Siegfried Fors
A growl in the darkness stirred me. My eyes slowly opened, everything a little blurry, my body protesting with a dull ache as I tried to move. All around me were the broken remains of trees, splintered and torn.
Something felt strange. The world was in full view. I could see from both my eyes. The eyepatch must have been torn away.
The growl came again, deeper this time. I forced my head forward, and saw it.
A black figure loomed in the haze, a hand gripping the cub by its back. The little beast thrashed, tiny claws raking uselessly at the air, too short to reach its captor. The other hand of the figure lifted slowly, wrapping around the cub's neck. The grip began to tighten.
"No..." The word barely escaped my throat, a ragged whisper of protest.
I reached inward, dragging mana from my soul's crucible until my veins burned. It poured into every muscle and tendon, igniting my body from head to toe. As the mana reached my right eye, a sudden, searing heat made me instinctively close it to ease the discomfort.
Pain screamed at me to stop, but I forced myself upright. My hand went to my magic pouch, pulling out another wand.
The beast's head turned to me, and my jaw set. "May mana pierce through my enemies..." Mana coalesced around me, and dozens of glowing points manifested in the air.
"Mana Missiles!" I commanded. The points shot off with piercing whistles, striking the beast's body and creating multiple explosions. In the chaos, cub slipped free of its grip, falling hard to the ground. I pushed forward, ignoring the smoke, grabbing the cub, and running past the beast.
I whipped around, pointing my wand at the beast. As the smoke cleared, I saw it: not a single scratch. It wasn't a surprise; if a spell like that could kill it, the Knights would have done so already.
I took a good look at the beast. The armored figure stood tall, its black plates glowing with a harsh crimson light that cut through the darkness. Crimson energy flared from its back like burning wings, casting sharp shadows around it. The faceless helm turned slowly, locking its gaze on me.
Leaving all things aside, the armor looks cool.
It tilted its head slightly, a subtle gesture that sent a chill down my spine. Then with a flex of its clawed hand, the massive double-headed axe that lay at its feet snapped up, slamming into its grip with a metallic hunger.
My heart jumped. Words burst from my lips before thought could catch them.
"Oh great mana, blow away my enemies…" A massive orb of mana conjured at the end of my wand. "Mana Cannon!" Multiple beams of mana shot out from the orb, lancing through the night. Each impact tore the ground and filled the air with fire and dust. The recoil shoved me backward with each release, the force rattling through my bones. Still I held, teeth clenched, until through the chaos I saw it—walking forward. One step after another. Straight through the storm of explosions.
"Fuck it!" I shoved the orb itself forward, a mass of crackling mana ripping free.
The beast raised its axe and used the flat side to hit the orb, batting it high into the sky. A deafening bloom split overhead, showering the night in green fire that lit the world like warped daylight.
What the hell?
I turned to run, but felt a sudden pull. In an instant, I was snatched from the ground and pulled into the beast's clawed hand.
Force magic? Just like Mother and Grandpa!
"Damn it—" I fired a magic bullet point-blank into the helm, light flaring against it. The thing didn't even twitch. Its head remained angled, gaze locked, as if dissecting me in silence.
Damn it!
No choice. I dropped the cub from my other arm. He hit the ground with a small thud. "Run!" I shouted, hoping it would listen this time.
But instead, the little idiot lunged, tiny fangs gnashing against the beast's armored leg.
"What are—" "You…"
The sound hollowed the air. My whole body trembled.
From within that faceless helm, a voice seeped out, deep, warped, and yet undeniably human.
"You look familiar…"
It can talk?
A humanoid magic beast that can talk. We might be more screwed than we originally thought.
"What's your name?" the beast asked, voice deep and jagged like metal scraping stone.
"Why? Planning to carve it on my gravestone?" My words came out sharp, but my throat was dry.
"Hmm…" The axe in his hand clattered to the ground, yet the weight of his presence only grew heavier. His gauntleted hand clamped onto my face, fingers prying at my eye with unnatural strength.
"Like I thought…" His voice lingered as he forced my right eye open.
As I looked at him with my right eye, I could see a bulky silhouette inside the armor. It looked…
"You're a human?" I asked, the words tumbling from my lips in disbelief.
Instead of an answer, a SWISH cut through the forest. His head twitched slightly, then again; another sound, another sharp jerk through his frame. With a final whistle, an arrow struck his arm. I felt his grip loosen, and I pulled back, freeing myself, only for my body to be swept up before I could hit the ground.
Arms caught me, steady and strong, pulling me across the clearing in a blur.
"Captain Tavian?" My voice cracked between relief and disbelief.
"Your familiar is really helpful," he said as a "Fuuaaa!" came from above. I looked up to see Faux hovering above us.
Tavian set me down gently, the cub slipping from his other arm as he released it beside me. His voice turned to command in an instant.
"Pull out the chains!"
A heavy clink rang out as a chain snapped around the beast's neck, dragging taut. My gaze shot up to the treeline, Aifa stood braced against the bark, her arms locked tight on the chain.
Another chain lashed forward, binding the beast's right arm. Ashar pulled with raw force, boots digging into the dirt.
The third came from the other side, another knight straining with all his weight, pinning the left arm.
The clearing thrummed with the sound of rattling chains and strained breaths.
Tavian drew his sword, and his mana flared around it, a brilliance far beyond the standard glow of mana reinforcement. It was brighter, sharper, and looked infinitely more powerful.
He glanced at me briefly. "Stay here, young lord."
And then he moved.
Inhuman speed carried him across the ground, his blade trailing light, cutting through the night like judgment itself.
He brought his sword down, and the clearing was swallowed in a storm of sparks, spatter of blood, and the final, agonizing shriek of breaking metal.