It's dark. I can't see a thing.

Why do I feel so cold? Am I dead? What happened to Elizabeth?

Where're the others?

Oh right. I got stabbed.

Is this it? Am I really gonna die?

What about my parents? My home? They won't know what happened. What will happen if I don't come back? I need to go back?

Hey! Is anyone there!

It's so quiet. It's so dark. I'm so cold. Damn it. I'm really gonna die.

"Do you want to die?"

Course not.

"Why?"

Who would want to die?

"Is that it? You don't wish to die because you are afraid?"

.... No, that's not it. I want to save Elizabeth. I want to see my friends again.

"Why?"

Cause I never had people like that before in my life. It was always boring. Nothing ever really made sense. I only had one person, who I could really call a friend. Now, I have five more. I don't want it to end here. I can't let it end here.

"Then don't. Awaken to your true self and escape death."

Easy for you to say.

Wait, Who are you?

"Open your eyes."

****

Allisa slowly opened her eyes and found herself staring at a deep blue sky above her.

"The sky?" she then realized she was lying on her back.

She sat up and looked around. There was nothing around but the sky and the ground, or at least, she thought it was the ground at first. As she looked down, she saw that it was water. Crystal clear water that reflected the sky, stretching out as far as the eye can see. The scene felt tranquil and calming, as though all the harsh events in the girl's life seem a distant memory.

But she didn't sink. In fact, the water was completely solid. She gently ran her hands over the surface, creating small ripples with her fingertips. The water was cool, but dry. She tried to push down, but couldn't breach the water level.

"Where am I?"

"You're finally awake." A man's voice called to her.

Allisa shot up, startled by the stranger's voice. "Who's there?"

"I'm right here."

Allisa looked round to find the source of the voice. "Where are you? What is this place?" looking around, she saw nothing but sky and water

"Turn around." Allisa turned. She then saw a man standing on the water surface. He was young, with fair hair. He wore old garments, equivalent to that of the medieval age, as far as Allisa could tell; a chain mail vest with a blue overcoat adorned with the crest of a bear. "It's good to finally meet you face to face, Allisa."

"You know my name."

"Of course, I have been inside you for two years now."

"What do you mean? Wait! I was stabbed through the-" Allisa fumbled on her chest, but found no evidence of her being stabbed. "What's going on? She looked around frantically. "A-am I.... dead?"

"You're not dead, seeing that I still exist. But the fact that you are here means you are close to death." The man said with a grim expression.

"What do you mean? Who are you? And where am I?"

"Oh, sorry. I guess I should explain." The man raised both arms. "This is the inside of your soul."

"Huh?" Allisa looked around at the featureless surroundings. "This.... is inside me?"

"The inside of your soul, to be specific." Allisa turned to the man.

"Th-then, are you a part of me?"

"Well, technically I'm an intruder, but I have become a part of you. Your power at least." The man placed his palm on his chest and bowed. "My name is Arthur Pendragon."

"Arthur.... Pen-dragon?" The name seemed very familiar to her.

"You might know me better as 'King Arthur,' and the previous owner of your sword."

"What?" Allisa took a step back with surprise. "Y-you mean 'That' king Arthur?"

"That's right," Arthur said nodding his head. "Although, I'm more of a remnant of who I once was."

"What do you mean?"

"The real me died long ago but my soul lived on in Excalibur. When you were chosen, my remnants were merged with your own soul. I have been within you, dormant until now, when I can finally manifest myself to meet you."

"Ok." Allisa didn't fully understand what Arthur was saying. "Hold on. You said you were inside me for two years."

"Yes. You were chosen when you turned Thirteen. I've lived dormant in you for.... for quite a long time,"

"Wh-what?" Allisa was rattled with confusion. "But the sword appeared two months ago."

"True, it manifested only recently, but you were chosen long before that," Arthur said with a smile. Several strong feelings started to well up inside Allisa, most prominent of them was anger. "For you to be chosen when you at such a young age-"

"Why?" Allisa said quietly, cutting Auther off. She clenched her fists. "Why me? Why was it me?"

"Well," Arthur caught a little off guard by Allisa's interruption. "The sword chooses a wilder of a pure heart and soul-"

"That doesn't tell me anything!" Allisa yelled in frustration, surprising Arthur. "Why me of all people? What's so special about me? What the heck is a pure heart and soul anyway?!

"I....... I-I didn't ask for any of this! I'm just an ordinary girl who lived a safe and boring life before all this crap! And you and your stupid sword just showed up out of nowhere and.. and...." She then collapsed to the ground panting. Tears hit the water, creating gentle ripples as she cried in frustration. "Why me? I'm not strong. I can't save anyone. So why me?"

As she opened her soaked eyes, she saw the ground beneath her had changed to a wooden floor. As she looked up wiping the tears from her eyes, she noticed she was in someone's house. Not just that, it was a place she knew well. "This is... my home?" She was indeed in her house, her real house, back in terra. She and Arthur were standing in the living room. "What did you do?" She asked Arthur, who was looking around.

"I did not do anything." He said. Allisa walked out into the kitchen. It was her home, but something seemed off to her.

"Gandma!" a young girl then ran through the kitchen, and literally though Allisa, who was startled by the girl's appearance.

"That's me." She said with disbelief. "That's when I was about 5. Wh-what's going on?"

"It seems like you're reliving a memory," Arthur concluded as Allisa walked back to the living room. Her young self-approached an old woman who was sitting on the couch, who wasn't there before.

"Look, look." She held up a clover into the woman. "I found one, a lucky cover."

"Oh," the woman took the clover from Allisa and inspected it. "I'm sorry dearly, this only has 3 leaves so it isn't a lucky clover."

"Aw, no fair. It took ages to find one."

"Well how about I reward your efforts with a story?" The old lady closed the book she was reading and patted on the couch.

"Yay!" Allisa said as she leaped up and took a seat next to the lady.

"You seem close to this lady," Arthur said as he watched. "Who is she?"

"My grandma." Allisa said in disbelief. "But how....?" She tried to voice her questions, but she was completely speechless.

"Once upon a time, there lived a beautiful princess," Allisa's grandma began. "But she was abducted by an evil witch who jealous of her beauty, and locked her up in a ruined castle, guarded by a fearsome dragon,"

"I already know this story." Allisa interrupted. "A prince will come and save her, and they fall in love and get married. The end."

"You don't like the story?"

"I just don't get why it's always a prince that saves the princess. It's never the other way round."

"That's true," Grandma replied chuckling. "Well, if you were a princess, what would you do?"

"Easy. I'll be the one to save the prince."

"Really?" Grandma then chuckled some more. "I don't think anyone's thought of that before."

"Hey, you don't believe me."

"Of course I believe you, dearie."

"You'll see. I'll even beat up the dragon." Allisa said in a strop.

Grandma smiled and leaned in close. "If that's the case, you're going to need something."

"What?" Grandma put her left hand on Allisa's shoulder.

"A pinch of magic."

"Magic?" She then pressed her thumb on Allisa's forehead.

"Close your eyes, and relax." Allisa followed her instruction and closed her eyes. "There, all done," Grandma said as she released her.

"Huh? Hey, you didn't do anything."

"Of course I did."

"But I don't feel any different."

"What were you expecting? It's not something you can feel."

"Still sounds like you don't believe me," Allisa said, pouting.

"Of course I believe you. Because you are a very special girl."

"Really?"

"Really. Now then, how about I tell you a new story."

"Yay."

"Long ago, there was a man, consumed by hatred and darkness, set out to bring sadness and pain to the world. He gathered many followers, achieved a power that rivaled that of a god. There were many who tried to stop him, but he was too powerful.

"Then one day, a group of heroes began to form, bringing with them what no one else had seen for a long time. Kindness, light, and most importantly, hope. These heroes saved many lives, held back the darkness, and gave people the power of hope once more. And when the time came, the heroes went to the abyss, where the darkness was strongest, in order to confront the very person who plunged the world into darkness."

"What happens next?"

"You're going to have to find out on my next visit," Grandma said smiling as she got up.

"Aw, no fair." Grandma chuckled and knelt down to Allisa's level.

"I promise I'll tell you the rest on my next visit."

"You promise."

"I promise." The vision then vanished back to the clear blue sky and water that it was before.

A single tear rolled down Allisa's cheek as the image disappeared. "I always loved her stories. She always came up with them on the spot." She said to Arthur, wiping away her tears. "Every time she visited, there was always a new story."

"How did that last one end? It was quite interesting." Arthur asked.

"I don't know. That was the last time I ever saw her." Allisa said quietly.

"What happened?"

"She died in a fire that evening."

"Oh, My apologise." Arthur bowed in apology.

"It's ok." Allisa bowed her head sadly, recalling the next day when her mother had told her the sad news. If she recalled, she cried all day. "I still miss her, that's all."

"It's only natural. After all, you seemed quite close to her."

Allisa nodded. "I guess so."

"What you said was interesting though."

"Huh?"

"How you would save the prince."

"Oh right." Allisa blushed with embarrassment. "I was just a little kid."

"Even so, I doubt most girls that age would even consider that."

"Well, I wasn't exactly what you would call girly." Allisa looked up at the sky. "I always found that stuff boring. I was into comics and action figures when I was young. And I'm still not into things like fashion or other stuff girls are into. I got picked on a lot too. As a result, I never had many friends."

"Because you were different?"

"I guess so." Allisa looked down again, feeling nostalgic. "Was it the same for you?"

"Me?" Arthur scratched his head as he thought. "I.... don't know."

"You can't remember?"

"Yes. In fact, I can not recall anything from my past at all." Arthur then placed his hand on his head. "When I was dormant inside you, my memories started to break down and scattered until all I had left was just my name. It seemed as though they had some kind of effect on you."

"What do you mean?" Allisa then came to a realization. "The dreams." She said quietly. "They're.... They're your memories." Arthur nodded.

"You have seen them, haven't you?"

"Yeah, but," Allisa held her hand to her head. "They're all jumbled, and missing out a lot of detail. I can't make sense of them."

"I see. Sorry." Arthur rubbed his head as he tried to think. "There's something important that I feel I should tell you about, something in my past. But I just can not remember."

"It's ok." Allisa then looked around at the vast expanse. "So what now? Is this really the end for me?

"There is one way to save you," Arthur said.

"Really?" Allisa returned her gaze to Arthur. "Is there something you can do?"

"Oh, there is nothing I can do myself. But it's something you can do."

"There is?" Allisa wasn't sure what he meant. "What do I do?"

"It's known as an awakening."

"Awakening? You mean like waking up."

"Not quite. I think I did something similar before. It's 'awakening' you to all your mana."

"What does that mean?"

"You actually have a massive reserve of mana, which is considerably greater compared to what you have been currently using. Yet that reserve has been mentally blocked by you."

"R-really? How?"

"Remember when you lost your temper after I introduced myself."

"Oh yeah. S-sorry about that."

"It's all right. But those feelings of frustration are what's holding you back."

"Huh?" Allisa held her hand close to her chest as she thought. "My frustration?"

"You can't deny that there is a part of you that regrets being chosen for the path you're on. 'Why did this happen to me?' 'Why couldn't it happen to someone else?' Those strong feelings of frustration are what's blocking you from achieving your full potential."

Allisa wanted to protest, but she couldn't disagree with what Arthur said. After all, she did just say those exact things. "So what do I do?" Allisa said quietly.

"You have to confront those feelings in order to release your suppressed mana." Arthur's voice then became serious. "However, by doing that, there will be no turning back. You will be committing yourself to this path whether you want to or not." Allisa hesitated slightly. "And this is the inside of your soul, so it's impossible for you to lie to yourself."

"And if I don't?"

"Then you will die," Arthur said bluntly. Allisa hesitated for a moment before she replied. "Don't worry. I have confidence in you."

"What do I do?"

"Simply close your eyes and relax." Allisa did as instructed. "Now concentrate on what you want to do."

What do I want to do?

Sight ripples started to form on the water around her as she went into deep thought.

Thinking about it, I don't think I really wanted this. I always wondered if this was all just some bad dream, and I would wake up and everything would be back to normal. Its true, I never really asked for this. But, when those assassins attacked me that night, it was terrifying, but weirdly, it was kinda fun.

The ripples around Allisa started to get more frequent, eventually causing the water to sway.

I mean, every day was just the same boring day. Wake up, go to school, go home. Nothing ever really happened.

Allisa then started to glow, producing a strange blue aura as the water began to become more violent.

There was a part of me, who thought I made some kind of mistake coming to this world. But I'm actually glad I did. I met so many people, made friends. I then just forgot about my anxiety, my boring old life.

The aura then shot to the sky as large waves began to form.

True, I didn't ask for this, I don't know what's gonna happen in the future, but I don't regret it. I'm glad this happened. Because this… this is the start of a real adventure.

Allisa then felt a surge of power flowing through her.

"You've done it!" Arthur's voice then sounded in her head. "The rest is in your hands. You should be waking up soon."

"Great! Thanks for everything!" Allisa called out as a bright light started to engulf the scenery.

"Just so you know, this won't happen again. Next time you really will die. Keep that in mind and be careful." The scenery started to melt away as Allisa felt life returning to her. "I hope we meet again. Good luck."

****

Elizabeth struggled on her chains as she lashed forward. "ALLISA!! ALLISA!!" she cried out.

"Cry all you want, but that girl isn't coming back," Loria said as she walked back towards Elizabeth.

"Why?! She didn't have anything to do with this!"

"That's where you're wrong. She made the mistake of challenging a knight. She had her chance to run but decided to stay anyway. She died because of her own foolishness." She then grabbed Elizabeth by the chin as she leaned in close, staring deep into Elizabeth's eyes. "Don't worry, you'll be seeing her again, very soon." She said smiling at Elizabeth.

Then, all of a sudden, her expression changed. She released Elizabeth and looked behind her. "What's that?" she then walked to the edge of the altar and then froze with shock. "No. That's impossible." She breathed.

Garlahad halted when he saw Loria frozen. "What is it?" he asked. He then felt some slight breeze coming from behind him. He then looked behind him and was overcome with disbelief. "What?!"

A blue aura surrounded Allisa as she got back to her feet. The ground cracked where she stood by the overflow of power.

"Th-That can't be! How are you still alive?!" Garlahad demanded, looking as though he'd seen a ghost.

"I don't really know what's going on here," Allisa summoned her sword as the aura started to dissipate. "And I don't care."

"You little-" Garlahad quickly spun around and drew his rapier.

"But I'm going to save Elizabeth. Even if I have to go through you!"

Her wounds.... They’re completely healed. Loria thought to herself, breaking out in a cold sweat. Not only that, her mana level has skyrocketed. What exactly is she?

"Allisa." Elizabeth breathed with relief, seeing her friend still lived.

"Seems I wasn't quite thorough enough with that last attack," Garlahad said as the tip of his rapier glowed. "I won't make the same mistake again!" He then shot a projectile at Allisa. Allisa moved to the side, allowing it to pass. She dogged it!

He leaned back as he prepared to fire more. "All right, try and dodge this!"

He then released a barrage of projectiles at Allisa, moving his arm at impossible speed as he jabbed out shot after shot, and Allisa intercepted all of them with her sword. When the barrage ended Garlahad stared in disbelief, as he saw not one had managed to hit her.

What's going on! She's completely different from a few seconds ago! And how could she move with those.... Wait? What the?! It was then when he realized that the life-threatening injuries from before had healed completely. Impossible! No one heals that fast!

"Is that all?" Allisa taunted.

Garlahad's anger was reaching a breaking point as he stared down his opponent. He then held out his rapier to his side. "Don't get, ahead of yourself," A large amount of mana gathered in his sword. He then returned to his standard position, ready to launch a more powerful shot. "YOU BITCH!!!"

He released the powerful shot at Allisa. It impacted against the ground hard, destroying the part of the ground where Allisa was standing, sending bits of rock spraying outwards. "Did that get her?"

"Nope." Allisa appeared by Garlahad's left side.

'What!' He quickly turned to face her. As he did, Allisa stuck downwards, slicing through his armor like it was nothing. What is this girl! Is she even human?

Dumb luck

Nel's vision began to blurry. Every muscle in her body ached as her energy was robbed from her. She found it hard to focus, losing control of her piercer eyes, causing them to revert as she collapsed to her knees. Blood seeped from the bolts stuck into her.

"That's 18 bolts." Daud's voice sounded around her. "To be honest, I'm surprised your heart hasn't stopped with that kind of dosage. You got quite the resilience to poison."

Nel looked around panting. She was almost out of energy and found even the simple task of looking around a chore. As an assassin, she was trained at a young age to resist the effects of the poison. It was only through that training that she could still put up some kind of fight. But she had taken a massive dose of Daud's poison and was starting to feel its effects. She was also trying to work out his ability.

There has to be something I've been missing. She thought as she studied the room. It's definitely some kind of teleportation, that much is for sure. Those bolts he fires must somehow be teleporting into my blind spots. Then there are the times where he disappears completely, then reappears silently. It's like he's blending into the shadows of the.... SHADOWS!

Nel looked to the ground. The six braziers in the room, cast many shadows across the room. Glancing down she saw she was currently at the center of the room, casting six shadows in all directions.

"Looks like you figured it out." A black figure then emerged from Nel's front right shadow and quickly dissipated revealing Daud.

"'Shadow shift.' The ability to blend into the shadows, and strike from an enemy's blind spots." Nel looked up at Daud. "The trademark of the Black horse assassin clan."

"Not bad. You've done your homework."

"These bolts are also part of that ability, aren't they?"

"Right again." Daud held up his left arm, showing off his wrist-mounted crossbow. "Most assassins from my clan specialize in ranged and projectile weaponry since it blends in best with shadow shift."

He then fired a bolt into one of the shadows of one of the pillars to his left, which then disappeared. A second after, the same bolt hit Nel in her left side, causing her to grunt at the sharp pain.

"Every time you dodged, it actually made it easier for me to hit you." Daud continued. "As you can see, I fire into shadows and transport them into your blind spots. No matter how powerful those eyes are, you simply can't see what you can't see."

"Seems so." Nel struggled as she tried to get back up. However, she couldn't so much as move a finger due to the effects of the poison.

"Don't bother, the dose is too strong. And if you think that girl will come back to save you, forget it. My employers probably killed her by now."

"Your employer. You mean Garlahad?"

Daud raised his eyebrow. "How'd you find out?"

"You just told me," Nel said smiling. "But I had my suspicions since we got here."

"Really. And yet you sent that girl ahead to face a knight. That's awfully cruel. You sent her to her death when you knew who she would be up against."

"She'll be fine." Nel looked up at Daud with a grin on her face. "If there's one thing I learned about Allisa, it's that she's highly unpredictable and will often surprise you."

"Is that right?" Daud then got down to Nel's level. "You really think that girl can defeat a knight?"

"That's right. I have no doubt she can do it."

"Well, to be honest, I really don't care what happens. I just want those eyes of yours" Daud then started to reach out his right hand at Nel's face, fingers poised to rip out her eye.

Nel tried to move but was just unable to, she couldn't even turn her head. She stared on as Daud's hand inched closer to her eyes. Then all of a sudden, something landed on Daud, breaking the ground in the prose. A large amount of dust-covered Daud from sight.

"Damn. How far did I fall?"

Nel stared in disbelief as the dust settled and she could see her savior. "M-Max!"

"Nel?" Max sat there staring at Nel, confused, and oblivious to what he landed on. "Wow, you look terrible." Nel looked up at the ceiling and noticed a square-shaped hole. "What the heck happened to you?"

"Forget that, where did you come from?" Nel said in confusion looking back down to Max.

"Oh, well," Max thought for a second. "I beat that Clone guy and tried to catch up. But on the stairs, I felt some kind of draft in one of the walls. I broke it down and found this secret passage. When I went to check it out I went down some long slide to some other passageway. I followed it and fell down this hole in the floor, and wound up here." Max scratched his head as he laughed slightly. "Looks like you're in trouble. Talk about luck, huh?"

More like dumb luck. Nel then noticed that Daud wasn't below Max.

"That hurt Damn it!" Daud's voice came from the shadows. Max shot up to his feet when he hired his voice.

"Are you the one who attacked Nel?" He called out looking around.

"What if I am?" Daud then emerged from Max's back left shadow, preparing to strike him with his short sword.

"Max!" Before Nel could warn him, Max turned quickly and punched Daud in the face, sending him flying backward.

"That means I'm gonna kick your ass!"

What the?! Daud struggled back to his feet. Did he see me coming?

"Tch, alright kid" He pointed his crossbow at Max. "Try to dodge this!" he fired two bolts at Max.

"Watch out! There poisoned!" as Nel gave out her warning, Max blasted them aside with his fire before charging at Daud.

"Crap!" Daud touched a shadow nearby, belonging to one of the columns, and disappeared before Max reached him.

"What the?" Max stopped as he studied the surroundings. As he did, Daud appeared behind Max, preparing to strike him again.

Got you now. Max then turned to face Daud and punched him in the gut, sending him flying back into one of the columns, hitting it hard enough to break into it, spitting out blood from the impact. The hell!

Before he could recover, Max breathed in and released a fire roar at Daud. Seeing it coming, he touched a shadow of the column and seeped into it just as the fire blasted through the column and into the wall.

"Did I get him?"

"No, he just escaped," Nel said to him.

"You're kidding!" Max looked around again. "How'd he get away?"

"He blended with the shadow and used it to escape." Nel summarized.

"What?" Max looked confused. "He did what with shadows?"

"He can slip in and out of them. Same for those bolts he fired at you with earlier."

"That still doesn't make sense."

"It's called shadow shift." Daud then appeared at the bottom right of the room, grasping the column for support as he clenched his gut, blood trickling from his mouth. "Most people can't detect me or what emerges from the shadows. So how are you doing it?"

"I don't know. Instinct I guess."

"Instinct? What kind of freak are you?" Daud looked at Max's chest, taking not of the mark. "Oh, I get it. Not only that but you can also attack with fire. You must be the Salamander."

"Yeah, so?"

Daud grinned. "Looks like I'm gonna have to kill you first before I take those eyes of hers." He said as he stood up straight.

"Allisa's in the next room," Nel said to Max, getting that off his mind. "I take it you haven't seen Yuki or Melvin?"

"No. I took a little detour so I probably passed them."

"Thought so." Nel tightened her grip around her weapons, which she still managed to cling to despite her weekend state. "We'll need to take care of this on our own. Think you can keep his attention for a minute?"

Max grinned, slamming his fist into his palm. "No problem."

"Don't get cocky kid," Daud said as he leaped back into the shadows. "I'm just getting started!"

Max charged him. As he did, Daud emerged behind him. Max quickly turned and attempted to punch him. Before his fists could make contact, Daud disappeared. Shocked, Max turned and just managed to dodge a blow from Daud. He then threw a fireball at Daud, who managed to dodge it by seeping back into a shadow.

"Damn this guy's fast." Two bolts then struck him in the back. Max grunted before turning to face Daud, who wasn't there.

"I'm sure the girl told you I can transport them." Daud then lunged at Max while his back was turned.

"Damn!" Max turned to attack Daud. As he did, Daud disappeared again, appearing at Max's left at a distance.

He then shot out two bolts at Max, who turned and blasted them away with a fire roar. Daud got out of the way before it impacted into one of the braziers, destroying it. Daud appeared behind Max and prepared to fire. Before he could fire, a quick flash passed him. Before he knew what hit him blood poured from his left arm, where it was sliced off up to the elbow.

"THE HELL!!!" He looked to his left and found his arm, besides the exhausted Nel, with blood dripping from her short blade. HER!

As he tried to grasp what had happened, Max leaped forward and Punched Daud to the ceiling, hard enough to shatter the area where he impacted. As he fell, Nel collapsed to the ground again.

"You ok?" Max asked. Turning to her as Daud landed on the floor.

"I'm fine," Nel said, huffing and puffing. Her vision was starting to go as she struggled to keep herself from staying on the ground.

"D-Damn It!" Daud struggled back to his feet, giggling slightly. "That was a surprise. I admit I didn't see you attempting that in your condition." He took out some string and wrapped it around his arm and pulled it tight enough to stop the bleeding.

"He can still move after that?" Max said.

"Assassins are tough opponents," Nel said to him. "We've trained to survive even if we lose a limb. Given his skill, he's probably dealt with many opponents similar in strength to you."

"If you think this is over, you're dead wrong," Daud said as he picked up his sword. He stared at Nel, who was attempting to get to her feet but kept slumping back down. "I'm guessing that was the last of your strength. Still, I'm impressed you could find the energy left. I guess I should just finish you off first before I take out the kid!" Nel tried to look at him, but Max stood in the way.

"Nel, stay out of this." He said to her. "You've done enough." Max then burst into flames, forcing out the bolts' in his back. "I'll take care of this bastard!"

Nel wanted to protest, but she knew the situation she was in. She knew she couldn't face Daud in her condition. "Don't go overboard." She said to him. "There's still something I need from him."

Daud smiled as he swung out his sword in front of him. "Alright kid." He threw up his sword and grabbed it while it was spinning. "Don't go soft on me cause I lost my arm!"

"No problem!" Max replied, grinning through his flames. "Cause I'm gonna kick your ass!"

Dorstera, The Castle Eater

Garlahad stumbled down the stairs, taken by shock from what had just happened. A large cut ran through his armor and was bleeding. Loria was lost for words at what had just happened. She fixed her gaze at Allisa. Was that Quickstep? No, it was different.

She then turned to face Elizabeth. "It's a bit early, but I don't have a choice." She raised her right hand to her forehead. A flow of lightning came from her diamond embedded there. "Say your prayers princess!" She then lifted her hand back and prepared to throw it at her.

Just as she was about to, Allisa grabbed her wrist holding her back.

"Allisa," Elizabeth said with joy.

Loria looked in horror as she struggled to free her hand. "What are you?" She spat.

Allisa then discarded her sword and punched Loria in the gut. The lighting on her hand dissipated as she fell forwards. Allisa then released her, allowing her to drop to the floor, then rushed towards Elizabeth.

"Are you alright?" She asked as she summoned her sword to cut Elizabeth's chains. Elizabeth slumped forward due to being held by her cuffs. Allisa caught her before she could fall to the ground.

"Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for rescuing." Elizabeth replied. She returned a panicked look to her rescuer, "Are you ok? You're covered in blood."

"Oh, I'm fine, really." Allisa looked down to see that her top was completely stained red with her blood. "It looks worse than it is, promise."

"Ok. If you say so."

"Oh, and," a sad look came over Allisa, glancing sideways. "Sorry I didn't tell you about where I was from."

Elizabeth looked surprised she bought it up but then smiled unexpectedly. "It's alright. After all, I didn't tell you I was the princess when we first met."

"Oh right." Allisa scratched the back of her head. "Guess that makes us even."

"True." Both girls giggled slightly. "Could you tell me about your world?"

"Sure," Allisa replied nodding. "But let's get out of here first."

"You're not going anywhere!"

Allisa turned around and saw Loria getting back on your feet. She immediately stood in front of Elizabeth and summoned her sword. "Stay behind me." She instructed the princess, not taking her eyes off the incoming attacker. "If you want Elizabeth, you have to go through me."

"Works for me," Loria said a sinister grin on her lips. "We need the blood of a virgin to awaken Dorstera. And I'm pretty sure you're a virgin, so it really doesn't matter if I blast both of you."

"Huh?" Allisa looked confused. "What are you talking about?"

"They were going to sacrifice me to awaken a monster sealed here," Elizabeth answered her.

"What?!"

"Truth is, we could have used any little girl to awaken the beast." Green Lightning arced from the diamond into Loria's hands. "But it would be more appropriate to mark this evening with the blood of a royal." The lightning became more intense, coating Loria's hands until they were no longer visible. "The true king will sit upon his throne, and you, the current princess, will be the catalyst that will begin to right this world-!"

A light suddenly shot through Loria, creating a large hole in her chest. The lightning resided as she toppled forwards.

"Change of plans."

Smoke came from the tip of Garlahad's rapier. Garlahad was slouched on one knee holding up his sword. Lora toppled to the ground. A large amount of blood started to pour from her open wound.

"G-Garlahad." Loria breathed. "D-Damn.... it..."

Elizabeth ran over to the dying woman while Allisa stood motionless in horror.

"Please hold on," Elizabeth said to her.

"Why," tears started to roll down Loria's cheeks. More and more of her blood seeped into the gaps in the stone, highlighting it like a canal. "It..... I can't...... master....Ye...." With her last breath, her dying words interrupted, Loria fell silent.

"Please, you have to hold on." Elizabeth pleaded with her. Loria laid their lifeless, mouth open and trickling blood, sorrow eyes filled with shock and sadness. "No."

Allisa gritted her teeth as she starred in anger, listening to Loria's final words. She then marched over to the edge of the altar. "YOU BASTARD!!!" She yelled at the top of her lungs to Garlahad. "How could you do that to your comrade?!"

"Comrade?" Garlahad giggled as he put his sword down. "That woman was just a means to an end. Nothing more." He unclipped his left vambrace and took it off.

"Garlahad," Allisa snarled in anger. "I won't let you get away with this!!"

"You're too late!" He stood up and lifted up his left arm. Allisa saw a strange tattoo around his arm which started to glow and pulse an unnatural light, smoke rising from the pattern.

"Allisa!!" Elizabeth called for her. As she turned, Elizabeth pointed at the circle below where she was chained. The blood was pouring into the circle, causing it to glow a red color. Lines then extended to the wall behind it, lighting up the strange symbol on the wall.

"What the?" Allisa breathed. The entire complex then began to shake. "An Earthquake?"

"Dorstera, beast of the Northern sands," Garlahad chanted holding his left arm high. "I hereby awaken you from your slumber, and with this command seal, bind you to my will." The tattoo on Garlahad's arm started to glow.

"What's happening?" Elizabeth said as she stood up. The glow on the wall became brighter as soon the entire altar began to shake.

"Come Forth, DORSTERA!!"

****

How long had it been, frozen in some dark chamber, chains wrapped around its body? 300 years? It no longer knew. Everything was frozen to it; as it lay in slumber, time simply stood still.

Then, a familiar feeling came to it.

A feeling it had not felt for years.

Warmth.

Its muscles, lifeless and solid, began to contract. Air slowly filled its lungs. Another feeling started to come back. A primordial instinct. Anger. Its massive claws then scratched the ground as it began to stir. And slowly, opened its eyes. It took in a deep breath and roared.

*****

An ear-splitting sound resonated through the chamber, the sound of a beast wailing. Both Allisa and Elizabeth covered their ears as the horrible sound echoed through the chamber. The altar from which they stood on started to descend, due to magic or some hidden mechanism, as the wall behind them started to glow, and slowly dissipate into nothing. As the alter descended, Allisa grabbed Elizabeth and held her close as the alter blended with the floor. Everything then went quiet. As both girls got back to their feet, they were greeted with a horrible sight.

"Wh-Whats that?" Allisa said in horror.

Before the girls were a massive creature, held together by chains. The beast was almost as tall as the room and had dark, bluish. At its head was two, long, thick horns, extending downwards, running parallel along its monstrous face. A brown main ran down its long back. its legs were large and bulky, with razor-sharp claws as big a car. It fixed its large, green eyes on the two girls.

"Dorstera the castle eater!" Garlahad answered with joy.

"Dorstera! You mean you guys worship this thing?" Allisa asked, pointing at the monster.

"Not exactly! He's the key to my ascension as the rightful king of Rosaria!" The Chains around Dorstera began to disappear. As it did, Garlahad raised his left arm. "Dorstera!! Destroy these two wrenches before you!!"

As the chains vanished, slowly started to move forward, each step it took out of the chamber it was in, left a small dent in the floor. Allisa and Elizabeth were frozen in terror as the monster came over them. It then raised its massive paw high in the air. Allisa quickly grabbed Elizabeth's hand and pulled her away as the massive paw smashed into Loria's lifeless body.

The impact was so strong it smashed the ground beneath it, tripping both girls up by the shockwave. It then lifted its massive head and let out another roar, showing off its long fangs.

"Are you ok?" Allisa asked Elizabeth as she tried got up, ears still ringing. Elisabeth looked up and froze. Allisa did the same and saw the giant monster looming over them.

"Crush them!" Garlahad ordered. The beast then raised its paw again. Allisa immediately got up in front of her and held out her sword, standing in hopeless defiance to the colossal beast looming in front of her.

What am I gonna do? How do I beat this thing?

Fire then suddenly burst from the ceiling above the beast followed a massive fireball that impacted on the beast's back.

"What the?!" Garlahad was dumbstruck as the fireball forced the beast to the ground. Through the flames, Allisa managed to make out a figure.

"M-Max?"

****

Daud gritted his teeth in pain, as Max slammed into him, breaking through the ceiling and landing on something hard. On impact, he coughed up blood from the force as the blazing inferno began to subside. Max stood over him, looking around where he was. "What the?" Max looked around at what he was standing on. "What is this thing?" he said as he gazed at a massive behemoth below him.

"You!!" A loud voice came from his right, who he immediately recognized.

"Hey, Knight dude!" He called out waving, clearly oblivious to the fact he was his enemy. "Looks like you made it here! Is that other guy with you?"

"Max!" Max turned and saw Allisa and Elizabeth in front of him.

"Hey! You alright?" he asked casually waving. "What's going on? And what is this thing?" he then took another look at Allisa. "And why are you covered in blood?"

"Don't worry, I'm fine!" Allisa called back.

Daud rolled down onto the floor in incredible pain. Smoke came from his body, and his clothes were torn and burnt in several places. "Damn that kid!" he spat as he coughed up blood.

"Daud! What's the meaning of this?" Garlahad said pointing at Max. "How could you let this happen? You were supposed to dispose of any unwelcome guests."

"Y-you try... Fighting him." Daud mumbled in pain as he attempted to stand back up.

"Wait, you know this guy?" Max asked Garlahad, pointing at Daud.

Before anyone could answer him, the behemoth started to move again. Max tumbled down its left side, and the beast then turned its body and swiped him with its right foreleg, sending him smashing into the back of the chamber.

"MAX!!!" Allisa cried out.

"So that's Dorstera? Impressive."Daud said as he got to his feet.

Dorstera then turned its attention back to Allisa and Elizabeth. Both girls slowly started to back away as the beast started to approach them. Then another fire bolt struck the beats right forcing it into a wall.

"What now?" Garlahad exclaimed. Something then came shooting back out of the fireball and landed on its feet, revealing it to be some kind of dog.

"Is that," Allisa immediately recognized the dog. "Cerberus?"

"Allisa!" Melvin called out to her.

"Melvin!" Allisa replied as Cerberus returned to his master.

"Looks like the princess's safe that's good." He said as he petted Cerberus's head. "Wait." He then took another look at Allisa, noticing that her entire top was stained red. "Wha-What happened to you? Is that Blood?!" He said in alarm.

"It's fine don't worry. Anyway, what about you?" Allisa referred to his arm, which was supported by a sling.

"Oh, don't worry. Just some broken bones."

The beast then got back to its feet and prepared to charge Melvin, keeping its head low to the ground. Suddenly, something slashed the right side of its face, cutting through its eye and one of the horns. It wailed in pain as it took steps back as blood poured from the terrible gash.

"Looks like we're a little late to the show." Yuki stood in front of the group, slinging his sword down, throwing off the blood on his sword.

"Yuki!" Allisa said.

"Good to see you alive," Yuki said to her. He then turned to his right, looking at Garlahad. "I guess this was your doing." He pointed at Dorstera. "The other guy mentioned as much."

"Other guy?" Garlahad snarled in anger. Why is this happening? Why now of all times? Kuradeal. Were you defeated?

"Quite the gang of freaks, huh?" Daud said giggling.

"Silence!" Garlahad snapped. I've come too far to lose it all to people like them.

Dorstera then stopped lashing about and resumed its advance on the group. Blood still flowed from the cut on the left side of its face.

"I think we made it angry," Melvin said worriedly as he lifted his wand.

The beast came close and was about to attack when it was suddenly moved back, as though it was being pulled back. The beast stuck its claws into the ground in an attempt to halt its movement, leaving behind large makes in the ground.

"Something's pulling it back," Allisa said, amazed given its size.

"Do you think?" Melvin began.

The beast was then lifted up off the ground, its head scraping a section of the ceiling before it slammed into the ground on its back, cracking the ground beneath it. From where everyone was standing, they could see someone clinging to the beast's tail.

"That hurt, you overgrown weasel!"

"It's Max!" Allisa said with joy.

"He's ok," Elizabeth said with relief.

"N-no way," Daud muttered with his jaw wide open. "The kid's still alive after that?" Both he and Garlahad were dumbstruck by what they had just witnessed.

"Th-that's impossible. No human could have that kind of strength." Garlahad muttered. "Why is this happening?"

"Don't ask me." Daud looked nervously at Max. That kid's terrifying. I'm lucky I even survived against him.

Max released Dorstera's tail and leaped back as it started to lash about. He then looked behind him to see Yuki and Melvin.

"Oh hey, when'd you guys get here?" he asked.

"That's what we should be asking you!" Yuki yelled in annoyance.

"You were behind both of us! How'd you get here before either of us?" Melvin joined in with the yelling.

"I don't know! I fell down some hole somewhere!" Max replied.

"A hole?" Melvin looked up at the ceiling, inspecting the gaping hole left by Max. "You mean this one?"

"Na, there's some hole above it."

Dorstera then began to get back on its feet. It was clear it was furious.

"That thing’s really pissed," Yuki said as he started walking forwards.

"Allisa, take the princess and get her out," Melvin said. "We'll take care of this."

"Are you sure?" Allisa asked.

"What do you mean 'we?'" Max interrupted, punching his palm. "I can beat this thing on my own."

"In your dreams, pyro," Yuki said as he walked towards him swiping his sword. "This thing's mine."

"No way, sword bastard. I called it first."

"Well, I cut it first." Yuki pointed at the scar on the beast's right side of its face.

"Well I landed on it first and it bashed me into the wall."

As the two continued to argue, Dorstera raised its left foreleg. It then brought it down on the two of them, crushing the ground beneath it. Max and Yuki both dodged out of the way, seconds before they were crushed Blood then burst from the beast's palm, and as it pulled back, two of its fingers fell off.

"The skins pretty thick," Yuki said, blood dripping from his sword. "But not enough to stop my blade."

As it leaned back howling in pain, Max leaped up and punched a fiery fist into its underbelly, sending it flying back, in a short blazing inferno. "Bigger they are," The beast landed on its back once again, sending bits of the ground flying on impact. "The harder they fall!"

"To be more specific," Melvin continued with a nervous look, pointing at the two attacking the behemoth. "They'll take care of it. Cerberus and I are gonna give support."

"Sounds like a plan," Allisa said, staring at the spectacle in front of her. You'd think I'd be used to this kind of thing by now.

"Are you sure they will be ok? That monster's powerful." Elizabeth asked.

"Don't worry," Melvin said. "Those two are monsters themselves. If anyone can stop that thing, it's those two. And I got Cerberus, so I'll be fine." He then pointed to a hole in the wall. "The bridge where we parted is destroyed, so you better take the way Yuki and I came from. We saw some stairs that went up, so it might lead you back to the surface."

"Alright." Allisa grabbed Elizabeth's wrist. "Come on." She then tugged her toward the opening. Garlahad's ire rose as he saw what they were doing

"You're not getting away." He snarled. He was about to attack when suddenly he felt dizzy. He looked down at the wound Allisa gave him, and saw it was bleeding profusely, blood stained the front of his armor as it trickled down to the floor. "Daud! Kill them!"

"I'm not getting paid enough for this," Daud complained quietly as he took out a wooden cylinder with his free hand. "Gonna need to borrow something." He removed a tag beneath it with his teeth. He then threw the cylinder in front of him. It then burst into a bright light, which halted Allisa and Elizabeth as they shielded themselves from the bright light.

"A flare!" Allisa said to herself.

Daud then stepped behind Garlahad and disappeared into the shadow he created. He then materialized behind Elizabeth, drawing a dagger. "End of the line." As Elizabeth and Allisa turned their heads, Daud lunged forward with his dagger, intent to slit the girl's throats with one swing.

Something then parried his strike. Seeing the danger he was in, Daud leaped back before a second strike hit him. "Oh boy... This really is turning into a bad day." In front of him, standing between him and the girls was Nel.

"We're not finished," Nel said, breathing heavily.

"Nel." Allisa saw that Nel was in a lot of pain. She was also covered in bolts.

"Not bad. You must be running on fumes now." Daud said with a large grin as his eyes wondered across Nel's body. "Look at you. You look like you could pass out at any moment."

"You're no better." Nel paused to catch her breath. "You clearly took a beating from Max."

"Ha, good point," Daud said inspecting his left stump. "Looks like one of us will be dying here."

"Allisa, take the princess.... And get to the surface." Nel said to Allisa.

"What about you?" Allisa protested. "You don't look-"

"Remember why you came here!" Nel took in another breath. "You have the princess so get her out of here!" Nel held up her weapons. "I have some unfinished business with him."

"Nel." Allisa grabbed Elizabeth's wrist again. "We're all getting out of here! All of us!" She then continued her run towards the hole, dragging Elizabeth along with her.

"All of us," Nel said quietly to herself. Like I'm dying here.

"They're getting away!" Garlahad yelled. "What are you doing? Kill them!"

"Sorry. Unfinished business." Daud replied grinning as he faced Nel.

"Damn you!" The girls reached the hole in the wall and disappeared from sight. "Fine." He ran towards the hole, ignoring the pain he felt. "I'll do this myself!" He passed Nel and made it to the hole. Nel kept her focus on Daud, ignoring Garlahad.

"I'm getting that information." She said to Daud.

"I'm getting those eyes," Daud replied. They stood in a standoff. Facing one another. Then, both of them lunged forwards, blades in hand, ready to kill.