Laguna - south-end - afternoon

Cade left me alone to confront this old man, so I suppose it is my responsibility to save the others. Gripping the shaft of my weapon, I narrow my gaze at him. His giant stature is imposing, but that’s not all there is to it. The air he carries screams death, and that gentle smile tells me he enjoys fighting. My, oh my, what a frightening foe. Testing the waters will not do it. A more…aggressive approach is required.

“Are you done evaluating me, boy?”

So he noticed? What a keen observation on his part, but I suppose that gave him time to read me as well. His posture is firm with his feet glued to the ground, but he’s itching to bash in my skull. How frightening…

“Yes, I am. Sorry for keeping you.”

Killing him now would be a waste. Questioning him on his allies would be nice, but that’s not too important. I just want to see where this goes.

Dashing forward, I swing my weapon, using one hand to utilize the reach of my spear. He takes a step back, remaining in a defensive stance. Pivoting, I target his chest. He crouches while leaping back. Impressive reaction time. I pursue him, slamming the shaft of my spear to his side. He blocks with his forearm, then pulls it to bring me closer. Not only is he fast, he’s taking advantage of my weapon’s range.

The longer the weapon, the more limited the range. Some confuse a spear’s advantage with being long-range, but that’s not right. What they mean is reach. Long-range is its weakness. A spear or lance is longer than most weapons; if a person were to get past the blade part of these weapons, then they would be past the point of danger. So, when using a long weapon, one needs to keep the enemy at bay. Of course, that’s for those who do not know how to overcome this weakness.

I let go of my spear, using the forward momentum he gave me. Leaping into the air, my foot pounds the sides of his head. I bash his chin with three consecutive punches. My knuckles are practically punching bricks, the bones throbbing inside my hand. Any more of that and my poor hand will break into tiny pieces. Regardless, he releases my weapon. I swipe it from the air, immediately going for an attack. However, his ability to halt my strike that close to his chest catches me off guard. His fist blurs past my perception, belting my head backward. It is like he smashed a brick into my face! The pain keeps me from blacking out. I almost want to puke out everything in my gut.

I lift myself to my feet before my body touched the ground, standing straight.

“You’re able to stand after that?’

“I nearly blacked out.” Outstanding, he broke my nose with a single strike. Not only that, but he didn’t give me enough time to react. What else is there to say? He is impressive. I sneeze out some of the blood, ceasing the flow. A painful but effective fix for now. Despite how short our engagement was, I saw it on his face, as well as felt it. His lust for fighting is strong, almost intoxicating… Maybe he’s… I do not see why not? If he refuses my offer, then I can kill him.

Lowering my weapon, I put my hand out. “...Do you have a purpose?”

Raising a single brow, he leaves his stance. “Excuse me?”

Bewildered, as expected. Being vague tends to reap their attention.

“Purpose, the reason a person breathes, sleeps, eats, or even speaks. Be it small or big, a purpose is a key component for a person to function. Without it, they are nothing more than a useless sack of meat.”

Sack of meat is harsh, but an apt phrase.

“Is there a point to this?”

“I ask because I feel we are the same. You and I seek something in combat, correct? What you seek is pleasure, yes?”

A broad grin slithers onto his face, doing away with the pleasant smile from before. “Indeed. You can say it is my purpose. Everything else in life is meaningless.” Clenching his fist, he stares me down, elated to share his reason. “When your life hangs in the balance, fighting an opponent you are capable of killing, but they are just as capable of killing you, those are the moments that define a person’s life. The strength that one brings out, the ecstasy, but more importantly, the value of your own life flashes you by. Those are moments of beauty; the beauty of one’s life! Where the strong wager their values to one another!”

Finding beauty in battle… How superb! Such a notion is insane, but there is a beauty in it that only people like him and I can see.

“Splendid, what a splendid reason to live! Allow me to accommodate you.”

I speed across the street, prioritizing speed over anything else. During our brief encounter, he waited for me to attack, redirected my attack, then countered. I have to strike faster than he’s able to counter, let alone block. Which means getting into his range. Fortunately, fighting in close range is no issue.

Twirling my weapon, I bend it around my body, hitting him with the shaft. Bringing out the higher level of my acrobatics and my mastery of the spear is a must if I am to defeat this man. However, despite my swift movements, he guards even my more advanced techniques.

This…this man is it! He’s the one! After all this searching, I finally found the one who can help me.

“Please, give me your name,” I ask him, excited to hear his answer.

“I lost my name long ago, and even if I remembered, such a thing means little to me.”

“Then may I give mine?”

“Certainly. Knowing those who could kill me would be most appreciated.”

Saying this might sound crass, but this is making me giddy.

“Jed, that is my name. And I would like it if we could have a discussion.”

“Oh? What is there to discuss?”

Widening the already present smile on my face, I puff air from my nose. “What else? My purpose…”

…

Fighting through wrecked buildings, the bandit scum follows behind me, moving like a wild animal on the hunt. Shaking him isn’t gonna happen, and I don’t need to. Leaping through another building, there’s some kitchenware around here, begging to be used. Perfect, I can work with this. I slide under the table, waiting to give him a big warm welcome.

He breaks through the door with his shoulder, tearing the door from its hinges. I chuck the table with both my feet.

He catches it only for me to kick through it with both feet. I scurry to the kitchen, taking whatever silverware I can. Forks, nice! Four go airborne, one to his left, right, below, and for his chest.

In that split second before impact, he jumps up and grabs the support beams, lifting himself above the forks. What is that reaction speed!?

“All you got, kid?”

“Not even close!”

“You got some fire in those eyes!”

There’s little room in here to maneuver. Half the battle is me not trying to bust my ass on anything in here. His actions are too quick. Tripping him up with the environment is the only way. Our back-and-forth battle of making the other slip up begins. Daggers, silverware, pots, and pans, he slips past them with. His body twists, turns, and bends in strange ways, not possible for a human.

What a freak! That table ambush was my best attack and even then, he still saw it coming. Everything about this guy doesn’t make sense. Damnit, I’m gonna need to head up to the second-floor!

I bolt up the wooden stairs that creaked under my feet. I bust into the first door I see, closing it shut, waiting for him to stomp in front of it. His feet set in front of the door. This is it! I jump at the door, pointing my daggers at it. Breaking the door from its hinges and stabbing it through, we crash into another room, tearing through the door into this room. Somehow, the bastard slides out from under the door. He shoots forward, running hog-wild at me. I shoot up, jumping back into the room behind me. The bandit slams through the wall, wrecking the wall with his body weight. Stupid bastard, probably broke his head with that. Now or never, while he’s disoriented.

Bursting into the next room he’s in, boots smash against my head, pushing me to a wall behind me. His fist leaves a mark on the wall after I barreled away. This guy is still moving, even after ramming through a wall. What is he even made of, a shit-brick house? Whatever, I got him where I want him. In a narrow hallway like this, there’s nowhere he can dodge.

"Take this!"

I throw the last of my daggers, leaving a single one in my cloak. Each of them closes off any of his options to dodge. He’s not escaping, not this time! Let’s see what you got to say now, you filthy bandit!

But, all that comes out of his mouth is him clicking his teeth. Against the low odds, in an impossible situation that would make any human flinch, he plunges forward. My blades pierce an arm and a leg, but he’s still running. What the– I don’t believe it! How could he just–

"Got you, you little shit!"

His fist flashes across the air. It strikes me with a heavy thud, cracking his knuckles against my jaw. My consciousness fades in and out as I hit the floor. T…this guy isn't human. He's an animal…

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“Shit, that stings…! Oh well, at least I ain’t dead.” Shit, my legs, I can barely feel them! No, no, no, no! Not this, not like this! I don’t want to lose. "That was touch and go for a bit, I'll admit, but it's over for ya, kid."

It can't be, not yet! My family… Every waking minute, their faces stare at me while they’re cut down, their voices keep telling me to avenge them, to never allow a single bandit to escape judgment… The kingdom doesn’t care to deal them proper judgment, and Proxy and his group just let them live. So it’s up to me, I have to judge them, each and every one of them! With this rage, this desire to kill them all, I’ll kill them, no matter the cost! Because if I don’t, who will!?

"See ya around, punk, I–"

I yank the dagger from his leg, swiftly stabbing his foot three times. He flees before I can go for a fourth one. His foot, caked in blood, leaves bloody footprints on the wooden floor, giving it a fresh coat of paint. The smell drifts in the air, settling in my nose. My awareness rises from how revolting it smells, especially from something less than human.

"Damn, that was nasty! Didn't think you had any left in you," he winces at the end, trying to bite back the pain.

"Oh, I have plenty… But thank you."

His blatant confusion says it all, and that weird look only states the obvious. "Thanks for what?"

"For reminding me, you bandits are subhumans."

"Ouch, I'm hurt."

Some part of me kept saying they were human, not to deter me, but to say it would be easy to kill them. But it was wrong. They’re not humans, humans don’t fight like beasts. Beasts are harder to kill, but they look nothing like a human, making them easier to kill.

"The way you move and fight is not that of a human, but an animal. An animal that does not deserve to be treated like a human."

His face contorts into a scowl, growling like the beast he is. "Beasts still deserve respect.”

"Why so defensive? Not like what I said is wrong. Beasts are below human beings in terms of value!"

"No, they are not!"

"They are… They do nothing but kill whatever they like without pause, never considering who gets hurt and what it does to the people around them. So I’ll slaughter all of them! I’ll be the monster that devours beasts!”

If beasts are equal to humans, then I’ll be something more than that, something that can pick apart the beasts from humans!

“You’re out of your mind, kid!”

He charges, ignoring the open wound on his leg. I’m not going to run away anymore, not from scum like this! I’ll face all of them head-on!

"Go for the legs!"

Crawling around my brain, those words jolt my body into action. I slash his legs, acting on the voice’s command. His beastly reaction time leads him to leap over me.

“Throw a dagger!” I chuck one, almost on instinct. It nails his shoulder, spraying his disgusting blood all over the place. “Close the distance!”

My feet kick off the ground, breaking a piece of the brittle wooden floor below. I jump at him, planting my boots on him. Slipping out the last dagger from my cloak, I go for the kill, wanting to sink the blade into his skin, spilling all the blood from this beast’s body. At this distance, I can do it.

“Get off me!”

He forces me off, swinging his forearm with that beastly strength.

“Throw it!”

I do just that, pushing it into the air with the tip of my fingers. It flies across the room, centering on his chest. It sinks into his shoulder. He was quick to lower his body, but he wasn’t quick enough.

“Kill him!”

Just what I was thinking. I messed up his leg and foot, there’s no better time. Snatching a dagger from the ground, I race down the hall. He flees into the room next to him. What’s the point? No matter where you run, I’ll– Glass shattering interrupts my thoughts. Is there a window in there? Shit! Barging into the room, glass is littered on the ground with the window missing from the room, letting in the sea breeze. I hate being right!

He jumped out the window, and since this is a two-story building, he’s probably fine! But with his injuries, he’s still losing blood, and I can use that to follow him.

I race to the first floor and leap through the window leading to the back of this house. I follow his trail. Injuries like those will keep him from moving as deft as he was before. When I close in, I’ll slice him apart, piece by piece; don’t want him somehow living through our encounter.

Turning the corner, the trail ends. Must’ve patched his wounds somehow. Not like that’s gonna help. Tracking him won’t be too hard… Forget him. I have to go help Jed and the others. Besides, he can run all he wants, I’ll find him, then cut him to pieces!

Laguna - North-end - evening

Somehow made it back to the checkpoint after hours of lugging my leg. We’re based in the tree here in Laguna. There’s a long bridge way that acts as a chokehold between us and anyone coming into the North. The water crashes from below the sea, rushing along with the wind that smells like the sea.

Talk about close scrapes. Walking is a bitch and a half thanks to these holes in my leg. Thing practically feels like a log. My shoulders ain’t any better, but I can deal with them being stiff.

Halfway through the fight, something happened to that kid. He suddenly got better at fighting me, and the way he was acting changed. And the shit he said… Little bastard, when I get my hands on him, I’ll wrangle him!

“You are worse for wear.”

Great, here comes the old man. And wouldn’t you look at that? He ain’t harmed. How lucky.

“You just gonna stare at me or help?”

“What happened to your foe?”

Gah! This old bastard completely ignored me!

“I had to escape.”

“Is that right? Such a humiliating action is becoming a common occurrence with you.”

“Shut up! I just keep getting the freaks!”

“And that excuses you how?”

“Just shut up…! But this freak was different from the last one. He changed before my eyes, like I was fighting someone else.”

“Sounds as if we have some interesting opponents this time around.”

“Yeah. Between him and Proxy, I’d say they go neck and neck in how dangerous they are.”

“Not only those two, but with the boy I fought today as well.

“Really!? Then this gonna get real interesting!”

Okay, maybe that kid banging up my leg wasn’t too much of a bad thing then. Three of them are reaching their potential… Yeah, that kid with the weird lance had that air, but I can’t say for certain whether or not it’s true since I didn’t get to fight him,

“If we meet them in combat, then the three of them will blossom into something beautiful.”

“Yeah. I can feel it coming. For Proxy, it’s slowly coming out, but with that other kid I fought, it just erupted from him, overwhelming me.”

“And I believe Jed is holding back on purpose. But, if this place were to be turned into a proper battlefield, then…”

“...Then they would break past their limits, unleashing their potential as fighters.”

This feeling! A tingle runs down my spine and all the anger I had before washes away, replaced by euphoria. The stronger the pray, the more satisfying it is to beat. Though, that knife-wielding brat is someone I won’t be hunting. Hunting an opponent means I respect their strength and them as a fighter, so I come at them with everything I got, and that brat doesn’t fit the description. Anyone who disrespects the balance of life doesn't get anything but a boot to the head!

Laguna - South-west-end - evening

Cade, walking alongside Jed and the rest of his squad, returns to their temporary site. Kids ranging from 13 to 18 greet them, as well as the rest who accompanied Cade.

Jed, with nary a wound, smiles on, striking the hearts of the girls in the encampment, and even some of the boys captured by his girlish face. They shower Cade in applause along with the rest of his squad.

“Jed, you gonna answer me?”

“Is it so important why I left? I am capable of protecting myself, but I am sorry for worrying you.”

“Just don’t do that again.”

Jed noticed a subtle difference in Cade’s inflection. Not only his voice, but his posture, as well as the air he exudes; radiates a dense killing intent that has no cap. Others felt this from Cade, others remained ignorant of it, all of them cheering for him nonetheless.

“Today! I encountered bandits here, as well as Proxy and his band,” Cade announces, catching everyone’s attention.

The name spreads around like a bad omen, causing anger to stir from everyone. They remember him as a traitor who defended a bandit and harmed their allies. Yet, running counter to their anger, there’s a bitter sadness to it. The ones that got to know him thought he was kind, and his bright personality uplifted them, helping them to forget their trauma. With anger and sadness comes conflict within themselves.

Cade, however fierce his anger is toward him, still holds the bit of their friendship that remains between them. He does hate Proxy, but like everyone else, feels sad ‌he has to fight him, wanting nothing more than to be friends with him. However, he won’t change his mind, and he won’t spare Proxy, even if he doesn’t want to fight him.

“Tonight, we’ll be scouting ahead, so we’ll need a few volunteers, that’s all.”

Puck emerges from the crowd along with Wedge.

She gasps, spotting bruises on Cade’s body. “You’re wounded! We need to get you medical attention!”

“I’m fine, Puck. Bruises aren’t gonna keep me down.”

“Yeah! I get bruised all the time,” Wedge’s voice resounds, annoying anyone in earshot of him.

Puck taps Wedge’s chest with the back of her knuckle. “That’s because you’re made of harder stuff. Also, stop yelling!”

“Sorry!”

Cade lets his guard down, laughing at the two’s banter. A broad smile stretches on Puck’s face, elated to see Cade happy.

“Ah, I did not know you could smile?” Jed unintentionally mocks Puck.

Her face flushes pink, turning to him with a nasty glare. “Sh-shut up! Who cares what you think!”

“But you are,” Wedge pits in, speaking at a normal pitch.

“Why aren’t you yelling!?”

“I thought you did not wish for him to yell?”

“Shut it!”

“My, my…”

Wedge watches on, pressing his lips together while Puck chases Jed around. Even on the battlefield, this moment of childish peace imprints into Cade’s mind, but even then, the voice whispers into his ear, keeping him from dropping his guard, especially around his friends.

"Kill them… Kill all of your enemies."

The voice seeps not into his ear, but into his brain. The tempting allure of his blade gliding across a bandit's body, their lives thralled in his hands. As sick as he thinks it is, there’s an animalistic part of him that revels in the thought.

A Source-user awakens their Source in one of two ways: Training to feel their Source, learning to control it before they learn their trigger to release it, or from mental and physical strain, causing them to realize their Source without any training. Of course, without training, they can’t properly use it, but, on rare occasions, some can manifest an ability, even without knowing about Source.

Typically, when a Manifestation is created, the user must nurture their intended creation, being overly familiar with it, imprinting in one’s mind and soul. During their time creating this, they can manifest how the ability works, the stronger the ability, the heavier the restriction will be, and it cannot go beyond the realm of possibility or understanding.

In this case, Cade’s obsession, feelings that have been developing for years, with eliminating the bandits was used to materialize a manifestation, giving it the form of an entity that hovers over his shoulders. It only came to be during his fight with Wildcard, subconsciously. It being subconscious in creation, Cade was not able to control what it can and cannot do.

However, since Cade hasn't found his trigger to unleash his Source, his Manifestation is weak, only able to speak with him. However, that is only the surface of its abilities.

“Kill enemies…grow stronger! Grow stronger! Big and strong!”

Amongst his allies, he sinks further into darkness, unable to hear their voices and their laughter, only the ghoulish voice whispering to him.