The woman’s sweet voice sent warmth into Cadivus’s heart. A warmth that trickled throughout his body. He reached out and pulled the distant voice close.

The sun, must rest, so it can shine

The moon, must succeed, the one true light

Today’s troubles, are fading away

Without words, I hear you say

Goodnight, and know

For you, my soul

The son, must grow, so it can find

The truth, within his waking mind

Yesterday’s troubles, are present now

His actions, to whom he bows

Goodnight, and know

For you, my soul

Cadivus awakened in a dark tent. Naked. He couldn’t move, tied to a log that supported the structure. Several men huddled around a brazier. They looked like soldiers with their uniforms, their weapons, and their tattered insignia. Some chewed on what looked like rotten meat.

A greasy, large man walked toward him.

“Ey, boys. I think he’s awake…”

The crowd gathered around him, the men smiling and laughing.

“I think I might know the answer, but tell us your name, boy.”

Cadivus looked around the room, at all their dirty and pathetic faces.

“Me? Don’t remember your own mother? Pity. What a disgraceful and small peckered son I have.”

Nobody laughed. They just raised their brows and backed away.

The greasy man got closer. His face was weathered, and one of his nostrils had been cut off and scarred over.

“Funny boy, ain’t ya? Well, I’ve got jokes too. Except me jokes…involve taking me small pecker an’ shoving deep in your asshole, boy.” He walked behind him and sniffed his neck. “Luckily for me, they washed you up some. Hate to get the stench of death on me wee pecker.”

Everyone laughed.

“Well, I thank you for the wash,” Cadivus said. “I’m sure your two inches of uncircumcised fury is going to tear me a new one. While that’s happening, perhaps one of your fluffers here can tell me what’s happening, where’s the woman?”

The greasy man squeezed his butt cheek and circled back to the front of him.

“Woman? Do you think I’d need to fuck you if we had a lass here?”

They laughed again. “Gods, we still be running train on er’ if we had a woman.” He licked his lips and continued. “Ya Cadivus, ain’t ya?”

“Why would I tell you shit badgers anything?” Cadivus said.

“We prefer ya didn’t, if honest; Gives us a chance to ask a little harder.” He pointed to one of the men in the middle of the crowd. “You! Get me knives…”

“Get em yourself,” the man said. “What do I look like?”

The room went quiet. Other men stepped away from the one refusing.

“What ya just say, cadet?” The greasy man walked over to the smaller man and got in his face. “I think you’ll suck me till I’m hard, so I can have fun with our friend here.”

“Eh, I’m good. Haven’t had the taste of shit in my mouth for weeks. Don’t plan on breaking my streak anytime soon.”

He faked a laugh and went to strike a blow to his head, but the traitor caught his hand.

“This is mine now.” With nothing but boredom in his eyes, he pulled on the arm until it separated from his shoulder.

The greasy man stared at his wound and cried out. He attempted to strike the traitor with his other arm, but the traitor drew his sword and cut the arm off at the elbow. He then clubbed the greasy man’s head with his own arm, knocking him to the ground.

He continued the attack after he fell. “Quit hitting yourself! Quit hitting yourself!” He laughed as the greasy man bled out on the floor.

The other four men in the room removed their swords and axes and took a battle stance.

“Seriously?” He cracked his neck and turned to face them.

His voice changed to a deeper, more lively tone.

“My, my. While I have an admiration for your bravery, I cannot help but feel deflated. For I’ve shown you my inclination for violence, and yet, you still believe you could best me. While a time existed where you could leave, and jerk off in a bush somewhere in the woods. Now, you’ve forfeited the possibility of uniting your piss shooters to your palms ever again.”

“Put your hands up!” One of the men said, his voice shaking. “Y-You’re under arrest!”

“Yes, sir!” As he saluted, he swung the arm at the men, letting the blood fly off and land on their faces. He then charged and clotheslined two of the men. Pulling two daggers from his waist, he spun around and stabbed into a man’s chest. He threw the remaining dagger into the last man’s eye.

As they groaned in pain, he grabbed one man’s axe and swung it through all the men, separating their heads from their bodies. He then looked at Cadivus and raised the axe in his hands.

Cadivus watched the man restrain himself from swinging the axe down on him.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“Well, I guess we’ll just go our separate ways now…” he said, half admiring and half fearing the man.

“I know it’s you, Cadivus. You’ve nothing to fear from me…Not yet anyway.” He slowly lowered the axe to his side. “My apologies. Reigning it in can be…difficult at times, as you know.”

“Who are you?”

“Me? Well who I am is not who I’ve been. Who I’ll be is not who I am currently. Furthermore, well suffice to say, a longer explanation would only confuse us both. And then I get stabby.”

“Makes perfect sense. Can we discuss this when I’m not tied up?” Cadivus wiggled in his ropes.

“Perhaps.”

An awkwardly long silence took place.

“Tell me more…” Cadivus finally said.

“Forgive me…I am a…fan. Of course, I have arrived with a purpose, and that purpose is to meet you.”

“Well, here we are.”

“Indeed. Now, I’m afraid I must ask some hard questions, not dick hard or torture hard like our armless friend here proposed, no. These are more…philosophicalological in nature.”

“Well, that’s a real word, and I have nowhere to be. Proceed”

“You’re weak, Cadivus.”

“Not a question, but okay, point taken.”

He collected his knives as he continued talking.

“I would take a great interest in having a protege such as yourself…”

Cadivus thought he would agree to just about anything the crazy bastard said and then run when he had the chance.

“I accept.”

“Denied.”

“But you just said—”

“I know you’ll run if I free you, a few more moments are needed to garner your loyalty, I’d imagine. And I think I know what you want most in this world. Care to wager?”

“The terms?”

“If I guess correctly, you become my loyal protege. If I’m wrong however, I’ll cut you loose, and you can leave. I’ll never bother you once more.”

Cadivus wondered if he knew about his plan to find Thermia or about his other plan to kill that Darion guy. He still hadn’t decided which he would pursue first. Or how to go about it.

“All right. Tell me then. What is it I desire most?”

“What you want…” He stared into his eyes like he was reading his soul. “You want to know who your parents are. More specifically, you want to know what happened to your mother.”

Cadivus’s heart sank deep into his chest. He began to ponder the question. The question he forgot to ask for so long now. His face was warm.

“My mother? You…knew her?”

“There is much to be learned in this big world of ours. Come with me, and I’ll help you find the truth they don’t want you to see. Yes, you’ll have the power to decide your fate, young one. A story of your own.”

The sounds of soldiers walking and shouting orders came from outside the tent.

“I’ll give you a moment to consider. However, If you want to come with me, you need to perform one simple task.”

“What task?”

“Simple. Break free your constraints…usurper of fire.” The man walked backward as his face fell into darkness.

Like any other time he tried to use his powers. Cadivus felt an attack coming on. However, the pain felt duller. The wall…thinner.

The traitor left the tent, closing the door behind him.

“What’s going on in there, soldier?” A soldier from the crowd outside demanded. His shoulders were adorned with golden epaulets to signify his high rank.

“Oh, you know the boys like to get frisky…Bunch of horned up fanny chasers this lot.”

The crowd made a disgusted face, save for a few men who tried to peek into the tent.

“Step aside, cadet. I’ll see for myself.” The officer stepped toward the tent, but the traitor didn’t move. “Step aside!” he repeated with great authority.

The traitor folded his arms and stood tall. “The thing about that is…no.”

“Kill this unloyal swine!” The officer shouted.

The group charged in, swinging their weapons. The traitor laughed louder and louder as they stabbed and bludgeoned him. He fell to his knees, taking all the blows with a smile.

“Cadivus! What is your answer?!” he screamed, his voice echoing through the valley they found themselves in.

A loud crackling noise came from inside the tent.

Yet the soldiers still pulled the beaten traitor to the side and continued to swing at him. The officer went to open the tent, but as he pulled the cloth door aside, a giant flame arose and engulfed the large tent in fire. It glowed as a sun had risen over the dark valley. Between the inferno’s flames a roar echoed.

The soldiers backed away until the heat became manageable. Within the flames, a silhouette of a man walked toward them. In his right hand, he dragged a long chain.

“Take him!” the officer shouted. He poured water over his singed face, and steam rose off his wounds.

The soldiers charged with their weapons drawn. Cadivus raised his arm holding the chain and cracked it forward, caving the officer’s face in. He pulled the chain back and swung it from his side, sweeping it through the crowd. Soldiers either flipped over it or were knocked down by it. Some of their bones cracked, and many lay on the ground, screaming in agony. Soldiers outside of the attack ran away.

Cadivus walked into the middle of the fallen soldiers and pushed his powers out. A circle of infernal rage enticed their screams for a few mere moments before their lives were forfeited to the intense heat.

Screams echoed in the distance. “Hybrid! Retreat!”

He stood letting the blurry images of his past fill his mind. The flames…they stoked an understanding that his memories were missing…taken.

From the ground, the traitor smiled wide, watching Cadivus fall to his knees and stare at the carnage around him. The inferno consumed the trees, the tent, and the bodies.

Cadivus’s face changed from rage into terror. “Ah! Fuck! Get me out of here!” The fire drew around him. He shrieked and huddled into himself, rocking back and forth.

“What the fuck?” The traitor muttered. He walked over to Cadivus, picked him up, placed him over his shoulder, slapped his ass, and walked out of the fiery carnage. He walked until he couldn’t feel the heat on his back and then dropped Cadivus onto the ground. He stared at him for a moment. “Aren’t you fireproof?”

Cadivus opened his eyes and looked around to make sure it was safe. He then sat up.

He laughed. “Afraid of a few dead bodies, are ya?”

Hyperventilating, Cadivus sat there for several minutes.

“No…I just needed to leave is all.”

“Speak truth to me. I am your master now, after all.”

Cadivus bit his lip, debating what to say. He decided to just come clean.

“I have a fear of the fire, is all. So what?” He folded his arms and looked away.

A second later, the traitor laughed so hard he rolled along the ground, grabbing at his sides.

“Go ahead. Have a laugh.”

He continued to do so, much louder this round.

Irritated, Cadivus stared at the man and then tilted his head. “Where are your wounds? I heard the sounds of them…killing you…”

The traitor stopped rolling around and stood.

“I’m getting real tired of being asked that all the time.”

“You’re a hybrid then?”

“Yes. A much stronger one than yourself, mind you. Consider that if you think about welching on our deal.” He put his hand out and pulled Cadivus up to him. Then he shook his hand and smiled.

“You never answered me. Who are you?”

“My name is Teavis. And I don’t want you to only think of me as your master. Just think of me like a friend. Except if you don’t do what I tell you to, I’ll kill you.”

He raised his eyebrows and smiled the biggest fake smile he could manage. Remembering him from the sheets he had seen.

“Okay…”

“I’ll promise you this however.” He got close to Cadivus's face and stared into his eyes. Nearly pressing his lips to his own. “If you stick with me, I’ll help you grow stronger than some other notable members of your family.”

Cadivus thought it was a jest at first, but his eyes spoke the truth.

“Okay. I’ll work with you.”

“And boy…go get your fucking clothes, your hairy cock is distracting.”

Cadivus looked past him and at the blazing fire. He figured the outfit he had gotten from Pribbs was locked away in a tent somewhere.

“Let’s just catch our breath for a moment. Let the fire die down. It’ll be easier to find.”

He spotted the chain laid out toward the wreckage. It shrank in size, losing links one at a time. The metal disappeared like a lit fuse.

**********

Thermia opened her eyes in a dark room, her body heavy and weak. She looked around but could find no shapes in the darkness.

“Where am I?” she called out to the nether.

“You know where you are…” a voice answered back.

She looked around at the emptiness as a familiar feeling fell over her.

“My dark place.”