Prologue: Part 2: A Child, A Hope

A soft wind rolls across a plain of honey-colored grass.. The sun illuminates the world with a warm, red hue.. A man and woman stand next to each other, holding hands as they stare into the setting sun..

The man’s fluffy, black hair ruffles in the breeze; his brilliant golden irises reflect the light of the sun, like a treasure gifted from the gods; his feline-like ears twitch slightly atop his head, as his tail swishes nervously behind him. His body is defined and lean, with the lines of his muscles easily visible beneath the light, black clothing that covers him.

The woman’s hair is a deep red, flowing unbounded in the wind; her eyes are a gentle brown, like that of chocolate; her ears are pointed, and her face has a narrow shape. Beautiful. A beauty that even regular elves couldn’t compare to. Her figure, although seemingly fragile, looked like it held immense power and her skin held a slight red color. As if she was a burning flame, everything around her seemed to be raised several degrees in temperature. A simple red robe fluttered about her body, the curves of her form easily seen.

The only thing odd about them, was the difference in height. The woman stood almost a full head taller than the man. Such is the difference in their race, it seems.

As the sun reaches down into the horizon, already halfway gone, the wind around them seems to pick up speed.

Flames crackle in the air around them.. From head to toe, the two of them are slowly covered in a lively flame, consuming their figures.

As soon as the flame completely devours them, the sun shines strongly. Despite the fact that it is already setting, it shines as bright as if it is still midday. The light envelops their flaming figures, and swallows them whole.

The sun’s light returns to how it was before, and the two of them are gone.

New Life

Amidst a sea of red grass, a solitary black, circular rock sits upon the ground. As if cut by an immeasurably sharp blade, the rock is perfectly flat. Strange rune markings can be found carved into it’s surface.

One by one, the runes blaze to life.. A twister of flame erupts from the edges of the stone, towering into the crimson sky above. Seconds later, the twister stops spinning and the flames disperse into the air.

“So this is the Plane of Fire, we actually made it here..” The golden-eyed man sighs in relief.

“Yes, or do you still dare doubt my abilities? Shall we have another spar?”

Sensing danger, the man hurriedly replies, “Of course not dear, if I had doubts I wouldn’t have married you, and be here getting ready to.. do what we’re going to do.”

The woman blushes slightly, reminded of the unsaid intentions, “A-ah.. right… Well then, Charlotte, come.”

Fire energy begins gathering, condensing, and taking form as a flame-red fox.

“Alright Charlotte, please lead the way for us.” The fox begins running across the sea of red grass followed by the man and woman. The black rock disappears into the distance behind them..

….

The man and woman move steadily through a forest of pink bamboo.

From the pink bamboo sprout leaves of blue flame that produce no smoke. The bamboo forest stands as tall as a small mountain with uncommonly thick trunks for a bamboo tree, and, even if one spent hours looking for a path, it would seem almost impossible to travel through such a densely clustered forest of bamboo. Yet the man and woman seem to be moving through it as if the bamboo itself is making way for them.

They enter a clearing within the forest, a small hut constructed of pink bamboo stands in its center. In front of the hut is a statue of a regal tiger made out of white stone. Even though its only a statue, it seems to impose a strong pressure on the surroundings.

The man and woman come before the statue, and kneel down in respect. The woman holds out a small ruby crystal in front of her. Within the crystal burns a small ruby flame, hard to see unless inspecting closely.

As if the statue is alive, it’s eyes stare down at them. A flame of multiple colors seems to come from out of thin air, as it wraps around the man and woman.

They patiently wait.. for what almost seems like hours, they wait. Eventually, the flame pulls back, and the ruby crystal is now gone.

The statue of the tiger now seems to smile, if a tiger could smile that is. The woman and man look happy, as they bow to the tiger again before heading into the small hut.

….

Night has spread across the forest of bamboo, the blue flames of the bamboo dye the world in the forest with an azure hue. Small flame creatures scamper about in the forest.

The man and woman are now are inside the small hut, laying between the sheets of a bed.

The man smiles while looking at the woman, “When we return, we will surely surprise the family. To think.. one of my kin will be able to use magic..”

The woman reaches out to the man’s chest, “I’m sure our child will be amazing, if no one is surprised then they must’ve been hit upside the head.”

The man twists his naked frame until he is on top of the woman, “Haha, quite so. Our child will be amazing.. Yes, our son will be quite spectacular.”

The woman wraps her arms around the man’s waist, her naked figure glowing with a seductive red aura. She smiles wryly, “Eh? And who says it’s a son?”

“I did.” As the man pounces into the woman’s embrace. A night full of activities commences..

….

A year later. The screams of a woman ring throughout the forest.

The blue flames of the bamboo trees blaze brightly, dancing through the air. The crackling of flames can be heard as the air around the small hut combusts with little bursts of red flame.

The statue of the tiger, is no longer a statue. In front of the small hut, a tiger pure white fur stands. Rising to almost a hundred feet in height, it towers over the hut. Flames of ever-changing color blaze from the stripes on it’s body.

Silently, the tiger stares at the hut. The flames on its body soon stop changing, maintaining a constant crimson flame. The crimson flame slowly escapes from the tiger’s body, extending to the ground. There, another tiger takes form. A tiger of pure crimson flame.

The crimson tiger bows to the regal tiger as one would bow to their king, and turns towards the hut. Losing its form, the tiger turns into a wind of flame, and enters the hut.

The flames of the regal tiger once more become an ever-changing color.

“ROOAARR!” It releases a realm shaking roar.

Immense amounts of fire energy began to gather in the area around the small hut. The energy is swallowed in by the insides of the hut.

The air temperature rises to an extreme level, the air no longer combusts with small sparks, but massive eruptions of flame. The flames do nothing to the surroundings, as it all gets sucked into the hut.

The fire energy soon stops gathering inside the small hut. The air temperature returns to its normal heat. The regal tiger has turned back to a statue. The screams can no longer be heard.

Silence.

“WAAUUGGHH! WAAUUGHH!”

The sudden cries of a newborn child.

….

In the hut within the forest of pink bamboo, a woman is holding a now sleeping baby in her arms.

Her chocolate-brown eyes gaze a warm love as she watches her child. The warmth coming from this new mother is so immersive as to cause a man who has succumbed to the frostbite of the coldest regions of the world to forget the meaning of the word cold.

A thin layer of deep red hair but with black stripes like the fur of a tiger covers the head of the child. Twin small feline ears protrude from his head. He breathes ever so slightly and calmly, seeming to be lost in the comfort of his mother’s arms.

The man kneels down beside the woman, who is sitting up in bed. Tears slowly creep down his face from his golden irises, as a smile threatens to tear his face in half. “See? I k-knew he’d be a b-boy…” As he chokes on his own emotions; truly a situation where a man didn’t know whether he should laugh or cry.

….

In the sea of red grass, man woman and child walk on to the familiar black stone.

Grasping each others hands, fire energy gathers around them once again. The air crackles with small sparks, and their bodies are slowly covered in flame from head to toe.

The runes blaze one by one. A twister of flame erupts from the black stone, completely surround them. A flash of light engulfs them. As it fades away, they’re nowhere to be seen, and the twister disperses.

Traitors

In the north-western plains of the Beast-Plain Kingdom, Pendragonia, there is a city known as Pyralis. A city which belongs to the Pyralis clan of the cat-people race. They’re a small clan, but occasionally a strong child is born with the potential to become a great warrior.

The current head of the Pyralis clan, Uther Pyralis, is one such warrior. A long time ago, his ancestors participated in a war against the Human-Noble Kingdom, and they achieved a great victory. This town was given to them by the king at the time as a reward for their achievements.

In the northern part of the city, the Pyralis clan residence resides. This is where the main family to the current head lives.

This is also where the earlier man and woman live. Uther Pyralis, the golden-eyed man. Elizabeth Pyralis, the red-haired woman.

Their child had only been born but two days earlier, but they had decided to return to their home instead of remaining in the Plane of Fire.

Within a study inside the residence, Uther is sitting at desk with many papers and books piled around it. Another man stands behind him, wearing leather armor with a sword sheathed across his back, and a dagger at his side. His eyes and hair are brown, showing that he’s from one of the branch families of the Pyralis clan.

“What is it Henry?”

“Master, a few months ago, we lost contact with Lord Balthor. I must warn you, Malzar may know something by now.”

“Lord Balthor wouldn’t be so weak as to say anything, even if they had a reason to arrest him they wouldn’t get anything out of him. You should know just as well how stubborn he is.”

“You are right, Master. But there is another matter. King Malzar has summoned you to the royal palace. Even if he doesn’t know anything, he is still planning something.”

“... I see. Then I’ll have to go see what he’s planning, won’t I?”

“Master.. you don’t mean to actually accept the summons? What if it’s a trap? You know how ruthless he is!”

“Can the head of a small clan like me refuse the summons of my king without repercussions? If I were to refuse, then he might take it out on the clan. I’m not the young warrior I was in my younger years, Henry. I can’t just act based on how I feel anymore. The King has summoned me, and I must go.”

“Master..”

“While I’m gone, protect my wife and child. No one is to get near them, not even other members of the clan. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Master.”

“Good. I’ll leave tonight.”

….

Within the master bedroom of the main family residence, Uther and Elizabeth watch their child silently sleeping in a well-built crib beside their bed.

“Do you really have to go?” Elizabeth grips Uther’s hand tightly.

“Yes, my dear. But don’t worry, I’ll definitely return. For the sake of you and Arthur, how could I disappear now?”

“I.. understand. But I swear Uther, if Malzar does something to you.. I will burn his entire palace with him in it to the ground.” She gives a fierce look, as if she can see the many she speaks of right in front of her.

“Haha, I don’t doubt it, my dangerous little fire elf.” He pats her head, attempting to sooth her anger.

A few moments of silence go by.

“... Please come back, Uther.”

“I promise I will, no matter what.”

….

A few days later, within the capital city of Pendragonia, Pendragon City, a carriage rolls in front of the Royal Palace. With solid gold gates and walls of elegant white marble. The palace towers of the rest of the city, like the house of a god.

The door of the carriage opens, and Uther walks out, wearing more noble clothing of black and gold colors than what he wore a few days ago. The guards open the gates, and he walks inside, following the path up to the palace.

….

In a parlour room within the palace, Uther sits in a chair in front of a table decorated by two cups. Sitting across from him is another man, but his upper body is shrouded in darkness. A butler bends slightly, pouring tea into the two cups before moving away.

“Haha, Uther my dear friend, why the agitated look? Can I not call upon an old friend to chat?” The shadow shrouded man jests slightly, treating Uther like he is nothing more than prey.

Uther’s eyes flicker with a dangerous light, “Surely my King has more important matters to occupy his time than to chat with a simple fellow like me. I just hope that there is something with which I can help that my King has called me for.”

“Haha, rightly so... I have an idea, how about I get you to tell me the reason. I’ll even give you a hint. About a month ago my guards caught a… rat, I would call it. They happened upon some curious information about a certain clan’s activities. Go ahead, make a guess.” Malzar shows a cruel smile that is apparent even in the darkness, and it is made even more cruel due to his teeth being sharpened fangs.

Uther knows what the man wants, but he has no intention of giving it to him. “I have no idea what it could be, my King. Perhaps you could shed some light on my lack of knowledge.”

“Haha, right!” Malzar picks up his cup of tea and drinks slowly, his actions seeming to say that he has all the time in the world.. “Well why don’t I tell you a story I heard about this rat. This rat was surprisingly a clever one, afterall it was able to live in my palace and grow for so many years.”

He motions to the butler with his hands, the butler moves towards a door and opens it. Out of the door walks a man with short white hair, a scarred face, and black clothing stained with blood. He drags another man by the neck behind him, just by a look one could tell this old man was barely alive, his body covered head to toe in gruesome wounds.

Uther instantly knows who this man is, Lord Balthor.

“You see, this rat actually worked for me, and before me it worked for my father. I trusted this rat because it was also trusted by my father, I had very high faith that it would serve me well.. but I guess I was wrong. It turns out that this rat didn’t like me as much as I thought. It began to collude with a rebellion behind my back, and it did very well in surviving for as long as it did, causing me manys problems.

However it got cocky, and left out some papers it shouldn’t have. These papers, while not giving as much information as I’d hoped, were certainly helpful. But why stop there, right?”

He stands up and moves towards Lord Balthor, grabbing his face by the chin and turning it towards Uther. The King moves his tongue slowly across his fangs. Lord Balthor’s face is expressionless, even though he is without a doubt conscious. His eyes lack any life, however, as if he is no longer paying attention to the world.

“So, I had some special magic done, a few tricks to the brain, and I forced every little piece of information out of him that I could. You’re quite clever I guess, seeing as he only knew the name of your clan and remained ignorant of any others… but I highly doubt you Pyralis folk are the only ones at work. So tell me, Uther Pyralis, head of the Pyralis clan, keeper of lies and a traitor to me, THE KING, why I would summon you here.” As if to emphasize his last few words, he flexes his hand and crushes the head of Lord Balthor. Blood sprays across the room, landing near the feet of Uther.

“YOU DARE CALL YOURSELF A KING?! You sell your own people to the hands of those filthy human nobles! You let bandits and barbarians run across our lands, raping and pillaging without fear of the King that sits behind them! The people cry for saviors and yet no help comes as the king they trusted sells them out in front of their noses! You’re no king, you’re nothing more than a tyrant brat who’s going to destroy this kingdom!” Uther’s voice shakes the air in the room. As he rises from his chair, his imposing pressure unravels throughout the room, sending the butler and the white-haired man into unconsciousness.

“HAHA! YES! THATS THE FACE I WANTED TO SEE! HOW LOVELY, HOW FANTASTIC! Tell me Uther, where have you been these past few months, eh? I heard rumors you went on a trip to train or something, but I can’t sense any break-through in you. Also I heard a rumor, you know.. a rumor about when you returned to Pyralis a few days ago with a newborn baby..” The Kings eyes become a murderous red while his pupils contract vertically like that of a dragons, flooding the room with his killing intent.

Uther’s face distorts in anger, “Y-you… YOU FIEND! … What do you want from me Malzar, do you really think you can handle me so easily? If so, then you’re sorely mistaken!”

“Not so, my dear Uther. But let me ask you this, do you think you can make it back to your family before my men slaughter them? Do you think you can protect them from here? Do you think you can even escape from my palace alive? You should know fully well who is stronger between you and I.”

“... What do you want?”

“Kneel. Kneel to me, as your King. Admit to your treason, and accept your name as a traitor. You will be publicly executed, and your clan will be outcast from the kingdom.. but at least they’ll be alive.” The King smiles with delight at the thought of having Uther kneel before him.

“Y-you…. Then you must swear to me. Swear to me that you will not target my family. You will not have your soldiers hurt my clansmen, my wife, or my child. Not your soldiers nor assassins or mercenaries, not the clans under your control, or any third parties you influence. You must swear this to me. Then I will kneel.”

“I, Malzar Pendragon, swear upon my soul that, upon Uther Pyralis declaring his guilt of treason, I shall neither influence nor direct any man, beast, or monster, including myself, to act against any family or clansmen of Uther Pyralis from this moment forth. May the Great Elemental Lords bare witness to my oath, and should I ever break it, let them smite me for breaking this oath.” The King says while smiling, never looking away from Uther’s gaze.

Uther, hesitating for a moment, kneels to the ground. As he bows his head he says in a grave, monotone voice, “I, Uther Pyralis, have plotted against the King. I have sought to overthrow and kill the King for my own goals, and have committed treason in doing so. May my punishment be served.”

“Good. Guards!” Guards come into the room, handcuffing Uther like they’ve been ready for this the whole time. “Take him to the cell.” ‘’’’’’’’’Yes, my King!’’’’’’’’’’

The guards try to force Uther up, but a pressure knocks them all on their asses. He stands up himself, and walks out of the room, in the direction of the cell.

After a few minutes of silence, “To think, that I would be able to make the great Uther Pyralis, kneel to me. Truly this is a marvelous moment. Haha, good thing he didn’t question the oath. I only swore that I wouldn’t do anything from this moment onwards, I didn’t say anything about orders I’ve already given! AHAHAHAHA! Does he honestly think I’m going to have mercy on his pitiful clan of cats, what a joke!”

….

Back in the Pyralis clan residence… The woman is sitting beside a crib, watching her child sleep, “Your father will be back in a few days, we’ll get to introduce you to the clan then little Arthur.” She smiles thinking of the people here as well as her own clan back in the Elf-Forest Kingdom.

The brown haired man from earlier is standing in the corner of the room, his presence completely undetectable except for those who know he exists.

*BOOM* A loud crash is heard in the direction of the residence entrance, and sudden thundering of heavy feet can be heard.

Both the woman and the man flash surprise, then immediately begin moving. Screams can be heard coming from the main hall, as the sound of swords slashing and the thundering feet draw closer.

“Henry, quick, go burn the office! Don’t miss a single thing! Then follow me to the basement!” The brown haired man quickly dashes out of the room, the woman is already grabbing things from the room and tossing them in a pile. The child has woken up and cries in protest to the sudden noises that it doesn’t recognize.

The women opens a drawer and takes out a particular necklace and a ring. She wears the ring, and all of the things she gathered disappear. She pulls on a sling for carrying a baby, and stashes her son inside. Not even 10 seconds have gone by.

Henry quickly reappears, “It is done my Lady.” The woman nods, before pulling back a rug and dropping through a pitch black hole beneath it, followed by Henry shortly after. A small gust pulls the rug back over the hole.

In the basement the woman and Henry appear, but there are already soldiers coming in from the doorway following other clansmen who have also run to the basement. She quickly runs through a portion of the wall that has been destroyed by other clansmen, delving into the hidden tunnels created for escaping.

“My lady go on ahead! I’ll stop them from entering the tunnels!” Knowing it would be dangerous to have powerful enemies get near a tunnel with his master’s wife inside.

The woman doesn’t hesitate at all, the most important thing to her right now is to get her son away. She’s already running through the tunnels passing by the slower clansmen who are also fleeing from the residence.

….

Back in the basement Henry stands with his right arm raised in front of him holding a sword and his left arm at his side holding a dagger. Fur has grown all over his body, making him appear more like a beast than man.

He glares dangerously at the soldiers and mages standing in front of him looking for anyone to lunge forward like the two idiots who are already lying dead on the floor with their heads rolling.

The room has many boxes used for storage, creating a very cramped room, allowing very few opponents to get near Henry. But there are many enemies in the room, giving Henry very little room to move about, practically forcing him to stay where he is.

A man with a more decorated set of armor with blood splattered across it walks in, observing the scene. “Haaah. Looks like we ran into a troublesome cat.” He unsheathes a large sword, a longsword, and takes up a stance in front of Henry. “Let me take care of this little house pet, eh?”

The man charges forward, his longsword lashes out against Henry like a dragon whipping it’s tail. Henry fully aware of the dangers of trying to block, rolls backwards and avoids the strength of the man.

He lands on his feet in perfect position to pounce and blasts forward while twisting in mid air before the man can even redirect his blade, however, just before he can land his strike in the gaps of the man’s armor, daggers fly at him with one of them connecting into his left shoulder.

Henry’s attack gets thrown off and his own dagger leaves a cut in the man’s armor, forcing him backwards, but not penetrating through. Losing his full strength in his left arm, Henry curses himself, preparing to defend himself with his sword as he rolls on the ground into another pouncing position.

However, right as he lands another soldier drives his sword into Henry’s leg, anchoring him to the ground. He curses himself again, and this ridiculously small space with so many enemies. He was hoping he could move again, before these dimwitted soldiers would be able to act.

“Hoho, what a fast kitty.” The man not daring to hesitate against his opponent, swings his sword overhead to kill. Yet, Henry is already moving again, twisting his frame to cut the arms of the soldier who has pinned him and rolling out of the way. The man’s sword smashes the ground where he was a moment ago, shaking the room as dirt falls through the ceiling. Even the soldier who was behind Henry, was cleaved in half right after having his arms cut off. Needless to say, he died instantly.

Henry pulls the sword out of his leg, and uses his good leg to push himself away from the nearby soldiers who’re also trying to land a hit on him. He crashes into some storage boxes, and quickly tries to regain his balance.

“Hmm, not only moves fast, but thinks fast as well. Should be about sev…” Before he can finish his sentence Henry has thrown his dagger, although not with as much strength as he could’ve since his shoulder was injured, and the dagger cuts through the mans neck, barely missing his jugular.

“Tch… Annoying cat. Die already!” The man charges again, his sword moving even faster this time drawing the air around it like it’s trying suck everything around it into it’s path to be cut. Henry, without the mobility to dodge, tries to deflect such a massive strength by angling his sword, but the cut goes completely through his blade, ignoring it’s angle, and lands in Henry’s side.

Henry’s right arm falls to the ground as blood gushes from his wound., flying to the side landing on his back a few feet from where he was, blood quickly puddles around his fallen body. “Hoho, couldn’t even cut all the way through.. Quick, mages, collapse that tunnel!” ‘’’’’’’’Sir!’’’’’’’’ As the mages move forward from behind the soldiers, and begin chanting magic.

Henry watches the mages, with the light fading from his eyes, (Hopefully… I gave her… enough time…)

….

In the tunnel, the woman carrying the child is running as fast as she can to reach the exit. The tunnels begin to shake and she curses, the muscles in her leg already burning from the intense speed. Sections of the tunnel began collapsing behind her drawing closer every second.

She flies through the exit just as an explosion of dirt and dust fly out behind her, as the tunnel has completely been collapsed. Yet just as she feels relieved, a new scene greets, causing her face to pale.

Behind her, the city is in flames. Screams of women, children, and men drown the world in noise. Buildings collapse beneath the onslaught of the King’s soldiers.

In front of her are a dozen or so fellow clansmen lying mutilated and dead on the ground as soldiers walk over their corpses following a man dressed in a set of pitch black armor.

This man has silky, black hair flowing down behind him; his eyes are blood red and contracted into a vertical shape like a dragons. He smiles with white fangs dyed red from the blood coating them. “And so the Miss survives the tunnel, only to die to me.”

The woman immediately bursts into flames that cover both her and her son, and begins to chant magic as she runs in a direction with little soldiers and away from that man. “Stop her!”

The man shouts as he lunges after her, clearly several times faster. Black scales grow around his legs and arms. His pitch black sword thrusts out, yet right as it’s about the pierce her back through her heart, she leaps slightly.

The blade pierces through her lower section, but misses her son. Yet she does not flinch or react to the pain, her entire concentration is directed on her spell and running away. Just as the man moves to follow up his missed strike, this one attempting to cut off her head, the flames covering her erupt into a devouring inferno releasing a dramatic shock wave from heating the area rapidly. The man is blown backwards and the soldiers scream in pain as flesh, metal, and everything else is melted.

Like a rocket the woman shoots off through the soldiers, crashing through the surrounding terrain like an unstoppable arrow of fire… headed straight for the wilderness.

….

The woman is running between the trees, her clothes torn and stained with her own blood. She has long ago run out of mana. She continues to hear shouts behind her followed by the barks of wolves. She knew that man wouldn’t give up so easily.

But she has not yet lost hope. For the sake of her child, she cannot afford to lose hope.

She came from a notable elvish clan, but following her own will to be an adventurer led her to fall in love with Uther. Her clan spited her for following someone from such an ‘inferior race’, yet she did not care. Uther was worth more to her than her own clan. Although she loved her father, she knew he would understand her feelings even if her clan did not.

Uther and Elizabeth wanted to have a child, but conception between an elf and a beastman is almost unheard of. Not because love between them was rare, but rather the conception between them is incredibly hard.

But they did not lose hope, they wanted a child, and they had hopes that he would become a great person. After all, what parent doesn’t hope for great things for their child?

In order to conceive, they spent a great deal of effort to acquire a fire-heart crystal. Together, they travelled to the Plane of Fire, and asked a powerful elemental to bless their love.

The elemental was known to the Pyralis clan for its affinity with feline creatures, and also because this was the same legendary elemental that had bonded with the hero from the stories, who was also of the cat-person race.

Through a miracle, the elemental accepted their pleas, and took the fire-heart crystal as payment. With the aid of the elemental’s fire of life, their conception was made possible. But there were even more benefits to conceiving a child in the Plane of Fire. The affinity the child would possess for the fire element would be enormous, and, since the Plane was constructed entirely out of mana and spirit energy, his senses for them would no doubt be high.

The Pyralis clan was a clan with very little talent for magic. They had talent as warriors, but they lacked the talent for elemental affinity and mana control.

To Uther, the child was a hope to become someone powerful enough to take over the clan. To bring the clan strength, and use that strength to save the kingdom of beastmen from the wretched-ness brought on by the past kings from the powerful Dragon clan.

To Elizabeth, the child represented her love. Her love for the not only Uther but for all life itself. She wanted her child to be someone who could prove that love between elves and other races was not impossible. To her, her child was worth more to her than any treasure the world could give her.

As she ran, she was quickly running out of options. Her only hope was that they would lose her in the darkness of the Eternal Night Forest, the most dangerous place near the borders of the Beast-Plain kingdom.

This is when she decided, that because of the wolves following her scent, it would be hard for her to lose them. Even if she could outrun them because they needed to catch her changing directions, she could not run forever. She was no ranger or rogue, nor did she possess powerful illusion magic. She had no means to escape.

Thus, near a river, she ran up to a massive tree with giant roots. She used a complicated fire spell to eat the earth underneath the roots, creating a small hole. She stored the necklace she took in the folds of the child’s wrap, and then she placed him inside. The way she used her magic left no scorch marks on the tree or surrounding ground, nor any means to tell that there was a hole there unless they looked over the tops of the roots at specific angle.

She used a low level sleeping spell to put the child to sleep so he would be quiet, and then she ran.

She ran back in the direction of the wolves and that accursed man. She ran to catch their attention, while she pretended to still be carrying a child. She lured them away from that stream, and she ran. All the while she was crying; crying so hard her heart felt like it was being crushed by a mountain.

She begged for forgiveness from her son, for abandoning him. She prayed to the Elemental Lords to give him a better fate, to spare his life. She damned herself for bringing such a misfortunate life on to her son only days after he had been born. All the while, she continued to run. Hoping for her son to be saved from this fate.

Her figure fades into the dark forest as the continuous barks of wolves and cursing of men ring through the air.

Mother

In the Eternal Night Forest, there are a few tiger cubs playing around a small stream. These tiger cubs had white fur with light blue stripes running through it. They were just old enough to be allowed to run around and explore the world for their first day.

All of a sudden, a mewling comes from a nearby tree. However, all the cubs were here, so they knew it couldn’t be one of their own.. Curiously, one of the braver ones wandered towards it while the rest followed behind.

As it got closer, crawling up on the giant roots of the tree, it found the small crevice and cave in which the mewling came from. Looking inside, the cub saw Arthur, bawling his eyes out.

A sad cry, as though the child has been deeply wronged, yet it knows nothing of what has transpired. The only thing the child knew was that its mother was no where to be found, and that was a bad thing, a sad thing.

The cub pushed it’s towards Arthur, touching him. This caused Arthur to stop mewling and open his eyes… He saw the cub, the cub saw him… and they both looked at each other confused as to what the other was.

The cub was suddenly lifted up by the back of its neck, and plopped onto the ground while it mewed in protest. The mother stood on its four legs and still reaching almost ten feet in height with pure blue flames coming off it’s body. She looked like she could smash a large bull into meat paste with one swipe of her paw. This same mother looked in to the crevice and found Arthur.

It observed, it sniffed, and it just simply stared. Arthur stared back, with the same confused look it gave the cub… and then he reached out towards the mother tiger, once again mewling.

You may think it odd, for a child to reach out to a tiger mother like its asking to be picked up, but to the current Arthur he could tell one thing. That was, that this tiger had a similar aura to that of the mother he knew. This tiger loved life just like his mother, and that was the only thing in this world Arthur could hold on to.

Unexpectedly, the mother reached her paw into the crevice, claw extended… and picked Arthur up by the wrap around him, placing him on the roots of the tree. Then she picked him up again by the wrap using her mouth this time, and carried him off into the forest..

Nova Chapter List