Barry and Daren turn around, and there, a woman stands. She had a slim build, long black hair, fair skin, and a cold look on her face. She was wearing leather pants, a long sleeved white blouse, and a green hooded cloak. She appears to be in her early twenties, yet there is something strange about her.
Barry had sensed it almost instantly... This woman is a mage...
"Wait... Is it really her?" He thinks. "Did she really just walk up to me? Did I really get that lucky?"
But his thoughts are interrupted, as Daren whispers to his ears something that sends shivers down his spine.
"Don't worry Barry, I know white magic. I can purify her."
Knowing that the purification method would only kill the woman, Barry instantly rejects the idea.
"Listen to me, Daren!" He whispers. "She isn't a banshee!"
Daren stands perplexed at Barry's comment. There was no way a woman could be born a mage. Only banshees could give them powers. There hadn't been a single human female mage in ages.
"So what, are you suggesting she's a mage, then? Barry, women can't be born as mages. There hasn't been a single recorded case of a woman mage in all of our world's history. Everytime a woman's developed magical abilities, it's been because of a banshee. Every single time."
"You think I don't know that?!" Barry thinks. "But this isn't the case!"
"She's different Daren, trust me. I know the difference, I've met a banshee up close. Have you met a banshee before Daren?"
"...no," Daren admits.
"Look, you trust me enough to tell me your greatest weakness, so I'm asking you to trust me on this too... Please, trust me on this, Daren."
Daren takes a long look at Barry, then he lets out a deep sigh.
"Fine," Daren says, letting go of his argument. "Just know that I'll be watching her."
"Thank you," says Barry, relief filling his voice. "You won't regret-"
"Would you guys mind telling me what you've been whispering about for the past minute?" The woman asks, approaching the two.
"Oh, uh, we were just finishing our discussion from earlier." Barry tells her, trying to sound calm.
The woman eyes Barry suspiciously. She doesn't appear to believe him. She stares at Barry for a few seconds. Their eyes meet, and Barry notices something. Her eyes are deep, cold, and ruthless, like those of a wild animal. He also notices that she is somewhat tense in his presence.
The way she straightened her back, her stiff shoulders, even her voice. She clearly doesn't trust him, and is letting her guard up. After a few moments, she drops the subject and addresses Daren.
"You didn't answer my question. Are you Daren, the healer in armor?"
"I am, indeed," answers Daren. "What business would you have with me?"
Barry closely observes the woman.
"Does she recognize me?" He thinks. "Would she accept me and allow me to travel with her? Would she just leave after finding out it's me? Will she even remember me? She's been there when it happened... if they ever continued with the experiments after I escaped... please be one of those two..."
"I... require an escort. I am not certain I can survive this tournament by myself. And I've heard of all your deeds of valor and all your legends, so I thought that maybe..."
"Say no more!" Exclaims Daren. "I will grant you my protection for the duration of your quest. From what you say, I would surmise that you are not actually trying to win the tournament?"
"No... I'm not," says the woman. "I am looking for... a friend. And I have reasons to believe that she's somewhere on this continent. But I don't have specific leads just yet. For now, I just need to stay alive."
"Then you can join us!" Daren exclaims happily. "We were just about to get out of here! We're way too out in the open right now."
The woman turns her head, and gives Barry a suspicious look.
"I only asked to travel with you. I don't think it would be wise to travel with someone with such a... noticable magical power." She says. "Traveling with him will bring us too much attention..."
"Listen, I understand your point of view, but he saved my life," Daren speaks. "And I plan on repaying my debt to him. If you want me to escort you, he is coming with us. It's all three of us or none at all."
The woman takes a moment to think.
"Very well," she says. "If that's the way it has to be, then I'll oblige. Just know that I'll be constantly watching my back."
"Then that settles it!" Daren says. "Now that we got that done, let's be off! The tournament awaits!"
"Wait..." Barry says, stopping the group. He then takes off his hood, revealing his pitch black hair. "You didn't tell us your name."
"Please... please..." Barry thinks while looking at the woman. "Please recognize me, or at least give me a hint! Show me that you are who I'm looking for..."
"Kate..." the woman answers coldly. "My name is Kate."
"Wh-what did she just say?" Barry thinks. "Is it... is it really you? You survived? Wait! Control yourself Barry! She doesn't recognize you and she already said she doesn't trust you. You can't just tell her now... but what if she isn't the Kate I know? She was cheerful and happy... but now she's... cold... what happened to her while I was gone?"
The trio begins to walk forward into the forest, the many explosions in the distance subsiding with each passing moment. Eventually, Barry's device reboots and his aura is concealed, only a vestige of what it truly was. Enough to drive off attention, like that of a normal human. At some point, Daren began to ask Barry about his strong aura.
"I must ask," Daren says. "How come you have such an immense magical aura? I haven't felt such pressure since I interacted with a sage a long time ago, and does that device help you conceal it?"
Barry stays silent, he doesn't know what to say. He can't tell him of his past, that would show Kate who he really is. And despite all the time he spent looking for her, he never thought of what he would tell her. He needs more time.
"I was just blessed, I guess."
A lie that took everything inside him to say. His power wasn't a blessing, it was a curse. A curse he never ask for.
"And this device helps me conceal it, I've always had a problem with-"
"Quiet down, you two... We got company..." Kate says pointing in front of her.
In the clearing just ahead of them, a battle had occurred. Trees broken, snapped like twigs and dead bodies almost completely covering the grass.
The three victors of this skirmish were standing in the middle, looting their rewards.
One was big and strong looking, with very long black beard covering his face. He was wearing heavy armor and wielding a large battle axe, and based on his appearance, it looks like he is in his mid forties.
The other two appeared to be smaller, skinnier, younger, and are wearing chainmail vests, but strangely, they didn't appear to wield any weapons. The bigger mage shouts as soon as he sees Daren.
"That's quite the team you got there, healer in armor. A healer, a banshee, and a normal man?" The man asks, laughing. "Who would of thought the great healer in armor couldn't possibly find himself a better team. It's like you are begging to lose this tournament."
Kate seems upset at the mam's comment on her being a banshee, which Barry notices, sinc he was constantly checking on her. Along with that, he had also picked up on her way of walking, breathing, and even talking.
"Hey, we don't want any trouble." Barry says, walking forth and putting his hood down. "We wouldn't want anyone getting hurt before the tournament actually starts, would we?"
But before the man could respond to Barry, Daren stepped forward.
"Why?" He asks. "Why have you done this?"
Daren gestures towards the lifeless bodies lying all around the ground.
"Nobody told us to start killing each other!" Daren continues. "They told us there are no rules until they give us our first objectives. We don't even know if there was going to be combat involved! Why did you have to kill all of these people?!"
"Because there are no rules!" answers the mage with the battleaxe. "No rules mean we can do whatever the hell we want! And what we want is to eliminate as much of the competition as possible before the main event starts!"
The mage laughs.
"My sons and I were a little worried at first! We were afraid we might not be ready for the big leagues. But here we are!" The bearded mage exclaims as he takes a victorious stance. "But enough talk! We all know what's coming!"
"Watch out Barry!" Daren shouts.
"The first rule of combat!" The mage shouts, overpowering Daren's voice.
Suddenly, both young mages disappear and appear right behind Barry.
"Get rid of the weakest enemy first!" The mage shouts.
Without hesitation, both mages try to kill Barry. One of them aims for his neck, the other for his lower back. However, the many months of training he got had it's chance to finally be of use.
Releasing the true size of the small staff he had kept in his hand, and making it rotate at incredible speeds, he managed to deflect both attacks. Barry then throws the staff upwards, making both mages look at it as if something was about to happen. But before they could figure out the futility of the move, Barry turns around and swipes his leg low, throwing both mages into the floor. Grabbing his staff as it falls, Barry points towards the young mage.
"You deal with them, Daren." Barry says, turning towards the big mage. "I'll deal with him."
Daren, completely astonished at the sheer precision, speed, and confidence Barry demonstrated, takes a moment to comprehend what he had said. However, one of the young mages disappears and appears a few meters away, making dozens of swords appear in the air that shoot towards Kate.
"Leaving the woman undefended was your first mistake!" the big mage shouts with full confidence.
Just before they reach her, Kate's right arm gets covered with ice in the shape of a shield, all the swords sticking to it.
"A woman... a banshee..." Kate says annoyed. "Which is it? Make up your damn mind already!" She looks at the big mage, her eyes fuming with rage. The whole forest falling silent at the sound of her voice.
The mage with the battle axe seems to have temporarily lost his cool and looks a little terrified. Kate's killing intent is so strong that it's almost palpable.
"So that's how she survived out there, even with all those banshee hunters..." Barry thinks to himself, sighing a breath of relief, now that he is confident in her ability to fend for herself.
Suddenly, all the air in the area begins to get colder. "All I see are nothing more than backstabbers and sword throwers. Let me show you what real magic looks like!"
"No matter who you are, wench, we will kill you all!" He shouts as he runs towards Barry. "Starting with the small fry!"
Barry stands walking slowly towards the big mage, his eyes and composure completely calm and still as untouched waters.
The bearded mage approaches him with the battleaxe, swinging at his body, but Barry jumps, using his staff as a propulsion mechanism. As he jumps over him, he sees the sheer amount of rage the bearded mage held. As soon as he landed on the ground, Barry rolls forward, avoiding another swing from the man's axe. Then he gets up and gets into a fighting stance, both legs bent, body form straight, staff held only by his right hand, left hand in front of him in complete tension.
"Is that all you are going to do?!" The big bearded mage demands. "Come and fight me if you think you are so mighty!"
Not letting the man's words break his composure, Barry stood in the same pose, waiting for the man to strike. When the man runs towards him with the intention of killing him, Barry quickly grabs his staff with both hands, swinging upwards and hitting the man right in the chin. The sound of elven steel smashing against his skull reverberated across the field. But Barry isn't done, as he follows the momentum of his attack with a butterfly kick, pushing the man to the ground. Barry lands on another fighting pose. Left arm and right leg extended in front of him, left leg behind him and right hand grabbing his staff. The fight is over.
Seeing that the man is out cold, Barry takes a look at his teammates.
Kate had begun the offensive as she had begun to throw ice cones at one of the young mages, making him use the sword he had been throwing at her to block them mid air. As he shifted into a defensive style, Kate's attacks intensified in magnitude and power. The mage didn't adapt to the incoming projectiles fast enough, and was killed when one of the cones pierces his heart. The other mage looks at the other one's dead body fall to the ground, distracting him and giving Daren the gap to stab the young mage in the chest. Killing him as he choked on his own blood.
Barry begins to walk towards his companions when suddenly Kate sends an ice cone flying towards him. The ice cone passes right by his head, avoiding it by mere inches. Behind Barry, the loud thud of a body falling down makes him turn around. The big man had gotten up and tried to kill him, but Kate stopped him right before he could do anything. The sight of the dead man sent Barry back to his past, back to his foster parents, back to the destroyed village.
"That was... close..." Barry thinks.
As the group gets together to heal their wounds, Daren begins to praise Barry.
"Those were some amazing moves you did back there Barry," Daren says, patting Barry on the shoulder. "You might just be able to win this tournament alone! You didn't even use your magic abilities! Good thing I won't be fighting you anytime soon."
"Eh, it's really nothing. Just some stuff I picked up a while back." Barry replied.
He then moves over to Kate.
"Hey, Kate. Tell me something." Daren says. "With the way you fought back there, why would you ever want an escort? You can probably take on a small battalion all by yourself."
"We all have our weaknesses, healer... you struggle against weapon enchanters, just like earlier. you should have been able to take that man out easily, but you were too concerned with his weapons. Meanwhile, your friend over there seems to be scared of finishing his enemies off... something that could have cost him his life if it wasn't for me. None of us can survive, let alone win this tournament alone."
Daren stands silent at Kate's pungent, yet true, words.
"I guess you're right... well, we should keep going." Daren says heading for the trees.
Barry begins to follow him, but Kate stops him in his tracks with a very serious look in her eyes.
"I saw how you fought back there..." she says in a low voice, making sure that Daren couldn't hear her. "That was a commendable fight, but you owe me one. I saved your life, and I intend to collect that debt."
"That aggressiveness must be what got her this far..." Barry thinks. "I can't exactly blame her..."
"I understand..." Barry says. "Thanks, I owe you."
"Good..." she says, turning towards Daren's direction. "Now let's catch up with Daren."