An unfamiliar, yet unmistakingly motherly Voice called out in a soft, deliberate tone. Her words having repeated themselves endlessly, only now being heard. 

“Wake Up.”

The call had caused Cal to open his eyes just slightly, his consciousness still in the realm between dreams and reality he could not understand what he was looking at.  All he could feel was a great warmth surrounding him.

The source of the voice was obscured in fire and ashes, nothing but a vague silhouette being even close to visible. Despite what should be a shocking sight Cal didn’t stir from his sleep, it was rare enough when he could get any rest and he’d be damned if some dream was going to wake him. 

“Wake Up!” 

The voice was louder now and accompanied by another, younger sounding scream. This second voice held a commanding tone, in spite of its younger age. 

“Shut up” 

Cal mumbled out, still half asleep, still unaware of the danger he was in. 

“If you don’t wake up, you’re going to die!” 

The motherly voice had completely disappeared now in the brief flickers as Cal blinked between consciousness and unconcousness so to had her figure from the fires, now all that remained were the roars of the fire and the pleas of a young woman. Her demand repeated again and again, until finally…

“Please forgive me” 

An apology followed by a hard kick to the face, forcing Cal to sit upright clutching hard to his face. Fortunately for him the woman had held back on her strength, the difference between a bloodied nose and a shattered skull. 

“Gah, Son of a bi-” 

His scream of pain instantly cut off as he finally, truly managed to see his surroundings. The burning homes, the charred stone, the blackened sky and the cause of his new found pain standing beside him. The heavy smell of burning filled the air assaulting his senses, almost immediately his eyes begin to water. 

“Finally!” 

The woman declared as she grabbed Cals right arm and began pulling him to his feet. In a state of shock, she pauses for a moment, she had been trying to force him to move for some time and with her great strength she should have been able to do so easily, why could she move him now she silently wondered to herself as the heat continued to rise to unbearable levels. 

Her Intricately designed teal dress, dark blue hair and deep blue eyes stood as a stark contrast to the bright hues of red, orange and black surrounding the pair, like an oasis in the desert. 

“Please, we have to run. Now!” 

The woman shouts out to Cal who with fear in his eyes accepts her plea, taking her hand as she leads them down the road, up-wind in an attempt to avoid the worst of the blaze. 

Fire burns all around and as they run down the cobblestone road thoughts begin running through Cals head, this wasn’t home, this wasn’t New York. The buildings even as obscured by the firestorm as they were clearly weren’t familiar to him, the small roads and tightly packed buildings reminded him of London, but this wasn’t London either, there were no skyscrapers or street lamps, not even any cars or bikes on the street. 

“There, the river!” 

The unknown saviour shouted out to Cal in a hopeful voice, he had not been looking forward but to his sides and behind, completely absorbed by the flames on all sides. 

“If we can get there, we’ll be safe!” 

Shouting out the obvious, the young woman was trying to encourage the man she had just rescued to keep on going. Now in sight, the river looked alive with life as lights, ships, passed back and forth carrying refugees of the disaster to safety. 

Far in the distance another city could be seen, just on the horizon, this River must have been many kilometres wide. 

“Just a couple hundred metres, we’re going to-” 

Cals thoughts are cut off as he notices a wooden beam about to fall right in the direction they’re running, acting on instinct he takes harder hold of the girl's arm and pulls her back  with all his might, causing them both to fall back onto the hard cobblestone floor, narrowly avoiding being crushed. 

“Y-you-” 

The saviour turned saviee had tried to say or rather ask, “You would try to save me?.” but couldn’t make the words out as they both stood. Most regular humans wouldn’t dare to even touch someone of her power and status, even if they thought her in danger or perhaps especially if they thought so. 

Their path now obscured by a burning column of oak far to hot and high for to jump as the fires danced and screamed in a knowing way, they both looked around desperately for a way to escape. 

“There, that alley” 

Cal points to the only route around that seems devoid of fire, the flames looked as though they dare not approach and even the burns on nearby buildings stopped short of reaching the alley. 

“That should take us right to the docks, good thinking!” 

The two ran down the alley as it twisted and turned like a maze, seemingly having been spared from the fire as if the flames themselves could not navigate its confusing reaches. 

Reaching the docks, Cal and his saviour are met by a small group of fleeing citizens, one man, a drunkard but clearly one with a heart, screams to Cal and the young woman not missing a step as he goes. 

“A Ship! There’s a ship down the way, it’s at the Balory docks!”

Not seeing any other ships around, bar those out in the lake already clearly ferrying as many people to safety as they can, the pair follow the group. After around twenty minutes of running they come across a massive crowd of hundreds trying to force their way into a dock that clearly stands apart from the rest, attempting to climb up the clean marble stonework, finding themselves pushed back down by the defenders on the gold plated walls. The defenders were holding their spears backward, hitting climbing refugees with the blunt end, not that it mattered which end you were hit with if you fell five metres onto solid stonework. 

“What the hell do they think they’re doing!?” 

Cal shouted out in anger as he saw man after man pushed down from the walls, while the crowd did their best to catch those that fell, some were not so lucky. He looked around for his saviour to find her making her way through the crowd, which split like the red sea as she approached as if they people respected or feared her. 

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“Open this gate, let these people in.” 

Reaching the golden gate of the docks, she made a single demand. With a tempestuous voice that carried far beyond what would have been possible for a human. 

“I-I’m sorry my lady, we are under orders-” 

A Terrified gate guard tried to plead with the woman standing before him, but she wasn’t having it. With both hands she firmly grasps at the gate and with a soft “humph” she tears the full 30 tons from its reinforced fittings and throws it over her head, sending the golden gate flying far over the tall masts of the ship and deep into the clear, cool river. 

“Never mind, it’s already open.” 

She declares as a roaring, cheering crowd makes their way into the dock only to be stopped by a reserve line of guards, two dozen of them equipped with spears and heavy plate armour. Their comrades from the walls joined them, moving in from the sides and pouring into the back of the formation. Creating a two man thick wall the guards managed to block any possible entry to the ship or its loading area. 

As the two hundred refugees stand face to face with the one obstacle to their freedom, Cal approaches the woman who had saved him, standing at her side as noone else dared to her spoke to a guard whos armour seemed to stand out from the rest, with a lion esque pauldrons covering the guards shoulders and a more intricate yet less protective helmet. . 

“That ship could hold a thousand people! How many are aboard now?”

Everyone looked to Cal, it was a question everyone had dreaded but noone had asked. 

“Four hundred fifty, not counting our sixty guard” 

The captain replied, confirming that the ship had more than enough room onboard for all in its towering, elegantly designed hull. 

“Then how dare you deny passage to these people?!” 

The blue haired woman stared directly into the soul of the guards captain as if forcing him to answer. 

“It is not my choice, I swear it.” 

From the ship a tall, slender man began walking towards the near ruckus, a strange shimmer surrounding his body. No-one seemed to notice him, no-one, but Cal. 

“He’s right, it wasn’t his choice…” 

As the tall man stood just behind the guard captain the shimmer that had been surrounding him disappeared, causing all in the area, even his own men to a lesser extent to gasp in shock as if he had appeared out of nowhere. His gesture and pose made it clear that he was the man in charge here, even if his clothing was a little unorthodox for his position. 

“It reflects poorly on your status, playing with the rabble.” 

The guards around him attempted to apologise for their failure to keep the dock secure, the people in the crowd seem to lose their drive as if attempting to over power this man would be a pointless task, mumbling about a lord Balory, Cal assumes that must be the name of the tackily dressed skinny man. 

“Listen here!” 

Before his companion could get a word out Cal had began to shout to the man who had made this whole mess. This whole situation was unreal, he must still be dreaming he thought to himself and like hell was he going to let some pompous snob be the boss of his own dream.

“You’re going to let these people on your ship, or i'm going to kick the ever loving crap out of your scrawny ass.” 

But this wasn’t a dream and for his speaking out of turn all he received was laughter from Lord Balory that quickly turned to tears of amusement and terrified looks from the crowd behind him as well as the guards in front. The woman to Cals side simply looked on at Lord Balory, not for a second taking her gaze off of him. 

“Oh my, you slay me boy! Please, tell me your name so i may declare you the most jolical jester in the entire city!” 

Cal didn’t see the joke

“My name is Calvin Preston and i’m-”

He tries to step forward as he’s speaking, as if to fight Balory but finds himself held in place by the woman who had saved his life once before, she looks him in the eyes and contemplates for a moment what this strange man she had rescued had thought he was going to do before looking at Lord Baloiry and saying.

“Under the protection of Lady Veloria Skybreaker, as are all these people.” 

Lord Balory simply scoffs at his peers' declaration, he already knew who she was but simply didn’t care, these were his docks and she was simply a trespasser in them as far as he was concerned. 

“And?”

A Single word reply from the ships owner, clearly infuriating Veloria. Not seeking to actually physically fight with someone who actually had a chance of beating him, Balory expanded on his point. 

“The simple fact of the matter is there is no room on my ship, do you know how much space priceless paintings, artefacts and stores of gold take up?!” 

“Then empty your holds!” 

Cal shouted out but neither of the nobles seemed to be paying him much attention, that is until after a few moments Veloria tilted her head towards Cal as if to force Balory to answer back though he doesn’t break eye contact with Veloria as he speaks. The two seemingly in some kind of trance with each other, perhaps they were trying to intimidate each other Cal thought to himself, he could not imagine the reality of the battle they were waging in their minds. 

“Why would i? My goods are priceless, the lives of these peasants are worthless, do the maths.” 

Blood running down her nose, clearly losing the battle of minds Veloria makes a single declaration…

“It is the duty-” 

Straining as she speaks, she pushes on. 

“-Of those whom the blood of the gods flow-”

Yet unwavering in her dedication as the air itself begins to split around her.

“-To protect the world and the people in it!” 

As she says that she leaps forward, snapping herself and Balory out of their Psychic duel turning it into something far more physical. In an instant she closes the hundred metre gap and lands a furious blow on her peers face sending him flying backwards. A deafening sonic boom forces all around to cover their ears, an impressive display of speed that she had been building up for some time to get the drop on her opponent. 

In the Chaos both the Guards and the crowd begin rushing for the ship, both groups seeing it as their chance to escape the rampaging blaze that soon threatened to consume this dock itself. All trying their best to avoid the battle of Demi-gods happening before their very eyes, though the speed and skill of which Veloria and Balory fought made it difficult for regular humans to keep track and try, Cal did.

Veloria was Stronger by far but Balory was faster, more nimble he was hard for her even with her superhuman speed to keep up with. While neither were as fast in their exchanging of blows as Veloria in her initial assault, both moved far beyond what should be humanly possible. She was clearly more skilled and he cared not for casualties, passing by a number of fleeing refugees at such speed to send them flying. 

Understanding that, as he was Cal could not hope to fight someone on their level head on he instead relegated himself to helping the injured, picking up a man with a broken leg and carrying him to the ship, encouraging others to help on. He continued to help others, returning to help more as the fight raged, Veloria seemingly doing her best to keep the battle away from others which fortunately proved easy enough given the large size of the dock and how quickly most had cleared the main area. 

At the ship proper yet another stand off emerged as the guards set up on deck to repel boarders and people try to climb on and yet, out from below a young girl opens a hatch and runs to her father, a guard crying to let the people onboard and yet stricken with fear of his lord the guards do not abide her, dare not defy their lord. 

A seemingly hopeless situation on both sides Cal turned back to see his saviour being assaulted from multiple angles seemingly simultaneously, he could not accurately see the attacker at first but he could see the shimmer that surrounded him, understanding that Veloria had been fighting a losing battle ever since the first blow was struck and failed to end the fight.

“She can’t see the bastard!” 

Running as fast as his legs would carry him back towards the duelling demi gods Cal continued to watch as the shimmering attacker moved until he finally saw a chance to help 

“Low, To your right!” 

He shouted and Veloria took faith in the word of the man she had saved, Catching Balory completely off guard, managing to grab him by the throat causing his shimmer to disappear and light to return to Balory, seemingly blinding him for a moment. Now caught in the claws of a ferocious Warrior, Balory had no hope of escaping and he knew it and yet he did not look to the woman who held him in her grasp, instead with his blood shot eyes he looked to where the signal of his defeat had came from. 

 “You’re something else, aren’t you my boy?” 

After all a Demi-Goddess of superhuman might was practically a dime a dozen in this world as far as he was concerned, but someone who could see through his shimmer? The shimmer that in a small way imposes a false reality, willed by its creator onto the world. That was unique, not even the oracles of fate possessed that kind of ability. 

“Either you help evacuate these people, or i’ll evacuate every drop of blood from your body”

Not willing to indulge her bested foe Veloria got straight to the point, who turned to her and with a sickening smile declared in a booming voice that carried for dozens of kilometres, declaring to all that could hear that.

“I, lord Edwin Balory, do declare my intent to thoroughly and with all assets at my disposal to assist in the evacuation of the city of Casphea until the current disaster is abated.”

Before looking Veloria dead in the eye and saying.

“That blood line? Wasn’t as tough as you wanted it to sound, i’d have gone with-”

Content in her victory she drops him, walking off towards the ship, not interested in his drivel, Cal follows close with the crowd already in the process of rushing onboard and the cargo being pushed out into the river all the while Balory simply chuckles to himself while staring at the pair that had bested him. 

Veloria smiles softly to herself, Cal however is not so amused and thinks deeply as they wait to board the ship. Seeing the distress on his face and wishing to speak her mind, Veloria taps on Cals shoulder.

“Thank you for helping me back there, you didn’t have to.” 

Cal looks up to the woman, who had saved him, actually finally looking at her, their eyes meet level, Veloria is quite tall matching Cal at 6’2”, he hadn’t noticed that she was infact missing her shoes, kicked off during the initial launch of her first attack, though it wasn’t as if he was wearing any shoes either, he was dressed for bed and as far as he was concerned just half an hour ago he was in bed in his apartment.

There is something about Velorias eyes, the deep blue shines, swirls and spirals as if looking into the stars as if entire galaxies exist within those two eyes, it’s mesmerising and would be perhaps quite intimidating if Cal wasn’t doubting the reality he was facing, doubting the pain in his face, the smells that bombarded him and the frosty winds that clashed with the blazing cities heat. 

“I could say the same to you.”

Veloria shakes her head, her dark blue hair shining as she does, as if it contains some semblance of energy itself.

“No I couldn't, it is my duty to protect the people. No matter how difficult they are to wake from their slumber.”

In a moment she goes from serious to attempting to lighten Cals poor mood, though it has no effect despite her divine charisma and honest best efforts. 

“Lady Veloria, are you and your servant coming aboard?” 

In the time the two had been talking the crowd had already boarded the ship and lord Balory had disappeared off into the distance, skipping and dancing his way across the lake at incredible speed, declaring that he would summon all the ships he had in his possession to help in the rescue. 

Veloria looks to Cal almost expectantly, reaching her hand out to him again as she once had before but this time she does not grab his, instead waiting a moment for him to take her hand. Though unsure of himself, of all that had happened and the reality he was facing Cal at least knew one thing in this strange new world as he took Lady Velorias gloved hand, he knew that at least for now he would not be alone in it.