A voice muttered in the dark depths.

"You will be sacrificed for our cause".

----------------------------------------

"What do you think these ruins are exactly?" a young man of about sixteen years old asked.

He and two others, a boy and a girl, were looking at old decrepid hallways.  That said, while they were certainly in disrepair, they had a certain grandness and awe inspiring feel to them.  It was clear they were all from the same place, as they all were wearing the same thing.  A black jacket with silver buttons and silver trim, grey pants, tall grey socks that went under the pants, and black boots.  On their chests above a pocket was a silver insignia, and they all had a silver berret on their heads.  Underneath their jackets was a white shirt.

The boy who asked the question had charming looks and blonde hair, along with emerald eyes.  

"The captain said that it was unknown.  They only discovered it recently, while trying to investigate a lead on the Necroids, but the other team didn't have the time, so they sent us.  More importantly, lets keep moving Joshua.  You too, Ezren.  Captain Urazi should be up ahead".

The trio kept going, but they couldn't help but be amazed at the ancient writing that was littered across the halls.

Joshua Yaeger looked over at the girl, Elliazza Revlen, or as she prefered just Ellia.  "You can read this right, what does it say?"

"I cant properly read to decypher it while moving.  Id love to have a chance to look at it all in detail, although without knowing where is the start and the end, it might be difficult to be exact" Ellia mentioned, as they moved forward.  "I can say that from what iv glanced at, some of it seems to be warnings, and mentions a seal".

"A seal?  Warnings?  Could it be related to Necroids?"

"Doubtful.  They believe these ruins are older then the existence of Necroids" Ezren mentioned.  However, as they walked down the dusty hallway, they found what appeared to be corpses of monsters.  They looked like raptors and ogres, but there were some weird metal bits on them.  However, they had all been cut to pieces.  "Looks like we are close to the captain".

The other two nodded, confident in that conclusion.  Seeing a nice trail left for them to followed, they decided to follow the trail of Necroid corpses.  Although htey were killed without anything held back it seemed, they still remained on guard.  None of them dropped their guards, as Ellia and Joshua drew their swords, and Ezren raised a rifle.  Nothing attacked them, but still they remained wary and on guard as they followed the trail.

And turning a corner, they saw a black haired woman standing in the center of a circle of Necroid corpses, beautiful and confident..  Although certainly Ellia had beautiful blonde hair herself, and was quite charismatic, so was their captain, Isha Uzari.  She was standing in what appeared to be a large hall, with a pair of strong and sturdy doors in front of her, untouched unlike everything else around her.

"You managed to hold back?  Is that door of some importance?" Ezren asked.  However, the captain shook her head.

"No matter what attack hit it, nothing damaged the door.  Its sealed too, so I cant open it.  However, when I arrived, the Necroids were clawing at the door.  Ellia, can you please study the door and unlock it?"

She looked at all the corpses with a sad look on her face, but then rallied herself and nodded at the captain.

"Yes, let me.  I will do my best".

"You sure you are okay?  You seemed a bit out of it earlier today as well" the captain asked as Ellia began to examine the door.

"Yes.  It is fine.  According to what I can translate and understand, it seems something of great importance is here.  These Necroids, could they be being lead by an intelligence?  They seemed to understand there was something important here, or sensed it at least".

"There are no reports, and they were just scratching at the door, not trying to unlock it properly.  So I dont think so...but I wonder what would attract them like that?"

Ezren looked around the corners, still wary.

"We should remain on guard.  Dont talk too loudly".  

"Right...Ellia?"

"Something about....treasure?  Value?  Protection?  This isn't a vault, but it seems like something incredibly valuable was placed in here.  Its the rune for personal treasure though, not monetary treasure...".

While saying that, a hissing creek echoed across the halls.  Joshua and the Captain raised their weapons, but nothing appeared before them.

"Ah, this is quite complex, but I think I have it.  I had to use some enhancement magic though on my brain" Ellia mentioned, causing the captain to furrow her brow a little.

"More then usual?"

"...yeah.  But its fine, its not much, and I just about have it...weirdly enough, there is an apology written on the door".

"I dont like that.  An apology written on a sealed door is never a good sign.  We should leave it sealed".

"It has the Necroid's clawing to try and get it.  We cant leave it here and risk one managing to get in".

With that order, the Captain looked towards Ellia.

"How close are you?"

"And...there..." she said, with the large doors in the wall beginning to open.  As it did, airflow was felt as the air cycled in the room.  Inside the room, there was a massive magic circle that occupied it, as well as magic circles on the walls, the ceiling, and even the doors they had just opened had one.  There was only one other thing in the room.  Contained within a sphere of magic on the floor, there was a boy that was shackled to the ground, the metal shackles around his neck and wrists directly bolted into the floor, which would make it impossible for him to stand or even sit up.

The boy was young, couldn't be older then nine or ten years old, with silver-white hair.  His body was entirely exposed, completely naked.  As they approached though, the barrier around him dissipated.  His sleeping face appeared so young and peaceful, and his skin appeared so smooth as if he had not strugled or worked at all.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"What the...a human?"

"Why was he sealed in here though?" Joshua asked.

The Captain shook her head.  "We dont have time for questions.  Ellia..."

However, when the captain looked at Ellia, she seemed half in shock, half frantic as she tried to unlock the shackles using magic.  Yet, she lacked the time to ask her friend about her state, as she sensed movement and dangerous amounts of it at that.

"Everyone, it appears every Necroid in this place is now rushing right at us".

"No...no, I wont let them" Ellia screamed, as she unlocked the very last shackle.  As she did, the boy appeared to begin waking up, his red eyes opening finally.

"...what the..."

And then suddenly, he felt himself picked up and then immediately smothered by something.

"Its okay!  You are okay!  We are here to save you!"

"W...what?!" the boy questioned.  As he did, he felt a major pain in his head, as he remembered something vaguely.

You will be sacrificed for our cause.

He immediately tried to push away in a panic, but as he did he fell to the ground.  Once that was done, he saw his own body, and immediately blushed and got embarrassed, covering his front.

However, a large cloak seemed to fall on top of him.

"Boy, put that on!  Ellia, get him out of here!  Everyone else, cover Ellia and then pull out behind her!"

The boy barely managed to pull the cloak on.  It just managed to cover everything, although the sleeves were clearly too big.  He was then suddenly scooped up into the blonde haired girl's arms.  She seemed to go by the name of Ellia.

"Who are you?  Perverts?!  What the hell did you do to me?!"

His face was extremely red, as this girl Ellia held him tight.

"Just don't worry!  We will get you to safety!  Please just hold on!  We can explain everything later!"

However, the boy could not help but worry.  After all, he had no memory of how he got there in the first place.

No, his memories themselves seemed very strange.  They were jumbled and confused, with occasional thoughts passing through and then disappearing once more.   He could just barely make out his own name.

Zazie.  

And he could remembering being forced to submit to...something, and a burning feeling on the back of his waist.

And he remembered crying.

And he definently remembered he didn't like being seen naked by others or being held and coddled like this!  It was embarrassing!

But as he was carried out through these halls in a rush, he remembered something else.  Being dragged through against his will, a sweet lovely face apologizing to him as he was dragged down the hall and into the room.

"I am sorry, so sorry sweetie.  I promise, we will release you the moment we can.  The hero is working hard, we will have a solution before you know it".

"No, no!  Let me out!  Please!  I dont want to die!"

"I promise...I will not let you disappear.  I will save you Zazie, just hold strong and wait...it will be just like a dream".

"No, no!  Let me go!" he screamed, as he was dragged into the room.

And then nothing, the end of the memory.

"We are nearly to the surface!" Ellia told him, hugging him even tigher.  She was carrying him princess style, which was bad enough, but when she held him tighter her hand slipped under the cloak.  It didn't touch anything aside from his legs, but given what had already happened, he was still embarrassed.

And yet, once they reached the surface, he saw the new landscape.  It felt like it was...different.  There was so much forest, with just a few ancient stone guardtowers standing around, everything else overtaken by trees.

It felt only vaguely familiar, but also completely different.

"Its okay, boy!  You big sis is here for you!"

"Could you let me down?!  This is embarrassing!"

As he complained, something moved out of the forest.  And with that something, a distorted voice echoed within their heads.  A psychic attack against their very minds.

"So the seal was undone?  The air shifted?  ANd now, I have two humans to make my pets and play with".

Ellia held him tight as she collapsed, the psychic pressure overwhelming her.  Even for Zazie, it made him feel horrible and sick, as something stirred deep within his minds.  But he didn't experience the pain like Ellia did.  He could tell how painful it had to be though, but she still held onto him and tried to run away with him in her arms.  As for the beast itself, its skull was half metal, but it looked like a cross between a dragon and a pig, with various metal bits including claws and shoulders, and the eye on the metal side was red and full of evil.

"Activate...Aether Shield!"

Suddenly, a barrier seemed to surround them, which made Zazie even more anxious.   He felt something crawling around inside his body as well.

"Damnit...for something like this to appear here!  Aether Blade!"

She created a blade of light in the air and fired it at him.  But he deflected it like it was nothing.

"Idiot!  Let me down!  You have a sword right?  Clearly you cant run from it, and you need to draw your sword!"

"No...I wont let you go!  I wont ever let you go!  Not again!"

Not again...is she traumatized by something.....ahg!

Thinking about that forced him to remember his own painful memory, a memory of him being stripped naked, and branded twice, one on the back of the waist, one on the front.  And then a third brand to the back of the neck.  The first one was the most painful, but the other two hurt as well.

He remembered what they said to.  That it was for the peace, the good of the kingdom.  But looking at these ruins, that kingdom had clearly been destroyed.

So I was sacrificed for nothing then?

In his anger, he watched then as the woman who was doing everything she could to protect him had her barrier broken, and was hit with some sort of silver energy.  She then collapsed, finally letting Zazie go.  And as he raised his arm to smash them both, his hand was suddenly shot off his body by a powerful magic bullet.

"Captain!  A powerful intelligent type has appeared!  I think....its Major class!"

"Major?  THen we will disable it enough to escape!  We dont have to the tools to deal with it after all!  Physical Boost, activate.  High speed acceleration, activate.  DIvine Sword Style: Full Score Extermination!"

The black haired woman, Captain Isha Uzami, suddenly sped out and attacked the beast all at once.  Ezren, the rifle user, kept firing at parts to shoot them off, but they regenerated in under a second.  Zazie watched as she cut through its heart, cut off its head, several limbs, but they all just regenerated.  Even though she was so strong, this thing was insane.

No, it was immortal.  They were fighting against an immortal enemy.   

You will be a sacrifice for peace...thats what I remember them saying, but I dont really understand it.  But it seems like that was nothing but lies if this happened and they kept me sealed away.

Those thoughts ran through his head once more, as he felt a strange burning sensation.  He felt it in the places he was branded, as well as one more.  He glanced at his left arm, and something seemed to be glowing there.

"Did you think you could defeat me with such things?!  I shall never fall!  I shall never waver!  And now, I shall kill the child you seek to protect".

Such strong words echoed across all their minds, making it hard to think.  And as he said this, his claws rose up, and slashed Zazie to pieces.

"Hahaha....ha?" the Necroid muttered, as he saw the boy's body suddenly regenerated completely.  His cloak was cut to pieces, but he stood there with a staff in hand now.

"Ability Tap Spell, activated" Zazie mentioned.  "I finally remembered something useful".

At the same time, suddenly all the wounds he recieved stopped regenerating and were bleeding massively, as he howled in pain.  However, the others were as confused as the Necroid.

"His immortality is gone?" Joshua questioned.

"No time for that!  Captain!" Ezren mentioned.

"Yeah, I got ya..." she said, as she unleashed all of her power on the immortal that had lost his immortality.   

With that, the group suddenly defeated it immediately, partially since it was in a confused state and failed to adapt after the thing it had relied upon, Immortality, was taken away.

However, the moment it died, Zazie felt the immortality ability leave him.  He could only do that while the subject was alive it seemed.  And then, he noticed his situation again, and quickly covered himself.

It seemed this was going to take some time for him to get used to.  But at the time, he had no idea the secrets that his body held within it...or the dangers.