Sometimes, a person is hated simply for living. Maybe this person did something to deserve it, maybe they didn’t, maybe someone thinks they did, or maybe it’s just the only way to solve the problem that this person has become. Whatever the reason, the simple fact is that if it were up to some, these people would all be better off dead. No other action should be made, no amount of mercy offered to them, no other favorable outcome. All for the unforgivable crime of living.
There are going to be four of these people in a city soon. Four whom many would kill on the spot if it was an option. One is innocent, one is a victim of circumstance, one is just trying to be, and one absolutely deserves it. Soon they will all be inside a city where those who wish for their end can make their move.
The lavish city of Grict, is a beacon of modern society. It’s the place people dream of visiting and cities dream of becoming. Towers of glass and gold, technology at its peak, and a population made of all races. Long gone are the days of kingdoms, racial persecution, and monsters. A place where all can live in peace.
At least that's what the postcards say. The truth of it all varies where in the city one is. But this story doesn’t start in the city, it starts on a cruise ship heading towards it. A ship carrying the four souls we will be following. We start this story in one of the first-class suites, room 31A.
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It’s nine in the morning, a man wakes up in a bed that is not his. He moves the scaly arm on top of him and climbs out of bed. He reaches for a pair of round glasses with crimson lenses and puts them on. He walks over to a coffee table and sees a half-drunk bottle of water from last night. He unscrews the lid and gulps down the remainder of the lukewarm liquid. In an ashtray is a long cigarette holder. He removes the butt of the one inside and puts in a new one from a pack on the table. He carries it out to the balcony and puts the holder in his mouth.
He whispers a small incantation, and small runes carved into the side of the holder glow as the tip of the cigarette is lit. He takes a short puff, enjoying the scent of the sea and the sound of the waves as he does. He exhales and the smoke drifts off in the wind. He looks down and sees a large jellyfish in the water.
Vaughn didn’t grow up by the sea. He lived most of his life in what he called “a place that as far as the world knew, doesn’t exist.” Getting on this boat was the closest he had ever been to an actual ocean. He wasn’t all that impressed by it. Though the potential things lurking beneath the surface did interest him, he was not here for that.
He finishes his cigarette and extinguishes it in a small puddle of what is either dew or spray from the sea on the railing. He walks back in and sees his two companions from last night awake and barely dressed. Two lizardfolk had convinced him into having a one-night stand. Vaughn didn’t mind, he needed something to occupy his time until the boat arrived and this certainly beats the room he got. Still, though, he found it to be a new experience as a human to share a bed with two lizardfolk. Even if he didn’t quite remember their names at the moment. The aftereffects of that drink are still lingering.
“Hey, did you sleep well?” the one with black scales asked.
“Slept like a damn brick. I know you said that stuff would loosen me up but I wasn’t expecting to be that loose.” Vaughn said.
“Oh, it works wonders. You can find it all over the place back where we’re from.” the one with purple scales said.
“It’s illegal here though, so we had to use it all last night. Sorry if we gave you too much,” she said.
“Why is it illegal?” Vaughn asked.
“Magic-infused sap is used for it. And you know the stink the people here have been raising about magic-infused food,” he said.
“They don’t know what they’re missing,” Vaughn said.
Vaughn picked his clothes up off the floor. An all-black outfit consisting of a tailcoat, long pants, gloves, a bowler hat, and a balaclava. He dressed himself and tucked his cigarette holder into his coat pocket, a wizard has to keep his wand secure. Especially a wizard who isn't in the good graces of a particular magic community. Realizing he should blend in even a little bit, he takes off his coat and tied the sleeves around his waist, and stuffs the balaclava in his pocket. He’s glad he is wearing a grey t-shirt, it had been hot on the boat ride. He hoped the city was cooler.
“Well, you two. Thank you for having me for the night. This was a pleasant new experience for me.” Vaughn said.
“We owe it to you after you drove off that creep,” she said.
“Well, technically it was Sandau who did it,” Vaughn said as he straightened his hat.
“Then thank him for us,” he said.
Vaughn made sure nothing else of his was left behind and stepped out of suite 31A. The electronic lock sealed it shut behind him. He walked down the lavish hallway and to the elevators at the end. Vaughn was rather hungry and decided to go get some food. He took the elevator down to the main deck of the ship. He walked out into the open air, deck chairs normally inhabited by sunbathing tourists are mostly vacant. Only some of the passengers are here, most are just getting breakfast from the buffet. Vaughn certainly looked out of place with his outfit. Then again, what wizard actually dresses appropriately?
He walked across the deck and into a room on the opposite end. A dining area complete with a rather nice buffet. Vaughn grabs a plate and waits in line to get some bacon and eggs with a couple of biscuits. He sits down and begins to eat his meal. Halfway through one of the biscuits, he spots a passenger enter the dining area. This one is covered in bruises and has a black eye, Vaughn recognized him.
A rather scummy person who kept pestering the two lizardfolk from last night. He had been doing it the entire trip at any chance he could as if he wanted to ruin their cruise and nothing else. The security tried to deal with the man, but the guy kept evading them every time they tried to confront him. The cruise made a stop at an island yesterday and he followed the two onto it. Kept calling them scale-covered whores that should be skinned and made into boots. Vaughn had no idea what his problem was with lizardfolk, but he decided to put a stop to it in his own special way. All it took was following him onto the island to a vacant strip of beach. Once he and the lizards he was harassing were in view, Vaughn struck.
Vaughn is a necromancer, one who reanimates the dead and commands them. Necromancy is a touchy subject in the magic community, mainly with the means by which said undead are acquired. Vaughn was something of an exception however, he had figured out how to reanimate more than just old bones.
Drawing power from the book in his pocket and focusing it through his wand, he let out a small ball of smoke that drifted toward the man. It hit the ground and exploded into a large cloud. When it dissipated, standing in the cloud was the image of a man named Sandau. A vaudeville performer, a strongman who dazzled the crowd with feats of strength. He had died over two centuries ago, yet here he stood. A perfect image of his living form but colored like old black-and-white film footage.
Acting under Vaughn’s orders, Sandau beat the man to a pulp. Enough to warrant medical attention, but not to end him. Killing him might delay the cruise’s departure after all. While the man never saw him, Vaughn made sure the two lizardfolk noticed him before Sandau vanished. They met again later that night which resulted in the two of them repaying Vaughn for his actions.
Vaughn watched the man try to convince the security guard in the dining room to find the one who assaulted him. The guard, however, knew who the man was and was content in ignoring his demands. Giving the man half-assed answers and doubts about what happened instead. Vaughn smiled and turned his attention to his breakfast. He considered this to be a good experience for his first cruise ship.
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In room 21C slept a mage, or at least she was trying to sleep. Thrashing about in her bed alone as another nightmare was ending its torment. She bolted upright as she slowly realized it was all a dream. Her pillow was drenched in sweat, as was her long hair. She calmed down enough to get herself out of bed and into the shower. The showers in those third-class suites were minuscule but she just wanted to be clean.
After her shower, she looked into the corner of her small room and saw a staff leaning against the wall. The entire thing looked like it was made from pearl and is tipped with a cube made of small tubes of the same material, the opposite end was a large rounded orb. She grabbed her staff and looked into the mirror on the wall. Her eyes were black with pinprick pupils, her skin was deathly pale, her teeth were like that of a beast, and those are just the obvious features. It would be easier to stay unnoticed if she looked like a normal person, but she can’t be that and she knows it. Yara held her staff tight with both hands, closed her eyes, and silently focused her power
She opened her eyes and didn’t see her face. She saw the face of Frances Grevau instead, she is the one who bought the ticket to this room. She’s the one whose body Yara left hidden in the forest on that island yesterday. Yara needed a way into the city, Frances wouldn't be missed. At most, people would celebrate once her body was found.
All it took was a threatening letter snuck onto the plate she ordered from the restaurant. An alleged blackmail attempt demanding her to meet with someone in private. It was almost too easy for her to get Frances all to herself. In a day or two, someone will find her body, but Yara will be long gone by then. A nice ghost story to give the crew.
The disguise should last until the ship makes it to port at least. Yara knows her bounty posters have made it to the city, she can’t get noticed by customs. She already planned three escape routes off the ship, she may use one once it’s docked. Best to leave the ship as quickly as possible.
She opened a closet and saw a suitcase Frances had brought with her. She opened it up and rifled through it. Nothing interesting, it’s mostly clothes and makeup. She found a large amount of money hidden away in an envelope, Frances won’t be needing that any time soon. Yara closed the suitcase and got properly dressed.
She put on her white robe with blue trim, fitting for a mage of her talents. She also donned a handmade straw hat with a plastic pink flower stuck into it, Yara didn’t plan to get rid of it anytime soon. She looked at herself in the mirror again and tapped her staff on the ground. Her clothes were now shrouded in an illusion to give her the same outfit Frances had when she died. She tapped her staff again and now her staff had become much smaller, only a foot long. She tucked it into her robe for now.
She left her room and headed up to the main deck to get some breakfast. She took the stairs since she always found elevators unsettling. When she arrived at the main deck, she saw a battered and bruised man angrily stomp past her and into an open elevator. She heard a bunch of commotion happened here last night and assumed he got in a fight.
She stepped out onto the main deck and saw that the line for the buffet is now out the door of the dining hall. Yara never liked waiting in lines, so she sat down on a vacant deck chair and waited for the line to shorten. The morning sun feels warm on her pale skin, she regretted not looking for a bottle of sunscreen on Frances before hiding her. Even if most of her body is covered by the robe and hat, she still wanted some just in case.
Yara wishes she could have gotten to the city sooner. But Frances was her prime lead and intercepting her at the island was the best option at the time. But now she has to wait for the cruise to finish before she can continue. Yara was never good at waiting, not with her goal possibly having an end in sight.
More and more people began coming onto the deck. The sounds getting louder and louder. Yara nervously fidgeted in her chair, this was too much. She wanted to do something to shut them up, impale a random person out in the open and demand some quiet. Yara quickly shoved those thoughts aside.
Killing someone to solve her problems, that’s what she wanted her to do. Yara had been trying to forget the things that woman taught her for years. She isn't having a lot of luck in that regard though, Frances’s rotting corpse is the most recent example. Yara has killed plenty like her, it’s why she has such a large bounty on her head. People label her as a crazed murderer and they’re not entirely wrong. Yara was made this way and she has tried to undo it.
She tried therapy, repression, drugs, magic, anything she could find. None of those steps worked. Yara decided there was only one option left, the obvious first step towards any kind of recovery she can hope for. To end the one that made her.
She didn’t expect it to be the magic switch to fix everything. She didn’t even expect it to work. Yara is doing this because she feels like she needs to. Like someone who can’t fall asleep unless they do something specific every night. Otherwise, Yara won’t make it through the year. She can feel herself slipping ever so slightly ever since she left her.
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Yara would have done this sooner if she hadn’t found out where she was. All those murders drew the attention of another one of her victims. He was too far gone to save himself. He found her and told Yara what he knew before asking for death. Yara fulfilled his wish and began her quest.
She had no intention of sparing anyone who got in her way. Yet Yara knew she should try to be subtle about it. If she gets word of Yara coming for her, then she will likely flee from her. Yara won’t get another chance like this, she has no intention of wasting it.
Shaking herself away from those thoughts, she looks back towards the buffet and sees that the line has significantly decreased. Breakfast food is one of the few pleasures she has in her life, she wants to savor what little happiness she can find. Even if she can’t do it in her normal form. Yara decided to get the waffles and pours an obscene amount of syrup on it. The little pleasures like that are what keeps her going.
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In the luxury suites, unknown to the crew at the moment. There is a room labeled as 40A. The room has always been there, many of the staff have been to that room and many guests have stayed in it. Yet none of them remember the room exists. If one were to try and find the door, it would seem to have vanished. Many would assume illusion magic is afoot, but this is no act of magic.
Inside this room is a man named Hictor Lindstrum. A mage specializing in summoning, though he rejects to merely be called a mage as he views himself as a man of science. If one can even call him that since he is working with magic. Hictor is someone who wants to learn, but what he wants to learn most is what no one else knows.
Hictor is sitting in the center of the room, the carpet strategically stained with wine to form a circle. Hictor is in the middle of the circle, he had spent all night tinkering with his latest magic instrument. It almost resembles a foot-long metal detector in design. Hictor had made it himself, unfortunately, he isn't good at coming up with names so he has yet to file for a patent. In addition to not having a name for his invention, he is also wanted by the governments of the world. All of them in fact. Hictor didn’t want this kind of attention but he had to deal with it anyway.
Sitting on the bed is a being, one which Hictor, nor anyone in the world fully understood. Its head was rectangular in shape and had gill-like slits across where its face would be. The skin looks like flesh but is sculpted into shapes that make it look almost robotic in design. It has a pair of long arms ending in two long fingers with the strength to rip a man apart. Its body is grotesque yet perfectly symmetrical, like something from a dream. Below its chest is a flowing skirt ending in tatters and adorned in jewels made from materials not found on this planet. Its skin is an almost artistic blend of red and purple patches. The creature looked at Hictor and the device in his hand.
“You did not rest this night. Why?” it asked in a voice Hictor heard with his mind and not his ears, it also left a taste of strawberries in his mouth for reasons he has yet to discover.
“Peace is a rarity for me. I can’t waste it when I have work to do,” he said.
“You have such trouble finding peace, yet this is the first time you have asked me to hide this room from the world. Why have you not asked this before?” it asked.
“Because I want to use it as little as possible. If they find out this trick, they’ll find a way around it. I need to be as many steps ahead of them as I can with as many escapes as possible planned out.” Hictor said as his device sparked.
The device kept shooting out sparks, Hictor quickly stood up and ran over to the bathroom to toss it into a partially filled tub. Another failure, but Hictor wasn't one to be discouraged by failure. He ran his hand through his frizzy gray hair as he tried to think of what to do next.
There was a knock at the door, the being on the bed claimed that it went and got food for him. Through the door walked a man-shaped being carrying a plate of various breakfast foods. This thing is able to look like anyone in the world, perfect for going out and getting supplies while also staying hidden. Hictor sighed and decided he might as well eat.
He walked out of the bathroom and took the food from it, which caused it to immediately vanish since it had fulfilled its use. Hictor sat down at a table and examined the plate of food. A few slices of orange, some toast, a large amount of eggs, and about ten napkins. Hictor was a bit of a picky eater, but right now he was too hungry to care. Hictor began eating as the being on the bed looked at him with curiosity.
“Is there a purpose to the complicated preparations of those substances?” it asked.
“It’s called cooking. It removes harmful bacteria and enhances the flavor.” Hictor said.
“My kind do not consume material to live. I do not know what flavor is,” it said.
“Do you smell?” Hictor asked.
“We can distinguish scents.” it said.
“It’s like that. Except it's a sort of sensation everything has when we eat it. For a person to want to eat something, the flavor has to be desirable. But what is a good flavor varies from person to person sometimes.” Hictor said.
“This world is so odd. I’ll admit, it almost makes your command over me worth it.” it said.
“I never believed in one-sided summonings. You should get something out of it too.” Hictor said.
“I remember you asking me that when we met.” it said.
“The pact wouldn’t have worked if you hadn’t agreed.” Hictor said.
“Some of the others are not as agreeable however.” it said.
“I offered, I never know what comes out of those things so chances are I’ll get a random creature.” Hictor said.
“Regarding unknown encounters. I saw a woman downstairs who is wearing the form of another woman over hers. I sensed the stench of murder on her. Yet she had no knowledge of you.” it said.
“Not my problem. If there is a serial killer loose on this boat, then it’s even more reason not to leave this room.” Hictor said.
“I’ll admit I still know very little about your kind. Yet I suspect this isn't healthy to stay confined and without sleep for so long.” it said.
“Oh yeah, it’s not healthy at all! But what am I to do about it? I’m one of the most widely wanted people on the planet right now. I can’t exactly just stroll down to the corner store and buy a slushie!” Hictor said.
“I…. don’t know what that means.” it said.
“Yeah I know its just….” Hictor said as he looked down at his nearly finished food.
He felt full, even though he could eat more, he felt like he had enough. The weight of all the sleepless nights he spent locked up in this room was starting to weigh on him. He wasn’t used to going nonstop like this since he didn’t need to until recently in his life. Hictor rested his face in his palms and peeked at the bed.
“How long until we dock?” Hictor asked.
“Three hours, we could slip out anytime after then.” it said.
“Well, then I’m going to take your advice, I will sleep. Once we dock I need you to use your decoy thing and find us a safe place to hide. When you find one, wake me and we’ll move out.” Hictor said.
“Understood.” it said as it stood up.
Hictor took a step towards the bed, but then realized he had one thing he should do first. He walked back into the bathroom and took the soggy device out from the tub. He opened a panel on it and removed a large crystal from the inside. It’s about the size of a cherry tomato and was a different color every time Hictor looked at it. Right then it was a bright orange, he blinks and it became a lavender color.
It was the key to his plans, the key to what made his magic break new ground. Summoning the things he now used would never have been possible if it weren’t for that crystal. It’s the source of all his power and all his troubles. Hictor told himself that breaking new ground often gets one into trouble, history has more than proven that.
Hictor took a mostly dry towel and folded it a few times. Then he rested it on a shelf and put the soggy crystal on it to dry. Hictor looked at himself in the mirror, he sees the goggles he has worn for quite a while now over his eyes and the veil that covered his face attached to the goggles as well. Hictor slowly pulls the goggles off his eyes, he feels a slight pain as the rubber that has been pressed into the flesh around his eyes finally is separated. Hictor’s eyes look tired with red rings around them from the goggles. The veil is dirty with grease and grime and is beginning to fray along the edges. Hictor only started wearing this when people started coming after him, best to give any facial recognition cameras a hard time rather than they give him one instead.
Hictor tossed his goggles to the floor and took off his white coat as he walked to the bed. After getting comfortably stripped down, he promptly collapsed onto the luxurious bed. Hictor immediately regretted not getting a drink first, but his body was too tired for him to act after finally resting. With no real way to stop himself from it, he quickly drifted off to sleep.
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Deep in the bowels of the cruise ship, are a pair of stowaways. A member of the maintenance crew is carrying a large bag of food from the crew cafeteria. He wandered down halls and past machines he had never passed by until recently. His almost robotic movements would disturb his crewmates if any were to see him. He entered a formerly sealed off room and presented the bag to the two stowaways sitting on empty metal containers, one of which was startled by his sudden entrance.
“Gah! Fuck Cyreen, tell me when he is coming! I nearly took his head off.” a demon wearing tattered clothes said.
“Sorry, I was working on a new spell.” A witch says as she reached towards the bag with a monstrous red hand.
“I forget, is he going to remember this?” The demon asked.
“Oh he will. He’s fully aware right now, this spell only hijacks his body. I’ll leave him on autopilot until sundown so we have some time to get away.” Cyreen said as she opened the bag with her clawed fingers.
“Send him away, I don’t want him hearing us then!” the demon says as he shooed at the crewmember with a rather thin arm wrapped in bandages.
Cyreen snapped her fingers and the man walked away, closing the door behind them. The room is a former supply storeroom. Considering how the door was locked tight yet there was nothing inside, they must have sealed it off and forgotten about it. Getting onto this boat was easy, staying hidden wasn’t. Both of them can’t exactly blend in with people of any race.
She took a bite out of a biscuit as she saw her companion attempt to understand how to eat an orange. Lavor is a demon, specifically the former Demon Prince. Cyreen watched him bite into the orange with his sharpened teeth, swallowing the rind and all. Lavor shrugs and takes another bite, apparently having at least tolerated the fruit. Cyreen watched him finish eating the orange before wiping off the juice on his hands, the hands that once belonged to Cyreen. She looked down at the large muscular arm she was using to hold the biscuit, its red skin and black claws being a sharp contrast to the rest of her body. These arms were once Lavor’s.
That wizard surgeon’s help was worth every coin to them. Her new arms feel as if they were the ones she was born with. Sure it took her some time to get used to them being slightly larger and only having three fingers, but she just needed practice. Oddly enough, getting them didn’t feel all that strange. Cyreen spent most of her childhood years in a coven of swamp witches. No actual family, just the coven who had decided to take in the young half-elf.
Witchcraft is a strange breed of magic. A very broad and confusing one that drew from all other forms of magic. No official methods for learning it exist, it can only be learned from experience and not from a book. Some people consider it to be dangerous, a way to circumvent the restrictions that stop one from mastering too many magic variants at a time. Sure Cyreen could theoretically raise the dead, but a dedicated necromancer will always outperform her.
One of Cyreen’s fingers began to glow gold, she gently rubbed it over the biscuit and seemed to scrape off some of the light as she did. Then she took a bite, it tasted like buttery cranberry jam. A little trick one of the witches taught her. Lavor looks over after having taken a biscuit of his own. She reaches over and applied some of her spell to his as well.
This last meal before leaving is a good way to end their miserable trip. Cyreen has a hard time blending in and Lavor can’t really hide being a demon. Once the ship docks, they both plan to get off as soon as possible. Staying in this room for five days was not fun.
Lavor looked at Cyreen with his four eyes, one eye on the right and three smaller ones on the left. She smiled at him, Lavor nods before taking a bite. He was used to exotic food back in the demon home of Deepworld. Things that cannot exist anywhere else are grown there. Yet, he enjoyed its flavor more than anything else from there. To think some demons view mortal food as being beneath them.
Lavor is a demon, but demons are not malicious beings in this world. Demons do not seek to conquer the mortal realm and kill all in sight. The majority don’t at least. Demons are simply another race in the world like humans and elves. Albeit a rather unique one, the same can be said for their counterparts the angels. Demons on the surface are not rare, but still unusual. Both angels and demons usually keep to themselves. Though Lavor isn't here of his own free will.
Lavor once had dreams and hopes. Those were all taken from him at the moment. He wants them back because he simply had no other clear purpose in life. Lavor spent his life preparing for it, he isn’t able to do much else nor does he want to. He had lost hope for a good while before he met Cyreen. They made a deal, and now he can hope again. Cyreen intends to help him after what Lavor did for her. She claims witches always settle debts, Lavor has seen no real contention to that statement since.
He looked down at his arms wrapped in bandages so not a single bit of flesh is showing. Cyreen looked intimidating with her arms but its the opposite for Lavor. He considered these human arms to be weak and have far too many fingers for him. Yet, Lavor made this choice willingly. He needed them to get his life back.
He reached over to the object leaning against the wall. A long club made from white gold and engraved with depictions of angelic beings, the tip of it was a metal lantern adorned with metal spikes and with a golden flame burning endlessly within. The holy torch of Sangvald, used by an ancient paladin to defeat an ancient demon uprising. With his human hands, he grabbed the long club and examined its engravings. It’s said for every demon slain with this club, an engraving of their likeness is added onto the club on the spot. Just merely holding this club would have had Lavor’s image join them.
Lavor isn't strong enough to take back his life and kill the ones responsible on his own. He knows this and they know it. With Cyreen’s help, they stole this ancient weapon and Lavor intended to use it. What better weapon to use for it than something made to kill demons? While stealing this did get a lot of people angry at the both of them, it was a necessary step. Besides, they’ll return it once they are done. The boat docks in under an hour, it’s almost time to leave.