Ian and Aurelio stared at each other from opposite ends of the training field. Both of them stood quietly, breathing heavily; they'd been training for quiet some time now. Ian sighs and sheathes his lance, the Robusta, a divine lance that his mother once wielded in battle.
"You're awful good at dodging attacks Lord Aurelio," Ian says. "And I understand that, you're a Mage, and so you must keep your distance. But when it comes to fighting, there's more to it than just dodging. You can't just sit back and what for an opening to appear. What if the enemy doesn't give you that chance? Sometimes you have to strike first Lord Aurelio. You're training to be a tactician, are you not? I don't imagine you need me to tell you all this."
"Yeah, I know." Aurelio sighs. "But with a weapon like mine Ian, I can't afford to get too close. Evading and then countering is really the only way I can make myself useful out on the field."
"Then perhaps you should fight using a different weapon. Or at the very least, acquire a tome with a further range..."
"But I don't want to use a different weapon Ian, magic is what comes naturally to me."
"I'm not saying you have to give up magic, but I am telling you to be a bit more weary of the situations around you. That, and I'd prefer for you to fight with a different weapon, if you ever have to fight at all. Perhaps you could use an axe like your sister. They're a bit rare, but surely you've heard of Bolt Axes? I'm sure we could get fitted with one nicely."
"Tomes are just fine." Aurelio sighs. "I can think on my feet, so don't worry so much Ian. I'm not going to let the enemy outsmart me."
Ian smiles weakly. "Lord Aurelio, it's my job to worry about you."
"You're trying a bit too hard though," Aurelio chuckles. "Everyone needs a break from time to time, you should take it easy for a little while."
"Ha, when you can prove to me that you can truly defend yourself in a fight Lord Aurelio, perhaps I'll take a break then." Ian's smile widens. "Until then, we'll be having practices every day from sun-up to noon, starting tommorow."
"At sun-up?" Aurelio grumbles. "For real?"
"Yes, for real." Ian chuckles and begins to gather up the training weapons left behind by the soldiers in order to put them away. "You two are dismissed. Oh, but before you go, I do believe your father wanted to see you all about something. I didn't catch what for, but I do believe it was important, so please make haste."
Aurelio and Callista exit the training room of the barracks as Ian begins to tidy up. They head across the hallway and down the stairs into the main room on the ground floor where Arturo was waiting for them.
"You wanted to see us Father?" Aurelio asks.
"Yes," Arturo replies. "Though I really only requested for your appearance Aurelio. What are you doing here Callista?"
"Ian said you were looking for the both of us." Callista says. "Besides, anywhere Aurelio goes, I go too."
"He must have misheard me, but no matter. You two are practically joined at the hip, I should've expected this." Arturo sighs. "Aurelio, you said you wanted to help the Vibestians, correct?"
"That's right, though I thought you said I couldn't fight?" Aurelio says, still feeling slightly bitter.
"Well, I'm giving you a chance. I've received a report from Ewan saying that there's been some trouble in Tema, a place better known colloquially as the thieving town. I don't imagine a skirmish will ensue, but you never can be too sure with the people down there... Do you think you two can you two handle it?"
"Without a shadow of a doubt Father." Aurelio says confidently. "Whatever's happening down there will be taken care of, I'm sure of it."
"Well then, get going." Arturo says. "I know of your aversion to horses, so I haven't had any prepared. It's a long walk from here to Tema."
"You're scared of horses?" Callista asks as she and Aurelio step through the grand doors of the castle.
"Not really scared per se, I just... don't like them very much." Aurelio replies.
"Sounds to me like you're scared."
"I am not!"
Callista laughs as the two set out towards the thieving town Tema, a small town that sat at the edge of Pagni, a ruined kingdom from the ancient age.
~~~
"You know, I've been meaning to ask Sister, why don't you ever wear shoes?" Aurelio asks the two were walking down a small dirt road. "I wouldn't have been so curious if I hadn't heard your feet annoyingly squelch through the mud for the past couple of miles..."
"I don't like 'em." Callista bluntly replies. "Simple as that."
"But doesn't wallowing about like that disgust you?"
"Nope."
"Ugh," Aurelio grimaces. "Between your bare feet and long hair, it's almost as if I'm kin to an animal."
"At least I go outside." Callista replies, offended. "All you ever do is hole up in your room with those dumb tomes of yours! Why don't you get dirty for once, like how you used to? I mean, how do you not get tired reading the works of some old dead guys?"
"I suppose it's for the same reason your feet don't get calloused." Aurelio retorts. "We both have things we enjoy, things that we're good at and can seemingly do endlessly."
"Well, it's a wonder your brain hasn't gotten all mushy yet, reading all that dreck."
"And it's a wonder you don't have some kind of disease."
"Oi, that's enough sibling squabbling for one day!" A voice calls out. Aurelio and Callista had reached the gate to the thieving town and we're greeted by a tall, scrawny man. He had unruly blond hair and a scraggy goatee. It was Ewan. He looks at the two with a smile. "Are you two gonna help us our not?"
"Mm." Aurelio nods. "You're Ewan, correct? Ian's father?"
"That's right." Ewan says, bringing the two into town. "How's he doing anyway?"
"Fine," Callista says with a chuckle. "But now I can see where he got his curly hair from."
"Yeah, big rats' nests like ours run in the family." Ewan laughs. "If he ever has kids himself, their hair will likely be just as messy."
The three were now standing in the town square. Tema had received several renovations since Arturo had become king; the streets were now lined with cobblestones as opposed to loose soil and several of the buildings and homes had been fixed up and cleaned. In the square, a group of townspeople could be seen yelling back and forth at each other. The group seemed to be divided down the middle, with exactly half arguing over something and the other half another.
"What seems to be the problem here?" Aurelio asks, stepping towards the group.
"Those low down dastards have been stealing from us!" One of the townspeople says. "My cattle numbers have been dwindling, and it's all their fault!"
"We've done no such thing!" Another townsperson says, one from the other half. "Thieves don't steal from thieves, we all know that! Something else has been going after our livestock!"
"Hm... May I see your cattle pens?" Aurelio asks.
"Yeah, right this way."
The first townsperson leads Aurelio over to his small cattle pen. The gates had been gnarled and twisted, almost as if something had forced them open. Claws marks could be seen in the mud and on the gates. Aurelio bends down, examining the scratches. He sighs and looks at the townsperson.
"Now, I don't know much about thieves," Aurelio says. "But I find it highly improbable that one of you all did this. Thieves are silent, correct? Whatever did this had to have made some kind of noise. Not to mention they would've had to have had the strength of at least twenty men to tear apart your gate like this."
"So you're thinking it was some kind of animal?" The townsperson asks.
Aurelio nods. "That's right, though just what kind of animal I'm not sure. These claw marks are unlike any I've ever studied. When did this start happening?"
"A few nights back I believe."
"And did you hear anything out of the ordinary?"
"Hm... Yeah, but I just figured it was the cows being ornery."
"Is that so?" Aurelio sighs. "Ewan, do you think you can break up the argument in the square? I'm going to look for whatever did this."
"Right, I'll see what I can do." Ewan heads back down towards the square.
Aurelio sighs and begins to look around the pen, trying to figure out where whatever took the cows could've gone. Looking at the claw marks, Aurelio ascertained that the creature--whatever it was--drug its arms and legs around, and it doing so it left behind a trail. The trail went north towards a small woodland area. Several of the trees had been toppled over and it looked as if they'd been pushed aside.
"I imagine we'll find it up there." Aurelio says. "I'll take care of things. Sister, you stay here."
"Like hell I will!" Callista retorts. "Do you really think I'm gonna let you fight some wild animal by yourself?"
"I fight with you all the time and I've yet to get a scratch from it." Aurelio scoffs. "Besides, Father said this was my mission, not yours. Do you even have your axe with you?"
"Of course I do!" Callista unsheathes her axe. "And I've got half a mind not to hit you over the head with it! You've been real mean lately, you know that?"
"I'm no such thing." Aurelio sighs and heads towards the woodland. "You can come, but don't go crying to me when you hurt yourself."
"You're gonna be the one crying when I'm done with you..." Callista grumbles and the two head into the woodland.
Once inside, Aurelio and Callista could see that several of the trees had been knocked over, their bases twisted and splintered. Following the tracks, the two reached a small clearing. It was dark and cold. A strange, pungent smell lingered in the air as mushroom spores tickled against their noses.
"Aurelio, what's that over there?" Callista asks, pointing to a strange pair of bundles that were laying next to a tree.
Aurelio steps forward, examining the bundles. Upon closer inspection, they were bundles at all, but wadded up clothes, namely a pair of black cowls and matching pants. They were soaked with blood. "It would seem that we aren't the only ones who wanted to confront this beast..." Aurelio tries his best to sound confident and collected, but he was plastered with goosebumps.
Aurelio reluctantly began to explore the surrounding area. On top of the cowls, he had also found two pairs of boots. One of the boots was still attached to a leg, though the leg had very clearly been severed from its original body. It looked as if it had been bitten clean off. Aurelio backs away, feeling nauseated. A snapping noise could be heard in the distance, causing the two siblings to nearly jump out of their skin. Stomping footsteps could then be heard; they echoed louder and louder off of the trees as they got closer and closer to Aurelio and Callista. From the opposite side of the clearing, a large beast bursts out from the trees. It appeared to be some sort of wyvern. The creature's dull scales we're falling off in places and its skin seemed to be rotting. Its wing membranes were torn; its claws and teeth were stained red with blood. The wyvern's eyes were a sickly shade of purple and were devoid of any sort of emotion. It looks at Aurelio and Callista, an acrid, acidic drool oozing from its hungry jaws.
"What is that?" Callista exclaims. "Do you think it's the one who was taking the cows?"
"It wouldn't surprise me..." Aurelio grabs his tome and casts Elfire, striking the wyvern with a ball of flames. "It appears to be diseased... We have to deal with it now! A beast like this would wreak all sorts of havoc if it goes back down into town!"
The wyvern lets out a pained roar as the Elfire strikes it between the eyes, shrouding its vision. It howls in pain and blindly retaliates by firing a large beam of energy. Aurelio and Callista dodge the beam but the attack makes quick work of several of the trees in the clearing, knocking them over and creating a mess. The wyvern--having regained its sight--lunges forward, snapping at Aurelio. Aurelio dodges and counters by casting more Elfire spells, striking the wyvern this time in the mouth and nose. The wyvern quickly recovers however and grabs Aurelio's foot with its jaw. It then tosses Aurelio into the air and leaves its mouth agape, waiting for Aurelio to helplessly fall in. As Aurelio falls, the wyvern catches a glimpse of the Regnum Stellis mark on his neck and stops. It growls and steps back as Aurelio crashes onto the ground. The wyvern looks down at Aurelio, snarling.
"Leave him alone!" Callista rushes forward and swings her axe, striking the wyvern with enough pressure to leave the weapon embedded in its shoulder.
The wyvern lets out a pained shriek and retreats back into the forest. Aurelio lay flat on the floor of the clearing, his clothes stained with mud.
"Gods above..." Aurelio mumbles, pained. "That... really hurt..."
"Aurelio, are you alright?" Callista runs over and helps Aurelio back onto his feet. "Nothing's broken, is it?"
"I don't think so..." Aurelio smiles weakly. "It's a good thing that beast grabbed the steel toes of my boot though, otherwise it probably would've taken off a big chunk of my foot... This is why you need to wear shoes..."
"This isn't the time for jokes Aurelio, you could've died!" Callista says, beginning to sob. "It's a good thing it stopped when it did!"
"Quit crying Sister, I'm fine..." Aurelio sighs. "Though... I do wonder why it stopped... Tch, I suppose I shouldn't complain though, should I? Heh, I suppose I can tell Father that now I've cheated Death too..."
Aurelio shakes his head and begins limping back towards the town. Callista wipes her tears and follows after Aurelio, but takes a moment to stop. She looks back towards the opposite end of the clearing. When she attacked the wyvern, her eyes met its, and something about it felt strange. Callista felt two things: a feeling of pain coming from the wyvern, an emotional pain, as if something was eating away at it; and a strange air of familiarity. There was something she and the wyvern shared in common, yet she didn't possibly know what it could be. Callista then remembered what Aurelio said earlier, about her being like an animal, and began to cry again.
"Sister? Sister, aren't you coming?" Aurelio stops and looks back. He sees Callista and walks back towards the clearing. "What's wrong? Don't let a mission like this get you all blubbery, I'm okay. Really."
"It's not..." Callista sighs, her breath shaky. She wipes her eyes and shakes her head. "Nothing's the matter Aurelio, I'm fine..."
"Okay..." Aurelio sighs and returns to the town square with Callista.
~~~
Boiling, sludgy blood oozed out from the wyvern's shoulder as it painfully trudges through the dark woodland. It reaches another clearing and is confronted by someone, a tall girl with long blonde hair. She was a young girl, likely around twenty or so. The girl was dreadfully skinny; her ribcage hung against her chest, painfully ebbing in and out as she breathed. It looked as if all the life had been sucked out of her. The girl wore an old white mask, though it appeared as someone had broken the mask; one of the girl's eyes could still be seen, a sunken purple eye that was filled with a fiery rage. She looks up at the wyvern.
"There's no fresh blood on your teeth or fangs..." She sighs. "I take it you didn't kill them?"
The wyvern whimpers. The girl walks forward and rips Callista's axe from his shoulder with a smile.
"Uncle, you're so useless" The girl takes the axe and slams it back into the wyvern's shoulder and pushes, driving the axe so deep that it cut through the wyvern's shoulder blade. "You're pathetic! Why didn't you kill them as I ordered?! You had one job and-"
The girl stops and grumbles, fuming angrily. She rips the axe back out of the wyvern's shoulder and then throws it, embedding it in the trunk of the nearest tree. The wyvern howls and limps away into the shadows of the woodland.
"That's right, run away..." The girl scowls. "Useless beast..."
"He really is, isn't he?" A low, malevolent voice whispers in the girl's ear. It was Mortabe's voice. "To think such a useless worm could be related to the two of us..."
"I should just go and kill him, you don't need a pawn like him!"
"That'd be unwise." Mortabe cackles. "As useless as he may be now, that wound will heal, and when it does, he will be filled with rage... Kehehehe, we can use that to our advantage, we can make him useful. I'm sure Sieghild would love to have the last Oxalian join in on her war efforts..."
"If you say so." The girl sighs. "I could care less about the shit Sieghild causes. Let her have her fun, all I want to do is have my revenge..."
"Kehehehe, worry not Angelica," Mortabe laughs. "The time for that will come soon, I promise you..."