Azmina couldn't remember a time where she felt more anger, more disappointed, more betrayed by her brother's stupidity. All she wanted was to attend Vellia’s magic academy to master her power. It was the first step in taking back leadership of her clan and was supposed to be the easiest one. But Rohaan turned a simple night into a disaster like a child kicking an ant Hill and being surprised by the bites that followed.
She lost all her caretakers and servants escaping the queendom of Ram, but she and her brother still had the mountain of gold needed to gain strength in this pale-faced city. Purchasing the education needed to fight in the war for the throne was her number one priority, sadly Rohaan had other ideas.
He became bored of waiting for admission, so when a fledgling noble of the city mentioned the pits, there was no stopping him.
Azmina pleaded with him not to go, that beyond the walls of where they stayed only held unneeded dangers, but he wouldn't listen. So, she accompanied him to keep him safe from his own foolishness.
Outside the polished finery of Villia’s walls was surprising, but not because of how foreign their oddly shaped buildings were or the lifeless grays and brown everyone wore. What really bothered Azmina was how unkempt the land just outside the city was.
The peasants of Ram, like all peasants were poor and had to work the land for food or die but their lives were pristine compared to the Vellian masses. With her magical perception widening her view past the limits of her eyes, Azmine saw in every direction past the elaborate decorations just outside the wall into the filth just beyond.
The homes were decrepit heaps of rotten wood, hardly fit for stable animals. Nearly half of those within were thin and weathered from a lifetime of starvation. The dead were tucked away in hidden alleys without honor or under piles of refuse where most of the bodies were small. It took Azmina a moment to realize they were children.
She begged her brother to leave. She could clearly see how much danger they were truly in. Hoder and his men might be mundane, but he moved and like an untrustworthy snake ready to bite if given the chance.
Rohaan of course ignored everything she said. He wanted to feel important, to be respected and feared like they were still home and not on the run as strangers in a strange land. That was his real reason for being here. It wasn't for the carnage or the sport, but to feel strong amongst those without magic.
The only silver lining of the ridiculous outing had been Brand. She’d never seen a person like him before, darker than anyone she’d ever met and a head taller than any man from home. His hair was somehow a curly mess but at the same time tied together in long strands. And his eyes, they were bright gold-like polished coins that contrasted with his dark features.
Brand was perfectly beautiful and unique, an excellent addition to her court that would bolster her standing in Ramian society upon her return.
While enjoying the luxury of the upper floor of the fighting pit, Azmina asked Hoder non-stop questions about Brand’s deminer, upbringing, and abilities as they watched him throughout the night. She was shocked to find out he was only 16, not much older than herself. What surprised her more was the skill he displayed as he won his matches.
She’d had been trained in martial skills even though her large mana pool made her a far better mage than a cultivator. This allowed her to see through the farce of Hoder’s competition.
There were only four men Azmina even bothered to watch compete. One died to an obviously drugged opponent. Another had lost to another drugged man but survived the encounter. The last two were Brandy and the red-headed Blood Beard.
As Brand purposefully lost his match against Blood Beard, Azmina asked Hoder to speak about his future plans. Sadly, Rahaan heard and inquired as to why she cared. She told her brother her intention to add him to their household, and to her surprise, he was furious.
“You think this weakling is good enough to join our clan? He didn’t even win against the bearded one,” he had said.
“Yes, I do,” Azmina retorted. “You can't see his worth because your training is lacking. Either way, he is one of the best and youngest fighters we’ve seen. Did you forget that we have no retainers left, just a governess? We need him!”
“I’ll be the judge of that,” Rohaan said, jumping down to the sands to confront Brandy.
Looking back, Azmina wished she'd stood up for herself and not let her brother walk over her like he’d done so many times before. She was the rightful matriarch making his disregard of her authority a personal failure.
Her brother challenged Brand to a duel so one-sided it would be considered dishonorable. A veteran soldier against a child would be more just than a spirit warrior against a normal man. Even so, Brand once again surprised her. He dodged a blow Rohaan meant to kill him with and a moment later, restraining him in an armbar. That's when everything went horribly wrong.
Rohaan had never been in control of his geo mastery focus. It was one of the skills she hoped he’d master at Vellia. Whenever he used it, the earth around him would destabilize and crumble as if cobbled stone suddenly turned to sand.
Azmina thought, no, she knew her brother was a fool, but she never thought he'd use his focus underground. Within seconds the hole Rohaan made to escape the armbar sent cracks radiating through the underground cavern sending tons of rubble down on everyone's heads.
She should have run for the exit, she had enough time to make it past the danger, but she froze. She did what she always did while in danger, tapping into her own focus creating a sphere that banished all solid matter.
No earth got through the sphere and was vaporized instantly. It’s saved her, but not the floor she stood on.
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She fell when it gave way and curled into a ball remembering not to let her focus eat the ground she landed on. Her mana drained as more and more earth was banished in turn causing even more to fall.
When the earth stopped falling, Azmina opened her eyes to darkness and the feeling of something liquid pooling around her and soaking her dress. For a moment, she wondered if she released her bladder out of fear only to wish that had been the case as she materialized a light in her hand.
Blood seeped through the stones around her raining down like summer rain. A year ago, she would have emptied her stomach at the gory sight. A year ago, she was still a child. Now, she was someone who’d seen too much death and treachery for her mind to focus on anything but survival.
“I need to move or die here,” she said to herself.
Her mana flared to life filling the small chamber with the shimmering light of her aura. With a thought, it surged forward banishing the rock in front and above her creating a slope leading up to the surface.
Azmina had to take several turns after running into the remains of the once captivated audience. With every corpse she found, her anger toward Rohaan increased. He killed what was likely over 100 people including Brand and herself if she ran out of air before finding a way out. There would be blood to pay when she found him. Her study of magic far surpassed his fighting ability. He’d be helpless against whatever punishments she came up with.
When Azmina made it to the surface, she burst through the ground in a plume of dust, the early morning sun was blinding. She quickly blinked away the spots in her vision finding herself in the city proper her back practically leaning against the giant wall surrounding it
Wanting to gag at seeing the filth covering her, Azmina cast a cantrip to clean the blood from her clothes and body. The grime flew off her with a flick of a finger leaving the reds and gold of the torn and tattered dress shining. Sadly, there wasn't magic to fix her messy hair and makeup.
Finally clean and out of danger, Azmina took in her surroundings. A large part of the wall collapsed due to Rohaan’s focus leaving debris on both sides and a gaping wound in the fortress-like fortification. The destruction would be visible for miles, a tear in Vellia’s perfect vale of authority.
Hoping to escape without being seen, Azmina dashed down a dimly lit back street. Her home was only a few minutes away and if she could make it there in secret maybe she wouldn’t suffer for her brother’s mistake. Unfortunately, she only made it a few feet before making a silent scream as a spell slammed into her back.
Magic swam through Azmina's body collecting around her joints like cement. As she hit the ground, her muscles spasmed uncontrollably until rough hands rolled her onto her back.
To her surprise, it wasn't city guardsmen but Hoder smelling as foul as ever with two of the night's competitors. Without saying a word, he placed a collar around her neck smiling as he tightened the restraint.
With the collar secured, Azmina felt her mana take on an unfamiliar feeling like someone had tried to meld with her but clumsily distorted the energies making them both unusable. She tried even harder to move, to scream, to do anything but she was powerless.
One of Hoder’s men lifted Azmina’s limp form bringing her back inside a stable part of the Mur. They stopped deep within the wall where no one could hear screams or cries for help and lay her on her back.
Undoing his belt, Hoder leered at his prey hungrily. “You and your brother have cost me everything, so I’ll do the same to you. Bet you thought you’d just walk away leaving us nobodies with the rubble you let us keep.” Azmina was forced to watch and listen, frozen in place as Hoder carefully removed her clothing not wanting to damage its resale value. “I'll make back all the gold you lost me and more by selling you to the highest bidder. Hahaha, bet you never saw whoring in your future.”
As Hoder spread Azmina’s legs apart he brought his crotch closer to her’s.
“I'll, ki, kill you, for ggtthhuu,” she mumbled sloppily, making Hoder laugh.
Azmina wanted to close her eyes and be somewhere else while he did what he did, but she would not give up so easily. She fought with her mana trying to grasp it and once more and bend it to her will, but she couldn’t no matter how hard she tried.
If freedom couldn’t be found within maybe it was somewhere around her. She looked for whatever controlled the collar in hopes of breaking free. Sadly, one of the men behind Hoder held the small rune-covered orb suppressing her movement.
“This is it,” she thought. “My virginity, stolen by scum all because of my brother.”
From the corner of her eye, a dark figure almost casually walked up to the man farthest from Hoder and stabbed him through the back of his neck quickly dropping him to the floor, unaware of what killed him. Noticing the man's assault, the other henchman pulled a short sword only for his sword hand to be caught and a knife to be shoved into his right eye.
His screams sounded like grinding metal while thrashing about until the knife was forced deeper into the eye socket with a surge of strength mixing his brains before being pulled free.
“Bbb-Brand,” Hoder stuttered, falling backward, his pants still around his ankles.
Azmina finally got a good look at who was hopefully her rescuer. It was indeed Brand coated from head to toe in dried blood sporting a victorious smile.
“Hey Hoder,” Brand said, calm and unworried, as he took in the scene before him.
At that moment, Azmina saw something break within his mind. Seeing her lying there, naked, with Hoder about to force himself on a helpless, panicked, fragile-looking girl, Brand’s face went from a nonchalant look as if meeting an old friend to an all-consuming rage that would only be sated by blood.
There was no taunting, jokes, or bluster before he pounced on Hoder raining down knife blows into his eyes then chest, and one final stab to the stomach. Hoder hadn’t even the time to scream before he was dead many times over.
Getting off the dead man, Azmina saw Brand exhale a sigh of relief as if a great weight had been lifted from him. He started to free Hoder of all his possessions pocketing everything he found.
“Hhheeeoollp” Azmina mumbled trying to get Brandy's attention.
She somehow regretted calling to him. Once he saw her nakedness, he drank in her beauty with wide eyes. Embarrassment reddened her cheeks instead of rage at being seen by him. Worse was that he didn’t even pretend not to be enjoying the view. His eyes roamed her body briefly pausing at her privates and chest.
“So,” he said, not bothering to look away. “Looks like you've had a pretty shitty day too.” As Brand talked, he dressed Azmina deepening her blush as he slowly placed underclothes on her exposed nethers. “How do I get you moving again?”
Azmina grunted as she tried to tell him of the orb right behind him. Brand waited for an answer but realizing none would come he looked about the room. Finding the orb on the ground he brought it to Azmina’s face.
“I’m guessing this is what's got you looking like a dead fish,” he said, rolling the orb in his hand. Azmina just grunted in response. “Just to be safe little lady, one ggeerrfff for yes and two for no, ok. Should I smash this?”
Receiving his answer, Brand smashed the orb to dust. Immediately Azmina felt the effects starting to fade, but not leaving her entirely. She could not talk yet, but her head could now move from side to side.
“Now about making me a cultivator?” was all Brand had time to say before a bolt of energy almost took off his head. Many more followed forcing him back and then into a run as the deadly energies rained down. City guards made their way down the corridor chasing after him. One man with the look of a captain came to Azmina’s side.
“My lady, you're safe now,” he said, removing his cape and draping it around her for modesty.
“This nightmare is over,” she thought, hugging herself tightly and trying not to tremble.