Underground Ring: Book 1

by M. M. Reid

  “Whatcha waiting for?” he taunted. “I hope a wee bit of blood doesn’t make you squeamish?”

  Allowing my Fire to slowly pour forth, I felt the gift begin to swirl around me much like a cloak. In a flash, I was upon him. My sword must have been light to him because he parried the first blow easily, but the second struck true right into the top of his shoulder. There was no time to waste as I got low and kicked his legs out from under him. As his feet were raised into the air and his hand released his staff in shock, his energy vanished. Peculiar, I thought as smashed him underfoot. His grunt of pain gave me some sick satisfaction. Desperate under my boot, he tried reaching for his staff. I kicked it away as I noticed that with his staff gone, so too was his energy and any hope he could possibly have to push me off.

  Kill him, slay him. Laucian’s voice urged me on. I smiled, not even trying to resist him. My sword raised, I was ready to deliver the final blow. That is, until Yayel’s voice travelled into my ears.

  “What’s going on?” he cried, looking like he was in complete shock. I couldn’t kill this man, not in front of him, not now.

  I glowered back towards my foe. “Give me one good reason I shouldn’t kill you right now?” I asked, my rage boiling.

  “I would worry less about me, lad,” he said, another crooked smile taking his lips, “and more about your friends.”

  I turned to see the masked man kick Ben, out-maneuver Lee’s knife, and skip away but not before tossing some objects towards the two of them. Lee ducked easily and the spinning blades soared over his head. A strange sensation took over me as the blades themselves seemed to slow to a sluggish rotation. This had happened once before during my battle with Lokus.

  “Ben, stay down!” I tried to scream, but my voice wouldn’t do as I commanded. Ben was slowly turning to face his enemy.

  Even at the reduced speed, the blades were travelling too fast for me. I shifted my weight and began to move as fast as I possibly could, but I felt as if I was in deep water and couldn’t move my limbs. I wouldn’t make it in time! Ben’s eyes opened in shock as he realized his mistake too late, the blades now threatening to impale themselves in his chest. A blur suddenly knocked Ben out of the way and the knives both spun away, useless. There stood Trosian, Gungnir under one arm. My perception of time had returned to normal without me even realizing it. My breathing was heavy and rapid. I felt much as I did after the second test when I was trying to become a Master: completely drained. What the hell had just happened to me?

  Trosian and the masked man hesitated for a moment, then struck together in combat. Scythe blade spinning like a helicopter, Trosian not only was able to deflect the attacks of his adversary but was also pushing him back! Each blow that this masked being had to parry cost him dearly as he shuffled back, losing his footing. The training that Trosian had undergone over the years seemed to bear fruit in that moment. Even I felt slightly intimidated, I must admit. Dropping his blades, the masked man once again began to weave the signs with his hands. Trosian’s eyes widened as he realized something we didn’t. Dropping Gungnir deliberately, Trosian grabbed and held fast onto his enemy’s wrists. In an extreme showing of acrobatics and martial skill, the little man twisted himself about Trosian and broke his grip, then slid back and drew new swords.

  “We are not your enemies, Boorr,” Trosian announced, putting his hands up to show he did not wish to fight any longer. “We are not Shadows.”

  “What are you talking about, Trosian?” Ben yelled, moving forward to attack. “That guy tried to kill us!”

  “Stop! I’m telling you he is not our enemy,” Trosian retorted, coming between the stunned masked man and Ben.

  “That guy,” Ben pointed at the masked individual, “killed Yayel’s mother!”

  Yayel, I thought, looking back to where he was standing. But the creature before me was no longer the child that was known as Yayel. No, this was someone else entirely.

  The child’s face changed from a look of stunned confusion, to a sobbing mess, to a contorted face that a predator would make prior to an attack. His body shook as if a large earthquake was underfoot as he repeated, “Killed…my…mother.”

  I took my foot off of the large man and went to Yayel, putting my hands on his shoulders. His face became more animalistic with rage with each passing moment. I knew what was happening to him. It had happened to me when my father had left me under the tree all those years ago: he was losing control. “Yayel, it’s OK,” I said, trying to keep my voice even as I could feel the frenzy coming off of him in waves of heat. “Calm down. We are going to find your mother.”

  “Killed my mother?” Yayel repeated again as blood began to drip from his fists as his nails dug into his palms. He then stopped suddenly, his face frozen in a look of pure hatred, his eyes shut. The silence was so great that only the wind could be heard howling among the leaves, as if it was afraid of what was going to happen next.

  “Yayel?” I asked after a moment. He was stock-still. I didn’t even hear breathing. I shook him a little. “Yayel?”

  A low growl came in response as I felt the muscles in his shoulders harden. It was then I noticed that his Fire was growing at alarming rates. His energy skyrocketed to heights that no child, or even a normal Mystic, could ever achieve.

  “Augrais, get away from him!”

  Trosian’s warning came too late as a roar that sounded like no man or beast I had ever heard came from Yayel’s mouth. The sound itself caused Ben, Lee, and the mountain of a man to cover their ears in pain. I tightened my grip on Yayel whilst trying to resist the burst of energy escaping him. I had to use the Water gift before he lost control, I thought, but I simply didn’t have time. In a second, Yayel broke my grip and dashed like a wild animal, roaring and growling, right at our masked opponent. With a speed that none of us could ever attain, he descended upon his foe and began to eviscerate him with his fingers. Attempting to stop the brutal attack, Trosian scooped the boy up in a bear hug but couldn’t stop him.

  Unsure who was friend or foe anymore, Yayel then turned on Trosian and bit him on the neck. Trosian ripped the boy off and threw him away. Blood flowed freely as he cradled his wound with his hand. In disbelief, I stood there watching Yayel as he became the very thing that I had struggled to contain in myself. He was a force of nature, a monster, and he was about to turn on me. Yayel sprinted in blind fury and threw himself at me with all of his speed. I barely had enough time to duck. He drove his feet into the ground and spun around like a cat on a hardwood floor and attempted to reengage with me. Again he threw himself at me and I was so surprised by his speed that this time his fist struck my arm soundly. The blow was so great that it made my well planted feet slip and I flew backwards onto the ground a few metres away. The boy’s energy burned my arm as if I had been doused with flame. I needed to end this, and now, before I would have to kill him. He pounced at me once again. I took a step to the side as my foot collided with his head. His eyes widened in shock then closed as he dropped to the ground, the monster in him asleep from the blow. I felt his Vitae drain away as he lay there, unconscious.

  Ben, Lee, Trosian, and I watched as the masked man and the mountainous man composed themselves in the forest nearby.

  “What…the…hell…was…that?” Lee gasped, his wide eyes examining Yayel up and down, as if he could maybe figure it out just by looking at him.

  “His Fire gift…” Ben mused, then added as if he wasn’t sure if what he was saying were true, “it became unstable?”

  Trosian cocked one eyebrow. “Unstable?”

  I nodded in agreement. “The emotion of losing his mother turned him into a monster.”

  “Kinda like when you attacked Lokus?” Lee asked, kneeling next to the boy.

  The off-handed comment produced a pang of self-righteous anger in me, but with the two strangers watching us, this was not the time to discuss what I had done to Lokus.

  “What about them?” Ben asked, slightly nodding towards the other two who now look
ed at us. “Who are they Trosian?” His tone was much less accusatory than last time.

  “Those men,” he pointed back to them, “are not Shadows. They’re like us.”

  “Mystics?” Ben interjected.

  “No, idiot!” Lee slapped Ben on the back of the head. “Have you ever seen a Mystic weave Handseals?”

  The word triggered my memory and I remembered the Lion’s book and Lokus’s teachings about other ancient civilizations. “Boorr from the East?”

  Trosian nodded.

  “They use Handseals which are symbols they make with their hands, in order to amplify a certain gift,” I explained. “So technically every Boorr has access to all four gifts, but can only use them one at a time.”

  “But his energy, his Vitae, isn’t that strong,” Lee stated

  “They call it Ki,” Trosian corrected, now standing at his full height after checking Yayel’s pulse. “They only use energy to heal and block out pain. They rely on the gifts’ natural strength and their extreme training. That’s where their strength lies.”

  “So maybe if we make friends,” Ben grinned, “they’ll teach us how to do those hand thingies.”

  I shook my head. “I think they would rather die than pass on a secret to an outsider. Plus, it would take years before you could master something like that.”

  Ben wasn’t even listening as he tried to imitate the hand movements his adversary had used against him.

  I sighed as I looked towards the masked Boorr. “I guess we should try and talk to them.”

  “Lee, stay with the boy,” Trosian ordered. “Notify me when he wakes.”

  Lee nodded as he knelt next to Yayel. Ben began to follow as Trosian and I approached the other two.

  Spinning around towards Ben, Trosian put his hand up. “Oh no, you are not coming.”

  “What?” Ben looked shocked and insulted. “Why?”

  “Because you can’t censor that mouth of yours.” Trosian’s open palm produced an accusing finger that he pointed right into Ben’s chest.

  “Who died and made you king?” Ben bumped his chest into Trosian, who was now towering over him. “I’m heading over there. I don’t care what you say!”

  For a moment I thought Trosian would hit him for those words, but after a moment with a lot of glaring on both sides, Trosian lowered his arm. “Don’t be stupid,” he said simply, before turning on his heel.

  I led the approach with Trosian on my left and Ben on my right. They were both eyeing each other, but seemed content to keep a truce for the time being.

  “Augrais of the Mystics,” I introduced myself, bringing my hand forward in a traditional handshake.

  My opponent, the tall redheaded man, stepped forward and grabbed my extended forearm. “Ravenfury,” he said stiffly, then jerked his head back to the masked man. “Anandus.”

  With his leather mask removed, Anandus was a small, interesting-looking man. He had sharp, brown eyes, dark skin, and a stern face which was accented with black hair growing wildly in every direction. He looked deceptively youthful although I could feel the wisdom of his experience. Anandus merely glowered at us, no happier than his comrade at the end of the fighting.

  “What happened here?” I asked politely whilst staring directly into Ravenfury’s eyes, trying not to give them any excuse for erupting into battle again.

  Ravenfury shook his head, challenging my stare. “Your guess is as good as mine, lad.”

  My eyes narrowed slightly as my grip tightened around his arm. “The boy’s mother is missing,” I lowered my voice. “I’m sure you can appreciate the urgency.” I deliberately glanced at Yayel.

  “No, his mother’s dead,” Ravenfury said then leaned in slightly. “Why don’t ya tell me where ya got the sword? And maybe then I’ll tell ya where you could find her body?”

  Taking a few deep breaths, I continued, “I apologize for attacking you earlier—” Ravenfury scoffed in disbelief. I tried to paint the deepest concern on my otherwise normally impassive face in hopes he would buy it. I looked down to Balmung at my side. “As for my weapon, it was given to me from another. I did not steal it.”

  “And just who gave it to you?” Ravenfury spat in retort.

  “Alexander,” came a familiar voice from behind us.

  Trosian, Ben, and I spun around in surprise to see none other than the Pagan Mother, Selene. The few years that had passed seemed to only have added to her amazing beauty. Her long, silky black hair twisted in the wind that had picked up. I found myself relieved to see her again. A part of me had worried about her safety from time to time over the years. I was happy to see that she had not only survived, but seemed stronger than ever.

  “Augrais.” She smiled softly and placed her hand on my cheek, her icy eyes staring into mine. We shared a moment in silence, a moment of two beings with so much to say to one another but, as always, no time to share.

  “Alexander, the Vitae Lord?” Ravenfury turned his glare to her. The two newcomers and Selene obviously knew one another.

  “Vitae Lord?” I almost shook my head. I didn’t hear that correctly.

  “The very same,” Selene assured.

  “My father—Alexander—was no Vitae Lord,” I said, repeating what was running over and over in my head.

  “Are you sure this little spit didn’t just steal it?” Ravenfury squinted at me. “How could Alexander give Balmung to someone who doesn’t even know the Shin Dynasty?”

  “Shin Dynasty?” Trosian asked, blinking a few times.

  “Look at him closely, Ravenfury, and you will see,” Selene instructed him while her snowy eyes never once left mine.

  The mountain of a man shifted closer to me, squinting as he did, his fuzzy eyebrows nearly covering his sockets. He stunk of the earth and his breath was like the smell of a dead animal. I awkwardly leaned away.

  “Get out of my face,” I said threateningly. “I have had enough”.

  As I said this, Ravenfury’s eyes widened in shock and he staggered back as if he had been struck. “By Natus…”

  “Ahh!” Ben cried at Ravenfury. “Those runes, that staff. You’re a Druid!”

  I jumped at Ben’s outburst and the tension between Ravenfury and I broke slightly. Trosian rolled his eyes and glanced off to the side as if to say that this conversation wasn’t worth his time. My father—a Vitae Lord? And what was this Shin Dynasty they spoke of? Again, I silently cursed Lokus for his keeping his secrets. Didn’t I, Alexander’s flesh and blood, deserve to know more of my father’s past?

  Selene seemed to pick her next question from my mind. “Where is Lokus, Augrais? I am in great need of his council right now.”

  Ah damn, I thought, as I scratched the back of my head in an attempt to delay my answer. I honestly didn’t know how to explain to her what had happened between Lokus and myself.

  “Augrais?” She cocked her head in a confused manner.

  “We left him,” I said, keeping it simple.

  A stunned look blurred Selene’s beauty. But before she could speak, Lee called out to us. “Guys, I think Yayel’s coming to!”

  Worried there would be another outburst, I was over to them in a flash just as Yayel was sitting up slowly and rubbing the side of his head. Selene did not follow, but turned to the others to get the answers to her questions. Trosian stepped forward and began to speak to Selene.

  “Ow,” Yayel whimpered. “My head hurts.”

  I knelt down next to him, relieved at his return to his normal self. It was hard to believe that this boy had become a monster only moments before. A flash of the snarling, the total loss of control, returned to my mind only for a moment. I banished it, praying it was the last time I would see him as that beast. In my heart of hearts, I knew that I was wrong.

  “Who are you?” he asked, looking up at me in confusion. I must have hit him harder than I thought, since he didn’t seem fully with us. In part I was happy that he didn’t remember what had happened in the battle. However, this meant telling him again
about his mother as he would ask about her soon enough. Selene and the others came from behind, slowly joining us.

  “My name is Augrais. I am a Mystic,” I said gently placing a hand on him. “Why don’t you just relax and try to remember happy memories?” My Water gift was in full effect.

  “OK.” Yayel smiled dumbly at me.

  “Augrais,” Selene’s tart voice called. “I need to speak with you. Alone.”

  I nodded slowly and rose to a standing position. I could tell already that this was not going to be a good conversation.

  “Where is Mom?” Yayel asked suddenly, snapping from my control and frantically looking about. “Where is she?”

  I looked to Trosian who still seemed to be brooding a few metres away. Calm him down. Use the Water gift if you have to. I spoke to him through my Earth gift. Just don’t make him angry. Though Trosian never met my gaze, he nodded slightly.

  Selene led me away into the woods, out of earshot of the others. When she felt she was safe, she spun around and put her hands on her hips.

  “Just what happened with you and Lokus? And that child, Yayel, do you even realize how careful you have to be around one with a Fire gift of that strength?”

  My eyes narrowed at the condescension dripping from her words. I would have none of it. She opened her mouth to speak again but I cut her off. “Why are you here, Selene?”

  The bluntness of my question took her aback. She looked hurt. Recovering quickly, her eyes narrowed much like mine. “I asked you a question first.”