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Chapter 19 - Ashsa

The beat of the dragon's wings left the air. The five dragons landed in a shrouded forest with a thick heavy fog over it. The large figures that were in the sky shrunk into the shadows.

"This fog should make it difficult for anyone to find us. We can't stay here long, it does appear to be someone else's veil of cover." Ryuu stated.

Rae ran over and took my fresh corpses from Black and started cooking the body with fire magic. "I'm so hungry. He's on the lean side, but this should hold me over until we slaughter whoever stole Lea."

"Since I killed him, I at least get a leg. That's fair right?" Black asked Rae.

"Fine, whatever. Just don't rush me, I don't want anything to be uneven. This is very delicate. While you're waiting, sort through his stuff. See if he had anything of value." Rae instructed. Black went through the man's armor but only found a picture.

"He only had his armor and this picture. Looks like this one had a family. Too bad their dad was so weak and puny. A weak bloodline for someone so frail." Black mocked and laughed while throwing the picture into the fire on top of his body.

"Stop all your laughing or you'll draw unwanted attention. Now, come here and I'll heal you. Can't believe you were so careless with one knight." Grass said as she approached Black.

"You're one to talk, you couldn't even resist a gravity spell. My hero." Black said while lying on the ground reenacting the moment. Grass stepped on his back and walked away irritated, while Black kept laughing.

"Ryyu, are you really that worried? You'd know if something happened by now. Plus she has enough raw power, that even if someone wanted to harm her they wouldn't be able to. She's inexperienced cause she's a kid but she's strong." Crimson said to Ryuu. He didn't respond or even look at him. It was as if he wasn't there. His mind completely elsewhere. "Everything will work out.

"Ryuu said this fog has magic in it, do you think it has any other properties?" Grass questioned.

"I'm not sure, he's really quick at picking up on these things. I can set my own but figuring out how someone else built theirs is an entirely different skill set. But why do ask?" Rae asked back.

"I don't want to speak it into existence, but sometimes there's random magic that accidentally has affects in unexpected ways. Like something to debuff our strength." Grass was mentioning.

"Or something to revive the dead?" Rae said dead toned.

"Yea, or... oh no." Grass looked over and the corpse was healing itself and reversing the burns and stab wounds. In a panic Grass screamed, "I didn't mean to reanimate him. Why can't we catch a break!"

The corpse stood in the flames. He took the ashes of the picture that was burnt with him and closed his fist with it. The fire was no longer harming him, but instead combining with him. "I.... I..." the body was attempting to speak. His face started to slowly form back and become recognizable. His missing leg grew back, despite the original leg being a few feet away. He started to gain more control of his body again. Hair returned that was originally removed. "I will be A HERO!" The man shouted and tried lunging at Black. Black prepared for the attack when suddenly the man was trapped in a water prison. Same technique used on Galamene.

"Guys, quit playing with your food. Either eat it or let's go." Ryuu said annoyed, unbothered by the zombie like presence.

"Fine, I wanted him cooked a little. It tastes better that way but we can eat him raw I guess." Rae said in a disappointed tone. The man tried struggling to get out but he was completed suspended off the ground and was incapable of generating any power to move. He was stuck in zero gravity essentially. Fear started to surface, as he was devoured and ripped apart. His body was still under the influence of the magic, which continued to restore his limbs but didn't remove the pain of having them torn apart. The dragons were unbothered by his screams as they treated his body like a endless buffet. Mysterious eyes were watching these events unfold. Too afraid to emerge but kept their presence hidden from the dragons.

"Alright, rest time is over, let's go." Ryuu commanded.

"Yea, I'm good. What should we do with the body?" Crimson asked.

"Rip it apart once more. We don't know how long the magic will affect him or us, and we don't need him reviving while we're mid flight. He never appeared any stronger no matter how many times we killed him. He's just as weak as he was before." Ryuu said transforming back and taking to the sky.

"Sorry guy, nothing personal." Crimson shredded the body once more and set it ablaze with his fire magic. Then everyone else transformed and took to the sky.

Hours passes and the man fully revived. He gathered as much of his supplies and armor as he could, dressed himself, and sat down. "It.... is a miracle... or is it a nightmare? I'm healed, back to full strength. I can see my family again. My son, he won't be without a father. This has to be a blessing." Just as he said that, a cloaked woman appeared from the shadows.

"You could say it's a blessing darling. And there's more for you to do against those dragons." The man tried to find the woman's face but it was as if her face wasn't there but was. She pulled back her hood and he could only see purple hair. He tried very hard to see her face but he just couldn't. Nothing was blocking it. He wasn't sure what to make of it. "Don't be afraid, I don't bite. Hehe."

"Who are you?" The man asked.

"There's no time for silly questions boy, I thought you wanted to be a hero." She said while pointing at his armor. "You gonna have to come harder to fight dragons. Luckily, you're talking to a bona-fide witch. I have a thing or two that'll help you stand toe to toe when the time comes."

"Thank you, thank you so much. What do I have to do to earn your magical blessing?" The man said with pure joy. The previous despair he had was completely gone.

"I just want the leaders head in exchange. You do that and any plus all my magic will be at your disposal. And just as a little taste, you're currently alive thanks to it. I just need one of those sapphire dragon's heads. Maybe one of their hearts too, just for some side potions. Dragons make excellent brews, but they have been made almost extinct in these areas. I need some for my research of immortality." The woman said.

"You allowed me to survive several deaths. It seems like you're already amazing at it. Look at me! I look better than when I woke up this morning. I even feel stronger." The man said while flexing his arms and posing.

"Hehe, yes you would feel that way. There's levels to this magic darling. You'll see in due time." The woman chuckled.

"Oh, forgive me ma'am. My name is Tristan. I'm a knight. Or was, I'm sure I lost my title since dying to the dragons. They were much more powerful than we expected. But everyone else was too scared to even move. And now I see why." Tristan said remembering the events from earlier.

"Courage and stupid. Often they are exactly the same. And regardless of which you are, I need that from you to fight them. For now, you rest. I'll pop back once I need your strength." She put her hood back on and walked into the shadows.

"Wait, what's your name?" He asked.

"Ashsa" and she vanished.

"Was that her name or a spell?" He thought to himself. He walked into the same spot he saw her disappear but she was nowhere to be found. Completely vanished. However, there was a bow left behind. "Maybe it was a spell and she left me this bow. This reminds me of Raphael's sword but as a bow. It is glowing. It is definitely enchanted. Well, he's definitely a top level warrior, with this I should be able to compete if not surpass him. I'll get right to practicing, I will slaughter those dragons and become a hero."

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