So I won’t let myself die, not yet.

Each of them thought the same thing. They all recalled that Liron repeatedly mentioned that she did something awful or unforgivable. But each of them silently disagreed with her. They could not bring their feelings to light, however, because they knew that this feeling came from her heart and they could not sway her to think differently.

Hayim: So, what do we do now, captain?
Akari: We should follow this tunnel to wherever it leads. At the very least, we need to gain some proximity from here before we re-surface. The air here is thin, but there’s enough, which means there is some kind of airflow.
Shahar: Right.
Akari: Are we all ready to move?

They all nod yes.

Akari: Okay. Let’s go then. Amitay, how’s your mana? I know you’ve been keeping a dim flame this whole time.
Amitay: It’s okay for now. I’ve managed to learn a trick to keep it to a minimum while maintaining a small flame.
Akari: That’s good.

They continue along the path with Amitay leading the way.

Shahar: Captain, how are your injuries?
Akari: I might have agitated them a little in our previous fight, but I think I’m okay.

They were all trying to change the subject as much as possible, because that story was still at the forefront of everyone’s mind.

Akari: Come to think of it…

We go back all the way to Chapter 30 when Hunter was speaking to Akari about his team.

Akari: I can’t believe you gave me Liron.
Hunter: See? I told you I would be fair.
Akari: That girl is a godsend.
Hunter: She’s been through a lot. I’m sure as you travel with her, you’ll learn more about the trauma that befell her.

Akari: Just how much did Hunter know when he said that?

As they’re walking, Katzir and Drora are both walking while embracing Liron from both sides.

Liron: It’s starting to get difficult to walk like this, guys.
Katzir: But Ms. Liron, I can’t help it.
Drora: Yeah, what he said.
Liron: *Sigh* Fine.

Amitay takes a glance back, but keeps walking forward.

Amitay: When she spoke about being the opposite of me, I didn’t realize just how much. I have everything. Like Hayim, she had nothing at one point in her life. And yet both stand here as comrades with me. It’s touching, but also sad.


The shocking conclusion to Liron’s story has been unveiled. As they press on, danger constantly looms over their heads. What is it that they will find at the end of this tunnel? Keep tuning in to A Tale of Iron!

About a half-hour has passed. They are still walking through this tunnel.

Akari: I don’t sense anyone around us. I think we’ve escaped major harm for now. We should take this time to prepare to surface.
Liron: Are you okay now, captain?
Akari: Your story allowed me time to rest up a little bit. I think I’m okay to fight at full force again, though my wounds will take some time to fully heal. I can’t worry too much about them.

They travel just for another minute and then stop. They sit down for a few minutes to get all their equipment in order and to simply rest.

Akari: Everyone, huddle up close. Shahar, get a barrier above our heads. I’m going to rend the ceiling above us, and I’m not sure how much rubble will come down.
Shahar: I’m on it.

They all get close together and Shahar creates a barrier above them. Akari stomps on the ground, which sends a shockwave up to the ceiling above. Akari then manipulates it with his hands, forcibly ripping it aside as a lot of dirt and rock comes down on them. It bounces off the barrier, keeping them safe and clean. After that clears, it is clear to go up.

Akari: Alright. Don’t anyone move.

Akari raises the ground below them to plug up the hole while simultaneously bringing them to the surface.

Amitay: Ah, fresh air.
Drora: My clothes, they have dirt on them.
Shahar: (Sarcastically) Maybe you should take them off and get rid of it.
Drora: Hah, you’d like that, wouldn’t you? I’ll only do it if Amitay asks me to.
Amitay: Seriously?
Liron: Your jumpsuit is black, so at least no one can really tell.
Drora: I know, but I can feel it. It’s so yuck! And it’s on my face too.
Hayim: Here, I can help.

He creates a water ball that she can wash her face with. The others also do the same.

Drora: That magic is so handy. Thanks.
Akari: You should be careful whom you use casual magic around. Some people get offended by that.
Shahar: Yeah. I’ve noticed. But you don’t seem to mind, captain.
Akari: Not really. Magic is a tool like any other. It can be used however one pleases. But there is another school of thought that says that one should never use magic for personal use. They say it promotes laziness. I respect that, but I tend to disagree.
Shahar: Those people don’t want to take responsibility for their own actions. They’re always looking for something else to blame for society’s problems when the problem is within. It’s something more abstract.
Hayim: I’m completely lost.
Shahar: In simpler terms, people are lazy when they can’t handle responsibility. The responsibility doesn’t make them lazy.
Hayim: I think I understand. When I lived on the streets, everything had an effect right away. Those of us who were poor, if we got caught stealing, we were beaten. If we helped someone in need, like assisting an old lady carrying things, we were rewarded. Is that what you mean?
Shahar: Hmm, almost. Think about it this way, Hayim. When you were on the streets, you had to work for everything you got in order to survive, right?
Hayim: Yes.
Shahar: Now imagine you had enough money to feed yourself for a year and a home that was paid for a year. What would happen after a year if you never had a job in that time?
Hayim: Well, I would be back to the streets.
Shahar: Exactly. Did that money make you lazy? Or was it just inaction?
Hayim: Ah, I get it. So you think magic is the same way. If you can handle magic responsibly, there’s nothing wrong with using it how you want.
Shahar: Gold star to Hayim.
Akari: I feel the same, but don’t trample on the feelings of people who disagree. It’s okay to have differing viewpoints.
Shahar: I know that. I just think there’s no point just having different views without first discussing why.
Hayim: I guess I never understood. When Master Hunter took me in, I worked hard for him. I didn’t think anything of it. It’s something I’ve done all my life.
Drora: I never had to “work”, but I always had to train, so that counts right?

They all continue walking while the conversation continues.

Amitay: Do you guys notice that we always seem to go off on random conversations off the smallest things?
Katzir: We do.
Akari: That’s proof that we’ve grown as a team. I think even more concrete evidence is how you all worked together against the Mohadmaht.

As they continue, they notice a very large goblin blocking the way. It is about 8 feet tall. It is wielding a large club.

Shahar: Is that a goblin king?
Amitay: Looks like we’ll have to fight it to get through.
Katzir: Let me handle it.
Akari: Katzir?
Katzir: I’m tired of being scared of my power.

Katzir walks out in front of the group and the goblin spots him. Katzir takes a stance and then starts to focus his mana.

Katzir: Dark power, heed your master and move as I move.

The dark aura begins to intensify around him. It builds up more and more until it stabilizes. Katzir’s eyes are purple, but his appearance doesn’t change otherwise.

Akari: It’s stable. He’s doing it.
Katzir: Come.

The goblin recognizes this power and perceives it as a threat. It charges at Katzir and swings its club straight down at him. By the time the club hits the ground, Katzir is already behind the goblin.

Liron: That speed. It was comparable to my fastest speed when surrounded by lightning. Maybe faster.

Katzir focuses while putting one hand forward towards the goblin’s back.

Katzir: I saw Seijuro do this before. C’mon, work.

He focuses the dark energy around him and compiles it into his palm.

Akari: That move. He can use that already?!

The goblin turns around, finally realizing where Katzir is. But it is too late. Katzir shoots the dark aura in a beam out of his hand, which explodes on contact with the goblin. It annihilates its entire body.

Amitay: Amazing. He took that thing out in one hit.
Akari: Jeez. You dark affinity mages are something else.
Katzir: It’s all because you all gave me the courage to stand and fight.
Shahar: Katzir, I’m now sold on you.
Katzir: Thanks, Shahar.
Liron: I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but how much stamina do you have left after that attack?
Katzir: About half, unfortunately.
Akari: That attack eats a lot of mana. I’m surprised you could manage to perform it so quickly. You were holding back your own potential with fear.
Katzir: That’s probably true, captain.
Akari: Anyway, we need to keep moving, so let’s go.

As they press on, Amitay walks next to Katzir.

Amitay: Hey.
Katzir: Hello, what’s up?
Amitay: So, how did it feel?
Katzir: Awesome. I’m finally in control.
Amitay: I’m happy for you. I bet Yusuk is too.
Katzir: You think so? Thanks. You always have a kind word for everyone.

We switch back over to the Iron Kingdom. We see Mars in Drogos, speaking with Vito.

Vito: Are you sure you’re okay going out there alone?
Mars: Yeah. I’m on a mission and I’m also going to be training out there.
Vito: Okay then. I’ll have them open the gate for you. Hey, Erosion!

Erosion comes out of hiding from behind a building.

Erosion: Yeah?
Vito: Have them open the gate for Mars.
Erosion: Why don’t you do it yourself?
Vito: Because I’m the warden and I said so, bitch.
Erosion: Okay…
Vito: You can have Solomon come with you too in case you two want to get intimate on the way.
Solomon: NO! You can do that with Aerona if you want. He might be in Aegis, but you can always travel there. You know, it’s been a month since we’ve seen him. We can always just go.
Vito: Don’t talk back to me. I know you’ve been writing to him in secret. He fucking stole you from me.
Mars: Can I just get the gate opened for me?
Vito: Oh, right. Yeah, take care of it, Erosion.

Meanwhile, in Aegis, Aerona is training against the general in an isolated room with no one else present. They are using wooden spears.

Strago: You don’t seem to have lost your edge.
Aerona: It’s only been a month. After all the shit we went through on the Red Kingdom, there’s no way that would have happened.
Strago: I see. So you’re well rested then.
Aerona: Hell yeah.
Strago: I see that you’ve been practicing that other thing though.
Aerona: How do you…oh right. It’s you.
Strago: You’d better not let anyone else find out about that. The only reason I keep my mouth shut is because you guard the queen.
Aerona: Yeah, thanks. I can’t help it. I developed something really cool over at the Red Kingdom, but it’s not quite perfect yet.
Strago: Oh? Why don’t you show it to me?
Aerona: Glad you asked. I only just became able to use it over here.

We now cut back to the Red Kingdom, but we go to the capital. Sentus and Helvast are walking together through the streets.

Helvast: So you’ve heard nothing so far?
Sentus: That is correct.
Helvast: That’s unfortunate. There are some bright Sheikh out there under your unit.
Sentus: Yes. I pray for their success every day and night.
Helvast: I didn’t know you were religious.
Sentus: Ah, that was a figure of speech. I simply meant-
Helvast: Relax, I know. By the way, do you remember Sheikh Hassar?
Sentus: How could I not? That man under you who-
Helvast: His younger sister is on Akari’s team.
Sentus: What? You mean the girl that killed Hassar?
Helvast: The very one. I heard it straight out of the general’s mouth.
Sentus: That’s not good. What if she turns out like her brother?
Helvast: She won’t.
Sentus: How do you know?
Helvast: I know her. She is everything Hassar could have been. After all this is over, I plan to groom her into a proper Sheikh.
Sentus: You’re too sentimental.
Helvast: That’s not all though. Apparently a natural dark mage is on his team as well. Apparently, he’s related to Seijuro.
Sentus: What? Seijuro had a relative like that?
Helvast: We still don’t know the full story on him. It’s possible that he is still in the early stages of development.
Sentus: Why is it that you seem to know more about people under my unit than me?
Helvast: General Shiomi likes to talk, especially when she has a glass of wine in her hands.
Sentus: My god, Helvast. I can’t believe you said that anywhere near the palace.

When we zoom out, we can see that they are walking towards the palace and are very close to it.

Helvast: Yeah, my bad.
Sentus: I’m not going to back you up if you get into trouble with her.
Helvast: It’s okay. I have one piece of leverage over her.
Sentus: Oh?
Helvast: If she kills me, she won’t be able to…you know.
Sentus: Typical.
Helvast: Oh, don’t act like you haven’t enjoyed a night with her.
Sentus: As if I had a choice in the matter.
Helvast: Hated every moment of it?
Sentus: …No.
Helvast: That’s what I thought.

They make it to the palace, where there is someone waiting for them. This man is also wearing a blue robe. He has darker skin than the other two and has black hair slicked back into pointed spiky hair in the back. He’s around 6’0. He is wearing shoulder armor over top of the robe.

Helvast: Jerome, why are you out here so soon?
Jerome: General Shiomi is in there with the king. There’s nothing to worry about.
Sentus: Should we go in?
Jerome: That’s probably for the best.

The three of them go in together to the throne room. The king is sitting on the throne with Shiomi standing next to him.

King: Approach, captains.

They do as he asks.

Shiomi: What do you have for me, Sentus?
Sentus: Nothing, I’m afraid.
Shiomi: I see. I’m taking this watch shift. Sentus, you have the night watch.
Sentus: Yes, ma’am.
Shiomi: And Helvast, I want you tonight.
Helvast: Understood.
Shiomi: You may go. Oh, wait. Get that lazy shit Sheikh Habib in here.
Jerome: It will be done.

They leave the room and Jerome tugs on someone with a black robe on. He is lying around at the palace, smoking. He has long black hair that covers his face.

Jerome: Habib.
Habib: Captain Jerome, sir.
Jerome: The general wants you in the throne room.
Habib: Oh fuck.
Jerome: You have duties, Habib. Why are you here, smoking?
Habib: I just stopped like five minutes ago. I promise.
Jerome: Get going. If you’re not there soon, the general says she’ll cut it off.
Habib: Not that! I’m going now!

Habib runs extremely fast away from them. The three of them start laughing.

Sentus: “She’ll cut it off” Nice touch.
Jerome: Sometimes a padded lie is what’s needed to goad him.
Helvast: Well, it looks like Sentus had his shift relieved for now.
Sentus: Yeah, but I won’t be getting any sleep tonight. I’ll be guarding the king while he sleeps. Worst shift.
Helvast: True. But at least we can hang out. It’s not often that we can.
Jerome: What do you say, Sentus?
Sentus: Fine. Let’s go get drinks at the usual place.

Sentus starts walking away.

Jerome: Sentus? Did you forget to speak out loud again?
Sentus: Shit. I said let’s go get drinks at the usual place.
Helvast: Alright.

Meanwhile, at the throne room…

Habib: I’m sorry, General Shiomi! Please don’t cut it off!
Shiomi: What the fuck are you talking about, Habib? Get your ass on the floor and give me 100 push-ups.
Habib: Right away, ma’am!

He starts doing them.

King: Why are you making him do push-ups in the middle of my throne room?
Shiomi: I like torturing him.
King: That’s fair. By the way, what is it that you do with your captains when you call them later that night? You seem to do it almost every night. And you seem to call Helvast up more than the other two.
Shiomi: Ah, that? It’s a fairly standard procedure we do to solidify our team.
King: I see. Sounds boring.

We now see the three captains at a bar with drinks. They’ve also ordered some food. There are people all around the bar staring at them.

Man 1: Do you see that? It’s the three captains!
Man 2: To see them together like this. It must be good luck.
Jerome: So, what do you say, Sentus? How about you give me Helen and I’ll give you Habib?
Sentus: As if anyone would accept a trade like that. Just demote the bastard and be done with him.
Helvast: He’s a good soldier. He just needs some motivation, is all.
Sentus: Besides, I’m happy with my three.
Jerome: And what if they all die on this mission? You’ll have to accept at least one of mine since I have 4. And I’m giving you Habib without hesitation.
Sentus: They won’t. As long as Akari is there, they’ll succeed.
Helvast: Akari? Why do you say him and not Hunter?
Sentus: Hunter is strong and he has a brilliant mind. But Hunter’s intelligence sometimes gets in the way. It inflates his ego. Akari knows what he knows and what he doesn’t. To that extent, he’s a wiser person. His own intelligence is nothing to put down either. And of all the Sheikh, he has the most raw power.
Helvast: Even though he failed against the…oh.
Sentus: You don’t have to walk on eggshells around me. Yes, even though he failed against those despicable people. If Dravos lost to them, Hunter wouldn’t have stood a chance either.
Helvast: I suppose you have a point there.
Jerome: I would have liked to fight them. I would have if those idiots at the coliseum didn’t fall for such a stupid trick.
Helvast: What trick was that?
Jerome: They said they were under a poisonous spell that activated if they talked about that group. As if some half-baked Iron mage could perform such a complicated spell.
Sentus: I heard one of them competed in that coliseum as well.
Jerome: Yes, but I didn’t realize it was one of them till they cracked and finally spoke.
Helvast: You actually saw the fight?
Jerome: Yeah. He put down our champion even with a major handicap in equipment. To be honest, it would have been difficult for us too with those handicaps.

Their food arrives. They begin eating. A loosely dressed woman approaches them.

Woman: Hey, Captain Sentus. What do you say you bring me back to your cave and you can show me your dragon?

Sentus seems visibly annoyed by this, while the other two are chuckling.

Helvast: How long did that take you to think of?
Sentus: I might have taken your offer up, but unfortunately I can’t tonight.
Jerome: Ah, yes. He has to guard the king.
Sentus: Hey, wait. Are you even 18?
Woman: Uh…

She runs away. The bartender chases her out after hearing that.

Helvast: I’m impressed. How did you know?
Sentus: I just know.
Jerome: It’s getting harder to tell these days.
Helvast: Too many mishaps sharpened your eyes, eh?
Sentus: Don’t compare me to you.
Jerome: Ah, right. You have to keep your bloodline pure.
Sentus: Yes. It’s an unfortunate circumstance, but I follow tradition.
Helvast: Say, do you think if you bred with the general that you could get a real dragon child?

Sentus gets red in the face.

Helvast: Watch out, he’s about to breath fire at us.
Sentus: It doesn’t work like that; I’ll have you know.
Jerome: Still, do you think she’ll finally opt to have a child with one of us when things settle down?
Helvast: It’s possible. If she’s looking for a powerful child, there’s no one else suitable. The only one else that was possible was Seijuro.
Jerome: If she wants the strongest of us, that’ll have to unfortunately be Sentus. You’re also royalty, so it works.
Sentus: It’s already come back to me with her again? Damn it, guys. If she’d pick anyone, it’d be Helvast. She favors you the most.
Helvast: That’s probably true.
Sentus and Jerome: Asshole!

Later that night, Helvast and Sentus are walking together inside the palace in a narrow corridor.

Sentus: Well, I guess this is it. A long night.
Helvast: Yeah, good luck.
Shiomi’s Voice: Oh Helvast. Where are you?
Helvast: *Wink* Gotta go.
Sentus: Bastard.

Helvast walks in the opposite direction. Meanwhile, Sentus knocks on the ensuing door. It opens to see the king.

King: Sentus, I’m glad you’re here.
Sentus: Are you ready to see who is the true chess king tonight?
King: Hell yeah I am.

Sentus puts his hand behind his back and puts up the middle finger in the general direction that Helvast walked. They go inside and close the door.

King’s Voice: Say, just how closely are we related anyway?
Sentus’ Voice: No clue, your majesty.

We now switch back over to Akari’s team. They are still continuing walking. Akari suddenly stops the group.

Akari: Wait. Something’s wrong.


What is it that has Akari’s senses piqued?

Akari suddenly stops the group.

Akari: Wait. Something’s wrong.
Liron: What is it?
Drora: I don’t sense any enemy presences.
Akari: It’s not that. I recognize this air.

Akari proceeds cautiously as the group follows him.

Shahar: Captain, I think I recognize this as well. This particular scent.
Amitay: What is it? The air hasn’t changed that much has it?
Akari: It’s not surprising you guys don’t know this feeling.

Akari is sweating. His hands are trembling.

Akari: Please, please, please.
Katzir: Captain, Mr. Shahar, please tell us what’s going on?
Akari: Wait, I see something.

He rushes forward quickly through some thick grass and then stops once he makes it through. He closes his eyes as his face begins to drop ever so slightly. As the rest of the group arrives, they also stop. Shahar in particular reacts to what they all see. On the ground in front of them is the body of Hannah, her armor broken and pierced with arrows all around. Their eyes drift upwards where the rest of their horrors await. All of Helen’s team members are in a similar condition. This includes Ferra. The familiar scent Akari spoke of was none other than the presence that fills the air after a battle. Shahar immediately bends down and checks Hannah’s pulse. He then grits his teeth in anger.

Shahar: Damn it!

Liron then notices Ferra and then runs to her.

Liron: Ferra! Not now! Not like this!

Akari is frantically looking around for Helen’s body.

Akari: Helen?! HELEN?!

Just then, he looks into the thick grass to see something there. He rushes to it and parts the grass. The second he does, he backs up and falls to the ground to his knees.

Akari: No, I can’t….it can’t be true. Helen.

Akari grabs the lifeless body of Helen and holds it close. He checks her pulse multiple times with no sign of life. There is a stab wound through her chest roughly where her heart would be. Meanwhile, the rest of the team is checking on the rest of Helen’s team.

Amitay: None of them survived. It looks like they got ambushed.
Katzir: Whoever they were, they were strong enough to take out a Sheikh and her team.
Amitay: This has to be a trap. Katzir, Hayim, Drora, we need to stay alert for an enemy attack.

Just as Amitay says that, an arrow is sent his way. It is blocked however, as a barrier emerges in front of Amitay. Shahar stands up, angry.

Shahar: How dare you interrupt us?

Many people drop down onto the branches above and begin to run away, now that they have been found out. They are hopping from branch to branch.

Katzir: They’re running?
Amitay: That has to be another trap to lead us into the wolves’ den so to speak.

Just then, Akari stands up. He is teeming with dark magic all around him.

Akari: Everyone, stand back.

He walks out in front of the group.

Akari: (Darkened) You dare run from me after the things you’ve done?! I won’t let you!

Akari’s dark magic aura surges even further, to the point where it’s even difficult to see him. He lets out a gut-wrenching, agonizing yell from the heart *Music* (go to 30 seconds if time doesn't automatically start there) and slams both hands on the ground. The earth quakes and shakes, making his team behind him fall to the ground from the rumbling.

Hayim: What is this power?!

The ground in front cracks and reaches further than he can see and all of the sudden, a giant dust pillar erupts, blocking everyone’s view. When it finally clears, the sight to which they see is breathtaking for all. For what looks like a mile’s radius, the forest has been completely leveled. All trees in the vicinity have been uprooted and the ground level has dropped a full two meters.

Drora: Captain…

Akari falls backwards and lands on his back, breathing heavy, consequently fainting.

Amitay: He put his entire soul into that attack. *Music Stops*

At that moment, some more people appear through portals on the cleared forest grounds in front of them. We recognize them as Rapier, Saber, Scimitar, Muscles, the twins and Tulwar. Tulwar’s eyes are darkened.

Drora: I killed that son of a bitch! Why is he still alive?!
Shahar: It looks like he’s been revived by some necromancy, Drora. That’s really bad.
Katzir: The captain is out of commission for right now. We have to take them out on our own.
Amitay: We can do it!

Liron is still holding Ferra at this time. She looks at her body to see a stab wound similar to Helen’s. This stab is not at her heart, however, but somewhere in the mid-section. She stands up and jumps down in elevation to where the ground dropped.

Katzir: Ms. Liron! What are you doing?
Liron: (To Rapier) Was this your work? Did you kill that woman?
Rapier: Indeed. Another flower I was forced to kill, but less of one I’m afraid.

Liron tries to contain her anger. Her teeth are grinding against each other helplessly while her fists are clenched so tight that blood begins to run out.

Rapier: Are you angry with me, angel?
Saber: Don’t egg her on, dumbass.
Rapier: I know her trick this time. I won’t fall for it again. She’s as good as helpless before my blade. This time, I will reach your heart one way or another.

As Liron stands there, the dark aura begins to surround her slowly. This surprises the whole group.

Rapier: What the…
Saber: No time for delay! We have to kill her now!
Amitay: We won’t let that happen!

A fire blast comes down and creates a wall of fire between Liron and the enemy group. In that instant, all the memories of Ferra come to her mind as well as the memories connected to her. Her brother, the day she was assaulted and the friend she lost with the deeds she committed. All of them begin to intermix inside her mind like liquids mixing inside of a cup. Then, finally, the cup is too full of liquid and begins pouring out. At that moment, something within her snapped. There is a spark inside her head and her eyes go white. She lets out a cry as dark magic energy surges all around her *Music* (If time doesn’t redirect, go to 32 seconds). Her eyes changes to purple and her skin starts to darken.

Shahar: I’ve seen this before…it’s….
Katzir: She’s already gone berserk!

Liron is surrounded with dark purple lightning and then disappears. None of the enemies react until she is behind Rapier. She puts her hand straight through Rapier’s back.

Rapier: What speed! This is nothing like last time!

She rips her hand out violently. Rapier coughs up massive amounts of blood. Saber and Tulwar are the first ones to react to this and both attack at the same time. Before they can, Saber receives a kick and flies away. A barrier appears to block Tulwar’s attack. Katzir is standing next to Liron with dark magic activated. Liron’s next target is Muscles, who immediately hardens. She punches him, which sends him flying and crashing into the ground. She appears in front of him as he lands and then lands on top of him. She grips his face with one hand and sends electricity through him. He yells out in pain as he tries to get her off, but to no avail. Eventually, the electricity completely stops his heart.

Meanwhile, Saber has managed to heal Rapier and is now faced off against Katzir.

Saber: You’re much different.
Katzir: If you think this is going to end well for you, you’re mistaken.
Rapier: I’m going to kill that woman!
Saber: Do it.

Just then, the twins are behind Katzir, but they receive a whip of water, which knocks them both away. Hayim stands back to back with Katzir.

Hayim: I’m with you.
Katzir: Yeah. Good timing. *Music Stops*

Amitay, Shahar and Drora are now faced off against Scimitar and Tulwar. *Music*

Shahar: You’ve come for even more punishment, I see.
Scimitar: Last time you had a lucky guess. I won’t be so obvious this time.
Amitay: I’ll take the main offensive. Can you two cover me?
Drora: Of course.
Shahar: Yeah. Just leave me a few shots, will ya?
Amitay: Definitely, bro. Take out as much anger as you need.

Amitay activates dark magic and purple flame begins to appear around him.

Tulwar: This isn’t good. They’ve grown considerably since we last fought them. We’re outclassed.
Scimitar: I don’t care. You’re dead, so you fight them then!

Scimitar teleports away.

Shahar: What a despicable woman.

Amitay lights Tulwar on fire, completely burning him to ashes.

Amitay: Sorry, Shahar.
Shahar: There are plenty of other targets. Let’s go.

At this point, Saber is charging at Katzir and swinging his blade. Katzir is dodging each one with relative ease.

Saber: It doesn’t matter how good you’ve gotten! I will defeat you, you annoying brat!
Katzir: It’s the opposite. You’ve kept attacking us out of nowhere and tried killing our members while they were grieving. You bastards deserve death!

Katzir suddenly rushes forward and punches Saber in the face. *Music Stops* Meanwhile, back where the forest is still in tact, Akari is awake and sitting up. Helen’s head is on his lap. He’s half watching the fight. All of the sudden, he notices something out of the corner of his eye. A body begins to move. It is Ferra.

Akari: One of them survived?

Akari crawls over to her and touches her neck, only to get shocked lightly. He retracts his hand and then Ferra’s hand starts moving.

Akari: Liron’s magic? Did she sub-consciously use it in her grief?

All of the sudden, her eyes open and she gasps for air. This startles Akari.

Akari: You are alive. I don’t believe it.
Ferra: What…I’m alive?
Akari: Your stab wound. It doesn’t look like it was fatal. In fact, it’s not that bad at all. Your heart must have stopped from shock. Liron accidentally restarted your heart. Unbelievable.
Ferra: Liron? Liron’s here?
Akari: She’s fighting right now.
Ferra: Sheikh Helen! Everyone!

She now notices that everyone else has been killed.

Akari: Everyone else suffered fatal wounds, I’m afraid. I’m so sorry.

Akari looks back at the fight.

Akari: Oh no. She’s…
Ferra: What’s happening to her?
Akari: She’s gone berserk. This isn’t good. I’m all out of mana. I can’t even hope to go in there and release her state.

At this time, Rapier is in front of Liron, who has just gotten off Muscles. She looks at him and her aura flares up again.

Rapier: Now you’ve made me angry!

Rapier slows down time immediately the second she starts moving. But even from his perspective, she’s still moving extremely quickly. He is barely able to dodge a punch from her. While still in slow mode, he lunges with his weapon, but she catches it in the middle of the blade after dodging. Time then goes to normal.

Rapier: No, I’m out of time. NOOOOOOOOO!

Liron throws him to the ground while simultaneously stealing his rapier. She lands on top of him and then violently stabs him repeatedly until he screams no more. She then yells straight into his face as some kind of feral scream. Just then, a hand grabs her by the shoulder. She looks back to see Hunter.

Hunter: Release!

He is able to release her berserk mode and dispel the dark aura around her. Just a few moments before that, we go back to Akari and Ferra.

Ferra: Such power. I can’t even keep up with that speed. Jeez. To think I was going to challenge her. I was stupid.
Akari: She was willing to throw the fight for you. If it meant that you could move on, she was going to accept it.
Ferra: I see.

They then see Hunter enter the picture.

Akari: Hunter? What is he doing here?

They witness him release her berserk mode.

Akari: Either way, he saved the day with that. Go to her. She needs to see you.

She nods. We cut over to the rest of the fighting. Saber is on his knees with Katzir gripping the back of his shirt. Shahar is in front of Saber.

Katzir: Do it. For Hannah.
Shahar: For Hannah.

Shahar bashes Saber in the face with his mace, killing him. Hayim has killed one of the twins. The other is on the defensive. Suddenly, she gets an arrow to the chest. This gives Hayim the opening to stab her in the head with one of his kama. This kills her.

Amitay: That about wraps it up.
Liron: Sheikh Hunter. It’s you.
Hunter: What happened here, Liron? Where is Akari?
Liron: Sheikh Helen…Ferra…

She looks up to where Akari is and points to him. But then she notices Ferra walking towards her below her line of sight. She tilts her head downwards to see her. She is walking slowly, as she is still injured. Liron’s eyes open in surprise and she stands. They walk towards each other slowly until Liron falls onto her knees, sobbing. Ferra also gets teary eyed and smiles at her.

Liron: You’re…
Ferra: I’m back.

Ferra gets on her knees as well and they embrace.

Ferra: I’m so sorry.
Liron: How…my magic worked?
Ferra: Yes. You saved me.

Ferra notices that Hunter is no longer in their presence. He’s already next to Akari. The two of them are sitting in silence together, looking at Helen. Finally, Hunter breaks it.

Hunter: Did you love her?
Akari: Yes.
Hunter: I thought so.
Akari: You?
Hunter: As a sibling. It would have worked for you just fine.
Akari: I see.
Hunter: I shouldn’t have sent her on this mission.
Akari: Don’t beat yourself up over it. She knew what she was getting into.
Hunter: I know.

Switching back to the team, they’ve all gathered together.

Ferra: Your words stuck with me. I didn’t realize that you blame yourself just as much for what happened to Hassar as I tried to blame you. Then it hit me today. Everything you did, it saved me. Back then, I just wanted to die. But this mission has made me truly understand how precious life is. And now having the experience I just did, I realize that I want to live now.
Liron: Ferra…
Ferra: I get it now. Hassar was ruined by war and we were the collateral damage. You’re every bit a victim as me. So I’m sorry. Can you ever forgive me?
Liron: Of course.
Shahar: I hate to interrupt, but could you tell us what happened?
Ferra: You’re Shahar, right? Hannah often spoke highly of you. I’m so sorry for your loss.
Shahar: Thanks.
Ferra: Anyway, some rock monster showed up and attacked our group.
Amitay: The Mohadmaht…
Ferra: Thanks to our captain, we were able to beat it back, but it took a toll on her and all of us. Then, out of nowhere, the group that we’ve been fighting repeatedly showed up as well as these guys you just killed. On top of that, there were archers everywhere that surrounded us. There was no way we could fight all of that at once; especially not after fighting that thing.
Katzir: They ran right into a trap.
Drora: Then those people that ran. They were all archers. I think the captain took them all out with that attack.
Amitay: But this second group worries me.
Shahar: Hannah told me all of their abilities at least the last time we met. We should have discussed them earlier, but we will do so.
Amitay: First, we should pay our last respects. Shahar, why don’t you take some time up there? You too, Ferra.
Shahar: Yeah, that’s a good idea. I will.
Ferra: Yes, me too.
Amitay: We’ll be waiting here for you.

The two of them leave to go back to the forest.

Katzir: Ms. Liron, are you okay?
Liron: Yeah, I’m fine thanks to Hunter.
Drora: You scared me, girl. Never do that again. That look was not stylish at all.
Katzir: That’s what you were worried about?
Liron: Yeah. That wasn’t fun.
Katzir: I know how that feels.
Liron: I remember.
Hayim: Master Hunter…
Amitay: You’re worried about him, aren’t you?
Hayim: I’ve never seen him so upset.
Amitay: Helen must have meant something great to both of them.

Back with Akari and Hunter, they are looking out in the distance.

Hunter: Look at this. That was captain level destruction right there.
Akari: Yeah. I used all my mana in one attack. I was so angry that I couldn’t hold anything back.
Hunter: I see.
Akari: Where’s your team?
Hunter: They’re waiting just outside the edge of where your handiwork stops. I figured it was best that I come alone. We saw that attack and we couldn’t ignore it.
Akari: That means you also got slowed down as well.
Hunter: A little.
Akari: This throws our mission off completely.
Hunter: We’ll sit down later and discuss a better strategy. I’m going back to my team. I’ll be back.

Later that day, Helen and her group are lined up in lowered ground. They each pay their final respects to them. Akari and Hunter are the last to approach Helen after Shahar and Ferra are the last to say goodbye to the rest of them.

Hunter: Goodbye, Helen. I’ll miss you dearly.
Akari: I love you, Helen.

With that, Akari buries them all simultaneously.

Akari: The two of us are going to take a few moments alone, if you don’t mind.

They leave Akari and Hunter alone for about ten minutes. After that, they rejoin Akari’s group and Ferra.

Hunter: Thanks for waiting.
Hayim: Master Hunter, are you going to be okay?
Hunter: Yes, Hayim. But now that I’m thinking clearly, one of you is missing. What happened to Yusuk?
Akari: He was killed. It couldn’t be helped.
Hunter: I see. So you’ve lost your healer and Helen’s healer is also dead. Wonderful. Wait a second.
Ferra: Taario didn’t die in this incident. We lost him during a previous enemy attack. We weren’t able to find his body anywhere.
Hunter: Unfortunately we don’t have time to look for him.
Ferra: I understand. I will look for him.
Liron: What are you talking about, Ferra?
Akari: You don’t want to come with us?
Ferra: It hurts to admit it, but I’ll be a burden to your team. My magic is useful, but I’m just not up to the standard you need. If he’s dead, I’m heading home. If he’s alive, I’ll try to catch up to you guys. The enemy won’t notice just the two of us.
Shahar: I’m sorry to say this, but she’s right. Tactically speaking, this is the best option.
Akari: Hunter, do you think we should consolidate groups?
Hunter: No. I think we need to stick to two groups.
Akari: After what just happened, you’re still saying that?
Hunter: Akari, if you were there with Helen, you would have ended up dead as well. Think about it for a second. They would have sent an even bigger force to corner you at this junction.
Akari: …Yeah, you’re right. I suppose this means our decision to stop and do maintenance was the right one.
Hunter: So you saw my note.
Akari: Yes. Helen skipped the checkpoint after signing.
Ferra: We traveled nearly non-stop till this point. We were getting to be too tired, unfortunately.
Hunter: They were planning this from the start. We had an easy trip till recently, which goaded them to wear themselves out. Clever bastards.
Akari: The good news is that we’re over halfway there, right?
Hunter: Yes. It won’t be long from now till we reach our destination. You know what, I can’t think anymore right now. I’m sorry.
Akari: Yeah. I know what you mean.
Hunter: We’re only just a half-day’s travel away from the town. I sent my team there. Why don’t we speak strategy after we’ve had some proper rest there?
Akari: Agreed. Let’s go.

They all start walking. Hayim stops Hunter.

Hunter: Yes, Hayim?

Hayim activates dark magic and shows off his skills briefly with dark water.

Hunter: Look at you. You’re making great progress.
Hayim: Thank you, Master Hunter.
Hunter: Akari, you’re the best. Such a pure one. Trying to cheer me up. Thanks, Hayim.


Helen has been killed in action. This mission weighs heavier on them each day. For now, they will grieve. But the adventure will continue next time.

They have made it to the edge of the destroyed forest and are about to cross over into the non-destroyed forest.

Ferra: Well, this is where we part ways.
Liron: Are you sure you don’t want to come with us?
Ferra: I’m sure.
Akari: Travel on the road. We’ve cleared most of it out.
Ferra: Right.
Liron: If things get too dangerous, don’t worry about catching up to us.
Ferra: I know. I’ll be okay. Hassar will watch over me.
Liron: We’ll talk after this is all over.
Ferra: That’s a deal.

They glance at each other one more time and then part as the rest of the team goes into the forest.

Hunter: Now that we’ve dealt with that, it’s time to press on.
Akari: Hold on now, Hunter. You’re with my group now. You know what that means?
Hunter: Oh, so then what are your orders, “team leader”?
Akari: Relax, I was just kidding. Of course we’ll press on.

They start walking along a narrow path. We follow Hayim, who is walking with Hunter.

Hayim: How are things with the team?
Hunter: Well.
Hayim: That’s good. I was worried about you.
Hunter: I know. How are you doing with this team?
Hayim: I like them. They’ve been very kind, except Yusuk.
Hunter: Yusuk was an inevitable casualty. I did foresee that Katzir might kill him.
Hayim: So you knew.
Hunter: You didn’t have to say a word. I could tell. The situation was unavoidable. There wasn’t any other healer I could send you.
Hayim: He has control of his dark magic now.
Hunter: I see. So you can all use it pretty well?
Hayim: Yes, now that Liron was able to do what she did.
Hunter: Interesting. Thanks for the update.
Hayim: Of course. Anything else you want to know?
Hunter: When was the last time you checked the ducks?
Hayim: Before I left. They’re in good hands right now.
Hunter: That’s good.

Hunter brings Hayim closer with his hand.

Hunter: Hayim, thanks. You’re doing great work.
Hayim: Thank you so much, Master Hunter.
Hunter: Keep it up, buddy.

He nudges Hayim away, sending him towards his comrades.

Amitay: What’s up, Hayim?
Hayim: Nothing much.
Amitay: You seem to be in a good mood.
Hayim: Well, making Master Hunter proud makes me happy.
Amitay: I see. I admire your respect for him. I’m afraid I don’t have anyone that close to me that I can do the same.
Hayim: That’s because Master Hunter is the best.
Amitay: That’s hard to argue against. Say, how is your quest for the fair maiden coming along?
Hayim: Uh…what?
Amitay: (Whispering) You know…asking her how she feels about you.
Hayim: Oh. What do I say, Amitay?
Amitay: Say what you feel, I guess.
Hayim: How do I do that?
Amitay: Sorry, I don’t know how to answer that.
Hayim: Oh…

Just then, we see a hoard of goblins coming their way, crossing a small river that only goes up to their ankles.

Katzir: Goblins!
Hunter: Hayim, let’s handle this.
Hayim: Right!

They both create a large amount of water from their hands and then manipulate it together. As some of it shoots past some of the goblins, it touches the water in the river. All of the sudden, the water in the river is lifted straight out of the ground and is being manipulated. Hayim and Hunter make the same movements simultaneously and then the river slithers in the air like a snake and then swallows up all of the goblins in one fell swoop.

Hunter: And crush.

The water starts to compress and crushes the goblins that have been swallowed up by the now giant water ball floating in the air. It becomes bloodstained immediately and then they let go of the water and it drops.

Drora: Incredible.

Eventually, they make it out of the forest and into a small town. It is extremely rural, with farms and wood architecture.

Drora: This place looks so different from most of our towns.
Shahar: This different terrain makes it difficult to live the same type of life style. But my question is why it’s so secluded from the rest of the Red Kingdom.
Akari: It’s part of our attempts to colonize more territory. Two Sheikh have this place protected with a handful of skilled mages like you all.
Hunter: I guess four Shiekh for tonight.
Akari: True.

They go into town and Hunter leads them to an inn.

Hunter: Well, here we are. I don’t know about you guys, but I need to get a good night’s sleep.
Akari: I’ll try to, at least.

They get into rooms. We go back to Hayim, who is with Shahar.

Shahar: Hey, Hayim.
Hayim: Hey, Katzir.
Shahar: It’s Shahar.
Hayim: Oh, right. Sorry. So, are you okay?
Shahar: I’m doing fine. My feelings for Hannah have since passed. We were still friends, yes, but I’m not as devastated as I would have been if we were still dating.
Hayim: I see.
Shahar: You seem very concerned for everyone’s wellbeing.
Hayim: It’s hard for me to understand. I had nothing to begin with, so there was nothing for me to ever lose. But if I try to imagine losing my master…
Shahar: Say no more. Listen, Hayim. Humans are strong. We can have the worst things happen to us and we’ll still keep on living.
Hayim: What about those people who kill themselves?
Shahar: That’s a lot more complicated. Don’t think too hard about it.
Hayim: Good, because I hate thinking too much. Makes my head hurt.
Shahar: Hahahaha. It’s not for everyone, I suppose.
Hayim: Good day...er night. Or is it evening?
Shahar: ‘Night.

Hayim moves from one door to the next. He knocks on it and the door opens promptly.

Hayim: Can I come in for a minute?
Liron: Yeah.

Liron lets him in. His hands start to tremble as Liron sits down on her bed.

Liron: What’s wrong?
Hayim: Y-you see…I was wondering if you…ah…
Liron: Hayim, take a deep breath.

Hayim does.

Hayim: Liron, after seeing how you fight and how you act…I don’t know how to describe it. I wanted to see more. And then I heard your story and that feeling has been getting bigger. This feeling, it’s different from the way I feel about Master Hunter, but I think it’s love.
Liron: Hayim…
Hayim: You’re incredible and I want to never leave you. I’m sorry. I don’t know how else to say it. I can’t speak as well as Shahar or Amitay. I’m not that smart, but I know my feelings aren’t lies.
Liron: I can’t answer you.
Hayim: You can’t? Why not?
Liron: This mission is more important to me than anything right now. I don’t have time to think about how I feel about men.
Hayim: But aren’t thinking and feeling different?
Liron: Yes. I guess that was a contradiction. Sorry, but I’m not sure about how I feel about you. Don’t take it personally.
Hayim: I see…
Liron: You’re smarter than you let on. But thinking and feeling can be intertwined. Don’t forget that.
Hayim: I’m not sure I understand.
Liron: You don’t have to, I suppose. But my answer is undecided either way. Perhaps after this mission is over, I will sort this out.
Hayim: Oh…
Liron: You can’t wait that long? Why?
Hayim: No, it’s just that I was hoping for an answer tonight.
Liron: I wish I could give you one.
Hayim: I know. Anyway, it’s getting late. I’m going to bed. Good night.
Liron: Good night, Hayim.

He leaves. We switch over to a room with Akari and Hunter.

Akari: Fucking damn it.
Hunter: …
Akari: I’m sorry. It’s just so frustrating.
Hunter: I know. People like us overthink things. How things could have been different.
Akari: Everything was going well for me, you know. Then those assholes from the Iron Kingdom showed up. Ever since, my life has been getting worse and worse.
Hunter: Can’t argue with you there.
Akari: Hunter, she confessed to me and we…
Hunter: You got that far? Such a shame.
Akari: Hunter, let’s finish this mission. Then I think I’ll disappear for a while. Maybe travel. Would you come with me?
Hunter: I’d love that.
Akari: Fuck this potential war. Fuck the Iron Kingdom. Fuck everything.
Hunter: Time for “fuck it” mode, huh? I’m down.
Akari: But first, we’ll make those sons of bitches pay for crossing us.
Hunter: Hear, hear.

The next morning, we continue to follow Hayim, though he is with Katzir, drinking coffee together.

Hayim: Shahar, do you know anything about women?
Katzir: It’s Katzir, and unfortunately, no. The only things I know are the things I picked up from all the older women. I was always the cute little one in my family.
Hayim: I see.
Katzir: Why do you ask?
Hayim: No reason.
Katzir: Mr. Hayim, you asked for a reason.
Hayim: Just drop it.
Katzir: Very well.

Amitay joins them not long after.

Amitay: Good morning, you two.
Both: Good morning, Amitay.
Amitay: You look like you’re having an intelligent conversation over here.
Hayim: I don’t think so. Not with me here.
Amitay: I bet you you’re wrong.
Hayim: Huh?
Amitay: So, tell me why you chose kama as your weapons.
Hayim: I tried a lot of weapons under Master Hunter’s guidance. My technique with a sword wasn’t very good and carrying around a long weapon like a spear or pole sounded tiring. I liked using two smaller axes, but I found that hooking weapons was easier with kama. That’s why I chose to use these instead.
Amitay: Hooking is a great technique in a one on one situation. I remember it nearly working against Shahar when we all first met.
Hayim: True. Aim doesn’t also have to be good compared to a sword, which was nice for me.
Amitay: You’re talking about edge alignment, right? Yes, if you don’t get that right, the cut will suffer greatly.
Hayim: Yes, that’s the right term.
Amitay: See? Intelligent conversation.
Hayim: Huh…
Katzir: When it comes to fighting, you know your stuff.
Hayim: Amitay…
Amitay: If you’ll excuse me, I think I’ll go greet some of the others who may be awake.

Amitay walks away. Drora comes out immediately after.

Katzir: Drora, were you listening?
Drora: I’m not sure what you’re talking about.

She looks out at Amitay walking away and then goes in an opposite direction.

Katzir: It seems our relationships are starting to change.

Meanwhile, Liron and Shahar are playing Shogi.

Liron: You and Hannah played this early in the morning?
Shahar: It’s something that sharpens the mind for the rest of the day.
Liron: I see. I’ve never seen someone play this passive aggressive style.
Shahar: You’re not bad yourself, but this should be over in a few moves.
Liron: Shit. You’re right.

About an hour passes and everyone has gathered together, including Hunter.

Akari: So, you’ll be heading out then?
Hunter: Yes. My team is waiting for me. Wait thirty minutes and then proceed. We need to keep things tight now that we’re down to two groups. If we run into too much trouble, we’ll send a signal into the sky.
Akari: If you happen to cross the Mohadmaht, you know what to do.
Hunter: Right.
Hayim: Master, be careful.
Hunter: I will. Help this group a little longer.
Hayim: Yes.
Hunter: Right. I’m off then.

Hunter leaves.

Akari: We have a half-hour. Get prepared. And ladies, do your hair now rather than last minute.
Liron and Drora: Okay…

Hayim goes with Akari as they get ready.

Akari: Is there something you need, Hayim?
Hayim: I was just wondering how long you’ve known Master Hunter.
Akari: Since I was 10, I think. We were schooled together for most of our years.
Hayim: I see. I think I recall seeing you a few times.
Akari: Same. It took me a while to realize that the teenager was you.
Hayim: Yeah.
Akari: You’ve changed a lot since then. And even on this journey, I can tell that you’ve grown quite a bit.
Hayim: Thank you, captain.
Akari: Have you told Liron how you feel about her?
Hayim: Yes, but how did you know?
Akari: I’m good at reading people.
Hayim: Are you? Heh.
Akari: What’s so funny?
Hayim: Nothing. I wish I was that good.
Akari: You are at a disadvantage because you were educated so late. But you’ll learn in time to fit in mentally. You have that capacity.

Akari looks towards the door of his room and smiles. On the other side of the door, we see Katzir walk away.

Katzir: So that was what was going on with him.

He walks past the next room, where Amitay and Shahar are conversing while also getting ready.

Shahar: It seems as though everyone is getting emotionally strained.
Amitay: How about you?
Shahar: Yes…even me.
Amitay: I understand.
Shahar: But it’s up to us to keep the morale going.
Amitay: You don’t have to force it. I’ll take care of it all.
Shahar: No, it’s not fair to have to task you alone.
Amitay: I can handle it. Your job is to provide the voice of tactical reason. Mine is to provide the voice of support.
Shahar: Yeah, you’re right. You’re too damn reliable; you know that?
Amitay: I certainly try.

The half-hour passes and everyone is ready to leave.

Akari: Before we leave, I want to say something to you all. I know you have all been worrying about me. I appreciate that. Last night, I was not fit to lead you into the impending danger that we face. But I’ve got my head on straight today. There will be time for me to properly grieve, but right now I am focused on the mission. I suggest that you all get your minds prepared. This is the last push before we reach our destination.
Shahar: I’m ready, captain. Use my tactical mind however you wish.
Katzir: You’ve taught me more than I could ever be grateful enough for. I’ll follow you for glory or ruin.

The rest of them nod in agreement with Katzir.

Akari: Right. Then let’s set out.

They walk away from the inn and walk through the town.

Shahar: So, captain, what exactly are we looking for as our destination?
Akari: Nothing in specific. Hunter has laid out a general area with less than a kilometer circumference. This is based on where our scouts were attacked and other miscellaneous data that he could gather.
Liron: Isn’t that a bit vague? How will we know when we’re there?
Akari: Well, that’s why Hunter went ahead of us.
Liron: And if Hunter should fail?
Akari: Then we make a tactical retreat. Captain Sentus will step in if he needs to.
Shahar: Did he say so?
Akari: No, but I know him. If there’s any chance the dragon slayers are behind this, he’ll cross hell itself to be there.
Katzir: Is there a chance?
Akari: Hunter doesn’t believe so, but anything is possible. They were brave enough to come here with just the five of them.

They make it to the edge of town. There is a large cave in front of them.

Akari: The Haero Mines. Do any of you know anything about them?
Drora: Yes. It was said that dwarves built their stronghold here before the Red Purging.

Over a century ago, dwarves inhabited what was not yet considered the Red Kingdom. They made up 50% of its population. The Red Faction, denoted by their red mage robes, formed an alliance with the Iron Faction, the humans who lived what was not yet known as the Iron Kingdom who were known by their iron armor and weapons. Together they wiped out the majority of the dwarf race. In return, the Red Kingdom after being founded aided the Iron faction to rid their land of elves. This was known as the Iron Purging, which established the Iron Kingdom. Some elves and dwarves remain even today, but their population together could only fit a small town.

Katzir: Don’t even mention the Red Purging.
Shahar: You know, the dwarves weren’t much better. They always fought with the elves, much like how we always fight the Iron Kingdom.
Liron: In the end, we were the same as them.
Amitay: Why are we going into the Haero Mines, captain?
Akari: It cuts through the ridiculous terrain that follows.

As we zoom out, we see ultra dense jungle terrain followed by mountains in the far distance. Just then, multiple footsteps are heard from behind. The group turns around to see two men wearing the black robe. The first has light skin and wears a kite shield on his back with some sort of weapon as well. He has medium length wavy hair. The second is bald and holds a spear in his hands.

Akari: It’s been a while, Drake (first one) and Ka’rud (second one).
Drake: Akari, you’re the second Sheikh to pass through here within the hour.
Ka’rud: Hunter was unwilling to explain himself. Perhaps you would.
Akari: Have you seen any suspicious activity around here lately?
Drake: Besides you two staying the night here and not bothering to say hello? No.
Akari: Sorry, it’s been a rough few days.
Shahar: So that means our attackers have been avoiding this place.
Akari: The short of it is that there are spies around…but they’re being awfully aggressive for spies. There’s something else going on here.
Ka’rud: We will be extra vigilant.
Akari: Don’t let anyone into the village unless it’s one of us or their names are either Taario or Ferra.
Ka’rud: Noted.
Drake: Hey, look, Ka. It’s Katzir.
Ka’rud: Who?
Drake: Oh, right. You don’t know him.
Katzir: Hello, Mr. Drake
Drake: It’s been three years I believe. We just heard news about Seijuro recently. Sorry, man.
Katzir: Thanks.
Drake: It feels like a little while ago where he introduced you to me. It was my second time on Red soil and I needed a guide.
Katzir: Yeah. It was scary, having the responsibility of showing a soon-to-be Sheikh around.
Akari: I hate to interrupt, but we need to get moving. Hunter didn’t seem to linger here for very long, so we can’t afford to either.
Katzir: Right.
Ka’rud: Safe travels, Akari.

Akari holds out a torch and Amitay lights it on fire. They turn to the cave and enter.


With civilization behind them, they press onto the final stage of this journey!

They are walking through the cave as the light from behind them becomes less and less intense. Eventually, only the fire from the torch gives them any light source.

Katzir: I thought this was a mine, not a cave.
Akari: It starts as a cave, but then leads to the main thing. Historically, the dwarves used this strategy to bottleneck the humans. It ended up working against them, however.
Hayim: How?
Akari: With the use of fire magic, they were able to destroy what little oxygen they had. Most of them died by inhaling too much carbon dioxide.
Hayim: I don’t get it.
Akari: All you need to know is that they breathed what they shouldn’t have and died from it.
Shahar: So, who was that Drake? He spoke as if he was a spy.
Akari: Drake was a knight of Aegis until three years ago. He defected and came to our side, killing many Iron soldiers in the process. Due to his power, he was granted Sheikh rank very quickly.
Liron: Do you know why he switched sides?
Katzir: He said that he was tired of the system in the Iron Kingdom. He was amazed by our culture and wanted to switch, I suppose.
Liron: That sounds suspicious.

They hit a clearing in the cave where everything opens up. Akari notices some braziers near by and lights them. Drora suddenly draws her bow and shoots in the dark. A thump is heard. When Akari gets closer to the sound, we see that she shot a goblin in the neck.

Liron: Nice, Drora.
Drora: I have a feeling that’s not the only one around.
Shahar: It’s possible that Hunter moving through here could have alerted whatever lives down here.
Liron: In other words, he left all the hard work to us.
Akari: From now on, no side conversation. We all need to have our senses active.

Akari puts one hand on the ground.

Akari: I can’t feel any movement in the immediate area as of right now.
Liron: How does that work exactly?
Akari: I have my mana running through the floor at a certain radius. If someone or something disturbs it, I will know. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t someone there. Understand?
Shahar: That means if someone is still, you can’t detect it.
Akari: Right.

They continue moving. With two braziers lit, they are able to navigate slightly better than before. They are going down a flight of steep steps where the drop is very low. As they level off after the stairs, Amitay bumps into something.

Amitay: What’s this?
Akari: Hmm, it’s a mine cart in the way. Did Hunter even go this way?
Shahar: I’m sure there is more than one way through. Liron, help me move this.

The two of them push the rusted mine cart aside and they continue on the path. They see another brazier on the path and light it.

Drora: We’re really high up…or the mines are really low!
Amitay: Just keep looking forward, Drora.

They reach a narrow strip. They form a line and walk across one by one. There is a gap just after that in the path.

Liron: We’ll have to make that jump.
Shahar: Not necessary.

Shahar creates a barrier that bridges the gap. Hayim carefully steps on the barrier and sees that it is solid.

Hayim: Woah.
Shahar: I’m not sure what you’re surprised about. You’ve fought against the barrier before.
Hayim: I know, but it’s partly see-through. It looks like I’ll fall through it.

They cross the barrier bridge and then Shahar lets it dissipate. They pass through what looks like a doorway and then a brazier already lights the next room. It’s a small room that has three doorways, including the one they just came from.

Akari: Thank you, Hunter. You actually did something useful for us.
Liron: At least we know he came this way.

Akari touches the ground again and closes his eyes.

Akari: We’re being followed.
Shahar: What?
Drora: Wait, they’re coming from all three sides.
Shahar: We need to cut them off at the doorways. Amitay, take one.
Amitay: On it.
Shahar: I’ll take this one. Liron, can you handle the last one?
Liron: Yes.

The three of them get to the doorways and wait. They all have their weapons ready.

Akari: Katzir, Hayim, you stand by with me. We’ll let them handle this. Drora, you stay vocal. You need to call out what you sense.
Drora: Yes, captain!

Drora draws her bow.

Drora: Amitay, it’s coming.
Amitay: Right.

Amitay thrusts through the dark with his pole and hits something.

Amitay: I hit something.
Drora: Shahar, multiple opponents coming!
Shahar: Thanks!

Shahar takes a step back and allows one figure to pass through the doorway. The second that happens, he creates a barrier behind it to block anything else from passing. It turns out to be a goblin with a rusty dagger. Shahar bashes it in the head with his mace, squashing its head. A thump is also heard on the other side of the barrier.

Shahar: They’re goblins!
Drora: Liron, duck!

Liron does so and Drora shoots an arrow over her head, also hitting a target. Another figure busts through the doorway, but Liron is quick to cut it down with one of her scimitars.

Drora: Amitay, you have five enemies coming through!
Akari: Torch them all at once!

Amitay shoots a cylindrical blast of fire out of his staff and screams are heard on the other side.

Drora: Nice shot. Shahar, there are just two more on your side and we’re done.

She loads another arrow. Shahar drops his barrier and Drora shoots. Another figure comes through, but quickly. Shahar misses with his mace and then it becomes clear what the figure is.

Shahar: Shit. Vampire!

Just then, the vampire is rammed from the side and pushed into the wall. It’s Katzir, with dark aura around him. While stunned, Hayim steps in and embeds one kama into its head, killing it.

Akari: Nice one, Katzir. Nice follow up, Hayim.
Drora: That’s all of them.
Akari: Yes. You all did well. Your teamwork is steadily improving.
Liron: Drora, nice calls.
Akari: I agree. You were able to prioritize which enemies needed immediate attention. I wanted to see how you would do, and your calls matched how I would have done so.
Drora: Aww, captain. You’re so sweet. *wink*
Akari: A-anyway, we’ll take two minutes to rest and then we press on.

They all sit down against the various walls available to them.

Shahar: Is it necessary to rest, captain? We haven’t had to expend much mana yet.
Akari: These mines run deep. We need to take our time going through, or we could be in trouble. Stamina conservation is one thing, but my concern is slightly more than that.
Shahar: Hmm, I think I see where you’re going. The ones we faced could have followed us and become a greater threat if they joined other creatures.
Akari: Correct. Thanks to Hunter, whatever lives down here has to be on high alert. If we can pick off our threats in small groups, we stand a better chance in the dark while we’re at a slight disadvantage.
Shahar: Yes, that makes sense.
Akari: Shahar, you will make a fine commander on the battlefield. Even when you don’t understand something, you take notes to learn from.
Shahar: I appreciate that, captain. You’re only two years older than me and yet your experience far surpasses my own.
Akari: I was born in an unfortunate time, or fortunate depending on your viewpoint. I fought in three wars. That’s three more than any man should have to.
Shahar: Three? You mean to tell me you fought when you were only a teenager?
Akari: Yes. The first war I fought in was 11 years ago. Hunter was with me, though Helen was not.
Shahar: No? Why not?
Akari: In those days, there was a serious concern about women being too under populated, so they limited the number of female fighters. In just a decade, we have managed to change that. A lot more girls were born since then.
Shahar: I see. That seems reasonable.
Akari: It’s one of the reasons Helen fell behind us in terms of power for a while. We were scared shitless out on the battlefield, but it also made us stronger. I remember Hassar showing up and saving our asses. He was a year younger than us, and yet he showed such courage.
Liron: My brother saved you?
Akari: Hard to believe? Hunter and I would surpass him, true. But back then we just had a different mindset from him. Another man I looked up to back then was Seijuro. Well, every Sheikh did to some extent.
Katzir: Yeah. It seems like everyone wants to talk about him.
Akari: I couldn’t believe it when I heard he had been killed. And then I nearly ended up getting killed by underestimating the same people. I’ve always found new people to look up to. Captain Sentus is the person who I currently admire. Do you know what he told me? He said, “Stop relying on people who will most certainly die in battle”. So I followed his advice. Captain Sentus won’t die in battle. He’s too strong.

There is a few seconds of silence.

Akari: Well, I suppose that was longer than two minutes. Let’s get moving.

They all stand up and continue on. They go through one of the doorways. There is a wall lantern lit across the room. It illuminates steep steps that wind down below their sight.

Drora: So…who wants to go down the staircase of doom first?
Akari: I have the torch, so I will lead the way.

They travel down the steps.

Amitay: I’m not sure how well my magic is going to do down here.
Shahar: Use it when you need to, but don’t go crazy. We’ll run out of oxygen very quickly if you do.
Akari: We’ll rely on Liron for lighting purposes if we get into a big fight.
Liron: Yes.

They eventually reach the bottom of the steps.

Akari: Hmm…this area. There’s a strong echo. Liron, if you would, please.
Liron: Yeah.

She releases a ball of electricity that lingers in mid-air. The area becomes visible in flashes of light. What can be seen is a grand hall. There are many braziers that can be lit. The ball flickers and then eventually goes out.

Akari: That’s just fine. Let’s light this area up.

Akari lights the braziers one by one till the whole area is lit by fire. The grand hall is separated by huge stone columns. The area itself is so huge that one cannot even see either end.

Shahar: This is…amazing. I can’t believe small people built such a huge hall.
Akari: Magnificent architecture.
Liron: So the dwarves were able to travel underground. That’s how they were able to survive as long as they did against our superior armies.
Akari: According to legend, a great battle took place here. This is where the ruler of dwarves surrendered and was killed.

They press on until they see an end. When they get close enough, they see a stone throne and a coffin in front of it. Shahar dusts off the top of the coffin to see the inscription. “Here lies Ogden, King of Dwarves. Our king now and forever.”

Liron: The humans must have allowed them to honor their king in return for their unconditional surrender.
Amitay: At least they allowed them that dignity. To think that we’re seeing our kingdom’s place of birth with our own eyes.
Shahar: That’s certainly one way to put it.
Akari: Something is wrong.
Drora: What is it?
Akari: There is something that lingers here. If I had to describe it, it’s like a very old magic is at work here. And yet, it’s familiar. It feels almost like…no. We’re in serious danger here.

Suddenly, they can hear footsteps and turn around. Skeletons are walking towards them. They are small.

Shahar: Wights? No, that’s not right.
Liron: These are the bones of dwarves, clearly. What does this mean, captain?
Akari: It means that we need to get the hell out of here.

Behind them, the coffin begins to open. Bluish-white aura seeps out of the coffin and a voice speaks to them. It is dark, hellish and yet sounds like an intense whisper.

Voice: בני אדם, אתה בגדת בנו, רצח אותנו. סובל כפי שעשה בעבר.
Drora: “Humans, you betrayed us, murdered us. Suffer, as we once did.” How is it that I just understood what that voice said?
Liron: I did too.
Akari: This is an arcane spell. Are you the dwarven king?!

Everything from here on is automatically translated for your convenience.

Voice: I am…or I once was.
Akari: Over a hundred years have passed since that time! Those who did you harm are long dead!
Voice: It matters not how many generations pass. My hatred is ever-present!
Akari: Then that makes you no better than our ancestors.
Voice: Suffer. Suffer. SUFFER!

From the coffin, another skeleton rises. It wears a silver crown, embezzled with many jewels. It jumps at the group, but Shahar steps in the way and bashes it with his mace. The skeleton shatters.

Shahar: That was creepy as hell. Let’s go.
Amitay: Well said.

The skeleton of the dwarf king reforms, however.

Akari: When I said that this spell felt familiar, that’s what I meant.
Shahar: Oh.

Skeletons have them surrounded. Akari takes his flail out.

Akari: Blunt attacks work best. We cut through them and leave this place.
Voice: SUFFER! SUFFER! SUFFER!
Akari: Never mind. We’re not staying here any longer.

Akari stomps on the ground and makes a ripple through the ground, tripping up all the skeletons. They use this opportunity to run past them and away.

Hayim: Guys, I think we went the wrong way the first time.
Shahar: You think?!
Hayim: By the way, who was that guy? He sounded creepy.
Shahar: I’m not putting up with your bullshit right now, Hayim!
Katzir: That was scary!

After a while, they stop running and start to breath heavy. Akari and Katzir are the least winded at this point.

Amitay: The air is so thin…it’s hard to breath properly after running.
Katzir: My martial arts training included breathing control, so I’m okay for now, but yes.
Akari: This is a race against time, but we also can’t rush through this place.

They continue walking, still with no end to the hall in sight. Eventually, their torch is the only source of light they have again.

Drora: Captain, do you know how that spell was cast? I thought dwarves couldn’t use magic.
Akari: It could have been elven magic, but that seems off. I’m not entirely sure. I just know that it felt similar to when Hamas would summon the dead. Perhaps it was a human who sympathized with them.
Shahar: For a spell to linger for so long, what kind of power would that take?
Akari: Arcane magic works by its definition is mysterious. There are only a few people each generation that can work it.
Liron: Is it an affinity anyone can learn like dark?
Akari: Not exactly. The person who used that spell likely had the affinity for life magic and ended up becoming one of the first necromancers. He or she somehow learned a spell with that type that we would consider arcane.
Katzir: So, what you’re saying is that if someone says “arcane magic”, they really mean an ancient and difficult spell within their specific affinity.
Akari: Yes. Very good, Katzir.
Hayim: Do you know any, captain?
Akari: No. I’ve never heard of any earth arcane magic. I’m sure the general has at least one from her affinity in her arsenal though. Ah, come to think of it…
Liron: You know someone who does?
Akari: The three legendary heroes of the Iron Kingdom all knew arcane magic. That made it extremely difficult to bring them down, especially as a trio.
Shahar: Those guys, huh?
Akari: As a twist, I heard that three of the dragon slayers are related to them. Makes sense why they were so strong.
Liron: Did you ever see those three fight?
Akari: No, but I saw the aftermath of that battle three years ago.
Katzir: You mean the battle that all three captains nearly died in? My cousin spoke very highly of that battle. But he always went quiet and wouldn’t answer exactly what went down in that fight.
Akari: Captain Sentus is the same way. He forbids us from asking him about that fight. Something happened there that was not meant to ever be seen by other eyes.
Shahar: What the hell could have happened?

After some time…

Hayim: Hey, a door.

They reach a large door that is about twenty feet tall and wide enough that they could all theoretically line up horizontally and be able to go through.

Drora: That’s one big ass door.
Shahar: It’s slightly open. I’m guessing because Hunter has been through here.
Akari: Yeah, you would hope so.

They are able to go through one by one with the size of the opening. They see a staircase that winds up like how the previous staircase did.

Katzir: Time to climb, I guess.
Akari: Yeah…no thanks. All of you huddle up. Shahar, create two barriers here and here *points with both hands*.
Shahar: Yes, captain.

Shahar makes two barriers that are on opposite sides of Akari. The group gets close to him and he puts one hand on the floor. The floor rises up in a cylindrical shape. The floor keeps rising, like an elevator, till it becomes too thin to continue going.

Akari: That’ll have to do. We’re about halfway up, so we can walk the rest of the way up.

They jump onto the staircase and then start the climb up.

Akari: As much as I didn’t want to waste the mana, we lost some time by going the wrong way.
Amitay: We haven’t had to use too much yet anyway.

They make it up the steps. There is a lantern, already lit, waiting for them.

Hayim: Master…

Hayim takes the lantern. They continue on where there is a faint light source.

Shahar: Is that…moonlight? Have we been down here that long?
Liron: Perception of time is seriously messed up here.
Akari: Well, we were walking that long hall for a very long time. It felt much quicker though.
Amitay: That means we’re almost out of here, if we can see moonlight.

Just then, they hear a faint growl of some sort.

Drora: Of course.
Akari: Fucking hell, Hunter. He didn’t kill a single thing down here.
Drora: Something’s approaching us fast!

A figure quickly moves its way towards the group. They all jump out of the way. As it moves into the light, we can see that it is a chimera.

Shahar: Ah shit. A fucking chimera.

Being the closest to it, the chimera swipes one of its front paws at Shahar, who puts up a barrier. The attack shatters the barrier and blows Shahar away. Liron appears behind the beast with her swords drawn. The snake portion lunges at her, which she is able to dodge. She attacks with her sword, but the cut does negligible damage to the snake. The chimera bucks with its hind legs, knocking Liron’s swords out of her hands. She then shoots a bolt of lightning at it, but it does not seem to irritate it much.

Akari: Magic won’t do much to it!

The goat turns its attention to Liron and breaths fire out of its mouth. Amitay and Hayim step in. Hayim creates a small blast of water, which weakens the fire blast. Amitay takes over by using a blast of his own. With Hayim’s prior help, Amitay’s blast overtakes the goat’s and leaves a small burn mark on the goat’s head. Meanwhile, Katzir jumps towards the lion head, clad in dark magic aura. The chimera is able to intercept Katzir with its paw and bats him away. Suddenly, a barrier appears in the direction that Katzir is flying.

Shahar: Katzir! Heads up!
Katzir: Thanks!

Katzir uses the barrier as a footstool and pushes off to launch himself back at the lion head. He lands a punch to the top of its head, which makes it growl in pain. It goes for another attack, but an arrow pierces through its left eye and its next paw swipe completely misses Katzir. On the other side of the fight, the snake spits venom at Liron, Amitay and Hayim, but Hayim is able to block it with a bit of water. Liron surrounds herself with electricity, but then activates dark magic on top of it. We see her focusing, till her electricity turns to a dark purple. She leaps up into the air while Katzir does the same from the other side. They both hit the ceiling with their feet and kick off at the same time. They both attack the chimera right in the middle of its back. Katzir punches and Liron kicks. Meanwhile, Akari creates a large stone spike under its stomach. The force of the attack sends it into the spike, stabbing it a few inches deep. All three of the heads make noises in response. The chimera dislodges itself from the spike and runs away, deeper into the mines.

Amitay: We did it.
Drora: Yeah, now let’s get the fuck out of here before it decides it wants a round two.


To be continued…

The group makes it to the end of the cavern and step outside.

Shahar: I never thought I would appreciate air this much.
Liron: No kidding.
Akari: That’d probably a good place to train fire magic, if it didn’t have all that creepy shit down there.
Shahar: Captain, do you think Hunter is camping out for the night?
Akari: It’s likely. Moving in the dark in these parts is too dangerous. We didn’t have a choice in the mines, but now at least we do. We’ll make up for lost time by going just a bit further and then we’ll rest.

They make it to an open grass field just outside of a forest. They have camped out there.

Amitay: What does our food supply look like?
Akari: After re-supplying in the town, we’re doing well.
Shahar: That makes the trip back rather pleasant.
Akari: Take some time to get ready, then we sleep. Tomorrow could very well be when we reach our destination.

They scatter into smaller groups as they set up their beds.

Amitay: Hello, Drora.
Drora: Amitay, I wanted to speak with you one more time.
Amitay: What can I do for you?
Drora: Why…are you so nice to everyone?
Amitay: What do you mean?
Drora: It seems no matter who it is, you’re always trying to be so helpful.
Amitay: Hmm…I’m not sure why. I just feel like it.
Drora: I’ve never seen anyone act this way before.
Amitay: Really? Does it bother you?
Drora: No. I actually really like that about you.
Amitay: You do?
Drora: Yes. Most people treat me nicely because of who my family is, or because of how I look. I could always tell there were no strings attached to your kindness. I love that.
Amitay: Thank you, Drora. No one has ever told me that before.

Shahar: Looks like Drora’s going all in.
Hayim: I wonder what Amitay is going to say.
Akari: It’s not any of our business, really.
Shahar: Does that hurt, seeing it, captain?
Akari: Maybe a little. How about you, Shahar? Are you okay letting her go after Amitay like that?
Shahar: Why wouldn’t I? Are you trying to imply something?
Akari: *Smirk* Okay, if that’s how it is…
Hayim: What are you two talking about?

Katzir: Ms. Liron, I want to ask you something.
Liron: What is it?
Katzir: How do you feel after telling us your story?
Liron: A little better, I suppose. It wasn’t easy to tell you guys though.
Katzir: I understand. I don’t think I would have the courage.
Liron: Katzir, it’s hard to tell, because you would be a different person if you went through different circumstances.
Katzir: I guess that’s true.
Liron: Besides, I think you have plenty of courage.
Katzir: You mean it?
Liron: After killing Yusuk, you could have run away from your problems. It would have been easier to go home and forget ever using magic again. But that’s not what happened, is it?
Katzir: No.
Liron: You may act the way you do, but you pushed through your situation. Don’t ever forget that.

Katzir starts to sob.

Liron: Oh jeez. My bad.
Katzir: Thank you. You have no idea how hard it was to hear the general tell me that I was a liability.
Liron: Ah, right. I forgot about that. She told me that I would surpass Hassar if I stay under Sheikh Akari. I only hope that’s true.
Katzir: *Sniff* Well, I didn’t know your brother, but I’m sure you can do it.
Liron: Thanks, Katzir.

The group sleeps and awakens the next morning without incident. After getting ready, they traverse into the ensuing woods.

Drora: Please no bugs, please no bugs, please no bugs.
Liron: Stop it, Drora. You’re making me itchy.
Drora: I’m sorry! I can’t help it!

Just then, they all stop. They can all feel a presence coming towards them slowly. As it becomes viewable, they are all surprised. Akari smiles.

Akari: So you’ve come, Mohadmaht.

The Mohadmaht stops just 20 feet from the group.

Mohadmaht: A second chance comes at eating you. I won’t let this opportunity slip, mage.
Akari: Unfortunately, things won’t go quite the same.
Shahar: We need to all gang up on him. It’ll go smoother this way.
Akari: Sorry, Shahar. I need to take this one myself.
Shahar: Captain, this isn’t like you to be so rash!
Akari: I know I’m supposed to lead by example, but I need this. I order you all to stand back.

They all do.

Liron: Don’t worry. The captain wouldn’t do this if he didn’t have a plan.
Mohadmaht: So, you have offered your body first. The most powerful taste the best.
Akari: Sorry, but you took me by surprise the last time. You’ll find that things are different.

Akari surrounds himself with dark magic. The Mohadmaht charges at Akari quickly and swings his maul at him. Akari dodges it and then dodges another attack.

Amitay: Maybe it is better that he fights alone. It’s hard for us to keep up with this level of speed.

Akari now takes the offensive and gets in close. The Mohadmaht shoots a few ice shards out of one hand, but Akari ducks under them. *Music* He focuses an extra amount of dark magic into his hand and places his palm onto the Mohadmaht’s stomach. All of the sudden, he is blown back and sent through a tree, snapping it instantly. When the Mohadmaht gets up, there is some blood coming from his mouth.

Mohadmaht: What did you do to me?
Akari: Heh. It worked.
Mohadmaht: Answer me!
Akari: Nah. I don’t feel like it.
Shahar: I see. So that’s what he did. You all saw it too, right?

They all nod.

Mohadmaht: Either way, I just need to stop you from touching me.

He covers himself in ice. Akari pulls out his flail. The Mohadmaht charges in again, but with much less speed. Akari easily avoids his swing and then attacks with the flail. It busts open the ice around his torso and Akari repeats what he did before, blowing the Mohadmaht back again.

Akari: By making your body stiffer, you can’t move nearly as fast.
Mohadmaht: You, you’re different.

He sits up and starts coughing blood. He turns to run away, but Akari stomps on the ground and the ground below grabs him and incapacitates him.

Akari: Forgot about my earth magic already?
Shahar: You injected dark magic directly into his body, didn’t you?
Akari: Correct. Similar to the process of how I was able to awaken all of you, but on a lethal scale. I figured if his exterior is too hard, his insides have to be fragile enough. Though, that would have killed most people.

They approach the Mohadmaht. The group stays a fair distance away as Akari goes up to him. *Music Stops*

Akari: Now, maybe you have some information for me.
Mohadmaht: What exactly are you looking for?
Akari: What has come this way?
Mohadmaht: I think others have been this way. I cannot tell you any more than that.
Akari: That I believe. Now, how about this one. Are you the only one of your kind?
Mohadmaht: Haha. Now that IS a good question. Truthfully, I cannot tell you if any of them are still alive.
Akari: So then, it’s safe to say there are other creatures that can use magic.

The Mohadmaht smirks and snickers. Akari seems mystified.

Akari: I can’t believe it. It’s like we’ve been living a lie.
Mohadmaht: Is that all?
Akari: That’s all I can get from you. Mythical creature or not, you’re in our way. You have to die.
Mohadmaht: Hmph. Who told you this fight was over?

The Mohadmaht unleashes ice shards from every part of his body. Akari dodges backwards and uses his flail to bash two of them that come his way. A few go towards the group, but Amitay makes a small fire barrier that melts them. The Mohadmaht breaks out of the ground and starts powering up rapidly.

Akari: Was he figuring out a way to beat me?

Akari sends a ripple through the ground to set him off balance. He stops powering up and then tries to regain his footing. He does and then rushes for Akari at great speed. Akari narrowly dodges a swing from his maul.

Akari: He’s faster than before.

Akari goes for a counterattack, but the Mohadmaht covers that part of his body with ice. Akari retracts his hand and jumps back.

Mohadmaht: I’ll repeat what you said to me. You’ll find that things are different.
Akari: Maybe you’re right.

Akari readies his flail as the Mohadmaht appears in front of him. Akari dodges four consecutive strikes and then goes for one of his own. Again, that part of the body becomes encased in ice. Akari hits with the flail, but before he can then attack with his hand, another maul attack comes through. Akari is forced to dodge again. This process repeats four different times and then they make distance between each other.

Akari: Not bad. You’ve been able to effectively keep me out.
Mohadmaht: I should say that to you for being able to dodge every single swing. You won’t be able to do it for much longer. Surely all that dodging is getting to you.
Akari: Are you sure you don’t want to join the Red Kingdom? We could really use talent like that.
Mohadmaht: I eat humans. I do not join them.
Akari: It’s a shame. You would be a Sheikh if not for your one lacking attribute.
Mohadmaht: What? What do you mean?
Akari: You’ll know soon enough.

Maddened, he shoots a few ice shards at Akari. He is able to parry with his flail, but the Mohadmaht appears behind him. Akari shifts the earth under him to move out of the way of the downward strike. Akari counters. As the Mohadmaht encases his side with ice, it’s thinner than before. This surprises him, but not Akari. He goes through with the attack and injects dark magic into him. The ice does block a small portion of it, but he is still sent to the ground. He tries to get up, but Akari surrounds himself with dark magic. He starts flailing with his hands as the ground below the Mohadmaht starts to morph irregularly. It continuously pulls him down while wrapping around him. The Mohadmaht rips out of the ground’s grip, but it just grabs him again. Eventually, he is halfway underground and his arms are bound by thick hardened dirt and rock.

Akari: That’s it for you.
Mohadmaht: I can’t move. What was that? Why couldn’t I block your attack?
Akari: Since you implied last time that you don’t really feel the need to use magic much, you shouldn’t be aware of your mana ceiling.
Mohadmaht: What…you’re right.
Akari: You’ve probably never used it this much, so you’ve never ran out of mana.
Mohadmaht: From one small remark…
Akari: You weren’t observant enough at my moves. If you were, you might have figured out what I was doing.
Hayim: What’s he talking about?
Liron: After the first time that the Mohadmaht stopped the captain from attacking, he never used dark magic until that last attack. Meaning, he was never going for the kill in that long string of dodging and countering.
Shahar: That first couple of attacks was enough to intimidate him into thinking that a killing strike was coming. So much so that he didn’t notice what was actually going on. And yet, if he saw through that, the captain could have just concentrated dark magic at the last second anyway. It was a multi-layered plan.
Mohadmaht: You thought this through very well. I thought I was the one thinking, but you already had this fight won before we even started.
Liron: So, this is how a true Sheikh fights.
Akari: Katzir, come here. The rest of you should watch this as well.

The group gets closer.

Akari: I’m going to show you how this technique works. Keep it in the back of your mind for down the road when you all become even more proficient with dark magic.

Akari holds out his left hand, which has some dark aura radiating off it.

Akari: If an amateur touches something or someone with dark magic, it will instantly harm whatever that is on the outside. It can be used to awaken dark magic potential, but it’s not ideal. But, once you have a certain amount of control over it…

Akari’s left hand touches Katzir’s shoulder. Nothing happens.

Katzir: What? How can this be?
Akari: My control has become good enough that I can stop it from harming you. But, once you’ve mastered that, you can send dark magic through the openings in someone’s body and force it to attack his or her internally. Even the Mohadmaht here has them. Allow me to demonstrate one more time.
Mohadmaht: Wait, what?
Akari: Didn’t you hear me before? You’re in our way.

Akari focuses a decent amount of dark aura into his left hand and puts it on the Mohadmaht’s forehead.

Akari: Focus on that hand. Imagine that mana seeping through the body peacefully. And then…

Akari’s hand tenses up and then there is a loud bang, where the Mohadmaht’s head gyrates and then falls limp.

Hayim: …Cool!
Liron: Did…you just make his brain implode?
Akari: Pretty much. Well, this technique is not exactly easy to control. So don’t try to perform it anytime soon. Hahahaha.
Shahar: (lower) He just wanted to show off, didn’t he?
Amitay: Captain, how’s your stamina?
Akari: Pretty good. I tried to conserve as much as possible. Though that last earth attack was somewhat draining.

Akari sits down next to the dead Mohadmaht.

Akari: I need just a moment and then I’ll be ready to move on.
Shahar: I don’t know if it’s processing, but you just killed a legendary monster. By yourself.
Akari: He haunted at least one of my dreams as a child. So that’s what he gets. Well, yes, it is definitely a rare thing for anyone. But then again, there aren’t many people who make it to Sheikh rank.
Liron: I’m convinced now that you’re in the top 5 most powerful fighters in the Red Kingdom.
Akari: Competition is running low these days. Drake is pretty strong too. Oh and of course there’s Hunter. Though strictly speaking, if we’re talking power alone, then yes I’m in the top 5.
Katzir: I think that’s why Mr. Hunter wanted you to teach me dark magic.
Akari: We had a conversation about that. You’re right. Anyway, let’s get moving.

He stands up and they take one more look at the Mohadmaht. They then press on.

Amitay: Shahar, do you have a moment?
Shahar: Yeah.

The two of them hang back a bit. They are talking in lower volume so that the others cannot hear them.

Amitay: I’m sure you saw Drora and I talking last night.
Shahar: Yeah. What’s going on?
Amitay: She didn’t outright say anything, so I’m not sure.
Shahar: She seems very interested in you.
Amitay: In what way, though?
Shahar: I see. Do you think her “love” is shallow?
Amitay: That’s what I’m trying to find out. Your perception surpasses mine, so I was hoping you would know better.
Shahar: Listen, bro. Even the captain can’t perceive women.
Amitay: Hah. That’s unfortunate.
Shahar: Does it really matter, though? What if she just wants to sleep with you a few times and be done?
Amitay: I’m not sure of my own feelings, Shahar. I think I’m fine with experimenting. But I want to be cautious so I don’t hurt anyone in the process.
Shahar: That’s very much like you.
Amitay: What about you? I also don’t want to cross your feelings.
Shahar: Why does everyone assume I like Drora?
Amitay: You don’t?
Shahar: I didn’t say that.
Amitay: So you do.
Shahar: I didn’t say that either.
Amitay: It’s cool. You don’t have to voice your feelings. But you know…
Shahar: Hmm?
Amitay: Someone is bound to confess to her eventually. If not, her family will eventually set her up in an arranged marriage. If someone were to take her, don’t you think as a friend that it would be better for someone that she chooses?
Shahar: Yes. You’re right about that.
Amitay: Then, if you do like Drora now or come to do so in the future, you should say so.
Shahar: This conversation. It was going to be about me the whole time, wasn’t it?
Amitay: As I said, you’re more perceptive than I.

They bump fists casually. They get closer to the group.

Drora: What were you two talking about?
Shahar: None of your damn business.
Drora: Amitay, tell me!
Shahar: Don’t sidestep me.
Amitay: We were discussing the finer points of geography.
Liron: *snicker* You’re a shit liar. Don’t worry, Drora. You know how we have girl talk? They have guy talk too.
Drora: They do? I just thought that meant they talk about who they want to fuck.
Liron: I doubt it.

Liron turns her head to Amitay, who mouths “thank you” to her. She nods her head and then turns her head forward again.

Shahar: By the way, volleyball is back in season as of today.
Hayim: How do they know that? It’s always hot enough to play.
Shahar: They just decide a time to rest the players. It coincides with the end of the football season, to keep the entertainment going.
Hayim: Oh.
Katzir: I wonder who won the football season.
Liron: Well if those lesbians that Drora went to school with are on the same team…
Drora: They’re not lesbians!
Liron: I think I saw a bulge on one of them.
Drora: Nope!
Amitay: The capital has the majority of the best football teams.
Katzir: Maybe we should make our own team.
Akari: What?
Katzir: We need 9 players, right? We have 7. The captain could probably convince Mr. Hunter to join and he can bring two from his team.
Hayim: That’s a great idea, Shahar.
Katzir: Katzir…
Shahar: Hmm, but who would be what position?
Katzir: Ms. Liron and I would be the forwards (AKA the scorers), the captain would be mid-field (the person who plays the entire field), Mr. Hunter and Amitay would be the half-backs (can go on offense or defense), Mr. Shahar would be the sweeper (main defensive position) and Drora would be a striker (defensive position at the back). Hayim could be a stopper (front defensive position).
Shahar: You really thought this one out. I’m guessing this isn’t the first time you thought of this.
Katzir: You caught me.
Akari: I’m not a big fan of sports, but it would probably be fun to try.
Drora: I hate sports. Sorry.
Katzir: Sorry.
Drora: It’s fine.
Liron: By the way, captain. I have a question about Sheikh Drake. Have you ever fought him weapons only?
Akari: I have not, but I’ve seen what he can do with weapons alone. He definitely shows the royal knight prowess that you hear so much about.

The group stops.

Akari: Here they come.


More trouble?!