Intro:
This is a world of magic. In this modern-day steampunk age, all beings from humans to elves, and other races, are born with the innate ability to use it. It is like a muscle—the more you use it, the stronger it becomes.
There are, however, a very select few who are unfortunate enough to be born without it. The "mage" we follow in this story is one such individual. Though what he lacks in magical prowess, he makes up for with another power that few can understand.
Because of this power, he was appointed as the Acting Captain of the Black Wolf Knights. A placeholder for another remarkable captain, one who has been absent a year since his departure.
The Black Wolf Knights, or rather the Black Wolves, are a group of misfits, one of the eight Guilds in the Valley Kingdom. They are ranked 8 among them, the lowest rank on the roster, and the most underrated.
Each one has a unique magic ability and past—as well as our Acting Captain, as he struggles to remember his. Throughout the story, they will fight against traitors within one of the Valley Kingdom's Guilds.
So, when evil makes its move, his past comes back to haunt him, and the Valley is left to rely on this band of unlikely mages who call themselves the Black Wolves… how will they fare?
Arc 1:
Part 1: Pilot
Chapter 1:
The sky couldn't have been any more blue. The air any more fresh than it was. Its cool breeze refreshing to the touch of the skin that was exposed as I fell through the sky with my eyes closed…
When I finally opened them, the reflection of the sky against my black pupils was beautiful. I marveled at the height I fell from and started to wonder why I loved the sky so much… They reminded me of her eyes… But who was she?
"Yoo-hoo, Captain, we going in?" said a cool and cheerful female voice that managed to interject, waving a hand and bringing me back from whatever dream I was just having.
When I came to, I found myself staring straight up at the deep blue sky and the tip of my black boots just barely over the ledge of the massive skyscraper we were atop.
We always dressed like winter with dark colors regardless of the season. There were three of us. Me, this girl, and a guy crouching a few feet above us, looking down.
We wore matching uniforms, which were only jackets. The rest of our clothes only matched in color—each worn differently, complementing our own unique styles: Charcoal dark jackets with a black fur trim on the hoods. A black wolf logo on the back of each. Casual white shirts. The guys wore jagged black pants, and the girl wore black ripped short shorts and fishnets. Black boots on all of us. And our fingernails painted black with fingerless gloves.
With the reflection of the sky against my black pupils, maybe I only felt this way because we were so high up. I had a thing for high places, after all. While others may dislike it, for me, there was peace in the fact that one wrong step could lead to impending death—and staying alive would mean I'd have to keep focus… stay aware… Or perhaps I only looked up at the sky because I was trying to remember something… something very important I feel I've forgotten…
I gave a sigh and replied to her, "Yeah… also, I told you to stop calling me that." Putting my hands in my pockets, my whole vibe screamed nonchalant.
"Then what are we waiting for? I'm bored shitless standing way up here," she said back. Her short, black hair layered over her long, loose rat tail, which was a blonde peekaboo underneath, rustled in the breeze. The long blonde part of her hair in the back ended just at her butt, which was nicely plump. Her bangs covered her right eye, which had an eyepatch over it, and her one exposed left eye was a deep, dark purple color. She gave me a mischievous smile as she tilted her head to the side and waited for my response.
"Told you, you didn't have to come with," I replied. My black hair, mid-length and spiked in the back, also rustled in the soft breeze. Short bangs hanging above my right eye obscured it slightly, and silver crosses dangling from each lobe chimed as I stood there. "Plus, knowing you, you won't be contributing anyway. That's why I only asked Havoc to come with."
The other male, a younger man, held a calm and lazy look upon his face. Still crouched down atop some railings behind and above from where this girl and I stood, you could hear his eagerness to be there with the way he looked alone… Energy drink in one hand and the other just hanging off his knee, it seemed no matter how much he drank from the can, it couldn't disperse the laziness. Lazy was an understatement, though. Even if he didn't want to look the way he did, the nasty scar on the left side of his face wouldn't let him take on another expression. His hair, dirty blond, also rustled in the breeze along with the braided rat tail from the back, draping down to the left side of his head, revealing his blind left eye in the center of his gnarly scar. His right eye was the complete opposite—untouched and reflected a dark green color as he finally looked at us.
"Actually, I think I'll sit this one out too, Cap," Havoc said, his voice almost raspy as he held his low tone.
"Really? Come on… At least watch," I responded, not really trying to convince him. I half expected he'd say that.
"It's a Grade 4 down there, not a Grade 3 like the mission implied. You really don't need us." He could have fallen asleep after saying that, as he almost dropped his energy drink can, which was completely empty now.
"By the Keeper, you guys. Having me do all the work. And here I am as your supposed captain. You two should be going down there while I watch from way up here, arms crossed, looking like a badass."
Both gave me a faint snicker of a smile from their point of view in response to me. I simply looked up at the sky and let out another big sigh. A tattoo of half of a wolf's face was plastered on the left side of my neck, fairly large and visible. Purposely unfinished. Holding within it, lore of its own for another time…
"Ophelia and I will wait at the rendezvous while you handle this one," Havoc said finally.
"Do what you want," I said, maybe too passively. I should've been more stern, being the captain and all, but I really didn't care at that moment. And I really didn't care about being the captain. Plus, I think I'd just get bored myself if I had made them do it. He was right, though. This was an easy job. Even for someone with no magic like me.
"Alright, well… see ya!" I said, stepping off and turning to both of them with a cheerful smile on my face.
"Bye-bye!" was all I heard from Ophelia as I stepped off the ledge, plunging down from the skyscraper we were atop.
***
On the ground, a huge swing from an abnormally large arm shattered a nearby wall and window of a store. People screamed and ran away from the creature that swung it. Its arms were muscular and had three large talons for fingers. Its legs were small, so it had to carry itself upright with its arms—almost like a gorilla-mixed-creature. The head, monstrous, had three slits for its mouth that opened, baring endless teeth within them. The creature gave a loud growl that startled the people around it and sent them scattering away for dear life.
A young lady who had just turned a corner from an intersecting street finally saw the creature after hearing its deathly cries from around the block. Other people were running toward another street. She couldn't tell where the shrieks were coming from and had thought she was running away from it. Instead, she found herself in the midst of the ruckus, with the creature there only a short distance away from her. It was looking elsewhere until it felt her presence and turned directly toward her, facing her completely. The young lady, shocked with fear, couldn't even let out a cry. Trembling, immobilized, she stared at it as it stalked toward her slowly like a predator and her the prey, then gradually ramped up and ran vehemently. Through her eyes, it felt like time slowed. Even though a vicious creature was speeding in her direction, all she could do was wait. Wait to be killed in a matter of seconds…
***
I fell headfirst, eyes closed, and my mind at ease. At this time, I thought about how I had gotten here, the people I met, and what I meant to them. My past had been blurry. It felt like there was a gap—something missing in my memory that I couldn't help but think about any chance I got. It had been five years since I woke up in this world. And each and every day since, even with all the memories I've made, and the people I've met, I still wondered who exactly I was…
I adjusted my body to let my head lead—speed accelerating after each story I flew past. When I got closer to the ground—faster and faster—I repositioned myself as if surfing on the air, fist ready for impact.
For an instant, my right arm and fist were coated with black. The air pressure condensed as I fell at staggering speeds. The windows I neared shattered one by one on the way down. I was like a meteor.
Then…
***
The creature, as it drew dreadfully closer to the young lady, was twice her size. It was the size of an elephant-beast compared to her. Closer and closer, it raged toward her, closing the distance in seconds.
Still in shock, the young lady could not move an inch. She was paralyzed in what seemed like endless slow motion to her—the beast trudging in her direction through the reflection of her dilated eyes.
I'm gonna die… I'm gonna die… she said to herself. She closed her eyes. But heard a loud impact.
CRASH!!!
A mix of debris, shards of flesh, and a wave of purple liquid blasted in all directions from where the beast was. Only a few feet away from the young lady. The purple liquid enveloped the surrounding area.
The young lady opened her eyes, only to be slapped with it all at once. Soaked in the purple blood and guts of the beast's insides.
At that moment, she saw a guy standing in the middle of where the creature had been. There seemed to be a crater beneath him, as if he had caused this. He even seemed dry after the impact—after the beast exploded.
Then drops of purple rain showered over him, and he simply looked up at it and let it fall on him like it was water. After it stopped, he looked at the young lady, dreary-eyed. And then said, "You okay, miss?"
Then and only then, with her emotions rising, clarity of thought and the reality of the situation finally caught up to her all at once. She looked him dead in the eyes and screamed hysterically.