Bamm!

A large hammer crashes down on a hard stone floor, dust rises as the ground chips away from the smash,

“You reckon I could break it more than you honey?”

“Alrigh- let’s see you then”

Bambash!

“How’s that?”

“Not bad, but I can top it easily watch thi–”

“–Or maybe we shouldn’t be destroying the very ground we stand on?” Shiryu interjects,

He looks down at the cracked floor of the outside barracks in disdain, here is where what’s left of Soterra’s Knights and Warriors come to train their bodies or magic, the original building was previously destroyed beyond repair…

“Who are you to tell us what we can or cannot destroy new guy” a burly hammer wielding woman named Thora presses him

“Where have you even come here from, Furlheim?” her male companion, Thors joins in,

“Aye, are we training or having a date?” Shiryu brute forces his way around the questions

“Alright let’s have a little spar shall we, what’s your magic mate?” Thors takes the initiative

“I’m behind you mate” Shiryu pokes the man under his armor behind his neck,

“Heh?” he swings back his elbow,

“You were right in front of me?”

“You were seeing something similar to an after image, see I can bend and reflect the light around me,

Stare at me too long and it can be your undoing,”

“Is that all you can do!?” Thora swings her hammer violently at him, he leaps back a great distance to avoid it

“No, but I rather not reveal all my cards,

You two seem to be one trick pony’s however”

“Yeah we are” Thors puffs his chest out proudly

(That’s something you admit man…)

“My wife and magic evolved together, when the city went ‘kaboom!’ that day

We were both earth attribute summoners,

But now we can summon hammers,”

“That seems…

I don’t know-uninteresting,

Like hammers, that’s it?”

“Yeah, but–”

BANNGGG♪

The couple slam their hammers together sending a shockwave at Shiryu who leaps away safely out of harms way again

“Our power multiplies when we fight together,”

“Thora and I even caught an ugly purple little beastman in the outskirts,

You should of seen the thing, trying to beg for it’s life when we smashed it’s head in,”

“Mm, really,”

….

Thammpp!

Shiryu jumps up with more force than before this time, launching himself at Thors,

Whamkk!

He kicks the mans steel helmet off sending him reeling

“Alright enough, you win” Thora blocks her husband

(Revenge feels good)

“Your jumping strength is really good,” Thor groggily gets up, he rubs his shaved but patchy blond head,

“Where’d you learn to jump like that?

Nowhere, I’ve just been doing it since I was a child,

Hey, what’s makes your power multiply when you attack together?”

“The educated answer would be that our magic evolved at moment when we were both fearing for each other’s life making them interconnected in that way,

But I think it’s just because of our love,” Thors says taking of her helmet, her face is covered in scars and bruises, her blond eyebrows in a frown as she watches her hurting husband,

(Maybe I hit him too hard)

….

Chsssshhhhhhhhh♪♪

“Hum?” The three look up as it begins tk rain despite them being covered by a wooden roof

“You should be fine now” a girls voice says softly,

“Oye, thanks Amelia,” Thors notices the girl approaching

She nods quietly, before turning to Shiryu,

“You’re always such a shy girl Amelia,” Thora gives her a broad smile

(Shy girl???

What am I hearing,)

“Shy?” Shiryu spits out

The girl immediately flashes him a terrifying glare for brief second

(This girl is a definitely a societal menace 😭)

“So anyway Shiryu, queen is calling for you back” Amelia’s voice borders a whisper

(What a total fraud)

“Alright I was just about done here anyway,” he says out loud going with the girl,

…..

….

“You are a sick woman” Shiryu whispers when they reach a good distance away from the couple,

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

“What are you talking about?” Amelia replies nonchalantly

“You know exactly wha–”

“–Shiryu, before we go to the queen let’s go somewhere private, behind the barracks?” she cuts him off

“W..ehemc?” He begins to stutter,

(Is she secretly in love with me?)

“I..i yes let’s go,”

…..

….

….

….

….

“Owwww-owwww-owww!” yelps the young man in pain, a dagger is lunged aggressively under his melted away armor sleeves and scales into his forearm,

“Don’t try to put me up like that in front of people again,”

“Awwww- I didn’t know they say you as a shy, girl I’m sorry, I didn’t know,”

“Well let this one be your warning, next time I’ll melt off your armor and toss you in the middle of the city for everyone to see what a disgusting creature you are,

Then we’ll all take turns cutting you into tiny little pieces,”

“Hey what happened to you believing that I was actually a human being and not a monster remember?”

“That was a few das ago, I slept on it and realized you saw my ‘fun’ side and still lived,

I don’t care if you were the son of the dead gods, I still want your head”

(Damn she’s really into me)

“I love you.”

“What the hell?”

“AAAAHHH-AHH-OWWWWW!” Amelia yanks the dagger out his arm,

“I think I’m going to be sick” she says

(Did I come on to strongly)

“Is there someone else you love,”

“Yes, my brother now shut up and stay put so I can heal you then go vomit,”

“Your brother??

Isn’t that kind of wrong?”

“I don’t think you understand what love is Shiryu,

Maybe you’re just a beat after all,

Healing raindrops….”

(I don’t understand…..?)

….

*****

Those words lingered in Shiryu’s thoughts from then on,

(What did she mean?

I don’t understand?

I don’t have any family I’ve grown with to experience their love,

The only way I can get love is from someone else

What does she mean I don’t understand?

I know what love is)

“Shiryu, I’m speaking to you” Zinnia shoves him impatiently,

“Sorry, um, I was thinking about something,”

“Yeah I could tell, now stand over there, an important visitor as shown up under short notice,”

Shiryu nods taking his place near to the back of the private meeting room in city hall,

Not much to say about the room, it’s walls are newly constructed like everything else, painted in a plain white, the oval room is not small but not big either filled with chairs and for now empty bookshelves…

...

(I wonder who is the important person)

…

Shiryu does not have to ponder this long as the double doors push open, entering a woman of short stature, dressed in sleek black trousers and tight jacket, both filled with many pockets, of which the outline of several blades poke,

Amelia enters in behind the woman not even looking Shiryu’s way she goes to Zinnia’s side,

The woman’s feet makes no sound, as she walks, taking cautious glances around the room,

Her eyes rest on Shiryu for a minute, he stares back at them, her eyes are a pale shade of gray, she wears a black layer of eye shadow, her lips are full and also covered with a black layer of lipstick, her small nose twitches slightly as she meets Shiryu’s gaze,

Spinning her head back around her short ponytail swings a little, her jet black at the front is cut into perfectly levelled bangs that cover her forehead, the ponytail of course to the back,

“This is chief Aki,” Amelia introduces her to Zinnia,

Aki bows slightly,

“This will be our first meeting in person chief Aki, it must be something important that you had to come here personally,” Zinnia gestures for the woman to sit,

“I think you should sit for this,” she shakes her head, Aki’s voice coming out both sharp and hollow,

“I came in person out of respect for the others,”

“The others?

Did something happen?”

“Yes,” Aki takes a deep breath waiting for Zinnia to sit,

“Your…..

You’re friends, Kage, Apollo, Lyra and Karina….

I’m sorry,

They’re all dead.”