To become a monster, one should think as one, talk as one, convince everyone around him. Sirius' eyes turned cold and he asked into the forest, not expecting to get an answer.

"Since we are at a standstill, I'll ask. Why do you want to kill me?"

"Because you are an enemy of the Kingdom." Emotionlessly answered the mage.

"That would explain things. I know you don't care about me. But do you for your partner?" Sirius asked. The man in front of him looked up in fear, incapable to get up.

"Our mission is to kill a traitor and a heretic." Coldly answered woman.

"So you want to say, if I deadly injure him right now, you will leave him to die." Sirius began thinking aloud, making the warrior go pale.

"The mission is the priority."

"Oh wow, seems like she will let you die, even if I run away from her later." Said Sirius to the man, with a fake compassion in his voice, loud enough for the mage to hear. "What do you think?"

"No... Wait..." The warrior struggled to squeeze out words, as he crawled back a bit.

"You know, I am a healer. I can fix you up, but I also know many ways to perform a small stab, that would leave you slowly suffocating while I am fighting your partner." Sirius said, leaning on his staff.

"Please..." A man was slowly coming to his senses and tried to get up. Sirius didn't have much time left.

"I won't do this, I promise." Whispered Sirius, stopping the act for a moment. "Just don't stab me in the back right away."

Warrior's eyes widened. Sirius suddenly perked up and took a stance, pointing to his side, waiting for an attack. Besides him he began creating two clumps of mana, rapidly spinning in different directions. Separation of the opposites was never the hardest part in magic for Sirius, it was the most efficient operation in his arsenal. What made this a bit dangerous was the proximity of the opposite streams: if the difference was too high, the interaction would create a shockwave, or even an explosion.

Sirius slowly made the orbs spin faster and faster, to the point where they nearly collided with the environmental mana. He had a plan, but he had to wait for an attack. He strained his mind to contain raging energy, keeping them apart to avoid creating an explosion right beside him. Then the opportunity presented itself. The mage began condensing an ice spear, the movement of mana, betraying her location. Sirius tapped into the raging vortices and converted just a bit of rotational energy into speed, and bot projectiles rushed towards their target. As the lance left its caster, it collided with one of the orb, making it collide with another. An explosion shattered the silence of the forest, followed by a thud and a groan.

"What did... you do?" Stammered warrior. Sirius walked closer to the mage.

"Don't worry, she is alive." He said after inspecting his opponent. "Maybe a little concussion from hitting a tree."

"You... dare oppose the Silver Order!" Mage hissed, while trying to get up. "I am... The Child of Prophecy! It is my duty to stop scum like you!"

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Oh wow! What a coincidence. I was called like that too by the Bishop of Ravenloft. A nice guy, very friendly." Sirius said with amusement.

"You infidel! I was chosen by Gods! It is I..." She was interrupted by a light push, that made her fall.

"So you think you were unique, huh?"

"I am!" She said with rage.

"You were sensitive to mana from birth, and on your twelfth birthday came people from the Order and took you from home."

"Stop spreading your lies, heretic!"

"They nurtured you as a prodigy. They told that you are special, unique, one of a kind."

"Why would you know!? I was born a saviour! kept in secret from lowly folk!"

"They failed to find me. And I learnt magic myself. You know that feeling of wrongness when you condensed Mana Pool?" He coldly stared down at her, stating one thing after another, and watched as her whole world was shattered. "You were taught to be above all. Yet there are hundreds of such kids across the Kingdom. Some of them are killed, but the most devoted are taken in. Until one survived long enough to oppose them..."

"No! You are lying! I was the savior of the world! I am the salvation!"

Mage's mind couldn't bear this information. She was never opposed, but when someone told her life experience she did not disclose to anyone... It was too much. She grasped at her head, tearing the mask from her face, red and streaked with tears. Her face was that of rage, anger and hate, directed at Sirius. She tried casting any spell, but the turmoil robbed her of the precise control required for that. One after another ice, fire and rock materialised and disintegrated, as mage failed to control them. Sirius watched with pity in his eyes at this pathetic tantrum.

"So. Now that you are done with. Give me that." He leaned in and took the amulet she used to track him.

"Are you going to kill us?" Asked warrior. He was quietly watching Sirius' rant from behind, unsure of what to do.

"No, why?" Said Sirius, while pocketing the device. "All I want is peace. To get out of here and live somewhere else."

"So... To be a traitor?"

"Call me like you want." Said Sirius, calmly watching how the 'chosen one' was lashing out at the ground below. "What about your mission?"

"To hell with the mission. I thought we were partners."

"Wouldn't you be punished for letting me go?"

"Do you want to fight more?"

"Not really." Sirius shrugged. "Aren't you afraid to be executed?"

"Why would they?"

"Well, I was nearly executed three times in a span of a year and a half... Four if you consider the Cleansing. They put a lot of attention on me, I thought they wanted to get rid of me at any cost."

"That's true. They stated the importance of the mission."

They fell silent, thinking. Sirius sighed.

"Well, I have to go. The Unique One is going to get over it soon and might stab me with an icicle. You are a good human." Said Sirius with a smile, looking in warrior's eyes.

"Maverick." Said warrior.

"Sirius."

"Duh. I know."

"Yeah, right." Chuckled Sirius. "Thank you, Maverick. Be safe."

With that Sirius climbed the tree, took his backpack with Seth shivering inside, and went on his way, cloaking his presence for as long as he could muster.