Fire, burning with intense heat and bright colors, rapidly spread like a cobweb through the narrow cobblestone streets of Gear Gate. Burning bright, crimson, and orange, it danced and leaped across the battlefield, devouring everything in its path. Despite the chaos surrounding her, the princess stood motionless, her hands coated in the substance, yet she felt nothing.
In the aftermath of the explosion, the air hung heavy with the acrid scent of burnt remnants, embers floated lazily, weaving through the cracks in the desolate streets like fireflies.
“Come on is that the best you got”
She cried out a jeer. She wanted to provoke it, whatever it was supposed to be. Once when she had combat training, of the few opportunities she had, her brother Bryce told her that to win a fight her opponent had to lose composure. In truth, she was the one losing her composure.
It made no sound, but behind that cold mask, she felt as if it was taunting her. Laughing at all her mistakes and failures. She didn't want to destroy the city but the thing lured her out of the house.
“Luckily there's a curfew, no one should get hurt,” she thought “That thing won't be able to dodge my attack forever”
Around her, lances of fire formed from the air. The flames scorched the buildings as the monster climbed up and down like an acrobat in the circus. It leaped from rooftop to rooftop barely evading the last of the flames.
The attack destroyed a few windows causing shards of glass to rain down on her. She tumbled out of the way but a shard found its mark across her arm. She winced in pain holding her now bleeding limb.
Despite all the hours of training, the countless lessons she had endured, and the arduous journey she had undertaken, she still couldn't manage to hit her mark. For her, success had always been a foregone conclusion even if she faltered at first, but now it seemed that even her luck had run out.
“Just a bit more, I can do this,” she reassured herself, attempting to quell the rising tide of fury. Yet, with every evasive maneuver of the creature, her patience dwindled, and the embers of frustration burgeoned into an inferno of anger.
At that moment, the line between protector and destroyer blurred, consumed by the relentless flames of wrath.
“Fight me, you coward! You can keep dancing around forever but you will never escape me!” With each incantation, the flames erupted in a chaotic display, painting the night in hues of crimson and gold. It was no longer about precision or finesse; but a visceral outpouring of frustration
“Why won't you just burn?” she growled, the words escaping her lips with an intensity that bordered on desperation. Her head began to pound in pain.
In a fit of uncontrollable rage, she unleashed a raging inferno that consumed everything in its path. Her vision blurred with fury as the world was engulfed in a fiery red haze, leaving nothing but destruction in its wake.
The throbbing in her head intensified, and she saw brief glimpses of a scene. Flames engulfed the room, and there was blood on her hand. She heard panicked screams echoing around her, and a voice kept repeating "monster." She clutched her head in pain as the visions grew more vivid.
The vision flashed before her eyes, causing a jolt of fear and excitement to course through her body. But just as quickly as it had appeared, it vanished, leaving her feeling empty and confused. She didn't know if she wanted the vision to come back or if she was relieved that it was gone. She quickly snapped out of her thoughts, the current situation required her full attention.
“Officer Rowans, what did you do to him !” She screamed at the charred remains of her opponent. She formed another lance of flame, ready to impale it the moment it tried to escape.
“Answer me dammit!”
From the depths of the engulfing flames emerged shadows that mirrored the enigmatic creature, multiplying and replicating until the cobblestone streets teemed with faceless replicas.
“I’ve seen this trick before” she yelled out
“I killed every single last one of you before and I can do it again!”
She took a staggering step back, the mass formed into one mass of charging at her. There was no escape, no respite from the unyielding tide of replicas that encroached upon her with an unsettling uniformity.
In a fit of desperation, she unleashed another surge of flames, aiming to obliterate the multiplying horde. Yet, as the searing tendrils surged forth, they only served to birth more shadows, perpetuating the cycle of her torment.
As the faceless legion closed in, she felt the flames beginning to heat. This was not a good sign, it meant she was losing control of her spell. The flames that danced around her only intensified, creating long, distorted shadows that mirrored the relentless onslaught closing in from every direction.
"Calm down, think this through, you are a princess of the Felucia Kingdom and the apprentice of Merlin the greatest mage of the continent" A fragment of sanity sought to anchor her spiraling thoughts.
The first haunting memory surfaced – a nocturnal encounter in the labyrinthine streets of Gear Gate. It was there, in the obsidian embrace of the night, that the creature had first revealed itself, an enigmatic silhouette shrouded in shadows.
From the inky void emerged the first clones, multiplying like grotesque reflections in a malevolent mirror. Each time, the creature had sought refuge within the shadows, orchestrating the multiplication of its insidious legion.
The realization struck like a bolt of clarity through the fog of her tumultuous thoughts.
“That's it, shadows - that was the source of her torment”
The clones manifested from the very essence of darkness which is why she always encountered it during the night.
"Great, just great," she muttered, frustration seeping into her words. "Every move I make, every flame I conjure, it's like I'm playing into its twisted hands. What am I supposed to do when my abilities help the enemy?"
Taking a deep breath, she steadied herself, drawing upon the last reserves of her mana. The faceless legion closed in, shadows converging from all directions, but in the recesses of her mind, a strategy began to form.
No longer paralyzed by the nightmarish spectacle, Alexia steeled herself against the encroaching shadows. In the calm recesses of her inner thoughts, she prepared to confront the creature on her terms.
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With a sprint, Alexia took off running in the opposite direction of the thing creating a wall of flame to separate her from the creature. She needed distance between them so she had time to cast her spell.
“If I can't burn it away directly, maybe I can use the shadows against it."
Creating a tendril of flames, she snatched a nearby lamp. "Come on, you faceless nightmare. Let's see if you can handle me without your precious shadows,”
She threw the lamp with a flick of her wrist, igniting a few of the faceless legions.
"Alright, I need time," she thought, her mind racing amidst the chaos. "If I can create a light bright enough to eliminate all darkness, maybe I can put an end to this nightmare."
Ducking into an alley, she began to channel her magical energy, focusing on the incantation that would weave a blinding brilliance. "Just a bit longer," she muttered to herself, beads of sweat forming on her forehead as she maintained concentration amidst the chaos unfolding outside the confines of the narrow passage.
As the sea of faceless entities flooded into the narrow alleyway, their proximity tightened like a suffocating noose. Panic surged within Alexia as she felt their ominous presence drawing nearer, her breaths quickening in response.
Just in the nick of time, she completed the incantation. A blinding burst of light erupted from her outstretched hands, shattering the darkness that clung to every corner of the alley. The brilliance was so intense that, for a fleeting moment, it turned the night into a radiant day. The faceless creatures recoiled, their shadows dissipating in the onslaught of this extraordinary radiance.
Exhaustion enveloped Alexia like a heavy cloak, dragging her down to the unforgiving cobblestone beneath. The intense display of magic had drained every ounce of energy, leaving her limbs heavy and her mind clouded. Collapsing onto the scorched ground, she felt the warmth of lingering embers beneath her as the world around her blurred in a hazy aftermath.
The flames now roared with unchecked ferocity, licking at the wooden structures and painting the night sky in hues of orange and red.
“The greatest strength of fire magic and its greatest weakness” Merlin used to tell her “is one and the same”
"People will come," she whispered to herself
“Get up Alexia, you have to get up and leave”
Dragging herself up from the charred ground, Alexia scanned the vicinity with a weary gaze. The distant wail of sirens echoed through the night With a heavy heart, she knew that her presence here would only complicate matters. The flames illuminated her face, beads of sweat cascaded down her face.
"I can't stay," she murmured
Pushing herself to her feet, Alexia staggered toward the beckoning darkness of the alleyways. Her hair was a mess, she needed to go to a salon after all this was over.
As she stumbled into the narrow corridors, the distant sounds of hurried footsteps and shouted commands echoed from the main streets.
"Why am I like this," she whimpered into the shadows, and tears began to form in her eyes. The cold ground embraced Alexia as she collapsed amidst the alley's detritus, the stench of discarded refuse enveloping her like a noxious shroud.
“People around me always get hurt no matter what I do” she tried to hold back her tears. The stench had faded by now. She had slept in the forest before and this was no different
“Ed, where are you” she cried into the sleeves of her dress. She whispered the names of those who helped her on this journey. Ed, Clayton, Elara, Merlin, Bryce, even Thaddeus.
A gentle nudge disrupted Alexia's crying. Looking down, she saw a beautiful rainbow of colors– her familiar, Slinky. "I thought I unsummoned you, little one." She muttered Wiping away lingering tears
Another nudge followed, and this time, Ember, the winged bear, emerged from the shadows.
"At least I still have you guys."
As fatigue settled in, a weary smile played upon her lips. "We’ll be okay," she mumbled as they cuddled for warmth, fading into the background as her eyes succumbed to the heavy lull of sleep.
“Yeah,” she thought “we still have each other”
~~~~~
Edmund Reiner huddled in the corner of his frigid cell, the relentless wind howling through the unseen cracks in the ancient stone. The draft curled around his broad shoulders like a serpent, probing for any vulnerability in his tattered garb. The labor had left him weak and starving.
He shifted, his back scraping against the rough-hewn wall, muscles stiff from the damp chill. His brown hair lay matted against his forehead. The wind's icy fingers seemed almost tangible as they danced across his skin, stinging and restless.
"How long have I been in this forsaken place? Ed's voice echoes in the cold stone walls, “Feels like an eternity. Clayton, I hope you're holding up better than me."
In the stillness of his dark prison, Ed couldn't shake the restlessness that gnawed at him. The rhythmic breathing of his fellow prisoners and the occasional creaks of the cell doors created a dissonant lullaby that failed to soothe his troubled mind.
As he glanced over at Kaynard, who continued to sleep soundly despite the confined quarters, Ed couldn't help but mutter, "Kaynard, you sleep so soundly that even the owls seem jealous of your peace. I'm starting to think you've made a secret pact with the Sandman himself."
A flicker of movement caught Ed's attention, drawing his gaze to a shallow puddle nestled in a depression of the stone floor. Moonlight trickled through a slender crack high above, creating a silvery sheen across the water's surface. Ed leaned forward, eyes narrowing, peering into the liquid mirror.
There, amidst the ripples, his reflection stared back: hollow, gaunt, with a shadow of the man he used to be etched into the lines of his face. But the image wavered, blurred by another presence—a younger version of himself. This youthful Ed, with unmarred features and hopeful eyes, wasn't him.
"Remember who you were," the apparition spoke, its voice a faint echo in Ed's mind.
Startled, Ed recoiled he recognized those eyes—the same brown, but once filled with dreams of valor and adventure before failure had reshaped his path.
The young vision's voice rang in his head, calling out to the person he used to be. Edmund, they called him. A name he no longer recognized. They told him he was strong once, but now he couldn't even muster up the courage to face them. How could he when they reminded me of who I used to be?
Ed's breath caught in his throat, the cold momentarily forgotten. This was nothing more than a hallucination. It offered no solutions, no escape—but it ignited a spark within the cavern of his chest, a flicker of something he thought he had lost.
"Strong enough to fight for what is right," the boy continued
The reflection rippled as a draught swept through the room once more, distorting the image. Had he let something as simple as becoming a slave break him? He had someone to get back to, people to protect.
Ed clenched his fists, the knuckles white as the chills that ran up and down his spine. "Strong enough to fight for what is right," it said again, reverberating within the hollows of his soul.
"Right," Ed muttered under his breath.
He pushed himself up from the ground, feeling the cold, rough stone under his bare feet. The metal chains around his wrists rattled as he stood, a familiar sound that used to bring him to his knees in despair.
"Never again," Ed whispered, the words barely audible yet fierce. "Never again will I be a mere pawn in someone else's game."
He moved towards the puddle, staring down at the distorted image of himself. The reflection no longer showed a man defeated but one whose eyes burned with a newfound resolve. In the ripples, he saw not a prisoner but a warrior-in-waiting. Perhaps it was a mistake, another grand delusion. He used to think he would become an adventurer as well.
With deliberate movements, he began stretching his muscles, ignoring the bite of the shackles that sought to remind him of his confines. "Never again" he kept repeating under his breath. Never again will he let the people he cared about get hurt.
"Your move, fate," Ed challenged, his voice a low growl
The wind howled outside, indifferent to human plight, but inside that cold cell, a man's spirit blazed fiercely, refusing to be snuffed out by circumstance or cold iron.