by Aaron Oster
“Alright. Everyone who wants to go, say ‘aye.’”
To no one’s surprise, both Ferry and Geon immediately voted to go. Aika still looked unsure.
“What’s on your mind?” Roy asked, watching her bite her lip in indecision.
“I want to find out why Doragon betrayed us, and I also want to know where my grandfather disappeared to. But you have the opportunity to meet your father for the first time. Plus, if he’s in the Herald clan, then maybe I can still get my hands on Doragon and get the answers I need. I…I just don’t know!”
“Then how about we let fate decide?” Azure said.
He reached out, his hand seeming to pluck at the air, and a moment later, he held a large coin.
“Hey! How did you get that?” Aika exclaimed.
It was the coin Azure had originally given Roy, taken from the first Trial he had ever had to face. She’d been holding onto it when he’d been taken, so he hadn’t been able to use it, despite having finally met the requirements.
“Unimportant. So, what do you say? Would you like to put your future into fate’s hands?”
Aika hesitated for a moment more before finally letting out a sigh and nodding.
“Excellent!” Azure said, then flicked the coin into the air.
They all watched it spin, reflecting golden light before it landed on Azure’s palm.
“So, which will it be?” he asked, holding his closed fist out to her.
“The hammer,” Aika said without hesitation.
“Excellent!” Azure said. “So, if it’s the hammer, you’ll stay, and if it’s the ax, you’ll step through the portal. Are you all in agreement?”
They all nodded, although Roy had a sneaking suspicion which side of the coin would show when Azure opened his hand.
“Well, wouldn’t you know it?” he said, uncurling his fingers and revealing the ax. “Looks like you’re all going to get your answers!”
He flicked the coin, and Roy caught it out of instinct.
“Hold onto that. You’re going to need it where you’re going.”
Roy nodded, tucking the coin into his robes and making sure it was secure this time. He told himself that he’d have to test it out once they were on the other side.
“Well, off you go,” Azure said, making a shooing motion.
“Will you at least tell Hermit where we’ve gone?” Roy asked.
“Not to worry, he will be well informed!” Azure said, still shooing them through.
Roy, Aika, and Ferry shared one last look, then began to move toward the portal.
Aika’s arm was still looped into his right arm, and Ferry squished herself to his left. It was a nice feeling, being back amongst those who cared about him, regardless of who he was or where he’d come from. And he was secure in the knowledge that no matter where he went, so long as they were by his side, everything would be alright.
Epilogue
The four Sovereigns all gathered together, moving just outside the city in case anyone was still close enough to overhear.
“So, will we finally hear the real story?” Hermit asked, crossing his arms. “About why you abandoned your son in the Outer Edge and what’s really going on with him?”
“I mean, I feel like it would be pretty obvious, wouldn’t it?” Ikari retorted. “Herald Duncan got rid of him because Roy was so weak. No son of a Sovereign should be so pathetic.”
“You’re both wrong,” Duncan said, his expression impassive. “I didn’t abandon my son. I sent him away to somewhere I believed he would be safe. And I didn’t do it because he was too weak, but because he was too strong.”
Questions died on the lips of all those present as they decided to shut up and allow Duncan to recount his story. The man let out a sigh before looking out into the distance, as though staring into the past.
“For centuries, I never even thought about having children. I was too focused on my advancement, in growing my power and assuring the position and strength of my clan. It was only once I started approaching the limits of Sovereign that I realized that, despite all my strength, I didn’t really have any legacy of my own.
“Sure, my family was prosperous, but I had no wife, no children. No way to pass on my wisdom and knowledge without risking my own life to the various factions within the clan. So, I decided to rectify that.
“Finding a wife was much harder than I’d realized, and despite there being many favorable matches, I just didn’t find myself taken with any of them. They only wanted me for my position and what it could do for them. Perhaps I was foolish and naive, hoping for an actual connection at my age, but I was persistent, and one day, it paid off.
“A woman, visiting from a clan of Beasts, came to my attention. She had no idea who I was, as her clan lived on another continent. She’d come here to study, and the two of us quickly formed a connection. Before I knew it, we were married, and just a year later, our Leroy was born.”
Duncan paused for a moment, forcing the smile that had begun to form on his lips into a tight line once more.
“He was a beautiful child and represented a future filled with more than just bloodshed. For the first couple of years, we were happy and content, but then, a strange thing happened. Leroy was just a toddler, barely into his second year, when his mother discovered the Trial gate. He entered before she could stop him.
“We waited for several hours, watching the space in fear. This was, after all, an impossibility. No one had ever heard of a child so young being deemed worthy. Despite all our fears, he emerged from the Trials with his White-Belt shining around his tiny waist. His Core shone a brilliant gold, and we knew we had birthed the greatest prodigy of our era.
“Leroy began growing quickly after that, advancing to Yellow before the age of three and reaching the peak of Orange just three months after his third birthday.
“We were proud at first, but kept his presence hidden from the outside, lest any of our rivals discover his incredible potential and attempt to assassinate him. He spent most of his time in isolation, with only his mother for company. I would visit from time to time to see how his training was going, but for the most part, I stayed away for fear of accidental discovery.
“By the age of four, Leroy was a Blue-Belt, and it was then that he started exhibiting some disturbing behavior. He began to grow violent and bloodthirsty, and started acting more like a Beast than a human. His training often devolved into deathmatches, and the Beasts we captured to pit against him were torn to shreds.
“We tried to work with him to contain his violent tendencies, but as he advanced, he only grew worse. By his fifth birthday, when he was reaching mid-Purple, we were finally forced to act.
“Someone had discovered Leroy’s presence and sent several people in to get rid of him. Of course, none of them really knew how strong he was, only that he had some serious potential. A group containing five Blue-Belts, led by a Purple, were sent in to kill him.
“His mother heard the commotion and came running, only to find our little boy covered in blood and gore, eating the Cores of the Martial Artists. The most shocking part of it all was that they were still alive. He’d just beaten them to the point where they could no longer move so that he could enjoy his meal.
“We’d always known Roy could have some Beast blood in him because of his mother, but neither of us could have predicted that he would turn into such a monster.
“So, after talking it over with her, the two of us decided that it would be safer to separate Leroy from his Core and send him far away, to a place where the Martial Artists were relatively weak. He would be able to grow up there, free of his bloodthirsty nature and separated from his ability to cause harm to others.
“It wasn’t an easy task to remove his Core, and had he already been at Red-Belt, it would have been impossible. But, with a bit of effort on my part and a massive sacrifice which left his mother weakened to the state of a mere Yellow-Belt, we managed to lock his Core away. As you can imagine, it looked nothing
like the shining gold it had once been…”
Duncan trailed off, reaching into his robes and removing a blood-red sphered, encased by a construct of forged Weakness Reiki. Small cracks shone across its surface, showing that the casing was losing its integrity, and judging by how much of the red light was leaking out, it was clear that the power within was being slowly siphoned out.
“I’m sure you’ve all guessed what’s happening by now,” Duncan said, tucking the Core back into his robes. “Leroy somehow managed to get his hands on another Core, and when he advanced past Green, his body was finally able to handle the resurgence of power. His spirit began to call out to it, and he is now subconsciously pulling it back to rejoin his current power.
“While the advancements you’ve seen in battle were temporary, they will become permanent given enough time, and I worry that along with it, his violent and bestial tendencies will return as well.”
Hermit mulled all of this over, his mind racing as all of the missing pieces finally began clicking into place. Roy’s Trials had only given him a single Path when most others had at least a couple of choices. Their inability to sense his Core was because they were all looking in the wrong place. His presence in the Outer Edge, along with his mother’s death also made sense.
There were still plenty of unanswered questions, and he turned his attention back on Aika, only to feel her vanish.
It seemed that the others had realized it as well, as Duncan suddenly whirled, his eyes going wide. Before anyone could say anything, a familiar man stepped from thin air, his presence looming over them like a vast shadow.
“Not to worry, they’re all safe and sound,” Azure said, giving them a pleasant smile.
“Who are you, and where did you take my son?” Duncan demanded, crossing his arms and glaring up at the man.
“Oh, Roy is perfectly safe, I assure you. And, speaking of which…”
Azure made a swiping motion and pulled his hand back, the silver construct containing Roy’s original Core clutched in his hand.
Duncan seemed shocked for a moment, then he became angry. Power blasted from his body as he unveiled his Core, and for the first time, Hermit could feel just how close the man was to advancement. He’d thought Duncan was perhaps a few months away, but from the way his Core felt, he was ready to advance now.
“Return that to me at once!” the man roared.
“I don’t think I will,” Azure replied casually, then tucked the construct into his robes.
“You have no idea who you’re dealing with,” Duncan said, ramping up his power.
“Well, if there’s going to be a fight, I’m game,” Ikari said with a grin. “I’m much more interested in this Leroy now that I know the real story.”
What she didn’t say – what everyone was thinking – was that whoever got their hands on that Core would likely be able to sway Roy to their side, and if he was truly as monstrous as Duncan described, then he would be an asset to any clan.
Pelata removed his veil as well, the light of greed in his eyes. He’d had Roy in his grasp, assuming him to be some all-powerful Eternal. But in reality, he was just a wild monster, needing to be tamed, and if Pelata knew how to do anything, it was how to tame a Beast.
“This is all very cute, but I don’t have time for all of this,” Azure said. “I would really prefer it if you just stopped.”
“Give me the Core!” Duncan roared, then he, Ikari, and Pelata all launched themselves at the man.
Hermit wasn’t stupid enough to try and attack him, so he simply stood back and watched. He’d always been curious about this man’s power, and now he would finally get to see a measure of it. But, instead of retaliating with some massive attack, Azure merely spoke.
“I said, stop.”
All three Sovereigns, some of the most powerful Martial Artists in the world, froze in place, their Cores forcibly suppressed and leaving them unable to do so much as twitch an eyelid.
“Now, I can assure you that Roy is fine. He’s just going on a journey of self-discovery and should be back whenever. In the meantime, I guess I should warn you that one of the Ancient Cavern Beasts is waking up. If you want to know more, I’d recommend going to look in the Burning Hills. I hear the Sovereign of the Sanshoo clan is having a bit of trouble. Tata!”
Azure winked out of existence, and the Sovereigns were free to move once more. They all stared at the space Azure had occupied only a moment before, then, as one, all turned to Hermit.
“Who the hell was that and what was he?” Ikari demanded.
Hermit didn’t know what to say. Anyone who had the power to lock three Sovereigns in place using only a single word had to at least have the power of a Scion. With someone of Duncan’s power, it would have taken a powerful Scion. But Hermit was fairly certain that Azure was far more than a mere Scion. More than that, he’d offered them some truly troubling information.
One of the Ancient Cavern Beasts was rising. These were Beasts who’d outlived all the others and finally settled down to rest while they processed their power. Every so often, they would rise to feast once more, leaving untold destruction in their wake. No one could stand up to them, and even if all four Scions pooled their power together, they wouldn’t be able to do much more than slow the Beast down.
Thankfully, there were only two of these creatures, and they didn’t rise often. But, if one truly were rising in Sanshoo territory, there would be signs that could easily be verified and needed to be checked.
“I don’t know much about him,” Hermit admitted, “but I can tell you that he never lies. An Ancient Cavern Beast could mean the end of the Seven Great Clans as we know them, and right now, we need to focus our efforts on ensuring the survival of Safaia. We need to call a meeting of the Sovereigns, and we need to do it now.”
The others could sense how serious he was and knew that he wasn’t lying. They would still want to check, but once they confirmed the terrible truth, they would have no choice but to call a meeting of the Sovereigns.
Roy and the others would need to fend for themselves for the time being, because right now, there were much bigger problems to worry about.
***
Kaeru and Violet stood on the edge of a fiery cliffside, Fire Essence spinning up from the lake of molten stone below. Neither of them knew how they’d gotten here. One moment, they were running toward Reign City, and the next, they were here. Worse, the two of them could sense it, the vast presence stretching out like an ocean from a creature of unfathomable power and destruction.
“I don’t like this,” Violet said, moving a bit closer to him, as though he could protect her from the monstrous presence within.
“Neither do I,” Kaeru said, wishing that he could be strong enough to make a difference. “Neither do I.”
***
Roy and the others stepped through the portal and into a darkening forest. Ferry’s nose began twitching immediately and he felt Geon stirring in his chest.
“Roy, this place smells like home,” Ferry said, her overly large eyes flicking around and taking everything in.
Roy opened his sense and felt at the ambient Essence in the air.
“This place is familiar,” Geon said. “I feel like we’ve been here before.”
“We have,” Roy replied, feeling his muscles beginning to tighten.
“Roy! Your Belt!” Aika exclaimed.
Roy looked down quickly, the irrational fear that his Belt would be regressing back to Orange rearing its ugly head. Instead, he found himself looking at a Belt that was now a solid, shining Blue-Belt. More than that, Roy felt a solidity and finality that had been previously lacking. This Belt would not be changing back again. He was a Blue-Belt, and he’d somehow advanced without needing to take a test.
“Well, that’s one more mystery to add to the pile,” Roy said, running his hand over the Belt.
He didn’t feel any different, as his Core had already expanded exponentially, but the knowledge that he was a Blue-Belt and finally
on the same level as Aika was oddly comforting. He hadn’t really passed a test, so the feeling was bittersweet, as though he hadn’t earned it.
“You fought a Scion and didn’t die. I can’t think of a more suitable test for someone on my Path.”
The voice of the Spirit sounded in his mind, but just as quickly as her massive presence appeared, it vanished, leaving him feeling content.
That feeling vanished a moment later, when he felt someone enter the field of his Spirit Sense. The Essence was familiar, and it flowed in a way he would never have been able to forget.
“I know where we are,” Roy said as his suspicions were finally confirmed.
“You do?” Aika asked, looking in the direction of the Martial Artist.
“It would be hard not to,” Roy said, as Power Qi began coursing through his channels. “This was where I spent most of my life, where I grew up. Where I was treated worse than garbage, day in and day out.”
His eyes narrowed as the other Martial Artist finally drew close enough to sense them and turned the other way to run.
“We’re in the territory of my old clan. We are in the Waterwood.”
Roy’s techniques
Essence:
Physical: Exploding Fist
Movement: Shockwave
Armorer: Trace
full-body: Undiscovered
Projected: Void Sphere
Terrain: Constellation
Containment: Overflow
full-area: Undiscovered
Conqueror: Undiscovered
Qi:
Physical: Exploding Fist-Strike
Movement: Shockwave Airstep
Armorer: Trace Hex
full-body: Unnamed
Projected: Void Sphere-Pulse
Terrain: Constellation Cluster
Containment: Overflow-Plus
full-area: Unnamed
Conqueror: Undiscovered
