Chapter 12

  Battles of Nita

  Myrrh was the first kingdom to form after the arks returned to land following the Erasure of History. During the tumultuous times of resettling the world, conflict between people were almost as numerous as skirmishes with Zori. While many held to the communities formed aboard the ships, others attempted to create towns or tribes. It was Mune who drew people together under leadership that became the first people to call itself a true nation.

  In the centuries following its inception, Myrrh maintained its identity as a nation through warfare and expansion, as well as the inclusion of as many different strengths it could muster. People of every origin were accepted so that the many warrior arts could be preserved and used for the Kingdom. With every group gathered, more of the secret knowledge smuggled through the Erasure of History was reclaimed for the good of the nation, including the Kairaetsu.

  Yan had heard stories that her clan once served the royal family as shadows, before they closed their gates to the outside world. Now that she had escaped that confinement she was in no hurry to head home. She had chased the attacker into the alleyways, but as she arrived grew more cautious about the trap laid for her. The quality of the fog was different today, and soon all the sounds of the wooden city of Nita were closed off to her. The art of the ninja isolating her from the rest of Myrrh, a reflection of the same history she had come to hate.

  “I know you’re lurking. There’s no reason to keep hiding.” Yan was fed up with the dramatic tension her clan employed. When it was just her it felt over the top. “These tactics are best used on the unsuspecting, don’t you think?”

  The complete lack of response was to be expected. Banter was not something a Ninja trained to take part in. Yan kept her guard up as she moved deeper into the fog, and felt the faint motion of wind a second later. Yan dodged out of the way as a kunai flew past her, followed by an unraveling net. She was quick enough to avoid both, but another was already on the way.

  Her enemy had to be one of the battle unit, those trained to incapacitate foes with maximum efficiency. Much more skilled than the scout units that were around the day prior. They must have rushed to get here so soon, but it spelled trouble for Yan anyways.

  Attacks kept coming, but they were not the flurry of strikes like her previous fight. Meticulous strikes with dual and triple purpose, weapons followed by nets followed by continuous spreading fog. The enemy was skilled, and hiding themselves well. Yan dodged and parried with all her might, managing to avoid being too damaged, but she could not predict where the enemy was, or how many there were.

  Each moment felt like a wave of nostalgia, like the hours and weeks spent drilling the combat methods of her clan over and over. The very same pressure that she had run away from, closing in from the mists within Nita. No matter how far she had run, things caught up to her anyways. Was this how it was always going to be? What was the point?

  A kunai struck Yan in the shoulder, delivering a paralyzing agent. On instinct she channeled energy through her body to expel and nullify the poison, but the wound was not so easy to deal with. Another attack came faster than before, a net thrown with more haste than precision. Yan was able to snatch it out of the air and tossed it upwards to dismantle another attack. She had seen all of these tactics before, “You fools should have realized what was different about yesterday's fight before you lured me here.”

  There was a break in the attacks, her words had made them hesitate. Yan knew they were trying to capture her, but didn’t want the others to be involved with her fight. It was risky to keep fighting, not that she was doing much, but she needed to figure out how many enemies she was facing. She touched the alley wall. With the fog all around there wasn’t any lines of sight so she needed to find the source. A smoke bomb or other gadget would have run out by now, so this was a Tech. Ninja used techniques in ways most would need to use spells for, but it also meant someone was emitting energy to maintain the effect.

  Her words didn’t keep the enemy from attacking for long. This was to be expected, but Yan was already moving by the time the next attack came. They had gotten used to her dodging, so her running along the walls to avoid wild spinning blades wasn’t suspicious. She tracked the trail of energy, trying to find the source and the others hiding in the fog. The energy was dense, coiled, strong. The person manipulating the fog was skilled, but the same could be said for the one attacking.

  Something ricocheted at Yan which caused her to burst to the side, but a net was waiting for her as she avoided the attack. She had been so caught up in tracking she hadn’t seen it, or it was placed there. The sticky netting entangled her as she spun to land, rolling on her shoulder hard on the road. It was a clean capture, but the trick felt familiar. Yan didn’t try to escape, waiting and listening instead.

  A moment passed before the soft creak of wood sounded behind her. The wooden roads had given away the position of the one coming to collect Yan. She could feel the person approaching, but was waiting for the others to reveal themselves.

  No one else appeared.

  “You’ve gotten rusty. This is why you shouldn’t have run away, Yan.” The voice made Yan’s ears flinch. He was wearing a mask, but it was unmistakable. She knew that voice.

  “Aeroth? They sent you after me? Are you serious!” Yan wiggled to roll over and look up, unable to hide the anger in her voice. “After all that talk about how the village should remain closed and only a few select people get to go out on missions.”

  “I understand how you feel, sister.” The masked ninja appeared from the fog, his hands held out in a placating manner. Even in full garb it was clear that it was Aeroth, Yan’s younger brother.

  “There’s no way you received the rank to leave the village, your spy training wasn’t even half done!” Her brother had stopped approaching when Yan rolled over, but something else was bothering her. The fog was wispy and flowing fast here, he was the one conjuring it. The situation was not as she had surmised.

  “The elders gave me this mission. You have to be brought home.”

  “And you seriously think you are going to manage that?” Yan laughed, and her brother fumed. “Name one time you’ve beaten me in combat, brother.”

  “Things are different now.” Aeroth was easy to rattle, but impossible to break. His composure reasserted itself and he spoke with absolute confidence. “You’ve been running around for months, and you’ve also run out of tools. The scouts even reported that you were fighting barehanded.” Aeroth drew a kunai from his sleeve, and another net from a pouch on his belt, “You are restrained and have nothing to fight with. I won this fight.”

  Aeroth approached to apply more restraints, and Yan waited until he was within range. The moment he drew close she kicked out and rolled back to her feet, the netting falling away as she moved. “You overestimate yourself!” Yan had used a small whittling knife behind her while they bantered before.

  “Just give up!” Aeroth threw the net, but it was too close to unfurl. Then he struck it midair with the kunai to cause it to burst, sending the sticky gel coating out everywhere. Yan charged into it so less hit her, it wouldn’t burn off with energy so she just focused on charging her brother. When he saw her coming he moved back and jumped into the fog.

  The sneaking suspicion Yan got during their chat had to be true, Aeroth had no backup. He must have gotten the report of her location and rushed to capture her alone. It was little wonder he had arrived so soon. “Come take your beating little bro, or are you going to run to call the scouts to help?”

  “You won’t beat me with that flimsy little knife.” Aeroth’s voice was filtered from all around. His floating fog technique had improved, but it no longer mattered. She knew he was alone, but didn’t want him around to intervene in things. He had to be dealt with, or scared away.

  More attacks came from the fog, simple energy strikes. Now that Aeroth had challenged her about a lack of tools he wasn’t using his, to prevent her from taking them? They were all disposable tools anyways, he kept the well made kunai on wires to pull them back. Yan was able to dodge one of the attacks, but the gunk was slowing her down. She didn’t even want to see how she looked at the moment, the scent was bad enough.

  Yan let out a burst of energy and started running into the fog, causing Aeroth to retaliate with more precise attacks. Holding her ground had been good for defense, but she needed to be able to attack to even the odds. The alley was narrower where she ran, so she wasn’t able to dodge the surges. They stung, and she couldn’t take many of them, but she didn’t stop moving. Her vision started to swim too, how many hits had she taken? Too many for not striking back.

  The floating fog technique filled the alleyways with a dry haze. It was meant to obscure and hide, not harm those within. It worked by spreading out energy in bands that unfurled within an area, surrounding and concealing like a bubble. Enclosed spaces like the alleyway made it much easier to maintain, but the problem stemmed from Yan’s knowledge of the technique. She was a member of the same clan of ninja, and her brother was alone. He may have predicted the vulnerability, but he could not defend it.

  At the edge of the fog Yan found what she needed, just in time to avoid an attack. A cable of energy that maintained the concealment, Yan latched on and zipped out of sight like a puff of smoke.

  Silence spread out throughout the alley. If anyone wandered into it, they would see nothing besides an annoying lingering fog. Bursts of motion distorted the air in places as the two unseen warriors moved around trying to hide and find one another, leaping from wall to wall. From Yan’s perspective things weren’t so wondrous. She zipped along trails of energy and leapt every time she landed, fighting back the fatigue from all her dodging and running. Coated in gunk, wounded by her own family, and lacking the armor or tools for the fight, Yan was weary.

  Despite all her complaints, Yan expected that Aeroth was in a panic. Nary an attack had been made, just hasty traps applied to walls as he rushed around at full speed. He was right that she lacked the gear, but even then Yan had warned him. The thing that held her back in the fight yesterday was not a lack of gear, but her desire to conceal her abilities from the people she was traveling with. What felt like a long brutal struggle took moments as Yan caught up and entangled Aeroth in one of his own traps. Less than a minute passed since she reached the coil of energy, and the fog dissipated.

  Yan landed on the ground beneath the dangling form of her younger brother, sealed in netting and suspended between three buildings. “Next time you come after me, try to remember where we come from.”

  “You have to come home, Yan. The village is closed for a reason. There are rules!”

  “You know, you don’t really live up to your name, brother.” Yan folded her arm. “Aeroth is the god of Wind, Weather, Exploration, and Freedom. You shouldn’t be agreeing with things just cause older people say so. We’re adults now too.”

  “I didn’t choose my name. I choose to trust, and follow the rules. It’s the reason our clan still exists.”

  “Whatever, have it your way.” Yan took solvent from his pouch and cleaned off the gunk, then made sure the bindings were secure. “Go home and stay out of my way.” Winning had left a bit of a pit in her stomach, but her worry for the others was even more important. Without another word, Yan turned and rushed out of the alleyway to catch back up to the others. Friends or family, Yan had chosen freedom instead. Wherever that took her, she would just have to see it through.

  Nita’s morning ruckus had turned the town on its head. A fake raid siren spoiled the mood of an otherwise peaceful morning, causing many to march off to make complaints, others to go home and forget the morning, and some to turn to recreational distractions. The streets were abandoned in most places due to the mass of people at Roland’s rally, but a few of the taverns had taken the chance to open their doors and turn on their taps for the frustrated morning crowd. Some streets with open air pubs had more patrons sitting and drinking than their afternoon rushes.

  Escaping the chaos of the day did not work for everyone.

  A roiling black mass of energy and mayhem tore along the road, pursued by swift red shockwaves of well timed attacks. The clamor of the chase drowned out the panic and surprise of onlookers as the vague mass of force fled the swordsman in red. Each time the fleeing energy turned a corner, Hyato delivered another precise stroke to keep it away from anyone off to the side.

  The Revenant was eager to find another host and persistent, but it dared not approach Hyato. Each time it drew near to someone Hyato launched a ribbon of red energy through the slash of his sword to keep it away. This was working to dissuade it, but also prevented him from closing the gap. The crazed spirit monster kept trying to slip towards alleys and buildings, but Hyato did not let it. This was a chase, but the Revenant was not being given any choices.

  Rounding the corner from a curved street to a longer straight path, the Revenant tore along the road sending splinters flying out behind it. The erratic energy composing its form was damaging anything it touched, and unraveling around it like a growing aura of destruction. It rushed along the straight path towards the south gates, eyes scanning for anyone out in the open, while Hyato trailed along behind.

  The gap between the two had been widening bit by bit, but Hyato had been waiting for this very chance to arrive. The straight road was long enough for his gambit. With the focused effort of energy built up inside of him, Hyato unleashed a technique to propel himself at high speeds. With a rocketing explosion of force, Hyato closed the gap and crashed into the Revenant in a single motion.

  In a flurry of motion Hyato tumbled along the road with the Revenant, bouncing along the wooden roads as the semi corporeal body of his foe dispersed and coalesced. It was like wrestling sand, there was form and weight but it spread around with every motion. Hyato expanded his energy to both protect his body and pin down the enemy. It took just a moment to restrain the spirit.

  “Got you!” Hyato focused to maintain the shell of energy as he stood up and readied an overhead sword attack. “I don’t know if this is enough to kill you, so I won’t take any risks. You die today, Revenant!” His strongest attack, it would take nothing less. A vibrant red energy began to form along the blade of his katana, honing with precise power as he readied the best cutting attack he could muster.

  Hyato’s vision began to waver at the edges, his peripherals fading. He was just about to attack as the swimming sensation began. “No, not now. I just needed a few more seconds-”

  One challenge with the wooden roads of Nita was the upkeep. While they were made to never splinter, strong enough damage could tear up the top layer and cause those sharp bits of wood to be a hazard. As Hyato staggered into focus he felt a few splinters on his clothing, and looked around to get his bearings.

  A shell of energy cracked in front of him, who had been maintaining it? No one to the left, and there was an open air pub to the right down the road a few yards. He didn’t recognize anyone. His arm was lifted, poised to strike, was he in another swords contest?

  Shadowy energy roiled out of the energy shell and crept along the road. It was lethargic and slow, none of the force or speed that Hyato expected from its appearance. What kind of bulbous mass was it? The moment of hazy uncertainty lasted almost a minute, then he realized what he was seeing. “The Revenant!”

  Before Hyato had realized what was happening, the weakened shadow monster reached the open air pub. Fresh hosts were all around, but those nearest freaked out and ran from it as it crashed through the small fence at the edge of the plot. Ordinary citizens upset with the day's events had strayed far to reach their favorite watering hole. There was just one customer present who had not responded to the raid siren in the first place.

  The bane of the pub, a thorn in its side, a man who spent all morning drinking every morning. The bartender would have thrown him out, if it weren’t for the threats of violence. Now, as the shadowy monster crashed through the tables, more than a few eyes went to the drunken bandit from the mountains. Heaving a heavy sigh, the big man took his feet off his table and stood up, picking up the club he left leaning against the chair. “You messed with the wrong turf, Ophzori.”

  “Don’t!” Hyato yelled as the bandit approached the Revenant. His warning was ignored as the bandit swung his heavy club with an overhand strike, smashing up the floor as the shadowy form of the Revenant spread apart. Tendrils of darkness shot out and grappled the bandit, who went from smug to panicked in seconds.

  The bandit’s scream cut out as the energy of the Revenant shoved itself down his throat. Hyato reached the bar, too late to intervene. The black energy of the Revenant pulsated with powerful blue currents of electrical force, arcing around to the tables and chairs surrounding the bandit. Those within the bar that hadn’t backed away were pushed back by a sudden shockwave that felt like a hollow scream.

  For a moment an aura of darkness seemed to exude from the bandit. It was like the shadow of someone with hair growing down to their waist, spiked armor around the arms and legs, and a cloak of the deepest red. It spiraled into the flesh of the possessed man, vanishing without a trace. Save for the eyes. Glowing crimson pupils and golden sclera scarred with marks like fangs. The Revenant scanned the surrounding area, then locked its monstrous eyes on Hyato.

  As the possessed bandit swung his club, smashing through the fence without reserve, all traces of the alteration vanished. Hyato parried the shrapnel with a surge shield, then had to back away as the bandit charged. He was a tall man with lanky limbs and defined muscles, and he swung his club with arms that bent like whips to hit hard. To anyone that hadn’t seen what just transpired, this was no better than a street brawl.

  Hyato trusted his ability to win such a simple fight. The club was heavy, but his sword strikes carried precision with timing and angles. Hyato deflected the next blow into the ground, then bounced the club back into the air with the flat of his blade. Using a swift strike, Hyato disarmed the man. “Surrender now, and you’ll come to no harm.”

  “Not a chance!” The bandit came at Hyato with his fists, the energy he used looking the same as the Revenant. Whether he knew he was possessed or not wasn’t important yet, but it was concerning. Hyato didn’t know whether the man could survive being possessed like this, no one had done so according to the others.

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  A sucker punch hit Hyato square in the jaw while he was distracted, and all of his worries faded. No time to think, just fight. The bandit was in close, too close to swing his sword. He could have punched or kicked, but that wasn’t how he fought. He dodged back, but the bandit kept in close. “You aren’t getting away from me, punk!”

  More hits, Hyato tracked where each one landed. Slight movements to avoid too much damage, but the bandit was fast enough to keep him from leaving the brawl. A knife would be more suitable at this range, but Hyato didn’t use a knife. He lowered his sword behind him as the bandit reached to disarm, then made a motion to dodge again. The sucker punch came for his throat, just as Hyato predicted.

  With a pivot into place, the edge of Hyato’s sword was in the way of the punch; the bandit cut his hand deep and recoiled. “I’m not the strongest, nor the fastest, or even the smartest.” Hyato stepped towards the bandit as he moved for his club, “I only care about precision.” A flick of energy made the club roll just an inch out of the way, and by the time the bandit recovered it Hyato was already upon him. With a downward swing brought down at the right time, Hyato cut the bandit’s club in half, then swept him from his feet with the flat of his blade.

  “What’s your problem? Leave me alone!” The bandit cried out, angry and scared in equal measure. The blood dripping down his hand splotched to the road and stained his light clothes, but he held up his hand to block an attack while trying to crawl away.

  “This needs to come to an end.” Hyato raised his sword, “I’ll make it quick.” He took in a breath and gathered his energy, and the bandit cringed down and braced for the attack.

  Silence.

  When the bandit opened his eyes he saw the swordsman in the red mantle standing over him, eyes glazed over as he stared off into the middle distance. Looking around in disbelief, the bandit noticed the onlookers from the bar were just as surprised. People chattered on, with no intention to look away or intervene in what was happening. This was as good a time as any to make a break for it, the bandit hopped to his feet and took off running at full speed.

  As Hyato came to he assessed his surroundings to get an idea of what was going on, like always. “Why did you let him get away?” Some person asked, drawing Hyato’s gaze. The man flinched when Hyato looked over.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Th-the bandit. He was always causing trouble around here, and then there was that Ophzori or whatever... it looked like you were going to... you know.” The man indicated down the road and at the space around them. Overturned tables, a broken fence, signs of battle on a wooden street. Hyato looked along the road to see a trail of blood leading towards the gates of the city, with the mountains at the horizon. So, this was Nita, and the Revenant had just escaped.

  “Sorry for the mess.” Hyato sheathed his sword and turned back. He needed to catch up to Michael and explain what he knew, while he was still able to. Hyato headed away fast, his heartbeat increasing with anticipation. He knew what happened next, and wasn’t looking forward to it.

  Screaming cut through the streets of Nita, a signal more alarming than the raid bells that had driven everyone to wake in the first place. The cacophony of panic was accompanied by enormous waves of black energy visible over the houses and buildings of the wooden city. Whatever pace at which people had been moving before became urgent haste without reservations.

  Groups of people fled from the main plaza park of the city, rushing without looking back or even stopping to explain what was happening. As they fled, more screaming echoed from behind them. A mixture of angry howls and terrified screeches, as well as the loud voices of those trying to stop everything. Yan was the closest person closing towards the plaza, but Mien also tore through the streets ahead of Pierre and Sebastian. Each looked towards the problem without noticing one another, and each carried with them a different expectation of what they would find. Hyato rushed to catch up, hoping to be able to affect something.

  A mob of people stood disjointed within the plaza. Many were on the ground, laying down behind temporary barricades manned by guards and adventurers alike. Others were deeper within the park, nearer to the large pond at its center. As Mien reached the area to look around, a blast of black energy sent a dozen people soaring through the air from the middle of the mob. Everywhere there was anger and shouting and discordant tension, but the being at the center of it all stood apart from the rest.

  One man at the edge of the pond released a shockwave of energy whenever someone got close, knocking people back by the dozen. He looked wild, fierce, with black hair and skin and an even darker sword swinging around, but people kept trying to go after him. Something about this situation was off, Mien approached one of the guards. “What’s going on here?”

  “We’re trying to de-escalate things, but the crowd is too riled up.” The guard explained, sensing Mien’s authority at once, “A few people have snapped out of it, but most of them are still enraged. And the empty eyed one is just as aggressive, if not more.”

  Mien looked around again with a renewed sense of concern. At first it seemed as simple as someone rampaging in the park, but the mob was also a volatile issue. Direct intervention could escalate things to drastic levels, beyond even what they were at. “How many casualties?”

  “None so far, well...” The guard fidgeted, “Captain Roland died, but the medic team could find no signs of attack. His body in the arms of that man was what drove the mob to attack.” The guard glanced behind him at the people of the city that had retreated or been pulled out of the conflict. Most were disoriented and resting, but some seemed to be trying to rejoin the fighting. “It’s like the entire city has been possessed.”

  “Keep up the good work soldier. Military reinforcements are on their way.” Mien continued to fret over how to inject himself into the situation, until he noticed Pierre arrive. “Where is Sebastian? I wanted his input on the situation.”

  “He-” A blur of motion interrupted Pierre’s reply, moving so fast that Mien alone was able to track it. The figure dashed through the blockade, past the mob, and right up to the rampaging man before anyone had time to react. As they neared, the man at the center of it all slammed his sword into the ground to unleash a shockwave in all directions. The situation was escalating before plans could be formed, but Mien remained back to assess the new development.

  Several people were repelled from the shockwave, but it was still not so strong as to cause lasting damage. Raging with such ferocity that steam billowed from his shoulders, Dark Michael snarled and snapped at those around him with every motion. He swung his sword each time he looked around, but this time he was face to face with a familiar form. Yan stood between Dark Michael and the mob of people, blocking the surges that flitted from his attacks. He moved to attack another side and she was even faster to get in the way.

  Some people howled and charged towards Dark Michael, but Yan appeared before them and blasted them back with a surge. Their charge was slowed and few fell back, but she had already moved to block an attack from Dark Michael before they realized what had happened.

  “Michael!” Yan’s voice was urgent and pleading, “Snap out of it!” The response was snarling and another attack, Dark Michael had a kind of frenzied look to him.

  Someone from the mob shouted and was answered by many others, then all of the dozens of people around charged in at once. They had been acting in small groups, so the sudden full charge drowned out the sounds of alarm and surprise. Yan attempted to grab and jump with Michael, but the crazed man shook her off. She was still not certain about this transformed rage state he underwent.

  Dark Michael spun the black sword through the air, leaving a trail of darkness that folded over itself like an empty night sky. With a dexterity that Michael had never shown before, he flourished the sword around and above him into a double helix, then slammed the sword through the trail with extreme force. As the mob descended from all sides, a wave of force tore open into a sudden chaotic gale. Harsh winds crashed into people and flung everything away, tearing open the ground and ending the mob’s advances with overwhelming force.

  Enough was enough, a silver light carved through the dark winds as Mien dropped into the fight, twin swords drawn. “It is clear to me now, that you are the one responsible for the destruction of Liniva.” His entrance had ended the winds, preventing any casualties, but the mob had been cleared away enough that Mien stood uncrowded within the park. “Rest assured, I will not allow you to repeat that here or anywhere else. This ends now. Surrender. This shall be my only warning.”

  Ever ready with a response, Dark Michael swung his sword to send an attack along the ground in the form of Force Sword. Mien batted away the technique with the ease one reserves for swatting a fly, arching an eyebrow. The show of skill was still not enough to stop Dark Michael, who just unleashed another ranged strike. With a sigh, Mien destroyed the technique and charged into battle.

  A stone flew in from the side that forced Mien to twist and block. It had been aimed at his temple, with uncanny speed. Dark Michael attacked again, having not moved from where he stood throughout the battle, but Mien just blocked his attack as well. He was surprised when the force of the attack still pushed him back, and it was clear this was not as simple a problem as it seemed.

  Mien pivoted and began to slash the air, creating a flurry of shockwaves that cascaded through the air like a dozen flying knives. They sailed ahead, bunched up before they would spread out to encircle their target, but never had the chance. The ninja girl soared through the air to deflect the attack before it could spread, moving faster than even Mien’s attack. “You don’t need to intervene, girl!”

  “I won’t let you hurt him!” Yan shouted. She moved to block one of Dark Michael’s attacks the moment afterwards, preventing him from striking out at one of the mob that was trying to approach. “Stop this, Michael! Calm down!”

  “This Michael is anything but calm. He must be stopped!” Mien launched a spell and charged in again, sending another for good measure to prevent his approach from being stopped. He made it a few steps before the ground gave way, mud soaking down his boot and stopping his charge. His spells sailed through the air, until another interloper arrived to deflect them. A swordsman in white with a large red mantle, his fierce eyes and stern face making even Mien pause.

  Energy continued to expand through the park as Dark Michael continued to twist and attack without pause. He snarled and growled and seemed to lash out at everything that moved, but was also not reacting to Yan’s words. Mien took note of the water pooling around his feet, hidden beneath the grass, and the swordsman standing in his way. For a moment he wondered what kind of a mess he had gotten himself into. “I cannot allow the tragedy of Liniva to be repeated, I will put a stop to this rampage at once. Move, or be moved.”

  The stoic swordsman remained in a battle ready stance, something of a unique stance that seemed to be a mix of many styles. He did not respond, nor move an inch as one of Dark Michael’s attacks struck him in the back.

  “Fine.” Mien leaped forward out of the mud to attack, but Hyato dodged to the side as a second wave of dark energy rushed along the ground. Dark Michael’s attack struck Mien in the air and forced him to recover with a few surges of his own before he landed on the muddy grass. The areas where Hyato and the others stood were dry, but Mien was dealing with a roaming marsh. He was almost starting to get annoyed.

  While Hyato distracted the attacker, Yan moved to block another attack aimed at random people. “Michael... Dark... Michael. Are you there? If you can hear me, if you are anything more than just a frenzied ball of hate... please let me know. I know you’re angry, and things aren’t fair. I just want to help you.” She swallowed and hoped her words weren’t falling on deaf ears, there was no change in Dark Michael fidgeting rage, “I’m not going to stop trying. I want my friend back.”

  Yan tried to get in close to Michael again, but he attacked. Just how much stamina did he have, throwing around energy like that? Even the former prince was taking moments to recover between attacks. Her hopes of a dramatic hug or something snapping Dark Michael out of it were dashed, but she couldn’t even get close enough to knock him out without risking serious injury to him.

  Hyato was proving to be a tricky opponent, but a single swordsman and some mysterious mud weren’t enough to restrain a man with full Myrrhmidon training. Mien scattered out of view for a moment before appearing with a twinfold strike, knocking Hyato to the ground with sheer force. He dashed over with a jumping technique then a surge jump to keep off the ground as he closed the distance to reach Michael. Yan struck from the side to stop him, but Mien twirled through the air with a sudden spell to knock her away. “It’s over.”

  Dark Michael tried to attack Mien as he arrived, but his technique was parried before it gained momentum. Mien struck from two sides to deliver a finishing blow, but Hyato and Yan rushed in to block the attacks, and Mien had to land. Even Dark Michael focused on Mien instead of the others, but all three were blocked in the same motion. Mien deflected attacks from all three of the others in melee range to him, then disarmed Michael with a swift upwards motion. The black crystalline sword flipped through the air and clattered to the ground in the plaza.

  “Give up, and I will spare your lives.” Mien commanded, his silver eyes glittering with a hint of frustration at the long fight. Dark Michael’s face had changed for the first time to one of shock, while the other two seemed to hesitate. “Cooperate, or this won’t end well.”

  A scream of agony made Mien twist around in alarm. Someone was thrashing on the ground near the black sword, clutching their arm and screaming in pain. Had the sword harmed them?

  Malevolent force like nothing he had ever felt slammed into Mien’s back and threw him to the ground. He looked up in time to see that the others had been knocked down as well as the rampaging man charged across the grass to recover his sword. He must have unleashed the attack before running, because no one else was struck. Then more force exuded from the man as he turned back around with a poise and power that sent a chill through the air.

  No longer the wild raging beast of a man that had been throwing a tantrum before, the cold red eyes of Dark Michael had narrowed into seething slits. His posture had straightened, attention had focused, and his gasps for air reconciled into a breathing technique. Mien rose to his feet and froze the ground beneath him with a spell. “What manner of warrior are you, Michael?”

  “Hhhaate.” The man’s voice was coarse, and the two that had been defending him looked surprised. Someone tried to approach him from behind and was repelled by the constant flow of black energy flowing off of him. “Hate. You.”

  “Do you two still really want to defend him?” Mien glanced to the side, but the ninja and swordsman were gone. Mien snapped to attention right as the charging form of Dark Michael reached him, and an attack was blocked at the last second.

  Pure force launched Mien into the air, raw power untempered by the skill he had expected. Mien recovered, he had long since learned to keep his balance in most cases, and landed at the edge of the pond. Dark Michael kept coming, but this time Mien was ready.

  Mien parried the next attack, requiring both swords to stop the terrible strength he was up against, and tried for another disarming attack. It didn’t work, but was a strong strike either way. Dark Michael was forced back, his frenzied attacks did not break Mien’s guard.

  Once again, Yan and Hyato arrived to keep the two warriors apart. While Hyato focused on diverting Dark Michael’s instant response, Yan faced the former prince. “There’s a more urgent threat, a dark spirit on the loose. Please.”

  “Such concerns will have to wait, I am taking you all into custody to resolve this.” Mien kept his eyes focused on Michael, not risking letting him slip away while he was distracted. All three of these people were dangerous, and Kris had seen three people enter Liniva the day it was destroyed. “Don’t think you can beat me.”

  Yan readied herself to dodge or parry whatever Mien was preparing to do, but she was pushed aside from behind as Dark Michael elbowed past Hyato and Yan. His rage was unabated, but a fixation on Mien had overtaken him as he tried to break through Mien’s defense.

  “Futile.” Mien blocked each attack with the ease of swatting aside an insect, then forced all three of his opponents away with a massive cone of silver energy. Hyato tumbled along the ground as Yan and Michael held their footing, but all three were knocked to the water's edge. “I am ending this, right now!”

  A pillar of mana erupted around Mien, the helical green and purple glow that many native to Myrrh recognized from stories and traumatic incidents. Onlookers within the park and plaza turned to flee at once, while those farther away watched in eager anticipation. The guards maintaining a barricade sounded a full retreat and urged people into motion. Mien was casting a Myrrhmidon spell, the high end combat magic reserved for the greatest warriors of the military kingdom, intended to be used in the most serious of situations.

  Dark Michael rose to his feet with focus to his angered expression, but faltered at the sight of Mien’s spellcraft. In that moment of hesitation, Yan and Hyato stood up as well. Dark Michael prepared to retaliate against whatever they did, but his face turned to confusion as they stood between him and Mien, readying to defend.

  The twin colored mana resolved into an arcing beam of force, twisting from a helix of light into pure force that curved down from above. It gave off enough wind to bend the nearby trees back and flatten the grasses, but the pond was unaffected. Nary a ripple played across its surface, and Mien noticed too late to change course.

  Water exploded from the pond into a great wave, erupting from the very grass without so much as a drop touching Michael and the others. The same moment the water made contact with the Myrrhmidon spell, it froze into a solid wall of ice. The light of the powerful spell dispersed across the wall, its power sapped as the mana expended melted away into haze. As Yan looked up at the sudden rescue with bewilderment, the fourth member of the party stepped out of the bushes where he had been hiding. “Now’s our chance, let’s get out of here!” Sebastian urged.

  “Sebastian? Where did- why were you...” Yan stammered then shook her head. “What about Michael?” She turned to see Hyato picking up the unconscious form of Michael with both hands. In the same moment that Sebastian played his hand, Hyato had knocked him out.

  “We don’t have much time. That wall won't stop Mien for long.” Sebastian started running, and the others followed. “Hyato already filled me in, the Revenant got away so we need to get after it. If we are arrested here, there’s no telling how long it will take to clear our names.”

  “Fine!” Yan snapped, racing ahead of the others. The ice wall that Sebastian formed was like a dome, and obscured their retreat. It was tense for the first minute as they slipped from the park, led by Yan. The next few minutes were uncomfortable, but less stressful, as Hyato led them through the streets.

  After a short time, Michael awoke. His skin and hair had changed back to their usual complexion, and from his sheepish attitude he seemed to have remembered his time as Dark Michael a little more this time. “Don’t worry about it.” Yan patted Michael on the back, hoping to console him.

  Having gathered their packs from where Sebastian had stashed them, the party snuck along through an unpopulated street. They avoided alleys at Yan’s insistence, but were still in Nita. “We are almost to the wall. I think we should climb over instead of using the gates, to avoid the guards knowing which way we went.” Sebastian was leading the way, now that they were nearing the way out. Adrenaline was still high from the recent battle, but things were starting to calm.

  Yan’s anxiety was turning into curiosity, she couldn’t help but be brimming with questions. “How did you block that spell? I thought it was like, super military magic.”

  “Even the best weapons have weaknesses. If you know them, you can counter them. The same is true for spells and techniques.”

  “That makes sense, I guess. But that means you knew what the weakness of that Myrrhmidon spell was, how?”

  Sebastian pursed his lips as he came to a stop, they were close to the wall already. His lack of an explanation made Michael more curious as well, but Hyato seemed to lack interest. “I think we should focus on getting away, before we get into anything unnecessary.”

  The response made Yan grunt, but she checked behind her just to be safe. It felt odd to be in the middle of an intense fight, then sneaking around just a short time later. With someone as powerful as Mien looking to take them out it felt like every corner could hide a life ending threat. Her previous worries were nothing compared to that stress.

  Like the rest of Nita, the walls were wooden. Unlike a simple wooden wall surrounding a hamlet, these were staunch fortifications with large ramparts and full buildings inside of them. The architect designed them to be easy to defend from, which meant stair access to the upper sections. No guards were around as the party climbed to the top and secured ropes to clamber down. It took until they were already descending for the realization to hit Yan.

  “Wait a minute, are we going to the mountains?”

  “The Revenant possessed a bandit and fled there.” Hyato explained.

  “Don’t worry, I made sure to pack gear and provisions for any direction we needed to head.” Sebastian was making his way down the slowest, despite this escape method being his idea.

  Yan heaved a sigh as she zipped down the rope and waited for the others. Hyato and Michael landed moments later, followed by Sebastian. “What’s wrong Yan?” Michael asked, concern replacing all sense of his shame at losing his temper.

  “It’s nothing important anymore.” Yan moved along the rocky flat that led towards the south road to the mountains. “I’m a ninja that ran away from my clan. And our secret village...” She pointed to the horizon of grey stone peaks that dominated the territory ahead, “Is in the Drakmor Mountains.”

  The others kept pace with Yan, not reacting at once to her words. She had already told them her plight at having run away from home, and now they were headed back towards it. Sebastian broke the silence first, “Well, we could use someone with knowledge and experience guiding us. I have heard Drakmor is a treacherous territory, and much of it is wild.”

  “It’s no use worrying about it now.” Yan shrugged, “We have to head there. Unless we give up trying to chase down this Revenant.”

  “No.” Michael said at once, “No, it’s too dangerous.”

  “There are lots of dangerous things out there, Michael.” Sebastian explained.

  “If you don’t want to come, that’s okay.” Michael’s expression was serious, but devoid of the rage and hate that Dark Michael wore. “But I am going to do something about it. The Revenant is my fault, afterall. I unleashed it. I felt what it wanted when it tried to possess me. I can’t even remember anything before that.” He chewed on his lip as if going over the words again in his mind, trying to make sure they were correct. “Yeah, I have to do this.”

  “Well that settles it.” Yan skipped ahead and turned around to face the others with a grin. “If our quest leads us to the mountains, so be it. I’ll guide the way so we can be safe, so don’t you all worry.”

  The cheery attitude of the party’s ninja was infectious, and so they fled from the city in good humor. Their destination had changed, but the goal remained ever the same. The Revenant had gotten away, but they had also stopped what it was doing as Roland, and escaped from an even more powerful person in the meantime. Whatever lay ahead they would face together.

  Watching from afar atop the wooden ramparts, someone turned to wake a messenger. “Head to headquarters and report in, the four criminals Prince Mien is looking for escaped the city and are heading south into the mountains.”