Living beings are fickle creatures; we live and then we die. So where did this idea that we can decide our own future come from? We all live our lives being led to believe so, yet very rarely do we actually get the chance to. We need to consider the variables that come into play here: where you come from, your natural abilities, your friends and family, and even your own state of mind—not to mention an extreme amount of luck to boot. Ultimately, what occurs to you in life is simply controlled by a random sequence of events, ones that make it seem like you’re in control. So no matter how much you want something, always keep your expectations low and never pray for the impossible.
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A pathetic, worthless, and problematic child—those are the only words I could really use to describe myself.
I was… an abnormal—a different type of abnormal.
Typically, when people heard that word, they would immediately begin to imagine somebody with incredible talent and abilities, someone blessed by the gods with tremendous power.
However, that was far from the truth. My abnormality is... nothing. Quite literally, nothing.
I have no power. Ever since I was born, I have been cursed with this: I can’t control or project flames like any other person on Neptar, nor do I possess any other elemental gifts; trust me, I’ve tried them all.
I don’t know where I come from; as far as I’m aware, it’s like I just popped into existence one day. There are no records of me whatsoever, and I have no one I can truly call a family. According to my adoptive parents, I have no blood relations with anyone.
Soon after I was born, I was taken in by a noble family, where they cared for me. It didn’t seem to matter to them that I was like this; they protected me and loved me nonetheless, or at least that's the facade they put up.
Because of my condition, they soon became extremely overprotective of me, to the point where they would hardly ever let me leave the house, and even when they did, I always had to be followed by a guard at all times.
Whenever I could, I would run away and go sit at my favorite spot near a small hill with a great view of the ocean.
My foster family had a huge mansion on the northwest corner of Xaar, the royal continent. They were quite wealthy, which I assumed was why they could afford to take me in even in my sorry state.
I hated the way I was. Every day I tried to take lessons in order to become stronger; however, the guards always went easy on me out of fear that I might get hurt. I could never reach greater heights; my power always seemed limited and frail.
Everyone reassured me that I would become stronger in due time, but I knew that they were only saying those things to make me feel better.
For the most part, that had been my life up until that point, that was until one fateful day. King Zant had sent a summons for my parents. Every time this occurred, they would leave me at home with several high-ranking guards to keep a watchful eye on me at all times.
This time, however, was different. They had asked me if I wanted to come along with them. Without hesitation, I agreed and went to pack my stuff.
I had never been to Torn, but I had heard a great many things about it.
A kingdom that stretched as far as the eye could see. Towns bustling with people from various walks of life all under the rule and protection of King Zant, the most powerful Neptarian alive.
I always wondered if he would let me join the royal academy. I strived to become stronger, and this was my opportunity to do so.
Once preparations were set, we all headed out. For a few minutes, I sat around wondering what Torn would be like: how large was it actually? What were the people like? Would we be welcome? All of these questions roamed around in my mind for hours on end, until finally we had arrived.
It was breathtaking, better than I could've ever imagined.
Torn was a beautiful city. It was located right in the center of Xaar. It had many buildings, ranging from houses to shops. Located up north was the royal palace, home to King Zant.
Once we were permitted inside, I saw many powerful guards stationed near each entrance.
We were greeted by the royal servants, who offered us various snacks and accommodations; all the while, you could gaze at and admire the many portraits and statues on the walls.
There was a huge staircase, and at the end of it all there was the throne, but more importantly, King Zant was there, waiting patiently for us to arrive. Once my parents and the king were getting ready to begin talking, the king spoke to me with a gentle voice.
"Hope, am I correct?" he had asked me.
I nodded.
"If you would like to, you may go to the yard out back with my grandson. These meetings can be awfully drawn out and boring." He was a nice man. He spoke to me with a gentle smile on his face, but even I knew that this was code for 'it’s time for the adults to talk.'
So I decided to take him up on his offer and go out into the yard.
I walked past many guards. All of them were clearly powerful; however, there was one in particular that stood out to me.
He was a bulky man holding what seemed to be a huge sword, which seemed impractical for combat. As he turned to look at me, he smiled, but I looked away and continued to walk before he could say anything to me so as to avoid any trouble.
Just his mere presence gave off many signs of caution. I could tell he wasn’t a bad man, but I couldn’t help but be cautious around him. His entire body just seemed to emit a frightening power, which warded off anyone who came close to him.
Once I exited the castle, I saw a huge open field, and off to the side was a boy around the same age as I was at the time; he was performing various exercises.
I hid and began to admire the boy from afar in order to pay close attention to what he did. I was intrigued by this boy. He had so much power for his age; he was different from me in every way imaginable.
As I tried to get a closer look, I accidentally made a rustling sound on one of the bushes I was hiding behind, which alerted him.
After hearing the sound, the boy approached the bush. He placed his hand out, and before I could even react, he had burned down the bush I was hiding behind. I fell to the ground and became frightened.
His eyes instantly lit up, and he instantly crouched down in front of me in a panic. "Oh, I’m sorry about that. My grandfather always pulls stunts like this, especially when I am trying to train," he said to me in a kind-hearted voice.
"I-I’m sorry to have troubled you. I’ll just be on my way," I said to him as I turned my gaze away from him.
"Wait? You're leaving so soon? That's a shame. I was hoping you would stay a bit longer. I never get any company around here," he said to me while placing his hand out to help me up. "My name is Mistery; what's your name?" he had asked me.
"My name is… Hope," I said to him, taking hold of his hand.
He lifted me off the ground and helped dust off my clothes.
"So, what brings you here?" he had asked me.
"My parents are here because of a request by King Zant," I responded.
"Yeah, that sounds about right; my grandfather always has people over. You'd think I’d be used to it by now," he said to me.
After that, he told me that he had to continue his daily routine, so throughout the whole day after that encounter, he showed me various exercises, and he even gave me one of his many collections of combat manuals.
Mistery told me that he joined the academy here in Torn but only managed to get into the lowest rank.
He was upset, and because of that, he chose to train daily until he became stronger. I ended up joining him in performing exercises for the day, where he was mostly doing endurance training.
During one of his exercises, he attempted to increase the length of time he could use his firepower.
"Alright, get ready. I’m counting on you to keep time for me, okay?" he told me.
He then let out a huge wave of fire, but not long after that, he collapsed, and I ran up to him worried. I tapped his shoulder, and he looked back at me with a smile.
"So how long was that?" he asked.
"T-ten seconds," I told him.
He was happy.
"That’s a new record," he said to me as he struggled to get up off the ground. "Alright, it’s your turn," he said to me.
I looked at him and remained silent for a few moments. "I-I can’t," I began to tear up.
"Don’t cry," he said to me in a panic as he ran up to me. "Why can’t you do it?"
"I-I don’t have any of these abilities. I can’t use fire," I told him, crying over his shoulder.
"It's okay. You don’t need to have these abilities to get stronger," he tried to comfort me. His voice changed as he attempted to mimic an old man's voice. "To become strong, you must believe you are strong and never give in to what you can’t accomplish. Strength is what's inside you," he laughed, "that’s what my grandfather tells me anyway."
He was strong—not just physically but mentally and emotionally. Once again, he helped me up and continued to comfort me.
"If you can’t use flames, then all you have to do is find another way to fight. Your own way," he said to me.
He would show me various other ways to fight; he told me that because we aren't as big as other people, we must be very mobile. I learned how to close in on an opponent and how to quickly back away from one.
"Geez. You're very agile, aren't you?" He said to me while panting.
I hadn’t realized it before, but because of my small stature, I could move much more freely than other people and could perform various flips and high jumps.
Mistery became amazed at what I could do, and within the first day, we became, in a way, best friends.
After the long training session, my parents called me back.
Later that week, we were left at an inn, where we were told we could stay for the foreseeable future. The inn was huge, and it housed many people who traveled from other kingdoms.
I had gone out and was being escorted around the town by one of the castle guards, and to my surprise, I ran into Mistery.
"Hope. I was looking for you," he told me.
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
"For what reason?"
"I wanted to give you this. I... bought it and thought it would look good on you, so here." He handed me a black scarf.
"O-oh uhh… T-thank you, but why buy this for me?" I said as I shyly accepted his gift.
"Because we’re friends now, and I just wanted to give you something," he told me with a smile on his face. "Anyway, the next exam is coming up later this month, so I need to go prepare. I would appreciate it if you could show up and cheer me on," he had said to me.
"Y-yes, I’ll be there," I responded.
He then waved goodbye before running back to the castle to prepare.
I put the scarf on and admired it as I continued to explore the town.
I figured I should buy him something special to get him ready for his exam.
At first, I thought that I should get him a sword until I remembered how badly he was defeated by one of the guards.
I thought maybe I could get him another book. So I decided to walk towards the library. There were many books on combat; however, I couldn’t seem to find one that he didn’t already own. There were different books on various topics, including hand-to-hand combat and flame control; there was even a list of all known techniques and abnormalities.
I ended up leaving the place empty-handed since I was pretty sure he already owned all of those books. I continued to wonder what to buy him.
I asked the guard escorting me if he knew anything about Mistery’s interest. He told me that Mistery don't really care what someone gets for him as long as it’s black.
With that knowledge at hand, I searched around for any accessories that were dyed uncomfortably black.
I found many artifacts, including necklaces and bracelets. However, I just didn’t see Mistery as an admirer of jewelry like I was, so I continued the search.
For hours on end, I looked for the perfect gift for him, but I was still lost as to where I should even look.
Even the guard escorting me asked if I wanted to get home since the sun was beginning to set. I denied his offer and continued to search. For hours after nightfall, I went from store to store asking for any black artifacts; the only items they had were jewelry and weapons. I needed something special and worthwhile.
The last store I ended up checking out was a small smithy; the moment I entered, I knew I would have to buy it—it was a pair of black arm bracers. Since Mistery didn’t use any weapons, he might need some protection for his arms. The pair I was eyeing were made of extremely light material.
"I see you have a good eye," the blacksmith said to me. "Let me tell you, this is some of the highest quality armor you will ever lay eyes on."
"Are they for sale?" I asked him.
"Well, they fetch a pretty high price, but yeah, I'm willing to sell them."
"The amount doesn’t matter; I’ll take them." I responded.
After I had paid the fee, the blacksmith polished the bracers and packaged them up.
I then needed to get home quickly before my parents began to worry. They tended to always get worried when I was away from them for too long.
Once I arrived at the inn, the guard escorted me to our room, where I was greeted by many hugs and scoldings.
"Hope, dear, you know you shouldn’t be out this late." "We were worried sick about you," my mother seemingly caressed my head, hoping it would come off as genuine.
"I’m sorry, I was out shopping, and I guess I just lost track of time," I told her, hoping to get away with a simple warning.
They didn't buy it, but I knew they wouldn't do anything with so much security around the place.
Once my parents had finally gone to sleep, I started planning the perfect way to give Mistery the gift. For hours on end, I came up with various ideas. I stayed up for most of the night.
"Maybe I can give him the bracers after he passes. Wait, but what if he doesn’t pass?"
I contemplated whether I should even give it to him at all; he might think it’s not good enough or weird to be giving him this sort of thing.
Suddenly, when I thought I had come up with the best plan to deliver the gift, there was a knock on my window.
I looked outside to find Mistery, smiling as he held his hand out.
"Shh," he signaled.
I nodded and took his hand as we ran away from the inn.
It was past midnight, but we were both still wide awake. He took me to a gorgeous mountain just behind the castle. We had a great view of the kingdom and the castle, there were plains that seemed to go on seemingly forever. Mistery was lying down on the grass, staring at the stars.
"It’s nice to get away from everything, don’t you think?" he had asked me.
"Y-yeah," I responded.
I hardly ever went anywhere without permission or supervision; this felt wrong, but I didn’t feel as nervous as I would normally. I felt free, and it was a nice change of pace and scenery. I laid down next to him, where we began to talk about the future.
He had never let go of his dream to become a royal knight. At the time, he told me that there were only four active royal knights stationed all throughout Neptar.
Mistery also spoke to me of his grandfather’s power. While he had never fully seen it, the rumors going around stated that Lord Zant had the power to copy any ability just by looking at it. It was frightening to even think about.
"So do you enjoy fighting?" he asked me.
"Uh… I’ve never thought about it," I answered.
I wanted to be strong. I could be doing anything I wanted to right now with the amount of support I received, but instead, I chose to train. I knew of the consequences, but that just didn’t matter to me.
"I guess... I just want to become stronger. So people will stop looking down on me for having no power." I told him
He laughed. "It’s funny, we’re similar to you and me," he said. "I want to become stronger because everyone expects me to—after all, I’m the king’s grandson. Though unlike me, I believe you actually have the means to do so." He said to me.
"H-how so?"
"What you lack in power, you make up for in strength, will, determination, and agility." "You're incredibly talented; I just think you don't quite see it yet."
I once again teared up.
Anyone who had ever known me had always seen me as the weakling, even if they’d never outright say it. The helpless, fragile little girl that they just need to protect
Mistery changed my perception of that; he told me that I could become something greater. He believed in me, and I would not let him down.
This would’ve been the perfect time to give him his present… if I hadn’t forgotten it.
I was in such a hurry to follow him that I forgot the gift on my bed. Once I saw him outside the window, I became flustered and panicked, and I ended up leaving the present there without thinking.
Instead, I decided to try and give it to him the next time we met up.
(Nearly a Month Later)
I told my parents that I would be heading out once again to watch the exams in a few hours.
As usual, they had a guard escort me.
The exams had just barely begun once I arrived at the arena; however, already more than half of the contestants had been eliminated.
I took a seat next to the guard to watch the event. I placed the present on my lap and waited for Mistery to have his turn.
The test seemed fairly simple and straightforward: the entrees had to fight one of the knights. If they managed to land a hit on her, they passed. The knight was powerful—unbelievably so.
She was wearing heavy armor and a large mace-like object.
She had managed to dispose of the first few combatants with ease; just a few attacks did the trick. However, as I continued to watch, something strange began to happen. Next up was a blonde boy around the same age as Mistery and I; he was wearing silver armor and wielding a one-handed sword.
He managed to go toe-to-toe with the knight. The boy was incredible; not once did he use his flames. He only relied on his swordplay, which was very good.
Unfortunately, the knight eventually managed to break through his defense, disarming him and ending the fight.
Next up was Mistery; he was wearing his usual attire: a black sweater, black pants, and black shoes—black on black on black.
He had a plain sense of style, but he was great.
He turned to look at me and smiled. The test had begun, and Mistery started to circle the knight.
Mistery would attack the knight repeatedly, but to no avail. The knight’s defense was solid; not even the previous contestant had managed to land a hit on him, and he seemed to be several leagues better.
Mistery was on the ropes, running around and dodging any attack that he could. I thought it was over; the guard was simply too powerful for him.
However, not long after the match had started, I started to notice something off about Mistery. This wasn’t his normal fighting style; he seemed a lot more reserved. I knew what he was trying to do; he wasn’t using any flame techniques. He was doing this for me.
But it already seemed like there was nothing more he could do.
I got up from my seat and shouted at him.
"Mistery! You can do this!"
He turned to look at me and smiled.
All of a sudden, it was like a flash of light had charged the knight head-on.
Mistery had moved lightning fast. Fast enough that my eyes couldn’t seem to keep up, and I don’t think I was alone.
Everyone in the crowd went silent. The only person who wasn’t shocked by this was King Zant. He was smiling and laughing as if he saw everything that had just occurred.
Mistery instantly broke through the guard's defense and sent her tumbling to the ground. He had passed the exam.
Later that day, after the exams were all set and done, I decided to give Mistery a little visit.
He had been busy all day, with many of the noble families kissing up to him and praising him for his achievements. It was always something he truly hated. If you ever wanted to anger Mistery the easiest way to do it would be to bring up his birthright as the prince.
"Congratulations!" I snuck up behind him.
"Oh," he said, becoming startled. "T-thanks, I surprised myself out there," he said to me.
"Is everything alright?" I asked him.
He had been acting strange all day; it was like something had been bothering him.
"It’s nothing; I’m just tired," he said to me. "I have to keep putting on this act anytime I’m around people. It starts to get really annoying at some point."
"I can imagine," I replied.
I noticed that he seemed pretty stressed out and annoyed that day.
Before we could continue our conversation, however, Mistery had been dragged back to various meetings with the many nobles attending the after party.
And not long after our encounter, our family had finally been called back to our home town after two years here in Torn and without any prior notice.
I was forced to leave, as I begged and pleaded with my parents to let me stay here, but they remained adamant about our departure.
Leaving him alone that day would eventually come to be my biggest regret in life.
(Weeks Later)
It was the day of our family reunion. Several high-ranking Neptarians gathered at our mansion to celebrate.
There was loud music and various snacks and drinks all around.
There was no one around my age, so I stayed close to my father, listening to everyone as they all spoke about political matters.
I learned that the guard hosting the exams that day was actually one of the four royal knights, and apparently she was a woman named Adira.
Mistery would be proud of himself for making progress towards his goal.
At this point in time, I still had the box containing Mistery’s present. I had been cleaning and polishing them every day since I left Torn.
"Why are you wearing those things? Armor like that is unbecoming for a daughter of mine." My father had asked me as he slurred his words; he was clearly intoxicated.
"T-they’re for a friend," I told him.
He was against me wearing the bracers from the start, and now he was getting annoyed that I would wear them every day, no matter the occasion.
"You mean that boy? The one who managed to defeat Adira like that?" my father had spoken out.
"I believe his name was Mistery; he is the grandson of Lord Zant," another guest said to my father.
"I mean seriously. If he had that type of power, he should’ve used it from the start. It’s pathetic, really," my father said.
Everyone continued to laugh and make fun of Mistery.
"Shut up…" I uttered under my breath.
My father and all the other guests around them became silent and stared at me.
"I beg your pardon?" He said to me, "The boy is a failure; if he can only raise his power after he has been beaten down, then he is no warrior."
"You wouldn’t say that to the King though, would you?" I lashed out.
The room then slowly became colder; my fingers were freezing, causing every guest to complain about the temperature. Many tried to use their flames to warm the place up, but all their fire just became smoke and dissipated.
"H-hold your tongue; you shall not speak to me in this manner!" He raised his voice as it was clearly shivering.
"Why?" I asked, "Are you afraid that I’ll rat you out?"
Every liquid in the room froze over, and the air became thinner.
My body felt completely frozen, and everybody began to panic. However, throughout all this, not one person stopped talking about Mistery in a bad light.
"W-what are you doing?" he asked me.
Everyone around me became colder and colder until they could no longer form proper words.
"I-I knew I should’ve never taken you in," he said to me. "You’re...just... a monster," he slowly said to me before dropping to the floor.
Many tried to escape, but the doors and windows were frozen shut.
Resistance was futile.
Many died of hypothermia, and those who didn’t became impaled by stalagmites made of ice.
Throughout all this, my body wouldn’t move, and I was forced to watch the murder of tens of people.
Blood was splattered on the walls and floor; people taking their last breath before being frozen to death or impaled.
Hours later, there was a loud knock on the door; someone from the outside had heard all the commotion and broken through the door.
It was Mistery.
Frightened, I ran up to his arms and let out a quiet sob.
The room was freezing, and everyone around us was dead, impaled in a horrible and gruesome manner.
The demon responsible for it all was staring down at us, seemingly frozen in place. A sculpture of ice towering above us, with its hands seemingly wrapped around me.
I was to blame for all this, for wishing death upon those who looked down on him.