SHADE WARS

“What makes you so confident that he's alive General!? Were he alive, wouldn't he have returned by now!?” Captain Dain questioned. It had already been a full week since Elroy and his squad hadn’t returned with the rest of the guards. Since they hadn’t come back after so long, it was obvious that they were long dead.

“Oh he’s alive. I’m bet my life on it! Ho ho!” Old Man Tony chuckled while stroking his beard.

Nearby, a frantic woman pleaded. “If that man is alive, then my Thomas must be alive as well! You must send someone out to search! Please!”

Outside the compound, Thadius and the rest of the squad were standing just outside the door. He turned and smiled. “You have a woman waiting at home, Thomas?”

“Well, I have a wife and- uh oh…” Thomas froze as he realized something.

The smile on Thadius’ face widened. “A wife, huh. Well, let's not keep her waiting too long. She sounds like she'd go out looking for you herself if you don't show up soon.”

“That's sounds like Sarah.” Thomas frowned, but he didn't move from his spot. His entire body oozed apprehension.

“Time to face the music!” Mavas chuckled, giving Thomas a hearty pat on the shoulder.

After sending Elroy a knowing look, Thadius opened the door.

THE YOUNGEST

You’ve successfully foiled the plot to kill the young noble and even led him through great danger in the Mists of Croaka. The quest may continue depending on your future interactions with the young noble.

+150 Fame

Of those present were Old Man Tony, Captain Dain, Richie, and a young brunette with tears streaming down her face. Everyone turned to look at who entered, and the first one to react was the old man in the corner.

“Ho ho ho! What I tell ya!? Today’s the day!” Tony chuckled happily.

Dain was absolutely livid when he saw Elroy walk in, but he quickly composed himself. As the rest of the squad members filed in, the young woman was on her tiptoes looking for Thomas, who hadn't moved outside.

Nearing hysterics, she rushed up to Thadius since he was the first to come in. “Sir! Have you seen my Thomas!? Wasn't he with this squad!?”

Thadius put on his best remorseful expression. “You must be Sarah…”

Hearing his tone, the woman paled. A fresh wave of tears slid down her freckled face. “Y-yes…”

“Unfortunately, Thomas…” Thadius looked toward his squad with mischievous eyes. Mavas and Bannon immediately put on serious expressions. Only Desha looked absolutely lost at why they were giving the poor woman a false impression.

Thadius sighed heavily, “Sarah, Thomas couldn't make it into the door. He's standing outside scared stiff.”

“Thomas!” Sarah screamed as she rushed outside. Seeing the skinny man standing there with a wry smile, she flew into a rage. “You run off to join the guard when I specifically told you not to! You even went and got yourself injured! Let me see-”

The door closed on Thomas’ severe scolding, and Thadius turned to see Captain Dain glaring at him with narrowed eyes. Thadius didn’t even flinch for the hostile look. Instead, he turned to Elroy and motioned for him to take the lead.

Elroy nodded and stepped forward. “Captain Dain, we’ve map out new areas on the west side of the mists as order. We believe we found what could be a road that leads to the Croaka capital.”

Captain Dain sneered. “Why didn’t you return when you saw that the supplies were gone?”

“We didn’t receive any orders to end the excursion early, sir. Instead of coming back early, we decided to fulfill the orders we were given and then return as planned. Although the supplies were gone, we made do. We also managed, after great difficulty, to slay a hydra that attacked while we were performing our duty.”

Hearing that the Mists Hydra, which was supposed to kill Elroy and those under his command, had been killed instead, Captain Dain nearly flew into a rage. “Nonsense! If you're going to lie, you need to at least make the lie believable!”

Elroy remained unphased and calmly stated, “I expected you to find such a remarkable feat unnatural, captain. So after the hydra was slain, we brought the hydra’s heads along with us. I’m afraid that bringing them inside isn’t possible because of their size. I beg your forgiveness.”

As if on cue, Thomas walked in carrying two ropes on his back. “How can ya even move with these things Thadius? These skulls aren’t light! I don’t think they’ll fit through the door either.”

Thadius smiled. “Just leave them outside, Thomas.”

“Yes, sir.” Thomas threw the ropes out of the door and came back inside. From the looks of it, his wife had already gone home.

Seeing Thomas treat Thadius as his superior officer, Captain Dain couldn’t keep his expression from turning ugly. “You don’t even have the respect of your squad! They answer to this rookie as if he were the squad leader!”

“That’s correct. I surrendered my command during the excursion, and now that we’ve returned, I wish to report that Thadius was in direct command of seven individuals and is sufficient to be promoted to lieutenant. It was also due to his strength that the hydra could be slain.”

“Promotion granted!” Old Man Tony declared.

PROMOTION OPPORTUNITY

You may now take command of a 10-man group as a Lieutenant. Your superiors will give you your new schedule and orders.

PAY: 45S / Month

“General!” Captain Dain looked at Tony as if he’d just been slapped in the face.

“We promote capable men in Todos. Don’t we Richie.” he smiled.

“Yes sir.” Richie nodded.

“Then it’s settled! Now, Richie, would you mind takin’ a look at those skulls? It would be an incredible feat if it’s true.” Old Man Tony commanded, then he turned to Captain Dain. “I believe you have somewhere you're supposed to be. I wouldn’t keep that man waitin’ if I were you.”

“Of course...” Dain saluted, and made his way to the door. On the way, he moved to bump into Thadius, but it felt like he had brushed against a mountain, and he ended up stumbling a step.

“Careful captain.” Thadius glared at him, adding in a bit of pressure for assurance.

Dain straightened his posture and growled lowly, “This isn’t over.”

After watching Captain Dain storm out, Richie went outside to verify the hydra skulls while the rest of the squad went further into the compound. All that jogging had left them beat, and they all planned to use their time off to get some much needed rest and healing.

"Thadius, I'd like to talk a bit with you. Did you want some healin' first?" Old Man Tony asked.

Thadius shook his head. "It can wait. I'll go see Christina afterwards."

"I figured as much. Actually, some of the news is 'bout her too, come on." Old Man Tony shuffled his way past the counter and led the way. While they were walking he asked, "Remember the last time we talked about the war?"

"I remember. You said that they would ask for reinforcements for the front line." Thadius recalled the moment clearly. He was still sore about losing the chess match that day.

"Well, things are a bit more serious than I anticipated. The plan was to send down a trainer to whip some of the city guard into shape, but not long after ya'll left for the mists, word come down that we need to round up the gladiators too." Tony sighed and shook his head.

'The gladiators?' Thadius pondered, and the image of a tall, domineering woman with glittering green eyes came to mind.

"They need men that badly?" he asked.

"'Fraid so. But at least they got North Wind to come down. That way, at least they'll be trained proper before they go."

"Who's North Wind?" Thadius questioned. If Old Man Tony praised him, then he was obviously strong.

"Corban didn't tell you? Didn't he tell you about the Todos Sword Style?" Tony stopped in his tracks and turned around with a wrinkled brow.

"It was on his status card that he was in the army, but he never told me about the sword style."

"Well, not many people know it, but the Todos Sword Style was created by North Wind with the help of the Iron Dragon. Then again, I'm not surprised he didn't mention it. He was always the dramatic one, keepin' secrets and the like." Old Man sighed again and continued walking. "Once he gets here, you can ask him yourself at the training camp."

Thadius winced at the words 'training camp'. "How long is this training camp exactly?"

"Only a couple of months." the old man shrugged.

"Is there some way I could be exem-"

"Oh god! It burns!! Just end it now please!"

"Hold him down! Don't let him bite his tongue!"

"We'll find out what's wrong! Just hold on colonel!"

Suddenly shouts were coming out from a room off to the side. From Thadius' memory, he remembered it as the infirmary. Currently, the door was shut tight and sounds of struggling could be heard within.

"Who's screaming like that?" Thadius asked. The agonized cries made him pity the man who would rather die than suffer from his injuries.

"Colonel Vane. He was on his way back from the Central Continent when he and his men were attacked by some strange beast. His men said he was fine at first, just hurt a little. But the beast had some sort of venom in it. We had Beth come to take a look but..." The old man's voice carried a hint of uncertainty. Thadius didn't have to be a genius to know that there probably wasn't a cure for the poison.

"Why are there still men on the Central Continent if there's a war going on?" Thadius asked, trying to change the subject. They moved further down the hall so that the screams were less audible.

"Many of the soldiers we sent were too far inland by time the war started. Most are just now comin' back." Old Man Tony sighed again and stroked his beard. "In times like these we had the elves to look to for help, but after the Shade Wars..."

The Shade Wars. It was a subject that truly piqued Thadius' curiosity. Not for the lore, but because of how at odds Desha and Bannon had been when they first met. They were on amicable terms now after fighting together for the past week, but if they didn't have to interact with each other, they didn't bother.

"What actually happened during the Shade Wars? How did it start? I have an elf and a Shade War veteran in my squad, so a little information could possibly smooth things out a bit faster." Thadius questioned when they reached the cafeteria.

"Finally ready to listen to this old man's stories about the good ole days, huh. Ho ho!" Tony chuckled and walked in to sit down at an empty table. Thadius sat across from him, ignoring the glances from those that could feel his fighting spirit.

"It's actually a sad story, so most people don't talk about it. Especially those who fought in it. It all started with an epidemic in the Shade Forest, the home of a majority of the elves on this continent. The epidemic only affected elves, and no one knew how it started. But when the elves came to us for help, we couldn't turn a blind eye. The elves had been close friends with us up to that point. And now that I'm thinkin’ back on it, Todos used to be filled with them." Old Man Tony paused and pulled out a canteen from his tunic, taking a couple gulps before putting it back.

"Our alchemists and apothecaries worked as fast as they could to come up with a cure, and eventually they did..." Tony paused again. There was a glint a melancholy in his eyes that could barely be seen under his overgrown eyebrows.

"So why was there a war if the cure was made?" Thadius found it hard for such good relations to deteriorate so quickly.

"Arinon, the elven king, lost his wife and daughter to the illness before we could cure 'em. The elves mourned the loss, and we also gave our support. But Arinon was quiet for too long after that. When he appeared again, he was suddenly attackin' villages at the head of his armies. He had invaded into our lands claimin' that if he had our resources, more of his people could have been saved." Old Man Tony bowed his head over the table. It was clear the memory was an old wound.

"He waged war over the ingredients of the cure?" Thadius could scarcely believe such a thing. They could easily get the recipe and the ingredients since they were allied with Todos, what really took the most time was synthesizing the cure.

"You have to understand, Thadius. Arinon was lost to his grief. He was no longer a man of reason, and many elves followed him in attackin' us. The elves live long, so losin' a friend or a loved one...the pain is too great." Tony lapsed into silence, his own face warped with bitterness. "It was a war that shouldn't have happened. Outside of the Shade Forest, we slaughtered them. But killing our friends wasn't the worst part of it, it was seeing the smiles on their faces when they died. It was the tears of joy they shed as their bodies cooled that haunted us, Thadius. Many of them threw their lives away to be reunited with their families in the Heavens."

Thadius felt his blood chill. War was a part of life. There had been numerous wars on Earth across the centuries, and the body counts were astronomical. But how high would the casualties amount to if the enemy welcomed death with open arms? How high would it be if they actively sought after an end? The image of mountains of dead with peaceful expressions was more disturbing than an ocean of wailing souls in Thadius' mind. He was truly thankful that he didn't have to fight in a war like that, where yesterday's friend would gladly fall on your sword tomorrow.

Thadius couldn't help the grimace on his face. "How did it end?"

Old Man Tony sighed heavily. "We thought it would end when we pushed them back to the forest, but when we did, somethin' strange happened days later. All the sound in the forest stopped, and the sunlight couldn't pass the treetops. It was so strange to see the leaves rustle without a sound, and to see the birds try to sing without their voices. While we were confused, Arinon charged out at the head of thousands with a ferocity that was unlike anythin' we'd ever seen out of the elves.

“Whether it was a forbidden spell or some ritual they cast, we don't know. But the fight that day was a long struggle. When we finally pushed them back into the forest, they didn't have the numbers to fight us anymore, so they retreated deeper into the shadowy, silent forest that they call home."

Thadius leaned back in thought. Bannon and Desha's first meeting couldn't have been friendly. Bannon was a Shade War veteran. He'd likely seen many of his comrades fall to the irrational elves, and he had probably killed many of them in the process, which was also why Desha reacted with hostility after Mavas pointed out the veteran.

'Well, they're able to work together now without going at each other's throats. They must remember that the elves and Todos were allies once. he mused. When he finally looked up, the cafeteria was basically empty. Lunch had already ended by time Old Man Tony finished his story.

Thadius rose from the table. “It’s about time I get out of here Mr.Tony. Now, about that training camp…”

“I think you should go. Even if it’s just to see that old goat North Wind. “ Tony said.

Thadius shook his head. “I don’t want to get drawn into a war, especially with Christina still in training. I joined the city guard so that I could lead the unit that she gets assigned to. I’m already set up with my own unit, so as soon as she becomes a full Priestess, I can add her to my unit. Half the work is done, but truthfully, I have the mind to just take her away once she graduates.”

“Christina is already a full-fledged priestess, and the excursions are on halt ‘til further notice. Even the coliseum is closin’ down for the trainin’ camp.”

“Christina became a Priestess!?” Thadius thought back to when they first came to the city. I hadn’t been long at all, but then he remembered Christina’s prior experiences in Yune.

’She’s worked hard for it already.’ he nodded to himself. Since Christina had already become a Priestess, and the excursions weren’t necessary at the moment, then he could just up and leave after he finished his business here. The only problem was that he didn’t know how long it would take to set up a church for Tegaia.

Thadius put the matter aside, there were more immediate issues to deal with. Getting his hands healed was one of them. “Then I’ll meet this ‘North Wind’ and see what I can learn from him. And while we’re at it, you said Beth had been here, right? That means she’s back from that trip she went on?”

Tony nodded. “She’s been back for a while, but she’s probably resting today. You should go see her tomorrow.”

“Then I’ll see her tomorrow. I’ll see you later Mr.Tony.” Thadius waved goodbye and then turned to leave the compound. On the way out, he passed the infirmary again and heard the agonized cry of the unfortunate officer. He couldn’t help but think of the book he read shortly after entering the game. The Untamed Continent listed many monsters that had lethal poison attacks, most of which were difficult and nigh impossible to cure.

Exiting the compound, Thadius didn’t head straight for the Church of Thena. Instead, he made his way to the blacksmith. His shield was in need of serious repairs, and he had an abundance of materials that could be used to ‘feed’ it. Even though he wasn’t going in as Victor Wolfe-Jagger, he had long since thought up a simple solution he could use before anyone could start asking questions.

It wasn’t long before Thadius found himself walking into Arm & Hammer. The young blacksmith, Tommy, was leaning on the counter, looking bored from the lack of business. He stood up with a start when Thadius walked in.

“Welcome to Arm & Hammer! What can we do for you today?” the young assistant asked.

“I’m looking for a man. He’s around my height and a bit rude. You’ve probably seen him, he came in to buy this sword.” Thadius displayed Serenity hanging on his hip. Without a cloak, it was hard to see the endless breeze the sword caused.

“Oh yeah! He has a wolf-head cloak right? He came around here about a week ago. He...gave you the sword?” Tommy’s eyes lit up at the mention of the man who purchased his master’s greatest work, but as he eyed the sword in question, he frowned.

“My brother showed up and suddenly tossed me this sword. All he said was ‘Take it. It suits you.’, then he walked off. The only time I saw him before that was at our master’s funeral. Since then, it’s damn near impossible to get us in the same room together.” Thadius sighed. “Any clue where he went?”

“He’s your brother? You guys do kinda have the same feel. It’s actually a little weird.” Tommy scrutinized Thadius for a moment before shaking his head. “Forget it. All I know is that he was asking for the price of buying a shop like this. He might be looking to start his own shop soon.”

“Well, that’s like him I suppose. He’s a pretty gifted tailor. No use chasing his shadow, in any case. To business.” Thadius put his shield on the counter and pulled out some of the hydra materials from his pack. “I need this repaired as soon as possible using these materials. I’d also like to bother you to forge a sword that doesn’t have a guard on it. It also needs to fly straight if it’s thrown.”

“Thrown!?” Tommy looked up from inspecting the shield. It was the first time he’d ever heard of such a request. “So you want a sword that’s good for throwing?”

“No. I want a sword that’s made to be thrown. I’d also like it to be a bit durable please. I’ll be doing a lot of tests.”

Tommy nodded. “We can take care of it, no problem. but the shops gonna be closed before we can finish you order. The shield is pretty banged up, and I want to let my master take a crack at that throwing sword. He likes to hog all the uncommon orders.”

“Then I’ll return tomorrow.” Thadius said. He wasted no time in leaving and hurried to get to the church in order to meet up with Christina and Yuna.

Yet, as Thadius made his way to the Church, he felt that someone was following him. The one following him wasn’t exactly close, but it looked like it was only surveillance for now. If they attacked, he would be ready.

Thadius walked into the church and stood just behind the doors to check on the person tailing him. After a few minutes, the person seemed to run out of patience and left, however, it still left Thadius a bit puzzled. He was wearing the full uniform of the city guard, so it would be hard to recognize him if the stalker was the assassin from a while back. So he was now left with the question of who it could possibly be. In the end, Thadius didn’t dwell on it. Since he didn’t know, he would just have to find out eventually.

He found a priest a lot quicker this time around and quickly asked for Christina. Thankfully, it was one of the priests that was ogling Christina the last time he came. As soon as he saw Thadius take off his helmet, the priest’s jaw dropped.

“Good afternoon, I’ve come to visit my companion. She’s easy to remember, so you should know who I’m talking about, right?” Thadius smiled.

“Yes! I’ll go right now, sir! Excuse me, sir! I’ll be right back, sir!” The priest bowed several times before he finally left. The impression he had toward Thadius, the winner of a Silver Champion’s Belt, was very deep.

Thadius shook his head and smiled at the man’s comical display then silently waited. Only a few minutes had passed before he could suddenly feel someone rushing toward him at a remarkable speed. Shifting his feet, he fully braced himself for the unseen goddess that had the power to knock him to the ground.

Yuna hugged Thadius at full speed and whispered excitedly, “Thadius! You’re finally back!”

“I’m back. So don’t try so hard to tackle me to the ground. You know I’m not comfortable with being sacked.” Thadius smiled. Then he looked up to see Christina running.

“Thadius!” she smiled brightly.

Seeing her so excited, Thadius couldn’t help but smile. “Word has it that you became a Priestess while I was away?”

“And she almost died.” Yuna tossed in.

“What?” Thadius asked, looking directly at the vanished Yuna.

“It was that guy that attacked us when we first came to the city.” Yuna replied.

Thadius sighed heavily. Then, after giving Christina a quick glance, he went over the details with the tiny goddess.

Although it wasn't intentional, that one glance was enough to stop Christina in her tracks. She couldn’t explain it well, but to her, that one glance was more terrifying than being attacked by the assailant the other day.

“And then he said something about the Hall of Shadows or something. So there could be other guys coming too.” Yuna shrugged after she finished narrating her day out with the girls.

“It's enough that no one was hurt.” Thadius made the motion to rub Yuna’s head out of habit, but then he remember his injuries and retracted. It wasn’t until then that the others noticed Thadius’ bandaged hands.

‘You’re injured?” Christina couldn’t suppress the uneasiness from before, but this was her moment to shine. She wanted to be able to offer support in moments like these.

“It’s not as bad as it was, but it would be a lot better after some official healing.” Thadius held out his hands and let Christina unwrap his hands.

Once the injuries were revealed, however, things were not as calm as they were before.

“What the heck!?” Yuna screamed as she looked at the melted flesh with her face warped in terror. She didn’t even bother to remain concealed.

Christina’s reaction wasn’t much better. She stood frozen in place, the only movement being the trembling hands that held Thadius’.

“Who did this!?” Yuna questioned.

“It was a hydra. But it’s dead now so-”

“A monster did this!? Thadius, we were practically trained to kill monsters! What the heck were you doing out there!” Yuna’s eyes watered as she shook Thadius’ arm. By now, Christina had recovered and was wholeheartedly trying to heal the grotesque wounds.

Under Yuna’s scolding, Thadius truthfully replied, “I was trying to do too much instead of focusing on killing the monster as quickly as possible. I was careless.”

“Careless?” Yuna’s voice caught in her throat as she tearfully glared at him. The worst injury she’d ever seen him with was a bruise, and at that time, she had been the culprit. Now, he came back from some random trip with his hands in this shape. How could she ever be at ease letting him go off by himself if a single moment of carelessness could result in such injuries?

’Good thing she didn’t come to the coliseum that day.’ Thadius thought.

He looked down at the tiny goddess and said, “I learned a valuable lesson when I went out this time. I won’t let myself get hurt like this again if I can help it.”

Yuna remained unconvinced. Her dark silver eyes were resolute. “You won’t be leaving me behind next time. I’m going with you.”

“Christina isn’t ready for something like that, and we can’t just leave her behind.” Thadius made a wry smile. He knew coming back injured would have Yuna anxious to let him leave. Even if he was a Traveler, no one wanted a loved one to die.

Yuna sent a glance to Christina full of frustration and impatience. “I’ll make sure she’s ready!”

Seeing Yuna give her such a look, Christina suddenly knew why that one glance from Thadius had given her such a feeling of unease. Ever since she left home, she had seen with her own eyes just how strong Yuna and Thadius were. In an act of selfishness, she chose to follow them. No matter what, she didn’t want Thadius to leave her behind. However, instead of being left behind, something much worse was happening; she was holding them back. And that look from Thadius, it was a look of uncertainty. Whether it was uncertainty toward her future or her place with them, it was impossible for her to be sure. In the end, she could just be imagining things as well, but it made her feel so small.

’Who knows where they would be right now if I hadn’t come with them! Christina thought as she bowed her head and cast another heal.

“Christina…” Thadius said softly. Her dejected appearance gave him a deep feeling of guilt. He didn’t want to make it sound like she was a burden, but she had to know how dangerous it would be traveling with them from now on.

“Yes.” she replied meekly, not daring to meet his eyes.

“When we fought the hydra, only one person died. His name was Marcus. He was our Priest.” Thadius said.

Hearing that the only one that died was the priest, Christina flinched.

Thadius continued, “The monster targeted him Christina. It saw how he would heal us and it killed him first to give us a harder time. I don’t want to scare you, but there will be times where Yuna and I cannot protect you in time. There will also be enemies of ours that will come after you first because you’re a Priestess. So before we go anywhere, it’s extremely important that you learn to defend yourself. Even more so because of how important your role is to the people around you.”

Christina nodded with the edge of her eyes glistening. Her thoughts immediately pictured a young woman fighting by Thadius’ side, protecting his blind spots, and healing him when he’s injured. The young woman in that vision of hers wasn’t herself, but the Red Hand, Rosemary.

Thadius pulled her into a hug, hoping to lift her spirits, and she welcomed it wholeheartedly, leaning her head against his chest.

’Even if she’s perfect for him. She’s not here!’ Christina closed her eyes and immersed herself in the embrace. Although she felt inferior to the woman she’s never seen. She was never one to give up when things get tough. All she needed was time, and she could gain the ability needed to stand beside Thadius in his adventures.

“You two won’t have to worry about me going anywhere for now. I have plenty of things I want to work on while we’re in Todos. Christina, what’s the name of the High Priest here? Or is it a Priestess?” Thadius asked while releasing Christina from his arms. When she looked into his eyes, he saw a stubbornness within the heavenly glow.

“The High Priest’s name is Nigel. If you’re looking for him, he’s usually in his office in the afternoon.” she replied.

Thadius shook his head. “I won’t be meeting him today, I want to get some tailoring done. Now, tell me what else has happened this week.”

Thadius listened to all their various stories and shared a little about his trip to the Mists of Croaka. In the end, he didn’t stay too long since he needed to prepare a few things for tomorrow.

Once he walked outside again, he scanned the surroundings with his Holy Fighting Aura to make sure he wasn’t followed, then he set off to a nearby inn for a place to sit down and weave in peace. Out of all the things he was the most anxious about while he was in the mists, the first was his companions, and the second was his earnings from the tailoring shop.

’I really hope nothing went wrong. Thadius sighed heavily. Tonight was going to be a busy night for him, and tomorrow was going to be a another full day. Slowly but surely, he had to set his plans into motion.