I stand up and look around. I’m in the middle of a dark forest. The only light is coming from the building in front of me. It is as long as a football stadium and a dozen stories high. This must be the facility where the Aidoshians lost their minds. If they had Fantasia, did they let her go? Could she have escaped?

“Kai, there you are?” I hear Reaka’s voice behind me.

I duck down in time to dodge a clear sword from cutting my head off.

“You dodged. It the skills Amùsen taught you are impressive. Now I’m sure I could have fun with you,” she giggles.

“You got here fast,” I say as I turn to face her and jump back.

“I wouldn’t be late for our date, Kai! How could I miss your going away party,” she says then whistles and out from the forest comes the unarmed men. One hands her a shield.

I run into the dark forest. After a couple of minutes with no sign of being followed by her, I kneel down at the base of a tree to load my gun. As soon as I finish, an ear-splitting sound jars me—the snapping of wood followed by three loud booms. I see the glass blade sticking through the tree right next to my head but I don’t see Reaka or her goons. I realize she threw her sword at me with such deadly force it cut down three trees. If my head was an inch closer to the right, I would be dead. How am I going to get out of this alive? There is no way to win against these monsters. I thought the Myrmidon was the fiercest thing the Gandole had to offer but if there are more like Reaka and Ailh, there is no hope for survival.

What’s the point in continuing this fighting if there is no hope? The Gandole have taken everything from me—my family, my home, my identity. What’s left to protect? Maybe Univer wants me to die tonight before I lose sight of who I am... maybe I’m no one to begin with.

“Giving up already?” Reaka asks.

I can’t see her but I call out, “What’s the point, Reaka? You’re going to kill me. I don’t see why I should delay the inevitable any longer.”

“Well that sucks after all I sacrificed for this hunt. What happened to all that fire you had in you a minute ago? I wanted to enjoy killing the last of the Brotherhood. You really know how to ruin a girl’s fun,” she says as she jumps down from the tree next to me. “You may have lost your will to live but killing is killing and it’s always enjoyable to watch the last moments of someone’s life,” she says as she picks me up by the neck and squeezes the last bits of life from me. “Do you feel it, the cold feeling of death’s calm? Ah! It must be wondrous. How does it feel?” Her face is full of pleasure.

Suddenly she stops and lowers me until my feet touch the ground. She raises her shield. An explosion goes off in front of us. A barrier of light extends from the shield protecting us as the blast engulfs us in a hellish fire. The shockwave throws us in the air. I lose sight of Reaka. I hit the earth surprisingly in one piece.

“Rise to thy feet, brave warrior. The time of thy reckoning hast not come. Stand and come with thee to a haven beyond thy dark woodland!”

I look up to see a girl’s figure. The darkness conceals her face.

“Who are you?” I ask.

“Now is not the time to familiarize thy self with thee. The darkness is not enough to conceal thee from thine enemy.”

I may not know who she is but her accent is definitely not Gandole or Aidoshian. Can she be trusted? Without a second thought, I stand up and trail behind her as she leads me through the thick forest. We soon meet up with two others of her squad. One of them tackles me to the ground and forces my hands behind my back. They all share the Dokain speech so it is hard to follow their conversation. The soldier on top of me helps me up and we all trail behind my mysterious savior. Her fellow squad members watch me closely.

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Twenty minutes pass and I’m now able to see a large gated camp ahead. When we arrive inside the camp, the people are staring me up and down with their hands on their guns, some pointing them at me. The woman that saved me relieves her squad and they both walk off. With the light posts, I can see my savior’s face and hopefully get some answers as to who she is and why she would risk her own life to save a stranger’s. Before I even get a chance to speak, she offers me a seat at one of the light posts. Two chairs sit facing each other most likely for interrogations.

Though she is not an ugly girl, she is not the most beautiful I have ever seen. She is quite skinny but not malnourished. Her short hair does not go down to her neck. She has three earrings on her left ear with only one on her right. In Dokain custom women get their ears pierced to mean certain social statuses like the coming of age. One of the earrings she is missing is the marriage band and the other means she does not have children. Her eyes are a beautiful amber and reflect a kind soul. She has an Mx-17 anti-tank missile launcher strapped to her back and a pistol on her leg. Her clothes are military camouflage and her rank is posted on the sleeve of her jacket though I am not familiar with their ranking system.

“I welcome thee, friend,” she says as she sits down in the chair facing me. “What hast thou done to bring upon thyself the wrath of those most feared?”

“Before I answer, can I ask you a question?”

“Of course. All ye have to do is ask it of me.”

She talks in the form of old Nayate which is very uncommon in any part of the world. I’ve only heard of one country that still holds onto such an old tongue, the small island country Doku which means this is a squadron of the Dokain army.

“Who are you and why did you save me.” I ask.

“Were thou not suffering?”

“Lucy, what hast thou done? Thou art a fool to bring a stranger here,” says a man that walks towards us.

He has many ribbons and stars. I can suppose he is the commander.

“Father, thy God’s will has been done and saved the life of this man,” she says as she stands up and salutes him. She says father but she means it not in the literal sense. The Dokain like the Aidoshians are ruled by a theocracy. Dokain generals are often spiritual leaders as well.

“Why hast thine life been marked with death?” he asks as he turns to me.

“Because, sir, I am Aidosh…” I cannot finish my statement.

A darkness grips my heart and refuses to let me say what I don’t know to be true anymore. What am I to call myself? Should I believe those monsters or believe my own heart? I feel at a loss. I never got the chance to get to know my parents before they died. I was left with my uncle and aunt and they would not speak of them. Have I always lived a lie? Am I fighting a war that isn’t mine to fight?

“Thou art Aidoshian? Then thou art blessed truly, for you still have your wits about thee,” the Father says.

“What do you mean?” I ask.

“Others whom we find have let madness run their lives,” he replies.

“So you have seen other Aidoshians here? Where are they?”

“All that we saved with thine noble cause found death’s accursed kiss soon after,” he replies then grabs my shoulder. “But don’t let such trivial words bother thee for the mighty axe of the Dokain will sever the arm of the Gandole that chokes the life from Aidon.”

“I am sorry to say but you are too late. Aidon has fallen and her citizens lie dead in the streets! Your superiors played you for fools,” I say as I shake his hand from my shoulder.

“Are you sure of this?” the Father asks.

I nod my head yes.

“This is such troubling news, Father,” Lucy says. “How could we be so misinformed?”

“What is thy name?” the Father asks.

“Kai,” I respond.

“Will thee Kai accompany me on the morrow to speak before the magistrate? Such dire news as this shall be spoken from thou who hast witnessed it firsthand and can testify wholeheartedly the horror that he has beheld,” the man says.

“Yes,” I reply.