"Is this really safe?" Elron hissed at this partner. They had already climbed half way up to the caves of the Heartless, so it was probably too late to be asking this. But Elron still asked. He just wanted to calm his tense heart.
'I-I don't know. Lord Roran said it is," His partner said from under his hood. He tried to remain calm but the tremble in his voice betrayed his fear.
'Why are all my partners always so scared?' Elron thought distractedly.
His hooded partner turned to him. "I know he says that the Heartless hunt with their strongest members and only infants and elderly are left at the caves. But what if the elderly are stronger than the Fiend stage?"
He too was afraid of that. But he couldn't just turn and leave. "Calm down. We are not here to fight anyone. We just have to sneak into the cave at the top and take the Cursed Altar."
"Hmm." The sound his partner made could either be a confirmation or a soft whimper. Elron sighed and continued their climb.
"Stay strong, we got this," he said, trying to soothe his partner's nerves. "Remember, we have to do this. If we fail now, we will have caused the death of so many for nothing."
His partner's face was covered, but seeing him start to climb steadily with him was enough. He turned his gaze upward.
'Yes. We have to succeed. Only then can we justify the deaths as sacrifices. Else, it's just murder.'
…
Everything was going well. Hestia poured her energy endlessly in the vines. Her techniques provided the best crowd control. Without it, the teams would be swarmed by the creatures.
The Knights joined their Blessings and killed the Heartless in numbers. The Heartless greatest terror was their numbers. They usually hunted in packs of a few tens to hundreds.
This time the numbers were on the low side. The Knights knew they were spread over the outer regions. That's why the Knights fought without holding back. They wished to leave the mountain before more of these cursed creatures arrived.
Only the creatures at the Fiend stage posed a problem. But the Knights managed to handle them.
Out of the six Knights the healer was the weakest. She was only a trainee Knight. Four of them, including Hestia, were at the experienced level. And Duter was an adept Knight.
He caused the death of most Fiends. His empowered strikes tore the demonic hides of these creatures.
They were almost there. She could already see the end of the creatures. They were about to make their way out.
It was then she saw the blur of black wind appear. She watched in horror as the Squires were killed. There was nothing she could do.
The Knights were ten meters behind the Squires, but even that distance was too far. The blur was too fast. She watched as Greg's headless body fell and Vin's heart was pierced.
She could only scream. She shouted in despair.
"A Disaster. Run!"
But it was too late. The Disaster stage creature hit Hex square in the chest. He was sent flying beyond her sight. She saw blood and bone splatter.
Her team was wiped out. Almost. She saw Alice run away, deeper into the mountain. She wanted to shout, but couldn't. The Disaster stood in front of them.
…
Hex lay on the path, under the veil of darkness. His heart had stopped beating.
The crystals they had harvested were scattered all over the ground. A crystal however was pierced in his chest, touching the surface of his heart.
The crystal had cut through the meaty surface of the organ. But it didn't go through. It had struck against a hard surface.
A faint glimmer appeared at the point of contact. If someone looked at it, they would be shocked to their core. The beast crystal was fusing with the heart!
The chaotic energy of the crystal was transferring to Hex. The wounds were healing.
The glimmer turned into a glow. The fusion speed increased. Soon half of the crystal had fused with Hex.
Clang!
The glow shattered in light specks. The crystal had disappeared.
…
Hex stood in the middle of a dark space.
'What happened?'
'Why am I here?'
At first he felt disoriented and confused. But soon his memory started to come back. He saw Greg's head being blasted off, Vin's chest being pierced. The creature's talons severed Allie in two. He had seen everyone around him die.
"Am I dead?"
The last memory he had was him looking into the abyss-like eyes of the creature. It had struck even before Hex became aware of him.
Flash!
Hex stood dejected in the middle of the space when he heard something. With a start he looked up.
Right in front of him a brightly glowing object appeared.
'What is this?'
He raised his hand carefully. To his surprise his hand passed through the light and grabbed the object. But he couldn't move it. He got closer to take a better look.
'It feels like a stone or a crystal. But it's shaped like a heart.' The more he looked at, the more he was convinced that the object was a heart. But of what or whom?
Boom!
The object moved suddenly. Not away. Its surface caved and returned to its place.
"Ah!"
He felt a sharp pain assault inside him.
Boom!
The object trembled. Again moving.
Hex felt the pain again. But his focus was more on the object.
'It's truly a heart!'
Boom!
The pain intensified.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
The 'heart' started to beat fast. With each beat the pain Hex felt grew. It became almost unbearable. But he didn't let go of it.
Swish.
Outside Hex control, his glyph appeared. The bear phantom melded with Hex.
Pain and rage.
"Ahhh."
Hex felt an infinite amount of pain and rage inside him. He felt his senses turning sharp.
The pressure inside him was suffocating him. He wanted to let it out. He wanted to release all the pain and rage inside him.
Red and golden light swirled and mixed around him. He felt his body on the verge of exploding.
He had to let it out.
"Ahhh!"
He had to.
Hex stopped thinking.
His feelings took over.
He let it all out.
"AHHHH!"
Hex's eyes snapped open!
…
The Knights were holding on. But barely.
A disaster stage creature was equal to a Refined Knight. It was a stage where humans and other creatures could refine the natural energy to their innate energy.
It was a stage that could alter nature itself.
"Keep fighting!" Hestia shouted. Her will to live was the strongest among the survivors.
The others gritted their teeth and held on. But it seemed futile. Their will was crumbling. The creature kept assaulting them.
Old White was already on the verge of collapse. The healer was dead. Ilmar had lost an arm and Yrva suffered internal damage.
Only Hestia's vines and Duter's hammer held the creature at bay. But even Duter was slowing down. His mark couldn't remain active endlessly.
They felt despair. Hopelessness.
But then they heard it. The noise shook the mountain.
ROAR!
A young man jumped behind the Disaster.
He was clad in gore. His armor was broken.
His sword glowed with red light.
His figure encased within a bear-like phantom.
His black eyes blazing like the inferno in hell.