He ran towards the depth following tracks of blood into the cave. The cave reeked of rotten meat stink of sludge. A seemingly broken lamp was the only source of light. Rayke tried the ground with the spear before taking each step. Fortunately, the spear was almost the length of a cane and came in handy. The more he progressed into the cave, it became colder. Rayke shivered as another pass of strange cold rampaged through him. He had never gone further than this point. Usually, the guards would have not let entry for common villagers unless for emergency trades with the city. But tonight, there was no one there protecting the passage. Even the imps were silent. He doubted for a second. What if they knew about the passage. What if it was a trap. But he had no better choice. More importantly, he heard no shrieks tonight. He was getting used to hearing screams and sounds of bodies being ripped apart coming from above. But there was none tonight. That was a good sign. As Rayke kept moving deep into the cave, piles of dead bodies put on each other carelessly came into view. He touched the ground and smelled it. It was a combination of fresh blood and mud. He dig the ground nearby with his fist. After some attempts, he finally found it. Rayke clenched his fists to take droplets of water and drank it with so much greed. He shivered at the muddy taste.
‘Is that you Rayke? I’ve been waiting for you. What’s going on here? ’ Said a far away voice.
Rayke turned his head towards the voice. It was coming from the passageway. As he got closer, an old man with mid-length beard and a bald head came into view. He had the same brown eyes as Rayke.
‘Grandpa? Is that you? ’ asked Rayke, glad to see a familiar face that was still breathing. ‘I came as soon as I knew the village is under attack. You’re safe now.’
Rayke wanted to believe him more than anything, but something was off. His grandpa always refused being called that. He made Rayke refer to him as the young man.
‘now tell me what happened Rayke? Where is my son? ’ the old man asked with genuine worry in his eyes. ‘the whole village is burnt down. Everyone else is slaughtered to death. I’m the only one left.
‘Rayke knew he couldn’t completely trust that this man was who he claimed to be. But He had held so much emotions in himself for so long that he just needed an excuse to stop running away and mourn. He burst down in tears. He gripped onto the spear. His father’s last wish was for him to hide and protect the spear. It was all that was left of home. The only memory of his father.
‘Everything is ok now. it must have been painful to be betrayed by your loved ones. ’ the old man exclaimed while patting on Rayke’s shoulder. Rayke freezed at his spot. He shouldn’t have known about that. He took a step back, his eyes widening with fright. ‘how do you know about that? ’ Rayke squeaked.
It all started three nights ago. The villagers became mad and started slaughtering their own family with no mercy. The night after that, the survivals started clinging out of pain and setting themselves on fire. Then those wolfs attacked the village and tore down survivor. He was lucky enough to run and hide in the underground tunnels. He just had to follow his father’s last wish and bring the spear and himself to a safe place.
‘Oh, you know that your father told me about what happened and asked me to come and save you and the spear. ’ the old man said calmly. ‘why do you want this useless spear? I use it as a cane. ’ said Rayke. He thought playing dumb could save him some time to distract the man. He was now convinced he was not his grandpa. But thought he might get into a worse trouble if he pointed out his suspensions. If he was capable of impersonating another human with that accuracy, he had to be a powerful creature. Rayke was very well aware that he wouldn’t stand a chance if it came to a combat. ‘ your father wanted me to take care of it, of course. And Its better for you to take some rest. You’ve been through a lot of horrible events. You can now entrust the spear to me.’ said the old man. Rayke felt a breeze on his face as he was told he can now take rest. He knew now very well what the bold creature meant by him taking a rest. If he was completely honest, there was a part of him that wanted to just take the man’s advice and just go to sleep. He was so tired of running and feeling the guilt of still breathing. He was tired of the constant regret of not standing besides others and dying with them.
‘No, the spear is my responsibility. I would NOT give it up. ’Rayke said.
He didn’t understand why every single person in his life had to die or why a spear was so important for them, while it was not even a functional weapon, but Separating with the it meant becoming lonely again. That was all that was left from home.
‘now you’re boring me, kid. Just give it up already and in return I’ll make it end quickly.’ The old man roared.
As he finished talking, his eyes widened at realisation of revealing his true identity.
‘NO’ Rayke said.
‘well then. I’ve waited enough. Just remember that you did it yourself. You could’ve had a peaceful death. Like others.’ The bold man continued ‘but you called it upon yourself just like those brats who thought they stand a chance against my master. ’the old man said
‘your master? Whats going on here? ’ Rayke called.
He knew the man was after the spear, but was he the one behind all this. The old man started changing. His arms and legs became larger. Then his hands changed into claws. His skin turned to a brownish red. His face became full of scars filled with pus. In fact it wasn’t just his face. His whole body was leaking pus. Three bite teeth came out of his mouth that torn his beard while growing longer. As of he wasn’t hideous enough, two black bull horns grew on his bold head. The only cloth left on his body was a beach short with ‘Happy Ocean ’ written all over it. If Rayke wasn’t sure that he was about to be killed, that would have made a hilarious scene.
‘So what are you supposed to be now?’ Rayke asked. His voice resonated his fright while he was trying to swallow his laughter at the same time.
‘I’m a cobold, of course. This form isn’t my favourite, but its practical for now. Its your last chance to give up the spear. ’ the hideous creature said. ‘you could impersonate humans. Then it were you who attacked the village. Wasn’t it? ’ asked Rayke with anger flowing through his voice.
The monster didn’t reply. Instead he griped his hand around Rayke’s neck and took him into air like a toy. He then moved him in the air so fast that Rayke that made Rayke vomit. The monster then threw him at the wall. His covered his head with his hands while holding onto the spear to protect it from breaking. When the wall hit him, his hands started bleeding and he knew that some his bones had broken. Rayke had almost none combat skills. The most experience he had of fighting involved reading about his favourite adventures in the central library of village. He was unmatched and made him certain that the only reason he was alive now was because the kobold needed him to submit the spear to him personally. The monster came towards him again. He put his feet on his hand holding the spear. Then grabbed him again and pushed his teeth into it forcefully. Rayke screamed out of pain. It wasn’t a normal bite. It burned down deep into his bones. He felt pain was spreading from his hand to all his body. The monster then threw him at the wall. The spear held out of his grip. ’not giving up yet? That bite was poisonous. It will first makes your body paralysed. Then you’re going to feel a pain like no other. With every breath you take, you wish to die. But you know the beauty of the poison is that you won’t. ’ the monster said ‘if you give up already, I’ll show mercy and kill you. You’re just a useless brat. Why should you wield such a powerful weapon.’ Rayke whimpered out of pain. He was right about the poison. Every breath he took made his chest burn with paralysing pain, let alone moving. He had to do something. It was very well clear that the monster could not have the spear if he didn’t give it up, otherwise he would have been long dead and he would have just picked it up already. Now the spear was his only hope. He just had to figure out what it was capable of apart from poking the monster. He cried out of the agonising pain when he moved his hand to take a hold of the spear. ‘don’t be stupid, kid. Like those stupid villagers. I offered them mercy and some of them were stupid enough to reject my kindness. ’ said the monster. ‘what do you mean? You just slaughtered everyone. ’ Rake said painfully. Hatred and pain filling his eyes. ‘oh, my. Do you really think I would go through all that trouble? You’re the only one honoured to be killed by my hands. ’ the monster exclaimed. ‘what? ’ Rayke was so surprised. He cried when another stage of agonising pain came through his body. He felt like his meat was being ripped apart from him and his bones were on fire. He suddenly felt his head burning and suddenly his vision blurred. ‘its going to get worse than that. You’re now in heaven compared to whats going to happen. All your organisms are going to be burnt down while you’re still alive, breathing. ’ said the monster. ‘but to answer your question, what happened to your dear village was the pure art of our dear eels. A unique species indeed. They enter the persons ears and then execute one simple order. In your case, it was to kill your loved one. When the order is performed, the parasite kills the host and dies itself. But the spear chose you as the wilder, a good for nothing human who cant even fight to save himself. ’ he continued ‘ but if the host holds a strangely strong willpower against the order, then the host will feel a pain at least ten times worse than what you’re experiencing. Both physical and mental. The inner conflict gets both the host and parasite killed. Your father was especially resistant and brought this upon the village. Some of your pathetic friends might have survived if he just gave up and listened. ’ the monster laughed. Rayke felt his body was on fire. But it wasn’t just the pain now his eyes became red as his body was being filled with rage and determination. There was no way that he was going to give up. He would have at least had to try, like everyone else. He reached out his hand and got a hold of the spear but it felt. He tried again. He felt like the monster was nearing him. He needed more time. He had to distract him somehow. ‘then why didn’t you do the same to me? You could’ve just ordered me to give you what you want. ’ asked Rayke. The monster laughed ‘that was no fun, then. Was it?’ He answered. The pain was burning Rayke alive. The more he moved, the more incurable it became for him to take another breathe. Rayke closed his eyes and imagined the face of his father. He remembered the time they used to spend together in garden, talking about every book they’ve read while eating aunt Laula’s handmade ice creams. He could smell the flowers he planted in summer. He imagined waiting for summer to come. So e could spend all day playing with his friends catching fairies or helping at the farms. And now all of those beautiful days were gone. He could not give up, not now. Not after what his family and friends went through. He tried again and finally took a hold of the spear. as the spear came into contact with his hand, A black aura appeared around the spear as the spear came into contact with his hand. The spear became almost weightless as if it was floating on its own. A thick black mist covered where he was bitten and the pain stopped immediately. The mist penetrated into his body, empowering his body. suddenly he felt so much power that he felt he could rule the world.
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‘I admit you are quite resistant as a human’ the monster said while he was laughing ‘but, its just a matter of time.’
Rayke knew he had to use his new found power without any delay as he wasn’t sure when it would disappear. He sneaked near the monster and put the spear into his knee with all his might. But the monster’s skin was tougher than his bones. The spear just made a black scratch. The monster laughed out. ‘do you really think you can beat me with your pathetic attacks? ’ he asked while moving towards Rayke.
A mist started forming around the scratch like the one that healed Rayke. However the former didn’t heal the scar. The kobold’s whined out, ‘what the hell.’ The mist became thicker and larger until it fully covered the monster’s knee, forcing him to kneel down. Rayke used this opportunity and pushed the spear into the monster’s eye. Another dark mast penetrated into his eye as he screamed out of gorging pain. A moment later, all the life force was sucked out of the huge monster. He fell on the ground as if he never existed. Rayke blinked, trying to process what was happening. He could not believe he had made it. He was alive and the monster wasn’t. As the dark aura around the spear disappeared, Rayke felt like passing out. He was beyond tired and the pain was coming back to his body. Apparently, the spear only neutralised the poison and its effects, but his bones were still as broken as they were and without the power of spear, it was so much to bear.
‘what is all this fuss about?’ Came a voice from a barrel near the gateway.
Rayke’s face became white. Was it a back up in case the kobold didn't make it? He was not sure if he could stand against another one of those monsters. He wasn’t even sure how not to pass out. A red head came out of the barrel. ‘is the mad man gone already? ’ he asked. ‘Marcellus? What are you doing here? ’ Rayke exclaimed feeling relief washing over him.
Marcellus was their neighbour. He was Rayke’s elder by only two years, however he lived alone for some reasons. He had a habit of trespassing into the cave in hopes of breaking into the city one day. They were never close and never really spent that much time together. But with all that happened, Rayke felt like he had found his long lost brother.
‘just call me Marcel, you jerk.’ Said the boy ‘Oh. Its you, Rayke. I was trying to get into city. The imps were silent and it was the golden opportunity. But it like the exit was locked. When I wanted to turn back, I found the dead imps. And they were not just dead, but most definitely killed. So I decided to hide inside the barrel. But I think I lost my conscious. And when I woke up there was a mad bull roaring around. So I thought it would be better to stay here a while longer. Now tell me why are you here? ’
Rayke told him everything as they passed through the hidden passageway. ‘i’m sorry ’ Marcel exclaimed as a single tear came down from his eyes.
‘who would’ve thought we would finally go to city together? ’ he said with a fade smile.
Rayke wanted to object to that, but decided otherwise. They walked for another two hours in silence. ’what should we do now? ’ asked Rayke. ‘for now, let’s just move forward. And when the time comes we’ll decide on that. ’ he said. Rayke nodded his head. He was feeling a mixture of utter grief of loss and happiness of having a companion. As they reached the other side of cave, the walls became wider and the roof became taller. The whole cave was decorated with valuable paintings and statues everywhere and the floors were carpeted. There were multiple rooms, all ending to the main salon. The lustres on the roof made the cave shine as bright as daylight. ‘welcome to the city. ’ Marcel said triumphal. Rayke nodded smiling. He was beyond grateful for reaching to city alive. But he had no idea what to do from now. He took a look at the spear. It saved his life. He knew no matter what happened he had to protect the spear. It was his only chance of finding out what was going on. For his village. A roar came from one of the rooms. A moment later, a green dragon came flying towards them. Rayke hold the spear in front of them ready to attack. The dragon was not an ordinary one with eight large heads and eight tails. ‘As it got closer, two riders came into view. The one riding the dragon was a beautiful woman with asian features and long dark hair but the tough look in her eyes were in contrast with her face. The one sitting behind the first woman had curly brown hair with big kind eyes and a playful smile. Both of them jumped into the ground from the floating dragon.
‘the stamp is broken Akari. We need to leave now. ’ said the second woman. ‘there is no use anymore. ’ She then turned her head around and saw Rayke and Marcel staring at the two of them with mouths open wide. ‘we have guests, Vanessa. ’ she got closer to them. Rayke was scared to death.
‘is that really Yamata no Orochi? ’ asked Marcel, unable to take his eyes off the dragon floating above their heads. ‘how in hell someone could tame that monster’ he then looked at the woman with admiration in his eyes. Rayke shrugged at him. All he knew was he needed a bed to sleep for a whole week straight, not another monster.
‘she is called Yami and she is more of ride.’ She explained as the one of the dragon heads glared at her. ‘you’re officially my ideal now.’Marcel said to the woman.
‘first things first. Tell me who you are and why did you trespass’ she pointed at her sword ‘and tell the truth if you value your lives. ’
Rayke explained everything. The asian woman listened carefully with still face all along while the other woman looked at him with widened eyes.
‘how come the lord has chosen such an inexperienced, young man? ’ she whispered more to herself. ‘very well. I’m Vanessa and this is my partner, Akari. We are members of black knights. ’ she said.
‘nice to meet you. ’Rayke said ‘but what is black knights? ’ Akari rolled her eye. ‘how can someone not know that and beat a monster down. Black knights are a part of the association that fights against chaos in the kingdom.’ She said ‘I think that is enough for now. you could leave the rest to us. '
Then she searched into her waist bag and gave them each a bronze coin the size of Rayke’s hand, it had the engraving of nine knights lifting their swords towards the sun on a floating chariot. Rayke turned the coin around. The word ‘pass’ was engraved on it with gold. He thought it was money at first, but it was a lot bigger than the usual coins they used. maybe it was the credit they used in city.
‘its an invitation to the knights competition. If you were able to survive that catastrophe, I guess you could do so much better if you train. ‘Vanessa explained seeing the perplexed looks on their faces.
She then turned towards Rayke and continued ‘i’m sure they could use you ’ Vanessa said happily. Rayke nodded. He decided to find out who was behind all of this. He had so many unanswered questions. But Akari was right. He had to be trained first.
‘what competition are we talking about now? ’asked Marcel. ‘there are a lot of people dreaming to join the knights as a position offers granted power and riches, so there is a competition designed to choose only the most credible participants. Unfortunately, not everyone makes it out alive. But that’s nothing to be afraid of, really. ’ Vanessa exclaimed with a spark in her eyes. ‘you're kidding right? ’ Marcel asked.
‘that’s enough for now. Yami and I'll investigate the village. Vanessa, You show these two a place to stay for the night and some food.’
As Rayke followed Vanessa out, he fell asleep while walking.