A figure walks out of the blazing forest carrying a giant battle-axe. His eyes glimmer as he stares at me with a cold, menacing glare. As he raises the axe high above his head, ready to strike, Harou shouts, “I’ve got you!” and grabs onto my robes tightly.

With a mighty crash, the figure slams the axe into the ground, sending a shockwave rippling through the earth. The impact shatters the wall, causing it to explode in a shower of rubble. We're all thrown backwards by the force of the explosion, but Enigma quickly recovers and gracefully leaps through the air, navigating the rubble to land safely on the ground. Unfortunately, the garrison was not so fortunate and has been completely destroyed in the blast.

The man advances slowly, each step measured and deliberate, until he stands within several feet of Enigma. The wolf’s inky black fur stands on end. He growls ferociously, baring his fangs at the figure.

I take in the man’s appearance: a deep scar runs down the side of his head, and he wears a dark bearskin cloak over his red steel plates. The badge on his chest shows an all-seeing eye within the center of a crimson crown – the Emperor's banner.

It's hard not to recognize that face.

He's none other than the Royal Warden, tasked by the Emperor himself to guard my golden cage. A towering warrior with formidable strength known only as ‘Wrath.’

“By the order of Emperor Zenith Oath,” he booms in a deep, authoritative voice, “you are hereby sentenced to death for the illegal abduction of his prisoner and property. Surrender now, and I shall make your death quick. Resist, and I will put you down with your mangy dog.”

Harou dismounts Enigma, and then helps me get down. “This will only take a moment,” he says to me before addressing Wrath with a chilling tone. “Look, we really don’t have time for this. We're kind of in a hurry. Let us go, and I won't let my pet maul you to death.”

“What an unnatural little summon you have here. Where have I seen it before?” Wrath stares down the wolf, and then shrugs. “I suppose it doesn’t matter. Come, boy. I will put you in your place, and then I will recover the stolen property.”

Harou scowls. "You disgust me. But I did warn you," he runs his hand over Enigma's fur, slowly, methodically, and then points at the man. "Kill."

With incredible speed, the dark wolf lunges at Wrath with fury. The royal warden sidesteps the ramming charge, avoiding it by the last second. The two engage in a deadly dance of death, steel and claws clashing with a thunderous boom. Wrath matches Enigma’s animalistic pace with ease, his axe ringing through the air with the maddening reverberation of steel.

Suddenly, Wrath breaks away from Enigma and charges towards Harou. In response, Harou releases the dark hawk, Penumbra, once more, knowing that he cannot win the fight alone. Penumbra summons lightning from the air, hitting the Warden with a bolt of electricity.

Despite the crackling electricity that's running through his body, Wrath remains largely unaffected. “Your futile spells won’t work on me,” he says with a sneer before whirling around his axe and slamming the blade into the ground. A destructive shockwave snakes towards Harou, threatening to engulf him.

He raises a barrier of ink in a diamond form. The incoming attack impacts against the barrier, diverging in two directions and creating two craters behind him. Enigma returns to Harou, standing by his master’s side and ready to pounce.

Harou’s robes are torn at the sleeves in the attack, and he tears off the top of his clothing to reveal his tattooed torso. On his heart sits a stunning tattoo of a dragon eating its own tail. Wrath looked at Harou with renewed interest.

“The Tamerumi Kingdom has many peculiar dynasties. For example, there is one who are renowned for their ability to summon mystical beasts made from ink. The same ink used on your odd creatures.” Wrath explains, his cold glare piercing Harou. “Now it makes sense. You’re a Tsukumo – heretics, cultists, ritualists, and practitioners of forbidden magic. Did you really think that this lowly trash was the crowned prince?”

Harou flinches and glances at me for a brief moment. “He would fare better under our care,” Harou responds, his tone genuine. “And he will be treated with the respect that he deserves.”

“Respect!” Wrath’s voice booms with amusement. “Liar. You weren't freeing him out of the goodness of your own heart. Let's be real here. You were hoping to betray him to your clan, and use him for your own gain. It’s no surprise that your cursed dynasty is infamous for their shadowy practices. How many have been sacrificed before? Thousands? And how many more until the Emerald Emperor is satisfied?”

As I consider the warden’s words, I can’t help but feel a twinge of doubt. After all, Harou’s kindness, his willingness to sacrifice himself, and his detailed knowledge of the castle grounds, all points to the fact that he's working for someone.

Was everything Harou told me a lie? Was he trying to lower my guard and earn my trust? I can’t believe I was so naïve. I thought I was being freed, but now it feels like I’m just being moved to another cage.

"Don't listen to him! He's only planting seeds of doubt in your head," Harou snarls, his eyes never leaving Wrath.

Who's telling the truth. My head falls in my hands. It feels as if everyone is out to use me. I look up at Harou, and speak.

"Is it true?"

He finally looks back at me, a genuine look of concern in his eyes. There's no hint of deception in them. "Of course not. I didn't come out this far just to trick —"

Wrath ceases the opportunity and use the temporary lapse in Harou’s judgement to attack. He charges forward and strikes with his axe. Caught off-guard, the blade catches Harou by the chest, cutting him open from his shoulder down to his stomach. The force of the blow sends him crashing into a pile of rubble.

Harou coughs up blood, his voice strained. “Damn it. Should've... known that you have no honor,” he says through his teeth. "Enigma, take him down."

Enigma attacks Wrath, but the Warden grabs the wolf by the neck, slams him into the ground, and pins him down with his boot on its head. Penumbra tries to help, but is quickly silenced with a precise strike from Wrath's great axe. The hawk dissolves into thin air, the inky substances returning to Harou’s skin.

‘Penumbra! N-no…” Harou groans in pain.

There must be something that I can do to help. I still don’t fully understand what’s going on, but one thing is clear: there's no way that I'm going back to my prison. The fate that awaits me there is worse than death itself. I have to find a way to fight back.

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Fight back.

Fight...

Back...

. . .

“Fight back!” a child says, and prods my chest aggressively with a stick, pretending that it's the sharp edge of a sword.

“Stop staring at us!” another child says.

“I just want to play with you all,” I plead, voice sounding meek and young.

When did this happen?

“Why should we play with you?"

The third child pushes me to the ground and the others circle around, chanting insults in a sing-song voice. The boy with the stick starts hitting me with it. Harder, and harder, until I feel it break against my head. A sharp pain shoots through my temple. I close my eyes and curl into a ball, trying to make myself as small as possible.

“Monsters like you should be slain and burned!” one of them says, I don’t know who. They all sound the same to me.

“My mother says you’re a bad omen!”

“We’re going to put you down!”

“Hey, get away from him, or you’re all going to get it!” an adult man shouts, and the children disperses.

As they get away, one of them shouts back, “Don’t let him look at you...”

. . .

There's something wrong with his eyes.

Something in me awakens, and I feel power flow through my body like a surging river. My eyes feels different, as if I'm seeing under new lenses. As I focus my sights on Wrath, time slows down to a crawl.

I see everything.

His strengths, and weaknesses. The large amount of mana circulating throughout the gateways of his body. It boosts his strength, agility, endurance, and stamina to exceptional level. He's using mana to enhance his physical abilities.

However, despite his impressive strength and power, Wrath is still a mortal, and has vulnerabilities that I can exploit. Perhaps I can turn the tables on him. But there's no way I can win this alone. I need Harou's help to accomplish this crazy plan.

"Harou?" I call out to him. "Can you still stand?"

Harou groans and removes himself from the bed of rubble he's lying on. Despite his grave injuries, he manages to stand up to his full height. Perhaps his determination to fight is what powers him to continue on. If I want a chance at escaping, I must put aside my doubts and work with him to overcome Wrath.

"You called?" he says, and then he notices something in your eyes. "Whoa. They're glowing! Did I miss something?"

"We can discuss it later," I say and redirect the conversation. "We won’t be able to cross the border until we’ve dealt with the warden! But I need to know if you trust me first!”

He looks at me for a moment, and then gives me a firm nod. "Lead and I'll follow."

Wrath watches the two of us curiously, as if observing two urchins playing with fire.

"I need you to distract him. Can you do that?"

Harou looks at me as if I'm insane, and then grins. “I have just the party trick for this occasion. Greater smoke!” he chants, and then throws a spell in Wrath’s direction. The projectile explodes into black mist, blanketing his surroundings with a smokescreen.

"Together. Go!" I say.

Upon breaching the fog, Wrath spots Harou first and swings his axe at him from above. My companion narrowly dodges the attack, and I become the next target of Wrath’s fury. His strength is nothing to scoff at, and it would be problematic if I were to get hit by it.

However, the attack happens slowly, as if he's moving at a fraction of a second. I realize that my magical sight are seeing things at a greatly reduced pace. But instead of moving out of the way, something compels me to raise my hands and catch the blade between my palms, stopping the swing completely as if his great axe weights nothing more than a tiny pebble.

Time resumes, and Harou gawks in disbelief. "Nice catch!"

"You dare raise your hand against me, whelp? I will whip you until you are reduced into bloody pulp!" Wrath shouts.

Harou takes advantage of this moment to materialize a weapon in his hand. A blade made of inky substances appears, and he strikes at the Warden with untamed fury.

The Warden attempts to pull his great axe back to defend himself but my grip is solid as steel, and impossibly so. His eyes go wide when he sees that my fingers have dug deep into the blade. I may lack the combat experience but my newfound strength seems to make up for it.

“Block this, you big oaf!” Harou shouts as he stabs Wrath in the chest. He screams in pain as the dark blade draw blood from his wound. As he hands slips off the grip of his great axe, I muster all of my strength and strike the broadside of the weapon using my knuckles, shattering it in a shower of steel chunks.

"Impossible... How did you shatter pure adamantium steel?" Wrath shouts, fear evident in his eyes.

Now defenseless, I step forward and attack his vital point, which glows bright like a beacon, thanks to my magical sight. I strike hard and shatter his rib cage with the force of cannon fire. Wrath screams in pain, and I almost enjoy the sound of it.

I launch another attack that sends him flying backwards, and he lands several yards away, rolling and tumbling on the ground. Enigma is finally freed from his boot, and he howls with rage at being treated like a stepping stool.

I look down at my hands, palms open and facing the sky. I'm surprised by my own strength... It’s exciting to not be the helpless one for once!

“Devour!” Harou commands Enigma.

He imitates the shape of a dog’s maw with his hands. Enigma’s maw opens wide to an abnormal degree, sharp teeth glistening like daggers, and then chomps down on Wrath’s torso, mauling him for several seconds before being tossed aside. Blood spurts from the fang sized holes in his body. The final blow proves too much for Wrath and he goes limp on the ground.

“He’s not coming back after that. Return to me, demon wolf of strife!” Harou gestures towards Enigma, vanishing him in a puff of smoke. The ink comes crawling back to his arms.

The Warden looks at me, eyes burning with contempt. “There is... no... escape,”

“We need to leave!” Harou says, trying to get my attention.

“No matter where you run... or hide... the Emperor will pursue you. He’ll scour the freezing Mountains of Zerdottir, and comb the scorching hot Deserts of Vaznhayya, just to find you. He’ll wage wars, burn down entire cities – whatever it takes to make sure that you stay in your prison.”

“He’s just trying to provoke you,” Harou insists, his tone urgent. “Ignore him and let’s go!”

Wrath manages to stand up. He's unsteady on his feet, as if he'll topple at any moment. The amount of blood he's lost seems to go unnoticed by him. “You’re nothing but discarded flesh... Unwanted.... Unloved even by your own family. You know your place. Deep down, you understand why you deserve imprisonment."

I try to block out his words, but they dig into my skull like daggers. And then... he says something that really sticks.

“You’ll always be his caged bird.”

I look at Wrath with grim determination, and march towards him with purpose. Harou’s words become unintelligible in the background.

I tackle him to the ground, and he cackles as if he's won. I unleash a barrage of strikes, punching over and over again until the weight of my fists breaks something. Is it his jaw? Is it his nose? I don't care. I keep striking, and striking, and striking until I see nothing but red.

Someone screams. Is it me? Is it him?

Powerless.

I don’t stop.

Alone.

Why should I stop?

Monster.