Chase scratched the back of his neck and lifted up a hand to wave to his friends, which turned out to be a lot of his friends.
'Why are most of them here?'
However, before he could wave Equan grabbed him by the shoulders and squeezed the life out of him.
"Watch- The- Arm!"
He muttered, trying to escape the archer's hug.
"Sorry, just didn't actually believe you would show up..."
Chase glanced around at everyone, even Gideon and Neveah were here.
They all looked so different that it felt weird to be there among them again.
He put his hand around his left wrist, trying to lift it but only groaned in pain.
"There any healers nearby?"
He asked with a toothy grin.
Leo stepped through Neveah and this one girl with elven markings who had been staring at him since they got arrived at the crater.
"What the hell was that?!"
Leo threw his hands up in outrage, and forcefully grabbing Chase around the shoulders.
"Since when the hell can you singlehandedly take down goliaths?"
Chase chuckled, still annoyed that no one answered his question.
"Yeah, but look what it did to me."
He said, thankful that Leo wasn't insulting him relentlessly like he used to.
The girl with elven markings raised a hand.
"I- I'm a healer..."
"You are!?"
Leo asked, letting go of Chase and making a face of utter confusion.
Gabriel tilted his head, in the back. His black cloak, or what Chase had assumed used to be a cloak was completely destroyed, in fact, everyone looked tattered and quite messed up.
Then he walked past his friends with a limp, pulling himself to the top of the crater and looking onward from that point.
It was a wasteland littered with corpses of both humans and kobolds...
"How many?"
Michael put a hand on his shoulder.
"That's not important, what is important is getting the group back together, since you left... Phoenix Academy was entirely discontinued as a school... And I have a feeling there are a lot of people who are going to want to join an army that isn't corrupted..."
Chase raised an eyebrow.
"Like you read my mind or something..."
He grinned, and turned around.
The girl with elven markings walked over to him and offered him a hand.
He held his broken arm out for her, while never keeping his gaze off of the countless corpses of humans that had been killed because of his late timing.
"I'm Kaylynn... Here."
She lifted his arm up with both of her soft hands and began a quiet chant.
Her markings started to glow a bright lime green and his bones started to creak and groan as they realigned themselves.
Chase didn't make a single noise, he simply stood watching the horizon as his entire arm was rebuilt at his side.
"You!"
A familiar voice yelled from the direction where the three colossal beasts had once been.
It was a man with crimson eyes, a red stetson hat, and a lot of terrible wounds.
Chase tilted his head, studying the man.
"Professor Luke?"
Chase asked in confusion.
"I have a message for you..."
He said out of breath.
"Save it for a private meeting... I have a feeling I know what it might be about."
Chase said, nodding toward Luke.
"Right!"
Kaylynn said, running over to the guy who looked like some sort of bandit, and immediately giving attention to his wounds.
"It will take time to fully heal, so rest these next few days."
Michael said, with a grim expression on his face.
"I don't have a few days..."
Chase replied.
Then everyone started to tremble except for Chase, as a mighty shadow descended upon the crater.
Flapping its mighty wings, the crimson dragon landed with grace as it began to shift forms.
Following shortly after, was a man with no shirt and ivory wings.
They immediately ran toward Chase, with urgent looks on their faces.
"My lord! There are chariots on the way! Lots of them!"
Lithica yelled from ten meters away as he sprinted toward Chase with Zephyr slowly making his way over behind him.
"He is correct... It seems that King Rider is on his way..."
Chase flinched at the name, summoning his sword in his right hand.
Grabbing his wrist, Zephyr growled.
"Absolutely not! Are you a fool? Even if you have gotten stronger... Rider will slaughter you like a lamb..."
"He is here for me..."
Chase said quietly.
"So, it's only right that I greet him with honesty..."
"My lord... With your injuries... I would advise against it."
Chase turned toward Lithica, and glanced around at everyone.
They all seemed fearful toward the man who had been a dragon only moments ago, and maybe even towards the angelic man. However, they all had a strange amount of determination in their faces.
Then the sounds of horses trotting against the ground got louder.
Chase gripped Hero's Fang in his right hand, turning in the direction the chariots were arriving from.
"Then what do you advise we do?"
He asked no one in particular, trying to keep his voice steady.
Lithica summoned several orbs of light that began to idly float around his figure.
Zephyr drew a black great sword from a sheathe on his back.
"Me and the celestial can probably take him... Although I would advise that you and your allies make a break for it."
"No..."
Equan said, knocking an arrow into his bow string.
Then two more figures came up behind Chase, one a little familiar and the other very familiar.
The faceless man and Zelenna looked terrible, their armor shattered and ruined, with stains of blood littered across their bodies.
However, they had their weapons drawn and immediately ran up beside Zephyr and Lithica.
"It's Rider..."
Zelenna growled, gripping her spear in one hand while her other arm dripped blood onto the ground.
Chase glanced at her, then at The Faceless Man...
'What the hell is this?'
The chariot stopped at the other side of the crater, and the door swung open.
Stepping out were five people, and one was clearly in binds.
He had long black hair and a gaunt figure, but it wouldn't change the fact that Chase had instantly realized that it was Gemini, who had been chained up and was being dragged across the dirt by the general with a blue helmet.
Chase had forgotten the general's name, mainly because he knew he could kill that one...
Rider was the last one to step out, with a woman with cloth across her face stepping out before him.
Rider was in full battle armor with an indigo crown resting on his shaggy hair that had turned gray since the last time Chase had seen him.
He wore a big smile on his face, and a terribly wretched look in his eyes.
"Dear friends! I come with a deal!"
Zelenna stepped forward, pointing the spear at Rider. She was seething and trembling, her look said that she would no doubt try to kill him here and now.
However, Zephyr put a hand in front of her and walked forward.
Letting his sword hang from a chain on his hand and drag across the dirt as he slowly took step after step.
"What is this foolishness?"
Rider chuckled, looking around at all of them. Not even bothering to put his eyes on the devil in front of him.
"So you've assembled an army against me boy? How cute..."
He grinned.
Zephyr was now directly in front of Rider, Picto and the other general instinctively drawing their blades because of his powerful presence.
"Who might you be?"
Rider asked, never ceasing to let his smile fall.
"You are too happy for a man cursed with corruption..."
Zephyr grinned.
"Ah... So you are not human if you can sense it then... Maybe... A devil? Which last I checked goes against the church's natural laws... I could have you executed..."
Zephyr lifted his blade, putting it inches away from Rider's throat.
"Unlike the gods... I do not have a vow against interfering in human affairs... I could slit your throat before you even blink, and kill all of your men before they can even realize what is going on..."
"Do it..."
Rider laughed.
Chase stepped forward behind Zephyr, clutching Hero's Fang in his right hand.
Leo and Michael followed close behind, both wielding weapons of their own.
"You killed Leander!"
Neveah yelled, drawing a very heavy looking blade.
"Children are quite amusing aren't they...?"
He lifted a small dagger and put it at Gemini's throat, causing everyone to stop in their tracks.
Chase gazed into Gemini's eyes from the other side of the confrontation, trying to understand what they were trying to say.
'Run? No that can't be r- Run? Run!'
"Get down!"
Chase screamed, before he could understand why.
Arrows began to rain down over the wasteland, several plunging directly into Zephyr's unmoving figure.
Chase tried to scream, but was pushed to the ground by Professor Luke, as an arrow embedded itself into the ground where he once stood.
'I'll kill him!'
Chase pushed Luke off of him, and started toward Rider. His knuckles turning white from how hard he was gripping the sword.
However just as he went to slash Rider's throat...
A force of energy, so powerful that Chase's mind cracked.
His sword shattered as Rider's finger stopped the blade in seconds.