A man in his early twenties is standing at a small entrance to the cave he and two other people are in and peers outside.
He watches a large Manticore stomp back and forth in front of the cave entrance, its scorpion's tail lifelessly dragging behind its powerful lion's body which is the same size as four humans combined.
"Looks like we're trapped inside here for a while." He says, ruffling through his spiky brown hair as he looks towards his two comrades, a muscular man in his mid-twenties and a green haired girl of the same age with a slender build and fair skin, almost seeming violet in color.
"Well, at least that means I have time to treat my wound." The man whose body's dimension remind one of a bear due to his massive muscles threatening to burst out from under his clothes says.
"Yeah. Lina, can you help him?" The younger man of the two asks the girl.
"Sure, Dagonet take off your armor and shirt." The green haired woman tells their muscular friend, who's bleeding from the side of his stomach.
"Are you sure the tail didn't hit you before I managed to crush it?" The brown-haired man asks, watching his large comrade peel off a metal shoulder armor and his blue jacket, which has a hole where the Manticore managed to land a hit on him.
"Yes. I only got hit by its paw Ben." The muscle packed man replies, pulling a blood splattered, white shirt over his head, revealing his wide torso which shows multiple scars and his blood covered side.
"Can you hand me my bag?" Lina asks Ben, holding out her hand with Ben placing her brown leather bag in it, after collecting it from where she put it down against a wall earlier to help Dagonet sit down at the end of the cave.
"Thanks." She says, rummaging through the bag and takes out a few leaves and a bandage.
"This is going to sting." Lina tells Dagonet, pushing the leaves against and into the wound, before wrapping the bandage around his stomach tightly.
"It wasn't that bad." Dagonet tells her, squeezing her hand comfortingly.
"What is going on with Ben? He's not acting like himself?" Lina asks him, looking over to the brunette teen wearing a red cloak reaching to the middle of his thighs over a black dress shirt and white, dirty cargo pants. His shoes originally are black in color, but the color faded to a dull grey from daily wear.
"He got hit in his head by that rockslide earlier." Dagonet informs her, grabbing a fistful of his black pants with metal plates providing protection in a few places.
"Ben! You still with us leader?" Dagonet asks loudly.
"Yeah, I think. I just keep remembering my past." Ben groans, holding his head which feels like someone is trying to kick in his temple.
"I'm going to get some rest. We won't be able to leave for a while anyways. Are you OK with taking watch Lina?" Ben asks, getting a nod from the woman who is dressed in a green dress with black diamond shaped spots decorating it and a large hole at her stomach and the back of her shoulders, giving her more flexibility. She also wears black high heeled sandals and has a quiver with arrows sticking out over her shoulder along with a blue pouch strapped to her left thigh. Her usually wavy hair is now out of her usual ponytail reaching to her waist and is now sticking to her dress, limply hanging behind her.
"We're fine. Rest Ben, you haven't slept enough the whole time we were on the quest." Dagonet says, while Ben sits down against a wall near the only cave opening.
"Thanks guys. I couldn't wish for a better... family." He says sleepily, drifting off into an uneasy slumber.
When Ben falls asleep he is replaying his childhood in his mind.
"But, what did he do?" A 6-year-old Ben asks, a dagger in his hand right hand, while his father has his other hand firmly placed over an old looking book.
"He is an enemy of this kingdom and he has what belongs to you. The true leader skill. It's supposed to be yours." Ben's father says, the man's cold eyes staring at him expectantly.
"But I don't want to kill him." Ben says nervously, looking at the middle-aged man kneeling in front of him with a brown bag over his head to hide his face.
"Ben, do it!" The kid's father says firmly, roughly grabbing Ben's right hand and pushes the dagger up against the other man's chest, just above his heart.
"I'm sorry." Ben says, squeezing his eyes shut and stabs the unknown man in his chest, killing him quickly.
"So? Did it work?" Ben's father asks the three other men in the room, one of which holds up a clear crystal and nods his head with a large smile.
"Yes. The Gods have chosen your son to carry the skill of true leadership." The man with the crystal answers.
"Congratulations Ben. You have a successful and bright future ahead of you, I just know it." Ben's father tells him, while Ben is staring at the now dead man lying in a pool of blood at his small feet.
"Let's tell your siblings of the good news." The man says, picking up Ben and seats him on his shoulder while placing the child's dagger next to the old book.
"Why did I have to kill that man?" Ben asks quietly from his seat on his father's shoulders.
"Because you are a noble undergoing the skill ceremony. And as a noble you deserve a rare and powerful skill. This skill you have received from the Gods is one of the most sought after things in the world. It's one of the 10 legendary skills. You should be excited you're the only person in the world who possess this skill now and Sir Berut will be helping you understand its abilities." His father explains.
"So, the person before me was the man at the altar?" Ben asks curiously.
"Yes. But don't worry he was just some clueless man from one of the 3 minor countries. He held no value, especially not compared to you my son. If fate shall have it, you may even inherit the throne from your Granduncle." Is his father's reply.