Rogues: Strife

[Angelglory]

In search of spreading the fact that I write, and since having more readers would be a plus, I've decided to post the story that I'm writing here.

So here it is: Rogues of Strife. My inspiration for this story, as well as others I've yet to write, is the Tales of series. I'll provide a bit of insightive on the backdrop and other stuff in this first post.
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The world of Reidena is literally Heaven and Hell on Earth. One side, Elysion, is governed by the benevolent Goddess Bellona, who is just, fair, and continues to maintain peace among mankind. Another side, Tartarus, is governed by the wicked Goddess Enyo, who rules over the Demons, whom mankind sees as despicable creatures that live for total chaos. Nevertheless, despite how wicked Goddess Enyo is, she wouldn’t dare make a move as long as Bellona and her deity guardian, Mars, are present. Without a choice, Enyo simply quietly plots and watches until Bellona slips up, somehow. Meanwhile, worshippers of the Goddess Bellona host a festival every year to celebrate her guidance. Every tenth year, a tournament is hosted where the most powerful of fighters gather all to win the Goddess Bellona’s hand in marriage. Still, as each year passes, nobody has yet to defeat the final opponent: the deity and personal bodyguard of the Goddess Bellona, Mars. This year, however; things will be different as a young mercenary is unknowingly signed up for the competition...

Hey there, name's Daavis; Daavis Winchester. I'm currently the most wanted man in all of Reidena. Here's what happened:

Without my knowledge, I was entered into the Tournament of the Goddess. Once you've been entered, there's no going back either. With no choice but to compete, that's exactly what I did and more. I beat everyone sent at me, no problem. But then comes the big part... I even defeated the Mars chick! Apparently she hasn't been beaten up until now. Declared the winner of the tournament, I go up to receive my prize for winning. But then I found out what the prize was...to m-marry…the Goddess?! Sure, she's attractive, but I just wasn't ready to settle down anytime soon. So I said...

"I appreciate the offer, but I'll have to decline." And then I left. That was the biggest mistake of my life! The Followers of Bellona got stark-raving pissed and demanded me to be brought back for a punishment. Hell no! A bounty was quickly put up for bringing me in; the sum alone would make your jaw hit the floor!

So that's it-- Oh crap! Here they come again! Gotta run!

l:.CHARACTERS.:l
Main Characters
Name: Daavis Winchester
Age: 19
Height: 5' 10"
Gender: Male
Race: Human
Background: Daavis Winchester is a mercenary, a damn good one at that. He left home at 17 and went to train with a sword master who taught him how to perfect the art of swordfighting. Since then, he's been escorting caravans and bringing in bounties left and right until one day...he finds out that he's been entered into the Tournament of Bellona. Unable to withdraw, he competes and dominates the competition, including the mighty warrior Mars. But to his surprise, and dismay, he found out that the prize for winning the tournament was to marry the Goddess Bellona. Being the kind of guy he is, he declines and bails...And that little mistake sets off this whole story's events. Daavis would rather not be tied down; he'd rather be able to go where he wants, whenever he wants. He's a bit of a goof at times, but head-steady enough to know what needs to be done. The swordsman also has a strange ability that defies the very laws of physics…
Appearance: Daavis Winchester

Name: Fioel Letherwane
Age: 18
Height: 5' 5"
Gender: Female
Race: Human
Background: Fioel Letherwane is an honest thief, meaning she'll admit that she's mugging you no problem. She loves money even more than a rich person does. One day, when trying to raid a caravan, she crossed paths with Daavis and her thieving was thwarted. Rather than turn her in, Daavis let her go as a favor. Despising being in someone's debt, Fioel tried her hardest to repay Daavis. When the swordsman is branded as 'the most wanted man in the world', Fioel decided to help him to finally get even. Although now she'll use the fact that she could turn him in to get what she wants: more money. Fioel isn't one to care about others feelings, unless they have money. She's a bit cold-hearted, but secretly she has a weakness for cats.
Appearance: PENDING

Name: Oliver Spenly
Age: 14
Height: 5' 3"
Gender: Male
Race: Half Breed: Human & Elf
Background: Oliver Spenly is a teen who was raised by his nurse/caretaker, Bishoujo Miyuki, while his parents traveled the world. He was deaf as a child, making his speaking skills somewhat behind other people his age. Oliver would rather sit in a library and read a good book than go outside. He's socially behind, often becoming clumsy and nervous when thrown into sudden situations. Since he's spent much more of his life with Miyuki than with his real parents, he's more attached to her than them. But he still loves his parents, and is concerned that they haven't returned for almost a full year now...
Appearance: Oliver Spenly

Name: Bishoujo Miyuki
Age: 32
Height: 5' 9"
Gender: Female
Race: Human?
Background: Bishoujo Miyuki has been employed by Oliver's parents since Oliver was born. She took care of him and raised him while his parents were away on frequent business trips. With her prolonged employment in taking care of Oliver, she eventually was invited to live with the family. She is known to sometimes make flirtatious jokes and odd implications, much to Oliver's dismay, but she means no harm. Miyuki is very down-to-earth, aloof, one with the wind, or however you want to put it. She is graceful and has a mysterious air about her that seems to attract all kinds of men.
Appearance: Bishoujo Miyuki

Name: Tairo
Age: 17
Height: 5' 8"
Gender: Male
Race: Catugal
Background: Tairo is a Catugal venturing out to the outside world for the first time. Since the Catugal were shunned for using steam technology and not mana technology, Tairo is curious as to why this is and wants to find out. Of course, since he has no idea how life is outside the Catugal colony, he can seem a bit air-headed. His huge gauntlets are steam-powered and offer a lot of power than normal gauntlets. Tairo is a bit behind on what's going in the world, and will make comments how things seem out-dated to him. He tries to keep in high spirits at all times, and often can lift anybody out of a bad mood.
Appearance: Tairo (Concept Art)

Name: Berthi Wandain
Age: 40
Height: 5' 6"
Gender: Female
Race: Elf
Background: Berthi Wandain is often referred to as the 'Big Mistress of Magic'. Her skills with mana manipulation is top-notch and considered the best in the entire world; she also happens to be filthy rich. While she does make donations to various funds, she also uses her money in a not-so-charitable fashion (interpret as you may). Berthi is a typical aristocratic woman: snooty, stuck-up and egotistical. However, she doesn't leave debts unpaid and can be surprisingly cooperative at times. She isn't above using her name and money as a threat, but this is because she seems to have enemies...
Appearance: PENDING

Name: Edgar Obsidon
Age: 28
Height: 6' 0"
Gender: Male
Race: Human
Class: Ranger
Weapon: Inventions
Background: Edgar Obsidon is a traveling merchant with no limit to what he'll sell. He can make a wise-crack from out of nowhere and sweet-talk to a lady like no other, but business is always on his mind. He sees Fioel as an easy target for lots of sales. He fights with various contraptions from a cross-bow to a spring-loaded boxing glove. Edgar can see a customer a mile away, and is quite the fast-talker. He's been known to try to make a sale even in the most awkward of moments.
Appearance: PENDING

Supporting Characters
Name: Bellona
Background: Bellona, while the Goddess that governs Elysion, she does not force conflict onto the world unless it is the destiny that the Goddess of Fate weaves. Faithful to the Goddess of Fate, Bellona believes all things happen for a reason. While her followers in the world are enraged by Daavis refusal to marry Bellona, the Goddess was not offended as it was all part of fate...
Appearance: PENDING

Name: Enyo
Background: Enyo is the polar opposite of Bellona, as she loves bloodshed and hell-raising. Manipulative, cruel, and hates pretty much everything good; She also plays the role of seductress quite well. She also happens to be the ruler of the Demons and governs Tartarus. She stole the throne out from under the previous ruler with her feminine wiles. However, just ruling the Demons isn't enough for her...
Appearance: Goddess Enyo

Name: Mars
Background: Mars is Bellona's personal guardian, and is the last opponent in the tournament that Daavis defeats. Her precious pride ripped apart, she swears revenge and begins to hunt Daavis down when he runs away from the marriage to Bellona. She isn't a fan of other races, and has a blatant disregard for their safety in her pursuit of the ‘heretic’. Mars is a prideful warrior, and anyone who harms her pride pays for it dearly. It can get to a point where she is blinded by defending her pride to fulfill her duties...
Appearance: Mars

Name: Ares of Agony
Background: A powerful Demon and also the leader of the Rejected Sins, Enyo's personal killers. He's calm, collected, and ruthless. Any sort of contact with his skin causes violent, agonizing pain to whoever touched him.
Appearance: Agony

Name: Ignorance
Background: A child-like Demon and a member of the Rejected Sins. No one, not even he, knows his real name. He is often acting like a small child, so can often become upset easily. He can't feel pain and is able to tear off and reattach limbs at will.
Appearance: Ignorance

Name: High Minister Zeios
Background: The leader of the Followers of Bellona. Being the leader of such a large following, he is looked upon as an almost godly like person. However, he is a tight-fisted person, and takes crimes against the Followers very seriously.
Appearance: PENDING

Name: Bristle Cerculur
Background: A scientist with the Followers of Bellona. She has a huge ego and will flaunt it all the time, unless in the pressence of a superior. Perhaps deluded or deranged, but she believes that she is the most beautiful person in the world.
Appearance: PENDING

Name: Eiji
Background: Daavis's mentor. He is the swordmaster that Daavis left home to train with. Eiji taught Daavis everything he knows about wielding a blade in perfect harmony with ones body. While he's usually serious and stoic, there are times when he is a pretty loveable guy. For whatever reason, his pet cat, Toku, is always peering over the man's shoulder unless in combat.
Appearance: Eiji (plus Toku)

Name: Meryl
Background: Mars's personal attendant. Given the nature of Mars, Meryl has to keep on her toes lest she be killed by the deity unintenionally.
Appearance: PENDING

l:.RACES.:l
Human: Humans are the most common race in Elysion. They can be distinguished with their eye color and inability to use magic. Being the only race that cannot use magic, they must rely on physical athleticism and strategic prowess in battle.

Elf: Elves are the founders of magic. They mostly keep to themselves, researching magic and living peacefully. Their pointed ears can identify them. The Elves have a long life span, able to live over 250 years.

Catugal: Catugal are humanoids with animalistic ears and tails, usually feline. They are very agile and light on their feet. They created steam technology, but were shunned by the rest of the world for not using mana-based technology like the rest of them. The Catugal then withdrew from the world, and now live away in secret locations in peace.

Demon: Demons are, well, Demons. They usually have horns sticking out of their skulls and markings all over their bodies. They are granted immortality as long as they stay within Tartarus. The Demons that leave the domain usually are just out to cause minor chaos and due secret tasks for Enyo. They can live to be almost 4 centuries old at the longest.

Half-Breed: Half-Breed is a general term used to refer to a being with mixed blood. In most cases, a Half-Breed is granted abilities from both sides of its blood. I.E. a Half-Breed with Human and Elven blood can use magic and physical strength to their advantage. Though Half-Breeds are in theory more likely to be stronger than a Pure-Breed, they are very uncommon due to racial preferences.

l:.LOCALES.:l
Elysion or "Heaven": The half of the world where just about everyone, that isn't a Demon, lives. The Followers of Bellona have a large influence on this half of the world.

Tartarus or "Hell": The half of the world where Demons reside. An enchantment surrounds this half of the world that leaves Demons unkillable by mortal means.

Freshdale Forest: A large scale forest located within Elysion.

l:.CHAPTERS.:l
Chapter 1: A Steady Pace (Page 1, second post)
Chapter 2: The Guardian (Page 1, third post)

[Angelglory]

Just a forewarning, this chapter is much short than the following ones.

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Chapter 1: A Steady Pace

He was a blur of blue with silver trails, darting through the maze of trees. Not too far behind, a few angry looking fellows chased after the moving object. "GAAAH! Why do they hafta be so persistent?!" the blur, know seen to be a human male about nineteen years of age, cried out in anguish.

Daavis Winchester, Reidena’s most wanted.

"Don't let him get away!" one man hollered, waving a pitchfork over his head.

"Jeez, why is there always that one guy with a pitchfork in an angry mob?!" Daavis grumbled in thought. Just then an arrow whizzed by over his shoulder. "GAH! I thought the bounty was for bringing me back alive?!" he shouted back to the mob chasing him.

"The high leaders of the Follower's of Bellona are planning on sentencing you to death anyway, so it's a dead-or-alive reward!" a second mob member shouted back.

Daavis winced and then suddenly skidded to a stop. “Just what’s the big deal about all this anyway?! So I didn’t want to get hitched, so what?”

“You insulted the Goddess Bellona! Anyone who commits such a despicable act against the Goddess deserves to be strung up by their ankles and left to rot by the Followers of Bellona!” a few angry members of the mob shouted.

“Honestly, she didn’t look offended at all when I said no,” Daavis remarked, shrugging his shoulder with a sigh.

The mob of people all pointed their swords, or whatever they were armed with, at Daavis in a threatening manner. “You shut your mouth! Defying the Followers of Bellona is considered traitorous to our society! It doesn’t what nonsense you spout, you must die.”

Daavis groaned and placed his hands on the sheaths of his two blades strapped to his back. "Ugh, all right, fine. If you think you can kill me..." he drew his swords, a single-edged sword and a double-edged sword, into an offensive stance. "THEN COME AND GET SOME!" He then leapt at his pursuers, swords trailing by his sides. But then something odd happened; he leapt again?

The blade-wield seemingly kicked off of thin air, catapulting high above the group of attackers. When he came down, he landed outside the circle that had been formed around him.

"HAAAA!!!" Daavis was obviously far more skilled than this whole mob combined, but that didn't seem to stop them from swinging. "Gotta finish this quick before any more show up," he thought quickly, before parrying a sword swing thrown at him.

Springing into the air with a rising slash, Daavis brought one of the men up into the air with him and began slashing like crazy as they rose. The sight was such a spectacle, that a few members of the mob stopped and watched in shock and awe. Finishing his aerial assault, the now dead man and Daavis both returned to the ground. "Anyone else?!"

The rest of the men shook their heads and quickly retreated, tails tucked between their legs like whipped dogs.

"Tch, dammit, that was a pain..." Daavis grumbled, sheathing his swords and heaving a heavy sigh. “If this is my life now…I’m seriously gonna be pissed.”

~****~

A cloaked shadowy figure watched from one of the many treetops as a group of panicking men ran for their lives like they had just seen a giant Demon stomping around. “Hmm, ‘wonder what’s the rush for,” the person mumbled as he/she observed the retreating group more closely.

“That guy’s not human! H-How the hell can somebody jump off the air like that?!”

“And he killed Marvin so easily! W-We need get some reinforcements or something!”

“Right, good idea, he’s only one person; we’ll just outnumber him! Yeah!”

The rest of the frantic conversation was too inaudible to hear at the distance the cloaked person was located, but he/she had heard more than enough. “Well, well, that made my search sooo much easier~” the person chuckled lightly before turning on a heel and jumping off in the opposite direction that the men were running.

~****~

Peace and quiet, finally, there was peace and quiet. He’d been on the move for days now, not even having the time to sit down and rest his eyes. But everything had finally slowed down enough with that last mob running off; Daavis just needed a few minutes to sleep before the inevitable mob can back with more people to try and kill him. “Whoever signed me up for the tournament, they’re going to pay. Ruined my life and reputation, now I’ve got nowhere to go for shelter…”

“OH, COME ON!!” “What...? Who’s that?”

“I’m the part of you that’s not a pansy!” “HEY!”

“All the time you’re wasting crying about how much your life sucks could be being spent hunting down the jerk that signed you up for the Tournament of the Goddess and get some payback! Now get up and break a leg, or an arm, or whichever you’d prefer!”

“As insulting as you are, you’ve got a point!” Daavis leapt to his feet with an energetic hop and looked off into the horizon that would have been visible had he not been in a deep forest. “Sleep is for quitters! Daavis Winchester doesn’t give up so easily!” Amazing, how a conversation with himself could get him so motivated…

“But……Where the heck do I start looking?” The growing feeling of determination suddenly died. “Crap…That’s sort of a jam in the plans.”

“Wow, you really are a genius…” a voice commented with heavy sarcasm. A cloaked figure emerged, stepping out from the shadows before Daavis. “Long time no see, Daavis.”

The swordsman eyed the individual and knew immediately who it was. “You...What the hell are you, a magnet? I thought I finally lost you a week ago…” he grumbled lowly.

The hood of the person's cloak was pulled back to reveal a female face, albeit an angry female face. "You can't get rid of me that easily, especially now that everyone's looking for you!"

Fioel Letherwane, honest thief.

"Besides, I want to help you out," Fioel added to her previous remark.

"Only because you hate being in debt..."

The thief let out a huff and crossed her arms. "EXCUSE ME?! Do you want help or not?! Like it or not, I'm all you've got!" She shouted, but suddenly switched gears. "Ya know...I could always just turn you in myself; you're gonna collapse from exhaustion eventually~"

"Grr...I wouldn't put it past her either...Fine, fine..." Daavis grumbled in defeat. "So, where would you suggest we go?"

Fioel smirked knowingly then pointed even further into the deep foliage. "That way, there's a place I know that we can hide your sorry arse. Come on." Without waiting for an answer from her fugitive companion, the thief headed off.

The swordsman rolled his shoulders and cleared his throat; this was going to be one hell of a 'journey'...

End Chapter

[Angelglory]

lol chapter 2

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Chapter 2: The Guardian

It had been a few hours since Daavis was somewhat black-mailed into a partnership with the thief, Fioel, and things were fairly dull and quiet along their hike to the supposed safe place that Fioel knew. The forest was seemingly peaceful, which was odd considering there were people out and about hunting Daavis down.

“So…What’ve you been doing these past few days? Just…running?” The thief suddenly asked, casting a lazy yet curious glance to her ‘companion’.

Daavis furrowed his brow, skeptically looking back at the girl. “Huh? What’s with the sudden interest?”

“Oh shut up and answer the question! If I have to hike with your sorry butt, I may as well no how much of a loser you are.”

“Ouch,” Daavis mumbled to himself before rolling his eyes and he replied, “Fine, I’ll bite.” With a sigh and a sudden somber look on his face, Daavis began his explanation.

“Since I was declared a criminal, all I’ve been doing is running and fighting. Getting attacked by angry mobs at a frequent pace, I couldn’t use an inn or have time to eat. I’ve been living off fruit and gels for the past few days now.”

“Huh…Honestly, I’m surprised you made it this long without getting caught. You’re not an incompetent as I thought you were,” Fioel remarked with a faint shrug.

The twin swordsman raised an eyebrow towards the girl. That remark had certain surprised him, it almost sounded like some kind of compliment. "O...kay..." he said slowly before drifting back into his thoughts as the conversation seemed to come to a close.

~****~

The confines of the room where dark and dismal; fit for the mood she was in. There was virtually nothing in this room aside from a few burning candles and a pillow where the woman sat. The thoughts of vengeance and payback were almost all she could think off. He had shattered her pride in front of all those pathetic people, and then salted the wound by rejecting her Goddess. Oh, Daavis Winchester would pay for his crimes with his spilled blood.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a light knock on the door. Of all the times... "Enter," the deity, Mars, hissed in agitation.

The door creaked opened and an elven woman in a long white robe slowly stepped in, closing the door behind her. "Mistress Mars, it is I; I have come just like you requested." The woman spoke, adjusting the glasses resting on the bridge of her nose.

"...Has the heretic been captured, Meryl?" Mars spoke with a level of bitterness that could even make a dead man cringe. She hoped both that he had been caught and hadn't. She wanted to be one to catch him, but also wanted to kill him as soon as she could.

The woman, apparently named Meryl, cleared her throat in uneasiness. "W-Well, about that..."

"Well, what?"

Meryl pushed her glasses up, obscuring her eyes in the candlelight. Her voice was lined with apprehension as she spoke. "T-The latest group of men sent after him came running back not too long ago; one man was reportedly killed."

An almost deadly silence laced the room; Mars's hands were clenched in tight fists of rage.

"Mistress...Mars? AH!!!" Meryl dove out of the way of the axe as it came down on the door, obliterating it in one menacing swing. The elf frantically looked from the door to the enraged deity; it could have been her in pieces all over the room now if she hadn't moved.

"Disgusting insects...will always be disgusting insects it seems..." The guardian of Bellona hissed as she pulled her weapon from the stone floor. "Meryl, clean this mess up. I'm going to crush the heretic myself.”

The deity then vanished into thin air, leaving Meryl to her own thoughts. “She’s become increasingly more violent ever since she lost against that boy. She’ll be blinded by her anger if it continues like this…”

“Oh, so she left. Such a shame, I wished to speak to her,” a voice spoke from the doorway.

Into the room stepped another woman, this one dressed in deep red. Her eyes were concealed by crimson tinted glasses; was she hiding her eyes for a reason?

The apprehension returned to Meryl’s voice as she spoke; this woman was a bit…tiring to talk to at times. “Oh, M-Miss Bristle, you just missed the Mistress. She left to find the fugitive just a moment ago.”

“What?! Darn it, I wanted to deal with him! It was going to be the perfect field test for my beautiful new invention…” Bristle groaned, pouting her lips as she tumbled with her thoughts. “Humph…it doesn’t matter; the great and lovely Bristle Cerculur shall not be deterred so easily! When Mars returns, please, be a dear and tell her I was looking for her.”

“Y-Yes, o-of course, ma’am.”

“DO I LOOK OLD TO YOU?! I am most certainly not a ‘ma’am’! I am clearly still a ‘miss’!!” Bristle shouted in outrage, her arms were flailing and everything.

“I-I’m sorry…Miss…Bristle,” Meryl peeped quietly.

“Much better; farewell and good day, Meryl,” The red-clad woman left as abruptly as she appeared.

Once again Meryl was left alone. “…Sometimes I wonder why I even get out of bed…” she whispered with a sigh, grabbing a broom and beginning to sweep up the wreckage Mars had caused.

~****~

"Hmm, that's weird..." Fioel mumbled to herself as she surveyed a small clearing in the forest. "It should've been here..."

Daavis looked around at the area, confused as to what the thief was looking for. "There's nothing here."

"Shut it! Lemme focus, would ya?!" Fioel snapped, her gaze burnt into the clearing as if she were searching for something. "Now where was it supposed to be...?"

"...You're not lost, are you?”

She ignored his comments, continuing her persistent search for whatever. She took a few steps and knelt down, running her gloved hands over the grass covered ground. "..." Moving over to a bush, she nudged at it with her foot before shaking her head. She continued moving about the area for several minutes.

The swordsman just stood there, watching this spectacle unfold with a skeptical expression on his face. "Just what the heck is she looking for?"

Fioel stopped at a nearby tree when she suddenly shouted in triumph. "HAH!!! Found the little bugga! See? Told ya I'd find it!" She gave a mocking smirk, like she'd just won a game of chess. A light rap on the trunk of the tree revealed a small emblem embedded into the bark. "Orbis Verus Austror," she spoke quietly.

"Huh? What's that thing?" Daavis approached Fioel, looking at the strange shape that had magically appeared in the tree. "And what was that you just said?"

"This," Fioel stopped to chuckle at her brilliance, "...is a Money's Mark. It's what we who thieve use to tell each other where we are. What I just said was the incantation to activate it; tell anyone and I will make you regret."

Daavis just shrugged, not like he cared about some thief club. "Whatever, so why were you looking for this thing anyway?"

The girl put her hands on her hips, yet another angered look on her face. "You idiot, I just told you! To find out where my buddies went!"

"She has friends?" "Uhh huhhh...and just saying that password and you'll automatically know where your 'buddies' are?"

"No," Fioel huffed, then knocking on the Money's Mark again. "Like this."

A man's voice suddenly emulated from the emblem, causing the swordsman to leap back in surprise. "Had to pack up early because it's getting too heated out here. Heading back to the nest; we'll be passing through Ark on our way."

"W-What the heck?! That thing just talked!!!" Daavis hollered in shock and a bit of uneasiness. It was definitely a bizarre thing to him.

Fioel stifled her blatant laughter to explain. "Hahahahahaha!!!! T-That was just a message recorded in the Mark. It's a mana inscription, it's fairly common, and so I dunno how you don't know what it is."

"Well excuse me for--"

Fioel muttered to herself, turning away and ignoring Daavis once again. "But why'd they leave so soon? There's no way the mobs could've gotten this far into Freshdale Forest yet..."

"I think I know why..." Daavis commented. The thief turned her head back to her 'companion' and caught a glimpse of a huge hulking beast standing before them. Flames escaped from the creatures mouth and eyes; a real hell spawn, but at this time of day? Fioel immediately spun around, pocketing the Money's Mark and withdrawing a pair of long daggers.

"Why the hell is that thing out now?! The monsters aren't supposed to come out until after nightfall!"

Daavis had brought his blades at the ready in an instant, a serious look on his face. "Obviously somebody's taking things further than others would. But enough chatting, here it comes!" he exclaimed, leaping high into the air as the monster thrust a giant fist at the two humans.

The ground shattered where the fist landed, sending small chunks of earth everywhere. Fioel was already halfway up the flame beast's arm by the time it realized it. She jumped as it pawed at her with its other hand, "Force Kick!!" and she came down with a fierce kick to the face.

"HAH! Eat that!" She cried in triumph. However, it seemed the monster was taking her advice. As she leapt away, it lunged forward with its jaws wide open, ready to take a huge bite out of her. "!"

"Pierce Rush!" Two swords pierced the side of the creature's skull, throwing it off-course. Daavis drove his blades harder into the monster's head, knocking it to the ground. It stopped moving after a bit of struggling; a relatively quick death.

"Phew..." The swordsman whispered as he stood, pulling his swords from the fallen monster as he glanced at the thief. "You okay, Fioel?"

Fioel stared at the monster's body from where she landed on the grass, a clear expression of shock painted on her face. She would've been monster chow if Daavis hadn't interfered. "Y.....Y-You...Why'd you do that?" She changed her gaze to fix on the bladewielder.

"It was gonna kill you if I didn't do anything. Even if you're annoying and steal for a living, I'm not just going to let you die. Especially if you're trying to help me out," he explained as he flicked the blood from his swords and sheathed them.

"You.....You idiot, I-I just would've let it kill you!" Fioel frowned and looked off to the side; there was a slight tint of pink on her face.

Daavis laughed and rested his arms behind his head. "Heheh, if you say so~"

The girl growled defiantly, she could tell she was being made fun of. "Hey, shut u-- LOOK OUT!"

The flame beast had gotten back to its feet, evidently it was one it's last leg, and was about to club Daavis like a tennis ball. Before the swordsman could turn and draw his swords, he was swatted aside by the monster's large hand and was sent flying several yards away.

Fioel looked up at the beast, completely vulnerable and afraid. She was dead, a shattering fear clutching her and preventing her from moving. All she could do was wait for the end; she closed her eyes tightly, she just couldn't watch.

However, her end didn't come and only sounds of beastly wails filled her ears, followed by silence. Tentatively, she opened her eyes and saw the flaming monster in pieces on the now blood-stained ground. Standing before the carnage was a man adjourned in a red robe, sheathing a blade at his hip.

Daavis groaned and sat up, the back of his head was pounding in pain. "Damn, what a cheap shot..." He shot a look behind him, and saw dead monster, Fioel, and the mysterious man.

The man smiled at the swordsman and crossed his arms. "It's been a while, Daavis. I assume you've been busy?"

Daavis was shocked, but also glad; he knew this person quite well. "Master Eiji!" he exclaimed as he got to his feet and raced over to the man. "Master, what are you do--AUGH!" He was greeted with a palm to the forehead.

"You're skills are slipping if you can't even tell when a beast is dead or not. And I heard you got a hefty bounty on your head; where you listening to my lessons at all or where you just nodding like an idiot the whole time?" Eiji scolded, bopping Daavis on the forehead several more times.

"Ow, ow, OW, I'm sorry, Master, just let me explain!"

Fioel stood up from the ground, poking at herself, making sure that she wasn't really dead. Nope, she was alive; and so the attitude returned. "Hey! Who's the geezer?" BOP. "OW! HEY!"

"And you, just sitting there like a dainty little damsel in distress. You were more than capable of moving out of the way but you seemed more content with letting Doofus here save you. You're lucky I was here or else your fairy tale would be over," The man showed no mercy with his words.

"D-D-Did you just call me a damsel in distress?! Look here, old man, I ain't some wimpy little girl who needs protecting!" Fioel hollered in defiance. BOP. "OW! Stop doing that!"

"Then stop lying." The man's mood suddenly changed as he heard a quiet sound from over his shoulder. "Oh? Oh, I'm sorry, Toku, I didn't mean to wake you," he apologize, but to who?

Another sound was heard as a small black cat popped up from over the Eiji's shoulder. "Nyow!" Eiji smiled to the cat before turning his attention back to Daavis and Fioel. 'Now then, where was I?"

"You were....just telling us why you were here?" Daavis remarked skeptically.

"Oh yes, of course, exactly." BOP, another palm to Daavis. "That's for lying, Daavis. But I digress; I suppose I should explain myself anyway."

The two teens kept silent. "..." Neither of them wanted to get a palm to the forehead.

"Well, I had heard about the bounty for the world's most wanted man, and I was going to go catch the bounty myself when I found out just who this most wanted man was. If you weren't my student then I wouldn't have cared how young you were, if you've got that kind of money up for grabs on your capture then I would've done it. But you lucked out, hm? Anyway, I was just going to keep an eye on you from the shadows, but small tidbit of information made me decide otherwise."

Daavis raised an eyebrow, curious as to what his master meant. "What kind of information?"

"Mars is coming," Eiji replied like it was nothing big.

Daavis gasped, he definitely wasn't expecting this. "WHAT?! Mars?!"

The man nodded slowly, his expression slowly turning into a deathly serious one. "Yes, I'm going to buy you as much time as I can while you run as far away from here as possible."

"What?! But Master Eiji, I defeated Mars in combat before; I don't need to run!"

"That may be true, but Mars is out for your life and she won't show mercy to you now; she wants you dead."

Daavis winced, gritting his teeth as he looked away. If it was true, then she'd probably be much more aggressive than when he fought her in the tournament. Could he really take her on again? "Damn it..." he muttered in defeat.”When will she be here? Do you know?"

Eiji pondered the thought, doing the math in his head silently. A thunderous boom suddenly shot out from within the foliage about a hundred yards before the group. Birds and other forest animals were sent fleeing from their homes, their cries echoing throughout the forest.

"She's already here..."

The booming sound only grew louder, it seemed like the trees were being torn apart in a wave...

"Hm!" Eiji quickly drew his sword as a glowing green light surrounded him. From the depths of the forest, an axe came flying at the man at near super-sonic speeds, ripping through the various trees like a hot knife on butter, only to be deflected by the glowing light. The weapon bounced off and retreated back to its owner.

"Daavis, leave now," Eiji ordered his student with a cold voice; the cat on his back went back into hiding.

"You won't escape me!" a woman's voice yelled out as a translucent light formed a dome around the entire area. From the shadows, the woman emerged wielding the axe from moments ago. It was Mars.

"Mars..." Daavis growled, his hands moving towards his blades.

"I've been waiting for too long for this, heretic. Today, I will restore my warrior's pride that you so shamelessly destroyed! You embarrassed me before my Goddess and then you denied the marriage; you're blasphemous ways end here and now!" Mars, her voice dripping with venom and hatred, pointed an accusing finger at Daavis.

"Look, somebody signed me up with my consent! I already said I didn't know the reward for winning the tournament; it's crazy to force somebody to marry the Goddess if they don't want to!" Daavis shouted back, drawing his swords from their sheathes.

"Silence, heretic! I only want to hear your cries of death!" Mars moved herself into an offensive stance as she brandished her axe. It seemed there was no way to talk her out of this.

"Daavis, you idiot....I told you to run away," Eiji muttered to his student.

"Sorry, Master."

"No matter, just don't get sloppy now or you'll be killed."

Fioel joined Daavis and Eiji, pulling out her daggers and standing beside them. "I'll prove I'm not a damsel in distress..."

Mars took a broad step forward, and then suddenly went catapulting into the sky. She brought her axe over her head as she came back down with a battle cry. "HeeeYAAAHHH!!!!"

The three fighters leapt away in all different directions as the deity's axe collided with the ground, pieces of earth exploding every which way.

Daavis swung his blades, slicing through the rubble as he kicked off the air to better position himself for a counter-attack. "Take this!" He thrust his swords in front of himself as he dove down at Mars at high-speeds. The deity jumped over him and went to swipe at him from above when Eiji entered the fray.

"Blade Dance!" Although all of the slashes and kicks were blocked, it successfully pushed Mars back.

"KeYAH!!" Fioel lunged at Mars from behind, swinging her daggers wildly at the deity.

The armored woman avoided the thief's attack and with a wave of her arm, she shouted, "Humph!!" A glyph appeared on the ground under Fioel and shot magic rings into the air, throwing the girl back.

As Mars landed, Daavis was already attacking again. The two warriors exchanged several attacks, each successfully defended against the other's attack. As Eiji came down from above, Mars kicked Daavis away and swung her axe up at the man, resulting in a fierce clash of steel.

"Why do you insist on defending the heretic? He is a criminal and must be punished!" Mars questioned Eiji, locked in a stalemate with the man.

"Simple. He is my student, and it is a teacher's duty to defend his students," Eiji replied, staring back into the eyes of the deity.

"Humph," Mars scoffed, her gaze narrowing as she suddenly applied an exponential amount of force to her attack. "So you created this monster. Then you are just a guilty!"

Eiji was suddenly finding it much harder to keep Mars at bay; she was obvious trying now.

"Master!" Daavis exclaimed, lunging at Mars again. He had to help his teacher; he wouldn't let that demented deity hurt his mentor. "Hurricane Rush!" He sped along the ground, blades outstretched and surrounded by a wind tunnel.

"YOU FOOL! Stay back!" Eiji cried, losing his focus.

Mars broke through Eiji's guard and shove him back, then swung fiercely at Daavis, completely obliterating his attack and leaving him wide open. "Bone Shatter!!"

Daavis felt a powerful force collide with his body and launch him back. He crashed harshly into the barrier, causing it to shatter to allow him to continue flying backwards. After he hit a tree trunk spine first, he collapsed to the ground in a heap. The world was spinning around him, his vision was darkening fast; the last thing he saw was Fioel shouting something at him before he lost consciousness.

"Daavis!" Eiji shouted as he watched his pupil get the full brunt of Mars's attack. However, his attention was draw away long enough to leave him unprepared for the attack coming at him. He could wince as he felt cold steel ripping into his chest.

"Daavis! DAAVIS!" Fioel shouted, running over and shaking the teen's body. No good, he was out cold. She looked back towards the battle, only to see a horrifying sight. "!"

Mars's axe was covered in blood, Eiji's blood, as it stuck into the man's body. Eiji turned his gaze towards the thief, blood being to trickle from his mouth. "Get...him...away from...here...." he murmured as his sword fell from his grasp. The deity viciously pulled her weapon from the man's body, letting him fall to the ground. "No one crosses the Guardian of Bellona and lives. No one."

Mars turned her piercing gaze towards Fioel and Daavis's unconscious body. Fioel felt like she was staring at the Grim Reaper, surely she was going to die next. But then something of a miracle happened...

"It was fluke; he could've done better than that. I don't want to kill him when he's not even a challenge. But know this, little girl," the deity pointed her bloodied axe at the girl. "I will kill anyone who gets in my way." She then vanished from sight, leaving behind a scene of despair and death.

Fioel looked from Daavis to the dead body of Eiji, traumatized with fear. She had come oh-so-close to death twice today, and was now left in the middle of a huge forest in a grim situation. She had to get Daavis help, but how?

End Chapter