They say that the Adventurer’s life is a dream worth dying for…
But how far are you willing to attain it?
Screams of the fallen echo the streets as an ominous shadow looms over the fallen skyscrapers. Behind that smoke holds a large beast with dark crimson eyes. Its cold stare pierces Roger’s heart as he does his best not to fall to his knees. It was his first time working with the militia, though when he and his squad were the ones to be sent out for an emergency call, he didn’t expect his first assignment to be like this.
Beads of sweat were falling on his face. The wooden spear he was holding started to sweat throughout, causing it nearly to slip out of his grasp. Death was imminent, he thought. Not even the armor he was wearing would save his life. Not against that thing…
Each step the beast takes causes the ground to shake and makes Roger’s blood turn to ice. Instinct tells him to run, to retreat before the creature would snuff the life from him. Yet his legs turned to jelly and his movement remained futile. The scent of smoke and fear consumed him as the young soldier tried to yell out for his comrades.
But no one answered.
No one called back.
Tears began to come down on Roger’s face. Is this it? Is this how his life would end?
“I’m sorry love,” he whimpered as he closed his eyes, clutching a small necklace that his lover made for him before he left for Centaria, succumbing to the fate that had been sealed to him.
The wolf’s roar echoed across the city and into his ears. He was waiting for Death’s sweet embrace.
Yet he could still feel everything.
A voice of hope spoke amidst the chaos.
“Sorry for the delay.”
Roger opened his eyes and noticed a tall figure, covered in full-plated armor, head to toe. Despite the charred flames and smoke, the knight’s armor glowed a bright cyan blue, deflecting the anguish with its calm tone. No way, is this figure…a Blade?
How? He thought. How is he even alive amidst all of this?
His thought process was eventually cut short when the knight calmly spoke.
“Can you still move?”
“Um...Ye-yes sir!” Roger yelled, his body still trembling from the beast’s wake.
“Good…”
Held on the knight’s right hand is a longsword in its sheathe. Its sheath is adorned in dark blue with white lines and diamonds.
“I must ask you to run.” said the knight. He pulled his longsword out of its sheathe, the blade glowing a bright cyan blue like his armor. “I’ll do my best to buy you some time.”
What…Is this knight….is he insane?
“Private Rogers!”
Roger looked behind and saw a squad of three soldiers making their way through the wreckage. One was familiar, for his gray beard was somewhat scorched and covered with soot, and the eyes of discipline no doubt belonged to his commander, Vox.
“C-Commander…”
“Ah…Commander Vox.” said the knight. “Would you kindly please help this man get up on his feet?”
“Understood sir! Come on boys! Lift him in three…two…one!”
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With effort, Roger was lifted to his two feet. The fear of death has yet to be thawed, though he was relieved that he has been found and with some people.
The growl that emanated throughout the broken city broke the small veil of calm. The knight held a stance and yelled. “It’s coming! You must make haste! Right now!”
“Why…?” Roger started, frustration boiled and swelled up inside him, almost like a pot of water about to burst. He couldn’t contain what he had just seen before the Blade arrived and what he just endured.
The knight turned toward the young soldier’s direction.
“Why are you doing this!? That creature had already slaughtered nearly everybody! Millions of innocents! My comrades! Not even the Glavien or military can bring them down!”
“........”
The knight remained silent for a moment, then he spoke.
“.......Because it is my duty.”
“Your…duty..?”
“We as Blades have sworn to protect the people. Even when Death threatens to take me from this mortal plane, I will still uphold my duty as a Blade, no matter the cost!”
“How can you be sure you won’t perish like the others!?”
“I don’t.”
The words that left the knight’s mouth had entered Roger’s ears, causing his eyes to grow wide.
“I understand that you are afraid,” the knight continued. “But know that you mustn’t let fear snuff out your flame, for it could grow to melt away the ice cap and provide warmth in your care!”
Roger remained silent for he had lost any spark to respond to the knight’s statement. The knight turned away from the young warrior and held a clenched fist up high.
“I pray good fortunes may smile upon you, my friend. Now go!”
* * *
As Commander Vox and his squad dragged the young soldier away, the knight lowered his fist and relaxed his hand. He knows he might be unable to kill this beast, but there may be a way to end all of this. It might even kill him in the end.
The small smile behind his helm disappeared as he held his sword with both hands and assumed a stance. Sweat began to trickle down to the sides of his head as the heat from the wreckage devoured the surrounding area. The loud steps finally stop as the demon before has finally shown himself. A large wolf, its fur bearing a dark shade of blue, followed by the crimson eyes of evil.
“I’m sorry….” said the knight. “But I can’t let you do this Zexes.”
The phantom sword that the knight held began to glow a bright blue hue.
“The last thing I want to do…”
Zexes bear their fangs and lower themself, almost as if they were about to pounce and bite on the dear knight. Its entire body remains unscathed from the searing fire.
Without skipping a beat, the knight held his sword up high, its sword glowing from a bright blue to a pure white light.
“....is to hurt a dear friend.”
Having never cared about listening to a tiny ingrate, the wolf transformed. The ground around him began to shake immensely, causing various structures of the once great city to fall or reduce to ash. Red and black streaks of Aura begin to seep and surround the wolf with huge ferocity until finally a huge ball of dark flame surrounds the creature.
Bearing fang and sword, both creatures leaped high into the sky. One formed into a giant flame of darkness and death, while the other formed a small orb of light bearing blue and white.
As the two close the distance, the atmosphere began to intensify. Ripples of trees and metal began to break down and deform.
The two collide in a wild BANG! The intensity of between the two forces was unimaginable. The small light flickered, almost as if is being devoured by the dark dreadnought.
The light flickered…and faded….until it was reignited. This time, the light grew brighter and brighter than ever, causing cracks to emerge from the dark meteor. The darkness from within started to turn into a beautiful bright blue, and the surrounding flame of red and black succumbed to change into white and blue.
And like a jar, the two formed into one and shattered, causing the entire landscape to be consumed by the white light.
Within that light, the knight's armor began to fade into nothing. He felt nothing. No pain. No fear. Nothing.
Only silence….peaceful silence.
As his helm is torn apart, a warm yet mournful smile appears on his face, and his last words are mouthed before fading into obscurity.
“Forgive me…”