Howdy! This is my first post so I’m not AMAZING at writing yet. I want to eventually become an author, but I can’t do that without practice, so that’s why I’m here. Also, it’s a tad gruesome and a bit violent but I don’t really know the limits of writing here… I’d appreciate it if you’d leave constructive criticism! Just please don’t be a jerk. Enjoy!
Kassian rubbed at the dimly glowing crystals implanted into the back of his hands, still violently stinging from the recent surgery. Nervously, his eyes drifted across the room, the torches emitted an oppressive heat, the walls were dusty and cracked, and the line of men and women he stood in were all irritable and nervous. A lone bead of sweat leaked down his back and he stared at the stone brick walls that entrapped him. Kassian shifted his weight from foot to foot nervously, suddenly very aware of himself.
He shook his head and feigned determination that he certainly did not feel as he smoothed his slightly curly black hair and stood a little straighter, continuing to look straight ahead. Suddenly, the tapping of shoes on stone resounded down the hall to his right. Those around him instantly tensed and the once steady thump within his chest shifted to a resounding stomp.
The tall man waltzed into the small room and stopped in front of them, clearing his throat. Kassian recognized this man as High Mage Aleric, a highly experienced mage and seasoned war veteran for the Knights of Arymandias, the very guild Kassian had dedicated his life to ever since he was a boy. Some of his very first memories were of the kind souls that ran the guild, training him and preparing him for the world. The generous people who fed him and gave him a home when his mother and father left him at a doorstep.
From behind Aleric, a short man in a light gray gambeson struggled with a wooden cart overflowing with weapons and various types of armor, ranging from an Elven Talibong to a Dwarven war pick. With no small amount of effort, the sweaty man, who he now realized was a dwarf, heaved the cart into a corner after hunching over and breathing heavily.
High Mage Aleric loomed over all of them, his small beady eyes meeting each of them and sniffing irritably. His long crimson cloak just barely draped along the floor behind him to allow movement. His body was wrapped with armor such as a black gambeson and a dark burgundy brigandine with various small bits of metal. He crossed his arms and nodded over to a corner, “Put your weapons over there so we may begin.” He snapped. They all jumped at his sudden order and rushed to obey. Kassian quickly unbuckled his belt and dropped his sword- a very simple, strong steel blade.
Seemingly satisfied, High Mage Aleric uncrossed his arms and began his speech. “As you all know, you twelve have been specifically chosen to be tested for trace amounts of mana in your system. I will perform a test on each of you, let my mana flow into the magical conduits implanted in your hands. These conduits will, theoretically of course, enhance your natural magical power. If all goes well, you will be an elite squad of battlemages…” he stopped, “Any questions?”
The twelve shook their heads almost in sync, with very few uttering a muttered: No, sirs. High Mage Aleric mumbled an irritated “very well”, under his breath and he started his test.
Down the line, he held his hand out and Caelum, whom he was about to test, stood there dumbly. “Give me your hands, boy!” Aleric snapped. With Caelum’s conduits in hand, he placed his other hand over the glowing implant. Caelum flinched and suddenly, the conduit began to glow much brighter. It got brighter and brighter until it was almost unbearable and rays of brilliant white light shot from his hands in blinding beams.
Aleric seemed impressed as he gave a grudging nod. A small flicker of flame danced around Caelum’s fingertips as Aleric continued to push mana through the conduit.
Aleric, it looked like, gave one last surge of mana into the conduits within Caelum’s hands, and a small flame formed in this palm. Caelum looked in awe at the fantastic flame within his grasp and twisted it whilst it shifted along his fingers, sparks dancing wildly.
Aleric let out a sound of curiosity and released the conduits. The flame stopped, it’s only fuel being cut off. “Interesting,” the mage mumbled, “it would seem as though the conduits have not bonded as well as we had hoped.” Caelum gave him a look of puzzlement and Aleric continued.
“Ideally, your flames would look like so,” the battlemage held out his hand and flames erupted from his arms, licking along his sleeve and engulfing his hand in pure heat. “The entire purpose of the implants is more destructive magic and easier channeling. Very well, you are dismissed for now. You may wait over there,” Aleric said dismissively, pointing to the wall near the overflowing cart of armor and weapons, “you’ll be of use, but the failure is disappointing nonetheless.”
Aleric quickly moved on to the next in line, Kassian did not know this woman’s name, but she wasn’t very successful. Much like Caelum, she could only muster very little magic, but this time, droplets of water formed from thin air, and the temperature of the room dropped, only to return to normal when Aleric removed his hand from her implants. The next, another woman, was much more successful, however.
The woman, Tyria, stuck out her hands without being asked and Aleric grasped her hands as she winced. Aleric closed his eyes and appeared to begin channeling his mana into the conduits and light erupted from the crystals, but not like before… they were brighter, denser, and far more blinding. Around the implants, her skin let out a puff of smoke as golden lines raced up her arm, leaving numerous symbols in the elven tongue. The crystal within her hands changed into a lovely amber the color of honey. A tear ran down her face as she screamed and the symbols had reached her upper forearm, still racing as her mana carved its way through her body. Tyria let out a yelp of pain as the room shook, dust and pebbles rose from the ground and the cart of weapons rattled precariously as a sword tumbled over the edge and made its way to Tyria. Aleric had a strange grin splayed across his face, the previous failures forgotten as one of his students was reshaped into a glorious weapon.
Finally, the screams stopped and the room stopped shaking, leaving a disheveled Tyria to fall to her rear in exhaustion. Two swords and a shield lay on the cobbled floor, no longer vibrating and clawing their way toward the exhausted woman. The lines had stopped near the middle of her elbow, leaving runes and lines in their wake. With a sniffle, Tyria rose from the floor and looked in awe at the runes and tattoos that now covered her arms and hands. The golden runes and lines appeared to reflect light, much like the luster of a precious metal. Two circles were engraved into her palms, which had a strange symbol, and they ran up into the implants surrounded by small symbols and a diamond outline around the conduits.
Aleric smiled. However, it was not a kind smile, more like a mad scientist’s. Thankfully, he caught himself, and his iconic sour demeanor returned. “Excellent,” he said, “you may wait over there as well, you will make an excellent mage.”
Tyria’s smug grin was beyond obnoxious as she waltzed past them, practically skipping despite the obvious pain. Aleric paid her no notice and moved further down the line, charging his mana into several others. Kassian paid them no heed, however, his nerves were far too bothersome.
With a wince, he realized he was digging his nails into his conduit and grimaced as a drop of crimson flowed from it like a weak stream. The crystal implant glowed faintly in the torchlight, barely enough to notice, but if he looked closely, he could see countless runes and enchantments placed on the cloudy white stone. With no small amount of effort, he shrugged off his worries, saving them for later. He didn’t have time to fret.
Aleric motioned for Farus’ hand and he obeyed, letting his palm face towards the ceiling. Aleric pressed down on the conduit gently, causing Farus to wince and crimson to seep out of the conduit in fat droplets. With a visible amount of effort, Aleric channeled mana into Farus’ implants and they grew brighter.
The crystal grew brighter and sparks of lightning formed in Farus’ fingers and a mystic wind filled the room. Crackles of thunder boomed within the room and Kassian’s ears popped as the air fluctuated. Slowly, smoke rose from the implant and the skin around it darkened and then turned a strange grey color. The smell of burning flesh permeated the room and Kassian was forced to pinch his nose shut from the horrendous stench.
The lines shot all over his arm like lightning, leaving glyphs and symbols, they reached his hand and formed an ancient glyph, making the crystals embedded into his hands glow brighter and their color shift to that of an electric blue. The lighting sparked off of Farus’ hand now, leaving arcs of burning energy flying from his palms. With one last pulse of mana, Aleric released his hold of Farus and turned his attention to Kassian.
Aleric’s cold, calculating eyes scanned him and he held out his hand for the conduits. Kassian obeyed immediately.
Aleric pressed down on the implants far harder than he would’ve liked and shut his eyes. Kassian could feel the dull thrum of mana from within the man, it wriggled and condensed within his hand and shot into the conduit like strikes of lightning. He let out a yelp, but he couldn’t move, he was frozen in place as this burning and freezing sensation took control of his senses. Aleric must have been low on energy, but he was putting every last drop into this. The conduit stung within his skin like a swarm of angry hornets injecting boiling acid into his veins as the feeling spread all over his body.
His mere yelp intensified into a scream as the room grew darker and wisps of darkness grasped at the thin air around him. Slowly, the skin around his implants darkened, forming a black diamond shape. The cloudy crystal within his hands darkened into pitch-black darkness. From this shape, lines, and glyphs crawled up and down his arm like snakes. The burning sensation was so intense he felt light-headed and he could no longer hear his screams. His eyes were now slammed shut and his face was twisted into one of severe pain. Aleric’s mana flowed over him and shot all over his arms from his conduits. It gathered in his hands and circles formed with various other shapes inside of them.
The tendrils of wispy darkness condensed into stygian tentacles which writhed from around his legs and the shadows crawled up the walls like spiders.
Lines and glyphs formed past his bicep and onto his shoulder, making more circles and filling them with similar shapes and glyphs as the ones on his hands. The burn grew stronger and then stopped altogether, replaced with aches, stings, stabs, and a strange tingle. Aleric released him and he fell to the floor with his eyelids still clamped closed, nose congested, and eyes puffy.
By the gods, please let this be over, he thought grimly.
And it was. Kassian lay there for several seconds before even attempting to open his eyes. He wanted so badly to just lay there without worry, and maybe, just maybe, the aches and burns would fade to a manageable throb. His head was throbbing and within the deepest corner of his mind was a deep stabbing feeling. Whispers danced in his ears from mouths unknown to him and teased him into awakening. Unfortunately, they did not fade and he opened his irritated and puffy eyelids with no small amount of grimace.
The room was practically aflame with candlelight and the ceiling spun slightly as a wave of nausea and pain washed over him in an all-encompassing tsunami, causing him to squeeze his eyes shut once more. Mysterious whispers danced in his ears from mouths unknown to him, luring him into a more conscious state.
“Excellent,” a cold, slithering voice hissed from what seemed afar. A boot lashed out at his side and his pain doubled and he let out a yelp. "Get up!
Kassian’s eyes snapped open and he sat up, albeit woozily. The group of new mages were spread across the wall closest to him with wide, wild eyes and Aleric bent over to get a closer look at the markings on his body. His cold, calculating eyes scrutinized every bit of his body as if he were an unexpected result from an experiment. Well… he technically was.
“You are,” Aleric began, almost as if he was searching for the correct words to use. “…An unexpected result,” he finished with a satisfied nod.
In a moment of uncharacteristic kindness, Aleric held out a hand and eased Kassian up and off the spinning floor. Without warning, Aleric let go as he had risen to his full height and Kassian stumbled in place as the room continued to spin and his gut churned unforgivingly.
Steadying himself he set his eyes on Aleric as he cleared his throat from the center of the room. His gaze danced from person to person until settling on Kassian and then his gaze flowed elsewhere. “Now that we are finally done with the experiments, we have greater knowledge of what true success looks like. You will be choosing a weapon from the cart now, as your old ones will simply no longer be of use to you,” he said lazily.
“Iron dampens and nullifies mana, so any sort of steel will simply serve to weaken your powers… we wouldn’t want that,” he droned on. “In addition, you will be given armor which is not composed of any sort of iron at a later date, are we clear?”
With very few mumbled ‘Yes sirs’, he waved his hand dismissively and the new mages began digging through the cart of weapons. The short-statured dwarf must have taken the elf back to the infirmary as he was once again back in the testing room, albeit in the corner so as to not get trampled. Deciding to avoid the crowd, he hobbled over to the man who managed to find a way out of the mob.
“Excuse me, m’lord,” Kassian muttered with some difficulty due to his dizziness and aching body, “what are these weapons made of?” The man wiped his brow with his forearm and gave Kassian a slight smile.
"Nae! Ye dun’ need tuh’ call me that, laddie! " He bellowed with a surprisingly powerful voice for such a small man. “They’re made o’ selverus an’ silver alloy, lad,” he explained, his dwarvish accent thick. “Let’s ye dammt wizards ta’ use 'yer magic. 'Dunno why though.”
Kassian nodded and thanked the weaponsmith who shrugged it off with a hearty laugh and a wave of his thickly calloused hands. Through the corner of his eye, the crowd of mages had backed off so he said his thanks once again and gingerly made his way to the cart.
Kassian’s gaze settled on a pair of gorgeous blades with particularly ornate handles that were tied together gently with a piece of cloth. The sheathed blades were a bit longer than his old blade. Thinner too. Gingerly, he grabbed the hilts and slowly unsheathed the swords. They had gorgeous handles with upward-sweeping quillions, curling wires of metal, and finger rings for indexing the blade. Near the ricasso, where the blade was dulled, lie side rings and a knuckle bow for added protection. Along the blade were various intricate runes, most likely from the ancient tongue. They were dark grey in color and practically glowed with power.
“They’re 'alled sideswords,” the dwarf said from behind him, “They’re like rapiers, but wit’ a thicker an’ shorter blade.”
The sword itself was fairly light, maybe the weight of an average sword, despite its thin blade and delicate-looking features, but the hilt and the steady taper to the blade made it easy to orient the point.
They were perfect, agile weapons made for swift thrusts but heavy enough to allow devastating cuts and slashes. Glorious machines made for efficiency and nothing less.
But what would he need it for?
Fire and bloodshed. As far as the eye could see. All-encompassing violence just for the fun of it. It was sickening to Kassian, not only because of the innocent lives taken, but because they believed they were serving a just cause.
His eyes narrowed as flames raged around him and thunder cackled at his misery as cold arrows of rain bombarded the earth. His grip tightened around his swords and his implants stung ferociously like a swarm of pissed hornets, prickling and roiling with anger and venomous intent. Shadows deepened and undulated like grass swept by a strong breeze, with tentacles and angry wisps swirling at his feet.
From the rubble, several figures emerged dazedly with hateful mugs and deadly intent, but he couldn’t care in the slightest. He had his eyes set on one, maybe two, people.
Aleric, the High Mage for the Knights of Arymandias and a conniving bastard to boot. The man, if one could call him that, who gave the order to destroy a town of innocents for the Gods and power. The arrogant, power-hungry, and calculating right-hand man of the Archon, the ruler of his guild- no, cult.
Kassian had endured years of vigorous training and intense regimen to hone his body into a gorgeous weapon to do the gods’ bidding, only to serve innocent lives on a golden platter for corrupt entities in the heavens. His body and mind were tough and calloused to endure rough punishment and then he was treated as though he was a mere lab experiment.
Rage prickled in his gut, emotions surging to life and begging for release. He had felt rage before, and he had welcomed it, it gave him strength for his training in exchange for dulling his wits. But he couldn’t afford that now, not with an army of trained warriors against him. Rage was but a tool for him to control and use at will, not an aid.
He took a step forward, careful to not step on any corpses. His adversaries tensed and many forced their magic to flare to life or fell into a stance with their weapons.
Many hateful mugs glared upon him, with naught a pair of soft eyes within the crowd. But only one stood out, Aleric’s piercing glare settled upon his and a snarl reached his lips. The look was befitting of a man like him, a crazed killer.
“I was mistaken,” Aleric hissed from afar, “Oh, so mistaken.” He chuckled hatefully, venom seeping into his words. “YOU WERE A RISK! A RISK I NEVER SHOULD HAVE TAKEN, THE ARCHON SAID YOU WERE WORTH IT, BUT NOW I’M BEGINNING TO DOUBT THE VALIDITY OF HIS CLAIM!”
His mask had slipped and the facade of control and power had left his face, leaving only a wicked, spiteful man. He was cracking.
Aleric’s eyes matched that of a starved cockatrice, hungry, desperate, and soulless. Something in his eyes shifted and suddenly his flames flared to life. Fire shot from his hands with a roar and barreled toward Kassian.
Kassian threw his arms up into the air hurriedly and shadows leaped from beneath him to shield him from the attack. Those who remained from the devastation joined in, magical attacks bombarded Kassian and the shield shuddered as black wisps raged and faded. Various elements shot from the hands of wizards, violently impacting his shield as it slowly wilted and faded. His implants stung violently and heat like no other blazed on his skin.
With a roar, he expanded what was left of the shield, reinforcing it with his mana and the darkness around him, making a sphere of inky black shadows. Forcing his will and mana through the conduits in his hands, he made the sphere explode, smoke-like shadows devastating the area and pushing attacks back.
Many of his attackers were flung back, although few stood strong, like defiant statues. Aleric had a mad grin splayed across his face and shouted an order to attack once again. Kassian had no choice but to retreat to safety.
He stumbled as he began to run, magical attacks zooming past him and fireballs from Aleric flying far too close for comfort. His eyes landed upon a broken stone wall and he leaped for it, skidding across the wet cobblestone as attacks continued to fly past him.
His inexperience with his magic would be his downfall, Aleric had trained them hard since their magic had awakened, but it had only been mere weeks. His main talent lay in weaponry, but they couldn’t be more different. The only advantage Kassian had was the others were similarly lacking magical control. Beside Aleric, of course.
He examined his resources but came up with little. The armor he was wearing was only a gambeson with some leather armor. He had his swords, elegant blades of course, but he doubted their ability to perform well against mages.
A particularly strong fireball impacted the stone wall and it shook violently, stones tumbled off and Kassian’s time was almost up.
He stared intensely at his blades, their sharpness impeccable. With a small huff, he pumped a small amount of mana into the blade and shadows leaped from around him and clung to the blades like a second skin. The swords were now pitch black and their runes were glowing a palatial grey color. Wispy blackness floated off the swords in tendrils like smoke and the ebbing of mana caused a rhythmic beat within his stinging conduits. Perfect
Keeping mana flowing through the swords, he lifted a finger and let a small, wispy orb of inky substance form as he hurled it over the wall where he resided. Crouching behind another stone wall, he launched another orb, leading to a yelp from his adversaries and then a scream. Kassian couldn’t help but smile.
Shadow magic had a special effect on living creatures. When an attack hits, the shadow latches onto the opponent and slowly starts sapping its energy and causing any living thing to slowly wilt and wither into nothing. On humans, this is particularly useful, as it very quickly causes one’s opponent to begin to wither away. It gets slower as time goes on and may eventually stop, but there is only one true cure.
Shadow’s polar opposite. Light can instantly cease the wilting and completely heal the affected area. Luckily, none of his adversaries could wield Light.
As Kassian snuck around, he kept the mana flowing into the blade. Despite his abnormally large mana reserves due to the conduits, he had already used far too much for his liking.
With murder on his mind, Kassian emerged from a dilapidated building and leaped at his opponent.
The stygian blades stabbed through the belly of his enemy with little resistance, leaving the man gasping like a beached fish as he dealt the final blow. Just as he removed the shadowy blades, two more opponents emerged from the ruins and attacked Kassian.
Sparks flew as shadow met blade and the two swayed in a dance of death. One of his opponents, a man he did not know, stabbed at him with his longsword and forced Kassian to side-step whilst also parrying with one blade and stabbing him with the other, leaving a river of blood streaming from his unarmored thigh in bursts.
Kassian turned to face his other opponent only to be met with a large chunk of earth flying through the air at frightening speeds. The rock met his shoulder and Kassian was flung backward like a child’s toy.
The opponent he stabbed had recovered enough to rise to his full height and glare hatefully as he hefted his blade. The Earth mage, a woman he knew as Alice, conjured another attack from the earth.
Kassian rose once again and readied his blades by falling into his stance and coating them with more darkness. Alice launched a stalactite at Kassian, but he ducked and rushed at his other opponent, blades outstretched.
The swords caught the man in his throat and shoulder as crimson swelled from the wound like water through a broken dam. Kassian spun on his heel and ducked as more stalactites were launched at him. With his sword outstretched, he prepared a blast from one of his fingers and launched it at the woman, only for it to be blocked by an earthy shield erected from the ground.
He dashed closer and slashed at the woman with his blades, shadows leaping from his swords in an arcing motion. The inky slices cut through the armor she was wearing like butter and she let out a scream as the shadow gnawed at her flesh.
It was Aleric’s turn.
Kassian marched from the ruins of a home, blades bloodied and conscience dirtied. They were merely following orders, but he had to put a stop to the Knights. For all the lives he had inadvertently ruined, for all the people he had killed, he needed to make it right.
Others were waiting outside, but he paid them no heed. There was only one man he sought. Aleric glared from across the battlefield, sword drawn and sheathed in flame. Extinguished embers shifted to raging infernos and the flame on Aleric’s blade burned brighter with rage.
His reserves were almost exhausted and his energy was lacking, he needed to end this battle now. With all the strength he could muster, Kassian leaped forward in a sprint and met Aleric head-on. Flame and shadow met with raging sparks as the shadows shied away from the light the flame was emitting.
Aleric smirked and the brightness grew tenfold as the flames roiled and roared. Kassian’s inky blade faded to a miserable gray and Aleric stabbed at his chest. Kassian parried it to the side with one blade and riposted with the other. Lunging forward, he slashed at Aleric’s midriff only to meet air.
Aleric held his blade out straight and pointed it directly at Kassian, flame licking at the blade in fat swirls of fire. Suddenly, a blaze erupted from the tip and launched at Kassian who had to roll out of the line of fire. Aleric erupted in a fit of cackles as the flame grew white-hot and air distorted into whorling fits of heat.
Kassian pumped the last of his mana into the blade and the sword was covered in stygian essence once again. He sliced at the air, much like he did with Alice, and darkness erupted from the blade, leaping off the sword and forming devastating arcs of shadow that drained the light from the flame. The dark slice met Aleric’s flaming blade and sent it flying through the air spinning end over end.
It was then those who remained intervened. Blasts of flame and slices of wind sped through the air, barreling past him and striking the ground whilst kicking up an eruption of fire and dust. He fell into his stance and nimbly rolled away from a wave of earthen spikes erupting from the ground.
He dashed forward, ready to strike. He approached his first opponent far faster than he would have liked and stabbed at his gut only for him to slide out of the way and knock his blade aside. More blasts of flame blazed past with few grazing him and leaving an uncomfortable sting along his body.
Kassian lunged forward and sliced at his opponent’s throat, leaving the man a gurgling mess as he rolled away from another blast of roiling heat and spike of stone.
Kassian muttered a curse as he rose to his full height and rushed toward another target. The woman unsheathed her scimitar and met him with a growl. He broke from the bind and sliced at her hands, the only open target.
His blades met her flesh and she let out a yelp, loosening her grip on her curved blade. He parried her blade to the side and it flew from her grip. In a last-ditch effort, she conjured a powerful blast of flame. The powerful fire erupted from her fingertips and a white-hot tongue of flame licked at his breastplate. The wave of heat knocked him back and singed his hair, leaving a foul smell in the air.
Burns stinging ferociously, he powered through the pain and slit her throat, leaving a thin red line as she choked on her blood. Kassian spun on his heel, blades at the ready. His eyes scrutinized the ruins, searching for any survivors.
Only one remained.
Aleric stood there, a shattered visage of his former, grandiose self. It was perfect. Just what he deserved. What they all deserved, including himself.
Kassian hobbled forward, his wounds and burns finally catching up to him. He stopped just a swords-length from Aleric. Close enough, he thought.
A blank mask covered his face, glossy and bloodshot eyes shot around wildly behind an emotionless mask and his head shot up.
“The Archon was right,” he murmured.
“This power you wield…” he began. “It was worth the cost.”
Slice.
