The night of the Siren Ceremony was a blur for Dreiki. He had thought he had the answer to the Oskuutor’s weakness, but having only part of the story led to having only part of the answer. While ringing the pendant on his neck, he thought of all the things represented by the stories. He infused Ux into it, and it seemed to hold the creatures at bay for at least a little bit. Not only that, but it held them for longer the less hatred he had in his heart while ringing.

Burning the effigies had been an idea born from a mix of Sancta’s knowledge of the puppets, and Arik’s knowledge of the ritual itself. It had been the reason the Malaki did not only target Kaara.

As for the reason they did not target, Dreiki theorized it was due to the pendant, but there was a chance Shiira had something to do with it as well. During their stand at the bonfire, Dreiki had posted himself atop a nearby tree so that he could survey the battlefield and ring his bell at the right moment. It had not always worked, but for the most part it gave people the split second difference they needed to survive.

What frustrated him most is how the bell’s chime seemed to be less effective each time. As if the Oskuutor were realizing that he did not have the second half of their puzzle figured out yet.

Despite that, the Oskuutor’s intelligence was also their downfall. They were not mindless beasts with no sense of self preservation. They were intelligent monsters who hesitated to push in the case that someone knew the answer to killing them. They were sadistic and indulgent, opting to harm more than kill.

Dreiki had no doubt that if these creatures were merely mindless monsters they would have all been slaughtered. Still, the trauma these monsters inflicted likely would not leave the hearts of many children here, and that saddened Dreiki.

No matter how much he looked at it, this ritual was cruel. Even if they opted in, none of them were old enough to fully comprehend the horror they’d endure tonight. All for the sake of power they were not allowed to understand yet.

Was it not more possible to awaken Ux through training like he had? Dreiki sighed to himself. It was not unlike the other warrior cultures he’d read about. The idea that someone was born to survive, while those that perished were not worthy of passing on their traits. There had been far more cruel rites of passage, but that did not make this one permissible.

Mid way through the ritual, it had become clear to Dreiki that his purpose was to interfere with the ritual. He watched as warriors cloaked in gray ran rampant through the ranks of the Oskuutor. Savekio had planned to do this from the beginning. He planned to show him the horrors that the Tibur inflicted on their own.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Savekio had clearly spent the past few weeks gathering allies. This enigmatic ‘Gray Order’. But why were the Tibur and nobility not stepping in now? Clearly an outsider party was interfering, so what was stopping the overseers from acting?

Dreiki dangled his leg from the tree branch, swinging it about underneath him as he watched the Oskuutor corralled and killed off. The ring did not have to be from a bell, nor even bronze, it seemed. Perhaps bronze helped, but it seemed these warriors knew how to ring their swords and spears to get the same effect.

He caught the occasional glimpse of how they killed the creatures. Each of the gray cloaked warriors pulled a hand-sized orb from the bodies of the Oskuutor and bit into it. They took the orbs from different parts of the Oskuutor’s bodies. It seemed as though the Oskuutor loved to shift them around in their bodies to prevent them from being damaged.

One by one, the Oskuutor were reduced to ash, and the bone-armored Malaki were crushed. Any injury the warriors incurred seemed ineffective. Watching them work made Dreiki realize how much further he had to go. Not just him, but everyone else around him too. Other kids his age could move at high speeds, exhibit incredible strength, and cast incredibly powerful magic. And yet, each and every one of the gray warriors were on a level far beyond what they were capable of.

Dreiki could recognize their usage of Ux. Each of them used Recuso as if it were second nature.

“Argo! Time to go!” Rixam shouted up at him, “Master told us where to meet up.”

Dreiki nodded, dropping down from his branch, “Are all of you alright?”

“Thanks to you, yes.”

He looked at his friends. Each of them had earned a few wounds, but none seemed to be in dire condition. He smiled, but it was bittersweet. He did not know what happened to the others. After the Oskuutor managed to break their lines, everyone had scattered. All Dreiki could contribute was the ringing of his bell while he waited to be saved. It was truly a helpless situation.

He counted himself lucky that everyone closest to him had survived, but he did not know about Tadios or Kaara or anyone else. He even found himself hoping for Sancta’s safety, but in reality she had likely perished. Regardless, he would not be able to confirm that. Whatever was holding back the overseers from stepping in was likely temporary.

The group rushed to their meeting place, and they did not need to wait long. Only moments after arriving, Dreiki and the others were met by the gray cloaked warriors. Each of them had a strange magical darkness which obscured their faces.

“So this is your protege, Savekio?” one of them said.

“Meager as they are, they accomplished what was necessary.” Another said.

“Careful,” Savekio said, shedding his hood, “The more you all talk, the easier it will be for my protege to discover the answers to future tests. He’s got a mind like mine.”

“Unsurprising that you’ve chosen him, then.”

“I have other reasons, of course.” Savekio said, looking to Dreiki, “So, my disciple, what have you learned in these past two weeks?”

“Aren’t you going to tell me how I did on your test?” Dreiki asked.

“I would if your test was over, but you’re still being graded.”