The wind blew strong in the mountains as the sun came up. Cadmus woke up in his bed, after a nice and relaxing sleep. He sat up as he looked out the window and glanced over the calm land. He slowly got up and got dressed as someone knocked on his door.
"Hey Cadmus! Wake up already you lazy sack of rat shit!" A woman with a harsh voice called the warrior as he just shook his head.
"I'm coming already Guthen. Did Rufa start his experiments?"
"Don't know, it's possible, find out yourself." The woman's steps were heard as she walked away. More and more light illuminated the room. **CRASH** an empty glass broke on the nightstand.
"Hm?" He looked around and all he saw were the glass shards all over the floor. He thought for a second, but did not kept around for long and walked out the door, down the stairs into the empty hall around to the other side and down even more steps into a huge empty balcony area with stairs leading down at the opposite end with a circle in the center looking down at the chamber where Rufus was sitting, waiting in a chair holding a vial with the dark fog in it.
"Need a maid to look at it because of your bad sight?" Cadmus startled the old man as he looked up and celebrated as Cadmus walked down the stairs to greet him. He put down the vial as they both shook hands.
"Cadmus, you're back! And alive!" They both laughed. "Thankfully the last one was not too rough, the other ones though." He said while giving a relieved sigh.
"You did good Cadmus, we will unravel these beasts' secret yet. This.. this smoke that they all had, holds great power.. Containing them must have put a great toll on you. It seems strange, does not disappear in light, in fact it grows thicker."
"Hmm..." Cadmus takes one of the vials that are on the table and looks at it. "You see it too don't you? It looks like it's beating, pulsing. Maybe we can use these to our advantage."
"Perhaps... we could alter them like the shadows." Rufa nodded silently. "I thought we could test this morning as soon as you wake up. You have the most experience with these after all. Come to the courtyard the others are already there." They took the vials and walked up and outside to the big open training area as Cadmus talked about about the beasts he defeated on the way, Rufa was mostly interested in a particular one. Seemingly animalistic, on four legs, thin fur covering it's body, it's bones were showing in most places, but it still had organs. It had strange bones growing out of it in unexplainable places, all Cadmus noticed is that these outgrowings were symmetrical on it's left and right side.
"It looked like a huge rat but... it's back legs were like a fox's without a tail."
"Alright Cadmus, we shall archive it later." Rufa opened the front door as they both walked out to the other four waiting for them, two women and two men.
They all were next to each other, Guthen from earlier, bright red hair and brown leather armor with a hint of red added, she wielded a curved sword with a smaller dagger along with it in her other hand. Bryda, a blonde haired witch, her class was obvious from her armor, it covered most of her body but it was very light and free as most of her protection was created by her powers, she had a one handed pick on her left side with sharp edges that could tear a bear apart. Uthlig, long and braided black hair and a sword on his back along with a dagger on his hip and a fancy crossbow with fine engravings of a raven. And the brute Lurken, A huge battleaxe on his back with a pouch on his hip holding many small balls in it.
"Guthen, Bryda, Uthlig and Lurken, we may have found something that could aid us in destroying the beasts forever, and it is a curse from their own bodies." Rufa handed one vial to Lurken as they all examined it once more.
As soon as it got in Bryda's hand she looked at it and shifted it around in the vial, back and forth after a few times it gone back and forth the glass started shaking and almost shattered. "This is... how would anyone control this?" Rufa turned to Cadmus and smirked. "Well one of us did already."
"Rufa, i could never stabilize this much power enough to wield it as a weapon!"
"Who said it will be a weapon?" Rufa took the vial from Bryda and handed it to Cadmus. "Let's see what it really does." The walls provided some shadow as Cadmus opened the vial. Surprisingly the fog did not disperse or take off, but rather started swirling around his arm, he focused on his arm, opened his palm as the fog collected in his palm and grew, larger and larger covering his arm.
"Hey, do you hear that too?" The dark fog dissipated around Cadmus' arm, Rufa looked at the others as horse trotting was heard getting closer and closer. This was not a messaging party, there were 30-40 of them heavily armed as many of their armors shackled on the horses while the majority was walking behind them in a quick manner. "Everyone, get ready." They all hurried in position, Uthlig looking at the gates from behind while the others stood up on the walkway on the walls. Uthlig drew his crossbow and aimed towards the gates. The horses getting closer. The party moving in, the hunters waiting in anticipation.
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The party was wielding a flag that looked a little rough, but something was not right. It was the empire's banner but the family crest was tore out of it. The horses stopped in sight range, one rode out and threw the banner in front of him as it burned up in the light.
"Where is Ronan?!" The man that looked to be the captain of this party yelled to the hunters in the distance, his voice echoing. The hunters looked at each other as Rufa looked at the man far away.
"We don't know this Ronan of yours!" The captain looked behind and held out his hand as a woman's head was given to him on a javelin. The man threw the javelin as it flew past the head of Rufa and impaled the snowy ground in front of Uthlig. "I know this woman...from White Rose... they are looking for the knight!" He yelled to Cadmus. "We don't have your friend with us!" Cadmus shouted to the man who looked dissatisfied with his answer, he slightly nodded as suddenly a blazing fire flew towards them. The target was Cadmus. The arrow flying right towards his head. As it started to get close a sudden whip of shadow cut the arrow in half and detoured it as it fell on the ground. Rufa looked at Cadmus in awe as the cloud of shadow was already gone.
The horsemen started galloping. The soldiers drew their weapons. Bryda opened up the gates with telepathy, welcoming the soldiers. Cadmus jumped down. Lurken drew his axe as he walked down the stairs out of sight. The warriors smiling at Cadmus while he was standing in the shadow casted by the wall. As they got closer and closer. Cadmus held his sword in his right hand and formed the shadow cloud again in his left. It enveloped his arm. The first soldier now through the gate. Time slowed down for a second. Cadmus readied his sword. He pushed the soldier off his horse with great wind power taking the one behind him with him too to the ground. Lurken swinged his axe from the stairs taking the head off the one after them. Uthlig shooting his bolt as it went right through one person and landed in the forehead of the other.
Cadmus jumped away from the wild horses as only two riders were left as they both entered the courtyard. One of them went for Uthlig, but he rolled away. He reloaded his crossbow and by the time the horsman turned around he was shot between the eyes.
The other rider managed to get behind some barrels, Cadmus running towards them, jumped on the barrels and from those to the horse. He took the rider off of the steed with him to the ground. The soldier's sword fell out his hand as Cadmus slit his throat.
The footmen gone through the gates as now it was Guthen's turn. The party filled in the courtyard, but there was more than enough room for them. Guthen jumped down behind some of them and cut them off one by one. Slashing throats. Stabbing hearts, she got to the side of the courtyard as the enemy tried to slash her, not even being able to scratch her.
Brytha opened both her arms and walked towards the soldiers. Three of them ran towards her, one of them fell face first having his head stuffed in the snow suffocating. Another one pushed off his feet while the third one started burning under his armor. The one who got pushed stood up to see the horrors as Brytha drew her pickaxe, dark shadow extending it by a little on the edges. She cut the soldier's head clean off.
Lurken slashing through them with his axe. Impaling one with one side and the next one with the weapon's other side. The brave ones were a marvel to watch for Rufa. He knew they did not need him. The captain walked in on foot to see his men getting slaughtered one by one. Until only he remained. The gates behind him shut as he looked in frustration on Rufa above and behind him.
"You! Come down here and fight me just us! You do not have a chance against me!" Cadmus walked forward with the cloud appearing once again around him as he walks into the shadow. "No, you are fighting with me." The man turning around with his great sword already in hand. "Fight me in the light if you dare, Hunter!" Cadmus smiled and took steps back letting him also in the light.
The man charged at him without hesitation. Swinging his sword, Cadmus dodging his attacks. The man kept getting faster and faster. The blade cut his hair. But suddenly the fight stopped as Cadmus blocked his sword with his own. The man laughed while Cadmus struggled. The man looked at him and whispered. "I don't need shadow!" With that a sudden spike flew towards Cadmus. He struggled to flick the man's sword. He jumped away. His sword falling out his hand. The arrow almost hitting his head.
The man started shaking and dropped his weapon. He held his throat. He fell on his knees as suddenly something impaled him from behind. Creating a huge hole in his chest he started bleeding out coughing up blood. Cadmus looked at his hand, focused, and created dark fire in the light. The cloud was not gone just thin around him. But enough to alter it. Flames swallowed the man as he screamed and struggled on the ground burning up alive. As his suffering stopped so did the flames.
"How did you.. do that?" Guthen looked at Cadmus as he was also in shock, he walked in the shadow and held his hand in it making the cloud stronger as it slowly dissipated. Rufa chuckled as he walked down the stairs. "See? This is really something, focus and use it when there is no shadow, it has a strong power to it i can feel it, this is more than just shadow!" Cadmus took a good look at his hand as a few streams of darkness was seen dancing around on his arm, but him not being able to create more of it even if he tried.
The brave ones cleaned their weapons and took the bodies away. The snow in the courtyard was covered in blood, the white snow became all red as it slowly drowned in blood. Uthlig walked to Rufa. "My ravens tell me he is almost back with the Knight." Rufa nodded in approval as the warriors walked in the hall as Rufa stood in the courtyard.
"Just how do we get the upper hand..." Rufa remembered and visualized Cadmus fighting "Did the shadow had control on it's own? Cadmus did not expect the soldier to fall on their knees and die in such a way." The front door swinged open from the hall. "Rufa, come on in already the snow will dry up by the time you get yourself in here!" Brytha invited the old man in as he followed the woman and they all listened to Cadmus' adventures.