The Tsudo legion all geared up and grabbed their weapons before meeting in the dining hall where Sarim stared at each of them while holding his helmet.
“Reports say a large group made of members of the Flamouriá cult should be approaching Dahlia as we speak. We’ve been sent to observe their movements and report if they do anything that could endanger the people of Lanceberg but I can’t help but feel that this is a opportunity to show our usefulness.” Sarim and said his men replied with looks that varied from enthusiasm to caution.
“Mmm… but if our mission is strictly recon, don’t you think engaging will surely warrant punishment on our part?” Gauld asked but Raläe clicked his tongue repeatedly.
“Were you listening to anything Sarim said? If the Flamouriá prove a danger to the people of Lanceberg, then they are marked for death. It would be far more efficient if we got rid of them there and there. Besides, are you really fine with having those heretics run around as they are?”
Gauld winced but didn’t respond.
“Alright! We leave for Dahlia and if the opportunity presents itself, we strike!”
“
.
..
A single bolt of lightning briefly lit up the vast stretch of forest far south of Dahlia.
Strong gusts of wind and heavy rain struck the golden armor of each Tsudo knight as they stood atop a sheer cliff edge.
“There.” Sarim growled upon noticing a group of people suddenly appearing in a clearing at the center of the forest.
“Really? Why are there so few? The report said no less than a thousand of those heathens were traveling south.” Raläe said with sniffle. His coat was completely drenched, but it’s hood shielded his face from the worst of the storm.
“A space magician can only carry so much without risking disaster. Chances are, he’s taken them from place to place in small groups. If he were to try teleporting them all at once, well… let me just say we would not have a thousand heathens to worry about.”
“I know that much. Anyway, take care of them before the rest arrive. Enoçia, you stay here with me.” Raläe said with a scoff.
Enoçia did as instructed and with a nod, Sarim teleported four of his comrades to the clearing where they drew their swords, startling many of the robe clad people who were hurriedly trying to erect tents.
“Members of Flamouriá, I hereby sentence you to death for treason and heresy! Come fourth and let your deaths be swift so that justice may be served!” Sarim yelled but none of the people before him moved, even as the storm raged on.
Instead, they all turned to the eastern part of the clearing and then deeply bowed as the sounds of clanging armor filled the air.
Sarim frowned as a gigantic, warrior clad in dark armor of Draconic design emerged from seemingly nowhere.
No one spoke as he unsheathed his sword which he pointed at Sarim and his men.
“Lower your sword or share the same fate as those you so foolishly protect.” Sarim growled but the warrior remained still.
“Kill him-“ Sarim didn’t even manage to finish his sentence as an explosion tore the air apart and he watched as the warrior dashed towards one of his knights at a speed he could barely keep up with.
The warrior then punched one of his men square in the face, tearing through the helmet and splitting the knight’s skull as though it were a tomato.
Sarim’s body flared with light as he swung an enraged fist at the warrior only the for the Draconic warrior to disappear.
Sarim felt his entire body seize up, but just as he prepared himself for death, a massive explosion pushed him forward.
He turned around to find two of his men blocking the Draconic warrior’s sword with their own.
His last remaining man dashed towards the warrior only for the him to disappear again.
“Retreat-“
Sarim’s face twisted with horror as the space in and around one of his men twisted so intensely that it shattered, splintering flesh metal and bone.
“AAHHHGGG!” Sarim painfully cried before teleporting his two remaining knights to a spot fifty meters from the campsite, but just as their feet touched the ground, a dark sword suddenly appeared and it threatened to cleave off the head of another of Sarim’s men but he couldn’t let that happen and so, with a speed that shattered the ground atop which he ran, he dashed towards the sword and deflected it upward.
The warrior fully materialized and raised his hand to punch Sarim, but the captain’s two remaining knights dashed towards the warrior and with blades that were coated with white hot energy, they struck the warriors left shoulder, shattering his dark armor.
The dark warrior took several steps backwards before suddenly disappearing again.
Sarim anticipated another gruesome attack and so he took his knights to the subspace but let out a horrified shriek upon seeing the warrior waiting for them in the infinite grey plane.
Sarim tried bringing his men back to the real world but it was far to late for one of them who was mercilessly cleaved in half, armor and all before Sarim.
The dark warrior surfaced only to be charged at by an enraged Gauld.
Sarim tried reaching out to stop the young knight but all he could do was watch in horror as the warrior punched his comrade in the stomach.
A loud splintering noise then filled the air and the back of Gauld’s armor blew open, sending out all the flesh and bone in the his abdomen.
“AHHHHHRRG!” Sarim screamed as he slobbered all over his helmet.
He then charged his sword with as much light as he could before dashing towards the warrior.
The Draconic incarnation of destruction raised his sword to swiftly strike Sarim, but the captain teleported behind him all while raising his sword.
The warrior instantly turned to parry Sarim’s attack, but Sarim anticipated this, so he entered the subspace and placed his searing hot sword into the warriors chest before trying to re-materialize.
The warrior, at a speed that defied reality, shifted his body to the side just as Sarim’s sword entered the real space and this spared him from being impaled.
This action, however, didn’t spare his left arm which was torn off by Sarim’s strike.
Sarim quickly dashed backwards and watched as the warriors arm landed on the ground but instead of a sense of triumph, his body was filled to the brim with dread as the warriors eyes slowly began glowing brightly white.
The space all around him twisted and contorted and, in an attempt of self preservation, Sarim teleported himself as far away as he could and due to his panic, he accidently materialized in between a rock, shattering all the bones in his right leg.
A loud explosion then tore the skies apart and Sarim let out a whimper as he fell to his side.
He then closed his eyes and waited for death.
A moment passed.
Then another.
Regardless of how much time passed, Sarim didn’t open his eyes.
He didn’t want to be in the same world where that thing existed and so he closed his eyes and begged Summus for a quick death.
.
..
Dawn eventually came and Sarim opened his eyes to find that he was still alive.
He looked down and trembled upon seeing that his right leg had become one with his armor in a twisted, gory display.
He looked up and saw the boulder wherein he materialized. A large hole could be seen at its center.
Sarim took deep and rapid breaths while trying his next to ignore the mind numbing pain he was in.
He then grabbed his sword and used it to hoist himself onto his feet.
Walking would be impossible and hopping would be excruciatingly painful and so Sarim chose the third option.
He teleported himself to a spot a few meters ahead and he cried out in pain as the shift caused his dangling led to move.
The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
He did this repeatedly, in short bursts, letting out pained groans and grunts as he made his way towards a certain cliff.
He eventually arrived atop the cliff and his eyes trembled upon seeing that Enoçia and Raläe were nowhere to be found.
He turned around and looked at the forest as the sun steadily rose.
His already trembling eyes quaked upon seeing a massive crater in the center of the forest, but it wasn’t just the size of it that filled Sarim with a familiar dread. It was never endingly deep and floating above it, seemingly unable to fall, were large boulders, trees and swirling dirt.
It seemed as though reality itself had been shattered.
Sarim shook his head slowly and repeatedly.
He then fell onto his back and began crying tearlessly.
.
..
Sarim’s eyes suddenly popped open and he sat up.
He then took one last glance at the forest before hopping onto his foot with the help of his sword.
He teleported across the hill he was on before hurriedly teleporting across Aurenia.
He passed the entire region of Dahlia, hopped past the rain soaked countryside of Centora and eventually stopped upon seeing a pillar of flame rising from his hometown of Mades.
He teleported to the town’s southernmost entrance where he saw countless corpses, some belonging to the people of Mades and other clad in dark leather clothes.
Sarim’s vision blurred to the point that he couldn’t see and so he tore off his helmet before tossing it to the side, but his vision remained blurry.
He stumbled towards Blood Manor which stood as a tall black blob in the distance.
“Ugh! What the-?”
The sound of someone’s voice returned Sarim’s vision and he turned his rage filled eyes towards a rather skinny man who dragged behind him a blood stained sword.
The man opened his mouth to speak, but Sarim squeezed his hand into a fist, crushing the man’s head instantly.
He then resumed his walk towards the manor, walking past countless corpses and across blood soaked streets.
He eventually arrived at the foot of the manor and he let out a whimper upon seeing large gashes cutting across the building.
His eyes then widened before turning to the northeast.
He dropped his sword and painfully hopped in that direction and with each hop, he teleported across a distance of about ten kilometers.
He stumbled and fell a few times but regardless, he picked himself up and made his way to a certain forest and its upon reaching the forest that he fell face flat onto the ground.
Rising from deep within the forest was another tall pillar of smoke.
“Oh…” Sarim whimpered as he slowly crawled onto his foot.
He then teleported into the forest which was filled with smoke.
He made his way towards a certain house and all he could do was stare as it burnt.
Standing all around it were bandits and in the middle of all this was a tall woman who sat on-
At this point, all Sarim could do was whimper upon seeing that the woman was sitting on a mangled but still breathing Enoçia.
Behind her were Uzuri and Keldün only the were bound by thick ropes.
“Ah… you must be Sarim. I’ve heard so much about-“
“AHHHHRRRG!” Sarim screamed before teleporting behind the woman only for her to turn around, grab him by the throat and slam into the ground where he let out a gross croak.
The woman then pressed her mud covered leather boot on Sarim’s neck.
He glared into her eyes which housed two pitch black vortexes.
She sighed while resting her hands on her waist.
“Dammit. I just wanted to say hello.” The woman said before removing her hat which had an unreasonably large rim. This revealed her short white hair and the many thin golden lines that covered her skin.
She brushed her hair backwards before wearing he dark hat once more.
“Phew. You’re almost as energetic as the other one. Anyway, my name is Evílios, but you can call me Ev.”
“HHHARRRG!” Sarim screamed.
Ev rolled her eyes before placing her boot on Sarim’s shoulder.
“Lets go see if she likes you… alright, pack up, boys! We’re heading to Gordias!” Ev yelled but the bandits all around her let out groans of displeasure.
Several of them reached out to grab Uzuri, but just as they did, Sarim tried standing up only for Ev to slam her boot into his shoulder shattering it instantly.
Sarim fell limply onto the ground and his vision rapidly darkened.
His eyes then closed his eyes and lost consciousness from rage, or possibly loss of blood.
.
..
Sarim was brought back into the waking world by the sound of chains.
He opened his eyes to find himself hanging from in a dark but beautifully decorated chamber. The floors were made from a dark marble and covered all four walls were tall, royal blue drapes which were all embellished with the crest of the moon. Although it looked as though someone had cut out the crest from a few of them.
Sarim’s left shoulder was still broken and the pain from both it and his leg threatened to rob him of his newly regained consciousness.
He looked down and saw a small woman clad in what could only be described as underwear made of gold rubbed oil all over his naked body. Her brown hair was long and her skin was smooth although her eyes looked rather weary.
He wanted to call out to the sad looking woman but his attention was quickly drawn to the people who hung to his sides.
“Uzuri!” Sarim yelled- well, he tried yelling but this revealing to him that at some point, he had lost his tongue.
The old woman raised her head and looked at Sarim with teary eyes.
“Penda… Maua…” She wheezed as she hung naked in the chamber. Her skin covered in oil.
Sarim bit his teeth, some of which were cracked or missing before looking to his left where be grimaced upon seeing an unconscious Enoçia and a barely conscious Keldün.
Keldün looked at Sarim with bloodshot eyes.
“Bandits… they came and…” He wheezed but Sarim shook his head begging Keldün not to speak.
A loud clack filled the air and a large set of doors opened, revealing a tall man with white hair and silver lines all over his skin. He was dressed in a silky black robe that loosely hung from his body. A large scar went from his forehead all the way down to the left side of his chest.
“I can sense a dramatic change approaching. The ashes of that war have yet to settle and the smoke has yet to clear. A new world awaits us beyond the veil, but for now, I will indulge in the moment.” The tall man said with a rather soft and raspy voice.
He walked up to Sarim and company before spreading his arms dramatically.
“Greetings! Sarim of the disgraced Tsudo and his companions. I have brought you here with a certain intention in mind but you know what they say, it’s always best to know where your food is coming from.” The man said while staring at Sarim with dim grey eyes.
A simple wooden chair suddenly appeared behind the man and he lazily fell onto it.
“Ahem! My name is Gulanimphen or Gula, son of Grandmaster Ferrum and ex member of the Yilon legion of knights.” He greeted with a curt bow.
Silence filled the room.
“Hehe, I see you’re not the chatty kind.” Gula chuckled as he crossed his legs.
His eyes then turned to Keldün.
“You… Ev told me that you were once a priest back when Mades was a cesspool. But you went missing shortly after the town was restored. Tell me, what have you been up to since then?” Gula asked but instead of answering, Keldün glanced at Sarim who simply shook his head.
“Ooh… I’d advise against disobeying me.” Gula said as his eyes flashed white.
Sarim frowned at this.
“Ugh, fine. Either you talk or-“
“AHHH!” Uzuri cried as her right foot suddenly burst open.
Sarim let out strange panicked gurgles as he watched Uzuri writhe in pain.
He then turned his glowing eyes to Gula who sat calmly.
The small woman walked up to Uzuri before pouring some life energy into her foot, stopping it from bleeding any further.
“Disobey me again and I’ll take her head.”
Sarim turned to Keldün, who’s teary eyes quaked.
He then nodded weakly prompting Keldün to take several deep and shaking breaths.
“A-after the new Tsudo arrived under the watch of the Stormhawks, Sarim approached me at the temple. He told me he wanted to give the women of the brothel in Mades a proper home-“
“Why?” Gula interrupted.
“Because one of them was his mother.” Keldün wheezes.
“Oh…” Gula sounded before turning his gaze to Uzuri who silently wept next to Sarim.
“Aren’t you quite the tragic heroic figure, mmm?” Gula asked before turning to Enoçia.
“She’s half dead, so there’s no point in asking her anything.” He said as he hopped onto his feet.
The chair behind him then suddenly disappearing and with the snap of his fingers, the binds that held Sarim and company up broke but no one fell.
Instead, they floated mid air and were carried towards the door by the scarred man.
Sarim’s eyes widened to their extremes as he was floated into an enormous chamber at the center of which sat a cage within which sat… a dragon.
Although it was sleeping, it probably stood at about twenty meters tall and was about forty meters long. Sitting proudly on its head were four horns that curled forwards as if to meet at a sharp point. It skin looked both lizard like and yet appeared to have the texture of stone.
“Behold! My beloved!” The man said while rushing towards a luxurious couch that sat in front of the cage.
He floated Sarim and the others in front of him and cleared his throat once more.
“As I said before, my name is Gula and no, I’m not planning to take over the kingdom in some grand scheme. I already tried that and it nearly cost me my life. Where are we? Let’s just say we’re hidden in plain sight. What am I going do to you? Ah… behind you sits Xenagós, my beloved. I captured her during the closing days of the great War and have since tried to win her heart but the stubborn bitch refuses to hear my hearts call.” Gula said with the click of his tongue.
“Anyway, she has a soft spot for anyone that isn’t me, so you’re going to go in there and see if you can win her over.” Gula said but all Sarim could do was wince in confusion.
Gula nodded, turning Sarim and the others around and floating them towards the cage.
The cage’s only door opened and they was unceremoniously dropped into it.
Sarim trembled as the dragon let out a deep breath that shook the air.
It then twitched before opening its large reptilian eyes which instantly glared at a trembling Sarim.
“Oh- I forgot that you’ve never actually seen a dragon. So, tell me. How does it feel?” Gula asked with a yawn.
Sarim’s mouth hung agape as the dragon sat up.
It’s forearms were very similar to human arms only it’s fingers were adorned with sharp claws.
It’s wings blanketed nearly the entire cage.
[When will this end?]
A deep feminine voice asked from within Sarim’s mind.
“It’ll end when you learn to love me!” Gula yelled.
The dragons head dropped in defeat.
She then stared at Sarim.
[Oh? Such a powerful knight looking so frightened?]
She asked while lowered her head.
[Has he been cleaned?]
“Yes!” Gula yelled with brightened eyes.
[Ugh. Place your head in my mouth and your death will be quick.]
The dragon said but Sarim shook his head frantically.
“Hey! Don’t try to rush this!” Gula yelled.
This is insane. What’s going to happen to Uzuri? Are they going to feed her to a dragon as well?
Sarim wondered.
Xenagós sighed before looking down at Gula.
[He’s wondering if you’re going to feed his friends to me as well.]
“Huh? Of course! But that’s not the only thing we’re here for! Do you like him or not?” Gula asked.
Xenagós locked gazes with a weary Sarim.
You can read my thoughts?
[Yes. We dragons are distantly related to the Caelasti, but I’m guessing you don’t know what that means. Think of me as a divine being.]
Sarim weakly nodded.
What’s going to happen to Uzuri and the others?
[I will eat them as well because if I do not, Gula will torture you for what will seem like an eternity.]
“What are you two doing gazing lovingly into each other’s eyes?” Gula yelled but neither Xenagós nor Sarim looked away.
I… I see. You said you’d make our death quick… thank you but… why show us such kindness?
[You have given me no reason to be cruel. Unlike a certain someone.]
“Hey! I know you’re talking about me!”
Sarim took a deep breath before glancing at Keldün and an unconscious Uzuri.
He then crawled over to where she was and with Keldün’s help, he dragged her over to Xenagós.
“I will go last.” Sarim said and Keldün weakly nodded.
“Hey! Don’t just accept death!” Gula yelled while Sarim placed Uzuri’s head between Xenagós many large and sharp teeth.
The dragon then snapped its jaw shut and Sarim let out a mortified moan as Uzuri’s body fell to the ground.
Xenagós opened her mouth once more and Enoçia’s head was offered next.
Keldün broke into a full wail as the cage’s floor was covered in the blood of the two Headless corpses in front of him.
He then turned to Sarim before rushing into his arm.
Nothing was said as the two tightly held each other.
Keldün then ripped himself from Sarim before offering his head.
Sarim was up next and so he crawled towards Xenagós as she opened her mouth once more.
He then placed his head between two of her blood covered teeth and before his final thoughts could even surface, she shut her jaws.