Time paused as Ojero activated his powers, dashing across the field towards his brother.
Hundreds of strategies ran through his mind as he sped up his mental processes, allowing him to think faster than thousands of normal humans put together.
He sped across the grassy plains, reaching his brother quickly. He cast a quick time cantrip, allowing his brother to join him in the time pause.
His brother, noticing the paused time, looked his brother in the eyes. Ojero nodded his affirmation, and pulled out a dagger from his waist.
Seeing his brother steel his resolve, Ojero cut the dagger across his wrists, cutting off his chained hands. Orpham hissed with the pain, but knew it wasn't over yet.
He lay down on the ground, and clenched his teeth. Ojero once again cut his dagger, this time on his ankles, cutting both his feet and chain off.
Ojero dragged his brother a little bit away before rewinding the time on his brothers limbs, regrowing them.
Orpham flexed his limbs as he stood up.
"Thank you brother. I knew you wouldn't let him end me there. It is time for them to feel our strength, is it not?"
"It is time, brother."
Both of them ran away from the main area, giving them distance between themselves and their enemy.
When they were about a fifth of the field away from the enemy, Ojero ended the time pause. The knight's blade whistled as he fell into the dirt, no longer having a target.
Both armies let out a collective gasp as they noticed the now-freed Orpham standing beside Ojero a distance away from the armies.
"You ready brother?" Orpham asked.
"Always."
Suddenly, a blue and a green vortex opened over the brothers, and then suddenly fell onto them. Ojero was wrapped in green, and Orpham in blue as the power filled their veins.
As the glow subsided, they saw the brothers clad in armor that struck fear in the hearts of any enemy unlucky enough to cause their ire.
Ojero's once white and gold armor now was a brilliant emerald green. His head however did not have a helmet, but a green hood leaving a green mist billowing out from it, allowing no one to see within.
Orpham was now wearing a set of dark blue very similar to Ojero. However, he did wear a helmet whereas Ojero had a hood. He looked like a knight of justice and power, as space distorted around his armor.
The Knights of Avar readied themselves, as their officer returned to his ranks, a visage of anger clouding his face.
"KNIGHTS OF AVAR" the officer bellowed.
All of the men in the Avarian army collectively responded. "NEVER FALTER!"
"CHARGE!"
All of the Avarians charged towards the two brothers, as a feeling of pure strength radiated across the battlefield.
Ojero vanished from the field, only to reappear cleaving the head off a charging knight with his Chrono Blade.
Orpham too reacted, as he fell into a vortex that dropped him high above the battlefield. As he fell onto the field, multiple rifts in space opened near him, dropping meteors the size of horses in dozens of positions.
Ojero continued his deadly dance of temporal energies, as he disappeared and reappeared, always taking a life. Blood was spilled wherever he swung, but a drop never touched his armor.
At one point, a lucky archer managed to hit Ojero, but something terrifying happened. It went right through him, hitting another Avarian in the torso.
This was due to Ojero's armor, the Cloak of Time. It can take any form he wishes, and takes Ojero out of the timeline. Ojero was currently unable to be touched due to him being both in every timeline and none. The only way he could harm others was his Chrono Blade, which was able to negate the effect for itself only to kill.
Orpham too wreaked havoc, as he disappeared into dozens of vortexes, only to summon dozens of meteors and cut enemies out of space itself. Both of them became the harbinger of destruction as they proved why they are both feared.
As the brothers were slaughtering the enemy ranks, the army of Riote crashed into the Avarians, causing a bloody battle.
However, in the Avarian lines something was changing. An officer had taken a small green orb the size of a bead out of case, and was chanting words as it rested in his palm.
Ojero could feel the time energy coming off the bead, and realized what it was. It was an artifact he had been trying to find for many years. The Bead of Boutimon, the first Chronomancer and who the last month was named after.
He knew he had to have it, but something strange happened. He felt a cut in space appear that wasn't his brother, as time paused for everyone but Ojero. However, even Ojero could only move his head.
A little boy, no older than 8, walked up to Ojero. He wore beggars clothes, and looked very dirty. His hair was black, and he had dark eyes. His voice was very high pitched for a young boy.
"It's time to choose Ojero. Power or family."
Ojero was confused, till he looked across the field and saw a green bead being shot right towards Orpham. It came from the green bead. Even though time was paused, the green bead still moved, albeit very slowly.
"If you save Orpham, you lose any chance at gaining the bead. If you leave Orpham, you get the bead but Orpham dies."
"Why can't I save Orpham then go take the bead?"
"Because I won't allow it."
Something in Ojero's mind wouldn't let him ask anything else, not who the child was or how he stopped time for everyone. It was as if this being controlled everything.
He was conflicted. He loved his brother, they had always been together. When they both awakened as single mythical magi, they were together. When they attended Lumenbecs, they were together. When Orpham was married, they were together.
However, this bead had great power that Ojero needed. It was a time artifact, one of the rarest kinds. Ojero had spent forever looking for them, and this was his chance.
'I know what the moral thing to do is, but I may lose everything if I choose that. This bead is everything to me...'
"Ok child, I have made my choice."
Ojero breathed in deeply as he affirmed his choice.
"I choose..."