A scratch appeared on my face as I dodged out of the way of a heavy punch, keeping my distance from my opponent. I slid through the dirt and held my hands out, ready to block another attack. Azrael and I were currently sparring, as we have been for almost the entire trip. I knew he was good in hand-to-hand combat, but he had greatly surpassed my original assumption.
He was like an immovable mountain, and had such a strong fighting spirit that I could see tangible traces of his dark orange aura leaking from his body. It felt like I was going up against a battle-hardened master of combat, someone who had trained endlessly without rest to achieve what he wanted. That was what I had come to admire about this man before me.
Azrael wore a smile on his face as he lowered himself before springing toward me. We clashed and a loud bang resounded through the air, startling the large crowd of bystanders that accompanied us on our daily spars. I twisted my hips and met Azrael's kick with my fist before lifting my forearm up and knocking his punch above my head before moving in and launching a roundhouse to his ribs.
Azrael spun out of the way and used his momentum to deliver a hook kick that lashed out with the sound of a whip. I ducked and realized that he had set me up as his other foot shot toward my exposed face. I quickly crossed my arms and blocked the kick, but it was too strong. I was sent rolling and tumbling backwards until I had recovered my balance and slid to a stop, my breaths erratic.
"Eighteen minutes...impressive! Considering the rate at which you're improving, you will be a force most people wouldn't want to meet on the battlefield! Keep at it and grow stronger, as I still want to beat you in a legitimate match." I clenched my hands into fists before letting out a sigh. 'Growing stronger is much harder than I thought. It's not at all like what the stories of the past had told me.' I got up and brushed my clothes off before tossing a water-skin over to Azrael, which he accepted gratefully.
My body had already healed the minor wounds and fractures Azrael had made, but the same couldn't be said for him. Although he was a good fighter, he wasn't untouchable and we both knew that. Arisu made her way over to Azrael and began to heal him while I was looking for a certain mischievous little Kitsune girl. Suddenly, a barrier of star-like objects surrounded me, and tiny hands covered my eyes as a negligible weight appeared on my shoulders.
"Aha! There you are! I was beginning to think you tripped somewhere when trying to set your little trap." Truth be told, I was able to spot her "traps" quite well with my, erm, Mor'Ulthan's eyes. May had turned six the day after the attack, and her ability suddenly stirred within her. It was a shock to us all, for most people don't awaken their abilities until they were fourteen, and even then they were considered talented.
May huffed in response and said "I'll have you know that I have perfect balance, see!" before standing atop my shoulders and balancing herself with ease. I quickly grabbed her and hooked my hands under her armpits before lowering her down and carrying her on my hip as one would a child. "Yes, yes, I know how good your balance is, but you know how much that worries me when you pull stunts like that. Try to be more careful, for me."
May groaned and reluctantly said "Okay, fine. I'll be more careful, but I won't stop training! I want to help you and my big sister!" I let out a wry laugh, as I had heard this many times over the course of the very few days we had spent on the road. "You're still too young, May. Maybe when you grow up to be a strong girl like, your sister, I'll think about training you personally, how does that sound?"
May's eyes lit up as she flailed her arms and yelled "Really!?" I nodded my head and smiled at her antics as I moved over to the head wagon, a large, noble-looking piece of art made of white stone with gold and red accents that spiraled around the white doors. 'This is more of a large carriage at this point...' I thought as I opened the door and placed May inside. "Now, if you want to grow strong like your sister, then you have to get plenty of rest and eat healthy, got it?"
Her ears drooped down as she muttered "Even the vegetables...?" It hurt me physically to see the cute little Kitsune so down, but I swallowed the lump in my throat and said "Yes, even the vegetables." She had a small pout on her face before she sighed, much like how I do, and said "Fine, I'll eat the vegetables, but you have to buy me something cool!"
I laughed as I climbed into the wagon and placed her down in her little bundle before tucking her in and agreeing with her term. "Fine, but it may be a while before I can find something suitable." May nodded her head quickly before rolling over and closing her eyes. Of course, I knew she wasn't actually going to go to sleep, so I stayed with her and started to gently stroke her hair as Arisu has done so many times.
Her breathes turned steady as she was lulled to sleep, and a peaceful smile spread across her face. 'I swear on the Gods' names that I will personally murder anyone who harms this adorable child. Seriously, who the hell can do such things to children like May?' I looked down and noticed that my body was still unbelievably sweaty from my earlier spar with Azrael, so I immediately stood up to go and wash off, however, the door to the wagon opened and Arisu stepped in with a smile on her pale face.
I sighed and said "You've overdone yourself again, haven't you." It was a question, for I already knew the answer I sought. I shook my head with a smile of my own before placing my hand on her head and saying "You did good. Continue to work hard, and remember to rest; something you don't seem to know the definition for." Arisu continued to smile as she moved to wrap me in her embrace.
"I wouldn't do that, I'm pretty sw-" Suddenly, her hand shot up and she flicked me on the forehead before hugging me tightly. I returned her embrace before helping her walk over toward a cushion on the floor and sit down. She gently placed her head on my shoulder and sat there hugging my arm with a peaceful expression on her face.
Needless to say, I felt pretty awkward in the moment, but one couldn't tell from the warm smile I wore on my face. May had adjusted in her sleep and now had her head laying on my thigh, while Arisu herself had fallen asleep on my shoulder. I wasn't tired, yet I found myself falling into a deep, deep state of unconsciousness.
---
Fire.
A bright, burning flame enveloped my vision, however, this time I was in front of it with a torch in my hand, and a strange chain wrapped around my arm. Screams rang out from inside of the blaze, and a strange frost began to cover my left arm, while my right began to go numb and crackle like lightning. The screams I intensified as the smell of burning flesh filled my nose, but my expression was calm and...almost righteous...
My hair was billowing in the wind, but it was unlike how my hair was before. It was longer and was filled with a dark sheen, and gave off an almost malevolent vibe. Suddenly, the scene changed and I was in a large, dark temple with carvings of large entities destroying the world along the vast walls. I continued to walk down a strange black carpet as the large columns looked over me from the sides.
A fire lit up at the end up the carpet and, through the fire's light, two figures could be seen kneeling on the ground while a larger figure was standing behind the brazier.
I walked closer and the fire shot up, illuminating all three figures to where I could make out their features. There were two white-haired women with white, floppy ears and fluffy tails. The only difference was one had green eyes, and the other had blue eyes. My heart began to beat faster as panic gripped my heart, and that's when the man behind them stepped forward with his arms out wide.
"Ah, my Lord I see you have returned. I have brought these two as you have asked." The man gave a deep bow before back stepping to where he was previously; the white porcelain mask on his face covered any expression he would have been making, but his eyes told me everything. I nodded my head and said "Thank you, Seris. I'm sure you know not to harm these two, no matter what."
The man, Seris, nodded his head with another bow. I looked down at the two women on the ground and reached out my hand toward the one with blue eyes, but she jerked her head away with tears in her eyes. I had a confused look on my face as I turned toward the other, and she did the same. Neither of them wanted to look at me. To look at what I had become.
Seris, upon seeing this, smiled with a crazed look in his eyes as he raised his hand and clenched it into a fist. I activated my eyes and saw hundreds of arrows hurtling toward the four of us, and each of them were traveling at impossible speeds. I began to run forward so I could shield the two women in front of me, but I was too slow. They were riddled with arrows and fell to the floor, blood oozing from their wounds.
I fell to my knees with my hands stretched out toward them, but I was soon pinned down by multiple arrows. Warm years streaked down my eyes as my gaze was fixated upon their bodies. My heart slammed against my ribcage and filled my ears with its mournful melody. Rage began to fill every fiber of my body as their two names began to ring out in my mind.
My bones began to crack and reshape themselves as an unfamiliar chill began to permeate through my body. The air around me began to crackle and spark as my rage grew in intensity. Then, with a cry of pure sadness, the power inside of me shot out and destroyed the temple, along with myself.
---
I jolted awake with my heart beating furiously. It felt like it was about to burst at any moment, and my body was abnormally cold. My startled cry woke Arisu, who was laying at my side, and she began to look at me with a worried gaze. I quickly spun my head and saw May sleeping silently next to me, filling me with all kinds of emotions.
I grabbed both of them with shaky hands and pressed their foreheads against mine. "Thank the Gods you two are okay...thank you...thank you...!" I kept repeating these words over and over, even as May woke up and began to ask me what was happening.
I knew that what I saw was a vision, like the one I had of my past when I fled to Azmarin with my parents. But this one...this, was something different.
This was a warning. A warning of what's to come.