The City Ran red with blood in the streets, the villagers huddling in the broken huts that remained of their home. The sign of “Moralsium” left burning in the pile of bodies that burned with it.  Creatures covered with dark armor, dragged bodies to the pyre. Their screams traveled the distance of the town, over the smokestacks.   The impact of such an invasion was sudden, shocking. The local warriors had no time to prepare and no power to resist the scourge set upon their master.  A curse uttered marked many a man’s epitaph as their resentments targeted Morias of the Left Hand.  Mothers, Fathers, Children. Even orphans lost parts of themselves they never knew they had under his reign.

Such an orphan found herself at the forefront of such an attack. The orphanage of Moralsium wasn’t equipped to defend against a stray ball against its rotting wood, much less a fighting force of this nature. Behind the ruins of the orphanage, Lucia Connors held her brother in her arms, her back against the wood as the flames of the carnage soared behind her. The others had run off long ago, and the director had left the children to die. Some were able to make it out. Others… were less fortunate.  All the while, Lucia held Avean in her arms, hiding out best she could. But she knew she didn’t have much longer to hide. The footsteps were getting closer, and she had to do.  Lucia looked down to her brother, pushing her hands through his hair.

“Ok, Ave.  In few seconds, I’m gonna let you go and jump out from behind here. When I do, I need you to run. Run as fast as you can away from here and don’t look back.”

With tears in his eyes, Avean looked up at his sister. 

“Please Lucia, I can help, I won’t leave you!”

“Just please!” Her grip was starting to loosen, though everything in her body screamed at her to hug him even tighter. “I’m about to let go and I need you to run.”

The whimpering from underneath his long locks was she got in response. It was time.

3.

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2.

1.

Lucia burst out of her hiding spot, grabbing the nearest piece of wood from the orphanage she could find. The splinters hurt but she knew that she had to buy him time. She looked up to face down the iron clad knights she would have to face. Only to see someone standing in its place, and the soft ambience of burning wood. In the place of the fiends, was a monster.

It was human-esque. As though a man was covered in shadow, pulsating and pushing against an invisible fabric.   The only clothing on it were wrist-guards and bracelets for its ankles and hands;the rest of its features consumed by the darkness. In its hand, it held the still bleeding, dripping heads of some of the monsters that had assaulted her town.   There were no eyes upon its blank face but something was staring daggers at her in that brief moment. Sweat dropped from her face and onto the ground ,and in an instant her hearing returned to her as the sound of her brother falling reached her. 

The creature turned its head towards Avean as he freezed up. With no hesitation at all, Lucia took the opportunity to strike at the creature.  The piece of junk wood cracked on impact with the entity, as its eyes remained on the boy.  Lucia fearfully backed up, but the head snapped towards her and for an instant, an overwhelming presence consumed her.

It spelt the end.

It spelt death.

Her life was in its hands and it was going to snuff her out.

All she could do was run towards it, buy her brother a little more time. Yet as she did, the words that came out of its mouth stopped her in her tracks.

“You’re really brave, kid. But you aren’t strong.”

The being threw the heads aside and grabbed Lucia by the scruff of her neck and sat her beside her brother, the same way one would drop a cat on its side.  The town could only watch as the being that had massacred the murders sat in front of the two children in criss-cross position. 

“I’m really strong though. I’m sure you can be strong too.”

The entity tapped the two on their heads and as it removed the finger, a warmth filled their bodies. At first like a soft glow, but grew evermore into a fever as they clawed at their skin to relieve the pain.  If the unknown thing that cursed them could smile, Lucia could swear it was as it took up the center of her vision before she couldn’t take the pain anymore.

“Of course, my little Bruiserweight. You shouldn’t die so easily. Not with that determination in ya. “

It turned its back on the duo as the crowd quickly gave way to let it through.

“Heroes don’t die that easy.”